Abstract: An optical apparatus which can reproduce an image having a large focal depth without losing resolution and luminance, wherein there is inputted a plurality of images focused on different object planes. A plurality of input images are then weighted and added together. Image recovery processing of the thus added images is then performed.

Abstract: A method of reading image wherein an original image is read with two different sampling intervals, and undesirable signal components are removed from the read image signals. An apparatus for reading image wherein an original image is read with different sampling intervals by reading devices of two systems; outputs of the reading devices are A/D converted and subjected to an orthogonal function transformation; a converted signal of smaller absolute value is subjected to an inverse orthogonal function transformation to produce a read image signal.

Abstract: The method of detecting corresponding regions between a plurality of pictue images includes respective steps of standardizing the concentration values of respective picture image signals in the operation object regions of a plurality of picture images so that an influence such as the dispersion of the concentration and brightness may be corrected, operating the correlation in the actual fields of the operation object regions and detecting the set of regions in which the operated correlation value is a maximum. The apparatus for realizing this method includes a standardizing device for standardizing the concentration values of respective picture image signals in the operation object regions of a plurality of picture images so that the influence such as the dispersion of the concentration and brightness may be corrected, a correlation operating device for operates the correlations in the actual fields of the operation object regions.

Abstract: A correlation operational apparatus for multi-dimensional images includes: means for reducing at least two-dimensional components of the multi-dimensional images composed of at least two components by at least one component by projecting a vector representing the image onto a space perpendicular to a vector representing a large variance of distribution of the multi-dimensional image in a vector space whose orthogonal axes represent the individual dimensional component values of the multi-dimensional image; and means for performing a correlation operation for each component on the multi-dimensional images whose dimensional components have been reduced by at least one. In consequence, images having a relatively high number of high spatial frequency components and whose components have been reduced by at least one are extracted, and a correlation operation is performed thereon.

Abstract: The method for detecting corresponding regions between a plurality of picture images comprises the steps of setting respective operation object regions for a plurality of picture images, calculating a variance of mutual concentration or density distributions in the operation object regions, and detecting the operation object regions which have been set in which the calculated variance value is at a minimum. The apparatus for detecting corresponding regions between picture images comprises a variance calculating member for calculating a variance of mutual concentration or density distributions in the operation object regions of a plurality of picture images, and a corresponding region detecting member for detecting a seat of regions where a variance value calculated by the variance calculating device is at a minimum.

Abstract: The method of detecting corresponding regions between primary color picture images comprises respective steps of converting three primary color signals of color picture images to at least two signals based on these three primary color signals, calculating the variance of the mutual concentration distribution in the operation object regions of the three primary color picture images from these converted signals and detecting the set of regions in which the calculated variance value is minimum.

Abstract: An optical non-contact detection of profile errors of a surface or surfaces of an article, such as an industrial product is carried out by a coherent signal bea of light introduced along an imaginary plane and projected onto the surface of the article at a large angle of incidence. The signal beam of light is reflected from the surface toward the same imaginary plane and traveled past optical system toward a photosensitive material on which a separate reference beam of light is projected. A hologram of the surface is formed on the photosensitive material, which is used for an analysis of the profile errors of the surface.

Abstract: A method of processing images taken by an endoscope having insertion section, bending section and operation section including a step of entering a first image of an object taken by the endoscope having the bending section situated in a first position, a step of entering a second image taken by the endoscope having the bending section situated in a second position, after moving the bending section into the second position by operating an operation member, the first image being partially overlapped with the second image, a step of detecting a positional relation between the first and second positions by detecting the movement of the bending section, a step of deriving a distance between corresponding points on the first and second images, a step of deriving three dimensional information of the object, and a step of displaying a three dimensional image of the object in accordance with the three dimensional information.

Abstract: A method for optically detecting error in shape wherein a laser irradiates with a large angle of incidence the surface of an object to be inspected for its shape and the light wavefront of its positive reflected light from the surface is converted by using a special optical element into a light wavefront that is easily converged, the converted light wavefront is converged and the state of the convergence is detected by a photoelectric detector array, and output signals from the photoelectric detector array are processed to detect and measure the shape error of the surface of the object.

Abstract: A hardness tester has an image sensor and a detecting system. The image sensor has aligned plurality photoelectric sensor elements on an image plane on which a bright and dark image of an indentation is formed through an optical system. The detecting system detects the diagonal length of the indentation by using the differences in amplitude of the output signals developed by the sensor elements in the vicinity of the ends of the indentation image.