Image capturing system and image capturing method

• US 8,045,007 B2
• Filed: 12/22/2005
• Issued: 10/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/24/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Gotohda, Yukita
• Primary Examiner(s): Chan; Jason
• Assistant Examiner(s): OSINSKI, MICHAEL S
• Application Number:
  US11/313,681
• Publication Number:
  US 20060158534A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,133 Days
• Field of Search: 348/14.16, 348 94- 95, 348143-160, 3482071-20711, 348/211.99, 348/211.2, 348/231.99, 3482312-2316, 348/239, 348/61, 707/741, 455/412.1, 340/995.24, 701207-208
• US Class Current: 348/207.11
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/61 based on recognised objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/635 Region indicators; Field of view indicators
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet

Abstract

An image capturing system can provide an image having the desirable composition captured by an image capturing apparatus to the user is provided.

The image capturing system includes: an image capturing unit; a composition storage section for storing a plurality of compositions of the image captured by the image capturing unit; plurality of position indication units for indicating a position at which a main subject should be located in order to capture an image having the composition stored in the composition storage section; and a composition presentation section for presenting the composition of the image captured by the image capturing unit for the plurality of position indication units when the main subject is located at the position indicated by the position indication unit. The image capturing unit is fixedly installed in a predetermined position. The plurality of position indication units have a plurality of position indication mark units drawn on the positions at which the main subject should be located in each of the plurality of compositions stored in the composition storage section.

Claims

1. An image capturing system comprising:

a composition storage section for storing a plurality of compositions which identify a background image and a position in the background image of a main subject;

a composition determination section for determining a composition desirable to a user among the plurality of compositions;

an image capturing unit for capturing an image of the main subject having the composition determined by the composition determination section;

a position identification section for identifying at least one of the position of the image capturing unit and the position of the main subject based on the composition determined by the composition determination section;

a position presentation section for presenting to the user at least one of the position at which the image capturing unit is located and the position at which the main subject is located at a time that the image capturing unit captures the image, which are identified by the position identification section;

a portable unit detection section for detecting a portable unit that is held by a person, who is a main subject of an image, and is located in a predetermined region within which the image having the determined composition can be captured by the image capturing unit;

the position identification section identifies the position at which the person holding the detected portable unit is to be located when the image capturing unit captures the image having the determined composition so that the person can select the desirable composition; and

when the portable unit detection section detects the portable unit within the predetermined region, the position presentation section transmits the identified position to the portable unit and the portable unit presents the received identified position to the person so that the person can take the image having the determined composition.

2. The image capturing system according to claim 1, wherein the composition determination section selects the composition selected by a user among the plurality of compositions stored in the composition storage sections.

3. The image capturing system according to claim 2 further comprising:

an image capturing unit information storage section for storing information indicative of the type of the image capturing unit;

an image capturing condition determination section for determining an image capturing condition of the image capturing unit based on the composition determined by the composition determination section and the information indicative of the type of the image capturing unit stored in the image capturing unit information storage section; and

an image capturing condition presentation section for presenting the image capturing condition of the image capturing unit determined by the image capturing condition determination section.

4. The image capturing system according to claim 2, wherein

the image capturing unit is fixedly installed in a predetermined position;

the composition storage section stores a plurality of compositions in which the position or size of the subject in each image captured by the image capturing unit are different, respectively;

the position identification section identifies the position of the main subject based on the position or size of the main subject in the composition determined by the composition determination section; and

the position presentation section presents the position of the main subject identified by the position identification section.

5. The image capturing system according to claim 4 further comprising:

a position storage section for storing the position of the main subject in association with the plurality of compositions stored in the composition storage section; and

a mark unit provided at the position of the main subject stored in the position storage section, wherein

the position identification section selects the position of the main subject stored in the position storage section in association with the composition determined by the composition determination section, and

the position presentation section identifies the mark unit provided at the main subject selected by the position identification section.

6. The image capturing system according to claim 5 further comprising:

a portable unit held by the main subject; and

a portable unit detection section for receiving within a predetermined region including the mark unit, a radio signal outputted from the portable unit and detecting that the portable unit is located in the predetermined region, wherein

the position presentation section presents information for identifying the mark unit provided at the position of the main subject selected by the position identification section when the portable unit detection section detects that the portable unit is located in the predetermined region.

7. The image capturing system according to claim 6, wherein

the mark unit is drawn on the position of the main subject selected by the position identification section along with information for identifying the mark unit, and

the position presentation section transmits the information for identifying the mark unit provided at the position of the main subject selected by the position identification section to the portable unit and causes the portable unit to display the same.

8. The image capturing system according to claim 6, wherein

the mark unit has a light emitting section for emitting light, and

the position presentation section causes the mark unit provided at the position of the main subject selected by the position identification section to light.

9. The image capturing system according to claim 1 further comprising a map image storage section for storing a three-dimensional map image, wherein

the composition determination section determines a composition including a background image of the main subject, and

the position identification section compares the background image of the main subject included in the composition determined by the composition determination section with the three-dimensional map image stored in the map image storage section to identify the position of the image capturing unit.

14. The image capturing system according to claim 1, further comprising a portable unit that is held by the user and that identifies a current position of the user, wherein

the position presentation section presents to the user the current position of the user and at least one of the position at which the image capturing unit is located and the position at which the main subject is located at a time that the image capturing unit captures the image, which are identified by the position identification section.

10. An image capturing system comprising:

an image capturing unit;

a composition determination section for determining a composition of an image to be captured by the image capturing unit;

a position identification section for identifying at least one of the position of the image capturing unit and the position of a main subject based on the composition determined by the composition determination section;

a position presentation section for presenting at least one of the position of the image capturing unit and the position of the main subject which are identified by the position identification section;

a position acquiring section for acquiring one of the position to which the image capturing unit is fixed and the position to which the main subject is fixed near the position presented by the position presentation section;

a map image storage section for storing a three-dimensional map image; and

a composition redetermination section for determining again a composition of the image to be captured by the image capturing unit based on the composition determined by the composition determining section, the three-dimensional map image stored in the map image storage section and the position acquired by the position acquiring section, wherein the position identification unit identifies an other of the position of the image capturing unit and the position of the main subject based on the composition determined by the composition redetermination section.

11. The image capturing system according to claim 10, wherein

the position acquiring section acquires the position to which the image capturing unit is fixed near the position presented by the position presentation section,

the composition redetermination section determines the composition which allow the image capturing unit to capture the main subject and other subjects in the positional relationship approximately the same as the positional relationship between the main subject and the other subjects in the composition determined by the composition determination section based on the composition determined by the composition determination section, the three-dimensional map image stored in the map image storage section and the position of the image capturing unit acquired by the position acquiring section, and

the position identification section identifies the position of the main subject based on the composition determined by the composition redetermination section.

12. The image capturing system according to claim 10, wherein

the position acquiring section acquires the position to which the main subject is fixed near the position presented by the position presentation section,

the composition redetermination section determines the composition that allows the image capturing unit to capture the main subject and other subjects in the positional relationship approximately the same as the positional relationship between the main subject and the other subjects in the composition determined by the composition determination section based on the composition determined by the composition determination section, the three-dimensional map image stored in the map image storage section and the position of the main subject acquired by the position acquiring section, and

the position identification section identifies the position of the image capturing unit based on the composition determined by the composition redetermination section.

13. An image capturing method comprising:

storing a plurality of compositions which identify a background image and a position in the background image of a main subject in a composition storage section;

determining a composition desirable to a user among the plurality of compositions;

capturing by an image capturing unit an image of the main subject having the composition determined;

identifying at least one of the position of the image capturing unit and the position of the main subject based on the composition determined in the determining of the composition; and

presenting to the user at least one of the position at which the image capturing unit is located and the position at which the main subject is located at a time that the image capturing unit captures the image, identified in the identifying of the position;

detecting a portable unit that is held by a person, who is a main subject of an image, and is located in a predetermined region within which the image having the determined composition can be captured by the image capturing unit;

identifying the position at which the person holding a detected portable unit is to be located when the image capturing unit captures the image having the determined composition so that the person can select a desirable composition; and

when the portable unit is detected within the predetermined region, transmitting the identified position to the portable unit which presents the identified position to the person so that the person can take the image having the determined composition.