Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and imaging system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10063774-B2
Application number	US-201414914208-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 25, 2014
Priority date	Aug 28, 2013
Publication date	Aug 28, 2018
Grant date	Aug 28, 2018

Abstract

An image processing apparatus detecting a plurality of joint positions between a plurality of input images includes a target image generation unit configured to generate a plurality of target images to be searched in a second input image among the input images from a first input image among the input images; a characteristic amount calculation unit configured to calculate a characteristic amount for each of the target images generated by the target image generation unit; and a joint position determination unit configured to determine the joint position for a target image of interest among the target images having the characteristic amounts calculated by the characteristic amount calculation unit depending on the characteristic amount.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus detecting a plurality of joint positions between a plurality of input images, comprising:
a processor configured to:
determine a plurality of target images, from a first input image among the input images, to be searched in a region of a second input image among the input images that overlaps the first input image;
calculate a characteristic amount for each of the target images from the first input image; and
detect a first joint position of a first target image from the first input image among the target images based on a second joint position of a second target image from the first input image, different from the first target image from the first input image, selected from peripheral target images around the first target image from the first input image, the second target image from the first input image having the characteristic amount greater than that of the first target image from the first input image and the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image having already been determined.

2. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
calculate a temporary position for the first target image from the first input image based on a relative relationship of characteristic amounts between the first target image from the first input image and one or more of the peripheral target images including the second target image from the first input image; and
calculate a matching between the first target image from the first input image and a part of the second input image based on the calculated temporary position for the first target image from the first input image.

3. An image processing apparatus, synthesizing a plurality of input images, comprising:
a processor configured to:
obtain a characteristic amount for each of a plurality of target images in a first input image among the input images; and
synthesize the first input image and a second input image among the input images, at a first joint position detected of a first target image from the first input image, among the target images, in a region of the second input image that overlaps the first input image, using a second joint position of a second target image from the first input image, different from the first target image from the first input image, selected from the target images having the characteristic amount greater than that of the first target image from the first input image, the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image having already been determined, wherein
the first joint position detected of the first target image from the first input image represents an offset between a position in the first target image from the first input image and a first position in the second input image, and
the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image represents an offset between a position in the second target image from the first input image and a second position in the second input image.

4. An image processing method detecting a plurality of joint positions between a plurality of input images, executed by a computer, the method comprising:
determining a plurality of target images, from a first input image among the input images, to be searched in a region of a second input image among the input images that overlaps the first input image;
calculating a characteristic amount for each of the target images from the first input image;
obtaining a first joint position of a first target image from the first input image among the target images, at which a second target image from the first input image among peripheral target images around the first target image from the first input image is jointed, the second target image from the first input image having the characteristic amount greater than that of the first target image from the first input image; and
detecting the first joint position for the first target image from the first input image based on a second joint position of the second target image from the first input image, the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image having already been determined, wherein
the first joint position of the first target image from the first input image represents an offset between a position in the first target image from the first input image and a first position in the second input image, and
the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image represents an offset between a position in the second target image from the first input image and a second position in the second input image.

5. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
determine an order for processing the target images based on the characteristic amounts, the order specifying a relative relationship of the characteristic amounts, and
calculate the temporary position for the first target image from the first input image using the second joint position of the second target image from the first input image having the characteristic amount greater than that of the first target image from the first input image and an initial joint position of a third target image from the first input image among the peripheral target images having the characteristic amount less than that of the first target image from the first input image.

6. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the temporary position for the first target image from the first input image by executing at least one of:
giving weights to one or more of the peripheral target images including the second target image from the first input image depending on a relative relationship of the characteristic amounts relative to the first target image from the first input image, and
giving the weights to one or more of the peripheral target images including the second target image from the first input image depending on distances from the first target image from the first input image.

7. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to correct an evaluation value based on the matching so that the evaluation value takes a greater value centered around the temporary position.

8. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to set a search range in the second input image for the matching based on a relative relationship of the characteristic amounts between the first target image from the first input image and the one or more peripheral target images including the second target image from the first input image.

9. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the characteristic amount is at least one of an edge amount, dispersion, and standard deviation of the target image.

10. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to calculate the matching using an evaluation method depending on the characteristic amounts.

11. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 10 , wherein the processor is further configured to correct an evaluation value using a correction method depending on the evaluation method.

12. The image processing apparatus as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to correct the evaluation value based on the matching so that the evaluation value takes a greater value centered around the temporary position.

13. The image processing apparatus as claimed

Assignees

• Ricoh Co Ltd

Inventors

• Takenaka Hirokazu
• Yoshida Kazuhiro
• Kawaguchi Keiichi

Classifications

• H04N1/387 Primary

  Composing, repositioning or otherwise {geometrically} modifying originals · CPC title

• H04N23/698

  for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture · CPC title

• G06F18/22

  Matching criteria, e.g. proximity measures · CPC title

• H04N1/3872

  Repositioning or masking · CPC title

• G06T3/4038

  Image mosaicing, e.g. composing plane images from plane sub-images · CPC title