IMAGE SENSING APPARATUS, AND CONTROL METHOD, PROGRAM, AND STORAGE MEDIUM OF IMAGE SENSING APPARATUS

• US 20070285521A1
• Filed: 05/18/2007
• Published: 12/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Watanabe, Yoshinori, Honma, Yoshihiro, Sato, Yoshinobu, Kosugi, Masato
• Granted Patent: US 7,671,892 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/208.990
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/68 for stable pick-up of the scene, e.g. compensating for camera body vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/6811 based on the image signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/6812 based on additional sensors, e.g. acceleration sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/683 performed by a processor, e.g. controlling the readout of an image memory

Abstract

An image sensing apparatus according to the present invention includes: an image sensing unit configured to sense an object image and output image signals; a shift amount detecting unit configured to detect a shift amount between two image signals, from the image signals that are sequentially output by the image sensing unit; an image signal synthesizing unit configured to sequentially synthesize the image signals based on detection results of the shift amount detecting unit, and generate a synthesized image signal that has been corrected by the shift amount; and a memory unit configured to accumulate the synthesized image signal, wherein the image signal synthesizing unit performs level adjustment of a signal level, the level adjustment varying for each area of the two image signals that are to be synthesized, and generates the synthesized image signal.

Claims

1. An image sensing apparatus, comprising:

an image sensing unit configured to sense an object image and output image signals;

a shift amount detecting unit configured to detect a shift amount between two image signals, from said image signals that are sequentially output by said image sensing unit;

an image signal synthesizing unit configured to sequentially synthesize said image signals based on detection results of said shift amount detecting unit, and generate a synthesized image signal that has been corrected by said shift amount; and

a memory unit configured to accumulate said synthesized image signal,

wherein said image signal synthesizing unit performs level adjustment of a signal level, the level adjustment varying for each area of said two image signals that are to be synthesized, and generates said synthesized image signal.

2. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein in said level adjustment in said image signal synthesizing unit, an adjustment level of said level adjustment is changed as the number of image signals that are synthesized increases.

3. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising

an area information generating unit configured to generate, in said memory unit, first area information indicating an area on which said image signal output from said image sensing unit is superimposed, and second area information indicating the entire area of said synthesized image signal accumulated in said memory unit, based on the detection results of said shift amount detecting unit,

wherein when the number of shootings is taken as N (where N is a positive integer), said image signal synthesizing unit:

performs said level adjustment in which said image signal output from said image sensing unit is multiplied by N/(N−

1), in an area that is inside the area indicated by said second area information and outside the area indicated by said first area information;

performs said level adjustment in which said image signal output from said image sensing unit is multiplied by N, in an area that is inside the area indicated by said first area information and does not overlap with said synthesized image signal accumulated in said memory unit; and

synthesizes said image signal output from said image sensing unit and said synthesized image signal, in an area that is inside the area indicated by said first area information and overlaps with said synthesized image signal accumulated in said memory unit.

4. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said shift amount detecting unit detects a motion vector of said object image.

5. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said shift amount detecting unit detects said shift amount based on mechanically detected motion of said image sensing apparatus.

6. A control method of an image sensing apparatus, comprising:

an image sensing step adapted to sense an object image and output image signals;

a shift amount detecting step adapted to detect a shift amount between two image signals, from said image signals that are sequentially output in said image sensing step;

an image signal synthesizing step adapted to sequentially synthesize said image signals based on detection results in said shift amount detecting step, and generate a synthesized image signal that has been corrected by said shift amount; and

an accumulating step adapted to accumulate said synthesized image signal,

wherein in said image signal synthesizing step, level adjustment of a signal level is performed, the level adjustment varying for each area of said two image signals that are to be synthesized, and said synthesized image signal is generated.

7. The control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein in said level adjustment in said image signal synthesizing step, an adjustment level of said level adjustment is changed as the number of image signals that are synthesized increases.

8. The control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising

an area information generating step adapted to generate, in a memory unit, first area information indicating an area on which said image signal output in said image sensing step is superimposed, and second area information indicating the entire area of said synthesized image signal accumulated in said accumulating step, based on the detection results in said shift amount detecting step,

wherein when the number of shootings is taken as N, in said image signal synthesizing step:

said level adjustment is performed in which said image signal output in said image sensing step is multiplied by N/(N−

1), in an area that is inside the area indicated by said second area information and outside the area indicated by said first area information;

said level adjustment is performed in which said image signal output in said image sensing step is multiplied by N, in an area that is inside the area indicated by said first area information and does not overlap with said synthesized image signal accumulated in said memory unit; and

said image signal output in said image sensing step and said synthesized image signal are synthesized, in an area that is inside the area indicated by said first area information and overlaps with said synthesized image signal accumulated in said memory unit.

9. The control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein in said shift amount detecting step, a motion vector of said object image is detected.

10. The control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein in said shift amount detecting step, said shift amount is detected based on mechanically detected motion of said image sensing apparatus.

11. A computer-executable program written in a computer-readable storage medium, in which steps of the control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim 6 is described.

12. A computer-readable storage medium storing a program in which steps of the control method of an image sensing apparatus according to claim is described.