Imaging apparatus and method of the same

• US 20040183926A1
• Filed: 05/21/2003
• Published: 09/23/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shuichi Fukuda
• Original Assignee: Tama-Tlo Ltd.
• Inventors: Yanagisawa, Hideyoshi, Ishii, Manabu, Fukuda, Shuichi
• Granted Patent: US 6,937,255 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/239
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/265 Mixing

Abstract

An imaging apparatus and method of the same, able to combining an image of a virtual object in an image of a real space so that the virtual object is virtually located in the real space at a desired position and at desired angles and able to easily set the position, posture, etc. of the virtual object, using a circular marker having two semicircular portions of first and second color areas separated by a center line, acquiring an image of a real space including the marker, detecting the marker area, and analyzing the detected marker area So as to calculate the position, size, elevation of the image pickup relative to the marker, and azimuth rotation angle and rolling rotation angle of the marker and, according to the results of calculation and the shape data of the virtual object, calculating a composite image where a virtual object is arranged in a real space by a position, dimensions, and angles indicated by the marker.

Claims

1. An imaging apparatus comprising:

a circular marker, having two semicircular portions of a first color area and a second color area separated by a center line, which indicates the position and angles for arranging an image of a virtual object in an image of a real space,

an image acquiring means for acquiring an image of a real space including the marker,

a calculating means for detecting the marker area from the image acquired by the image acquiring means and calculating the position and the angles when arranging a virtual object in the real space based on the marker area, and

an imaging means for constructing an image of the virtual object virtually arranged in the real space by the position and angles indicated by the marker based on the calculation results of the calculating means and the shape data of the virtual object.

2. An imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the calculating means calculates the center coordinates of the marker based on the coordinates of tangents with the marker area in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction of the image acquired by the image acquiring means.

3. An imaging apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the calculating means calculates distances from the center coordinates of the marker to the circumference of the marker area and calculates the major axis and the minor axis of the marker area according to the maximum value and the minimum value of the distances.

4. An imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the calculating means calculates the elevation of an image pickup picking up the image relative to the marker based on the lengths of the major axis and the minor axis of the marker area calculated.

5. An imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the calculating means calculates the rolling rotation angle of the marker based on an angle formed by the direction of the major axis of the marker area and the horizontal direction of the image acquired.

6. An imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the calculating means calculates an azimuth rotation angle of the marker based on the length of a line vertical to the major axis of the marker area from an intersection of the boundary line of the marker with the circumference of the marker area and the length of the minor axis of the marker area.

7. An imaging apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the calculating means correct the calculated azimuth rotation angle of the marker based on the positions of the first and the second color areas of the marker area.

8. An imaging apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the calculating means calculates the size of the composite image of the virtual object based on the ratio of the diameter of the marker and the major axis of the marker area.

9. An imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image acquiring means is formed by an image pickup picking up an image of the real space including the marker.

10. An imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image acquiring means is formed by an image reproduction device reading out the image from a storage medium storing the image of a real space including the marker.

11. An imaging apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a data storage unit that stores the shape data of the virtual object, wherein the imaging means obtains the shape data of the virtual object from the data storage unit.

12. An imaging apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the imaging means obtains shape data of the virtual object from a server providing the shape data of the virtual object via a data communications network.

13. An imaging method constructing an image of a virtual object arranged in a real space at a position and angles indicated by a marker having two semicircular portions of a first color area and a second color area separated by a center line, comprising the steps of:

acquiring an image of the real space including the marker;

detecting the marker area from the acquired image and calculating the position and angles when the virtual object is arranged in the real space based on the marker area; and

constructing an image of the virtual object arranged in the real space at a position and angles indicated by the marker based on the calculated position and angles of the marker and the shape data of the virtual object.