Control unit, control method, program, and storage medium

Abstract

To more appropriately control a driving speed in a pan direction and a tilt direction of a camera and a driving speed for zooming and focusing according to a distribution state of the camera.SOLUTION: A control unit has: an acquisition unit that acquires information on a distribution state of an imaging apparatus; an operation unit that receives input for instructing a driving speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction to a driving unit for changing an imaging direction of the imaging apparatus; a determination unit that, on the basis of the information acquired by the acquisition unit, determines input-output characteristics of input to the operation unit and output for instructing the driving speed to the imaging apparatus; and an instruction unit that instructs the driving speed in the pan direction or the tilt direction to the imaging apparatus on the basis of the input-output characteristics determined by the determination unit and the input to the operation unit. The determination unit determines first input-output characteristics as the input-output characteristics when the imaging apparatus is during distribution of images, and determines second input-output characteristics as the input-output characteristics when the imaging apparatus is not during distribution of images.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a control device, a control method, a program, and a storage medium. [Background technology]

[0002] In recent years, in the field of video production, there are increasing opportunities to use cameras whose imaging direction can be remotely controlled in a pan or tilt direction. Patent Document 1 discloses a control device for controlling the imaging direction of a camera, the control device including an adjustment unit for adjusting an upper limit value for the driving speed in the pan or tilt direction of the camera. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication 2010-114521 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to more appropriately control the driving speed of the camera in the pan and tilt directions, or the driving speed of the zoom and focus, according to the distribution state of the camera. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In order to solve the above problem, a control device according to one embodiment of the present invention includes an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding the distribution status of an imaging device, an operation unit that accepts an input for instructing a drive speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction to a drive unit for changing the shooting direction of the imaging device, a determination unit that determines input / output characteristics of an input to the operation unit and an output for instructing the imaging device of the drive speed based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit, and an instruction unit that instructs the imaging device of a drive speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction based on the input / output characteristics determined by the determination unit and the input to the operation unit, wherein the determination unit determines a first input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is currently distributing, and determines a second input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is not currently distributing. Effect of the Invention

[0006] According to the present invention, it is possible to more appropriately control the driving speed in the pan and tilt directions of the camera, or the driving speed of the zoom and focus, depending on the distribution state of the camera. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] Configuration of the imaging system [Diagram 2] Control device hardware configuration and function block diagram [Diagram 3] Flowchart showing the control flow of the control device [Figure 4] Conceptual diagram showing the input / output characteristics of the displacement and drive speed of the control device's operating section [Diagram 5] A conceptual diagram showing the input / output characteristics of the displacement of the control unit's operation part and the drive speed when the upper limit of the drive speed is changed. [Figure 6] Conceptual diagram showing the input / output characteristics of the displacement and drive speed of the control device's operating section DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] Hereinafter, the embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings. The embodiment described below is an example of a means for realizing the present invention, and should be appropriately modified or changed depending on the configuration of the device to which the present invention is applied and various conditions, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment. In addition, a configuration may be made by appropriately combining parts of each embodiment described later.

[0009] <Embodiment 1> (Photography system configuration) 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an imaging system including a control device 200 according to this embodiment. The imaging system is made up of the control device 200, PTZ cameras 100 and 110, and a switcher 300. Note that one or more PTZ cameras are required.

[0010] (PTZ camera) The PTZ cameras 100 and 110 are cameras capable of PTZ (Pan Tilt Zoom) operation. The PTZ cameras 100 and 110 each include a video output terminal 102, 112, a control communication terminal 103, 113, a tally lamp 101, 111, a pan drive unit, a tilt drive unit, a zoom drive unit, and a focus drive unit (not shown).

[0011] The video output terminals 102, 111 are terminals that output the video captured by the PTZ cameras 100, 110, and examples of the standard include SDI and HDMI (registered trademark). Also, the video output is not limited to this, and the video may be packetized by IP (Internet Protocol) and communicated according to a communication standard such as Ethernet.

[0012] The control communication terminals 103, 113 are terminals for receiving control signals output (transmitted) from the control device 200, and an example of the control communication terminals is an IP communication standard such as Ethernet. Note that the standard is not limited to this, and a serial communication standard such as RS-422 may also be used.

[0013] The pan driving unit and the tilt driving unit are motor mechanisms for changing the shooting directions of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 to the pan direction and the tilt direction, respectively. The pan driving unit and the tilt driving unit are driven based on control signals from the control device 200 input via the control communication terminals 103 and 113.

[0014] The zoom driving unit is a motor mechanism for changing the shooting angle of view by moving the zoom lenses of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 in the optical axis direction. The zoom driving unit is driven based on a control signal from the control device 200 input via the control communication terminals 103 and 113.

[0015] The focus driver is a motor mechanism for changing the focal length by moving the focus lenses of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 in the optical axis direction. The focus driver is driven based on a control signal from the control device 200 input via the control communication terminals 103 and 113.

[0016] The tally lamps 101, 111 light up according to the distribution status of the PTZ cameras 100, 110, respectively. For example, the tally lamps light up red when the PTZ cameras 100, 110 are distributing and light up green when they are not distributing, allowing the user to recognize which of the multiple connected cameras is distributing video. The distribution status is selected by the switcher 300, which will be described later.

[0017] (Control device) The control device 200 includes a pan / tilt operation unit 201 , a zoom operation unit 202 , a focus operation unit 203 , a control communication terminal 220 , a pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211 , a zoom speed adjustment unit 212 , a focus speed adjustment unit 213 , a display unit 204 , and a switch 205 .

[0018] The pan-tilt operation unit 201 receives an input for instructing the driving speed in the pan direction or tilt direction to a driving unit for changing the shooting direction of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110. In this embodiment, the pan-tilt operation unit 201 is configured with a joystick, and the user can input the driving direction and driving speed of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 by tilting the joystick. The direction in which the joystick is tilted corresponds to the driving direction, and the driving speed corresponds to the tilt of the joystick, that is, the displacement amount of the joystick tilt. The respective correspondences (input / output characteristics) will be described later. The control device 200 receives an input to the pan-tilt operation unit 201 and outputs (transmits) a control signal to the pan driving unit and the tilt driving unit. Note that in this embodiment, the pan-tilt operation unit 201 is a joystick, but it may be a button-type operation unit such as a cross key, as long as the driving direction and driving speed can be input.

[0019] The zoom operation unit 202 accepts an instruction (input) to move the zoom position to the telephoto side or the wide-angle side for the zoom driving unit. In this embodiment, the zoom operation unit 202 is configured in a button shape, and outputs (transmits) a control signal to the zoom driving unit according to the amount of displacement by which the user presses the button. Note that, although the zoom operation unit 202 is button-shaped in this embodiment, this is not limited thereto.

[0020] The focus operation unit 203 receives an instruction (input) to move the focus position to the NEAR side or FAR side for the focus drive unit. In this embodiment, the focus operation unit 203 is configured in a knob shape, and outputs (transmits) a control signal for focus drive according to the amount of displacement caused by the user rotating the knob. Note that, in this embodiment, the focus operation unit 203 is configured in a knob shape, but is not limited to this.

[0021] The control communication terminal 220 is a terminal for transmitting control signals to the PTZ cameras 100 and 110, and an example of the control communication terminal 220 is an IP communication standard such as Ethernet. Note that the standard is not limited to this, and a serial communication standard such as RS-422 may also be used.

[0022] The pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211, the zoom speed adjustment unit 212, and the focus speed adjustment unit 213 are each configured in the shape of a knob. The user can adjust the upper limit value for the drive speed of each drive unit by rotating each knob. The upper limit value for the drive speed of each drive unit will be described in detail later.

[0023] The display unit 204 displays a user interface and preview images captured by the PTZ cameras 100 and 110. The display unit 204 is configured with a display such as a liquid crystal panel, but is not limited to this.

[0024] (Switcher) The switcher 300 includes video input terminals 301 and 302, a switch 305, a video output terminal 303, and a control communication terminal 304. The video input terminals 301 and 302 are terminals for receiving video signals output from the PTZ cameras 100 and 110, and an example of the standard is a serial communication standard such as RS-422. Note that the standard is not limited to this, and an IP communication standard such as Ethernet may also be used.

[0025] The switch 305 is a switch for the user to select from which camera the output video is to be distributed, and the video signal of the camera selected here is output from the video output terminal 303. In this embodiment, four switches 1 to 4 are provided, and the user can select a camera from which to output video from a maximum of four cameras. In addition, the switch 305 lights up in a color corresponding to the tally light of the camera by an LED (not shown), and the user can recognize the distribution status of each camera from the color that is lit on the switch 305. Note that, although there are four switches 305 in this embodiment, the number is not limited to this. Also, instead of physical switches, the switches may be an interface displayed on a display such as a liquid crystal panel.

[0026] The video output terminal 303 is connected to a distribution system or a recording device (not shown), and outputs a video signal from a camera selected by a switch 305 .

[0027] The control communication terminal 304 is a communication terminal for transmitting information related to distribution, such as tally information showing the distribution status of the camera, and in this embodiment, is connected by an IP communication standard such as Ethernet.

[0028] (Functional configuration of the control device) 2(a) is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of a control device 200 according to this embodiment. The control device 200 is made up of a pan / tilt operation unit 201, a zoom operation unit 202, a focus operation unit 203, a system control unit 230, and a communication unit 240. By a user operating each operation unit, it is possible to perform control and settings corresponding to each operation unit for the PTZ cameras 100 and 110.

[0029] The pan / tilt operation unit 201, the zoom operation unit 202, and the focus operation unit 203 each send a control signal corresponding to an input from a user to the system control unit 230. The system control unit 230 has an acquisition unit 231, a determination unit 232, and an instruction unit 233. As shown in FIG. 2(b), the system control unit is composed of a CPU 234, a RAM 235, and a ROM 236. Of the units shown in FIG. 2(a), the acquisition unit 231, the determination unit 232, and the instruction unit 233 are functions realized by software. Therefore, these functions are realized by loading a program stored in the ROM 236 into the RAM 235 and executing it by the CPU 234.

[0030] The acquisition unit 231 acquires information on the distribution state of the camera to be operated, that is, tally information, via the communication unit 240 described later. The tally information may be acquired from the switcher 300 or from the camera to be operated.

[0031] The determination unit 232 determines input / output characteristics for determining a drive speed V for input signals from the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the zoom operation unit 202, and the focus operation unit 203. The determination unit 232 determines the input / output characteristics based on information acquired by the acquisition unit 231 regarding the distribution state of the camera to be operated.

[0032] The instruction unit 233 outputs a control signal instructing the drive speed V of each drive unit based on the input / output characteristics determined by the determination unit 232 and the input signal to each operation unit. The details of the processing flow and input / output characteristics of the functions in the system control unit 230 will be described later.

[0033] Communication unit 240 transmits the control signal output from system control unit 230 to the camera to be operated via control communication terminal 220. That is, the control signal output from instruction unit 233 is transmitted via communication unit 240 to the camera to be operated.

[0034] Note that there are cases where the control signal output from instruction unit 233 is not necessarily sent to the camera to be operated. For example, there are cases where the camera body does not have a pan drive unit or tilt drive unit, and the camera body is fixed to a camera platform that has a pan drive unit and tilt drive unit. In this case, the control signal is not sent to the camera body, but is output (sent) to the camera platform. Therefore, the drive unit for changing the imaging direction of the camera also includes the drive unit of the camera platform.

[0035] (Operation description) 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the control device 200 according to this embodiment. The operation of each step described in this flowchart is realized by loading a program stored in the ROM 236 into the RAM 235 and executing it with the CPU 234. Hereinafter, as an example, a case will be described in which the PTZ camera 100 is the camera to be operated and the user inputs in the pan direction to the pan / tilt operation unit 201. Note that the operation of this flowchart can also be applied to the tilt drive unit, zoom drive unit, and focus drive unit, and similar processing can also be performed in the PTZ camera 110.

[0036] In step S300, the system control unit 230 waits until there is an input from the pan / tilt operation unit 201. If there is an input to the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the process proceeds to step S310.

[0037] In step S310, the acquisition unit 231 acquires information (tally information) about the distribution state of the PTZ camera 100. As described above, the tally information may be acquired from the switcher 300, or may be acquired directly from the PTZ camera 100.

[0038] In step S320, the determination unit 232 determines the input / output characteristics indicating the relationship of the drive speed V to the input to the pan / tilt operation unit 201 based on the acquired tally information. If the distribution state of the PTZ camera 100 is "distributing", the first input / output characteristics are determined as the input / output characteristics to be used for calculating the control signal (step S330). On the other hand, if the distribution state of the PTZ camera 100 is not "distributing", the second input / output characteristics are determined as the input / output characteristics to be used (step S330).

[0039] In steps S340 and S360, the instruction unit 233 determines the driving speed V in the pan direction or tilt direction based on the input / output characteristics determined by the determination unit 232 and the input signal to the pan / tilt operation unit 201. The determined driving speed V is output (transmitted) as a control signal to the PTZ camera 100 via the communication unit 240. More specifically, a calculation is performed to convert the input signal into a control signal based on the determined input / output characteristics, and the control signal is output to the PTZ camera 100. Here, a control signal for rotating at the driving speed V is output to the pan driving unit.

[0040] In this embodiment, the determination of the input / output characteristics and the output of the control signal to the PTZ camera 100 are performed in the same flowchart, but the determination of the input / output characteristics and the calculation and output of the control signal may be performed separately. That is, before input to the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the tally information of the PTZ camera 100 is acquired in advance, and the input / output characteristics to be used are determined based on the tally information. Then, when an input is made to the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the determined input / output characteristics may be used without determining the distribution state. In this case, the tally information of the operation target may be periodically acquired and the input / output characteristics may be updated. This eliminates the need to determine the input / output characteristics every time an operation is performed, making it possible to more suitably convert the input signal into a control signal.

[0041] (Input / output characteristics) Fig. 4 shows input / output characteristics when the camera to be operated is streaming and when it is not streaming. The horizontal axis indicates the amount of displacement (input) of the pan / tilt operation unit 201, and the vertical axis indicates the drive speed V (output). The amount of displacement is acquired in both the pan direction and the tilt direction. As described above, in this embodiment, the case where input is made only in the pan direction will be described. The amount of displacement here is the amount indicating how far the joystick has been moved (or tilted) from a reference position, and the reference position indicates the position of the joystick when the joystick is not being operated.

[0042] Fig. 4 shows the output when a displacement amount X1 is input in the pan direction to the pan / tilt operation unit 201. In the first input / output characteristic and the second input / output characteristic shown in Fig. 4, the drive speed V is determined by a linear graph, and the slope of the graph differs between the first input / output characteristic and the second input / output characteristic.

[0043] For example, when the PTZ camera 100 is streaming, the instruction unit 233 generates a driving speed V1, which is a speed parameter, based on the first input / output characteristic shown in Fig. 4, and outputs it to the PTZ camera 100, thereby driving the pan driving unit at the driving speed V1. On the other hand, in the case of the second input / output characteristic (when the PTZ camera 100 is not streaming), a driving speed V2 faster than the driving speed V1 is generated for an input signal of the same displacement amount X1. In this way, for the same input to the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the driving speed output based on the first input / output characteristic is slower than the driving speed output based on the second input / output characteristic.

[0044] In other words, the slope of the linear graph of the first input / output characteristic and the slope of the graph of the second input / output characteristic are different, and the slope of the graph of the first input / output characteristic is smaller than the slope of the graph of the second input / output characteristic.

[0045] 4 is the maximum speed at which the pan drive unit of the PTZ camera 100 can be driven, and the displacement amount Xmax on the horizontal axis indicates the maximum displacement amount of the pan / tilt operation unit 201. Also, the drive speed V1max at the operation unit displacement amount Xmax of the first input / output characteristic shown in FIG 4 is the upper limit speed value of the pan Vmax drive unit of the PTZ camera 100 during distribution.

[0046] In this embodiment, the first input / output characteristic and the second input / output characteristic are set to be a linear graph. The first input / output characteristic includes a first upper limit value (V1max) and includes a second input / output characteristic (Vmax). Therefore, the first input / output characteristic is determined based on the first upper limit value, and the second input / output characteristic is determined based on the second upper limit value.

[0047] In the field of video production, it is necessary to quickly adjust a non-streaming camera to the desired angle of view, while for a streaming camera, it is necessary to change the angle of view while maintaining the quality of the video, so the camera must operate at a slower speed than the non-streaming camera.

[0048] In the conventional technology, the upper limit value can be set for the driving speed, and the user can adjust the upper limit value for the camera that is streaming and the camera that is not streaming. However, the conventional method of manually setting the upper limit value is time-consuming, since the user needs to go through a process such as checking the tally lamp to determine whether the camera to be operated is a streaming camera or a non-streaming camera. According to the present embodiment, the input / output characteristics are automatically switched based on the tally information, making it possible to more appropriately control the driving speed in the pan direction or tilt direction according to the streaming state of the operation target.

[0049] As described above, different input / output characteristics can be used for the driving speed of the zoom driving unit and the focus driving unit in the distribution state and the non-distribution state, not limited to the driving speed in the pan direction or tilt direction. However, the input / output characteristics of the driving speed in the pan direction or tilt direction must be different. Also, different sets of input / output characteristics may be used for the pan direction and the tilt direction.

[0050] <Embodiment 2> The control device 200 according to this embodiment includes a pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211, a zoom speed adjustment unit 212, and a focus speed adjustment unit 213 shown in Fig. 1. The pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211 is a setting unit that can set upper limits for the drive speeds of the pan drive unit and the tilt drive unit of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110, and is disposed near the pan / tilt operation unit 201.

[0051] The zoom speed adjustment unit 212 can set an upper limit for the drive speed of the zoom drive unit of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 , and is disposed near the zoom operation unit 202 .

[0052] The focus speed adjustment unit 213 can set an upper limit value for the drive speed of the focus drive unit of the PTZ cameras 100 and 110 , and is disposed near the focus operation unit 203 .

[0053] Figure 5 shows the input / output characteristics when the upper limit of the drive speed is changed from the input / output characteristics in Figure 4. The dashed line shows the input / output characteristics before the upper limit of the drive speed was changed, i.e., the input / output characteristics in Figure 4, and the solid line shows the input / output characteristics after the upper limit of the drive speed was changed.

[0054] As in the first embodiment, when the user operates the pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211 to change the upper limit Vmax of the drive speed of the pan drive unit in the non-distribution state to V2max, the second input / output characteristic changes with the change in the upper limit as shown in Fig. 5. The slope of the linear graph of the second input / output characteristic decreases with the change in the upper limit.

[0055] At this time, as shown in Fig. 5, the first input / output characteristic and the driving speed V1max also change with the change in the upper limit value. More specifically, the first upper limit value (V1max) included in the first input / output characteristic is changed based on the difference between the second upper limit value (Vmax) included in the second input / output characteristic and the changed second upper limit value (V2max). The first upper limit value may be calculated based on the second upper limit value. For example, it can be calculated using the following formula. V1max=α·Vmax (0<α<1) (Equation 1)

[0056] α allows the magnification to be adjusted relative to the maximum speed by moving the knob of the pan / tilt speed adjustment unit 211. When the first upper limit is changed, it is preferable not to change the second upper limit in conjunction with the change of the first upper limit. According to this embodiment, even after the second upper limit is changed, it is possible to maintain the relative magnitude relationship between the first input / output characteristic and the second input / output characteristic. Even if the user changes the upper speed limit in the distribution state, the viewer can operate the camera at a drive speed that is easily visible during distribution. On the other hand, in the non-distribution state, the camera can be quickly operated to the desired angle of view, so that the camera can be operated at an appropriate speed according to the distribution state.

[0057] <Embodiment 3> The device configuration and functional configuration of the control device 200 according to this embodiment are similar to those of the first and second embodiments, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted.

[0058] In this embodiment, a case will be described in which graphs having different properties are used for the first input / output characteristic and the second input / output characteristic. Similar to FIG. 4, FIG. 6(a) and (b) are diagrams showing the drive speed and the input / output characteristic determined by the determination unit 232.

[0059] 4 in that the first input / output characteristic has nonlinearity. That is, the input / output characteristic for a camera in a broadcasting state has linearity as in the first and second embodiments, while the input / output characteristic for a camera in a non-broadcasting state has linearity as in the first and second embodiments.

[0060] The input / output characteristic shown in Fig. 6(a) will be described. The second input / output characteristic is the same as that in Fig. 4, and therefore will not be described. Therefore, the first input / output characteristic will be described. The first input / output characteristic is the same as the second input / output characteristic up to a predetermined displacement amount Xth, and when a displacement amount equal to or greater than the predetermined displacement amount Xth is input to the pan / tilt operation unit 201, the output drive speed is kept constant (first upper limit value).

[0061] Next, the input / output characteristics shown in Fig. 6(b) will be described. The second input / output characteristics are the same as those in Fig. 4, so their description will be omitted. Therefore, the first input / output characteristics will be described. The first input / output characteristics shown in Fig. 6(b) are curved, and are set so that as the amount of displacement input to the pan / tilt operation unit increases, the drive speed is calculated with high sensitivity to the amount of displacement.

[0062] Note that the setting of the first input / output characteristic is not limited to this. In other words, various customizations of the operation unit other than those described above are possible, and it is sufficient that the first input / output characteristic is adjusted to be different from the second input / output characteristic.

[0063] In video production sites, there are cases where the operability of a camera during distribution needs to be changed according to the user's preferences or the shooting scene. However, since it is important to be able to quickly change the angle of view of a camera in a non-distribution state, the settings (input / output characteristics) of the control device 200 for a camera during distribution may become a factor that inhibits adjustment of a camera in a non-distribution state.

[0064] According to this embodiment, it is possible to control using different input / output characteristics depending on the distribution status of the target to be operated, so that it is possible to customize the operability of a camera that is currently distributing to suit the user's preferences, while quickly changing the angle of view of a camera that is not currently distributing.

[0065] <Other embodiments> The present invention can be realized by a process of reading and executing a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-mentioned embodiment 1. The program is supplied to a system or device via a network or a storage medium, and is read and executed by one or more processors in the computer of the system or device. The present invention can also be realized by a circuit (e.g., ASIC) that realizes one or more functions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0066] 100 PTZ Cameras 101 Tally lamp 102 Video output terminal 103 Control communication terminal 110 PTZ Camera 111 Tally lamp 112 Video output terminal 113 Control communication terminal 200 Controller 201 Pan-tilt control unit 202 Zoom operation section 203 Focus control section 204 Display section 205 Operation target camera selection button 211 Pan-tilt speed adjustment unit 212 Zoom speed adjustment section 213 Focus speed adjustment unit 220 Control communication terminal 230 System Control Unit 231 Decision Section 232 Instruction section 240 Communications Department 300 Switcher 301 Video input terminal 302 Video input terminal 303 Video output terminal 304 Control communication terminal 305 Streaming video selection button

Claims

1. an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding a distribution state of an imaging device; an operation unit that receives an input for instructing a driving speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction to a driving unit that changes a shooting direction of the imaging device; a determination unit that determines input / output characteristics between an input to the operation unit and an output for instructing the imaging device of the drive speed based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit; an instruction unit that instructs the imaging device on a drive speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction based on the input / output characteristics determined by the determination unit and an input to the operation unit, The control device, characterized in that the determination unit determines a first input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is currently streaming, and determines a second input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is not currently streaming.

2. 2. The control device according to claim 1, wherein, for the same input to the operation unit, a drive speed output based on the first input / output characteristic is slower than a drive speed output based on the second input / output characteristic.

3. The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the first input / output characteristic includes a first upper limit value of a drive speed to be output to the imaging device, and the second input / output characteristic includes a second upper limit value of a drive speed to be output to the imaging device.

4. 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the first upper limit value is smaller than the second upper limit value.

5. 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the determination unit determines the first input / output characteristic based on the first upper limit value, and determines the second input / output characteristic based on the second upper limit value.

6. 4. The control device according to claim 3, wherein the second upper limit value is a maximum speed at which a drive section of the imaging device can be driven.

7. The control device according to claim 3 , wherein the determination unit determines the first upper limit value based on the second upper limit value.

8. 4. The control device according to claim 3, further comprising a setting unit that sets the first upper limit value and the second upper limit value.

9. The control device according to claim 1 , wherein the operation unit is a joystick.

10. an acquisition unit that acquires information regarding a distribution state of an imaging device; an operation unit that receives an input for instructing a drive speed for changing a zoom or focus of the imaging device; a determination unit that determines input / output characteristics between an input to the operation unit and an output for instructing the imaging device of the drive speed based on the information acquired by the acquisition unit; an instruction unit that instructs the imaging device on a zoom or focus drive speed based on the input / output characteristics determined by the determination unit and an input to the operation unit, The control device, characterized in that the determination unit determines a first input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is currently streaming, and determines a second input / output characteristic as the input / output characteristic when the imaging device is not currently streaming.

11. 11. The control device according to claim 10, wherein for the same input to the operation unit, a drive speed output based on the first input / output characteristic is slower than a drive speed output based on the second input / output characteristic.

12. The control device according to claim 10, wherein the first input / output characteristic includes a first upper limit value of a drive speed to be output to the imaging device, and the second input / output characteristic includes a second upper limit value of a drive speed to be output to the imaging device.

13. 13. The control device according to claim 12, wherein the first upper limit value is smaller than the second upper limit value.

14. An acquisition step of acquiring information regarding a distribution state of an imaging device; an operation step of receiving an input for instructing a drive speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction of the imaging device; a determination step of determining input / output characteristics between an input in the operation step and an output for instructing the imaging device of the drive speed based on the information acquired in the acquisition step; an instruction step of outputting a drive speed in a pan direction or a tilt direction to the imaging device based on the input / output characteristics determined in the determination step and an input in the operation step, A control method characterized in that, in the determination step, if the imaging device is currently streaming, a first input / output characteristic is determined as the input / output characteristic, and if the imaging device is not currently streaming, a second input / output characteristic is determined as the input / output characteristic.

15. A program for causing a computer to execute the control method according to claim 14.

16. A computer-readable storage medium storing the program according to claim 15.

Images