JPH07143429A - Image record carrier and image recording / reproducing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Abstract] [Purpose] A large-capacity, highly-accessible and portable image record carrier, and a high-definition image that can be quickly captured in a computer can be recorded at a desired shutter opportunity, and the image can be reproduced. To be able to provide a recording / reproducing device. [Structure] An area for recording image information composed of a moving image and / or a still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is used as a unit for recording the image information to improve accessibility, and at the same time, the image information By changing the clock frequency for recording / reproducing, or changing the rotation speed of the image record carrier, the recording density can be increased without changing the accessibility, and the accessibility is improved. (EN) Provided is an image recording / reproducing device capable of handling high-definition images.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image recording carrier for recording image information such as moving images and still images, and an image recording / reproducing apparatus for recording and reproducing image information using the carrier.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, development of an apparatus capable of rapidly recording and reproducing a high-definition image has been actively conducted. On the other hand, it is desired that high-definition images be quickly captured in a computer. Conventional devices for recording image information such as moving images and still images include video tape recorders and still video cameras.

The video tape recorder has a structure for recording moving image information obtained by a two-dimensional area sensor or the like on a tape medium. The still video camera is also configured to record still image information obtained by a two-dimensional area sensor or the like in a small floppy disk or a card type IC memory.

An optical memory is known as a computer memory that has a large capacity and can be accessed at high speed. Among them, a magneto-optical disk memory in which information can be rewritten is regarded as promising. Further, there is a ZCAV type magneto-optical disk memory in which the recording area is divided into several areas and the density is increased by changing the frequency of the recording / reproducing clock or changing the rotation speed of the disk in each area.

[0005]

However, the above-mentioned video tape recorder is suitable for continuously recording and reproducing a long-time moving image, but in order to find a desired moving image from the tape medium and take it into a computer, it is a tape medium. It had the drawback of poor accessibility. Further, when it is not known when the moving image information to be recorded can be obtained, it is necessary to continuously record the moving image information, and there is a drawback that the recording capacity is used more than necessary.

Further, the still video has a drawback that the capacity is small when the recording medium is a floppy disk, and has a drawback that the capacity is small and expensive when the recording medium is an IC memory. Further, there is a drawback that a photo opportunity is missed when it is not known when the still image to be recorded can be obtained. Also,
Conventionally, the ZCAV type magneto-optical disk memory has not been used as a record carrier for image information.

In view of the above problems, the present invention can provide a portable image record carrier having a large capacity and high accessibility, and records a high-definition image that can be quickly taken into a computer at a desired shutter opportunity. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image recording / reproducing device capable of reproducing the image.

[0008]

The image record carrier of the present invention is an image record carrier for recording image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image, and the region for recording the image information is divided into a plurality of regions, One area is used as a unit for recording the image information.

Further, in the image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention, an area for recording image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is used as a unit for recording the image information. Images are recorded / reproduced using the image record carrier, and the clock frequency for recording / reproducing the image information is made different.

Another feature of the image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention is that an area for recording image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one of the areas is used for the above-mentioned image. An image is recorded / reproduced using an image record carrier as a unit for recording information, and the rotation speed of the image record carrier is varied when recording / reproducing the image information.

Further, another feature of the image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention is that in the image recording apparatus which captures image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image and records it on the image record carrier, the first switch. And a second switch, a primary image record carrier and a secondary image record carrier,
The operation of the first switch starts the capture of the image information to continue recording on the primary image record carrier, and the operation of the second switch confirms the image information and the operation of the second switch. The image information of a predetermined recording unit is recorded on the primary image record carrier based on the determined time, and then transferred and recorded on the secondary image record carrier.

[0012]

According to the image record carrier of the present invention, the recording area for recording the image information composed of the moving image and / or the still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one of the areas is used as a recording unit of the image information. To improve accessibility.

The image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention records / reproduces image information on the image information recording carrier by changing the clock frequency in each region, or controls the rotation speed of the image recording carrier. By changing the recording / reproducing of the image information, the accessibility is improved and a high-definition image can be handled.

Further, two switches, a first switch and a second switch, are provided, and the first switch starts the capture of image information and continues recording on the primary image record carrier, and the second switch switches the image. After confirming the information, the image information of a predetermined recording unit is recorded on the primary image record carrier based on the time when the second switch is pressed, and then transferred to the secondary image record carrier for recording. By so doing, desired image information can be surely recorded so that a photo opportunity is not missed.

In addition to recording an image on the image record carrier, information on the set value at the time of recording by the image recording / reproducing apparatus,
By recording the information indicating the recording operation procedure, the setting value information during reproduction, the information for processing, editing, and outputting the reproduced image, the information indicating the reproduction operation procedure, In the image recording / reproducing apparatus using this, the desired image can be easily recorded / reproduced in advance.

[0016]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the image record carrier of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a recording area explanatory diagram for explaining an image record carrier of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 is a rewritable optical disk memory as an image record carrier. The optical disk memory described here is
A magneto-optical disk having a size of 3.5 inches and a capacity of about 350 MByte will be described.

The recording area of the magneto-optical disk 1 is divided into a plurality of areas shown as a first zone 2, a second zone 3, a third zone 4 ... In this embodiment, 3
It is assumed that the zone is divided into 0 zones. It is assumed that each zone has almost the same capacity as 10 MByte. This one area is used as a recording unit of image information and audio information for the image information.

Reference numeral 5 is a management zone in which the state of the recording area and the recorded contents are recorded, and the information necessary for the image recording / reproducing apparatus at the time of recording / reproducing is recorded. here,
An area for recording the read-only information is also included.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of an image recording / reproducing apparatus which captures and records or reproduces image information of a moving image or a still image by using the magneto-optical disk 1 as the image record carrier.

In FIG. 2, reference numeral 6 shows the main body of the image recording / reproducing apparatus. Further, 7 is a bus for transmitting / receiving various information inside thereof. 8 is the image recording / reproducing device 6
Is a CPU that performs overall control of. Reference numeral 9 denotes an R for storing programs and various data for the CPU 8 to control.
It is an internal memory composed of OM and RAM. An image input controller 10 is for converting an image captured from the image input unit 11 into a digital signal, and the image input controller 10 captures image information of a moving image or a still image.

The image input unit 11 is composed of an image forming system 12 and a photoelectric conversion unit having a high-speed electronic shutter function 13. Reference numeral 14 is a compression circuit and an expansion circuit for image information. Image information obtained from the image input controller 10 or the external input device 27 is compressed and then recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1 or the like mounted in the semiconductor memory 23 or the magneto-optical memory unit 24.

In this embodiment, the recording density is increased without changing the accessibility by changing the recording / reproducing clock frequency or changing the rotation speed of the magneto-optical disk memory 1 in each recording zone. .

The image information recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1 or the like is expanded and then displayed on the external monitor TV 34 or the like via the monitor output circuit 25, or 35 via the video printer output circuit 35. It is output to.

Reference numeral 15 is a voice input / output controller for taking in voice from the microphone 16 and converting it into a digital signal. Further, 17 is a compression circuit and a decompression circuit for audio information. The voice information obtained from the voice input controller 15 or the external voice input device 28 is compressed in the same manner as the image information, and then the semiconductor memory 2 is associated with the image information.
3 and the magneto-optical disk memory 1 and the like. In addition, the audio information recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1 etc.
After being decompressed, it goes through the monitor output circuit 25 and the monitor TV.
It is output to 34 together with the image information.

Further, the image recording / reproducing device 6 has an external control device interface 18 capable of being controlled by an external control device 29 such as a personal computer, and an external memory interface capable of transmitting / receiving information to / from a floppy disk memory device. Have nineteen.

The external control device 29 is a computer or the like as described above, and controls the image recording / reproducing device 6 to record the image / audio information sent from the external image input device 27 and the external audio input device 28. It is designed so that it can be executed. Further, the image and audio information recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1 can be processed. Further, the image recording / reproducing device can be used as an external memory of the external control device 29.

The external memory 30 is composed of a floppy disk memory, an IC memory card, another optical disk memory, etc. as described above, and can send and receive information such as images and sounds to and from the image recording / reproducing device 6. It is done like this. In this embodiment, image recording /
As a configuration for the user to operate the playback device 6 independently, a key for inputting various commands, a plurality of switches for notifying the timing of capturing image and audio information, and the like are provided.

An output device 21 is provided to display the contents of the command issued to the input device 20 and the image recording / reproducing device 6 and the operating state. In addition, the wireless communication circuit 22 is provided which can receive a command from the remote controller 31 and transmit information to the external peripheral device 32 by utilizing optical communication resistant to noise or spread spectrum communication.

FIGS. 3 and 4 are flowcharts for explaining the procedure of recording and reproducing image information by the image recording / reproducing apparatus as described above. It should be noted that description can be omitted here because the voice information can be similarly processed.

In FIG. 3, when the operation is started in step S1, first, in step S2, the image recording / reproducing device 6 is turned on, the magneto-optical disk memory 1 is mounted, and the operation is performed. Next, the operation content as to whether to record information or to reproduce is input through the input device 20. In the case of the present embodiment, the input contents are displayed on the output device 21 so that the operator can easily confirm (the input contents and the operation contents are displayed on the display device 21 and confirmed in the same manner thereafter). ).

Next, in step S3, it is determined whether the input operation content is recording or reproducing. If the result of determination in step S3 is recording, step S4
If it is reproduction, the process proceeds to step S16 of FIG. Step S4 and subsequent steps in FIG. 3 are flowcharts for explaining the recording operation content.

That is, first, in step S4, it is input whether the recording condition is set manually or automatically.
Then, after that, the process proceeds to step S5, and it is determined whether the setting condition is manual or automatic. If the setting condition is manual, step S5 is performed.
6. If automatic, go to step S10.

In step S6, whether the image to be recorded is a moving image or a still image is input. Then, in the case of a moving image, the process proceeds to step S8 to set the maximum recording time, the number of pixels, the compression ratio and the like. However, since the recording unit is determined, these setting values are limited. Therefore, it is necessary to decide whether to give priority to the recording time or the image quality based on the number of pixels and the compression ratio.

Further, it is determined at what timing the image is captured based on the time when the switch is pressed. For example, if the longest recording time is L minutes, the first switch starts capturing an image, and the previous longest recording time L minutes is taken in based on the time when the second switch is pressed, or
Or, capture the longest recording time L later, or use the previous x (L
> X) and subsequent (L−x) minutes are fetched.

That is, it is desirable to match the timing of the second switch with the shutter chance depending on whether the shutter chance of the subject occurs in the last part, the beginning part, or the middle part of the series of movements. It is possible to capture a series of moving images including the images described above without waste. When the setting is completed, the process proceeds to step S11. On the other hand, in the case of a still image, the same setting is made in step S9.

In this case, the number of continuous shooting frames, continuous shooting interval, number of pixels, compression ratio, etc. are set. Similarly, since the recording unit is determined, these setting values are limited, and it is necessary to determine whether to give priority to the number of continuous shooting frames or the image quality based on the number of pixels and the compression ratio. Also, it is determined at what timing the capture is performed.

For example, assuming that the maximum number of continuous shooting frames is M, the first switch starts capturing an image, and the previous M frames are captured based on the time when the second switch is pressed, or the subsequent M frames are captured. Take in the sheets, or y before (y <M) and after (M-
y) Make settings such as capturing sheets. As described above, this makes it possible to capture a still image without missing a photo opportunity.

On the other hand, when the automatic setting is selected, in step S10 the image recording / reproducing device 6 reads the information on the recording conditions recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1,
The settings made in steps S6 to S9 are automatically performed and the process proceeds to step S11. These pieces of information are recorded in the management zone 5 or the like, and the conditions previously set by the user may be recorded, or those manufactured by the magneto-optical disk memory 1 may be recorded in advance. .

In the latter case, these pieces of information may be recorded as read-only information. That is, if the user is a beginner who handles the image recording / reproducing apparatus 6, the selection of the recording conditions performed in steps S6 to S9 and the like is complicated. In this case, the user can easily capture the desired image by purchasing a magneto-optical disk in which the recording conditions capable of capturing those images are recorded in advance in the management zone 5 together with the sample image book and sample video. Is possible.

When the recording conditions are set, step S1
1 waits for the first switch to be pressed. And the first
When the switch is pressed, the image input controller 10 starts taking an image from the image input section according to the recording conditions.
The captured image information is compressed by the image information compression circuit 14 and then recorded in the semiconductor memory 23 as a primary image record carrier.

During this time, by stopping the magneto-optical disk memory 1, the power consumption can be reduced. And step S
Wait for the second switch to be pressed at 13. When the second switch is pressed, the image information to be recorded is decided in accordance with the set timing of fetching, and the image information is transferred from the semiconductor memory 23 to the recording area of the magneto-optical disk memory 1 as the secondary image record carrier. And record.

The recording conditions at this time are also recorded in association with the image. Although this condition is used during reproduction, it may be recorded in the management zone 5 or may be recorded in the same recording area as each image information. By performing the recording as described above, it is possible to accurately capture a desired image and record the image information in which unnecessary portions are omitted.

As the first switch and the second switch, push buttons may be independently provided, or the first switch may be automatically turned on at the same time when the recording condition is set. Also, when the push button as the second switch is half-pressed or touched, the first switch is turned on,
The second switch may be turned on when the push button is fully pressed.

In this embodiment, the capacity of the primary image record carrier is equal to or larger than the recording unit. If the capacity of the image information exceeds the recording unit after the first switch is pressed and before the second switch is pressed, the older image information is erased and the newly fetched image information is recorded. Try to keep it.

On the contrary, when the determined image information is less than the recording unit, the rest of the recording zone in which the information is recorded is left unused. The recording zone may be automatically moved to an unrecorded zone for recording, or the already recorded zone may be selected and old information recorded therein may be erased to record new information. You can

Further, as the primary image record carrier so far,
Although the semiconductor memory 23 is used, the magneto-optical disk memory 1 may be configured to also serve as the primary and secondary image record carriers. In this case, since the semiconductor memory can be omitted, the device can be downsized.
Information such as the start and end of the image is recorded in the management zone 5.

When the image information is recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1, the process proceeds to step S15. In step S15,
Select whether to change the setting. When recording continuously, the recording proceeding to step S11 is repeated. If another operation is to be performed or the setting is changed, the process returns to the input of operation contents in step S2. Of course, it is convenient for operation if the interruption such as step S15 can be performed from any step.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the operation contents of reproduction. First, in step S16, an image to be reproduced is determined. When the image to be reproduced is determined, the process proceeds to step S17, where the image recording / reproducing device 6
The image information on the magneto-optical disk memory 1 and the recording conditions for recording it are read. The image information is decompressed by the image information decompression circuit 14 and then sent to the monitor output circuit 25 and output to the monitor TV 34 according to the recording conditions.

In addition to normal reproduction, moving pictures can be specially reproduced such as fast-forward and rewind. In addition to the frame-by-frame playback of still images, continuous frame-by-frame playback can be performed using the keys of the input device 20.

Next, in step S18, whether or not to perform image processing is input, and then step S19 is executed.
Here, it is determined whether to perform image processing. Then, when performing image processing, the process proceeds to step S20.

In step S20, image reproduction is performed using the information previously recorded in the management zone by the manufacturer. Next, in step S21, the reproduction image is processed and edited by applying a special filter, enlarging / reducing, trimming, or the like.

Also in this case, if the automatic reproduction can be performed as in the recording, the desired image can be reproduced even if the user is a beginner. When the image processing is completed or the image processing apparatus is not used, the process proceeds to step S22. In step S22, whether to change the setting is selected. Then, in the case of continuously recording, the process proceeds to step S16 and the reproduction is repeated. If another operation is performed or the setting is changed, the process returns to the operation content input in step S2.

Up to this point, it has been explained that the information which can be automatically recorded and reproduced is recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1. However, the information for assisting the user is further recorded in the magneto-optical disk memory 1. By recording it, when the user asks for help or gives attention to the user, by reading the information, and notifying the user as a voice to a speaker (not shown) or as a character on the output device 21,
It is possible to more reliably capture a desired image and record / reproduce it.

[0054]

As described above, according to the present invention, in an image record carrier for recording image information composed of a moving image and / or a still image, the recording area is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is a recording unit of the image information. Since it is set to, the accessibility can be improved.

Further, with respect to the image record carrier, image information is recorded / reproduced by changing the clock frequency in each region, or image information is recorded / reproduced by changing the rotation speed of the image record carrier. Therefore, it is possible to provide an image recording / reproducing apparatus which has excellent accessibility and can handle high-definition images.

Further, in the image recording apparatus for taking in image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image and recording it on the image record carrier, the first switch and the second switch, the primary image record carrier and the secondary image record carrier are provided. Provided, first above
Operation of the switch to start capturing the image information and continue recording on the primary image record carrier, and operation of the second switch confirms the image information,
Since the image information of a predetermined recording unit based on the time when the second switch is operated is recorded on the primary image record carrier, the image information is transferred and recorded on the secondary image record carrier. A desired image information can be surely recorded, and it is possible to provide an image recording device that does not miss a photo opportunity.

In addition to recording an image on the image record carrier, information of setting accumulation at the time of recording of the image recording / reproducing apparatus, information indicating a recording operation procedure, and information of setting accumulation at the time of reproduction, reproduction. By recording the information for processing, editing, outputting, etc. of the image and the information indicating the procedure of the reproducing operation, in the image recording / reproducing apparatus using this,
It is possible to provide an image recording / reproducing device capable of easily recording / reproducing an image desired in advance.

As a result, it is possible to provide a portable image record carrier having a large capacity and high accessibility, and by using the above image record carrier, it is possible to quickly capture a high-definition image in a computer. It is now possible to provide an image recording / reproducing apparatus capable of surely recording at a photo opportunity and reproducing the image.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a recording area explanatory diagram for explaining an image record carrier of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining an image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of recording and reproducing image information by the image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a procedure of recording and reproducing image information by the image recording / reproducing apparatus of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Rewritable optical disk memory 2, 3, 4 Multiple recording areas of image record carrier 5 Management zone 6 Main body of image recording / reproducing apparatus 7 Internal bus 8 CPU 9 Internal memory 10 Image input controller 11 Image input unit 12 Imaging system 13 High-speed electronic shutter function 14 Compression / expansion circuit 20 Input device 21 Output device 22 Wireless communication circuit 23 Semiconductor memory 24 Magneto-optical memory 25 Monitor output circuit 26 Video printer output 27 External image input device 28 External audio input device 29 External control device 30 External Memory 31 Remote Controller 32 External Peripheral Equipment

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Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. An image record carrier for recording image information composed of a moving image and / or a still image, wherein an area for recording the image information is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is a unit for recording the image information. An image record carrier characterized by the above. 2. An image recording / recording method using an image record carrier in which an area for recording image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is used as a unit for recording the image information. An image recording / reproducing apparatus characterized in that a clock frequency for recording / reproducing the image information is made different while performing reproduction. 3. An image recording / recording method using an image record carrier, wherein an area for recording image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area is used as a unit for recording the image information. An image recording / reproducing apparatus characterized in that the rotational speed of the image record carrier is made different when the image information is recorded / reproduced while reproducing. 4. An image recording apparatus for capturing image information consisting of a moving image and / or a still image and recording the image information on an image record carrier, comprising a first switch and a second switch, a primary image record carrier and a secondary image record carrier. The first switch is operated to start capturing the image information and continue recording on the primary image record carrier, and the second switch is operated to confirm the image information, and the second image is stored. Image recording, characterized in that after recording image information of a predetermined recording unit on the basis of the time when the switch is operated, the image information is recorded on the primary image record carrier and then transferred and recorded on the secondary image record carrier. apparatus. 5. The image recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the image information is a moving image, and the time, the number of pixels, and the compression ratio are variable within a predetermined recording unit. 6. The image according to claim 4, wherein the image information is a still image, and the number of continuous shots, the continuous shot interval, the number of pixels, and the compression ratio are variable within a predetermined recording unit. Recording device. 7. When the image information which is being continuously recorded on the primary image record carrier exceeds the recording unit, the older image information is erased and the newly fetched image information is recorded. Item 4. The image recording device according to item 4. 8. The image recording apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the primary image record carrier and the secondary image record carrier are the same record carrier. 9. An image record carrier for recording image information taken in by an image recording / reproducing apparatus or image information read out, wherein the image information is recorded and settings are made at the time of recording performed by the image recording / reproducing apparatus. An image record carrier, on which value information, information for processing, editing, and outputting a reproduced image, and information indicating a procedure of a reproducing device are recorded. 10. The image record carrier according to claim 9, wherein the area for recording the image information is divided into a plurality of areas, and one area serves as a recording unit of the image information. 11. Recording of image information, and information of setting values at the time of recording performed by the image recording / reproducing apparatus, information for processing, editing and outputting a reproduced image, and a procedure of the reproducing apparatus. An image recording / reproducing apparatus that captures image information by using an image record carrier on which information is recorded, and records and reproduces the image information. When the image information is recorded, the set value at the time of recording is automatically displayed. When reading from the record carrier, setting the recording condition according to the value, reading out the information indicating the procedure of the recording operation from the image record carrier as necessary, and indicating it to the user and performing the reproduction, automatically. The set value at the time of reproduction is read from the image record carrier, the reproduction condition is set according to the value, the information indicating the procedure of the reproduction operation is read out from the image record carrier as necessary, and it is shown to the user and reproduced. Special effects image, processing, editing, image recording / reproducing apparatus characterized by comprising means for enabling the output operation.