IMAGING APPARATUS

• US 20150319350A1
• Filed: 07/13/2015
• Published: 11/05/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OM Digital Solutions Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: HOMMA, Shinsuke, KODAMA, Hiroshi, MOCHIZUKI, Ryosuke
• Granted Patent: US 10,048,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/02 Bodies
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 19/07 having more than one objective
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 37/00 Panoramic or wide-screen photography; Photographing extended surfaces, e.g. for surveying; Photographing internal surfaces, e.g. of pipe
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/58 Means for changing the camera field of view without moving the camera body, e.g. nutating or panning of optics or image sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders

Abstract

An imaging apparatus includes an omnidirectional imaging unit that captures and generates an image of a visual field all around an axis as omnidirectional image data; an image converter that converts at least a part of the omnidirectional image data, which is generated by the omnidirectional imaging unit, to image data having a rectangular display area and thereby generates conversion image data; and a display unit that displays an image corresponding to the conversion image data, which is generated by the image converter. The omnidirectional image data forms an annular shape.

Claims

1. An imaging apparatus comprising:

a first imaging unit including (1) a system of one or more lenses defining an optical axis and (2) an image pickup unit, the first imaging unit capturing a visual field all around the optical axis of the first imaging unit and generating image data of the captured visual field as omnidirectional image data, wherein the omnidirectional image data forms an annular shape;

a second imaging unit including (1) a system of one or more lenses defining an optical axis orthogonal to the optical axis of the first imaging unit and (2) an image pickup unit, wherein

the first imaging unit is positioned outside of any angle of view of the second imaging unit,

the first imaging unit is configured to capture the image in both of a front direction and a back direction with respect to the imaging apparatus, and

an image converter that converts at least a part of the omnidirectional image data, which is generated by the first imaging unit, to image data having a display area and thereby generates conversion image data;

a display unit that displays an image corresponding to the conversion image data, which is generated by the image converter; and

an image synthesizer that synthesized area image data, which is generated by the second imaging unit, and the conversion image data, which is generated by the image converter, and thereby generates synthesis image data, wherein the display unit displays an image corresponding to the synthesis image data.

2. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the second imaging unit captures and generates, as the area image data, an image of a visual field with an angle of view of two directions that are orthogonal to each other on the optical axis, the angle of view being less than 180 degrees.

3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the image converter excludes an area that is an overlap of the visual field of the first imaging unit and the visual field of the second imaging unit, from an area to be converted.

4. The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image synthesizer arranges the omnidirectional image data and the area image data one above the other.

5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image synthesizer superimposes the conversion image data, which is converted by the image converter, on a circumferential area of the area image data.

6. An imaging apparatus for displaying a captured image, comprising:

an imaging unit configured to capture an image of an all-around visual field to generate image data of the visual field;

a face image information storage unit that stores face image information on images of faces of persons;

a face detector configured to detect a face of a person contained in the image data by referring to the face image information stored in the face image information storage unit;

a horizontality determining unit configured to determine whether the imaging apparatus is horizontal; and

an image converter configured to correct at least one of an aspect ratio and a slope of face image data of the face detected by the face detector, when the horizontality determining unit determines that the imaging apparatus is not horizontal.

7. The imaging apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the image converter is configured to convert at least a part of the image data generated by the imaging unit, to image data having a rectangular display area.

8. The imaging apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the image data has an annular shape.

9. The imaging apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising an acceleration detector configured to detect an acceleration of the imaging apparatus, wherein

the horizontality determining unit is configured to determine whether the imaging apparatus is horizontal according to a result of the detection by the acceleration detector.

10. An image processing method executed by an imaging apparatus for displaying a captured image, the method comprising:

capturing an image of an all-around visual field to generate image data of the visual field;

acquiring, from a face image information storage unit for storing face image information on images of faces of persons, the face image information, and detecting a face of a person contained in the image data by referring to the acquired face image information;

determining whether the imaging apparatus is horizontal; and

correcting at least one of an aspect ratio and a slope of face image data of the detected face, when the imaging apparatus is determined to be not horizontal.