Apparatus and method for reducing motion blur in a video signal

• US 8,369,644 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2009
• Issued: 02/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Erdler, Oliver, Sartor, Piergiorgio, Dolar, Carsten, Richter, Martin
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Jayesh A
• Application Number:
  US12/403,657
• Publication Number:
  US 20090245639A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,425 Days
• Field of Search: 382260-266
• US Class Current: 382/266
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10016 Video; Image sequence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20201 Motion blur correction
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/20 using local operators
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 5/73 Deblurring; Sharpening

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus for reducing motion blur in a video signal, comprising an analysing means for determining edge characteristics of an input video signal and for providing motion estimation of an edge within said input video signal, generation means for generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, and an adding means for adding the detail signal to the edge within the input video signal and outputting an output video signal.

The present invention further relates to a method for reducing motion blur in a video signal.

Claims

1. An apparatus for reducing motion blur in a video signal, comprising:

an analysing means for determining edge characteristics of an input video signal and for providing a motion estimation of an edge within said input video signal;

a generation means for generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, said synthetic detail signal being artificially generated and being only dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation; and

an adding means for adding the synthetic detail signal to the edge within the input video signal and for outputting an output video signal,

wherein the generation means further includes;

a gain factor control means for calculating a gain factor (a_g) that represents a height of the edge,

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge, and the motion estimation, and

a multiplication means for multiplying the height independent detail signal with the gain factor (ag) to obtain the synthetic detail signal, and for submitting the synthetic detail signal to the adding means.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the analysing means for determining the edge characteristics determines a position, a height, and an orientation of the edge within the input video signal.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the analysing means provides motion vectors that indicate a direction and a velocity of a movement of the edge.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the height independent detail signal generation means includes a look up table that contains a plurality of readily calculated height independent detail signals for different combinations of motion vector information, a direction, and a position of the edge, and the height independent detail signal generation means selects the height independent detail signal from said look up table.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the height independent detail signal generation means calculates the height independent detail signal based on information submitted by the analysing means.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1,

wherein the generation means generates the detail signal by adapting a length and an amplitude of an arbitrary point symmetric and finite function.

7. The apparatus according to claim 6,

wherein the arbitrary point symmetric and finite function is a sinusoidal function.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generation means includes:

a motion adaptive gain factor control means for calculating a motion adaptive gain factor that represents a height of the edge based on the motion estimation.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the generations means includes:

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a motion independent and height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge.

10. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the generation means further includes:

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a motion independent and height independent detail signal based on the position and orientation of the edge; and

a multiplication means for multiplying a motion independent and height independent detail signal with the motion adaptive gain factor thereby obtaining the synthetic detail signal, and for submitting the synthetic detail signal to the adding means.

11. An apparatus for reducing motion blur in a video signal, comprising:

an analysing means for determining edge characteristics of an input video signal and for providing a motion estimation of an edge within said input video signal;

a generation means for generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, said synthetic detail signal being artificially generated and being only dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation; and

an adding means for adding the synthetic detail signal to the edge within the input video signal and for outputting an output video signal, wherein the generation means further includes;

a gain factor control means for calculating a gain factor (a_g) that represents a height of the edge,

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge, and the motion estimation,

the height independent detail signal generation means calculates the height independent detail signal based on information submitted by the analysing means, and

the height independent detail signal generation means includes a first modelling means for modelling a transmission characteristics of an ideal transmission channel for providing a modelled ideal signal.

12. The apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the first modelling means includes a first low pass filter and a motion and an edge adaptive enhancement means.

13. The apparatus according to claim 12, wherein the motion and the edge adaptive enhancement means includes:

an inner product means for calculating an inner product between motion vector components and a gradient,

a normalisation unit for normalising the inner product,

a multiplier for multiplying the normalised inner product with an absolute value of one of the motion vector components, and

an enhancement network for enhancing frequency components of the modelled ideal signal controlled by a signal submitted by the multiplier.

14. The apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the first modelling means includes a first low pass filter and a static enhancement means.

15. The apparatus according to claim 11,

wherein the height independent detail signal generation means further includes:

a second modelling means for modelling transmission characteristics of a real transmission channel for providing a modelled real signal; and

a subtraction means for subtracting the modelled real signal from the modelled ideal signal thereby obtaining a difference signal.

16. The apparatus according to claim 15,

wherein the height independent detail signal generation means further includes:

a normalisation means for normalising the difference signal with respect to the height of the edge.

17. An apparatus for reducing motion blur in a video signal, comprising:

an analysing means for determining edge characteristics of an input video signal and for providing a motion estimation of an edge within said input video signal;

a generation means for generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, said synthetic detail signal being artificially generated and being only dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation; and

an adding means for adding the synthetic detail signal to the edge within the input video signal and for outputting an output video signal, wherein the generation means further includes;

a gain factor control means for calculating a gain factor (a_g) that represents a height of the edge,

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge, and the motion estimation,

the height independent detail signal generation means calculates the height independent detail signal based on information submitted by the analysing means, and

the height independent detail signal generation means includes second modelling means for modelling transmission characteristics of a real transmission channel for providing a modelled real signal.

18. The apparatus according to claim 17,

wherein the second modelling means includes a second low pass filter.

19. The apparatus according to claim 17,

wherein the second modelling means includes a second low pass filter, and a motion and an edge adaptive low pass filter.

20. A system for providing an overall improvement of video signal quality, comprising:

a segmentation means for segmenting a video signal into edges, homogeneous parts, and textures;

an apparatus for reducing motion blur with respect to said edges including;

an analysing means for determining edge characteristics of said video signal and for providing a motion estimation of said edge within said input video signal,

a generation means for generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, said synthetic detail signal being artificially generated and being only dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, and

an adding means for adding the synthetic detail signal to said edge within said video signal and for outputting an output video signal;

a modified MCIF means for reducing motion blur with respect to said textures; and

a combination means for combining motion blur reduced signals to said output video signal,

wherein the generation means further includes;

a gain factor control means for calculating a gain factor (a_g) that represents a height of the edge,

a height independent detail signal generation means for generating a height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge, and the motion estimation, and

a multiplication means for multiplying the height independent detail signal with the gain factor (ag) to obtain the synthetic detail signal, and for submitting the synthetic detail signal to the adding means.

21. A method for reducing motion blur in a video signal, the method comprising steps of:

determining edge characteristics of an input video signal;

providing a motion estimation of an edge within said input video signal;

generating a synthetic detail signal dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation, said synthetic detail signal being artificially generated and being only dependent on said edge characteristics and said motion estimation; and

adding the synthetic detail signal to the edge within the input video signal and outputting an output video signal,

wherein the step of generating further includes the steps of;

calculating a gain factor (a_g) that represents a height of the edge, generating a height independent detail signal based on a position and an orientation of the edge, and the motion estimation, and multiplying the height independent detail signal with the gain factor (ag) to obtain the synthetic detail signal.