Facial parts position detection device, method for detecting facial parts position, and program for detecting facial parts position

• US 20060045382A1
• Filed: 08/29/2005
• Published: 03/02/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Aisin Seiki Co., Ltd. (Aisin Corp.), Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha (Toyota Motor Corporation)
• Inventors: Kasugai, Junya, Ninomiya, Yoshiki, Tanaka, Isahiko, Shiraki, Nobuyuki, Hayashi, Takeshi, Ando, Michinori, Adachi, Yoshihiro
• Granted Patent: US 7,515,773 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/291
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/165 using facial parts and geometric relationships

Abstract

A facial parts position detection device which includes an image inputting device for inputting a captured face image, an ends position detecting device for detecting right and left ends position of the face on the basis of the image, a facial parts region setting device for setting facial parts region indicating a region where facial parts exists on the basis of the right and left ends of the face, a horizontal edge detecting device for detecting a horizontal edge on the basis of the image inputted by the image inputting device, a horizontal edge histogram creating device for creating a horizontal edge histogram by projecting the horizontal edge in a horizontal direction, a proposed position setting device for setting a plurality of peaks of the horizontal edge histogram as proposed positions respectively, and an optimum position detecting device for detecting an optimum position of the facial parts region.

Claims

1. A facial parts position detection device comprising:

an image inputting means for inputting a captured face image;

an ends position detecting means for detecting right and left ends position of the face on the basis of the image inputted by the image inputting means;

a facial parts region setting means for setting facial parts region indicating a region where facial parts exists on the basis of the right and left ends of the face detected by the ends position detecting means;

a horizontal edge detecting means for detecting a horizontal edge on the basis of the image inputted by the image inputting means;

a horizontal edge histogram creating means for creating a horizontal edge histogram by projecting the horizontal edge detected by the horizontal edge detecting means in a horizontal direction;

a proposed position setting means for setting a plurality of peaks of the horizontal edge histogram as proposed positions respectively by the horizontal edge histogram creating means; and

an optimum position detecting means for detecting an optimum position of the facial parts region on the basis of the facial parts region set by the facial parts region setting means and each proposed position set by the proposed position setting means.

2. The facial parts position detection device according to claim 1, wherein the optimum position detecting means detects symmetry of the horizontal edge in the facial parts region by applying the facial parts region to the proposed position one after another, and detects the proposed position where degree of symmetry is the highest as the optimum position of the facial parts region.

3. The facial parts position detection device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a facial parts position detecting means for detecting a position of at least one of eyebrows, eyes, a nose, and a mouth of the face on the basis of the optimum position of the facial parts region detected by the optimum position detecting means.

4. The facial parts position detection device according to claim 1, wherein the facial parts region setting means sets the facial parts region by adjusting region width at a first side and region width at a second side relative to an axis of symmetry of the facial parts region in accordance with a rotational angle about a vertical axis of the facial parts.

5. The facial parts position detection device according to claim 1, wherein the facial parts region setting means sets the facial parts region to rotate the facial parts region in accordance with rotational angle about an axis in a front direction at the center of the facial parts.

6. The facial parts position detection device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image capturing means for creating an image by capturing an image of a human face and for supplying the captured image to the image inputting means.

7. A method for detecting facial parts position, comprising process of:

detecting right and left ends position of a face on the basis of a captured face image;

setting a facial parts region indicating a region where facial parts exists on the basis of right and left ends position of the detected face;

detecting a horizontal edge on the basis of the captured image;

creating a horizontal edge histogram by projecting the detected horizontal edge in a horizontal direction;

setting a plurality of peaks of the created horizontal edge histograms as proposed positions; and

detecting and optimum position of the facial parts region on the basis of each set proposed position and the set facial parts region.

8. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein symmetry of the horizontal edge within the facial parts region is detected by consecutively applying the facial parts region to the proposed position one after another, and the proposed position where the degree of the symmetry assumes the highest is detected as the optimum facial parts region.

9. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein a position of at least one of eyebrows, eyes, a nose, and a mouth of the face is detected on the basis of the optimum position of the detected facial parts region.

10. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein the facial parts region is set by adjusting region width at a first side and region width at a second side relative to an axis of symmetry of facial parts region in accordance with a rotational angle about a vertical axis direction of facial parts.

11. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein the facial parts region is set for rotating a facial parts region in accordance with a rotational angle about axis in a front direction at the center of the facial parts.

12. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein the plural peaks are proposed positions of the optimum position of the facial parts region as positions of facial parts including eyebrows, eyes, a nose, and a mouth of the face.

13. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein the facial parts region and each of the proposed position are matched.

14. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 13, wherein the peaks of the horizontal edge histogram is detected from a top in order and determined as the proposed position of the facial parts including the eyebrows, the eyes, the nose, and the mouth.

15. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein the right and left ends position of the face creates a vertical edge histogram by projecting a vertical edge in a vertical direction and detects right and left ends of the face by peaks of the vertical edge histogram.

16. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 7, wherein a facial parts template pre-memorized in a memory is applied to the facial parts.

17. The method for detecting facial parts position according to claim 16, wherein the facial parts template indicates ratio of region and positions of facial parts including eyebrows, eyes, a nose, and a mouth on the assumption that the face faces front.

18. A program for detecting facial parts position which makes a computer execute transactions including:

detecting right and left ends position of a face on the basis of a captured face image;

setting a facial parts region indicating region where facial parts exists on the basis of the detected right and left ends position of the face;

detecting a horizontal edge on the basis of the captured image;

creating a horizontal edge histogram by projecting the detected horizontal edge in a horizontal direction;

setting a plurality of peaks of the created horizontal edge histogram as proposed positions; and

detecting an optimum position of the facial parts region on the basis of each of the set proposed position and the set facial parts region.