IMAGE PICKUP CONTROL APPARATUS, IMAGE PICKUP CONTROL METHOD AND PROGRAM

• US 20110157397A1
• Filed: 11/22/2010
• Published: 06/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/28/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: YOSHIZUMI, Shingo
• Granted Patent: US 8,605,158 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/38 Releasing-devices separate from shutter integral with shutter G03B9/08
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/16 Human faces, e.g. facial parts, sketches or expressions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0058 Docking-station, cradle or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/50 Constructional details
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/61 based on recognised objects
• 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 23/69 Control of means for changing angle of the field of view, e.g. optical zoom objectives or electronic zooming
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/695 Control of camera direction for changing a field of view, e.g. pan, tilt or based on tracking of objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/185 from a mobile camera, e.g. for remote control

Abstract

An image pickup control apparatus, includes: a trigger acceptance section adapted to accept a predetermined trigger input as a changeover input from an automatic image pickup mode to a request responding image pickup mode; and a request responding image pickup control section adapted to establish, when the trigger input is accepted by the trigger acceptance section while an image pickup apparatus is carrying out still picture image pickup operation with an image pickup visual field of the image pickup apparatus changed in the automatic image pickup mode, the request responding image pickup mode and control the image pickup apparatus to execute a process for determining an image pickup visual field in accordance with an image pickup request and then execute still picture image pickup operation after the determination of the image pickup visual field.

Claims

1. An image pickup control apparatus, comprising:

a trigger acceptance section adapted to accept a predetermined trigger input as a changeover input from an automatic image pickup mode to a request responding image pickup mode; and

a request responding image pickup control section adapted to establish, when the trigger input is accepted by said trigger acceptance section while an image pickup apparatus is carrying out still picture image pickup operation with an image pickup visual field of the image pickup apparatus changed in the automatic image pickup mode, the request responding image pickup mode and control the image pickup apparatus to execute a process for determining an image pickup visual field in accordance with an image pickup request and then execute still picture image pickup operation after the determination of the image pickup visual field.

2. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a picked up image recording control section adapted to control the still picture image pickup operation of the image pickup apparatus which carries out image pickup of an image pickup object and recording of picked up image data on or into a recording medium;

an image pickup visual field variation section adapted to change the image pickup visual field of the image pickup apparatus;

an image pickup visual field variation control section adapted to control the image pickup visual field variation section; and

an image pickup preparation processing section adapted to carry out a process of determining an image pickup visual field for still picture image pickup;

said request responding image pickup control section being operable to control, when the trigger input is accepted by said trigger acceptance section while the image pickup apparatus is carrying out still picture image pickup under the control of said picked up image recording control section while said image pickup visual field variation control section controls the image pickup visual field variation section in the automatic image pickup mode, said image pickup preparation processing section to execute a process of determining an image pickup visual field in accordance with the image pickup request in the request responding image pickup mode and cause a still picture image pickup operation to be executed under the control of said picked up image recording control section after the determination of the image pickup visual field.

3. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising

an image pickup prediction operation control section adapted to control execution of a prediction operation for predicting that still picture image pickup will be carried out,

said request responding image pickup control section being operable to control said image pickup preparation processing section to execute a process for determining an image pickup visual field for a request responding image pickup operation in the request responding image pickup mode, control, after the determination of the image pickup visual field, the prediction operation to be executed under the control of said image pickup prediction operation control section and then cause the still picture image pickup operation to be executed under the control of said picked up image recording control section.

4. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, said trigger acceptance section accepts a particular operation input by a user as the trigger input.

5. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said trigger acceptance section accepts a particular sound input as the trigger input.

6. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said trigger acceptance section accepts that a particular image pickup object state is decided from a picked up image as the trigger input.

7. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, in the request responding image pickup mode, said image pickup preparation processing section carries out an image pickup object detection process for moving an image pickup object in accordance with the image pickup request into the image pickup visual field while said image pickup visual field variation control section controls the image pickup visual field variation section.

8. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein, in the request responding image pickup mode, said image pickup preparation processing section carries out a composition process of adjusting the arrangement of an image pickup object image in the image pickup visual field while said image pickup visual field variation control section controls the image pickup visual field variation section.

9. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the composition process includes a process of further moving, when one or more image pickup objects are detected in the image pickup visual field, the image pickup visual field to confirm presence of some other image pickup object in accordance with the image pickup request.

10. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said image pickup preparation processing section carries out the composition process also in the automatic image pickup mode but carries out, in the request responding image pickup mode, the composition process in a processing procedure or with a processing parameter different from that in the automatic image pickup mode.

11. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said trigger acceptance section can detect an inputting direction of the trigger input, and said image pickup preparation processing section causes said image pickup visual field variation control section to control the image pickup visual field variation section in the inputting direction.

12. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said request responding image pickup control section causes a process of determining an image pickup visual field for a request responding image pickup operation to be executed in the request responding image pickup mode and causes a still picture image pickup operation to be executed when a predetermined still picture image pickup condition is satisfied after the determination of the image pickup visual field.

13. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said request responding image pickup control section decides that the still picture image pickup condition is satisfied when a particular sound input is received.

14. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 12, wherein said request responding image pickup control section decides that the still picture image pickup condition is satisfied when a particular image pickup object state is decided from a picked up image.

15. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said request responding image pickup control section controls, after said request responding image pickup control section causes the image pickup apparatus to execute a still picture image pickup operation, a still picture picked up image to be displayed on a display section of the image pickup apparatus and causes the image pickup visual field variation section of the image pickup apparatus to be controlled so as to direct the display section toward an image pickup direction.

16. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said request responding image pickup control section returns to operation of the automatic image pickup mode after execution of the still picture image pickup operation in the request responding image pickup mode.

17. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said image pickup prediction operation control section carries out control of causing sound outputting or indication outputting to be executed as a prediction operation for predicting that still picture image pickup will be carried out.

18. The image pickup control apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said image pickup prediction operation control section carries out control of controlling the image pickup visual field variation section to cause the image pickup apparatus to execute a predetermined operation as a prediction operation regarding for predicting that still picture image pickup will be carried out.

19. An image pickup control method for an image pickup apparatus or an image pickup system which includes a still picture image pickup section adapted to carry out image pickup of an image pickup object and record picked up image data on or into a recording medium, and an image pickup visual field variation section for an image pickup visual field of the still picture image pickup section, comprising the steps of:

causing the still picture image pickup section to execute a still picture image pickup operation while the image pickup visual field variation section is controlled in an automatic image pickup mode;

accepting a predetermined trigger input as a changeover input from the automatic image pickup mode to a request responding image pickup mode;

determining an image pickup visual field in accordance with an image pickup request in the request responding image pickup mode; and

causing a still picture image pickup operation to be executed by the still picture image pickup section after the determination of the image pickup visual field.

20. A program for causing a processor to control an image pickup apparatus or an image pickup system which includes a still picture image pickup section adapted to carry out image pickup of an image pickup object and record picked up image data on or into a recording medium, and an image pickup visual field variation section for an image pickup visual field of the still picture image pickup section, the program comprising the steps of:

causing the still picture image pickup section to execute a still picture image pickup operation while the image pickup visual field variation section is controlled in an automatic image pickup mode;

accepting a predetermined trigger input as a changeover input from the automatic image pickup mode to a request responding image pickup mode;

determining an image pickup visual field in accordance with an image pickup request in the request responding image pickup mode; and

causing a still picture image pickup operation to be executed by the still picture image pickup section after the determination of the image pickup visual field.