Sony Corporation

Toshio Sarugaku

Masaharu Tokuhara

Takaya Hoshino

Masuyoshi Kurokawa

Kazuhiko Nishibori

Seiko Imai

Makoto Kondo

Koji Aoyama

Hiroyuki Kawashima

Nobuo Ueki

Naoki Kaneko

Ikuo Someya

Yukihiko Mogi

Hiroyuki Kita

Tomoya Yano

Kazuo Watanabe

Masayuki Hongu

Hirofumi Todo

Hisafumi Motoe

Mamoru Kanou

Muzaffar Husain Bin Fakhruddin

Hidefumi Naito

Seiko Isomoto

Kiroyuki Kita

Hiroshi Sugisawa

An image processing apparatus and an image processing method, enabling achievement of both an effect of improvement of motion-picture response and a reduction of flicker even in a case of a low frame rate, are provided. The apparatus has a processing region detection portionincluding a first detection portiondetecting motion of an image in a sub frame from a continuous plurality of sub frames, and a second detection portiondetecting a component having a predetermined value or more of level difference to peripheral pixels of pixels forming an image in the sub frame; and a gradation conversion portionincluding a plurality of adaptive gradation conversion portionsandconverting the gradation for a region of the component having a level difference at which motion is detected in the corresponding sub frame among the plurality of sub frames in accordance with the output signal of the processing region detection portionand a sub frame selecting and outputting portionalternately selecting and outputting the selectively graduation converted sub frames for each sub frame rate.

Image processing apparatus and image processing method

To realize a motion compensation device capable of more appropriately compensating the movement of a video signal subjected to double-speed conversion. A motion vector between an image of a current field in a double-speed-converted video signal and an image of a reference field that is one frame or two frames later is detected, the pixels of the current field are shifted based on the motion vector and the pixels of the reference field are shifted in an opposite direction based on the motion vector. Then simple averaging or weighted average according to the shift amount is performed on the pixels of the current field and the pixels of the reference field to compensate the current field, thereby being capable of compensating the movement between fields so as to be much smoother than conventional cases.

Motion correction device and method

There is provided a video signal processing apparatus that makes it possible to realize a favorable display of pictures by increasing the detection accuracy of the video source of an input video signal and by using an appropriate scanning method for an output video signal in accordance with the determined type of video source. The video signal processing apparatus includes video source determining means for determining whether the video source of a video signal is a film source, calculating means for calculating a degree of difference between a picture of a field of the video signal and a picture of a field of a delayed video signal, threshold setting means, comparison means for comparing the degree of difference and a threshold and determining whether the pictures of each field match, and a signal pattern detecting means for detecting a signal pattern of a signal outputted by the comparison means and determining whether the video source is a film source, with the threshold setting means outputting respectively different thresholds in a state where the video source is determined to be a film source and a state where the video source is not determined to be a film source.

Video signal processing apparatus, video signal processing method and video source determining method

To enable a satisfactory suppression of overemphasized component after converting the number of scanning lines of video signal, when the video signal is converted in the number of scanning lines and a high-frequency component at least in a vertical direction of the converted video signal is emphasized, signals delayed by a plurality of stages of time equal to or more than a time required for converting the number of scanning lines are obtained by a delay circuit, and an appropriate delay signal is selected from among the plurality of delay signals by a selection circuit. The selected delay signal is compared with the emphasized video signal in emphasized-component detector circuitsand the overemphasized component is detected. Processing to suppress the emphasis is performed by suppressor circuitswith respect to a portion where the overemphasized signal component is detected.

Video signal processing method and device

The present invention provides an image signal processing apparatus and a method thereof in which each of the fields forming the unit-frame is specified, with respect to the inputted image signal, based on a difference value calculated in signal level between a detected pixel in a current field and a detected pixel at the same position in a field which comes one frame behind the current field, a motion vector for a field which comes two frames behind the current field is detected, with respect to the detected pixel in the current field, the detected pixel is shifted, with respect to the specified first field, in a direction opposite to the motion vector within the range of the detected motion vector, the detected pixel is shifted, with respect to the specified fourth field, in a direction along the motion vector, and the detected pixels is shifted, with respect to the specified second and third fields, so as to make the pixels gradually closer to the pixel position shifted with respect to the fourth field, in the consecutive order of the fields from the first field, in the direction along the motion vector or in the direction opposite to the motion vector.

Image signal processing apparatus and processing method

An image signal processing apparatus according to the present invention receives an image signal inputted thereto that is generated by subjecting a telecine-converted image to double speed conversion, in which signal one film frame is formed by four fields, identifies a first field on the basis of a difference value calculated between pixel signal levels, and shifts the position of a detected pixel in a vector direction of a motion vector such that an amount of shift is progressively increased as transition is made from the identified first field to the subsequent fields.

Image signal processing apparatus and method

A line doubling processing system has an input signal switching output section for receiving sequential input fields and for outputting, based on the sequential input fields, a plurality of fields obtained from the same image, and a line doubling device for generating one line-doubled field using the plurality of fields that are output from the input signal switching output section.

Image processing apparatus and method and signal switching output device

A plurality of circuit blocks that output digital signals with different sampling frequencies are connected to data buses in common. One of outputs of the circuit blocks is selected and the output is sent to a sampling rate converter circuit block through the data buses. Each of the circuit blocks has a tri-state buffer at its output stage. With an output enable signal, a desired circuit block can be selected.

Sampling rate converting system for converting the sampling rate of a

A motion detector detects a motion of a video signal by a simple circuit arrangement with high accuracy. The motion detector comprises a first luminance detecting means (42) for detecting a luminance component contained in a composite video signal, a delay circuit (44) for delaying the composite video signal by at least one frame, a second luminance detecting means (45) for detecting a luminance component contained in a signal delayed by the delay circuit (44), a subtracting means (43) for subtracting a luminance component output from the first luminance detecting means (42) and a luminance component output from the second luminance detecting means (45) from each other, a filter (60) for eliminating a frequency band of a color subcarrier from an output of the subtracting means (43), a switching means (50) for selecting an output of the filter (60) and an output of the subtracting means (43) and a chroma component detecting means (50) for detecting a chroma component from the composite video signal, wherein the switching means (46) is controlled on the basis of a chroma component detected by the chroma component detecting means (50) and a motion detection is carried out on the basis of the level of a signal selected by the selecting means (46). A television receiver having a motion detector for a video signal is also provided.

Three-dimensional motion detection

A luminance and chrominance signal separation circuit in which, when its comparing circuits decide that the level of high-frequency components of a luminance signal is lower than a predetermined level, a switching circuit, controlled by a control circuit, selects and outputs a chrominance signal output from a BPF processing circuit.

Luminance and chrominance signal separation circuit employing comparison

A picture signal processing circuit is composed of a picture memory, such as a field memory, having one input port for receiving an input picture signal and two distinct and independent output ports; a timing control circuit is designed to control the respective reading operations through the first and second output ports in such a manner that one output signal is shifted by one horizontal line period with respect to the other output signal, both output signals being supplied to an operating circuit, such as a vertical enhancer, for processing picture signals of a plurality of horizontal lines.

Video signal conversion system with a vertical enhancement circuit

A television receiver for extended definition television carries out scanning line interpolation in a way that eliminates picture shift on the screen and ensures normal display when supplied with a non-standard video signal having a scanning line count of other than 262.5 lines per field. The television receiver includes a scanning line interpolation circuit, a normal video signal detection circuit and a interpolation controller. The scanning line interpolation circuit effects scanning line interpolation using either data in the current field or out-of-field data as per the result of motion detection in the picture. The normal video signal detection circuit distinguishes the normal video signal from other signals by detecting the number of scanning lines involved. The interpolation controller causes the scanning line interpolation circuit to effect scanning line interpolation using only the inside-field data if the supplied signal is a non-standard signal.

Television receiver for extended definition video signal detects number

Intermediate vertical synchronizing signals are generated to occur between the vertical synchronizing signals normally included in a conventional video signal. A first counter counts clock signals which are synchronized with the horizontal synchronizing signals normally included in the conventional video signal to provide a count representing the number of clock signals which are present in one-half of a field interval of that conventional video signal. The count provided by the first counter during the second preceding field interval is temporarily stored and compared to a count produced by a second counter which counts the clock signals from the beginning of the field interval. An intermediate vertical synchronizing signal is generated when the count of the second counter is equal to the stored count.

Flicker reduction apparatus

In a picture-in-picture television receiver, the subpicture signal is A-D converted; the converted digital subpicture signal is latched in response a subpicture clock in synchronism with a subpicture synchronizing signal; the latched signal is latched again and stored in an image memory in response to a main picture synchronizing signal; and the latched signal is read from the image memory in synchronism with the main picture synchronizing signal, in order that the subpicture can stably be inserted in a predetermined area of the main picture by eliminating the unstable data duration during which variation in the subpicture signal is different for each bit signal thereof.

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Chiba, Japan

Toshio Sarugaku