Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed for performing motion estimation and compensation to fractional pixel accuracy using polyphase prediction filters as part of a video compression/decompression technique. A motion estimator applies a set of polyphase filters to some data in the reference picture and generates motion vectors, an estimated macroblock of video data, and a residual error macroblock of video data. The data referenced in the reference picture usually have more data than a macroblock since multi-tap filtering needs to access more data. A motion compensator generates a compensated macroblock of video data in response to the reference video data, the residual error macroblock of video data, and a polyphase prediction filter decided by the motion vector. The reference video data are usually reconstructed at the compensator side.

Abstract: A method and system for segmenting an object in a digital image are disclosed. A user selects at least one foreground pixel or node located within the object and at least one background pixel or node located outside of the object. A random walk algorithm is performed to determine the boundaries of the object in the image. In a first step of the algorithm, a plurality of coefficients is determined. Next, a system of linear equations that include the plurality of coefficients are solved to determine a boundary of the object. The processing is performed by a graphics processing unit. The processing can be performed using the near-Euclidean LUV color space or a Lab color space. It is also preferred to use a Z-buffer in the graphics processing unit during processing. The object, once identified, can be further processed, for example, by being extracted from the image based on the determined boundary.

Abstract: An image quality display apparatus includes an input means for inputting images, an operating means for accepting a request for display of a graph showing a frequency distribution of shading levels of an image inputted by the input means, a display means for displaying the graph in response to the display request, and a tallying means for preparing data for displaying the graph before accepting the display request.

Abstract: A method of locating a character set in a digital image comprises examining pixels of the digital image to detect pixels having specified color attributes. Regions of the detected pixels are identified and the identified regions are clustered according to color similarity. Each cluster is examined to detect the cluster meeting specified morphological constraints thereby to locate the character set. An apparatus for locating a character set in a digital image is also provided.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products used to locate a feature in a digital image. A first search is performed in the image to find candidate faces, where each candidate face found is a group of pixels in the image that satisfies a first pattern-matching criterion. A second search is performed in the image to find candidate eyes, where each candidate eye found is a group of pixels in the image that satisfies a second pattern-matching criterion. A third search is performed within each candidate face that includes at least one overlapping candidate eye to find red pupils, where each red pupil found is a group of pixels in the image. A color modification process is applied to the red pupils.

Abstract: Systems and methods are disclosed that provide noise reduction for primary tones. In an embodiment, the systems and methods involve adjusting an input color toward a primary tone at the expense of replicating the input color according to its proper hue. The adjusted input color, when displayed by a display device, will be more visually appealing to a typical user.

Abstract: An attribute data transform unit (205) rearranges a bit string which forms attribute information, using descending order data, and sends the rearranged attribute information to an image/attribute data coding unit (206). The image/attribute data coding unit (206) codes the received attribute information.

Abstract: Aspects of the present invention comprise systems and methods for image illuminant estimation. Some aspects relate to computing an image histogram comprising data relating the frequency of image element color values to color values found under said candidate illuminants, determining match scores for the plurality of candidate illuminants, determining a minimum match score of the match scores and determining minimum match score chromaticity coordinates. Some aspects relate to fitting a surface to the match scores wherein the surface represents illuminant parameter values other than the candidate illuminants, solving for an extremum of the surface and determining chromaticity coordinates of the extremum. Some aspects relate to selecting estimated image illuminant coordinates based on the relative location of the coordinates of one of the candidate illuminants, the coordinates of the extremum and/or the minimum match score chromaticity coordinates.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for the detection of errors in compressed digital image is disclosed. In one embodiment, a signature is generated using a multiple input shift register and added to the compressed information. The signature is verified at the decoder to detect an error in the compressed information. Other information such as the frame number and/or color component type of the compressed image can also be verified to detect errors in the compressed information. In other embodiments, the decoder detects errors if there are bits remaining after decompression and/or if there are invalid codes at decompression. Once an error is detected, the compressed information can be discarded or re-sent and processed. Therefore, the detection of errors can significantly enhance at least the reliance of systems such as digital cinema that require compression of large amounts of data.

Abstract: A method for the three-dimensional determination and digitization of a plaster- or positive-model, in particular for the production of replacement teeth, with improved handling and costs. According to the method, a plaster- or positive-model is clamped in a mounting with a defined orientation and irradiated by means of a radiation source; the radiation reflected by the plaster- or positive-model is recorded and evaluated by a scanning unit. Separation information is generated, and defined movement of the plaster- or positive-model relative to the radiation source takes place along an axis (y), approximately perpendicular to the direction of radiation and linking the displacement with the separation information. The invention also relates to a device for carrying out the method.

Abstract: A system for capturing, calibrating and concatenating all-surface inspection and metrology data is herein disclosed. Uses of such data are also disclosed.

Abstract: An image coding apparatus includes an image characteristic determination unit configured to divide input image data into image blocks each including a plurality of pixels, and to determine a characteristic of each image block, a loop filter configured to perform a filtering process on each image block in a locally decoded image associated with the input image, and a control unit configured to control a property of the loop filter to perform a filtering process on image regions into which the image blocks are sorted according to characteristics of the image blocks determined by the image characteristic determination unit.

Abstract: The present invention realizes a function equivalent to an optical half-ND filter electrically and incorporates this function in an image-signal processing system, thereby to compress the dynamic range of images, both effectively and flexibly. The present invention provides an imaging apparatus including an imaging unit that photographs an object, thereby to generate a video signal, a pattern-generating unit that generates a two-dimensional gradation pattern, and a multiplying unit that multiplies the video signal by a gain that corresponds to the two-dimensional gradation pattern.

Abstract: A computer-readable medium contains software that, when read by a computer, causes the computer to perform a method for wide-area site-based surveillance.

Abstract: Techniques and tools for spatial extrapolation of pixel values in intraframe video encoding and/or decoding are described. For example, to predict the pixel values for a block of pixels, a video encoder or decoder uses spatial extrapolation from the pixel values of pixels in a causal neighborhood for the block of pixels.

Abstract: An encoding process is provided which can easily control the compression rate or guarantee a maximum required processing time when representing the factor data, obtained from a wavelet transformation, as codes corresponding to each of the bit planes. To this end, a plurality of sets of table data each specifying the bit planes to be discarded for each of the sub bands are provided, and by selecting one of these sets according to the various conditions set forth such as the desired compression rate or a maximum required processing time, the amount of data to be encoded can be optionally set and/or a maximum required processing time can be optionally set for an apparatus with a predetermined processing speed.

Abstract: Embodiments of the invention provide a method for setting a light source parameter in order to recognize an identification mark on an object surface. In one embodiment, a grayscale image is generated by setting the light volume of the light source to a given value. Plural thresholds each for binarizing the grayscale image in density are set. The inter-class variance values to be produced respectively according to the thresholds are calculated and the largest inter-class variance value is selected as the peak inter-class variance value from the inter-class variance values calculated. The light volume is changed to a plurality of different values. Peak inter-class variance values are obtained respectively for the values and the largest peak inter-class variance value is selected as the maximum inter-class variance value from the peak inter-class variance values obtained.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus, including computer program products, for protecting colors from being clipped during color adjustment. A first set of colors is identified in a source color space, and a first color mapping is specified to associate colors in the source color space with mapped colors. The first set of colors and the first color mapping are used to construct a third color mapping that can be represented as a concatenation of an injective second color mapping with the first color mapping. The third color mapping is constructed such that each color in the first set of colors is associated with a mapped color inside a destination color space.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to an image processing apparatus or an image processing method, and takes as its technical problem the fact that conventionally it is difficult to perform a process of carving out a rectangle with high precision in a noisy environment. Therefore, as to an image made by binarizing an original image, histograms of the numbers of horizontal and vertical black pixels thereof are created and trapezoidal approximation is performed on the histograms so as to detect vertex coordinates indicating an extent of a rectangular area in the binary image. An inclination direction of the rectangular area in the extent is detected so that the rectangular area can be detected from the binary image with high precision.

Abstract: A method of segmenting a digitized image includes providing a digitized image on a domain of points on an N%N grid, defining a weight between each pair of adjacent points in the image based on the intensity difference of each said point pair, marking a subset of points in the image, associating a probability potential with each unmarked point, and using a multigrid method to solve for the probability potentials for each unmarked point, wherein a restriction operator for the image is applied to an (N?1)%(N?1) image wherein each image weight is treated as a function of an adjoining point for application of the restriction operator, wherein said restriction operator determines weights of a coarse level grid.