Image communication apparatus

• US 5,036,390 A
• Filed: 08/28/1989
• Issued: 07/30/1991
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Masunaga, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): Ng, Jin F.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Woo, Stella L.
• Application Number:
  US07/398,938
• Time in Patent Office: 701 Days
• Field of Search: 358/85, 358/134, 358/54, 379/53
• US Class Current: 348/61
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display

Abstract

There is disclosed an apparatus for displaying an image taken with a camera or an image transmitted externally, in which the camera-taken image is displayed in laterally inverted manner as if the operator look at a mirror, thereby facilitating the monitoring operation, while the externally transmitted image is displayed without lateral inversion.

Claims

1. An image transmission apparatus comprising:

generation means for continuously generating a laterally inverted source image signal by photoelectrically converting a source image;

display means for displaying the source image with keeping a laterally inverted state of the source image, on the basis of the source image signal, said display means being adapted to renew the display according to the source image continuously generated by said generation means; and

transmission means for executing an image transmission by further laterally inverting the laterally inverted source image.

2. An image transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said generation means comprises a television camera.

3. An image transmission apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission means is adapted to transmit an image to a communication line.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an image displaying direction of said display means is a standard direction, and

an image generating direction of said direction means is a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said generation means generates the source image signal by scanning the source image in an inverted direction of a standard direction, and

said display means displays the source image by scanning a display medium in the standard direction.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said transmission means further comprises memory means for storing therein the laterally inverted source image signal, and

said transmission means reads the image signal from said memory means such that the laterally inverted source image is laterally inverted.

7. An image reception apparatus comprising:

image pickup means for picking up a source image;

reception means for receiving a reception image;

and display means for displaying the source image laterally inverted and the reception image not laterally inverted,

wherein said reception means further comprises memory means for storing therein the reception image,

said reception means transfers the reception image from said memory means to said display means such that a display of the reception image is not laterally inverted,

an image pickup direction of said image pickup means is a laterally inverted direction of an image displaying direction of said display means, and

said image pickup means transfers the source image to said display means without passing the source image through said memory means.

8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said image pickup means is adapted to continuously pick up the source image, and

said display means is adapted to renew the display according to the image continuously picked up by said image pickup mean.

9. An image reception apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said reception means is adapted to receive an image from a communication line.

10. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein an image displaying direction of said display means is a standard direction, and

an image pickup direction of said image pickup means is a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

11. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein an image pickup direction of said image pickup means is a standard direction, and

an image displaying direction of said display means is a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

12. An apparatus according to claim 11, wherein said reception means reads the reception image from said memory means with laterally inverting the reception image.

13. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said image pickup means includes a television camera.

14. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said image pickup means picks up the source image by scanning the source image,

said display means displays the image by scanning a display medium, and

a scan direction of said image pickup means is a laterally inverted direction of a scan direction of said display means.

15. An image reception apparatus comprising:

image pickup means for generating a source image signal by picking up a source image;

reception means for receiving a reception iamge signal representing a reception image; and

display means for displaying a laterally inverted image on the basis of the image signal provided from said image pickup means and said reception means,

wherein said reception means further comprises memory means for storing therein the reception image signal,

said reception means reads the image signal such that the reception image is laterally inverted, and said reception means provides the read image signal to said display means, and

said image pickup means provides the reception image signal to said display means without passing the reception image signal through said memory means.

16. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said image pickup means includes a television camera.

17. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said reception means receives the reception image signal over a communication line.

18. An apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said display means displays the laterally inverted image by scanning a display medium in an inverted direction of a standard direction.

19. An image transmission apparatus comprising:

generation means for generating an analog source image signal by photoelectrically converting an image;

transmission means for transmitting the image on the basis of the analog source image signal, wherein said transmission means further comprises digitizing means for digitizing the analog source image signal and executes a transmission process according to the digitized source image signal such that the image is not inverted; and

display means for displaying the laterally inverted image, in accordance with the analog source image signal which is not yet digitized by said digitizing means.

20. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein said generation means includes a television camera.

21. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein said transmission means transmits the image over a communication line.

22. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein said transmission means transmits the image by modulating the image according to the digitized source image signal.

23. An apparatus according to claim 19, wherein said generation means generates the analog source image signal by scanning the image,

said display means displays the image by scanning a display medium, and

a scan direction of said generation means is a laterally inverted direction of a scan direction of said display means.

24. An apparatus according to claim 23, wherein said generation means scans the image in a standard direction, and

said display means scans the display medium in a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

25. An apparatus according to claim 23, wherein said display means scans the display medium in a standard direction, and

said generation means scans the image in a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

26. An apparatus according to claim 23, wherein said transmission means further comprises memory means for storing therein the digitized source image signal, and

the signal is read from said transmission means such that the image is laterally inverted.

27. An image transmission apparatus comprising:

generation means for generating a source image signal by photoelectrically converting a source iamge;

display means for displaying the laterally inverted source image; and

transmission means for transmitting the source image signal such that the source image is not laterally inverted,

wherein said transmission means further comprises memory means for storing therein the source image signal according to a key operation by an operator,

said transmission means transmits the source image signal read from said memory means, and

said display means receives the source image signal from said generation means without passing the source image signal through said memory means.

28. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said generation means includes a television camera.

29. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said generation means generates the image signal by scanning the source image,

said display means displays the source image by scanning a display medium, and

a scan direction of said generation means is a laterally inverted direction of a scan direction of said display means.

30. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said generation means scans the image in a standard direction, and

said display means scans the display medium in a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

31. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said display means scans the display medium in a standard direction, and

said generation means scans the image in a laterally inverted direction of the standard direction.

32. An apparatus according to claim 27, where said transmission means further comprises memory means for storing therein the digitize source image signal, and

the signal is read from said transmission means such that the image is laterally inverted.

33. An apparatus according to claim 27, wherein said transmission means transmits the image over a communication line.