Patent ID: 7573510
Filing Date: 2009-08-11
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. An electronic camera apparatus with a moving-image pickup function that records a moving image on a removable recording medium, the apparatus comprising: a speed performance determining unit for determining a data write speed performance of the recording medium; a writing unit for writing moving-image data on the recording medium in one of a plurality of moving-image recording methods determined in correspondence to the data write speed performance of the recording medium determined by the speed performance determining unit; a buffer memory that temporarily and sequentially stores image data at a predetermined frame period for a plurality of frames, wherein the image data has been subjected to image processing for recording purposes, and wherein the moving-image recording methods include an indirect method of writing image data, which are stored temporarily in the buffer memory, in order of storage to the recording medium, and erasing the image data in the buffer memory that have been written to the recording medium; an empty storage space detector for detecting a measure of a remaining empty storage space of the buffer memory while the writing unit writes the moving-image data to the recording medium in accordance with the indirect method of writing image data; and a record control unit, responsive to the empty storage space detector detecting that the remaining empty storage space of the buffer memory is less than a predetermined measure, for temporarily stopping the temporary storage of the image data to the buffer memory at the frame period, and then responsive to all the image data in the buffer memory being erased, for resuming the temporary storage of the image data to the buffer memory at the frame period.