JP2003134699A - Electronic camera and battery charger - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve convenience when a non-contact charging system is used in an electronic camera. SOLUTION: An LCD display 14 or 35 displays a screen to tell which charging method is used, a contact method or a non-contact method, to charge a battery 19 which is the power source of an electronic camera 100. A contact method uses power supplied by a cradle 200 via connectors 21 and 31, and a non-contact method uses electromotive force generated in a power reception coil 22 due to electromagnetic induction by a magnetic field generated in a transmission coil 30. Or, when a battery is being charged by the non-contact method and anther action is simultaneously being done in the electronic camera 100, if the amount of electromotive force generated in the coil 22 is lower than a fixed value, it is shown on the display. Or, when the battery is being charged by the non-contact method, information on a memory card 8 is displayed.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a technique used in an electronic camera, and more particularly to a technique for charging a secondary battery included in an electronic camera that uses a secondary battery as a power source.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An invention relating to a technique of charging a secondary battery, which is a rechargeable battery as a power source, for charging this battery is disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-69388. In this publication, a so-called non-contact type charging system is adopted in which electric power is supplied from an electric charger to an electronic camera by using an electromagnetic induction effect, and a battery provided in the electronic camera is charged by the supplied electric power. Electronic cameras are disclosed.

In such a non-contact type charging system, the battery can be charged without providing a metal terminal for power feeding on the surface of the housing of the electronic camera, so that the metal terminal exposed on the surface of the housing can be charged. It has the advantage that it is not necessary to take measures to maintain its conductivity while protecting it from the external environment, and during charging, removes the secondary battery from the electronic camera and installs it in the charging device. Alternatively, there is an advantage that a troublesome work such as connecting a cord for supplying power is unnecessary.

[0004]

However, this non-contact type charging system has higher power supply efficiency than a so-called contact type charging system in which a current path is electrically connected to supply power for charging. Since it is low, it takes a long time to fully charge the secondary battery.

In view of such advantages and disadvantages of the contact type and the non-contact type, it is an object to be solved by the present invention to improve convenience at least when a non-contact type charging system is adopted in an electronic camera. is there.

[0006]

When the electronic camera according to the first aspect of the present invention is mounted on a charging device, the secondary battery, which is a power source, is charged by the electric power supplied from the charging device. Assuming things.

An electronic camera according to one of the first aspects of the present invention has a structure which is provided in the charging device and is connectable to a power transmission connector which outputs electric power for performing the charging by a contact method. , A power receiving connector to which electric power output from the power transmitting connector is input, and a power transmitting coil that is provided in the charging device and generates a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method utilizing electromagnetic induction Generated by the magnetic field, the contact type charging performed on the secondary battery by using the electric power input to the power receiving connector, and the electromotive force generated by the power receiving coil And a notification unit for notifying which of the non-contact type charging to be performed on the secondary battery is being performed. To resolve.

According to this structure, the user of the electronic camera having both the contact type and the non-contact type can easily recognize which of the two types is currently being used for charging. Therefore, the user can make a determination such as to use the contact charging method when it is necessary to complete charging in a short time.

An electronic camera, which is another aspect of the first aspect of the present invention, is provided in the charging device and generates a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method utilizing an electromagnetic induction effect. A power receiving coil in which electromotive force is generated by a magnetic field generated by the power transmitting coil, a non-contact charging operation performed on the secondary battery using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil, and another operation of the electronic camera If the power amount of the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is lower than a predetermined value when and are simultaneously performed, the above-mentioned configuration is provided by providing a notification means for notifying that effect. Solve the problem.

When the electronic camera is simultaneously performing a charging operation and another operation, the secondary battery cannot be charged or a very long charging time is required due to the power consumption of the other operation. The situation occurs. With this configuration, the user can be made aware of the occurrence of such a situation.

In the electronic camera according to the present invention described above, the notifying means gives the notification if the amount of electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is less than the amount of power consumed by the operation of the electronic camera. It can also be configured to do so. According to this configuration, the electronic camera performs the charging operation and the other operation at the same time, so that the user can recognize the occurrence of the situation in which the secondary battery cannot be charged due to the power consumption of the other operation. become.

Further, in the above-mentioned electronic camera according to the present invention, the notification means gives the notification when the electronic camera is operating in a recording mode which is an operation mode for performing an image capturing operation. Further, the notifying means may be configured to transfer the image data representing the image recorded by the electronic camera to another device under a transfer mode, which is an operation mode. It is also possible to make the notification when the electronic camera is in operation.

According to this structure, the operation in the recording mode or the transfer mode, which generally consumes a large amount of electric power, is performed at the same time as the charging operation in the electronic camera. The user can be made aware of the occurrence of a situation in which the battery cannot be charged.

Further, in the electronic camera according to the present invention described above, it has a structure connectable to a power transmission connector which is provided in the charging device and outputs electric power for performing the charging by a contact method. A contact method further comprising a power receiving connector to which electric power output from the connector is input, and the notification by the notifying means is a method of charging the secondary battery using the electric power input to the power receiving connector. It can also be configured to encourage charging of the battery.

According to this structure, when the electronic camera performs the charging operation and the other operation at the same time, and the secondary battery cannot be properly charged due to the power consumption of the other operation. In addition, it is convenient because the user can be informed of an improvement measure for charging the secondary battery by the contact charging method, which has better power transmission efficiency than the non-contact charging method.

An electronic camera according to yet another aspect of the first aspect of the present invention is provided in the charging device, and utilizes an electromagnetic induction action when the electronic camera is mounted on the charging device. Whether the electronic camera is mounted on the charging device and a power receiving coil that generates electromotive force by the magnetic field generated by the power transmitting coil that generates the magnetic field for performing the charging by the non-contact method When the placement state of the electronic camera on the charging device is detected by the placement detection unit that detects the state, image data representing an image captured by the electronic camera is recorded. The above-mentioned problems can be solved by configuring the notification means for notifying the information about the recording medium.

According to this structure, the user can put information on the recording medium for recording the image data, for example, the total recording capacity of the recording medium, and the recording can be performed only by placing the electronic camera on the charging device for the non-contact charging. The total number of recorded images, the number of recorded images, the capacity of the recorded area, the recording capacity of the unrecorded area, the number of images that can be recorded in the unrecorded area, or if the recording medium is removable from the electronic camera. It is possible to know information such as whether or not the device is attached.

In the electronic camera according to the present invention described above, the notifying means may be arranged such that when the capacity of the unrecorded recording area of the recording medium is smaller than a predetermined amount,
It may be configured to prompt transfer of data already recorded on the recording medium to another device.

With this configuration, it is possible to provide the user with an improvement measure when the unrecorded capacity of the recording medium is reduced only by mounting the electronic camera on the charging device for non-contact charging. It is convenient and convenient. Further, in the above-described electronic camera according to the present invention, the notification by the notification means may be performed only for a predetermined time.

According to this configuration, since the notification by the notification means is stopped after the elapse of a predetermined time, the amount of electric power consumed by the notification means is suppressed, and the time required for charging is shortened. The electronic camera according to the present invention described above may further include display means for displaying an image, and the notification means may be configured to display the content of the notification on the display means.

With this configuration, the user can be notified visually by the notification means. The charging device according to the second aspect of the present invention has a structure in which an electronic camera can be mounted and charges a secondary battery that is a power source of the electronic camera.

A charging device, which is one of the second aspects of the present invention, performs the charging by a power transmission connector that outputs electric power for performing the charging by a contact method and a non-contact method using an electromagnetic induction effect. A power transmission coil for generating a magnetic field, contact-type charging performed on the secondary battery using electric power output from the power transmission connector, and a magnetic field generated by the power transmission coil, which is provided in the electronic camera. And a notification unit for notifying which of the non-contact type charging is performed on the secondary battery by using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil. Solve the problem.

With this configuration, the user of the electronic camera having both the contact type and the non-contact type can easily recognize which of the two types is currently being used for charging. In addition, a charging device which is another one of the second aspect of the present invention includes a power transmitting coil that generates a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method using an electromagnetic induction action, and a power transmitting coil that generates the magnetic field. When a non-contact charging operation performed on the secondary battery by using an electromotive force generated in a power receiving coil provided in the electronic camera by a magnetic field and another operation of the electronic camera are performed simultaneously. The above-mentioned problem can be solved by further comprising: a notification means for notifying that the amount of electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is below a predetermined value.

According to this structure, when the electronic camera is performing the charging operation and the other operation at the same time, the secondary battery cannot be charged due to the power consumption of the other operation or the charging for a very long time. The user can be made aware of the occurrence of a situation that takes time.

Further, a charging device which is still another one of the second aspect of the present invention has a power transmission coil for generating a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method utilizing an electromagnetic induction action, The charging is performed by using an electromotive force generated in a power receiving coil provided in the electronic camera by a magnetic field generated in the power transmitting coil in a state where the electronic camera is mounted, and the electronic camera is mounted. The above-mentioned problem can be solved by further comprising a notifying means for notifying information about a recording medium on which image data representing an image captured by the electronic camera is recorded when the apparatus is placed.

According to this structure, the user can know the information regarding the recording medium for recording the image data only by placing the electronic camera on the charging device for the non-contact charging. As described above, according to any of the aspects of the present invention, it is possible to improve the convenience at least when the non-contact charging method is adopted in the electronic camera.

[0027]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an electrical configuration of an electronic camera system embodying the present invention. The camera system shown in the figure is configured to include an electronic camera 100 and a cradle (Cradle) 200 that also functions as a charging device and on which the electronic camera 100 can be mounted.

First, the electrical configuration of the electronic camera 100 shown in FIG. 1 will be described. Inside the electronic camera 100, the CPU 1, the imaging processing unit 4, the DRAM 5, the image processing unit 6, the flash memory 7, the memory card 8, and the USB I.
/ F9a, video driver 11, LCD driver 13 are all connected to the bus 24, and C is connected between them.
Data can be exchanged under the control of the bus 24 by the PU1.

A CPU (Central Processing Unit) 1 is a central processing unit that controls the operation of the entire electronic camera 100. The taking lens 2 forms a subject image on the light receiving surface of the image sensor 3. The image pickup element 3 photoelectrically converts the subject image formed on the light receiving surface and outputs an analog signal indicating an image representing the subject image.

The image pickup processing section 4 uses a CDS (Correlated Dou
ble Sampling: Correlated double sampling circuit), AGC
(Automatic Gain Control: automatic gain control circuit), an analog / digital conversion circuit, etc.
Under the control of PU1, the reset noise included in the analog signal output from the image sensor 3 is removed, the signal level is adjusted, and the like, and the analog signal after these processes is performed is converted into digital data.

The digital data that is output from the image pickup processing section 4 and represents the image in which the subject image is represented will be referred to as "captured image" hereinafter. DRAM
The (Dynamic Random Access Memory) 5 is an image pickup processing unit 4.
It is used as a buffer memory for temporarily storing the photographed image output from the camera, the photographed image subjected to the image processing by the image processing unit 6, and the like, and is also used as a work storage area for various processes by the CPU 1. Memory.

The image processing unit 6 is based on an instruction from the CPU 1 and performs image correction processing such as γ correction and white balance performed on the captured image output from the image pickup processing unit 4, and image data representing the image. Performs various processes such as image compression / decompression for recording / playback. In addition, in the compression / decompression processing of image data, for example, JPEG (Joint Photograp
decompression processing and compression processing according to the hic Experts Group) method are performed.

A control program for causing the CPU 1 to control the operation of the electronic camera 100 as a whole is stored in the flash memory 7 in advance. The CPU 1 controls the operation of the entire electronic camera 100 by reading and executing the control program stored in the flash memory 7.

The memory card 8 is a memory for storing image data and can be attached to and detached from the electronic camera 100. USB (Universal Serial Bus) I / F 9a
It provides an interface function for exchanging various data between the CPU 1 and an external device such as a personal computer connected to the USB terminal 10a.

The video driver 11 is the electronic camera 1
00 to the cradle 200 to provide an interface function for transmitting image data.
The image data, which is parallel data sent via, is converted into serial data.

The light emitting / receiving section 12a is an LED (Light Emitting).
Diode) and a phototransistor, and exchanges various data with the cradle 200 using light as a transmission medium when the electronic camera 100 is placed on the cradle 200. CPU1, USB
The I / F 9a and the video driver 11 are the light emitting / receiving unit 12
Serial data can be transmitted to the cradle 200 via a, and the USB I / F 9a can also receive serial data sent from the cradle 200.

An LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) driver 13 drives the LCD display 14 to display on the LCD display 14 the image represented by the image data sent via the bus 24. The LCD display 14 is a liquid crystal monitor that displays an image.

The speaker 15 emits sound according to an instruction from the CPU 1 to notify the user of various information by sound. When the so-called self-timer photographing is performed by the electronic camera 100, the various LEDs 16 are turned on / off at various intervals to display the timing of photographing to a person as a subject and visually notify the person. A self-LED provided on the front side of the camera 100, or a flash for night-time shooting, which is provided near the viewfinder on the back side of the electronic camera 100, for example, to notify the focus lock state during so-called AF (Auto Focus) operation. LE for the notification of the charging status for
It is a generic term such as D.

The operation instructing section 17 comprises various keys, switches, buttons and the like operated by the user.
The CPU 1 acquires the content of the operation performed on the operation instruction unit 17, and receives the instruction from the user corresponding to the content. The power supply unit 18 supplies electric power stabilized to a predetermined voltage to each unit of the electronic camera 100.

The rechargeable battery 19 is a battery serving as a power source of the electronic camera 100, and a rechargeable secondary battery such as a nickel cadmium battery, a nickel hydride battery or a lithium ion battery is used. The charging unit 20 controls the charging of the rechargeable battery 19, and at the same time, the current charging is performed by the contact type, that is, whether the cradle 200 is receiving the electric power for charging through the connector 21. Alternatively, the CP indicates information indicating whether the current charging is performed by the non-contact type, that is, whether the power for charging is obtained from the cradle 200 via the power receiving coil 22.
Notify U1. Further, when the electronic camera 100 is powered on while being supplied with power from the cradle 200, this power is sent to the power source unit 18 to be used as the power source for the electronic camera 100.

The connector 21 is joined to the connector 31 on the cradle 200 side and receives the electric power supplied from the cradle 200 and transfers it to the charging section 20. Power receiving coil 22
Is a coil in which electromotive force is generated by a magnetic field generated by the cradle 200 when the electronic camera 100 is placed on the cradle 200, and functions as a power receiving coil in a non-contact charging system.

The magnet 23 is for turning on a magnetic switch provided in the cradle 200 when the electronic camera 100 is placed on the cradle 200.
The electronic camera 100 is configured as described above. Next, the electrical configuration of the cradle 200 in FIG. 1 will be described.

The light emitting / receiving unit 12b is similar to the light emitting / receiving unit 12a of the electronic camera 100, and exchanges various data with the electronic camera 100 using light as a transmission medium. The USB I / F 9b can transmit serial data to the electronic camera 100 via the light emitting / receiving unit 12b, and the USB I / F 9b and the video I / F 9b.
The / F25 can receive serial data sent from the electronic camera 100.

The USB I / F 9b is the electronic camera 1
No. 00 USB I / F 9a, and when the electronic camera 100 is placed on this cradle 200, instead of the USB terminal 10a, the USB terminal 10b is used.
Even if an external device such as a personal computer is connected to this, various data can be exchanged between this external device and the CPU 1 of the electronic camera 100.

The video I / F 25 is used by the electronic camera 1
When 00 is placed on the cradle 200, the image data sent from the electronic camera 100 via the light emitting / receiving unit 12b is converted into a video signal. The video signal output from the video I / F 25 is led to the video output terminal 26. When a home television device is connected to the video output terminal 26, the image represented by the image data is displayed on the television. Displayed on the device.

The AC / DC converter 27 is connected to the A
The AC voltage supplied via the C power cord 28 is stepped down to a predetermined voltage and rectified to a DC voltage, stabilized to a predetermined voltage, and electric power is supplied to each part of the cradle 200.
The oscillator 29 generates a high frequency wave having a predetermined frequency.

The power transmission coil 30 is a coil that produces a magnetic field in which the number of magnetic fluxes changes with time when the high frequency wave generated by the oscillating unit 29 is input, and is a non-contact type that utilizes electromagnetic induction. Functions as a power transmission coil in the charging system. Power receiving coil 22 of electronic camera 100
Then, an electromotive force is generated by being placed in the magnetic field generated by the power transmission coil 30.

The connector 31 supplies electric power from the cradle 200 to the electronic camera 100 when it is joined to the connector 21 on the electronic camera 100 side, and information indicating whether or not the connector 31 is joined to the connector 21. Is configured to be able to be acquired by the CPU 33.

The magnetic switch 32 is a switch that is turned on by the magnetism generated by the magnet 23 provided in the electronic camera 100, and indicates whether or not the electronic camera 100 is properly mounted on the cradle 200. Information is given to the CPU 33. The CPU 33 is a central processing unit that controls the operation of the AC / DC converter 27 and the display on the LCD display 35. CPU3
A control program for causing the CPU 33 itself to perform these operation controls is stored in advance in 3.

The LCD driver 34 drives the LCD display 35 to display the image represented by the image data sent from the CPU 33 on the LCD display 35. The LCD display 35 is a liquid crystal monitor that displays an image.

The cradle 200 is constructed as described above. Next, FIG. 2 will be described. The figure shows two examples of the external appearance of the electronic camera 100 and the cradle 200 shown in FIG. It should be noted that although the structure of the electronic camera 100 is the same between FIGS.
The structure of 0 is different.

The first example shown in FIG. 2A is the LCD display 35 provided on the front side of the electronic camera 100 provided with the taking lens 2 and the cradle 200.
In this example, and are placed on the same side. As shown in this example, the front side of the electronic camera 100 is shown in FIG.
Self timer LE belonging to various LEDs 16 in
D16a, finder window 36a, and flash 37
Is provided.

The second example shown in FIG. 2B is L
Electronic camera 10 provided with a CD display 14
LCD provided on the back side of 0 and the cradle 200
In this example, the display 35 is placed on the same side. As shown in this example, on the back side of the electronic camera 100, a finder LED 16b belonging to the various LEDs 16 in FIG. 1 and a finder 36b are provided. Further, the connector withdrawal switch 38 provided on the cradle 200 is operated to disconnect the fitted connector 21 and connector 31 when the electronic camera 100 is separated from the cradle 200.

Note that, also in the first example shown in FIG. 2A, the connector extraction switch 38 is provided on the back side of the cradle 200. Next, FIG. 3 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the first example of the notification processing. This process is performed as part of the operation control of the entire electronic camera 100 performed by the CPU 1 by reading and executing the control program stored in the flash memory 7.

In FIG. 3, first, in S101, the charging unit 2
It is determined whether 0 has started the operation, and the process of S101 is repeated until the determination result is Yes.
The charging unit 20 starts its operation when the electric power necessary for charging the rechargeable battery 19 is supplied from the connector 21 or the power receiving coil 22, and when the operation is started, the CPU 21
Notify 1.

In S102, it is determined whether or not the connector 22 of the cradle 200 is connected to the connector 21. If the determination result is Yes, the user is notified that the contact type charging is being performed in S103. Processing is performed. On the other hand, if the determination result of S102 is No, a process of notifying the user that the non-contact type charging is being performed is performed in S104. Then, after the processing of S103 or S104 is completed, this notification processing is completed.

The determination in S102 is made by the CPU 1 obtaining from the charging unit 20 information indicating whether or not the charging unit 20 is operated by the electric power sent from the connector 21. In addition, S103 and S1 described above
The notification of the charging method performed in the process of 04 causes the LCD display 14 provided in the electronic camera 100 to perform the display as shown in FIG. 4, for example.

FIG. 4 shows a state in which a display showing the charging method is superimposed on the lower right portion of the image being displayed on the LCD display 14, and (a) shows that the contact type charging is performed. Is displayed, and (b) is a display showing that non-contact charging is being performed.

Further, as shown in FIG. 4, the notification of the charging system is L
Instead of using the CD display 14, various types of L
Using the ED16, for example, the self-timer L shown in FIG.
The ED 16a and the finder LED 16b are made to blink according to predetermined timing, or two-color LEDs are used for them to emit light of a color different from the one originally used.
It is also possible to make it blink and so on. Of course, an LED dedicated to the notification of the charging system may be newly provided to perform the notification. In addition, the speaker 15
It is also possible to drive and to notify by sound.

By the CPU 1 performing the above notification process, it is possible to notify the user of the charging method. Less than,
Another embodiment of the present invention will be described. First, FIG. 5 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the second example of the notification processing. This process is performed as a part of operation control of cradle 200 performed by CPU 33 by reading and executing a control program stored in advance.

In FIG. 5, first, in S201, it is determined whether or not the magnetic switch 32 is turned on, and the process of S201 is repeated until the determination result is Yes. As described above, the magnetic switch 32 is turned on by the action of the magnet 23 provided in the electronic camera 100 when the electronic camera 100 is properly mounted on the cradle 200. That is, the process of S201 is a process of determining whether the electronic camera 100 is properly placed on the cradle 200.

In S202, it is determined whether or not the connector 21 of the electronic camera 100 is connected to the connector 31, and if the determination result is Yes, the user is notified that the contact type charging is performed in S203. Processing is performed. On the other hand, if the determination result in S202 is No, a process of notifying the user that the non-contact type charging is being performed is performed in S204. Then, after the processing of S203 or S204 is completed, this notification processing is completed.

It should be noted that the notification of the charging method performed in the above-described steps S203 and S204 is performed on the LCD display 14 of the electronic camera 100 in the above-described first example as shown in FIG. 4, for example. The display may be displayed on the LCD display 35 provided in the cradle 200. Of course, similarly to the first example described above, the cradle 200 may be provided with an LED or a speaker to notify.

The user can be informed of the charging method also by the CPU 33 performing the above notification processing.
Next, FIG. 6 will be described. The figure shows the processing contents of the third example of the notification processing.

The electronic camera 100 records images, takes pictures at night,
It has various operation modes such as image reproduction, and the power consumed when operating the electronic camera 100 varies depending on the operation mode. When the electronic camera 100 is operated while being mounted on the cradle 200, that is, when the electronic camera 100 is operated while charging the rechargeable battery 19 with the electric power received from the cradle 200, when the power transmission is performed by the non-contact method, the contact method is used. Since the efficiency of power transmission is lower than that of, the electronic camera 100 may not receive sufficient power for its operation depending on the operation mode.

Therefore, in the third example, when the electronic camera 100 is operated while charging by the non-contact method, the power consumption estimated from the operation mode at that time is calculated, When this value is equal to or more than the amount of electric power that the electronic camera 100 receives from the cradle 200 by the non-contact method, the fact is notified to the user to inform that the rechargeable battery 19 cannot be charged.

In FIG. 6, (a) is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the third example of the notification processing. This process is performed as part of the operation control of the entire electronic camera 100 performed by the CPU 1 by reading and executing the control program stored in the flash memory 7.

First, in S301, it is determined whether or not the non-contact charging is started, and the process of S301 is repeated until the determination result becomes Yes. The determination process of S301 is, for example, S in the first example (FIG. 3) described above.
It is realized by performing the processing of 101 and S102.

In S302, the power consumption amount estimated when the electronic camera 100 operates in the currently set operation mode is calculated. FIG. 6B shows an example of a table showing the amount of power consumption for each operation mode, which is used to calculate the amount of power consumption. The numerical values of this power consumption table may be obtained in advance by actual measurement, for example, and this table is stored in the flash memory 7. The CPU 1 obtains the power consumption amount corresponding to the currently set operation mode by referring to this power consumption table, and obtains the total power consumption amount of the electronic camera 100 by calculating the sum thereof.

In S303, it is determined whether or not the power consumption amount of the electronic camera 100 obtained in the previous step is equal to or more than the power amount (charge supply power amount) received from the cradle 200 by the non-contact method. If Yes, the process proceeds to S303, and if No, the process returns to S301 and the above-described process is repeated. The amount of power supplied for charging may be measured, for example, in advance and stored in the flash memory 7.

In step S304, a process for notifying the user that the rechargeable battery 19 cannot be charged in the current operating state of the electronic camera 100, or a control for causing the cradle 200 to notify the user of that effect The process of transmitting the data and the display data from the light emitting / receiving unit 12a is performed, and thereafter, the notification process ends.

The notification of the charging method performed in the process of S304 is performed by causing the LCD display 14 provided in the electronic camera 100 to perform the display as shown in FIG. 7, for example. FIG. 7 shows the LCD display 14
The state in which the display showing the charging state is overlaid on the image being displayed is shown in FIG. In (a), the fact that you are about to perform contactless charging is displayed at the bottom right of the screen, and
The display of the battery mark on the upper right of the screen blinks, indicating that the rechargeable battery 19 is not being charged. Also, (b)
Is displayed on the screen as "Please switch to the contact charging method", and the rechargeable battery 1
It is shown that charging of 9 cannot be performed.

As in the case of the above-mentioned, the notification of the charging state is carried out by using various LEDs 16, a new LED dedicated for the notification of the charging state is newly provided, or the speaker 15 is driven. Sound notification
You may In the process of S304, the light emitting / receiving unit 12a receives control data and display data for causing the cradle 200 to notify the user that the rechargeable battery 19 cannot be charged in the current operating state of the electronic camera 100. Cradle 20 when sent from
In the case of 0, these data are received by the light emitting / receiving unit 12b, and the CPU 33 causes the LCD display 35 to display based on the received data. The display at this time may be, for example, the display as shown in FIG. As in the case of the second example described above, the cradle 200 may be provided with an LED or a speaker for notification.

By the CPU 1 performing the above notification processing, it is possible to notify the user of the charging state in the non-contact method. Next, FIG. 8 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the fourth example of the notification processing.
In this process, when the electronic camera 100 is operated while performing the charging in the non-contact method, the power consumption estimated from the operation mode at that time is not calculated, and the simultaneous operation of the camera operation and the charging is performed. If it is determined that the simultaneous operation is not possible, the user is notified to that effect and the rechargeable battery 19 can be charged. It is to inform that there is no.

The processing shown in FIG. 8 is performed as a part of the operation control of the entire electronic camera 100 performed by the CPU 1 by reading and executing the control program stored in the flash memory 7. First, in S401, it is determined whether or not the non-contact charging is started, and the process of S401 is repeated until the determination result becomes Yes. This determination processing in S401 is performed by, for example, S101 and S1 in the above-described first example (FIG. 3).
It is realized by performing the process of 02.

In step S402, the operation mode currently set in the electronic camera 100 is a recording mode in which an image is photographed and data representing the image is recorded in the memory card 8, or a light emitting / receiving unit. It is determined whether or not the transfer mode, which is an operation mode in which various data is transferred from the electronic camera 100 to the cradle 200 by blinking the 12a, and the determination result is Yes.
If so, the process proceeds to S403, and if No, the process returns to S401 and the above-described processing is repeated.

The recording mode and transfer mode are
It is generally known that power consumption during operation is significantly higher than that of other operation modes, and in the electronic camera 100 of the present embodiment, the power received by the non-contact method for these operation modes. It was found from an actual measurement conducted in advance that the power consumption was larger than the amount. Therefore, an operation mode other than these operation modes may be the determination condition of S402.

In step S403, a process for informing the user that the rechargeable battery 19 cannot be charged in the current operation mode of the electronic camera 100, or a control for causing the cradle 200 to inform the user of that effect. The process of transmitting the data and the display data from the light emitting / receiving unit 12a is performed, and thereafter, the notification process ends.

The notification of the charging method performed in the process of S403 may be performed, for example, by causing the LCD display 14 provided in the electronic camera 100 to perform a display similar to that shown in FIG. In addition, the notification of this charging method is also made in the same manner as the above-mentioned ones by various LED16
May be used, a new LED dedicated for notifying the charging state may be newly provided to notify, or the speaker 15 may be driven to notify by sound.

In the process of S403, the cradle 20 notifies the user that the rechargeable battery 19 cannot be charged in the current operating state of the electronic camera 100.
Even when the control data and display data to be performed by the light receiving and emitting section 12a are transmitted from the light receiving and emitting section 12a, the cradle 200 receives these data similarly to the above.
b, and the CPU 33 displays a display based on the received data as shown in FIG. 7, for example.
Let them do it. As in the case of the second example described above, the cradle 200 may be provided with an LED or a speaker for notification.

By the CPU 1 performing the above notification processing, it is possible to notify the user of the charging state in the non-contact method. Next, FIG. 9 will be described. This figure is a flowchart showing the processing contents of the fifth example of the notification processing.
This process is performed by the electronic camera 10 for charging the rechargeable battery 19.
0 is to notify the recording status of the image of the memory card 8 when it is placed on the cradle 200. Even if a new photographing is started after the charging is completed, a large amount of image data is already recorded in the memory card 8. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a failure that the necessary number of images cannot be taken because the number of newly recordable images has already decreased.

The process shown in FIG. 9 is also performed as a part of the operation control of the entire electronic camera 100 performed by the CPU 1 by reading and executing the control program stored in the flash memory 7. First, in step S501, the electronic camera 100 is moved to the cradle 200.
It is determined whether or not it has been placed on, and the result of this determination is Yes.
The process of S501 is repeated until This determination is made, for example, based on whether or not the CPU 1 has received a notification indicating that the power required to charge the rechargeable battery 19 is supplied from the connector 21 or the power receiving coil 22 and the operation of the charging unit 20 has started.

At S502, the remaining capacity of the memory card 8,
That is, the recording capacity left unrecorded in the memory card 8 is detected. In this process, the number of recordable images, that is, the number of newly recordable images in the memory card 8 calculated based on the remaining capacity may be detected.

In S503, it is determined whether or not the remaining capacity detected in the previous step is less than or equal to a predetermined value. If the result of this determination is Yes, the flow is S505, and if No, S5.
The process proceeds to 04. If the recordable number is detected in S502, it is determined in S503 whether the recordable number is less than or equal to a predetermined number.

Here, it is convenient for the user to arbitrarily set the predetermined value or the predetermined number of sheets which is the determination condition of S503, but it is also possible to use a fixed value in advance. In S504, control data and display data for causing the cradle 200 to notify the user of the remaining capacity or the number of recordable sheets of the memory card 8 detected in the process of S502, or to that effect are received. The process of transmitting from the light emitting unit 12a is performed, and then the process proceeds to S506.

The notification of the charging method performed in the process of S504 is performed by causing the LCD display 14 provided in the electronic camera 100 to perform the display as shown in FIG. 10A, for example. FIG. 10A shows L
It shows a state in which a display showing the number of recordable sheets of the memory card 8 is superimposed on the upper right part of the image being displayed on the CD display 14. Further, in the figure, a display of "SHQ" indicating the setting state of the number of pixels and the image quality of a recorded image when a new image is captured / recorded is also displayed. At this time, other information about the memory card 8, for example, the total recording capacity, the total number of records that can be recorded, the number of recorded images, the capacity of the recorded area, the recording capacity of the unrecorded area, and the unrecorded area The number of images that can be recorded in the area, or the electronic camera 1 of the memory card 8
You may make it display information, such as the presence or absence of attachment to 00.

Returning to the explanation of FIG. 9, in S505, S50
The cradle 200 notifies the user of the remaining capacity or the number of recordable sheets of the memory card 8 detected in the processing of No. 2 and the fact that these values are smaller than a predetermined value, or notifies the user of that. A process of transmitting control data and display data to be performed from the light emitting / receiving unit 12a is performed.

The notification of the charging method performed in the process of S505 is performed by causing the LCD display 14 provided in the electronic camera 100 to perform the display as shown in FIG. 10B, for example. FIG. 10B shows
In addition to displaying the recordable number on the LCD display 14 in the same manner as in (a), since the recordable number has decreased, the data recorded in the memory card 8 is transferred to another recording medium. The figure shows that a display prompting to increase the recordable number is displayed. Instead of this display, the LCD display 14 may blink a display indicating the recordable number to notify that the recordable number has decreased.

In the processing of S504 and S505, the light emitting / receiving unit 12 receives the above-mentioned control data and display data.
When transmitted from a, the cradle 200 receives these data by the light emitting / receiving unit 12b, and the CPU 33 causes the LCD display 35 to display based on the received data. The display at this time is, for example, as shown in FIG.
The display may be as shown in. As in the case of the second example described above, the cradle 200 may be provided with an LED or a speaker for notification.

In S506, it is determined whether or not the rechargeable battery 19 is charged by non-contact charging. If the determination result is Yes, the process proceeds to S507. If No, the process in S504 or S505 described above is performed. Thus, the notification process ends with the above-described notification screen being displayed on the LCD display 14 continued.

In S507, it is determined whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed, and the process of S507 is repeated until the determination result is Yes. In step S508, the electronic camera 100 is operating in the image recording mode, which is an operation mode for shooting and recording an image, or the image reproduction mode, in which the image data recorded in the memory card 8 is read and the corresponding image is reproduced. Then, it is determined whether or not this notification processing is being performed while displaying any image on the LCD display 14. If the determination result is Yes, the processing proceeds to S509, and if No, the processing proceeds to S510. Advances.

In S509, only the display superimposed on the LCD display 14 by the process of S504 or S505 described above is erased, and thereafter, the notification process is finished. In S510, the LCD display 14 is turned off,
That is, all the display is stopped and the operation is stopped. By this process, the electronic camera 1 at the time of non-contact charging after a predetermined time has elapsed since the notification screen was displayed
Useless power consumption due to 00 is suppressed.

After the processing of S510 is completed, this notification processing is completed. In addition, S504 and S of the notification process described above.
In the process of 505, various data are stored in the cradle 200.
When the data is being transmitted to, the determination processing of S506 can be omitted.

By the CPU 1 performing the above notification processing, it is possible to notify the user of the recording status of the image of the memory card 8 when the electronic camera 100 is placed on the cradle 200 for charging the rechargeable battery 19. Becomes Although the optical communication system is used as the wireless communication system between the electronic camera 100 and the cradle 200 in the above-described embodiment, a communication system using electromagnetic waves such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) is used. Good.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various improvements and changes can be made.

[0096]

As described in detail above, in the electronic camera or the charging device which is one of the modes of the present invention, the charging of the secondary battery, which is the power source of the electronic camera, is either the contact type or the non-contact type. Since the system is configured to notify the user of which method is being used, the user can easily recognize which method is currently being used for charging.

Further, in the electronic camera or the charging device according to another aspect of the present invention, when the electronic camera is mounted on the charging device and the charging operation by the non-contact method and another operation are simultaneously performed. In addition, when the amount of electric power received from the charging device by the electronic camera is below a predetermined value, the electronic camera is configured to give a notification to that effect, so that when the electronic camera is simultaneously performing a charging operation and another operation. It becomes possible to let the user recognize the occurrence of a situation in which the secondary battery cannot be charged or a very long charging time is required due to the power consumption due to other operation.

Further, in the electronic camera or the charging device according to still another aspect of the present invention, the image is taken by the electronic camera while the electronic camera is mounted and charging by the non-contact method is performed. Since the information about the recording medium on which the image data representing the image is recorded is notified, the user only has to place the electronic camera on the charging device to charge the information about the recording medium for recording the image data. You will be able to know.

As described above, any of the aspects of the present invention has the effect of improving the convenience at least when the non-contact charging method is adopted in the electronic camera.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an electrical configuration of an electronic camera system embodying the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of appearances of an electronic camera and a grade.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing processing contents of a first example of notification processing.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a notification example of a charging method.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of a second example of notification processing.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating processing contents of a third example of notification processing.

7 is a diagram showing an example of notification in the example of FIG.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of a fourth example of notification processing.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the processing contents of a fifth example of notification processing.

10 is a diagram showing an example of notification in the example of FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1,33 CPU 2 Shooting lens 3 image sensor 4 Imaging processing unit 5 DRAM 6 Image processing unit 7 Flash memory 8 memory cards 9a, 9b USB I / F 10a, 10b USB terminal 11 Video driver 12a, 12b light receiving and emitting section 13, 34 LCD driver 14, 35 LCD display 15 speakers 16 Various LEDs 17 Operation instruction section 18 power supply 19 rechargeable battery 20 charging section 21, 31 connector 22 Power receiving coil 23 magnets 24 bus 25 Video I / F 26 Video output terminal 27 AC / DC converter 28 AC power cord 29 Oscillator 30 power transmission coil 32 magnetic switch 36a finder window 36b finder 37 flash 38 Connector extraction switch 100 electronic camera 200 cradle

Front page continuation (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) // H04N 101: 00 H04N 101: 00 F term (reference) 2H100 DD13 5C022 AA13 AB40 AC03 AC18 AC69 AC73 AC77 5G003 AA01 BA01 DA04 EA01 GB08 GC05 5H030 AA00 AS00 BB09

Claims (13)

[Claims] 1. An electronic camera which, when mounted on a charging device, charges a secondary battery, which is a power source, with electric power supplied from the charging device. A power receiving connector that has a structure connectable to a power transmission connector that outputs the power for charging and that receives the power output from the power transmission connector; and an electromagnetic induction function provided in the charging device. A power receiving coil that generates electromotive force due to a magnetic field generated by a power transmitting coil that generates a magnetic field to perform the charging by the non-contact method that is used, and the secondary battery using the power input to the power receiving connector. Whether the contact-type charging performed or the non-contact charging performed on the secondary battery using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is performed. An electronic camera comprising: a notifying means for notifying. 2. An electronic camera which, when mounted on a charging device, charges a secondary battery, which is a power supply, with electric power supplied from the charging device, the electromagnetic camera being provided in the charging device. To the secondary battery by using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil and the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil to generate a magnetic field for performing the charging by the non-contact method utilizing When the non-contact charging operation performed by the electronic camera and the other operation of the electronic camera are performed at the same time, if the amount of electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is below a predetermined value, this is indicated. An electronic camera comprising: a notifying means for making a notification. 3. The notifying means gives the notification if the amount of electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is less than the amount of power consumed by the operation of the electronic camera. Electronic camera described. 4. The notifying means gives the notification when the electronic camera is operating in a recording mode, which is an operation mode for performing an image capturing operation. Or the electronic camera described in 3. 5. The electronic camera operates according to a transfer mode, which is an operation mode for transferring image data representing an image recorded by the electronic camera to another device. The electronic camera according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the notification is performed when the electronic camera is operating. 6. A structure provided in the charging device, which has a structure connectable to a power transmission connector that outputs electric power for performing the charging by a contact method, and receives electric power output from the power transmission connector. The system further comprises a power receiving connector, and the notification by the notifying means is to urge the contact-type charging, which is a method of charging the secondary battery using the electric power input to the power receiving connector, The electronic camera according to any one of claims 2 to 5, which is characterized. 7. An electronic camera which, when mounted on a charging device, charges a secondary battery, which is a power source, with electric power supplied from the charging device, the electronic camera being provided in the charging device. A power receiving coil that generates electromotive force by a magnetic field generated by a power transmitting coil that generates a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method using an electromagnetic induction action when the camera is mounted on the charging device; Placement detection means for detecting whether or not the camera is placed on the charging device, and when the placement state of the electronic camera on the charging device is detected by the placement detection means. An informing means for informing information about a recording medium on which image data representing an image taken by the electronic camera is recorded, and an electronic camera. 8. The informing means, when the capacity of an unrecorded recording area of the recording medium is smaller than a predetermined amount, urges the data already recorded on the recording medium to be transferred to another device. The electronic camera according to claim 7, wherein the electronic camera is a digital camera. 9. The electronic camera according to claim 7, wherein the notification by the notification means is performed only for a predetermined time. 10. The display means for displaying an image is further provided, and the notification means displays the content of the notification on the display means. The electronic camera according to item. 11. A structure having an electronic camera mountable thereon,
A charging device for charging a secondary battery, which is a power source of the electronic camera, comprising: a power transmission connector that outputs electric power for performing the charging by a contact method; and a charging method by a non-contact method using an electromagnetic induction action. A power transmission coil for generating a magnetic field, a contact-type charging performed on the secondary battery using electric power output from the power transmission connector, and the electronic camera by the magnetic field generated by the power transmission coil. A notifying unit for notifying which of the non-contact type charging is performed on the secondary battery using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil provided in Charging device. 12. A structure capable of mounting an electronic camera,
A charging device for charging a secondary battery, which is a power source of the electronic camera, comprising: a power transmission coil that generates a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method using an electromagnetic induction effect; The non-contact charging operation performed on the secondary battery by using the electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil provided in the electronic camera by the magnetic field and the other operation of the electronic camera are performed at the same time. At some time, if the amount of electromotive force generated in the power receiving coil is below a predetermined value, a notifying means for notifying that effect is provided, and the charging device is characterized by: 13. A structure having an electronic camera mountable thereon,
A charging device for charging a secondary battery which is a power source of the electronic camera, having a power transmission coil for generating a magnetic field for performing the charging by a non-contact method utilizing an electromagnetic induction effect, the charging comprising: When the electronic camera is mounted, the magnetic field generated by the power transmission coil is used to generate electromotive force in a power receiving coil provided in the electronic camera, and the electronic camera is mounted. The charging device is characterized by further comprising notification means for notifying information regarding a recording medium on which image data representing an image captured by the electronic camera is recorded.