AR Image Blending Factors for Depth-Uncertain Occlusion Rendering
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing augmented reality systems face challenges in generating accurate depth maps for real-time applications due to incomplete or inaccurate depth information, leading to erroneous depth comparisons and visual artefacts in rendered images.
Innovation Solution
An augmented reality processing system that identifies confidence and uncertainty regions based on depth and color similarity, using blending factors to combine images and generate augmented reality images, incorporating an RGBD camera for color and depth capture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If scene scanning from multiple positions is performed to generate accurate depth maps, then depth measurement accuracy is improved, but processing time and computational resources increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the scene into multiple depth regions (foreground, midground, background) and processes each region separately using appropriate depth estimation techniques. This allows real-time processing by dividing the computationally intensive task into manageable segments rather than processing the entire scene uniformly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary depth estimation using a fast single-point capture method to generate an initial depth map, then applies selective refinement only to uncertain regions. This preliminary action provides a good starting point that reduces the computational burden of subsequent processing.
2Productivity
If depth information is captured from a single point using RGBD camera, then processing speed is improved, but depth information completeness and accuracy deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces color information as an intermediary to compensate for incomplete or inaccurate depth measurements. By analyzing color gradients and patterns in the captured image, the system can infer depth relationships in regions where direct depth measurement is unreliable or unavailable.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically adjusts processing parameters such as blending factors and uncertainty thresholds based on the quality and completeness of captured depth information. When depth data is noisy or incomplete, the system increases reliance on color-based estimation and adjusts blending to minimize visual artifacts.
3Reliability
If blending factors are used to combine images in uncertainty regions, then visual artifacts are reduced, but computational complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies blending factors locally only to uncertain regions rather than uniformly across the entire image. By identifying and processing only the regions where depth uncertainty exists, the system maintains high rendering quality where needed while minimizing unnecessary computational overhead in confident regions.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies blending selectively to uncertain regions rather than processing the entire image with full blending operations. This partial action approach achieves the necessary visual quality improvement while avoiding the excessive computational cost of applying blending factors everywhere.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for generating an augmented reality image from first and second images, wherein at least a portion of at least one of the first and the second image is captured from a real scene, identifies a confidence region in which a confident determination as to which of the first and second image to render in that region of the augmented reality image can be made, and identifies an uncertainty region in which it is uncertain as to which of the first and second image to render in that region of the augmented reality image. At least one blending factor value in the uncertainty region is determined based upon a similarity between a first colour value in the uncertainty region and a second colour value in the confidence region, and an augmented reality image is generated by combining, in the uncertainty region, the first and second images using the at least one blending factor value.