Apparatus and methods for the optimal stitch zone calculation of a generated projection of a spherical image

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11756152-B2
Application number	US-202217960040-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 4, 2022
Priority date	Oct 10, 2016
Publication date	Sep 12, 2023
Grant date	Sep 12, 2023

Abstract

Apparatus and methods for the stitch zone calculation of a generated projection of a spherical image. In one embodiment, a computing device is disclosed which includes logic configured to: obtain a plurality of images; map the plurality of images onto a spherical image; re-orient the spherical image in accordance with a desired stitch line and a desired projection for the desired stitch line; and map the spherical image to the desired projection having the desired stitch line. In a variant, the desired stitch line is mapped onto an optimal stitch zone, the optimal stitch zone characterized as a set of points that defines a single line on the desired projection in which the set of points along the desired projection lie closest to the spherical image in a mean square sense.

First claim

What is claimed:

1. A non-transitory computer-readable apparatus comprising a storage apparatus, the storage apparatus comprising instructions configured to, when executed by a processor apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to:
determine a stitch line in an optimal stitch zone for a spherical image;
adjust, according to the determined stitch line, an orientation of the spherical image; and
generate, based at least on the adjusted spherical image, a projection having the determined stitch line.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processor apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to:
obtain a plurality of fisheye images captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, the plurality of fisheye images comprising hyper-hemispherical images, the hyper-hemispherical images each having a field of view of greater than 180 degrees and being associated with one or more overlap areas, the one or more overlap areas configured to reduce discontinuity within the projection; and
stitch the plurality of fisheye images based on the one or more overlap areas to generate the spherical image.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processor apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to:
derive a spherical image from a plurality of fisheye images, captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, by mapping of a plurality of pixels associated with the plurality of fisheye images based on a Cartesian coordinate system or a spherical coordinate system.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processor apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to:
select the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection is a cubic projection.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the instructions are further configured to, when executed by the processor apparatus, cause a computerized apparatus to:
select the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection comprises an octahedron projection.

6. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the projection comprises a plurality of image facets, and the stitch line traverses a plurality of contiguous ones of the plurality of image facets.

7. The non-transitory computer-readable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the stitch line is located along a meridian plane associated with the spherical image.

8. A system comprising:
a processor apparatus; and
computerized logic executable by the processor apparatus, the computerized logic being configured to:
determine a stitch line in an optimal stitch zone for a spherical image;
adjust, according to the determined stitch line, an orientation of the spherical image; and
generate, based at least on the adjusted spherical image, a projection having the determined stitch line.

9. The system of claim 8 , wherein the computerized logic being further configured to:
obtain a plurality of fisheye images captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, the plurality of fisheye images comprising hyper-hemispherical images, the hyper-hemispherical images each having a field of view of greater than 180 degrees and being associated with one or more overlap areas, the one or more overlap areas configured to reduce discontinuity within the projection; and
stitch the plurality of fisheye images based on the one or more overlap areas to generate the spherical image.

10. The system of claim 8 , wherein the computerized logic being further configured to:
derive the spherical image from a plurality of fisheye images, captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, by mapping of a plurality of pixels associated with the plurality of fisheye images based on a Cartesian coordinate system or a spherical coordinate system.

11. The system of claim 8 , wherein the computerized logic being further configured to:
select the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection is a cubic projection.

12. The system of claim 8 , wherein the computerized logic being further configured to:
select the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection comprises an octahedron projection.

13. The system of claim 8 , wherein the projection comprises a plurality of image facets, and the stitch line traverses a plurality of contiguous ones of the plurality of image facets.

14. The system of claim 8 , wherein the stitch line is located along a meridian plane associated with the spherical image.

15. A computerized method of generating a projection, the computerized method comprising:
determining a stitch line in an optimal stitch zone for a spherical image;
adjusting, according to the determined stitch line, an orientation of the spherical image; and
generating, based at least on the adjusted spherical image, a projection having the determined stitch line.

16. The computerized method of claim 15 , the method further comprising:
obtaining a plurality of fisheye images captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, the plurality of fisheye images comprising hyper-hemispherical images, the hyper-hemispherical images each having a field of view of greater than 180 degrees and being associated with one or more overlap areas, the one or more overlap areas configured to reduce discontinuity within the projection; and
stitching the plurality of fisheye images based on the one or more overlap areas to generate the spherical image.

17. The computerized method of claim 15 , the method further comprising:
deriving the spherical image from a plurality of fisheye images, captured via a plurality of image-capturing elements, by mapping of a plurality of pixels associated with the plurality of fisheye images based on a Cartesian coordinate system or a spherical coordinate system.

18. The computerized method of claim 15 , the method further comprising:
selecting the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection is a cubic projection.

19. The computerized method of claim 15 , the method further comprising:
selecting the projection from a plurality of projections, wherein the selected projection comprises an octahedron projection.

20. The computerized method of claim 15 , wherein the projection comprises a plurality of image facets, and the stitch line traverses a plurality of contiguous ones of the plurality of image facets.

Assignees

• Gopro Inc

Inventors

• Abbas Adeel
• Macmillan Timothy
• Douady-Pleven Cesar

Classifications

• G06T3/4038

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

• H04N23/45

  for generating image signals from two or more image sensors being of different type or operating in different modes, e.g. with a CMOS sensor for moving images in combination with a charge-coupled device [CCD] for still images · CPC title

• H04N23/698

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

• G06T3/12 Primary

  Panospheric to cylindrical image transformations · CPC title

• G06T3/08 Primary

  Projecting images onto non-planar surfaces, e.g. geodetic screens · CPC title