Variable speed, variable resolution digital cinema camera system

• US 7,663,687 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2005
• Issued: 02/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/12/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Glenn Neufeld
• Original Assignee: Glenn Neufeld
• Inventors: Neufeld, Glenn
• Primary Examiner(s): Ho; Tuan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Gebriel; Selam T
• Application Number:
  US11/178,093
• Publication Number:
  US 20060007344A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,685 Days
• Field of Search: 348/36, 348/37, 348/335, 348/231.99, 348/47, 348/48, 348/95, 348/153, 460/56
• US Class Current: 348/337
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/90 Arrangement of cameras or camera modules, e.g. multiple cameras in TV studios or sports stadiums

Abstract

A digital cinema camera includes a plurality of imagers and a plurality of shutters mounted radially on a frame. A beam splitter disposed at a center of the frame rotates to provide an input optical beam sequentially to the plurality of imagers. When the input optical beam is aligned with a particular one of the imagers, a corresponding one of the shutters is triggered to apply the optical beam on the particular one of the imagers. The electrical signals generated by the imagers are first stored in RAM, and then transferred to a hard disk drive disposed in a removable magazine. This way, the magazine can be replaced with a new magazine, and the latent image data can be downloaded out of the removed magazine for post-processing while new image data is being stored in the new magazine.

Claims

1. A digital camera comprising:

a plurality of imagers and a plurality of shutters mounted radially on a frame;

a beam splitter disposed at a center of the frame, the beam splitter being rotatable to provide an input optical beam sequentially to the plurality of imagers, wherein when the input optical beam is aligned with a particular one of the imagers, a corresponding one of the shutters is triggered to apply the optical beam on the particular one of the imagers;

a RAM for storing image streams generated by the imagers as image data; and

a removable magazine including a hard disk drive, wherein the image data stored in the RAM are transferred to the hard disk drive,

wherein the magazine can be replaced with a new magazine, such that the image data can remain in the removed magazine while new image data is being stored in the new magazine,

wherein the RAM comprises a plurality of triple port RAMs having a first port, a second port and a third port, wherein the image data is stored via the first port, the stored image data is read via the second port to be transferred to the hard disk drive on a first-in, first-out basis, and the stored image data is read via the third port on a first-in, first-out basis to be converted into a format for viewing while the image streams are being generated.

2. The digital camera of claim 1, wherein the triple-port RAM comprises two dual-port RAMs in parallel.

3. The digital camera of claim 1, further comprising:

a plurality of image downsizers for receiving the image data from the third ports of the RAMs and for lowering the resolution of the image data to generate lower resolution images;

a frame interleaver for sequencing the lower resolution images; and

a video encoder for converting the sequenced lower resolution images to a viewable format to generate viewable images.

4. The digital camera of claim 3, further comprising a video output connector for receiving the viewable images from the video encoder and transmitting the viewable images to an external monitor.

5. The digital camera of claim 3, further comprising:

a display screen; and

a hard disk drive for storing the viewable images from the video encoder and transmitting the viewable images to the display screen for viewing.

6. A method for aligning image data produced by a plurality of imagers sequentially exposed to an image provided by a rotating beam splitter, comprising:

orienting the imagers in various degrees of rotation such that each imager generates an image stream of upright images; and

adjusting x-axis and y-axis positions of each imager until the images produced by the imagers are aligned,

wherein the x-axis and y-axis positions of each imager are adjusted by;

a) exposing the plurality of imagers to a reference image;

b) assigning one imager as a base imager;

c) adjusting the x-axis and y-axis positions of each imager other than the base imager until its image is aligned with the image of the base imager; and

d) if an imager cannot be adjusted to align its image with the image of the base imager, assigning that imager to be a new base imager and repeating a)-c).