JPH0518408B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Technical Field of the Invention) The present invention relates to a photographic printing apparatus that automatically positions and stops image frames corresponding to each size of original film such as negative film. Concerning how to stop detecting frames.

(Technical Background of the Invention and Problems Thereof) In a photographic printing apparatus, in order to properly print the frame images of the original film onto photographic paper, it is necessary to accurately position the frames of the original film in the optical frame. For this reason, conventionally, a notch is provided in advance at the side edge of the original film, and this is detected and positioned using a mechanical sensor, optical sensor, etc., but when providing the notch, it is necessary to accurately correspond to the frame. The drawback is that it requires a lot of effort. There is also a method of positioning the original film by constantly moving it a fixed distance.
The drawback is that positional deviations accumulate, resulting in poor accuracy and low practicality. Furthermore, a method has been proposed in which optical sensors such as photodiode arrays are arranged according to the shape of the frames of the original film, and the positions are determined based on the detection status and order of each optical sensor. The disadvantage is that the control algorithm is complicated and the cost is high.

(Object of the Invention) The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and detects edges between image frames of an original film using photometric image information of the original film such as a negative film using a simple configuration. The object of the present invention is to position an image frame by setting a movement amount corresponding to the image frame size, and to provide a fast and accurate method for detecting and stopping image frames.

(Summary of the Invention) The present invention relates to a method for stopping the detection of image frames in a photographic printing apparatus, etc., in which a one-dimensional image sensor receives light from one end of a negative carrier opening illuminated by a printing light source, The edge between each image frame of the original film is detected by measuring transmitted light or reflected light from the original film with the one-dimensional image sensor in a pixel line-shaped portion perpendicular to the transport direction, and While the edge between each image frame is being detected, the original film is transported by a minute feed, and after the edge is detected, the transport is carried out at high speed, and when the edge is detected, the original film is transported in a manner corresponding to the size of the original film. It is designed to convey the distance between frames and then stop. A two-dimensional image sensor receives light from the negative carrier area irradiated by the printing light source, and extracts one or more images corresponding to one end of the negative carrier opening and orthogonal to the conveyance direction of the original film. The edge between each image frame of the original film is detected by measuring the transmitted light or reflected light from the original film with the two-dimensional image sensor in the pixel line-shaped portion, and the edge between the image frames is detected. While the edge is being detected, the original film is conveyed by a minute feed, and after the edge is detected, the original film is conveyed at high speed, and when the edge is detected, the original film is conveyed by a distance between frames corresponding to the size of the original film. I'm trying to stop it.

(Embodiment of the Invention) FIG. 1 shows an example in which a one-dimensional image sensor 11 used in the present invention is installed together with a lens system 12 in a conventional photographic printing apparatus. The negative film 2 sent above is illuminated by a light source 4 through three complementary color filters 3 of yellow (Y), magenta (M) and cyan (C). The transmitted light passes through a lens system 5 and a black shutter 6 before reaching photographic paper 7. Photographic paper 7 is feed roller 7
A is wound around the roller 7B in synchronization with the conveyance and stopping of the negative film 2, and red (R) and green (G) are wound around the lens system 4 side of the negative film 2. ) and blue (B), an optical sensor 8 such as a photodiode is provided for detecting image density information of the three primary colors;
Photo printing is performed based on the detection signal. The one-dimensional image sensor 11 is mounted at one end of the negative carrier opening so as to be perpendicular to the conveying direction of the negative film 2 and
It is arranged so that it can scan the entire original image frame of the negative film 2 loaded in the camera, and image information of a pixel line-shaped area 40 as shown in FIG. 8 can be detected at one end. There is. Further, a lens system 12 is disposed in front of the one-dimensional image sensor 11, and is adapted to focus and form an image on the negative film 2.

Here, the one-dimensional image sensor 11 is a MOS
(Metal Oxide Semiconductor) and CCD (Charge
As shown in FIG. 2, in the case of a CCD, there is an imaging unit 101 that optically captures an image, and a holding unit 102 that holds the charge transferred from the imaging unit 101. and holding part 1
02, and an output register 103 for outputting the charge held in 02, and by controlling drive signals 101S to 103S from the drive circuit
The dimensional image information is photoelectrically converted and output register 1
Since 2003, analog image signals PS have been output in series. Further, the circuit configuration is, for example, as shown in FIG. The light irradiated onto the image signal 101 is output as an image signal PS from the output register 103, sampled and held in a sample hold circuit 21 at a predetermined sampling period, and the held value is converted into a digital signal DS by an AD converter 22. . The digital signal DS from the AD converter 22 is input to the logarithmic conversion circuit 23 and is logarithmically converted, and after being converted into the density signal DN, it is written into the memory 25 via the write control circuit 24.
Note that the write control circuit 24 is connected to the drive circuit 20 to 1.
A reading speed signal RS is inputted to drive the dimensional image sensor 11 to read image information at a constant speed.
The density signals DN are sequentially written to predetermined positions in the memory 25 in accordance with the driving speed of the dimensional image sensor 11.

In such a configuration, when performing normal photographic printing, the optical sensor 8 detects the transmitted light of the negative film 2 that has been conveyed and is stationary in the printing section, and generates image signals for each of the three primary colors, RGB. The filter 3 is adjusted accordingly, the black shutter 6 is opened, and the photographic paper 7 is exposed to the determined exposure amount.

In this invention, for example, there is a
A one-dimensional image sensor 11 made of CCD is installed,
As the negative film 2 is transported, a part or the entire screen thereof is divided into a large number of aligned pixels to detect image information. That is, the drive circuit 20
A predetermined drive signal is sent to the one-dimensional image sensor 11 from
By providing signals 101S to 103S, the one-dimensional image sensor 11 receives the transmitted light of the negative film 2 located at the side end of the printing section through the lens system 12. 2, the entire negative film 2 is divided into a large number of aligned small pixels 2A as shown in FIG. 4A, and the entire screen of the negative film 2 is sequentially scanned along the scanning line SL. can do. Then, the output register 103 of the one-dimensional image sensor 11 is
sequentially outputs the image signal PS from
is the concentration signal after being AD converted and logarithmically converted.
DN, and this density signal DN is stored in the memory 25 under the control of the write control circuit 24 in an array corresponding to the pixel 2A as shown in FIG. 4B and as a density digital value of the negative film 2. That will happen.

In this way, the negative film 2 is stored in the memory 25.
When digital values for each pixel or density values for each pixel related to the three primary colors are stored, the negative film 2
Digital values can be read out from the memory 25 and used for each pixel. Therefore, by means of stripe filters (not shown) closely attached to the pixels of the one-dimensional image sensor 11, 3
If density values as shown in Figure 4B are determined and stored for each RGB primary color, the photographic printing exposure can be determined or corrected in the same way as before by reading out the stored values and performing calculations, etc. It can be used as a quantity.

Here, the long negative film 2 is sequentially transported to the printing section by the negative transport mechanism 30, which is located at the center of the negative transport path 31, as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B. A negative carrier 1 having a rectangular opening 32A corresponding to the size of the negative film used is mounted, and the negative film is transported between the negative transport path 31 and the negative carrier 1. ing. Guide walls 31A and 31B are erected on both sides of the negative transport path 31 to guide the transport of the negative film, and directly below the negative carrier 1 is a transmission hole 33 for receiving light from the light source 4. There is. Further, a guide member 34 consisting of a top plate 34A and a bottom plate 34B for sandwiching and smoothly introducing the negative film is disposed at the film introduction portion of the negative transport path 31, and the top plate 34A is connected to a hinge member 34C. It can be opened and closed through the Furthermore, a negative drive roller 35 is provided at the film lead-out portion of the negative transport path 31 for loading and winding the printed negative film. The negative drive roller 3 is rotated by the motor 37 via the
A nip roller 38 consisting of a pair of rollers is disposed above the negative film to smoothly load and wind the negative film, and this nip roller 38 can also be opened and closed upward via a hinge member (not shown). I'm starting to be able to do it.

In such a configuration, the negative film to be subjected to printing is introduced from the opening 34D of the guide member 34, is conveyed onto the negative conveyance path 31, passes through the opening 32A of the negative carrier 1, and finally reaches the negative conveyance path 31. , and is loaded onto the negative drive roller 35 via the nip roller 38 and wound up. Here, the negative carrier 1 is attached according to the size of the negative film to be used, and the size of the opening 32A of the negative carrier 1 corresponds to the frame size of the negative film, so that the periphery of the image frame is The snook part does not protrude from the end of the opening 32A of the negative carrier 1. On the other hand, the area where the image sensor 11 receives light includes not only the frame images of the negative film 2 but also the non-transmitted light portion of the negative carrier 1 so that it can handle large-sized negative films with ease. , the image information of the snook image area detected by the one-dimensional image sensor 11 is, for example, the image information in the case of a 110 size negative carrier as shown in FIG. 6A.
The image information for a 135 full-size negative carrier is as shown in Figure B. Similarly 2
The 110 size image information of the dimensional image sensor is as shown in FIG. 6C, and the 135 full size image information is as shown in FIG. 6D. These Figure 6 A, B,
C and D each show an example of detected image information in a state where no film is loaded, and the part surrounded by the broken line in the center shows the opening.

Here, since the size of the opening corresponds to the size of the negative film 2, the density “0” ( (or a value close to this) and by calculating the number, the area of the opening can be determined, and as a result, the size of the negative film 2 can be determined. In other words, the size of the negative film 2 is determined by counting the number of pixels with a density of "0" using hardware or software and comparing the counted value with a predetermined value for each size. be able to. At the same time, from the opening surrounded by the broken line in the center of the two-dimensional image sensor,
It is also possible to automatically select and extract one or more line-shaped pixel portions with density "0" at one end, and in this case there is an advantage that mechanical position adjustment of the sensor unit is almost unnecessary. The size information of the negative film 2 determined in this way is sent to the printing system, and after an exposure amount determining formula is selected or calculated using a predetermined determining formula, printing according to the size is realized. In addition, the size information of negative film 2 is as follows.
It can also be input visually by an operator or the like.

Here, when the negative film 2 is transported to the printing section for printing, it is necessary to accurately position the photographed image frames 2A, 2B, 2C, . . . on the negative carrier 1 as shown in FIG. 7A. After the image frame is printed, the negative film 2 is conveyed, the next image frame is positioned, and the image frame is stopped. Conventionally, in order to stop the detection of image frames in this manner, a notch for automatically stopping the image frames at a predetermined position was previously formed on the negative film using an automatic notcher. On the contrary,
Regarding the negative film 2 as shown in FIG. 7A,
If, as the negative film 2 is conveyed, image information for each pixel of the one-dimensional image sensor 11 as shown in FIG. Detectable and unphotographed areas between adjacent image frames
RA, RB, RC, . . . can also be detected from the density data, and thereby image frame detection can be stopped. In this case, the one-dimensional image sensor 11 is fixed together with the lens system 12, and the negative film 2 is moved by the negative conveyance mechanism 30 to selectively extract and scan a necessary portion of the negative film. However, if all of the detected information is used to stop detecting image frames, the calculation will take a lot of time, and in order to do it at high speed, the performance of the microcomputer must be increased, which increases the cost of the device. There are some drawbacks.

For this reason, in the present invention, as shown in FIG. As a result, edges between image frames of the negative film 2 are detected using this pixel line-shaped portion 40.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the detection and stop method of the present invention, in which a negative carrier 1 of a size corresponding to the size of the negative film 2 to be printed is loaded into a predetermined position of the printing section (step S1), and the negative carrier 1 is The size of the opening 32A is measured by the image sensor 11 using the method described above (step S2). Note that this size measurement may be input visually. In accordance with this size measurement information, the conveyance amount of the negative film 2 is set, and in the case of a two-dimensional image sensor, selection and extraction of the pixel line-shaped portion 40 according to the size of the negative film 2 is automatically performed.

Next, the developed long negative film 2 to be printed is loaded in a position where the empty frame at the leading end of the negative film almost corresponds to the opening of the negative carrier (step S3), and the leading end of the negative film 2 is driven into the negative drive. Once loaded onto the roller 35, the motor 37 is driven to transport the negative film 2 minutely by a fraction of the frame interval D (step S4), during which image information is detected by the image sensor 11. Diagram B
Obtain data for each pixel as shown in . As is clear from the correspondence between A and B in FIG. 7, image frames 2A, 2B, 2C taken on negative film 2
...and the unshot areas between frames RA, RB, RC,...
There is generally a noticeable difference in concentration values between...
An area where the density value is below a certain level, and where the density value changes sharply in the horizontal direction and within a certain range in the vertical direction (direction perpendicular to the conveyance direction of the negative film 2),
By searching with the pixel line portion 40 of the image sensor 11, image frames 2A, 2B, 2C...
The edges RA, RB, RC, ... can be detected. FIG. 8 shows this state, in which the negative film 2 is conveyed in the N direction to the printing section of the negative carrier 1, and the pixel line-shaped portion 40 is located at the side end of the opening of the negative carrier 1. Then, the pixel line-shaped portion 4 of the image sensor 11
I am trying to detect Edge RC with 0. Although the width of the edge is shown wide in FIG. 8 and FIG. 7B for convenience, it is actually about 1 mm on the negative film 2.
This edge can be detected even by a sensor with modest resolution. When edges are detected by a sensor with low resolution, the snaking part and the frame image part do not change sharply but change gradually. When the direction of change is reversed (or the position where the change value becomes zero) based on the amount of time-series change in pixel data for one line of the sensor, or the relative difference or relative ratio of pixel data between two lines
is detected as an edge.

The conveyance of the negative film 2 is continued at a low speed until such an edge between image frames is detected (step S5), and when an edge RC between image frames is detected, the size measurement is performed as described above (step S2). Based on the obtained size information, the frame is transported a distance S at high speed until it is positioned in the printing section (steps S6, S7), and then stopped (step S8).
In this case, the distance D from the edge E between the image frames located at the side edge of the negative carrier 1 to the burned area of the frame can be calculated if the frame size S is known.
This can be determined by +S, and if the negative film 2 is conveyed by D from the state shown in FIG. 8, it will eventually stop in a state where it is accurately positioned at the printing section. Further, if edges between image frames are not detected in the pixel line portion 40 of the one-dimensional image sensor 11, for convenience, for example, constant feeding is performed at the frame interval D (step S12).

After conveying and stopping the negative film 2 in this way,
It is determined whether the stopped frame is suitable for burning (step S9), and if it is not suitable for burning, the step
Skip to S11, and if it is suitable for printing, print the stopped frame with the determined exposure amount and correction amount (step S10), and after the completion of printing the next image frame, transport the next image frame to the printing section and print it. In order to attach
It is determined whether or not the negative film 2 is still present, and the negative film 2 is minutely conveyed according to the size information obtained in step S2 (step S11,
S4). Note that the determination of the presence or absence of negative film 2 (step S11) is based on whether negative film 2 is negative carrier 1 or not.
If it disappears from above, it can be detected because the image information of the opening 32A becomes all "0" as shown in FIGS. 6A, B, C, and D. Also, it is determined whether the stopped frame is suitable for printing (step S9).
If all of the image information in Figure 4B is above a certain value (corresponding to an extremely overexposed negative), below a certain value (corresponding to an extremely underexposed negative), or within a certain value (extremely low It can be detected by becoming a contrast negative (equivalent to a negative contrast).

Thereafter, by repeating the above-described conveyance and stopping, it is possible to automatically print each image frame in sequence. Then, when the negative film 2 runs out in step S11, the idling of the negative drive roller 35 is automatically stopped and the process ends. At this time, an alarm may be issued to notify the operator of the end of film processing. All of the above explanations have been made using density values, but it goes without saying that the log conversion circuit 23 may be suspended and information on true values may be used.

In the above, a one-dimensional image sensor is placed at one end of the negative carrier opening, and a general reduction imaging optical system such as a spherical lens or an aspherical lens is used to detect edges between image frames and image information in a line-shaped portion. is detected, but it may also be detected using a 1-magnification imaging optical system using a lens array or the like. Furthermore, a two-dimensional image sensor is used to photometer the entire surface of the negative carrier including the vicinity of the opening, and edges between image frames are detected using one or more extracted pixel line-shaped regions corresponding to one edge of the negative carrier. Also good. Although the explanation has been made using a long negative film, if the negative drive rollers 35 are arranged on both sides of the opening 32A, it is also possible to handle short negative films (for example, in units of 6 frames).

In the above embodiment, a photographic printing apparatus has been described, but the present invention can be similarly applied to recording on storage media such as magnetic tapes, optical discs, and magnetic disc films.

(Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the present invention, the image information including the peripheral area of the frame image of the original film is detected by the image sensor, and the original film is scanned in synchronization with the conveyance of the original film. The system automatically detects image frames and positions them at predetermined positions by selectively extracting the necessary portions of the image and controlling exposure, and by detecting edges between image frames at the side edges of the negative carrier opening. Therefore, efficient and reliable photo processing can be realized with a simple configuration.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the application of the present invention to a photo printing device, Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing the functions of a one-dimensional image sensor, and Fig. 3 is a block diagram showing the control system of the one-dimensional image sensor. Configuration diagram, 4th
Figures A and B are diagrams illustrating an example of the correspondence between pixel division of the original film and stored data, Figure 5A is a plan view showing the detailed structure of the printing section, Figure B is a side view thereof, and Figure 6 A to D are memory diagrams showing examples of image information, FIGS. 7A and B are diagrams showing the relationship between negative film and image information, FIG. 8 is a diagram showing the state of the negative carrier section, and FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the present invention. 2 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation. 1...Negative carrier, 2...Negative film, 3
... Filter, 4 ... Light source, 5, 12 ... Lens system, 6 ... Black shutter, 7 ... Photographic paper, 8 ... Light sensor, 11 ... One-dimensional image sensor, 20 ... Drive circuit, 22 ...AD converter,
24...Write control circuit, 25...Memory, 30...
...Film conveyance mechanism, 31...Film conveyance path,
35...Negative drive roller, 37...Motor.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A one-dimensional image sensor receives light at one end of the negative carrier opening irradiated with a printing light source, and a pixel line-shaped portion perpendicular to the conveying direction of the original film is detected. The edge between each image frame of the original film is detected by measuring the transmitted light or reflected light from the one-dimensional image sensor, and while the edge between each image frame is being detected, the edge of the original film is The film is transported by a minute feed, and after the edge is detected, the film is transported at high speed, and when the edge is detected, the film is transported by a distance between frames corresponding to the size of the original film, and then stopped. How to stop detecting image frames. 2. Image frame detection according to claim 1, wherein the one-dimensional image sensor also detects image information of the original film by moving relative to the original film. How to stop. 3 The negative carrier area irradiated with the printing light source is
Light is received by the dimensional image sensor, and transmission from the original film is detected at one or more extracted pixel line-shaped portions corresponding to one end of the negative carrier opening and orthogonal to the transport direction of the original film. By measuring light or reflected light with the two-dimensional image sensor, the edges between each image frame of the original film are detected, and while the edges between the image frames are being detected, the conveyance of the original image is finely advanced. Detection of image frames is carried out at high speed after the edge is detected, and when the edge is detected, the image frame is conveyed by a distance between frames corresponding to the size of the original film and then stopped. How to stop. 4. The method for stopping detection of image frames according to claim 3, wherein the two-dimensional image sensor also detects image information of the original film. 5. Stopping detection of image frames according to claim 3, wherein extraction of a pixel line-shaped portion of the two-dimensional image sensor corresponding to one end of the negative carrier opening can be arbitrarily selected. Method.