Dual mode digital camera for video and still operation
US6151069A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 3, 1997 |
| Grant date | Nov 21, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 3, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC H)Electricity
- CPC primaryH04N2201/0049
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A cost effective digital image capture apparatus such as a digital camera that operates in both still mode and video mode, using a common programmable image processing chain and fixed optics. The full resolution of the image sensor (yielding raw image data) may be used in still mode, with adequate signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) achieved either from the scene ambient lighting or from supplemental light supplied by a strobe. In video mode, the apparatus may be configured to capture video image data by programming the parameters for image processing methodologies such as scaling, decorrelation, and encoding into a look-up table (LUT) which in turn configures logic circuitry to spatially scale and compress if necessary the raw image data in order to meet storage and transmission bandwidth constraints for video images. In video mode, adequate SNR may be achieved despite the lower light conditions, encountered, for example, during videoconferencing, by averaging pixels together during scaling.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.