HEAD SEPARATED CAMERA APPARATUS

• US 20110050877A1
• Filed: 04/28/2010
• Published: 03/03/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukumoto, Junya, Shinozaki, Hiroshi, Ookubo, Masatoshi, Tashiro, Kei, Irikura, Hiroyuki, Tsuda, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 8,040,374 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/183 for receiving images from a single remote source

Abstract

According to one embodiment, a head-separated device has an imaging unit, a control unit configured to control the imaging unit and a connection unit configured to connect the imaging unit with the control unit, wherein the imaging unit comprises sensor configured to capture an image, and a transmitter configured to transmit a video signal, a sync signal (HD, VD) and a clock signal to restore or to reproduce the image captured by the sensor, and the control unit comprises a determining module configured to determine whether a waveform of the video signal has a level that the video processor is processable, and a setting module configured to set the transmitter to perform enhancement correction to the video signal, if the determining module determines that the waveform of the video signal does not have the level that the video processor is processable.

Claims

1. A head-separated camera device comprising an imaging unit, a control unit configured to control the imaging unit, and a connection unit configured to connect the imaging unit with the control unit, wherein

the imaging unit comprises

a sensor configured to capture an image, and

a transmitter configured to transmit a video signal, a sync signal (HD, VD) and a clock signal to restore or to reproduce the image captured by the sensor, and

the control unit comprises

a receiver configured to receive the video signal, the sync signal and the clock signal,

a video processor configured to perform an imaging process with the video signal, the sync signal and the clock signal received by the receiver,

a timing signal generator configured to output a driving sync signal and a driving clock signal to the sensor,

a determining module configured to determine whether a waveform of the video signal has a level that the video processor is processable, and

a setting module configured to set the transmitter to perform enhancement correction to the video signal, if the determining module determines that the waveform of the video signal does not have the level that the video processor is processable.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein if the determining module determines that the waveform of the video signal does not have the level that the video processor is processable after the enhancement correction is performed, the setting module is configured to set the transmitter to perform amplitude correction to the video signal in addition to the enhancement correction.

3. The device of claim 2, wherein the control unit comprises a gain correction module configured to perform gain correction to the video signal, in addition to the enhancement correction and the amplitude correction to the video signal by the transmitter, if the determining module determines that the waveform of the video signal does not have the level that the video processor is processable after the enhancement correction and the amplitude correction set by the setting module are performed.

4. The device of claim 3, wherein the determining module is configured to determine a length of the connection unit based on a difference in phase between the sync signal received by the receiver and the driving sync signal, determine whether the waveform of the video signal has the level that is processable by the video processor in accordance with the length of the connection unit, and set ON/OFF of each of the enhancement correction, the amplitude correction and the gain correction in accordance with the length of the connection unit.

5. The device of claim 3, wherein:

the control unit comprises a first voltage supply module configured to supply a voltage to the imaging unit;

the imaging unit comprises a second voltage supply module which configured to return the voltage supply from the first voltage supply module to the determining module; and

the determining module is configured to calculate an amount of voltage drop from a difference between the voltage supplied by the first voltage supply module and the voltage returned from the second voltage supply module, determines the length of the connection unit based on the amount of the voltage drop, determine whether the waveform of the video signal has the level that is processable by the video processor in accordance with the length of the connection unit, and set ON/OFF of each of the enhancement correction, the amplitude correction and the gain correction in accordance with the length of the connection unit.

6. The device of claim 3, wherein:

the control unit comprises a selecting module configured to select the length of the connection unit; and

the determining module is configured to determine the length of the connection unit based on the length of the connection unit selected by the selecting module, determine whether the waveform of the video signal has the level that is processable by the video processor in accordance with the length of the connection unit, and set ON/OFF of each of the enhancement correction, the amplitude correction and the gain correction in accordance with the length of the connection unit.

7. The device of claim 3, wherein:

the imaging unit comprises a test pattern generator configured to generate a test pattern, which is transmitted from the transmitter to the receiver; and

the determining module is configured to determine that the waveform of the video signal has the level that is processable by the video processor if the determining module determines that the test pattern includes no error, and determine that the waveform of the video signal does not have the level that is processable by the video processor if the determining module determines that the test pattern includes an error.

8. The device of claim 7, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the test pattern to the receiver when the imaging unit and the control unit are powered on.

9. The device of claim 7, wherein the transmitter is configured to transmit the test pattern in a blanking period of the sync signal to the receiver when the imaging unit and the control unit are operating.

10. The device of claim 4, wherein the control unit comprises a memory configured to store information indicating ON/OFF of the enhancement correction, the amplitude correction and the gain correction in association with the length of the connection unit.