Image processing apparatus

• US 10,331,953 B2
• Filed: 04/09/2014
• Issued: 06/25/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/09/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Foo. Log Inc., University of Tokyo
• Original Assignee: University of Tokyo
• Inventors: Aizawa, Kiyoharu, Ogawa, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Peter D
• Application Number:
  US14/783,413
• Publication Number:
  US 20160070960A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,903 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/22 Matching criteria, e.g. proximity measures
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30128 Food products
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/001 using an image reference approach
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/761 Proximity, similarity or dissimilarity measures
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/20 in augmented reality scenes
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/68 Food, e.g. fruit or vegetables

Abstract

Provided is an image processing apparatus which is connected to and accessible to a database storing a plurality of pieces of previously prepared reference data, and which stores at least one piece of individual data having an image captured by the user in association with the information regarding the food/beverage contained in the captured image. The image processing apparatus compares information of the food/beverage in the captured image with the reference data stored in the database and the individual data, and acquires the food/beverage information included in the reference data together with the reference image similar to the captured image, the food/beverage information associated with the captured image in the individual data, or the food/beverage information in the reference data or the individual data including the food/beverage information relating to the captured image.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus connected to a database which holds a plurality of pieces of reference data including previously prepared food/beverage information together with reference images so as to be able to access the same,

the image processing apparatus comprising:

a holding device which holds, as a piece of individual data, at least one image of foods/beverages which are eaten/drunk by a user in the past, associated with information regarding the foods/beverages, the at least one image being captured in the past by the user,

an image capturing device which captures an image of food/beverage,

an acquisition device which compares the captured image of food/beverage, with both the at least one image of foods/beverages captured in the past by the user and the reference images included in the previously prepared reference data, and acquires food/beverage information associated with the at least one image captured in the past by the user or included in the reference data together with at least one of the reference images, which is similar to the captured image,

a holding control device which controls the holding device to hold the acquired food/beverage information in association with the captured image of food/beverage, and

a displaying control device which displays, upon receiving an instruction from the user, a list of the food/beverage information and associated images of foods/beverages eaten/drunk in the past held in the holding device.

2. An image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the image capturing device acquires and outputs circumstance information at time of image capturing,

the holding control device controls the holding device to hold the individual data in which the acquired food/beverage information, the captured image, and the acquired circumstance information are associated with each other,

the acquisition device, in which when the circumstance information at the time of image capturing and the circumstance information associated with the image included in the individual data satisfy a predetermined condition, the image associated with the circumstance information is compared with the captured image, and

the circumstance information includes at least one selected from information regarding a time slot at the time of image capturing, position information, housing angle information at the time of image capturing, and information relating to illumination.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image processing apparatus is a smartphone, and where the smartphone is changed to a new model, the individual data accumulated before the change is treated as the reference data.