LIGHT EMITTING DEVICE, CAMERA WITH LIGHT EMITTING DEVICE, AND IMAGE PICKUP METHOD

• US 20090102964A1
• Filed: 12/23/2008
• Published: 04/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/31/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Casio Company Limited (Casio Computer Company Limited)
• Original Assignee: Casio Company Limited (Casio Computer Company Limited)
• Inventors: Yuyama, Masami, Yoshida, Kaoru
• Application Number:
  US12/343,018
• Publication Number:
  US 20090102964A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/371
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/56 provided with illuminating means
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/651 for reducing power consumption by affecting camera operations, e.g. sleep mode, hibernation mode or power off of selective parts of the camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/673 based on contrast or high frequency components of image signals, e.g. hill climbing method
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/74 by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/88 for colour balance, e.g. white-balance circuits or colour temperature control

Abstract

A camera comprises a lens and an LED array at its front. The LED array is composed of red, green and blue LEDs, which are individually turned on and off for light emitting purposes, as well as changeable in their quantities of red, green and blue lights to be emitted under control of an MPU. Thus, the LED array is capable of emitting light having any color having a different brightness by controlling the respective quantities of red, green and blue lights to be emitted by the corresponding LEDs. That is, the camera is capable of irradiating an object with light having a desired color for image pickup.

Claims

1. A camera apparatus with a flash device, comprising:

an image pickup device for picking up an image of an object;

a storage device for storing as image data an image of the object picked up by the image pickup device;

a light emitting device having a plurality of light emitting diodes disposed on a camera body for emitting a number of different-colored lights, and for irradiating the object with the different-colored lights;

a driver for supplying power individually to the plurality of light emitting diodes;

a setting device for setting, based on a color of an initial image of the object picked up by the image pickup device, respective percentages of quantities of the different-colored lights to be emitted by the plurality of light emitting diodes so as to emit a synthetic light having a color that is the same as the color of the picked-up image;

a display for displaying RED, GREEN and BLUE meters, each corresponding to a respective one of the set quantities set by the setting device; and

a controller for controlling the driver such that the plurality of light emitting diodes emit the plurality of different-colored lights in the set respective percentages of quantities of the different-colored lights when the image of the object is picked tip.

2. The camera apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the display superimposes the RED, GREEN and BLUE meters on a monitor image.

3. The camera apparatus according to claim 1, wherein:

the initial image of the object picked up by the image pickup device, based on which the setting device sets the respective percentages of quantities of the different-colored lights, is picked up while the light emitting device is in an off state.