Image analysis – Applications – 3-d or stereo imaging analysis
Reexamination Certificate
1998-06-22
2002-11-05
Ahmed, Samir (Department: 2623)
Image analysis
Applications
3-d or stereo imaging analysis
C345S418000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06477267
ABSTRACT:
The present invention is generally directed towards stereoscopic image synthesis and more particularly toward a method of converting two dimensional (2D) images for further encoding, transmission and decoding for the purpose of stereoscopic image display on two dimensional (2D) or three dimensional (3D) stereoscopic displays systems.
Recent improvements in technology in the areas of compact high performance video projection systems, image processing, digital video and liquid crystal panels have made possible many practical 3D display systems utilising both active and passive polarising glasses and both single and multi-viewer autostereoscopic displays.
Three dimensional display systems have moved out of the arena of being technological curiosities and are now becoming practical display systems for entertainment, commercial and scientific applications. There has now emerged the requirement for 3D media to display on these devices. Traditionally there has been just two ways to produce this 3D media (ie media produced that contains image information for at least two separate views of the same scene from different perspective's). These are:
1) Generation of two separate views (usually in real time) by a computer.
2) Videoing or filming with two laterally displaced cameras.
In the case of computer generated images for usage in Computer Aided Design (CAD) systems, simulators or video game equipment, it is not a complex process to produce two separate images with different perspective's.
The filming of movies utilising two laterally displaced cameras to produce 3D has been well understood for many years. However, there are many problems with this approach. It is considerably more difficult to film or video in 3D than in 2D because there are limits to the permissible distance between the nearest and farthest objects in the scene (practical 3D depth of field) as well as framing problems (such as near objects being seen on only one camera and thus highlighting the inaccuracy of the 3D image generation when re-played. Another problem is maintaining a smooth pan without causing false 3D artefacts due to latency between the images from the two cameras and so on.
Because of the complexity, high cost of production and implementation, and the fact that there are as yet still only a very small number of 3D display systems being produced for the domestic and commercial markets there has not been a large incentive for the major producers of films or videos to produce 3D media. However, if a technique was devised that would allow conventional 2D films to be re-processed into a 3D version then it would be possible to not only convert new films into 3D format for significantly less cost than filming them directly in 3D in the first place but it would also make possible the re-processing of the vast archives of 2D film and video material for re-release to both the cinema and video markets.
It would however be advantageous to be able to convert an existing 2D image so that it can be viewed as a 3D image. One way of achieving this is to convert a single 2D image to two separate left and right images by a ‘cut and paste’ technique. In this technique, an object is ‘cut’ from the image and laterally displaced left or right then ‘pasted’ back onto the original image to produce the required separate images. This however results in a blank region in the area formally occupied by the object within the image.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to overcome or minimise at least one of these problems.
With this in mind, the present invention provides in one aspect, a method of producing left and right eye images for a stereoscopic display from an original 2D image, wherein selected areas of said original image are displaced by a determined amount and direction to thereby generate stretched images, said stretched images forming said left and right eye images.
The two converted images when respectively viewed by the left and right eye of a viewer can provide a 3D image without any blank region as would be the case with images produced by the ‘cut and paste’ technique.
This document covers some of the major algorithmic processes involved in the conversion of 2D media to 3D format, a new composite data format which is suitable for the communication and storage of this new 3D media. It also discusses several hardware implementations for the real-time encoding, transmission and decoding of this new 3D format.
The main benefits of the technology is that there are significant cost saving and media supply advantages.ie. Only one camera has to be used for filming. Due to the nature of the 2D to 3D conversion process it is possible to package and transfer the image media virtually unchanged except for the addition of a small packet of 3D data that doesn't in any way encumber the final 2D display process. In fact it enables the images to be displayed on standard 2D televisions in 2D or 3D (usage of shutter glasses or similar required) without degradation of image quality whilst also allowing display on 3D televisions or other displays in 3D.
The final stage of the 2D to 3D conversion process is completed in real-time at the receiver and thus the increased bandwidth requirements for displaying 3D images is local to the television decoder and does not adversely affect the channel handling capacity of the television carrier.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a method of describing the changes to be made to an original 2D image for converting said 2D image into stretched images for a stereoscopic display.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of encoding a video signal of a 2D image for allowing conversion of said video 2D image to stretched images for a stereoscopic display.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of receiving a video signal of a 2D image including encoding data, and extracting the encoding data from the video signal for allowing conversion of the 2D image to stretched images for a stereoscopic display.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manipulating a 2D video image with encoding data to thereby provide stretched images for a stereoscopic display.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of producing left and right eye images for a stereoscopic display from an original 2D image including the steps of:
a) identifying at least one object within said original image,
b) outlining said or each object,
c) defining a depth characteristic for said or each object,
d) respectively displacing selected areas of said or each image by a determined amount in a lateral direction as a function of the depth characteristic of said or each object, to form two stretched images for viewing by the left and right eyes of the viewer.
These image pairs may be either mirrored or similar to each other so that the stereoscopic 3D effect is optimised.
The image may include a plurality of objects with each object being provided with a said respective depth characteristic. Images may be converted on an individual basis. Alternatively, a series of related images as in a video or film may be converted.
The image may be digitised and the image may be stretched or converted electronically by temporarily placing a mesh over the image, the mesh initially having a plurality of parallel lateral mesh lines and a plurality of parallel longitudinal mesh lines positioned at right angles to the lateral mesh lines. Each intersection of the mesh lines on the mesh may provide a mesh sub-point. The image can move together with the mesh so that distortion of the mesh results in the stretching of the underlying image. The mesh lines may remain continuous to provide for a smooth stretching of the image. The amount of displacement of each of the mesh sub-points from their initial position may provide the conversion data for said original image. The sub-points may be displaced in a lateral direction.
The displacement
Ahmed Samir
Banner & Witcoff , Ltd.
Dynamic Digital Depth Research Pty Ltd.
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