Patents Examined by Mekonen Bekele
  • Patent number: 9691141
    Abstract: A video correction apparatus includes: a resolution adjuster to determine resolution values and a filter coefficient of at least one filter for performing filtering process, and adjust an initial resolution of the color component of the input image to the resolution values to generate resolution-adjusted images; an illumination component extractor to extract illumination components by using the color component of the input image and the at least one filter; a reflection component extractor to extract reflection components of the resolution-adjusted images by removing the illumination components from the resolution-adjusted images; a color adjuster to generate sum images by using the reflection components and the resolution-adjusted images; and an image synthesizer to generate readjusted images by readjusting the resolutions of the sum images to the initial resolution of the color component of the input image, and generate a corrected image corresponding to the color component of the input image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: SK TELECOM CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Seung-ho Shin, Ki-mun Kim
  • Patent number: 9691133
    Abstract: A method of generating super resolution image data includes receiving original image data of a low resolution at an image processing device, performing motion compensation on the original image data using a current frame of image data and at least one previous frame of image data and at least one future frame of image data as reference frames, generating motion vectors, applying noise reduction to the current frame of image data and the reference frames to produce noise reduced, current frame image data, and generating a current frame of super resolution image data using the noise reduced, current frame image data.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: PIXELWORKS, INC.
    Inventors: Guodong Liu, Junhua Chen
  • Patent number: 9691002
    Abstract: The invention relates to a system and method for adjusting the color of image objects based on chained reference points and/or light gradients to account for the effects of lighting conditions that can vary across different environments, according to an implementation of the invention. To chain reference points and/or characterize light gradients, the system may determine a color shift value, which represents the effects of lighting conditions of a target environment (in which the lighting conditions may be unknown) relative to a reference environment (in which the lighting conditions may be known). The chained reference points, gradient characterization, color shift values, and/or other information may be used to store a delta map that characterizes the lighting conditions of an environment so that it may be reused for subsequent color shifts without re-characterizing the environment.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 30, 2015
    Date of Patent: June 27, 2017
    Assignee: Carbon Objects, Inc.
    Inventors: Allen Reed Tomlinson, Frances Allie O'Connell
  • Patent number: 9679218
    Abstract: Disclosed is a method and apparatus for computation and processing of an image for image matching. The apparatus here is configured to pre-process plurality of images for creating an image template. Next, the test image is extracted and pre-processed for assessing the degree of match between the test image components and the image components of the images in the image template, based a position based matching score, a feature based matching score or both.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: Tata Consultancy Services Limited
    Inventors: Aishwarya Visvanathan, Tanushyam Chattopadhyay
  • Patent number: 9679371
    Abstract: In order to enable the computation of a process window including an arbitrary exposure condition, the present invention comprises: a contour data extraction means for extracting contour data from captured images of a plurality of circuit patterns formed by altering exposure conditions for identical design layouts; a shape variation measurement means for measuring, on the basis of the plurality of sets of extracted contour data, the amount of shape deformation at each edge or local region of the circuit patterns; a variation model computation means for computing, on the basis of the measured amount of shape deformation, a variation model for the contour data of a circuit pattern or a shape corresponding to a prescribed exposure condition; and a process window computation means using the variation model to estimate the amount of shape variation of a circuit pattern or a shape corresponding to an arbitrary exposure condition with respect to a circuit pattern or a shape corresponding to an exposure condition spec
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 7, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 13, 2017
    Assignee: Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Hiroyuki Shindo
  • Patent number: 9665925
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to a method and a terminal device for image retargeting, and belongs to the computer technical field. The method includes: establishing a saliency model for an original image; calculating a saliency value of each pixel point in the original image based on the saliency model; and retargeting a target image according to the saliency value of each pixel point, original resolution of the original image and target resolution of the target image. Thus, the present disclosure may solve the problem of complicated analysis process and huge calculation amount caused by analyzing image contents of the original image to obtain important pixel points. Consequently, technical effects of reducing calculation amount may be achieved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 24, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 30, 2017
    Assignee: XIAOMI INC.
    Inventors: Lin Wang, Tao Zhang, Zhijun Chen
  • Patent number: 9654773
    Abstract: When removing a block distortion occurring in a local decoded image, a loop filtering part 11 of an image coding device carries out a filtering process on each of signal components (a luminance signal component and color difference signal components) after setting the intensity of a filter for removing the block distortion for each of the signal components according to a coding mode (an intra coding mode or an inter coding mode) selected by a coding controlling part 1.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2017
    Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
    Inventors: Shunichi Sekiguchi, Kazuo Sugimoto, Hiroharu Sakate, Tokumichi Murakami, Akira Minezawa
  • Patent number: 9648350
    Abstract: A progressive JPEG (joint photographic experts group) decoder is disclosed. The progressive JPEG decoder includes a processing unit that receives a plurality of progressive scans and generates a plurality of modified progressive scans (MPSs). A baseline JPEG decoder, coupled to the processing unit, includes a Huffman decoder, an inverse quantization unit and an inverse transform unit. The Huffman decoder receives a current MPS and generates a set of transform coefficients corresponding to the current MPS. The processing unit adds a set of transform coefficients corresponding to a previous MPS to the set of transform coefficients corresponding to the current MPS, and the processing unit generates quantization indices. The inverse quantization unit estimates inverse quantization values based on the quantization indices. The inverse transform unit estimates inverse transform decoded values based on the estimated inverse quantization values and generates a set of pixels corresponding to the current MPS.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: May 9, 2017
    Assignee: TEXAS INSTRUMENTS INCORPORATED
    Inventors: Mihir Narendra Mody, Vipul Paladiya, Kapil Ahuja
  • Patent number: 9633444
    Abstract: The present disclosure provides an image segmentation method and device. The image segmentation method comprises: establishing a saliency model of an image; obtaining foreground sample points and background sample points of the image according to the saliency model; establishing a foreground and background classification model according to the saliency model, the foreground sample points and the background sample points; and segmenting the image according to a predefined graph cut algorithm which segments the image by using the foreground and background classification model and edge information related to pixels in the image. A problem that a user needs to manually and roughly select the foreground sample points and the background sample points and thus the segmentation efficiency is low for segmenting a large number of images is solved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: XIAOMI INC.
    Inventors: Lin Wang, Qiuping Qin, Zhijun Chen
  • Patent number: 9635330
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing device including a color determination unit configured to detect a region in a certain color from an input image, a feature amount calculating unit configured to calculate a feature amount related to luminance of the input image, and a noise reduction unit configured to perform noise removal on the input image on the basis of a result obtained by detecting the region in the certain color, and the feature amount.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 18, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2017
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventor: Hiroaki Ebi
  • Patent number: 9622645
    Abstract: RGB image signals are inputted. B/G ratio is calculated based on B image signal and G image signal. G/R ratio is calculated based on the G image signal and R image signal. In a feature space formed by the B/G ratio and the G/R ratio, an expansion process and a compression process are performed. In the expansion process, an angle between a first center line and coordinates in a specific region, which contains the first center line, is changed at an angle change rate Wnx. In the compression process, an angle between the first center line and coordinates outside the specific region is changed at an angle change rate Wny smaller than the angle change rate Wnx.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 23, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Assignee: FUJIFILM Corporation
    Inventor: Yoshiyuki Moriya
  • Patent number: 9628811
    Abstract: This disclosure is directed to techniques for determining a picture type for each of a plurality of frames included in a video sequence based on cross-correlations between the frames. The cross-correlations include first order cross-correlations between image information within pairs of frames included in the video sequence and second order cross-correlations between pairs of the first order cross-correlations. The first order cross-correlations may be analyzed to detect video transitional effects between the frames. The first and second order cross-correlations may be comparatively analyzed to determine temporal similarities between the frames. Therefore, the correlation-based determination techniques determine picture types for the frames based on the video transitional effects and the temporal similarities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 17, 2007
    Date of Patent: April 18, 2017
    Assignee: QUALCOMM Incorporated
    Inventors: Scott T. Swazey, Seyfullah Halit Oguz, Amit Rohatgi
  • Patent number: 9609291
    Abstract: To provide an apparatus that generates an RGB pattern data from an image pickup signal by an image pickup element having an RGBW pattern and a method. An edge detection unit analyzes an output signal of the image pickup signal of the RGBW pattern to obtain edge information corresponding to the respective pixels, and a texture detection unit generates texture information. Furthermore, a parameter calculation unit executes an interpolation processing in which an applied pixel position is changed in accordance with an edge direction of a transform target pixel to generate parameters equivalent to an interpolation pixel value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 28, 2017
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yasushi Saito, Isao Hirota
  • Patent number: 9600864
    Abstract: Techniques related to skin tone tuned image enhancement are described. Such techniques may include performing an enhancement of a pixel of an input image based on a skin tone detection score and local detail information of the pixel.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 26, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 21, 2017
    Assignee: Intel Corporation
    Inventors: Ya-Ti Peng, Yi-Jen Chiu, Hong Jiang
  • Patent number: 9594994
    Abstract: The invention relates to a security element applied onto printing substrates (bank notes, securities, product packagings, identity cards/labels or other similar documents) by printing, comprising a unique identifier as primary information visible to the naked eye and secondary information protecting against copying non-visible to the naked eye. The unique identifier is typically a point code. Said secondary information is represented by a structure with the largest dimension of 2 to 40 microns, and due to printing distortions arising when the security element is applied onto a printing substrate, said secondary information is non-reconstructable from the print of the security element and a statistically analyzable inherent feature is associated to it. The invention also relates to a printed matter with such an inventive security element and to a method to check authenticity of a printed matter with the inventive security element in visible light (380-750 nm).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 14, 2017
    Assignee: Glenisys Kft.
    Inventors: Attila Biró, Gábor Kristó, Piroska Reményi
  • Patent number: 9589181
    Abstract: Provided is a suspicious person detection method. First, a normal similar facial image search is carried out. Next, facial images, which are detected automatically from the input images and specified manually, are specified to be determined. Next, similar faces are searched for limited time on a time axis on the database. Next, the number of search results that distance between the features is lower than predetermined value is calculated and it is determined that the number of appearances is large and a possibility of a prowling person is high if the number of cases is large, and otherwise a possibility of prowling person is low. Last, a similarity between a facial image of a pre-registered residents and a facial image of a person whose number is large is calculated, and it is re-determined that the person is residents if the similarity is high, regardless of the determination.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 18, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: HITACHI KOKUSAI ELECTRIC INC.
    Inventors: Wataru Ito, Yohei Akimoto
  • Patent number: 9589324
    Abstract: A method of processing video data includes upscaling an input low resolution image to a high resolution image using a processor, detecting monotonicity in a direction normal to an edge in a low resolution neighborhood in the input low resolution image, and correcting pixels in a high resolution neighborhood of the high resolution image corresponding to the low resolution neighborhood to preserve at least some of the monotonicity.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2014
    Date of Patent: March 7, 2017
    Assignee: PIXELWORKS, INC.
    Inventors: Guodong Liu, Bob Zhang, Neil Woodall, Junhua Chen, Yue Ma
  • Patent number: 9582095
    Abstract: Provided are methods and computing devices wherein in one embodiment, a positional input is utilized to identify variables associated with operations configured to designate groups or ranges of user chosen locations within a document, and operations having access to the designated locations to edit the document. For example, two variables, corresponding to two ends of a line, drawn at various positions on a touch screen within which a text document is displayed, may be utilized to designate groups of two locations in the document within which to move a character: a first representing locations “from” and a second representing locations “to” in which, to move a character. Other embodiments are disclosed, such as grouping user entered symbols, commands and text at various positions on a touch screen within which a document is displayed, into consolidated editing commands and the locations in the document at which to apply them.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 31, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Inventor: Eli I Zeevi
  • Patent number: 9582940
    Abstract: A system and method for obtaining a composite image by combining multiple sub-images are provided. In some embodiments, the method may include retrieving overlapping images corresponding to sub-images including 3D volume data, generating two-dimensional (2D) projection images and pixel maps based on the overlapping images, performing one or more registrations based on the 2D projection images and the pixel maps, calibrating the sub-images based on the results of the registration(s), and fusing the sub-images to produce a composite image. In some embodiments, the method may include setting a plurality of parameters relating to an X-radiation source or a radiation detector based on a preliminary number of exposures and a preliminary exposure region, controlling, based on at least one of the plurality of parameters, a motion of the X-radiation source or a motion of the radiation detector to capture a plurality of sub-images, and combining the plurality of sub-images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 27, 2016
    Date of Patent: February 28, 2017
    Assignee: SHANGHAI UNITED IMAGING HEALTHCARE CO., LTD.
    Inventors: Wenjun Yu, Xiangcui Jin, Yang Hu, Haifeng Xiao, Hongwei Chen, Wei Wang
  • Patent number: 9569820
    Abstract: Image correcting methods and apparatuses for removing speckles from an image are provided. The image correcting method includes selecting a first region in an image; removing a speckle from a second region except for the first region from the image by using image information at a predetermined frequency band in the image; and increasing a contrast level of the first region.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 2014
    Date of Patent: February 14, 2017
    Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Won-hee Choe, Jae-guyn Lim, Seong-deok Lee