Imaging device, method for controlling imaging device, and program

Abstract

The image pickup apparatus includes a first operation member capable of receiving a first operation and a second operation member capable of receiving a second operation. In a case where the first operation member receives a first operation, the imaging apparatus controls the imaging unit to perform imaging and records a captured image acquired by the imaging on a recording medium, and in a case where the second operation member receives a second operation, records a first image on the recording medium. Even in a case where the second operation member receives the second operation, when the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, the imaging apparatus does not record the first image on the recording medium.

Description

Camera device, camera device control methods and procedures Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a camera device, a method and procedure for controlling the camera device. Background Technology

[0002] When displaying a list of images captured by a camera in burst mode, many thumbnail images with similar characteristics can be displayed side-by-side. As a result, the user may not be able to visually distinguish the separations between multiple consecutive photographic images. Therefore, Patent Document 1 describes a technique that acquires predetermined separations from photographic information and generates "separator images as images to be displayed at the separation positions when displaying a list of multiple photographic images." [Prior Art List [Patent Documents]]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-244778 Technical problems of the invention

[0004] In Patent Document 1, a delimiter image is automatically generated and recorded on a medium without the user's knowledge when predetermined conditions are met. This eliminates the laborious operation required by the user to generate and record the delimiter image. However, in this technology, the conditions for recording (generating) the delimiter image are fixed. Therefore, the user cannot record the delimiter image on the medium at the time expected by the user.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention provides a camera device that can record separator images on a medium at timed intervals as desired by the user when recording multiple photographic images on the medium. Solution to the problem

[0006] One aspect of the present invention is a camera device, comprising: a camera unit; a first operating member capable of receiving a first operation instructing the camera unit to perform photography; a second operating member capable of receiving a second operation; and a control unit configured to: 1) control the camera unit to perform photography and record the photographic image acquired by the photography on a recording medium when the first operating member receives the first operation, and 2) record a first image on the recording medium when the second operating member receives the second operation, wherein even when the second operating member receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, the control unit does not record the first image on the recording medium.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a control method for a camera device, the camera device comprising: a camera unit; a first operating member capable of receiving a first operation instructing the camera unit to perform photography; and a second operating member capable of receiving a second operation. The control method comprises: a first control step for controlling the camera unit to perform photography and recording the photographic image acquired by the photography on a recording medium when the first operating member receives the first operation; and a second control step for recording a first image on the recording medium when the second operating member receives the second operation, wherein, in the second control step, even when the second operating member receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, the first image is not recorded on the recording medium. Advantages of the present invention

[0008] According to the present invention, when recording multiple photographic images on a medium, the camera device can record separator images on the medium at a time predetermined by the user. FIG1 is a configuration diagram of the camera 100 according to Embodiment 1. FIG2 is an external view of the camera 100 according to Embodiment 1. FIG3A to FIG3H are diagrams for illustrating the separator image according to Embodiment 1. FIG4 is a flowchart of the display control process according to Embodiment 1. FIG5 is a flowchart of the process in response to the Fn1 button according to Embodiment 1. FIG6 is a flowchart of the process in response to the Fn1 button according to Embodiment 2. Detailed Implementation

[0010] Embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0011] <Example 1> Figure 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example system configuration of a digital camera 100 (image capture device) according to Example 1. Figure 2 is an external view of the digital camera 100. Note that Example 1 can be applied to any electronic device (such as a smartphone or personal computer) that includes an image capture unit, rather than the digital camera 100.

[0012] The photographic lens 104 is a lens group including a zoom lens and a focusing lens. The shutter 105 is a shutter with an aperture function. The imaging unit 106 is an imaging element composed of components that convert optical images into electrical signals (such as CCD or CMOS elements). The imaging unit 106 acquires photographic images by capturing images of real space. The A / D converter 107 converts analog signals into digital signals. The A / D converter 107 is used to convert the analog signals output from the imaging unit 106 into digital signals. The baffle 103 covers the imaging system of the digital camera 100 (including the photographic lens 104). Therefore, the baffle 103 prevents the imaging system (including the photographic lens 104, shutter 105, and imaging unit 106) from getting dirty or damaged.

[0013] The image processing unit 102 performs prescribed pixel interpolation, resizing (such as reduction), or color conversion processing on data from the A / D converter 107 or the memory control unit 108. Furthermore, the image processing unit 102 performs prescribed calculations using the captured image data. The system control unit 101 performs exposure control or rangefinder control based on the obtained calculation results. As a result, TTL (through-lens) AF (autofocus), AE (auto exposure), and electronic EF (electronic EF) processing are performed. Additionally, the image processing unit 102 performs prescribed calculations using the captured image data and performs TTL AWB (auto white balance) processing based on the obtained calculation results.

[0014] Output data from A / D converter 107 is written to memory 109 via image processing unit 102 and memory control unit 108 or directly via memory control unit 108. Memory 109 stores image data acquired by camera unit 106 and converted into digital data by A / D converter 107. Memory 109 stores image data to be displayed on display unit 111. Memory 109 has sufficient storage capacity to store a predetermined number of still images and moving images and audio over a predetermined time period.

[0015] Furthermore, memory 109 serves as a memory for image display (video memory). D / A converter 110 converts the data stored in memory 109 for image display into an analog signal and supplies the converted analog signal to display unit 111. In this way, when image data for display written in memory 109 is supplied to display unit 111 via D / A converter 110, an image based on that image data is displayed on display unit 111.

[0016] Display unit 111 displays on a display such as an LCD the analog signal received from D / A converter 110. The digital signal, which undergoes an A / D conversion by A / D converter 107 and is stored in memory 109, is then converted to analog signal in D / A converter 110. Display unit 111 functions as an electronic viewfinder by sequentially displaying images based on the transmitted signals, enabling it to display a through image (hereinafter referred to as a "live view image").

[0017] The non-volatile memory 114 is an electrically erasable and recordable memory. For example, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) may be used as the non-volatile memory 114. The non-volatile memory 114 stores constants and programs for the operating system control unit 101. The programs used here refer to programs used to execute the various flowcharts described later in this embodiment.

[0018] The system control unit 101 controls the entire digital camera 100. The system control unit 101 executes the program stored in the aforementioned non-volatile memory 114 to implement the processing type of this embodiment, which will be described later. RAM (Random Access Memory) serves as the system memory 112. Constants, variables, and programs (read from the non-volatile memory 114) used by the system control unit 101 are loaded into the system memory 112. Furthermore, the system control unit 101 also performs display control by controlling the control memory 109, the D / A converter 110, and the display unit 111. The system timer 113 is a clock unit that measures the time used in various types of control and the time of the internal clock.

[0019] The shutter button 115, mode switching dial 118, power button 119, and operation unit 120 are each operation units used to input various operation instructions to the system control unit 101.

[0020] The mode switching dial 118 switches the operating mode of the system control unit 101 to a detailed mode that includes "still image recording mode, motion image recording mode and various operating modes".

[0021] When the shutter button 115 on the digital camera 100 is pressed halfway (photography preparation indicator), the first shutter switch 116 is activated, and a first shutter switch signal SW1 is generated. In response to the generated first shutter switch signal SW1, operations such as AF (autofocus) processing, AE (auto exposure) processing, AWB (auto white balance) processing, or EF (flash pre-light) processing are initiated.

[0022] The second shutter switch 117 is activated when the shutter button 115 is fully operated, i.e., fully pressed (shooting instruction), and generates a second shutter switch signal SW2. In response to the generated second shutter switch signal SW2, the system control unit 101 begins a series of photographic processes (from reading signals from the imaging unit 106 to writing image data to the recording medium 124).

[0023] The power control unit 121 includes a battery detection circuit, a DC-DC converter, and a switching circuit (for switching between blocks to be powered). The power control unit 121 detects the state of the power button 119, whether a battery is installed, the type of battery, and the remaining battery power. Furthermore, the power control unit 121 controls the DC-DC converter based on the detection results and instructions from the control unit 101. As a result, the power control unit 121 supplies the required voltage to each unit, including the recording medium 124, for the required time period.

[0024] The power supply unit 122 includes a primary battery (such as an alkaline battery or a lithium battery), a secondary battery (such as a NiCd battery, a NiMH battery, or a Li battery), and an AC adapter. In this embodiment, the case where the secondary battery is used as the power supply unit 122 (hereinafter referred to as "battery 122") will be described.

[0025] Recording medium I / F 123 is an interface to recording medium 124 (such as a memory card or hard disk). Recording medium 124 is a memory card or the like used to record photographic images. Recording medium 124 includes semiconductor memory or a hard disk, etc.

[0026] The digital camera 100 can provide notifications such as warnings via sound. Specifically, the speaker 126 can output the sound generated by the sound control unit 125.

[0027] The operation components of the operation unit 120 are operated as various function buttons. Based on the selection of various function icons displayed on the display unit 111, functions are appropriately assigned to the corresponding operation components. Each operation component is assigned a function button such as an end button, a return button, an image forward button, a jump button, a zoom button, or an attribute change button.

[0028] For example, when the menu button 201 shown in Figure 2 is pressed, a menu screen with various settings is displayed on the display unit 111 (see Figure 3A). While viewing the menu screen displayed on the display unit 111, the user can intuitively make various settings using the cross button 202 (an operating component with buttons in the four directions of up, down, left, and right) and the SET button 203.

[0029] The controller wheel 204 and electronic dial 205 are rotatable operating components included in the operation unit 120. The controller wheel 204 and electronic dial 205 are used in conjunction with the cross button 202 to indicate selection items. Pressing the playback button 206 allows the digital camera 100 to switch between shooting mode and playback mode. Pressing the motion picture recording start button 207 allows the recording of motion pictures to be started and stopped.

[0030] The user can assign any function to each of the function buttons 208 (hereinafter referred to as "Fn1 button 208") and 209 (hereinafter referred to as "Fn2 button 209"). In response to receiving a press operation of each function button, the digital camera 100 executes the function assigned to that function button.

[0031] The battery 122 and recording medium 124 can be inserted into the digital camera 100 from the bottom. The bottom of the digital camera 100 can be covered by an openable cover 210.

[0032] Next, an overview of the generation of separator images will be described. The function of generating separator images can be assigned to an operation component on a menu screen such as shown in Figure 3A. As shown in Figures 3B and 3C, a separator image is an image that represents the separation between multiple photographic images (images of real space being photographed) when a list of multiple photographic images (list playback) is displayed.

[0033] When a button with the function to generate a separator image is pressed in the photography standby state after continuous shooting, a separator image is generated as the next image in a series of photographs. The generated separator image is recorded as a file on the recording medium 124.

[0034] Using separator images, even when multiple thumbnails with similar designs are displayed side-by-side in list displays such as G and H in Figure 3, users can easily visually identify the separations between multiple consecutive photographic images. Furthermore, the system control unit 101 can also generate a specific separator image at a predetermined changing time and record this specific separator image on the recording medium 124. Here, the specific separator image is preferably different from the separator images IA and IB, which will be described later. This allows users to easily understand whether the images in the list display were photographed before the predetermined changing time. The predetermined changing time is the time of change of the digital camera 100's setting value, the time of lens replacement, or the time of date change, etc.

[0035] In Example 1, two types of delimiter images are prepared. One type of delimiter image is referred to as "delimiter image IA" (see Figure 3B), and the other is referred to as "delimiter image IB" (see Figure 3C). As shown in Figure 3A, delimiter image IA can be generated by pressing button Fn1 208. Delimiter image IB can be generated by pressing button Fn2 209.

[0036] The delimiter image is assigned a filename that conforms to the same naming rules as the photographic images and is recorded on the recording medium 124. The filename can be assigned a unique number according to the shooting order (generation order, recording order). In other words, the predetermined naming rule can be any naming rule that allows files (images) to be rearranged according to their generation order based on their filenames. For example, DCF (the design rules of a camera file system) can be used as the naming rule for still images. Furthermore, the filename can simply be a number representing the shooting date and time (year + month + day + hour + minute + second). In this case, for example, if the filename of an image is "20231117025030", it can be determined that the image was taken (generated) on November 17, 2023 at 2:50:30. Even when the delimiter image and multiple photographic images are transferred from the digital camera 100 to the PC, the PC can display the delimiter image at the desired position by arranging the images in order of file number.

[0037] Furthermore, in Embodiment 1, when a function button (Fn1 button 208 or Fn2 button 209) is accidentally pressed repeatedly to generate a separator image, the digital camera 100 prevents the generation of exactly the same separator image. Since identical separator images are not generated consecutively, as shown in FIG3 G, identical separator images are displayed discontinuously (not horizontally adjacent to each other) in the list display. Furthermore, since multiple types of separator images each have their own meaning determined by the user, as shown in FIG3 H, different types of separator images can be generated consecutively.

[0038] The display control processing of the separator image according to Embodiment 1 will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG4. When the digital camera 100 is set to photography mode, the state of the digital camera 100 changes to photography standby state. In photography standby state, the processing of the flowchart in FIG4 is executed periodically.

[0039] In step S401, the system control unit 101 determines whether the Fn1 button 208 has been pressed. If it is determined that the Fn1 button 208 has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S402. If it is determined that the Fn1 button 208 has not been pressed, the process proceeds to step S403.

[0040] In step S402, the system control unit 101 performs processing in response to pressing the Fn1 button 208. The details of the processing in step S402 will be described below with reference to the flowchart in FIG5.

[0041] In step S403, the system control unit 101 determines whether the Fn2 button 209 has been pressed. If it is determined that the Fn2 button 209 has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S404. If it is determined that the Fn2 button 209 has not been pressed, the process proceeds to step S405.

[0042] In step S404, the system control unit 101 performs a process in response to pressing button Fn1 208. The details of the process in step S404 are the same as those in step S402 (the process in the flowchart of FIG. 5). Specifically, in the process of step S404, "button Fn1 208" in the flowchart of FIG. 5 is replaced with "button Fn2 209", "separator image IA" is replaced with "separator image IB", and "generation flag FA" is replaced with "generation flag FB". Therefore, a detailed description of the process in step S404 will be omitted. Here, when the generation flag FA is ON, it indicates that the separator image IA has been generated and no further photographic images have been recorded (generated). When the generation flag FB is ON, it indicates that the separator image IB has been generated and no further photographic images have been recorded (generated).

[0043] In step S405, the system control unit 101 determines whether the shutter button 115 has been pressed (or whether the second shutter switch 117 has been pressed). If it is determined that the shutter button 115 has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S406. If it is determined that the shutter button 115 has not been pressed, the process proceeds to step S410.

[0044] In step S406, the system control unit 101 controls the camera unit 22 to take pictures. Therefore, the system control unit 101 performs the process of generating still images (photographed images).

[0045] In step S407, the system control unit 101 creates a filename for the generated still image (photographic image) according to a predetermined naming rule.

[0046] In step S408, the system control unit 101 records the still image (photographic image) with the created file name on the recording medium 124 as a still image file.

[0047] In step S409, the system control unit 101 clears (turns off) the generation flag FA of the delimiter image IA and the generation flag FB of the delimiter image IB. Clearing the generation flags FA and FB allows the delimiter image to be generated as the next image. The presence of the generation flags allows only one delimiter image IA and one delimiter image IB to be generated (recorded) between shots. In other words, the presence of the generation flags prevents two or more identical delimiter images from being generated (recorded) between shots.

[0048] In step S410, the system control unit 101 determines whether the operating mode has changed from the camera mode. If it is determined that the operating mode has changed from the camera mode, the processing of this flowchart ends. If it is determined that the operating mode has not changed from the camera mode, the processing proceeds to step S401.

[0049] The details of step S402 will be described with reference to the flowchart in Figure 5.

[0050] In step S501, the system control unit 101 determines whether the Fn1 button 208 has been pressed and held. As used herein, "press and hold" means an operation that is held down for a period of time longer than a predetermined time period (e.g., one second or two seconds). If it is determined that the Fn1 button 208 has been pressed and held, the process proceeds to step S509. If it is determined that the Fn1 button 208 has not been pressed and held (it has been pressed and held down for a period of time shorter than the predetermined time period), the process proceeds to step S502.

[0051] In step S502, the system control unit 101 determines whether the generation flag FA is ON. If it is determined that the generation flag FA is ON, the process proceeds to step S508. If it is determined that the generation flag FA is not ON, the process proceeds to step S503.

[0052] In step S503, the system control unit 101 generates a separator image IA.

[0053] In step S504, the system control unit 101 creates a filename for the delimiter image IA according to a predetermined naming rule. Here, the predetermined naming rule is the same as the naming rule for the filename of the still image described in step S407.

[0054] In step S505, the system control unit 101 records the delimiter image IA on the recording medium 124 using the created file name.

[0055] In step S506, as shown in D of FIG3, the system control unit 101 displays a message on the display unit 111 indicating that the separator image IA has been generated (recorded).

[0056] In step S507, the system control unit 101 sets the generation flag FA to ON.

[0057] In step S508, the system control unit 101 does not perform the process of generating the delimiter image IA because generating identical delimiter images is prohibited. Therefore, as shown in Figure 3E, the system control unit 101 displays a message on the display unit 111 indicating that the delimiter image IA cannot be generated (recorded).

[0058] In step S509, the system control unit 101 determines whether the generation flag FA is ON. If the generation flag FA is determined to be ON, the process proceeds to step S510. If the generation flag FA is determined to be ON, the process in this flowchart ends, and the process proceeds to the next step in the flowchart of Figure 4 (step S403). Note that if the generation flag FA is determined to be ON, no separator image IA is recorded after the recording of the preceding photographic image (the preceding photograph), therefore the process of deleting the separator image IA in step S510 is not performed.

[0059] In step S510, the system control unit 101 deletes the file of the immediately preceding delimiter image IA from the recording medium 124.

[0060] In step S511, as shown in F of FIG3, the system control unit 101 displays a message on the display unit 111 indicating that the separator image IA has been deleted.

[0061] In step S512, the system control unit 101 clears the generation flag FA.

[0062] According to Embodiment 1, when a user presses a specific button between shots, a separator image is recorded at the user's intended time interval. Furthermore, since the generation of the same separator image consecutively is prohibited, accidental recording of separator images due to user error can be prevented. Therefore, when a list of multiple photographic images is displayed, the separator image is displayed in the user's intended location, allowing the user and other viewers of the list to visually understand the user's intended separation (grouping) within the multiple photographic images.

[0063] Note that in Embodiment 1, a method for generating two types of separator images has been described; however, the number of separator image types can be one, three, or more than three, and can be equal to the number of operation components that can be assigned functions. Furthermore, a method for generating (recording) and deleting separator images by operating operation components has been described; however, in Embodiment 1, in addition to the aforementioned long press of the operation component, separator images can also be generated or deleted by operations such as pressing the operation component twice within a short time period. Furthermore, by assigning the function for deleting separator images to operation components that can be assigned functions, the preceding separator image can be deleted when the operation component is operated.

[0064] In Example 1, a flag is generated to determine whether a specific delimiter image has been recorded after the recording of a preceding photographic image. The digital camera 100 can examine additional information of the image file recorded on the recording medium 124 and determine whether a specific delimiter image has been recorded after the recording of a preceding photographic image based on whether the file's attributes indicate a specific delimiter image.

[0065] Note that in step S507, the system control unit 101 can execute a process to turn the generation flag FA to on and clear the generation flag FB. According to this process, even if a delimiter image IB has been generated (recorded) after the acquisition of the preceding photographic image (after the preceding photograph), a subsequent delimiter image IB can still be generated (recorded). In this case, the generation of the delimiter image IB is only prohibited if the preceding image recorded on the recording medium 124 is a delimiter image IB. On the other hand, the generation of the delimiter image IB is not prohibited when the preceding image recorded on the recording medium 124 is a photographic image or a delimiter image IA. This makes it possible to generate (record) the delimiter image IB in the following order: then the delimiter image IA, and then the delimiter image IB.

[0066] <Example 2> In Example 2, when a specific button is operated, the digital camera 100 generates (records) a separator image, and deletes the preceding separator image when the specific button is operated again.

[0067] The process described in the flowchart of Figure 4 is also performed in Embodiment 2, but only the processes of steps S402 and S404 differ from those in Embodiment 1. Therefore, the details of the process of step S402 (in response to pressing the Fn1 button 208) will be described below with reference to the flowchart in Figure 6.

[0068] Note that the processing in step S404 is the same as that in step S402 (the processing in the flowchart in Figure 6). Specifically, the only difference between the processing in step S404 and the flowchart in Figure 6 is that "delimiter image IA" is replaced with "delimiter image IB" and "generation flag FA" is replaced with "generation flag FB". Therefore, a detailed description of the processing in step S404 will be omitted.

[0069] In step S601, the system control unit 101 determines whether the generation flag FA is ON. If it is determined that the generation flag FA is ON, the process proceeds to step S607. If it is determined that the generation flag FA is not ON, the process proceeds to step S602.

[0070] In step S602, since no delimiter image IA is recorded on the recording medium 124 after the recording of the preceding photographic image (after the preceding photograph), the system control unit 101 generates the delimiter image IA.

[0071] In step S603, as in step S504, the system control unit 101 creates a filename for the delimiter image IA according to a predetermined naming rule.

[0072] In step S604, the system control unit 101 records the delimiter image IA on the recording medium 124 using the created file name.

[0073] In step S605, as shown in D of FIG3, the system control unit 101 displays a message on the display unit 111 indicating that the separator image IA has been generated.

[0074] In step S606, the system control unit 101 sets the generation flag FA to ON.

[0075] In step S607, the system control unit 101 deletes the file of the immediately preceding delimiter image IA from the recording medium 124.

[0076] In step S608, as shown in F of FIG3, the system control unit 101 displays a message on the display unit 111 indicating that the separator image IA has been deleted.

[0077] In step S609, the system control unit 101 clears the generation flag FA.

[0078] In Embodiment 2, when a specific button is pressed, the digital camera 100 determines whether a specific delimiter image has been recorded (generated) after the recording of a preceding photographic image. Then, based on the determination result, the digital camera 100 switches between generating and deleting delimiter images, thereby preventing the continuous generation of the same delimiter images.

[0079] Although the invention has been described in detail based on preferred embodiments, it is not limited to the specific embodiments, and various modes are included without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. Parts of the above embodiments can be appropriately combined with each other.

[0080] Furthermore, in the above description, "processing proceeds to step S1 when A is at least B, and processing proceeds to step S2 when A is less than (lower than) B" can be interpreted as "processing proceeds to step S1 when A is greater than (higher than) B, and processing proceeds to step S2 when A is no more than B." Conversely, "processing proceeds to step S1 when A is greater than (higher than) B, and processing proceeds to step S2 when A is no more than B" can be interpreted as "processing proceeds to step S1 when A is at least B, and processing proceeds to step S2 when A is less than (lower than) B." Therefore, unless a contradiction arises, "at least A" can be interpreted as "greater than (higher, longer than, or exceeding) A," and "no more than A" can be interpreted as "less than (lower than, shorter than, or less than) A." Additionally, "greater than (higher than, longer than, or exceeding) A" can be interpreted as "at least A," and "less than (lower than, shorter than, or less than) A" can be interpreted as "no more than A."

[0081] Note that the various types of control described above can be performed by a single piece of hardware (e.g., a processor or circuitry) or otherwise processed. Processing can be distributed among multiple pieces of hardware (e.g., multiple processors, multiple circuits, or a combination of one or more processors and one or more circuits), thereby controlling the entire device.

[0082] Furthermore, the processors mentioned above are processors in a broad sense, encompassing both general-purpose and special-purpose processors. Examples of general-purpose processors include central processing units (CPUs), microprocessor units (MPUs), and digital signal processors (DSPs). Examples of special-purpose processors include graphics processing units (GPUs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and programmable logic devices (PLDs). Examples of PLDs include field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and complex programmable logic devices (CPLDs).

[0083] The above embodiments (including variations) are merely examples. Any configurations obtained by appropriately modifying or changing some configurations of the embodiments within the scope of this disclosure are also included in this disclosure. This disclosure also includes other configurations obtained by appropriately combining various features of the embodiments.

[0084] <Other Embodiments> The present invention can also be implemented by supplying a program for implementing one or more of the functions of the above embodiments to a system or device via a network or storage medium, and causing one or more processors of the computer of the system or device to read and execute the program. Furthermore, the present invention can also be implemented by a circuit (e.g., an ASIC) for implementing one or more functions.

[0085] This invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications and alterations can be made to this invention without departing from its spirit and scope. Therefore, the appended claims are added to disclose the scope of the invention.

[0086] This application claims priority to Japanese Patent Application 2023-174203, filed on October 6, 2023, all of which are incorporated herein by reference. [List of reference numerals]

[0104] 100 Digital camera (video recording device) 111 Shutter button 208, 209 Function buttons 101 System control unit

Claims

1. A camera device, comprising: Camera unit; A first operating component is capable of receiving a first operation to instruct the camera unit to take a photograph; The second operating component is capable of receiving the second operation; The control unit is configured to: 1) control the camera unit to take pictures when the first operating member receives the first operation, and record the photographic image acquired by the photography on a recording medium; and 2) record a first image on the recording medium when the second operating member receives the second operation, wherein even when the second operating member receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, the control unit will not record the first image on the recording medium.

2. The camera device according to claim 1, wherein, The control unit: when the first operating component receives the first operation, records a photographic image with a filename conforming to a predetermined naming rule on the recording medium; and when the second operating component receives the second operation, records the first image with a filename conforming to the predetermined naming rule on the recording medium.

3. The camera device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, Even if the second operating member receives the second operation, if the first image has already been recorded on the recording medium immediately after the recording of the preceding photographic image, the control unit will not record the first image on the recording medium.

4. The imaging device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a third operation member capable of receiving a third operation, wherein, The control unit: 1) if the image immediately preceding the recording on the recording medium is the second image, then does not record the second image on the recording medium, and 2) if the image immediately preceding the recording on the recording medium is not the second image, then records the second image on the recording medium.

5. The camera device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, The second operating component is capable of receiving the second operation and the fourth operation, and when the second operating component receives the fourth operation, the control unit deletes the first image immediately recorded on the recording medium from the recording medium.

6. The camera device according to claim 5, wherein, The second operation is a press operation for a period of time shorter than the predetermined time period, and the fourth operation is a press operation for a period of time longer than the predetermined time period.

7. The camera device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein, The control unit: when the second operating member receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is not the first image, then records the first image on the recording medium; and when the second operating member receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, then deletes the first image immediately recorded on the recording medium from the recording medium.

8. The camera device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein, The control unit records a third image on the recording medium at the timing of changes in the settings of the camera device, the timing of lens replacement of the camera device, or the timing of date changes.

9. A method for controlling a camera device, the camera device comprising: Camera unit; A first operating component is capable of receiving a first operation to instruct the camera unit to take a photograph; The control method includes a second operating component capable of receiving a second operation, comprising: a first control step for controlling the camera unit to take a photograph and record the photographic image acquired by the photograph on a recording medium when the first operating component receives the first operation; and a second control step for recording a first image on the recording medium when the second operating component receives the second operation, wherein, in the second control step, even if the second operating component receives the second operation, if the image immediately recorded on the recording medium is the first image, the first image is not recorded on the recording medium.

10. A program that enables a computer to function as a unit of a camera apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

Images