Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and recording medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10242287-B2
Application number	US-201615177032-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 8, 2016
Priority date	Jun 11, 2015
Publication date	Mar 26, 2019
Grant date	Mar 26, 2019

Abstract

An image processing apparatus includes a detection unit configured to detect at least one identical object or at least one object of an identical type from images captured by a plurality of imaging apparatuses, a selection unit configured to select at least one object from among at least one detected object based on color information of each object, and a determination unit configured to determine color correction information related to a plurality of the imaging apparatuses based on color information of at least one selected object. The image processing apparatus enables restricting the degradation of the color matching accuracy.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:
a detection unit configured to detect at least one identical object or at least one object of an identical type from images captured by a plurality of imaging apparatuses, wherein each imaging apparatus is a camera;
a selection unit configured to select, as an object for determining color correction information, at least one object which is captured in common by at least two imaging apparatuses included in the plurality of imaging apparatuses from among at least one detected object; and
a determination unit configured to determine the color correction information that is used for the color correction of the plurality of imaging apparatuses based on color information of the at least one selected object,
wherein the selection unit is configured to select an object having an attribute smaller than a predetermined frequency from among the at least one detected object, and
wherein each unit is implemented by one or more processors, circuitry or a combination thereof.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the selection unit selects at least one object based on a pixel-unit color histogram for each of the at least one detected object.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the selection unit selects an object of which a ratio of a number of pixels belonging to bins of a gray scale is smaller than a predetermined ratio in the color histogram.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the object is a person, and the determination unit determines the color correction information based on the color information of a face region or a body region of the person in an image of the person.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, based on a plurality of attributes of each object, the selection unit selects at least one object from among the at least one object selected based on the color information of each object.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5 , wherein the object is a person, and the attribute is at least one of an age, a gender, a presence/absence of glasses, a presence/absence of mustache, and a presence/absence of beard.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the determination unit determines color correction information based on color information of an object captured in common by the largest number of imaging apparatuses among the at least one selected object.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, in a case where a number of imaging apparatuses that captured at least one selected object is equal to or greater than a predetermined number, the determination unit determines color correction information based on the color information of the at least one selected object.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the selection unit selects at least one object based on a similarity of the at least one detected object.

10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein the detection unit detects a plurality of identical objects or a plurality of objects of an identical type, and
wherein, the selection unit selects at least one object so that each of a plurality of the detected objects is captured by at least two of a plurality of the imaging apparatuses.

11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ,
wherein a plurality of the imaging apparatuses includes at least one first imaging apparatus, a plurality of second imaging apparatuses, and at least one third imaging apparatus,
wherein the selection unit selects a first object from images captured by each of the first and the second imaging apparatuses, and selects a second object from images captured by each of the second and the third imaging apparatuses, and
wherein, in a case where either the first or the second imaging apparatus is used as a reference imaging apparatus, the determination unit determines the color correction information for the first and the second imaging apparatuses based on color information of the first object, and determines the color correction information for the third imaging apparatus based on at least one of the color information of the first object and color information of the second object.

12. The image processing apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein, in a case where a plurality of the second imaging apparatuses have captured the first and the second objects, and a ratio of a number of second imaging apparatuses using color correction information determined based on the first and the second objects to a number of a plurality of the imaging apparatuses is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, the determination unit determines the color correction information determined based on the first and the second objects as color correction information of a plurality of the imaging apparatuses.

13. The image processing apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein, in a case where the selection unit selects the first and the second objects from an image captured by the one second imaging apparatus, the second imaging apparatus is determined as the reference imaging apparatus.

14. The image processing apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein, in a case where the first object is a first person and the second object is a second person, the determination unit determines first color correction information based on the color information of a face region or a body region in an image of the first person, and determines second color correction information based on the color information of a face region or a body region in an image of the second person.

15. The image processing apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the selection unit extracts an image feature amount of the object, which is dependent on color information, from an image corrected by the color correction information determined by the determination unit, and reselects a plurality of identical objects or a plurality of objects of an identical type based on the extracted image feature amount.

16. The image processing apparatus according to claim 11 , wherein the selection unit extracts an attribute of the object, which is dependent on color information, from an image corrected by the color correction information determined by the determination unit, and reselects a plurality of identical objects or a plurality of objects of an identical type based on the extracted attribute.

17. An image processing method comprising:
detecting at least one identical object or at least one object of an identical type from images captured by a plurality of imaging apparatuses, wherein each imaging apparatus is a camera;
selecting, as an object for determining color correction information, at least one object which is captured in common by at least two imaging apparatuses included in the plurality of imaging apparatuses from among at least one detected object; and
determining the color correction information that is used for the color correction of the plurality of imaging apparatuses based on color information of at least one selected object,
wherein the selecting selects an object having an attribute smaller than a predetermined frequency from among the at least one detected object.

18. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium that stores a program for causing a computer to function as the units of an image processing apparatus comprising:
a detection unit configured to detect at least one identical object or at least one object of an identical type from

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Shiiyama Hirotaka
• Matsushita Masahiro
• Sorakado Hideki

Classifications

• H04N5/262 Primary

  Studio circuits, e.g. for mixing, switching-over, change of character of image, other special effects {; Cameras specially adapted for the electronic generation of special effects} · CPC title

• G06V10/56

  relating to colour · CPC title

• H04N23/88

  for colour balance, e.g. white-balance circuits or colour temperature control · CPC title

• H04N23/90

  Arrangement of cameras or camera modules, e.g. multiple cameras in TV studios or sports stadiums · CPC title

• G06V10/50

  by performing operations within image blocks; by using histograms, e.g. histogram of oriented gradients [HoG]; by summing image-intensity values; Projection analysis · CPC title