JP4768367B2 - Stereoscopic image pickup apparatus and stereoscopic image display apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a stereoscopic image capturing apparatus that captures an imaging target using a lens group arranged in a planar or curved surface in order to display a stereoscopic image, and a stereoscopic image display apparatus that displays the stereoscopic image. .

  In general, so-called integral photography using a group of lenses arranged in a planar or curved surface is one of the stereoscopic television systems that allows a stereoscopic image (stereoscopic reproduced image) to be freely viewed from an arbitrary viewpoint. There are (Integral Photography) type (hereinafter referred to as IP type) stereoscopic image pickup devices and stereoscopic image display devices.

  FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing the principle of the imaging method based on the IP method. In this IP system, a subject O in front of the lens group L (upward in FIG. 11) is photographed by a lens group L composed of a plurality of convex lenses arranged on the same plane. At this time, on the film F behind the lens group L (downward in FIG. 11), an image I of the subject O (hereinafter referred to as an element captured image) I imaged by each convex lens constituting the lens group L is formed. Then, after photographing in this way, the image obtained by developing is placed at the position where the film F is disposed at the time of photographing, and from the front of the lens group L arranged at the same position as at the time of photographing (from the upper side in FIG. 11). When viewed, a stereoscopic reproduction image can be observed.

  A stereoscopic image capturing apparatus that captures a high-resolution moving image using this IP method is known (see Patent Document 1). A stereoscopic image imaging device disclosed in Patent Document 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 and 13. FIG. 12 is a schematic view showing the arrangement of lenses and image pickup means in this stereoscopic image pickup apparatus, and FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ shown in FIG. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 100 includes a substrate 102, an imaging unit 104, a lens group 106, and an optical shielding unit 108.

  As shown in FIG. 13, the imaging means 104 is provided on the substrate 102 and includes a plurality of element imaging elements 104a. Each element image sensor 104a is, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) image sensor, and is configured with a high-definition number of pixels sufficient for capturing a stereoscopic image with a relatively high resolution moving image. In addition, in the example shown in FIG. 12, a total of 20 element imaging elements 104a in 4 rows and 5 columns (identification codes Dij: i = 1 to 4, j = 1 to 5) are arranged. Although not shown, the substrate 102 has a drive signal line for supplying a drive signal to each element image sensor 104a, and an output signal for outputting a signal including imaging information captured by each element image sensor 104a. Lines, drive signal supply means and the like are arranged. The lens group 106 includes a plurality of lenses (convex lenses) 106a disposed on the same plane. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 13, the centers of the respective lenses 106 a are respectively arranged so as to correspond to the centers of the element imaging elements 104 a. The optical shielding part 108 is a thin plate made of metal or synthetic resin, and is disposed between adjacent lenses 106a as shown in FIG.

The stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 100 captures a subject (not shown) disposed in front of the lens group 106 (upward in FIG. 13). At this time, an optical image (element captured image) is formed on each element imaging element 104 a by each lens 106 a constituting the lens group 106. A plurality of images obtained by shooting in this way are displayed, for example, with a liquid crystal element at the position where each element imaging element 104a is arranged at the time of shooting, and in front of the lens group 106 arranged at the same position as at the time of shooting. When viewed from above (in FIG. 13), a stereoscopic reproduction image can be observed.
JP 2001-320735 A (paragraphs 0014 to 0019, FIGS. 5 and 6)

  However, in the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG. 13, since the optical shielding unit 108 is disposed between the adjacent lenses 106 a, information on a gap portion between the adjacent lenses 106 a cannot be obtained. For this reason, when a captured image is displayed, a three-dimensional image in which the information on the gap is missing is reproduced. That is, the stereoscopic reproduction image has a relatively low resolution and is not good. Furthermore, when viewing a stereoscopic reproduction image, the range in which the observer can move becomes narrow.

  In this stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 100, it is possible in principle to improve the resolution by dramatically increasing the number of lenses 106a with respect to the number of element image sensors 104a. The processing load is significantly increased. In this case, for example, an element with high processing capability is required, and the manufacturing cost increases. Therefore, in order to reduce this processing load, an apparatus having a configuration in which each element image sensor 104a corresponds to one or a small number of lenses 106a is desired.

  Therefore, it is conceivable to remove the optical shielding portion 108 in order to eliminate the gap portion between the adjacent lenses 106a. However, in this case, light from the lens 106a other than the corresponding lens 106a is incident on each element image sensor 104a. Further, even if the entire combination of the element image sensor 104a and the lens 106a is made adjacent to each other while leaving the optical shielding portion 108, a drive signal line (not shown) on the substrate 102 around the element image sensor 104a, Since the output signal lines, the drive signal supply means, and the like are arranged, there is a problem that the element image pickup devices 104a cannot be arranged adjacent to each other without a gap.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object thereof is to provide a stereoscopic image capturing apparatus and a stereoscopic image display apparatus capable of improving the resolution of a stereoscopic image.

The present invention has been made to achieve the above object. First, the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus according to claim 1 has a plurality of lenses that form an optical image of a subject in a planar or curved shape. And a plurality of elemental image sensors for capturing the optical images transmitted by the optical image transmission unit. A substrate having an image pickup means, an element image pickup element of the image pickup means, a drive signal line for supplying a drive signal to the element image pickup element, and an output signal line for outputting a signal including image pickup information picked up by the element image pickup element; In the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus using the integral photography method, each lens constituting the lens group is disposed adjacent to each other, and each element image pickup element constituting the image pickup unit is provided. Are arranged at a predetermined interval from each other, and the optical image transmission means corresponds to each of the element imaging elements with a plurality of fiber bundles integrated so as to be bent in a state where a plurality of optical fibers are bundled. Each of the fiber bundles has one end, which is an end portion on the lens group side, facing a predetermined number of adjacent lenses constituting the lens group, and an end portion on the imaging means side. And the other end faces the corresponding element imaging device, and the fiber bundle at the other end is disposed so that the distance between the fiber bundles at the one end is larger than the distance between the fiber bundles. bundle transmits an optical image of the object of the predetermined said predetermined number multiple incident from the one end via a multiple lens to said other end, said each fiber bundle of the optical image transmitting means imaging Each point of means Between the imaging device and a further comprising a projection optical system including a projection lens for projecting an optical image of the predetermined plurality of the subject transmitted by the fiber bundle in the element image pickup device, respectively.

According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus is configured such that the fiber bundle constituting the optical image transmission means for transmitting the optical image formed by each lens constituting the lens group to each element image sensor can be bent. The distance between the fiber bundles at the other end (the end on the imaging means side) is arranged to be wider than the distance between the fiber bundles at the one end (the end on the lens group side). Accordingly, the lenses constituting the lens group can be adjacent to each other while maintaining a predetermined interval for wiring the drive signal line and the output signal line on the substrate between the adjacent element imaging elements. Therefore, the gap portion between adjacent lenses can be reduced as compared to the conventional case, information on the gap portion that could not be obtained conventionally can be acquired, and the resolution of the reproduced stereoscopic image can be improved.
Here, each lens constituting the lens group is arranged in a planar shape or a curved shape, and each lens type is, for example, a convex lens, a ball lens, a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or a combination thereof. It is. The element image sensor is, for example, a CCD image sensor.
In addition, according to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus transmits a plurality of optical images formed by the plurality of lenses constituting the lens group by one fiber bundle. Therefore, since the number of fiber bundles can be reduced from the number of lenses, the manufacturing cost can be reduced.
According to such a configuration, in the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus, the optical image transmitted by the optical image transmitting unit is projected onto each element image sensor by the projection lens included in the projection optical system. Therefore, it becomes easy to form the optical image transmitted by the optical image transmission means on the light receiving surface of the element image sensor. Here, the projection lens of the projection optical system is, for example, a convex lens, a ball lens, a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or a combination thereof.

  Further, the stereoscopic image imaging device according to claim 2 is the stereoscopic information imaging device according to claim 1, wherein the stereoscopic image imaging device generates inversion information generated as information obtained by inverting the imaging information captured by each of the element imaging elements in a point-symmetric manner. The generation means is further provided.

  According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus generates the captured information as information obtained by inverting the image information in a point-symmetric manner by the inversion information generation unit. Therefore, a stereoscopic reproduction image displayed using information obtained by inverting imaging information in a point-symmetric manner by a stereoscopic image display device paired with the stereoscopic image imaging device is compared with a subject when viewed from an observer. And the depth will be equal.

The stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to claim 3 is the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 or 2 , wherein the optical image transmission means is a coating in which each of the fiber bundles has an optical shielding function. It was supposed that it was covered with a material.

  According to such a configuration, in the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus, since each fiber bundle is coated with the coating material having an optical shielding function, the light of the optical image transmitted by the fiber bundle is scattered, and the adjacent fibers The incident on the bundle can be prevented.

A stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to a fourth aspect is the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to any one of the first to third aspects, wherein an optical element is interposed between the lenses constituting the lens group. An optical shielding part having a shielding function is further provided.

  According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus shields each optical image formed by each lens constituting the lens group by the optical shielding unit, and therefore is adjacent to the optical image formed by each lens. It is possible to prevent the optical image formed by the lens to be affected from affecting.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stereoscopic image display device comprising: a display means comprising a plurality of element display elements for respectively displaying images of a subject; and an image transmission means for transmitting an image displayed on the element display elements of the display means. A lens group in which a plurality of lenses that form a three-dimensional image by forming each image transmitted by the image transmission means are arranged in a planar or curved surface, an element display element of the display means, and the element display In a stereoscopic image display apparatus using an integral photography system, comprising: a drive signal line that supplies a drive signal to an element; and a substrate that has an input signal line for inputting a signal including display information displayed by the element display element. The lenses constituting the lens group are arranged adjacent to each other, the element display elements constituting the display means are arranged at a predetermined interval from each other, The image transmission means has a plurality of fiber bundles integrated so as to be bendable in a state where a plurality of optical fibers are bundled, corresponding to each of the element display elements, and each fiber bundle is on the display means side. one end is the end facing the corresponding said element display device, the predetermined predetermined multiple lenses adjacent to each other and the other end is an end portion of the lens unit side constituting the lens group The fiber bundles are arranged so that an interval between the fiber bundles at the one end is wider than an interval between the fiber bundles at the other end, and the fiber bundle is incident on the predetermined incident from the one end . the images of the subject of multiple transmitting from each of the other end to the predetermined multiple lenses, between each fiber bundle of the image transmission means and the elements display elements of the display means, the display means Elements of It was that each comprise a projection optical system an image of the predetermined plurality of the subject displayed a projection lens for projecting the fiber bundle by示素Ko.

According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image display device is configured such that the fiber bundle constituting the image transmission unit that transmits the image displayed on each element display element to the lens group is bendable, and has one end (on the display unit side). The interval between the fiber bundles at the end portion is arranged so as to be wider than the interval between the fiber bundles at the other end (end portion on the lens group side). Accordingly, the lenses constituting the lens group can be adjacent to each other while maintaining a predetermined interval for wiring the drive signal line and the input signal line on the substrate between the adjacent element display elements. Therefore, the gap portion between adjacent lenses can be reduced as compared with the conventional case, information on the gap portion that could not be displayed conventionally can be displayed, and the resolution of the reproduced stereoscopic image can be improved.
Here, the element display elements are arranged in a planar shape or a curved shape, and are constituted by, for example, liquid crystal display elements. Further, each lens constituting the lens group is arranged in a planar shape or a curved shape, and each lens type is, for example, a convex lens, a ball lens, a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or a combination thereof. is there.
According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image display device transmits an image displayed on the element display element constituting the display means to a plurality of lenses constituting the lens group by one fiber bundle. Therefore, since the number of fiber bundles can be reduced from the number of lenses, the manufacturing cost can be reduced.
According to such a configuration, in the stereoscopic image display apparatus, the image transmitted by the image transmission unit is projected onto each lens constituting the lens group by the projection lens included in the projection optical system. Therefore, the image transmitted by the image transmission means can be easily projected as parallel light on each lens constituting the lens group. Here, the projection lens of the projection optical system is, for example, a convex lens, a ball lens, a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or a combination thereof.

A stereoscopic image display device according to a sixth aspect is the stereoscopic image display device according to the fifth aspect , wherein the imaging information captured by each element imaging element of the stereoscopic image imaging device according to claim 1 is point-symmetrical. Inverted information generating means for generating the information inverted as the display information and outputting the information to the input signal line is further provided.

  According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image display device generates information obtained by inverting the imaging information captured by each element imaging element of the stereoscopic image capturing device in a point-symmetric manner by the inversion information generation unit. Therefore, the stereoscopic reproduction image displayed using the generated information has the same depth as the subject when viewed from the viewer (observer).

The stereoscopic image display device according to claim 7 is the stereoscopic image display device according to claim 5 or 6 , wherein the image transmission means is a covering material in which each of the fiber bundles has an optical shielding function. It was supposed that it was covered with.

  According to this configuration, in the stereoscopic image display device, since each fiber bundle is coated with a coating material having an optical shielding function, light that is an image medium transmitted by the fiber bundle is scattered and adjacent to each other. Can be prevented from entering the fiber bundle.

Further, the stereoscopic image display device according to claim 8 is the stereoscopic image display device according to any one of claims 5 to 7 , wherein an optical element is provided between the lenses constituting the lens group. An optical shielding part having a shielding function is further provided.

  According to such a configuration, the stereoscopic image display apparatus shields the light of each image transmitted to each lens constituting the lens group with the optical shielding unit by the fiber bundle constituting the image transmission unit. It can prevent that the light which injects from the adjacent fiber bundle exerts influence with respect to the light which injects into each lens which comprises.

According to the first or fifth aspect of the present invention, each lens constituting the lens group while maintaining a predetermined interval for wiring on the substrate or the like between adjacent element imaging elements or element display elements. Can be adjacent. Therefore, it is possible to reduce the gap between adjacent lenses as compared with the prior art, and improve the resolution of a stereoscopic image that is reproduced by reflecting information on the gap that has not been obtained in the past. That is, the resolution of a stereoscopic reproduction image can be improved even when an element imaging element or element display element arranged to have a relatively low resolution is used. Accordingly, it is possible to create a three-dimensional reproduced image having a deep depth. As a result, the range in which the viewer can move can be expanded when viewing the stereoscopic reproduction image.
Further, according to the invention described in claim 1 or claim 5 , the number of fiber bundles constituting the optical image transmission means or the image transmission means can be reduced as compared with the number of lenses constituting the lens group. Can be reduced.
According to the first or fifth aspect of the invention, since the projection optical system is provided, in the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus, the optical image transmitted by the optical image transmitting unit is connected to the light receiving surface of the element image sensor. In addition, in the stereoscopic image display apparatus, it becomes easy to project an image transmitted by the image transmission unit as parallel light on each lens constituting the lens group.

According to the second or sixth aspect of the invention, the inversion information generating unit generates the imaging information imaged by each element imaging element as information obtained by inverting the image symmetrically. Therefore, since the stereoscopic reproduction image displayed using the generated information has the same depth as the subject when viewed from the observer, a favorable stereoscopic reproduction image can be created.

According to the invention described in claim 3 or claim 7 , since each fiber bundle is coated with a coating material having an optical shielding function, the light transmitted by the fiber bundle is scattered and the adjacent fibers are scattered. The incident on the bundle can be prevented.

According to the invention described in claim 4 or claim 8 , since the optical shielding portion is provided between the lenses constituting the lens group, in the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus, the optical image formed by each lens is formed. Thus, the optical image formed by the adjacent lens is prevented from being affected, and in the stereoscopic image display device, the light incident from the adjacent fiber bundle has an influence on the light incident on each lens. It can prevent giving.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Configuration example of stereoscopic image pickup device]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus viewed from the lens group side illustrated in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, the stereoscopic image imaging apparatus 1 includes a substrate 2, an imaging unit 4, a lens group 6, an optical shielding unit 8, an optical image transmission unit 10, a writing unit 14, and a storage unit 15. With. The stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 captures an optical image transmitted by the optical image transmission means 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, the imaging unit 4 is provided on a substrate (chip) 2, and includes a plurality of element imaging elements 4 a that respectively capture optical images formed by the lens group 6.
Each element imaging device 4a is, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) imaging device, and is configured with a high-definition number of pixels sufficient for capturing a stereoscopic image with a relatively high resolution moving image.
As shown in FIG. 2, the element image pickup device 4a has four rows and five columns (identification code Dij: i = 1 to 4, j = 1 to 5), as in the conventional stereoscopic image pickup device 100 (see FIG. 12). In total, 20 are arranged. Further, on the substrate 2, a plurality of element image sensors 4 a, a drive signal line G 1 for supplying a drive signal to each element image sensor 4 a, and a signal including imaging information captured by each element image sensor 4 a are written 14. An output signal line G2 for outputting the signal, a drive signal supply means (not shown), and the like are arranged. In FIG. 2, for convenience of explanation, only a part of the element imaging device 4a, the drive signal line G1, and the output signal line G2 are displayed in a simplified form.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lens group 6 is configured by arranging a plurality of convex lenses (lenses) 6 a that form an object (imaging target) as an optical image in a planar shape. Each convex lens 6a is arranged on the same plane corresponding to one element imaging device 4a.
As shown in FIG. 1, the optical shielding unit 8 is arranged between the convex lens 6a and the optical image transmission means 10 so as not to be affected by extraneous light crossing over from the adjacent convex lens 6a. It is disposed between them, has an optical shielding function, and is made of, for example, a thin plate made of metal or synthetic resin.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the optical image transmission means 10 transmits each optical image formed by each convex lens 6a constituting the lens group 6 to each element imaging device 4a. It is configured by bundling. Each fiber bundle 11 transmits one optical image incident from one end (end portion on the lens group 6 side) to the other end (end portion on the image pickup means 4 side), and has a minute size of about several μm. The optical fibers 12 are integrated so as to be bendable in a state where a large number (several thousands to several tens of thousands) of optical fibers 12 having various diameters are bundled. These optical fibers 12 are covered with a covering material 13 having an optical shielding function, and are not affected by extraneous light that crosses over from the adjacent fiber bundle 11.

Further, in the optical image transmission means 10, the distance between the fiber bundles 11 at the other end (the end on the imaging means 4 side) is wider than the distance between the fiber bundles 11 at one end (the end on the lens group 6 side). It is arranged like this. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, the convex lenses 6a constituting the lens group 6 are disposed adjacent to each other, and the element imaging elements 4a constituting the imaging means 4 are arranged at a predetermined interval from each other. Established. The predetermined interval is an interval that allows the drive signal line G1, the output signal line G2 (see FIG. 2), a drive signal supply unit (not shown), and the like to be arranged on the substrate 2.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, the convex lenses 6 a have so-called stacking in which the centers of the convex lenses 6 a are aligned for each row, and the centers of the convex lenses 6 a are aligned every other column in the column. Arranged as a state.

The writing means (inversion information generation means) 14 acquires imaging information included in the signal output from the output signal line G2, generates the acquired imaging information as information obtained by inverting the acquired imaging information in a point-symmetric manner, and stores it in the storage means 15. To store.
The storage unit 15 is a general storage unit such as a hard disk, and stores inverted imaging information for displaying a stereoscopic image.

  If one element imaging system includes the convex lens 6a, the fiber bundle 11, and the element imaging element 4a, the stereoscopic image imaging apparatus 1 has 20 element imaging systems as shown in FIG. In reality, however, one thousand to several tens of thousands or more element imaging systems are arranged.

[Configuration example of stereoscopic image display device]
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of a stereoscopic image display device according to the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the stereoscopic image display device viewed from the lens group side illustrated in FIG. 3.
As shown in FIG. 3, the stereoscopic image display device 21 includes a substrate 22, a display unit 24, a lens group 26, an optical shielding unit 28, an image transmission unit 30, a reading unit 34, and a storage unit 35. Is provided. The stereoscopic image display device 21 displays a stereoscopic image using an image transmitted by the image transmission means 30. The stereoscopic image display device 21 is paired with the stereoscopic image pickup device 1 shown in FIG. 1. The substrate 22, the display unit 24, the lens group 26, the optical shielding unit 28, and the image transmission unit 30 are respectively The arrangement (size) is the same as that of the substrate 2, the imaging unit 4, the lens group 6, the optical shielding unit 8, and the optical image transmission unit 10 shown in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 3, the display means 24 is provided on a substrate (chip) 22 and is composed of a plurality of element display elements 24a for displaying an image captured in advance by the imaging means 4 (see FIG. 1). . Each element display element 24a is, for example, a liquid crystal element, and is configured with a high-definition number of pixels sufficient for displaying a stereoscopic image with a relatively high resolution moving image.
As shown in FIG. 4, the element display element 24a has four rows and five columns (identification codes Hij: i = 1 to 4, j = 1 to 5), as in the conventional stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 100 (see FIG. 12). In total, 20 are arranged. Further, the substrate 22 has a plurality of element display elements 24a, a drive signal line G21 for supplying a drive signal to each element display element 24a, and a signal including display information to be displayed on each element display element 24a. An input signal line G22 for inputting from the input signal, drive signal supply means (not shown), and the like are arranged. In FIG. 4, for convenience of explanation, only a part of the element display element 24a, the drive signal line G21, and the input signal line G22 are displayed in a simplified form.

As shown in FIG. 3, the lens group 26 is configured by arranging a plurality of convex lenses (lenses) 26 a that generate a stereoscopic image from each image displaying a display target in an array. Each convex lens 26a is arranged on the same plane corresponding to one element display element 24a.
As shown in FIG. 3, the optical shield 28 is adjacent between the image transmission means 30 and the convex lens 26a so as not to be affected by extraneous light crossing over from the adjacent fiber bundle 31 to the convex lens 26a. It is disposed between the convex lenses 26a, has an optical shielding function, and is made of, for example, a thin plate made of metal or synthetic resin.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the image transmission means 30 transmits each image displayed on each element display element 24 a to a convex lens 26 a constituting the lens group 26, and bundles a plurality of fiber bundles 31. Composed. Each fiber bundle 31 transmits an image incident from one end (end portion on the display means 24 side) to the other end (end portion on the lens group 26 side), and has a small diameter of about several μm. The optical fibers 32 are integrated so that they can be bent in a state where a large number (several thousand to several tens of thousands) of optical fibers 32 are bundled. These optical fibers 32 are covered with a covering material 33 having an optical shielding function, and are not affected by extraneous light that crosses over from the adjacent fiber bundle 31.

Further, in the image transmission means 30, the distance between the fiber bundles 31 at one end (the end on the display means 24 side) is wider than the distance between the fiber bundles 31 at the other end (the end on the lens group 26 side). It is arranged. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the convex lenses 26a constituting the lens group 26 are disposed adjacent to each other, and the element display elements 24a constituting the display means 24 are arranged at a predetermined interval from each other. Established. The predetermined interval is an interval that allows the drive signal line G21, the input signal line G22 (see FIG. 4), a drive signal supply unit (not shown), and the like to be arranged on the substrate 22.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, each convex lens 26 a has an alignment state in which the centers of the convex lenses 26 a coincide with each other in rows, and the centers of the convex lenses 26 a coincide with every other column in the column. Arranged as a state.

The storage means 35 is a general storage means such as a hard disk, and stores inverted imaging information acquired in advance by the stereoscopic image imaging apparatus 1 shown in FIG.
The reading unit 34 reads the inverted imaging information from the storage unit 35, generates a signal including the read imaging information as display information, and outputs the signal to each element display element 24a via the input signal line G22.

If one element display system includes the element display element 24a, the fiber bundle 31, and the convex lens 26a, the stereoscopic image display device 21 has 20 element display systems as shown in FIG. In reality, however, one thousand to several tens of thousands or more element display systems are arranged.
Further, the substrate 22, the lens group 26, the optical shielding unit 28, the image transmission unit 30 and the storage unit 35 constituting the stereoscopic image display device 21 are the substrate 2, the lens group 6, and the optical shielding unit 8 shown in FIG. 1, respectively. The optical image transmission unit 10 and the storage unit 15 may have the same configuration.

[Operation of stereoscopic imaging device]
The operation of the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus 1 shown in FIG. 1 will be described with reference to FIG. 5 (see FIGS. 1 and 2 as appropriate). FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of an imaging method by the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus illustrated in FIG. In this stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1, a subject 50 arranged in front of the lens group 6 is photographed. At this time, an element captured image (optical image) 55 is formed on each element imaging element 4 a by each convex lens 6 a constituting the lens group 6. Each element captured image 55 is an image in which the depth of the subject 50 is inverted. Then, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 uses the writing unit 14 to point-symmetrically capture image information (a plurality of images captured by each element image sensor 4a) included in the signal output from the output signal line G2 (see FIG. 2). The information is generated as inverted information and stored in the storage means 15. Then, the information stored in the storage means 15 is displayed at the position where each element imaging element 4a is arranged at the time of photographing, and compared with the subject 50 when viewed from the front of the lens group 6 arranged at the same position as at the time of photographing. 3D images with the same depth can be observed.

[Operation of stereoscopic image display device]
The operation of the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21 shown in FIG. 3 will be described with reference to FIG. 6 (see FIGS. 3 to 5 as appropriate). FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram of a reproduction method by the stereoscopic image display apparatus shown in FIG. First, as shown in FIG. 5, information (inversion information) taken by the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 and stored in the storage means 15 is stored in advance in the storage means 35 of the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21.

  Next, the stereoscopic image display device 21 reads a plurality of images (inversion information) stored in the storage unit 35 and displays them as element display images 65 by the element display elements 24a. Then, the stereoscopic image display device 21 transmits each element display image 65 to each convex lens 26a by the image transmission means 30, and inverts the depth of the element display image 65 by the convex lens 26a. In this state, when the observer observes the lens group 26 from the front with the eyes 70, the stereoscopic reproduction image 60 can be visually recognized at the same depth as the subject 50 (see FIG. 5).

According to the three-dimensional imaging device 1 according to the present embodiment, the fiber bundle 11 constituting the optical image transmission means 10 that transmits the optical image formed by each convex lens 6a to each element imaging device 4a can be bent. Therefore, each convex lens 6a can be made to adjoin, maintaining a predetermined space | interval between the adjacent element image sensors 4a.
Similarly, according to the stereoscopic image display device 21, since the fiber bundle 31 constituting the image transmission means 30 that transmits the image displayed by each element display element 24a to each convex lens 26a can be bent, it is adjacent. Each convex lens 26a can be made to adjoin, maintaining a predetermined space | interval between the element display elements 24a.

  Therefore, when an image captured by the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 is displayed by the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21, the resolution can be improved as compared with the conventional case. As a result, a three-dimensional reproduced image having a deep depth can be provided to the observer. In addition, since the resolution is improved as compared with the conventional case, the range in which the observer can move can be expanded when viewing a stereoscopic reproduction image. Furthermore, since the convex lens 6a (26a) is made to correspond one-to-one with the element imaging element 4a (or element display element 24a), the resolution of the element imaging element 4a (or element display element 24a) is reduced. Can be improved.

  Although the embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and can be implemented in various ways without changing the gist thereof. For example, in the present embodiment, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 generates information as information obtained by inverting imaging information in a point-symmetric manner, but the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21 may generate the information. In this case, in the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1, the writing unit 14 stores the acquired imaging information as it is in the storage unit 15. And the memory | storage means 35 of the stereo image display apparatus 21 stores the same imaging information as the information stored in the memory | storage means 15, and the reading means 34 functions as an inversion information generation means. That is, the reading unit 34 generates imaging information read from the storage unit 35 as point-symmetrically inverted information and outputs the information to each element display element 24a via the input signal line G22. Thereby, an equivalent effect can be produced.

  In the present embodiment, the convex lenses 6a (26a) constituting the lens group 6 (26) are arranged on the same plane, but may be arranged on the same curved surface. The alignment state of the plurality of convex lenses 6a (26a) is not limited to the stacked state, and may be a state in which the centers of the adjacent convex lenses 6a are aligned vertically and horizontally. However, the stacked state is preferable because it becomes denser.

  The coating material 13 (33) of the fiber bundle 11 (31) may be a single layer or a plurality of layers. In the case of a plurality of layers, it is preferable to use a urethane acrylate-based ultraviolet curable resin for the primary coating. In addition to the covering material 13 (33), a member for protecting the optical fiber 12 (32) from an external impact may be used in combination.

  Hereinafter, various variations of the element imaging system (or element display system) including the convex lens 6a (26a), the fiber bundle 11 (31), and the element imaging element 4a (or element display element 24a) will be described as the first modification to the first modification. The third modification will be described.

[First modification]
7A and 7B are schematic diagrams illustrating a first modification of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus and the stereoscopic image display apparatus according to the present invention, where FIG. 7A illustrates the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus, and FIG. 7B illustrates the stereoscopic image display apparatus. Yes. As shown in (a) of FIG. 7, the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 </ b> A is configured except that one end of one fiber bundle 11 is disposed so as to face a plurality (two in the figure) of convex lenses 6 a. The configuration is the same as that of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. Note that there are actually a plurality of fiber bundles 11 constituting the optical image transmission means 10, and the way of bundling is the same as that shown in FIG. 1, but is omitted in FIG. In addition, one fiber bundle 11 (or one element image pickup device 4a) is provided on the substrate 2A of the stereoscopic image pickup apparatus 1A, but the fiber bundle 11 (or element image pickup device 4a) is disposed on the substrate 2A. The number is arbitrary. When the subject 50 (see FIG. 5) is photographed by the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1A, an element captured image 55 is formed on each convex lens 6a and transmitted to the element image capturing element 4a by the fiber bundle 11 (optical image transmitting means 10). Is done.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7B, the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21A is arranged such that one end of one fiber bundle 31 is disposed so as to face a plurality (two in the figure) of convex lenses 26a. Except for this, it has the same configuration as the stereoscopic image display device 21 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. Note that there are actually a plurality of fiber bundles 31 constituting the image transmission means 30, and the way of bundling is the same as that shown in FIG. 3, but is omitted in FIG. 7B. In addition, one fiber bundle 31 (or one element display element 24a) is provided on the substrate 22A of the stereoscopic image display apparatus 21A, but the fiber bundle 31 (or element display element 24a) is disposed on the substrate 22A. The number is arbitrary. The stereoscopic image display device 21A reads out an image obtained by photographing with the stereoscopic image imaging device 1A shown in FIG. 7A from the storage means 35 and displays it as an element display image 65 on the element display element 24a. It transmits to each convex lens 26a by the fiber bundle 31 (image transmission means 30). Thereby, when each convex lens 26a is viewed from the front, a stereoscopic reproduction image can be observed.

  FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view showing an example of the correspondence relationship between the fiber bundle and the convex lens shown in FIG. Note that the correspondence between the fiber bundle and the convex lens shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 8A, the fiber bundle 11A is provided with two convex lenses 6a. That is, FIG. 8A shows a case where the number ratio between the fiber bundle 11A and the convex lens 6a is 1: 2. In this case, the fiber bundle 11A is configured to have a rectangular cross section, and the rectangle has, for example, a length that is the length of the diameter of the convex lens 6a and a width that is twice the diameter of the convex lens 6a.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, the fiber bundle 11B is provided with three convex lenses 6a. That is, FIG. 8B shows a case where the number ratio between the fiber bundle 11B and the convex lens 6a is 1: 3. In this case, the cross section of the fiber bundle 11B is formed in a regular triangle shape, and two circles having a diameter of the convex lens 6a are inscribed on each side of the regular triangle.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8C, the fiber bundle 11C is provided with four convex lenses 6a. That is, FIG. 8C shows a case where the number ratio between the fiber bundle 11C and the convex lens 6a is 1: 4. In this case, the fiber bundle 11C is formed in a square shape in cross section, and the square has a length of one side twice the diameter of the convex lens 6a. Of the circles indicating the four convex lenses 6a shown in FIG. 8C, two circles arranged diagonally may be in contact with each other. In this case, the cross section of the fiber bundle 11C is a parallelogram.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8D, the fiber bundle 11D is provided with seven convex lenses 6a. That is, FIG. 8D shows a case where the number ratio between the fiber bundle 11D and the convex lens 6a is 1: 7. In this case, the fiber bundle 11D is configured to have a regular hexagonal cross section, and two circles having a diameter of the convex lens 6a are inscribed on each side of the regular hexagon.

  Thus, the number of convex lenses 6a corresponding to one fiber bundle 11 is arbitrary, and the cross-sectional shape of the fiber bundle 11 is not limited to the above-described shape, and may be, for example, a circle. However, in order to bundle a plurality of fiber bundles 11 on the lens group 6 side so that there is almost no gap, a shape in which a plane or a curved surface can be filled with each element (cross section of the fiber bundle 11) is preferable. That is, when the correspondence relationship between the number of fiber bundles and the number of convex lenses is 1: 2, 1: 3, 1: 4, and 1: 7, the fiber bundle 11 preferably has the cross-sectional shape shown in FIG. . In addition, the number of convex lenses 6a corresponding to one fiber bundle 11 depends on the pixel pitch and the number of pixels of the element imaging element 4a. For example, 2-9 are preferable. However, the number of convex lenses 6a corresponding to one fiber bundle 11 is not limited to this.

[Second modification]
FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating a second modification of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus and the stereoscopic image display apparatus according to the present invention, in which (a) illustrates the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus and (b) illustrates the stereoscopic image display apparatus. Yes. As shown to (a) of FIG. 9, the stereo image imaging device 1B is provided with the projection optical system 80 between the fiber bundle 11 (optical image transmission means 10) and the element image pick-up element 4a (imaging means 4). The configuration is the same as that of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. In addition, the optical image transmission means 10 and the board | substrate 2A are displayed by the meaning similar to what was shown to (a) of FIG.

  The projection optical system 80 is provided in front of and behind the projection lens 81 for projecting the optical image transmitted by the fiber bundle 11 (optical image transmission means 10) onto the element imaging device 4a (imaging means 4). And an optical shielding part 8. According to this, it becomes easy to form the optical image transmitted by the optical image transmission means 10 on the light receiving surface of the element imaging device 4a. Although a convex lens is illustrated as the projection lens 81, it is not limited to this as will be described later. The projection optical system 80 may further include a mirror at a predetermined position.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 9B, the stereoscopic image display device 21B is provided with a projection optical system 80 shown in FIG. 9A between the fiber bundle 31 and the element display element 24a. Except for this, it has the same configuration as the stereoscopic image display device 21 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. Note that the image transmission means 30 and the substrate 22A are displayed in the same meaning as shown in FIG. According to this, it becomes easy to project the image transmitted by the image transmission means 30 onto the convex lens 26a as parallel light.

[Third Modification]
FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating a third modification of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus and the stereoscopic image display apparatus according to the present invention, in which (a) illustrates the stereoscopic image imaging apparatus and (b) illustrates the stereoscopic image display apparatus. Yes. As shown in FIG. 10A, in the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1C, the lens group 6 (see FIG. 1) includes a ball lens (lens) 6b, and has an optical shielding unit 8 (see FIG. 1). The configuration is the same as that of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus 1 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. In addition, the optical image transmission means 10 and the board | substrate 2A are displayed by the meaning similar to what was shown to (a) of FIG. According to this, the ball lens 6 b has a relatively small curvature and is suitable for condensing light on the fiber bundle 11.

  As shown in FIG. 10B, in the stereoscopic image display device 21C, the lens group 26 (see FIG. 3) is configured by a ball lens 26b, and does not have the optical shielding part 28 (see FIG. 3). Except for this point, the configuration is the same as that of the stereoscopic image display device 21 shown in FIG. Therefore, the same components as those in FIG. Note that the image transmission means 30 and the substrate 22A are displayed in the same meaning as shown in FIG. According to this, the ball lens 26b has a relatively small curvature, and is suitable for emitting light from the fiber bundle 31 as parallel light.

Further, the lenses constituting the lens group 6 (26) are not limited to the convex lens 6a (26a) and the ball lens 6b (26b) described above, but a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or these It may be a combination of Here, the gradient index lens is, for example, a GRIN (Gradient-index) lens having a different refractive index from the center toward the outer periphery. The diffractive optical element is, for example, a Fresnel lens. The concave lens is used in combination with other lenses as appropriate.
In addition to the convex lens described above, the projection lens 81 included in the projection optical system 80 shown in FIG. 9 may be, for example, a ball lens, a refractive index distribution lens, a diffractive optical element, a concave lens, or a combination thereof.

It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the stereo image imaging device which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the three-dimensional image imaging device seen from the lens group side shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the stereo image display apparatus which concerns on this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the three-dimensional image display apparatus seen from the lens group side shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the imaging method by the three-dimensional image imaging device shown in FIG. It is explanatory drawing of the reproduction | regeneration method by the stereo image display apparatus shown in FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows the 1st modification of the stereo image imaging device and stereo image display device which concern on this invention, (a) is a stereo image imaging device, (b) has shown the stereo image display device. It is sectional drawing which shows an example of the correspondence of the fiber bundle and convex lens which were shown to (a) of FIG. 7, (a) is the case of 1: 2, (b) is the case of 1: 3, (c) is In the case of 1: 4, (d) shows the case of 1: 7. It is a schematic diagram which shows the 2nd modification of the stereo image imaging device and stereo image display apparatus which concern on this invention, (a) has shown the stereo image imaging device, (b) has shown the stereo image display apparatus. It is a schematic diagram which shows the 3rd modification of the stereo image imaging device and stereo image display apparatus which concern on this invention, (a) has shown the stereo image imaging device, (b) has shown the stereo image display apparatus. It is explanatory drawing which shows the principle of the imaging method by an integral photography system. It is a schematic diagram which shows arrangement | positioning of the lens and imaging means in the conventional stereo image imaging device. FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ illustrated in FIG. 12.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 (1A-1C) Stereoscopic imaging device 2 (2A), 22 (22A) Board | substrate 4 Imaging means 4a (D11-D45) Element imaging device 6,26 Lens group 6a, 26a Convex lens (lens)
6b, 26b Ball lens (lens)
8, 28 Optical shielding unit 10 Optical image transmission means 11 (11A to 11D), 31 Fiber bundle 12, 32 Optical fiber 13, 33 Coating material 14 Writing means (reversal information generating means)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 15,35 Memory | storage means 21 (21A-21C) Stereoscopic image display apparatus 24 Display means 24a (H11-H45) Element display element 30 Image transmission means 34 Reading means 50 Subject 55 Element picked-up image 60 Three-dimensional reproduction image 65 Element display image 70 eyes 80 Projection optical system 81 Projection lens G1, G21 Drive signal line G2 Output signal line G22 Input signal line

Claims (8)

A lens group in which a plurality of lenses that respectively form an optical image of a subject are arranged in a planar or curved surface, an optical image transmission unit that transmits each optical image formed by the lens group, and the optical image transmission unit An image pickup unit comprising a plurality of element image pickup devices for picking up each of the optical images transmitted in the above, an element image pickup device of the image pickup means, a drive signal line for supplying a drive signal to the element image pickup device, and the element image pickup device. In a stereoscopic image capturing apparatus using an integral photography system, including a substrate having an output signal line that outputs a signal including captured image information,
Each lens constituting the lens group is disposed adjacent to each other,
Each element imaging element constituting the imaging means is disposed at a predetermined interval from each other,
The optical image transmission means has a plurality of fiber bundles integrated so as to be able to bend in a state where a plurality of optical fibers are bundled, corresponding to each of the element imaging elements,
Wherein each fiber bundle has one end which is an end portion of the lens unit side is facing a predetermined prescribed multiple lenses adjacent to each other constituting the lens group is at the end of the imaging means side The other end faces the corresponding element image sensor,
The spacing between the fiber bundles at the other end is arranged to be wider than the spacing between the fiber bundles at the one end,
It said fiber bundle transmits an optical image of the object of the predetermined number of multiple incident from the one end via a predetermined multiple of the lens to the other end,
A projection lens for projecting the predetermined plurality of optical images of the subject transmitted by the fiber bundle onto the element image sensor between each fiber bundle of the optical image transmission unit and each element image sensor of the imaging unit. A three-dimensional image capturing apparatus comprising a projection optical system including   The stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a reversal information generation unit configured to generate information obtained by reversing image capturing information captured by each of the element image capturing elements. The optical image transmitting means, the stereoscopic imaging apparatus according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that each said fiber bundle is coated with a coating material having an optical shielding function. The stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , further comprising an optical shielding unit having an optical shielding function between the lenses constituting the lens group. Display means comprising a plurality of element display elements for displaying images of the subject, image transmission means for transmitting images displayed on the element display elements of the display means, and each image transmitted by the image transmission means A lens group in which a plurality of lenses that form an image and generate a stereoscopic image are arranged in a planar or curved surface, an element display element of the display means, a drive signal line that supplies a drive signal to the element display element, and the element In a stereoscopic image display device using an integral photography system comprising: a substrate having an input signal line for inputting a signal including display information displayed by a display element;
Each lens constituting the lens group is disposed adjacent to each other,
Each element display element constituting the display means is disposed at a predetermined interval from each other,
The image transmission means has a plurality of fiber bundles integrated so as to be bent in a state where a plurality of optical fibers are bundled, corresponding to each of the element display elements,
Each of the fiber bundles has one end that is an end portion on the display means side facing the corresponding element display element, and the other end that is an end portion on the lens group side is adjacent to each other that constitutes the lens group in advance. facing a predetermined multiple lens defined,
The spacing between the fiber bundles at the one end is arranged to be wider than the spacing between the fiber bundles at the other end,
It said fiber bundle transmits respectively the images of the object of the predetermined number of multiple incident from the one end from the other end to the predetermined multiple of the lens,
Projection for projecting the predetermined plurality of images of the subject onto the fiber bundle displayed by the element display element of the display means between each element display element of the display means and each fiber bundle of the image transmission means A stereoscopic image display apparatus comprising a projection optical system including a lens . An inversion information generation unit that generates information obtained by inverting image information captured by each element image sensor of the stereoscopic image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 in a point-symmetric manner as the display information and outputs the information to the input signal line. The stereoscopic image display apparatus according to claim 5 , further comprising: Wherein the image transmitting means, the stereoscopic image display apparatus according to claim 5 or claim 6, characterized in that each said fiber bundle is coated with a coating material having an optical shielding function. The stereoscopic image display apparatus according to any one of claims 5 to 7 , further comprising an optical shielding unit having an optical shielding function between the lenses constituting the lens group.

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