Abstract: A method of evaluating cleanliness of a member having a silicon carbide surface, the method including bringing the silicon carbide surface into contact with a mixed acid of hydrofluoric acid, hydrochloric acid and nitric acid; concentrating the mixed acid brought into contact with the silicon carbide surface by heating; subjecting a sample solution obtained by diluting a concentrated liquid obtained by the concentration to quantitative analysis of metal components by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry; and evaluating cleanliness of the member having a silicon carbide surface on the basis of a quantitative result of metal components obtained by the quantitative analysis.

Abstract: A concentrating lens includes an incident surface, an emitting surface, and a reflective surface. The incident surface includes a central portion and an outer portion. The incident surface is formed by an inner surface of a depression portion. The reflective surface surrounds the emitting surface. The reflective surface extends so as to go toward a first side as going toward an outside. A first light incident on the outer portion of the incident surface transmits through the outer portion, is reflected by the reflective surface, reflected by the incident surface, and incident on the emitting surface. A second light incident on the central portion of the incident surface transmits through the central portion and is incident on the emitting surface. The central portion of the incident surface reflects the first light reflected by the reflective surface, toward the emitting surface and transmits the second light.

Abstract: A light guide includes a translucent member. The translucent member includes: a light incident surface where light is incident; a light emitting surface provided on a side of the translucent member opposite to the light incident surface and emitting light; a parabolic first mirror surface facing the light incident surface and reflecting the light incident from the light incident surface as parallel light; and a parabolic second mirror surface facing the first mirror surface and the light emitting surface and reflecting the parallel light reflected by the first mirror surface so as to be condensed toward the light emitting surface.

Abstract: An object detection device (10) is provided with: a video image converting section (20) converting an input video image in which surroundings of a vehicle are shot, to a characteristics video image into which image characteristics have been extracted from the input video image; a video images-classified-by-distance extracting/composing section (30) extracting areas which differ according to distances from the characteristics video image on the basis of the distance from a vehicle and composing the areas; a first object detecting section (40) scanning a composite video image to perform first object detection processing; an object-candidate position specifying section (50) determining an object-candidate position from a result of the first object detection processing; a second object detecting section (60) performing second object detection processing for the object-candidate position; and an object position identifying section (70) identifying an object position from a result of the second object detecting sec

Abstract: A system for controlling vehicle opening/closing element has a radiation block for irradiating near-infrared light to a peripheral region of an opening/closing element; a photographing block that photographs an image irradiated with the near-infrared light; a hand region extraction block that extracts a user's hand region from brightness of an image photographed by the photographing block; a motion detection block that detects motions of the user's hand from the extracted hand region; and a control block that determines whether or not the detected motions coincide with previously-set predetermined motions and that commands operation of the opening/closing element in accordance with the determined motions.

Abstract: An image capture device (100) that converts the viewpoint of an input video image includes: a viewpoint selecting unit (501) that selects a viewpoint parameter of a desired start viewpoint and a viewpoint parameter of a desired end viewpoint; a viewpoint parameter interpolating unit (502) that generates an interpolated viewpoint parameter by interpolating the viewpoint parameter of the start viewpoint and the viewpoint parameter of the end viewpoint; and a viewpoint conversion unit (503) that generates and outputs a viewpoint-converted video image by sequentially performing a viewpoint conversion on the input video image, based on the interpolated viewpoint parameter sequentially generated by the viewpoint parameter interpolating unit (502), the viewpoint conversion unit thereby presenting the viewpoint-converted video image in which the viewpoint is gradually switched between the start viewpoint and the end viewpoint.

Abstract: An imaging apparatus (1) comprises: a camera (100) (101) for generating a plurality of differently exposed images with parallax; an image brightness adjuster (200) (201) for adjusting the brightness of a plurality of images based on the exposure; a matching unit (21) (22) for using a plurality of brightness-adjusted images to perform matching between the images, and determining matching information; a distance calculator (31) for determining the distance to a given subject based on matching information; a position corrector (24) for correcting positions in an image with parallax so as to eliminate the parallax from the image with parallax, based on the matching information; and a wide dynamic range image generator (32) for combining a plurality of differently exposed images in which positions are corrected by the position corrector (24), and thereby generating an image having a wider dynamic range than images imaged by the camera (100) (101).

Abstract: There is provided an obstacle detection apparatus capable of detecting an obstacle present at the rear of a vehicle even in a low illumination environment, without the need for a sensor other than an imaging apparatus. An obstacle detection apparatus (20) detects, upon backing up of a vehicle, an obstacle from a video of a rear area of the vehicle. The obstacle detection apparatus (20) includes a difference image creating unit (23) that creates a difference image between an image captured when brake lights of the vehicle are on and an image captured when the brake lights of the vehicle are off; and an obstacle determining unit (26) that determines whether there is an obstacle, based on a location in an image where a difference occurs in the difference image obtained by the difference image creating unit (23).

Abstract: It is an object of the present invention to provide a video processing apparatus which can perform separately two shading corrections including a dark shading correction of an image and a peripheral shading correction for light falloff at edges of the image, and can calculate, with accuracy, correction gains corresponding to respective pixels from the correction values of blocks.