Method and system for coherent image group maintenance in memory

• US 6,141,044 A
• Filed: 09/26/1996
• Issued: 10/31/2000
• Est. Priority Date: 09/26/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Computer Incorporated (Apple Inc.)
• Inventors: Anderson, Eric C., Masukawa, Mike
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, LUONG TRUNG
• Application Number:
  US08/721,592
• Time in Patent Office: 1,496 Days
• Field of Search: 348/231, 348/232, 348/233, 348/552, 348/220, 386/21, 358/906, 710/13
• US Class Current: 348/231.6
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/212 Motion video recording combined with still video recording television signal recording H04N5/76
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/215 Recording a sequence of still pictures, e.g. burst mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2158 using a detachable storage unit
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32122 in a separate device, e.g. in a memory or on a display separate from image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/214 Checking or indicating the storage space
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3226 of identification information or the like, e.g. ID code, index, title, part of an image, reduced-size image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3247 Data linking a set of images to one another, e.g. sequence, burst or continuous capture mode
• 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

Abstract

A method and system for maintaining coherent image relationships within identified image groups in a memory system of a digital image capture device includes storing a plurality of groups of related images on a removable storage device in a hierarchical manner, and providing an alias identifier for an image file when the removable storage device has reached its storage capacity, wherein the alias identifier identifies the image file stored in a storage device of the digital image capture device. The method and system further includes providing the image file with a same file name and a substitute extension designation to correlate the image file on the storage device with an empty file of the same name on the removable storage device.

Claims

1. A method for maintaining coherent image relationships within identified image groups in a memory system of a digital image capture device, the method comprising:

storing a plurality of groups of related images on a removable storage device in a hierarchical manner; and

providing an alias identifier for an image file when the removable storage device has reached its storage capacity, wherein the alias identifier identifies the image file stored in a storage device of the digital image capture device, wherein the image file is provided with a same file name and a substitute extension designation to correlate the image file on the storage device with an empty file of the same name on the removable storage device.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the removable storage device further comprises a flash disk storage device.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the storage device of the digital image capture device further comprises a RAM disk storage device.

4. The method of claim 3 further comprising including at least one parameter associated with the image file to ensure that the image file is associated with an appropriate image group.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the at least one parameter further comprises a group name.

6. A system for maintaining coherent image relationships within identified image groups, the system comprising:

a digital image capture device, the digital image capture device comprising removable and system storage devices, and further, the digital image capture device capable of processing digital image data into image files for storage in image groups on the removable storage device in a hierarchical manner, wherein the hierarchy comprises a flat hierarchy encompassing image files grouped by tags and within each group the files are related to each other; and

a central processing unit within the digital image capture device and capable of coordinating provision of an alias identifier for an image file when the removable storage device has reached its storage capacity, wherein the alias identifier identifies the image file stored in the system storage device of the digital image capture device, wherein the alias identifier further comprises a same file name and a substitute extension designation to correlate the image file on the system storage device with an empty file of the same name on the removable storage device.

7. The system of claim 6 wherein the removable storage device further comprises a flash disk.

8. The system of claim 6 wherein the system storage device further comprises a RAM disk.

9. The system of claim 8 wherein the image file further includes at least one parameter to ensure that the image file is associated with an appropriate image group.

10. The system of claim 9 wherein the at least one parameter further comprises a group name.

11. A computer readable medium containing program instructions for maintaining coherent image relationships within identified image groups in a memory system of a digital image capture device comprising:

storing a plurality of groups of related images on a removable storage device in a hierarchical manner, wherein the hierarchy comprises a flat hierarchy encompassing image files grouped by tags and within each group the files are related to each other; and

providing an alias identifier for an image file when the removable storage device has reached its storage capacity, wherein the alias identifier identifies the image file stored in a storage device of the digital image capture device, wherein the image file is provided with a same file name and a substitute extension designation to correlate the image file on the storage device with an empty file of the same name on the removable storage device.