US7509042B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Digital camera, image capture method, and image capture control program
Assignee: Apple Inc
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Filing: 2005-12-21
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Granted: 2009-03-24
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Expires: 2025-12-21
Abstract
Abstract The present invention provides a digital camera that is capable of capturing a picture in which the brightness between a main subject and a nighttime background are well balanced. When an image capture instruction is received while a night scene portrait mode is set, in a pixel addition output mode, an image sensor 16 is set to a high sensitivity state by performing pixel addition, and outputs low resolution non-flash image data. Further, in an overall pixel output mode, the image sensor 16 outputs high resolution flash image data in a low sensitivity state without performing pixel addition. Next, a resolution conversion circuit 40 converts a resolution of non-flash image data to be equivalent to a resolution of flash image data. Then, an image combining circuit 60 adds respective pixel values of corresponding pixels in the non-flash image data and the flash image data having the same resolution and combines both sets of image data to generate image data for recording.
Inventors
- 👤 Keiichi Mori
- 👤 Sumito Yoshikawa
- 👤 Kenichi Nakajima
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 19:03
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03B; G03B15/00; G03B15/02; G03B15/03; G03B15/05; H; H04; H04N; H04N23/00; H04N23/70; H04N23/74; H04N25/00; H04N25/40; H04N25/42; G03B2215/00; G03B2215/05
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 17
Claim 1
Independent Claim
188 words
A digital camera, comprising: an image sensor that converts subject image information into an image signal and outputs the image signal; and a flash circuit for emitting flash light, wherein the image sensor has a first image capture mode in which a first image signal having a relatively large number of pixels captured at a relatively low sensitivity is output, and a second image capture mode in which a second image signal having a relatively small number of pixels captured at a relatively high sensitivity is output, the digital camera further comprising: an image capture control circuit that performs an operation for capturing and outputting the second image signal in the second image capture mode without emission of flash light by the flash circuit and an operation for capturing and outputting the first image signal in the first image capture mode with emission of flash light by the flash circuit; and an image combining circuit that combines the first image signal and the second image signal after resizing a number of pixels of at least one image signal of the first image signal and the second image signal.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
188 words
A digital camera, comprising: an image sensor that converts subject image information into an image signal and outputs the image signal; and a flash circuit for emitting flash light, wherein the image sensor has a first image capture mode in which a first image signal having a relatively large number of pixels captured at a relatively low sensitivity is output, and a second image capture mode in which a second image signal having a relatively small number of pixels captured at a relatively high sensitivity is output, the digital camera further comprising: an image capture control circuit that performs an operation for capturing and outputting the second image signal in the second image capture mode without emission of flash light by the flash circuit and an operation for capturing and outputting the first image signal in the first image capture mode with emission of flash light by the flash circuit; and an image combining circuit that combines the first image signal and the second image signal after resizing a number of pixels of at least one image signal of the first image signal and the second image signal.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
40 words
The digital camera according to claim 1 , wherein electric charges of a plurality of pixels of the image sensor are added up to thereby capture and output the signal at the high sensitivity in the second image capture mode.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
35 words
The digital camera according to claim 2 , wherein exposure of the image sensor is controlled with reference to different exposure program diagram in the first image capture mode and the second image capture mode.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
45 words
The digital camera according to claim 2 , wherein exposure in the first image capture mode is started in parallel with the operation for outputting the second image signal immediately after the exposure ends in the image capture operation of the second image capture mode.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
47 words
The digital camera according to claim 2 , wherein the image capture control circuit controls an exposure period by means of an electronic shutter in the second image capture mode, and controls the exposure period by means of a mechanical shutter in the first image capture mode.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
61 words
The digital camera according to claim 1 , wherein an image combining circuit combines both images after resizing the number of the pixels of at least one of the first image signal and the second image signal to set the number of the pixels of one image signal to be equivalent to that of the pixels of the other image signal.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
203 words
A digital camera which performs a night scene portrait image capture, comprising: a flash circuit which emits flash light; an image sensor which outputs image data at a high or low sensitivity; an image capture control circuit which performs a high sensitivity image capture control and a low sensitivity image capture control in a case where an instruction for the night scene portrait image capture is received and which allows the image sensor to perform exposure and output low resolution image data having a relatively low resolution at the high sensitivity without the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in the high sensitivity image capture control and which allows the image sensor to perform the exposure and output high resolution image data having a relatively high resolution at the low sensitivity with the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in the low sensitivity image capture control; and an image combining circuit which combines the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data output from the image sensor in the night scene portrait image capture after resizing an image size of at least one of the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
203 words
A digital camera which performs a night scene portrait image capture, comprising: a flash circuit which emits flash light; an image sensor which outputs image data at a high or low sensitivity; an image capture control circuit which performs a high sensitivity image capture control and a low sensitivity image capture control in a case where an instruction for the night scene portrait image capture is received and which allows the image sensor to perform exposure and output low resolution image data having a relatively low resolution at the high sensitivity without the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in the high sensitivity image capture control and which allows the image sensor to perform the exposure and output high resolution image data having a relatively high resolution at the low sensitivity with the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in the low sensitivity image capture control; and an image combining circuit which combines the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data output from the image sensor in the night scene portrait image capture after resizing an image size of at least one of the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
126 words
The digital camera according to claim 7 , wherein the image sensor operates in a first output mode in which the image data is output at a predetermined resolution and a second output mode in which a plurality of pixels are added up to thereby output the image data at a resolution that is lower than the predetermined resolution, and the image capture control circuit controls the image sensor in such a manner that the image data is output in the second output mode to thereby output the low resolution image data and the image data is output in the first output mode to thereby output the high resolution image data in a case where the instruction for the night scene portrait image capture is received.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
79 words
The digital camera according to claim 7 , further comprising: an image capture permission judgment section which permits the night scene portrait image capture in a case where a luminance of a subject field before the emission of the flash light is not more than a predetermined threshold luminance, wherein the image capture control circuit enables the night scene portrait image capture in a case where the image capture permission judgment section permits the night scene portrait image capture.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
35 words
The digital camera according to claim 9 , wherein the threshold luminance is a value obtained by subtracting a predetermined value from a target luminance of the subject field required for securing predetermined adequate exposure.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
63 words
The digital camera according to claim 10 , wherein the threshold luminance is a value which is lower than a flash threshold luminance as a judgment standard in a case where the image capture control circuit judges based on the luminance of the subject field whether or not the flash light needs to be emitted in order to secure the predetermined adequate exposure.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
28 words
The digital camera according to claim 9 , wherein the image capture permission judgment section changes the threshold luminance based on a zoom position of a zoom lens.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
57 words
The digital camera according to claim 9 , wherein the image capture permission judgment section judges whether or not a main subject exists in an illumination region illuminated with the flash light emitted by the flash circuit, and permits the night scene portrait image capture in a case where the main subject exists in the illumination region.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
151 words
An image capture method of performing night scene Portrait image capture, comprising: a step of allowing an image sensor to perform exposure and output low resolution image data having a relatively low resolution at a high sensitivity without emission of flash light by a flash circuit, and allowing the image sensor to perform the exposure and output high resolution image data having a relatively high resolution at a low sensitivity with the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in a case where an instruction for the night scene portrait image capture is received; and a step of allowing an image combining circuit to combine the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data output from the image sensor in the night scene portrait image capture after resizing an image size of at least one of the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
151 words
An image capture method of performing night scene Portrait image capture, comprising: a step of allowing an image sensor to perform exposure and output low resolution image data having a relatively low resolution at a high sensitivity without emission of flash light by a flash circuit, and allowing the image sensor to perform the exposure and output high resolution image data having a relatively high resolution at a low sensitivity with the emission of the flash light by the flash circuit in a case where an instruction for the night scene portrait image capture is received; and a step of allowing an image combining circuit to combine the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data output from the image sensor in the night scene portrait image capture after resizing an image size of at least one of the low resolution image data and the high resolution image data.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2012-03-23 | 2012-09-22 | 2013-03-24 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2016-03-23 | 2016-09-22 | 2017-03-24 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2020-03-23 | 2020-09-22 | 2021-03-24 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |