IMAGING APPARATUS AND IMAGING METHOD

• US 20080211921A1
• Filed: 09/17/2007
• Published: 09/04/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Tsuruta, Masaaki, Sako, Yoichiro, Ito, Taiji, Asukai, Masamichi
• Granted Patent: US 8,294,776 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/207.1
• 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

Abstract

Disclosed herein is an imaging apparatus including imaging means confitured to photograph an image of a scene that is in a direction in which a user sees, outside world information acquisition means confitured to acquire outside world information, and control means confitured to control an operation of the imaging means based on the outside world information acquired by the outside world information acquisition means.

Claims

1. An imaging apparatus, comprising:

imaging means confitured to photograph an image of a scene that is in a direction in which a user sees;

outside world information acquisition means confitured to acquire outside world information; and

control means confitured to control an operation of said imaging means based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means.

2. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising display means confitured to display the image photographed by said imaging means.

3. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising recording means confitured to record the image photographed by said imaging means on a storage medium.

4. The imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said control means controls said recording means to start or terminate recording based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means.

5. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising transmission means confitured to transmit the image photographed by said imaging means to an external device.

6. The imaging apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said control means controls said transmission means to start or terminate transmission based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means.

7. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said imaging means includes a CCD sensor or a CMOS sensor as an imaging device.

8. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means is a sensor configured to detect a situation of a surrounding environment as the outside world information.

9. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means is a sensor configured to detect information concerning an imaging object of said imaging means as the outside world information.

10. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means acquires current position information as the outside world information.

11. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means acquires a current date and time as the outside world information.

12. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means acquires the outside world information via communication with an external device.

13. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said outside world information acquisition means acquires the outside world information via image analysis performed on the image photographed by said imaging means.

14. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of a brightness, temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, or weather of surroundings.

15. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of a distance to an imaging object of said imaging means.

16. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information or energy of infrared rays emitted by an imaging object of said imaging means.

17. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information or energy of ultraviolet rays emitted by an imaging object of said imaging means.

18. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information for identifying an imaging object of said imaging means.

19. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information for identifying a person, an animal, a structure, a natural object, or a device as an imaging object of said imaging means.

20. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of a motion of an imaging object of said imaging means.

21. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information for identifying an individual person as an imaging object of said imaging means.

22. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information for determining whether an imaging object of said imaging means includes a letter.

23. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of a place corresponding to a current position.

24. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of a structure or a natural object in an area corresponding to a current position.

25. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of brightness or clearness of the image photographed by said imaging means.

26. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means is information of brightness or clearness of a part of the image photographed by said imaging means.

27. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls activation and deactivation of an imaging operation in said imaging means.

28. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts an angle of view of said imaging means between telephoto and wide-angle extremes.

29. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts a focus in said imaging means.

30. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts imaging sensitivity in said imaging means.

31. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts infrared imaging sensitivity in said imaging means.

32. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts ultraviolet imaging sensitivity in said imaging means.

33. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts imaging sensitivity in a part of an imaging device in said imaging means.

34. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means adjusts a frame rate in said imaging means.

35. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls an operation of a photographic lens system in said imaging means.

36. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said control means controls an operation of an imaging signal processing section that processes an imaging signal obtained by an imaging device in said imaging means.

37. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

illumination means confitured to provide illumination in the direction in which the user sees,

wherein, based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means, said control means controls an operation of providing illumination performed by said illumination means.

38. The imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

speech synthesis means confitured to perform speech synthesis based on a letter included in the image photographed by said imaging means to generate synthesized speech; and

audio output means confitured to output the synthesized speech generated by said speech synthesis means,

wherein, based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition means, said control means controls an operation of outputting the synthesized speech generated by said speech synthesis means.

39. An imaging method employed by an imaging apparatus that includes imaging means confitured to photograph an image of a scene that is in a direction in which a user sees, the method comprising the steps of:

acquiring outside world information; and

controlling an operation of the imaging means based on the outside world information acquired in said acquiring.

40. An imaging apparatus, comprising:

an imaging section configured to photograph an image of a scene that is in a direction in which a user sees;

an outside world information acquisition section configured to acquire outside world information; and

a control section configured to control an operation of said imaging section based on the outside world information acquired by said outside world information acquisition section.