Image Capture Field of View Adjustment via Oversampling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image capture devices face challenges in smoothly adjusting the field of view while maintaining encoded resolution and frame rate, often resulting in soft and pixelated images due to digital zoom, which degrades image quality.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of a system that oversamples images at a capture resolution greater than the encode resolution, determines a crop setting based on field of view selection, crops the image in the RAW domain, converts it to the YUV domain, and down-scales it to achieve a scaled image at the encode resolution, thereby avoiding up-scaling and preserving image quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If digital zoom is used to adjust field of view, then field of view adjustment is achieved, but image quality degrades becoming soft and pixelated
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary oversampling at a higher capture resolution before any cropping or scaling operations. By capturing at a resolution greater than the final encode resolution, the system preserves image quality throughout subsequent processing steps, avoiding the degradation that occurs with traditional digital zoom methods.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an additional resolution dimension by capturing at a capture resolution higher than the encode resolution. This extra dimensional headroom allows for flexible cropping and scaling operations while maintaining quality, resolving the contradiction between field of view adjustment and image quality preservation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If field of view is adjusted using traditional methods, then field of view change is achieved, but encoded resolution and frame rate are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The system captures images at a preliminary oversampled resolution before encoding. This preliminary high-resolution capture allows the system to maintain the encoded resolution and frame rate while still achieving field of view adjustment through cropping in the RAW domain.
Solution Approach 2:
The processing pipeline is segmented into distinct stages: oversampling capture, RAW domain cropping for field of view adjustment, YUV domain scaling to encode resolution, and encoding. This segmentation allows each stage to optimize for its specific function, preserving encoded resolution while enabling field of view flexibility.
3Manufacturing precision
If high resolution capture is used, then image quality is maintained, but processing complexity and power consumption increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs the high-resolution capture as a preliminary action only when needed for quality maintenance, rather than continuously. The oversampling is done at capture time and then processed through defined pipelines (RAW domain cropping, YUV domain scaling) that manage complexity systematically.
Solution Approach 2:
By working with an additional resolution dimension during capture and processing, the system achieves high image quality while managing complexity through structured processing stages. The extra resolution dimension provides flexibility that reduces the need for complex real-time adjustments.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods are disclosed for field of view adjustment for image capture devices. For example, methods may include receiving a field of view selection; oversampling, using an image sensor, to obtain an image at a capture resolution that is greater than an encode resolution; determining a crop setting based on the field of view selection; cropping the image using the crop setting to obtain a cropped image; down-scaling the cropped image to obtain a scaled image at the encode resolution; encoding the scaled image at the encode resolution; and storing, displaying, or transmitting an output image based on the scaled image.