Electronic camera with battery capability consideration

• US 6,876,393 B1
• Filed: 02/09/2000
• Issued: 04/05/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 02/10/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Yokonuma, Norikazu
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MISLEH, JUSTIN P
• Application Number:
  US09/501,257
• Time in Patent Office: 1,882 Days
• Field of Search: 348/207.99, 348/372, 348/231.99, 348/231.2, 348/231.7, 348/231.9, 396/277, 396/278, 396/279, 396/280, 396/301, 396/302, 396/303, 396/304
• US Class Current: 348/372
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00885 Power supply means, e.g. arrangements for the control of power supply to the apparatus or components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00899 Detection of supply level or supply failure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00925 Inhibiting an operation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/634 Warning indications
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/65 Control of camera operation in relation to power supply
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8047 using transform coding

Abstract

An electronic camera according to the present invention includes: a recording device that records image data output by an image-capturing element, which captures an image of a subject, into a recording medium; a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage; a check level setting device that sets a battery check level by taking into consideration a quantity of battery power consumption required for recording the image data to the recording medium; and a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by the battery voltage detection device with the check level set by the check level setting device.

Claims

1. An electronic camera comprising:

an image-capturing element that captures an image of a subject and outputs image data;

a photography mode selection device that selects a photography mode among a plurality of photography modes;

a recording device that records the image data output by the image-capturing element into a recording medium;

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a check level setting device that sets a battery check level according to the selected photography mode; and

a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by said battery voltage detection device with the check level set by said check level setting device.

2. An electronic camera according to claim 1, further comprising:

a warning device that stops a photographing operation for a current frame and issues a warning when said photographing decision-making device decides that the photographing operation is not possible.

3. An electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of photography modes include a single-shot mode and a continuous shooting mode.

4. An electronic camera according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of photography modes include a single-shot mode, a continuous shooting mode, a fine image quality mode, a normal image quality mode and a basic image quality mode.

5. An electronic camera according to claim 1, wherein:

the plurality of photography modes include image quality modes.

6. An electronic camera according to claim 5, wherein the image quality modes comprise a fine mode, a normal mode and a basic mode.

7. An electronic camera comprising:

an image-capturing element that captures an image of a subject and outputs image data;

a compression rate selecting device that selects a compression rate among a plurality of compression rates;

a compression control device that compresses the image data output by the image-capturing element according to the selected compression rate;

a recording device that records the compressed image data into a recording medium;

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a check level setting device that sets a battery check level according to the selected compression rate; and

a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by said battery voltage detection device with the check level set by said check level setting device.

8. An electronic camera according to claim 7, further comprising:

a warning device that stops a photographing operation for a current frame and issues a warning when said photographing decision-making device decides that the photographing operation is not possible.

9. An electronic camera comprising:

a file generation device that processes image data output by an image-capturing element, which captures an image of a subject, the file generation device generating a file having a variable size depending on an image data processing process, and records the file thus generated into a recording medium;

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a check level setting device that sets a battery check level according to a size of a file generated by said file generation device; and

a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by said battery voltage detection device with the check level set by said check level setting device.

10. An electronic camera according to claim 9, further comprising:

a warning device that stops a photographing operation for a current frame and issues a warning when said photographing decision-making device decides that the photographing operation is not possible.

11. An electronic camera according to claim 9, wherein the image data processing processes the image data based on at least one of a selected file size and a selected image quality mode.

12. An electronic camera comprising:

a recording device that records image data output by an image-capturing element, which captures an image of a subject, into a recording medium;

a continuous shooting picture number setting device that sets a number of pictures to be taken in a continuous shooting mode

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a check level setting device that sets a battery check level according to a number of pictures for continuous shooting set by said continuous shooting picture number setting device; and

a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by said battery voltage detection device with the check level set by said check level setting device.

13. An electronic camera according to claim 12, further comprising:

a warning device that stops a photographing operation for a current frame and issues a warning when said photographing decision-making device decides that the photographing operation is not possible.

14. An electronic camera according to claim 12, wherein:

said recording device records the image data in the recording medium after compressing the image data at a specific compression rate; and

said check level setting device sets the battery check level by taking into consideration the specific compression rate.

15. An electronic camera according to claim 12, wherein:

said recording device processes the image data, generates a file having a size depending on an image data processing and records the file thus generated into the recording medium; and

said check level setting device sets the battery check level by taking into consideration a size of a file generated by said recording device.

16. An electronic camera comprising:

a recording device that records image data output by an image-capturing element, which captures an image of a subject, into a recording medium;

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a continuous shooting enabled picture number determining device that determines a number of pictures that can be taken continuously according to the battery voltage detected by said battery voltage detection device; and

a continuous shooting picture number limiting device that limits a number of pictures to be taken in a continuous shooting mode to said number of pictures that can be taken continuously.

17. An electronic camera according to claim 16, wherein:

said recording device records the image data in the recording medium after compressing the image data at a specific compression rate; and

said continuous shooting enabled picture number determining device determines the number of pictures that can be taken continuously by taking into consideration the specific compression rate.

18. An electronic camera according to claim 16, wherein:

said recording device processes the image data, generates a file having a size depending on an image data processing and records the file thus generated into the recording medium; and

said continuous shooting enabled picture number determining device determines the number of pictures that can be taken continuously by taking into consideration a size of a file generated by said recording device.

19. An electronic camera comprising:

a storage element that is capable of storing image data corresponding to a plurality of frames output by an image-capturing element which captures an image of a subject;

a recording device that transfers and records the image data stored at said storage element into a recording medium;

a battery voltage detection device that detects a battery voltage;

a check level setting device that sets a battery check level according to a volume of image data stored at said storage element which have not been transferred yet; and

a photographing decision-making device that makes a decision as to whether or not a photographing operation for a next frame is enabled by comparing the battery voltage value detected by said battery voltage detection device with the check level set by said check level setting device when an instruction to start the photographing operation of the next frame is issued before transfer of the image data from said storage element to the recording medium is completed.

20. An electronic camera according to claim 19, further comprising:

a warning device that stops a photographing operation for a current frame and issues a warning when said photographing decision-making device decides that the photographing operation is not possible.