Image analysis – Image enhancement or restoration
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-16
2003-12-23
Lee, Thomas D. (Department: 2624)
Image analysis
Image enhancement or restoration
C382S260000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06668096
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to the technical field of an image verification method for a print image or a representation image in case of being subjected an inputted image to image processing and then outputting as a print or representing on a display device.
Heretofore, the images recorded on photographic films such as negatives and reversals (which are hereunder referred to simply as “films”) have been commonly printed on light-sensitive materials (photographic paper) by means of direct (analog) exposure in which the film image is projected onto the light-sensitive material to achieve its areal exposure.
A new technology has recently been introduced and this is a printer that relies upon digital exposure. Briefly, the image recorded on a film is read photoelectrically, converted to digital signals and subjected to various image processing operations to produce output image data for recording purposes; recording light that has been modulated in accordance with the output image data is used to scan and expose a light-sensitive material to record a latent image, which is subsequently developed to produce a (finished) print. The printer operating on this principle has been commercialized as a digital photoprinter.
In digital photoprinters, the image is converted into digital image data and exposing conditions to be used in a printing step can be determined by processing that image data. Hence, by using such digital photoprinters, the correction of dropouts or blocked-ups due to photography with rear light or an electronic flash, sharpening, the correction of color or density failures, the correction of under-or over-exposure, the correction of the insufficiency of marginal light and various other kinds of image processing can be performed effectively enough to produce prints of high quality that have heretofore been impossible to obtain by the direct exposure technique. Having these features, the digital photoprinter is composed of the following three basic components; a scanner (image reading apparatus) that reads the image recorded on a film photoelectrically; an image processing apparatus that performs image processing of the read image to obtain output image data (exposing conditions) for recording; and a printer (image recording apparatus) that scan exposes a light-sensitive material in accordance with the output image data and performs development and other necessary processes to produce a photographic print.
In the scanner, the reading light emitted from a light source is allowed to be incident on the film, thereby producing projected light that carries the image recorded on the film; the projected light is then passed through an imaging lens to be focused on an image sensor such as a CCD sensor which performs photoelectric conversion to read the image, which is optionally subjected to various kinds of image processing before it is sent to the image processing apparatus as the input image data (image data signals) from the film.
In the image processing apparatus, the image processing conditions are set on the basis of the input image data that has been read with the scanner and then the input image data is subjected to image processing in accordance with the thus set image processing conditions, thereby producing output image data for image recording (i.e., exposing conditions) that are subsequently sent to the printer.
In the printer, if it is an apparatus that adopts exposure by scanning with optical beams, the optical beams are modulated in accordance with the output image data sent from the image processing apparatus, a light sensitive material is two-dimensionally scanned and exposed with the light beams (printed) to thereby form a latent image; then, the exposed light-sensitive Material is subjected to preset development processing and other various kinds of processing to produce a (photographic) print on which the image that has been recorded on the film is reproduced.
As described above, the digital photoprinter has the following features. That is, the images which were recorded on the film can be outputted as the print; in addition to the above feature, images which have bad image reproducibility due to inappropriate photographing conditions when they were photographed, are subjected to digital image processing for the correction of a backlighted scene, high contrast scene, underexposed negative film, sharpness, insufficient marginal light and the like, whereby the images can be easily outputted as beautiful images of high quality as the print.
When the images recorded on the photographic film are printed onto the light-sensitive material by any of the above-mentioned direct exposure (analog exposure) and digital exposure, if a number of images having similar scenes are present in one photographed film or if a plurality of image data directly obtained by photographing a plurality of subjects with such as a digital camera or a video camera are read out of an image recording medium and a number of images having similar scenes are present among the thus read images, it will be inconvenient for a user who is to enjoy an output print service to receive finished prints differing in quality from each other though similar scenes were recorded thereon. Therefore, image data have normally been subjected to image processing so as to finish the print up such that print images of similar scenes appear the same.
In order to perform the above, as an exemplified verification method, frames are represented on a monitor one by one on which a user or an operator performs a visual judgement on similarity and, if it is judged that the present frame is similar to the preceding one, image processing adjusted by manipulating keys is performed so that the present frame may be of same finishing quality as the preceding frame.
However, it is troublesome for the operator or the user to perform the visual judgement on similarity and, unless the operator or the user is well skilled, it takes time in performing the judgement on similarity as well as results of judgements vary from one to the other.
To solve she above problem, verification methods for performing judgement on similarity between any individual frames based on image data or image information of each frame have been proposed.
As such verification methods, for example, disclosed are a method for judging similarity of scenes based on an amount of a judgement formula using a plurality of characteristic quantities (in Examined Published Japanese Patent Application (kokoku) No. 63-52367) and a method for judging similarity of two consecutive frames utilizing LATD (large area transmission density) and a detected amount of photographing light quality (in Unexamined Published Japanese Patent Application (kokai) No. 49-40942).
However, an invention described in the latter application No. 49-40942 has difficulty in judging whether a frame of interest has a standard scene or a scene influenced with color failure, density failure or light quality of a light source if LATD is only used when printing exposure light quantity of the frame of interest is determined. The latter application No. 49-40942, moreover, determines the printing light quantity of the frame of interest by judging whether LATD or light quality of the light source is same in the consecutive two frames and, then, by comparing the printing exposure light quantity of the frame of interest with that of a frame which is judged as same to prevent an occasion that one of two sane scenes which have LATD difference, for example, density difference of 0.03 or less therebetween is corrected and the other of the two same scenes is not corrected.
An invention described in the former application No. 63-52367 judges whether two frames are of same scene or not based on whether threshold of judgement formula using characteristics quantities such as LATD, average density of upper, lower, right-side and left-side portions of a picture, minimum and maximum density, contrast of the picture as a whole and the like is large or small and, if the two frames are judged as having
Brinich Stephen
Fuji Photo Film Co. , Ltd.
Lee Thomas D.
LandOfFree
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