Imaging Optical Instrument, Captured Image Processing System, and Captured Image Processing Program

• US 20070268383A1
• Filed: 08/22/2005
• Published: 11/22/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Honjo, Kenichi, Miyazaki, Kyoichi
• Application Number:
  US11/570,019
• Publication Number:
  US 20070268383A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/231.990
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/0006 with means to keep optical surfaces clean, e.g. by preventing or removing dirt, stains, contamination, condensation G02B1/18 takes precedence; cleaning in general B08B
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/64 Imaging systems using optical elements for stabilisation of the lateral and angular position of the image
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 27/646 compensating for small deviations, e.g. due to vibration or shake movement of one or more optical elements for control of motion blur in cameras, projectors or printers G03B2205/0007; image stabilisation in cameras peculiar to the presence or use of an electronic image sensor H04N23/68
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/14 interchangeably
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 5/02 Lateral adjustment of lens
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00405 Output means output arrangements for computers G06F3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00912 Arrangements for controlling a still picture apparatus or components thereof not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4097 Removing errors due external factors, e.g. dust, scratches
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/60 Control of cameras or camera modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/68 for stable pick-up of the scene, e.g. compensating for camera body vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/811 by dust removal, e.g. from surfaces of the image sensor or processing of the image signal output by the electronic image sensor

Abstract

An imaging optical instrument 12 includes: an imaging optical system 1; an imaging element 2; an image shift unit 3 for working on at least one of the imaging optical system 1 and the imaging element 2 so as to shift a position of a subject image with respect to the imaging element 2; an image storage unit 4 for storing a plurality of sets of image data; a harmful luminance image detection unit 5; and an image correction unit 6. The harmful luminance image detection unit 5 includes: an image shift arithmetic unit 8 for making the positions of the subject image of the plurality of sets of image data coincide with one another; and a differential image arithmetic unit 9 for carrying out differential arithmetic processing with respect to the sets of image data with the positions of the subject image having been made to coincide with one another, so as to detect a set of harmful luminance image data from sets of harmful luminance image data obtained in relation to the plurality of sets of image data. The image correction unit 6 uses the detected set of harmful luminance image data and corrects the image data corresponding to the detected set of harmful luminance image data, so as to obtain a correction-completed image. This configuration allows the imaging optical instrument to be capable of preventing the image quality of a captured image from being deteriorated by dust or a scratch in the imaging optical system.

Claims

1. An image optical instrument comprising:

an imaging optical system;

an imaging element for converting a subject image formed by the imaging optical system into image data;

an image shift unit for working on at least one of the imaging optical system and the imaging element so as to vary the subject image with respect to the imaging element;

an image storage unit for storing a plurality of sets of image data, the sets of image data being data of variations of the subject image, respectively, that have been captured while being varied by the image shift unit; and

a harmful luminance image detection unit including;

an image shift arithmetic unit for carrying out arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data; and

a differential image arithmetic unit for carrying out differential arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data with, so as to detect sets of harmful luminance image data in relation to the plurality of sets of image data, respectively, and further, detecting a set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to any one of the sets of image data, from the sets of the harmful luminance image data in relation to the plurality of sets of image data.

2. The imaging optical instrument according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image correction unit for, by using the detected set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to the one of the sets of image data, correcting the image data corresponding to the detected set of harmful luminance image data, so as to obtain a correction-completed image.

3. The imaging optical instrument according to claim 1, further comprising:

a movement detection unit for detecting a movement of a main body of the imaging optical instrument,

wherein based on the movement data fed from the movement detection unit, a shift of the position of the subject image with respect to the imaging element caused by the movement of the main body of the imaging optical instrument is corrected by the image shift unit.

4. The imaging optical instrument according to claim 1, further comprising a warning unit for issuing a warning according to an intensity of the harmful luminance image data.

5. The imaging optical instrument according to claim 1, further comprising a harmful luminance image storage unit for storing the harmful luminance image data.

6. A captured image processing system comprising:

an imaging optical instrument including;

an imaging optical system;

an imaging element for converting a subject image formed by the imaging optical system into image data;

an image shift unit for working on at least one of the imaging optical system and the imaging element so as to vary the subject image with respect to the imaging element; and

an image storage unit for storing a plurality of sets of image data, the sets of image data being of variations of the subject image, respectively, that have been captured while being varied by the image shift unit; and

,

a control device including;

a harmful luminance image detection unit including;

an image shift arithmetic unit for carrying out arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data; and

a differential image arithmetic unit for carrying out differential arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data, so as to detect sets of harmful luminance image data in relation to the plurality of sets of image data, respectively, and further, detecting a set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to any one of the sets of image data, from the sets of the harmful luminance image data in relation to the plurality of sets of image data; and

an image correction unit for, by using the detected set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to the one of the sets of image data, correcting the image data corresponding to the detected set of harmful luminance image data, so as to obtain a correction-completed image.

7. The captured image processing system according to claim 6, wherein the imaging optical instrument further includes a movement detection unit for detecting a movement of a main body of the imaging optical instrument,

wherein based on the movement data fed from the movement detection unit, a shift of the position of the subject image with respect to the imaging element caused by the movement of the main body of the imaging optical instrument is corrected by the image shift unit.

8. The captured image processing system according to claim 6, further comprising a warning unit for issuing a warning according to an intensity of the harmful luminance image data.

9. The captured image processing system according to claim 6, further comprising a harmful luminance image storage unit for storing the harmful luminance image data.

10. A captured image processing program for allowing a computer to execute:

input processing for inputting a plurality of sets of image data concerning a subject image at different positions, respectively;

image shift processing for carrying out arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data so that the positions of the subject image of the plurality of sets of image data coincide with one another;

differential processing for carrying out differential arithmetic processing with respect to the plurality of sets of image data having been subjected to the image shift processing;

harmful luminance image data detection processing for detecting a set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to any one of the sets of image data, from the sets of the harmful luminance image data in relation to the plurality of sets of image data, respectively, which have been detected through the differential processing; and

image correction processing for, by using the detected set of harmful luminance image data corresponding to the one of the sets of image data, correcting the image data corresponding to the detected set of harmful luminance image data.