Microscope-use digital camera

• US 7,969,464 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2006
• Issued: 06/28/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Evident Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Inventors: Uchida, Tomohiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan; Jason
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vieaux; Gary C
• Application Number:
  US11/602,367
• Publication Number:
  US 20070126866A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,681 Days
• Field of Search: 348/79, 348/372, 348/155, 348/80
• US Class Current: 348/79
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 21/365 Control or image processing arrangements for digital or video microscopes G02B21/361, G02B21/362 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 7/26 Power supplies; Circuitry or arrangement to switch on the power source; Circuitry to check the power source voltage

Abstract

A microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function includes an image pickup unit for picking up an image and a control unit for controlling so as to shift to a sleep state, or not shift thereto, based on an image picked up by the image pickup unit.

Claims

1. A microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, comprising:

an image pickup unit for picking up images;

a timer unit for measuring a time of an absence of an input operation to an operation unit for operating at least one of the image pickup unit and a display unit;

a judgment unit for judging whether a change has occurred between a first image picked up by the image pickup unit at a first clock time and a second image picked up by the image pickup unit at a second clock time which is after the first clock time;

a selection unit for selecting one of a shift to a sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and an extension of time to shifting to the sleep state, according to an input instruction if the time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state and if the judgment unit judges that no change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, wherein all three of the shift to the sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and the extension of time to shifting to the sleep state are available as selections which are selectable by the selection unit; and

a control unit for controlling the microscope-use digital camera to one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, based on the time measured by the timer unit, an output of the judgment unit, and the selection by the selection unit;

wherein the control unit controls the microscope-use digital camera to;

(i) one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, according to the selection by the selection unit, when the time measured by the timer unit is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judgment unit judges that no change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, and (ii) not shift to the sleep state when the time measured by the timer unit is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judgment unit judges that a change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time.

2. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising an image storage unit for storing the images picked up by the image pickup unit.

3. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the microscope-use digital camera to recover from the sleep state if, after shifting to the sleep state, the judgment unit judges that a change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time.

4. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the microscope-use digital camera to shift to the sleep state when the time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than the preset time until shifting to the sleep state when a replay mode, which enables a replay of a photographed image, is set.

5. The microscope-use digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the microscope-use digital camera to shift to the sleep state after a passage of a predefined time following an image pickup operation by the image pickup unit, and to at least partly recover from the sleep state at a predetermined time prior to a next image pickup operation by the image pickup unit during execution of a time lapse photographing wherein the image pickup unit operates at a constant time interval.

6. A microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, comprising:

an image pickup unit for picking up images;

a timer unit for measuring a time of an absence of an input operation to an operation unit for operating at least one of the image pickup unit and a display unit;

a judgment unit for judging whether a change has occurred between first exposure control information obtained from a first image picked up by the image pickup unit at a first clock time and second exposure control information obtained from a second image picked up by the image pickup unit at a second clock time;

a selection unit for selecting one of a shift to a sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and an extension of time to shifting to the sleep state, according to an input instruction if the time measured by the timer unit is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state and if the judgment unit judges that no change has occurred between the first exposure control information obtained from the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second exposure control information obtained from the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, wherein all three of the shift to the sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and the extension of time to shifting to the sleep state are available as selections which are selectable by the selection unit; and

a control unit for controlling the microscope-use digital camera to one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, based on the time measured by the timer unit, an output of the judgment unit, and the selection by the selection unit;

wherein the control unit controls the microscope-use digital camera to;

(i) one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, according to the selection by the selection unit, when the time measured by the timer unit is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judgment unit judges that no change has occurred between the first exposure control information obtained from the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second exposure control information obtained from the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, and (ii) not shift to the sleep state when the time measured by the timer unit is greater than or equal to a preset time and the judgment unit judges that a change has occurred between the first exposure control information obtained from the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second exposure control information obtained from the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time.

7. A control method for a microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, said method comprising:

measuring a time of an absence of an input operation to an operation unit for operating at least one of an image pickup unit and a display unit;

judging whether a change has occurred between a first image picked up at a first clock time and a second image picked up at a second clock time which is after the first clock time;

selecting one of a shift to a sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and an extension of time to shifting to the sleep state, according to an input instruction if the measured time is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state and if it is judged that no change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, wherein all three of the shift to the sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and the extension of time to shifting to the sleep state are available as selections which are selectable; and

controlling the microscope-use digital camera to one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, based on the measured time, an output of the judging operation, and the selection;

wherein the microscope-use digital camera is controlled to;

(i) one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, according to the selection, when the measured time is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judging operation judges that no change has occurred between the first image picked up at the first clock time and the second image picked up at the second clock time, and (ii) not shift to the sleep state when the measured time is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judging operation judges that a change has occurred between the first image picked up at the first clock time and the second image picked up at the second clock time.

8. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having a program stored thereon that is executable by a microscope-use digital camera equipped with a sleep function, wherein the program controls the microscope-use digital camera to execute functions comprising:

measuring a time of an absence of an input operation to an operation unit for operating at least one of an image pickup unit and a display unit;

judging whether a change has occurred between a first image picked up at a first clock time and a second image picked up at a second clock time which is after the first clock time;

selecting one of a shift to a sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and an extension of time to shifting to the sleep state, according to an input instruction if the measured time is equal to or greater than a preset time until shifting to the sleep state and if it is judged that no change has occurred between the first image picked up by the image pickup unit at the first clock time and the second image picked up by the image pickup unit at the second clock time, wherein all three of the shift to the sleep state, no shift to the sleep state, and the extension of time to shifting to the sleep state are available as selections which are selectable; and

controlling the microscope-use digital camera to one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, based on the measured time, an output of the judging operation, and the selection;

wherein the microscope-use digital camera is controlled to;

(i) one of shift to the sleep state, not shift to the sleep state, and extend the time to shifting to the sleep state, according to the selection, when the measured time is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judging operation judges that no change has occurred between the first image picked up at the first clock time and the second image picked up at the second clock time, and (ii) not shift to the sleep state when the measured time is greater than or equal to the preset time and the judging operation judges that a change has occurred between the first image picked up at the first clock time and the second image picked up at the second clock time.