PLANAR PANORAMA IMAGERY GENERATION

• US 20130106990A1
• Filed: 11/01/2011
• Published: 05/02/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/01/2011
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Williams, Samuel Thomas, Kopf, Johannes, Rosenberg, Jonathan Paul, Kim, Don Dongwoo, Kanumuri, Sandeep
• Application Number:
  US13/286,756
• Publication Number:
  US 20130106990A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/36
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/24 Classification techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/4038 Image mosaicing, e.g. composing plane images from plane sub-images
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/698 for achieving an enlarged field of view, e.g. panoramic image capture

Abstract

One or more techniques and/or systems are disclosed for generating improved planar panorama imagery, which may be used to view street-level, human-scale locations along a desired path, for example. One or more desired objects can be detected in source imagery that may be used to produce the resulting planar panorama imagery. Respective object regions comprising a desired object can be identified in one or more frames of the source imagery. One or more portions of the source imagery that do not comprise the object region for the desired object can be joined with at least some of the one or more frames that do comprise the object region for the desired object. The resulting planar panorama imagery can thus comprise the desired object. Also, the planar panorama imagery can be generated so as to lack one or more non-desired objects and/or adverse effects that may result therefrom.

Claims

1. A computer-based method for generating planar panorama imagery, comprising:

identifying an object region in one or more frames of planar panorama source imagery, the object region comprising a desired object; and

joining one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery, not comprising the desired object, with the one or more frames comprising the object region, to generate the planar panorama imagery comprising the desired object, at least a portion of the method performed by a processing unit.

2. The method of claim 1, comprising identifying the desired object in the planar panorama source imagery using an object detector.

3. The method of claim 1, comprising selecting merely a first frame from the one or more frames to join with the one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising selecting a first frame from the one or more frames to join with the one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery, the first frame comprising an entirety of the desired object.

5. The method of claim 1, comprising identifying the desired object in the planar panorama source imagery, comprising:

identifying a first desired object in the planar panorama source imagery; and

identifying a second desired object in the planar panorama source imagery.

6. The method of claim 5, identifying the object region comprising:

identifying a first object region comprising the first desired object in one or more first frames of the planar panorama source imagery; and

identifying a second object region comprising the second desired object in one or more second frames of the planar panorama source imagery.

7. The method of claim 6, comprising prioritizing the first object region over the second object region based on a first priority associated with the first object region and a second priority associated with the second object region.

8. The method of claim 6, the joining resulting in:

the planar panorama imagery comprising merely the first desired object if the first desired object is prioritized over the second desired object and the first object region and the second object region overlap in the planar panorama imagery;

else

the planar panorama imagery comprising the first desired object and the second desired object.

9. The method of claim 1, comprising identifying a negative object region in one or more negative frames of the planar panorama source imagery, the negative object region comprising a non-desired object.

10. The method of claim 9, comprising joining the one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery with the one or more frames, resulting in the planar panorama imagery not comprising the non-desired object.

11. The method of claim 9, comprising one or more of:

selecting a first frame that does not comprise the non-desired object, from the one or more frames to join with the one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery; and

cutting the negative object region from at least a second frame of the one or more negative frames, and joining the one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery with at least the second frame.

12. A system for generating planar panorama imagery, comprising:

a computer-based processor configured to process data for the system;

a desired object detection component, operably coupled with the processor, configured to identify a desired object in one or more frames of planar panorama source imagery; and

an image joining component, operably coupled with the desired object detection component, configured to join one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery, not comprising the desired object, with the one or more frames comprising the desired object, resulting in the planar panorama imagery.

13. The system of claim 12, the desired object detection component configured to identify an object region in the one or more frames of the planar panorama source imagery, the object region comprising the desired object.

14. The system of claim 13, comprising a frame selection component configured to select at least a first frame from the one or more frames for the image joining component, the first frame comprising the object region comprising the desired object.

15. The system of claim 12, the desired object detection component comprising a plurality of object detectors, the respective object detectors configured to identify merely one type of object in the planar panorama source imagery.

16. The system of claim 15, the plurality of object detectors comprising one or more of:

one or more positive object detectors configured to detect the desired object, the desired object intended to be included in the resulting planar panorama imagery; and

one or more negative object detectors configured to detect a non-desired object, the non-desired object intended not to be included in the resulting planar panorama imagery.

17. The system of claim 12, comprising an object prioritization component configured to prioritize selection of a first desired object over selection of a second desired object for inclusion in the resulting planar panorama imagery, based at least upon a first desired prioritization associated with the first desired object and a second desired prioritization associated with the second desired object.

18. The system of claim 17, the image joining component configured to generate the resulting planar panorama imagery, the resulting planar panorama imagery comprising:

the first desired object if the first desired object is prioritized over the second desired object and a first object region, comprising the first desired object, overlaps a second object region, comprising the second desired object, in the planar panorama source imagery;

else

the first desired object and the second desired object.

19. The system of claim 12, comprising a frame selection component configured to select one or more of the one or more frames for the image joining component, comprising one or more of:

selecting at least a first frame, from the one or more frames, the first frame comprising at least a desired view of the desired object;

selecting at least a second frame, from the one or more frames, the second frame not comprising a non-desired object; and

selecting at least a third frame, from the one or more frames, the third frame comprising a desired view of the non-desired object, the desired view of the non-desired object resulting in the desired planar panorama imagery when the non-desired object is cut from the third frame.

20. A computer readable medium comprising computer executable instructions that when executed via a processor perform a method for generating planar panorama imagery, comprising:

identifying an object region in one or more frames of planar panorama source imagery, the object region comprising a desired object;

identifying a negative object region in one or more negative frames of the planar panorama source imagery, the negative object region comprising a non-desired object; and

joining one or more portions of the planar panorama source imagery with at least some of the one or more frames and at least some of the one or more negative frames in a manner that generates the planar panorama imagery comprising the desired object and not comprising the non-desired object.