Image sensing apparatus with feature extraction mechanism and its control method

• US 7,564,486 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2004
• Issued: 07/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Ikeda, Eiichiro
• Primary Examiner(s): Misleh; Justin P
• Application Number:
  US10/951,483
• Publication Number:
  US 20050088536A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,757 Days
• Field of Search: 348/222.1, 382/117, 382/118
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/20 using local operators
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/168 Feature extraction; Face representation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00323 with a measuring, monitoring or signaling apparatus, e.g. for transmitting measured information to a central location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/61 based on recognised objects
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/611 where the recognised objects include parts of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/673 based on contrast or high frequency components of image signals, e.g. hill climbing method
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/675 comprising setting of focusing regions
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/134 based on three different wavelength filter elements

Abstract

The attitude of an image sensing apparatus is detected, and optimum filter processing is selected based on the result of detection for extracting feature information of a subject, thus processing is simplified. While a shutter button is half-depressed, it is determined whether the image sensing apparatus is performing landscape image sensing or portrait image sensing based on attitude information obtained from an attitude sensor (S105). Then based on the result of determination, one of two filter processings in different scan directions is performed thereby a person'"'"'s face in an image is detected. Then image sensing conditions at the next timing are determined based on the area of the person'"'"'s face in the image. When the shutter button is full-depressed, image sensing is performed in accordance with the latest image sensing conditions, and an obtained image is stored into a storage medium such as a memory card.

Claims

1. An image sensing apparatus having an image sensing device, comprising:

an attitude detection unit configured to detect an attitude of said image sensing apparatus;

a plurality of filter processing circuits configured to read image signals obtained by said image sensing device in a direction different from each other, and to extract edge information from the read image signals; and

a feature extraction circuit configured to select one of the plurality of filter processing circuits in accordance with the attitude detected by said attitude detection unit and to recognize the shape of an object in said image signals in accordance with the edge information extracted by the selected filter processing circuit.

2. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a control circuit to determine an image sensing condition based on the result of shape recognition by said feature extraction circuit.

3. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said feature extraction circuit extracts at least one of position information of an area including a person'"'"'s face and position information an area including the person'"'"'s eye in the image signals,

and wherein said control circuit performs focus adjustment to obtain focus on an area specified by the position information.

4. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said feature extraction circuit extracts at least one of position information of an area including a person'"'"'s face and position information of an area including the person'"'"'s eye in the image signals,

and wherein said control circuit performs exposure control in accordance with luminance information weighted with reference to an area specified by the position information.

5. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said feature extraction circuit extracts at least one of position information of an area including a person'"'"'s face and position information of an area including the person'"'"'s eye in the image signals.

6. The image sensing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an image sensing mode setting unit to select an image sensing program,

wherein said feature extraction circuit does not perform the shape recognition of an object if a predetermined image sensing program has been set by said image sensing mode setting unit.

7. A control method for image sensing apparatus having an image sensing device, comprising:

an attitude detection step of detecting an attitude of said image sensing apparatus;

a plurality of filter processing step of reading the image signals obtained by said image sensing device in a direction different from each other and to extract edge information from the read image signals; and

a feature extraction step of selecting one of the plurality of filter processing steps in accordance with the attitude detected in said attitude detection step and to recognize the shape of an object in said image signals in accordance with the edge information extracted in the selected filter processing step.

8. The control method for image sensing apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising:

a control step of determines an image sensing condition based on the result of shape recognition in said feature extraction step.