Minolta Company, Ltd.

Minolta Camera Kabushiki Kaisha

Konica Minolta Photo Imaging, Inc.

Katsuyuki Nanba

Manabu Inoue

Hirokazu Yagura

Nobuyuki Taniguchi

Dai Shintani

Hiroshi Ishibe

Sadafusa Tsuji

Hideo Hotomi

Takashi Kondo

Yoshihiro Tanaka

Toru Ishii

Hirokazu Naruto

Isao Hayami

Hideki Nagata

Hiroaki Kubo

Yoshito Tanaka

Takehiro Katoh

Shigeru Wada

Reiji Seki

Tsutomu Honda

Akihiko Fujino

Hiroyuki Okada

Gen Sasaki

Masahiko Matsuura

Hiroyuki Matsumoto

Masahito Niikawa

Naoki Masazumi

Tsutomu Ichikawa

Yasuhiro Morimoto

Hidehiko Fujii

Yutaka Maeda

Kenji Nakamura

Katsuhiko Asai

Yukari Maeda

Makiko Mandai

Kouji Hamaguchi

Yasuhiro Kyoden

Tetsuo Yamada

Kazuaki Okumura

Mikihiro Komatsu

Takeshi Ono

Hiroshi Ueda

Masataka Hamada

Hiroshi Ootsuka

Toshiyuki Tanaka

Kenji Ishibashi

Takeo Hoda

Yoshinobu Kudo

Takashi Okada

Toshihiko Ishimura

Takeshi Hashimoto

Kenji Tsuji

Shinji Tominaga

Shuji Izumi

Michihiro Iwata

Toshihiro Hamamura

Jun Ishihara

Hirokazu Yamada

Tougo Teramoto

Tetsuro Kanbara

Naohiro Kageyama

Shinichi Ban

Tatsuya Suzuki

Tetsuyuki Tanimoto

Koh Hayama

Masayuki Ikemura

Hiroshi Kiten

Hirokazu Kuroda

Noriyuki Ishii

Takeshi Ogoshi

Tatsuya Ishida

Hiroshi Yoshino

Kyoko Kakudo

Atsuhiro Noda

Shigeru Nagata

Kotomi Murakami

Takuya Kishimoto

Masayuki Funakoshi

Kiyoyuki Tomita

Toshiyuki Murai

Yumi Hasegawa

An electronic device includes a display having a memory function and a communications capability. Display functions are controlled based on a state of the operation of the device and/or based on a state of received data. Also disclosed is a method of selectively displaying advertising information based on a state of the device where the advertising can be maintained on the display without requiring any power consumption.

Electronic apparatus

A data distributing system wherein an electronic book data storage center which is stored with a plurality of pieces of book data is capable of communicating with electronic book vending machinesvia a communication line and/or a communication satellite. In each of the vending machines, a storage medium can be inserted. The vending machine selects a piece of book data, which may be desired by the user, based on data stored in the storage medium as data to be to recorded into the storage medium. The user himself or herself can select a piece of book data. Also, the recorded data can be deleted from the storage medium in compliance with the user's request. These vending machines may have a function of casting accounts.

Data distributing system and data recording method

A metallic sliding cover that covers an image taking lens system when an image taking apparatus is not in use is attached at the front side of the image taking apparatus, and an IC tag of a type that has an internal power supply and an IC tag of a type that has not an internal power supply are stuck to the front side of the image taking apparatus. A plural number of IC tags are alternatively covered with the sliding cover by movement of the cover. Thereby, communication only by one IC tag becomes possible when the image taking apparatus is in use; meanwhile, communication only by the other IC tag becomes possible when the image taking apparatus is not in use. As a result, interference between a plurality of IC tags having mutually different characteristics can be prevented.

Image taking apparatus having selectively enabled IC tags

A still video camera or apparatus which eliminates possible erasure in error of a picture image to be maintained and wherein a picture image recorded in an internal memory can be reproduced readily. The camera comprises image pickup means, recording means for recording a picture image signal obtained by the image pickup means into a record medium which may be an internal memory or a removable IC card, manually operable means, protect signal recording means operable in response to an operation of the manually operable means for recording into the record medium a protect signal representative of inhibition of erasure of a picture image signal recorded in the record medium, and controlling means for inhibiting erasure of a picture image signal at a portion of the record medium corresponding to the thus recorded protect signal.

Still video camera having protecting function

An image processing device gives an alarm if deletion of image is directed in a state that the image has not yet been transferred from an image recording medium into a storage medium having a larger capacity. Also, when a deletion operation is performed for image, the image processing device compresses and stores the corresponding image file in accordance with an evaluation rank based on history data for the image. Therefore, the image processing device allows effective use of the storage medium having a limited capacity by contriving compression processing of the image file.

Image processing device for processing images which are recorded in a recording medium and a method thereof

An information display device which is structured as an electronic book with liquid crystal displays which display information stored in a storage medium. The information display device further has a first driving section which drives the liquid crystal displays and a second driving section which drives the recording medium, and while the displays are reset, the second driving section is inhibited from driving the storage medium. Also, the information display device has a speaker, and when a mode to display information on the liquid crystal displays at a high speed is selected, the speaker is inhibited from reproducing sound.

Information display device and information display method

An image retrieval system for retrieving a plurality of images recorded in a recording medium, records data concerning operations and processing for image files as history data. A desired image is found based on the history data. Further, an image is found based on a combination of photographing condition in a photographing operation, and the history data of the operations executed for the image file. Therefore, the image retrieval system allows the image to be efficiently, exactly, and conveniently found without a trouble of assigning key information to the image file.

Image retrieval system for retrieving a plurality of images which are recorded in a recording medium, and a method thereof

A compact film player has a picture reproducing unit and an information reading unit capable of reading a photographing information on each frame of the film. When a developed film is fed in an inlet of the picture reproducing unit in a prescribed direction, a scan mirror scans a picture provided on the film perpendicularly to the feed direction, so that a line sensor takes the picture every line. The line sensor and the scan mirror read two-dimensional pictures provided on the film. When the picture of the frame previously read is on display, the scan of the next frame is effected.

Still image reproducing apparatus saving time for still image reproduction

An electronic still camera in which taken images are recorded onto a memory card has an LCD for image display, a RAM for image storage and a switch for image selection. Photographing is started before a direction to start recording is provided by the user. Photographing is continued even after the direction is provided and a predetermined number of images taken over a period spanning before and after the direction to start recording is provided are stored in the RAM. The images stored in the RAM are successively displayed on the LCD and the images which the user determines to be necessary and specifies by operating the switch are recorded onto the memory card.

Electronic still camera

A still video camera which eliminates possible erroneous erasure of a picture image recorded in an internal memory of the camera. The camera has an image pickup apparatus and a recorder for recording a picture image signal obtained by the image pickup apparatus into a record medium which may be an internal memory or a removable IC card. Further, the camera has a manually operable switch and a protect signal recording apparatus operable in response to the operation of the manually operable switch for recording a protect signal into the record medium. The protect signal will inhibit the erasure of a picture image signal recorded in the record medium. The camera also has a controller for inhibiting erasure of a picture image signal at a portion of the record medium corresponding to the protect signal.

Still video camera in which erroneous erasure of picture image is prevented

An image information display device, such as an electronic book, that displays contents stored in a recording medium on a first screen and a second screen in which liquid crystal is used. The device includes means for paging through image information and means for screen selection. The means for screen selection is used to select a two-screen mode in which the contents are displayed on both the first and second screens or a one-screen mode in which an image is displayed on either of the screens. By selecting the one-screen mode, energy consumption may be reduced.

Image information display device

An information display device can be structured as an electronic book which has a first screen and a second screen made of liquid crystal with a memory effect. A dry battery can be used as its power source section. The remaining electric power of the battery is detected by measuring the voltage, and immediately before the remaining electric power becomes a minimum voltage necessary for erasure of the screens, the first and second screens are reset so that the images displayed thereon can be erased.

Information display device and display control method

A photographing apparatus can transfer an image to an image processing apparatus with a first recording medium. The photographing apparatus includes a discriminator which determines a state of a second recording medium for recording a photographed image, the recording medium being detachably provided to the photographing apparatus. The photographing apparatus also includes a selector which selects whether the photographed image is to be transferred to the first recording medium or to the second recording medium, based on the determined state by the discriminator, and a controller which controls a transfer of the photographed image to the recording medium selected by the selector.

Photographing apparatus, method for recording an image by the photographing apparatus, and method for reproducing an image by the photographing apparatus

An electronic filing system which can record an image reproduced from a photographed image of a developed film together with a photographic information pertaining thereto on a recording medium such as an optical disk. The system includes a device for reproducing an image from the photographed image of the film, a reading device for reading the photographic information recorded on the film, and a writing device for writing the reproduced image and photographic information on the recording medium.

Electronic filing system capable of recording image reproduced from developed film

Growing community of inventors

Sakai, Japan

Katsuyuki Nanba