Portable Image Processing Apparatus for Album Print Digitization

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional methods for digitizing photographic prints affixed to albums are cumbersome and risk damaging the prints, as they require removal from the album for scanning, and portable devices struggle to accurately capture specific prints due to arbitrary positional relationships.

Innovation Solution

A portable image processing apparatus and method that uses edge detection, oblique photographing correction, and color fading level detection to extract and correct specific photographic print areas within a photographed image, allowing for digitization without removing the prints from the album, utilizing a digital camera with image processing capabilities.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If photographic prints are removed from the album for scanning, then digitization quality is improved, but the risk of print damage increases and operational complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedigitization qualityVSAvoidprint damage risk
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent uses a digital camera to capture an image of the photographic print while it remains in the album, creating a digital copy without physical removal. The image processing apparatus then extracts the print area from the captured image, achieving digitization while eliminating the need to handle and remove the fragile print from the album.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #26Copying

2Ease of operation

If portable photographing devices are used to photograph prints in albums, then ease of operation is improved, but the ability to accurately identify and extract specific prints deteriorates due to arbitrary positional relationships

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveportability and flexibilityVSAvoidprint identification accuracy
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The image processing apparatus analyzes the captured image to detect edges and identify the photographic print area automatically. The system provides feedback by displaying the detected print area on a liquid crystal display, allowing the user to confirm and select the correct print. This feedback mechanism ensures accurate identification even when the print is in an arbitrary position within the album.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

3Manufacturing precision

If edge detection is applied to the entire photographed image, then extraction completeness is improved, but processing time and computational load increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveextraction completenessVSAvoidprocessing time
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The image processing apparatus divides the photographed image into multiple regions and performs edge detection selectively in regions where photographic prints are likely to be located. This segmentation approach maintains extraction completeness by focusing computational resources on relevant areas while significantly reducing overall processing time and computational load.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentEP1922693B1Image processing apparatus and image processing method
Publication Date: 2016.11.09 CASIO COMPUTER CO LTD
  • EP1922693B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP1922693B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP1922693B1 patent drawingFigure 3A~3G

AI summary

When a user instructs photographing by operating an operating unit (302), an image captured by an image sensor (102) is stored as a photographed image in a memory (201). When a mode for performing color fading correction is set, the CPU (204) instructs an image processing device (203) to extract, from the photographed image, an area which is supposed to bring about color fading. The image processing device (203) generates a binary image by detecting edges of the area.