Omnidirectional Image Thumbnail Generation via Partial Region Segmentation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Users face difficulty in discriminating omnidirectional images due to their large size and curved objects, making it hard to understand and generate thumbnail images effectively, especially with existing methods requiring user operation to select regions.
Innovation Solution
An image processing apparatus and method that displays a partial region of an original image on a screen, allowing users to change the region interactively, and generates thumbnail images based on changed regions, facilitating easy discrimination by displaying a list of representative images on a separate screen.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If thumbnail images are generated from entire omnidirectional images, then image discrimination becomes easier, but objects are extremely finely displayed making content understanding difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The omnidirectional image is divided into multiple partial regions, and thumbnail images are generated from specific partial regions rather than the entire image. This segmentation allows important objects to be displayed with sufficient detail while maintaining the thumbnail format for easy discrimination.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the omnidirectional image are treated differently - regions containing important objects are selected for thumbnail generation while other regions are not. This local quality approach ensures that thumbnails focus on meaningful content rather than uniformly processing the entire image.
2Ease of operation
If geometric conversion processing is applied to omnidirectional images, then partial regions can be displayed, but users require long time to successively switch and confirm partial images for discrimination
Solution Approach 1:
Thumbnail images are generated in advance from selected partial regions of omnidirectional images. This preliminary action allows users to immediately see representative content without needing to successively switch through multiple partial images, significantly reducing confirmation time.
3Ease of manufacture
If user operation is required to select and specify regions for thumbnail images, then thumbnail images can be generated, but ease of generation is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically determines and selects appropriate partial regions for thumbnail generation without requiring user operation. The image processing apparatus autonomously identifies important regions and generates thumbnails, making the process as easy as providing the omnidirectional image itself.
Data Source
AI summary
An image processing apparatus according to the present invention includes: a display control unit configured to display a partial region of an original image on a first screen; and a changing unit configured to change the region to be displayed on the first screen in response to a user's operation, wherein the display control unit displays a list of a plurality of representative images corresponding to a plurality of original images each on a second screen, and wherein the representative images displayed on the second screen are based on partial images corresponding to regions of the original images changed by the changing unit each.