JPH11146269A - Digital still camera with secret function - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] To provide a digital still camera in which there is no possibility that an image desired to be made secret can be seen by others, or in which the image is less likely. SOLUTION: In a digital still camera with a secret function capable of performing a secret processing for preventing a photographed image from being seen by others, when a secret mode is selected, an operation for the secret processing after photographing is required. The secretizing process is performed on the image taken without the secret.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a digital still camera having a so-called secret function for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by others.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There is known an information portable terminal having a camera function, which is provided with a function of making a photographed image secret so that the image cannot be viewed unless a password registered in advance is input. . In such an apparatus, an image desired to be made secret from a photographed image is displayed on a single display screen (a screen that displays only the image on the entire screen frame), and then a predetermined secret key is inserted into a dedicated pen or the like. A desired image is made secret by touching with. Such operations are repeated when a plurality of images are to be made secret.

When a card is used as a recording medium for a photographed image, the above-mentioned password registered for the image recorded on the card becomes valid, and the image recorded on the card is also converted into a secret. Have been able to.

[0004]

However, in the conventional method, it is necessary to recall the recorded image after photographing and then perform an operation for making each image secret for each image. There is a risk that others will be able to see the image before the conversion. Also,
In a conventional apparatus, an operation for making a secret is always required when making a secret, and when selecting an image to be made secret, it is necessary to display the image.
In particular, in the above-described apparatus, since the image to be made secret is displayed on a single display screen, there is a possibility that the displayed image may be seen by others during the operation.

An object of the present invention is to provide a digital still camera in which there is little or no fear that an image desired to be made secret can be seen by others.

[0006]

The present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1, 2 and 6, which show one embodiment of the present invention. It is applied to a digital still camera with secret function that can perform secret processing. A mode switching means 2 for switching between a secret mode and a non-secret mode is provided. When the secret mode is selected by the mode switching means 2, secretion of a captured image is performed in accordance with only an operation essential for photography. The above object is achieved by performing the processing. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera with the secret function according to the first aspect, the digital still camera further includes an image display unit for displaying a thumbnail of the photographed image. Of these, a predetermined color is superimposed and displayed on the image subjected to the secretization processing. According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera with the secret function according to the first aspect, the digital still camera further includes an image display unit for displaying a thumbnail of the photographed image. By masking and displaying the image on which the secret processing has been performed, the image on which the secret processing has been performed is made invisible. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera with a secret function according to the first aspect, the digital still camera further includes an image display unit 5 for displaying a thumbnail of a captured image, and the image display unit 5 performs a secret process when displaying the thumbnail. The image on which the secret processing has been performed is masked and displayed at the time of displaying one image in which only one captured image is displayed. The invention described in claim 5 is applied to a digital still camera with a secret function that can perform a secreting process so that a photographed image is not displayed to others. And an image selecting means for selecting an image to be subjected to a secreting process from among the captured images,
Image display means 5 for displaying a photographed image, and displaying one image selected by the image selection means on the image display means 5 when the image selection means 5 is used to select an image to be subjected to secretization processing. The above object is achieved by performing only the thumbnail display of the photographed image without performing the above operation. The invention according to claim 6 is applied to a digital still camera with a secret function that can perform a secreting process so that a photographed image is not displayed to others. And an image selecting means for selecting an image from which the secretization processing is to be canceled from the photographed images, and an image display means 5 for displaying the photographed images. When selecting an image to be canceled, one image of the image selected by the image selection unit is not displayed on the image display unit 5,
The above object is achieved by performing only the thumbnail display of the photographed image. According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera with the secret function according to the fifth or sixth aspect, a predetermined color is superimposed on the image 11 selected by the image selecting means among the images displayed by the thumbnail display. By displaying the selected image 11, the selected image 11 is difficult to see. According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the digital still camera with a secret function according to the fifth or sixth aspect, an image 10 selected by the image selecting means out of the images displayed by the thumbnail display is masked and displayed. Thus, the selected image 10 is made invisible.
According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, a secret image processing for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by others by preventing a photographed image from being viewed unless a password identical to a password registered in advance is input. The present invention is applied to a digital still camera with a secret function that includes an image writing unit 8 for writing a photographed image to a mounted recording medium 8A and that can use only one password for each recording medium 8A. When the recording medium 8A is not mounted on the writing means 8, the password cannot be registered. According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a secretizing process for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by another person by preventing a photographed image from being viewed unless a password identical to a previously registered password is input. The present invention is applied to a digital still camera with a secret function that includes an image writing unit 8 for writing a photographed image to a mounted recording medium 8A and that can use only one password for each recording medium 8A. When the recording medium 8A is not mounted on the writing means 8, a warning is issued when the password is registered.

In the section of the means for solving the above-mentioned problems, which explains the configuration of the present invention, the drawings of the embodiments of the present invention are used to make the present invention easy to understand. However, the present invention is not limited to this.

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of a digital still camera with a secret function according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes sequence control of a camera, and image processing is performed on a photographed image.
Further, a central control unit 2 for performing a secreting process (to be described later) on the photographed image is a mode selection switch for switching and selecting a secret mode or a non-secret mode. The secret mode will be described later. 3 is an operation unit operated when the operator instructs various operations of the camera;
Reference numeral 4 denotes a photographing control unit that controls each part of the camera during photographing, and 5 denotes a monitor that displays a photographed image. The monitor 5 displays an image of one piece on the entire display screen,
The photographed images are displayed by a thumbnail display for displaying a list of a plurality of photographed images. Reference numeral 6 denotes an image pickup unit that includes an image pickup device (not shown) such as a CCD and converts a photographed subject image into an electric signal. Reference numeral 8 denotes a recording medium 8A such as a recording card mounted thereon and records the photographed image on the recording medium 8A. Also, it is a recording medium mounting section for reading an image from the recording medium 8A.

As shown in FIG. 1, a mode selection switch 2, an operation unit 3, a photographing control unit 4, a monitor 5, an imaging unit 6, and a recording medium mounting unit 8 are connected to the central control unit 1, respectively.

The present embodiment is configured so that an arbitrary photographed image can be subjected to secretization processing. With respect to the captured image that has been subjected to the secretization processing, information indicating that the secretization processing has been performed is stored in a memory (not shown) of the central control unit 1 in association with the captured image. The information is also recorded on the recording medium 8A. Unless the operator inputs a password registered in advance, the image is not displayed and the image is not recorded on the recording medium 8A. In addition, by recording the password registered in the recording medium 8A, even after being recorded in the recording medium 8A, an image that has undergone the secreting process is not read out by a personal computer or the like unless the registered password is input. Is configured.

In this embodiment, the secretizing process can be canceled for each photographed image. In the release of the secretization process, the information indicating that the secretization process has been stored in the memory of the central control unit 1 is deleted.

FIG. 2 shows a thumbnail display image in which a plurality of photographed images are reduced and displayed as a list on the monitor 5.
Images that have not been secreted are displayed as thumbnails in the original display area in the list display, and the original display area 10 is masked with blue or the like to completely erase the image of the image that has been secreted. As described above, only the image not subjected to the secretization processing is not packed and displayed without any gap, and the display area 10 of the image subjected to the secretization processing is masked because the image subjected to the secretization processing is photographed at any time. By making it possible to visually recognize whether a piece is a frame or not, the photographer himself / herself can recall the contents of the image without having to recall the image that has been subjected to the secret processing. Such a thumbnail display image is created by image processing in the central control unit 1.

In the camera of the present embodiment, the secret mode is selected when the mode selection switch 2 is on, and the non-secret mode is selected when the mode selection switch 2 is off. If shooting is performed when the secret mode is selected and a password has already been registered, secretization processing is automatically performed on the shot image. In this case, there is no need for any operation for performing the secreting process after photographing. On the other hand, if the non-secret mode is selected, and if the password is not registered even if the secret mode is selected,
The secretizing process is not automatically performed on the shot image. However, it is possible to perform secretization processing on an image shot in the non-secret mode by an operation after shooting. Also, even if the password was not registered at the time of shooting,
A password can be registered after photographing, and a secret image can be processed for a required image after the password is registered.

Next, the operation of the camera according to this embodiment will be described. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of the camera according to the present embodiment at the time of photographing. The operation starts when a release button (not shown) of the operation unit 3 is turned on. In step S1 of FIG. 3, shooting is performed, and the process proceeds to step S2. In step S2, image processing such as image compression is performed by the central control unit 1, and the process proceeds to step S3A. Step S
At 3A, the state of the mode selection switch 2 is read. If it is determined that the mode selection switch 2 is on, the process proceeds to step S3B, and if it is determined that the mode selection switch 2 is off, the process proceeds to step S5. In step S3B, it is read whether or not a password has been registered. If it is determined that the password has already been registered, the process proceeds to step S4. If it is determined that the password has not been registered, the process proceeds to step S5. The registered password is recorded in the memory of the central control unit 1, and in the above-mentioned step S3B, the presence or absence of the registration of the password is determined by reading the information of this memory.

In step S4, a secreting process is performed, and the flow advances to step S5. In the secretizing process in step S4, information indicating that the secretizing process has been performed is stored in the memory of the central control unit 1 in association with the captured image, and the file format of the captured image is normally changed by the process in the central control unit 1. From a secret to a secret-only format. In step S5, the image file is recorded on the recording medium 8A in the normal format for the photographed image that has not been subjected to the secret processing and in the secret-only format for the photographed image that has been subjected to the secret processing.
Proceed to 6. In step S6, preparations for photographing the next frame are made.
End the sequence.

In the camera according to the present embodiment, an image file recorded in the secret-only format is not displayed on the monitor 5 in either the one-item display screen or the thumbnail display screen unless a registered password is input. Also,
Unless a registered password is input, an image recorded in the recording medium 8A in a secret-only format cannot be read by a personal computer or the like. For example, when a PC card is used as the recording medium 8A, even if the PC card is inserted into the card slot, the image recorded in the secret-only format cannot be read by a personal computer because it is not a general-purpose format. Therefore,
The secretization process is also effective for images recorded on the PC card.

FIG. 4 shows an operation for confirming a secret image and canceling the secret conversion process. In step S11 in FIG. 4, as shown in FIG. 2, a thumbnail display is performed by masking the image that has been subjected to the secretization processing. Next, in step S12, it is determined whether or not there is an image subjected to secret processing. If it is determined that there is an image subjected to secret processing, the process proceeds to step S13. If it is determined that there is no image subjected to secret processing, the process proceeds to step S15.

In step S13, a message for instructing the operator to enter a password is displayed on the monitor 5, and after the password is entered, the process proceeds to step S14.
Proceed to. In step S14, the password input in step S13 is compared with the already registered password, and if it is determined that they match, step S15
Proceeds to step S1 if it is determined that they do not match.
Return to 1.

In step S15, a message is displayed on the monitor 5 for instructing the operator to input a frame for which secretization processing is to be canceled, and the flow advances to step S16 after inputting a specific frame. In step S16, one image of the frame input in step S15 is displayed on the monitor 5. In step S17, a message is displayed on the monitor 5 asking the operator to confirm whether or not the secretization process can be canceled. If the cancellation is confirmed, the process proceeds to step S18, and if it is confirmed that the process is not canceled, the process returns to step S11. In step S18, the secret image is released from the image of the frame selected in step S15, and the sequence ends. In the secret release in step S18, the file format of the captured image is converted from a secret-only format to a normal format.

In this embodiment, after displaying a thumbnail (step S11), masking is continued for an image that has been subjected to secret processing even if a correct password is input. When it is determined, the thumbnail display may be performed on the image that has been subjected to the secretization processing in the same manner as other images.

FIG. 5 shows an operation in the case of performing a secretizing process on a specific image after photographing. In step S21 of FIG. 5, as shown in FIG. 2, a thumbnail display is performed by masking the image subjected to the secretization processing. In step S22, it is determined whether or not the password has already been registered. If it is determined that the password has been registered, the process proceeds to step S23. If it is determined that the password has not been registered, the process returns to step S21.

In step S23, a message for instructing the operator to input a password is displayed on the monitor 5, and after the password is input, step S24 is performed.
Proceed to. In step S24, the registered password is compared with the password input in step S23, and if it is determined that they match, the process proceeds to step S25. If it is determined that they do not match, step S21 is performed.
Return to In step S25, a display is displayed on the monitor 5 instructing the operator to input a frame to be subjected to secretization processing, and the process proceeds to step S26 after waiting for a specific frame to be input. In step S26, masking is performed on the image of the frame selected in step S25 among the images displayed as thumbnails. Step S27
Then, the secretization process is performed on the image of the frame selected in step S25, and the sequence ends.

In the camera of the present embodiment, when performing the secretizing process after shooting, one image is not displayed and only the thumbnail display is performed to select an image to be subjected to the secretizing process. For this reason, the image subjected to the secretizing process is displayed smaller than in the case of displaying one case, and it is difficult for another person to recognize the image when performing the secretizing process. In addition, when a frame to be subjected to the secretizing process is selected, the image of the frame is masked immediately after that, so that there is no risk that others will be able to view the image thereafter. Instead of masking the image of the selected piece, as shown in FIG. 6, the display area 11 corresponding to the selected image may be overlaid with a color such as blue to make it difficult to recognize the content of the image.
In displaying the thumbnail, the captured image may be displayed as it is, without performing masking or overlaying a predetermined color on the image that has been made secret. In this case, it is possible to recognize that the secretization processing has been performed by superimposing a mark indicating the secreted processing captured image on the captured image.

In step S16, one image of the frame instructed to be made secret is displayed on the monitor 5. However, when the secret processing is canceled, only one thumbnail is displayed without displaying one image. It may be. By not displaying one case, when the operator reconsiders that the secretization process is to be maintained as it is, there is less possibility that the image of the piece is seen by another person. For the thumbnail display in this case, the same display method as that at the time of the secretizing process can be adopted.

FIG. 7 shows an operation for registering a password. FIG. 7 illustrates a case where a recording card such as a PC card is used as the recording medium 8A. In step S31 of FIG. 7, the recording card is
It is determined whether or not a recording card is loaded. If it is determined that a recording card is loaded, the process proceeds to step S32, and if it is determined that a recording card is not loaded, the process proceeds to step S33. In step S32, it is determined whether or not the password has already been recorded on the recording card. If it is determined that the password has been recorded, the process proceeds to step S33. If it is determined that the password has not been recorded, step S34.
Proceed to. In step S33, a warning is issued and the sequence ends.

In step S34, a message instructing the operator to input a password to be registered is displayed on the monitor 5, and the process proceeds to step S35 after the password is input. In step S35, the entered password is registered, and the sequence ends. In the present embodiment, only one password can be used for one recording card, and the password is recorded on the camera body and each recording card in step S35.

As described above, in the camera of the present embodiment,
If a recording card is not loaded and a password is already recorded on the recording card, no password is registered. For this reason, it is possible to prevent an accident due to the password not being recorded on the recording card or the password recorded on the camera body not matching the password recorded on the recording card.

For example, if the registration of a password without a recording card loaded is permitted, the password is not recorded on the recording card at the time of registration. There is a possibility that an image to be converted is recorded and it is not possible to make the image after recording on the card a secret. Also, if you accept the registration of a password when a recording card with another password already recorded is loaded, for example, the password recorded on the camera body for the same image matches the password recorded on the recording card. Without this, there is a possibility that the image that has been converted into a secret and recorded on the recording card cannot be read out later by the camera. The camera according to the present embodiment can prevent such an accident.

In this embodiment, the mode selection switch 2
Is automatically performed only when the secret mode is selected for the captured image. However, if the mode selection switch 2 is omitted and a password is registered, The secretization process may be automatically performed on the captured image. In addition, for example, a release button to be operated when secreting processing is desired and a release button to be operated when secreting processing is not desired are provided, and when the former release button is operated, a password is registered. If so, the secretizing process may be automatically performed, and if the latter release button is operated, the secretizing process may not be performed.

In the present embodiment, the monitor 5 corresponds to the image display means, and the recording medium mounting section 8 corresponds to the image writing means. The term "password registration operation" in claim 10 is a concept including an operation for determining whether or not password registration is performed when a password is registered.

[0032]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, the secretizing process is performed on the photographed image in accordance with only the operation necessary for photographing, so that there is no possibility that the image can be seen by others, and the secret can be obtained. A complicated operation for the conversion is not required. According to the second aspect of the present invention, among the images displayed as thumbnails by the image display means, a predetermined color is superimposed on the image that has been subjected to the secretizing process, so that there is a possibility that another person can view the secretized image. Less. According to the third aspect of the present invention, the image subjected to the secret processing is masked and displayed among the images displayed as thumbnails by the image display means, so that the image subjected to the secret processing becomes invisible. The possibility of seeing the secreted image is eliminated. According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the image display means can display the image on which the secret processing has been performed when displaying the thumbnail, and can display the image on which the secret processing has been performed when displaying one image in which only one shot image is displayed. Since the masked image is displayed, the possibility that another person can see the secretized image is reduced. According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, when an image to be subjected to a secretizing process is selected by using the image selecting unit, the image display unit does not display one image of the image selected by the image selecting unit. Since only the thumbnail display of the image is performed, the possibility that another person can see the image to be subjected to the secretizing process during the secretizing process is reduced. According to the sixth aspect of the present invention, when an image to be released from the secretizing process is selected by using the image selecting unit, the image display unit does not display one image of the image selected by the image selecting unit, and the photographed image is displayed. Since only the thumbnail display of the image is performed, the possibility of seeing the image that should be subjected to the secretizing process when canceling the secretizing process is reduced. According to the seventh aspect of the present invention, among the images displayed by the thumbnail display, the image selected by the image selecting means is displayed with a predetermined color superimposed thereon, so that the selected image is more likely to be seen by others. Less.
According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, since the image selected by the image selecting means among the images displayed by the thumbnail display is masked and displayed, the possibility that the selected image can be seen by another person is further reduced. According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, the password cannot be registered when the recording medium is not mounted on the writing means. Therefore, the password is not recorded on the recording medium, or the password recorded on the camera body is different from the password. It is possible to prevent an accident caused by a mismatch between the password recorded on the recording medium and the password. According to the tenth aspect of the present invention, when a recording medium is not loaded in the writing means, a warning is issued when a password is registered. Therefore, the password is not recorded on the recording card or the password is recorded on the camera body. It is possible to prevent an accident caused by a mismatch between the password and the password recorded on the recording card.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a digital still camera according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a thumbnail display in which an image to be secretized is masked;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a shooting operation of the digital still camera according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of confirming secretization processing and releasing secretization of the digital still camera according to the embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an operation of a secretizing process after photographing by the digital still camera according to the embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a thumbnail display in which colors of an image to be secretized are displayed in a superimposed manner.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the digital still camera of the present embodiment when registering a password.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2 Mode selection switch 5 Monitor 8 Recording medium mounting section 8A Recording medium 10 Display area 11 Display area

Claims (10)

[Claims] 1. A digital still camera with a secret function capable of performing a secret processing for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by another person, wherein the secret processing is performed on the photographed image in accordance with only an operation necessary for photographing. A digital still camera with a secret function. 2. An image display means for displaying a thumbnail of a captured image, wherein a predetermined color is superimposed on an image which has been subjected to a secretizing process among images displayed as thumbnails by the image display means. The digital still camera with a secret function according to claim 1, wherein: 3. An image display means for displaying a thumbnail of a photographed image, wherein a secret-processed image is masked and displayed among images displayed as thumbnails by the image display means, thereby performing secret processing. 2. The digital still camera with a secret function according to claim 1, wherein the image subjected to the step (c) is made invisible. 4. An image display means for displaying a thumbnail of a photographed image, wherein the image display means can also display the image on which the secret processing has been performed when displaying a thumbnail, and displays only one photographed image. 2. The digital still camera with a secret function according to claim 1, wherein the image subjected to the secret processing is masked and displayed at the time of displaying one case. 5. A digital still camera with a secret function capable of performing a secret processing for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by others, an image selection for selecting an image to be subjected to a secret processing from photographed images. Means, and an image display means for displaying a captured image, when selecting an image to be subjected to a secreting process using the image selection means, the image display means of the image selected by the image selection means A digital still camera with a secret function, in which only a thumbnail of an image that has been shot is displayed without displaying one case. 6. A digital still camera with a secret function capable of performing a secret processing for preventing a photographed image from being viewed by others, and an image for selecting an image from which the secret processing is to be canceled from among the photographed images. Selecting means, and image display means for displaying a photographed image, wherein when selecting an image for which the secretization processing is to be canceled by using the image selecting means, the image is selected by the image selecting means. A digital still camera with a secret function, wherein only a thumbnail display of a photographed image is performed without displaying one image. 7. The image selected by the image selecting means among the images displayed by the thumbnail display is displayed with a predetermined color superimposed thereon, thereby making the selected image difficult to see. A digital still camera with a secret function according to claim 5. 8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the image selected by the image selection unit is masked and displayed from among the images displayed by the thumbnail display, thereby making the selected image invisible. 6. A digital still camera with a secret function according to 6. 9. A secret-making process that prevents a photographed image from being viewed by others by preventing a photographed image from being viewed unless a password identical to a password registered in advance is entered. A digital still camera with a secret function capable of using only one password for each recording medium, comprising: an image writing unit that writes a captured image on a mounted recording medium; A digital still camera with a secret function, in which a password cannot be registered if the camera is not attached. 10. By making it impossible to view a photographed image unless a password same as a password registered in advance is entered, it is possible to perform a secretization process so that another person cannot see the photographed image. A digital still camera with a secret function capable of using only one password for each recording medium, comprising: an image writing unit that writes a captured image on a mounted recording medium; A digital still camera with a secret function, wherein a warning is issued when a password is not attached when registering a password.