Electronics device applying an image sensor

• US 20020080239A1
• Filed: 03/05/2001
• Published: 06/27/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 12/25/2000
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Inuzuka, Tatsuki, Ikeda, Mitsuji, Nakashima, Keisuke, Fujii, Kenjiro, Kuzunuki, Soshiro
• Application Number:
  US09/797,600
• Publication Number:
  US 20020080239A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/207.99
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0304 Detection arrangements using opto-electronic means constructional details of pointing devices not related to the detection arrangement using opto-electronic means G06F3/033; optical digitisers G06F3/042
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/631 Graphical user interfaces [GUI] specially adapted for controlling image capture or setting capture parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture

Abstract

An electronic device capable of displaying and recording an input image includes an image sensor. A position information detector processes the image imaged by the image sensor and calculates movement information of the image sensor itself or movement information of a subject imaged by the image sensor. The electronic device can input hand-written characters and graphics without adding afresh a mouse or a tablet.

Claims

1. An electronic device having an image sensor, comprising:

means for outputting an image imaged by said image sensor; and

means responsive to said outputting means for calculating movement information of said image sensor by processing the image imaged by said image sensor.

2. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a pointing cursor.

3. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a graphic inputting cursor.

4. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to execute signature authentication.

5. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a manipulator .

6. An electronic device according to claim 2, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a button.

7. An electronic device according to claim 2, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with speech.

8. An electronic device according to claim 2, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a condition of the image imaged.

9. An electronic device according to claim 3, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a button.

10. An electronic device according to claim 3, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with speech.

11. An electronic device according to claim 3, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a condition of the image imaged.

12. An electronic device according to claim 3, wherein character recognition is conducted by utilizing graphic information inputted.

13. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information is calculated by imaging an object article associated in advance with absolute coordinates information, and determining said absolute coordinates information.

14. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information is calculated by calculating correspondence points of the images continuously imaged.

15. An electronic device according to claim 14, wherein the correspondence point is calculated by retrieving a partial image near the center of one image among the images continuously imaged, from a greater partial image of other images.

16. An electronic device according to claim 14, wherein the correspondence point is calculated by retrieving a partial image, having large features, of one image among the images continuously imaged, from a greater partial image of other images.

17. An electronic device according to claim 14, wherein the correspondence point is calculated by correlation calculation highly resistant to illumination fluctuation.

18. An electronic device according to claim 17, wherein normalization mutual correlation is executed as the correlation calculation highly resistant to illumination fluctuation.

19. An electronic device according to claim 17, wherein generalized Hough transform is executed after extraction of high frequency components as the correlation calculation highly resistant to illumination fluctuation.

20. An electronic device according to claim 14, wherein the movement information is corrected in accordance with rotation information of the image determined.

21. An electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising an acceleration sensor, and the movement information being corrected in accordance with the information outputted from said acceleration sensor.

22. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is changed between the point at which the image imaged by said image sensor is outputted and the point at which the movement information is calculated.

23. An electronic device according to claim 22, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is a scanning speed.

24. An electronic device according to claim 22, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is a scanning region.

25. An electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the movement information of said electronic device is calculated by moving a main body of said electronic device.

27. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a pointing cursor.

28. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a graphic inputting cursor.

29. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to execute signature authentication.

30. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein the movement information thus calculated is utilized to control a manipulator.

31. An electronic device according to claim 27, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a button.

32. An electronic device according to claim 27, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with speech.

33. An electronic device according to claim 27, wherein control of click, double-click and drag is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a condition of the image imaged.

34. An electronic device according to claim 28, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a button.

35. An electronic device according to claim 28, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with speech.

36. An electronic device according to claim 28, wherein control of pen-up and pen-down is conducted in the interlocking arrangement with a condition of the image imaged.

37. An electronic device according to claim 28, wherein character recognition is conducted by utilizing graphic information inputted.

38. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein the movement information is calculated by extracting a subject of an object from images imaged continuously, and conducting correspondence point calculation for the subject so extracted.

39. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein features of a subject of an object are set in advance.

40. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is changed between the point at which an image imaged by said image sensor is outputted and the point at which the movement information is calculated.

41. An electronic device according to claim 40, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is a scanning speed.

42. An electronic device according to claim 40, wherein a scanning condition of said image sensor is a scanning region.

43. An electronic device according to claim 26, wherein movement information of a third object article is calculated by moving said third object article inside a visual field of said image sensor.

26. An electronic device having an image sensor, comprising:

means for outputting an image imaged by said image sensor; and

means responsive to said outputting means for processing the image imaged by said image sensor, and calculating movement information of a subject of said image sensor.

44. An electronic device comprising:

an image sensor;

a displaying part for displaying an image imaged by said image sensor; and

means for executing character recognition from movement information of the image imaged by said image sensor, and adding the recognition result as an attribute to the image thus imaged.

45. An electronic device according to claim 44, wherein a symbol representing an alphanumeric character is used as said attribute.

46. An electronic device according to claim 45, wherein a GRAFFITY character is used as said symbol representing an alphanumeric character of one character as the attribute.

47. An electronic device according to claim 44, further comprising a button for switching a mode for imaging an image and a mode for inputting a symbol.

48. An electronic device according to claim 47, further comprising:

a button for instructing imaging of an image; and

means for switching an operation mode to a mode for inputting a symbol for a predetermined time when said button for instructing the image input is released.