Area mapping employing reference clusters for high quality noninteger resolution conversion with enhancement

• US 5,689,343 A
• Filed: 05/26/1995
• Issued: 11/18/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: Loce, Robert P., Lin, Ying-wei, Jodoin, Ronald E.
• Primary Examiner(s): FRAHM, ERIC S
• Application Number:
  US08/451,376
• Time in Patent Office: 907 Days
• Field of Search: 358/296, 358/298, 358/443, 358/447, 358/448, 358/454, 358/456, 358/530, 358/533-536, 358/457, 395/102, 395/109, 395/112, 395/128, 382/205, 382/209, 382/210, 382/254, 382/257, 382/260-266, 382/298-300, 382/308
• US Class Current: 358/3.21
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/4023 based on decimating pixels or lines of pixels; based on inserting pixels or lines of pixels
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/40068 Modification of image resolution, i.e. determining the values of picture elements at new relative positions H04N1/3935 takes precedence

Abstract

A method and apparatus for converting the resolution of an input image to a higher resolution that is a noninteger multiple of the input resolution. The method and apparatus employ either an interlocked or noninterlocked clustering arrangement of output pixels in order to assign to each output pixel a reference value determined from the signal levels of the input image. In addition, the method and apparatus include a template-based enhancement filter to further refine modify or alter the assigned signal level prior to its output as a higher resolution image.

Claims

1. A method, operating in an image processing system, for mapping a plurality of first resolution input image signals representing a two-dimensional image to produce a plurality of second resolution image signals for rendering as a two-dimensional output image on an image output device, where the second resolution is higher than the first resolution, including the steps of:

defining a cluster of output pixel positions, wherein the cluster is a set of pixel positions having a size and two-dimensional shape encompassing a predetermined number of output pixel positions at the second resolution;

identifying a first reference value equal to an input image signal level of a reference pixel position;

setting the image signal level of the cluster of output pixels to the first reference value;

comparing image signals of a set of first dimension pixel positions within a window encompassing the reference pixel position to a template-based filter to identify a match; and

modifying, only in response to a template-based filter match, the image signal level of at least one of the cluster of output pixels.

2. The method of claim 1, further including the steps of:

defining a second cluster of output pixel positions, wherein the second cluster is a set of pixel positions having a size and two-dimensional shape encompassing a predetermined number of pixel positions at the second resolution;

identifying a second reference value equal to an input image signal level of a second reference pixel position;

setting the image signal level of the second cluster of output pixels to the second reference value;

comparing image signals of a set of first dimension pixel positions within a window encompassing the second reference pixel position to a template-based filter to identify a match; and

modifying, only in response to a template filter match, the image signal level of at least one of the second set of output pixels.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first and second sets of output pixels are interlocked.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the second resolution is a non-integer multiple of the first resolution.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein edges present in the input and output images may not be aligned coincidently in their respective images due to the non-integer resolution mapping and where the first and second sets of output pixels are interlocked by alternately activating the neighboring pixels to give the appearance in the two-dimensional output image that edges within the input image are similarly positioned in the output image.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the output cluster and the reference pixel position respectively represent associated regions of the first and second resolution images.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the the reference pixel position is selected so as to correspond with an overlap of the pixel positions of the second resolution image when the second resolution image is superimposed over the first resolution image.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the first resolution is 240×

240 spi and the second resolution is 600×

600 spi, and where a 2×

2 array of input image signals are converted to a corresponding 5×

5 array of output image signals, and where the first reference signal is determined by the image signal contained in a first quadrant of the 2×

2 array of input image signals, further including the steps of;

defining second, third and forth clusters of output pixel positions, wherein the second, third and forth clusters, in combination with the first cluster, comprise a set of pixel positions having a size and shape encompassing all the pixels in the output array;

identifying second, third and forth reference values equal to an input image signal level stored in the second, third and forth quadrants of the 2×

2 array of input image signals, respectively;

setting the image signal level of the second cluster of output pixels to the second reference value;

setting the image signal level of the third cluster of output pixels to the third reference value;

setting the image signal level of the fourth cluster of output pixels to the fourth reference value;

comparing image signals of a set of first dimension pixel positions within a window encompassing the 2×

2 array of input image pixel positions to a template-based filter to identify a match; and

modifying, only in response to a template filter match, the image signal level of at least one of the output image signals.

9. An image processing system for mapping a plurality of input image signals of a first resolution representing a two-dimensional input image to produce a plurality of image signals of a second resolution representing a two-dimensional output image where the second resolution is a non-integer multiple of the first resolution that is printed by a printer connected to receive the two-dimensional output image from the image processing system, including:

an input buffer for storing image signals, said input buffer is an array suitable for storing a predetermined number of input image signals associated with pixel positions of the first resolution;

an output image signal buffer for storing a plurality of output image signals at the second resolution;

buffer logic for controlling the storage of input image signals stored in said input buffer in association with the retrieval of output image signals from said output image signal buffer;

first reference value logic for setting a reference value equal to that of a first pixel location stored within the input buffer and storing the reference value in memory locations corresponding to a first set of output pixels within said output image signal buffer;

a template-based filter for detecting when the input image stored in the input buffer includes an image signal pattern matching one of a plurality of predefined templates stored therein, and generating a signal upon such detection;

output pixel logic circuitry for modifying, in response to the template-based filter signal, the image signal level of at least one of the first set of output pixels in response to the detection of a template filter match.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, further including:

second reference value logic for setting a second reference value equal to that of a second pixel location stored within the input buffer and storing the second reference value in memory locations corresponding to a second set of output pixels within said output image signal buffer;

a second template-based filter for detecting when the input image stored in the input buffer includes an image signal pattern matching one of a second plurality of predefined templates stored therein, and generating a second signal upon such detection;

second output pixel logic circuitry for modifying, in response to the second template-based filter signal, the image signal level of at least one of the second set of output pixels in response to the detection of a second template filter match as indicated by the second signal.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first and second sets of output pixels are interlocked.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the first set of output pixels and the second set of output pixels are interlocked by alternately activating neighboring pixels so as to give an appearance in the two-dimensional output image that edges represented within the input image are similarly positioned therein.

13. A method, operating in an image processing system including a central processing unit, for mapping a plurality of first resolution input image signals representing a two-dimensional input image to produce a plurality of second resolution image signals representing a two-dimensional output image where the second resolution is higher than the first resolution, including the steps of:

generating a template-based filter by identifying a plurality of central pixel positions within a window at the first resolution, point mapping each central pixel position to a plurality of pixel positions at a third resolution higher than the second resolution, for each pixel position of a second resolution output image, selecting one of the pixel positions of the third resolution point map and associating the selected pixel position with the image value of the second resolution pixel position, and repeating the process until each of the second resolution pixel positions is represented by a third resolution pixel position from which a reference value will be obtained;

defining a cluster of output pixel positions, wherein the cluster is a set of pixel positions having a size and two-dimensional shape encompassing a predetermined number of output pixel positions at the second resolution;

identifying a first reference value equal to an input image signal level of a reference pixel position;

setting the image signal level of the cluster of output pixels to the first reference value;

comparing image signals of a set of first dimension pixel positions within a window encompassing the reference pixel position to a template-based filter to identify a match; and

modifying, only in response to a template filter match, the image signal level of at least one of the cluster of output pixels.