Image processing apparatus, distortion-corrected map creation apparatus, and semiconductor measurement apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9514528-B2
Application number	US-201214370360-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 3, 2012
Priority date	Jan 31, 2012
Publication date	Dec 6, 2016
Grant date	Dec 6, 2016

Abstract

Image processing apparatus includes: interpolation process image acquisition means for acquiring an interpolation process image of prescribed size which includes an interpolation point of an inputted image; Fourier transform means for subjecting the interpolation process image which is acquired with the interpolation process image acquisition means to Fourier transform; phase change means for changing, a phase of each value of the transformed interpolation process image which has been subjected to Fourier transform by the Fourier transform means, such that the interpolation point migrates to a desired nearby integer coordinate position; inverse Fourier transform means for subjecting the interpolation process image whose phase has been changed by the phase change means, to inverse Fourier transform; interpolation value determination means for adopting an interpolation point, a value of a pixel at the integer coordinate position, from the transformed interpolation process image subjected to inverse Fourier transform by the inverse Fourier transform means.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An image processing apparatus comprising a processor and a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions which when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
retain data created by subjecting one-dimensional data of a prescribed length to Fourier transform, as reference data;
acquire an interpolation process image of a prescribed size which includes an interpolation point of an inputted image;
create a weighted image of a same size as the interpolation process image by determining a reference position on the basis of a distance between the interpolation point and a desired integer coordinate position in a vicinity of the interpolation point and acquiring data from the reference position of the reference data; and
adopt a product sum of the interpolation process image and the weighted image as an interpolation value of the interpolation point.

2. A semiconductor measurement apparatus comprising:
a photographic apparatus for photographing an image of a semiconductor; and
the image processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to use the image photographed by the photographic apparatus as an inputted image.

3. An image processing apparatus comprising a processor and a non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
calculate an interpolation value of an interpolation point of an inputted image based on a prescribed interpolation method which uses a distance between the interpolation point and an integer coordinate position in a vicinity of the interpolation point as a parameter value;
create a translated image by defining an interpolation point by configuring a desired assumed migration amount as a parameter value for calculating the interpolation value and by performing an interpolation process on the inputted image;
measure a measured migration amount from the inputted image with respect to the created translated image;
determine correspondence information that enables obtaining a corrected migration amount to be configured as the parameter value in order to obtain an interpolation value of an interpolation point of an actual migration amount, from the actual migration amount on the basis of a relationship between the assumed migration amount and the measured migration amount measured with respect to the translated image; and
determine, based on the correspondence information, a corrected migration amount obtained when a distance between an interpolation point of the inputted image and an integer coordinate position in a vicinity of the interpolation point is adopted as an actual migration amount, and performing an interpolation process on the inputted image by configuring the corrected migration amount as a parameter value and by using the interpolation method.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:
configure a plurality of prescribed values as an assumed migration amount for creating respective translated images, and
measure an actual migration amount for each of the translated images in order to determine a first correspondence from an assumed migration amount to a measured migration amount;
calcualte a second correspondence from a measured migration amount to an assumed migration amount on the basis of the first correspondence; and
adopt, as the measured migration amount, a distance between an interpolation point of the inputted image and an integer coordinate position in a vicinity of the interpolation point;
determine an assumed migration amount corresponding to the measured migration amount on the basis of the second correspondence, and
adopt the assumed migration amount as the corrected migration amount to be configured as a parameter value.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:
acquire an interpolation process image of a prescribed size which includes an interpolation point of an inputted image;
subject the interpolation process image to Fourier transform;
change, based on a shift theorem, a phase of each value of the transformed interpolation process image which has been subjected to Fourier transform, such that the interpolation point migrates to a desired nearby integer coordinate position;
subject the interpolation process image whose phase has been changed to inverse Fourier transform; and
adopt, as an interpolation value of the interpolation point, a value of a pixel at the integer coordinate position, from the transformed interpolation process image which has been subjected to inverse Fourier transform.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:
retain data created by subjecting one-dimensional data of a prescribed length to Fourier transform, as reference data;
acquire an interpolation process image of a prescribed size which includes an interpolation point of an inputted image;
create a weighted image of a same size as the interpolation process image by determining a reference position on the basis of a distance between the interpolation point and a desired integer coordinate position in a vicinity of the interpolation point and acquiring data from the reference position of the reference data; and
adopt a product sum of the interpolation process image and the weighted image as an interpolation value of the interpolation point.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to perform the interpolation process using cubic interpolation.

8. A semiconductor measurement apparatus comprising:
a photographic apparatus for photographing an image of a semiconductor; and
the image processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the instructions, when executed by the processor, further cause the processor to:
with respect to a plurality of assumed migration amounts,
create a translated image resulting from translating an inputted image photographed by the photographic apparatus by the migration amount using an interpolation process which adopts the plurality of migration amounts as a parameter value;
measure a migration amount from the inputted image with respect to a plurality of the created translated images;
determine correspondence information, which associates an actual migration amount with a corrected migration amount to be configured as a parameter value in order to obtain an interpolation value of an interpolation point of the actual migration amount, based on a relationship between the assumed migration amount and the measured migration amount with respect to the plurality of created translated images; and
configure a corrected migration amount whose corresponding actual migration amount in the correspondence information is a migration amount from an integer coordinate position in a vicinity of an interpolation point for which interpolation has been requested as a parameter value in order to determine a corrected interpolation value of the interpolation point.

9. A distortion-corrected map creation apparatus for performing a process of creating a distortion-corrected map from a distortion map,
the distortion map being a map showing a point from which each point on a distorted image had originally migrated due to the distortion, and
the distortion-corrected map being a map showing where each point on an image without the distortion migrates due to the distortio

Assignees

• Hitachi High Tech Corp

Inventors

• Taguchi Junichi
• Ikeda Mitsuji
• Abe Yuichi
• Inoue Osamu
• Kawasaki Takahiro

Classifications

• H04N1/387 Primary

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

• G01R31/311

  of integrated circuits {(G01R31/31728 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• H04N1/3878

  Skew detection or correction · CPC title

• G06T5/20

  using local operators · CPC title

• G06T2207/30148

  Semiconductor; IC; Wafer · CPC title