Apparatus and method for automatically compensating for an image gradient of a mobile communication terminal

• US 7,692,668 B2
• Filed: 06/10/2004
• Issued: 04/06/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Original Assignee: LG Electronics, Inc. (LG Corporation)
• Inventors: Ahn, Chung-Hyuk
• Primary Examiner(s): Yang; Ryan R
• Application Number:
  US10/865,980
• Publication Number:
  US 20040252913A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,126 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/619, 345/581, 345/589, 345/10, 345 12- 14, 345/20, 345/24, 345/651, 345/677, 455/899, 382/167, 715/863
• US Class Current: 345/619
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1686 the I/O peripheral being an integrated camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/0492 Change of orientation of the displayed image, e.g. upside-down, mirrored
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation

Abstract

Disclosed are an apparatus and a method for automatically compensating for an image gradient of a mobile terminal display. The apparatus and method capture a user'"'"'s image, determine the user'"'"'s line of sight, calculate an image gradient between the user'"'"'s line of sight and a reference coordinate system of the mobile terminal, and generate control information used to adjust displayed images to coordinate for the image gradient.

Claims

1. An apparatus for automatically compensating for an image gradient of a mobile communication terminal display, the apparatus comprising:

an image input unit adapted to receive a user'"'"'s image, determine the user'"'"'s line of sight, and generate user image information corresponding to the user'"'"'s line of sight;

a data process unit adapted to receive user image information from the image input unit, calculate an image gradient related to the angle between the user'"'"'s line of sight and the terminal, generate control information corresponding to the image gradient, and compare the image gradient to a minimum threshold and a maximum threshold to determine if a viewable image is adjusted, wherein the viewable image is adjusted if the image gradient is greater than the maximum threshold value or less than the minimum threshold value; and

a display unit adapted to display the adjusted viewable image.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the image input unit is adapted to receive the user'"'"'s image from a camera mounted inside or outside the mobile terminal.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the camera is a digital camera.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, the data process unit further including:

a memory unit having volatile and non-volatile memory, the volatile memory adapted to store user image information from the image input unit and the non-volatile memory containing an algorithm for controlling all functions of the mobile terminal and an algorithm for calculating an image gradient; and

a central control unit adapted to perform the algorithms stored in the memory unit to calculate the image gradient using the user image information stored in the memory unit and to generate corresponding control information.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the user'"'"'s line of sight is related to a specific portion of the user'"'"'s anatomy and the image input unit is adapted to recognize the specific portion in the user'"'"'s anatomy.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the specific portion is one of the user'"'"'s face, eyes, ears, eyebrows, mouth and nose.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the image input unit is further adapted to perform a face recognition technique to recognize the specific portion of the user'"'"'s anatomy.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the face recognition technique is a support vector machine (SYM) algorithm.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data process unit is further adapted to compare an arbitrary line superimposed on the user image information with a reference coordinate system of the mobile terminal.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the reference coordinate system comprises at least one of a horizontal line and a vertical line.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the arbitrary line is one of a relatively straight horizontal line and a relatively straight vertical line.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the arbitrary line connects one of the user'"'"'s two eyes, the user'"'"'s two ears, and the user'"'"'s two eyebrows.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the arbitrary line connects the user'"'"'s mouth and nose.

14. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the control information comprises a control signal.

15. A method for automatically compensating for an image gradient of a mobile communication terminal display, the method comprising the steps of:

determining a user'"'"'s line of sight via an image input unit from a captured image and generating user image information;

calculating an image gradient via a control unit between the user'"'"'s line of sight and the mobile terminal using the user image information;

generating control information via the control unit corresponding to the image gradient;

comparing the image gradient via the control unit to a minimum threshold and a maximum threshold to determine if a viewable image is adjusted by the control information, wherein the viewable image is adjusted by the control information if the image gradient is greater than the maximum threshold value or less than the minimum threshold value; and

displaying the adjusted viewable image on the mobile communication terminal display.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the captured image is received from a camera mounted inside or outside the mobile terminal.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the user'"'"'s line of sight is related to a specific portion of the user'"'"'s anatomy and the step of determining the user'"'"'s line of sight further comprises recognizing the specific portion of the user'"'"'s anatomy in the captured image.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the specific portion is one of the user'"'"'s face, eyes, ears, eyebrows, mouth and nose.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein recognizing the specific portion of the user'"'"'s anatomy comprises performing a face recognition technique.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the face recognition technique comprises a support vector machine (SYM) algorithm.

21. The method of claim 15, wherein calculating an image gradient comprises:

superimposing an arbitrary line on the user image information; and

comparing the arbitrary line with a reference coordinate system of the mobile terminal.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the arbitrary line is one of a relatively straight horizontal line and a relatively straight vertical line.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein the reference coordinate system comprises at least one of a horizontal reference line and a vertical reference line.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein the arbitrary line connects one of the user'"'"'s two eyes, the user'"'"'s two ears, and the user'"'"'s two eyebrows.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the arbitrary line connects the user'"'"'s mouth and nose.

26. The method of claim 15, wherein the displayed viewable image is adjusted by an angle equal to the image gradient.

27. The method of claim 15, wherein the control information causes no adjustment of the displayed viewable image if the image gradient is one of equal to a maximum threshold value, between the maximum threshold value and a minimum threshold value, and equal to the minimum threshold value.

28. A method for automatically compensating for an image gradient of a mobile communication terminal display, the method comprising the steps of:

capturing an image via an image capture unit of a user of the mobile communication terminal and generating user image information;

determining that the captured image contains the user'"'"'s face via an image input unit;

recognizing a specific portion of the user'"'"'s face in the captured image;

superimposing an arbitrary line on the specific portion of the user'"'"'s face in the user image information;

calculating an image gradient via a control unit between the superimposed line and a reference line stored in the mobile terminal;

comparing the calculated image gradient via the control unit to a maximum threshold value and a minimum threshold value;

adjusting the viewable image if the image gradient is greater than the maximum threshold value or less than the minimum threshold value; and

displaying the adjusted viewable image on the terminal display, is different from the captured image.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the image is captured by a camera mounted inside or outside the mobile terminal.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the specific portion is related to the user'"'"'s line of sight.

31. The method of claim 30, wherein the specific portion is one of the user'"'"'s eyes, ears, eyebrows, mouth and nose.

32. The method of claim 28, wherein the arbitrary line is one of a relatively straight horizontal line and a relatively straight vertical line.

33. The method of claim 28, wherein recognizing a specific portion of the user'"'"'s face comprises performing a face recognition technique.

34. The method of claim 33, wherein the face recognition technique comprises a support vector machine (SYM) algorithm.

35. The method of claim 28, wherein calculating an image gradient comprises comparing the arbitrary line with a reference coordinate system of the mobile terminal.

36. The method of claim 35, wherein the reference coordinate system comprises at least one of a horizontal reference line and a vertical reference line.

37. The method of claim 28, wherein the arbitrary line connects one of the user'"'"'s two eyes, the user'"'"'s two ears, and the user'"'"'s two eyebrows.

38. The method of claim 28, wherein the arbitrary line connects the user'"'"'s mouth and nose.

39. The method of claim 28, wherein the displayed viewable image is adjusted by an angle equal in size to the image gradient.