Patents by Inventor Tomonori Masuno

Tomonori Masuno 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: 8861846
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a superimposition processing unit that performs a blending process for a plurality of continuously captured images, wherein the superimposition processing unit is configured to selectively input luminance signal information of a RAW image or a full color image as a processing target image and perform a superimposition process, and performs a process for sequentially updating data that is stored in a memory for storing two image frames so as to enable superimposition of any desired number of images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: October 14, 2014
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Satoru Takeuchi, Hiroaki Takahashi, Teppei Kurita, Tomonori Masuno, Takefumi Nagumo, Yuhi Kondo
  • Patent number: 8767103
    Abstract: A color filter allows a light signal to pass through by each pixel and be incident on an imaging device. The light signal is inputted through a lens and including one of plural different spectral components. The plural different spectral components include a first spectral component which has a widest frequency bandwidth among the plural different spectral components, a second spectral component corresponding to a predetermined frequency band close to a frequency that causes no chromatic aberration of the lens, and a third spectral component expressed in terms of a linear sum of a value resulting from multiplying the first spectral component by a first weighting factor and a value resulting from multiplying the second spectral component by a second weighting factor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 19, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 1, 2014
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomonori Masuno, Mitsuharu Ohki
  • Patent number: 8749661
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus and method and program whereby composition can more readily be confirmed. An imaging unit 432 receives light from a lens 431 and images an imaging image; an extracting unit 435 extracts an extracted image which is an image having a different size from the imaging image and which includes a subject having a high degree of focus; a synthesizing unit 436 synthesizes the extracted image so that the positions of the subject match to the imaging image; and a display unit 438 displays the imaging image of the portions corresponding to a predetermined region having the same size as the extracted image in the display region wherein the entire imaging image can be displayed, and displays the extracted image that has been synthesized with the imaging image. The present invention can be applied to a digital camera, for example.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 2, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 10, 2014
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Shinichiro Gomi, Tomonori Masuno, Masaru Suzuki, Yusuke Nakamura
  • Publication number: 20130272611
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and method, an image capturing apparatus, and a program which make it possible to crop an image with an optimal composition even for a subject other than a person. A composition pattern setting section 33 sets a composition pattern corresponding to an input image, on the basis of the number of salient regions to which attention is directed in the input image, and the scene of the input image. On the basis of the composition pattern set by the composition pattern setting section 33, a composition analyzing section 34 determines a crop region in the input image which is optimal for an image to be cropped in the composition pattern from the input image. The present invention is applicable to, for example, an image processing apparatus that adjusts the composition of a captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2013
    Publication date: October 17, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yusuke Nakamura, Shinichiro Gomi, Tomonori Masuno, Masaru Suzuki
  • Publication number: 20130242141
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus and method and program whereby composition can more readily be confirmed. An imaging unit 432 receives light from a lens 431 and images an imaging image; an extracting unit 435 extracts an extracted image which is an image having a different size from the imaging image and which includes a subject having a high degree of focus; a synthesizing unit 436 synthesizes the extracted image so that the positions of the subject match to the imaging image; and a display unit 438 displays the imaging image of the portions corresponding to a predetermined region having the same size as the extracted image in the display region wherein the entire imaging image can be displayed, and displays the extracted image that has been synthesized with the imaging image. The present invention can be applied to a digital camera, for example.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 2, 2013
    Publication date: September 19, 2013
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Shinichiro Gomi, Tomonori Masuno, Masaru Suzuki, Yusuke Nakamura
  • Patent number: 8538074
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus and method, an image capturing apparatus, and a program which make it possible to crop an image with an optimal composition even for a subject other than a person. A composition pattern setting section 33 sets a composition pattern corresponding to an input image, on the basis of the number of salient regions to which attention is directed in the input image, and the scene of the input image. On the basis of the composition pattern set by the composition pattern setting section 33, a composition analyzing section 34 determines a crop region in the input image which is optimal for an image to be cropped in the composition pattern from the input image. The present invention is applicable to, for example, an image processing apparatus that adjusts the composition of a captured image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2009
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Yusuke Nakamura, Shinichiro Gomi, Tomonori Masuno, Masaru Suzuki
  • Patent number: 8390884
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a frequency information extracting unit configured to extract frequency information of an input image, a color information extracting unit configured to extract color information of the input image, a feature amount calculating unit configured to calculate a feature amount of the input image on the basis of the frequency information extracted by the frequency information extracting unit and the color information extracted by the color information extracting unit, and a scene determining unit configured to determine a scene of the input image on the basis of the feature amount calculated by the feature amount calculating unit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 1, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 5, 2013
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Masaru Suzuki, Shinichiro Gomi, Yusuke Nakamura, Tomonori Masuno
  • Publication number: 20120224766
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a superimposition processing unit which performs a blend process on a plurality of images which are continuously photographed. The superimposition processing unit includes a moving subject detection unit, a blend processing unit, and a noise reduction processing unit. The moving subject detection unit detects the moving subject region of an image, and generates moving subject information in units of an image region. The blend processing unit generates a superimposition image by performing a blend process on the plurality of images using a high blend ratio in a stationary subject region and using a low blend ratio in the moving subject region based on the moving subject information. The noise reduction processing unit performs a stronger pixel value smoothing process on the moving subject region of the superimposition image based on the moving subject information.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 24, 2012
    Publication date: September 6, 2012
    Inventors: Mitsuharu OHKI, Tomonori MASUNO, Satoru TAKEUCHI, Hiroaki TAKAHASHI, Teppei KURITA
  • Patent number: 8199229
    Abstract: A color filter allows a light signal to pass through by each pixel and be incident on an imaging device. The light signal is inputted through a lens and including one of plural different spectral components. The plural different spectral components include a first spectral component which has a widest frequency bandwidth among the plural different spectral components, a second spectral component corresponding to a predetermined frequency band close to a frequency that causes no chromatic aberration of the lens, and a third spectral component expressed in terms of a linear sum of a value resulting from multiplying the first spectral component by a first weighting factor and a value resulting from multiplying the second spectral component by a second weighting factor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 3, 2007
    Date of Patent: June 12, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomonori Masuno, Mitsuharu Ohki
  • Patent number: 8180437
    Abstract: A biological-information obtaining apparatus includes a light-emitting unit, an image sensor configured to capture images, in a time sequence, relating to a living body, and a lens. The apparatus also includes an extreme-occurrence-time obtaining unit configured to obtain times T1 and T2 at which extremes occur in time sequence with respect to brightness values of a first region and a second region, respectively, of each of the captured images. The apparatus further includes a pulse wave velocity (PWV) calculation unit configured to calculate a pulse wave velocity according to the equation, P=(Y×L/f)/(T2?T1), where Y represents a distance on the image sensor, the distance corresponding to a distance between the first region and the second region, f represents the focal length of the lens, and L represents a distance between the lens and the living body.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 2, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 15, 2012
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Tomonori Masuno
  • Publication number: 20120092535
    Abstract: A color filter allows a light signal to pass through by each pixel and be incident on an imaging device. The light signal is inputted through a lens and including one of plural different spectral components. The plural different spectral components include a first spectral component which has a widest frequency bandwidth among the plural different spectral components, a second spectral component corresponding to a predetermined frequency band close to a frequency that causes no chromatic aberration of the lens, and a third spectral component expressed in terms of a linear sum of a value resulting from multiplying the first spectral component by a first weighting factor and a value resulting from multiplying the second spectral component by a second weighting factor.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 19, 2011
    Publication date: April 19, 2012
    Inventors: Tomonori MASUNO, Mitsuharu Ohki
  • Publication number: 20110310302
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a superimposition processing unit that performs a blending process for a plurality of continuously captured images, wherein the superimposition processing unit is configured to selectively input luminance signal information of a RAW image or a full color image as a processing target image and perform a superimposition process, and performs a process for sequentially updating data that is stored in a memory for storing two image frames so as to enable superimposition of any desired number of images.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 10, 2011
    Publication date: December 22, 2011
    Inventors: Satoru TAKEUCHI, Hiroaki TAKAHASHI, Teppei KURITA, Tomonori MASUNO, Takefumi NAGUMO, Yuhi KONDO
  • Patent number: 7899322
    Abstract: A photographing apparatus includes the following elements. A photographing unit photographs an object. A position detecting unit detects the position of the photographing apparatus. A direction detecting unit detects the direction of the photographing apparatus when the object is photographed. An angle-of-view detecting unit detects the angle of view of the photographed image. A recommended-composition information obtaining unit obtains recommended-composition information including a recommended angle of view of the image photographed at the detected position and a recommended direction. An angle-of-view comparing unit compares the detected angle of view with the recommended angle of view. An angle-of-view adjusting unit adjusts the angle of view in accordance with the result of the comparison. A direction comparing unit compares the detected direction with the recommended direction.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 4, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2011
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomonori Masuno, Shinichiro Gomi, Masaru Suzuki, Yusuke Nakamura
  • Publication number: 20100238313
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an imaging apparatus and method and program whereby composition can more readily be confirmed. An imaging unit 432 receives light from a lens 431 and images an imaging image; an extracting unit 435 extracts an extracted image which is an image having a different size from the imaging image and which includes a subject having a high degree of focus; a synthesizing unit 436 synthesizes the extracted image so that the positions of the subject match to the imaging image; and a display unit 438 displays the imaging image of the portions corresponding to a predetermined region having the same size as the extracted image in the display region wherein the entire imaging image can be displayed, and displays the extracted image that has been synthesized with the imaging image. The present invention can be applied to a digital camera, for example.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 8, 2009
    Publication date: September 23, 2010
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Shinichiro Gomi, Tomonori Masuno, Masaru Suzuki, Yusuke Nakamura
  • Publication number: 20100074613
    Abstract: A photographing apparatus includes the following elements. A photographing unit photographs an object. A position detecting unit detects the position of the photographing apparatus. A direction detecting unit detects the direction of the photographing apparatus when the object is photographed. An angle-of-view detecting unit detects the angle of view of the photographed image. A recommended-composition information obtaining unit obtains recommended-composition information including a recommended angle of view of the image photographed at the detected position and a recommended direction. An angle-of-view comparing unit compares the detected angle of view with the recommended angle of view. An angle-of-view adjusting unit adjusts the angle of view in accordance with the result of the comparison. A direction comparing unit compares the detected direction with the recommended direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 4, 2009
    Publication date: March 25, 2010
    Inventors: Tomonori MASUNO, Shinichiro GOMI, Masaru SUZUKI, Yusuke NAKAMURA
  • Publication number: 20100060915
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes a frequency information extracting unit configured to extract frequency information of an input image, a color information extracting unit configured to extract color information of the input image, a feature amount calculating unit configured to calculate a feature amount of the input image on the basis of the frequency information extracted by the frequency information extracting unit and the color information extracted by the color information extracting unit, and a scene determining unit configured to determine a scene of the input image on the basis of the feature amount calculated by the feature amount calculating unit.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 1, 2009
    Publication date: March 11, 2010
    Inventors: Masaru Suzuki, Shinichiro Gomi, Yusuke Nakamura, Tomonori Masuno
  • Patent number: 7551794
    Abstract: A smoothing calculator determines a smoothed mean luminance value C1×?(t)+(1?C1)??(t?1) based on a mean luminance value ?(t) input at time t and a smoothed mean luminance value ??(t?1) read at time (t?1) from a buffer, and outputs the smoothed mean luminance value C1×?(t)+(1?C1)??(t?1) as the smoothed mean luminance value ?(t) of the mean luminance value ?(t). Coefficient C1 is greater than 0 but smaller than 1. Gradation conversion responsive to luminance variation from frame to frame in a moving image is thus achieved.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 18, 2005
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomonori Masuno, Tomoo Mitsunaga, Hiroaki Ono
  • Patent number: 7529405
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus and an image processing method are disclosed by which an image correction process for a false color such as a purple fringe can be executed efficiently while excessive reduction of the saturation is prevented to produce image data of a high quality. A saturation reduction rate corresponding to each pixel is calculated, and saturation reduction of the pixel is executed based on the saturation reduction rate. Then, saturation correction is executed so that the difference between the hue of the pixel whose saturation has been reduced and a surrounding reference pixel may be reduced. Further, a surrounding pixel to be referred to in the saturation correction process is selected along a scanning line.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2005
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2009
    Assignee: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Tomonori Masuno, Mitsuharu Ohki, Rui Yamada
  • Publication number: 20080306366
    Abstract: A biological-information obtaining apparatus includes a light-emitting unit configured to emit light, an image-capturing unit configured to capture images, in time sequence, obtained by irradiating a living body with the light emitted and by causing the light to be transmitted through or reflected by the living body, the image-capturing unit being sensitive to at least two color components, an extreme generation unit configure to generate, for each of the captured images in the time sequence, a maximum value and a minimum value of each of the color components in a certain area of the captured image, and an oxygen-saturation calculation unit configured to calculate oxygen saturation on the basis of the maximum value and the minimum value of each of the color components in the certain area of the captured image.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 28, 2008
    Publication date: December 11, 2008
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Tomonori Masuno
  • Publication number: 20080306372
    Abstract: A biological-information obtaining apparatus includes a light-emitting unit, an image sensor configured to capture images, in time sequence, relating to a living body, a lens, an extreme-occurrence-time obtaining unit configured to obtain times T1 and T2 at which extremes occur in time sequence with respect to brightness values of a first region and a second region of each of the captured images, the time T1 being obtained for one of the first regions and the time T2 being obtained for one of the second regions, and a PWV calculation unit configured to calculate a pulse wave velocity P=(Y×L/f)/(T2?T1), where Y represents a distance on the image sensor, the distance corresponding to a distance between the first region and the second region, f represents the focal length of the lens, and L represents a distance between the lens and the living body.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 2, 2008
    Publication date: December 11, 2008
    Applicant: Sony Corporation
    Inventors: Mitsuharu Ohki, Tomonori Masuno