Image capturing apparatus for enabling generation of data of panoramic image with wide dynamic range

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9258453-B2
Application number	US-201213432919-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 28, 2012
Priority date	Mar 31, 2011
Publication date	Feb 9, 2016
Grant date	Feb 9, 2016

Abstract

An image capturing apparatus includes an image capturing section, an image capturing control section, an image clipping section, an HDR composing section and a panoramic image composing section. The image capturing control section causes the image capturing section to repeatedly capture an image of different luminance to provide plural images of different luminance. The image clipping section clips respective data of substantially overlapping image regions of the plural images of different luminance. The HDR composing section composes the image regions each clipped by the image clipping section to generate data of plural composite images having a wider dynamic range than the image captured by the image capturing section. The panoramic image composing section joins data of the plural composite images generated by the HDR composing section to generate an image whose range is wider than that of the image captured by the image capturing section.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An image capturing apparatus, comprising:
a processor; and
an image capturing section which comprises an image sensor, and which, under control of the processor, sequentially outputs plural pieces of image data, wherein the plural pieces of the image data are captured in a single continuous shooting operation during which the image capturing section is moved in a predetermined panoramic direction, and wherein adjacent pieces of the captured image data which are adjacent to each other in the predetermined panoramic direction each include corresponding overlapping regions which are captured over a same range in the predetermined panoramic direction, such that one piece of the image data includes (i) a first overlapping region which overlaps a second overlapping region of a preceding adjacent piece of the image data, wherein the first overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the second overlapping region of the preceding adjacent piece of the image data are captured over a first range in the predetermined panoramic direction, and (ii) a second overlapping region which overlaps a first overlapping region of a succeeding adjacent piece of the image data, wherein the second overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the first overlapping region of the succeeding adjacent piece of the image data are captured over a second range in the predetermined panoramic direction;
wherein the processor is further configured to perform control to realize functions of:
a control section which performs control to change, at predetermined timings in the single continuous shooting operation, luminances of the plural pieces of the image data such that the adjacent pieces of the image data which are adjacent to each other have respective different luminances;
a specification section which specifies, for the adjacent pieces of the image data, plural sets of corresponding overlapping regions of the adjacent pieces of the image data as targets for composite processing, wherein said plural sets include a first set comprising the first overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the corresponding second overlapping region of the preceding adjacent piece of the image data, and a second set comprising the second overlapping region of the one piece of image data and the corresponding first overlapping region of the succeeding adjacent piece of the image data, and wherein, in each of the plural sets, the first and second overlapping regions have respective different luminances;
and
a panoramic image composing section which combines the plural sets of the corresponding overlapping regions into a piece of panoramic image data.

2. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control section controls the image capturing section in accordance with an algorithm instructing switching of image capturing under a first exposure condition and image capturing under a second exposure condition, wherein the image captured under the second exposure condition has a luminance different from the image captured under the first exposure condition.

3. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to perform control to realize functions of:
a detection section which detects a moving distance of the image capturing apparatus; and
a moving distance determination section which determines whether or not the moving distance detected by the detection section has reached a predetermined amount;
wherein when it is determined that the moving distance has not reached the predetermined amount, the control section sets the first exposure condition, and when it is determined that the moving distance has reached the predetermined amount, the control section sets the second exposure condition.

4. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control section performs control to change luminance of the plural pieces of image data to be output by the image capturing section in accordance with an algorithm instructing alternate switching of an exposure amount value at a predetermined time interval.

5. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control section performs control to switch an exposure amount value at a predetermined moving distance interval or a predetermined rotation angle interval of the image capturing apparatus.

6. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the control section performs control to switch two gain adjustment amounts with respect to the images to be repeatedly captured by the image capturing section.

7. The image capturing apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to perform control to realize a function of:
a wide dynamic range composing section which performs wide dynamic range composite processing on each of the plural sets of the corresponding overlapping regions which are included in the piece of panoramic image data.

8. A method of controlling image capturing of an image capturing apparatus comprising an image capturing section which includes an image sensor, the method comprising:
sequentially outputting, with the image capturing section, plural pieces of image data, wherein the plural pieces of the image data are captured in a single continuous shooting operation during which the image capturing section is moved in a predetermined panoramic direction, and wherein adjacent pieces of the captured image data which are adjacent to each other in the predetermined panoramic direction each include corresponding overlapping regions which are captured in a same range in the predetermined panoramic direction, such that one piece of the image data includes (i) a first overlapping region which overlaps a second overlapping region of a preceding adjacent piece of the image data, wherein the first overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the second overlapping region of the preceding adjacent piece of the image data are captured over a first range in the predetermined panoramic direction, and (ii) a second overlapping region which overlaps a first overlapping region of a succeeding adjacent piece of the image data, wherein the second overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the first overlapping region of the succeeding adjacent piece of the image data are captured over a second range in the predetermined panoramic direction;
performing control to change, at predetermined timings in the single continuous shooting operation, luminances of the plural pieces of the image data such that the adjacent pieces of the image data which are adjacent to each other have respective different luminances;
specifying, for the adjacent pieces of the image data, plural sets of corresponding overlapping regions of the adjacent pieces of the image data as targets for composite processing, wherein said plural sets include a first set comprising the first overlapping region of the one piece of the image data and the corresponding second overlapping region of the preceding adjacent piece of the image data, and a second set comprising the second overlapping region of the one piece of image data and the corresponding first overlapping region of the succeeding adjacent piece of the image data, and wherein, in each of the plural sets, the first and second overlapping regions have respective different luminances;
and
combining the plural sets of the corresponding overlapping regions into a piece of panoramic image data.

9. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium having stored therein a program that is executable by a computer that controls an image capturing apparatus which comprises an image capturing section including an image sensor, the p

Assignees

• Kato Hiroyuki
• Muraki Jun
• Shimizu Hiroshi
• Hoshino Hiroyuki
• Ichikawa Erina
• Casio Computer Co Ltd

Inventors

• Kato Hiroyuki
• Muraki Jun
• Shimizu Hiroshi
• Hoshino Hiroyuki
• Ichikawa Erina

Classifications

• H04N23/741

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

• H04N23/698

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

• H04N1/3876

  Recombination of partial images to recreate the original image · CPC title

• H04N1/3871 Primary

  the composed originals being of different kinds, e.g. low- and high-resolution originals · CPC title

• H04N5/2355

  Electricity · mapped topic