JP2004248139A - Imaging and recording apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an imaging and recording apparatus which solves the problem that conventionally an imaging apparatus, a reproducing device, and a recording device are required for executing the composition/recording of real time video and composition material video, and in which the composition of real time images and previously prepared moving images can be executed with stand-alone equipment provided with a single storage part in an imaging system to execute the composition of the moving images each other. <P>SOLUTION: The writing period of composition result video to the storage 105 and the reading-out period of the material video for the composition from the storage 105 are shortened and time division multiplexing is executed in the imaging and recording apparatus. Accordingly, outwardly, a writing/reading-out control unit 104, which simultaneously executes the reading-out and the writing, is provided. The composition of the real time video and the moving image material can be executed with the stand-alone imaging and recording apparatus 100. The composition of the images by the moving images and the recording can be executed with the stand-alone imaging and recording apparatus while confirming in real time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an imaging and recording device capable of synthesizing and recording a real-time image and a previously prepared synthesizing image.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventional imaging apparatuses that perform image synthesis include an imaging unit that performs imaging, a storage unit that reproduces a material for synthesis, and a synthesis unit that synthesizes these (for example, see Patent Document 1). ). FIG. 5 shows an imaging apparatus for performing conventional image synthesis described in Patent Document 1.
[0003]
In FIG. 5, the real-time image captured by the optical lens 201 and the imaging unit 202 is combined with a combining image prepared in advance in the storage unit 205 by the combining unit 203 and displayed on the display unit 206 as a combined result image. You.
[0004]
With such a configuration, a user who operates the camera can easily check the synthesis result of the real-time image and a synthesis image such as a CG image prepared in advance, and shoot while checking the synthesis result. It can be performed.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-2000-270261 (pages 2 to 5, FIG. 1)
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the above-described conventional configuration, the storage unit 205 mainly stores an image as a material for synthesis, and the synthesized image obtained as a result of synthesis with the real-time image is only displayed or recorded. For this purpose, it is necessary to use another recording device.
[0007]
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to solve the conventional problem and to provide an imaging and recording apparatus that can combine a real-time image and a previously prepared moving image with a single device having a single storage unit. And
[0008]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve this problem, the present invention provides an imaging unit that generates a real-time video signal, a storage unit that stores the video signal, and a write-read that controls writing, recording, reading, and reproduction of the video signal to and from the storage unit. A control unit, a synthesizing unit that synthesizes the real-time video signal output from the imaging unit and a synthesized material signal read and reproduced from the storage unit, and a display unit that displays an output from the synthesizing unit. Things.
[0009]
The video signal written and recorded in the storage unit is a synthesis result signal output from the synthesis unit.
[0010]
The writing and recording of the synthesized result signal in the storage unit and the reading and reproduction of the synthesized material signal from the storage unit are performed substantially simultaneously in parallel. In other words, time-axis compression or data compression processing is performed on the synthesis result signal in writing / recording, so that the time required for recording / writing to the storage unit is shorter than the actual shooting time. The decompression process is performed to obtain the composite material signal. In other words, the real-time video signal, the composite material signal, and the composite result signal are photographed and composed with a real time length. The total is shorter than the photographing time.
[0011]
In addition, it is possible to shoot a real-time video while performing and performing the action while watching the synthesis result signal displayed on the display unit.
[0012]
Further, the synthesizing unit may store the real-time video signal itself without adding a video effect by synthesis by outputting the real-time video signal as it is without synthesizing the synthesized material signal with the real-time video signal. it can.
[0013]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
[0014]
(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of the imaging and recording apparatus of the present invention. In FIG. 1, 100 is an imaging and recording apparatus, 101 is an optical lens, 102 is an imaging section, 103 is a synthesis section, 104 is a write / read control section, Reference numeral 105 denotes a storage unit, and reference numeral 106 denotes a display unit.
[0015]
The operation of the imaging and recording device configured as described above will be described below.
[0016]
The video image formed on the imaging unit 102 through the optical lens 101 is output as a real-time video signal, and is synthesized by the writing / reading control unit 104 with the synthesized material signal read from the storage unit 105 by the synthesis unit 103. The synthesis result signal output from the synthesis unit 103 is displayed on the display unit 106 and written into the storage unit 105 through the write / read control unit 104. The video displayed on the display unit 106 allows the photographer to shoot while checking the synthesis result, and a video having the same content as the displayed video is recorded in the storage unit 105.
[0017]
FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing signals of each unit. (A) is a real-time video signal, (b) is a composite material signal, (c) is a composite result signal, (d) is a storage unit write signal, and (e) is a storage unit read signal.
[0018]
The real-time video signal (a) and the synthesized material signal (b) are chromakey-synthesized by the synthesizing unit 103 to become a synthesized result signal (c). FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of a combining process performed by the combining unit 103 having the chroma key combining function. Assuming that the shaded area in the composite material signal (b) is the corresponding chroma area, the composite result signal (c) is obtained by replacing only the video in this area with the real-time video signal (a). The synthesized result signal (c) thus obtained is subjected to data compression processing in the write / read control unit 104, converted into a storage unit write signal (d), and stored in the storage unit 105. That is, the amount of data to be stored is reduced by the data compression processing, and writing and recording to the storage unit 105 are performed in a shorter time than the corresponding real-time video. On the other hand, the read / reproduce of the storage unit read signal (e) is performed during a period in which writing and recording to the storage unit 105 are not performed, and the storage unit read signal (e) is subjected to data expansion processing by the write / read control unit 104. , Is converted into a synthetic material signal (b) on a real time scale and input to the synthesizing unit 103.
[0019]
In this manner, by performing the time division multiplexing of the write / record operation and the read / reproduce operation of the video data with respect to the storage unit 105, one storage unit, specifically, a semiconductor memory, an HDD (hard disk drive), a rewritable DVD Apparently, recording and reproduction can be performed simultaneously on a storage medium that is randomly accessible. As a result, a single imaging and recording apparatus can perform recording while synthesizing a real-time video with a synthesizing material previously stored in the storage unit in real time.
[0020]
The purpose of the conversion from the synthesized result signal (c) to the storage unit write signal (d) and the conversion from the storage unit read signal (e) to the synthesized material signal (b) is to convert the time axis. This is performed by increasing the rate or reducing the amount of data by compressing the data. The method may be selected according to the storage capacity of the storage unit 105 or the data transfer capacity. That is, when the storage capacity of the storage unit 105 is sufficiently large and the data transfer capability is sufficiently high, only the time axis compression / expansion processing may be performed without performing the data compression / expansion processing.
[0021]
(Embodiment 2)
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of Embodiment 2 of the imaging and recording apparatus of the present invention, as in Embodiment 1, and FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing signals of respective parts, and signal flows are almost the same. It is.
[0022]
Hereinafter, the operation of the synthesizing unit 103 which is a different part of the operation will be mainly described.
[0023]
The synthesis unit 103 performs synthesis (alpha blending) using the alpha channel information on the real-time video signal (a) and the synthesized material signal (b) to obtain a synthesis result signal (c). Alpha blending is a method of synthesizing images based on alpha channel information that represents the ratio of the mixture prepared for each pixel, such as simple additive mixing or mixing using multiplication that resembles the transmission of a transparent object. It is a generic term. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of a combining process performed by the combining unit 103 having a combining function based on alpha channel information. Assuming that alpha channel information representing a predetermined transmittance is defined in a shaded area in the composite material signal (b), the real-time video signal (a) is mixed at a predetermined ratio with the video in this area. As a result, a synthesis result signal (c) is obtained. The synthesized result signal (c) thus obtained is subjected to data compression processing by the write / read control unit 104 as in the first embodiment, and is converted into a storage unit write signal (d). 105 is stored.
[0024]
The first embodiment is particularly characterized in that a moving image created in advance by CG (two-dimensional, three-dimensional, animation) with alpha channel information added is used as the composite material signal (b). And different. That is, high-accuracy video synthesis is possible, and a moving image, not a still image, can be used as the synthesized material signal (b), so that a high effect can be obtained.
[0025]
The storage unit 105 may be a portable storage device that is detachable from the imaging and recording device 100, or may be provided with a computer I / F so that the contents of the storage unit 105 can be rewritten from an external computer or the like. A composite material signal is available.
[0026]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the present invention, a remarkable effect is obtained in that the composition and recording of an image based on a moving image can be performed while confirming in real time with the imaging and recording apparatus alone.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an imaging and recording device according to an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing the operation of the imaging and recording device according to the embodiment; FIG. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the synthesis of a real-time video signal and a synthetic material signal according to the second embodiment. FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing a conventional imaging device having an image synthesizing function. Figure [Explanation of symbols]
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 100 imaging recording device 101 optical lens 102 imaging unit 103 combining unit 104 write / read control unit 105 storage unit 106 display unit 200 imaging recording device 201 optical lens 202 imaging unit 203 combining unit 205 storage unit 206 display unit

Claims (7)

An imaging unit that generates a real-time video signal;
A storage unit for storing a video signal,
A write / read control unit that controls writing, recording, and reading / reproduction of a video signal with respect to the storage unit;
A synthesizing unit that synthesizes the real-time video signal output from the imaging unit and a synthesized material signal read and reproduced from the storage unit to generate a synthesis result signal;
A display unit that displays the synthesis result signal output from the synthesis unit,
The video signal written and recorded in the storage unit is the synthesis result signal,
Write and record the synthesis result signal in the storage unit and read and reproduce the synthesis material signal from the storage unit approximately in parallel.
An imaging recording device, characterized in that: The composite material signal and the composite result signal stored in the storage unit are in a compressed format,
The write / read control unit performs a data compression process at the time of writing / recording and a data decompression process at the time of reading / reproducing.
The imaging and recording device according to claim 1, wherein: The storage unit is a randomly accessible storage medium,
The imaging and recording device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: Using the real-time video signal from the imaging unit stored in the storage unit as the composite material signal,
4. The image capturing and recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: Using a CG image stored in the storage unit as the composite material signal;
4. The image capturing and recording apparatus according to claim 1, wherein: The synthesis method in the synthesis unit is chroma key synthesis,
The imaging and recording device according to claim 4 or 5, wherein: A CG image and an alpha channel image of the CG image stored in the storage unit are used as the composite material signal, and the combining method in the combining unit is alpha blending.
The imaging recording apparatus according to claim 5, wherein:

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