Image pickup system

An image pickup system comprising:

• (a) a reference object that is placed with a predetermined positional relationship with respect to a subject;
• and
• (b) a portable camera system,
• wherein said camera system comprises:
• (b-1) a measuring device;
• (b-2) a movable image-pickup apparatus which has an image-pickup device that is capable of relatively rotating with respect to said measuring device so as to pick up an image of said reference object while tracing said image thereof;
• (b-3) a detection device for detecting an amount of rotation shift of said measuring device by using an orientation sensor;
• and
• (b-4) a controller which, based upon said amount of rotation shift detected by said detection device, carries out a rotation driving control on said image pickup device by using said movable image-pickup apparatus so that a tracing control is carried out on said reference object,
• wherein based upon results of picked-up image of said reference object by said movable image-pickup apparatus, a calibration-use parameter of said measuring device is calculated.

A portable camera system comprising:

• (a) a measuring device;
• (b) a movable image-pickup apparatus which has an image-pickup device that is capable of relatively rotating with respect to said measuring device so as to pick up an image of a reference object that is placed with a predetermined positional relationship with respect to a subject while tracing said image thereof;
• (c) a detection device for detecting an amount of rotation shift of said measuring device by using an orientation sensor;
• and
• (d) a controller which, based upon said amount of rotation shift detected by said detection device, carries out a rotation driving control on said image pickup device by using said movable image-pickup apparatus so that a tracing control is carried out on said reference object,
• wherein based upon results of picked-up image of said reference object by said movable image-pickup apparatus, a calibration-use parameter of said measuring device is calculated.

A movable image-pickup device comprising:

• an image pickup device which acquires an image of a reference object having a known three-dimensional shape;
• a driver which drives said image pickup device with respect to a fixed portion;
• and
• a controller which, in the case when said movable image-pickup device is shifted, controls said driver so as to allow said image pickup device to pick up an image of said reference object.

A measuring device, which measures an object, comprising:

• a first image-pickup device for picking up an image of a reference object having a known three-dimensional shape;
• an orientation detector which calculates an orientation of said measuring device based upon a reference object image picked up by said first image-pickup device;
• and
• a display device which displays an image picked up by said first image-pickup device.

A measuring device, which measures an object, comprising:

• a first image-pickup device which picks up an image of a reference object having a known three-dimensional shape;
• an orientation detector which calculates an orientation of said measuring device based upon a reference object image picked up by said first image-pickup device;
• a detector which detects whether or not said reference object is in an operable state for an image-pickup process by said first image-pickup device;
• and
• an informing device for informing results of detection by said detector.

A measuring device, which measures an object, comprising:

• a first image-pickup device which picks up an image of a reference object having a known three-dimensional shape;
• an orientation detector which calculates an orientation of said measuring device based upon a reference object image picked up by said first image-pickup device;
• a detector which detects whether or not said reference object is in an operable state for an image-pickup process by said first image-pickup device;
• and
• an inhibition element which, when said detector has detected that said reference object is not in said operable state for said image-pickup process, inhibits a measuring operation in said measuring device.

A measuring device, which measures a subject in a state where a plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects, each having a known shape, are placed on a periphery of said subject, comprising:

• a reference-object pickup-use camera;
• a first calculator which, based upon images of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects preliminarily picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera, calculates relative positional relationships among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects;
• a controller which controls said reference-object pickup-use camera so as to pick up an image in synchronism with a measuring operation of said measuring device;
• and
• a second calculator which, based upon images of said orientation-detecting-use reference objects picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera during the measuring process, calculates an orientation of said measuring device.

A measuring device, which measures a subject in a state where a plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects, each having a known shape, are placed on a periphery of said subject, comprising:

• a subject-image pickup-use camera for picking up an image of said subject;
• a reference-object pickup-use camera;
• a first calculator which, based upon images of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects that have been preliminarily picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera and/or said subject-image pickup-use camera, calculates relative positional relationships among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects;
• a controller which controls said reference-object pickup-use camera so as to pick up an image in synchronism with an image pickup operation of said subject-image pickup-use camera;
• and
• a second calculator which, based upon images of said orientation-detecting-use reference objects picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera during a measuring process, calculates an orientation of said measuring device,
• wherein predetermined measuring calculations are carried out based upon an image picked up by said subject-image pickup-use camera and an orientation at that time.

A device, which finds calibration-use parameters of a measuring device, comprising:

• (a) an observer which observes at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object of a plurality of measuring device calibration-use reference objects that have same external features and are placed in a space in a dispersed manner so as to be distinguished in mutual orientations from external features independent of observing positions, from an observing position related to said measuring device;
• (b) a specifying element which specifies a relative position and a relative orientation between said at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object and said measuring device based upon images obtained from said observer;
• (c) an orientation detector which detects an orientation of said measuring device in a space to accommodate said subject by using an angle sensor attached to said measuring device;
• and
• (d) an identifying element which identifies said measuring-device-calibration-use reference object observed by said observer by collating a detected orientation of said measuring device within said space and an orientation of each of said plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects within said space that have been preliminarily found.

A camera-calibration-use three-dimensional chart comprising:

• a conical body having a bottom face and a plurality of side faces;
• and
• a plurality of charts that are displayed on each of said plurality of side faces, each of said plurality of charts having a set of a plurality of unit graphic forms having respectively known sizes,
• wherein each of said plurality of unit graphic forms has a geometrical shape that is coded so as to be identified by an observation from said observing position with respect to both of inside of said set and said plurality of charts, independent of relative positions and relative orientations between each of unit graphic forms and said observing position.

A camera-calibration-use three-dimensional chart comprising:

• a conical body having a bottom face and a side face;
• and
• a chart that is displayed along a circumferential portion of said side face, said chart having a set of a plurality of unit graphic forms having respectively known sizes,
• wherein each of said plurality of unit graphic forms has a geometrical shape that is coded so as to be identified by an observation from an observing position with respect to inside of said set, independent of relative positions and relative orientations between each of said plurality of the unit graphic forms and said observing position.

A method for measuring a subject in a state where a plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects having a known shape are placed on a periphery of said subject, comprising the steps of:

• (a) preliminarily picking up images of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects by a reference-object pickup-use camera and calculating relative positional relationships among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects based upon said images;
• (b) picking up an image of at least one of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects by using said reference-object pickup-use camera in synchronism with a measuring operation of a measuring device;
• and
• (c) calculating an orientation of said measuring device, based upon images of said orientation-detecting-use reference objects picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera during a measuring process.

A method for measuring a subject in a state where a plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects having a known shape are placed on a periphery of said subject, comprising the steps of:

• (a) preliminarily picking up images of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects by a reference-object pickup-use camera and/or a subject-use camera and calculating relative positional relationships among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects based upon said images;
• (b) picking up an image of at least one of said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects by using said reference-object pickup-use camera in synchronism with an image-pickup operation of said subject-use camera;
• (c) calculating an orientation of said measuring device, based upon images of said orientation-detecting-use reference objects picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera during a measuring process;
• and
• (d) carrying out a predetermined measuring calculation based upon an image picked up by said subject-use camera and an orientation thereof at that time.

A method for measuring a subject, comprising the steps of:

• (a) placing a plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects having a known shape on a periphery of said subject;
• (b) finding a relative positional relationship among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects from images obtained by image-picking up said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects;
• (c) specifying a proximate reference object that is closest to a movable camera that is designed so as to alter an image-pickup orientation, among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects, based upon said relative positional relationship;
• (d) allowing said movable camera to automatically trace said proximate reference object when a measuring operation of said subject is carried out;
• and
• (e) picking up an image of said proximate reference object by said movable camera in synchronism with said measuring operation.

A method of acquiring calibration-use parameters of a camera, comprising the steps of:

• (a) placing a camera-calibration-use three-dimensional chart in a space to accommodate a subject;
• (b) observing at least one chart of a plurality of charts contained in said camera-calibration-use three-dimensional chart from an observing position related to said camera;
• (c) extracting at least one unit graphic form contained in an observed chart as a target unit graphic form, and identifying said target unit graphic form among said plurality of charts as well as a plurality of unit graphic forms;
• and
• (d) specifying a calibration-use parameter of said camera that depend on a relative position and a relative orientation between said observing position and said camera-calibration-use three-dimensional chart, based upon a relationship between an actual size that has been preliminarily specified with respect to said target unit graphic form identified and an observed size of said target unit graphic form viewed from said observing position.

A method of acquiring calibration-use parameters of a measuring device, comprising the steps of:

• (a) placing a plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects that have same external features in a space to accommodate a subject in a dispersed manner with different orientations so as to be distinguished in mutual orientations from external features independent of observing positions;
• (b) observing at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object of said plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects from an observing position related to said measuring device;
• (c) specifying a relative position and a relative orientation between said at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object and said measuring device based upon images obtained from said step (b);
• (d) detecting an orientation of said measuring device in a space to accommodate said subject by using an angle sensor attached to said measuring device;
• and
• (e) identifying said measuring-device-calibration-use reference object observed by said step (b) by collating a detected orientation of said measuring device within said space and an orientation of each of said plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects within said space that have been preliminarily found.

A computer software product for measuring a subject from an image obtained by picking up an image of said subject in a state where a plurality of orientation-detection-use reference objects having a known shape are placed on a periphery of said subject, allowing a computer to execute the steps of:

• (a) finding relative positional relationships among said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects, based upon images obtained by picking up said plurality of orientation-detecting-use reference objects by a reference-object pickup-use camera and/or a subject-use camera;
• and
• (b) calculating an orientation of said subject-use camera during an image-pickup operation, based upon images of said orientation-detecting-use reference objects picked up by said reference-object pickup-use camera in synchronism with said image-pickup operation of said subject by said subject-use camera, and
• (c) carrying out a predetermined measuring calculation based upon an image picked up by said subject-use camera and an orientation of said subject-use camera.

A computer software product for finding a measuring-device-calibration-use parameter from an image obtained by observing at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object from an observing position related to the measuring device among a plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects that have same external appearance feature, and are placed in a dispersed manner with different orientations so as to be distinguished in mutual orientations based upon external appearance features independent of observing positions, allowing a computer to execute the steps of:

• (a) specifying a relative position and a relative orientation between said at least one measuring-device-calibration-use reference object and said measuring device based upon images obtained from observed images;
• (b) detecting an orientation of said measuring device in a space in which said plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects are placed in a dispersed manner from results of detection by an angle sensor attached to said measuring device;
• and
• (c) identifying said measuring-device-calibration-use reference object obtained by an observation by collating a detected orientation of said measuring device and an orientation of each of said plurality of measuring-device-calibration-use reference objects within said space that have been preliminarily found.