Image Pickup Apparatus Adaptive Correction for Lens Flicker
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image pickup apparatuses face challenges in correcting image quality degradation due to lens units, leading to delayed correction values, which can result in insufficient or overcorrection, causing flickering and a feeling of wrongness to the user, especially when the optical state of the lens unit changes.
Innovation Solution
An image pickup apparatus that calculates a first correction value based on lens characteristics and status, and sets a rate of change for a second correction value to gradually converge to the first, allowing for smooth image correction without sudden changes, thereby reducing the likelihood of perceived wrongness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If correction values are calculated and applied immediately based on current lens status, then correction speed is improved, but image stability deteriorates due to sudden correction changes causing flickering
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the correction value adaptive and time-dependent. Instead of using a fixed correction approach, the system dynamically adjusts correction values over time based on lens status changes. The correction value at time t is calculated as a combination of the current optimal correction value and the previous correction value, creating a dynamic transition that maintains both speed and stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by preparing correction values in advance through gradual transition. Before fully applying a new correction value, the system progressively adjusts from the old correction value to the new one over multiple frames. This preliminary gradual adjustment prevents sudden changes while still achieving the desired correction, resolving the contradiction between fast correction and image stability.
2Measurement precision
If correction values are updated frequently to track lens status changes, then correction accuracy is improved, but flickering increases due to rapid correction value changes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies periodic action by updating correction values at regular intervals rather than continuously. The correction value is recalculated and applied frame-by-frame with a smoothing transition, creating a periodic update pattern. This approach maintains correction accuracy by frequently tracking lens status while preventing flicker through the structured, gradual nature of the updates.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically balances correction accuracy and flicker prevention by adjusting the transition speed. The correction value incorporates both the current accurate measurement and the historical value, with the weighting dynamically determined by the transition parameter. This dynamic approach ensures accurate tracking of lens status changes while smoothing out rapid fluctuations that cause flickering.
3Reliability
If a large correction value is applied to correct significant image degradation, then correction effectiveness is improved, but overcorrection risk increases leading to unnatural image appearance
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial action by not immediately applying the full correction value even when it is calculated as optimal. Instead, the system gradually transitions toward the target correction value over multiple frames using a transition parameter. This partial, progressive application ensures correction effectiveness while preventing overcorrection, as the image can adapt to gradual changes rather than sudden large adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The system implements beforehand cushioning by preparing for potential overcorrection through gradual transition. Before fully applying a large correction value, the system progressively increases the correction amount over time, cushioning the impact of large corrections. This approach maintains correction effectiveness for significant degradation while preventing the unnatural appearance caused by abrupt overcorrection.
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 enables corrected images that minimize the perception of optical state changes, ensuring a stable and natural image appearance even during lens unit adjustments, reducing flickering and user discomfort.
Implementation Method 1
an image pickup element photoelectrically converts an optical image
Data Source
AI summary
An image pickup apparatus capable of forming a corrected image which does not give a feeling of wrongness to a user. In the apparatus, an image pickup element photoelectrically converts an optical image to output the same as image data. A target correction value is calculated for correcting image quality degradation due to a lens unit, based on lens characteristic information and a status of the lens unit. A system controller sets a rate of change to stepwise make the current correction value closer to the target correction value, and repeatedly calculates the correction value according to the target correction value and the rate of change. The image data is corrected based on the repeatedly calculated correction value. The rate of change is changed depending on the relationship between a preceding value of the correction value calculated in the past and the target correction value.