Abstract: A method for encoding an intra prediction mode according to the present invention selects an intra prediction mode for a current block, determines the number of valid MPM candidates by checking the validity of MPM candidates of the current block, and if the number of valid MPM candidates is less than a previously set number, adds additional intra prediction modes as MPM candidates. MPM candidates can be adaptively added on the basis of the directionality of valid MPM candidates. Additionally, during the encoding of residual intra prediction modes, residual intra prediction modes are realigned on the basis of the directionality of valid MPM candidates. Accordingly, the present invention minimizes the information for encoding the intra prediction mode of the current block by adding MPM candidates or realigning the residual intra prediction modes on the basis of the directionality of valid MPM candidates.

Abstract: A motion vector detection apparatus comprising, a memory for storing a reference image for motion prediction encoding, a unit for detecting a first motion vector by comparing the reference image with an encoding target block of a plurality of blocks obtained by dividing a field image, a converter for converting the field image into a frame image by performing interlace/progressive conversion, a unit for generating a reduced image by reducing the frame image, a frame memory for storing the reduced image, and a unit for detecting a second motion vector based on a reference reduced image and a reduced image of the encoding target block of reduced images stored in the frame memory, wherein the second motion vector detected with respect to the reduced image of the encoding target block is used to determine a search area for detecting the first motion vector.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a controller that selects, from multiple images photographed from different viewpoints, a set of images for three-dimensional image display. The controller determines whether or not amount-of-movement information corresponding to a parallax between the images is recorded as attribute information of the images. When the amount-of-movement information is recorded, the controller selects a combination of images having a parallax corresponding to a display size of a display section by using the recorded amount-of-movement information. When the amount-of-movement information is not recorded, the controller selects a combination of images having a parallax corresponding to the display size by determining an amount of movement through use of information resulting from determination of degrees of block matching between images divided into blocks and using information of the determined amount of movement.

Abstract: An endoscope system includes a light source device, a CCD, a video processor, and an observation monitor, wherein the video processor includes: a band decomposition processing section that performs a decomposition processing for decomposing into a plurality of spatial frequency bands on a signal of an image picked up by the CCD, to generate a plurality of band images; an enhancement processing section that performs an enhancement processing on selected band images based on an enhancement amount set for a region where an observation target in a subject is distributed in a feature space formed with wavelength bands or spatial frequency bands of the band images selected among the plurality of band images as axes; and an image generation section that integrates the plurality of band images subjected to the color conversion processing, for each wavelength image, to generate an image.

Abstract: An image encoding/decoding method and apparatus using coefficients of an adaptive interpolation filter are disclosed including: a coefficient calculator for calculating adaptive interpolation filter coefficient of a current frame; an image encoder for interpolating reference frames using the adaptive interpolation filter coefficient of the current frame and encoding the current frame using the interpolated reference frames; a filter flag encoder for generating and encoding a coefficient-inserted flag or coefficient non-inserted flag as a filter flag according to the adaptive interpolation filter coefficient of the current frame; a coefficient encoder for encoding the adaptive interpolation filter coefficient of the current frame when the filter flag is a coefficient-inserted flag; and a bit stream generator for generating and outputting a bit stream, which includes the encoded current frame and encoded filter flag, and further includes encoded adaptive interpolation filter coefficient of the current frame whe

Abstract: A capturing device includes a display section that changes between and displays a three-dimensional (3D) image and a two-dimensional (2D) image, and a controller that performs an image display control for the display section, wherein the controller changes a display mode of an image displayed on the display section, from a 3D image display to a 2D image display, in accordance with preset setting information, at the time of performing a focus control process.

Abstract: A system and a method for measuring flight parameters of a spherical object are disclosed. A trigger signal-generating unit generates and outputs a first trigger signal upon detection of a spherical object, and generates and outputs a second trigger signal when a reference time interval which is set on the basis of the maximum flight speed and the maximum rotating speed of the spherical object has elapsed from the point in time when the first trigger signal was generated. A photographing unit photographs images in a first image acquiring region having a predetermined region in which the spherical object exists, in accordance with the first trigger signal and the second trigger signal.

Abstract: Various embodiments for providing removable, pluggable and disposable opto-electronic modules for illumination and microscopic imaging are provided, for use with portable display devices. Generally, various medical or industrial miniature microscopes can include one or more solid state or other compact electro-optic illuminating elements, electronic vision systems and means of scanning located thereon. Additionally, such opto-electronic modules may include illuminating optics, imaging optics, and/or image manipulation and processing elements. The illuminating elements may have different wavelengths and can be time-synchronized with an image sensor to illuminate an object for imaging or detecting purpose or other conditioning purpose. All control and power functions of such disposable microscope units can be made in the control unit that the disposable microscopes are plugged into.

Abstract: Provided is an endoscope apparatus including a light-guiding part that guides illumination light emitted from a light source to the distal end of an inserted portion; a scanning part that makes the light-guiding part vibrate with a predetermined period, thus two-dimensionally scanning the illumination light emitted from the inserted portion on an observation subject; an image-acquisition part that receives return light of the illumination light coming from the observation subject and that generates an image signal based on a position scanned by the scanning part and an intensity of the return light; and a light-source control part that controls the light source so as to change the intensity of the illumination light emitted from the inserted portion in accordance with an angle formed between the longitudinal direction of the inserted portion and a direction in which the illumination light is emitted toward the observation subject.

Abstract: An endoscope system includes an imaging apparatus that outputs, as image information, an electrical signal photoelectrically converted from a plurality of pixels, outside the imaging apparatus, and a processing apparatus that is connected to the imaging apparatus so as to bi-directionally communicate with the imaging apparatus. The imaging apparatus includes a first recording unit that records identification information for identifying the imaging apparatus. The processing apparatus includes a second recording unit that records correction information for correcting characteristics of the imaging apparatus in association with the identification information, and a control unit that acquires, from the second recording unit, the correction information corresponding to the identification information received from the imaging apparatus and transmits the correction information to the imaging apparatus.

Abstract: An electronic mirroring system comprises a mirroring unit (12) consisted of a flat panel television (10) attached a touch panel (11), a front video camera (13), a rear video camera (14), and a main unit (21). A front image and a back image are displayed on the flat panel television (10) of the mirroring unit (12) simultaneously.

Abstract: An autostereoscopic display device comprises a display (103) having an array of display pixels (105) and a view forming arrangement (109) of elongate elements which have a long axis which is slanted at an angle ? to the column pixel direction, and the elements have a pitch of P times the width between pixels of the same color in different columns. The pitch P is selected to be: P=0.5·k·(1+S2) in which S=tan ?, and k is a positive integer. This arrangement enables the resulting image projected in respect of each view to have a uniform and regular distribution of pixels across the image. This improves the visual appearance of the views.

Abstract: A broadcast receiver and a 3D subtitle data processing method thereof are disclosed. A method for processing three dimensional (3D) subtitle data includes receiving, by a receiver, a broadcast signal including 3D subtitle data, extracting, by an extracting unit, subtitle display information for a base view and extended subtitle display information for an extended view from the 3D subtitle data, and controlling, by a controller, a 3D subtitle display using the subtitle display information for the base view and the extended subtitle display information for the extended view.

Abstract: According to one embodiment, an electronic apparatus includes a display including a display screen, a housing accommodating the display and including a surface configured to expose the display screen, a connector in an end portion of the housing, the connector being configured to be exposed to the outside of the housing, and a camera in the housing. The camera is configured to capture an image from the surface of the housing and eccentrically positioned with respect to a center portion of the housing as being shifted toward a side opposite to the end portion of the housing.

Abstract: An imaging apparatus includes an imaging section that images an object, an observation mode setting section that sets an observation mode when the imaging section images the object, and a control section that controls an image read mode in which an image is read from the imaging section and a in-focus object plane of the imaging section based on the observation mode set by the observation mode setting section.

Abstract: In illustrative implementations of this invention, multi-path analysis of transient illumination is used to reconstruct scene geometry, even of objects that are occluded from the camera. An ultrafast camera system is used. It comprises a photo-sensor (e.g., accurate in the picosecond range), a pulsed illumination source (e.g. a femtosecond laser) and a processor. The camera emits a very brief light pulse that strikes a surface and bounces. Depending on the path taken, part of the light may return to the camera after one, two, three or more bounces. The photo-sensor captures the returning light bounces in a three-dimensional time image I(x,y,t) for each pixel. The camera takes different angular samples from the same viewpoint, recording a five-dimensional STIR (Space Time Impulse Response). A processor analyzes onset information in the STIR to estimate pairwise distances between patches in the scene, and then employs isometric embedding to estimate patch coordinates.

Abstract: A wavelet transform (WT) is applied to a data stream of high definition video frames, each comprising one or more data channels digitally representing the same image. A WT is applied to each channel. Visual-quality preserving data filters and data substitution techniques are selectively applied that typically lead to at least 90-to-1 compression of the final encoded video frame. Image edge data is extracted and preserved and image noise is reduced to enhance compressibility. After the first WT, primarily low frequency (LL) image data is retained. With each later WT, more non-LL data is retained. Temporal sequences of LL images that result from the final iteration of the wavelet transform are compressed by means of a chain of invertible differenced images. Any color space can be used. Cross-channel conditional substitution is applicable. Complete multiresolution scalability is incorporated into the encoded product. Extra-high definition video encoding is also achievable.

Abstract: A stereo camera implements ranging of an object that includes consecutive similar patterns. In stereo matching using the stereo camera, if a plurality of corresponding point candidates are present in a sum of absolute differences (SAD) or suchlike evaluation value distribution for a target point, an evaluation value map is generated by superimposing an evaluation value distribution of a target point for which a plurality of corresponding points are determined to be present and an evaluation value distribution of each other target point present in a peripheral area of that target point. By this means, the shape of an object is represented in real space around a target point for which a plurality of corresponding points are determined to be present, and it is possible to calculate the true distance of a railing or the like that extends in a straight line by extracting a line segment with the strongest linearity in the evaluation value map.

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide an image encoding apparatus, an image encoding method, and an image encoding program, which can homogenize image quality of an image as a whole without lowering encoding efficiency, being operable at high speed, and reduce the size of circuit scale by performing macroblock shuffling without changing slice structure. Provided is an image encoding apparatus, including: a shuffling portion which collects and shuffles a plurality of macroblocks constituting image data from respective positions within an image; an encoding portion which performs space-frequency transform and entropy encoding on the plurality of macroblocks collected and shuffled by the shuffling portion, as a base unit; and a rate control portion which controls the encoding portion to adjust the rate of the plurality of macroblocks after the encoding.

Abstract: The present invention provides an apparatus that includes a color and polarization image capturing section 201, a whole sky polarization map getting section 202, a weather determining section 203, a fine-weather sky part separating section 204, a cloudy-weather normal estimating section 207, and a pseudo 3D image generating section 208. The apparatus obtains polarization information outdoors with the polarization state of the sky taken into account, and estimates surface normal information at an object's surface on a two-dimensional image, thereby generating a surface normal image. Using that normal image, the apparatus divides the object into multiple ranges, extracts three-dimensional information and generates a viewpoint changed image, thereby generating a pseudo 3D image.