Abstract: A video camera light shield for use with a video camera which has an adjustable hood component covering the LCD monitor and lens of a video camera, wherein the hood component is a two-section hood component adjustably slidable front to rear, with a two-piece front plate attached to the two-piece hood component which is adjustably side to side to adjust the light shield to more effectively fit to a variety of different video camera styles and sizes for best performance results.

Abstract: An electronic device includes an exterior casing and a flat hard disk drive with a thickness smaller than height and width. The exterior casing includes a hard disk accommodation unit which has a depth corresponding to the thickness and in which the hard disk drive is accommodated, an opening through which the hard disk drive is detachably mounted along the depth direction of the hard disk accommodation unit, and a cover for opening and closing the opening.

Abstract: A method for storing images of a workpiece is provided. The method includes the steps of: (a) reading an image of the workpiece from the storage; (b) reading one byte of the three bytes' color information of each pixel of the image; (c) storing one by one the read one byte of the three bytes' color information of each pixel of the image in an array allocated by the storage; (d) obtaining a coordinate value of a center point of the image from the location file; (e) storing the coordinate value of the center point of the image and the array representing the image's color information as an object in a source file; and (f) repeating the steps (a) to (e) till all the images of the workpiece are read. A related system is also disclosed.

Abstract: There is provided a technique of preventing occurrence of a shift in white balance even when the ratio of a dark area is greater than the ratio of a bright area as in the case of a night view. A white balance gain calculator calculates white balance gains for an image from color of pixels whose luminance levels are at equal to or greater than a reference luminance level among all pixels of an image. When the ratio of dark pixels whose luminance satisfies a predetermined condition, among all pixels of the image, is equal to or greater than a reference ratio, a correction coefficient calculating section determines a correction coefficient from at least one of factors; namely, image-capturing sensitivity corresponding to an image, the ratio of dark pixels, and firing/non-firing of flash light; and instructs the white balance gain calculator to make a correction to the white balance gain in accordance with the correction coefficient.

Abstract: An in-car entertainment (ICE) unit includes a compact disc (CD) player configured to play a CD. A radio receiver is configured to receive a radio broadcast. A docking station is provided in which a digital camera can be docked so that information can be downloaded from the camera. A liquid crystal display (LCD) can display information from the CD, the radio broadcast or the camera. A printer is configured to print the displayed information.

Abstract: A system is for supporting a camera for hands free filming includes a vest, and a camera mounting apparatus attached to the vest. In one aspect the system also includes a material overlay attached to the vest, the overlay including opposing end flaps and opposing side flaps the adjacent flap edges zippered for enabling the vest to be converted to an enclosure.

Abstract: A solid-state imaging apparatus comprises: a solid-state imaging device having pixels that image light originating from a subject, by dividing the light into color signals; and a signal processor that subjects photographed image data output from the device to white balance correction at a gain corresponding to light source type(s). The device further comprises a sensor that detects light in a wavelength range which induces a difference having a predetermined value or more between radiant energy of a first light source and that of a second light source on the surface of the device. The processor comprises: a mixing ratio estimation unit that determines a mixing ratio between illumination light originating from the first light source and that originating from the second one, through use of a detection signal output from the sensor; and a gain computation unit that computes a gain where the white balance correction is to be effected, according to the mixing ratio.

Abstract: Even in case the shutter speed is high, a flicker can be corrected accurately. A flicker correction method in which a flicker is corrected by predicting, from a present input frame image, a flicker component in an image of a next frame and adding a correction value to the next frame image on the basis of the predicted flicker component includes holding a plurality of flicker data, calculating the correction value by combining a plurality of flicker data together at a ratio set correspondingly to a shutter speed and frame rate, and adding the calculated correction value to the input image signal.

Abstract: A server fulfills region and time of interest (RTI) requests for images from multiple users. The server includes a receiver for receiving a RTI request from a user, a processor for assembling a compressed image based on the RTI request, and a transmitter for transmitting the compressed image to the user. The processor is configured to extract a first portion of the compressed image from a local storage device. If the first portion is insufficient to fulfill the RTI request, the processor is configured to request a second portion of the compressed image from another server, and combine the first and second portions of the compressed image to fulfill the RTI request from the user. The compressed image includes an image compressed by a JPEG 2000 compressor.

Abstract: Digital camera color correction with a linear transformation having coefficients computed from an optimization with preservation of gray levels. This preserves white balance despite differing exposures for images from a target sensor and reference colors.

Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes an image sensor configured to image an object to generate image data, a flash control unit configured to control a main flash, to be performed by a flash unit configured to emit flash to an object, according to preliminary image data generated by the image sensor in association with a pre-flash performed by the flash unit, a first drive unit configured to adjust starting timings of exposures performed at a plurality of lines of the image sensor to a same timing when the pre-flash is performed, and a second drive unit configured to shield the image sensor from light before the preliminary image data is read from the image sensor.

Abstract: Online camera calibration methods have been proposed whereby calibration information is extracted from the images that the system captures during normal operation and is used to continually update system parameters. However, such existing methods do not cope well with structure-poor scenes having little texture and/or 3D structure such as in a home or office environment. By considering camera families (a set of cameras that are manufactured at least partially in a common manner) it is possible to provide calibration methods which are suitable for use with structure-poor scenes. A prior distribution of camera parameters for a family of cameras is estimated and used to obtain accurate calibration results for individual cameras of the camera family even where the calibration is carried out online, in an environment which is structure-poor.

Abstract: A detachable processing device that is mounted in an image sensing apparatus, integrated, and used by the device includes a logic circuit that can be changed to a plurality of configurations, which implement functions corresponding to a plurality of processes performed by the image sensing apparatus, a memory that stores possible configurations of the logic circuit, and a controller that controls the configuration of the logic circuit on the basis of the logical configurations stored in the memory.

Abstract: An imaging apparatus, such as used in a digital camera or scanner, includes at least one photosensor chip. The chip includes subsystems thereon that control the integration periods of the photosensors according to different control data formats. A selector is used to adapt the chip to accept control data of a selected format consistent with a larger apparatus or system.

Abstract: A video communication system may include a computer program that implements a feedback control process for automatically controlling a light. The feedback control process may include receiving an image from a video camera and determining an initial difference between the received image and a stored image. For example, the feedback control process may determine, on a pixel-by-pixel basis, whether the color and intensity of a facial region in the captured image is sufficiently close to the color and intensity of a facial region in the stored image. If the difference between the captured image and the stored image exceeds a threshold, the feedback control process includes transmitting an optimization instruction to the light. This optimization instruction, when performed by the light, decreases the difference between the received image and the stored image.

Abstract: A predictive device system includes a first device motion control input, determines a desired first device motion using the first device motion control input, and provides actual first device motion using the first device motion control input. The predictive system also determines motion inherent in a received signal using the actual first device motion, determines a difference to be simulated in a second device signal using the desired first device motion and the motion inherent in the received signal, and outputs a predictive signal using the first device motion control input and the difference to be simulated in the second device signal.

Abstract: An image sensing apparatus provided with a plurality of image sensing elements each including a plurality of photoelectric conversion sections and an adding circuit adapted to add signals from the plurality of photoelectric conversion sections to obtain a one-pixel signal, wherein the adding circuit adds the signals obtained by the addition are arranged at equal intervals in an area extending over the plurality of image sensing elements.

Abstract: A method increases a resolution of a moving object in an image acquired of a scene by a camera. The image scene is temporally modulated according to a temporally encoding pattern, while integrating the image in a camera sensor to produce a blurred input image. The blurred input image is resolved according to the temporally encoding pattern to produce an enhanced and deblurred output image in which the object has an increased resolution.

Abstract: An image sensing apparatus provided with a plurality of image sensing elements each including a plurality of photoelectric conversion sections and an adding circuit adapted to add signals from the plurality of photoelectric conversion sections to obtain a one-pixel signal, wherein the adding circuit adds the signals such that the one-pixel signals obtained by the addition are arranged at equal intervals in an area extending over the plurality of image sensing elements.

Abstract: The apparatus of the present invention preferably comprises an image sensor, an orientation sensor, a memory and a processing unit. The image sensor is used for generating captured image data. The orientation sensor is coupled to the image sensor, and is used for generating signals relating to the position of the image sensor. The memory, has an auto-rotate unit comprising program instructions for transforming the captured image data into rotated image data in response to the orientation sensor signals. The processing unit, executes program instructions stored in the memory, and is coupled to the image sensor, the orientation sensor and the memory. The method of the present invention preferably comprises the steps of: generating image data representative of an object with an image sensor; identifying an orientation of the image sensor relative to the object during the generating step; and selectively transferring the image data to an image processing unit in response to the identifying step.