Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Dolby International Ab

Panasonic Corporaiton

Yusuke Monobe

Haruo Yamashita

Yasunori Ishii

Takeshi Ito

Yasuhiro Kuwahara

Tatsumi Watanabe

Akio Kojima

Toshiharu Kurosawa

Masao Hiramoto

Hirotaka Oku

Khang Nguyen

Yasunobu Ogura

Toshiya Fujii

Tatsuya Nakamura

Kuniaki Isogai

Sheng Mei Shen

Masaaki Suzuki

Seiji Nishiwaki

Pongsak Lasang

Takashi Fujii

Yoshiaki Sugitani

Masataka Ejima

Satoshi Kondo

Hitoshi Yamada

Daisuke Sato

Masahiro Inata

Takashi Kawamura

Kozo Ezawa

Toshio Inaji

Takeshi Shimamoto

Yasushi Yagi

Shinya Kojima

Kenji Takita

Atsushi Hirose

Yasuhiro Mukaigawa

Yusuke Tanji

Akito Umebayashi

Kazuyuki Imagawa

Yukiyasu Fukami

Keiichi Miyazaki

Kenji Tamura

ChinPhek Ong

An apparatus includes: a generating unit which generates, from each of images respectively obtained at viewpoint positions, one of different-viewpoint images which corresponds to an image at a virtual viewpoint position different from the viewpoint positions, the different-viewpoint image including a hole area in which a pixel value is missing; a calculating unit which calculates, for each of processing units respectively in predetermined areas in the different-viewpoint images, a hole density indicating, with respect to the predetermined area, a ratio of one of the hole areas in the processing units in the different-viewpoint images; a calculating unit which calculates, for each processing unit, a combination ratio of the different-viewpoint image, based on the hole density of the processing unit co-located with an other one of the processing units in an other one of the different-viewpoint images; and a combining unit which combines the different-viewpoint images, based on the combination ratios.

Different-view image generating apparatus and different-view image generating method

This image processorincludes: an input interfacethat receives first and second images, on one of which the position of the subject has shifted in a particular direction from the position on the other; a color image generating sectionthat generates a color image in which the pixel values of respective pixels of the first and second images are used as the values of first and second colors, respectively; a decision sectionthat calculates an index value indicating the degree of color shift between the first and second colors in the color image and that determines, based on the index value, whether or not the first and second images match each other; and an image moving sectionthat performs, if the decision has been made that the first and second images do not match each other, the processing of making the second image closer to the first image by replacing the pixel value of each pixel of the second image with the pixel value of a pixel that is adjacent to the former pixel in the particular direction.

Image processor, image capture device, image processing method and program

An image processing apparatus is provided which includes: a feature calculation unit which calculates feature quantities of respective pixels included in an input image; a reliability level obtaining unit which obtains reliability level information indicating reliability levels of respective depth values indicating depths of the respective pixels; and a depth correction unit which corrects the depth values included in input depth information, using the reliability levels and the feature quantities, to generate output depth information.

Image processing apparatus and image processing method

An apparatus for generating a new viewpoint image includes: a new viewpoint image generation unit that shifts the foreground image region in the input image, based on a depth map to generate a new viewpoint image including a missing pixel region; a representative background pixel selection unit that selects background pixels located a predetermined number of pixels away from edge pixels, as representative background pixels; a texture direction map calculation unit that calculates a texture direction of each of the selected representative background pixels, to calculate a texture direction map indicating texture directions, each corresponding to one of missing pixels, based on locations of the representative background pixels and locations of the missing pixels included in the missing pixel region; and a hole-filling processing unit that fills the missing pixel region with the obtained background pixels in accordance with the texture direction map.

Apparatus and method for generating new viewpoint image

An image sensorincludes: a photoelectric conversion layerincluding a plurality of photosensitive cells; a reflective layerthat reflects light that has been transmitted through the photoelectric conversion layer; a micro lens layerthat includes a plurality of micro lenses that are arranged between the photoelectric conversion layerand the reflective layer; and a transmitted light controlling layerthat is arranged between the photoelectric conversion layerand the reflective layerand that is able to change optical transmittance in accordance with an instruction given by a controller. The micro lens layeris arranged so that light that has been transmitted through one of the photosensitive cells and then reflected from the reflective layeris incident on the same photosensitive cell again.

Light field image capture device and image sensor

A depth estimating image capture device includes: an image sensor; an optical lens; a light-transmitting member arranged on the plane; and a signal processing section. The member includes a first mirror inside to reflect the light at least partially and a second mirror with the same reflection property as the first mirror on its upper surface. The first mirror has a reflective surface tilted with respect to the upper surface of the member. The second mirror has a reflective surface that is parallel to the upper surface. The first and second mirrors and are arranged so that a light beam coming from a point on a subject through the lens is reflected from the first mirror and from the second mirror and irradiates some area on an image capturing plane to make the irradiated area change according to the depth of the point on the subject.

Depth estimating image capture device and image sensor

An image interpolation apparatus includes: a first processing unit which calculates an error on image data between a patch to be interpolated that overlaps with a masked region and a reference patch that does not overlap with the masked region; a second processing unit which calculates, based on the image data, feature quantities indicating the degrees of flatness of the respective patch regions; a third processing unit which calculates an error between their feature quantities; a fourth processing unit which selects a reference patch that has produced a least significant error based on results obtained by the first and third processing units; and a fifth processing unit which pastes pixel data of the reference patch that the fourth processing unit has selected onto the patch to be interpolated. The third processing unit calculates an error between the feature quantities by comparing the feature quantity of the patch to be interpolated outside of the masked region to that of the entire reference patch.

Image interpolation device, image processing device, and image interpolation method

This image capture device includes: a light-transmitting sectionthat is made up of a plurality of portionsAB, each including diffraction regionsDDthat diffract incoming light, a transparent regionCLR that transmits the incoming light without diffracting it, and polarization regionsPParranged so as to overlap at least partially with the diffraction regionsDD; an image sensor in which a plurality of unit elements are arranged two-dimensionally on an imaging area, wherein each of the unit elements includes a first photosensitive cell, a second photosensitive cell, and a polarization filter arranged so as to face the first photosensitive cell; and an imaging section configured to obtain images produced on the imaging area by the light transmitted through the transparent region and by the light transmitted through the diffraction region.

Depth estimating image capture device

This solid-state image sensor includes an array of photosensitive cells and an array of dispersive elements. The photosensitive cell array is comprised of a plurality of unit blocks, each including four photosensitive cellsand. A condensing elementis further arranged to cover the photosensitive cellsandand condenses incoming light onto the photosensitive cellsand

Solid-state image sensor

A polarization color image capture device includes: a polarization color filter plate including a first area configured to transmit light that is polarized in a first direction and that falls within a first wavelength range, a second area configured to transmit light that is polarized in a second direction and that falls within a second wavelength range, and a third area configured to transmit incoming light at least partially; an image sensor in which a plurality of unit blocks, each including first, second and third photosensitive cells and first, second and third polarization filters that are arranged to face the first, second and third photosensitive cells, respectively, are arranged on an imaging area, the polarization transmission axis directions of the first, second and third polarization filters being different from each other; and an optical lens that produces an image on the imaging area of the image sensor.

Polarization color image capture device

This solid-state image sensor includes an array of photosensitive cells and an array of dispersive elements. The photosensitive cell array is comprised of a plurality of unit blocks, each including four photosensitive cellsand. An optical filteris arranged to cover those photosensitive cellsthrough. A portion of the optical filterthat covers the photosensitive cellsandis located closer to the imaging area than another portion thereof that covers the photosensitive cellsand

This image capture device is configured to generate a restored image by reducing a motion blur that has been induced by a camera shake during shooting. The device includes: an image sensor; an optical system; and an image processing sectionwhich processes an image signal that has been obtained by the image sensor. The image processing sectionincludes: a blur kernel determining section which determines a blur kernel that defines the camera-shake-induced motion blur of the image captured; and an image restoration section which generates the restored image. The blur kernel determining section changes the size of the blur kernel by reference to information that affects the degree of the blur of the image such as the zoom power of the optical system

Image capturing apparatus, image processing apparatus, image processing method, and image processing program

An image processing apparatus measures a subject distance using a plurality of captured images acquired by capturing the same subject in a plurality of imaging states in succession of time. The image processing apparatus includes a target motion amount estimation unit that estimates a target motion amount representing an amount of shift in subject position between first and second images among the captured images. The first image is captured in a first imaging state and a second image is captured in a second imaging state different from the first imaging state. A corrected image generation unit generates a corrected image by performing motion compensation on the second image based on the target motion amount, and an image processing unit performs image processing such as measuring a subject distance or generating an HDR image, using the first image and the corrected image.

This image capture device includes an image capturing sectionwhich captures two images in mutually different exposure times, and an image processing sectionwhich performs restoration processing on the images that have been captured by the image capturing section. The image processing sectionincludes a blur kernel determining section which determines a blur kernel that defines the camera-shake-induced motion blur of the image captured; and an image restoration section which generates the restored image. The blur kernel determining section changes the size of the blur kernel according to the exposure time in which the image is captured.

Image pickup device changing the size of a blur kernel according to the exposure time

An image processing apparatus which estimates a point spread function (PSF) of at least one input image, and the image processing apparatus includes: an S/N ratio estimation unit which estimates an S/N ratio of the input image at each spatial frequency; a restricted range calculation unit which calculates a restricted range that is a range of the spatial frequency in which the frequency component of the input images are restricted and that more likely includes a spatial frequency in which the S/N ratio is lower; a frequency restriction unit which generates a restricted image by restricting a frequency component of the input image within the restricted range; and a PSF estimation unit which estimates the PSF of the input image, using the restricted image.

Image processing apparatus, imaging apparatus, and image processing method

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Kyoto, Japan

Yusuke Monobe