Convergence feedback indicator, provided when taking a picture in a camera application
View Patent ↗Apparatus and associated method for facilitating image capturing in an electronic camera without the image being completely focused. A “mostly-in-focus” indicator is provided to an operator of the camera to notify the operator that a reasonably good image is available for capture, without having to wait for the camera to finish a fine focus adjustment.
1. A method of capturing an image with an electronic camera device having an image detector and an adjustable lens, the method comprising:
detecting an image on the image detector;
incrementally changing a separation distance between the adjustable lens and the image detector by a plurality of first-sized steps to improve clarity of the detected image, the incremental changes of the separation distance being made until an additional incremental change by a first-sized step decreases detected image clarity; and
prior to incrementally changing the separation distance by a plurality of second-sized steps to additionally improve image clarity, displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the first-sized steps are coarse steps and the second-sized steps are fine steps that are smaller than the coarse steps.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the act of displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture is performed before the detected image is optimally focused.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the act of displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture comprises displaying an icon on a display device associated with the electronic camera device.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the detected image's clarity is evaluated based on a focus-dependent characteristic of the detected image.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the focus-dependent characteristic is a parameter relating to sharpness of lines forming at least a portion of the detected image.
7. The method of claim 5 , wherein the focus-dependent characteristic is a parameter relating to sharpness of edges forming at least a portion of the detected image.
8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising displaying the image on a display device associated with the electronic camera device, wherein the act of displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture comprises displaying a plurality of L-shaped corners that form a virtual frame around at least a portion of the displayed image.
9. The method of claim 8 , wherein the plurality of L-shaped corners are provided with one or more different colors to further distinguish a degree to which the displayed image is focused.
10. The method of claim 8 , wherein the virtual frame comprises a rectangular frame.
11. A nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium containing instructions stored thereon which facilitate indication of focus control relative to image capture by an electronic device, when executed by a processor associated with the electronic device, the electronic device including a camera module with an image detector and an adjustable lens, the nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium comprising:
program instructions configured for detecting an image on the image detector;
program instructions configured for determining the detected image's clarity based on evaluating a focus-dependent characteristic of the detected image;
program instructions configured for facilitating incremental changing of a separation distance between the adjustable lens and the image detector by a plurality of first-sized steps to improve clarity of the detected image, the incremental changes of the separation distance being made until an additional incremental change by a first-sized step decreases the detected image's clarity; and
program instructions configured for displaying, prior to incremental changing of the separation distance by a plurality of second-sized steps to additionally improve image clarity, an indication that the detected image is ready for capture.
12. The nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium of claim 11 , wherein the program instructions configured for displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture comprise program instructions for displaying an icon on a display device associated with the electronic camera device.
13. The nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium of claim 11 , further comprising program instructions for evaluating the focus-dependent characteristic of the detected image's clarity based on sharpness of lines forming at least a portion of the detected image.
14. The nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium of claim 11 , further comprising program instructions for evaluating the focus-dependent characteristic of the detected image's clarity based on sharpness of edges forming at least a portion of the detected image.
15. The nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium of claim 11 , further comprising program instructions for displaying the image on a display device, wherein the program instructions configured for displaying an indication that the detected image is ready for capture comprise program instructions for displaying a plurality of L-shaped corners that form a virtual frame around at least a portion of the displayed image.
16. The nonvolatile storage computer-readable medium of claim 15 , wherein the plurality of L-shaped corners are provided with one or more different colors to further distinguish a degree to which the displayed image is focused.
17. An electronic device, comprising:
a camera module including an image detector and an adjustable lens;
a user interface associated with the camera module, the user interface including a display device; and
a controller configured to:
determine a detected image's clarity based on evaluating a focus-dependent characteristic of the detected image;
facilitate incremental changing of a separation distance between the adjustable lens and the image detector by a plurality of first-sized steps to improve clarity of the detected image, the incremental changes of the separation distance being made until an additional incremental change by a first-sized p decreases the detected image's clarity; and
facilitate displaying, prior to incremental changing of the separation distance by a plurality of second-sized steps to additionally improve image clarity, an indication that the detected image is ready for capture.
18. The electronic device of claim 17 , wherein the first-sized steps are coarse steps and the second-sized steps are fine steps that are smaller than the coarse steps.
19. The electronic device of claim 17 , wherein the indication that the detected image is ready is for capture comprises an icon displayed on the display device.
20. The electronic device of claim 17 , wherein the indication that the detected image is ready is for capture comprises a plurality of L-shaped corners that form a virtual frame around at least a portion of the image displayed on the display device.