US5204749A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Automatic follow-up focus detecting device and automatic follow-up device
Assignee: Canon Inc
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Filing: 1992-03-20
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Granted: 1993-04-20
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Expires: 2012-03-20
Abstract
Abstract An automatic follow-up focus detecting device comprises means for shiftably setting a follow-up field; extracting means for extracting a feature of an object in relation to the follow-up field; storing means for storing the extracted feature; detecting means for detecting a relative shift between the object and the device on the basis of the feature of the object extracted by the extracting means and the feature stored by the storing means; and shifting means for shifting a distance measuring field following the object according to the relative shift.
Inventors
- 👤 Masamichi Toyama
- 👤 Youichi Iwasaki
- 👤 Akihiro Fujiwara
- 👤 Takashi Amikura
- 👤 Naoya Kaneda
- 👤 Masahiro Takei
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-06 11:51
CPC Classifications
G; G01; G01S; G01S3/00; G01S3/78; G01S3/782; G01S3/785; G01S3/786; G01S3/7864; G01S3/7865; H; H04; H04N; H04N23/00; H04N23/60; H04N23/63; H04N23/633; H04N23/635; H04N23/67; H04N23/673; H04N23/675
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 21
Claim 1
Independent Claim
95 words
An automatic follow-up focus detecting device comprising: means for shiftably setting a follow-up field; extracting means for extracting a feature of an object in relation to the follow-up field; storing means for storing said extracted feature; detecting means for detecting a relative shift between said object and the device on the basis of the feature of said object newly extracted by said extracting means and the feature stored by said storing means; and shifting means for shifting a distance measuring field following said object according to said relative shift between said object and the device.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
95 words
An automatic follow-up focus detecting device comprising: means for shiftably setting a follow-up field; extracting means for extracting a feature of an object in relation to the follow-up field; storing means for storing said extracted feature; detecting means for detecting a relative shift between said object and the device on the basis of the feature of said object newly extracted by said extracting means and the feature stored by said storing means; and shifting means for shifting a distance measuring field following said object according to said relative shift between said object and the device.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
166 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) a photographing optical system for photographing an object and for focusing an image of the object on an image sensing plane; (B) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (C) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (D) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for putting out corresponding signals; (E) first control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (F) second control means for varying a size of said detecting area in response to a focal length of said photographing optical system.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
166 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) a photographing optical system for photographing an object and for focusing an image of the object on an image sensing plane; (B) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (C) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (D) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for putting out corresponding signals; (E) first control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (F) second control means for varying a size of said detecting area in response to a focal length of said photographing optical system.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
21 words
A video camera according to claim 2, wherein said detecting means detects a color signal component in said image sensing signal.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
50 words
A video camera according to claim 2, wherein said detecting means includes normalizing means for effecting normalization on the basis of a luminance, in order to prevent the signal representing the feature of the image extracted from said image sensing signal from being subjected to an influence of a brightness.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
32 words
A video camera according to claim 1, wherein said first control means is arranged to detect a shift of said image by comparing the output of said detecting means at different timings.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
43 words
A video camera according to claim 5, and further comprising integrating means for integrating the outputs of said detecting means, wherein said first control means is arranged to detect the shift of the image by comparing the signals smoothed by said integrating means.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
16 words
A video camera according to claim 2, wherein said detecting area is a focus detecting area.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
166 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) a photographing optical system for photographing an object and for focusing an image of the object on an image sensing plane; (B) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (C) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (D) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for producing outputs; (E) first control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (F) second control means for varying a size of said detecting area in response to a distance between said object and the video camera body.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
166 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) a photographing optical system for photographing an object and for focusing an image of the object on an image sensing plane; (B) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (C) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (D) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for producing outputs; (E) first control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (F) second control means for varying a size of said detecting area in response to a distance between said object and the video camera body.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
50 words
A video camera according to claim 8, wherein said detecting means includes normalizing means for effecting normalizing on the basis of a luminance, in order to prevent the signal representing the feature of the image extracted from said image sensing signal from being subjected to an influence of a brightness.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
32 words
A video camera according to claim 8, wherein said first control means is arranged to detect a shift of said image by comparing the outputs of said detecting means at different timings.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
131 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (B) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (C) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for producing an output; (D) control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (E) adjusting means for manually varying a size of said detecting area.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
131 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) image sensing means for converting the image of the object on said image sensing plane into an image sensing signal; (B) area setting means for setting a detecting area for extracting a feature of said image of the object on said image sensing plane; (C) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image from said image sensing signal corresponding to said detecting area, and for producing an output; (D) control means for detecting a variation of said image of the object on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image of the object; and (E) adjusting means for manually varying a size of said detecting area.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
44 words
A video camera according to claim 11, wherein said control means includes a memory for storing the output of said detecting means and it is arranged to detect a shift of said image by comparing the output of said detecting means at different timings.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
50 words
A video camera according to claim 11, wherein said detecting means includes normalizing means for effecting normalization on the basis of a luminance in order to prevent the signal representing the feature of the image extracted from said image sensing signal from being subjected to an influence of a brightness.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
100 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) area setting means for setting a detecting area for detecting a feature of an image in a picture plane; (B) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image in said detecting area from the image signal; (C) control means for detecting a variation of said image on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image when the variation of said image comes beyond a predetermined threshold value; and (D) means for varying said threshold value.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
100 words
A video camera, comprising: (A) area setting means for setting a detecting area for detecting a feature of an image in a picture plane; (B) detecting means for detecting the feature of said image in said detecting area from the image signal; (C) control means for detecting a variation of said image on the basis of an output of said detecting means and for controlling said area setting means so that said detecting area follows the variation of said image when the variation of said image comes beyond a predetermined threshold value; and (D) means for varying said threshold value.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
22 words
A video camera according to claim 14, wherein said threshold value determines a non-sensitive band for the shift of said detecting area.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
16 words
A video camera according to claim 14, wherein said detecting area is a focus detecting area.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1996-04-19 | 1996-10-19 | 1997-04-20 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2000-04-19 | 2000-10-19 | 2001-04-20 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2004-04-19 | 2004-10-19 | 2005-04-20 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |