Image Processing Device Brightness Correction Glossy Subjects
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image processing technologies face challenges in accurately correcting brightness for subjects with gloss when using auxiliary light sources, as they struggle to accurately acquire distance information, leading to decreased accuracy in brightness correction.
Innovation Solution
An image processing device that acquires first and second image data with different auxiliary light brightness levels, sets subject areas, selects areas based on reflection characteristics, and corrects pixel values using feature amounts related to reflection characteristics, thereby estimating the auxiliary light arrival rate and adjusting brightness accordingly.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If distance information is acquired using conventional image processing methods, then brightness correction can be applied to subjects, but the accuracy of distance information acquisition deteriorates for glossy subjects
Solution Approach 1:
The subject area is segmented into multiple regions based on reflection characteristics. The area selection unit divides the subject area into a first area (with specific reflection characteristics) and a second area (without such characteristics), then selects appropriate areas for distance information acquisition based on the subject's gloss properties. This segmentation allows the system to handle glossy and non-glossy subjects differently, resolving the contradiction between general applicability and glossy subject accuracy.
Solution Approach 2:
Different processing methods are applied to different regions of the subject area based on local reflection characteristics. For glossy subjects, the system selectively uses areas with appropriate reflection properties (first area) for distance calculation, while for non-glossy subjects, it uses areas without such characteristics (second area). This local quality approach ensures accurate distance information acquisition regardless of the subject's surface properties.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple subjects at different distances are captured with auxiliary light, then all subjects can be illuminated, but the brightness uniformity across subjects deteriorates with increasing distance
Solution Approach 1:
The system acquires images at multiple auxiliary light brightness levels (first and second brightness) and uses the reflection characteristic information to calculate appropriate correction amounts for each subject area. This feedback mechanism allows the system to compensate for the inverse square law of light attenuation, adjusting the brightness correction based on the actual light arrival rate at each subject, thereby maintaining brightness uniformity across subjects at different distances.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the auxiliary light brightness parameter by capturing images at multiple brightness levels (first brightness and second brightness). By comparing pixel values from images taken at different brightness levels and using reflection characteristic information, the system calculates distance-dependent correction parameters that compensate for light attenuation, thus maintaining brightness uniformity across subjects at varying distances.
3Productivity
If pixel values are corrected based on distance information alone, then brightness correction can be applied, but the correction accuracy deteriorates for subjects with varying reflection characteristics
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary analysis of reflection characteristics by comparing pixel values from images captured at different auxiliary light brightness levels before performing brightness correction. The area setting unit and area selecting unit pre-identify regions with specific reflection properties, and the correction amount calculation unit pre-calculates appropriate correction amounts based on both distance information and reflection characteristics. This preliminary action ensures that when brightness correction is applied, it is accurate for subjects with varying reflection characteristics.
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts the brightness correction amount based on the subject's reflection characteristics. Rather than applying a fixed correction based solely on distance, the system modifies the correction amount according to the subject's surface properties (glossy vs. non-glossy). This dynamic adjustment ensures that subjects with different reflection characteristics receive appropriately tailored correction, maintaining both efficiency and accuracy.
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 effectively corrects brightness for subjects at different distances, including glossy subjects, by accurately accounting for reflection characteristics, improving the accuracy of brightness correction.
Implementation Method 1
pixel values from which the influence of the reflection characteristics of subjects has been removed are calculated, based on image data obtained by image-capturing with irradiation by an auxiliary light
Data Source
AI summary
The image processing unit selects multiple subject areas from strobe-ON image data to be corrected, and, from the selected multiple subject areas, the image processing unit acquires a feature amount such as gloss information corresponding to each subject. Subsequently, from each subject area, the image processing unit selects a part of the subject area, based on the acquired feature amount. Then, regarding the partial area of each subject area, which is selected based on the feature amount, the image processing unit estimates the auxiliary light arrival rate corresponding to each subject, based on a pixel value of the strobe-ON image data and a pixel value of strobe-OFF image data. Thereafter, based on the estimated auxiliary light arrival rate, the image processing unit corrects the brightness of each subject area of the strobe-ON image data, in order to generate corrected image data.