Patent ID: 8194143

Claim:
A camera apparatus for encoding a picture signal received from photographing means and an audio data signal received from audio inputting means, the camera apparatus comprising: picture encoding means for encoding the picture signal received from the photographing means corresponding to a first encoding method or a second encoding method and generating first encoded picture data or second encoded picture data, respectively; controlling means for controlling and selecting the first encoding method or the second encoding method corresponding to a selected processing mode, wherein said controlling means controls said picture encoding means to encode the picture signal received from the photographing means corresponding to the first encoding method when a mode for capturing still picture data has been selected in the camera apparatus, wherein said controlling means controls said picture encoding means to encode the picture signal received from the photographing means corresponding to the second encoding method when a mode for capturing (a) still picture data with the audio data signal and (b) moving picture data with the audio data signal has been selected in the camera apparatus, wherein for capturing still picture data with the audio data signal, said controlling means (1) generating P or B picture data such that motion vectors are 0 for an entire frame, and (2) copying a chronologically preceding picture as the encoded picture, wherein for the second encoding method after encoding the picture data, said controlling means encodes the audio data signal, multiplexes encoded I picture signal or the generated P or B picture data and the encoded audio data signal, and captures the multiplexed signal when the mode for recording both the picture data and the audio data signal has been selected in the camera apparatus, wherein the multiplexed data is composed of packs with a fixed length, and wherein for multiplexed still picture data and the audio data signal a first pack contains encoded I picture data, encoded P or B picture data and the encoded audio data signal, a time period of the encoded P or B picture data being the same as a time period of the encoded audio data signal, and a second pack contains the encoded audio data signal and encoded P or B picture data, and wherein when the mode for capturing still picture data with the audio data signal is selected in the camera apparatus, simultaneously generating the first and second encoded picture data and the encoded audio data signal.