IMAGE-CAPTURING DEVICE

• US 20130093842A1
• Filed: 09/13/2012
• Published: 04/18/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/12/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Yahata, Kazuhiro
• Application Number:
  US13/613,809
• Publication Number:
  US 20130093842A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/69 Control of means for changing angle of the field of view, e.g. optical zoom objectives or electronic zooming
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/76 by influencing the image signals

Abstract

If a zoom magnification ratio of the image is changed after shooting, it is impossible to match brightness, amount of noise, exposure time between angles of view due to difference in light gathering ability of a camera. The number of one or more image-capturing units (130 to 161) having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is made larger than the number of one or more image-capturing units (101 to 105) having a wider angle of view than the first angle of view. In addition, the amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units (130 to 161) having a first angle of view is made approximately equal to the amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units (101 to 105) having a second angle of view.

Claims

1. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

a number of one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is larger than a number of one or more image-capturing units having an angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

2. The image-capturing device according to claim 1, wherein an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

3. An image processing apparatus comprising a generating unit configured to generate image data by synthesizing captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

a number of one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is larger than a number of one or more image-capturing units having an angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is approximately equal to an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

5. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

6. The image-capturing device according to claim 5 further comprising:

an image-capturing parameter acquisition unit configured to acquire image-capturing parameters in respective image-capturing units related to an amount of light being received; and

a control unit configured to perform control to make an amount of light received in total by the image-capturing units having the first angle of view approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by the image-capturing units having the second angle of view, by changing an image-capturing parameter in the image-capturing units having the acquired first angle of view.

7. The image-capturing device according to claim 6, wherein the control by the control unit is performed when an image-capturing parameter in the image-capturing unit having the second angle of view is changed.

8. The image-capturing device according to claim 6, wherein the image-capturing parameters include at least one of values indicating diaphragm and focus.

9. An image processing apparatus comprising a generating unit configured to generate image data by synthesizing captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is approximately equal to an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 9 further comprising:

an image-capturing parameter acquisition unit configured to acquire image-capturing parameters in respective image-capturing units related to an amount of light being received; and

a control unit configured to perform control to make an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, approximately equal to an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view, by changing an image-capturing parameter in the image-capturing units having the acquired first angle of view.

11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the control by the control unit is performed when an image-capturing parameter in the image-capturing unit having the second angle of view is changed.

12. The image processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein the image-capturing parameters include at least one of values indicating diaphragm and focus.

13. An image processing apparatus comprising:

a captured data acquisition unit configured to acquire a plurality of captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units;

a selecting unit configured to select a first captured data set from the acquired plurality of captured data so that an amount of light being received in total by image-capturing units which have captured the acquired first captured data set is approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by image-capturing units which have captured a second captured data set which is different from the first captured data set; and

a generating unit configured to generate image data by synthesizing captured data of the selected first captured data set.

14. An image processing method comprising a step of generating image data by synthesizing captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

a number of one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is larger than a number of one or more image-capturing units having an angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

15. An image processing method comprising a step of generating image data by synthesizing captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is approximately equal to an amount of light received in total by captured data obtained from one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

19. A program on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the program causing a computer to execute the image processing method according to claim 15.

16. An image processing method comprising the steps of:

acquiring a plurality of captured data obtained from a plurality of image-capturing units;

selecting a first captured data set from the acquired plurality of captured data so that an amount of light being received in total by image-capturing units which have captured the acquired first captured data set is approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by the image-capturing units which have captured a second captured data set which is different from the first captured data set; and

generating image data by synthesizing captured data of the selected first captured data set.

20. A program on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the program causing a computer to execute the image processing method according to claim 16.

17. A method of manufacturing an image-capturing device having a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

a number of one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is made larger than a number of one or more image-capturing units having an angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

18. A method of manufacturing an image-capturing device having a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a first angle of view, among the plurality of image-capturing units, is made approximately equal to an amount of light being received in total by one or more image-capturing units having a second angle of view which is another angle of view.

21. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged so that a pupil diameter formed by one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, is larger than a pupil diameter formed by one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

27. The image-capturing device according to claim 21, wherein the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged in a circular shape.

28. The image-capturing device according to claim 21, wherein the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged in a polygonal shape.

29. The image-capturing device according to claim 27, wherein the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged so that mutual correlation coefficients become small.

30. The image-capturing device according to claim 21, further comprising a synthesis unit configured to synthesize a plurality of captured data which has been captured by the plurality of image-capturing units.

22. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged so that a pupil diameter formed by one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, is smaller than a pupil diameter formed by one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view narrower than the first angle of view.

23. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, are arranged in a region wider than one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

24. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, are arranged in a region narrower than one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view narrower than the first angle of view.

25. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged so that standard deviation from a center of gravity of one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, is larger than standard deviation from a center of gravity of one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view wider than the first angle of view.

26. An image-capturing device comprising a plurality of image-capturing units, wherein

the plurality of image-capturing units is arranged so that standard deviation from a center of gravity of one or more first image-capturing unit groups having a first angle of view, among the image-capturing units, is smaller than standard deviation from a center of gravity of one or more second image-capturing unit groups having a second angle of view narrower than the first angle of view.