Patents Examined by Guillermo Rivera-Martinez
  • Patent number: 9064308
    Abstract: In accordance with various aspects of the disclosure, a system, a method, and computer readable medium having instructions for processing images is disclosed. For example, the method includes receiving an input datacube from which an input image is derived. The input datacube is transformed into a residual datacube by projecting out basis vectors from each spatial pixel in the input datacube, the residual datacube being used to derive a residual image. A statistical parameter value for samples of each focal plane pixel in the residual image is determined. Anomalous focal plane pixels are identified based upon a comparison of the determined statistical parameter value with the respective determined statistical parameter values of remaining focal plane pixels. Another comparison of residual values for each scanned sample of the identified anomalous focal plane pixels with values of corresponding scanned samples in the input datacube is performed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2015
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventors: Bradley A. Flanders, Ian S. Robinson
  • Patent number: 9042640
    Abstract: As set forth herein, a computer-implemented method facilitates pre-analyzing an image and automatically suggesting to the user the most suitable regions within an image for text-based personalization. Image regions that are spatially smooth and regions with existing text (e.g. signage, banners, etc.) are primary candidates for personalization. This gives rise to two sets of corresponding algorithms: one for identifying smooth areas, and one for locating text regions. Smooth regions are found by dividing the image into blocks and applying an iterative combining strategy, and those regions satisfying certain spatial properties (e.g. size, position, shape of the boundary) are retained as promising candidates. In one embodiment, connected component analysis is performed on the image for locating text regions. Finally, based on the smooth and text regions found in the image, several alternative approaches are described herein to derive an overall metric for “suitability for personalization.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 26, 2015
    Assignee: XEROX CORPORATION
    Inventors: Raja Bala, Zhigang Fan, Hengzhou Ding, Jan P. Allebach, Charles A. Bouman, Reuven J. Sherwin
  • Patent number: 9031354
    Abstract: In accordance with various aspects of the disclosure, a system, a method, and computer readable medium having instructions for processing images is disclosed. For example, the method includes selecting, at an image processor, a region of a first image comprising a plurality of pixels. A mean value of pixels in the selected region is computed. From a plurality of sets of pixels in the region, a first subset of pixels in the region containing artifacts therein is selected. A value of each pixel in the first subset is compared with the mean value. The value of each pixel is adjusted based upon the comparing. The first image is reconstructed based upon the adjusted value of each pixel in the first subset, such that a variance of pixel values in the reconstructed image is lower than a variance of pixel values in the first image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 13, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Raytheon Company
    Inventor: Ian S. Robinson
  • Patent number: 9031344
    Abstract: A mobile device and method for measuring image quality parameters, the device including a digital camera configured to capture one or a plurality of images, a processor configured to select one or a plurality of pairs of points from each image of the one or plurality of images, each pair of points connectable by a line, the processor further configured to compute one or a plurality of image quality parameters from at least one of the lines, and the processor further configured to compute a representative image quality parameter from the image quality parameters, and an output unit configured to communicate one or a plurality of representative image quality parameters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Industrial Printing Ltd.
    Inventor: Yoav Bresler
  • Patent number: 9031320
    Abstract: An image dynamic range compression method for an image processing device is provided. The method includes receiving a plurality of input pixels which include a first input pixel, obtaining a luminance pixel value of each of the input pixels, executing a filter execution according to the luminance pixel values of the input pixels to obtain a filter result corresponding to the first input pixel, transforming the filter result into a function result according to a function, and obtaining an output luminance pixel value of the first input pixel according to the luminance pixel value of the first input pixel and a transforming ratio between the function result and the filter result. Accordingly, the method reserves the details in an image and color information, and increases the execution speed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Tamkang University
    Inventor: Chi-Yi Tsai
  • Patent number: 9014426
    Abstract: Techniques for the detection of moving objects in a video image sequence are provided. Distinctive image variation points in a difference image are determined. An image variation threshold value is established and image variation points are determined as those points in the difference image in which the absolute image brightness value of which exceeds the image variation threshold value. The quality of the image variation points are determined based on at least one predetermined quality criterion. If the quality criterion is met, the determined image variation points determined are determined as the distinctive image variation points determined. Otherwise, the establishment of an image variation threshold value and determination of the quality of image variation points is repeated with a changed image variation threshold value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 1, 2012
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: EADS Deutschland GmbH
    Inventors: Holger Leuck, Christoph Stahl, Heiko Seidel
  • Patent number: 9014443
    Abstract: The image diagnostic apparatus includes: acquisition means 11 for acquiring data on an image having a first resolution, which is generated by imaging a diagnostic object; conversion means 12 for converting the resolution of the image into a second resolution which is lower than the first resolution; extraction means 13 for analyzing the image of which resolution has been converted into the second resolution and extracting an ROI of the diagnostic object; determination means 14 for determining whether or not a characteristic region which indicates a predetermined image characteristic exists in the ROI extracted by the extraction means 13; and creation means 15 for creating, when the characteristic region exists, an output image by converting the resolution so that the characteristic region is confined to an image size to be output, and occupies the image by a predetermined ratio or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 21, 2010
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2015
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventor: Atsushi Marugame
  • Patent number: 8983219
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus which re-encodes encoded data, encoded with a pixel block having a predetermined number of pixels as a coding unit, while suppressing degradation of image quality, with a higher compressibility. For this purpose, when an encoded-image-data input unit inputs JPEG encoded data with an 8×8 pixel block as a coding unit, a redundancy estimation unit performs encoding on the encoded data, and sets an encoded data amount obtained by the coding, as a target code amount for a recompressor to perform coding in accordance with JPEG 2000 coding. The inputted encoded data is decompressed by a decompressor, and the recompressor generates encoded data in the previously-determined target code amount. The code amount control is performed by deleting the encoded data in bit planes in an order from a least significant bit plane toward a high-order bit plane.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 31, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Hiroki Kishi, Yuki Shiraishi, Naoki Ito
  • Patent number: 8983201
    Abstract: The techniques discussed herein discover three-dimensional (3-D) visual phrases for an object based on a 3-D model of the object. The techniques then describe the 3-D visual phrases. Once described, the techniques use the 3-D visual phrases to detect the object in an image (e.g., object recognition).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC
    Inventors: Rui Cai, Zhiwei Li, Lei Zhang, Qiang Hao
  • Patent number: 8953885
    Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for performing optical character recognition. In one aspect, a method includes receiving a text image I. A set of feature functions are evaluated for a log linear model to determine respective feature values for the text image I, wherein each feature function hi maps the text image I to a feature value, and wherein each feature function hi is associated with a respective feature weight ?i. A transcription {circumflex over (T)} is determined that minimizes a cost of the log linear model.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 10, 2015
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventors: Franz Josef Och, Ashok Chhabedia Popat, Dmitriy Genzel, Michael E. Jahr
  • Patent number: 8942472
    Abstract: With a pixel included in image data as a reference pixel, a pixel that shares the same pixel value as the reference pixel or a pixel similar to the reference pixel is judged as a shared pixel, and for the pixel judged as the shared pixel, color of the reference pixel is regarded as a color judgment result of the shared pixel, thus making it possible to reduce color calculation processing for the shared pixel. This makes it possible to provide a color judging apparatus operating at higher speed and the like. Thereby, it is possible to provide the color judging apparatus operable at high speed and the like by reducing the number of times of the color calculation processing executed for an input image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 20, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Koji Otsuka, Osamu Manba
  • Patent number: 8929675
    Abstract: An image processing device includes an estimator, a first calculator, a selector, a determination module, and a third calculator. The estimator estimates a motion vector to reference images of an input video from a target pixel of a process target image. The first calculator calculates candidate pixel values corresponding to positions in the reference images. The selector selects a motion vector for which the error is small as many as the number smaller than the number of motion vectors acquired for the target pixel. The determination module determines the candidate pixel values corresponding to the selected motion vectors. The third calculator calculates a pixel value after correction of the target pixel from an arithmetic average or a weighted sum of the candidate pixel value determined equal to or less than the reference and the pixel value of the target pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba
    Inventors: Toshiyuki Ono, Toshimitsu Kaneko, Nobuyuki Matsumoto, Takashi Ida
  • Patent number: 8929663
    Abstract: An image processing device includes a processor, and a memory storing computer-readable instructions therein. The computer-readable instructions, when executed by the processor, causes the image processing device to perform: generating edge image data by using the original image data; calculating characteristic values for a plurality of determination regions; and identifying a determination region as a nonuniform region when the characteristic value of the determination region satisfies a prescribed criterion, and the determination region as a uniform region when the characteristic value of the determination region does not satisfy the prescribed criterion. Each of the plurality of determination regions corresponds to one of the characteristic values, represents a part of the edge image, and includes a plurality of pixels, the plurality of determination regions being different from one another, each of the characteristic values characterizing the edge strength of the corresponding determination region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Masaki Kondo, Ryohei Ozawa
  • Patent number: 8897562
    Abstract: Methods and apparatus for adaptive trimap propagation. Methods are described that allow a trimap to be propagated from one frame to the next in a temporally coherent way. A radius-based method propagates automatically computed local trimap radii from frame to frame. A mesh-based method employs pins on the binary segmentation boundary and a mesh generated for the unknown region; the pins are tracked from one frame to the next according to an optical flow technique, the mesh is deformed from one frame to the next according to the movement of the pins, and the adaptive trimap is then warped according to the deformed mesh. These methods can be used separately, or the first method can be used to propagate some regions of the adaptive trimap, and the second method can be used to propagate other regions of the adaptive trimap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2014
    Assignee: Adobe Systems Incorporated
    Inventors: Xue Bai, Jue Wang, David P. Simons
  • Patent number: 8891903
    Abstract: A method for scaling two-dimensional structures, which is especially usable for resizing digital 2D images with a rational scaling factor, is based on efficient implementation of a diamond-shaped filter. The conventional “1”-diamond matrices of variable size are replaced by a (m×n) coefficient matrix. For any given rational scaling factor, the computational load for calculating an output pixel is reduced to filtering (m×n) input pixels with a corresponding (m×n) filter matrix. The coefficients of this filter matrix depend from the phase of the output pixel to be calculated and the factor of interpolation, but are always integer numbers. The coefficients may be stored in lookup tables (LUT), which leads to a very efficient implementation of the inventive method. In one embodiment, a (3×3) coefficient matrix has been found to be advantageous.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: Brandenburgische Technische Universität Cottbus-Senftenberg
    Inventors: Stefan Schiemenz, Christian Hentschel
  • Patent number: 8873879
    Abstract: The present invention obtains subband signals by performing a multiresolution decomposition by a wavelet frame with orientation selectivity or a filterbank with orientation selectivity that is a set of an approximate filter with no orientation and a plurality of detail filters with respective orientations on image data, and, when an image is reconstructed by summing the obtained subband signals, generates reconstructed image data that creates a floating illusion by attenuating or amplifying a subband signal corresponding to at least one of detail filters with a predetermined orientation relative to a floating direction, in which an image is desired to be floated due to an illusion, among the detail filters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: National Institute of Japan Science and Technology Agency
    Inventors: Hitoshi Arai, Shinobu Arai
  • Patent number: 8873874
    Abstract: In image predictive encoding according to an embodiment, one or more motion information sets are derived from plural pieces of motion information stored in a computer readable storage medium. Each of the one or more information sets includes two pieces of motion information between which any one of constituent elements differ in value. A predicted signal of a target region in a picture is generated by motion compensation, using two pieces of motion information in a motion information set selected from the one or more motion information sets. The two pieces of motion information in the selected motion information set are stored in the computer readable storage medium, and are used for generation of a predicted signal of another region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 5, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 28, 2014
    Assignee: NTT DoMoCo, Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshinori Suzuki, Choong Seng Boon, Thiow Keng Tan
  • Patent number: 8861897
    Abstract: System and method for creating a collection of images are described, the method comprising: receiving images from at least one source of images; processing the images to produce an output collection of images, the processing comprising grouping the images to clusters of related images and selecting the preferred images in the clusters; and outputting the output collection of images, the output collection of images comprising the clusters of related images and indication of the preferred images in the clusters. The system for creating a collection of images comprising: a storage medium to receive images from at least one source of images; a processor to produce an output collection of images by grouping the images to clusters of related images and selecting the preferred images in the clusters; and a collection output medium for outputting the output collection of images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 17, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: Shutterfly, Inc.
    Inventors: Moshe Bercovich, Alexander Kenis, Eran Cohen
  • Patent number: 8805124
    Abstract: System and method are disclosed for creating a photo calendar. A computer storage medium stores images taken in a time period spanning a plurality of capture months. A computer processor automatically divides the images into groups based the capture months, distributes the images in one of the capture month to one or more calendar months according to an adjacency distribution function, and creates a design of a photo calendar comprising a plurality of calendar months and images distributed in the calendar months.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 12, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 12, 2014
    Assignee: Shutterfly, Inc.
    Inventors: Eran Cohen, Alexander M. Kenis, Moshe Bercovich