HK1218818B - Panoramic imaging head, and imaging system using same - Google Patents

Description

A panorama head for panoramic photography and a photography system using the same

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a panorama head for capturing multiple images and a photography system thereof for generating a panoramic image, and more particularly to a technology for easily achieving high-quality photography while preventing vignetting during photography.

Background Art

A technology is known that uses a digital camera to capture multiple images from different angles and then combines these images through image processing to create a panoramic image with a wider perspective than a single image. These panoramic images are not limited to conventional bird's-eye views. They can also be used in real estate advertising to clearly illustrate the interior and surroundings of a property, or to visually recreate museum spaces. Their applications are diverse.

Furthermore, with the widespread availability of high-performance devices equipped with digital photography capabilities, such as smartphones, anyone can easily capture images and post them on the Internet, leading to a high general demand for the creation of engaging content.

One application that allows smartphones to capture panoramic images is "360Panorama" (see Non-Patent Document 1), developed by Occipital Inc. This application uses digital photography to continuously capture multiple adjacent images, vertically, horizontally, and horizontally. Using proprietary image processing, these images are then pasted onto the inside of a virtual sphere, allowing users to reproduce images in any direction from the captured point.

On the other hand, while this simple panoramic image generation function may be enjoyable as a hobby, it suffers from low image quality when used for commercials or museum displays. Therefore, for such purposes, photography is typically performed using a digital single-lens reflex camera equipped with a wide-angle lens and a special pan/tilt head. For example, the "Nodal Ninja 4" (Non-Patent Document 2) manufactured by Fanotec is a tripod-mounted pan/tilt head that can hold a digital single-lens reflex camera at any angle while securing it so that the lens's nodal points serve as the center of rotation.

The following patent documents are disclosed as equipment for capturing panoramic images.

First, Patent Document 1 proposes a camera for taking panoramic photos, characterized by a rotating fixture having a rotation center located at the first principal point of the lens. This rotating fixture facilitates the capture of panoramic photos. By rotating the fixture and manually rotating the camera body, photos can be taken sequentially. Furthermore, the invention discloses that the rotation angle is determined using a rotation angle detector or a stopper that prevents the camera from rotating beyond a set rotation angle.

Patent Document 2 proposes a technique that uses the location of the tripod mounting screw hole on the camera itself as the nodal point of the main lens. This eliminates the need for a special fixture to align the nodal point with the center of rotation. Using a panoramic head and a tripod allows for accurate panoramic photography without parallax.

Prior art literature

Patent Literature

Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-188506

Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-178097

Non-patent literature

Non-patent document 1: Internet URL (http://occipital.com/360/app) retrieved on February 12, 2013

Non-patent document 2: Internet URL (http://shop.nodalninja.com/nodal-ninja-4-1/) retrieved on February 12, 2013

Summary of the Invention

Purpose of the Invention

The above-mentioned prior art proposes a fixture for rotation perpendicular to the lens nodal point. However, the structure of the pan/tilt head used in digital single-lens reflex cameras is complex and difficult to operate. Furthermore, while the structure in which the tripod mounting screw hole is located perpendicular to the nodal point is convenient for portability, it cannot be rotated while shooting unless it is mounted on a tripod, thus limiting its use.

When using ultra-wide-angle lenses, vignetting caused by fixtures, tripods, or the photographer's body being captured becomes a significant problem. Conventional cameras require various components to be adjustable to accommodate the camera body, and the angle of view of the lens used is not fixed. Therefore, preventing vignetting relies solely on experience. A camera that allows the photographer to hold the lens stably and avoids vignetting is needed.

The present invention is created in view of the problems existing in the above-mentioned prior art, and its purpose is to provide a panorama photography head and a photography system using the same, which is used to simply and without vignetting shoot multiple images in different directions.

Technical Solution

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a panoramic photography system as follows.

That is, it comprises: a digital camera body having a lens with a specific viewing angle at the front end and capable of shooting digital images; a panorama photography head connected to the bottom of the digital camera body; and a tripod connected to the bottom of the panorama photography head.

In this structure, the bottom of the digital camera body is provided with a first connecting means for connecting to the panoramic photography head. In addition, the panoramic photography head is provided with: an upper plate body, which is approximately horizontal and has a second connecting means for connecting to the first connecting means in a non-rotatable manner; a vignetting prevention extension body, which is bent downward from the upper plate body to ensure a specific interval for preventing the panoramic photography head or tripod from being photographed; and a lower plate body, which is connected approximately horizontally and forwardly from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension body and has a tripod connecting means for connecting to the tripod.

Furthermore, the present invention is characterized in that the lower plate of the panoramic photography head is tilted so that its upper surface faces outward and descends.

Alternatively, the panoramic photography system may include: a digital camera body having a lens with a specific angle of view at its front end and capable of capturing digital images; a panoramic photography head connected to the bottom surface of the digital camera body; and a tripod connected to the bottom surface of the panoramic photography head.

In this structure, the bottom of the digital camera body is provided with a first connecting means for connecting to the panoramic photography head. In addition, the panoramic photography head is provided with: an upper plate body, which is approximately horizontal and has a second connecting means for being non-rotatably connected to the first connecting means; a vignetting prevention extension body, which is bent downward from the upper plate body to ensure a specific interval for preventing the panoramic photography head or the tripod from being photographed, and has a handle portion that is formed to be gripped by the user; and a lower plate body, which is connected approximately horizontally and forwardly from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension body and has a tripod connecting means for connecting to the tripod.

Then, the tripod connection means is located vertically below the nodal point of the lens included in the digital camera body.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the vignetting prevention extension body of the panoramic photography head includes a handle portion that is formed so that a user can grip it.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the tripod is a monopod, and the tripod connecting means is non-rotatably connected to the tripod.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the panorama head for panoramic photography comprises: a support plate connected to the rear of the lower plate; and a handle rotatably supported by the support plate toward the bottom, so as to be grasped by the user.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the panorama photography platform further comprises:

A roughly disc-shaped base plate is provided on a setting surface for placing a single leg thereon, and has on both sides thereof: a recessed portion formed to place the lower end of the monopod in the center for easy positioning; a foot portion connected to the setting surface at multiple contact points; and a direction display portion displaying different polygons with symbols marked on the edges.

The present invention also provides the following panorama photography platform.

That is, the present invention provides a panorama head for panoramic photography, which is used together with a digital camera body when shooting multiple images in different directions for generating a panoramic image, and is characterized in that it comprises: an upper plate body, which is approximately horizontal and has a second connecting means for connecting to the digital camera body in a non-rotatable manner; a vignetting prevention extension body, which is bent downward from the upper plate body to ensure a specific interval for preventing the panorama head from being photographed; and a lower plate body, which is connected approximately horizontally and forwardly from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension body and has a tripod connecting means for connecting to a tripod.

Furthermore, the tripod connection means is located vertically below a nodal point of a lens included in the digital camera body.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the lower plate of the panoramic photography platform is tilted so that its upper surface faces outward and descends.

Furthermore, a panorama head for panoramic photography is provided as follows.

That is, a panoramic photography head is provided for use with a digital camera body when shooting a plurality of images in different directions for generating a panoramic image, characterized in that it comprises: an upper plate body, which is approximately horizontal and has a second connecting means for being non-rotatably connected to the digital camera body; a vignetting prevention extension body, which is bent downward from the upper plate body to ensure a specific interval for preventing the panoramic photography head from being photographed; and a lower plate body, which is connected approximately horizontally and forwardly from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension body and has a tripod connecting means for connecting to a tripod.

Furthermore, the tripod connection means is located vertically below a nodal point of a lens included in the digital camera body.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, in the above structure, the vignetting prevention extension body of the panorama head for panoramic photography is provided with a handle portion that can be grasped by the user.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the panoramic photography head comprises: a support plate connected rearward from a lower plate; and a handle rotatably supported by the support plate toward a substantially vertical downward direction, so as to be gripped by a user.

In addition, the present invention also provides a base plate, which is roughly disc-shaped and is arranged on the setting surface for placing a foot thereon.

That is, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, a base plate is provided, which is roughly disc-shaped and is arranged on a setting surface for placing a leg thereon, and is characterized in that it has on both sides of the base plate: a recessed portion formed to place the lower end of a monopod in the center for easy positioning; a foot portion connected to the setting surface with multiple contact points; and a direction display portion that displays different polygons and has symbols marked on its edges.

Beneficial effects

The present invention achieves the following effects by the above-mentioned structure.

The panoramic photography head of the present invention integrates an upper plate, a vignetting prevention extension, and a lower plate, making it easy to carry and attach to a digital camera. The tripod connection on the lower plate is located vertically below the nodal point of the camera's lens, enabling panoramic photography without manual adjustments.

In particular, by using a monopod, the panoramic photography head of the present invention can be mounted on the monopod, and the head can be held while changing the direction to take photos. At this time, the vignetting prevention extension body can be used to take good images without capturing the head, monopod, or the photographer himself.

Furthermore, if the panorama photography head includes a handle, panoramic images can be captured in a stable posture, not only when a monopod is used but also when shooting without a tripod.

In the present invention, by using the provided base, the central recess allows the monopod to be accurately positioned. This allows the user to adjust the correct orientation while observing the polygonal display and symbols. This significantly simplifies the structure and greatly improves the convenience of photography.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG1 is a perspective view of a panoramic photography system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of FIG. 1 .

FIG3 is a left side view of the panorama photography head according to the present invention.

FIG4 is a top view of the panorama photography head according to the present invention.

FIG5 is a bottom view of the panorama photography head according to the present invention.

FIG6 is a right side view of the panorama head for panoramic photography according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a panoramic photography system according to the present invention.

FIG8 is an explanatory diagram of a substrate according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 shows an experimental example of determining the length of the vignetting prevention extension body according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the examples shown in the drawings.

The present invention is a panoramic photography system (hereinafter referred to as the present system) for capturing multiple images from different directions, used to generate panoramic images. The system has particularly significant features in a panorama head (hereinafter referred to as the panorama head) for panoramic photography. Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of the system 1, and Figure 2 is a front view of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a left side view of the panorama head, Figure 4 is a top view of the panorama head, Figure 5 is a bottom view of the panorama head, and Figure 6 is a right side view of the panorama head.

In addition to the pan-tilt head 10 , the system also includes: a digital camera body 20 having an ultra-wide-angle lens 21 with a viewing angle exceeding a specific angle, especially exceeding 180 degrees, at the front end; and a monopod 30 connected to the bottom of the pan-tilt head 10 .

Since the structures of the digital camera body 20 and the monopod 30 are well known, their description is omitted in this embodiment.

A mounting screw hole 23 for connecting to a monopod or tripod is recessed on the bottom surface 22 of the digital camera body 20, forming the first connection means of the present invention. While the mounting screw hole 23 is often located on the digital camera body 20, the positional relationship between the mounting screw hole 23 and the nodal points 24 of the lens 21 is a crucial factor in this system, and the shape of the pan/tilt head 10 is determined by this positional relationship. This point will be discussed later.

The digital camera body 20 is placed on the upper plate 11 of the platform 10 and is secured thereto by mounting screws 110, which serve as a second fastening means. As shown in FIG4 , the mounting screws 110 have linear projections 111 and 112 on their left and right sides (in the figure, upper and lower sides) facing the front of the camera. These projections 111 and 112 engage with recesses (not shown) on the lower surface 22 of the digital camera body 20, thereby securing the directional relationship between the platform 10 and the digital camera body 20.

In a panoramic photography system, if the two are accidentally rotated, it is impossible to shoot in the correct direction, and there is a possibility that the image of the required angle of view will become insufficient. Therefore, it is important that the first connecting means and the second connecting means can be connected in a non-rotatable manner by making the concave and convex parts fit together.

The upper plate 11 is horizontally arranged toward the rear of the camera, with its rear end bent downward. The vignetting prevention extension 12 is extended from the bent portion 113 while being slightly inclined forward.

This inclination allows the photographer to easily position the digital camera body 20 upward when holding the vignetting prevention extension body 12 , and there is no need to worry about fingers being photographed as long as the photographer holds this portion.

As described above, in the present invention, it is preferable that the vignetting prevention extension body 12 has a function as a handle portion.

The vignetting prevention extension 12 ensures a specific distance between the upper plate 11 and the lower plate 13 connected at the lower end, thereby preventing the lower plate 13 or the monopod 30 from being captured in the panoramic image.

Figure 7 shows an experimental example of the shooting range using the pan/tilt head, monopod, and a digital camera body with a 180-degree viewing angle according to the present invention. When the distance from the upper end of the monopod to the upper end of the pan/tilt head is 60 mm, the connection between the monopod 30 and the lower plate 13, with a diameter of 31 mm, is captured. A radius of 137 mm on the mounting surface results in vignetting. On the other hand, at a distance of 200 mm, the corresponding radius is 62 mm. This difference is significant when capturing a 360-degree panoramic image. In this embodiment, based on the experiments, the vignetting prevention extension 12 was set to a length of approximately 13 cm.

In addition, in the enforcement of the present invention, this length can be arbitrarily changed, according to the result of above-mentioned experiment, in the scope of 60mm to 200mm. In addition, when performing function as above-mentioned handle portion, preferably, about 120mm to 200mm.

The vignetting prevention extension 12 is a plate having approximately the same width as the upper plate 11, and has a reinforcing rib 120 formed on the front extending from the lower plate 13. This rib 120 prevents the angle between the vignetting prevention extension 12 and the lower plate 13 from changing, enabling stable photography.

A lower plate 13 is formed substantially horizontally and forwardly from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension 12. In this embodiment, a support plate 14 is provided extending behind the lower plate 13 integrally with the lower plate 13.

A tripod screw hole 130 is provided below the front end of the lower plate 13, serving as a tripod connection means for connecting to the monopod, and is fixed by a tripod screw protruding upward from the monopod 30. Preferably, the tripod connection means is threadedly connected to the tripod in a non-rotatable manner, and the monopod does not have a free head that can rotate freely.

The portion of the lower plate 13 connected to the monopod 30 is preferably smaller in diameter than the upper end 31 of the monopod 30 . Furthermore, the monopod 30 itself is preferably as thin as possible.

The most important point of the present invention is that, in this connected state, the tripod connection means is located vertically below the nodal point 24 of the lens 21 provided on the digital camera body.

In this embodiment, since a monopod is used, a tripod screw and a tripod screw hole 130 are arranged on the central axis thereof, and the upper plate 11 and the lower plate 13 are arranged in such a way that the node is located on the extension line (L).

As is well known, by rotating around the nodal point 24 and performing imaging, a high-quality panoramic image without distortion can be generated.

The nodes are different depending on the lens 21. Therefore, in the implementation of the present invention, it is necessary to determine the position of the mounting screw 110 according to the digital camera or the lens. Therefore, it is preferable that the pan/tilt head 10 is a dedicated design so that it can be easily used.

Alternatively, for example, to cope with two types of cameras, the mounting screws 110 are selectively installed at two positions, and which hole to use for fixing can be selected according to the camera.

The dot-dash line in FIG2 shows this example. The screw mounting hole 23' of another digital camera 20' is connected by a mounting screw 110' offset forward from the original mounting screw 110.

In another embodiment, the upper plate 11 and the vignetting prevention extension 12 can be configured to be attachable and detachable, or only the upper plate 11 can be replaced depending on the digital camera or lens. In this case, only the upper plate can be replaced depending on the camera, etc., thereby providing a resource-saving and low-cost pan/tilt head.

In this embodiment, the handle 15 is rotatably supported by the support plate 14. The handle 15 is constructed with a sponge-like, non-slip covering on its surface, allowing the photographer to hold it stably. The user-friendly handle 15 allows the camera to be held stably even when held high.

In addition, the handle 15 may be fixed to the support plate without rotating.

The upper surface of the support plate 14 may be provided with a level 140. When photographing a panoramic image, the camera needs to be kept accurately horizontal and vertical, and conventionally, cameras or tripods equipped with a level have been proposed.

However, it is often difficult to maintain a stable shooting posture while checking the level, and when a monopod is used as in this embodiment, this may cause tilting and shaking of the camera.

In this embodiment, a level is provided just above the handle 15 , which enables intuitive horizontal alignment and is beneficial for high-precision photography.

Alternatively, the level may be positioned on the upper surface of the lower plate 13 or the rear side surface of the vignetting prevention extension 12 .

In the present invention, it is assumed that the digital camera body 20 uses an ultra-wide-angle lens 21 and is configured to prevent vignetting caused by reflected light incident from directly below the lens 21 .

First, the corners 114 and 115 of the upper plate 11 are rounded, thereby preventing the corners 114 and 115 from being captured in an image and preventing incident light reflected from the upper surfaces of the corners 114 and 115 .

Second, the upper surface of the lower plate 13 is inclined outward and downward. As shown in Figure 1, from the connection portion with the vignetting prevention extension 12, the front has inclined portions 131 and 132 on the left and right sides similar to the mountainside, and the front end also has an inclined portion 133 facing left and right.

Thus, even if the sun or lighting is incident on the lower plate from above, the reflected light is reflected to the outside, and can be prevented from being incident on the lens 21 .

Similarly, from the perspective of preventing reflection, it is better that the pan/tilt head is coated with low-reflective paint or surface-processed, and the paint color is a color that is difficult to reflect, such as black.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, the thickness portion 134 of the lower plate 13 is tilted forward, thereby minimizing vignetting. As mentioned above, this thickness portion 134 is preferably the same size as, or smaller than, the upper end of the monopod 30. In this embodiment, it tapers from the upper end 131 toward the inner side of the lower plate 13.

In the above embodiment, the vignetting prevention extension body 12 is located on the rear side of the upper plate body 11. This is because when the photographer holds the vignetting prevention extension body 12 with his hands, it is difficult to capture his hands. Therefore, this is a preferred structure.

On the other hand, in the practice of the present invention, if the above-mentioned problem does not occur, the vignetting prevention extension 12 may be located on the front side of the upper plate.

Figure 5 shows another embodiment. The platform 10′ comprises an upper plate 11′; a vignetting prevention extension 12′ that curves downward from the front end of the upper plate 11′; a lower plate 13′ that extends forward from the lower end of the vignetting prevention extension 12′; and a support plate 14′ extending rearward from the lower plate 13′.

In this structure, the tripod connection portion 130 of the lower plate 13' is located vertically below the nodal point 24 of the lens 21, similar to the above. Furthermore, the vignetting prevention extension 12' is set back as far as possible near the digital camera body 20 and tilted forward to follow the viewing angle, thereby preventing the camera from being photographed.

In addition, a concave surface is formed on the upper front portion of the vignetting prevention extension body 12', which prevents vignetting and helps prevent the vignetting prevention extension body 12' from bending.

6 is an explanatory diagram of a base plate 40 according to the present invention. This base plate 40 is used together with the above-mentioned panoramic photography system, is installed on a setting surface such as the ground or a floor, and the lower end of one leg is placed on it.

The overall shape is disc-shaped, with three rubber feet 43 on each side of the front 41 and back 42. These three feet provide stability, ensuring a stable hold when the monopod is placed. Furthermore, the rubber feet prevent damage to the floor even when the monopod is rotated.

In this embodiment, the front surface 41 is shown as a triangle, and the back surface 42 is shown as a quadrilateral, with the sides being 440 to 442 and 450 to 453. Furthermore, a recess 46 is formed in the center for contact with the foot of the monopod, and this positioning allows the monopod to be easily rotated.

When shooting, just rotate the monopod so that all sides are horizontal when observing from the photographer's direction to determine the direction. In particular, shoot in numerical order, so that you will not make a mistake in the shooting direction and can take photos that meet your needs.

In this embodiment, the numbers are 1 to 3 and 1 to 4, but they can be changed arbitrarily as long as they are easy-to-understand serial symbols.

Panoramic photography generally involves capturing images in three to six directions and combining the captured images. However, when using a wide-angle lens with an angle exceeding 200 degrees, such as the digital camera body 20 used in the present invention, the images can be sufficiently overlapped even with the substrate 40 in two to four directions, as described above. This reduces the time required for photography.

Of course, the polygon represented on the substrate 40 is arbitrary, for example, a hexagon or an octagon. The more sides a polygon has, the more the above symbols are required.

In addition, when shooting in two directions, you can use a quadrilateral instead and just record one line.

In this embodiment, the entire panoramic photography system is described. In the implementation of the present invention, only the panoramic photography platform 10 or the base plate 40 may be provided.

Marking Description

1 Panoramic photography system

10 Panoramic photography head

11 upper plate body

12 Vignetting prevention extension body

13 Lower plate body

14 Support plate

15 handle

20 Digital camera body

21 shots

30 Monopod

40 substrate

Claims (1)

1. A panoramic photography system for capturing multiple images with different orientations for generating a panoramic image, characterized in that it comprises: A digital camera body with a lens at the front that has a specific angle of view, and capable of capturing digital images; A panoramic photography gimbal is connected to the underside of the main body of the digital camera; and The tripod is connected to the underside of the panoramic photography head, wherein... The digital camera body has a first connection means on its lower part that connects to the panoramic photography gimbal. Additionally... The panoramic photography gimbal has the following features: The upper plate is generally horizontal and has a second connecting means for non-rotatable connection with the first connecting means; A vignetting prevention extension body, curving downwards from the upper plate to ensure specific intervals, is used to prevent the panoramic photography gimbal or tripod from being captured in the image; and The lower plate is connected to the lower end of the fading prevention extension body in a generally horizontal and forward manner, and has a leg connection means for connecting to the leg. The upper side of the lower plate is tilted outwards and downwards. The tripod connection means is located vertically below the node of the lens.