False Color Suppression in Bayer Matrix Image Processing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image processing techniques fail to adequately suppress false color in low chroma regions, leading to image unnaturalness and 'color omission' in high chroma regions due to incorrect detection of chroma signals containing false color components.
Innovation Solution
An image processing device that includes an interpolation unit, high-frequency component extractor, false-color reduced color signal generator, chroma signal generator, and suppression unit, which processes image signals from a Bayer matrix-based image capturing element to reduce false color effects and improve chroma detection accuracy, particularly in low chroma regions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If chroma is obtained from color difference signals Cr and Cb containing false color components, then the detection process is simple, but the detection accuracy of low chroma regions becomes incorrect
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by performing false color suppression on color difference signals before chroma detection. The suppression unit processes Cr and Cb signals to remove false color components caused by high-frequency spatial variations, ensuring that subsequent chroma detection operates on cleaned signals. This preliminary processing step prevents incorrect detection of low chroma regions while maintaining relatively simple overall system complexity.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If chroma suppression is applied to regions with high frequency components, then false color is reduced, but color omission occurs in high chroma regions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by implementing spatially selective false color suppression. The suppression unit identifies regions with high-frequency spatial components and applies suppression only to those specific locations, while preserving chroma information in high chroma regions. This localized approach ensures that false color is reduced where it occurs (in low chroma regions with high frequency) without causing color omission in high chroma regions, as the suppression strength is modulated according to local chroma characteristics.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If color difference signals are suppressed in low chroma regions, then false color is suppressed, but detection accuracy of chroma signals deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent resolves this contradiction by applying preliminary false color suppression to color difference signals before chroma detection. The suppression unit removes false color components from Cr and Cb signals in advance, so that when chroma is subsequently calculated from these cleaned signals, the detection accuracy is maintained. The key is that suppression is applied to the color difference signals themselves rather than to the derived chroma signal, ensuring that true chroma information is preserved while false color artifacts are eliminated.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution effectively suppresses false color in low chroma regions and enhances the performance of preventing 'color omission' in high chroma regions, resulting in more natural images by accurately generating and suppressing chroma signals based on high-frequency components.
Implementation Method 1
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Data Source
AI summary
An image capturing element of an image capturing section 2 has a color filter with a Bayer matrix, and interpolation unit 6 implements an interpolation process to an image signal for each pixel received from the image capturing element by using image signals of adjacent pixels to obtain an image signal of R, G and B for the respective pixels. High-frequency component extracting unit 7 extracts a high frequency component from the G signal; false-color reduced color signal generation unit 8 obtains, for the respective pixels, a false-color reduced color signal (R+B−2G) in which an effect of a false color is reduced; and, chroma signal generation unit 9 generates a chroma signal, which is an absolute value of the false-color reduced color signal. Suppression unit 10 suppresses the false color on the basis of the high frequency component extracted by the high-frequency component extracting unit 7 and the chroma signal for the respective pixels generated by the chroma signal generation unit 9.