Information device and computer product

• US 20030146921A1
• Filed: 01/17/2003
• Published: 08/07/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 01/17/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Original Assignee: Fujitsu Limited
• Inventors: Tanaka, Kenichi, Yamamoto, Mitsuhiko, Takeda, Akihiro, Kage, Hiroshi, Taniguchi, Shigeki, Kikuchi, Misao
• Granted Patent: US 7,639,266 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/629
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/107 Computer-aided management of electronic mailing [e-mailing]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/00 2D [Two Dimensional] image generation
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/171 Local features and components; Facial parts eye characteristics G06V40/18; Occluding parts, e.g. glasses; Geometrical relationships
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/576 associated with a pictorial or graphical representation
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72427 for supporting games or graphical animations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72439 for image or video messaging
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0014 via e-mail
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00167 Processing or editing H04N1/00196 - H04N1/00201 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00209 Transmitting or receiving image data, e.g. facsimile data, via a computer, e.g. using e-mail, a computer network, the internet, I-fax
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera

Abstract

A transmission-side cellular phone sends, via a mail server, to a reception-side cellular phone a face image and its attribute information as an attachment to an email. The reception-side cellular phone extracts the face image from the email, selects face part images from among a plurality of face part images stored in the face part storing section, combines the face image and the selected face parts, and displays the combined image. The reception-side cellular phone selects the face part images based on, for example, a number of times a telephone call from a person was not attended in a predetermined period.

Claims

1. An information device comprising:

an image obtaining unit that obtains a face image and a plurality of face part images corresponding to facial expressions;

an expression determining unit that determines a facial expression; and

an image combining unit that combines the face image and the face part images corresponding to the facial expression to obtain a combined face image.

2. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising a communications unit that transmits the face image, the face part images, or the combined face image to other information device.

3. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising a digital camera that acquires the face image and the face part images, and the image obtaining unit obtains the face image and the face part images acquired by the digital camera.

4. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising a memory that stores the face image and the face part images acquired via a communications line, and the image obtaining unit obtains the face image and the face part images from the memory.

5. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a digital camera that acquires the face image; and

a memory that stores the face part images acquired via a communications line, and

the image obtaining unit obtains the face image from the digital camera and the face part images from the memory.

6. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a digital camera that acquires the face part images; and

a memory that stores the face image acquired via a communications line, and

the image obtaining unit obtains the face part image from the digital camera and the face image from the memory.

7. The information device according to claim 1, wherein the face part images are images of eyes, nose, and mouth.

8. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising an operating unit with which an operator can select one facial expression from among a plurality of facial expressions, and the expression determining unit determines the selected facial expression as the facial expression.

9. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a receiving unit that receives a telephone call;

a number obtaining unit that acquires a telephone number of the telephone call;

a memory for storing face images and face part images in correlation with telephone numbers; and

a display unit that displays the combined face image,

wherein the expression determining unit determines the facial expression based on predetermined condition, and

the image combining unit combines the face image and the face part images corresponding to the facial expression and corresponding to the telephone number to obtain the combined face image.

10. The information device according to claim 9, wherein the predetermined condition is a number of telephone calls that were not attended in a predetermined period.

11. The information device according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined period is two hours.

12. The information device according to claim 1, further comprising a display unit that displays the face image, the face part images, or the combined face image.

13. An information device comprising:

an image obtaining unit that obtains a first face image and a second face image;

a method determining unit that determines a method for combining; and

an image combining unit that combines the first face image and the second face image based on the method for combining to obtain a combined face image.

14. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising a communications unit that transmits the first face image, the second face image, or the combined face image to other information device.

15. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising a digital camera that acquires the first face image and the second face image, and the image obtaining unit obtains the first face image and the second face image acquired by the digital camera.

16. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising a memory that stores the first face image and the second face image acquired via a communications line, and the image obtaining unit obtains the first face image and the second face image from the memory.

17. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising:

a digital camera that acquires the first face image; and

a memory that stores the second face image acquired via a communications line, and

the image obtaining unit obtains the first face image from the digital camera and the second face image from the memory.

18. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising an operating unit with which an operator can select the first face image and the second face image from among a plurality of face images.

19. The information device according to claim 13, the method for combining is one or more selected from the group consisting of

using eyes and mouth of the first face image and using a total face and other face parts of the second face image,

using parts of the first face image and the second face image based on generation of random numbers,

using a position information of the total face and the face parts of the first face image, and using shapes of the total face and the face parts of the second face image, and

using an intermediate value of the face parts of the first face image and the second face image.

20. The information device according to claim 13, further comprising a display unit that displays the first face image, the second face image, or the combined face image.

21. An information device comprising:

an image obtaining unit that obtains a first face image and a second face image;

a determining unit that determines a similarity between the first face image and the second face image and a relationship between the persons of the first face image and the second face image determined from the similarity; and

a display unit that displays the similarity, the relationship or both the similarity and the relationship.

22. A computer program containing instruction which when executed on a computer causes the computer to perform:

acquiring a face image and a plurality of face part images corresponding to facial expressions;

determining a facial expression;

combining the face image and the face part images corresponding to the facial expression to obtain a combined face image; and

displaying the combined face image.

23. A computer program containing instruction which when executed on a computer causes the computer to perform:

acquiring a first face image and a second face image;

determining a method for combining;

combining the first face image and the second face image based on the method for combining to obtain a combined face image; and

displaying the combined face image.

24. A computer program containing instruction which when executed on a computer causes the computer to perform:

obtaining a first face image and a second face image;

determining a similarity between the first face image and the second face image and a relationship between the persons of the first face image and the second face image determined from the similarity; and

displaying the similarity, the relationship or both the similarity and the relationship.