GREEN IMAGE DATA PROCESSING

• US 20180070061A1
• Filed: 07/21/2017
• Published: 03/08/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 02/14/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Red.com, LLC
• Original Assignee: Red.com, LLC
• Inventors: Jannard, James H., Nattress, Thomas Graeme, Greene, Richard, Mathur, Uday
• Application Number:
  US15/656,958
• Publication Number:
  US 20180070061A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/426 using memory downsizing methods
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 19/44 Decoders specially adapted therefor, e.g. video decoders which are asymmetric with respect to the encoder
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/10 for generating image signals from different wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/531 being rotatable or detachable
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/60 Control of cameras or camera modules
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/843 Demosaicing, e.g. interpolating colour pixel values
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/134 based on three different wavelength filter elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/64 Circuits for processing colour signals H04N9/77 takes precedence; camera processing pipelines for processing colour signals H04N23/84

Abstract

Embodiments provide a video camera that can be configured to highly compress video data in a visually lossless manner. The camera can be configured to transform blue, red, and/or green image data in a manner that enhances the compressibility of the data. The camera can be configured to transform at least a portion of the green image data in a manner that enhances the compressibility of the data. The data can then be compressed and stored in this form. This allows a user to reconstruct the red, blue, and/or green image data to obtain the original raw data or a modified version of the original raw data that is visually lossless when demosaiced. Additionally, the data can be processed in a manner in which at least some of the green image elements are demosaiced first and then the red, blue, and/or some green elements are reconstructed based on values of the demosaiced green image elements.

Claims

1. (canceled)

2. A portable electronic device capable of capturing digital images, the portable electronic device comprising:

at least one memory device;

one or more image sensors configured to convert light incident on the one or more image sensors into mosaiced color image data, the mosaiced color image data comprising a plurality of color channels, the color channels comprising at least a first green color channel, a second green color channel, a red color channel, and a blue color channel; and

one or more hardware processors configured to;

for each respective picture element of a plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, modify an initial value corresponding to the respective picture element using a calculated value derived from values of a kernel comprising a plurality of picture elements of the first green color channel, to generate transformed second green color channel data, wherein the kernel is centered on the respective picture element;

compress the transformed second green color channel data, data corresponding to the first green color channel, data corresponding to the red color channel, and data corresponding to the blue color channel, to generate compressed mosaiced color image data; and

store the compressed mosaiced color image data in the memory device.

3. The portable electronic device of claim 2, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to, for each respective picture element of the plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, subtract the calculated value from the initial value.

4. The portable electronic device of claim 3, wherein, for each respective picture element of the plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, the calculated value comprises an average of the values of the plurality of picture elements in the kernel.

5. The portable electronic device of claim 4, wherein the plurality of picture elements in the kernel comprise at least two picture elements which are on opposite sides of the respective picture element.

6. The portable electronic device of claim 4, wherein the plurality of picture elements in the kernel include picture elements from two picture element rows or from four picture element rows.

7. The portable electronic device of claim 2 further comprising:

a lens mount; and

a removable lens attachable to the lens mount,

wherein the mosaiced color image data is mosaiced according to a Bayer pattern.

8. The portable electronic device of claim 2, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to:

determine whether the kernel comprises any virtual picture elements positioned beyond an edge of the image sensor, and if so, to assign a value to each of the virtual picture elements for use in deriving the calculated value.

9. The portable electronic device of claim 8, wherein the value assigned to each of the virtual picture elements is a copy of the value of a non-virtual picture element in the kernel.

10. The portable electronic device of claim 2, wherein the plurality of picture elements of the kernel include at least four picture elements of the first green color channel that form a square centered on the respective picture element.

11. The portable electronic device of claim 10, wherein the kernel has four picture elements.

12. The portable electronic device of claim 10, wherein the kernel has 16 picture elements.

13. The portable electronic device of claim 2, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to:

transform the data corresponding to the red color channel by subtracting, from respective picture element values of the red color channel, a calculated value derived from picture element values of one or more of the first green color channel and the second green color channel which are spatially located relative to the respective picture element values of the red color channel, to generate transformed red color channel data;

transform the data corresponding to the blue color channel by subtracting from respective picture element values of the blue color channel a calculated value derived from picture element values of one or more of the first green color channel and the second green color channel which are spatially located relative to the respective picture element values of the blue color channel, to generate transformed blue color channel data;

compress the transformed red color channel data; and

compress the transformed blue color channel data.

14. The portable electronic device of claim 13, wherein:

the generation of the transformed second green color channel data results in a spatial decorrelation of the data corresponding to the first green color channel from the transformed second green color channel data,

the generation of the transformed red color channel data results in a spatial decorrelation of data corresponding to the first green color channel from the transformed red color channel data, and

the generation of the transformed blue color channel data results in a spatial decorrelation of the data corresponding to the first green color channel from the blue color channel data.

15. A portable electronic device capable of capturing digital images, the portable electronic device comprising:

one or more image sensors; and

one or more hardware processors configured to;

receive mosaiced color image data acquired by the one or more image sensors, the mosaiced color image data comprising a plurality of picture element values for each of a plurality of color channels, the color channels comprising at least a first green color channel, a second green color channel, a red color channel, and a blue color channel;

for each respective picture element of a plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, modify an initial value corresponding to the respective picture element using a calculated value derived from values of a kernel comprising a plurality of picture elements of the first green color channel, to generate transformed second green color channel data, wherein the kernel is centered on the respective picture element; and

compress the transformed second green color channel data, data corresponding to the first green color channel, data corresponding to the red color channel, and data corresponding to the blue color channel, to generate compressed mosaiced color image data.

16. The portable electronic device of claim 15, wherein the one or more hardware processors are further configured to:

for each respective picture element of the plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, subtract the calculated value from the initial value,

wherein;

the calculated value comprises an average of the values of the plurality of picture elements in the kernel, and

the plurality of picture elements in the kernel comprise at least four picture elements which are on opposite sides of the respective picture element.

17. The portable electronic device of claim 16 further comprising:

a lens mount; and

a removable lens attachable to the lens mount.

18. A system configured to decode color image data, the system comprising:

one or more image sensors; and

one or more hardware processors configured to;

access encoded color image data, wherein;

the encoded color image data was generated from mosaiced color image data initially acquired by the one or more image sensors,

the encoded color image data includes at least a first green color channel, a second green color channel, a red color channel, and a blue color channel, and

the encoded color image data was encoded at least partly by;

for each respective picture element of a plurality of picture elements of the second green color channel, modifying an initial value corresponding to the respective picture element using a calculated value derived from values of a kernel comprising a plurality of picture elements of the first green color channel of the plurality of color channels, the kernel centered on the respective picture element, to generate transformed second green color channel data, and

compressing the transformed second green color channel data, data corresponding to the first green color channel, data corresponding to the red color channel, and data corresponding to the blue color channel, to generate compressed mosaiced color image data; and

decode the accessed encoded color image data to reproduce the second green color channel that has been transformed.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein decoding the encoded color image data comprises substantially reversing the modifying operation and performing a decompression operation, and wherein substantially reversing the modifying operation is at least one of:

performed after performing the decompression operation, or

performed prior to performing the decompression operation.

20. The system of claim 18 wherein the system comprises a portable electronic device having imaging capability, and the system further comprises:

a lens mount; and

a removable lens attachable to the lens mount.