Image Processing Apparatus Low-Light Noise Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing image processing methods struggle to simultaneously suppress noise and image blurring, especially in low-light conditions, which is critical for applications like face authentication.
Innovation Solution
An image processing apparatus and imaging system that utilize a movement detector to correct for object movement between frames, an image corrector to align and combine these frames, and an exposure processor to generate an exposure image in a desired exposure state, thereby optimizing image quality.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If image signal is amplified to obtain a bright image, then image brightness is improved, but noise is also amplified
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the image processing into multiple stages: capturing multiple images at different exposure times, detecting object movement, correcting images based on movement information, and then combining corrected images. This segmentation allows the system to avoid amplifying noise while still achieving bright images through computational processing rather than signal amplification.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the exposure time parameter by capturing multiple images at different exposure times (including at least one long-exposure image). This allows the system to gather sufficient light information without amplifying the signal, thereby avoiding noise amplification while achieving the desired image brightness through proper exposure control.
2Illumination intensity
If exposure time is elongated to obtain a bright image, then image brightness is improved, but image blurring occurs when object moves
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the imaging process into multiple captures at different exposure times, then processes them separately. By detecting object movement between these segmented images and correcting each image based on movement information, the system maintains sharpness while achieving brightness through the combination of properly exposed images rather than prolonged exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary actions by capturing multiple images at different exposure times before final processing. The movement detection and image correction are performed on these pre-captured images, allowing the system to prepare corrected versions that maintain sharpness while achieving the desired brightness in the final combined image.
3Shape
If multiple images are combined to suppress image blurring, then image sharpness is improved, but processing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by detecting object movement specifically in regions of interest and applying correction only where needed. The movement detection focuses on the desired object, and the image correction is applied locally to correct only the blurring in that specific region, rather than processing the entire image complexly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces movement information as an intermediary that connects the multiple captured images. By detecting object movement and using this information as a mediator to align and correct images, the system simplifies the combination process and reduces overall processing complexity while still achieving sharp images.
Data Source
AI summary
An image processing apparatus according to the present disclosure includes: a movement detector that detects a change amount of a desired object image in a plurality of continuously captured images and that generates movement information regarding the desired object image; an image corrector that generates a plurality of corrected images in which a change of the desired object image between the plurality of captured images is corrected on a basis of the movement information generated by the movement detector; and an exposure processor that generates an exposure image in a desired exposure state on a basis of the plurality of corrected images generated by the image corrector.