Digital camera and image combination device

• US 8,564,691 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2012
• Issued: 10/22/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nikon Corporation
• Inventors: Tsuda, Yutaka, Ogawa, Hidehiro
• Primary Examiner(s): CUTLER, ALBERT H
• Application Number:
  US13/529,652
• Publication Number:
  US 20120262605A1
• Time in Patent Office: 488 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 348/230.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/70 Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/741 by increasing the dynamic range of the image compared to the dynamic range of the electronic image sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/587 acquired sequentially, e.g. using the combination of odd and even image fields
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8227 the additional signal being at least another television signal

Abstract

The digital camera includes: a storage unit that stores a plurality of images captured by an image sensor when a multiple exposure photographic mode is set; a gain impartation unit that imparts, to the plurality of captured images, gains based upon the number of shots of multiple exposure photography and determined so that their sum equals unity; and a combination unit that creates a multiple exposure photographic image by combining the plurality of images, after the gains have been imparted by the gain impartation unit.

Claims

1. A digital camera, comprising:

a shooting completion determination unit that determines whether shooting is completed in a multiple exposure photographic mode for capturing a plurality of images for multiple exposure, and confirms a number of images captured during the multiple exposure photographic mode after determining that shooting is completed in the multiple exposure photographic mode;

a gain calculation unit that, if it is determined by the shooting completion determination unit that shooting in the multiple exposure photographic mode is completed, calculates gains such that a sum of the gains becomes 1, based on the number of the images confirmed by the shooting completion determination unit;

a gain impartation unit that imparts the calculated gains in the plurality of images for multiple exposure respectively; and

a combination unit that creates a multiple exposure photographic image by combining the plurality of images for multiple exposure, after the gains have been imparted by the gain impartation unit.

2. A digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising:

a changeover unit that changes over between effectiveness or ineffectiveness of gain impartation by the gain impartation unit, wherein

when gain impartation is made effective by the changeover unit, the gain impartation unit imparts the gains to the plurality of images that have been captured.

3. A digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image processing unit that executes various types of image processing upon the multiple exposure photographic image created by the combination unit.

4. A digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising:

a recording control unit that, when performing processing to record the multiple exposure photographic image that has been combined by the combination unit upon a recording medium, records original images before combination that are stored in the storage unit upon the recording medium along with the multiple exposure photographic image.

5. A digital camera according to claim 1, further comprising:

a number of shots for multiple exposure setting unit that sets a number of shots for multiple exposure;

an interruption unit that interrupts image capture before image capture of the number of shots for multiple exposure is completed, wherein;

the shooting completion determination unit determines that shooting is completed in the multiple exposure photographic mode when the number of shots for multiple exposure have been completed or the interruption unit has interrupted image capture before image capture of the number of shots for multiple exposure is completed.

6. A digital camera according to claim 1, wherein:

the gain calculation unit calculates the gains so that the later an image is captured, the smaller a gain for the image becomes.

7. A digital camera according to claim 1, wherein:

the gain calculation unit calculates the gains so that the later an image is captured, the larger a gain for the image becomes.

8. The digital camera according to claim 1, wherein the shooting completion determination unit determines that shooting is completed in the multiple exposure photographic mode when shooting in the multiple exposure photographic mode is interrupted.

9. A digital camera, comprising:

a storage unit that stores a plurality of images captured by an image sensor when a multiple exposure photographic mode is set;

a shooting completion determination unit that determines whether shooting is completed in the multiple exposure photographic mode;

a gain impartation unit that, if it is determined by the shooting completion determination unit that shooting in the multiple exposure photographic mode is completed, calculates gains such that a sum of the gains becomes 1, based on a number of shots captured in the multiple exposure photographic mode, and imparts the calculated gains in the plurality of images;

a combination unit that creates a multiple exposure photographic image by combining the plurality of images, after the gains have been imparted by the gain impartation unit; and

an interrupt command unit that interrupts image capture before image capture of the number of shots for multiple exposure photography is completed, wherein;

when image capture has been interrupted by the interrupt command unit before image capture of the number of shots for multiple exposure photography is completed, the gain impartation unit calculates gains such that a sum of the gains becomes 1, based upon a number of shots that have been captured up to a point of interruption, and imparts the calculated gains in the plurality of images up to the point of interruption; and

the combination unit combines the plurality of images that have been captured up to the point of interruption, to create a multiple exposure photographic image.