Microscope-use digital camera

• US 20070126866A1
• Filed: 11/20/2006
• Published: 06/07/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Evident Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Uchida, Tomohiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,969,464 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/79
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/365 Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/26 Power supplies; Circuitry or arrangement to switch on the power source; Circuitry to check the power source voltage

Abstract

A microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function includes an image pickup unit for picking up an image and a control unit for controlling so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on an image picked up by the image pickup unit.

Claims

1. A microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, comprising:

an image pickup unit for picking up an image; and

a control unit for controlling so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on an image picked up by the image pickup unit.

2. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising

a judgment unit for judging an existence or nonexistence of a change between a first image picked up by the image pickup unit at a first clock time and a second image picked up by the image pickup unit at a second clock time which is after the first clock time, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on a judgment result of the judgment unit.

3. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 2, wherein

the judgment unit carries out the judgment based on a brightness value or contrast value of an image.

4. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising

a judgment unit for judging an existence or nonexistence of a change between first exposure control information obtained from an image picked up by the image pickup unit at a first clock time and second exposure control information obtained from an image picked up by the image pickup unit at a second clock time which is after the first clock time, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on a judgment result of the judgment unit.

5. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising

an image storage unit for storing an image, and

a judgment unit for judging an existence or nonexistence of a change between an image stored in the image storage unit and an image picked up by the image pickup unit, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on a judgment result of the judgment unit.

6. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 2, further comprising

a timer unit for measuring a time of an absence of an operation input, wherein

the control unit controls so as not to shift to a sleep state if the judgment unit judges as an existence of a change when a time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state.

7. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 6, wherein

the control unit controls so as not to operate the sleep function if a time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state and if the judgment unit judges an existence of a change.

8. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 6, further comprising

a selection unit for selecting either a shift to a sleep state, no shift to a sleep state or an extension of time to shifting to the sleep state according to an input instruction if a time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to a sleep state and if the judgment unit judges as a nonexistence of a change in an image, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state, not shift to a sleep state or extend a time until shifting to the sleep state according to a selection by the selection unit.

9. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 2, wherein

the control unit controls so as to recover from a sleep state if the judgment unit judges as an existence of a change after shifting to the sleep state.

10. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 6, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state if a time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state in the case that a replay mode, which enables a replay of a photographed image, is set.

11. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state after a passage of a predefined time following an image pickup by the image pickup unit, and a part or the entirety of a part having shifted to the sleep state recovers from the sleep state at a predetermined time prior to an image pickup event by the image pickup unit during an execution of a time lapse photographing which picks up image by the image pickup unit at a constant time interval.

12. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 2, wherein

the control unit controls so as to shift to a sleep state immediately or after a passage of predetermined time if the judgment unit judges as nonexistence of a change.

13. A control method for a microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, controlling

so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on a picked up image.

14. A computer readable recording medium recording a program for controlling a microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, wherein

the program makes a computer of a microscope-use digital camera accomplish

the function of controlling so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on a picked up image.