Minolta Company, Ltd.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.

Kansai Paint Company, Ltd.

Samsung Digital Imaging Co., Ltd.

Konica Minolta Photo Imaging, Inc.

Toshihiro Hamamura

Toshiyuki Tanaka

Hiroaki Kubo

Yoshihiro Hara

Hideki Nagata

Takashi Okada

Tougo Teramoto

Tsutomu Honda

Kiyoshi Seigenji

Tomonori Satoh

Tadahiro Nakao

Kazuhiko Kasei

Hiroshi Ootsuka

Tetsuya Uno

Hiroyuki Okada

Katsuyuki Nanba

Masataka Hamada

Shigeto Ohmori

Masahito Niikawa

Kazuhiko Yukawa

Kenji Nakamura

Keiji Tamai

Masatoshi Yoneyama

Kazuhiko Sugimoto

Shinichi Ban

Chikara Kawamura

Shuji Yoneyama

Chicara Kawamura

Taro Shibuya

Yuki Endo

Masami Sugishima

Tsuyoshi Moriya

Takashi Kato

Akira Shiraishi

Hiroyuki Ogura

Yoshimitsu Adachi

Takeshi Yamawaki

Hidekazu Kutsuma

Yoko Sogabe

Hiroyuki Tsukadaira

Kazuhisa Nakai

Naoki Takafuji

Mineyuki Nomura

An image pickup apparatus includes an image pickup unit to photograph a subject by using a photographing device, a control unit to determine an operation mode of the image pickup apparatus, and, when the operation mode of the image pickup apparatus is a manual focusing mode, the control unit selects a focus detecting method to be applied among a plurality of focus detecting methods according to a focus operation of a user, a determination unit to determine a focus state for the subject by using the selected focus detecting method, and a user interface unit to indicate the determined focus state.

Image pickup apparatus, driving control method thereof, and computer-readable recording medium

Photographing apparatus and method to reduce auto-focus time are disclosed. A photographing apparatus is provided that includes two imaging optical systems; an imaging device that converts images of subjects formed by the imaging optical systems into respective image signals; a subject distance calculation unit that calculates subject distances between the imaging device and the subject based on two images generated by the imaging device; and an in-focus position detection unit that detects an in-focus position based on contrast evaluation values of the image signals obtained for a plurality of focusing positions, performs preparatory focusing driving by moving the focusing positions close to the in-focus position based on the calculated subject distances, and scans the focusing positions from the position close to the in-focus position to the in-focus position.

Photographing apparatus and method to reduce auto-focus time

A photographing apparatus including an in-focus position detector for detecting an in-focus position of a focusing lens to focus an image of a subject on an image pickup surface, a driving controller for controlling the driving of the focusing lens, a reflective member that opens and closes on a path of a light that is irradiated onto the image pickup surface, and an optical measuring unit measuring a brightness of the subject image that is reflected by the reflective member in a closed state when a preliminary light emission operation is performed with respect to the subject before performing a main exposure operation. In the preliminary light emission, the driving controller drives the focusing lens to a position nearer the subject or a position nearer the image pickup surface, rather than to the in-focus position of the focusing lens detected by the in-focus position detector.

Photographing apparatus and photographing method

An auto focus (AF) adjusting apparatus and a camera system of a lens replaceable camera are disclosed. AF is performed by correcting a location error of a focus lens due to a difference between a frequency band for performing AF detection and a frequency band for determining an improved location of an image surface of an imaging lens, and/or a target region for detecting a focal point.

Auto focus adjusting apparatus and camera system

Provided are a focusing position determining apparatus, an imaging apparatus, and a focusing position determining method, the method including setting an aperture to a first aperture value; driving a focus lens through a first range of positions as a first drive; during the first drive, obtaining images periodically, and calculating a first sampling of contrast values from the obtained images; calculating a first focus position from the first sampling of contrast values; setting the aperture to a second aperture value; driving a focus lens through a second range of positions as a second drive, the second range of positions being based on the first focus position; during the second drive, obtaining images periodically, and calculating a second sampling of contrast values from the obtained images; calculating a focusing position from the second sampling of contrast values; and driving the focus lens to the calculated focusing position.

Focusing position determining apparatus, imaging apparatus and focusing position determining method

An apparatus and method for image pickup capable of reducing noise in the images to reduce the effect of shaking due to, for example, hand movement. The image pickup apparatus and method can employ an exposure photographing unit for photographing at least one exposure image at predetermined time intervals using time-division exposure in a light exposure state, a dark frame photographing unit for photographing at least one dark frame at predetermined time intervals using time-division exposure in a dark state, a subtracting processor for subtracting the dark frames from the exposure images to reduce noise in the exposure images, and an image combiner for combining the plurality of reduced noise exposure images.

Apparatus and method for image pickup

An apparatus and method that can maintain the number of photographed images obtained per second (frame rate) while ensuring sufficient exposure of a subject. The photographing apparatus and method can include an exposure portion for repeatedly performing an exposure at intervals of a predetermined unit exposure time, an image data storing portion temporarily storing unit image data generated by the exposure of the exposure portion, and an image combiner reading and combining a group of unit image data corresponding to a predetermined exposure time from the image data storing portion in synchronization with a photographing start timing of a continuous photographing period that is set in advance, to generate a combined image.

Photographing apparatus and photographing method for exposure control during continuous photographing mode

A photographing apparatus and method that can combine a plurality of images photographed by time division exposure. The photographing apparatus and method employ a photographing device having an entire reset mode in which entire pixels are exposed simultaneously right after a flash is shot, and a sequential exposure mode in which exposure time is different according to a state where a flash is not shot, and an image combining unit that combines images photographed by the photographing device, such that the photographing device performs photographing in combination of the entire reset mode and the sequential exposure mode in sequential photographing operations.

Photographing apparatus and method

A photographing apparatus and method prevent a resolution of a peripheral portion of an image from being degraded with a simple structure. These employ an in-focus state detector for detecting evaluation values for auto in-focus operation representing an in-focus state of an image from a first in-focus state detection region disposed on a center portion of the image, and at least one second in-focus state detection region disposed on a peripheral portion of the image, a flat subject determiner that determines whether a subject is flat based on the detection result of the evaluation values for auto in-focus operation, a flat subject focusing position calculator that calculates a final focusing position based on the evaluation values when the subject is determined as being flat, and a three-dimensional subject focusing position calculator that calculates a final focusing position based on the evaluation value when the subject is not flat.

Photographing apparatus, photographing method and a computer readable medium of instructions for controlling the photographing apparatus

A photographing apparatus and method employ an imaging device arranged including a matrix of pixels each which accumulates accumulation charges according to an amount of light incident thereon, an accumulation charge read device for reading the accumulation charges at a time difference based on the position of each row or column of the pixels, and a reset device resetting an entirety of the accumulation charges of the imaging device before a main exposure. The photographing apparatus and method each further employ a reset timing change device capable of changing a reset timing for resetting the accumulation charges with respect to a synchronization pulse corresponding to a time for reading the accumulation charges.

Provided are a photographing apparatus and method which can obtain the same effect as in a weighted summation method by capturing a plurality of images of a subject while appropriately controlling exposure time for each of the images and adding up the images and can correct distortions in the images obtained using a typical exposure time division method. The photographing apparatus includes: an exposure compensation value calculation unit which calculates a plurality of exposure compensation values for a plurality of exposure operations respectively corresponding to a plurality of diaphragm values based on a predefined parameter; an exposure unit which respectively performs the exposure operations for exposure times determined based on the exposure compensation values; and an image synthesis unit which synthesizes a plurality of images respectively obtained by the exposure operations.

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 camera is provided with: a detector for detecting a shake amount of the apparatus with respect to an object at an interval; a calculator for calculating a shake speed and a shake acceleration rate based on detected shake amounts, and calculates an estimative shake amount based on a calculated shake speed, a calculated shake acceleration rate, and a coefficient k (0&#x3c;k&#x3c;1) on an assumption that a shake is uniformly accelerated motion, the coefficient k being a multiplier for the calculated shake acceleration rate; and a corrector for executing a shake correction in accordance with a calculated estimative shake amount.

Apparatus capable of shake estimation

An electronic still camera includes an image pickup unit for picking up an object image to generate a frame image, the image pickup unit having a single pickup mode of picking up an object image to generate a single frame image, and a continuous pickup mode of picking up an object image continuously to generate a plurality of continuous frame images, and a display unit for displaying a frame image in a display manner specialized to the pickup mode in which the frame image is generated. Each frame image is stored in a memory, and given with pickup mode information representing which the frame image is generated in the single pickup mode or the continuous pickup mode.

Electronic still camera provided with a display

A cold setting coating composition comprises an urethane-modified vinyl resin (A) produced by reacting a reaction product with an isocyanate group-possessing compound (c). The reaction product is produced by reacting an epoxy group-containing vinyl copolymer (a) with a fatty acid component (b) containing an unsaturated fatty acid. The vinyl copolymer (a) is a copolymer of a first polymerizable unsaturated monomer containing an epoxy group and a second polymerizable unsaturated monomer. The composition also comprises a polymer dispersion (B) obtained by polymerizing two or more of vinyl monomers in the presence of a dispersion stabilizer (d) in an organic liquid in which vinyl monomers are soluble and a polymer formed from the monomers is insoluble. The dispersion stabilizer (d) is soluble in the organic liquid. The coating composition improved weathering resistance and water resistance of the resulting coated film.

Cold setting coating composition

Growing community of inventors

Yokohama, Japan

Toshihiro Hamamura