Sony Corporation

Katsuaki Hirota

Toshiharu Kondo

Akihiro Kikuchi

Takashi Kohashi

Fumiaki Kato

Ken Nakajima

Keiji Mabuchi

Takashi Abe

Nobuo Nakamura

Hiroki Sato

Nobuyuki Sato

Eiichi Funatsu

Hiroaki Fujita

Makibi Nakamura

Tomoyuki Umeda

Koji Iwamoto

Shuji Shimizu

Naoki Kawaguchi

Kenichi Hamada

Takamasa Wada

Nobuyuki Satou

Funiaki Kato

Yoshikazu Ochi

An image-processing apparatus for processing images, whereby the image-processing apparatus includes an image capture unit, a filter, and an extraction unit. The image capture unit acquires image signals composed of multiple color components of a 2&#xd7;2 color-coding array. The filter then calculates an average pixel value associated with any (2n&#x2212;1) pixels acquired by the image capture unit, whereby each of the filtered (2n&#x2212;1) pixels include a target pixel and adjacent pixels having the same color component as that of the target pixel, and the calculated average is designated as the average of the target pixel and the adjacent pixels. At the extraction unit the pixel having the average calculated by the filter as the pixel value is extracted at an extraction rate of 1/(2n&#x2212;1), where n is a positive integer value.

Image processing system, image processing method, image processing recording medium, and program suitable for extraction processing

A solid state imaging device having an X-Y addressable solid state imaging device with color filters and a driving unit which reads out pixel information of a same color filter in a unit pixel block as pixel information for one pixel simulatively. A predetermined color coding for the pixels has two rows and two columns. When k is a positive integer equal to or larger than 0, with (2k+3)&#xd7;(2k+3) pixel blocks as unit pixel blocks, the driving unit reads out pieces of pixel information of the same color filter in each of the unit pixel blocks, the driving unit reads out pieces of pixel information of a same color filter in each of the unit pixel blocks simulatively as pixel information for one pixel in a state in which the unit pixel blocks are laid without overlapping one another, and the driving unit averages the added pieces of pixel information and outputs the averaged pieces of pixel information.

Solid-state image pickup device and drive method thereof

A lens driving device for an image pickup apparatus in which there is no problem of defocusing of an object caused by changes in the light stop state after manual or automatic focusing with respect to an object. The lens driving device includes a focusing correction amount calculation circuit 27 for calculating the amount of focus correction from the focus position from a focus position detection circuit 26 responsive to the zooming position from a zooming position detection circuit 28 and to a signal S.sub.1 from a light stop value sensor 13. The lens driving device also includes an adder 24 for summing the focusing correction amount to the focusing displacement from an autofocusing displacement calculation circuit 21 or a manual focusing displacement calculation circuit 22 via a signal switching unit 23. The resulting sum is outputted as a displacement of a focusing lens.

Image generating device having automatic focus correction based on a

Flange-back adjustment in a video camera using an inner focus lens assembly is done by detecting a position on the top of an actual zoom tracking curve and by detecting positions of end points of a variater on the basis of the top. Positions of the end points are presumed by a calculation from a position of the variater before arrival at an end. That is, by using the position of the variater in focus as a result of a movement of a focus lens from the top, and a ratio of a distance from the position of the variater in focus to one of the end points versus a distance from the position of the variater in focus to the other of the end points, positions of the end points are obtained.

Flange-back adjusting method and apparatus for a video camera using an

A lens position adjusting method for flange back adjustment of an inner focus lens assembly, which is suitable for a video camera is disclosed. The method comprises the steps of: moving a variator near to a telephoto end or a wide end; detecting a focal position by moving a focus lens when the variator is moved near to the telephoto end or the wide end; computing a difference in position between the variator and the telephoto end or the wide end, based on a moving distance of the focus lens to the focal position; and determining the position of the telephoto end or the wide end.

Method and apparatus for flange back adjustment of camera inner focus

A video camera having an imaging device providing a video signal comprises; lens means for focusing an object leading to the imaging device, signal processor or processing outputs of the imaging device to video signals, focus detection means for detecting focus information of the object, drive means for driving the lens according to outputs of the focus detection means, and control means for controlling the lens position from first position to a predetermined position when the power is supplied.

Video camera

A switching circuit to selectively generate either one of an image pickup signal from an image pickup device and a reproduction video signal in which when the recording mode is set, the switching circuit is set to the side on which the image pickup signal from the image pickup device is supplied. When the reproducing mode is set, the switching circuit is set to the side on which the reproduction video signal is supplied. When the instantaneous reproduction is executed in the recording mode, the optical information from an optical information detecting circuit just before the switching circuit is switched from the side on which the image pickup signal is supplied to the side on which the reproduction video signal is supplied is held. An output of the switching circuit is converted into a digital signal. The digital signal is supplied to a digital signal processing circuit to process the digital signal and is also supplied to the optical information detecting circuit to detect the optical information.

A focus detection signal is generated from the video signal produced by a video camera by deriving higher frequency components of that video signal, detecting when those higher frequency components exceed a minimum threshold level, sensing when the video signal exceeds a maximum threshold, and integrating those higher frequency components which exceed the minimum threshold, except during an interval when the video signal exceeds the maximum threshold, thereby producing the focus detection signal.

Auto-focus system for video camera

In a color video camera providing color video signal components corresponding to a light image projected on an image pickup, only the levels of the color video signals components which correspond to at least substantially white regions of the light image are detected, and such detected levels of the color video signal components are integrated so as to obtain average values thereof as white-balance detection signals. The color video signal components which correspond to at least substantially white regions of the light image, and thus have their levels detected, may be those which occur during intervals corresponding to a white-balance detecting area positioned to correspond with a selected white area of the light image. Alternatively, the color video signal components may be sampled to provide pixel-by-pixel values thereof, whereupon, only those pixel-by-pixel values which are determined to be within a predetermined range of white as defined by a black body radiation curve are subjected to integration. The predetermined range is made relatively wide when the valve of the color video signal components deviate substantially from a desired white-balance relationship and the range is reduced as the values of the conponents come near to the desired relationship.

Color video camera with auto-white balance control

A sampling frequency conversion filter circuit permits the same auto focus circuit to be used with CCD imagers having different numbers of pixels per line. The conversion filter converts a digital signal of a first sampling frequency into a second sampling frequency and for providing a digital signal of the first sampling frequency with a predetermined frequency characteristic includes a delay circuit for delaying an input digital signal of the first sampling frequency by a predetermined amount; a first flip-flop for taking in the input digital signal of the first sampling frequency in synchronism with a clock of the second sampling frequency; a second flip-flop for taking in the digital signal of the first sampling frequency delayed by the predetermined amount through the delay circuit with a clock of the second sampling frequency; an adder for adding outputs of the first and flip-flops; and control circuits for controlling inputs of the first and second flip-flops to obtain from the adder circuit an output equivalent to a result obtained by over-sampling the digital signal of the first sampling frequency at a frequency that is a common multiple of the first sampling frequency and the second sampling frequency, and then re-sampling it at the second sampling frequency via a filter having the predetermined frequency characteristic.

Auto focus frequency conversion filter for CCD imagers having different

A color video camera providing a digital video signal has an auto-focus detector, an auto-exposure detector and an auto-white balance detector formed as sections of an optical detector circuit which further has serial input and output ports common to the auto-focus, auto-exposure and auto-white balance detectors, and a system controller which is common to the auto-focus, auto-exposure and auto-white balance detectors and provides control signals therefor through the serial input port while receiving focus, exposure and white-balance detection signals through the serial output port from the respective detectors. Further, an improved exposure control system is provided which compensates for abnormal lighting conditions, such as, back-lighting or excessive front-lighting of the scene in the field of view of the camera.

Digital color video camera with auto-focus, auto-exposure and auto-white

A focus control system for a video camera determines a first gradient indicative of a change in value of a predetermined frequency component in the video signal for first and second positions obtained from the signal of predetermined frequency component in the video signal sampled at the first lens position and at the second lens position, and determines a second gradient indicative of a change in value of the predetermined frequency component in the video signal for second and third lens positions obtained from the signal of the predetermined frequency component in the video signal sampled at the third lens position point, and the speed of longitudinal movement of the lens is controlled in accordance with changes in the first and second gradients, thereby permitting faster focusing and reducing the amount of overrun of the lens during such focusing.

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Kanagawa, Japan

Katsuaki Hirota