Image Enlargement via High-Frequency Component Extraction and Addition
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image processing methods fail to maintain perceived resolution during image enlargement due to the lack of adequate high-frequency components in the enlarged images, as they primarily perform low-pass filtering on neighboring pixel values.
Innovation Solution
The proposed solution involves an image processing apparatus that generates and adds high-frequency components to the enlarged images by extracting and processing high-frequency components separately, using a combination of image enlarging, high-frequency component generation, and processing means to create an output image with enhanced resolution.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional low-pass filtering is used to enlarge images by taking weighted sums of neighboring pixel values, then the image enlargement process is simple and computationally efficient, but the perceived resolution is lost due to inadequate high-frequency components
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the image processing into two distinct paths: a low-pass filtering path for basic enlargement and a high-frequency component extraction path for resolution enhancement. By dividing the processing into separate functional blocks (low-pass filter 22A, high-frequency component extractor 1, enlarging means 2B, and adding means 4), the system achieves both simplicity and high perceived resolution without requiring a completely complex new approach.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the outputs of two different processing paths: the enlarged low-pass filtered image from means 2A and the up-scaled high-frequency components from means 2B. By combining these two results in adding means 4, the system produces an enlarged image that retains both the smooth background from low-pass filtering and the sharp edges from high-frequency components, thereby achieving high perceived resolution while maintaining processing simplicity.
2Manufacturing precision
If high-frequency components are extracted and processed separately to enhance perceived resolution, then the perceived resolution of the enlarged image is improved, but the device complexity increases due to additional processing means
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the essential high-frequency components from the original image using high-frequency component extractor 1, rather than processing the entire image through complex algorithms. This extraction approach isolates the critical resolution-determining elements (edges and fine details) and processes them separately, reducing the overall computational complexity while maintaining high perceived resolution in the final enlarged image.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies partial action by focusing computational resources only on extracting and enhancing high-frequency components rather than processing all frequency ranges equally. The high-frequency component extractor 1 selectively identifies and processes only the necessary frequency components for perceived resolution, avoiding unnecessary computation on low-frequency areas that do not contribute significantly to image sharpness, thereby managing device complexity effectively.
Data Source
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AI summary
There are provided a first image enlarging means (2A) for enlarging the input image (Din) and outputting a first enlarged image (D2A); a high-frequency component image generating means (1) for extracting a high-frequency component of the input image (Din) and generating a first high-frequency component image (D1); a second image enlarging means (2B) for enlarging the first high-frequency component image (D1) and outputting a second enlarged image (D2B); a high-frequency component image processing means (3) for processing the second enlarged image (D2B) and generating a second high-frequency component image (D3); and a means (4) for adding the first enlarged image (D2A) and the second high-frequency component image (D3) and outputting the result. This provides the enlarged image with adequate high-frequency components, and a sense of resolution of the enlarged image can be obtained.