Abstract: A digital image processor is provided. The digital image processor includes a shift register having a number of serially connected registers. The shift register is receptive to an image data word signal and has a plurality of taps. A coefficient store provides a number of quantized coefficients in which the number of coefficients stored corresponds to an integer multiple of the taps. A number of multipliers are provided, each having a first input coupled to a tap of the shift register and having a second input coupled to the coefficient store to receive a coefficient to provide a number of multiplied output. An adder is coupled to the multiplied outputs, wherein the adder generates a filtered and scaled image data output signal.

Abstract: An image retrieval method and an image retrieval apparatus are disclosed in which it is possible to identify in which image-information recording medium or in which group an image to be retrieved is included. The image retrieval apparatus has a recording controller for recording image information on a disk drive or a hard disk drive. A reduction/expansion controller generates an index picture of a predetermined group of the image information. A retrieval-information storage unit generates index picture IDs, medium IDs, and folder IDs while correlating the above different types of IDs with each other, and stores the IDs together with the index pictures. With this arrangement, a desired item of image information is retrieved by using the index pictures, the index picture IDs, the medium IDs, and the folder IDs. It is thus possible to obtain a target image by sequentially checking the index picture visually.

Abstract: Lower resolution source data is synthesized to a higher resolution format for subsequent rendering on a lower resolution output device. Synthesis occurs by selecting or generating and using a synthesis template that represents a configuration of a plurality of pixel data in the higher resolution format into which the lower resolution source data is to be synthesized. A working or active pixel is identified from the lower resolution source data, a synthesis template is selected, and then the synthesis template pixel data is substituted for the working pixel for rendering on the output device. The synthesized higher resolution data is rendered in a manner such that dots represented by the synthesized data are formed interstitially relative to scan lines of the given lower raster/resolution capability of the output device. The working pixel is identified in the lower resolution data by recognizing a configuration of a plurality of pixel data adjacent the working pixel.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus for synthesizing images from two or more existing images are described. The described embodiment makes use of an illumination model as a mathematical model to combine the images. A first of the images is utilized as an object color or color source (i.e. the foreground) for a resultant image that is to be formed. A second of the images (utilized as the background or texture) is utilized as a perturbation source. In accordance with the described embodiment, the first image is represented by a plane that has a plurality of surface normal vectors. Aspects of the second image are utilized to perturb or adjust the surface normal vectors of the plane that represents the first image. Perturbation occurs, in the described embodiment, by determining individual intensity values for corresponding pixels of the second image. The intensity values are mapped to corresponding angular displacement values.

Abstract: Light sources are disposed at a plurality of different positions for an object body to be photographed, and a plurality of images corresponding to respective light source positions are photographed, and from the change in the direction or the color on the surface of the object body to be photographed, the parameters to be the coefficient for introducing the direction or the color on the surface of the object body observed from the light source position are measured, and an image can be synthesized for any light source position using the above-mentioned data. Thereby, it is made possible to synthesize an image for any light source position with the data which can be easily available as the images of an object body photographed with a camera and so on, without needing many hands or special tools.

Abstract: An object mask and a set of control points defined for a given frame are subjected to morphological processing to remove false edge points and provide a more robust mask for use in tracking the object in a next frame. The morphological processing is performed on a frame by frame basis corresponding to object tracking so that errors added in by the object tracker do not accumulate, and instead are filtered out. Rapidly moving objects which are troublesome for edge-based object trackers are more readily tracked. Also, regions of low contrast or regions locked onto in the background when trying to identify the object are more readily distinguished and eliminated from the object mask.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes recording unit which has recorded image information appended with quantized space information in units of pixels, setting unit for setting a resolution higher than that of the recorded image information, reconstruction unit for reconstructing an image by reading out image information from the recording unit at the recorded resolution irrespective of the resolution set by the setting unit, and interpolation unit for making pixel interpolation of the reconstructed image with the resolution of the reconstructed image matching the resolution set by the setting unit.

Abstract: An automated method for evaluating the amount of residual protein levels following treatment of cellular specimens. Particular methods include the measurement of maternal neutrophil alkaline phosphatase after treatment with or without urea or heat, measurement of leukocyte acid phosphatase after treatment with or without tartrate, and measurement of leukocyte esterase after treatment with &agr;-naphthol butyrate with or without fluoride.

Abstract: Methods of caching tile image constituents of image-mosaics enable a substantially smooth real-time display of portions of the image-mosaic in a view during panning, resizing, or zooming of the view. The method includes using a predictive algorithm to identify tile images to be retrieved from a remote store through a local area network, and for sequencing requests for the retrieval of tile images from the remote store. A scheduler calculates time spent in retrieving and servicing each tile image retrieval request and proportionately pauses retrieval of tile images after each request is serviced in order to prevent over utilizing LAN resources. The advantages are that tile images to be displayed are cached in accordance with a priority to facilitate image display while network data transfers are distributed in time.

Abstract: The present invention is a modified Radon transform. It is similar to the traditional Radon transform for the extraction of line parameters and similar to traditional slant stack for the intensity summation of pixels away from a given pixel, for example ray paths that spans 360 degree at a given grid in the time and offset domain. However, the present invention differs from these methods in that the intensity and direction of a composite intensity for each pixel are maintained separately instead of combined after the transformation. An advantage of this approach is elimination of the work required to extract the line parameters in the transformed domain. The advantage of the modified Radon Transform method is amplified when many lines are present in the imagery or when the lines are just short segments which both occur in actual imagery.

Abstract: A method and apparatus allows mutual comparison of a mode of appearance of a color by the visual sense with a mode of appearance of the color from a calorimetric value from a calorimeters, and establishes a corresponding relationship between both evaluations. In the illumination variable calorimetric method and colorimeter, an illumination adjustment mechanism and an illumination measurement light receiver are disposed in a measurement optical path of an optical portion. After an illumination is adjusted to a predetermined illumination while a standard plate is placed on the surface of a sample table, standard adjustment is effected. Thereafter, measurement is started by placing a sample on the sample table, and the illumination of the sample table is varied by the light quantity adjustment mechanism so that changes in hue, saturation and lightness of a surface color of the sample and each color difference value with respect to the change of illumination of the same sample can be measured and displayed.

Abstract: An image processing system is provided which includes an input device for inputting first image data; and a processor for processing the first image data inputted by the input device so as to obtain second image data and for then outputting the second image data to an output device. The output device outputs an image on an image recording medium based on the second image data. The processor processes the first image data in accordance with at least one of a condition of a sharpness enhancing process, a condition of a noise eliminating process, a sequential order in the image processing and a number of times of the image processing.

Abstract: An inclination correction device for correcting an inclination of an image caused when the image is read while the image is inclined from a main scanning direction in an image reading apparatus which scans the image in the main scanning direction and in a sub-scanning direction, by shifting processing to shift the image at least in one direction, wherein there is provided an interpolation processing device which corrects an error that is smaller than a pixel unit and is caused in the shifting processing through interpolation processing.

Abstract: A first original image and a second original image are input to create a merged image. A superimpose area, which an operator designates using an input device, is set as a superimpose area. A portion of the first original image to be superimposed is determined. A superimposing process is executed by blending the first original image with the merged image with a weighted average. The setting of the superimpose area is to determine an &agr; value indicative of the degree of blend (weight) between the first original image and the merged image. The &agr; value of a portion independently present to the side of the second original image with respect to a center line is forced to be zero. The first original image is superimposed onto the merged image using the determined &agr; value.

Abstract: A method for producing an image. The method includes the steps of forming a procedural representation of the image. Then there is the step of taking samples of the image. Next there is the step of rendering larger shapes in the samples as progressively smaller shapes which cover the larger shapes until the larger shapes become represented by smaller shapes each occupying exactly one pixel, wherein the time it takes to render each smaller shape is essentially the same. An apparatus for producing an image. The apparatus includes a computer. The apparatus includes a memory connected to the computer. The apparatus includes a computer display connected to the computer. The apparatus includes a pointer device connected to the computer. The apparatus includes a mechanism for taking samples of the image and rendering larger shapes in the samples of the image as progressively smaller shapes which cover the larger shapes until the larger shapes become represented by smaller shapes each occupying exactly one pixel.

Abstract: To generating a mosaic image by combining a plurality of material images, an original image is divided into tiles and a material image having a characteristic similar to that of an image in each tile is applied to the tile. If more than one version of image data having different resolutions is provided as the image data for the material image, a low-resolution version of the image data is used to calculate a characteristic quantity of the image. Thus, the amount of time required to generate the mosaic image can be reduced.

Abstract: A method for automated image analysis of a biological specimen by histological reconstruction. Also provided is an automated cell image method for analyzing a biological specimen that has consecutively been stained by either an in situ hybridization (ISH) method, or an immunohistochemistry (IHC) method or a nucleic acid stain, and counterstained. The method couples composite images in an automated manner for processing and analysis. To identify structure in tissue that cannot be captured in a single field of view image or a single staining technique, the disclosure provides a method for histological reconstruction to analyze many fields of view on potentially many slides simultaneously.

Abstract: A high definition radar imaging system receives SAR image data and adaptively processes the image the data to provide a high resolution SAR image. The imaging technique employs an adaptive filter whose tap weights are computed based upon a constrained Maximum Likelihood Method (MLM). The MLM technique chooses the filter tap weights (i.e., a weighting vector &ohgr;) to satisfy several criteria including: 1) they preserve unity gain for a point scatter at the desired location, and 2) they minimize the perceived energy in the output image. The weights &ohgr; are constrained in norm ∥&ohgr;∥≦&bgr;, to reduce the loss of sensitivity to bright scatters. Significantly, the present invention applies an additional constraint on the iterative selection of the weighting vector &ohgr;, such that the weighting vector &ohgr; shall confined to a particular subspace in order to preserve background information in the image.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method for enabling easy characterization, storage and retrieval of multi-dimensional data structures involving use of a translation, rotation and scaling invariant index which results from concatenating a series of Eigenvalue calculation mediated index elements determined at a plurality of hierarchical data depth levels by characterizing spatial first and second central moment calculations, optionally including pre-selection of pixels in data structures which demonstrate significant intensity and/or color gradients with respect to surrounding pixels. Preferred characterizing vector(s) consist of typically orthogonally specific frequency integer counts of said pre-selected pixels, as well as spatial data structure first central monent value(s), and non-degenerate parameters determined from Eigenvalues derived from second central moments.

Abstract: A method for temporal interpolation of an image sequence using object-based image analysis is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of image segmentation for partitioning a known image into objects, motion estimation, object-based motion field processing, determination of object depth order, detection of covered areas and newly exposed areas, adaptive interpolation using motion projection, and graceful degradation for alleviating remaining visible artifacts. The method produces interpolated images of high quality in real time for every type of image areas including fast moving objects, covered areas, and newly exposed areas.