Wireless Camera Group Synchronization for Consistent Settings
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Solution Overview
Problem
Photographers face challenges in maintaining consistent operational settings across multiple camera bodies during events, leading to time loss and potential human error when switching between them, as changes made to one camera do not automatically affect the others.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a system where camera bodies can be configured into a group for wireless communication, allowing shared settings like ISO sensitivity, lens aperture, and shutter speed to be synchronized in real-time across all cameras, with one camera acting as a master to broadcast changes to others.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If multiple camera bodies are used simultaneously to capture different perspectives, then the photographer's capability and speed in responding to changing conditions improve, but the complexity of managing consistent operational settings across all cameras increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the settings management of multiple camera bodies by establishing a master-slave relationship where one camera (master) controls and synchronizes settings across all other cameras (slaves). This consolidation allows the photographer to manage settings through a single interface while maintaining coordinated operation across multiple cameras, effectively reducing the perceived complexity despite using multiple devices.
Solution Approach 2:
The master camera serves multiple functions: it acts as both a photography device and a centralized settings controller for the entire camera group. By making the master camera universal—capable of both capturing images and managing settings for all slaves—the system eliminates the need for separate settings management interfaces for each camera, simplifying the overall operation.
2Reliability
If the photographer manually replicates operational settings on each camera body, then consistent settings can be maintained, but valuable time is lost during the process
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary synchronization of settings automatically when cameras are connected or when the first camera is activated. Settings are pre-coordinated across all camera bodies before shooting begins, so when the photographer needs to switch cameras, the settings are already matched and no manual adjustment is needed during the shooting process.
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors and synchronizes settings changes in real-time. When a setting is changed on the master camera, the change is immediately transmitted to all slave cameras, providing continuous feedback and automatic updates. This ensures settings consistency is maintained dynamically without requiring manual intervention or time for replication.
3Productivity
If operational settings are changed on one camera body, then that camera can respond to changing conditions, but the other camera bodies do not automatically update, creating potential for human error
Solution Approach 1:
The master-slave architecture implements continuous feedback where any setting change on the master camera is automatically detected and transmitted to all slave cameras. This real-time feedback loop ensures that all cameras remain synchronized without requiring manual verification, eliminating human error while maintaining the ability to respond quickly to changing shooting conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The slave cameras automatically receive and apply setting changes from the master camera without requiring manual intervention. The system serves itself by automatically synchronizing settings across all devices, freeing the photographer from the need to manually adjust each camera and eliminating the potential for human error in settings replication.
Data Source
AI summary
An approach is provided to control digital imaging system. In the approach, camera bodies are configured to establish a camera group that includes each of the camera bodies. Each of the camera bodies in the camera group is controlled by a human operator in photographing an event. Shared camera settings that pertain to each of the cameras in the camera group are also configured. A wireless receiver included in one of the camera bodies receives an adjustment that was sent from another camera body included in the camera group. One of the settings of the receiving camera body is then adjusted based on the received adjustment.