Automatic framing camera

• US 6,606,458 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2002
• Issued: 08/12/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 09/05/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nisca Corporation (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nisca Corporation (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Masuyama, Kenji, Kasai, Motoki, Umeda, Yoshihito
• Primary Examiner(s): Perkey, W. B.
• Application Number:
  US10/230,326
• Publication Number:
  US 20030049027A1
• Time in Patent Office: 348 Days
• Field of Search: 396/106, 396/89, 396/110, 396/116, 396/121-123, 396/419, 396/428, 396/427, 348/169-172, 348/156, 348/143
• US Class Current: 396/110
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 13/18 Focusing aids
• 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

Abstract

This invention provides an automatic framing camera that identifies a still subject, frames it, and photographs it.

The ranging direction of a ranging unit (light emitting element and light receiving element) that can range in one direction is changed by a pan motor and a tilt motor, and a still person is searched for by changes in the signal from the ranging unit. Then, the photography direction of the imaging element is turned by the tilt motor toward the center of the face of the person that was found, this is framed with the center of the person'"'"'s face in the center of the angle of view, and the person'"'"'s face is photographed by the imagining component.

Claims

1. An automatic framing camera comprising a photographing means for photographing a subject, a ranging means for measuring the distance in one direction, and a direction changing means for changing as a single unit the photographing direction of said photographing means and the ranging direction of said ranging means, wherein distance information corresponding to said ranging direction that is changed by said direction changing means is fetched in sequence, a subject is identified from changes in said distance information, and said photographing direction is turned toward said identified subject by said direction changing means, and a photograph is taken.

2. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein for said subject identification, identification is done on the closest subject according to changes in said distance information.

3. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein said photographing means can take photographs even in infrared light areas.

4. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein said ranging means has an infrared light spot light emitting element and light receiving element.

5. The automatic framing camera of claim 4 wherein said light emitting element and said light receiving element are placed on both sides of said photographing means, respectively, and these are arranged in a straight line including said photographing means.

6. The automatic framing camera of claim 5 wherein said light emitting element, said light receiving element, and said photographing means are arranged side by side in a substantially horizontal direction.

7. The automatic framing camera of claim 6 wherein a rotation axis, on which are supported as a single unit with the ability to rotate said light emitting element, said light receiving element, and said photographing means, is provided extending into the cylinder body of said light emitting element and said light receiving element.

8. The automatic framing camera of claim 7 wherein said light emitting element, said light receiving element, and said photographing means are fixed on the same substrate, and said rotation axis is positioned in the perpendicular direction and depth direction in the center of gravity position of said substrate.

9. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein said photographing means has the goal of photographing a person'"'"'s face, said direction changing means can change the pan direction and tilt direction within a specified range, pan operation is performed at the lower edge within said specified range, the axis direction of the body of said person is identified from changes in the distance information by said ranging means, tilt operation is performed from the lower edge or the upper edge within said specified range at the axis direction of the body of said person, the direction of the top of the head of said person is identified from changes in the distance information by said ranging means, and by lowering said photographing direction by an amount of a preset angle from said identified top of the head direction, the direction that is the approximate center of the face of said person becomes said photographing direction.

10. The automatic framing camera of claim 9 wherein when said direction changing means performs pan operation at the tilt direction lower edge, the rangeable distance of said ranging means is shorter than the distance to the floor.

11. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein said photographing means has the goal of photographing a person'"'"'s face, said direction changing means can change the pan direction and tilt direction within a specified range, pan operation is performed at the lower edge within said specified range, the axis direction of the body of said person is identified from changes in the distance information by said ranging means, tilt operation is performed from the lower edge or the upper edge within said specified range at the axis direction of the body of said person, the direction of the top of the head of said person is identified from changes in the distance information by said ranging means, said photographing direction is set to be lowered by a specified angle in relation to said ranging direction, and when the top of the head of said person is identified, the approximate center of said person'"'"'s face becomes said photographing direction.

12. The automatic framing camera of claim 11 wherein when said direction changing means does a pan operation at the tilt direction lower edge, the rangeable distance of said ranging means is shorter than the distance to the floor.

13. The automatic framing camera of claim 11 wherein said specified angle is given by tan⁻

1 (L2/L1) when the distance between said photographing means and said person is L1 and when the distance from the approximate center of the face of said person to the top of the head of said person is L2.

14. The automatic framing camera of claim 1 wherein for said ranging means, greater than a specified distance is set as a non-detection area.

15. The automatic framing camera of claim 14 wherein said specified distance differs according to said ranging direction.

16. The automatic framing camera of claim 14 wherein for said specified distance, distance information that corresponds to the direction for which said ranging direction was changed by said direction changing means is obtained sequentially and stored in memory.