Method and apparatus for operating camera function in portable terminal

• US 9,485,421 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2013
• Issued: 11/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Cheong, Cheol-Ho, Kim, Dong-Hoon
• Primary Examiner(s): Jerabek, Kelly L
• Application Number:
  US14/104,146
• Publication Number:
  US 20140098257A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,055 Days
• Field of Search: 34833301-33312, 348/373
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/52 including functional features of a camera constructional features concerning the integration of cameras in portable phones H04M1/0264
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/45 for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• 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

Abstract

A method and an apparatus for operating a camera function in a portable terminal are provided. State information representing at least one of a direction and a rotation state of the portable terminal is obtained, and at least one of a sequence of reading an image from a camera sensor and an appropriate user interface is determined depending on the state information. Thus, the camera function is performed depending on the determined sequence or user interface.

Claims

1. A portable device, comprising:

a touch screen display;

at least first and second image sensors; and

a controller configured to perform operations comprising;

obtaining a first image and a second image in real-time via the first and second image sensors, respectively, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

displaying, via the touch screen display, the second image over at least a portion of the first image;

thereafter, changing a displayed location of all regions of the second image and thereby displacing the second image in response to a user input, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

2. The portable device of claim 1, wherein:

the input is a touch related input manipulated by a user.

3. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

presenting a menu for a user to determine a shape corresponding to the second image, the menu including one or more selectable shape images.

4. The portable device of claim 3, wherein presenting the menu comprises:

acquiring an input corresponding to a shape image of the one or more selectable shape images; and

presenting the second image in the shape image of the one or more selectable shape images.

5. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise:

obtaining state information representing at least one of a direction or a rotation state of the touch screen display via at least one of an accelerometer sensor, a gyroscope sensor, a horizontal angle measuring sensor, a touch sensor, or a user interface.

6. The portable device of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

acquiring another input via at least one user interface key;

determining a function related to the other input based on state information of the portable device.

7. The portable device of claim 5, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a region of the touch screen display via which to present a shutter icon, based on state information of the portable device.

8. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the capture event comprises a shutter key input, a shutter icon input or the occurrence of an automatic capture condition input.

9. An apparatus comprising:

a touch screen display;

at least first and second image sensors; and

a controller configured to perform operations comprising;

obtaining a first image and a second image in real-time via the first and second image sensors, respectively, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

presenting the first image via a first region of the touch screen display;

editing, responsive to user input, a size of a particular object delineated within the first image relative to other portions of the first image;

presenting the second image via a second region of the touch screen display, the second region being within a boundary of the first region;

thereafter, displacing all regions of the second image responsive to user manipulation so that the second image appears integrated within the object of the first image, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein presenting the second image comprises:

determining a shape based on at least one of an input from a user or a specified scheme.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein presenting the second image comprises:

presenting the second image via a third region of the touch screen display based on another input to change a region corresponding to the second image.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the operations further comprise:

obtaining state information representing at least one of a direction or a rotation state of the touch screen display.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a region of the touch screen display via which to present a shutter icon, based on the state information.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the operations further comprise:

acquiring another input via at least one user interface key;

determining a function related to the other input based on the state information.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the function comprises at least one of a capturing function or a zooming function.

16. A method comprising:

obtaining a first image and a second image in real-time via at least one of a plurality of image sensors in response to a first user input, wherein the first image and the second image from the plurality of image sensors are displayed in real-time;

displaying, on a touch screen display, the second image over at least a portion of the first image;

thereafter, changing a displayed location of all regions of the second image and thereby displacing the second image in response to a second user input, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein displaying the second image comprises:

presenting a menu for a user to determine a shape corresponding to the second image;

acquiring a third input to determine the shape corresponding to the second image; and

presenting the second image in the shape determined by the user.

18. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

obtaining state information representing at least one of a direction or a rotation state of the touch screen display;

presenting a shutter icon on a region of the touch screen display based on a first state information; and

presenting the shutter icon on another region of the touch screen display based on a second state information.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

obtaining state information representing at least one of a direction or a rotation state of the touch screen display; and

determining a function related to a user interface key based on the state information.

20. An apparatus comprising:

a touch screen display;

at least first and second image sensors; and

a controller configured to perform operations comprising;

obtaining a first image and a second image in real-time via the first and second image sensors, respectively, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

editing, responsive to user input, a size of a particular object delineated within the first image relative to other portions of the first image;

displaying, via the touch screen display, the second image over a portion of the first image, and thereafter displacing all regions of the second image so that the second image appears integrated within the object;

displaying, via the touch screen display, the first image in a first region over a portion of the second image in response to a user input, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

21. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein:

the input is a touch related input manipulated by a user.

22. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the operations further comprise:

presenting a menu for a user to determine a shape corresponding to the second image.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein presenting the menu comprises:

acquiring another input to determine the shape corresponding to the second image; and

presenting the second image in the shape determined by the user.

24. The apparatus of claim 20, wherein the operations further comprise:

obtaining state information representing at least one of a direction or a rotation state of the touch screen display via at least one of an accelerometer sensor, a gyroscope sensor, a horizontal angle measuring sensor, a touch sensor, or a user interface.

25. The apparatus of claim 24, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining a region of the touch screen display via which to present a shutter icon, based on the state information.

26. A method in a portable device having at least first and second image sensors and a touch screen display, comprising:

obtaining a first image and a second image in real-time via the first and second image sensors, respectively, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

displaying the first image on the touch screen display and editing, responsive to user input, a size of a particular object delineated within the first image relative to other portions of the first image;

displaying the second image on the touch screen display over a portion of the first image, and thereafter, displacing all regions of the second image responsive to a user manipulation so that the second image appears integrated within the object of the first image, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

27. A portable terminal comprising:

a touch screen display;

a first camera mounted in a front side of the portable terminal for sub capturing;

a second camera mounted in a rear side of the portable terminal for background capturing; and

a controller configured to perform operations comprising;

obtaining a background image and a sub image real-time via the first and second cameras, respectively, wherein the background image and the sub image from the first and second cameras are displayed in real-time;

displaying the background image as a background on the touch screen display;

displaying the sub image on a predetermined region of the background image;

thereafter, changing a displayed location of all regions of the sub image and thereby displacing the sub image in response to an input associated with the sub image, so as to display a real time composite image;

thereafter, detecting a capture event in respect of the displayed real time composite image; and

responsive to the detected capture event, storing the composite image.

28. A portable device, comprising:

a touch screen display;

a first image sensor and a second image sensor; and

a controller configured to;

obtain a first image in real-time via the first image sensor, and a second image in real-time via the second image sensor, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

present, via the touch screen display, a real time third image generated using at least one portion of the first image overlapping at least one portion of the second image;

identify an input to capture the real time third image; and

store the third image in a memory operatively coupled with the controller in response to the input,

wherein the third image is acquired by changing a displayed location of all regions of the second image in response to a user input.

29. The portable device of claim 28, wherein the controller is further configured to control the touch screen display to display the second image over a portion of the first image, and thereafter, display the first image over a portion of the second image in response to a user input.

30. A portable device, comprising:

a touch screen display;

a first imagae sensor and a second image sensor; and

a controller configured to;

obtain a first image in real-time via the first image sensor, and a second image in real-time via the second image sensor, wherein the first image and the second image from the first and second image sensors are displayed in real-time;

present, via the touch screen display, a real time third image generated using at least one portion of the first image overlapping at least one portion of the second image;

identify an input to capture the real time third image; and

store the third image in a memory operatively coupled with the controller in response to the input,

wherein the third image is acquired by displacing all regions of the second image so that the second image appears integrated within a particular object delineated within the first image relative to other portions of the first image.