Red-eye filter method and apparatus

• US 6,407,777 B1
• Filed: 10/09/1997
• Issued: 06/18/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/09/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: FotoNation Limited (Adeia Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Michael J. Deluca
• Inventors: DeLuca, Michael Joseph
• Primary Examiner(s): Garber, Wendy R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): White, Mitchell
• Application Number:
  US08/947,603
• Time in Patent Office: 1,713 Days
• Field of Search: 348/370, 348/371, 348/576, 348/577, 348/222, 382/117, 382/162, 382/274, 382/275, 382/260, 396/158
• US Class Current: 348/576
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0002 Inspection of images, e.g. flaw detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/193 Preprocessing; Feature extraction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/62 Retouching, i.e. modification of isolated colours only or in isolated picture areas only
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/624 Red-eye correction control of camera based on recognised facial parts H04N23/611
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/74 by influencing the scene brightness using illuminating means

Abstract

A digital camera has an integral flash and stores and displays a digital image. Under certain conditions, a flash photograph taken with the camera may result in a red-eye phenomenon due to a reflection within an eye of a subject of the photograph. The digital camera has a red-eye filter which analyzes the stored image for the red-eye phenomenon and modifies the stored image to eliminate the red-eye phenomenon by changing the red area to black. The modification of the image is enabled when a photograph is taken under conditions indicative of the red-eye phenomenon. The modification is subject to anti-falsing analysis which further examines the area around the red-eye area for indicia of the eye of the subject.

Claims

1. Within a portable digital camera having no photographic film, a method of filtering a red-eye phenomenon from a digital image comprising a multiplicity of pixels indicative of color, the pixels forming various shapes of the image, the method comprising the steps of:

locating pixels having a color indicative of the red-eye phenomenon;

determining if a grouping of at least a portion of the pixels of said step locating comprise a shape indicative of the red-eye phenomenon;

modifying the color of the grouping in response to said step of determining; and

analyzing if conditions of recording of the image are indicative of the red-eye phenomenon, wherein said step of modifying is selectively performed in response thereto.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the color indicative of the red-eye phenomenon corresponds to a substantially red color, and the shape indicative of the red-eye phenomenon corresponds to a substantially round, semi-circular or oval shape.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein said step of analyzing includes determining if a flash was used in conjunction with the recording of the image.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein said step of analyzing includes determining if a flash was used in conjunction with the recording of the image, the distance between a subject of the image and a camera for recording the image and an ambient light level during the recording of the image.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein said step of modifying changes the color of the grouping to black.

6. The method according to claim 1 wherein said step of determining further comprises the steps of:

determining if pixels in a vicinity of the grouping have a feature indicative an eye;

and inhibiting said step of modifying in response to an absence of the feature.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein the feature includes an absence of additional pixels having a color indicative of the red-eye phenomenon within the vicinity of the grouping.

8. The method according to claim 6 wherein the feature includes a substantially white area within the vicinity of the grouping.

9. The method according to claim 1 wherein the portable digital camera includes an integral flash and an electronic display, said method further comprising the steps of:

initiating a photographic flash by the flash;

digitally recording the image in response to said step of initiating;

performing said steps of locating, determining and modifying in response to said step of recording; and

displaying the image in response to said step of modifying on the electronic display.

10. A portable digital camera having no photographic film comprising:

an integral flash for providing illumination during image recording;

a digital image capturing apparatus for recording an image; and

a red-eye filter for modifying an area within the image indicative of a red-eye phenomenon.

11. The camera according to claim 10 further comprising an integral image display for displaying the modified image.

12. The camera according to claim 10 wherein the area has a color and shape indicative of the red-eye phenomenon and the image is modified to change the color to a black color and further wherein:

said integral flash selectively provides illumination during image recording; and

said red-eye filter is enabled to modify the image in response to said integral flash providing illumination during image recording.

13. The camera according to claim 12 further comprising an exposure control means for determining if the image was recorded in a condition conducive to the red-eye phenomenon and for generating a red-eye signal in response thereto, wherein said red-eye filter is further enabled in response to the red-eye signal.

14. The device according to claim 10 wherein said red-eye filter further includes a falsing avoidance apparatus which enables modification of the area in response to an absence of color indicative of the red-eye phenomenon with in a vicinity of and exclusive to the area.

15. The device according to claim 10 wherein said red-eye filter further includes a falsing avoidance apparatus which enables modification of the area in response a substantially white colored region within a vicinity of the area.

16. The device according to claim 10 wherein said red-eye filter comprises:

a pixel locator for locating pixels having a color indicative of the red-eye phenomenon;

a shape analyzer for determining if a grouping of at least a portion of the pixels located by said pixel locator comprise a shape indicative of the red-eye phenomenon; and

a pixel modifier for modifying the color of the pixels within the grouping.

17. The red-eye filter according to claim 16 further comprising a falsing analyzer for further processing the image in a vicinity of the grouping for details indicative of an eye, and for enabling said pixel modifier in response thereto.

18. The red-eye filter according to claim 16 further comprising an exposure analyzer for determining if the image was recorded in a condition indicative of the red-eye phenomenon.