Patent US6546203B2 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
US6546203B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Camera with adjustable strobe energy
Assignee: Apple Inc
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Filing: 2001-06-21
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Granted: 2003-04-08
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Expires: 2021-06-21
Abstract
Abstract A camera adjusts its strobe energy to achieve proper exposure of a photograph. The adjustment method uses two trial exposures of the scene to be photographed. One trial exposure is taken without the camera strobe using only ambient illumination. The other trial exposure is taken using the camera strobe at a pre-set energy level. Pixels that appear as saturated in the ambient-only trial exposure are discounted in the determination of the strobe energy for the final photograph. This method properly exposes scenes which themselves contain bright light sources such as lamps or light fixtures.
Inventors
- 👤 Gregory V Hofer
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 11:41
CPC Classifications
G; G03; G03B; G03B15/00; G03B15/02; G03B15/03; G03B15/05; H; H04; H04N; H04N23/00; H04N23/70; H04N23/71; H04N23/74; G03B2215/00; G03B2215/05
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 13
Claim 1
Independent Claim
79 words
A method of setting the strobe energy in a camera comprising the steps of: a) taking a first trial photograph of a scene using a pre-set strobe energy; b) taking a second trial photograph of the scene using only ambient illumination; c) identifying saturated pixels in the second trial photograph; and d) combining information about the saturated pixels in the second trial photograph with information from the first trial photograph to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 2
Independent Claim
79 words
A method of setting the strobe energy in a camera comprising the steps of: a) taking a first trial photograph of a scene using a pre-set strobe energy; b) taking a second trial photograph of the scene using only ambient illumination; c) identifying saturated pixels in the second trial photograph; and d) combining information about the saturated pixels in the second trial photograph with information from the first trial photograph to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising the step of taking a final photograph.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 1 wherein exposure histograms are used to gather information about the two trial photographs.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
51 words
The method of claim 3 wherein: a) saturated pixels are identified as those pixels residing in an exposure histogram bin representing the brightest pixels in the photograph; and b) saturated pixels in the second trial photograph are discounted in importance before the calculation of the strobe energy for the final photograph.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of claim 4 where the number of saturated pixels in the second trial photograph is subtracted from the number of saturated pixels in the exposure histogram of the first trial photograph before the calculation of the strobe energy for the final photograph.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
50 words
A camera, comprising: a processor; a strobe; and the processor configured to modify data from a first trial photograph obtained using the strobe, using information from a second trial photograph obtained using ambient light only, and to use the modified data to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
50 words
A camera, comprising: a processor; a strobe; and the processor configured to modify data from a first trial photograph obtained using the strobe, using information from a second trial photograph obtained using ambient light only, and to use the modified data to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
18 words
The camera of claim 6 wherein exposure histograms are used to gather information about the two trial photographs.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
51 words
The camera of claim 7 wherein: a) saturated pixels are identified as those pixels residing in the exposure histogram bin representing the brightest pixels in the photograph; and b) saturated pixels in the ambient-only trial photograph are discounted in importance before the calculation of the strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
43 words
The digital camera of claim 8 wherein the number of saturated pixels in the ambient-only trial photograph is subtracted from the number of saturated pixels in the trial strobe photograph exposure histogram before the calculation of the strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
62 words
A camera comprising: a) means for obtaining a first photograph using ambient light; b) means for obtaining a second photograph using a strobe; c) means for identifying saturated pixels in the first photograph, and d) means for combining information about the saturated pixels in the first photograph with information from the second photograph to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
62 words
A camera comprising: a) means for obtaining a first photograph using ambient light; b) means for obtaining a second photograph using a strobe; c) means for identifying saturated pixels in the first photograph, and d) means for combining information about the saturated pixels in the first photograph with information from the second photograph to compute a strobe energy for a final photograph.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US6151073A
Cited
US6195127B1
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2006-04-07 | 2006-10-07 | 2007-04-08 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2010-04-07 | 2010-10-07 | 2011-04-08 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2014-04-07 | 2014-10-07 | 2015-04-08 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |