Camera system

• US 20070058965A1
• Filed: 09/12/2005
• Published: 03/15/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nokia Technologies Oy (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Nokia Corporation
• Inventors: Kaikumaa, Timo
• Granted Patent: US 7,801,427 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 396/153
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0264 for a camera module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/52 including functional features of a camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/102 characterised by the element, parameter or selection affected or controlled by the adaptive coding
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/137 Motion inside a coding unit, e.g. average field, frame or block difference
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/51 Motion estimation or motion compensation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/60 Control of cameras or camera modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/72 Combination of two or more compensation controls
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/843 Demosaicing, e.g. interpolating colour pixel values
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/134 based on three different wavelength filter elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/145 Movement estimation for video coding H04N19/51
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/45 Picture in picture , e.g. displaying simultaneously another television channel in a region of the screen
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8227 the additional signal being at least another television signal

Abstract

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a camera system including a motion estimator estimating a motion of an image taken by the camera system, and; a controller controlling, based on the estimation, an update frequency of a predetermined parameter and/or an amount of adjustment of the predetermined parameter per update cycle.

Claims

1. A camera system comprising:

a motion estimator estimating a motion of an image taken by the camera system, and;

a controller controlling, based on the estimation, an update frequency of a predetermined parameter and/or an amount of adjustment of the predetermined parameter per update cycle.

2. A camera system according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined parameter being related with an operation of the camera system.

3. A camera system according to claim 1, wherein said predetermined parameter being related with one or more of exposure, amplifying, or white balance.

4. A camera system according to claim 1, wherein:

said motion estimator being arranged to divide a shooting area logically into sections and to estimate a motion of an image in each of the sections, and;

said controller being arranged to perform said controlling by taking into account the motion estimations of 2 or more of said sections.

5. A camera system according to claim 4, said controller being further arranged to decrease said update frequency and/or said amount of adjustment in case of a number of said sections estimated to contain motions is small, comparing with a case that said number is larger.

6. A camera system according to claim 1 further comprising a motion sensor for detecting a motion of the camera system, and said controller performing said controlling by taking into account an output signal of the motion sensor.

7. A camera system comprising a motion sensor for detecting a motion of the camera system and a controller controlling an update frequency of a predetermined parameter and/or an amount of adjustment of the predetermined parameter per update cycle by taking into account an output signal of the motion sensor.

8. An electronic circuit for controlling a camera module taking an image data electronically and for processing an output signal of the camera module, the electronic circuit being arranged:

to estimate a motion of an image taken by the camera module, and;

to change, based on a estimated motion, one or more of

an update frequency of a control parameter used for controlling the camera module,

an amount of adjustment of the control parameter per update cycle,

an update frequency of a processing parameter used for processing the output signal, and

an amount of adjustment of the processing parameter per update cycle.

9. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, wherein said control parameter being related with an operation of said camera module.

10. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, wherein said control parameter being related with an exposure time.

11. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, wherein said camera module comprising a diaphragm, and said control parameter being related with an amount of diaphragming said diaphragm.

12. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, wherein said camera module comprising an amplifier for amplifying a signal from an image sensor, and said control parameter being related with an amount of amplifying the signal by the amplifier.

13. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, wherein said processing parameter being related with adjusting a white balance.

14. An electronic circuit according to claim 8, the circuit being further arranged:

to divide a shooting area logically into sections and to estimate a motion of an image in each of the sections, and;

to perform said changing by taking the estimated motions of 2 or more of said sections into account.

15. An electronic circuit according to claim 14, the circuit being further arranged to decrease one or more of said update frequency of the control parameter, the amount of adjustment of the control parameter, the update frequency of the processing parameter, and the amount of adjustment of the processing parameter, in case of the circuit estimating that a number of said sections containing motions is small.

16. A semiconductor chip comprising an electronic circuit according to claim 8.

17. A camera device comprising an electronic circuit according to claim 8.

18. An image processing unit for controlling a camera module taking an image data electronically and for processing an output signal of the camera module, the image processing unit comprising a processor and a program, and the program being arranged to instruct the processor:

to estimate a motion of an image taken by the camera module, and;

to change, based on a estimated motion, one or more of

a rate of adjusting a control parameter used for controlling the camera module,

an amount of adjustment of the control parameter per update cycle,

a rate of adjusting a processing parameter used for processing the output signal, and

an amount of adjustment of the processing parameter per update cycle.

19. An image processing unit according to claim 18, said program being further arranged to instruct the processor:

to divide a shooting area logically into sections and to estimate a motion of an image in each of the sections, and;

to perform said changing by taking into account the estimated motions of 2 or more of said sections.

20. A camera device comprising a image processing unit according to claim 18.