JPH07170435A - Camera - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To control integrally the turning and tilt drive of an image pickup lens and an image pickup element by supporting adjustably and integrally the image pickup lens and the image pickup element so that its image pickup face is correctly face an object. CONSTITUTION:A mirror barrel main body 23 incorporating an image pickup lens 3 of a lens unit mechanism comprising a lens unit, an image pickup element block 35, and a correct opposition mechanism 10 of the lens unit is supported around X, Y axes turnably around a point G to which an optical axis of the image pickup lens 3 passes freely turnably and turned in directions of thetax, thetay by turning members 24, 25 via an outer spherical section 23b. Step motors 31, 32 of the correct opposition mechanism 10 drive the turning members 24, 25 and they are almost in point contact with the spherical section 23b and driven respectively in a predetermined direction. Then a multi-area automatic focus range finder system is adopted to detect a degree of correct opposition of the camera to the object and to regulate integrally the both so that the image pickup face of the image pickup lens 3 and the image pickup element are optically and correctly opposite to the object.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a camera, and more particularly to a camera capable of tilting and shifting.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art When the subject to be photographed is in a state where the degree of confrontation is poor with respect to the photographing optical system of the camera,
For example, when shooting a blackboard diagonally from the edge, or when shooting a tall building from below, a large camera has traditionally used parallel tilt adjustment to make the shooting optical system face the subject. I was taking pictures with no dents.

Incidentally, the above-mentioned state of facing is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG.
The optical axis O of 2 is orthogonal.

The parallel tilt adjustment means that the optical axis O faces the subject as shown in FIG.
03 is a tilt adjusting operation for shifting to a target image forming position of a subject while keeping 03 in a state perpendicular to the optical axis O. When shooting with this parallel tilt adjustment,
The magnification of the size of the subject image on the same screen does not change, and an image can be obtained without one-sided dents or upper and lower dents.

On the other hand, as for the conventional camera using the image pickup device, various cameras for moving the image pickup device to adjust the tilt have been proposed.

[0006] For example, a tilting movement device for a solid-state image pickup element in a photographed image recording apparatus disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-158258 shifts the position of the solid-state image pickup element with respect to an image pickup lens to a subject and is manually operated by a photographer. Alternatively, it is a device having a tilting mechanism.

The photoelectric conversion surface tilting device for a television camera disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-91574 can be applied to a television camera, and even when the image pickup element is shifted or the tilt is photographed. It is possible to continuously perform, and the photographer shifts, that is,
The above-mentioned adjustment is executed by designating the direction movement amount of the parallel movement and the tilt amount, that is, the inclination amount.

Further, the tilting photographing apparatus disclosed in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 3-159377 detects the inclination of the object surface by using the focus information generating means, and tilts the image pickup element according to the detected inclination of the object surface. It is a photographing device.

[0009]

However, in the photographed image recording apparatus disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-158258, and in the tilting apparatus of the television camera disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-91574, the camera is The inclination of the subject has not been detected, and the photographer has to observe the state of the subject and arbitrarily specify the tilt angle and the like. Further, the operation such as changing the optical path of the imaging lens system is not performed.

On the other hand, the tilting photographing device disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-159377 detects the inclination of the subject, and the tilting is automatically set.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing a state of the tilt correction operation by the tilt shooting device 113 disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-159377. As shown in the figure, when the subject 110 is tilted with respect to the photographing device 113, a tilt angle α indicating the degree of tilt of the subject 110 with respect to the photographing device 113 is detected. Then, based on the inclination degree, the image pickup element 112 is driven for tilt correction, that is, shift and tilt, so that the entire image forming surface 112a of the subject 110 is in focus. Then, all the imaging planes of the near and far subjects are in focus.

In the tilt adjusting mechanism, if the rotation of the image pickup lens and the image pickup element and the tilt drive are separately performed, it becomes complicated to control the image pickup lens and the image pickup element in harmony. ,
Further, there is a problem that it is difficult to always hold the imaging lens and the imaging element in parallel.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a camera capable of integrally controlling the rotation and tilt drive of the image pickup lens and the image pickup device. .

[0014]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, an image pickup lens and an image pickup element are provided independently of the camera body so that the image pickup surface of the image pickup lens and the image pickup element can optically face the surface of the subject. The camera is provided with an assembly that integrally supports the lens so as to be adjustable.

[0015]

According to the present invention, the image pickup lens and the image pickup element are integrally supported so that they can be adjusted and displaced independently of the camera body.

[0016]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the lens unit mechanism incorporated in the camera of the first embodiment of the present invention.

In this lens unit mechanism, as shown in the figure, the lens barrel main body 23 can be rotated in two directions θx and θy by two sets of rotating members 24 and 25 via an outer spherical surface portion 23b. It is a mechanism.

The main structure of the mechanism is composed of the lens unit, the image pickup device block 35, and the lens unit facing mechanism 10.

The lens unit has the image pickup lens 3, a driven and supported spherical surface portion 23b, and a guide groove 23a extending parallel to the optical axis O direction. Focusing of a lens barrel main body 23 supported rotatably about horizontal and vertical axes X and Y about a point G passing through the axis O, and an imaging lens 3 built in the lens barrel main body 23. A drive focus motor (not shown) and a motion restricting part that restricts rotation around the optical axis O (hereinafter referred to as rolling restriction), and has a cylindrical shape that is slidably fitted into the guide groove 23a. The rotation restricting pin 30 and the spherical surface portion 23
It is composed of two spherical receiving members 28, which are the receiving portions on the lower surface side of b, which regulate the movement in the optical axis direction, and a spherical receiving member 29, which is the receiving portion on the side surface side of the spherical portion 23b.
In the neutral state of rotation as shown in FIG. 4, the optical axis O coincides with the Z axis.

The facing mechanism 10 includes X and Y axis rotary members 24 and 25 each having a spherical rotary member whose surface is a friction member, and X and Y rotary members 24 and 25.
It is composed of X and Y axis stepping motors 31 and 32 that are driven via the axial worm gear boxes 26 and 27. The X and Y axis rotating members 24 and 25 are the same as the spherical portion 2
3b are brought into contact with each other in a substantially point contact relationship, and are brought into rolling contact with each other in order to give a displacement to be rotationally driven in predetermined directions. Further, it has a function of restricting the position of the lens barrel body 23 in the horizontal and vertical directions in the X and Y axis directions via the spherical surface portion 23b.

The image pickup device block 35 has an image pickup device and a shift mechanism for the image pickup device built therein. Details of the shift mechanism will be described later.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the lens barrel body 23. Further, FIG. 6 is a view on arrow A of FIG.

As shown in FIG. 5, when the lens barrel main body 23 is supported by the supporting portions 28 and 29 and is rotated about the X axis, for example, the optical axis O is rotated to the O'direction. It

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a shift mechanism incorporated in the image pickup device block 35.

This shift mechanism is a mechanism for shifting the image pickup device 4 along the X axis and the Y axis which are orthogonal to the optical axis O. The image pickup device 4 is fixed to a first base 41 having an opening for image pickup light facing the image forming surface 4a. The first base 41 is slidably supported in the X-axis direction by the guide shaft 42 held by the second base 43. The second base 43 is slidably supported in the Y-axis direction by a guide shaft 44 held by a third base 45. The third base 45 is fixed to the lens barrel body 23 of the lens unit 1.

An X-axis shift motor 48 is supported on the second base 43, and a pinion 47 fixed to the output shaft of the motor 48 meshes with a rack 46 attached to the first base 41. ing. In addition, the third
A Y-axis shift motor 51 is supported by the base 45, and a pinion 50 fixed to the output shaft of the motor 51 meshes with a rack 49 attached to the second base 43.

In the shift mechanism as described above, Y, X
When the shaft shift motors 51 and 48 are driven, the second base 43 or the first base 41 is driven in the Y and X axis directions via the rack 49 or 46, and the image pickup device 4 is shift-driven.

As described above, if the lens unit mechanism shown in this embodiment is used, the rotation of the image pickup lens and the image pickup device and the tilt drive can be integrally controlled, so that the image pickup lens and the image pickup device are always held parallel to each other. Can be done easily. Next, a camera equipped with a parallel tilt adjusting mechanism to which this embodiment is applied will be described.

The above-mentioned image pickup apparatus shown in FIG.
No. 159377) does not perform parallel tilt adjustment, the image plane 1 in the imaging state shown in FIG.
At 12a, the magnification is different at both end portions 112a1 and 112a2 due to the difference in subject distance along the respective optical axes O, resulting in a so-called one-sided or upper and lower-sided image. In this photographing state, especially for the purpose of photographing a subject such as a character or a figure on a blackboard or an open book, the screen is distorted and a preferable photographing screen cannot be obtained.

Therefore, in order to take an image of a tilted subject without any one-sided or one-sided or no-sided dents, a camera incorporating the parallel tilt adjusting mechanism is proposed as in the case of the large-sized camera. It was also possible. However, in such an image pickup apparatus, the photographer needs to check the degree of facing of the subject each time the image is taken, set the optical axis direction of the image pickup lens, and perform focusing. Furthermore,
It was also necessary to confirm whether or not the degree of the above-mentioned confrontation was within the allowable range, and it was necessary to perform extremely complicated and sophisticated operation and confirmation.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a camera showing an example for solving the above problems.

This camera is a camera to which an image pickup device is applied, and holds the image pickup lens 3 and the image pickup device 4 forming the photographing optical axis O so as to be integrally rotatable, and a multi-area AF is provided.
(Auto-focus) A distance measuring method is applied to detect the degree of the camera facing the subject, and based on this information, there is no one-sided dip, occasional vertical dip, etc. Tilt correction to get the shooting screen in focus, that is,
It is a camera capable of parallel tilt adjustment.

FIG. 2 is an optical path diagram showing the parallel tilt adjusting operation state of the camera. As shown in the figure, when the camera body 100 is aimed at the subject 120, the subject 1 is the degree of facing the subject before the parallel tilt adjustment.
The angle α of the photographing optical axis O ′ with respect to 20 is detected. Parallel tilt adjustment is performed based on the information of the angle α. That is, the imaging lens 3 and the imaging element 4 are rotated to a position where the photographing optical axis O is orthogonal to the subject 120. Then, the subject 12
The image forming surface 4a of the image pickup device 4 is shifted to the image forming position of 0.

The structure of the camera will be described with reference to FIG. 1. The subject image is captured by the image pickup device 4 through the image pickup lens 3 incorporated in the lens unit 1 and converted into an image pickup signal, which is then sent to the image pickup signal processing circuit 2. Is output. The video output of the image pickup signal processing circuit 2 is output to a recording system (not shown).

Further, the lens unit 1 further includes a focus motor (M) 5 using a stepping motor for focusing and driving the image pickup lens 3, and an image pickup element shift mechanism 6 described later for shifting the image pickup element 4. Have And
A lens barrel main body 23 that supports the imaging lens 3 and the imaging device 4
The lens unit facing mechanism 10 (see FIG. 4) is rotationally driven.

The focus motor 5, the image pickup element shift mechanism 6, and the lens unit facing mechanism 10 are controlled by a focus motor driving circuit 7, a shift mechanism driving circuit 8, and a facing mechanism driving circuit 9 which are controlled by a system control circuit 15, respectively. Driven. The system control circuit 15 is composed of a CPU, ROM, RAM and the like.

Further, the distance measuring light emitting element 11 is driven by the AF distance measuring circuit 13 based on the timing control signal from the system control circuit 15, and emits distance measuring light toward the subject. The distance measuring light is reflected by the subject, and the distance measuring areas A and B in the upper and lower positions and the distance measuring areas C and D in the left and right positions on the photographing screen 19 shown in FIG. As the distance light, the light receiving elements 12a, 12
b and the light receiving elements 12c and 12d.

The light receiving elements 12a, 12b, 12c, 12
The output signal of d is taken into the system control circuit 15 as distance measurement information. Then, based on the distance information, the degree of facing of the subject is recognized by the degree-of-facing recognition built in the system control circuit 15. That is, the up and down facing degree is recognized by the output signals of the light receiving elements 12a and 12b, and the left and right facing degree is recognized by the output signals of the light receiving elements 12c and 12d. Then, the face-to-face drive of the lens barrel main body 23 of the lens unit 1 in the Y and X axis directions is performed based on the vertical and horizontal face-to-face degree information.

Further, the focus position of the image pickup lens 3 and the shift amount of the image pickup element 4 are calculated based on the distance measurement information. Further, the focusing drive and the shift drive are executed. However, the focus position of the image pickup lens 3 is set to a focus position in consideration of a change in subject distance due to the facing drive.

In this example, assuming that the degree of face-to-face contact with the subject is too large, the face-to-face degree of the subject recognized by the above-described face-to-face recognition unit deviates from a predetermined limit value, and the lens unit 1 is directly faced. When the pair drive is impossible, the system control circuit 15 outputs the warning display circuit 1
A finder or LCD (not shown) for displaying a warning display signal indicating that the degree of confrontation deviates from a predetermined limit value via
A configuration for outputting to a display unit or the like is added. The warning display may be alarm means for issuing a warning.

Here, as the mechanism of the lens unit 1, the one of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 4 described above is used.

The subroutine "shooting preparation process" in the shooting sequence of the camera of the present example configured as described above will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 8 and the block diagram of FIG. It should be noted that in the shooting preparation process, the camera body 100 shown in FIG.
This is a subroutine process that is called when the release button is pressed halfway.

As shown in FIG. 8, in step S1, based on the output signals of the light receiving elements 12a to 12d,
Distance measuring area A on the screen 19 of the subject shown in FIG.
Distance measurement of B, C, D is performed. Then, in step S2,
Based on the distance measurement information of the areas A, B, C, and D, the optical axis of the camera body 100, that is, the optical axis O ′ in the neutral state of the lens barrel body 23 with respect to the subject surface, which is the degree of facing the subject.
Angle α (see FIG. 2) is calculated. Note that this angle α
Is displayed as the inclination angle on the horizontal plane in FIG. 2,
Actually, an angle between two directions, that is, the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, that is, the vertical inclination angle α1 obtained from the distance measuring data of the upper and lower distance measuring areas A and B, and the distance measuring data of the left and right distance measuring areas C and D. The tilt angle α2 in the left-right direction is calculated.

Then, in step S3, AF driving of the image pickup lens 3 is performed based on the distance measurement information. In step S4, it is determined whether the subject is tilted with respect to the camera body 100, that is, whether the tilt angle α is 0 °. If it is not tilted, it is not necessary to perform parallel tilt processing, so this routine is ended as it is. If it is determined that the subject is tilted, the process proceeds to step S5.

In step S5, it is determined whether or not the inclination angle α of the subject exceeds a permissible range in which the lens barrel main body 23 can be rotated for the face-to-face correction. If the allowable range is exceeded and the face-to-face adjustment drive is impossible, the process jumps to step S9. In step S9, a display signal indicating that the face-to-face correction is impossible is output to the display device (not shown) via the warning display circuit 14, and the display is performed.

If it is determined in step S5 that the rotation drive for the face-to-face adjustment is possible, the process proceeds to step S6, and the rotation drive amount of the face-up mechanism of the lens unit 1 is calculated. . As the rotational driving amount, the direction of the optical axis O is the angle α, specifically, the above-mentioned vertical tilt angle α1.
Since the lens barrel body 23 is rotated by the inclination angle α2 in the left-right direction, the rotation angle is the Y-axis and the X-axis of the lens barrel body 23. However, in reality,
The rotation angle is obtained as the number of drive pulses for the Y-axis and X-axis step motors 32 and 31.

Next, in step S7, the shift amount of the image pickup device 4 is calculated. In the case of the state shown in the photographing optical path diagram of FIG. 9, the shift amount is set to the distance L1 to the subject 120, the inclination angle α of the subject surface, the image forming position L2, and the focal length f of the imaging lens 3,

[0049]

1 / f = (1 / L1) + (1 / L2) Further,

[0050]

Tan (α) = x / L2 holds, and the shift amount x can be calculated from the equations (1) and (2).
Is

[0051]

[Expression 3] x = ((L1 × f) / (L1-f)) × tan (α)

For example, when the lens focal length f is 35 mm,
When the subject distance L1 is 2 m, the inclination of the subject 15
The shift amount x for 9 °, 30 ° and 45 ° is 9.
54 mm, 20.6 mm and 35.6 mm.

Next, in step S8, the rotational drive angle α of the lens barrel body 23 obtained in steps S6 and S7,
The parallel tilt drive of the shift amount x of the image sensor 4 is performed, and this routine is finished.

As described above, according to the camera of this example, the distances of four areas of the subject are measured by the four light receiving elements to obtain the degree of confrontation of the subject, and the image pickup lens and the image pickup element are arranged in parallel. Face-to-face driving is performed in the held state, and parallel tilt adjustment is performed. By this parallel tilt adjustment, the subject is, for example, a character on a blackboard or a printed character on a book,
Even if the camera is tilted with respect to the camera, it is possible to automatically perform shooting without any one-sided dent or upper and lower dents, without the need for the user to make adjustment operations.

Further, by adding the warning display circuit 14, when the degree of confrontation of the subject deviates from the parallel tilt adjustable range of the camera, a warning to that effect is displayed to inform the photographer of the normal condition. It is possible to recognize that the parallel tilt adjustment cannot be performed, and it is possible to prevent poor shooting.

Further, according to the present example, since the image pickup lens 3 and the image pickup device 4 are constituted by an integrated unit, the image pickup lens 3 and the image pickup device 4 are always maintained in the parallel relationship. Therefore, it is not necessary to separately provide the facing drive means for both, and the parallel tilt adjustment can be realized with a simple configuration.

Next, a modified example of the camera of the above example will be described. This modified example is different from the camera in that the distance measuring method is a passive method, and the distance information of the object is obtained from the contrast information extracted from the image pickup signal of the image pickup device, which is a so-called imager distance measuring method. , The point configured to obtain the degree of confrontation of the subject.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of the camera of the above modification. The configuration of the present modified example is different from that of the above example only in the components related to the imager ranging method, and other configurations are the same. Therefore, its identical components are shown in FIG.
The same reference numerals as those in the block configuration diagram of FIG.

In this modification, the image pickup signal of the subject output from the image pickup signal processing circuit 2 is fetched into the BPF (bandpass filter) 61, and the contrast data is extracted from the image pickup signal. In the area division circuit 62,
The contrast data is divided into four contrast data corresponding to areas A, B, C and D on the photographing screen shown in FIG. Next, the A / D conversion circuit 63 performs A / D conversion of each contrast data and outputs the output signal to the system control circuit 15.

Then, in the system control circuit 15, the number of steps of the motor at the in-focus position for each of the areas A, B, C and D is grasped, and the amount of extension of the focus lens is obtained from the value. The subject distance information is calculated from the amount of extension of the focus lens to obtain the degree of confrontation of the subject. The parallel tilt adjustment is performed based on this face-to-face degree information, and the processing operation is the same as that of the camera of the above example.

According to this modification, it is not necessary to dispose a light emitting element, a plurality of light receiving elements or the like for performing multi-area distance measurement as in the camera of the above example, and the output data of the image pickup element is used. It is possible to reduce the number of constituent members, which is advantageous in cost.

FIG. 11 is a schematic layout diagram of a camera showing a second embodiment of the present invention.

In the camera of the present embodiment, a rotatable mirror unit 76 is disposed in front of the image pickup lens 73 as a facing mechanism, the image pickup lens 73 is not rotationally driven, and the image pickup element 74 is The feature is that only shift driving is performed.
In FIG. 11, 70 is a camera body and 75 is a protective glass.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view showing the main structure of the mirror unit 76.

In the mirror unit 76, the mirror 8
1 is rotatably supported by a support frame 82 via an X support shaft 83. Further, the support frame 82 has a Y support shaft 85.
It is rotatably supported by the base 84 via. Then, the mirror 81 is rotationally driven about the X axis by an X axis drive motor 87 via a gear 86 fixed to the X support shaft 83. Further, the support frame 82 has a Y support shaft 85.
Y-axis drive motor 89 via gear 88 fixed to
Is rotated about the Y-axis. The base 84 is fixed to the camera body 70.

FIG. 13 shows the state of parallel tilt adjustment in the camera of the present embodiment having the above-described configuration. First,
In a state where the camera body 70 of the present embodiment is directed to the tilted subject 120, the mirror unit 76 is located at the neutral rotation position 76 (A). The image sensor 74 is also located at the neutral shift position 74 (A). Therefore, the distance measuring areas A, B, C, as shown in the photographing screen 19 of FIG.
The distance measurement information of D is detected, and the degree of confrontation of the subject 120, that is, the inclination angle α (α of the subject 120 with respect to the neutral optical axis O ′) is detected.
1, α2) is calculated.

When the parallel tilt adjustment is performed on the tilted subject 120, the mirror unit 76 is rotated from the rotation position 76 (A) by 1/2 of the calculated inclination angle α to rotate the position 76. Position (B). In this state, the optical axis O passing through the image pickup lens 73 is in a state of directly facing the subject surface.

Further, in order to position the image forming plane of the image pickup device 74 at the image forming position of the object 120, the image pickup device 74 is shift-driven from the neutral shift position 74 (A) to the shift position 74 (B). The shift amount is the same as the shift amount x shown in (Equation 3).

As described above, in the camera of this embodiment, the rotatable mirror unit 76 having a simple structure is used.
Therefore, the size and weight of the camera can be reduced. In addition, when the facing drive is performed, the mirror unit 7
It is only necessary to rotate 6 and control is easy, and the response speed can be improved.

[0070]

As is apparent from the above description, the camera of the present invention is provided with the rotation of the image pickup lens and the image pickup element, and
It has the advantage that the tilt drive can be controlled integrally.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block configuration diagram of a camera to which a lens unit mechanism according to a first embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is an optical path diagram of the camera of FIG. 1 in a parallel tilt adjusting operation state.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a distance measuring area of the camera of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a lens unit mechanism of the camera of the first embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a side view showing an operating state of a lens unit mechanism of the camera shown in FIG.

6 is a bottom view of a lens unit mechanism of the camera shown in FIG.

7 is a perspective view of a facing mechanism built in an image sensor block of the lens unit mechanism of the camera of FIG. 4;

8 is a flowchart of a subroutine "shooting preparation process" in a shooting sequence of the camera of FIG.

FIG. 9 is an optical path diagram showing a shift state in the “imaging preparation process” of FIG.

10 is a block configuration diagram of a modified example of the camera shown in FIG.

FIG. 11 is a schematic layout diagram of a camera of a second embodiment of the present invention.

12 is a perspective view of a mirror unit mechanism which is a facing mechanism of the camera shown in FIG.

13 is an optical path diagram of the camera of FIG. 11 in a state where parallel tilt adjustment is performed.

FIG. 14 is an optical path diagram when the camera is facing the subject.

FIG. 15 is an optical path diagram in a state where tilt adjustment is performed in the camera of the conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

3, 73 Imaging lens 4, 74 Imaging element 12a, 12b, 12c, 12d Light receiving element (correction degree recognition means) 13 AF distance measuring circuit (correction degree recognition means) 14 Warning display circuit (display means) 15 System control circuit ( Confrontation degree recognition means) 61 BPF (confrontation degree recognition means) 62 Area division circuit (confrontation degree recognition means) 63 A / D conversion circuit (confrontation degree recognition means)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An image pickup lens and an image pickup surface of an image pickup device can optically face directly to the surface of the subject.
A camera comprising an assembly that integrally supports the image pickup lens and the image pickup element independently of the camera body so as to be adjustable.