Fast camera auto-focus

• US 8,194,995 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2008
• Issued: 06/05/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Electronics Inc. (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Wong, Earl Quong, Nakamura, Makibi, Triteyaprasert, Soroj, Murakami, Yoshihiro, Li, Pingshan, Sugiura, Mamoru, Kushida, Hidenori
• Primary Examiner(s): Rahmjoo, Mike
• Application Number:
  US12/242,805
• Publication Number:
  US 20100080482A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,344 Days
• Field of Search: 382/255, 382/264, 382/298, 382/252, 382/205, 396/104, 396/89, 396/125, 396/128, 345/589, 345/421, 345/419, 345/422, 348/42, 348/46, 348/49
• US Class Current: 382/255
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/67 Focus control based on electronic image sensor signals

Abstract

A camera auto-focuses using computed blur differences between images of a three-dimensional scene. The camera computes the blur difference between two images of the scene acquired at two different picture numbers. The camera uses the computed blur difference to predict a third picture number, where the camera uses the third picture number to auto-focus a camera lens on the scene.

Claims

1. A computerized method comprising:

computing a blur difference between a first and a second image of a three-dimensional scene, the first image acquired through a camera lens focused at a first picture number and the second image acquired through the camera lens focused at a second picture number, wherein the first and second picture numbers represent different focus distances of the camera lens;

retrieving a blur difference curve from one of a plurality of stored blur difference curves, wherein each of the plurality of stored blur difference curves is associated with a different picture number; and

predicting a third picture number based on the computed blur difference, wherein the third picture number is subsequently used to autofocus the camera lens on the three dimensional scene and the predicting is further based on the blur difference curve associated with the first picture number.

2. The computerized method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining the blur difference curve using the computed blur difference.

3. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the computing a blur difference is further based on using an image mask.

4. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the computing a blur difference comprises:

convolving the first image into the second image with a blur kernel.

5. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first picture number is a picture number at one of a minimal focus distance and an infinite focus distance.

6. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the first picture number is predicted from a blur difference of a third and fourth image.

7. The computerized method of claim 1, wherein the second picture number is adjacent to the first picture number.

8. A non-transitory machine readable medium having executable instructions to cause a processor to perform a method comprising:

computing a blur difference between a first and a second image of a three-dimensional scene, the first image acquired through a camera lens focused at a first picture number and the second image acquired through the camera lens focused at a second picture number, wherein the first and second picture numbers represent different focus distances of the camera lens;

retrieving a blur difference curve from one of a plurality of stored blur difference curves, wherein each of the plurality of stored blur difference curves is associated with a different picture number; and

predicting a third picture number based on the computed blur difference, wherein the third picture number is subsequently used to autofocus the camera lens on the three dimensional scene and the predicting is further based on the blur difference curve associated with the first picture number.

9. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 8, further comprising:

determining the blur difference curve using the computed blur difference.

10. The non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 8, wherein the computing a blur difference comprises:

convolving the first image into the second image with a blur kernel.

11. An apparatus comprising:

means for computing a blur difference between a first and a second image of a three-dimensional scene, the first image acquired through a camera lens focused at a first picture number and the second image acquired through the camera lens focused at a second picture number, wherein the first and second picture numbers represent different focus distances of the camera lens;

means for retrieving a blur difference curve from one of a plurality of stored blur difference curves, wherein each of the plurality of stored blur difference curves is associated with a different picture number; and

means for predicting a third picture number based on the computed blur difference, wherein the third picture number is subsequently used to auto-focus the camera lens on the three dimensional scene and the means for predicting is further based on the blur difference curve associated with the first picture number.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the means for computing a blur difference comprises:

means for convolving the first image into the second image with a blur kernel.

13. A system comprising:

a processor;

a memory coupled to the processor though a bus; and

a process executed from the memory by the processor to cause the processor to compute a blur difference between a first and a second image of a three-dimensional scene, the first image acquired through a camera lens focused at a first picture number and the second image acquired through the camera lens focused at a second picture number, wherein the first and second picture numbers represent different focus distances of the camera lens, to retrieve a blur difference curve from one of a plurality of stored blur difference curves, wherein each of the plurality of stored blur difference curves is associated with a different picture number and predict a third picture number based on the computed blur difference, wherein the third picture number is subsequently used to autofocus the camera lens on the three dimensional scene and the predict is further based on the blur difference curve associated with the first picture number.