IMAGE FILE PROCESSING APPARATUS, IMAGE FILE PROCESSING METHOD, AND STORAGE MEDIUM

• US 20090153701A1
• Filed: 12/10/2008
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Yamada, Takuya, KOUTAKI, Kayo, Hosoda, Jun
• Granted Patent: US 8,004,582 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/231.200
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/907 using static stores, e.g. storage tubes or semiconductor memories H04N5/91 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8042 involving data reduction

Abstract

An image file processing apparatus comprises a first storage unit configured to store an image, a first data creating unit configured to create main image data or sub-image data, a second storage unit configured to store the main image data and the sub-image data as one file, a management region setting unit configured to ensure management information of the sub-image data stored in the same file as the main image data in the second storage unit by a predetermined number and set the management information in a management region of the main image data, and a storage control unit configured to control so as to store the file based upon content set by the management region setting unit.

Claims

1. An image file processing apparatus comprising:

an imaging unit;

a first storage unit configured to store an image imaged by the imaging unit;

a first data creating unit configured to create at least main image data and sub-image data from the image stored in the first storage unit;

a second storage unit configured to store the at least main image data and sub-image data created by the first data creating unit as one file;

a management region setting unit configured to ensure management information of the sub-image data stored in the same file as the main image data in the second storage unit by a predetermined number and set the management information in a management region of the main image data; and

a first storage control unit configured to perform control so as to store the file based upon content set by the management region setting unit when the file is to be stored in the second storage unit.

2. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a second data creating unit configured to create image data from at least one of the image imaged by the imaging unit, the main image data, and the sub-image data;

a first determining unit configured to determine whether or not image data created by the second data creating unit can be included in the file as new sub-image data based upon the number of management information items set by the management region setting unit; and

a second storage control unit configured to perform control so as to additionally store the image data created by the second data creating unit in the second storage unit as the sub-image data and rewrite the content of the management region when the first determining unit determines that the image data created by the second data creating unit can be included in the file.

3. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a display device configured to display an image based upon a file stored in the second storage unit; and

a first instructing unit for instructing creation of new sub-image data regarding an image displayed by the display unit, wherein

the second data creating unit creates new image data from main image data or sub-image data of a file corresponding to the image displayed by the display unit in response to an instruction from the first instructing unit.

4. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a display unit configured to display an image based upon a file stored in the second storage unit;

a first instructing unit configured to instruct creation of sub-image data regarding the image displayed by the display unit; and

an imaging control unit configured to control the imaging unit to conduct imaging in order to acquire image data newly in response to an instruction from the first instructing unit, wherein

the second data creating unit creates new image data from an image obtained by the imaging control unit.

5. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a display unit configured to display an image based upon a file stored in the second storage unit;

a second instructing unit configured to instruct deletion regarding the image displayed by the display unit;

a second determining unit configured to determine whether an image instructed by the second instructing unit is an image based upon main image data or an image based upon sub-image data; and

a third storage control unit configured to perform control so as to delete the sub-image data from a file in which the sub-image data is included and rewrite content of the management region of the file when the image whose deletion has been instructed by the second instructing unit is the image based upon the sub-image data.

6. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the third storage control unit comprises:

a rewriting unit configured to rewrite content of the management region of the file based upon the instruction from the second instructing unit when the second determining unit determines that the image instructed by the second instructing unit is the image based upon the sub-image data; and

a deleting unit configured to delete the sub-image data from the file in which the sub-image data is included according to the management region rewritten by the rewriting unit.

7. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a display unit configured to display an image based upon image data stored in the second storage unit;

a third instructing unit configured to instruct non-display regarding the image displayed by the display unit;

a third determining unit configured to determine whether an image whose non-display has been instructed by the third instructing unit is an image based upon main image data or an image based upon sub-image data; and

a fourth storage control unit configured to perform control so as to write information for setting the image based upon the sub-image data in a non-display state into a management region of a file in which the sub-image data is included when the third determining unit determines that the image whose non-display has been instructed by the third instructing unit is the image based upon the sub-image data.

8. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 5, further comprising:

a notifying unit configured to perform notification of such a fact that a file in which the main image data is included itself is deleted when the second determining unit determines that the image instructed by the second instructing unit is the image based upon the main image;

a detecting unit configured to detect performance of deletion in response to notification performed by the notifying unit; and

a fifth storage control unit configured to perform control so as to delete the file in which the main image data corresponding to the image being displayed is stored itself from the second storage unit when the detecting unit detects the performance of deletion.

9. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a first display control unit configured to perform control so as to display a capacity of a file in which image data corresponding to the image is included together with the image when the image is displayed by the display unit.

10. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a third display control unit configured to perform control so as to display the number of sub-image data included in a file in which image data corresponding to the image is included together with the image when the image is displayed by the display unit.

11. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

the third display control unit further performs control so as to also display the number of sub-image data corresponding to a preset region of the management region.

12. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the first data creating unit further creates a thumbnail image data from the image stored in the first storage unit, and

the sub-image data comprises data having the same resolution as that of the main image data or data having a resolution larger than that of the thumbnail image data and smaller than that of the main image data.

13. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the management information manages an output of main image data and a plurality of sub-image data included in the image file.

14. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein

the management information manages a display of an image based upon the main image data and the plurality of sub-image data by the display means.

15. The image file processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the management information comprises erase information of main image data and a plurality of sub-imaged data included in the image file.

16. An image file processing method comprising:

a first storage step for storing an image into a first memory;

a first data creating step for creating at least main image data and sub-image data from the image stored by the first storage step;

a second storage step for storing the at least main image data and sub-image data created by the first data creating step as one file into a second memory; and

a management region setting step for ensuring management information of the sub-image data stored in the same file as the main image data by the second storage step by a predetermined number and setting the management information in a management region of the main image data, and

the second storage step stores the file based upon content set by the management region setting step when the file is to be stored in the second memory.

17. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program for causing a computer provided in an image file processing apparatus to function as:

first storage means for storing an image into a first memory;

first data creating means for creating at least main image data and sub-image data from the image stored by the first storage step;

second storage means for storing the at least main image data and sub-image data created by the first data creating step as one file into a second memory; and

management region setting means for ensuring management information of the sub-image data stored in the same file as the main image data by the second storage means by a predetermined number and setting the management information in a management region of the main image data, and

first storage control means for performing control so as to store the file based upon content set by the management region setting means when the file is to be stored in the second storage means.