Zooming apparatus and method in digital TV

• US 6,542,201 B1
• Filed: 02/25/2000
• Issued: 04/01/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/03/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Ahn, Jin Ho, Song, Seung Chul
• Primary Examiner(s): Miller, John
• Assistant Examiner(s): Tran, Trang U.
• Application Number:
  US09/512,883
• Time in Patent Office: 1,131 Days
• Field of Search: H04/N.544, H04/N.974, H04/N.5262, 348/561, 348/581, 348/576, 348/704, 348/240.99, 345/130, 345/127
• US Class Current: 348/561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 11/20 Conversion of the manner in which the individual colour picture signal components are combined, e.g. conversion of colour television standards
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4344 Remultiplexing of multiplex streams, e.g. by modifying time stamps or remapping the packet identifiers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4728 for selecting a Region Of Interest [ROI], e.g. for requesting a higher resolution version of a selected region
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/44 Receiver circuitry for the reception of television signals according to analogue transmission standards H04N5/14 takes precedence

Abstract

An image zooming apparatus and method for zooming a specific portion of an image in a vertical direction for a digital TV is disclosed. The present apparatus includes a line memory unit for storing the input images; an input data controller for storing the input data in the line memory unit according to a type of the input image and zoom magnification; a zoom controller for receiving zoom area information and zoom magnification from a user, and controlling the data storage in the line memory unit and the processing of the stored data; and data processor for providing a zoomed image according to the control of the zoom controller. The present invention allows a user to zoom an image area of interest and re-zoom a zoomed image area of interest, thereby providing a user-friendly device.

Claims

1. A vertical zooming apparatus for an image comprising:

a line memory unit which includes at least one line memory and which stores input image data by each memory line;

an input data controller which stores the input image data in the line memory unit according to the image type and zoom magnification;

a zoom controller which receives an area information to be zoomed and a zoom magnification from a user, said zoom controller controlling the storage of the input image data in the line memory unit by outputting a first control signal to the data controller and controlling the processing of the stored data; and

a data processor which produces a zoomed image using the stored image data in the line memory unit, according to the control of the zoom controller, wherein said data processor includes,

a multiplication assembly including at least one multiplier,

a divider assembly including at least one divider,

a plurality of first multiplexers corresponding to the number of line memories in the line memory unit, each multiplexer receiving the input image data stored in a corresponding the line memory and outputting the received data to one of said multipliers,

a second multiplexer selectively multiplexing the input image data through said at least one of the multipliers, according to the zoom magnification, and outputting multiplexed data,

an adder adding the multiplexed data and outputting data sum to the divider assembly, and

a third multiplexer selectively outputting a data sum divided through one of said at least one divider as a zoomed data.

2. An apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data processor produces the zoomed image by an interpolation of the stored image data.

3. An apparatus of claim 2, wherein the interpolation method depends upon a number of line memories in the line memory unit.

4. An apparatus of claim 3, wherein a line doubling is used when the line memory unit has one line memories, a linear interpolation is used when the line memory unit has two line memories, and an interpolation of a high level is used when the line memory unit has three line memories.

5. An apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input data controller stores a luminance (Y) data in the line memory according to a size and zoom magnification of the input image, regardless of the input image type.

6. An apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input data controller stores a color (C) data in the line memory according to a size and zoom magnification of the input image, and according to an input image type and a color format of an output image.

7. An apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input data controller stores the input image data in the line memory unit through a repeated performance of a finite state machine of a given number of steps.

8. An apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data processor comprises:

a coefficient set having a plurality of coefficients;

a switch outputting a filter coefficient from the coefficient set based upon a line memory position of the input image data stored in the line memory unit; and

a vertical filter producing a zoomed image by combining the input image data stored in line memories of the line memory unit using the filter coefficient.

9. In a digital television system, a vertical zooming method for an input image, the method comprising:

(a) storing non-correspondingly lines of input image data into a plurality of line memories of a line memory unit according to the input image type having different display format and zoom magnification;

(b) receiving an area information to be zoomed and a zoom magnification from a user, and controlling the storage of the input image data in the line memory unit and controlling the processing of the stored data; and

(c) producing a zoomed image using the stored image data in the line memory unit, according to the control in the step (b).

10. A method of claim 9, wherein in the step (c), the zoomed image is produced by an interpolation of the stored image data.

11. A method of claim 10, wherein the interpolation process varies depending upon a number of line memories present in the line memory unit.

12. A method of claim 11, wherein the step (c) uses a line doubling interpretation when the line memory unit has one line memory, a linear interpolation when the line memory unit has two line memories, and an interpolation of a high level when the line memory unit has three line memories.

13. A method of claim 9, wherein the step (a) stores a luminance (Y) data in the line memory unit according to a size and zoom magnification of the input image, regardless of the input image type.

14. A method of claim 9, wherein the step (a) stores a color data in the line memory unit according to a size and zoom magnification of the input image, and according to an input image type and a color format of an output image.

15. A method of claim 9, wherein the step (a) stores the input image data in the line memory unit through a repeated performance of a finite state machine of a given number of steps.

16. A method of claim 9, wherein the step (c) comprises:

storing a plurality of coefficients;

outputting a filter coefficient from the plurality of coefficients based upon a line memory position of the input image data stored in the line memory unit; and

producing a zoomed image through a vertical filter by combining the input image data stored in the line memories of the line memory unit using the filter coefficient.

17. A digital TV comprising:

a line memory unit which includes at least one line memory and which stores input image data by each memory line;

an input data controller which stores the input image data in the line memory unit according to the image type and zoom magnification;

a zoom controller which receives an area information to be zoomed and a zoom magnification from a user, said zoom controller controlling the storage of the input image data in the line memory unit by outputting a first control signal to the data controller and controlling the processing of the stored data,

a data processor which produces a vertically zoomed image using the stored image data in the line memory unit, according to the control of the zoom controller, wherein said data processor includes,

a multiplication assembly including at least one multiplier,

a divider assembly including at least one divider,

a plurality of first multiplexers corresponding to the number of line memories in the line memory unit, each multiplexer receiving the input image data stored in a corresponding the line memory and outputting the received data to one of said multipliers,

a second multiplexer selectively multiplexing the input image data through said at least one of the multipliers, according to the zoom magnification, and outputting multiplexed data,

an adder adding the multiplexed data and outputting data sum to the divider assembly, and

a third multiplexer selectively outputting a data sum divided through one of said at least one divider as a zoomed data.

18. An apparatus of claim 17, wherein the data processor produces the zoomed image by an interpolation of the stored image data.

19. An apparatus of claim 17, wherein the data processor comprises:

a coefficient set having a plurality of coefficients;

a switch outputting a filter coefficient from the coefficient set based upon a line memory position of the input image data stored in the line memory unit; and

a vertical filter producing a zoomed image by combining the input image data stored in line memories of the line memory unit using the filter coefficient.