Abstract: In one embodiment, a light sensor includes four cell arrays, one for each color of the Bayer pattern, and four lenses each focusing the light coming from the scene to be captured on a respective cell array. The lenses are oriented such that at least a second green image, commonly provided by the fourth cell array, is both horizontally and vertically shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from a first (reference) green image. In a second embodiment, the four lenses are oriented such that the red and blue images are respectively shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the first or reference green image, one horizontally and the other vertically, and the second green image is shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the reference green image both horizontally and vertically.

Abstract: A method of filtering an image filter is disclosed. The filter is provided for a digital camera including image sensors sensitive to light, a color filter placed over sensitive elements of the sensors and patterned according to a Bayer mosaic pattern layout and an interpolation algorithm joining together the digital information provided by differently colored adjacent pixels in said Bayer pattern. The filter is adaptive and includes a noise level computation block for operating directly on a said Bayer pattern data set of for each color channel thus removing noise while simultaneously preserving picture detail.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a light sensor includes four cell arrays, one for each color of the Bayer pattern, and four lenses each focusing the light coming from the scene to be captured on a respective cell array. The lenses are oriented such that at least a second green image, commonly provided by the fourth cell array, is both horizontally and vertically shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from a first (reference) green image. In a second embodiment, the four lenses are oriented such that the red and blue images are respectively shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the first or reference green image, one horizontally and the other vertically, and the second green image is shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the reference green image both horizontally and vertically.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a light sensor includes four cell arrays, one for each color of the Bayer pattern, and four lenses each focusing the light coming from the scene to be captured on a respective cell array. The lenses are oriented such that at least a second green image, commonly provided by the fourth cell array, is both horizontally and vertically shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from a first (reference) green image. In a second embodiment, the four lenses are oriented such that the red and blue images are respectively shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the first or reference green image, one horizontally and the other vertically, and the second green image is shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the reference green image both horizontally and vertically.

Abstract: A method of estimating a global motion vector representative of the motion of a first digital image with respect to a second digital image, the first and the second image forming part of a sequence of images and being made up of, respectively, a first and a second pixel matrix. The method estimates the global motion vector on the basis of the estimate of at least one motion vector of at least one region of the first image representative of the motion of the at least one region from the first image to the second image and comprising phases of: subdividing the at least one region of the first image into a plurality of pixel blocks, assigning to each block of the plurality a respective weighting coefficient calculated on the basis of a respective inhomogeneity measure, and estimating the at least one motion vector of said at least one region on the basis of the weighting coefficients assigned to each block of the at least one region.

Abstract: A method of filtering an image filter is disclosed. The filter is provided for a digital camera including image sensors sensitive to light, a color filter placed over sensitive elements of the sensors and patterned according to a Bayer mosaic pattern layout and an interpolation algorithm joining together the digital information provided by differently colored adjacent pixels in said Bayer pattern. The filter is adaptive and includes a noise level computation block for operating directly on a said Bayer pattern data set of for each color channel thus removing noise while simultaneously preserving picture detail.

Abstract: A method of filtering an image filter is disclosed. The filter is provided for a digital camera including image sensors sensitive to light, a color filter placed over sensitive elements of the sensors and patterned according to a Bayer mosaic pattern layout and an interpolation algorithm joining together the digital information provided by differently colored adjacent pixels in said Bayer pattern. The filter is adaptive and includes a noise level computation block for operating directly on a said Bayer pattern data set of for each color channel thus removing noise while simultaneously preserving picture detail.

Abstract: A method of stabilizing an image sequence, said method comprising the following phases: estimating a first global motion vector comprising a first motion component in a predetermined direction that has associated with it a first respective amplitude and a first respective direction, said first vector being representative of the motion with respect to a reference image of a first image consisting of a pixel matrix, associating said first component with either a wanted motion or an unwanted motion, compensating said first component when it is associated with an unwanted motion, characterized in that the association phase comprises a phase of comparing the first amplitude of said component with a threshold compensation value T comp hor assigned to the predetermined direction, said first component being associated with an unwanted or wanted motion whenever the first amplitude is, respectively, smaller than said threshold value T comp hor or greater than/equal to it.

Abstract: Digital video signals, such as the signals generated by an image sensor in a Bayer format, are converted into an encoded format. In the Bayer format, the pixels of each line are alternately coded with two colors, and then converted into the encoded format. In the encoded format, the pixels of the digital video signals are reordered into sets of adjacent pixels, such that the sets group pixels coded with the same color. The encoded signal data results in a reduced switching activity when transmitted over a bus.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a light sensor includes four cell arrays, one for each color of the Bayer pattern, and four lenses each focusing the light coming from the scene to be captured on a respective cell array. The lenses are oriented such that at least a second green image, commonly provided by the fourth cell array, is both horizontally and vertically shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from a first (reference) green image. In a second embodiment, the four lenses are oriented such that the red and blue images are respectively shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the first or reference green image, one horizontally and the other vertically, and the second green image is shifted (spaced) apart by half a pixel pitch from the reference green image both horizontally and vertically.

Abstract: A method of processing digital source images, each represented by pixel matrices, to obtain from two or more source images, representing one and the same real scene and acquired by utilizing different exposure levels, a final digital image capable of reproducing the real scene with an exposure latitude greater than that of each of the source images. The method, which can be advantageously used in digital still cameras, produces the final image by combining the source images with the help of a weighted average constructed pixel by pixel. Thanks to a special filtering to which the weighting coefficients are subjected before the weighted mean operation, the method obtains a final image in which the source images are harmoniously combined with each other.

Abstract: A method of filtering an image filter is disclosed. The filter is provided for a digital camera including image sensors sensitive to light, a color filter placed over sensitive elements of the sensors and patterned according to a Bayer mosaic pattern layout and an interpolation algorithm joining together the digital information provided by differently colored adjacent pixels in said Bayer pattern. The filter is adaptive and includes a noise level computation block for operating directly on a said Bayer pattern data set of for each color channel thus removing noise while simultaneously preserving picture detail.

Abstract: A method of compressing digital images acquired in CFA format that utilizes optimized quantization matrices. The method, basing itself on the statistical characterization of the error introduced during the processing phase that precedes compression, appropriately modifies the coefficients of any initial quantization matrix, even of a standard type, obtaining a greater compression efficiency without introducing further quality losses.

Abstract: A post-processing method reduces artifacts in block-coded digital images. The method includes: dividing an input image into a plurality of image blocks; for each image block, estimating global features of said image block providing information on an average content of image edges along the horizontal and vertical directions of said image block; for each pixel of an image block under examination, estimating local features for said pixel providing information on the content of image edges along the horizontal and vertical directions of an image area near said pixel; modifying the value of said pixel according to both said global features of the image block to which said pixel belongs and said local features of the image area near said pixel.

Abstract: A method of filtering an image filter is disclosed. The filter is provided for a digital camera including image sensors sensitive to light, a color filter placed over sensitive elements of the sensors and patterned according to a Bayer mosaic pattern layout and an interpolation algorithm joining together the digital information provided by differently colored adjacent pixels in said Bayer pattern. The filter is adaptive and includes a noise level computation block for operating directly on a said Bayer pattern data set of for each color channel thus removing noise while simultaneously preserving picture detail.

Abstract: A method for obtaining a high-resolution digital image from a plurality of starting images formed by pixel matrices acquired at a lower resolution includes combining the plurality of starting images to generate a provisional high-resolution image, and producing from the provisional high-resolution image a plurality of low-resolution images. Each low-resolution image corresponds to a respective starting image. At least a portion of the provisional high-resolution image is processed by modifying pixels thereof to reduce a difference between the plurality of starting images and the plurality of low-resolution images. The processing includes associating with the pixels of the provisional high-resolution image a respective uncertainty measure representing an uncertainty of the pixels, and leaving unmodified at least a subset of the pixels of the provisional high-resolution image having associated therewith a respective uncertainty measure smaller than a threshold.

Abstract: A method of compressing digital images acquired in CFA format that utilizes optimized quantization matrices. The method, basing itself on the statistical characterization of the error introduced during the processing phase that precedes compression, appropriately modifies the coefficients of any initial quantization matrix, even of a standard type, obtaining a greater compression efficiency without introducing further quality losses.

Abstract: A method for obtaining a high resolution digital image from a plurality of starting images formed by pixel matrices and acquired at a lower resolution is provided. The method may include combining the plurality of starting images to generate a provisional high resolution image formed by a pixel matrix. The method may also include associating a respective error with at least a part of the pixels of the provisional image HR(0). More particularly, this may include providing a first error associated with at least one first pixel, and at least partially processing the provisional image by modifying the pixels of this image based upon the respective errors associated therewith. A second error may also be calculated to associate with at least one second pixel situated in the vicinity of the first pixel in the matrix (HR(0)). The second error may be calculated by using the first error associated with the at least one first pixel.

Abstract: A method for improving the quality of a digital image acquired with a non-optimal exposure. In one embodiment, the method, which is applied directly to the image in CFA (Color Filter Array) format, identifies the regions of the image that are most important from the perceptive or contextual point of view by means of simple statistical measures. The image is then transformed by inverting the response function in such a manner as to optimize the quality of these regions.

Abstract: A method of compressing digital images acquired in CFA format that utilizes optimized quantization matrices. The method, basing itself on the statistical characterization of the error introduced during the processing phase that precedes compression, appropriately modifies the coefficients of any initial quantization matrix, even of a standard type, obtaining a greater compression efficiency without introducing further quality losses.