Spatial scan replication circuit

• US 7,986,851 B2
• Filed: 02/09/2009
• Issued: 07/26/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 05/22/1989
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Technology Licensing Corporation
• Original Assignee: Technology Licensing Corporation
• Inventors: Cooper, J. Carl
• Primary Examiner(s): COUSO, YON JUNG
• Application Number:
  US12/368,238
• Publication Number:
  US 20090208127A1
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: 382/205, 382/254, 382/258, 382/260, 382/266, 382/267, 382/300, 382/307, 358/426.1, 358/1.2, 358/3.07, 358/3.27, 348/607, 348/616, 348/625, 348/245, 348/246, 348/269
• US Class Current: 382/254
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/113 using oscillating or rotating mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/409 Edge or detail enhancement; Noise or error suppression
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0458 Additional arrangements for improving or optimising scanning resolution or quality
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 3/26 Modifications of scanning arrangements to improve focusing
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 3/34 Elemental scanning area oscillated rapidly in direction transverse to main scanning direction
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/0135 involving interpolation processes interpolation-based image scaling G06T3/4007; interpolation for video coding H04N19/587, H04N19/59

Abstract

In an image replication circuit, the improvement of replicating a given element at a certain location with the most similar of surrounding sets of image elements.

Claims

1. A method of processing an image comprised of lines, for display on a flat panel display device, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting a plurality of elements of said image, at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to a first line, at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to a second line;

comparing at least one of said plurality of elements corresponding to the first line, to one or more other elements of said elements corresponding to the second line, to determine similarity between elements of said lines;

filling a void between the first line and the second line with an image element generated using similar image elements in response to said comparing step; and

displaying said image;

wherein the displayed image includes a newly generated line between the first line and second line, the new line comprised of at least one new element generated by said filling step; and

wherein at least one of the steps of;

selecting, comparing, and filling a void, is performed by an electronic circuit.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the image is displayed by address selection.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the image is displayed by scanning.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second lines are spatially separated from each other and the new line is spatially between them.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second lines are temporally separated from each other in different frames and the new line is temporally between them.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same brightness.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same color.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same hue.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same color saturation.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the displayed image is viewable on a high definition television (HDTV).

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the image is comprised of compressed data.

12. The method of claim 6, wherein brightness is a function of photons emitted in response to image elements when they are displayed on a display device.

13. A method of processing an interlaced image for display on a flat panel display device, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting a plurality of elements of said image, at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to a first field, at least one of the plurality of elements corresponding to a second field, the first and second fields being temporally adjacent;

comparing at least one of said plurality of elements corresponding to the first field to one or more other of said elements corresponding to the second field to determine similarity between elements of said fields;

filling a void between the first field and the second field with an image element generated using similar image elements in response to said comparing step; and

displaying said image;

wherein said displayed image includes a newly generated field temporally located between the first field and second field, the new field comprised of at least one new element generated by said filling step; and

wherein at least one of the steps of;

selecting, comparing, and filling a void, is performed by an electronic circuit.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the image is displayed by address selection.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the image is displayed by scanning.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same brightness.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same color.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same hue.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein similar image elements include image elements having substantially the same color saturation.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the displayed image is viewable on a high definition television (HDTV).

21. The method of claim 13, wherein the image is comprised of compressed data.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein brightness is a function of photons emitted in response to image elements when they are displayed on a display device.

23. A method of processing and displaying one or more non-interlaced image frames of image elements, the image elements being represented by digital data and, the image elements representing light intensity levels of a sampled motion image having temporal and spatial voids between lines and columns of sample points on said image, the method comprising the steps of:

selecting a plurality of said digital image elements, at least one of said plurality of digital image elements being from a first line of an image frame and, at least one other of said plurality of digital image elements being from a second line of said image frame;

comparing the at least one of said plurality of image elements from said first line of the image frame, to the at least one other of said plurality of image elements from the second line, to determine a similarity there between;

at least partially filling a void surrounding one of said plurality of image elements with an added image element provided in response to said comparing step and based on said similarity;

displaying said image with said added image element, in processed form on a light emitting, matrix display device wherein said image with said added image element in said processed form includes one or more of an;

an added image element spatially located between original image elements;

an added line of image elements spatially located between original lines of image elements;

an added frame of image elements temporally located between original image frames;

and wherein at least one of;

said added image element, said added line or said added frame are comprised of at least one of;

an original image element;

an original image element modified by said at least partially filling step;

a new image element created by said at least partially filling step;

and wherein at least one of the steps of selecting, comparing, and at least partially filling a void, is performed by an electronic circuit.

24. The method of claim 23 wherein said displaying step includes at least two of:

said added image elements;

said added lines;

said added frames.

25. The method of claim 23 wherein said displaying step includes said added image elements, said added lines and said added frames.

26. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said displaying step includes at least two of:

original image elements;

original image elements modified by said at least partially filling step; and

new image elements created by said at least partially filling step.

27. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said displaying step includes displaying:

original image elements;

original image elements modified by said at least partially filling step; and

new image elements created by said at least partially filling step.

28. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said at least partially filling step operates to improve the apparent spatial resolution of said displayed image of said displaying step.

29. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said at least partially filling step operates to improve the apparent temporal resolution of said displayed image of said displaying step.

30. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said comparing step compares diagonal image elements from the lines and columns of image elements.

31. The method of claim 23, 24 or 25 wherein said comparing step compares elements from a plurality of frames of image elements.