Patents by Inventor Satoru Kuma

Satoru Kuma has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11568602
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus and an image processing method that are capable of suppressing an increase in loads when a point cloud is generated from a mesh. Point cloud data is generated by positioning points at intersection points between a surface of a mesh and vectors each including, as a start origin, position coordinates corresponding to a specified resolution. For example, intersection determination is performed between the surface of the mesh and each of the vectors, and in a case where the surface and the vector are determined to intersect each other, the coordinates of the intersection point are calculated. The present disclosure can be applied to an image processing apparatus, electronic equipment, an image processing method, a program, or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: January 31, 2023
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ohji Nakagami, Koji Yano, Satoru Kuma, Tsuyoshi Kato, Hiroyuki Yasuda
  • Publication number: 20230023219
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing device and method capable of suppressing a reduction in encoding efficiency. When performing, for attribute information of each point of a point cloud that represents an object having a three-dimensional shape as a set of points, hierarchization of the attribute information by recursively repeating classification of a prediction point for deriving a difference value between the attribute information and a predicted value of the attribute information and a reference point used for deriving the predicted value with respect to the reference point, the reference point is set on the basis of a centroid of points. The present disclosure can be applied to, for example, an information processing device, an image processing device, an encoding device, a decoding device, an electronic device, an information processing method, a program, and the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 24, 2020
    Publication date: January 26, 2023
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi KATO, Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Koji YANO
  • Publication number: 20220414940
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and a method capable of controlling the number of the points to be obtained by decoding. A bitstream is generated, the bitstream including encoded data of 3D data having a plane expressing points in a point cloud that expresses a three-dimensional object as a set of the points, and control information for controlling the number of the points to be derived from the 3D data to be obtained by decoding the encoded data. The present disclosure can be applied to an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, an encoding device, a decoding device, an electronic apparatus, an information processing method, a program, or the like, for example.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 17, 2020
    Publication date: December 29, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Hiroyuki YASUDA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Tsuyoshi KATO, Koji YANO, Satoru KUMA
  • Patent number: 11532103
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and an information processing method that are capable of distributing higher-quality G-PCC streams. When G-PCC streams obtained by encoding Point Cloud data according to G-PCC are generated, there are generated spatial positional information indicating spatial positions of respective pieces of partial Point Cloud data that represent individual parts into which the Point Cloud data is segmented, and grouping information that groups the partial Point Cloud data. The present technology is applicable to a generating apparatus that generates G-PCC streams, for example.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: December 20, 2022
    Assignee: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryohei Takahashi, Mitsuhiro Hirabayashi, Mitsuru Katsumata, Takumi Tsuru, Ohji Nakagami, Satoru Kuma
  • Publication number: 20220383587
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing apparatus and an information processing method that can enhance the image quality while, at the same time, reducing increase in client's throughput. Image data of a plurality of projection directions is generated by projecting 3D data in a plurality of projection directions and converting the 3D data into two-dimensional data, and projection direction information indicating the projection direction of each piece of the image data is generated as projection metadata. Further, the projection direction information includes additional projection direction identification information that indicates that the image data has been generated by projection in additional projection directions. The present technology is applicable, for example, to a data generation apparatus that generates data for delivering a point cloud.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 10, 2022
    Publication date: December 1, 2022
    Applicant: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryohei TAKAHASHI, Mitsuhiro HIRABAYASHI, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Satoru KUMA
  • Publication number: 20220375136
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and method for reducing a decrease in coding efficiency. The information processing apparatus encodes information regarding the luminance of a point corresponding to the lowest hierarchical level in hierarchized geometry data, and information regarding the color of a point corresponding to a predetermined hierarchical level higher than the lowest hierarchical level in the geometry data, in a point cloud expressing a three-dimensional object as a set of points. The present disclosure can be applied to an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, an encoding device, a decoding device, an electronic apparatus, an information processing method, a program, or the like, for example.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 23, 2020
    Publication date: November 24, 2022
    Inventors: TSUYOSHI KATO, SATORU KUMA, OHJI NAKAGAMI, HIROYUKI YASUDA, KOJI YANO
  • Patent number: 11508096
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to information processing apparatus and method that makes it possible to suppress a reduction in encoding efficiency. Information relating to quantization of a three-dimensional position of an encoding target is generated. For example, the information relating to the quantization includes information relating to a coordinate system to be subjected to the quantization, information relating to a bounding box for normalization of position information of the encoding target, or information relating to a voxel for quantization of position information of the encoding target. In addition, three-dimensional information of the encoding target is restored from a signal string on the basis of the information relating to the quantization of the three-dimensional position of the encoding target.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 26, 2018
    Date of Patent: November 22, 2022
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru Kuma, Ohji Nakagami, Koji Yano, Tsuyoshi Kato
  • Publication number: 20220353492
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and a method capable of suppressing a reduction in encoding efficiency of point cloud data. As for a point cloud representing an object having a three-dimensional shape as a point group, position information of a point to be processed is predicted on the basis of position information of a reference point, position information of a prediction point is generated, a difference between the generated position information of the prediction point and the position information of the point to be processed is derived, the derived difference is encoded, and a bitstream is generated. The present disclosure may be applied to, for example, an information processing device, an electronic device, an information processing method, a program or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 11, 2020
    Publication date: November 3, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koji YANO, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Tsuyoshi KATO, Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI
  • Publication number: 20220353493
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and a method for achieving scalability of the number of points in point cloud data. Encoded data of a point cloud representing a three-dimensional object as a point group is decoded, a tree structure using the positional information about the respective points constituting the point cloud is generated, and the number of nodes corresponding to the depth of the level of detail is selected for some or all of the levels of detail constituting the tree structure. The present disclosure can be applied to an information processing apparatus, an electronic apparatus, an information processing method, a program, or the like, for example.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 11, 2020
    Publication date: November 3, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi KATO, Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Koji YANO
  • Patent number: 11481961
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing apparatus and an information processing method that can enhance the image quality while, at the same time, reducing increase in client's throughput. Image data of a plurality of projection directions is generated by projecting 3D data in a plurality of projection directions and converting the 3D data into two-dimensional data, and projection direction information indicating the projection direction of each piece of the image data is generated as projection metadata. Further, the projection direction information includes additional projection direction identification information that indicates that the image data has been generated by projection in additional projection directions. The present technology is applicable, for example, to a data generation apparatus that generates data for delivering a point cloud.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 18, 2019
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2022
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ryohei Takahashi, Mitsuhiro Hirabayashi, Ohji Nakagami, Satoru Kuma
  • Patent number: 11468603
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and a method that allows for suppression of a decrease in encoding efficiency. In comparison of voxel data resulting from quantization of point cloud data, a correlation degree of a distribution pattern between voxel data to be compared is calculated on the basis of a subjective feature of the distribution pattern of values of the voxel data. The present disclosure is applicable to an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, an electronic device, an information processing method, a program, or the like, for example.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2022
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koji Yano, Ohji Nakagami, Satoru Kuma, Tsuyoshi Kato
  • Publication number: 20220303578
    Abstract: There is provided an image processing apparatus and a method designed to be capable of reducing degradation of the subjective quality of a point cloud. Encoded data of a frame image in which a projection image of a point cloud representing a three-dimensional object as a set of points on a two-dimensional plane is placed is decoded, the frame image obtained by decoding the encoded data is unpacked to extract the projection image, and the respective points included in the extracted projection image are arranged in a three-dimensional space. When the coordinates of a point are not integer values in a basic coordinate system that is a predetermined coordinate system of the three-dimensional space, the point is moved in a direction perpendicular to the two-dimensional plane so that the coordinates of the point become integer values. Thus, the point cloud is reconstructed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 30, 2020
    Publication date: September 22, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Koji YANO, Tsuyoshi KATO, Hiroyuki YASUDA
  • Publication number: 20220286679
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing device and method capable of inhibiting deterioration in encoding efficiency. Attribute information of a point cloud in which 3-dimensional shaped objects are expressed as a set of points is hierarchized to generate a reference relation of the attribute information between layers, and the attribute information of a layer in the layer of the generated attribute information is sub-hierarchized to generate a reference relation of the attribute information between sub-layers. The present disclosure can be applied to, for example, an information processing device, an image processing device, an encoding device, a decoding device, an electronic device, an information processing method, a program, or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 26, 2020
    Publication date: September 8, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Koji YANO, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Tsuyoshi KATO
  • Publication number: 20220277517
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and method capable of curbing coding efficiency reduction. On the basis of position information indicating positions of points of a point cloud in units of first regions, for each second region composed of a plurality of first regions, a neighboring pattern of each first region including the points is specified by identifying whether or not each neighboring region adjacent to a processing target region includes the points or is positioned outside the second region including the processing target region, a context is selected according to the specified neighboring pattern, and the position information is coded using the selected context. The present disclosure can be applied to, for example, an information processing device, an image processing device, a coding device, a decoding device, an electronic apparatus, an information processing method, a program, or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 30, 2020
    Publication date: September 1, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Koji YANO, Tsuyoshi KATO, Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Hiroyuki YASUDA
  • Publication number: 20220262043
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing apparatus and method which enable an increase in a load of decoding processing of coded data of a point cloud to be suppressed. Positional information of a point cloud expressing an object with a three-dimensional shape as a set of points is encoded in an order which causes a decoding result of coded data of the positional information to be output in a processing order of attribute information of the point cloud, and coded data thereof is generated. In addition, coded data of positional information of a point cloud expressing an object with a three-dimensional shape as a set of points is decoded and a decoding result thereof is to be output in a processing order of attribute information of the point cloud. For example, the present disclosure can be applied to an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, a coding apparatus, a decoding apparatus, an electronic device, an information processing method, a program, or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 6, 2020
    Publication date: August 18, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ohji NAKAGAMI, Koji YANO, Satoru KUMA, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Tsuyoshi KATO
  • Publication number: 20220245863
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and method capable of curbing reduction in encoding efficiency. In an information processing device for processing attribute information of each point of a point cloud representing an object in a three-dimensional shape as a set of points, a first level is hierarchized using a first hierarchization method and a second level different from the first level is hierarchized using a second hierarchization method different from the first hierarchization method at the time of performing hierarchization of attribute information by recursively repeating processing of, among points classified as a predictive point or a reference point, deriving a difference value between a predictive value of attribute information of the predictive point derived using attribute information of the reference point and the attribute information of the predictive point for the reference point to perform hierarchization of the attribute information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 18, 2020
    Publication date: August 4, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Koji YANO, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Tsuyoshi KATO
  • Patent number: 11405644
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus and a method comprises generating a video frame that includes a patch obtained by projecting, onto a two dimensional plane, a point cloud that represents an object having a three-dimensional shape as a group of points; generating a thumbnail two-dimensional image, the thumbnail two-dimensional image being generated independently from the patch; embedding the thumbnail two-dimensional image into the video frame; and encoding the video frame to generate a bitstream.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 19, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2022
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Ohji Nakagami, Koji Yano, Tsuyoshi Kato, Satoru Kuma
  • Patent number: 11399189
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an image processing apparatus and a method that make it possible to suppress reduction of the encoding efficiency. A patch, which is an image where 3D data representative of a three-dimensional structure is projected on a two-dimensional plane, is placed and packed in a frame image on the basis of an evaluation of a result of prediction performed in encoding of the 3D data, and the frame image in which the patch is placed and packed is encoded using the prediction. The present disclosure can be applied, for example, to an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, electronic equipment, an information processing method, a program or the like.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 28, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 26, 2022
    Assignee: SONY CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi Kato, Satoru Kuma, Ohji Nakagami, Koji Yano
  • Publication number: 20220191520
    Abstract: There is provided an information processing apparatus, an image processing apparatus, an encoding device, a decoding device, an information processing method, and a program that facilitate scalable decoding of attribute information. Regarding the attribute information about a point cloud representing a three-dimensional object, a process of classifying the respective points of the point cloud into prediction points that are the points at which difference values between the attribute information and predicted values are left, and reference points that are the points at which the attribute information is referred to during derivation of the predicted values is recursively repeated on the reference points, so that the attribute information is hierarchized.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2020
    Publication date: June 16, 2022
    Applicant: SONY GROUP CORPORATION
    Inventors: Tsuyoshi KATO, Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Hiroyuki YASUDA, Koji YANO
  • Publication number: 20220182670
    Abstract: The present disclosure relates to an information processing apparatus and an information generation method that enable suppression of deterioration in subjective quality of a point cloud. There is generated an occupancyMap indicating, for each local area of a frame image, presence or absence of a projection image of a point cloud on a two-dimensional plane in accordance with a positional relationship of points in a three-dimensional space, while the point cloud represents an object having a three-dimensional shape as a set of the points. The present disclosure can be applied to, for example, an information processing apparatus, an encoding device, a decoding device, or the like.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 24, 2019
    Publication date: June 9, 2022
    Applicant: Sony Group Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru KUMA, Ohji NAKAGAMI, Tsuyoshi KATO, Koji YANO