Image processing apparatus

• US 7,042,501 B1
• Filed: 12/11/1998
• Issued: 05/09/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Matama, Toru
• Primary Examiner(s): Ometz, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): AGGARWAL, YOGESH K
• Application Number:
  US09/209,751
• Time in Patent Office: 2,706 Days
• Field of Search: 348/224.1, 348/231.6, 348/222.1, 348/266, 348/576
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0044 for image preview or review, e.g. to help the user position a sheet
• 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 2201/0408 Scanning film strips or rolls
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/40 Circuit details for pick-up tubes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/253 Picture signal generating by scanning motion picture films or slide opaques, e.g. for telecine scanning details therefor H04N3/36 ; standard conversion therefor H04N7/0112

Abstract

There is provided an image processing apparatus comprising a display, a display switching section, a designation section and a red eye correction section, wherein the display switching section switches in such a way that at least a region designated by the designation section in an image is displayed on the display at high resolution before or after, or both before and after the region is processed by the red eye correction section. The image processing apparatus is capable of effectively performing the red eye correction processing by simple manipulation and outputting an image of high quality without a red eye effect in high productivity.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus for subjecting input image data of an image obtained by optical photographing to preset processing and making the input image data to output image data, comprising:

storage means for storing the image data at high resolution that is finely scanned and the image data at low resolution that is pre-scanned;

a display for displaying the image carried by the image data at high resolution or low resolution that is read from said storage means;

display switching means for switching at least one portion or all portions of the image displayed on said display from the low resolution to the high resolution and vice versa;

designation means for designating a region to be corrected including an eye, said designating means designating the region to be corrected within the image at low resolution that is displayed on said display by said display switching means; and

red eye correction means for correcting a red eye effect in the image data at the high resolution by subjecting the eye in a region of the output image data at the high resolution that corresponds to the region designated by said designation means to eye color transformation processing,

wherein said display switching means switches in such a way that at least the region designated by said designation means in the image of the low resolution is displayed on said display at high resolution before or after, or both before and after the region is processed based on the output image data at the high resolution by said red eye correction means.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising at least one of means for selecting either one of execution and non-execution of processing by said display switching means, said designation means and said red eye correction means as a mode, means for automatically determining said either one of the execution and the non-execution of the processing from photographing information and means for selecting and indicating said either one of the execution and the non-execution of the processing.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the photographing information is at least one of whether photographing is performed using an electronic flash or not, a subject brightness range, a photographing distance, positions of main elements in a picture, a focal length of a lens, a type of a camera.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising means for determining the non-execution of the processing from the photographing information in the mode that the processing is performed.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the photographing information is at least one of whether photographing is performed using an electronic flash or not, a subject brightness range, a photographing distance, positions of main elements in a picture, a focal length of a lens, a type of a camera.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said red eye correction means comprises:

image data taking-out means for taking out the image data in said region including the eye in the high-resolution image that corresponds to the region designated by said designation means;

color transforming means for subjecting the image data of said eye in the region taken out by said image data taking-out means to the eye color transformation processing; and

image data replacing means for replacing said output image data in the region to be taken out by said image data taking-out means with the image data of the eye in the region which is substituted to the eye color transformation processing by said color transforming means.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein said display switching means allows the image in said region including the eye before or after the region is processed by said red eye correction means to enlarge and display on the display at the high resolution.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said input image data of the image obtained by the optical photographing are image data which are read photoelectrically from an image on a photographic film that is photographed and then developed.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said images which are displayed on the display at the high resolution and the low resolution are images based on the input image data which are read photoelectrically at the high resolution and the low resolution from the image carried on the photographic film.

10. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said input image data of the image obtained by the optical photographing are image data obtained directly by photographing a subject.

11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, said red eye correction means comprising:

image data taking-out means for taking out the image data in said region including the eye in the high resolution image that corresponds to the region designated by said designation means;

said image data taking-out means taking out a region of a prescribed shape and size in the image data of high resolution corresponding to the region in the image data of low resolution designated by said designation means;

said red-eye correction means correcting red eye in the region of the high resolution image taken out by said image data taking-out means.

12. An apparatus for processing an input image to remove red-eye, comprising:

a memory device, said memory device storing the input image at a high resolution and at a low resolution to store high resolution image data and low resolution image data;

a display device operatively connected to said memory device via a switching device, said display device displaying the low resolution image data;

an input device, said input device designating a location in the displayed low resolution image data, the location being close to or at an eye; and

a red-eye correction unit operatively connected to said memory device and to said input device,

said red-eye correction device taking-out a region in the high resolution image data corresponding to the designated location in the low resolution image data;

said red-eye correction device correcting a red-eye effect in the taken-out region of the high resolution image data that corresponds to the designated location;

said switching device switching the display displayed by said display device to display at least a portion of the high resolution image data; and

wherein the display of the high resolution image data permits a confirmation that the red-eye correction has been effective.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12,

said red-eye correction device taking out a region of a prescribed shape and size in the high resolution image data that corresponds to the designated location in the low resolution image data.

14. A method of processing an input image to remove red-eye, comprising:

storing the input image at a high resolution and at a low resolution to store high resolution image data and low resolution image data;

displaying the low resolution image data on a display device;

designating a location in the displayed low resolution image data, the location being close to or at an eye;

taking-out a region in the high resolution image data corresponding to the designated location in the low resolution image data;

correcting a red-eye effect in the taken-out region of the high resolution image data that corresponds to the designated location;

switching the display displayed by the display device to display at least a portion of the high resolution image data; and

confirming that said red-eye correction has been effective by reviewing the displayed high resolution image data that has been switched by said switching step.

15. The method according to claim 14,

said taking-out step taking out a region of a prescribed shape and size in the high resolution image data that corresponds to the designated location in the low resolution image data.