US6430304B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Method and apparatus for processing images to compute image flow information
Assignee: Imax Corp
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Filing: 2001-04-18
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Granted: 2002-08-06
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Expires: 2021-04-18
Abstract
Abstract A method and apparatus for accurately computing parallax information as captured by imagery of a scene. The method computes the parallax information of each point in an image by computing the parallax within windows that are offset with respect to the point for which the parallax is being computed. Additionally, parallax computations are performed over multiple frames of imagery to ensure accuracy of the parallax computation and to facilitate correction of occluded imagery.
Inventors
- 👤 Keith James Hanna
- 👤 Rakesh Kumar
- 👤 James Russell Bergen
- 👤 Harpreet Singh Sawhney
- 👤 Jeffrey Lubin
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 13:44
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06T; G06T7/00; G06T7/50; G06T7/55; G06T5/00; G06T5/50; H; H04; H04N; H04N13/00; H04N13/10; H04N13/106; H04N13/111; H04N13/20; H04N13/204; H04N13/239; H04N13/243; H04N13/25; H04N13/296; G06T2207/00; G06T2207/10; G06T2207/10004; G06T2207/10012; H04N13/15; H04N13/189; H04N13/246; H04N13/286; H04N2013/0074; H04N2013/0081
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 16
Claim 1
Independent Claim
88 words
A method for computing image flow information from a plurality of images comprising: aligning a plurality of images to form an aligned image; defining a plurality of windows, where each of said windows circumscribe an image region containing a point within said aligned image; offsetting at least one of said windows from said point; computing a flow estimation within each of said windows; identifying the flow estimation having the lowest error; and deeming said flow estimation associated with said lowest error as said flow information for said point.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
88 words
A method for computing image flow information from a plurality of images comprising: aligning a plurality of images to form an aligned image; defining a plurality of windows, where each of said windows circumscribe an image region containing a point within said aligned image; offsetting at least one of said windows from said point; computing a flow estimation within each of said windows; identifying the flow estimation having the lowest error; and deeming said flow estimation associated with said lowest error as said flow information for said point.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said flow information is constrained to produce parallax information.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 1 wherein one of said windows is centered upon said point.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said windows have different sizes.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
24 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said plurality of images comprises a plurality of images and said windows are defined in said aligned images.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said plurality of images are tiled and pairs of tiles form said plurality of images.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 wherein each said plurality of images are imaged contemporaneously.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
61 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of: computing a flow estimate for each of said aligned images; identifying a flow estimate having a lowest error; identifying, in response to said flow estimate, errant information in a first aligned image; and repairing said errant information in said first aligned image with information from at least one other aligned image.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 8 wherein said flow estimate is constrained to form a parallax estimate.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said flow estimation is corrected.
Claim 12
Independent Claim
60 words
A method of determining image flow comprising the steps of: aligning a plurality of pairs of images in a plurality of images to form a plurality of aligned images; computing a flow estimation for each of said aligned images to produce a plurality of flow estimates; weighting the flow estimates; and compositing an image by combining the weighted flow estimates.
Claim 13
Independent Claim
60 words
A method of determining image flow comprising the steps of: aligning a plurality of pairs of images in a plurality of images to form a plurality of aligned images; computing a flow estimation for each of said aligned images to produce a plurality of flow estimates; weighting the flow estimates; and compositing an image by combining the weighted flow estimates.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 11 wherein said flow estimation is constrained to produce parallax estimation.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
11 words
The method of claim 11 wherein said flow estimation is corrected.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
16 words
The method of claim 11 wherein the weighting step weights flow estimates for images over time.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2005-08-05 | 2006-02-04 | 2006-08-06 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2009-08-05 | 2010-02-04 | 2010-08-06 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2013-08-05 | 2014-02-04 | 2014-08-06 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |