Patents by Inventor Fujio Kawano

Fujio Kawano has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 10674129
    Abstract: An imaging device includes an imaging element including first pixels, each outputs a signal including color information, and second pixels having higher sensitivity than the first pixels, and a signal processing unit including a luminance value acquisition unit that acquires luminance values in the first pixels based on signals from the second pixels and a color acquisition unit that acquires color ratios by using color and luminance values in the first pixels. When a color value in the first pixels corresponding to one color is larger than a luminance value, the color acquisition unit corrects the luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to the one color so that a ratio of the color value and the luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to the one color is closer to a ratio of a color value and a luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to another color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Fujio Kawano, Shingo Hikosaka
  • Patent number: 10586348
    Abstract: A distance measurement device and an image capturing control device obtains height information and angle information on an image capturing unit based on a captured image signal output from an image capturing unit, and obtain distance information indicating a distance between the image capturing unit and a target object by using the height information and the angle information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 23, 2017
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2020
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventor: Fujio Kawano
  • Patent number: 10462432
    Abstract: A method for driving an image pickup apparatus is a method that generates image data using signals output by R, G, and B pixels contained in n frames, where n is an integer greater than or equal to two, and a signal or signals output by a W pixel contained in m frame or frames, where m is smaller than n, or that generates image data using signals output by R and B pixels contained in n frames and a signal or signals output by a G pixel contained in m frame or frames.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2015
    Date of Patent: October 29, 2019
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Patent number: 10368041
    Abstract: An imaging device has: a pixel unit including a first pixel and second pixels arranged around the first pixel and adapted to provide more brightness information than is provided by the first pixel; a directional property determination unit that determines a direction of an intensity distribution based on differences of the values of the second pixels; a correlation value calculation unit that calculates a correlation value of the values of the second pixels; and an interpolation processing unit that, when the correlation value is greater than a threshold based on a noise signal intensity in the values of the second pixels, interpolates a value of the first pixel that is based on the direction of the intensity distribution from the values of the second pixels and, otherwise, interpolates the value of the first pixel from the values of the second pixels without depending on the direction of the intensity distribution.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 30, 2019
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Yasushi Iwakura, Fujio Kawano
  • Publication number: 20190182465
    Abstract: An imaging device includes an imaging element including first pixels, each outputs a signal including color information, and second pixels having higher sensitivity than the first pixels, and a signal processing unit including a luminance value acquisition unit that acquires luminance values in the first pixels based on signals from the second pixels and a color acquisition unit that acquires color ratios by using color and luminance values in the first pixels. When a color value in the first pixels corresponding to one color is larger than a luminance value, the color acquisition unit corrects the luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to the one color so that a ratio of the color value and the luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to the one color is closer to a ratio of a color value and a luminance value in the first pixels corresponding to another color.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2018
    Publication date: June 13, 2019
    Inventors: Fujio Kawano, Shingo Hikosaka
  • Publication number: 20190182458
    Abstract: An imaging device includes an imaging element including first pixels, each of which outputs a signal including color information, and second pixels having a higher sensitivity than the first pixels, and a signal processing unit that processes signals from the imaging element and includes a luminance value acquisition unit that acquires luminance values of the first pixels based on signals from the second pixels and a color acquisition unit that acquires color ratios from color and luminance values of the first pixels and acquires, from the color ratios, color components of each of the first and second pixels. The color acquisition unit acquires the color ratio by using color values in the first pixels acquired in a first capturing condition and luminance values in the first pixels based on signals of the second pixels acquired in a second capturing condition of a lower sensitivity than the first capturing condition.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2018
    Publication date: June 13, 2019
    Inventor: Fujio Kawano
  • Patent number: 10229475
    Abstract: Resolution data is generated by using signals output by a first pixel group. Color data is generated by using signals output by a second pixel group. The resolution data is combined with the color data to generate first data. Up-conversion processing is performed on the first data to generate second data, and mosaic processing is performed on the second data to generate data of a predetermined array.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: March 12, 2019
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Patent number: 10122951
    Abstract: To increase image quality of a moving image by suppressing a color afterimage while reducing color noise, provided is an imaging apparatus, including: an imaging device; and a signal processing unit, in which: the imaging device includes a first pixel group and a second pixel group each including a plurality of pixels each configured to output a pixel signal; and the signal processing unit is configured to perform weighted addition for a second pixel signal output from the second pixel group by inter-frame processing, and to change a weight on each frame in the weighted addition based on an inter-frame differential of a first pixel signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 4, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2018
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hisashi Takado, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Tomoya Onishi
  • Patent number: 10021358
    Abstract: A plurality of adjacent pixels is provided adjacently in a plurality of directions to a first pixel. A direction with a highest correlation is derived from signals of the plurality of pixels, and the direction with the highest correlation is reflected to interpolation processing to be performed on the signal of first pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 19, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 10, 2018
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Publication number: 20180131883
    Abstract: To increase image quality of a moving image by suppressing a color afterimage while reducing color noise, provided is an imaging apparatus, including: an imaging device; and a signal processing unit, in which: the imaging device includes a first pixel group and a second pixel group each including a plurality of pixels each configured to output a pixel signal; and the signal processing unit is configured to perform weighted addition for a second pixel signal output from the second pixel group by inter-frame processing, and to change a weight on each frame in the weighted addition based on an inter-frame differential of a first pixel signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 4, 2018
    Publication date: May 10, 2018
    Inventors: Hisashi Takado, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Tomoya Onishi
  • Publication number: 20180109769
    Abstract: A plurality of adjacent pixels is provided adjacently in a plurality of directions to a first pixel. A direction with a highest correlation is derived from signals of the plurality of pixels, and the direction with the highest correlation is reflected to interpolation processing to be performed on the signal of first pixel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 19, 2017
    Publication date: April 19, 2018
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Publication number: 20180061075
    Abstract: A distance measurement device and an image capturing control device obtains height information and angle information on an image capturing unit based on a captured image signal output from an image capturing unit, and obtain distance information indicating a distance between the image capturing unit and a target object by using the height information and the angle information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 23, 2017
    Publication date: March 1, 2018
    Inventor: Fujio Kawano
  • Patent number: 9900532
    Abstract: To increase image quality of a moving image by suppressing a color afterimage while reducing color noise, provided is an imaging apparatus, including: an imaging device; and a signal processing unit, in which: the imaging device includes a first pixel group and a second pixel group each including a plurality of pixels each configured to output a pixel signal; and the signal processing unit is configured to perform weighted addition for a second pixel signal output from the second pixel group by inter-frame processing, and to change a weight on each frame in the weighted addition based on an inter-frame differential of a first pixel signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 20, 2018
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Hisashi Takado, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Tomoya Onishi
  • Patent number: 9883152
    Abstract: A plurality of adjacent pixels is provided adjacently in a plurality of directions to a first pixel. A direction with a highest correlation is derived from signals of the plurality of pixels, and the direction with the highest correlation is reflected to interpolation processing to be performed on the signal of first pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2016
    Date of Patent: January 30, 2018
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Publication number: 20170257605
    Abstract: An imaging device has: a pixel unit including a first pixel and second pixels arranged around the first pixel and adapted to provide more brightness information than is provided by the first pixel; a directional property determination unit that determines a direction of an intensity distribution based on differences of the values of the second pixels; a correlation value calculation unit that calculates a correlation value of the values of the second pixels; and an interpolation processing unit that, when the correlation value is greater than a threshold based on a noise signal intensity in the values of the second pixels, interpolates a value of the first pixel that is based on the direction of the intensity distribution from the values of the second pixels and, otherwise, interpolates the value of the first pixel from the values of the second pixels without depending on the direction of the intensity distribution.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 14, 2017
    Publication date: September 7, 2017
    Inventors: Yasushi Iwakura, Fujio Kawano
  • Patent number: 9602736
    Abstract: An image sensing apparatus includes an image sensor including a plurality of pixels and configured to sense an optical image formed from fluorescence or phosphorescence generated by excitation light from an excitation light source when periods during which pixels perform the photoelectric conversion sequentially end on the respective rows, a mechanical shutter configured to control exposure on the image sensor, and a control unit configured to control the image sensor and the mechanical shutter so as to prevent overlapping between an excitation period and a detection period, the excitation period being a period during which the excitation light source emits excitation light, the detection period being a period during which the plurality of pixels are commonly set in a state of performing the photoelectric conversion for detecting fluorescence or phosphorescence and the mechanical shutter is open.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 9, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: CANON KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Kazuyuki Shigeta, Fujio Kawano
  • Publication number: 20160344956
    Abstract: To increase image quality of a moving image by suppressing a color afterimage while reducing color noise, provided is an imaging apparatus, including: an imaging device; and a signal processing unit, in which: the imaging device includes a first pixel group and a second pixel group each including a plurality of pixels each configured to output a pixel signal; and the signal processing unit is configured to perform weighted addition for a second pixel signal output from the second pixel group by inter-frame processing, and to change a weight on each frame in the weighted addition based on an inter-frame differential of a first pixel signal.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2016
    Publication date: November 24, 2016
    Inventors: Hisashi Takado, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Tomoya Onishi
  • Publication number: 20160337623
    Abstract: A plurality of adjacent pixels is provided adjacently in a plurality of directions to a first pixel. A direction with a highest correlation is derived from signals of the plurality of pixels, and the direction with the highest correlation is reflected to interpolation processing to be performed on the signal of first pixel.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 5, 2016
    Publication date: November 17, 2016
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado
  • Publication number: 20160330414
    Abstract: Provided is an imaging apparatus including: a first signal processing unit configured to generate first data on a plurality of frames by executing processing for generating the first data by using first pixel signals in one frame, which have been output from a first pixel group, for the first pixel signal in each frame, the first data being obtained by interpolating a pixel signal corresponding to a first wavelength band in a second pixel group; a second signal processing unit configured to generate second data on a plurality of frames by using second pixel signals in the plurality of frames, which have been output from the second pixel group; and a signal combining unit configured to generate an image by combining the first data on the plurality of frames and the second data on the plurality of frames.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2016
    Publication date: November 10, 2016
    Inventors: Hisashi Takado, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Tomoya Onishi
  • Publication number: 20160309130
    Abstract: Resolution data is generated by using signals output by a first pixel group. Color data is generated by using signals output by a second pixel group. The resolution data is combined with the color data to generate first data. Up-conversion processing is performed on the first data to generate second data, and mosaic processing is performed on the second data to generate data of a predetermined array.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 8, 2016
    Publication date: October 20, 2016
    Inventors: Tomoya Onishi, Noriyuki Kaifu, Fujio Kawano, Hisashi Takado