Image processing apparatus, image capturing apparatus, image processing method, and storage medium

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11341622-B2
Application number	US-202016845516-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 10, 2020
Priority date	Apr 15, 2019
Publication date	May 24, 2022
Grant date	May 24, 2022

Abstract

There is provided an image processing apparatus. An obtaining unit obtains image data having a first dynamic range, the image data having been applied with a predetermined tone curve, the predetermined tone curve being a tone curve representing visual characteristics based on a relationship between the first dynamic range and an absolute luminance that is output. A first compression unit compresses the image data from the first dynamic range to a second dynamic range narrower than the first dynamic range while maintaining the predetermined tone curve.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus comprising at least one processor and/or circuit configured to function as following units:
an obtaining unit configured to obtain image data having a first dynamic range, the image data having been applied with a predetermined tone curve, the predetermined tone curve being a tone curve representing visual characteristics based on a relationship between the first dynamic range and an absolute luminance that is output; and
a first compression unit configured to compress, by executing scaling processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve, a dynamic range of the image data from the first dynamic range to a second dynamic range narrower than the first dynamic range, wherein the scaling processing compresses the dynamic range of the image data without executing degamma processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve and while maintaining the predetermined tone curve.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the predetermined tone curve is a tone curve conforming to OETF characteristics of PQ.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the first compression unit multiplies the image data by a ratio of a second value to a first value to compress the image data from the first dynamic range to the second dynamic range,
the first value is an output value of the predetermined tone curve in a case where a maximum value of the first dynamic range is an input, and
the second value is an output value of the predetermined tone curve in a case where a maximum value of the second dynamic range is an input.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one processor and/or circuit is further configured to function as following units:
a second compression unit configured to compress the image data from the first dynamic range to the second dynamic range by compressing luminance at a constant ratio in a linear region;
a conversion unit configured to convert, by local tone mapping processing, tone characteristics of the image data compressed to the second dynamic range by the second compression unit; and
a selection unit configured to select which of the first compression unit and the second compression unit is used to compress the image data from the first dynamic range to the second dynamic range.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the first dynamic range is an HDR image dynamic range, and
the second dynamic range is an SDR image dynamic range.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the first compression unit determines the second dynamic range based on a luminance distribution of the image data, and
the at least one processor and/or circuit is further configured to function as a third compression unit configured to compress the image data, which have been compressed to the second dynamic range, to a third dynamic range narrower than the second dynamic range, by compressing luminance at a constant ratio in a linear region.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein
the first compression unit determines the second dynamic range such that a width of the second dynamic range increases as the luminance distribution of the image data biases toward high luminance.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein
the first dynamic range is an HDR image dynamic range, and
the third dynamic range is an SDR image dynamic range.

9. An image capturing apparatus comprising:
the image processing apparatus according to claim 1 ;
an image sensor; and
at least one processor and/or circuit configured to function as a generating unit configured to generate the image data based on an electrical signal generated by the image sensor.

10. An image processing method executed by an image processing apparatus, comprising at least one processor and/or circuit configured to function as following units:
obtaining image data having a first dynamic range, the image data having been applied with a predetermined tone curve, the predetermined tone curve being a tone curve representing visual characteristics based on a relationship between the first dynamic range and an absolute luminance that is output; and
compressing by executing scaling processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve, a dynamic range of the image data from the first dynamic range to a second dynamic range narrower than the first dynamic range, wherein the scaling processing compresses the dynamic range of the image data without executing degamma processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve and while maintaining the predetermined tone curve.

11. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium which stores a program for causing a computer to execute an image processing method comprising at least one processor and/or circuit configured to function as following units:
obtaining image data having a first dynamic range, the image data having been applied with a predetermined tone curve, the predetermined tone curve being a tone curve representing visual characteristics based on a relationship between the first dynamic range and an absolute luminance that is output; and
compressing by executing scaling processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve, a dynamic range of the image data from the first dynamic range to a second dynamic range narrower than the first dynamic range, wherein the scaling processing compresses the dynamic range of the image data without executing degamma processing on the image data having been applied with the predetermined tone curve and while maintaining the predetermined tone curve.

Assignees

• Canon Kk

Inventors

• Kimura Naoto

Classifications

• H04N23/741

  by increasing the dynamic range of the image compared to the dynamic range of the electronic image sensors · CPC title

• H04N23/80

  Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof · CPC title

• G06T5/50

  using two or more images, e.g. averaging or subtraction · CPC title

• G06T2207/20208

  High dynamic range [HDR] image processing · CPC title

• G06T5/20

  using local operators · CPC title