Image Processing Apparatus Unevenness Reduction in High-Brightness Areas
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional image processing techniques fail to adequately reduce display unevenness in high-gradation areas while maintaining display brightness, leading to noticeable glare and decreased image visibility.
Innovation Solution
An image-processing apparatus and method that acquire brightness characteristic values, generate information about high-brightness areas, and perform unevenness reduction processing more aggressively in areas with larger high-brightness regions, balancing brightness maintenance and unevenness reduction based on the size of high-brightness areas.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If general unevenness reduction processing is performed to reduce display unevenness, then display unevenness is reduced, but display brightness decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by differentiating processing strength based on the size of high-brightness areas. Large high-brightness areas receive stronger unevenness reduction processing, while small high-brightness areas receive weaker processing to preserve brightness. This localized differentiation resolves the contradiction by adapting the processing intensity to the specific characteristics of each region.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamics by making the unevenness reduction processing adaptive rather than static. The processing unit dynamically adjusts the degree of unevenness reduction based on the detected size of high-brightness areas, allowing the system to optimize between brightness maintenance and unevenness reduction in real-time according to the image content.
2Illumination intensity
If unevenness reduction processing is performed with reduced degree to maintain display brightness, then display brightness is maintained, but display unevenness in high-gradation areas remains noticeable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by identifying and differentiating between large and small high-brightness areas. In large high-brightness areas where unevenness is more noticeable, stronger processing is applied. In small high-brightness areas, weaker processing preserves brightness. This spatial differentiation resolves the contradiction by targeting processing to where it is most needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent segments the image processing into different processing paths based on the size of high-brightness areas. By segmenting the processing logic into conditional branches (large area vs. small area), the system can apply appropriate processing intensity to each segment, resolving the contradiction between brightness maintenance and unevenness reduction.
3Reliability
If conversion is performed to maintain dynamic range of HDR image data, then dynamic range is maintained, but display unevenness becomes more noticeable in high-brightness areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by detecting the size of high-brightness areas and applying differentiated unevenness reduction processing. Large high-brightness areas receive stronger processing to reduce noticeable unevenness, while maintaining the overall dynamic range of HDR image data. This resolves the contradiction by locally adapting processing to where unevenness is most problematic.
Data Source
AI summary
An image-processing apparatus includes: an acquiring unit configured to acquire a brightness characteristic value from input image data; a generating unit configured to generate information regarding a high-brightness area that is an image area of the input image data having a brightness greater than or equal to a first threshold value, based on the brightness characteristic value; and a processing unit configured to perform, on the input image data, unevenness reduction processing of reducing unevenness in at least one of brightness and color, wherein the processing unit performs, on the input image data, the unevenness reduction processing of reducing the unevenness more strongly in a case where the high-brightness area is bigger, based on the information.