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DISTANCE MEASURING DEVICE AND PHOTOGRAPHING DEVICE EQUIPPED WITH DISTANCE MEASURING DEVICE

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a distance measuring device whose number of distance measuring areas effectively used is constant and a photographing device equipped with the distance measuring device. SOLUTION: The system comprises a pair of imaging devices 2a and 2b with a plurality of pixels, a pair of distance measuring optical systems, which lead light from a distance measuring area, and a distance calculating means to calculate a distance to an object of photographing on the basis of a signal from the pair of the imaging devices 2a and 2b. The distance calculating means comprises a large area setting means which sets large areas SL1 and SR1 against the pair of the imaging devices 2a and 2b and a small area setting means which sets a predetermined number of small areas L1-L5 and R1-R5 in the large area SL1 and SR1 respectively and calculates a distance to the object of photographing for each of the corresponding small areas L1-L5 and R1-R5. COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO ...

RANGING APPARATUS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ranging apparatus in which a release timing lag is reduced by shortening time for detecting subject distance, and at the same time accurately measuring the subject distance. SOLUTION: A ranging apparatus 1 comprises a means 13 for extracting extraction images 20 having each specific size from two image data, correlation operation means 14 and 17 for calculating the correlation value of both the images while successively shifting the extraction image, an operation-controlling means 15 for controlling the operation of the correlation value, a reliability- judging means 16 for detecting the extremal value of the calculated correlation value, and a corresponding-position detecting means 18 for detecting a corresponding position. The operation-controlling means 15 suspends the calculation of the correlation value during the operation. The reliability-judging means 16 judges whether an extremal value has been already detected in the calculated correlation value ...

NETWORK CAMERA AND VIDEO DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a network camera capable of reducing power consumption. SOLUTION: The camera 100 is provided with: an imaging part which generates a video signal by driving an image pickup device 102 in a predetermined drive system; a video signal generation part 105 which generates a low image quality video signal having a first frame rate and a first resolution using the video signal; a video signal generation part 106 which generates a high image quality video signal having at least one of a second frame rate higher than the first frame rate and a second resolution higher than the first resolution using the video signal; a recording part 109 which records the high image quality video signal in a memory; and transmission parts 107 and 108 which transmit at least one of the low image quality video signal and the high image quality video signal to a reception terminal 120 via a network 130 where the imaging part selects either a first drive system for acquiring the low ...

MULTI-LINE SENSOR AND DISTANCE DETECTOR USING THIS SENSOR

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a multi-line sensor capable of widening line intervals at low cost. SOLUTION: With respect to the multi-line sensor where plural line sensors 40 and 41, which consist of light reception part columns 12 consisting of plural picture elements for light reception and processing part columns 11 for output processing of photoelectric charge generated in light reception part columns 12, are arranged in parallel, any two line sensors out of plural line sensors 40 and 41 are so arranged that processing part columns 11 may be placed on the side interposed between two line sensors of light reception part columns 12. COPYRIGHT: (C)2000,JPO ...

DISTANCE-MEASURING DEVICE

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a distance-measuring device by which a distance can be measured with high accuracy and with high precision even in the case of a subject for photography as a repetitive pattern by a method wherein distance-measured data is computed on the basis of a first correlation value and a second correlation value in a plurality which are obtained by a first address specification means and a second address specification means. SOLUTION: Light which reaches an imaging device 1 from a subject for photography is passed through lenses 3L, 3R, it is reflected by mirrors 4L, 4R, beams of reflected light are reflected by reflecting faces 5L, 5R on a prism 5, and they are image-formed on light- receiving faces of sensors 2L, 2R so as to be fetched by an image processing part as a left image signal and a right image signal. A first address specification means and a second address specification means in an MPU 8 generate a first pixel address and a second pixel address which ...

CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera capable of bringing a main subject into focus by accurately catching the main subject even in the case of photographing a subject on the background of which a light source exists. SOLUTION: The camera has a range-finding means 11 detecting a subject distance based on subject light received from the subject, an auxiliary illuminating means 12 illuminating the subject in an auxiliary condition at the time of detecting the subject distance by the range-finding means, and an illuminating light emission permitting means 13 controlling the permission of the light emission of the illuminating means 12. The permitting means 13 controls to permit the light emission of the illuminating means 12 when the subject distance arithmetically calculated by the range-finding means 11 is equal to or above a specified distance, and the range-finding means 11 detects the subject distance again while the illuminating means 12 emits the light. COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO ...

DEVICE FOR DETECTING OBJECT AND CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a device for detecting object and a camera capable of performing photographing with a moving object as reference. SOLUTION: The device for detecting object is provided with a means capable of fetching object images time sequentially at prescribed timing, a first region designating means for designating at least a portion of the object images as a first designated region, a second region designating means for designating a second designated region that is arranged so as to be included in the first designated region and is narrower than the first designated region, a region dividing means for dividing at least a portion of an object image into a plurality of regions, a main object deciding means for selecting an optimum region that is optimum as a main object from a region included in the second designated region divided by the region dividing means and included in the second designated region, and a tracking area deciding means for selecting a tracking area ...

RANGE-FINDING SYSTEM AND AUTOFOCUSING CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a range-finding system and an autofocusing camera provided with the range-finding system rapidly deciding the propriety of range- finding by detecting the difference of brightness between right and left images formed on a line sensor for range-finding. SOLUTION: A photoelectric conversion element 33 constituting the left and right line sensors 31 and 32 is provided with a latch part 33c outputting a latch signal when potential increased by charge accumulation reaches a specified value. The elapsed time from the time when the charge accumulation is started till the time when the latch signal is inputted is measured by counters 34 and 35. By comparing the time when the first latch signal is inputted in the counters 34 and 35, the difference of brightness between the brightest parts of the right and left images on the line sensors 31 and 32 is detected, thereby judging that range-finding is impossible when the difference of the brightness exceeds a specified ...

CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a camera equipped with a range-finding device having high range-finding accuracy where low contrast or far/near competition is hardly caused by providing a posture detection means for detecting the posture of a camera and constituting the camera to decide the size of each arithmetic area set in accordance with the detected result by the posture detection means. SOLUTION: A detected result by a posture detection means 9 is given to a sensor control part 12 through a readout means 8 and the control part 12 sets the arithmetic area of area sensors 11L and 11R based on the data. After calculating a distance to a subject by a passive type correlation system based on the read out data by the readout means 8, a control means 4 consisting of a microcomputer selects the proper arithmetic area and gives range-finding data to the outer part of a range-finding device 16. Then, by making the arithmetic area corresponding to the vertical direction of the subject larger ...

RANGING APPARATUS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a ranging apparatus for determining a subject distance with sufficient accuracy and resolution as a reference for determining the subject region. SOLUTION: The ranging apparatus has a control operation section 14 for calculating a subject distance to each of a plurality of ranging points that are arranged two-dimensionally within a photographing range. The control operation section 14 comprises an image-dividing means 141 for dividing each of rows of ranging points 27a-27e to divided images for each continuous ranging point 26 for indicating a nearly equal distance, an overlapping-judging means 142 for judging whether each of the divided images overlaps in a direction that is vertical to the extension direction of the rows of ranging points with the divided images that belong to adjacent rows of ranging points that are at nearly an equal distance, and an image-integrating means 143 for grouping an arbitrary divided image and a divided image that are judged ...

IMAGING APPARATUS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging apparatus which can concurrently output a motion picture image and a still picture image with a high resolution even when the number of pixels to be read is decreased. SOLUTION: In the imaging apparatus, a solid-state imaging element includes a plurality of pixels disposed in a matrix shape, generates a first pixel mixed signal obtained by mixing pixel signals for each first region 160 including a predetermined number of pixels, a second pixel mixed signal obtained by mixing pixel signals for each second region inside the first region 160, and a third pixel mixed signal obtained by mixing pixel signals for each third region inside the first region 160 and outputs, for each first region 160, the first pixel mixed signals, at least one second pixel mixed signal and at least one third pixel mixed signal. COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT ...

CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera with an external light passive type range finder which is adaptive to variation in photographic magnification and hardly influenced by a light source in a background. SOLUTION: The range finder 1 mounted on the camera has a couple of left and right integration type photoelectric converting element arrays 11L and 11R, a plurality of luminance monitors 21 and 22 which are arranged closely to one of the photoelectric converting element arrays and measures the luminance of a subject in a specified range independently of each other and outputs electric signals corresponding to the luminance, and control means 14, 15, and 16 which select one of the electric signals from the luminance monitors according to photographic conditions and control the start and end of integration of an photoelectric converting element array according to a selected electric signal; and at least the one luminance monitor 21 has a wider measurement width region in the base direction ...

DISPLAY DEVICE

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a display device preventing the flickering of the display of a main object. SOLUTION: Position display corresponding to the position of the main object 1 detected by a main object detecting device H12, H14, V12, V15, V22, V25, V32, V35, H42 and H44 are superposed and displayed on an image in a photographic area 2. The position of the main object 1 detected by the main object detecting device is stored, and a difference between the stored past position of the main object and the present position of the main object detected by the main object detecting device is compared with a 1st specified value. Only when the difference is equal to or above the 1st specified value, the position display of the main object is changed based on the present position of the main object detected by the main object detecting device. COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO ...

RANGE FINDER

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a range finder which can be built with few memory devices. SOLUTION: The finder comprises a pair of imaging devices, each of which has prescribed numbers of small regions A1 to A10, means of calculating distance from each region to an object on the basis of signal from each pixel included in each region, means of memorizing adjustment values to correct individual difference of at least two or more of small regions A1, A4, A7 and A10 in advance, means of calculating adjustment values of small regions A2, A3, A5, A6, A8 and A9, of which adjustment values are not memorized, from the adjustment values memorized in the means of memorizing, and means of correcting the calculated distances with the memorized or calculated values of adjustment values. COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO ...

RANGE-FINDING SYSTEM AND AUTOFOCUSING CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a range-finding system rapidly detecting the insufficient contrast of an image formed on a line sensor for range-finding, and an autofocusing camera provided therewith. SOLUTION: A photoelectric conversion element 33 constituting the line sensors 31 and 32 is provided with a latch part 33c outputting a latch signal when potential increased by charge accumulation reaches a specified value. Counters 34 and 35 count the number of the latch signals and measure the elapsed time from the time when the charge accumulation is started till the time when the latch signal is inputted. By comparing the time when the first latch signal is inputted in the counters 34 and 35 with the time when the last latch signal is inputted therein, the difference of brightness between the brightest part and the darkest part of the image on the line sensors 31 and 32 is detected so as to judge whether the contrast of the image is sufficient or not. COPYRIGHT: (C)1997,JPO ...

CAMERA

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a camera which can predict accurate position of an object on exposure from the results of a plurality of rangings, even if the camera starts to let a lens out according to the results of ranging during a release is on. SOLUTION: The camera has a ranging device containing a ranging optical system 3, which is differ from a photographing optical system 2 with a photographing lens, and adjusts focus of the photographing optical system according to the results from the ranging device. The camera also has a means of memorizing 5 to memorize time-lags determined for respective photographing conditions and a means of calculation 6 to calculate and predict the travel distance of the object on the basis of the plurality of results Dn of ranging. The means of calculation 6 calculates release-time-lag Tr corresponding to the photographing conditions from the time-lag information memorized on 5 and predicts the distance to the object on exposure. COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO ...