Cellular telephone and electronic camera system with programmable transmission capability
An electronic camera system includes a programmable transmission capability for selectively transmitting electronic image data to a plurality of remote base units. In one embodiment, a camera module is detachably coupled to a portable computer including a display screen and a data entry device. The electronic image data generated by the camera module is supplied to the portable computer for display on the display screen. The data entry device is used by an operator to select which of the plurality of base units are to receive the digital image data. The digital image data is supplied by the portable computer to a radio-frequency transmitter module for transmission to the selected base units. The radio-frequency transmitter module is formed either integral with the portable computer or, like the camera module, is detachably coupled to the portable computer. In a further embodiment, a combined telephone/camera unit is provided that includes a camera module for generating electronic image data representative of a scene to be imaged, a memory unit for storing the electronic image data generated by the camera module, a display screen for displaying the electronic image data stored in the memory unit, a mechanism for selecting which of the plurality of base units is to receive the digital image data, and a cellular transceiver for transmitting the digital image data to the base units selected by the selection mechanism.
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This is a continuation of application Serial No. 08/842,458, filed Apr. 24, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,943,603, which is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/426,993, filed Apr. 24, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,666,159.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe invention is directed to an electronic camera system. More specifically, the invention is directed to an electronic camera system that includes a transmission mechanism for sending image data to selected receiver units.
BACKGROUNDMotion video cameras and electronic still cameras have been utilized for several years in applications involving image data transmission. Electronic image data generated from a video camera, for example, can be transmitted by a conventional broadcast television station and received by any television in the broadcast area tuned to the appropriate channel. It is not possible, however, for the transmitter to select which receivers will obtain the image data, as selection is controlled at the receiver. Image data from electronic still cameras has been transmitted via conventional telephone lines to selected receivers through the use of a computer equipped with a modem. The image data must first be downloaded from the electronic still camera to the computer, which then transmits the image data to a second modem equipped computer via the telephone line where it can be viewed or printed. Unfortunately, the requirement for a telephone line to transmit image data does not allow images to be quickly and easily transmitted from remote field locations to receiver units. While systems have been proposed that utilize radio frequency transmission to transmit image data from an electronic camera to an individual base unit, none of these systems have the capability of selectively transmitting image data to a plurality of receiver units.
In view of the above, it is an object of the invention to provide an electronic camera system that includes a programmable transmission capability for selectively transmitting electronic image data to a plurality of remote receive units.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe invention provides an electronic camera system that includes a programmable transmission capability for selectively transmitting electronic image data to a plurality of remote receiver units. In one preferred embodiment of the invention, a camera module is detachably coupled to a portable computer including a display screen and a data entry device. The camera module includes an electronic image sensor for generating digital image data representative of a scene to be imaged. The electronic image data generated by the camera module is supplied to the portable computer for display on the display screen. The data entry device is used by an operator to select which of the plurality of base units are to receive the digital image data. The digital image data is supplied by the portable computer to a radio-frequency transmitter module for transmission to the selected receiver units. The radio-frequency transmitter module is formed either integral with the portable computer or, like the camera module, is detachably coupled to the portable computer. In a further preferred embodiment, a combined telephone/camera unit is provided that includes a camera module for generating electronic image data representative of a scene to be imaged, a memory unit for storing the electronic image data generated by the camera module, a display screen for displaying the electronic image data stored in the memory unit, a mechanism for selecting which of the plurality of receiver units is to receive the digital image data, and a cellular transceiver for transmitting the digital image data to the receiver units selected by the selection mechanism.
The invention will be described in greater detail with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof and the accompanying drawings, wherein:
A diagram of a camera system in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIG. 1. The camera system includes a “clip-on” electronic camera module 10 coupled to a pen-based computer 12 that includes a radio frequency (RF) transmitter module 14 including an antenna. The camera module 10 can be of a form described in copending and commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/988,517 entitled “Electronic Camera with Memory Card Interface to a Computer”, which describes a removable camera module that fits into and interfaces with a standard PCMCIA card interface slot of a pen-based computer, or of a type described in copending and commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 07/988,560 entitled “Electronic Camera Incorporating a Computer-Compatible Bus Interface”, which describes a removable camera module that interfaces directly to a standard personal computer compatible bus. The camera module 10 takes still images that can be displayed on an interactive display screen 16 of the pen-based computer 12. The RF transmitter module 14 can either be a clip-on unit, like the camera module 10, or constructed integrally with the pen-based computer 12. The interactive display screen 16 acts as an input device to the pen-based computer 12, where a stylus or “pen” is used to select various icons or “buttons” displayed on the display screen 16 to enter data or commands into the pen-based computer 12. Still images captured by the camera module 10 are transmitted from the pen-based computer 12 to one or more receiver units, labeled A, B and C in
The camera module 10 is shown in greater detail in
The operation of the camera system is illustrated in greater detail in the flow diagram illustrated in FIG. 5. The user turns on the pen-based computer 12 using a power switch (not shown) to activate a camera application program stored in a memory unit of the pen-based computer 12, and then flips up the flash unit 24 which causes power to be supplied to the camera module 10 by activating a power switch (not shown). The user frames the subject using the optical viewfinder 18 and presses the capture switch 20 to initiate a sequence where the scene light level is read by the camera control processor 42 using the light measuring unit 44, the aperture 28 is adjusted, and the shutter 30 is opened to expose the electronic image sensor 36 to scene light. The camera control processor 42 also controls the firing of the flash unit 24 if the light measurement taken by the light measuring unit 44 indicates insufficient scene illumination. The image captured by the electronic image sensor 36 is processed by the image signal processor 40 and supplied to the pen-based computer 12 via the connector 26, where it is stored in the memory unit of the pen-based computer 12.
As illustrated in
The RF transmission link between the RF transmitter module 14 and the receiver units A-C may be a single frequency system including a cellular system, that uses the same frequency for all receivers, or a multiple frequency system, that uses different frequencies for each of the different receiver units A-C. In the latter case, the image is transmitted multiple times, once using the appropriate frequency band for each selected receiver unit. For single frequency systems, a header code is transmitted prior to transmitting the image. The header includes an ID for each receiver that is to receive the image. In a simple case, a three bit digital code is transmitted, where the first bit is 1 if receiver unit A should receive the image and 0 if it should not, the second bit is 1 if receiver unit B should receive the image and 0 if is should not, and the third bit is 1 if receiver unit C should receive the image and 0 if not. Alternatively, each receiver unit A-C could be assigned a specific address, and the header would contain the address of each receiver that should receive the image.
A second embodiment of the invention is illustrated in
In operation, as illustrated in greater detail by the flow diagram illustrated in
The invention has been described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof. It will be understood, however, that modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims. For example, although the first illustrated embodiment utilizes a pen-based computer, other types of portable computers with non-interactive displays can be utilized. In such a case, commands and data would be entered via a keyboard, mouse or other data entry devices.
INDUSTRIAL UTILITYThe invention provides an electronic camera system that includes a programmable transmission capability for selectively transmitting electronic image data to a plurality of remote base units. The camera system is particularly suited to applications, such as news gathering operations, in which it is desirable to capture images in remote field locations and transmit the images to a base station for subsequent review, distribution or publication.
Parts List
- 10 Camera Module
- 12 Pen-based Computer
- 14 RF Transmitter Module
- 16 Display Screen
- 18 Optical Viewfinder
- 20 Capture Switch
- 22 Lens
- 24 Flash Unit
- 26 Computer Bus Connector
- 27 Mounting Clips
- 28 Aperture
- 30 Shutter Mechanism
- 32 Filter
- 34 Electronic Imaging Unit
- 36 Electronic Imaging Sensor
- 38 CCD Driver Unit
- 40 Image Signal Processor
- 42 Camera Control Processor
- 44 Light Measuring Unit
- 46 Driver Unit
- 48 Telephone/Camera Unit
- 50 Lens
- 52 Flash Unit
- 54 Antenna
- 56 Display Screen
- 58 Keypad
- 60 Internal Bus
- 62 Control Processing Unit
- 64 Memory Unit Parts List (cont'd)
- 66 Cellular Transceiver
- 68 Camera Module
Claims
1. A portable handheld telephone system for selectively communicating with at least one of a plurality of receiving units, comprising:
- (a) a telephone keypad for selecting a particular receiving unit;
- (b) an image sensor for capturing image data;
- (c) a memory for storing the captured image data;
- (d) a control processor responsive to an image transmission mode signal indicating a type of image transmission mode receivable by the selected receiving unit for converting the stored image data into data which can be received by the selected receiving unit; and
- (e) a portable transceiver/receiver including an antenna for transmitting the converted image data to the selected receiving unit in a format corresponding to the image transmission mode receivable by the selected receiving unit.
2. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 1, further including an image display for displaying the stored captured image.
3. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 1, wherein the memory can store a plurality of captured image data.
4. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 1, further including flash unit.
5. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 1, wherein the memory stores phone numbers for the receiving unit.
6. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 1 wherein the image transmission uses facsimile modes.
7. The portable handheld telephone system of claim 6, wherein the facsimile modes include Group IV facsimile and color facsimile.
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Type: Grant
Filed: Feb 12, 2009
Date of Patent: Aug 17, 2010
Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company (Rochester, NY)
Inventors: Kenneth A. Parulski (Rochester, NY), James R. Schueckler (Leroy, NY)
Primary Examiner: Charles N Appiah
Assistant Examiner: Olumide T Ajibade Akonai
Attorney: Pamela Crocker
Application Number: 12/370,037
International Classification: H04M 1/00 (20060101);