IMAGE PROCESSING APPARATUS, IMAGE TAKING APPARATUS AND PROGRAM

• US 20100238320A1
• Filed: 06/09/2010
• Published: 09/23/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/29/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Washisu, Koichi
• Granted Patent: US 7,986,853 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/229.100
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/70 Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/741 by increasing the dynamic range of the image compared to the dynamic range of the electronic image sensors

Abstract

An image processing apparatus, which obtains a synthesized image whose exposure is corrected by synthesizing a first image and a second image, is disclosed. The image processing apparatus comprises a detection section which detects an amount of displacement of the second image with respect to the first image which is a reference image, a coordinate conversion section which performs coordinate conversion to the second image so as to conform to the first image, and a synthesis section which synthesizes the second image having been subjected to the coordinate conversion with the first image.

Claims

1. An image taking apparatus comprising:

(a) an image pickup device which captures at least three images sequentially;

(b) a detection unit which detects shift amounts between a first image among the at least three images and each of the other images;

(c) a coordinate conversion unit which performs coordinate conversion so that the other images overlap the first image based on a detection result in the detecting unit;

(d) a synthesis unit which synthesizes the first image and the other images as one synthesis image by performing the coordinate conversion in the coordinate conversion unit; and

(e) an adjusting unit which darkens brightness in a first region of each of the other images, the first region corresponding to a region irradiated with light in the first image,

wherein the first image among the at least three images is captured by using an illumination unit, and the other images are captured without using the illumination unit and are at least two captured images.

2. The image taking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the detection unit compares between the first image and the other images and detects the shift amount based on a specific point in a region where brightness change is lower than a predetermined value.

3. The image taking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the adjusting unit darkens the brightness in the first region of each of the other images by zeroing the brightness or masking the first region.

4. The image taking apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the adjusting unit adjusts brightness so as to shade-off a boundary between the first region and a second region which is a region other than the first region in each of the other images.

5. The image taking apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the adjusting unit changes brightness of the boundary in stages or continuously.

6. The image taking apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a synthesis prohibiting unit which prohibits an image synthesis operation of the synthesis unit when brightness change at a specific region in each of the first image and the other images.

7. The image taking apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the irradiation light is used when a last image among a plurality of images is taken.

8. The image taking apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a recording unit, in which stores the first image and the synthesized image are recorded.

9. A control method of an image taking apparatus comprising an image pickup device capturing an image, comprising the steps of:

(a) capturing at least three images sequentially by the image pickup device;

(b) detecting shift amounts between a first image among the at least three images and each of the other images;

(c) performing coordinate conversion so that the other images overlap the first image based on a detection result in the detecting unit;

(d) synthesizing the first image and the other images as one synthesis image by the coordinate conversion in the performing step; and

(e) darkening brightness in a first region of each of the other images, the first region corresponding to a region irradiated with light in the first image,

wherein the first image among the at least three images is captured by using an illumination unit and the other images are captured without using the illumination unit, the other image being at least two captured images.

10. An image processing apparatus which processes at least three images which are captured by an image pickup device sequentially, a first image among the at least three images being captured by using an illumination unit, the other images being captured without using the illumination unit and being at least two images, the image processing apparatus comprising:

(a) a detection unit which detects shift amounts between the first image and each of the other images;

(b) a coordinate conversion unit which performs coordinate conversion so that the other images overlap the first image based on a detection result in the detecting unit;

(c) a synthesis unit which synthesizes the first image and the other images as one synthesis image by performing the coordinate conversion in the coordinate conversion unit; and

(d) an adjusting unit which darkens brightness in a first region of each of the other images, the first region corresponding to a region irradiated with light in the first image.

11. An image processing method for processing at least three images which are captured by an image pickup device sequentially, a first image among the at least three images being captured by using an illumination unit, the other images being captured without using the illumination unit and being at least two images, the image processing method comprising the steps of:

(a) detecting shift amounts between the first image and each of the other images;

(b) performing coordinate conversion so that the other images overlap the first image based on a detection result in the detecting unit;

(c) synthesizing the first image and the other images as one synthesis image by the coordinate conversion in the performing step; and

(d) darkening brightness in a first region of each of the other images, the first region corresponding to a region irradiated with light in the first image.

12. A medium in which a program for processing at least three images which are captured by an image pickup device sequentially is stored, a first image among the at least three images being captured by using an illumination unit, the other images being captured without using the illumination unit and being at least two images, the program comprising the steps of:

(a) detecting shift amounts between the first image and each of the other images;

(b) performing coordinate conversion so that the other images overlap the first image based on a detection result in the detecting unit;

(c) synthesizing the first image and the other images as one synthesis image by the coordinate conversion in the performing step; and

(d) darkening brightness in a first region of each of the other images, the first region corresponding to a region irradiated with light in the first image.