Patent ID: 7551203
Filing Date: 2009-06-23
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A picture inputting apparatus comprising: a solid state image pickup device having a high-resolution pixel array consisting of a plurality of photo-receptive elements disposed at a high density for converting a formed image into a pixel value of an electric signal by photoelectric conversion; a low-resolution whole picture scanning unit which outputs low-resolution whole picture data by reading out and scanning the wholeness of an imaging range with the pixel array resolution lowered; a high-resolution partial picture scanning unit which outputs high-resolution partial picture data by partially reading out and scanning the imaging range with the pixel array high-resolution kept; a switching unit which provides a switching between the low-resolution whole picture scanning unit and the high-resolution partial picture scanning unit within a predetermined frame period of picture signals to thereby output in sequence the low-resolution whole picture data and the high-resolution partial image data at a speed equal to or greater than the video rate; an image processing unit which automatically determines the extracting position of the high-resolution partial picture at the next frame, based on the low-resolution whole picture data output from the low-resolution whole picture scanning unit, to thereby instruct the high-resolution partial picture scanning unit on the extracting position; and a picture transmission unit which converts into analog picture signals low-resolution whole picture data output from the low-resolution whole picture scanning unit and high-resolution partial picture data output from the high-resolution partial picture scanning unit, to transmit the obtained analog picture signals to an external image processor via a transmission path, wherein the picture transmission unit converts the low-resolution whole picture data and the high-resolution partial picture data into analog picture signals, respectively, for parallel transmission along parallel paths.