Producing a final modified digital image using a source digital image and a difference digital image

• US 6,775,407 B1
• Filed: 08/02/2000
• Issued: 08/10/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Monument Peak Ventures, LLC (Dominion Harbor Enterprises, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Spaulding, Kevin E., Gindele, Edward B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chen, Wenpeng
• Application Number:
  US09/631,348
• Time in Patent Office: 1,469 Days
• Field of Search: 382/232, 382/162, 382/167, 382/309, 382/166, 358/1.15, 358/518, 709/204, 709/201, 709/213, 709/217, 178/18.01, 345/2.2, 355/40
• US Class Current: 382/166
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32 Circuits or arrangements for control or supervision between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device, e.g. between a still-image camera and its memory or between a still-image camera and a printer device H04N1/38, H04N1/387 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/3871 the composed originals being of different kinds, e.g. low- and high-resolution originals

Abstract

A method for processing a digital image in a distributed manner to produce a final modified digital image includes providing a source digital image at a first computer, providing the source digital image at a second computer, and modifying the source digital image at the second computer to form a first modified digital image. The method further includes determining a difference digital image representing the difference between the source digital image and the first modified digital image, transferring the difference digital image to the first computer, and combining the difference digital image with the source digital image at the first computer to form the final modified digital image.

Claims

1. A method for processing a digital image in a distributed manner to produce a final modified digital image, comprising:

a) providing a source digital image at a first computer;

b) the first computer responding to the source digital image to produce a base digital image having a dynamic range less than the source digital image and a first difference digital image such that the base digital image and the first difference digital image can be recombined to produce a representation of the source digital image;

c) transferring the base digital image and the first difference digital image to a second computer which combines the base digital image and first difference digital image to produce a reconstructed digital image representing the source digital image;

d) the second computer modifying the reconstructed digital image to produce a modified digital image and determining a second difference digital image such that the base digital image and the second difference digital image can be recombined to produce the modified digital image;

e) transferring the second difference digital image to the first computer; and

f) combining in the first computer the second difference digital image with the base digital image to form the final modified digital image.