Keisoku Giken Co., Ltd.

Keisou Giken Co., Ltd.

Shinichiro Nakamura

Seiichi Gohshi

Jin Ogasawara

Keisuke Ohashi

For sharpening an input image by up-converting the input image in order to increase the number of pixels of an image and generating a frequency component higher than a frequency component contained in an input image signal representing the input image, the number of multipliers is reduced, thereby achieving significant downsizing of an apparatus and cost reduction. An image processing apparatus includes a path on a base image side for up-converting the input image signal and a path on a sharpening processing side for carrying out nonlinear arithmetic processing on the input image signal. The path on the sharpening processing side includes an up-converter at a subsequent stage of at least one filter, after which the nonlinear arithmetic processing is carried out. The at least one filter may be either a two-dimensional low pass filter for noise removal or a high pass filter for removing a DC component.

Image processing apparatus and image processing method

An image is sharpened by using a frequency component exceeding a Nyquist frequency. In particular, an image processing apparatusof the disclosure herein for generating an output image by sharpening an input image includes a first nonlinear processing unitconfigured to generate a first signal by carrying out nonlinear processing on an input image signal representing the input image, a sharpening processing blockconfigured to generate a second signal containing a frequency component higher than a frequency component contained in the first signal by carrying out sharpening processing on the first signal, and an adderconfigured to generate an output image signal representing the output image by adding the second signal to the input image signal.

An image is sharpened without generating, in frequency domain exceeding frequency component in horizontal and vertical direction, frequency component caused by sharpening carried out in horizontal and vertical direction in overlapping manner. An image processing apparatus includes: a vertical filter removing high frequency portion in vertical direction; a horizontal sharpening processing unit generating harmonic in horizontal direction containing frequency higher than frequency component in horizontal direction of the input signal; a horizontal filter removing high frequency portion in horizontal direction; and a vertical sharpening processing unit generating harmonic in vertical direction containing frequency higher than frequency component in vertical direction of the input signal, wherein a horizontal direction processing unit in which the vertical filter is disposed before the horizontal sharpening processing unit and a vertical direction processing unit in which the horizontal filter is disposed before the vertical sharpening processing unit are connected in series, or in parallel.

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Yokohama, Japan

Shinichiro Nakamura