Patents by Inventor Seiji Tanaka

Seiji Tanaka 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).

  • Publication number: 20150109497
    Abstract: The color imaging element and the imaging device according to the present invention can improve reproduction precision of demosaicing processing in a high frequency region and suppress aliasing. Further, the color imaging element can achieve high resolution by reducing occurrence of color moire (false color). Furthermore, the color imaging element and the imaging device can perform pixel demosaicing processing with high precision. Still furthermore, a basic array pattern including a square pattern and a grating filter line is repeated in a first direction and a second direction, and thus a color filter array can perform signal processing in a subsequent stage according to a repeating pattern of the square pattern and the grating filter line, and can simplify the processing in a subsequent stage more than a conventional random array.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA
  • Publication number: 20150109493
    Abstract: A color filter array of a color imaging element is formed with a basic array pattern repeatedly disposed in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction. The basic array pattern is formed with RGB filters arrayed in an array pattern corresponding to 5×5 pixels in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction. A ratio of all pixel numbers of a G pixel is made larger than a ratio of a pixel number of each color of RB. The G filter is disposed in each line in the horizontal, vertical and oblique directions of the color filter array. One or more R and B filters are disposed in each filter line in the horizontal and vertical directions of the color filter array in the basic array pattern. Filters of different colors are adjacently disposed in each of the horizontal, vertical and oblique directions of the R and B filter.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kenkichi HAYASHI, Seiji TANAKA
  • Publication number: 20150109491
    Abstract: In the color imaging element, a basic array pattern is repeatedly placed in a first direction and in a second direction, the basic array pattern includes two sets of patterns each including a first pattern corresponding to 2×2 pixels composed of first filters, a second pattern corresponding to 1×2 pixels composed of the first filters, third patterns each corresponding to 2×2 pixels each composed of second filters, and fourth patterns each corresponding to 1×2 pixels each composed of the second filters, in a color filter array, first patterns and the third patterns are alternately disposed in the first direction, and the first patterns and the fourth patterns are alternately disposed in the second direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Kenkichi HAYASHI, Seiji TANAKA
  • Publication number: 20150109495
    Abstract: A color filter array is configured with a 3×3 basic array pattern repeatedly disposed in a horizontal and a vertical direction. The basic array pattern is configured with a G filter array formed by disposing a G filter in the horizontal direction, and first and the second RGB filter arrays formed by disposing RGB filters in the horizontal direction. The ratio of the pixel number of the G color is made larger than the ratio of the pixel number of each color of RB. The G filter is disposed in each filter line in the horizontal, vertical and oblique directions of the color filter array. The RB filters are each disposed in one filter line in the vertical direction of the basic array pattern, and any of the RB filters is disposed in other filter lines.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI
  • Publication number: 20150109494
    Abstract: A color filter array of a color imaging element includes a basic array pattern P of 4×4 pixels in which RGB filters corresponding to red (R), green (G) and blue (B) are arrayed, this basic array pattern P is repeatedly disposed in a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, a G filter is disposed in each pixel line in four directions of horizontality, verticality, oblique upper right and oblique lower right, and R and B filters are disposed in each pixel line in the horizontal direction and vertical direction of the color filter array. Moreover, the color filter array includes consecutive first filters of two or more pixels in four directions of horizontality, verticality, oblique upper right and oblique lower right.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI
  • Publication number: 20150109492
    Abstract: According to a color imaging element and an imaging device of the present invention, it is possible to simplify processing in a subsequent stage compared to the case of a random array, improve reproduction precision of de-mosaic processing in a high frequency range, facilitate de-mosaic processing as a result of increase in types of peripheral colors, discern a direction with high correlation between a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, and suppress aliasing upon de-mosaic processing.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 5, 2015
    Publication date: April 23, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Kenkichi HAYASHI, Seiji TANAKA, Noriko KAWAMURA
  • Publication number: 20150093027
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus for processing image data formed by a set of pixel data includes a real space filter processing unit and a color space filter processing unit, wherein the real space filter processing unit calculates a real space weighting coefficient and performs weighted average of pixel data according to filter processing of an edge preservation type; pixel data of at least a target pixel of pixel data used in the color space filter processing unit is pixel data calculated by the real space filter processing unit; and of the pixel data which the color space filter processing unit uses for the weighted average, the pixel data of the target pixel is pixel data calculated by the real space filter processing unit, and the pixel data of a peripheral pixel is pixel data forming the image data before being input to the real space filter processing unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2014
    Publication date: April 2, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryou HASEGAWA, Seiji TANAKA
  • Patent number: 8982253
    Abstract: A single-plate color imaging element where an array of the color filters includes a basic array pattern of M×N provided with first filters corresponding to a first color with one or more colors and second filters corresponding to a second color with two or more colors with contribution ratios for obtaining luminance signals lower than the first color, the first filters are arranged in a check pattern shape in the basic array pattern, one or more second filters corresponding to each color of the second color are arranged in each line in the horizontal and vertical directions of the array of the color filters in the basic array pattern, and a proportion of the number of pixels of the first color corresponding to the first filters is greater than a proportion of the number of pixels of each color of the second color corresponding to the second filters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Tomoyuki Kawai, Kenkichi Hayashi, Seiji Tanaka
  • Patent number: 8976275
    Abstract: A single-plate color imaging element, where a basic array pattern in which the color filters are arrayed according to an array pattern corresponding to M×N (M and N are even numbers equal to or more than 6) pixels in horizontal and vertical directions is formed, the basic array pattern includes two each of two types of a first sub array and a second sub array in which the color filters are arrayed according to an array pattern corresponding to (M/2)×(N/2) pixels, the color filters include first filters corresponding to a first color and second filters corresponding to a second color whose contribution rates are lower than a contribution rate of the first color, a ratio of a number of pixels of the first color being greater than a ratio of a number of pixels of each color of the second color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Seiji Tanaka, Tomoyuki Kawai, Kenkichi Hayashi
  • Patent number: 8964087
    Abstract: A large difference in exposure timing is prevented from arising in cases in which plural pixels have a common amplifier, even when image data is read by thinning An imaging apparatus (10) includes: an image pickup device (14) including plural photoelectric conversion elements arrayed in first and second directions; an amplification means that treats (K×L) pixels as respective common pixels and amplifies an image capture signal for each of the common pixels; a color filter that is provided with a repeatedly disposed basic array pattern or first and second filters placed in a predetermined pattern of (N×M) pixels; and an image processing section (20) and a drive section (22) that perform charge sweeping by applying sequential shutter pulses to the image pickup device (14) in turn to each pixel, or to each scan line, or to each of plural pixels on a scan line, that read pixel signals of the plural pixels at a set cycle, that, from the read pixel signals, generate line image data of pixels that are arrayed runnin
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Hidekazu Kurahashi, Kenkichi Hayashi, Seiji Tanaka, Tomoyuki Kawai, Noriko Kawamura
  • Patent number: 8958000
    Abstract: Efficient thinned reading is performed in a case in which an image pickup device equipped with a color filter having an array different from a Bayer array is employed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Seiji Tanaka, Kenkichi Hayashi, Tomoyuki Kawai, Hidekazu Kurahashi, Noriko Kawamura
  • Publication number: 20150029367
    Abstract: A color imaging apparatus comprising: a color imaging element comprising a plurality of pixels and color filters of a color filter array arranged on the plurality of pixels, the color filter array including first filters corresponding to a first color that most contributes to obtaining luminance signals and second filters corresponding to two or more second colors, and the first filters including two or more sections adjacent each other in horizontal, vertical, and oblique directions; a direction determination unit acquiring pixel values of pixels of the two or more sections of the first filters near a target pixel of demosaicking processing and determining a correlation direction of luminance; a demosaicking processing unit that calculates a pixel value of another color at a pixel position of the target pixel and that uses one or more pixels of another color in the correlation direction to calculate the pixel value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 30, 2014
    Publication date: January 29, 2015
    Applicant: FUJIFILM CORPORATION
    Inventor: Seiji TANAKA
  • Patent number: 8922683
    Abstract: According to an aspect of the present invention, the first filters, which correspond to the two or more first colors that contribute to obtaining a brightness signal more than the second colors, are disposed within each pixel line in first direction to the fourth direction of the color filter arrangement, and it is configured so that the ratio of the number of pixels of the first colors corresponding to the first filters is larger than the ratio of the number of pixels of each color of the second colors corresponding to the second filters of two or more colors other than the first colors. Accordingly, the degree of reproducibility of the synchronization processing in a high-frequency wave area can be increased and the aliasing can be suppressed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventors: Kenkichi Hayashi, Seiji Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20140327797
    Abstract: A large difference in exposure timing is prevented from arising in cases in which plural pixels have a common amplifier, even when image data is read by thinning An imaging apparatus (10) includes: an image pickup device (14) including plural photoelectric conversion elements arrayed in first and second directions; an amplification means that treats (K×L) pixels as respective common pixels and amplifies an image capture signal for each of the common pixels; a color filter that is provided with a repeatedly disposed basic array pattern or first and second filters placed in a predetermined pattern of (N×M) pixels; and an image processing section (20) and a drive section (22) that perform charge sweeping by applying sequential shutter pulses to the image pickup device (14) in turn to each pixel, or to each scan line, or to each of plural pixels on a scan line, that read pixel signals of the plural pixels at a set cycle, that, from the read pixel signals, generate line image data of pixels that are arrayed runnin
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Publication date: November 6, 2014
    Inventors: Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Seiji TANAKA, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Noriko KAWAMURA
  • Patent number: 8878970
    Abstract: A color imaging apparatus comprising: a color imaging element comprising a plurality of pixels and color filters of a color filter array arranged on the plurality of pixels, the color filter array including first filters corresponding to a first color that most contributes to obtaining luminance signals and second filters corresponding to two or more second colors, and the first filters including two or more sections adjacent each other in horizontal, vertical, and oblique directions; a direction determination unit acquiring pixel values of pixels of the two or more sections of the first filters near a target pixel of demosaicking processing and determining a correlation direction of luminance; a demosaicking processing unit that calculates a pixel value of another color at a pixel position of the target pixel and that uses one or more pixels of another color in the correlation direction to calculate the pixel value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 4, 2014
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Seiji Tanaka
  • Publication number: 20140320710
    Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes: an image pickup device (14) including plural photoelectric conversion elements arrayed in a first direction and second direction; a color filter that has a repeatedly disposed basic array pattern of (N×M) pixels placed in a predetermined pattern in the first direction and the second direction (wherein N and M are integers of 3 or more); a line image data generation means that reads pixel signals from plural pixels at a set cycle from the image pickup device (14), and, from the read pixel signals, generates line image data configured from pixel signals of pixels, from out of the plural pixels, that are arrayed running along the second direction and are arrayed at a line cycle of (N?k) in the first direction (wherein 0<k<N); and an image data generation means that generates image data based on the line image data.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Publication date: October 30, 2014
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA, Hirofumi HORII
  • Publication number: 20140313380
    Abstract: A color imaging element, includes a color filter array, in which the color filter array includes an array pattern of a 3×3 pixel group in which first filters corresponding to a green color and second filters corresponding to red and blue colors are arrayed, and the first filters are placed at a center and 4 corners in the 3×3 pixel group, and the array pattern is repeatedly placed in horizontal and vertical directions, and in a pixel group within a predetermined area of the color imaging element, phase difference detection pixels for acquiring phase difference information are placed in entire components of one direction among components in the horizontal direction and components in the vertical direction in the pixel group.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 30, 2014
    Publication date: October 23, 2014
    Inventors: Takashi AOKI, Kazuki INOUE, Seiji TANAKA, Hiroshi ENDO, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Yoichi IWASAKI
  • Publication number: 20140313368
    Abstract: An image processing method according to an aspect of the present invention includes acquiring a mosaic image composed of pixels of a first color that contributes most to acquisition of a luminance signal among three colors for pixels, and pixels of second colors other than the first color, a first color image corresponding to pixels of the first color and a second color image corresponding to pixels of the second colors having respective different frequency ranges that are reproducible; extracting a region containing a spatial frequency at which the second color image is not reproducible while the first color image is reproducible, in an entire image area corresponding to the mosaic image; and reducing a chroma of an image corresponding to that region in an image acquired by demosaic processing on the mosaic image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 27, 2014
    Publication date: October 23, 2014
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Noriko KAWAMURA, Hidekazu KURAHASHI
  • Publication number: 20140307137
    Abstract: Efficient thinned reading is performed in a case in which an image pickup device equipped with a color filter having an array different from a Bayer array is employed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2014
    Publication date: October 16, 2014
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Kenkichi HAYASHI, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Hidekazu KURAHASHI, Noriko KAWAMURA
  • Publication number: 20140307135
    Abstract: A single-plate color imaging element configured by disposing color filters on pixels formed with photoelectric conversion elements, where the first filters are arranged along at least a diagonal line of the sub arrays, one or more of the second filters corresponding to each color of the second color are arranged in the horizontal and vertical directions of the array of the color filters in a basic array pattern, the basic array pattern being repeatedly arranged in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction in the array of the color filters, and corresponding to arbitrary 2N×2N pixels included in the array of the color filters, and the M is set to such a value that one or more of the first filters are arranged in horizontal, vertical, diagonal upper right and diagonal lower right directions of the array of the color filters.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 25, 2014
    Publication date: October 16, 2014
    Inventors: Seiji TANAKA, Tomoyuki KAWAI, Kenkichi HAYASHI