Face decision device

• US 7,783,084 B2
• Filed: 01/18/2006
• Issued: 08/24/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Algogene Financial Technology Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Imagawa, Kazuyuki, Ishii, Yasunori, Iwasa, Katsuhiro, Fukumiya, Eiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Mehta; Bhavesh M
• Assistant Examiner(s): DULANEY, KATHLEEN YUAN
• Application Number:
  US11/333,286
• Publication Number:
  US 20060177110A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,679 Days
• Field of Search: 382/118, 382/155, 382/203, 382/103
• US Class Current: 382/118
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/161 Detection; Localisation; Normalisation

Abstract

A face detection device comprises: a judgment area determining operable to judgment areas in an inputted image; and a face judgment unit operable to judge existence of a face image greater than a first predetermined size in the judgment areas. According to face directions, the judgment area determining unit determines a ratio of the inputted image to the judgment areas. The characteristics of face images can be effectively utilized.

Claims

1. A face image detection device, comprising:

a face detection unit operable to extract face images from a plurality of stored images;

a judgment area determining unit operable to, for each of the face images, (i) determine a judgment area for judging whether or not a particular face image among the face images is in a front view direction or a side view direction within a plurality of predetermined view directions other than the front view direction, and (ii) determine a view direction for the particular face image among the face images, respectively; and

a face judgment unit operable to judge, for each of the face images, whether or not the particular face image among the face images has a size greater than a predetermined threshold size in the judgment area, so that when the particular face image has a size greater than the predetermined threshold size, according to a respective view direction, the particular face image is accurately analyzed,

wherein said judgment area determining unit determines a ratio of a size of the judgment area to a size of a stored image for each of the plurality of stored images according to the respective view direction of the particular face image extracted from the stored image, and

the predetermined threshold size is different according to the respective view direction of the particular face image.

2. A face detection device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

a judgment area determined by the judgment area determining unit with respect to the front view direction is not greater than a judgment area determined with respect to the side view direction from the plurality of predetermined view directions other than the front view direction.

3. A face detection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the plurality of predetermined view directions include at least one of a left view direction and a right view direction.

4. A face detection device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said face judgment unit utilizes a value, based on a first pre-taught parameter, second pre-taught parameters, and images within the judgment area, to judge if the particular face image having a size greater than the predetermined threshold size exists in the judgment area, wherein

the first pre-taught parameter is obtained by pre-teaching face images in the front view direction, to define statistical distributions of the face images in the front view direction, and

the second pre-taught parameters are obtained by pre-teaching face images in the plurality of predetermined view directions, to define statistical distributions of the face images in the plurality of predetermined view directions.

5. A face detection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein

the front view direction is a direction toward which a face looks when both of two eyes on the face are included in the particular face image, and

the side view direction within the plurality of predetermined view directions is a direction toward which a face looks when at least one of two eyes on the face is not included in the particular face image.

6. A face detection device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines a size of the judgment area based on a size range of the face images to be extracted from the plurality of stored images.

7. A face detection device as claimed in claim 6, wherein said judgment area determining unit selects a partial area of the plurality of stored images as an area to be searched and determines the partial area to cover all of the area to be searched.

8. A face detection device as claimed in claim 7, further comprising:

a person image selecting unit operable to select an image from the plurality of stored images when said face judgment unit judges that the image is a person image; and

a person image displaying unit operable to display the person image selected by said person image selecting unit.

9. A face detection device as claimed in claim 8, wherein the plurality of stored images are images photographed by an amateur.

10. A face detection device as claimed in claim 8, wherein said person image displaying unit cuts an image within an area that said face judgment unit judges to include one or more face images and displays a cut portion of the image.

11. A face detection device as claimed in claim 8, wherein said person image displaying unit attaches a frame enclosing an image within an area that said face judgment unit judges to include one or more face images and displays a framed image.

12. A face detection device as claimed in claim 7, further comprising:

a person image selecting unit operable to select an image within the partial area when said face judgment unit judges that the image within the partial area is a person image; and

a person image displaying unit operable to display the image within the partial area selected by said person image selecting unit.

13. A face detection device as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said judgment area determining unit changes a difference between a rotation of each of the plurality of stored images and a rotation of the judgment area within a predetermined rotation range, in accordance with the respective view direction among the plurality of predetermined view directions.

14. A face detection device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the predetermined rotation range with respect to the front view direction is not greater than the predetermined rotation range with respect to the side view direction.

15. A face detection device as claimed in claim 14, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines the rotation of the judgment area based on a rotation range of the face images to be extracted from the plurality of stored images.

16. A face detection device as claimed in claim 14, wherein said judgment area determining unit turns at least a part of the plurality of stored images based on a rotation range of the face images to be extracted.

17. A face detection device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines an aspect ratio of the judgment area, for each of the face images, in accordance with the respective view direction of the particular face image among the face images among the plurality of predetermined view directions.

18. A face detection device as claimed in claim 17, wherein the aspect ratio, determined by the judgment area determining unit, with respect to the front view direction is not greater than the aspect ratio, determined by the judgment area determining unit, with respect to the side view direction within the plurality of predetermined view directions.

19. A face detection device as claimed in claim 18, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines the aspect ratio of the judgment area based on a range of aspect ratios of rectangles enclosing face parts in the face images to be extracted from the plurality of stored images.

20. A face detection device as claimed in claim 18, wherein said judgment area determining unit scales at least a part of the plurality of stored images based on a size range of the face images to be extracted.

21. A face detection device as claimed in claim 18, wherein said judgment area determining unit changes an aspect ratio of the plurality of stored images based on an aspect ratio range of the face images to be extracted.

22. A face detection device as claimed in claim 1, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines the judgment area such that the judgment area entirely covers the particular face image.

23. A mobile information terminal comprising:

a face detection device,

wherein said face detection device comprises;

a face detection unit operable to extract face images from a plurality of stored images;

a judgment area determining unit operable to, for each of the face images, (i) determine a judgment area, for each of the face images, for judging whether or not a particular face image among the face images is in a front view direction or a side view direction within a plurality of predetermined view directions other than the front view direction, and (ii) determine a view direction for the particular face image among the face images, respectively; and

a face judgment unit operable to judge, for each of the face images, whether or not the particular face image among the face images has a size greater than a predetermined threshold size in the judgment area, so that when the particular face image has a size greater than a predetermined threshold size, according to a respective view direction, the particular face image is accurately analyzed,

wherein said judgment area determining unit determines a ratio of a size of the judgment area to a size of a stored image for each of the plurality of stored images according to the respective view direction of the particular face image extracted from the stored image, and

the predetermined threshold size is different according to the respective view direction of the particular face image.

24. A semiconductor integrated circuit comprising:

a face detection unit operable to extract face images from a plurality of stored images;

a judgment area determining unit operable to, for each of the face images, (i) determine a judgment area for judging whether or not a particular face image among the face images is in a front view direction or a side view direction within a plurality of predetermined view directions other than the front view direction, and (ii) determine a view direction for the particular face image among the face images, respectively; and

a face judgment unit operable to judge, for each of the face images, whether or not the particular face image among the face images has a size greater than a predetermined threshold size in the judgment area, so that when the particular face image has a size greater than the predetermined threshold size, according to a respective view direction, the particular face image is accurately analyzed,

wherein said judgment area determining unit determines a ratio of a size of the judgment area to a size of a stored image for each of the plurality of stored images a according to the respective view direction of the particular face image extracted from the stored image, and

the predetermined threshold size is different according to the respective view direction of the particular face image.

25. A semiconductor integrated circuit as claimed in claim 24, wherein said judgment area determining unit changes a difference between a rotation of the plurality of stored images and a rotation of the judgment area within a predetermined rotation range in accordance with the respective view direction of the particular face image among the plurality of predetermined view directions.

26. A semiconductor integrated circuit as claimed in claim 24, wherein said judgment area determining unit determines an aspect ratio of the judgment area, for each of the face images, in accordance with the respective view direction of the particular face image among the face images among the plurality of predetermined view directions.