Image processing apparatus and method, and electronic camera

• US 8,107,775 B2
• Filed: 02/07/2008
• Issued: 01/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: OM Digital Solutions Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Imaging Corporation (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Onomura, Kenichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Ahmed, Samir
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bayat, Ali
• Application Number:
  US12/027,889
• Publication Number:
  US 20080193049A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,454 Days
• Field of Search: 382/162, 382/167, 382/274, 382/300, 708/290, 708/847, 345/589, 345/590, 345/591, 345/592, 358/428, 358/525, 348/538, 348/441, 348/449, 348/222.1, 348/252, 348/234, 348/451, 348/280, 348/453
• US Class Current: 382/300
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2209/046 Colour interpolation to calculate the missing colour values
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/843 Demosaicing, e.g. interpolating colour pixel values
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/134 based on three different wavelength filter elements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/447 by preserving the colour pattern with or without loss of information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/46 by combining or binning pixels

Abstract

An image processing apparatus obtains color image data by performing an interpolation processing for an image signal output from a color image pickup element having color filters arranged like a mosaic, by using a filter. The apparatus includes an interpolation processing unit which selectively modifies an interpolation processing according to a kind of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated, so that the spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal after the interpolation processing becomes identical in any layout pattern, if there are a plurality of kinds of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated.

Claims

1. An image processing apparatus for obtaining

color image data by performing an interpolation processing for an image signal output from a color image pickup element having color filters arranged like a mosaic, by using a filter, comprising:

an interpolation processing unit which selectively modifies an interpolation processing according to a kind of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated, so that the spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal after the interpolation processing becomes identical in any layout pattern, if there are a plurality of kinds of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated.

2. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the interpolation processing unit selects interpolation filter coefficients according to the kind of the layout pattern in an image area to be interpolated, and performs the interpolation processing for the image data in an image area to be interpolated by using the selected interpolation filter coefficients.

3. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising:

a filter coefficient selector which selects a set of interpolation filter coefficients from a plurality of sets of interpolation filter coefficients, based on the kind of the layout pattern in an image area to be interpolated,

wherein the interpolation processing unit performs, the interpolation processing for the image data in an image area to be interpolated by using the set of interpolation filter coefficients selected by the filter coefficient selector.

4. The image processing apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the interpolation filter coefficients are determined based on a function of a distance between a position of each pixel used for the interpolation processing for each color component and a position after interpolation processing.

5. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, further comprising a color layout pattern discriminator which discriminates the kind of the layout pattern based on a layout of color component signals included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated,

wherein the filter coefficient selector selects the set of interpolation filter coefficients from the plurality of sets of interpolation filer coefficients, based on a kind of the layout pattern discriminated by the color layout discriminator.

6. The image processing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the image area to be interpolated consists of 4×

4 pixels, and the plurality of sets of interpolation filter coefficients include interpolation filter coefficients based on the ratios of 9;

15;

15;

25, 3;

21;

5;

35 and 1;

7;

7;

49.

7. The image processing apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the color layout discriminator discriminates the layout of color component signals, based on a color corresponding to a beginning pixel in an image area to be interpolated.

8. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image signal is a signal obtained from an, image pickup element having a Bayer arrangement and obtained by adding and outputting results of receiving from pixels corresponding to same color component signals in a pixel addition mode.

9. The image processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the image area to be interpolated comprises pixel values generated based on results of receiving from N×

N pixels.

10. An electronic camera comprising:

a color image pickup element having color filters arranged like a mosaic; and

an interpolation processing unit which obtains a color image data by performing an interpolation processing for an image signal output from the color image pickup element, by using a filter,

wherein the interpolation processing unit selectively modifies an interpolation processing according to a kind of a layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated, so that the spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal after the interpolation processing becomes identical in any layout pattern, if there are a plurality of kinds of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated.

11. An image processing method for obtaining color image data by performing interpolation processing for an image signal output from a color image pickup element having color filters arranged like a mosaic, by using a filter, comprising:

determining whether there are a plurality of kinds of layout pattern of position of spatial center of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated; and

changing an interpolation processing according to a kind of a layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated, so that the spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal after the interpolation processing becomes identical in any layout pattern, if there are a plurality of kinds of layout pattern of a spatial center position of gravity of each color component signal included the image signal in an image area to be interpolated.