Pictures using voice commands and automatic upload

• US 9,936,116 B2
• Filed: 06/21/2016
• Issued: 04/03/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/17/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cutting Edge Vision LLC
• Original Assignee: Cutting Edge Vision LLC
• Inventors: Konicek, Jeffrey C.
• Primary Examiner(s): FULLER, RODNEY EVAN
• Application Number:
  US15/188,736
• Publication Number:
  US 20160301851A1
• Time in Patent Office: 651 Days
• Field of Search: 396 56
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 13/02 Viewfinders
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/02 Bodies
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 29/00 Combinations of cameras, projectors or photographic printing apparatus with non-photographic non-optical apparatus, e.g. clocks or weapons; Cameras having the shape of other objects combinations with flash apparatus G03B15/03
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 31/06 in which sound track is associated with successively-shown still pictures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 17/22 Interactive procedures; Man-machine interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 2015/223 Execution procedure of a spoken command
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42204 Arrangements at the exchange for service or number selection by voice at the terminal H04M1/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00095 Systems or arrangements for the transmission of the picture signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00209 Transmitting or receiving image data, e.g. facsimile data, via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network, the internet, I-fax
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00212 Attaching image data to computer messages, e.g. to e-mails
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/57 Mechanical or electrical details of cameras or camera modules specially adapted for being embedded in other devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/611 where the recognised objects include parts of the human body
• 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 23/64 : Computer-aided capture of images, e.g. transfer from script file into camera, check of taken image quality, advice or proposal for image composition or decision on when to take image
• 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

Abstract

A system and method is disclosed for enabling user friendly interaction with a camera system. Specifically, the inventive system and method has several aspects to improve the interaction with a camera system, including voice recognition, gaze tracking, touch sensitive inputs and others. The voice recognition unit is operable for, among other things, receiving multiple different voice commands, recognizing the vocal commands, associating the different voice commands to one camera command and controlling at least some aspect of the digital camera operation in response to these voice commands. The gaze tracking unit is operable for, among other things, determining the location on the viewfinder image that the user is gazing upon. One aspect of the touch sensitive inputs provides that the touch sensitive pad is mouse-like and is operable for, among other things, receiving user touch inputs to control at least some aspect of the camera operation. Another aspect of the disclosed invention provides for gesture recognition to be used to interface with and control the camera system.

Claims

1. A camera system comprising:

(a) a camera that is operable to take and store pictures, and that includes;

(i) a lens, (ii) an image sensor, (iii) at least one microphone, (iv) a voice recognizer, (v) a controller, (vi) a cellular interface, and (vii) a touch sensitive display;

(b) the controller including a control program having instructions to control and respond to the voice recognizer;

(c) the voice recognizer coupled to the at least one microphone and the controller, and configured to receive and process sounds into recognized words;

(d) the camera further configured to maintain and store a plurality of recognizable words having different plain meanings and commonly associated with taking a picture, the recognition of any of which will cause the camera to take a picture;

(e) wherein the voice recognizer is operable to receive a first and a second human sound spoken by the same person, and the voice recognizer is operable to recognize using speaker-independent voice-recognition;

(i) the first human sound as a first human spoken word from among the plurality, the recognized first human spoken word being assigned by the control program to be a command for the camera to take a picture, and

(ii) the second human sound as a second human spoken word from among the plurality, the recognized second human spoken word being different from the first human spoken word and also simultaneously assigned by the control program to be the same camera command to take a picture;

(f) the controller configured to;

(i) cause the camera to take a picture in response to the voice recognizer recognizing either the first or second human spoken word and to save the picture in a local memory in the camera;

(ii) receive, via the touch sensitive display, a user selection of an upload option that instructs the device to confine automatic picture upload to periods without potential cellular network access fees; and

(ii) automatically upload designated pictures previously selected from among a group of pictures saved in the local memory of the camera, the designated pictures uploaded via the cellular interface and an internet connection from the camera system to a user-selected account associated with an email address at an internet picture hosting website as instructed by a user of the camera, but the automatic upload occurring only if predetermined conditions are met, the predetermined conditions including at least the controller receiving;

(1) an indication from the cellular interface that the upload is acceptable based on the selected upload option;

(2) an indication from the cellular interface that the system can make an internet connection via the cellular interface; and

(3) an indication from the local memory that a user has elected an option to designate at least one picture from the group of pictures saved in the local memory to be uploaded to the internet picture hosting website.

2. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the system further comprises a cell phone.

3. The camera system of claim 2 wherein the controller is configured to determine if the recognized word is for one of either a camera operation or a cell phone operation.

4. The camera system of claim 2 wherein the voice recognizer is configured to recognize at least one spoken word to control dialing of the cell phone.

5. The camera system of claim 2 wherein the voice recognizer is configured to recognize spoken words in association with text messaging over the cell phone.

6. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the controller is further configured to execute an internet browser program and display the internet picture hosting website on the touch sensitive display.

7. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of recognizable words having different plain meanings and commonly associated with taking a picture are preassigned.

8. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the camera is configured to learn words from user input for the voice recognizer to recognize and for the controller to associate with specific commands.

9. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the camera includes an indicator that is activated if the voice recognizer is unable to recognize a command from a sound received at the microphone.

10. The camera system of claim 1 wherein one of the words is “

snap”

.

11. The camera system of claim 1 wherein one of the words is “

cheese”

.

12. The camera system of claim 1 wherein one of the words is “

shoot”

.

13. The camera system of claim 1 wherein one of the words is “

click”

.

14. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the voice recognizer is configured to receive and process a third human sound to be recognized as a third word that is different from the first and second words and is used by the control program to perform a second camera command.

15. The camera system of claim 14 wherein the controller is configured to delay the second camera command for an intentional period of time after the voice recognizer recognizes the third word.

16. The camera system of claim 1 further comprising a zoom lens coupled to the controller, wherein the controller is configured to accept user input from the touch sensitive display screen to determine the amount of zoom to be imparted to the zoom lens.

17. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the controller is configured to receive input regarding focus of the lens from the touch sensitive display.

18. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the controller is configured to cause pictures to be uploaded over the internet for storage at an internet picture hosting website and to be transmitted to another party.

19. The camera system of claim 1 wherein the controller is configured to enable the user to select specific pictures saved in the local memory to be uploaded to the internet picture hosting website.