Image pickup apparatus and motion vector deciding method

• US 7,864,860 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2006
• Issued: 01/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Ito, Kenji
• Primary Examiner(s): Vo; Tung
• Assistant Examiner(s): HOLDER, ANNER N
• Application Number:
  US11/395,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20060221215A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,737 Days
• Field of Search: 375/240.16, 375/240.26, 348/345, 348/349
• US Class Current: 375/240.16
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51
• 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 23/68 for stable pick-up of the scene, e.g. compensating for camera body vibrations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/6811 based on the image signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/6812 based on additional sensors, e.g. acceleration sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/682 Vibration or motion blur correction

Abstract

According to the apparatus and method of the present invention, the motion vector Vij is weighted by the weighting coefficient αij of the motion vector Vij decided based on the AF evaluation value Iij indicating the degree of sharpness of the subject image so as to decide the entire motion vector V. For this reason, it is possible to reduce an influence on the decision of the motion vector V of the entire image exerted by the motion vector of the object of a low degree of sharpness, that is, the object not focused on.

Claims

1. An image pickup apparatus, comprising

an imaging portion which photoelectrically converts a subject image and obtains a frame image of a subject;

a first motion vector deciding portion which decides a motion vector Vij of each of segmented regions Dij (i=1 to M, j=1 to N) made by segmenting the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion into multiple matrix domains of M lines×

N rows;

an auto focus (AF) evaluation value calculating portion which calculates an AF evaluation value indicating a degree of sharpness of the subject image from the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion;

a coefficient deciding portion which decides a weighting coefficient α

ij of each motion vector Vij based on the AF evaluation value calculated by the AF evaluation value calculating portion; and

a second motion vector deciding portion which decides an entire motion vector V of the frame image of the subject by weighting the motion vector Vij based on the weighting coefficient α

ij,

wherein the entire motion vector V is decided by the following

2. An image pickup apparatus, comprising:

an imaging portion which photoelectrically converts a subject image and obtains a frame image of a subject;

a first motion vector deciding portion which decides a motion vector Vij of each of segmented regions Dij (i=1 to M,j=1 to N) made by segmenting the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion into multiple matrix domains of M lines×

N rows;

an auto focus (AF) evaluation value calculating portion which calculates an AF evaluation value indicating a degree of sharpness of the subject image from the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion;

a coefficient deciding portion which decides a weighting coefficient α

ij of each motion vector Vij based on the AF evaluation value calculated by the AF evaluation value calculating portion; and

a second motion vector deciding portion which decides an entire motion vector V of the frame image of the subject by weighting the motion vector Vij based on the weighting coefficient α

ij,

wherein the AF evaluation value calculating portion calculates an AF evaluation value Iij indicating the degree of sharpness of the subject image in the segmented region Dij,

and

the coefficient deciding portion decides the weighting coefficient α

ij of each motion vector Vij based on the AF evaluation value Iij,

wherein the entire motion vector V is decided by the following

3. An image pickup apparatus, comprising:

an imaging portion which photoelectrically converts a subject image and obtains a frame image of a subject;

a first motion vector deciding portion which decides a motion vector Vij of each of segmented regions Dij (i=1 to M,j=1 to N) made by segmenting the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion into multiple matrix domains of M lines×

N rows;

an auto focus (AF) evaluation value calculating portion which calculates an AF evaluation value indicating a degree of sharpness of the subject image from the frame image of the subject obtained by the imaging portion;

a coefficient deciding portion which decides a weighting coefficient α

ij of each motion vector Vij based on the AF evaluation value calculated by the AF evaluation value calculating portion; and

a second motion vector deciding portion which decides an entire motion vector V of the frame image of the subject by weighting the motion vector Vij based on the weighting coefficient α

ij,

wherein the AF evaluation value calculating portion calculates an AF evaluation value Iij indicating the degree of sharpness of the subject image in the segmented region Dij,

and

the coefficient deciding portion decides the weighting coefficient α

ij of each motion vector Vij based on the AF evaluation value Iij,

wherein the coefficient deciding portion decides the weighting coefficient α

ij so that a size of the coefficient correlates with a size of the AF evaluation value Iij, and

wherein the entire motion vector V is decided by the following