Image pickup apparatus, setting apparatus, wavelength acquiring apparatus, and storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11240420-B2
Application number	US-202016928979-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 14, 2020
Priority date	Jul 18, 2019
Publication date	Feb 1, 2022
Grant date	Feb 1, 2022

Abstract

An image pickup apparatus includes an image sensor that photoelectrically converts an object image formed by an image pickup optical system including a zoom lens and a focus lens, a data storage that stores focus data indicating an in-focus position of the focus lens according to an object distance and a position of the zoom lens, and a wavelength acquirer that acquires a wavelength of imaging light incident on the image sensor. The focus data includes data for visible light and data according to a wavelength of infrared light. The wavelength acquirer acquires includes the wavelength of the imaging light using the focus data, the object distance, the position of the zoom lens, and a position of the focus lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus in a state where the visible light and the infrared light can enter the image sensor.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image pickup apparatus comprising:
an image sensor configured to photoelectrically convert an object image formed by an image pickup optical system including a zoom lens and a focus lens;
a data storage configured to store focus data indicating an in-focus position of the focus lens according to an object distance and a position of the zoom lens; and
a wavelength acquirer configured to acquire a wavelength of imaging light incident on the image sensor,
wherein the focus data includes data for visible light and data according to a wavelength of infrared light,
wherein the wavelength acquirer acquires the wavelength of the imaging light using the focus data, the object distance, the position of the zoom lens, and a position of the focus lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus in a state where the visible light and the infrared light can enter the image sensor,
wherein where a data in-focus position represents the in-focus position of the focus lens in the focus data, and an actual in-focus position represents the position of the focus lens in the image pickup optical system that is in focus, the wavelength acquirer acquires, as the wavelength of the imaging light, a wavelength that corresponds to one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position for the object distance and the position of the zoom lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus coincides with the actual in-focus position, and
wherein there is no focus data in which the data in-focus position for the object distance and the position of the zoom lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus coincides with the actual in-focus position, the wavelength acquirer acquires, as the wavelength of the imaging light, a wavelength of one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position is the closest to the actual in-focus position or a wavelength obtained by an interpolation using at least one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position is close to the actual in-focus position.

2. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the wavelength acquirer does not acquire the wavelength of the imaging light, at least one of when an aperture stop in the image pickup optical system has a predetermined minimum aperture state, when a gain of the image sensor is higher than a predetermined gain, when a shutter speed is lower than a predetermined speed, and when a luminance of the object is located outside a predetermined luminance range.

3. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a controller configured to control moving the focus lens using one of the focus data corresponding to the wavelength of the imaging light acquired by the wavelength acquirer, which is stored in the data storage or generated by an interpolation using the focus data, according to a movement of the zoom lens.

4. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a filter configured to prevent infrared light from passing the filter or allow only partial wavelength light of the infrared light to pass the filter;
a filter driver configured to insert the filter in and remove the filter from an image pickup optical path toward the image sensor; and
a controller configured to control the filter driver according to the wavelength of the imaging light acquired by the wavelength acquirer.

5. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein when the filter inserted in the imaging optical path passes only the partial wavelength light, the wavelength acquirer acquires the wavelength of the imaging light using one of the focus data corresponding to a wavelength within a wavelength range of the partial wavelength light.

6. The image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the wavelength acquirer is configured to set through a user at least one of a wavelength range and a timing for acquiring the wavelength of the imaging light and the object distance of the focus data used to acquire the wavelength of the imaging light.

7. A setting apparatus used with the image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 , and configured to set through a user at least one of a wavelength range and a timing for acquiring the wavelength of the imaging light and the object distance of the focus data used to acquire the wavelength of the imaging light.

8. A wavelength acquiring method for an image pickup apparatus that includes an image sensor configured to photoelectrically convert an object image formed by an image pickup optical system including a zoom lens and a focus lens, the wavelength acquiring method comprising the steps of:
preparing focus data indicating an in-focus position of the focus lens according to an object distance and a position of the zoom lens; and
acquiring a wavelength of imaging light incident on the image sensor,
wherein the focus data includes data for visible light and data according to a wavelength of infrared light,
wherein the acquiring step acquires the wavelength of the imaging light using the focus data, the object distance, the position of the zoom lens, and a position of the focus lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus in a state where the visible light and the infrared light can enter the image sensor,
wherein where a data in-focus position represents the in-focus position of the focus lens in the focus data, and an actual in-focus position represents the position of the focus lens in the image pickup optical system that is in focus, the acquiring step acquires, as the wavelength of the imaging light, a wavelength that corresponds to one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position for the object distance and the position of the zoom lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus coincides with the actual in-focus position, and
wherein there is no focus data in which the data in-focus position for the object distance and the position of the zoom lens when the image pickup optical system is in focus coincides with the actual in-focus position, the acquiring step acquires, as the wavelength of the imaging light, a wavelength of one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position is the closest to the actual in-focus position or a wavelength obtained by an interpolation using at least one of the focus data in which the data in-focus position is close to the actual in-focus position.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program that causes a computer in an image pickup apparatus having an image sensor configured to photoelectrically convert an object image formed by an image pickup optical system including a zoom lens and a focus lens, to execute a wavelength acquiring method according to claim 8 .

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Kamba Masaki

Classifications

• H04N23/69

  Control of means for changing angle of the field of view, e.g. optical zoom objectives or electronic zooming · CPC title

• H04N23/67 Primary

  Focus control based on electronic image sensor signals · CPC title

• H04N23/55

  Optical parts specially adapted for electronic image sensors; Mounting thereof · CPC title

• H04N23/667

  Camera operation mode switching, e.g. between still and video, sport and normal or high- and low-resolution modes · CPC title

• H04N23/20

  for generating image signals from infrared radiation only · CPC title