Camera control system

[Industrial Application Field] The present invention is a camera control system for remotely controlling a video camera.<u style="single">, Camera operating device and camera operating method</u>More specifically, a camera control system that controls the other party and / or one's own video camera in the video communication conferencing system by a user interface displayed on the monitor screen.<u style="single">, Camera operating device and camera operating method</u>Regarding.

[0002] In a video communication conferencing system, a video camera is connected to each communication terminal device, and input video thereof is transmitted to each other via a communication line. Each user talks while watching the image from the communication partner displayed on the monitor screen of his / her communication terminal device and, if necessary, looking at the material figures and the like. You can also exchange data with each other. Normally, the video camera connected to each communication terminal device is configured to be able to externally control pan, tilt, and zoom, and each communication terminal device communicates with the video camera connected to the communication terminal device of the communication partner. It can be operated remotely via a line. On the monitor screen, a camera operation interface for operating the video camera of the other terminal and the own terminal is displayed, and the user or the operator can arbitrarily use various graphical elements of the camera operation interface as a pointing device such as a mouse. By selecting and operating with, the desired camera pan, tilt, zoom, and the like can be operated.

[0003] FIG. 20 shows a conventional camera operating interface. In this camera operation interface 310, as camera operations, a left pan operation button 312 for instructing left pan, a right pan operation button 314 for instructing right pan, an up tilt operation button 316 for instructing an upward tilt, and a downward tilt operation button 316. Down tilt operation button 318 to instruct tilt, home position button 320 to instruct to return to the reference direction (usually front), tele button 322 to instruct to zoom in the tele direction, and zoom in the wide direction. It is equipped with a wide button 324 to instruct.

[0004] The interface 310 further includes a camera name display field 326 for displaying the camera name to be controlled, and by pressing the expansion button 328, as shown in FIG. 21, a list of all camera names that can be controlled is displayed. It is displayed as a pull-down menu 330 at the bottom of the camera name display field 326. The camera name displayed in the camera name display field 326 is the camera name displayed at the top of the pull-down menu 330. Reference numeral 332 is a registration button to be operated when it is desired to newly register a camera to be controlled in the pull-down menu 330.

[0005] When the user clicks the mouse button on the registration button 332, the registration window 334 shown in FIG. 22 is displayed on the monitor screen in response to the mouse button. The registration window 334 has a camera name input field 336, an IP address input field 338, and a camera number input field 340. In the camera name input field 336, enter the camera name to be added to the control target (Computer 1 in FIG. 22) in a character string that is easy for the user to understand. In the IP address input field 338, enter the IP address of the computer network of the communication terminal device to which the camera to be added to be controlled is connected. In the camera number input field 340, enter the number of the camera to be added to the control target among the cameras connected to the communication terminal specified by the IP address.

[0006] In the camera name display field 326 and the pull-down menu 330, the camera name input in the camera name input field 336 is displayed. The camera specified by the camera name currently displayed in the camera name display field 326 is the camera currently being controlled. The camera names are displayed in a list on the pull-down menu 330 as shown in FIG. 21, but in the conventional example, the display order is fixed to the registration order or the reverse order of registration.

[0007] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention] As described above, in the conventional example, the pull-down menu displayed when selecting the camera to be controlled displays the camera names in a list in a fixed order. For example, a frequently used camera does not always come to the top, so there is a drawback that the operation of selecting a camera to be controlled becomes troublesome.

[0008] Although a conventional example in a video communication conferencing system has been described, such an inconvenience is a video surveillance system using a large number of video cameras, which is arranged in a central surveillance center and any camera can be used. The same applies to a camera control system that selects and operates a camera.

[0009] The present invention is a camera control system that eliminates such inconvenience.<u style="single">, Camera operating device and camera operating method</u>The purpose is to present.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The camera control system according to the present invention is<u style="single">From the camera control device</u>It is a camera control system that can control multiple cameras.<u style="single">The camera operating device includes a selection means for selecting a camera to be controlled, and after the camera is selected by the selection means, pan, tilt, and zoom with respect to the selected camera in response to a predetermined operation input. Issuing means for issuing at least one camera control command, and the number of times the camera control command issued by the issuing means is issued for each video camera.</u>With a counting means to count<u style="single">Said</u>A list display means for displaying the camera list in the order according to the count value of the counting means is provided.<u style="single">The selection means is said</u>It is characterized in that a camera to be controlled is selected from a camera list displayed by the list display means.

【0011】<u style="single">Further, the camera operating device according to the present invention is a camera operating device capable of controlling a plurality of cameras, and is a selection means for selecting a camera to be controlled and a predetermined operation after the camera is selected by the selection means. An issuing means that issues at least one of the pan, tilt, and zoom camera control commands to the selected camera in response to input, and a camera control command issued by the issuing means for each video camera. A counting means for counting the number of times of issuance and a list display means for displaying a camera list in an order according to the count value of the counting means are provided, and the selection means is controlled from the camera list displayed by the list display means. It is characterized by selecting a target camera.</u>【0012】<u style="single">Further, the camera operation method according to the present invention is a camera operation method for controlling a plurality of cameras in the camera operation device, and the camera is selected in the selection step of selecting the camera to be controlled and the selection step. After that, a issuing process of issuing at least one camera control command of pan, tilt, and zoom to the selected camera according to a predetermined operation input, and issuing of each video camera in the issuing process. A counting step for counting the number of times the camera control command is issued and a list display step for displaying the camera list on the display means in the order according to the count value by the counting step are provided, and the selection step is displayed by the display means. It is characterized in that the camera to be controlled is selected from the camera list.</u>[0013] [Action] By the above means, the camera name candidates are displayed in descending order of frequency of use, so that the selection operation is simplified. Further, in the case of a two-party conference, by providing a means for selecting and specifying whether to control the camera of the communication partner or the camera of the user, the camera to be controlled can be quickly switched.

[Examples] Hereinafter, examples of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

An embodiment of the present invention in a video communication conferencing system will be described. FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication terminal device, FIG. 2 is a network connection configuration diagram, and FIG. 3 is an example of a monitor screen.

[0016] First, the configuration of the terminal device shown in FIG. 1 will be described. 10 is the CPU that controls the whole, 12 is RAM, 14 is the program for loading the OS (operating system) into RAM 12, ROM that stores other programs and fixed data, 16 is the image that compresses and decompresses the image data. A compression / decompression circuit, 18 is a video memory that stores image data to be displayed on the display monitor 20, which can be connected to the memory bus 22 to transfer data to and from each other.

An I / O bus 24 is further connected to the memory bus 22, and a keyboard 26, a mouse 28, an external storage device (hard disk device, etc.) 30, and a video camera 32 are connected to the I / O bus 24. Video input device 34 to be connected, audio input device 38 to connect microphone 36, audio output device 42 to supply audio signals to speaker 40, camera control circuit 44 to control pan, tilt and zoom of video camera 32, and , The network transmitter / receiver 48 connected to the network 46 is connected.

The video input device 34 converts the analog video signal output from the video camera 32 into a digital signal and stores it in the internal RAM. The voice input device 38 also converts the analog voice signal from the microphone 36 into a digital signal and stores it in the internal RAM. The CPU 10 can access the video data stored in the RAM of the video input device 34 and the audio data stored in the RAM of the audio input device 38 via the memory bus 22 and the I / O bus 24. The audio output device 42 includes a RAM for temporarily storing the audio data from the I / O bus 24, and the audio data stored in the RAM is sequentially converted into an analog signal and applied to the speaker 40.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of terminal devices 50, 52, 54, 56 having the configuration shown in FIG. 1 are connected to the network 46 so as to be able to communicate video, audio, and data with each other. , Build a video communication conference system. The network 46 is a bus-type network such as Ethernet (trademark) in this embodiment, but the present invention is not limited to such a specific network. In this embodiment, one video camera is connected to each of the four communication terminal devices, and a video communication conference is held among the four parties.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a screen of the monitor 20. Reference numeral 60 denotes a camera operation interface, which is the same as the conventional example shown in FIG. 20 in appearance. It is provided with operation buttons for shooting direction and magnification, and a camera name display field for displaying a control target, and a control target is selected. You can display a pull-down menu to do this. Details will be described later, but in this embodiment, the method of displaying the camera name list in the pull-down menu for selecting the control target is different from that of the conventional example. 62,64,66,68 is a video display window that displays captured images of a video camera 32 connected to each communication terminal 50,52,54,56 that normally constructs a video communication conference system. One of the video display windows (for example, 62) displays a captured image of the video camera 32 of the own terminal. In this embodiment, since a communication conference between four parties as shown in FIG. 2 is assumed, four video display windows 62, 64, 66, 68 are provided.

[0021] The video display windows 62, 64, 66, 68 can also be used to reproduce and display a recorded video or the like stored in a corresponding communication terminal device. Therefore, under each video display window 62,64,66,68, there are buttons for controlling playback (rewind button 70, playback start button 72, fast forward button 74, playback stop button 76), recorded video, and the current status. A switching button 78 for switching the image of is arranged. Needless to say, as long as the screen of the monitor 20 has a margin, the image display window can be further set, and any current image and recorded image can be displayed.

As is well known, by freely moving the mouse cursor 80 with the mouse 28 and performing predetermined operations on the camera operation interface 60 and various buttons 70 to 78, the user gives a desired instruction to the CPU 10. You can enter it.

[0023] The basic operation of transmission of video / audio data via the network 46 will be described. The video input device 34 converts the analog video signal output from the video camera 32 into a digital signal and expands it into the built-in RAM. The CPU 10 reads video data from the RAM in the video input device 34, expands the data into the RAM 12, packetizes the data, and outputs the data from the network transmission / reception device 48 to the network 46. The packet is forwarded over network 46 from another terminal device, eg, terminal device 50, to terminal device 52,54,56.

[0024] When the network transmission / reception device 48 detects that a packet has arrived from the network 46, it expands the packet into the internal RAM and notifies the CPU 10 of the reception of the packet. The CPU 10 reads data from the RAM in the network transmitter / receiver 48 and expands the data in the RAM 12. Then, the CPU 10 takes out the video data included in the packet and writes it at a predetermined position of the VRAM 18. For example, when the video should be displayed in the video display window 64, it is written to the address of VRAM 18 corresponding to the video display window 64. As a result, images from other communication terminal devices are displayed in the image display windows 62 to 68 assigned to each.

Further, the voice input from the microphone 36 is converted into a digital signal by the voice input device 38 and expanded in the internal RAM. The CPU 10 reads voice data from the RAM in the voice input device 38, expands the data into the RAM 12, packetizes the data, and outputs the data from the network transmission / reception device 48 to the network 46. The packet is forwarded over network 46 from another terminal device, eg, terminal device 50, to terminal device 52,54,56.

[0026] When the network transmission / reception device 48 detects that a packet has arrived from the network 46, it expands the packet into the internal RAM and notifies the CPU 10 of the reception of the packet. The CPU 10 reads data from the RAM in the network transmitter / receiver 48 and expands the data in the RAM 12. Then, the CPU 10 takes out the voice data included in the packet and writes it in the built-in RAM of the voice output device 42. The voice output device 38 converts the voice data stored in the internal RAM into an analog signal and applies it to the speaker 40. As a result, the voice from one or more other communication terminal devices is acoustically output.

[0027] The CPU 10 also generates a camera control command according to the operation content in response to an operation of buttons on the camera operation interface 60 by the mouse 28, and generates a camera to be operated and a terminal device to which the camera is connected. Specify and packetize the camera control command and output it from the network transmitter / receiver 48 to the network 46. The designated terminal device takes in a packet including the camera control command from the network 46, and when it confirms that the packet contains the camera control command, transfers the camera control command to the camera control circuit 44. The camera control circuit 44 controls panning, tilting, zooming, and the like of the video camera 32 according to the input camera control command. In this way, not only the video camera connected to the own terminal device but also the video camera connected to the other terminal device can be operated via the network 46.

[0028] In this way, a video / audio communication conference can be held between the four parties, and a video camera connected to another terminal can be remotely controlled.

Next, the camera operation interface 60 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows a detailed configuration of the camera operation interface 60. As described above, the appearance is exactly the same as the conventional example shown in FIG. 20, and the only difference is the method of displaying the list of camera names in the pull-down menu for selecting the camera to be operated. That is, it is provided with a left pan operation button 112, a right pan operation button 114, an up tilt operation button 116, a down tilt operation button 118, a home position button 120, a tele button 122, and a wide button 124 for camera operation. , A camera name display field 126 for displaying the name of the camera to be controlled is provided.

By pressing the expansion button 128 adjacent to the camera name display field 126, as shown in FIG. 5, a list of all camera names that can be controlled is displayed as a pull-down menu 130 at the bottom of the camera name display field 126. Will be done. Similar to the conventional example, the camera name displayed in the camera name display field 126 is the camera name displayed at the top of the pull-down menu 130. In this embodiment, the display order of the camera names in the pull-down menu 130 is not the registration order or the reverse order, but the order of the most frequently used cameras, and the camera name display column 126 shows the most frequently used camera names. Is displayed. 132 is a registration button to be operated when it is desired to newly register a camera to be controlled in the pull-down menu 130.

[0031] Also in this embodiment, when the user clicks the mouse button on the registration button 132, the registration window 334 shown in FIG. 22 is displayed on the monitor screen in response to this, and the camera name of the camera to be added to the control target is displayed. , You can enter the IP address and camera number of the terminal device to be connected.

[0032] Hereinafter, the operation of the camera operation program that manages the camera operation interface 60 will be described in detail. If one or more cameras have already been registered as control targets, the registration file will be loaded and the number of cameras, camera name, etc. will be set in the specified variables. The case of newly registering a camera name and the like will be described.

[0033] When the camera operation program is started, first, the initialization routine shown in FIG. 6 is executed, and 0 is assigned to the variable num_camera. The variable num_camera is a global variable that indicates the total number of controllable video cameras.

[0034] When the registration button 132 is clicked, the input data is set in a predetermined variable according to the flowchart shown in FIG. That is, the value of num_camera is assigned to the local variable i (S1). Due to the initialization shown in Figure 6, the value of num_camera is 0 at this point. Next, the registration window shown in FIG. 22 is displayed, prompting the input of the camera name, the network address of the communication terminal device to which the video camera is connected, and the number of the camera in the communication terminal device ( S2). This is to support the input of the camera number when a plurality of video cameras are connected to one communication terminal device. In this embodiment, only one video camera is connected to one communication terminal device.

After inputting, the camera name is assigned to the array variable camera [i] .name, the network address is assigned to the array variable camera [i] .address, and the camera number is assigned to the array variable camera [i] .number. To. Substitute 0 for the array variables camera [i] .freq and camera [i] .used (S3). The variable camera [i] .freq is a counter that counts the frequency of use of the corresponding video camera, and camera [i] .used is a flag used to determine the display order in the pull-down menu 130. ..

[0036] Increase the value of the local variable i by 1 (S4), assign the value of the variable i to the variable num_camera (S5), and end. camera []. name is used and listed as an entry in pull-down menu 130.

When the mouse button is clicked on the expansion button 128 of the camera operation interface 60, the pull-down menu 130 is displayed according to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, and the camera name and the like according to the user's selection are displayed. The information is set in a given variable. In this embodiment, basically, the camera name and the registration number are assigned to the structure pdmenu_entry [] for the pull-down menu 130 in descending order of camera []. freq (S13 to 24). Therefore, in order to display the camera list in order according to the selection frequency, the corresponding camera []. Freq should be incremented each time the selection is made (S31).

[0038] First, the value of the variable num_camera is assigned to the loop variable i (S11). As explained earlier, num_camera indicates the number of registered video cameras. Set the value of num_camera to the variable pdmenu_entry_max that indicates the number of cameras to be displayed in the pull-down menu 130 (S12).

[0039] The value of the variable num_camera is assigned to the local variable j (S13), and 0 is assigned to the local variable max.freq (S14). While decrementing j, check if the variable camera [j] .used is 0 (S15,16,17). The fact that camera [j] .used is not 0 indicates that it is already set in the variable pdmenu_entry for creating pull-down menu 130. If camera [j] .used is 0 (S15), compare camera [j] .freq with variable max.freq (S18), and if camera [j] .freq is large, change camera [j] .freq to variable max.freq. Substitute [j] .freq (S19) and assign the value of variable j to the local variable max.num (S20). S18,19,20 detect the camera with the highest selection frequency.

[0040] When j becomes 0 (S24), that is, all the registered cameras have been examined. At this point, max.num contains camera [] in cameras where camera []. Used is 0 (ie, cameras that are not yet registered in the structure pdmenu_entry [] for pull-down menu 130). -A number indicating the registration order of the camera that maximizes freq (that is, the serial registration number starting from 0) is set. Set camera [max.num] .used to 1 (S21), substitute the character string (or pointer) of the variable camera [max.num] .name into the array variable pdmenu_entry [num_camera-i] .name, and assign the array variable Assign the value of the variable max.num to pdmenu_entry [num_camera-i] .no (S22). Decrease the value of the variable i by 1 (S23).

[0041] S13 and subsequent steps are repeated until the variable i becomes 0 (S24). In this way, the camera names and the numbers indicating the order of registration can be stored in the array variable pdmenu_entry [] in the order of the number of selections, pdmenu_entry [0] .name ~ pdmenu_entry [num_camera-1]. ] .names are displayed in sequence as pull-down menu 130, as shown in Figure 5 (S25). The camera names are registered in the order of computer1, computer2, computer3, computer4, and computer5. In the conventional example, the pull-down menu is displayed in this order as shown in FIG. 21, but in this embodiment, it is shown in FIG. As you can see, it is displayed in the order of computer3, computer4, computer1, computer2 and computer5, not in the order of registration.

[0042] In S11 to S24, the sort results in the order of the most frequently selected are obtained by the double loop, but it goes without saying that other sort algorithms can be adopted. Since the number of cameras is usually considered to be small, it is preferable to adopt an algorithm that can efficiently obtain results when the number of targets is small.

[0043] After the pull-down menu 130 is displayed, the user waits for input (S26), and when there is user input (S27). Assign the menu acquisition number to the local variable n (S28), and assign the value of pdmenu_entry [n] .no to the local variable m (S29). The value of m indicates the registration number of the selected camera name. Substitute camera [m] .name, camera [m] .address and camera [m] .number for the global variables camera_name, camera_address and camera_number that indicate the current control target (S30).

Since it was selected, camera [m] .freq is incremented by 1 (S31), and the character string stored in camera_name is displayed in the camera name display field 126 (S32).

[0045] Set all camera []. Used to 0 in preparation for displaying the pull-down menu 130 next time. That is, the value of num_camera is set in the loop variable i (S33), 0 is assigned to camera [i] .used (S34), and i is decremented by 1 (S35). Repeat S34,35 while i is 1 or greater.

[0046] In FIG. 8, the camera names are listed in the pull-down menu 130 in descending order of the frequency of selection of the video cameras, and the frequency of selection is evaluated as the frequency of use. The more frequently selected, the higher the pull-down menu 130 is displayed. Although not realized in the flowchart shown in FIG. 8, the camera name with the highest selection frequency is displayed in the camera name display field 126 of the camera operation interface 60 without the operation of displaying the pull-down menu 130. preferable. For that purpose, it is preferable to execute the processes S11 to S24 in advance when displaying the camera operation interface 60, before the display, or after the selection operation. In this way, the camera name with the highest selection frequency is displayed in the camera name display field 126, and the pull-down menu 130 does not have to be displayed for the selection of this camera.

Next, a modified embodiment of this embodiment will be described. In the above embodiment, the frequency of use is evaluated by the number of selections, but the frequency of use may be evaluated by the time of the selected state. For that purpose, FIG. 9 may be modified as shown in FIG. 10, and the functions shown in the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 may be incorporated into the CPU 10. In FIG. 10, the part of S30 in FIG. 9 was changed as shown in S37, S31 was deleted, and the clearing process (S33 to 36) of camera []. Used was deleted. In S37, in addition to the processing of S30, the registration number (variable m) of the camera selected as the control target is set in the global variable camera_entry_no. As shown in FIG. 11, CPU10 activates the timer routine at regular intervals (S41) (S42). The timer routine increments the value of the array variable camera [camera_entry_no] .freq by 1 (S43), as shown in Figure 12. In this way, the selected time of the camera selected as the control target is counted and stored in camera []. freq.

[0048] As a result, the pull-down menu 130 displays a list of camera names in descending order of time selected as the control target.

The number of times the camera control command is issued may be counted instead of the time selected as the control target, and the pull-down menu 130 may be displayed in descending order of the counted value. For that purpose, the functions shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 may be incorporated into the CPU 10 instead of the functions shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. That is, it is checked whether or not the mouse button is pressed on any of the camera operation buttons 112 to 124 of the camera operation interface 60 (S51), and when the mouse button is pressed on any of the buttons (S51), the figure. Call the routine shown in 14 (S52), where the value of the sequence variable camera [camera_entry_no] .freq is incremented by 1 (S54). After that, a camera control command corresponding to the operated button is issued to the video camera of the camera number indicated by the variable camera_number, which is a video camera connected to the communication terminal device indicated by the variable camera_address (S53). ).

[0050] In this way, the frequency of use can be evaluated based on the number of times the camera control command is issued. That is, in the pull-down menu 130, the camera names are displayed in a list in descending order of the number of times the camera control command is issued, which makes it easy to select the camera to be operated frequently.

[0051] Next, a modified embodiment limited to a communication conference between two parties will be described. FIG. 15 shows an example of a display screen of the monitor 20. 140 is a camera operation interface. 142 is a video display window for displaying the video from the communication partner, and 144 is a video display window for displaying the video from the video camera connected to the own terminal device. Buttons for playing back the recorded video (rewind button 146, playback start button 148, fast forward button 150, playback stop button 152) and a switching button for switching between the recorded video and the current video, as described in FIG. 154 are placed. 156 is the mouse cursor.

FIG. 16 shows the details of the camera operating interface 140. It includes a left pan operation button 160, a right pan operation button 162, an up tilt operation button 164, a down tilt operation button 166, a home position button 168, a tele button 170, and a wide button 172 for camera operation. Furthermore, 174 is a remote camera selection button that is pressed when you want to operate the camera (remote camera) of the communication partner, and 176 is a pull-down button that displays multiple video cameras of the communication partner in the pull-down menu. Reference numeral 178 is a registration button for instructing the registration of the camera name to be newly registered as a remote camera. 180 is a local camera selection button that is pressed when you want to operate the video camera (local camera) of your terminal, and 182 is a registration button that instructs you to register the camera name you want to newly register as a local camera.

[0053] When the user clicks the mouse button on the registration button 178, the registration window 334 shown in FIG. 22 is displayed on the monitor screen accordingly, and the camera name, network address, and camera number can be input.

When the user clicks the mouse button on the registration button 182, the registration window shown in FIG. 17 is displayed on the monitor screen in response to the mouse button, and the camera name entered according to the flowchart shown in FIG. And the camera number is set in the predetermined variable. That is, the input camera name is set in the global variable localcamera.name, and the input camera number is set in the global variable localcamera.number.

[0055] The selection of the remote camera will be described. Basically, it operates according to the flowcharts shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. When you hover your mouse cursor over the remote camera selection button 174 and press the mouse button, the pull-down menu will list the remote camera names, as shown in Figure 5, and you can select any camera. You can choose. It differs from the first embodiment in that the selected camera name is not displayed after selection.

[0056] With reference to FIG. 19, a camera selection operation and an operation corresponding thereto will be described. When either the remote camera select button 174 or the local camera select button 180 is pressed (S61,63), in the case of the local camera select button 180 (S61), the video of the camera number indicated by the variable localcamera.number -The camera is controlled (S62), and in the case of the remote camera selection button 174 (S63), the camera is connected to the terminal device with the network address indicated by the variable camera_address, and the video indicated by the variable camera_number. -Control the video camera with the camera number (S64).

[0057] In this embodiment, since the button 174 for selecting the camera of the communication partner and the button 180 for selecting the own camera are provided, the camera to be controlled can be switched quickly and concisely. The select buttons 174,180 may be replaced by a single toggle button.

[Effects of the Invention] As can be easily understood from the above description, according to the present invention, a list for selecting one from a plurality of cameras is displayed in descending order of frequency of use. It will be easier.

[0059] Further, in the case of a two-party conference, the camera to be controlled can be quickly switched by providing a means for selecting and specifying whether to control the camera of the communication partner or the camera of the user. become.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [Fig. 1] Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a communication terminal device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a video communication conferencing system in which four communication terminal devices shown in FIG. 1 are connected to a network 46.

FIG. 3 is an example of a monitor screen of this embodiment.

FIG. 4 shows a detailed configuration of the camera operation interface 60.

FIG. 5 is a display example of the pull-down menu 130.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an initialization routine of a camera operation program.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a camera registration routine.

FIG. 8 is a part of a camera selection flowchart.

FIG. 9 is a part of a camera selection flowchart.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart in which FIG. 9 is modified so that the time at the time of selection is used as the frequency of use.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart of a timer activation routine for counting the time at the time of selection.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of a timer routine started in S42 of FIG.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart of a basic routine in a change example in which the number of times a camera control command is issued is used as the frequency of use.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a routine started in S52 of FIG.

FIG. 15 is an example of a display screen of a monitor 20 suitable for a two-party conference.

FIG. 16 is a detailed view of the camera operation interface 140.

FIG. 17 is a remote camera registration window.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of remote camera registration.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart of a camera selection operation in the camera operation interface shown in FIG. 16 and an operation corresponding to the operation.

FIG. 20 is a conventional camera operation interface.

FIG. 21 is an example of a conventional pull-down menu.

FIG. 22 is an example of a camera registration window in a conventional example.

[Code description] 10: CPU 12: RAM 14: ROM 16: Image compression / decompression circuit 18: Video memory (VRAM) 20: Display monitor 22: Memory bus 24: I / O bus 26: Keyboard 28: Mouse 30: External Storage device 32: Video camera 34: Video input device 36: Microphone 38: Audio input device 40: Speaker 42: Audio output device 44: Camera control circuit 46: Network 48: Network transmitter / receiver 50,52,54,56: Terminal Device 60: Camera operation interface 62,64,66,68: Video display window 70: Rewind button 72: Playback start button 74: Fast forward button 76: Playback stop button 78: Switching button 80: Mouse cursor 112: Left pan operation Button 114: Right pan operation button 116: Up tilt operation button 118: Down tilt operation button 120: Home position button 122: Tele button 124: Wide button 126: Camera name display field 128: Expansion button 130: Pull-down Menu 132: Registration button 140: Camera operation interface 142: Video display window 144: Video display window 146: Rewind button 148: Playback start button 150: Fast forward button 152: Playback stop button 154: Switching button 156: Mouse cursor 160: Left pan operation button 162: Right pan operation button 164: Up tilt operation button 166: Down tilt operation button 168: Home position button 170: Tele button 172: Wide button 174: Remote camera selection button 176: Pull down Button 178: Registration button 180: Local camera selection button 182: Registration button 310: Camera operation interface 312: Left pan operation button 314: Right pan operation button 316: Up tilt operation button 318: Down tilt operation button 320: Home position -Button 322: Tele button 324: Wide button 326: Camera name display field 328: Expansion button 330: Pull-down menu 332: Registration button 334: Registration window 336:Camera name input field 338: IP address input field 340: Camera number input field