JP4583965B2 - Image composition system, image composition method, and image composition program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an image composition system, method, and program for compositing an image of an outdoor landscape and an image of an object.

  With the rapid spread of computers and the spread of computer networks, it has become common to digitize images and handle them on computers. Digitized images are excellent in reusability, and many attempts have been made to reuse images, such as creating images using existing ones without creating new ones. Then, an image obtained by photographing a scene or an object (hereinafter referred to as “image A”) and an image obtained by photographing another object (hereinafter referred to as “image B”) are combined. .

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an image composition device that removes background information, takes out only a target object as an image B, and combines it with the image A when photographing another target object. Such image composition is widely used in movies using special photography.

  On the other hand, in image synthesis, it is known that if the positions of the light sources of the images A and B do not match, the direction of the shadow is different, giving an unnatural feeling. Assuming such a light source difference, when the images A and B are photographed in a state in which the light source information is calculated in advance, the problem of the light source difference does not occur, but the prior photographing plan becomes very complicated.

As a need to obtain a composite image more easily, for example, an image obtained by photographing an outdoor landscape in a place that is difficult to access such as a remote place is synthesized with an image obtained by photographing an object such as a person. There is a use to create an image as if it were in that place. Or, an image that combines only the desired outdoor object and the desired outdoor object under adverse conditions such as when the object has moved to a remote location but the weather is not favorable or other people become obstacles. In the case where it is not possible to shoot, it is assumed that the outdoor landscape image captured under good conditions in advance and the object image are combined and combined.
Registered Utility Model No. 3043071

  However, in applications such as those described above, there are many variations in when the date and time for photographing outdoor landscapes in remote locations will be rich, and images of outdoor landscapes and images of objects that have the same light source are planned. There is a problem that it is difficult to shoot.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to make the light sources of both images coincide with each other when an image of an outdoor landscape and an image of an object are combined.

  The image composition system according to the first aspect of the present invention includes a designation receiving means for accepting designation of a location of an outdoor landscape, a viewing direction of a camera, and date and time and storing them in a memory, and reading out the designated location and date and time from a memory. Based on the information, the sun position calculation means for calculating the location and the sun position at the date and time to be stored in the memory, and reading the sun position and the line-of-sight direction from the memory, and calculating the position of the pseudo light source based on the information A pseudo light source position calculating means to be stored in the memory, a photographing means for capturing an image of the object using the light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory and storing the image in the memory, and a designated location An acquisition means for acquiring an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to a line-of-sight direction and a date and time; and an image of an outdoor landscape acquired by reading out an image of a captured object from a memory; Synthesizing means for forming, characterized by having a.

  In the present invention, the position of the pseudo light source for reproducing the solar light source at the specified location, camera viewing direction, date and time is calculated, and the object is photographed by placing the light source at this position. Images of outdoor scenery corresponding to the selected location, camera gaze direction, date and time, and combining the images of these objects with the images of the outdoor scenery enables the generation of a composite image with the matching light source Yes.

  The image composition system further includes storage means for storing an image of an outdoor landscape in association with relevant information including the location, the direction of the line of sight of the photographed camera, and the shooting date and time, and the acquisition means is designated. An image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to the location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time is acquired from the storage means.

  In the present invention, an outdoor landscape image is captured in advance, and this image is stored in advance in association with the location, line-of-sight direction, date and time, thereby facilitating the acquisition of the outdoor landscape image. ing. As a storage means, a database, storage, an asset management system, etc. can be considered.

  In the image composition system, the acquisition unit acquires an image transmitted from a camera being shot, and the designation receiving unit specifies a location of the camera being shot, a line-of-sight direction, and a shooting date and time. The received information is received as information.

  In the present invention, an image of an outdoor landscape transmitted from the camera being imaged is acquired, and the location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time of this image are received as specified information, so that a real-time outdoor landscape image and target can be obtained. The composition with the image of the object is enabled.

  In the image composition system, the acquisition unit acquires an image of an outdoor landscape whose related information matches the designated place, line-of-sight direction, and date / time when the storage unit has the image, and if not, Obtains an image of an outdoor landscape whose related information is within a certain range with respect to a designated place, line-of-sight direction, and date / time from the storage means, and the designation receiving means The related information is received as designated information.

  In the present invention, it is difficult to capture and store images of outdoor scenery of every place, line-of-sight direction, date and time. On the other hand, even if the place, line-of-sight direction, date and time are slightly shifted, the position of the solar light source is maintained. Since there are no major changes, only typical outdoor scenery images to be stored are stored.If there is no outdoor scenery image with related information that matches the specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date, the storage means By acquiring images of similar outdoor landscapes within a certain range, it is possible to generate a composite image in which the position of the light source is very close to the image of the object and the image of the outdoor landscape. The amount of image data is reduced, and the amount of calculation at the time of image search is reduced.

  In the image composition method according to the second aspect of the present invention, a step of accepting designation of a location of an outdoor landscape, a viewing direction of a camera, and a date and time is stored in a memory, and the designated location and date and time are read from the memory, Based on the information, the step of calculating the location and the sun position at the date and time and storing it in the memory, reading the sun position and the line-of-sight direction from the memory, calculating the position of the pseudo light source based on the information, and storing it in the memory A step of storing in the memory an image of an object photographed using a light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory, and an outdoor landscape corresponding to the designated location, line-of-sight direction, and date and time. An image acquisition step, and a step of reading out an image of the photographed object from the memory and synthesizing the acquired image with an outdoor landscape image. And wherein the door.

  The image composition program according to the third aspect of the present invention is a process of accepting designation of a location of an outdoor landscape, a camera viewing direction, and date and time and storing it in a memory, reading out the designated location and date and time from the memory, and Based on the information, the location of the sun and the sun position at the date and time are calculated and stored in the memory, the sun position and the line-of-sight position are read from the memory, and the position of the pseudo light source is calculated and stored in the memory based on the information. Processing, storing the image of the object photographed using the light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory, and outdoor scenery corresponding to the designated place, line-of-sight direction, date and time An image acquisition step and a process of reading the captured image of the target object from the memory and combining the acquired image with the outdoor landscape image are executed on a computer. And wherein the Rukoto.

  According to the present invention, when combining an image of an outdoor landscape and an image of an object, the light sources of both images can be easily matched.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram showing the configuration of the image composition system in the present embodiment. This image composition system calculates the position of the solar light source when photographing an outdoor landscape to be composed, and when photographing an object such as a person whose position of the light source is relatively easy to change, By photographing using matching pseudo light sources and combining the images of the outdoor scenery and the image of the object, a combined image in which the light sources of both images match can be easily generated. In addition, an image here may be either a still image or a moving image.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the image composition system includes a location designation receiving unit 1, a date and time designation receiving unit 2, a gaze direction designation receiving unit 3, a sun position calculation unit 4, a simulated light source position calculation unit 5, a light source reproduction unit 6, An object photographing unit 7, an outdoor scenery acquisition unit 8, and a synthesis unit 9 are included. This image composition system is basically composed of a computer, and the processing of each unit is executed by a program. Below, the outline of the processing of each unit will be described first.

  The location designation accepting unit 1 accepts designation of the location of the outdoor scenery and stores it in the memory. The date / time designation accepting unit 2 accepts designation of shooting date / time and stores it in the memory. The line-of-sight designation accepting unit 3 accepts designation of the line-of-sight direction of the camera at the location of the outdoor scenery and stores it in the memory. Since various modifications can be considered for each designation receiving unit, details will be described later.

  The sun position calculation unit 4 reads the location and date / time from the memory, calculates the position of the sun at the specified location / date and time based on the information, and stores the calculated location in the memory. This specific calculation method will be described later.

  The simulated light source position calculation unit 5 reads the sun position and the line-of-sight direction from the memory, calculates the position of the simulated light source based on these information, and stores the calculated position in the memory. A specific method for calculating the position of the pseudo light source will be described later.

  The light source reproduction unit 6 arranges the light source at the pseudo light source position read from the memory. The pseudo light source is realized by irradiating bright light having the same rhythm / orbit as that of the sun at the same angle as that of the sun when photographing an object such as a person. The simulated light source can be reproduced by moving the light source mechanically using a crane or the like, or using a tool such as a stand or a tripod so that the light source is automatically set at the calculated position. . Alternatively, the light source may be manually set at the calculated position by lifting the light source by hand or using various tools.

  The object photographing unit 7 photographs an image of the object using the light source arranged at the pseudo light source position and stores it in the memory. For example, the object photographing unit 7 is a camera capable of photographing a still image or a moving image.

  The outdoor landscape acquisition unit 8 acquires an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to the designated place, line-of-sight direction, and date / time. As for this acquisition method, various modifications such as acquisition from a database or acquisition of an image being captured by transmission are conceivable, and details will be described later.

  The combining unit 9 combines the object image read from the memory and the acquired outdoor scenery image.

  Next, processing of each unit will be described in detail while showing various uses of the image composition system as examples.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram showing processing of the first embodiment. Here, an image obtained by photographing the outdoor landscape with the camera 12 is stored in the database 11 in advance in association with related information such as the place (latitude, longitude), date and time, and the viewing direction of the camera 12. Ideally, it is desirable to store images in every place / date / time / line-of-sight direction.

  As information to be specified in the location specification receiving unit 1, for example, a person may specify a location whose latitude and longitude are known in advance, or arbitrary latitude and longitude may be specified. However, since it is not realistic to shoot for places of all latitudes and longitudes, actually, shooting is performed for representative places. Therefore, the database 11 may store a combination of a representative name of the place, its latitude, and longitude as candidates, and the place designation receiving unit 1 may select a place from these candidates.

  With respect to the information specified in the line-of-sight direction designation reception unit 3 and the date / time designation reception unit 2, a person may arbitrarily specify the line-of-sight direction and the date / time. However, since it is difficult to capture all the images of the gaze direction and the date / time in advance with respect to the gaze direction and the date / time, the gaze direction is constrained or imaged at a fixed interval. Therefore, the database 11 stores a combination of the line-of-sight direction and the date / time of the image photographed in this way as a candidate, and the line-of-sight direction designation receiving unit 3 and the date / time designation receiving unit 2 select from these candidates. You may enable it to select a look direction and a date.

  The solar position calculation unit 4 calculates the solar position based on the location and date / time received by the location designation receiving unit 1 and the date / time designation receiving unit 2 in this way. The simulated light source position calculation unit 5 calculates the position of the simulated light source based on the calculated sun position and the viewing direction received by the viewing direction designation receiving unit 3. The camera 13 of the object photographing unit 7 photographs the object image 15 using the light source 14 arranged at the calculated pseudo light source position.

  On the other hand, the outdoor scenery acquisition unit 8 searches the database 11 using the place / date / time / line-of-sight direction received by the place designation reception unit 1, the date / time designation reception unit 2, and the line-of-sight direction designation reception unit 3 as search conditions. A corresponding outdoor landscape image 16 is acquired as a search result. The synthesizing unit 9 synthesizes the object image 15 and the outdoor scenery image 16 to generate a synthesized image 17.

  The most likely usage of this system is as follows. First, outdoor scenes are photographed regularly and continuously with a fixed point camera with a fixed line-of-sight direction or limited to some extent, and stored in the database 11. A user who desires to create a composite image uses the location designation receiving unit 1, the date designation receiving unit 2, and the gaze direction designation receiving unit 3 to indicate the visited or planned location, the date and time, and the viewing direction of the camera. specify. In this case, a human interface such as a keyboard or a mouse is used as each designation receiving unit.

  In addition, the user can capture the object photographing unit 7 with respect to the user himself / herself and other persons in a photographing environment such as a studio that can reproduce the position of the solar light source in the designated place, date / time, and line-of-sight direction with a pseudo light source. Let's shoot using Then, the user receives a combined image obtained by combining the object image generated by the combining unit 9 and the outdoor scenery image.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram showing processing of the second embodiment. Here, the camera 12 transmits the outdoor landscape image 21 being photographed to the present system together with related information such as the photographing location, date and time, and the viewing direction of the camera 12. This transmission may be performed by wire or wirelessly. Moreover, although it is desirable that this transmission is real time, it is not necessary to guarantee complete real time.

  The outdoor scenery acquisition unit 8 acquires the transmitted image being captured. The location designation receiving unit 1 receives the location of the transmitted related information as the designated location. The date / time designation receiving unit 2 and the line-of-sight direction designation receiving unit 3 also receive the date / time and line-of-sight direction of the transmitted related information as the designated date / time and line-of-sight direction, respectively.

  Using the information of the location / date / time / line-of-sight direction received in this way, the sun position calculation unit 4, the simulated light source position calculation unit 5, the light source reproduction unit 6, and the object photographing unit 7 are the same as in the first embodiment. The object image 22 is photographed by performing each of the above processes. The synthesizing unit 9 synthesizes the outdoor scenery image 21 acquired by the outdoor scenery acquisition unit 8 and the captured object image 22 to generate a synthetic image 23.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram showing processing of the third embodiment. The third embodiment is based on the first embodiment. When the database 11 has an outdoor landscape image in which the designated location, line-of-sight direction, date and time and related information match, the outdoor landscape acquisition unit 8 obtains the image, and if not, obtains from the database 11 an image of an outdoor landscape whose related information is within a certain range with respect to the designated place, line-of-sight direction, and date and time.

  The location designation receiving unit 1, the date / time designation receiving unit 2, and the gaze direction designation receiving unit 3 read out the location, the gaze direction, and the date / time associated with the acquired outdoor scenery image from the database 11 and receive them as designated information. .

  In the figure, as an example, a process when an outdoor landscape image corresponding to a designated date and time (12:00 on 12/25) does not exist in the database 11 is shown. In this case, the outdoor scenery acquisition unit 8 acquires the 12:00 outdoor scenery image 16 of 1/26 that is different from the day 1 from the database 11, and the date / time designation reception unit 2 sets the date and time related to the outdoor scenery image 16. Read from the database 11 and accept it as the specified date. Since other processes are the same as those in the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted here.

  In the third example, when there is no outdoor scenery image that matches the designated place, date and time, and the line-of-sight direction, an outdoor scenery image taken under conditions similar to these conditions is acquired. The reason why the conditions do not completely match is that, for example, the position of the solar light source does not change greatly even if there is a difference of one day, and can be almost ignored. In addition, for example, even when an outdoor scenery image for about one week is substituted with an image for one day, it can be expected that the position of the solar light source is substantially equal if the date and time are substantially equal. Also, as long as there is no major change due to an accident or the like, the scenery itself can be substituted with another date. In addition to the date, time, and location, the gaze direction is acceptable as long as it is within a certain range.

  For example, the following method can be applied to determine whether or not outdoor scenery images are similar. First, the direction of the pseudo light source is calculated by the pseudo light source position calculation unit 5 based on the designated location, date and time, and line-of-sight direction by a method described later. On the other hand, the azimuth | direction of a solar light source is calculated by the method mentioned later by the solar position calculation part 4 based on the place linked with the outdoor scenery image memorize | stored in the database 11, a date, and a gaze direction. When the orientation of the solar light source is below a certain threshold value, for example, 5 degrees or less with respect to the orientation of the pseudo light source, the outdoor scenery image can be said to be a similar image as the condition of the solar light source. Therefore, this outdoor scenery image can be substituted.

  In this way, by not matching the search conditions completely, it is sufficient to store only typical outdoor scenery images in the database 11, so the amount of image data to be searched can be reduced, and the image The amount of calculation at the time of search can be reduced.

  Next, the process in the sun position calculation part 4 is demonstrated.

  The solar position calculation unit 4 calculates the position of the solar light source using the specified location information (latitude and longitude) and date / time information. In order to simplify the calculation here, the relationship between the sunrise time, sunset time, and south / central time (time when the sun goes to the south) at a certain place is arranged, and the direction on the horizontal plane is changed from sunset to south. Middle → Calculated from the angular velocity of sunrise. On the other hand, the elevation angle is calculated from the elevation angle, the sunrise, and the sunset angle distribution during the south-central time.

  Based on this, first, the calculation of the South / Central time at the measurement point (reference point) P will be described with reference to FIG. Here, the northern hemisphere is assumed as an example. Needless to say, when using in the southern hemisphere, the north is considered as the standard. The case of using in the Southern Hemisphere is information that can be easily acquired by applying reverse correction, and therefore will not be described in detail.

The south-span time at the measurement point P is Ts (hour),
The longitude of the measurement point P is λ (+ for east longitude,-for west diameter),
The standard time longitude of the area to which the measurement point P belongs is λ0 (degrees),
ΔT, the time difference of the sun at noon at the measurement point P (a value that corrects the seasonal shift of the solar orbit)
The earth's hour angle (rotation angle per unit time) is ΔH,
Then, the following relational expression is established for the south-central time Ts at the measurement point P.

Ts = 12: 00-([lambda]-[lambda] 0) / [Delta] H- [Delta] T (1)
As described above, the south-central time Ts can be calculated using the longitude λ, the standard time reference longitude λ0, the hour angle ΔH = 360 degrees / 24 hours = 15 degrees, and the approximate difference ΔT at noon. Note that λ = λ0, ΔT may be set to 0, and Ts = 12: 00, and an approximate solution may be processed according to the purpose.

  Next, calculation of sunrise time and sunset time will be described. Here, the red diameter (H degree) from sunrise (sunset) to south-central is considered.

The angle from the horizon at sunset is μ degrees,
The sun's declination is σ degrees (however, it is + between the equator and the north regression line, and-between the south return line),
The specified longitude is φ (degrees),
Then, the following relational expression is established by the spherical triangle formula.

cosH = tanφ × tanσ−sinμ × secφ × secσ (2)
This formula shows that the time angle H from the south to the sunset / sunrise can be calculated using the angle μ from the sun's horizon at the sunset of point P, the declination σ of the sun, and the specified longitude φ. Yes.

  Also, the sunrise time and sunset time can be calculated by the following equations, where To and Ti are respectively set.

To = Ts−H / ΔH (3)
Ti = Ts + H / ΔH (4)
This equation indicates that the sunrise time and sunset time can be calculated using the south-central time Ts, the time angle H from the south to the sunset, and the earth time angle ΔH.

  Next, the calculation of the sun's south elevation angle will be described with reference to FIG. In the same figure, O is the center when the center of the solar orbit is projected onto the YZ plane, Ss is the position of the sun at any south-intermediate time, and O 'is the position where O is projected onto the Z axis. When the length of the line segment OSs is 1, the following relational expression is established.

OP = | tanσ | (5)
O′P = | tanσ | × sinφ (6)
PSs = 1 / cos σ (7)
In order to obtain the south elevation angle of the sun, assuming that the elevation angle of the sun at the spring equinox / autumn south as seen from the measurement point P is ψ0 (degrees), the following equation is established.

Ψ0 = 90 (degrees) −φ (8)
Further, when the elevation angle of the solar position Ss at the time of south and middle as seen from the measurement point P is ψs, the following equation is established.

Ψs = 90 (degrees) −φ + σ (9)
These equations can calculate the sun's elevation angle Ψ0 from the measurement point P from the latitude φ of the sun at the spring equinox / autumn, and the sun elevation angle Ψs from the measurement point P to the latitude φ of the P point. It can be calculated from the declination σ of the sun.

  Next, calculation of the absolute orientation of the solar orbital plane will be described with reference to FIG. The figure shows the positional relationship between the solar orbit and observation points. O is the center when the center of the solar orbit is projected onto the YZ plane. The absolute direction is 360 degrees clockwise from the north in the axial direction. α is the absolute orientation of the solar light source on the horizontal plane, and ψ is the elevation angle of the sun. If the absolute orientation of the solar orbital plane at an arbitrary time T is θ (degrees), the following relational expression is established.

θ = {(T−Ts) × ΔH} +180 degrees (10)
This equation indicates that the absolute azimuth θ of the solar orbital plane at an arbitrary time viewed from the measurement point P can be calculated from the south-central time Ts and the earth time angle ΔH.

  Next, calculation of the absolute orientation on the horizontal plane of the sun will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a state in which the solar orbit is projected onto the YZ plane. In FIG. 8, O ′ is the center when the center of the solar orbit is projected onto the YZ plane. S is the sun position projected on the YZ plane. SP is the distance on the YZ plane from the measurement point to the sun. The absolute direction is defined as 360 degrees clockwise with 0 degrees north. When the distance SP from the measurement point P to the sun is R, and the absolute azimuth on the horizontal plane of the sun at the arbitrary time viewed from the measurement point P is α, the following relational expression is established.

R = √ (sinθ ^ 2 + (sinΨ0 × | cosθ | + cosΨ0 × | tanσ |) ^ 2) (11)
α = (sin (| sinθ | / R)) ^ (− 1) (12)
These formulas express the solar horizontal plane absolute azimuth α at an arbitrary time as viewed from the measurement point P and the distance R to the sun as viewed from the measurement P point. This shows that the calculation can be made using the elevation angle Ψ0 of the sun and the declination σ of the sun at the spring equinox / southern equinox as seen from P.

  When the sun elevation angle when the absolute azimuth viewed from the measurement point P is α is Ψ, the following relational expression is established.

Ψ = sin ⁻¹ (R × cos σ × | cos α |) (13)
This equation indicates that the elevation angle Ψ of the sun when the absolute azimuth α is viewed from the point P can be calculated using the above R, α, and θ. With the above method, the absolute horizontal plane direction α and elevation angle Ψ of the sun as viewed from the point P are calculated.

  Next, processing in the pseudo light source position calculation unit 5 will be described with reference to FIG. When calculating in which direction the pseudo light source is located with respect to the camera and the subject at the time of shooting the object, the horizontal plane absolute direction of the solar light source is taken into account by taking into account the horizontal plane direction β of the camera's line of sight and the elevation angle Ψc. It is necessary to consider α and the elevation angle Ψ by replacing them with the azimuth and the elevation angle when the viewing direction axis of the camera is an absolute coordinate system.

  When the viewing direction D of the camera is (β, Ψc) and the direction of the pseudo light source is (αs, Ψs), the horizontal plane direction αs of the pseudo light source is a difference between the horizontal plane absolute direction α of the solar light source and the horizontal plane direction β of the camera. It can be calculated. Further, the elevation angle Ψs of the pseudo light source can be calculated as a difference between the elevation angle Ψ of the solar light source and the elevation angle Ψc in the camera viewing direction. In operation, it is unlikely that the position and angle of the camera and the subject will change greatly, so the elevation angle Ψs of the pseudo light source may be replaced with the elevation angle Ψ of the sun.

  With the above calculation method, the orientation (αs, Ψs) of the pseudo light source with respect to the camera is calculated. The calculation of the solar light source position and the calculation of the pseudo light source position are not limited to the above-described method, and other methods may be applied.

  Next, since various modifications can be considered in the data holding method in the database 11, this point will be described. The database 11 includes, in association with an outdoor landscape image, preliminary information such as the shooting location of the image, the shooting date and time, the direction of the camera's line of sight, weather such as sunny / cloudy / rainy, and the number of people in the outdoor landscape shooting location. Related information may be stored. When weather information is associated with an outdoor landscape image and stored in the database 11 as described above, when the designation receiving unit accepts designation of date and time or location, the user uses the image by referring to the weather. It is possible to increase the number of choices of whether or not, and it is possible to extract other images that are close to each other. Furthermore, weather information can also be used when reproducing the simulated light source. In this case, for example, a control unit that controls the intensity of the light source is provided in the light source reproduction unit, and the control signal is given to the control unit so as to increase the intensity when it is clear and to decrease the intensity when it is cloudy or rainy. May be input.

  Further, when storing the outdoor scenery image in the database 11, the solar position calculation unit 4 and the pseudo light source position calculation unit 5 are used to calculate the absolute solar light source position (α, Ψ) at the shooting location and the camera position. Information such as a relative solar light source position may be calculated, and these pieces of information may be stored in association with each other.

  Further, in the third embodiment, when searching for similar images that fall within a certain range under the specified conditions, the date and time, the location, and the line-of-sight direction of the camera are respectively compared, and it is determined that the difference value is small. Alternatively, it may be determined from the point that the relative position of the solar light source with respect to the camera position is the same.

  Therefore, according to this embodiment, the solar light source at the designated location, camera viewing direction, date and time is simulated to photograph the object, and the designated location, viewing direction, and date are supported. By acquiring an image of an outdoor landscape and synthesizing the image of the object and the image of the outdoor landscape, it is possible to easily obtain a combined image with matching light sources. Thereby, it is possible to provide a composite image with excellent quality.

  According to the present embodiment, an image of an outdoor landscape is captured in advance, and the image of the outdoor landscape is easily acquired by storing the image in advance in association with the location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time. be able to.

  According to the present embodiment, an image of an outdoor landscape transmitted from the camera being imaged is acquired, and the location where the image is captured, the viewing direction of the camera, and the shooting date and time are received as specified information. Thus, a real-time outdoor landscape image and an object image can be combined.

  According to the present embodiment, it is difficult to capture and store images of outdoor scenery at every place, line-of-sight direction, date and time, while the position of the solar light source is even if the place, line-of-sight direction, date and time are slightly shifted Since there are no major changes, the images of outdoor landscapes to be stored are only representative, and if there are no images of outdoor landscapes in the database that have related information that matches the specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time By acquiring images of similar outdoor scenery within a certain range, it is possible to generate a composite image in which the position of the light source is extremely close to the target image and the outdoor scenery image, and to reduce the amount of image data of the outdoor scenery. It is possible to reduce the amount of calculation at the time of image search.

  In addition, as a case where the composite image described in the above embodiment is effectively used, for example, when taking a commemorative photo with a scenic scene at a travel destination, photographing an original beautiful scene with bad weather conditions Is difficult, or there are obstacles due to human waves. It can also be applied when the user wants to freely change the costume.

  In addition, in movie shooting for business use, it has been popular to shoot the subject from all angles and combine the images using computer graphics technology. Since the object is photographed by calculating the position of the light source, it is not necessary to photograph from any angle, and a composite image can be obtained more easily.

  The image in the present embodiment may be a still image or a moving image. The still image is not particularly limited as long as it can display a still image, such as JPEG, GIF, or Bitmap. The moving image is not particularly limited as long as the moving image can display a moving image such as AVI or MPEG.

It is a functional block diagram which shows the structure of the image composition system in one embodiment. It is a figure which shows the process of the image composition system in 1st Example. It is a figure which shows the process of the image composition system in 2nd Example. It is a figure which shows the process of the image composition system in 3rd Example. It is a figure for demonstrating the calculation method of the south / central time in arbitrary places. It is a figure for supplementary explanation about the calculation method of the south / central time in arbitrary places. It is a figure for demonstrating the calculation method of the absolute azimuth | direction on the track surface of a solar light source. It is a figure for demonstrating the calculation method of the elevation angle of a solar light source. It is a figure which shows the positional relationship of a solar light source and a camera.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Place designation reception part 2 ... Date designation reception part 3 ... Gaze direction designation reception part 4 ... Solar position calculation part 5 ... Pseudo light source position calculation part 6 ... Light source reproduction part 7 ... Object imaging | photography part 8 ... Outdoor scenery acquisition part 9 ... Composition part 11 ... Database 12,13 ... Camera 14 ... Light source 15,22 ... Object image 16,21 ... Outdoor scenery image 17,23 ... Composite image

Claims (6)

A designation accepting means for accepting designation of an outdoor landscape location, camera gaze direction, date and time, and storing it in a memory;
A solar position calculation means for reading out the designated place and date from the memory, calculating the position of the sun at the location and the date based on these information, and storing it in the memory;
A pseudo light source position calculating means for reading the sun position and the line-of-sight direction from the memory, calculating the position of the pseudo light source based on the information, and storing it in the memory;
Photographing means for photographing an image of an object using a light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory and storing the image in the memory;
An acquisition means for acquiring an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to a specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date and time;
A synthesizing means for synthesizing an image of the photographed object with an image of an outdoor landscape read out from the memory;
An image synthesis system comprising: Storage means for storing an image of an outdoor landscape in association with related information including the location, the direction of the line of sight of the captured camera, and the date and time of shooting;
The image synthesizing system according to claim 1, wherein the acquisition unit acquires an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to the specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time from the storage unit. The acquisition means acquires an image transmitted from a camera being photographed,
2. The image composition system according to claim 1, wherein the designation accepting unit accepts the location of the camera being photographed, the viewing direction, and the date and time of photographing as designated information. The acquisition unit acquires the image when the storage unit has an image of an outdoor landscape whose related information matches the specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date / time, and if not, the specified location, An image of an outdoor landscape whose related information is within a certain range with respect to the line-of-sight direction and the date and time is acquired from the storage means,
3. The image composition system according to claim 2, wherein the designation accepting unit accepts related information about the outdoor scenery image as designated information. Accepting designation of the location of the outdoor scenery, the direction of the camera's line of sight, date and time, and storing it in the memory;
Reading out the designated place and date from the memory, calculating the location and the position of the sun at the date and time based on these information, and storing them in the memory;
Reading the sun position and line-of-sight direction from the memory, calculating the position of the pseudo light source based on these information, and storing it in the memory;
Storing an image of an object photographed using a light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory in the memory;
Acquiring an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to a specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date and time;
Synthesizing an image of the captured object with an image of an outdoor landscape read out from the memory; and
An image synthesizing method characterized by comprising: Processing to accept the location of the outdoor scenery, camera gaze direction, date and time, and store it in the memory;
A process of reading the designated place and date from the memory, calculating the location of the sun based on the information and the date and storing it in the memory, and
A process of reading the sun position and line-of-sight position from the memory, calculating the position of the pseudo light source based on these information, and storing it in the memory;
Processing to store in the memory an image of the object photographed using the light source arranged at the position of the pseudo light source read from the memory;
Acquiring an image of an outdoor landscape corresponding to a specified location, line-of-sight direction, and date and time;
Processing to synthesize the image of the captured object with the image of the outdoor landscape obtained by reading from the memory;
An image composition program for causing a computer to execute the above.

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