Color-coded Edge Display for Manual Focus Adjustment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image pickup apparatuses with manual focusing functions face challenges in precise focus adjustment due to limited monitor resolution and size, making it difficult for users to visually confirm sharpness and differentiate focused subjects, especially when multiple subjects are present in the same area.
Innovation Solution
An image pickup apparatus equipped with a manual focus adjusting unit, edge detecting unit, and color signal replacement unit that displays edge portions of high focus areas in predetermined colors, allowing users to easily identify and adjust focus on the monitor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If the monitor resolution and size are increased to enable precise visual confirmation of subject sharpness, then focus adjustment precision is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies color changes to edge portions of subjects based on their focus state. Specifically, edges that are in focus are displayed in a first color (e.g., green), edges that are out of focus are displayed in a second color (e.g., red), and edges with intermediate focus states are displayed in intermediate colors. This allows users to precisely identify focused subjects and adjust focus manually without requiring high-resolution or large-size monitors, thereby resolving the contradiction between focus adjustment precision and device complexity/cost.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple subjects are present in the same area, then the image content becomes more complex, but the ability to differentiate which subject is focused deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses distinct color coding to represent different focus states of multiple subjects. By displaying focused edges in one color and out-of-focus edges in another color, the system maintains clear differentiation of focus states even when multiple subjects are present in the same area, preventing information loss about which subject is currently in focus.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies different color properties to different spatial locations based on their individual focus states. Each edge portion is independently colored according to its local focus condition, allowing users to distinguish between multiple subjects with different focus states even when they occupy the same general area of the image.
Data Source
AI summary
An image pickup apparatus uses an image pickup device. A manual focus adjusting unit is configured to control a focus lens in response to a user's input operation. An edge detecting unit is configured to detect edge components from an image signal obtained by the image pickup device and to output detection levels of the detected edge components. A color signal replacement unit is configured to replace a signal of a pixel corresponding to the detection level with a predetermined color signal when the detection level satisfies a predetermined condition. A display unit is configured to display an image based on an output image signal from the color signal replacement unit.