Image input apparatus having interchangeable image pickup device and pan head
AssigneeCanon Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorKenji Kawano
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An image input apparatus has a pan head for mounting an image pickup device thereon and for changing the image pickup direction of the image pickup device. The image pickup device has an engaging device, and control terminals capable of transmitting specification information about an operation of the pan head from the image pickup device to the pan head. The pan head has a holding device to be engaged with the engaging device so as to interchangeably hold the image pickup device, identifying terminals capable of receiving the specification information when the image pickup device is held by the holding device, and a selection circuit for selecting an operation of the pan head corresponding to the held image pickup device based on the received specification information.
Claims62
A pan head for mounting an image pickup device thereon and for changing the image pickup direction of the image pickup device, said pan head comprising:
- (a) a holding member for selectively holding one of a plurality of different image pickup devices each of which has a control mode which is different from the other image pickup devices;
- (b) a receiving device that receives from the attached image pickup device an identifying signal that identifies the type of image pickup device being held by said holding member, the identifying signal specifying a pan head operation.
An image pickup device mountable on a pan head which is capable of changing an image pickup direction of said image pickup device, the pan head having a holding member which detachably holds one of a plurality of image pickup devices each of which has a control mode different from each other, said image pickup device comprising:
- (a) an engaging member engageable with the holding member of the pan head;
- and
- (b) a transmission device that transmits from the image pickup device to the pan head an identifying signal that identifies the type of image pickup device engaged with the holding member, the identifying signal specifying an operation of the pan head with said image pickup device.
An image input apparatus having a pan head for mounting an image pickup device thereon and for changing the image pickup direction of said image pickup device, said image input apparatus comprising:
- (a) said image pickup device comprising:
- an engaging member;
- and
- a transmission device that transmits from the image pickup device to said pan head specification information which specifies the control mode of an operation of said pan head with said image pickup device before an image pickup operation of the attached image pickup device is started, said specification information comprising an identification signal identifying said image pickup device,
- (b) said pan head comprising:
- a holding member being engageable with said engaging member to interchangeably connect said pan head with one of a plurality of image pickup devices each of which has a control mode different from each other;
- a receiving device that receives from said transmission device the specification information of the control mode of the image pickup device;
- and
- a selection device that selects an operation of said pan head corresponding to the connected image pickup device based on the received specification information.
An image pickup device mountable on a pan head which is capable of changing an image pickup direction of said image pickup device, the pan head having a holding member, said image pickup device comprising:
- (a) an engaging member engageable with the holding means of the pan head;
- and
- (b) a transmission device that transmits from the image pickup device directly to the pan head information about an operation of the pan head with said image pickup device, said information comprising a non-video signal, wherein said transmission device comprises a plurality of differently-shaped terminals whose shapes correspond to operational characteristics of said image pickup device,
- wherein the plurality of terminals have a pattern of different shapes based on the weight of the image pickup device.
An image input apparatus having a pan head for mounting an image pickup device thereon and for changing the image pickup direction of the image pickup device, said image input apparatus comprising:
- (a) said image pickup device comprising:
- an engaging member;
- and
- a transmission device that transmits from the image pickup device directly to said pan head specification information which specifies an operation of said pan head with said image pickup device, said specification information comprising an identification signal identifying said image pickup device,
- (b) said pan head comprising:
- a holding member engageable with said engaging member to interchangeably connect said image pickup device and said pan head;
- a receiving device that receives directly from said transmission device the specification information when said image pickup device is connected to said holding member;
- and
- a selection device that selects an operation of said pan head corresponding to the connected image pickup device based on the received specification information, said selection device automatically varying an operation of said pan head based on the identification signal,
- wherein said image pickup device transmission device comprises a plurality of differently-shaped terminals, the shape of the terminals corresponding to an operational characteristic of said image pickup device, and wherein said pan head selection device detects the different shapes of the image pickup device terminals and varies the operation of the pan head based on the shape of the image pickup device terminals,
- wherein the shape of the image pickup device terminals corresponds to a weight of the image pickup device and wherein said pan head selection device automatically varies an operation of the pan head based on the weight of the image pickup device.
An image pickup device mountable on a pan head which controls said image pickup device, said image pickup device comprising:
- a transmission device that transmits information from the image pickup device to said pan head, said information comprising information regarding the weight of the image pickup device.
A pan head for mounting an image pickup device thereon and for controlling said image pickup device, said pan head comprising:
- a holding device the interchangeably holds the image pickup device;
- and
- a receiving device that receives information comprising information regarding the weight of said image pickup device.
A control method for controlling a pan head on which an image pickup device is mounted, the method comprising the steps of:
- receiving information from the image pickup device, said information comprising information regarding a weight of the image pickup device;
- and
- controlling said pan head based on said information.
A control method for controlling a pan head on which an image pickup device is mounted, the method comprising the steps of:
- selectively holding one of a plurality of different types of image pickup devices each of which has a control mode which is different from other types of image pickup devices;
- receiving from the attached image pickup device an identifying signal that identifies the type of image pickup device being held, the identifying signal specifying a pan head operation;
- and
- controlling said pan head based on the identifying signal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.