METHOD FOR CREATING PHOTO CUTOUTS AND COLLAGES

• US 20090263038A1
• Filed: 04/22/2008
• Published: 10/22/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Monument Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Arnold, Kenneth, Luo, Jeibo
• Granted Patent: US 8,135,182 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/254
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/23213 with fixed number of clusters, e.g. K-means clustering
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/16 using multiple overlapping images; Image stitching
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/24 Aligning, centring, orientation detection or correction of the image
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/763 Non-hierarchical techniques, e.g. based on statistics of modelling distributions

Abstract

A method for automatically producing a new digital image from a first digital image that includes regions of interest, includes obtaining a main subject belief map including an array of belief values indicating the location and relative importance of subject matter in the first digital image; producing a mask for each privileged object in the first digital image, each such mask including margins around its corresponding privileged object; overlaying the mask(s) onto the belief map; and producing a first convex hull that includes the mask(s) with margin(s) and regions of the highest belief values from the belief map.

Claims

1. A method for automatically producing a new digital image from a first digital image that includes regions of interest, comprising:

(a) obtaining a main subject belief map including an array of belief values indicating the location and relative importance of subject matter in the first digital image;

(b) producing a mask for each privileged object in the first digital image, each such mask including margins around its corresponding privileged object;

(c) overlaying the mask(s) onto the belief map; and

(d) producing a first convex hull that includes the mask(s) with margin(s) and regions of the highest belief values from the belief map.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein step (b) is performed before step (a).

3. The method of claim 1 further including expanding the first convex hull to include regions of medium belief values intersecting with the first convex hull.

4. The method of claim 3 further including producing a second convex hull that includes the first convex hull and the regions of medium belief values intersecting with the first convex hull.

5. The method of claim 1 further including using the first convex hull on the first digital image to produce a first cutout and using such first cutout to produce a new image.

6. The method of claim 5 further including repeating steps a-d on a second digital image to produce a second cutout and using the first and second cutouts to produce a collage.

7. The method of claim 3 further including using the expanded first convex hull on the first digital image to produce a first cutout and using such first cutout to produce a new image.

8. The method of claim 7 further including repeating the method of claim 3 on a second digital image to produce a second cutout and using the first and second cutouts to produce a collage.

9. The method of claim 6 further including using the second convex hull on the first digital image to produce a first cutout and using such first cutout to produce a new image.

10. The method of claim 9 further including repeating the method of claim 4 on a second digital image to produce a second cutout and using the first and second cutouts to produce a collage.

11. The method of claim 5 wherein the new image is composed, including scaling of the cutout image, and combining with a background image using one of the following edge treatments for the cutout:

(a) using a hard edge with a simulated mat to appear as a matted image for framing,

(b) using a hard edge with a white border to simulate a photograph, or

(c) blending the edge into the background.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein a collage is composed, without overlapping the cutout images and including scaling of the cutout images, with a background image using one of the following edge treatments for the cutout:

(a) using a hard edge with a simulated mat to appear as a matted image for framing,

(b) using a hard edge with a white border and drop shadow to simulate a photograph, or

(c) blending the edge into the background.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein a collage is composed, without overlapping the cutout images and including scaling of the cutout images, with a background image using one of the following edge treatments for the cutout:

(a) using a hard edge with a simulated mat to appear as a matted image for framing,

(b) using a hard edge with a white border and drop shadow to simulate a photograph, or

(c) blending the edge into the background.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein a collage is composed, further comprising:

(a) using the main subject belief map to determine least important area outside the convex hulls in each image; and

(b) overlaying the image cutouts at the determined areas.

15. The method of claim 10 wherein a collage is composed, further comprising:

(a) using the main subject belief map to determine least important area outside the convex hulls in each image; and

(b) overlaying the image cutouts at the determined areas.

16. The method of claim 8 wherein a collage is composed, with partial overlapping among the image cutouts, further comprising:

(a) using the main subject belief map to determine less important area along the border of the convex hull of each image cutout; and

(b) overlapping the image cutouts at the determined areas.

17. The method of claim 10 wherein a collage is composed, with partial overlapping among the image cutouts, further comprising:

(a) using the main subject belief map to determine less important area along the border of the convex hull of each image cutout; and

(b) overlapping the image cutouts at the determined areas.

18. The method of claim 16 wherein a collage is composed where non-privileged image areas can be overlapped with other images, using one of the following edge treatments for the cutout:

(a) using intelligent overlap with edge treatment, or

(b) blending the edge of each cutout image into the background or into the other cutout images they overlap.