Conformal Image Buffer for Storage-Efficient De-Warping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional imaging systems require inefficient storage of entire input images to display de-warped or transformed versions, especially when using wide-angle lenses, which can lead to storage inefficiencies in compact devices.
Innovation Solution
Implementing a conformal image buffer that stores only the necessary portions of the captured image data required for specific transformations, such as de-warping or rotating, using a pixel buffer lookup table to determine the storage and retrieval of image pixels for efficient image processing and display.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If sufficient storage is provided to store the entire input image, then the complete image can be stored for processing, but storage efficiency deteriorates due to unused portions of the image data
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the image buffer into multiple segments or regions, where each segment stores image data for a specific region of the distorted image. This allows the system to allocate storage space more efficiently by only buffering the portions of the image that will be used in the de-warped output, rather than storing the entire input image.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements different buffer allocation strategies for different regions of the image. By analyzing the distortion characteristics of wide-angle lenses, the system identifies which regions of the input image will map to which regions of the output image, and allocates buffer space accordingly. This ensures that storage resources are concentrated on the most important regions while reducing or eliminating storage for regions that will not be displayed.
2Reliability
If a conventional image buffer stores the entire input image, then all image data is available for processing, but the device size increases which is problematic for compact imaging systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by storing only the necessary portions of the input image rather than the entire image. By calculating the mapping between distorted and de-warped regions, the system determines exactly which input pixels are needed for the output image and buffers only those portions, eliminating the need for excessive storage capacity.
3Loss of information
If the entire input image is buffered, then complete image data is stored, but processing efficiency decreases due to the need to handle and manage larger data sets
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and stores only the relevant portions of the input image data that are needed for generating the de-warped output. By using the known distortion characteristics to identify and extract the necessary image regions before buffering, the system reduces the total amount of data that needs to be processed and managed, thereby improving processing efficiency.
Data Source
AI summary
Imaging systems may be provided with image sensors for capturing images. An image sensor may include storage and processing circuitry having a conformal image buffer to be used in performing various types of image transformations on captured input images. The storage and processing circuitry may perform the image transformations, in part, by storing a portion of a captured input image in the conformal image buffer. A conformal image buffer may include a buffer for storing input image pixel values specific to various types of image transformations and memory for storing a pixel buffer lookup table. The pixel buffer lookup table may be used by the storage and processing circuitry to determine which input image pixel values should be stored in the conformal image buffer for each type of image transformation and to provide random read access to the stored input image pixel values in the conformal image buffer.