Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a motion prediction processor configured to detect a motion vector that indicates inter-image motion between a current image and a reference image; a motion compensation processor configured to perform a motion compensation process for the reference image by using the motion vector and generate a motion compensated image; an addition processor configured to generate a noise reduced image in which noise of the current image is reduced by adding the current image and the motion compensated image; an addition determination unit configured to compute an addition weight in units of pixels of the motion compensated image; a down-sampling processor configured to perform a process for reducing the current image and the motion compensated image; and an up-sampling processor configured to perform a process for expanding an addition coefficient map that is an output of the addition determination unit.

Abstract: An image processing device, which includes: super-resolution processing executing section which inputs a low-resolution image and a super-resolution image and generates a difference image which represents a difference between the input images; and an adding section which adds the difference image and the super-resolution image, wherein super-resolution processing executing section includes a motion vector detecting section which detects a object-based motion vector which represents a motion between images of an object commonly included in the low-resolution image and the super-resolution image on an object basis, and generates the difference image using a motion-compensated image generated by applying the detected object-based motion vector to each object area.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus that converts an input image having first resolution into an output image having second resolution higher than the first resolution includes a super-resolution processing unit that converts the input image into an SR image having the second resolution through motion compensation, a motion mask generating unit that generates a motion mask indicating an accuracy of estimation, an edge direction information generating unit that generates edge direction information indicating an edge direction of each area of the input image, a weight map generating unit that generates a weight map indicating likelihood of the edge direction of each of the areas, an interpolation processing unit that converts the input image into an interpolated image having the second resolution, a weight computing unit that computes a weight, and an image generating unit that generates the output image by constructing a weighted sum of the SR image and interpolated image.

Abstract: An image-coding format converting apparatus comprising an MPEG2 image decoder 30, a resolution/frame rate converter 31, a motion vector converter 32, and an MPEG4 encoder 33. The MPEG2 decoder 30 decodes a bit stream of MPEG2 image codes, generating an image signal. The resolution/frame rate converter 31 converts the image signal. The MPEG4 encoder 33 encodes the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31, generating a bit stream of MPEG4 image codes. In the resolution/frame rate converter 31, pixels are added or extracted in accordance with the start position of a macro block, thus adjusting the input image signal to one than can easily be encoded to MPEG4 image codes. The motion vector converter 32 generates an MPEG4 motion vector from parameters such as an MPEG2 motion vector. The MPEG4 encoder 33 uses the MPEG4 motion vector to encode the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31.

Abstract: A coding device having a specifying unit for specifying image region data to be processed for refreshing countermeasures in image data being coded based on that image data and a refreshing countermeasure unit for applying processing for refreshing countermeasures to image region data specified by the specifying unit when coding the image data.

Abstract: This invention realizes an image decoding apparatus and an image decoding method capable of correctly performing a decoding process in short time with a simple construction. In an image decoding apparatus and an image decoding method for performing a decoding process under a prescribed coding method, simple playback frames comprising an I-picture and following prescribed pieces of P-pictures on the basis of the I-picture existing at a desired position in picture data encoded with the coding method are extracted in a fast playback mode.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes an image correction processing unit configured to correct an input image so as to generate a corrected image and a super-resolution processing unit configured to receive the corrected image generated by the image correction processing unit and increase a resolution of the corrected image through super-resolution processing so as to generate a high-resolution image. The image correction processing unit performs at least one of a time-direction noise removal process, a space-direction noise removal process, a compression noise removal process, and an aperture control correction process.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes the following elements. A local motion vector estimation unit estimates a local motion vector associated with each of blocks, serving as segments of an image frame constituting a moving image. A block weight calculation unit calculates a block weight as an index of the reliability of a local motion vector for each block. A global motion vector estimation unit receives the local motion vectors and the weights to estimate a global motion vector as a motion vector common to the blocks in the frame. The global motion vector estimation unit calculates, as a cost, the sum of the products of the differences between the local motion vectors associated with the respective blocks and the global motion vector and the block weights assigned to the respective blocks subjected to difference calculation and calculates parameters of the global motion vector which minimize the cost.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus for generating a motion compensation image. The image processing apparatus includes: a pixel-relative-position calculation section calculating a relative position between a pixel position of a pixel constituting the motion compensation image and a pixel position of a reference pixel of a reference image to be used for calculating a pixel value of the pixel on the basis of motion vector information; a relative-position quantization section performing quantization processing of relative-position information calculated by the pixel-relative-position calculation section and generating quantized-relative-position information; and a motion-compensation-image generation section generating a motion compensation image by calculating a pixel value of a constituent pixel of the motion compensation image on the basis of the quantized-relative-position information and a pixel value of the reference pixel.

Abstract: A coding apparatus includes: an intra-coding complexity detecting section that detects an intra-coding complexity indicating a complexity of an intra-coding process; an inter-coding complexity detecting section that detects an inter-coding complexity indicating a complexity of an inter-coding process; a characteristic curve calculating section that calculates a characteristic curve indicating a value of strength data indicating the strength of a deblocking filter with a data amount per unit time of coded data as a variable, on the basis of the intra-coding complexity and the inter-coding complexity; and a strength value calculating section that calculates a value of the strength data by substituting a data amount of the coded data into the characteristic curve.

Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a plurality of addition means and an image processing means. The addition means performs addition processing of adding pixels of a differential image at a second resolution representing a difference between an inputted image at a first resolution and an image at the second resolution higher than the first resolution as pixels of an inputted image at the second resolution. The image processing means is configured to perform second and subsequent addition processing, and generate an image of the second resolution as a processing result by performing the addition processing for a predetermined number of times. The addition processing is performed with inputs of an image at the first resolution and an image at the second resolution obtained by an immediately preceding addition processing, which are different from each other.

Abstract: A coding device having a specifying unit for specifying image region data to be processed for refreshing countermeasures in image data being coded based on that image data and a refreshing countermeasure unit for applying processing for refreshing countermeasures to image region data specified by the specifying unit when coding the image data.

Abstract: This invention realizes an image decoding apparatus and an image decoding method capable of correctly performing a decoding process in short time with a simple construction. In an image decoding apparatus and an image decoding method for performing a decoding process under a prescribed coding method, simple playback frames comprising an I-picture and following prescribed pieces of P-pictures on the basis of the I-picture existing at a desired position in picture data encoded with the coding method are extracted in a fast playback mode.

Abstract: Motion picture data is compression-encoded by a compression encoder with the frame rate changing according to the amount of accumulated data of the buffer, which can adequately change the number of pieces of frame image data to be compression-encoded per unit time, according to the change in the picture of the motion picture. In addition, tracing is done to trace extract image data in the frame image data by using a simple motion vector detected for the frame image data of the motion picture data, a higher layer motion vector detector detects a motion vector of the frame image data by using the simple motion vector in common, and a compression encoder extracts the extract image data based on the results of tracing and compression-encodes it by using the motion vector.

Abstract: An image-coding format converting apparatus comprising an EMPEG2 image decoder 30, a resolution/frame rate converter 31, a motion vector converter 32, and an MPEG4 encoder 33. The EMPEG2 decoder 30 decodes a bit stream of EMPEG2 image codes, generating an image signal. The resolution/frame rate converter 31 converts the image signal. The MPEG4 encoder 33 encodes the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31, generating a bit stream of MPEG4 image codes. In the resolution/frame rate converter 31, pixels are added or extracted in accordance with the start position of a macro block, thus adjusting the input image signal to one than can easily be encoded to MPEG4 image codes. The motion vector converter 32 generates an MPEG4 motion vector from parameters such as an MPEG2 motion vector. The MPEG4 encoder 33 uses the MPEG4 motion vector to encode the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31.

Abstract: An image-coding format converting apparatus comprising an EMPEG2 image decoder 30, a resolution/frame rate converter 31, a motion vector converter 32, and an MPEG4 encoder 33. The EMPEG2 decoder 30 decodes a bit stream of EMPEG2 image codes, generating an image signal. The resolution/frame rate converter 31 converts the image signal. The MPEG4 encoder 33 encodes the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31, generating a bit stream of MPEG4 image codes. In the resolution/frame rate converter 31, pixels are added or extracted in accordance with the start position of a macro block, thus adjusting the input image signal to one than can easily be encoded to MPEG4 image codes. The motion vector converter 32 generates an MPEG4 motion vector from parameters such as an MPEG2 motion vector. The MPEG4 encoder 33 uses the MPEG4 motion vector to encode the output of the resolution/frame rate converter 31.

Abstract: A device and a method for multiplexing a plurality of bit streams, a device and a method for decoding a multiplexed signal and a recording medium storing a program for multiplexing a plurality of bit streams are adapted to carry out a dividing step for dividing said second bit stream into predetermined units, an adding step for adding a start code to each of said units obtained by dividing said second bit stream and a multiplexing step for defining a user operable region in said first bit stream and multiplexing and recording at least part of said second bit stream on said user operable region. As a result, a picture signal can be decoded with minimal processing steps because a conventional coding system can be used without modification.

Abstract: A method for encoding the chrominance of the 4:2:2 format or the 4:4:4 format in a picture having the shape so that the 4:2:2 format and the 4:4:4 format can be used in MPEG4. To this end, a picture is divided into the background and an object and an encoder encodes in terms of a macro-block formed by blocks of luminance Y and blocks of chrominance Cr and Cb as a unit. The encoder has a VOP encoding unit 3 which selects the method of utilizing the shape information of the object depending on the chrominance format of the picture.

Abstract: Motion picture data is compression-encoded by a compression encoding means on frame image data basis, and while being stored once in a buffer, the frame rate is changed by a frame rate changing means according to the amount of accumulated data of the buffer, which can adequately change the number of pieces of frame image data to be compression-encoded per unit time, according to the change in the picture of the motion picture, so as to stabilize compressibility and to stabilize the image quality of the motion picture, thus making it possible to adequately provide the motion picture of desired image quality.

Abstract: A scene description generating apparatus and method, an object extracting method, and a recording medium extract an object from an input image. Positional information on the extracted object is output. Based on the positional information, scene description information about a placement position of the object in a scene is generated. When the object is deformed, reference to the positional information is made, and the scene description information is generated in which the object deformation is reflected. Accordingly, the object is placed at a desirable position in the scene.