Image processing apparatus

• US 8,107,007 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2006
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/23/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Maxell, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Ogino, Masahiro, Tsuru, Yasutaka, Mizuhashi, Yoshiaki, Satoh, Junichi
• Primary Examiner(s): HSIA, SHERRIE Y
• Application Number:
  US11/646,405
• Publication Number:
  US 20070273787A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,860 Days
• Field of Search: 348/441, 348/443, 348/446, 348/448, 348/459, 348/451, 348/452, 348/458
• US Class Current: 348/441
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/015 High-definition television systems

Abstract

A technique for flexibly converting the number of frames of a displayed image on the basis of a motion in the image or information of an image signal such as a program genre is provided. An image processing apparatus includes an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input, an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning the input image signal, and a frame rate converter for converting the frame rate of the input image signal and outputting a resultant signal. The frame rate converter conducts the frame rate conversion of the input image signal on the basis of the information (such as the motion in the image or the program genre) of the input image signal acquired by the information acquirer.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning the input image signal; and

a frame rate converter for converting the frame rate of the input image signal and outputting a resultant signal, wherein;

the information acquirer detects a motion amount in the input image signal as the information concerning the input image signal,

the frame rate converter conducts a first frame rate conversion processing to generate an output signal having a first frame rate which is higher than the frame rate of the input image signal, when the detected motion amount is at least a first predetermined value, and

the frame rate converter conducts a second frame rate conversion processing to generate an output signal having a second frame rate which is higher than the first frame rate, when the motion amount detected by the motion detector is at least a second predetermined value which is greater than the first predetermined value.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the frame rate converter conducts frame rate conversion processing to generate interpolation frames by using a frame signal of the input image signal, insert the interpolation frames into a frame sequence of the input image signal, and thereby obtain an output signal having a frame rate higher than that of the input image signal.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the frame rate of the input image signal is 60 Hz, the first frame rate is 120 Hz, and the second frame rate is 180 Hz.

4. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning the input image signal; and

a frame rate converter for converting the frame rate of the input image signal and outputting a resultant signal, wherein;

the information acquirer acquires genre information of a program corresponding to the input image signal as the information concerning the input image signal, and

the frame rate converter conducts the frame rate conversion processing according to the acquired genre information of the program.

5. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning the input image signal; and

a frame rate converter for converting the frame rate of the input image signal and outputting a resultant signal, wherein;

the information acquirer acquires information concerning a signal state of the input image signal as the information concerning the input image signal, and

the frame rate converter conducts the frame rate conversion according to the information concerning the signal state.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the information concerning the signal state contains information of a throughput or transmission bit error rate of the input image signal.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the information concerning the signal state is acquired from outside of the image processing apparatus.

8. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning the input image signal; and

a frame rate converter for converting the frame rate of the input image signal and outputting a resultant signal, wherein the frame rate converter conducts the frame rate conversion of the input image signal on the basis of the information of the input image signal acquired by the information acquirer;

a display unit; and

a drive frequency changeover unit for changing over a drive frequency of the display unit according to a frame rate of an output signal of the frame rate converter.

9. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

a motion detector for detecting a motion in the input image signal;

a frame rate converter for conducting frame rate conversion processing to generate interpolation frames by using a frame signal of the input image signal, insert the interpolation frames into a frame sequence of the input image signal, and thereby obtain an output signal having a frame rate higher than that of the input image signal; and

a display unit for displaying an image on the basis of the output signal of the frame rate converter, wherein;

if the motion detected by the motion detector is smaller than a predetermined value, the frame rate converter does not conduct the frame rate conversion processing, and

if the motion detected by the motion detector is larger than the predetermined value, the frame rate converter executes the frame rate conversion processing.

10. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an information acquirer for acquiring genre information of a program;

a frame rate converter for converting a frame rate of an image signal corresponding to the program on the basis of the genre information acquired by the information acquirer; and

a display unit for displaying an image on the basis of an output signal of the frame rate converter.

11. The image processing apparatus according to claim 10, wherein

if the genre information acquired by the information acquirer indicates a movie or sport program, the frame rate converter outputs a signal having a first frame rate, and

if the genre information acquired by the information acquirer indicates a news program, the frame rate converter outputs a signal having a second frame rate which is lower than the first frame rate.

12. An image processing apparatus comprising:

an input unit to which an image signal having a predetermined frame rate is input;

an information acquirer for acquiring information concerning a signal state of the input image signal;

a frame rate converter for converting a frame rate of the input image signal on the basis of the information of the signal state acquired by the information acquirer; and

a display unit for displaying an image on the basis of the output signal of the frame rate converter.

13. The image processing apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the information concerning the signal state contains information of a throughput or transmission bit error rate of the input image signal.