Imaging device and accessory

Abstract

To perform appropriate processing on a first accessory when a second accessory is attached between an electronic apparatus and the first accessory.SOLUTION: A first accessory 200 is detachably attached to an electronic apparatus 100. The electronic apparatus includes processing means 101 for communicating with the first accessory and controlling operation of the first accessory. When a second accessory 300 is attached between the electronic apparatus and the first accessory, the processing means receives, from the first accessory, first information indicating whether to allow or disallow operation of the first accessory in a state in which it is attached to the second accessory, and controls the operation of the first accessory differently depending on the first information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 13

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an imaging device to which an accessory can be attached.

Background Art

[0002] When attaching an accessory to an imaging device, the expandability of the imaging system can be improved by attaching an intermediate accessory such as an adapter or an off-camera shoe cord (hereinafter referred to as an off-shoe cord) between the imaging device and the main accessory. Patent Document 1 discloses an imaging system in which an intermediate accessory is attached between an imaging device and a main accessory.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the imaging system disclosed in Patent Document 1, when the intermediate accessory is attached to the imaging device alone, the imaging device does not detect the attachment of the intermediate accessory, and when the main accessory is attached to the intermediate accessory, the imaging device detects the attachment of the main accessory. In this case, even if there is a function of the main accessory that cannot be realized due to the attachment of the intermediate accessory, it cannot be detected and appropriate processing cannot be performed.

[0005] The present invention provides an imaging device or the like that can perform appropriate processing on a main accessory when an intermediate connection accessory is attached between an electronic device and the main accessory.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] As one aspect of the present invention, an electronic device has a first accessory detachably attached thereto. The electronic device has processing means for communicating with the first accessory and controlling the operation of the first accessory. The processing means receives first information from the first accessory indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory when attached to a second accessory, and controls the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information.

[0007] Also, as another aspect of the present invention, a first accessory is detachably attached to an electronic device. The first accessory has accessory processing means for communicating with the electronic device. The accessory processing means is characterized by transmitting first information to the electronic device indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory when attached to a second accessory. Note that a system having the above-described electronic device and the first accessory also constitutes another aspect of the present invention.

[0008] Also, as another aspect of the present invention, a control method is applied to an electronic device to which a first accessory is detachably attached. The control method includes a step of receiving first information from the first accessory indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory when attached to a second accessory, and a step of controlling the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information.

[0009] Also, as another aspect of the present invention, a control method is applied to a first accessory detachably attached to an electronic device. The control method is characterized by including a step of transmitting first information to the electronic device indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory when attached to a second accessory. Note that a program for causing a computer of the above-described electronic device and the first accessory to execute processing according to the above control method also constitutes another aspect of the present invention.

Advantages of the Invention

[0010] According to the present invention, when a second accessory is attached between an electronic device and a first accessory, the electronic device can perform appropriate processing on the first accessory.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0011]

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Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Embodiment

[0013] FIG. 1 shows the electrical configuration of an imaging system including an imaging device (hereinafter referred to as a camera) 100, which is an electronic device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and an accessory 200 that is detachably attached thereto. The accessory 200 is, for example, a microphone device or a lighting (strobe or flash) device, and includes various devices that can be attached to the camera 100. The camera 100 and the accessory 200 are electrically connected by a one-to-one contact between a plurality of contacts (terminals) TC01 to TC21 of a camera connection portion 141 provided in the camera 100 and a plurality of contacts TA01 to TA21 of an accessory connection portion 211 provided in the accessory 200. Note that the accessory 200 may not have some of the plurality of contacts TA01 to TA21.

[0014] The camera 100 is powered by the battery 111. The battery 111 is detachable from the camera 100. The camera control circuit A101 as the first processing means, control means, and receiving means in the camera 100 and the camera control circuit B102 as the second processing means are circuits that control the entire camera 100 and are constituted by a processor (microcomputer) such as a CPU. The camera control circuit A101 and the camera control circuit B102 execute various controls and processes according to a computer program.

[0015] The camera control circuit A101 monitors operations such as a switch for camera operations (not shown) and controls the system power supply according to the user's operations. The camera control circuit A101 is constituted by a low-power type processor that can operate even when the camera 100 is in a power-saving state with low power consumption. On the other hand, the camera control circuit B102 is in charge of controlling the imaging sensor 122, the display circuit 127, and the like. The camera control circuit B102 stops operating in the low power consumption state and is constituted by a processor that operates in the normal operating state.

[0016] In this embodiment, the case where the camera control circuit A101 and the camera control circuit B102 are constituted by separate processors is described, but they may be provided within a single processor.

[0017] The system power supply circuit 112 is a circuit that generates the power supply to each circuit of the camera 100 and is constituted by a DC / DC converter circuit, an LDO (Low Drop Out), a charge pump circuit, and the like. The voltage of 1.8V generated by the system power supply circuit 112 that has received the power supply from the battery 111 is constantly supplied as the camera microcomputer power supply VMCU_C to the camera control circuit A101. Also, several types of voltages generated by the system power supply circuit 112 are supplied as the camera microcomputer power supply VMCU2_C to the camera control circuit B102 at an arbitrary timing. The camera control circuit A101 controls the on / off of the power supply to each circuit of the camera 100 by controlling the system power supply circuit 112.

[0018] The optical lens 121 is detachable from the camera 100. The light from the subject incident through the optical lens 121 forms an image on the imaging sensor 122 composed of a CMOS sensor, a CCD sensor, or the like. Note that the optical lens 121 and the camera 100 may be integrally configured. The subject image formed on the imaging sensor 122 is encoded into a digital imaging signal. The image processing circuit 123 performs image processing such as noise reduction processing and white balance processing on the digital imaging signal to generate image data, and converts the image data into an image file in the JPEG format or the like for recording in the recording memory 126. Further, the image processing circuit 123 generates VRAM image data for display on the display circuit 127 from the image data.

[0019] The memory control circuit 124 controls the transmission and reception of the image data and other data generated by the image processing circuit 123 and the like. The volatile memory 125 is a memory capable of high-speed reading and writing such as DDR3 SDRAM, and is used as a workspace for the image processing performed by the image processing circuit 123. The recording memory 126 is a recordable medium capable of reading and writing, such as an SD card or a CFexpress card, which is detachable from the camera 100 via a connection portion (not shown). The display circuit 127 is a display arranged on the back surface of the camera 100, and is composed of an LCD panel, an organic EL display panel, or the like. The backlight circuit 128 adjusts the brightness of the display circuit 127 by changing the amount of light of the backlight of the display circuit 127.

[0020] The accessory power supply circuit A (first power supply means) 131 and the accessory power supply circuit (second power supply means) B132 are each a voltage conversion circuit that converts the voltage supplied from the system power supply circuit 112 into a predetermined voltage. In this embodiment, 3.3 V is generated as the accessory power supply VACC. Note that a configuration for converting to other voltages may also be used. The accessory power supply circuit A131 is a power supply circuit with low self - consumption power composed of an LDO or the like. The accessory power supply circuit B132 is composed of a DC / DC converter circuit or the like and can pass a larger current (that is, can supply more power) than the accessory power supply circuit A131. Note that the self - consumption power of the accessory power supply circuit B132 is larger than that of the accessory power supply circuit A131. Therefore, when the load current is small, the accessory power supply circuit A131 is more efficient than the accessory power supply circuit B132, and when the load current is large, the accessory power supply circuit B132 is more efficient than the accessory power supply circuit A131. The camera control circuit A101 controls the on / off of the voltage output of the accessory power supply circuit A131 and the accessory power supply circuit B132 according to the operating state of the accessory 200.

[0021] The protection circuit 133 is composed of a current fuse element, a polyswitch element, or an electronic fuse circuit formed by combining a resistor, an amplifier, and a switch element. The protection circuit 133 outputs an over - current detection signal DET_OVC when the power supply current value supplied from the accessory power supply circuit A131 and the accessory power supply circuit B132 to the accessory 200 becomes excessive (abnormal) exceeding a predetermined value. In this embodiment, the protection circuit 133 is an electronic fuse circuit and notifies the camera control circuit A101 with the over - current detection signal DET_OVC when a current of 1A or more flows. The over - current detection signal DET_OVC indicates an over - current by a Hi level. Note that the configuration where the predetermined value is different from 1A may also be possible.

[0022] The camera connection part 141 is a connector for making an electrical connection with the accessory 200 via 21 contacts TC01 - TC21 arranged in a row. The contacts TC01 - TC21 are arranged in this order from one end to the other end in the arrangement direction.

[0023] TC01 is connected to ground (GND) and serves not only as a contact for the reference potential but also as a contact for controlling the wiring impedance of differential signals D1N and D1P. TC01 corresponds to the third ground contact.

[0024] The differential signal D1N connected to TC02 and the differential signal D1P connected to TC03 are differential data communication signals that pair up to perform data communication and are connected to the camera control circuit B102. TC02, TC03, TC07 to TCA10, TC12 to TC17, TC19, and TC20 described later are communication contacts.

[0025] TC04 as the first ground contact is connected to GND and serves as the contact for the reference potential of the camera 100 and the accessory 200. TC04 is arranged outside in the contact arrangement direction compared to TC05 described next.

[0026] The accessory power supply VACC generated by the accessory power supply circuits A131 and B132 is connected to TC05 as the power supply contact via the protection circuit 133.

[0027] The accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET is connected to TC06 as the attachment detection contact. The accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET is pulled up to the camera microcontroller power supply VMCU_C via a resistance element Rp134 (for example, 10 kΩ). The camera control circuit A101 can detect the presence or absence of the attachment of the accessory 200 by reading the signal level of the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET. If the signal level (potential) of the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET is at the Hi level (predetermined potential), it is detected that the accessory 200 is not attached, and if it is at the Lo level (GND potential) as the active potential, it is detected that the accessory 200 is attached.

[0028] When the power of camera 100 is turned on, the signal level (potential) of the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET changes from the Hi level to the Lo level, which triggers various transmissions via contacts between the camera 100 and the accessory 200.

[0029] Upon detecting that the accessory 200 is in the attached state, the camera control circuit 101 supplies power to the accessory 200 via TC05 as a power contact.

[0030] SCLK connected to TC07 which is a communication contact, MOSI connected to TC08, MISO connected to TC09, and CS connected to TC10 are signals for the camera control circuit B102 to communicate in the SPI (Serial Peripheral Interface) communication method which is the second communication method with the camera control circuit B102 as the communication master (hereinafter referred to as SPI communication). SCLK is a clock signal, MOSI is a transmission signal, MISO is a reception signal, and CS (chip select) is a communication selection signal, a signal for selecting a communication partner. In this embodiment, the communication clock frequency of SPI communication is 1 MHz, the data length is 8 bits (1 byte), the bit order is MSB first, and it is a full-duplex communication method.

[0031] In this embodiment, the camera 100 and the accessory 200 can support two types of communication protocols as the SPI communication method. Communication protocol A is a communication method in which the camera 100 does not confirm whether the accessory 200 is in a communicable state before outputting SCLK, and is referred to as SPI protocol A in the following description. Fig. 2(a) shows an outline of the communication waveform of SPI protocol A. In the figure, CS is Lo active.

[0032] The camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Lo level (active) at timing A1 to request SPI communication to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0033] At timing A2, which is a predetermined time T_CS after timing A1, the camera control circuit B102 starts outputting SCLK and MOSI. Also, when the accessory control circuit 201 detects a falling edge of SCLK, it starts outputting MISO.

[0034] The camera control circuit B102 stops outputting SCLK at timing A3 when the output of SCLK for one byte is completed.

[0035] Furthermore, the camera control circuit B102 stops outputting SCLK until a predetermined time T_INTERVAL has elapsed since timing A3, and resumes outputting SCLK at timing A4 when T_INTERVAL has elapsed to perform the next one-byte communication.

[0036] The flowchart in Fig. 3(a) shows the processing performed by the camera control circuit B102 in the SPI protocol A. S means step.

[0037] In S101, the camera control circuit B102 stores a numerical value indicating the number of bytes to be communicated in the internal variable N. For example, when communicating 3 bytes, 3 is stored.

[0038] In S102, the camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Lo level to request SPI communication.

[0039] In S103, after the camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Lo level, it performs a wait process until a predetermined time T_CS has elapsed. After the predetermined time T_CS has elapsed, it proceeds to S104.

[0040] In S104, for communicating one-byte data, the camera control circuit B102 controls the output of SCLK, and also controls the output of MOSI data and the input of MISO data.

[0041] In S105, the camera control circuit B102 checks whether the internal variable N indicating the number of communication bytes is 0. If the internal variable N is 0, it proceeds to S106; if the internal variable N is other than 0, it proceeds to S107.

[0042] In S107, the camera control circuit B102 stores, as a new internal variable N, a value obtained by subtracting 1 from the numerical value of the internal variable N indicating the number of communication bytes.

[0043] In S108, the camera control circuit B102 performs a wait process until a predetermined time T_INTERVAL elapses after the communication of 1-byte data is completed in S104. Then, after the predetermined time T_INTERVAL elapses, it returns to the process of S104 and executes the same process again.

[0044] In S106, the camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Hi level to end a series of SPI communications.

[0045] The flowchart of FIG. 3(b) shows the processes performed by the accessory control circuit 201 in the SPI protocol A.

[0046] In S201, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether CS has changed to Lo. If CS has changed to Lo, it proceeds to S202; if CS has not changed to Lo, it returns to S211.

[0047] In S202, the accessory control circuit 201 performs input control of MOSI data and output control of MISO data in response to the input of the SCLK signal to perform communication of 1-byte data.

[0048] In S203, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether CS has changed to Hi. If CS has changed to Hi, it determines that the SPI communication has ended; if CS has not changed to Hi, it returns to S202 to perform the next 1-byte communication.

[0049] In addition, communication protocol B in the SPI communication method is a communication method in which the camera 100 checks whether the accessory 200 is in a communicable state before outputting SCLK, and is referred to as SPI protocol B in the following description. Fig. 2(b) shows an overview of the communication waveform of SPI protocol B.

[0050] The camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Lo level at timing B1 to request SPI communication from the accessory control circuit 201. In addition, the camera control circuit B102 checks the potential of MISO together with the communication request. If MISO is at the Hi level, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 is in a communicable state, and if it is at the Lo level, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 is in a non - communicable state.

[0051] On the other hand, when the accessory control circuit 201 detects the falling edge of CS at timing B2, if it is in a state where SPI communication is possible, it controls MISO to the Hi level, and if it is in a state where SPI communication is impossible, it controls MISO to the Lo level.

[0052] Furthermore, when the camera control circuit B102 confirms that MISO is at the Hi level at timing B3, it starts outputting SCLK and MOSI. Also, when the accessory control circuit 201 detects the falling edge change of SCLK, it starts outputting MISO.

[0053] When the output of SCLK for one byte is completed at timing B4, the camera control circuit B102 stops outputting SCLK.

[0054] After performing data transmission and reception of one byte, the accessory control circuit 201 controls MISO to the Hi level if it is in a state where SPI communication is possible, and controls MISO to the Lo level if it is in a state where SPI communication is impossible, as shown in timings B5 and B6.

[0055] The camera control circuit B102 checks the potential of MISO at timing B7. If MISO is at the Hi level, it determines that the accessory control circuit 201 is in a communicable state; if it is at the Lo level, it determines that the accessory control circuit 201 is in a non - communicable state.

[0056] The flowchart of Fig. 3(c) shows the processing performed by the camera control circuit B102 in the SPI protocol B.

[0057] In S111, the camera control circuit B102 stores a numerical value indicating the number of bytes to communicate in the internal variable N. For example, when communicating 3 bytes, it stores 3.

[0058] In S112, the camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Lo level to request SPI communication.

[0059] In S113, the camera control circuit B102 checks whether MISO has changed to the Hi level. If MISO is at the Hi level, it proceeds to S114; if MISO is not at the Hi level, it returns to S113.

[0060] In S114, for communicating 1 - byte data, the camera control circuit B102 controls the output of SCLK, and also controls the output of MOSI data and the input of MISO data.

[0061] In S115, the camera control circuit B102 checks whether all data communication has been completed (the internal variable N indicating the number of communication bytes is 0). If the internal variable N is 0, it proceeds to S116; if the internal variable N is non - zero, it proceeds to S117.

[0062] In S117, the camera control circuit B102 stores, as the new internal variable N, a value obtained by subtracting 1 from the numerical value of the internal variable N indicating the number of communication bytes.

[0063] In S118, the camera control circuit B102 checks whether MISO has changed to the Hi level. If MISO is at the Hi level, it proceeds to S114; if MISO is not at the Hi level, it returns to S118.

[0064] In S116, the camera control circuit B102 changes CS to the Hi level to end a series of SPI communications.

[0065] The flowchart of Fig. 3(d) shows the processing performed by the accessory control circuit 201 in the SPI protocol B.

[0066] In S211, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether CS has changed to Lo. If CS has changed to Lo, it proceeds to S212; if CS has not changed to Lo, it returns to S211.

[0067] In S212, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether it is in a state where SPI communication is possible. If SPI communication is possible, it proceeds to S213; if SPI communication is not possible, it proceeds to S214.

[0068] In S213, the accessory control circuit 201 controls MISO to the Hi level and proceeds to S215.

[0069] In S214, the accessory control circuit 201 controls MISO to the Lo level and returns to S212.

[0070] In S215, the accessory control circuit 201 performs input control of MOSI data and output control of MISO data in response to the input of the SCLK signal to conduct 1-byte data communication.

[0071] In S216, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether CS has changed to Hi. If CS has changed to Hi, it determines that the SPI communication has ended; if CS has not changed to Hi, it returns to S212 to conduct the next 1-byte communication.

[0072] Figure 4 shows the communication content when notifying the accessory 200 of an operation execution command (command) from the camera 100 via SPI communication in this embodiment.

[0073] In the first byte of communication, the camera control circuit B102 transmits, as MOSI data, information CMD indicating a command number to the accessory control circuit 201. The accessory control circuit 201 transmits, as MISO data, a value of 0xA5, which is information indicating a communicable state, to the camera control circuit B102. If the accessory control circuit 201 cannot execute the communication process of the first byte, it transmits a value other than 0xA5 to the camera control circuit B102 as MISO data.

[0074] In the second byte of communication, the camera control circuit B102 transmits the argument MOSI_DATA1 corresponding to the command number CMD to the accessory control circuit 201. Similarly, from the third byte to the (N - 2)-th byte and later, the arguments MOSI_DATA2 to MOSI_DATA[N - 3] corresponding to the command number CMD are transmitted to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0075] In the second byte of communication, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits, as MISO data, the command number CMD received in the first byte to the camera control circuit B102. This enables the camera control circuit B102 to determine that the accessory control circuit 201 has correctly received the MOSI data.

[0076] Furthermore, in the third byte of communication, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits, as MISO data, the return value MISO_DATA1 corresponding to the command number CMD to the camera control circuit B102. Similarly, from the fourth byte to the (N - 2)-th byte and later, the arguments MISO_DATA2 to MISO_DATA[N - 4] corresponding to the command number CMD are transmitted to the camera control circuit B102.

[0077] Note that the number of arguments and return values is determined in advance for each command number. Also, either one or both of the arguments and return values may be absent.

[0078] In the communication of the (N - 1)-th byte, the camera control circuit B102 transmits the checksum data CheckSum_C as MOSI data to the accessory control circuit 201. The checksum data CheckSum_C is a value calculated by the following formula. CheckSum_C = EXOR(AND(SUM(CMD, MOSI_DATA1, …, MOSI_DATA[N - 3]), 0xFF), 0xFF) Also, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits 0x00 as MISO data.

[0079] Next, in the communication of the N-th byte, the camera control circuit B102 transmits 0x00 as MOSI data to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0080] Also, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits the checksum data CheckSum_A as MISO data. The checksum data CheckSum_A is calculated by the following formula when the value of CheckSum_C received by the camera control circuit B102 in the communication of the (N - 1)-th byte matches the value of CheckSum_C calculated by the camera control circuit B102. CheckSum_A = EXOR(AND(SUM(0xA5, CMD, MIS0_DATA1, …, MOSI_DATA[N - 4]), 0xFF), 0xFF) On the other hand, when the value of CheckSum_C received by the camera control circuit B102 in the communication of the (N - 1)-th byte does not match the value of CheckSum_C calculated by the camera control circuit B102, it is calculated by the following formula. CheckSum_A = AND(SUM(0xA5, CMD, MIS0_DATA1, …, MOSI_DATA[N - 4]), 0xFF) To the signal contact (communication request contact) TC11 shown in FIG. 1, a communication request signal (second input signal) / WAKE for requesting communication from the accessory 200 to the camera 100 (camera control circuit A101) is connected. The communication request signal / WAKE is pulled up to the camera microcomputer power supply VMCU_C via a resistor. The camera control circuit A101 can detect a communication request from the accessory 200 by detecting a change (falling edge) of the communication request signal / WAKE.

[0081] SDA connected to the communication contact TC12 and SCL connected to the communication contact TC13 are signals for the camera control circuit A101 to communicate as a communication master in the first communication method, the I2C (Inter-Integrated Circuit) communication method (hereinafter referred to as I2C communication). SDA is a data signal and SCL is a clock signal. SDA and SCL are open-drain communications pulled up to the camera microcomputer power supply VMCU_C, and in this embodiment, the communication frequency is set to 100 kbps.

[0082] In I2C communication, both data transmission from the camera 100 and data transmission from the accessory 200 are performed via SDA. Comparing SPI communication and I2C communication, I2C communication has a lower communication speed than SPI communication. Also, since SPI communication has a higher communication speed than I2C communication, it is suitable for communicating information with a large amount of data. Therefore, in the communication between the camera 100 and the accessory 200 of this embodiment, information with a large amount of data is communicated using SPI communication, and information with a small amount of data is communicated using I2C communication. For example, first, if data is communicated using I2C communication and SPI communication can be executed or needs to be executed based on this data, it can be controlled to further execute SPI communication.

[0083] Figs. 16(a) and (b) are diagrams showing an example of I2C communication waveforms. Fig. 16(a) shows an example of waveforms when the camera transmits N bytes of data (DATA[1] to DATA[N]) to the accessory, and Fig. 16(b) shows an example of waveforms when the camera receives N bytes of data (DATA[1] to DATA[N]) from the accessory. In Figs. 16(a) and 16(b), the upper waveform is SCL and the lower waveform is SDA.

[0084] Below the SDA waveform, the meaning indicated by the signal at each timing and whether the control circuit that controls the output level of the SDA signal is the camera control circuit A101 or the accessory control circuit 201 are shown. Also, the communication data is composed of data in units of 1 byte and 1-bit information indicating a response. At the top of the figure, it shows which byte of data it is from the start of communication.

[0085] Since the details of the communication content will be described later using Figs. 17 to 19, only the outline is explained in Figs. 16(a) and 16(b).

[0086] In Fig. 16(a), in the communication of the first byte and the second byte, the camera control circuit A101 notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the storage address information of the data to be transmitted. In the communication from the third byte to the (N + 2)th byte, the camera control circuit A101 transmits N bytes of data (DATA[ADDRESS] to DATA[ADDRESS + N]) to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0087] In Fig. 16(b), in the communication of the first byte and the second byte, the camera control circuit A101 notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the storage address information of the data to be received. In the communication from the third byte to the (N + 3)th byte, the camera control circuit A101 receives N bytes of data (DATA[ADDRESS] to DATA[ADDRESS + N]) from the accessory control circuit 201.

[0088] The flowchart of FIG. 17 shows the processing performed by the camera control circuit A101 when transmitting N - byte data to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0089] In S3001, the camera control circuit A101 stores a numerical value indicating the number of bytes to be transmitted in the internal variable N. For example, when transmitting 3 bytes, 3 is stored. In this embodiment, it is assumed that 3 is stored.

[0090] In S3002, the camera control circuit A101 changes SDA to the Lo level while SCL is at the Hi level (START condition). This notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the start of communication.

[0091] In S3003, the camera control circuit A101 sets the slave - address information indicating the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 in the upper 7 bits of the transmission data. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 is 1010000 in binary.

[0092] In S3004, the camera control circuit A101 sets the information indicating that it is WRITE communication in the lower 1 bit of the transmission data. Setting 0 in this bit means WRITE communication.

[0093] In S3005, the camera control circuit A101 transmits the data (10100000 in binary, 0xA0 in hexadecimal) set as the transmission data in S3003 and S3004 to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0094] In S3006, after transmitting 1 - byte data, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for 1 clock and checks the signal level of SDA. If the signal level of SDA is Lo, it is determined as a data - reception notification (ACK) from the accessory control circuit 201 and proceeds to S3007. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 has not received the data normally and proceeds to S3014.

[0095] In S3007, the camera control circuit A101 sets, as transmission data, information on the storage address (start address information) of data to be transmitted to the accessory control circuit 201. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the size of the start address information is 1 byte and the value is 0x00.

[0096] In S3008, the camera control circuit A101 transmits the 1-byte start address information (value 0x00) set for the accessory control circuit 201.

[0097] In S3009, after transmitting the 1-byte start address information data, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for one clock and checks the signal level of SDA. If the signal level of SDA is Lo, it is determined as a data reception notification (ACK) from the accessory control circuit 201, and the process proceeds to S3010. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 has not received the data normally, and the process proceeds to S3014.

[0098] In S3010, the camera control circuit A101 stores 1 in the internal variable M. The internal variable M is a variable for counting the number of transmission data.

[0099] In S3011, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for one byte and changes SDA to a desired signal level while SCL is Lo, thereby transmitting 1 byte of data to the accessory control circuit 201. Here, since the start address information is 0x00 and the internal variable M is 1, 1 byte of data corresponding to the address 0x00 is transmitted.

[0100] In S3012, after transmitting 1 byte of data, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for one clock and checks the signal level of SDA. If the signal level of SDA is Lo, it is determined as a data reception notification (ACK) from the accessory control circuit 201, and the process proceeds to S3013. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 has not received the data normally, and the process proceeds to S3014.

[0101] In S3013, the camera control circuit A101 checks whether the internal variable M has the same value as the internal variable N. If the internal variable M has the same value as the internal variable N, it is determined that the transmission of all data is completed, and the process proceeds to S3014. If the internal variable M does not have the same value as the internal variable N, it is determined that there is still data to be transmitted, and the process proceeds to S3015.

[0102] In S3015, the camera control circuit A101 adds 1 to the internal variable M and returns to S3011.

[0103] In this way, after returning to S3011, the camera control circuit A101 sequentially increments the address of the data to be transmitted and transmits 1-byte data corresponding to each address. By repeating the transmission of 1-byte data in this way until the internal variable M and the internal variable N have the same value in the process of S3013, the camera control circuit A101 transmits N bytes of data to the accessory control circuit 201. When the internal variable N is set to 3 as in this embodiment, 3-byte data can be transmitted.

[0104] In S3014, the camera control circuit A101 changes SDA to the Hi level while SCL is at the Hi level (STOP condition). This notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the end of communication.

[0105] The flowchart of FIG. 18 shows the processing performed by the camera control circuit A101 when the camera control circuit A101 receives N bytes of data from the accessory control circuit 201.

[0106] In S3101, the camera control circuit A101 stores a numerical value indicating the number of bytes to be received in the internal variable N. For example, when receiving 3 bytes, 3 is stored. In this embodiment, it is assumed that 3 is stored.

[0107] In S3102 to S3106, the camera control circuit A101 performs the same processing as S3002 to S3006 respectively, so the description is omitted.

[0108] In S3107, the camera control circuit A101 sets the information (start address information) of the storage address of the data received from the accessory control circuit 201 as transmission data. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the size of the start address information is 1 byte and the value is 0x00.

[0109] In S3108, the camera control circuit A101 transmits 1-byte start address information (value 0x00) set for the accessory control circuit 201.

[0110] In S3109, after transmitting the 1-byte start address information data, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for 1 clock and checks the signal level of SDA. If the signal level of SDA is Lo, it is determined as a data reception notification (ACK) from the accessory control circuit 201 and proceeds to S3110. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 has not received the data normally and proceeds to S3122.

[0111] In S3110, the camera control circuit A101 changes SDA to the Lo level while SCL is at the Hi level, similar to S3102, and notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the START condition.

[0112] In S3111, the camera control circuit A101 sets the slave address information indicating the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 in the upper 7 bits of the transmission data. In this embodiment, it is assumed that the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 is 1010000 in binary.

[0113] In S3112, the camera control circuit A101 sets the information indicating that it is a READ communication in the lower 1 bit of the transmission data. Setting 1 in this bit means a READ communication.

[0114] In S3113, the camera control circuit A101 transmits the data (10100001 in binary, 0xA1 in hexadecimal) set as transmission data in S3003 and S3004 to the accessory control circuit 201.

[0115] In S3114, after transmitting 1 byte of data, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for one clock and checks the signal level of SDA. If the signal level of SDA is Lo, it is determined as a data reception notification (ACK) from the accessory control circuit 201 and proceeds to S3115. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the accessory control circuit 201 has not received the data normally and proceeds to S3122.

[0116] In S3115, the camera control circuit A101 stores 1 in the internal variable M. The internal variable M is a variable for counting the number of received data.

[0117] In S3116, the camera control circuit A101 outputs SCL for one byte and reads the signal level of SDA at the timing when SCL changes from Lo to Hi. As a result, it becomes possible to receive 1 byte of data from the accessory control circuit 201. The received 1-byte data can be stored in the volatile memory 125 as data corresponding to the address 0x00 or used for a predetermined process.

[0118] In S3117, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether 1 byte of data has been received normally. If it has been received normally, it proceeds to S3118. If it has not been received normally, it proceeds to S3119.

[0119] In S3118, the camera control circuit A101 checks whether the internal variable M has the same value as the internal variable N. If the internal variable M has the same value as the internal variable N, it is determined that the reception of all data is complete and proceeds to S3119. If the internal variable M does not have the same value as the internal variable N, it is determined that there is still received data remaining and proceeds to S3120.

[0120] In S3120, the camera control circuit A101 outputs one byte of SCL and controls SDA to the Lo level, thereby sending a data reception notification (ACK) to the accessory control circuit 201 and notifying it to continue data communication.

[0121] In S3121, the camera control circuit A101 adds 1 to the internal variable M and returns to S3116.

[0122] In this way, after returning to S3116, the camera control circuit A101 sequentially increments the address of the received data and receives one-byte data corresponding to each address. By repeating to receive one-byte data in this way until the internal variable M and the internal variable N have the same value in the process of S3118, the camera control circuit A101 receives N bytes of data from the accessory control circuit 201. When the internal variable N is set to 3 as in this embodiment, 3-byte data reception can be performed.

[0123] In S3119, the camera control circuit A101 outputs one byte of SCL and controls SDA to the Hi level, thereby notifying the accessory control circuit 201 that the data communication has been completed (NACK).

[0124] In S3122, the camera control circuit A101 changes SDA to the Hi level while SCL is at the Hi level (STOP condition). This notifies the accessory control circuit 201 of the end of the communication.

[0125] The flowchart in FIG. 19 shows the processing performed by the accessory control circuit 201 when the camera control circuit A101 transmits N bytes of data to the accessory control circuit 201 and when the camera control circuit A101 receives N bytes of data from the accessory control circuit 201.

[0126] In S3201, the accessory control circuit 201 waits for SDA to change to the Lo level (START condition) while SCL is at the Hi level. When the accessory control circuit 201 detects the START condition, it proceeds to S3202.

[0127] In S3202, the accessory control circuit 201 stores 0 in the internal variable M. The internal variable M is a variable for counting the number of transmitted and received data.

[0128] In S3203, the accessory control circuit 201 receives 1-byte data transmitted from the camera control circuit A101.

[0129] In S3204, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the upper 7-bit data of the 1-byte data received in S3203 matches the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 (0x50 in this embodiment). If it matches the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201, it proceeds to S3205. If it does not match the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201, it proceeds to S3221.

[0130] In S3205, the accessory control circuit 201 controls SDA to the Lo level for the next SCL clock output after receiving 1 byte, thereby sending a data reception notification (ACK) to the camera control circuit A101.

[0131] In S3206, the accessory control circuit 201 determines the type of data for the next 1-byte communication based on the lower 1-bit data of the 1-byte data received in S3203. If the lower 1-bit data is 0, it is determined that the data for the next 1-byte communication is the start address information from the camera control circuit A101 to the accessory control circuit 201, and it proceeds to S3207. If the lower 1-bit data is 1, it is determined that the data for the next 1-byte communication is the transmission data from the accessory control circuit 201 to the camera control circuit A101, and it proceeds to S3209.

[0132] In S3207, the accessory control circuit 201 receives one byte of data transmitted from the camera control circuit A101. The received one byte of data is information indicating the address where the data to be transmitted and received in subsequent communications is stored. In this embodiment, as described with reference to FIGS. 17 and 18, it is assumed that the start address information is 0x00.

[0133] On the other hand, in S3209, the accessory control circuit 201 uses the address information previously stored in the accessory control circuit 201 or the address information previously notified from the camera control circuit A101 as the start address information.

[0134] In S3208, if the accessory control circuit 201 determines that it has successfully received one byte of data, it proceeds to S3210. If it determines that it has not successfully received one byte of data, it proceeds to S3221.

[0135] In S3210, the accessory control circuit 201 notifies the camera control circuit A101 of data reception (ACK) by controlling SDA to the Lo level in response to the next SCL clock output after receiving one byte of data.

[0136] In S3211, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether SDA has changed to the Lo level (START condition) while SCL is at the Hi level. If a START condition is detected, the accessory control circuit 201 determines that the next one byte of data to be communicated is data transmitted from the camera control circuit A101 to the accessory control circuit 201, which is data indicating the slave address and the communication type, and proceeds to S3212. If a START condition is not detected, the accessory control circuit 201 determines that the next one byte of data to be communicated is data information received by the accessory control circuit 201 from the camera control circuit A101, and proceeds to S3216.

[0137] In S3212, the accessory control circuit 201 receives one byte of data transmitted from the camera control circuit A101.

[0138] In S3213, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the upper 7 bits of the 1-byte data received in S3212 match the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201 (0x50 in this embodiment). If they match the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201, proceed to S3214. If they do not match the slave address of the accessory control circuit 201, proceed to S3221.

[0139] In S3214, the accessory control circuit 201 determines the type of data for the next 1-byte communication based on the lower 1 bit of the 1-byte data received in S3203. If the lower 1 bit of the data is 0, proceed to S3221. If the lower 1 bit of the data is 1, it is determined that the data for the next 1-byte communication is the data to be transmitted from the accessory control circuit 201 to the camera control circuit A101, and proceed to S3215.

[0140] In S3215, the accessory control circuit 201 controls SDA to the Lo level in response to the next SCL clock output after receiving 1 byte, thereby performing a data reception notification (ACK) to the camera control circuit A101.

[0141] In S3222, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits 1 byte of data corresponding to the start address information received from the camera control circuit A101 in S3207 or the start address information determined in S3209 to the camera control circuit A101.

[0142] In S3223, the accessory control circuit 201 adds 1 to the internal variable M and proceeds to S3224.

[0143] In S3224, the accessory control circuit 201 checks the signal level of SDA after transmitting 1 byte of data. If the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the camera control circuit A101 has received all the data and sent a notification (NACK), and the process proceeds to S3225. On the other hand, if the signal level of SDA is Hi, it is determined that the camera control circuit A101 is still requesting data transmission from the accessory control circuit 201, and the process returns to S3222. After returning to S3222 in this way, the accessory control circuit 201 sequentially increments the address of the data to be transmitted and transmits 1 byte of data corresponding to each address. By repeating the transmission of 1 byte of data in this S3224 process until a NACK is notified from the camera control circuit A101, the accessory control circuit 201 transmits N bytes of data to the camera control circuit A101.

[0144] In S3225, the accessory control circuit 201 waits for a STOP condition where SDA changes to the Hi level while SCL is at the Hi level. When the accessory control circuit 201 detects the STOP condition, it terminates the communication.

[0145] On the other hand, in S3216, the accessory control circuit 201 receives 1 byte of data, and stores that 1 byte of data in a non-volatile memory (not shown) or uses it for a predetermined process as data corresponding to the start address information received from the camera control circuit A101 in S3207.

[0146] In S3217, the accessory control circuit 201 adds 1 to the internal variable M and proceeds to S3218.

[0147] In S3218, if the accessory control circuit 201 determines that it has successfully received 1 byte of data, it proceeds to S3219. If it determines that it has not successfully received 1 byte of data, it proceeds to S3221.

[0148] In S3219, the accessory control circuit 201 notifies the camera control circuit A101 of data reception (ACK) by controlling SDA to the Lo level for the next SCL clock output after receiving 1 byte.

[0149] In S3230, the accessory control circuit 201 checks whether it has detected a STOP condition where SDA changes to the Hi level while SCL is at the Hi level. When the accessory control circuit 201 detects the STOP condition, it terminates the communication. On the other hand, if the accessory control circuit 201 does not detect the STOP condition, it determines that data transmission will continue from the camera control circuit A101 to the accessory control circuit 201 and returns to S3216.

[0150] In this way, after returning to S3216, the accessory control circuit 201 sequentially increments the address of the received data and receives 1-byte data corresponding to each address. By repeatedly receiving 1-byte data in this manner until the STOP condition is notified in S3220, the accessory control circuit 201 receives N bytes of data from the camera control circuit A101.

[0151] In this way, the camera connection unit 141 includes the contact TC12 for the data signal of the I2C communication method and the contact TC13 for the clock signal of the I2C communication method arranged on one side (adjacent on one side) with respect to the contact for the data signal. Further, on the other side with respect to the contact TC12 for the data signal (in order from the position adjacent on the other side), it includes the contact TC11 for the second input signal, the contact TC10 for the input selection signal of the SPI communication method, the contact TC09 for reception of the SPI communication method, the contact TC08 for transmission of the SPI communication method, the contact TC07 for the clock signal of the SPI communication method, the contact TC06 for the first input signal, and the contact TC05 for the output signal.

[0152] The accessory 200 stores accessory information in a non-volatile memory (not shown). The accessory information is information for enabling the camera 100 to identify the type of the accessory 200 and the specifications regarding communication and operations (functions). FIG. 5 shows an example of the accessory information. The accessory information is mapped to the memory space of addresses 0x00 to 0x0F, and it is possible to read the accessory information from the accessory 200 by I2C communication. Details of the accessory information will be described later. In the I2C communication of this embodiment, a checksum value for the read data is added as the final data of the communication.

[0153] The FNC1 signal connected to TC14, the FNC2 signal connected to TC15, the FNC3 signal connected to TC16, and the FNC4 signal connected to TC17, which are the communication contacts shown in FIG. 1, are function signals whose functions can be changed according to the type of the attached accessory 200. For example, when the accessory 200 is a microphone device, the signal communicated via TC15 is a signal regarding audio data, and when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, the signal communicated via TC14 is a signal for notifying the emission timing.

[0154] Note that signals realizing different functions may be communicated via the same contact depending on the type of the attached accessory. For example, when the accessory 200 is an accessory other than lighting, a synchronization signal for controlling a timing different from the emission timing may be communicated via TC14. TC14 to TC17 correspond to function signal contacts. Communication using at least any one of the function signal contacts is also referred to as function signal communication. Function signal communication can execute communication at a timing independent of I2C communication and SPI communication, in parallel with I2C communication and SPI communication.

[0155] The accessory type mentioned here refers to the above-mentioned microphone device, lighting device, etc. Accessories that achieve the same-purpose functions, such as lighting with different performances, are accessories of the same type. Accessories that achieve different-purpose functions, such as a microphone device and a lighting device, are accessories of different types. The function signal communication is executed based on the information acquired by I2C communication or SPI communication. TC18 as the second ground contact is also connected to GND. Similar to TC04, it is a contact that serves as the reference potential for the camera 100 and the accessory 200. The differential signal D2N connected to TC19 and the differential signal D2P connected to TC20 are data communication signals that perform data communication in pairs and are connected to the camera control circuit B102. It is possible to perform, for example, USB communication via TC19 and TC20.

[0156] TC21 is connected to GND. It not only serves as a contact for the reference potential but also serves as a contact for controlling the wiring impedance of the differential signal D2N and the differential signal D2P. TC21 corresponds to the fourth ground contact. The contacts TC01, TC04, TC06, TC18, and TC21 are connected to the GND part of the flexible substrate, for example, and the GND part of the flexible substrate is fixed to a metallic member at the GND level of the camera 100 with screws or the like. Examples of the metallic member at the GND level include an engaging member that engages with the accessory 200 in the accessory attachment part, a base plate (not shown) inside the camera 100, and the like.

[0157] In this embodiment, a mounting detection contact TC06 to which an accessory mounting detection signal / ACC_DET is connected is arranged adjacent to a contact TC07 (the first clock contact) that transmits the SCLK (the first clock signal) which is a clock signal. Generally, noise (clock noise) associated with the potential fluctuation of the clock signal is transmitted to a contact adjacent to the contact of the clock signal, which can be a cause of malfunction. In particular, in a configuration with a large number of contacts and a short distance between contacts as in this embodiment, the influence becomes greater. Therefore, by arranging the mounting detection contact TC06 adjacent to the SCLK contact TC07, the influence of the clock noise can be suppressed.

[0158] The accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET is pulled up before the accessory is attached, but is set to the GND potential after the accessory is attached. On the other hand, the SCLK contact TC07 that transmits the clock signal does not transmit the clock signal before the accessory is attached, so there is no potential fluctuation, and the potential fluctuates only after the accessory is attached in order to transmit the clock signal.

[0159] When the SCLK contact TC07 transmits the clock signal, the attachment detection contact TC06 is at the GND potential. For this reason, even if the attachment detection contact TC06 receives clock noise, the potential of the control circuits of the camera 100 and the accessory 200 hardly fluctuates, so malfunction can be prevented. In addition, it is possible to suppress the transmission of clock noise to a position farther from the attachment detection contact TC06. As a result, it is not necessary to arrange a GND terminal, so the influence of clock noise can be suppressed without increasing the number of contacts.

[0160] Also, an SCL (second clock signal) as a clock signal is transmitted to the contact (second clock contact) TC13. However, the SCLK transmitted to the SCLK contact TC07 has a higher frequency than the SCL, and more clock noise is generated from the SCLK contact TC07 than from the SCL contact TC13. For this reason, it is more effective to prevent malfunction due to clock noise by arranging the attachment detection contact TC06 next to the SCLK contact TC07 instead of next to the SCL contact TC13.

[0161] Furthermore, not only is there a difference in frequency, but the SCL transmitted at the SCL contact TC13 is the clock signal of the I2C communication standard, and the voltage fluctuation of the signal line is driven by an open-drain connection. On the other hand, the SCLK transmitted at the SCLK contact TC07 is the clock signal of the SPI communication standard, and the voltage fluctuation of the signal line is driven by a CMOS output. Therefore, the edge of the voltage fluctuation at the SCL contact TC13 is more likely to be gentle compared to the SCLK contact TC07, and clock noise is less likely to occur. Thus, placing the mounting detection contact TC06 next to the SCLK contact TC07 rather than next to the SCL contact TC13 has a greater effect of preventing malfunction due to clock noise.

[0162] Also, differential signals D1N and D1P may be transmitted in pairs to the first and second differential signal contacts TC19 and TC20, and a clock signal may be transmitted. In that case, a clock signal (third clock signal) with a higher frequency than the SCLK contact TC07 or the SCL contact TC13 may be transmitted. However, since the differential signals D1N and D1P are paired signals, the radiation of clock noise is less than that of the SCLK contact TC07 or the SCL contact TC13 that transmits single-ended signals. Therefore, placing the mounting detection contact TC06 next to the SCLK contact TC07 rather than next to the first and second differential signal contacts TC19 and TC20 has a greater effect of preventing malfunction due to clock noise.

[0163] Note that the contact (first data contact) TC08 arranged next to the SCLK contact TC07 on the side opposite to the mounting detection contact TC06 transmits MOSI (first data signal). Since MOSI is a data signal, it seems likely to be affected by clock noise. However, since MOSI is a data signal of the same SPI communication standard as the clock signal transmitted at the SCLK contact TC07, the timing of the potential fluctuation is synchronized with the clock signal, and it is less likely to be affected by clock noise. Therefore, it is not necessary to fix the contact TC08 to the GND potential, and it can be used as a MOSI contact.

[0164] The accessory 200 has a battery 205, receives power supply from the battery 205, and also receives power supply from the camera 100 via the camera connection portion 141 and the accessory connection portion 211. The accessory control circuit 201 as the accessory processing means in the accessory 200 is a circuit that controls the entire accessory 200 and is constituted by a processor (microcomputer) such as a CPU. The accessory control circuit 201 executes various controls and processes according to a computer program.

[0165] The accessory power supply circuit 202 is a circuit that generates a power supply for supplying each circuit of the accessory 200 and is constituted by a DC / DC converter circuit, an LDO, a charge pump circuit, or the like. A voltage of 1.8V generated by the accessory power supply circuit 202 is constantly supplied to the accessory microcomputer power supply VMCU_A in the accessory control circuit 201. Note that the configuration may be such that the voltage generated by the accessory power supply circuit 202 is a value different from 1.8V. By controlling the accessory power supply circuit 202, on / off control of the power supply to each circuit of the accessory 200 is performed.

[0166] The charging circuit (power receiving means) 204 is a circuit for charging the battery 205 using the power supplied from the camera 100. When the accessory control circuit 201 can determine that sufficient power for performing the charging operation is supplied from the camera 100, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the charging circuit 204 to charge the battery 205. Note that in this embodiment, the case where the battery 205 is mounted on the accessory 200 is described, but the accessory 200 may operate only with the power supply from the camera 100 to the accessory power supply circuit (power receiving means) 202 without the battery 205 being mounted. In this case, the charging circuit 204 becomes unnecessary.

[0167] The differential communication circuit 207 is a circuit for performing differential communication with the camera 100 and can transmit and receive data to and from the camera 100. The external communication IF circuit 208 is an IF circuit for performing data communication with an external device (not shown), such as an Ethernet communication IF, a wireless LAN communication IF, and a public network communication IF. The accessory control circuit 201 can transmit the data received from the camera 100 to the external device or transmit the data received from the external device to the camera 100 by controlling the differential communication circuit 207 and the external communication IF circuit 208.

[0168] The function circuit 206 is a circuit having different functions according to the type of the accessory 200. For example, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, the function circuit 206 is a light emission circuit, a charging circuit, etc. When the accessory 200 is a microphone device, the function circuit 206 is a voice codec circuit, a microphone circuit, etc.

[0169] The external connection terminal 209 is a connector terminal for connecting to an external device and is a USB TYPE-C connector in this embodiment. The connection detection circuit 210 is a circuit for detecting that an external device is connected to the external connection terminal 209. The accessory control circuit 201 can detect the connection of the external device to the external connection terminal 209 by receiving the output signal of the connection detection circuit 210.

[0170] The power switch 203 is a switch operated by the user to turn on / off the power (i.e., operation) of the accessory 200. The accessory control circuit 201 can detect the on position / off position by reading the signal level of the terminal to which the power switch 203 is connected.

[0171] The operation switch 212 is a switch operated by the user to give various instructions to the accessory 200 or perform various settings, and includes a button, a cross key, a slide switch, a dial switch, a touch sensor, etc. When the operation switch 212 is operated, the accessory control circuit 201 detects the operation and executes a predetermined process according to the operation.

[0172] The accessory connection part 211 is a connector for making an electrical connection with the camera 100 via 21 contacts TA01 to TA21 arranged in a row. The contacts TA01 to TA21 are arranged in this order from one end to the other end in their arrangement direction.

[0173] TA01 is connected to GND, and serves not only as a reference potential contact but also as a contact for controlling the wiring impedance of the differential signals D1N and D1P. TA01 corresponds to the third ground contact. The differential signal D1N connected to TA02 and the differential signal D1P connected to TA03 are data communication signals that perform data communication in a pair, and are connected to the differential communication circuit 207. TA02, TA03, TA07 to TA10, TA12 to TA17, TA19, and TA20 described later are communication contacts.

[0174] TA04 as the first ground contact is connected to GND and becomes the reference potential contact of the camera 100 and the accessory 200. TA04 is arranged outside in the contact arrangement direction compared to TA05 described next.

[0175] The accessory power supply circuit 202 and the charging circuit 204 are connected to TA05 as a power supply contact, and the accessory power supply VACC supplied from the camera 100 is connected.

[0176] TA06 as a mounting detection contact is directly connected to GND. When the accessory 200 is mounted on the camera 100, the accessory control circuit 201 sets the above-mentioned accessory mounting detection signal / ACC_DET to the Lo level (GND potential) as an active potential. Thereby, the camera 100 is made to detect the mounting of the accessory 200.

[0177] SCLK connected to TA07 which is a communication contact, MOSI connected to TA08, MISO connected to TA09, and CS connected to TA10 are signals for the accessory control circuit 201 to perform SPI communication as a communication slave.

[0178] A communication request signal / WAKE for the accessory control circuit 201 to request communication with the camera 100 is connected to TA11 which is a signal contact (communication request contact). When the accessory control circuit 201 determines that communication with the camera 100 is necessary, it changes the communication request signal / WAKE from the Hi level to the Lo level to make a communication request to the camera 100.

[0179] When power is supplied to the accessory 200 via TC5 from the camera control circuit 101 in response to detecting that the accessory 200 is in the mounted state, the accessory control circuit 201 changes the signal level (potential) of the communication request signal / WAKE from the Hi level to the Lo level to notify the camera control circuit 101 that power has been received.

[0180] Even when there is no request from the camera, the accessory control circuit 201 can change the signal level (potential) of the communication request signal / WAKE from the Hi level to the Lo level to notify that a factor for the accessory 200 to communicate with the camera 100 has occurred. With this configuration, the camera control circuit 101 can omit the operation of periodically checking whether a factor for the accessory 200 to communicate has occurred by polling. Also, when a factor for the accessory 200 to communicate occurs, the accessory 200 can communicate that fact to the camera 100 in real time.

[0181] SDA connected to TA12 which is a communication contact and SCL connected to TA13 are signals for the accessory control circuit 201 to perform I2C communication as a communication slave.

[0182] Thus, the accessory connection part 211 includes a contact TA12 for a data signal of the I2C communication system and a contact TA13 for a clock signal of the I2C communication system that is arranged on one side (adjacent on one side) with respect to the contact for the data signal. Further, on the other side with respect to the contact TAB12 for the data signal (in order from the position adjacent on the other side), a contact TA11 for a second input signal, a contact TA10 for an input selection signal of the SPI communication system, a contact TA09 for transmission of the SPI communication system, a contact TA08 for reception of the SPI communication system, a contact TA07 for a clock signal of the SPI communication system, a contact TA06 for a first input signal, and a contact TA06 for an output signal are included.

[0183] The FNC1 signal connected to TA14 which is a communication contact (function signal contact), the FNC2 signal connected to TA15, the FNC3 signal connected to TA16, and the FNC4 signal connected to TA17 are function signals whose functions can be changed according to the type of the accessory 200. For example, when the accessory 200 is a microphone device, it is a signal related to audio data, and when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, it is a signal for notifying the light emission timing.

[0184] TA18 as the second ground contact is also connected to GND, and like TA04, it becomes a contact for the reference potential of the camera 100 and the accessory 200. The differential signal D2N connected to TA19 and the differential signal D2P connected to TA20 are data communication signals that perform data communication as a pair, and are connected to the external connection terminal 209.

[0185] TA21 is connected to GND, and not only serves as a contact for the reference potential, but also serves as a terminal for controlling the wiring impedance of the differential signal D2N and the differential signal D2P. TA21 corresponds to the fourth ground contact.

[0186] The contacts TA01, TA04, TA06, TA18, and TA21 are connected to the GND portion of the flexible substrate, for example, and the GND portion of the flexible substrate is fixed to a metallic member that becomes the GND level of the accessory 200 with a screw or the like (not shown). Examples of the metallic member that becomes the GND level include a screw mounting leg that engages with the accessory attachment portion of the camera 100 and a base plate (not shown) inside the accessory 200.

[0187] Figure 6 shows the sequence of processes performed when the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100. Here, an overview of the processes of the camera 100 (camera control circuits A101 and B102) and the accessory 200 (accessory control circuit 201) will be described, and the details will be described later.

[0188] When the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100, the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET becomes the Lo level. Thereby, the camera control circuit A101 determines that the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100. The camera control circuit A101 that has determined that the accessory 200 is attached sets the power control signal CNT_VACC1 to the Hi level in order to turn on the output of the accessory power supply circuit A131. The accessory power supply circuit A131 outputs the accessory power supply VACC in response to the power control signal CNT_VACC1 becoming Hi.

[0189] The accessory power supply circuit 202 that has received VACC generates the power supply VMU_A for the accessory control circuit 201. Thereby, the accessory control circuit 201 is activated. The activated accessory control circuit 201 initializes each block in the accessory 200. After that, when the accessory control circuit 201 becomes capable of communicating with the camera 100, it sets the communication request signal / WAKE to the Lo level.

[0190] When the communication request signal / WAKE goes to the Lo level, the camera control circuit A101 detects that the accessory 200 has become communicable. The camera control circuit A101 requests the communication of accessory information to the accessory 200 by I2C communication. The accessory control circuit 201 that has received the accessory information request transmits the accessory information to the camera control circuit A101. The accessory control circuit 201 that has transmitted the accessory information sets the communication request signal / WAKE to the Hi level.

[0191] Based on the received accessory information, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether it is possible to control the attached accessory, etc. Also, it turns on the accessory power supply circuit B132. Then, the camera control circuit A101 performs various settings of the camera 100, and when this is completed, it notifies the camera control circuit B102 of the accessory information.

[0192] Based on the notified accessory information, the camera control circuit B102 notifies a control command for the accessory 200 (accessory control communication) or performs control corresponding to a function signal (function signal control) by SPI communication. That is, it controls the accessory 200 by SPI communication.

[0193] The accessory control circuit 201 responds to the control command from the camera 100 by SPI communication and performs an operation according to the function signal.

[0194] Here, the accessory information illustrated in FIG. 5 will be described. The D7 - D0 data of address 0x00 is information indicating the type of the accessory (hereinafter referred to as accessory type information). FIG. 7 shows an example of the accessory type information. For example, 0x81 indicates a strobe device, 0x82 indicates an interface conversion adapter device, 0x83 indicates a microphone device, and 0x84 indicates a multi - accessory connection adapter device for attaching a plurality of accessory devices to the camera 100.

[0195] The adapter device is an intermediate accessory that is mounted between the camera 100 and accessories such as a strobe device or a microphone device. The interface conversion adapter device is an adapter device that converts the interface to provide compatibility between the camera 100 and the accessory when the interfaces of the camera 100 and the accessory are different. The multi-accessory connection adapter device is an adapter device that can mount a plurality of accessories.

[0196] The D7-D0 data at address 0x01 in FIG. 5 is information indicating the model (type) of the accessory 200 (hereinafter referred to as accessory type information). Based on the accessory type information and this information described above, it is possible to identify the type and model of the accessory.

[0197] The D7-D0 data at address 0x02 is information indicating the version of the firmware of the accessory 200.

[0198] The D7-D6 data at address 0x03 is specification information indicating whether to request supply (power supply) of the accessory power VACC to the accessory 200 in the power-off state where a power switch (not shown) of the camera 100 is turned off. When this information is 0, it indicates that power supply is not required. When it is 1, it indicates a power supply request by the accessory power supply circuit A131. When it is 2, it indicates a power supply request by the accessory power supply circuit B132.

[0199] The D5-D4 data at address 0x03 is specification information (hereinafter referred to as auto power-off power supply necessity information) indicating whether to request supply of the accessory power VACC to the accessory 200 when the camera 100 enters a power-saving state (hereinafter referred to as the auto power-off state) by the auto power-off function. The camera 100 has an auto power-off function that automatically turns off the power when a no-operation state where no operation is performed continues for a predetermined time in order to suppress power consumption. When this information is 0, it indicates that power supply is not required. When it is 1, it indicates a power supply request by the accessory power supply circuit A131. When it is 2, it indicates a power supply request by the accessory power supply circuit B132.

[0200] The D3 - D2 data at address 0x03 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 has the battery 205. When this information is 0, it indicates that the battery is not equipped, and when it is 1, it indicates that the battery is equipped.

[0201] The D1 - D0 data at address 0x03 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 has a charging function for the battery 205. When this information is 0, it indicates that the charging function is not equipped, and when it is 1, it indicates that the charging function is equipped.

[0202] The D7 - D0 data at address 0x04 is specification information indicating the required power for the accessory power supply VACC to which the accessory 200 is powered from the camera 100. For example, a value obtained by multiplying this information by 10 indicates the current value. When this information is 10, it indicates 100 mA, and when this information is 100, it indicates 1 A. Also, as a method of reducing the amount of this information, this information may be used as simple information associated with the current value. For example, when this information is 0, it may indicate 100 mA, when this information is 1, it may indicate 300 mA, when this information is 3, it may indicate 450 mA, and when this information is 4, it may indicate 600 mA.

[0203] The D7 data at address 0x05 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 is in the firmware update mode. When this information is 0, it indicates that it is not in the firmware update mode, and when it is 1, it indicates that it is in the firmware update mode.

[0204] The D6 data at address 0x05 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 has a firmware update function. When this information is 0, it indicates that the firmware update function is not equipped, and when it is 1, it indicates that the firmware update function is equipped.

[0205] The D5-D4 data at address 0x05 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 permits the operation when it is attached to the intermediate connection accessory. When this information is 0, it indicates that the operation is not permitted, and when it is 1, it indicates that the operation is permitted.

[0206] The D3-D2 data at address 0x05 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 requires the camera 100 to confirm the attachment of the intermediate connection accessory when the camera 100 is started up. When this information is 0, it indicates that confirmation is not required, and when it is 1, it indicates that confirmation is required.

[0207] The D1-D0 data at address 0x05 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 supports command notification via I2C communication. When this information is 0, it indicates that it does not support command notification, and when it is 1, it indicates that it supports command notification.

[0208] The D5-D4 data at address 0x06 is specification information indicating the communication request factor acquisition method (used communication method: hereinafter referred to as the factor acquisition method), which is a communication method that can be used by the accessory 200 to notify the camera 100 of the cause of the communication request after notifying the camera 100 of the communication request signal / WAKE. When this information is 0, it indicates that the I2C communication method is the factor acquisition method. When it is 1, it indicates that the SPI communication method is the factor acquisition method. When it is 2, it indicates that both the I2C communication method and the SPI communication method are the factor acquisition methods.

[0209] The D3-D0 data at address 0x06 is specification information indicating whether the accessory 200 has functions corresponding to the FNC1 signal (function signal 1), FNC2 signal (function signal 2), FNC3 signal (function signal 3), and FNC4 signal (function signal 4). The D0 data corresponds to the FNC1 signal, the D1 data corresponds to the FNC2 signal, the D2 data corresponds to the FNC3 signal, and the D3 data corresponds to the FNC4 signal. When each value is 0, it indicates that the accessory does not have the function, and when it is 1, it indicates that the accessory has the function.

[0210] The D7 data at address 0x0A is specification information indicating whether to request the camera 100 to start up when the accessory 200 notifies the camera 100 of the communication request signal / WAKE. When this information is 0, it indicates a request to start up, and when it is 1, it indicates no request to start up.

[0211] The D6 - D0 data at address 0x0A is information indicating the cause of the communication request signal / WAKE notified by the accessory 200 to the camera 100.

[0212] Figure 8 shows an example of the cause of the communication request signal / WAKE (hereinafter also referred to as the communication request cause). Here, an example is shown when the accessory 200 is a microphone device. For example, the factor number 0x00 is a number indicating that the menu call switch among the operation switches 212 has been operated (pressed). The factor number 0x01 is a number indicating that the accessory 200 has completed the output control of the audio signal. The factor number 0x02 is a number indicating that the accessory 200 has completed the mute process (unmuted) of the audio signal. Thus, in this embodiment, the information on the communication request cause (number) as information on the cause of the communication request signal / WAKE can be notified (transmitted) from the accessory 200 to the camera 100 as one of the accessory information.

[0213] In Figure 5, the D1 data at address 0x0C is specification information indicating the SPI communication protocol supported by the accessory 200. When this information is 0, it indicates that it supports SPI protocol A, and when it is 1, it indicates that it supports SPI protocol B.

[0214] The D0 data at address 0x0C is specification information indicating the control logic of the CS of the SPI communication supported by the accessory 200. When this information is 0, it indicates that CS is Lo - active logic, and when it is 1, it indicates that CS is Hi - active logic.

[0215] The D7-D0 data at address 0x0D is specification information indicating the time required as the communication byte interval when the accessory 200 communicates using the SPI protocol A and the D7 data at address 0x05 is 0, that is, when the accessory 200 is not in the firmware update mode.

[0216] The D7-D0 data at address 0x0E is specification information indicating the time required as the communication byte interval when the accessory 200 communicates using the SPI protocol A and the D7 data at address 0x05 is 1, that is, when the accessory 200 is in the firmware update mode.

[0217] Figures 9(a) and (b) show the communication byte interval times (communication intervals) corresponding to the data (0 to 7) at addresses 0x0D and 0x0E. Figure 9(a) shows the communication interval for the data information at address 0x0D, and Figure 8(b) shows the communication interval for the data at address 0x0E.

[0218] In Figure 5, the data at address 0x0F is the checksum value data indicating the sum from address 0x00 to 0x0E.

[0219] Figure 10 shows the startup process executed by the camera control circuit A101 until the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100 and the functions of the accessory 200 are enabled.

[0220] In S401, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET and determines (detects) whether the accessory 200 is attached. If the signal level of / ACC_DET is Hi, the camera control circuit A101 determines that the accessory 200 is not attached and returns to S401 to determine the attachment again. If the signal level is Lo, it is determined that the accessory 200 is attached and the process proceeds to S402.

[0221] In S402, the camera control circuit A101 controls the power control signal CNT_VACC1 to the Hi level in order to turn on the output of the accessory power supply circuit A131. Then it proceeds to S403. When the power control signal CNT_VACC1 becomes the Hi level, the accessory power supply circuit A131 outputs the accessory power VACC.

[0222] In S403, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the overcurrent detection signal DET_OVC and determines whether an overcurrent is flowing. If the signal level of DET_OVC is Lo, the camera control circuit A101 determines that no overcurrent is flowing and proceeds to S404. If the signal level is Hi, it determines that an overcurrent has flowed and proceeds to S405 to perform error processing.

[0223] In S404, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the communication request signal / WAKE, which is a notification signal from the accessory 200, and determines whether the initialization of the accessory 200 is complete. If the signal level of / WAKE is the Lo level (active), the camera control circuit A101 determines that the initialization is complete and proceeds to S406. If the signal level is the Hi level, it determines that the initialization is not complete, returns to S404, and determines the completion of the initialization again.

[0224] In S406, the camera control circuit A101 performs I2C communication as initial communication with the accessory 200 and reads out 15 - byte accessory information. Then it proceeds to S407.

[0225] In S407, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether the attached accessory 200 is a device corresponding to the camera 100 (corresponding accessory) based on the accessory information read in S406. If the camera control circuit A101 determines that the attached accessory 200 is the corresponding accessory, it proceeds to S408. If it determines that it is not the corresponding accessory, it proceeds to S409 to perform error processing.

[0226] In S408, the camera control circuit A101 controls the power control signal CNT_VACC2 to the Hi level in order to turn on the output of the accessory power supply circuit B132. Then, it proceeds to S410. When the power control signal CNT_VACC2 becomes the Hi level, the accessory power supply circuit B132 outputs the accessory power VACC. In this embodiment, when both the power control signal CNT_VACC1 and the power control signal CNT_VACC2 become the Hi level, the output by the accessory power supply circuit B132 is supplied to the accessory power VACC.

[0227] In S410, the camera control circuit A101 notifies the camera control circuit B102 of the accessory information read in S406. Thereby, the activation process in the camera 100 associated with the attachment of the accessory 200 is completed.

[0228] The flowchart of FIG. 11 shows the activation process executed by the camera control circuit B102 until the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100 and the functions of the accessory 200 are enabled.

[0229] In S501, the camera control circuit B102 determines whether accessory information has been notified from the camera control circuit A101. If the accessory information has not been notified, the camera control circuit B102 returns to S501 to determine the notification again, and if the accessory information has been notified, it proceeds to S502.

[0230] In S502, the camera control circuit B102 makes settings for the function signals FNC1 to FNC4 based on the accessory information notified from the camera control circuit A101. For example, when it is notified that the accessory 200 is a microphone device, it is set so that FNC1 functions as the audio data clock signal BCLK, FNC2 functions as the audio data channel signal LRCLK, and FNC3 functions as the audio data signal SDATA. As another example, when it is notified that the accessory 200 is a strobe device, it is set so that FNC4 functions as the strobe emission synchronization signal XOUT. For the function signals that do not require control for the accessory 200, predetermined settings are made so as not to interfere with the operations of the camera 100 and the accessory 200.

[0231] In S503, the camera control circuit B102 makes settings for the control logic of CS in the SPI communication based on the accessory information notified from the camera control circuit A101.

[0232] In S504, the camera control circuit B102 determines whether a predetermined event for the accessory 200 has occurred. If the event has not occurred, the camera control circuit B102 returns to S504 to determine the occurrence of the event again, and if the event has occurred, it proceeds to S505.

[0233] In S505, the camera control circuit B102 determines whether the event that occurred in S504 is an event that requires SPI communication with the accessory 200. If the event requires SPI communication, the camera control circuit B102 proceeds to S506, and if not, it proceeds to S507.

[0234] In S507, the camera control circuit B102 determines whether the event that occurred in S504 is an event that requires control of the accessory 200 using the function signals. If the event requires control using the function signals, the camera control circuit B102 proceeds to S508, and if not, it proceeds to S509.

[0235] In S506, the camera control circuit B102 performs SPI communication with the accessory 200. Examples of the SPI communication performed here include communication of an instruction to turn on the microphone operation, communication of an instruction to turn off the microphone operation, communication of an instruction to switch the sound collection directivity of the microphone, and communication of an instruction to switch the equalizer function of the microphone, etc., when the accessory 200 is a microphone device. Also, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, there are communication to read the setting information of the strobe device and communication to notify the strobe device of the setting information, etc. When the SPI communication in S506 is completed, the camera control circuit B102 returns to S504 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0236] In S508, the camera control circuit B102 performs control using a function signal on the accessory 200. For example, when the accessory 200 is a microphone device, it outputs the audio data clock signal BCLK of FNC1 and the audio data channel signal LRCLK of FNC2, and captures the audio data signal SDATA of FNC3. Thereby, the camera 100 can acquire audio data from the microphone device. Also, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, it outputs the strobe emission synchronization signal XOUT of FNC4 at a predetermined timing. Thereby, the camera 100 can instruct the strobe device to emit light. When the control using the function signal is completed in this way, the camera control circuit B102 returns to S504 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0237] Also, in S509, the camera control circuit B102 performs predetermined in-camera control according to the event that occurred in S504. Examples of the in-camera control include control to start or end the recording of audio data to the recording memory 126 and control to perform equalizer processing on the audio data, etc., when the accessory 200 is a microphone device. Also, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, there are photometric control to accumulate and acquire the light emitted by the strobe device with the imaging sensor 122 and control to calculate the instruction value of the emission amount of the strobe device, etc. When the in-camera control is completed in this way, the camera control circuit B102 returns to S504 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0238] By means of the startup process by the camera control circuit A101 and the activation process by the camera control circuit B102 described above, it becomes possible to control the accessory 200 to which the camera 100 is attached.

[0239] The flowchart of FIG. 12 shows the processing executed by the accessory control circuit 201 from when the accessory 200 is attached to the camera 100 until various functional operations of the accessory 200 become possible.

[0240] In S601, the accessory control circuit 201 waits for the accessory power supply VACC from the camera 100 to turn on. When the accessory 200 does not include the battery 205, the accessory control circuit 201 can detect that the accessory power supply VACC has turned on by the power supply being supplied to the accessory control circuit 201 and the accessory control circuit 201 starting its own operation. When the accessory 200 includes the battery 205, the accessory control circuit 201 may monitor the voltage value of the accessory power supply VACC to detect that the accessory power supply VACC has turned on.

[0241] In S602, the accessory control circuit 201 performs predetermined initial settings. For example, settings for the operating frequency of the microcomputer, settings for the input / output control ports of the microcomputer, initialization settings for the timer function of the microcomputer, and initialization settings for the interrupt function of the microcomputer are performed. When the initial settings in S602 are completed, in S603, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Lo level. Thereby, it notifies the camera 100 that the initial settings are completed.

[0242] In S604, the accessory control circuit 201 responds to the I2C communication from the camera 100 and transmits 15-byte accessory information to the camera 100 as initial communication. The accessory information includes various information shown in FIG. 5.

[0243] When the initial communication of S604 is completed, in S605, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Hi level.

[0244] In S606, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether a predetermined event has occurred. If no event has occurred, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 to determine the occurrence of the event again. If an event has occurred, it proceeds to S607.

[0245] In S607, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S606 is an event that requires SPI communication with the camera 100. If the event requires SPI communication, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S608. Otherwise, it proceeds to S609.

[0246] In S609, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S606 is an event that requires I2C communication with the camera 100. If the event requires I2C communication, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S610. Otherwise, it proceeds to S611.

[0247] In S611, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S606 is an event that performs control using a function signal. If the event requires control using a function signal, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S612. Otherwise, it proceeds to S613.

[0248] In S613, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S606 is an event that notifies the camera 100 by the communication request signal / WAKE. If the event requires notification to the camera 100 by the communication request signal / WAKE, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S614. Otherwise, it proceeds to S615.

[0249] In S608, the accessory control circuit 201 performs SPI communication with the camera 100. When the communication request signal / WAKE is at the Lo level during the execution of the SPI communication, the communication request signal / WAKE is controlled to the Hi level after the SPI communication. Examples of the SPI communication performed here include, for example, when the accessory 200 is a microphone device, communication for instructing to turn on the microphone operation from the camera 100, communication for instructing to turn off the microphone operation, and communication for instructing to switch the sound collection directivity of the microphone. Furthermore, there is also communication for instructing to switch the equalizer function of the microphone, etc. Also, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, there is communication for reading the setting information of the strobe device and communication for notifying the setting information to the strobe device, etc. When the predetermined SPI communication in S608 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0250] In S610, the accessory control circuit 201 performs I2C communication with the camera 100. When the communication request signal / WAKE is at the Lo level during the execution of the I2C communication, the communication request signal / WAKE is controlled to the Hi level after the I2C communication. Examples of the I2C communication performed here include, for example, communication for reading the communication request factor (number) for the communication request signal / WAKE notified from the accessory control circuit 201 to the camera 100. When the I2C communication in S610 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0251] In S612, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the camera 100 using function signals. The controls performed here include, for example, when the accessory 200 is a microphone device, controlling the reception of the audio data clock signal BCLK of FNC1 and the audio data channel signal LRCLK of FNC2 output from the camera 100. Furthermore, there is also control over the output of the audio data signal SDATA of FNC3 synchronized with these signals. Also, when the accessory 200 is a strobe device, there is control over the reception of the strobe emission synchronization signal XOUT of FNC4 and the control of strobe emission in response thereto. When the control using the function signal in S612 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0252] In S614, the accessory control circuit 201 stores the communication request factor number for the camera 100 corresponding to the event that occurred in S606 in a volatile memory (not shown) of the accessory 200, and controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Lo level. The communication request factor number is a unique number assigned for each factor content as shown in FIG. 8. When the Lo level control of the communication request signal / WAKE in S614 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0253] In S615, the accessory control circuit 201 performs in-accessory control corresponding to the event that occurred in S606. The in-accessory controls performed here include control for detecting the remaining battery level when the accessory 200 is equipped with the battery 205, control for detecting the operation of the operation switch 212, and the like. When the in-accessory control in S615 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S606 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0254] Through the processing by the accessory control circuit 201 as described above, the accessory 200 can perform various functional operations after being attached to the camera 100.

Embodiment

[0255] FIG. 13 shows, as Example 2 of the present invention, the electrical configuration of an imaging system in which an off-shoe cord 300 as an intermediate connection accessory (second accessory) is mounted between the camera 100 of Example 1 and an accessory (first accessory: hereinafter referred to as the main accessory) 200. The off-shoe cord 300 is generally called an off-camera shoe cord and has off-shoe cord connection portions 311 and 341 connectable to the camera 100 and the main accessory 200, and a cord (cable) portion bundling a plurality of signal lines connecting the respective connection portions. The camera 100 and the main accessory 200 are the same as those in Example 1. Note that, instead of the off-shoe cord 300, other intermediate connection accessories may be used.

[0256] The camera 100 and the off-shoe cord 300 are electrically connected by one-to-one contact between a plurality of contacts TC01 to TC21 of the camera connection portion 141 provided in the camera 100 and a plurality of contacts TA01 to TA21 of the off-shoe cord connection portion 311 provided in the off-shoe cord 300. Also, the off-shoe cord 300 and the main accessory 200 are electrically connected by one-to-one contact between a plurality of contacts TC01 to TC21 of the off-shoe cord connection portion 341 provided in the off-shoe cord 300 and a plurality of contacts TA01 to TA21 of the accessory connection portion 211 provided in the accessory 200.

[0257] When the off-shoe cord 300 is mounted on the camera 100 alone, TA06 in the off-shoe cord connection portion 311 is connected to TC06 to which the accessory mounting detection signal / ACC_DET in the camera connection portion 141 is connected. However, there is no change in the signal level of the accessory mounting detection signal / ACC_DET, and the camera control circuit A101 cannot detect (determine) the presence or absence of the mounting of the off-shoe cord 300. When the main accessory 200 is mounted on the off-shoe cord 300, the signal level of the accessory mounting detection signal / ACC_DET becomes the Lo level, and the camera control circuit A101 detects that the main accessory 200 is mounted.

[0258] The off-chip code power supply circuit 301 is a circuit that generates a power supply for the off-chip code non-volatile memory 302 and is composed of an LDO or the like. When the accessory power supply VACC is supplied from the camera 100, the power supply to the off-chip code non-volatile memory 302 from the off-chip code power supply circuit 301 becomes possible.

[0259] The off-chip code non-volatile memory 302 stores various kinds of information in the same way as the 15-byte accessory information held by the main accessory 200 shown in FIG. 5.

[0260] The off-chip code connection part 311 is a connector for making an electrical connection with the camera 100 via 21 contacts TA01 to TA21 arranged in a row. The contacts TA01 to TA21 are arranged in this order from one end to the other end in the arrangement direction thereof. Also, the off-chip code connection part 341 is a connector for making an electrical connection with the accessory 200 via 21 contacts TC01 to TC21 arranged in a row. The contacts TC01 to TC21 are arranged in this order from one end to the other end in the arrangement direction thereof.

[0261] TA05 and TC05 are connected as a power supply path, and when the accessory power supply VACC is supplied from the camera 100, power generation by the off-chip code power supply circuit 301 becomes possible. The contacts TA06 to TA17 in the off-chip code connection part 311 are connected to the contacts TC06 to TC17 in the off-chip code connection part 341.

[0262] Note that in FIG. 13, the contacts TA01 to TA03 and TA19 to TA21 in the off - cord connection part 311 are not connected to the contacts TC01 to TC03 and TC19 to TC21 in the off - cord connection part 341, but they may be connected. Also, a configuration that does not have at least a part of the contacts TA01 to TA03, TA19 to TA21 in the off - cord connection part 311 and the contacts TC01 to TC03, TC19 to TC21 in the off - cord connection part 341 may be adopted. Since the diameter of the cord part of the off - cord 300 increases as the number of signal lines connecting each connection part increases, the size increase of the off - cord 300 can be suppressed by omitting signal lines with low versatility for various devices assumed as main accessories.

[0263] The contacts TA12 and TA13 in the off - cord connection part 311 are connected to the contacts TC12 and TC13 in the off - cord connection part 341, and are further connected to the off - cord non - volatile memory 302 as a communication line for I2C communication from the camera 100.

[0264] The flowchart of FIG. 14A shows the startup process executed by the camera control circuit A101 until the function of the main accessory 200 is enabled when the off - cord 300 is attached to the camera 100 and the main accessory 200 is further attached to the off - cord 300.

[0265] In S801, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the accessory attachment detection signal / ACC_DET and determines (detects) whether the main accessory 200 is attached. If the signal level of / ACC_DET is Hi, the camera control circuit A101 determines that the accessory 200 is not attached, returns to S801, and determines the attachment again. If the signal level is Lo, it is determined that the main accessory 200 is attached, and the process proceeds to S802.

[0266] In S802, the camera control circuit A101 controls the power control signal CNT_VACC1 to the Hi level in order to turn on the output of the accessory power supply circuit A131. Then it proceeds to S803. When the power control signal CNT_VACC1 goes to the Hi level, the accessory power supply circuit A131 outputs the accessory power VACC.

[0267] In S803, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the overcurrent detection signal DET_OVC to determine whether an overcurrent is flowing. If the signal level of DET_OVC is Lo, the camera control circuit A101 determines that no overcurrent is flowing and proceeds to S804. If the signal level is Hi, it determines that an overcurrent has flowed and proceeds to S805 to perform error processing.

[0268] In S804, the camera control circuit A101 monitors the signal level of the communication request signal / WAKE, which is a notification signal from the main accessory 200, to determine whether the initialization of the main accessory 200 is complete. If the signal level of / WAKE is at the Lo level (active), the camera control circuit A101 determines that the initialization is complete and proceeds to S806. If the signal level is at the Hi level, it determines that the initialization is not complete, returns to S804, and determines the completion of initialization again.

[0269] In S806, the camera control circuit A101 performs I2C communication as initial communication with the main accessory 200 and reads out 15 - byte accessory information. Then it proceeds to S807.

[0270] In S807, the camera control circuit A101 performs off - shoot code determination processing based on the accessory information read in S806. The off - shoot code determination processing will be described later.

[0271] Next, in S808, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether the determination result in the off - shoot code determination processing performed in S807 is "operation not permitted when there is an off - shoot". If it is "operation not permitted when there is an off - shoot", it proceeds to S809. Otherwise, it proceeds to S810.

[0272] In S809, as error processing, the camera control circuit A101 turns off the accessory power supply VACC so that the main accessory 200 cannot operate. That is, the camera control circuit A101 (and the camera control circuit B102) restricts the operation of the main accessory 200. Further, the camera control circuit A101 notifies the user that the use of the main accessory 200 is restricted through the display circuit 127. At this time, a message such as "The accessory cannot be used" may be displayed on the display circuit 127.

[0273] Note that, as a restriction on the operation of the main accessory 200 when the main accessory 200 cannot operate, restrictions other than turning off the accessory power supply VACC as described above may be imposed. For example, it may be possible to set the operation permission of the main accessory 200 by the user through the menu screen (setting means) of the camera 100, and control the operation of the main accessory 200 on the condition that the operation permission is set by the user. Alternatively, among the operations of the main accessory 200, operations that cooperate with the camera 100 may be made impossible and operations that do not cooperate with the camera 100 may be made possible.

[0274] In S810, the camera control circuit A101 controls the power control signal CNT_VACC2 to the Hi level in order to turn on the output of the accessory power supply circuit B132. Then, it proceeds to S811. When the power control signal CNT_VACC2 becomes the Hi level, the accessory power supply circuit B132 outputs the accessory power supply VACC. In this embodiment, when both the power control signal CNT_VACC1 and the power control signal CNT_VACC2 become the Hi level, the output from the accessory power supply circuit B132 is supplied to the accessory power supply VACC.

[0275] In S811, the camera control circuit A101 notifies the camera control circuit B102 of the accessory information read in S806.

[0276] Next, in S812, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether the determination result in the offshoot code determination process performed in S807 is "operation permission when there is an offshoot code" or "normal operation". If it is "operation permission when there is an offshoot code", the process proceeds to S813. If it is "normal operation", S813 is skipped and the startup process of the camera 100 is completed. In S813, the camera control circuit A101 permits the change of control in the state where the offshoot code 300 is attached.

[0277] That is, the control of the camera 100 is made different between the case where the main accessory 200 operates with the offshoot code 300 attached and the case where the main accessory 200 operates without the offshoot code 300 attached. For example, it is used in a case where the main accessory 200 is a camera unit and the image obtained by imaging with the camera unit is acquired by the camera 100, and the image obtained by imaging with the camera 100 and the image obtained by imaging with the camera unit are synthesized.

[0278] In the state where the offshoot code 300 is not attached, since the amount of optical axis misalignment between the camera unit and the camera 100 is obtained in advance, the image synthesis process is executed based on the obtained amount of optical axis misalignment. On the other hand, in the state where the offshoot code 300 is attached, since the amount of optical axis misalignment between the camera unit and the camera 100 cannot be obtained in advance, the amount of optical axis misalignment is unknown or a screen for allowing the user to input the amount of optical axis misalignment is displayed on the display circuit 127. In addition, in a configuration using the main accessory 200 having a function of acquiring the evaluation value of the subject of the camera 100, when the change in the distance between the camera 100 and the main camera 200 affects the evaluation value, S812 and S813 may be executed. Then, the startup process of the camera 100 is completed.

[0279] The flowchart of FIG. 14B shows the offshoot code determination process performed by the camera control circuit A101 in S807.

[0280] In S901, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether it is necessary to confirm the attachment of the offshoot code 300 based on the startup intermediate connection accessory confirmation information (second information), which is the D3 - D2 data at address 0x05 among the accessory information read in S806. As described above, the startup intermediate connection accessory confirmation information indicates whether it is necessary to confirm the attachment of the intermediate connection accessory by the camera 100 at the startup of the camera 100 in the main accessory 200. If it is necessary to confirm the attachment of the offshoot code 300, the camera control circuit A101 proceeds to S902; if it is not necessary to confirm the attachment of the offshoot code 300, the camera control circuit A101 proceeds to S907.

[0281] In S902, the camera control circuit A101 reads out the accessory information stored in the offshoot code non - volatile memory 302 within the offshoot code 300 by I2C communication. At this time, the camera control circuit A101 reads out the accessory information stored in the offshoot code non - volatile memory 302 via the same serial communication lines (contacts TA12, TA13 and TC12, TC13) as when reading out the accessory information stored in the main accessory 200. In this embodiment, by setting different I2C slave addresses (memory addresses) when reading out the accessory information stored in the offshoot code non - volatile memory 302 and when reading out the accessory information stored in the main accessory 200, it is possible to distinguish which accessory information has been read out. The camera control circuit A101 can identify the type and model of the offshoot code 300 based on the accessory information from the offshoot code 300.

[0282] Also, when the offshoot code 300 is attached, there is a response in I2C communication and the accessory information can be obtained. When the offshoot code 300 is not attached, there is no response in I2C communication, so the presence or absence of the attachment of the offshoot code 300 may be discriminated.

[0283] In S903, when the camera control circuit A101 determines that the offshoot code 300 is attached in S902, it proceeds to S904; when it determines that the offshoot code 300 is not attached, it proceeds to S907.

[0284] In S904, the camera control circuit A101 determines whether to permit the operation of the main accessory 200 based on the intermediate connection accessory operation permission information (first information), which is the D5 - D4 data at address 0x05 of the accessory information read in S806. As described above, the intermediate connection accessory operation permission information indicates whether to permit the operation of the main accessory 200 when the main accessory 200 is attached to the intermediate connection accessory. When the operation of the main accessory 200 with the offshoot code 300 attached is permitted, the camera control circuit A101 proceeds to S905. On the other hand, when the operation of the main accessory 200 with the offshoot code 300 attached is not permitted, it proceeds to S906.

[0285] In S905, the camera control circuit A101 ends this process with the determination result of this process as "operation permitted when offshoot code is present" and proceeds to S808 in FIG. 14A.

[0286] In S906, the camera control circuit A101 sets the determination result of this process as "operation not permitted when offshoot code is present". Then it ends this process and proceeds to S808 in FIG. 14A.

[0287] The camera control circuit A101 that determined in S903 that the offshoot code 300 is not attached and proceeded to S907 enables the "normal operation" of the main accessory 200. That is, when the offshoot code 300 is not attached, the camera control circuit A101 performs control different from when it is attached. Then it ends this process and proceeds to S808 in FIG. 14A.

[0288] The flowchart of FIG. 15 shows the processing executed by the accessory control circuit 201 from when the main accessory 200 is attached to the off - shoe cord 300 attached to the camera 100 until various functional operations of the main accessory 200 become possible.

[0289] In S1001, the accessory control circuit 201 waits for the accessory power supply VACC from the camera 100 to turn on. When the main accessory 200 does not have a battery 205, the accessory control circuit 201 can detect that the accessory power supply VACC has turned on when power is supplied to the accessory control circuit 201 and the accessory control circuit 201 itself starts operating. When the main accessory 200 has a battery 205, the accessory control circuit 201 may monitor the voltage value of the accessory power supply VACC to detect that the accessory power supply VACC has turned on.

[0290] In S1002, the accessory control circuit 201 performs predetermined initial settings. For example, it sets the operating frequency of the microcomputer, the input / output control ports of the microcomputer, initializes the timer function of the microcomputer, and initializes the interrupt function of the microcomputer.

[0291] In S1003, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the main accessory 200 can be used (operated) when an intermediate connection accessory is attached. If it can be used, it proceeds to S1004; if it cannot be used, it proceeds to S1005. Specifically, when the off - shoe cord 300 is attached and the accessory control circuit 201 cannot guarantee the quality of the signal transmitted to the camera 100 via the signal line (cannot guarantee communication), the accessory control circuit 201 determines that the main accessory 200 cannot be used. In addition, for the main accessory 200 used to detect the state of the camera 100 such as posture detection and motion detection, since the state of the camera 100 cannot be accurately detected when the off - shoe cord 300 is attached, the accessory control circuit 201 determines that the main accessory 200 cannot be used. Also, when a specific operation mode in which the main accessory 200 cannot perform functions due to the attachment of the off - shoe cord 300 is set, the accessory control circuit 201 may determine that the main accessory 200 cannot be used.

[0292] In S1004, the accessory control circuit 201 turns on the intermediate connection accessory operation permission bit (1 = operation permitted) among the accessory information shown in FIG. 5 to be transmitted to the camera 100 in the initial communication.

[0293] In S1005, the accessory control circuit 201 turns off the intermediate connection accessory operation permission bit (0 = operation not permitted) among the accessory information to be transmitted to the camera 100 in the initial communication. In S1007, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Lo level. Thereby, it notifies the camera 100 that the initial setting has been completed. In S1008, the accessory control circuit 201 responds to the I2C communication from the camera 100 and transmits the 15-byte accessory information shown in FIG. 5 to the camera 100 in the initial communication.

[0294] When the initial communication in S1008 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Hi level in S1009.

[0295] Next, in S1010, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether a predetermined event has occurred. If the event has not occurred, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S1010 to determine the occurrence of the event again, and if the event has occurred, it proceeds to S1011.

[0296] In S1011, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S1010 is an event that requires SPI communication with the camera 100. If the event requires SPI communication, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S1012, and if not, it proceeds to S1013.

[0297] In S1013, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S1010 is an event that requires I2C communication with the camera 100. If the event requires I2C communication, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S1014; otherwise, it proceeds to S1015. In S1015, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S1010 is an event that performs control using a function signal. If the event requires control using a function signal, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S1016; otherwise, it proceeds to S1017.

[0298] In S1017, the accessory control circuit 201 determines whether the event that occurred in S1010 is an event that notifies the camera 100 using a communication request signal / WAKE. If the event requires notification to the camera 100 using a communication request signal / WAKE, the accessory control circuit 201 proceeds to S1018; otherwise, it proceeds to S1019.

[0299] Here, in S1017, the accessory control circuit 201 stores the communication request factor number for the camera 100 corresponding to the event that occurred in S1010 in a volatile memory (not shown) provided in the main accessory 200, and controls the communication request signal / WAKE to the Lo level. As shown in FIG. 8, the communication request factor number is a unique number assigned for each factor content. The accessory control circuit 201 notifies the camera 100 of the intermediate connection accessory operation permission information, the intermediate connection accessory operation non - permission information, and the startup - time intermediate connection accessory confirmation information as communication request factors according to the operation status of the main accessory 200.

[0300] In S1018, the accessory control circuit 201 performs SPI communication with the camera 100. When the communication request signal / WAKE is at the Lo level during the execution of the SPI communication, the communication request signal / WAKE is controlled to the Hi level after the SPI communication. Examples of the SPI communication performed here include, for example, when the main accessory 200 is a microphone device, communication for instructing to turn on the microphone operation from the camera 100, communication for instructing to turn off the microphone operation, communication for instructing to switch the sound pickup directivity of the microphone, and further, communication for instructing to switch the equalizer function of the microphone. Also, when the main accessory 200 is a strobe device, there is communication for reading the setting information of the strobe device and communication for notifying the setting information to the strobe device. When the predetermined SPI communication in S1012 is completed, the accessory control circuit 201 returns to S1010 and determines the occurrence of an event again.

[0301] In S1012, S1014, S1016, and S1019, the accessory control circuit 201 performs the same processing as the processing in S608, S610, S612, and S615 in FIG. 12 and returns to S1010. By the processing of the accessory control circuit 201 as described above, the main accessory 200 can perform various functional operations after being attached to the camera 100 via the offshoot cord 300.

[0302] In each of the above embodiments, the imaging device has been described as the electronic device, but the electronic device according to the present invention includes various electronic devices other than the imaging device. (Other embodiments) The present invention can also be realized by supplying a program that realizes one or more functions of the above-described embodiments to a system or device via a network or a storage medium and causing one or more processors in a computer of the system or device to read and execute the program. It can also be realized by a circuit (for example, ASIC) that realizes one or more functions.

[0303] Each of the embodiments described above is merely a representative example, and various modifications and changes can be made to each embodiment when implementing the present invention.

Description of Symbols

[0304] 100 Camera 101 Camera Control Circuit A 102 Camera Control Circuit B 200 Accessory (Main Accessory) 201 Accessory Control Circuit 300 Intermediate Connection Accessory

Claims

1. An electronic device to which a first accessory or a second accessory is detachably attached, an accessory shoe portion to which the first accessory or the second accessory can be attached, processing means for communicating with the first accessory and controlling the operation of the first accessory, wherein the processing means, receives first information from the first accessory indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory, and controls the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information. An electronic device characterized by this.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the processing means restricts the operation of the first accessory when the first information indicates non - permission, and controls the operation of the first accessory when the first information indicates permission.

3. The electronic device is capable of supplying power to the first accessory, and the electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the processing means turns off the power supply to the first accessory when the first information indicates non - permission.

4. The electronic device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the processing means notifies the user that the use of the first accessory is restricted when the first information indicates non - permission.

5. When the second accessory is attached between the electronic device and the first accessory, the processing means, receives second information from the first accessory indicating whether it is necessary to confirm the presence or absence of the second accessory, and the electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein when the second information indicates that confirmation is necessary, the first information is received from the first accessory when the attachment of the second accessory is confirmed.

6. An electronic device to which a first accessory is detachably attached, processing means for communicating with the first accessory and controlling the operation of the first accessory, wherein the processing means, receives first information from the first accessory indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory, controls the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information, and receives second information from the first accessory indicating whether it is necessary to confirm the presence or absence of the second accessory. When the second information indicates that confirmation is required, the electronic device is characterized in that the first information is received from the first accessory when the attachment of the second accessory is confirmed.

7. The processing means receives, via the same serial communication line, accessory information for identifying each accessory held in the memory of each of the first accessory and the second accessory as information of different memory addresses, the electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. The processing means performs control different from that when the second accessory is attached when the second accessory is not attached to the first accessory, the electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. It has setting means for the user to permit the use of the first accessory, When the user permits the use of the first accessory by the setting means when the first information indicates non - permission, the processing means controls the operation of the first accessory, the electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. An electronic device to which a first accessory is detachably attached, Processing means for communicating with the first accessory and controlling the operation of the first accessory, Setting means for the user to permit the use of the first accessory, The processing means, Receives from the first accessory first information indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where it is attached to the second accessory, Controls the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information, When the user permits the use of the first accessory by the setting means when the first information indicates non - permission, the processing means controls the operation of the first accessory, the electronic device.

11. An electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, And the first accessory detachably attached to the electronic device, the system characterized by this.

12. A first accessory detachably attached to an accessory chute provided in an electronic device or to a second accessory, Having accessory processing means for communicating with the electronic device, The accessory processing means transmits first information indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory, to the electronic device. An accessory characterized by this.

13. The accessory according to claim 12, wherein when communication with the electronic device cannot be guaranteed due to the attachment of the second accessory, when the function of the first accessory cannot be implemented, or when an operation mode in which the function cannot be implemented is set in the first accessory, the first information is information indicating non - permission.

14. The accessory processing means transmits second information indicating whether it is necessary to confirm the presence or absence of the second accessory to the electronic device, and transmits the first information to the electronic device that has confirmed the attachment of the second accessory according to the second information indicating the necessity of confirmation. The accessory according to claim 12 or 13, characterized by this.

15. A first accessory detachably attached to an electronic device, having accessory processing means for communicating with the electronic device, wherein the accessory processing means transmits first information indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory to the electronic device, transmits second information indicating whether it is necessary to confirm the presence or absence of the second accessory, and transmits the first information to the electronic device that has confirmed the attachment of the second accessory according to the second information indicating the necessity of confirmation. An accessory characterized by this.

16. A system comprising the first accessory according to any one of claims 12 to 15, and the electronic device to which the first accessory is detachably attached. The system is characterized by this.

17. A control method for an electronic device to which a first accessory or a second accessory is detachably attached, comprising the steps of receiving, from the first accessory, first information indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory, and controlling the operation of the first accessory differently according to the first information. A control method characterized by this.

18. A control method for an accessory slot provided in an electronic device or a first accessory detachably attached to a second accessory, A control method, comprising a step of transmitting first information indicating whether to permit or not permit the operation of the first accessory in a state where the first accessory is attached to the second accessory with respect to the electronic device.

19. A program for causing a computer of an electronic device to which a first accessory is detachably attached to execute a process according to the control method described in claim 17.

20. A program for causing a computer of a first accessory detachably attached to an electronic device to execute a process according to the control method described in claim 18.

Images