Image capturing system, image capturing device, and image capturing method

• US 8,965,195 B2
• Filed: 06/13/2014
• Issued: 02/24/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kashiwa, Kotaro, Marukawa, Kazuyuki, Ohzeki, Yukihiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Laballe, Clayton E
• Assistant Examiner(s): Smith, Linda B
• Application Number:
  US14/303,754
• Publication Number:
  US 20140293078A1
• Time in Patent Office: 256 Days
• US Class Current: 396/325
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/60 Control of cameras or camera modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/63 by using electronic viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/661 Transmitting camera control signals through networks, e.g. control via the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/662 by using master/slave camera arrangements for affecting the control of camera image capture, e.g. placing the camera in a desirable condition to capture a desired image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/667 Camera operation mode switching, e.g. between still and video, sport and normal or high- and low-resolution modes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/90 Arrangement of cameras or camera modules, e.g. multiple cameras in TV studios or sports stadiums
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/765 Interface circuits between an apparatus for recording and another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/772 the recording apparatus and the television camera being placed in the same enclosure
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/188 Capturing isolated or intermittent images triggered by the occurrence of a predetermined event, e.g. an object reaching a predetermined position signal generation from motion picture films H04N5/253

Abstract

To enable satisfactory simultaneous and widely varied pictures to be obtained, for example, by allowing a common user to obtain an overall picture while the common user performing desired image capturing, or the like. A first image capturing device image-captures a subject to record this image, and also transmits a trigger signal to a second image capturing device. The second image capturing device image-captures an image to record this image in accordance with the trigger signal. Thus, the first and second image capturing devices enable both of an overall image and a zoomed image to be obtained with simultaneous timing.

Claims

1. A first image capturing device comprising:

an image capturing circuitry configured to capture a first image of an object with a timing specified by a capturing operation or a capturing program; and

a transmission circuitry configured to transmit at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device and a trigger signal to a second image capturing device, wherein at least the trigger signal is automatically transmitted when the capturing operation or the capturing program is executed;

wherein the trigger signal is for instructing the second image capturing device to capture a second image of a scene including the object with said timing and the second image is recorded in association with the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device.

2. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device is an apparatus identifying information of the first image capturing device.

3. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device is meta-data which the first image capturing device generates.

4. The first image capturing device according to claim 3, wherein the meta-data is date-and-time information.

5. The first image capturing device according to claim 3, wherein the meta-data is positional information.

6. The first image capturing device according to claim 3, wherein the meta-data is numbering information.

7. The first image capturing device according to claim 3, wherein the meta-data is information which has been input beforehand.

8. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein one of the first image and the second image is captured in a zoomed-in state.

9. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission circuitry transmits the first image to the second image capturing device.

10. The first image capturing device according to claim 9, wherein the transmitted first image is recorded in association with the second image.

11. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the transmission circuitry configured to transmit a power control signal, for controlling a power status of the second image capturing device, to the second image capturing device.

12. The first image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the image capturing circuitry is a CMOS sensor array.

13. The first image capturing device according to claim 1,

wherein the first image capturing device is capable of capturing a moving image,

wherein the second image capturing device is capable of capturing a moving image.

14. The first image capturing device according to claim 1,

wherein the image capturing circuitry captures a moving image as the first image of the object with a timing specified by a capturing operation or a capturing program,

wherein the second image capturing device captures a still image as the second image on the basis of the transmitted trigger signal.

15. An image capturing method for a first image capturing device comprising:

capturing, by the first capturing apparatus, a first image of an object with a timing specified by a capturing operation or a capturing program;

transmitting, by the first image capturing apparatus, at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device and a trigger signal to a second image capturing device, wherein at least the trigger signal is automatically transmitted when the capturing operation or the capturing program is executed; and

wherein the trigger signal is for instructing the second image capturing device to capture a second image of a scene including the object with said timing and the second image is recorded in association with the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device.

16. A second image capturing device comprising:

an image capturing circuitry configured to capture an image;

a reception circuitry configured to receive at least one additional information related to a first image capturing device and a trigger signal from the first image capturing device, wherein at least the trigger signal is automatically transmitted when a capturing operation or a capturing program to capture a first image of an object is executed on the first image capturing device; and

a control circuitry configured to control the image capturing circuitry to capture a second image of a scene including the object in response to receiving the trigger signal and to record the second image in association with the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device.

17. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device is an apparatus identifying information of the first image capturing device.

18. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device is meta-data which the first image capturing device generates.

19. The second image capturing device according to claim 18, wherein the meta-data is date-and-time information.

20. The second image capturing device according to claim 18, wherein the meta-data is positional information.

21. The second image capturing device according to claim 18, wherein the meta-data is numbering information.

22. The second image capturing device according to claim 18, wherein the meta-data is information which has been input beforehand.

23. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein one of the first image and the second image is captured in a zoomed-in state.

24. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein the reception circuitry receives the first image from the first image capturing device.

25. The second image capturing device according to claim 24, wherein the transmitted first image is recorded in association with the second image.

26. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein the reception circuitry configured to receive a power control signal, for controlling a power status of the second image capturing device, from the first image capturing device.

27. The second image capturing device according to claim 16, wherein the image capturing circuitry is a CMOS sensor array.

28. The second image capturing device according to claim 16,

wherein the first image capturing device is capable of capturing a moving image,

wherein the second image capturing device is capable of capturing a moving image.

29. The second image capturing device according to claim 16,

wherein the first image capturing device captures a moving image as the first image of the object when a capturing operation or a capturing program is executed on the first image capturing device,

wherein the control circuitry controls the image capturing circuitry to capture a still image as the second image of the scene including the object in response to receiving the trigger signal.

30. A method of capturing an image by a second image capturing device comprising the steps of:

capturing an image;

receiving at least one additional information related to a first image capturing device and a trigger signal from the first image capturing device, wherein at least the trigger signal is automatically transmitted when a capturing operation or a capturing program to capture a first image of an object is executed on the first image capturing device; and

controlling capture of a second image of a scene including the object in response to receiving the trigger signal and recording the second image in association with the at least one additional information related to the first image capturing device.