System and method for adaptive local white balance adjustment
First Claim
1. An apparatus comprising:
- an image sensor including a pixel array having a plurality of pixels;
an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array to;
determine a local white balance component for each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the spatial-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain that are spatially distant from the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied,determine a global white balance component for each pixel, andapply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component.
1 Assignment
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Accused Products
Abstract
The disclosure describes embodiments of an apparatus comprising an image sensor including a pixel array having a plurality of pixels and an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array. The AWB circuit is used to determine a local white balance component for each pixel, determine a global white balance component for each pixel, and apply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. The disclosure also describes embodiment of a process including receiving image data from each pixel in a pixel array, determining a local white balance component for the image data from each pixel, determining a global white balance component for the image data from each pixel, and applying a white balance adjustment to the image data from each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. Other embodiments are also disclosed and claimed.
11 Citations
46 Claims
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1. An apparatus comprising:
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an image sensor including a pixel array having a plurality of pixels; an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array to; determine a local white balance component for each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the spatial-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain that are spatially distant from the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied, determine a global white balance component for each pixel, and apply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. An apparatus comprising:
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an image sensor including a pixel array having a plurality of pixels; an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array to; determine a local white balance component for each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the intensity-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain whose intensity differs greatly from the intensity of the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied, determine a global white balance component for each pixel, and apply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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15. A system comprising:
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an optical element; an image sensor coupled to the optical element, the image sensor comprising a pixel array including a plurality of pixels; an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array to; determine a local white balance component for each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the spatial-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain that are spatially distant from the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied, determine a global white balance component for each pixel, and apply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component; and one or both of a display unit and a storage unit coupled to the digital signal processor. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A system comprising:
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an optical element; an image sensor coupled to the optical element, the image sensor comprising a pixel array including a plurality of pixels; an automatic white balance (AWB) circuit coupled to the pixel array to; determine a local white balance component for each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the intensity-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain whose intensity differs greatly from the intensity of the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied, determine a global white balance component for each pixel, and apply a white balance adjustment to each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component; and one or both of a display unit and a storage unit coupled to the digital signal processor. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A process comprising:
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receiving image data from each pixel in a pixel array; determining a local white balance component for the image data from each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the spatial-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain that are spatially distant from the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied; determining a global white balance component for the image data from each pixel; and applying a white balance adjustment to the image data from each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A process comprising:
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receiving image data from each pixel in a pixel array; determining a local white balance component for the image data from each pixel using a spatial-domain function and an intensity-domain function, wherein the intensity-domain function decreases the weight of pixels within a local domain whose intensity differs greatly from the intensity of the pixel to which the white balance adjustment is being applied; determining a global white balance component for the image data from each pixel; and applying a white balance adjustment to the image data from each pixel, the applied white balance adjustment comprising a combination of the local white balance component and the global white balance component. - View Dependent Claims (41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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Specification