Photography with embedded graphical objects

• US 7,876,334 B2
• Filed: 04/03/2006
• Issued: 01/25/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/09/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Western Digital Israel Limited (Western Digital Corporation)
• Original Assignee: SanDisk IL Ltd. (Western Digital Corporation)
• Inventors: Pomerantz, Itzhak, Bychkov, Eyal
• Primary Examiner(s): SAMS, MICHELLE L
• Application Number:
  US11/395,224
• Publication Number:
  US 20070057971A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,758 Days
• Field of Search: 345/632, 345/626, 345/629, 345/620, 345/621
• US Class Current: 345/629
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2158 using a detachable storage unit
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4426 involving separate means, e.g. a server, a magnetic card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/4433 to an apparatus, part of an apparatus or an apparatus function
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3245 of image modifying data, e.g. handwritten addenda, highlights or augmented reality information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3249 data relating to a linked page or object, e.g. hyperlink
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3252 Image capture parameters, e.g. resolution, illumination conditions, orientation of the image capture device H04N2201/3256 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3256 colour related metadata, e.g. colour, ICC profiles for use made of colour related metadata see the appropriate place, e.g. H04N1/60, H04N1/60 and subgroups

Abstract

A digital photography system and a method of its use. The system includes a digital camera having a mechanism for selecting a graphical object, a mechanism for superimposing the graphical object within a field of view of a digital camera, a mechanism for manipulating the graphical object within the field of view before capturing the image according to manipulation parameters that are set by a user and a mechanism for defining a relationship between the manipulated graphical object and at least part of the image. The scope of the invention also includes a memory card bearing such graphical objects and a method of offering the system for sale at a price that depends on the graphical objects stored in the memory card(s).

Claims

1. A digital photography system comprising:

a mechanism for selecting at least one graphical object from a plurality of graphical objects;

a mechanism for superimposing said selected at least one graphical object within a field of view of said digital photography system;

a mechanism for manipulating said selected at least one graphical object within said field of view with relation to a subject in said field of view according to manipulation parameters that are set by a user before capturing an image of said field of view;

a mechanism for capturing the image of said field of view to form a captured image of said field of view;

a mechanism for storing the manipulated at least one graphical object separately from the captured image of said field of view, wherein the captured image of said field of view is stored with the manipulation parameters of the at least one graphical object; and

a mechanism allowing a user to choose between displaying the captured image of said field of view and displaying a hybrid image including the manipulated at least one graphical object combined with the captured image of said field of view.

2. The digital photography system of claim 1, further including a mechanism for defining a relationship between said manipulated at least one graphical object and the subject.

3. The digital photography system of claim 2, wherein said relationship is that said manipulated at least one graphical object is superimposed within said captured image.

4. The digital photography system of claim 2, wherein said relationship includes a link between said manipulated at least one graphical object and said captured image, wherein the link comprises metadata including the manipulation parameters.

5. The digital photography system of claim 2 further comprising:

at least one memory card that includes;

a mechanism for storing said plurality of graphical objects;

a mechanism for storing a plurality of photographed images; and

;

a mechanism for storing, on said at least one memory card, said

relationship between said manipulated at least one graphical object and a least a part of said captured image.

6. The digital photography system of claim 1, wherein said mechanism for manipulating is responsive to voice commands.

7. The digital photography system of claim 1 further comprising:

a memory for storing said plurality of graphical objects.

8. The digital photography system of claim 7, wherein said memory is embedded in said digital photography system.

9. The digital photography system of claim 7, wherein at least one of said plurality of graphical objects is composed of a plurality of disjoint parts to create an illusion that a part of said at least one graphical object is hidden behind said field of view.

10. The digital photography system of claim 1, further comprising an interface for reversibly operationally attaching a memory card, wherein said plurality of graphical objects are stored, to said digital photography system.

11. The digital photography system of claim 10, further comprising an authorization mechanism for verifying authorization of said memory card.

12. The digital photography system of claim 10, wherein said plurality of graphical objects are stored in a format that is hidden from said user.

13. The digital photography system of claim 1, wherein said manipulation parameters include parameters for manipulating at least one feature including any one of color scheme, position, scale, and rotation angle.

14. The digital photography system of claim 1 which is a digital camera.

15. The digital photography system of claim 1, further comprising a mechanism for displaying said selected at least one graphical object superimposed within said field of view automatically eliminating parts of said plurality of graphical objects before capturing said image of said field of view by:

automatically identifying at least one area where the subject within said field of view is in focus;

automatically applying image processing on said selected at least one graphical object where a first portion of said selected at least one graphical object is not displayed in said at least one area where said subject within said field of view is in focus;

automatically identifying at least one area where said subject within said field of view is out of focus; and

automatically applying image processing on said selected at least one graphical object where said subject within said field of view is out of focus, wherein a second portion of said selected at least one graphical object is displayed in said at least one area where said subject within said field of view is out of focus.

16. A method for creating a hybrid photograph, the method comprising:

in a digital photography system including a processor and a memory storing a plurality of graphical objects;

selecting with the processor at least one graphical object from the plurality of graphical objects;

superimposing said selected at least one graphical object within a field of view of the digital photography system;

manipulating said selected at least one graphical object within said field of view with relation to a subject in said field of view according to manipulation parameters that are set by a user before capturing an image of said field of view;

capturing the image of said field of view to form a captured image of said field of view;

storing the manipulated at least one graphical object separately from the captured image of said field of view, wherein the captured image of said field of view is stored with the manipulation parameters of the at least one graphical object;

after storing the manipulated at least one graphical object and storing the captured image of said field of view, receiving a user selection choosing between a raw photo and a modified photo; and

selectively displaying one of the captured image of said field of view and a hybrid image including the manipulated at least one graphical object combined with the captured image of said field of view in response to the user selection.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising storing a relationship between said manipulated at least one graphical object and the subject.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the relationship includes a link between said manipulated at least one graphical object and said subject, wherein the link comprises metadata including the manipulation parameters.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

displaying the hybrid image of said at least one graphical object combined with said field of view by;

automatically identifying at least one area where the subject within said field of view is in focus;

automatically applying image processing on said selected at least one graphical object where the subject is displayed within said at least one area where the subject is in focus; and

automatically applying image processing on said selected at least one graphical object where the subject is out of focus, wherein a portion of said selected at least one graphical object is displayed in at least one area where the subject is out of focus.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein said superimposing of said selected at least one graphical object within said captured image extends, at least partially, around said selected at least one graphical object.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein said manipulating is effected in response to voice commands.

22. The method of claim 16 further comprising:

storing said plurality of graphical objects in a memory, such that said selecting is effected by reading said at least one graphical object from said memory.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein at least one of said plurality of graphical objects is composed of a plurality of disjoint parts to create an illusion that a part of said at least one graphical object is hidden behind said field of view.

24. The method of claim 16, wherein the digital photography system is a digital camera.

25. The method of claim 24 further comprising:

verifying authorization of a memory card that is reversibly operationally attached to the digital camera, and wherein said plurality of graphical objects are stored at the memory card.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein said manipulation parameters include parameters for manipulating at least one feature including any one of color scheme, position, scale, and rotation angle.

27. A memory device comprising:

a memory region including;

a clip library to store a plurality of graphical objects, wherein the clip library is accessible by a digital photography system via the interface to enable selection of a graphical object to be superimposed within a field of view of the digital photography system and to enable the selected graphical object to be manipulated using manipulation parameters that indicate a position within said field of view with relation to a subject in said field of view; and

storage to store data representing said field of view when the digital photography system captures an image of said field of view and to store the manipulated graphical object separately from the captured image of said field of view, wherein the captured image of said field of view is stored with the manipulation parameters; and

an interface coupled to the memory region, the interface configured to enable a host computer to access the memory region and to selectively display a hybrid image of the manipulated graphical object combined with the captured image of said field of view and to selectively display the captured image of said field of view in response to a user selection.

28. The memory device of claim 27, wherein the memory device comprises a removable nonvolatile memory device.

29. The memory device of claim 27, wherein the interface is further configured to enable the host computer to access the clip library and the storage to enable the host computer to display the hybrid image.

30. The memory device of claim 27, further comprising:

a controller coupled to the memory region, wherein the controller enables the host computer to retrieve data representing the selected graphical object, the data representing the captured image of said field of view, and the data representing a position of the selected graphical object within the captured image of said field of view and enabling the host computer to display the hybrid image, wherein;

at least one first area where the subject is in focus and at least one second area where the subject is out of focus are automatically identified;

image processing is automatically applied on a first portion of the selected graphical object, wherein the first portion of the selected graphical object is not displayed in the at least one first area where the subject is in focus; and

image processing is automatically applied on a second portion of the selected graphical object, wherein the second portion of the selected graphical object is displayed in the at least one second area where the subject is out of focus.