Classifications

• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06T—IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
  • G06T3/00—Geometric image transformations in the plane of the image
  • G06T3/40—Scaling of whole images or parts thereof, e.g. expanding or contracting
  • G06T3/4023—Scaling of whole images or parts thereof, e.g. expanding or contracting based on decimating pixels or lines of pixels; based on inserting pixels or lines of pixels
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N1/00—Scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission; Details thereof
  • H04N1/21—Intermediate information storage
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G06—COMPUTING; CALCULATING OR COUNTING
  • G06F—ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING
  • G06F16/00—Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
  • G06F16/50—Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor of still image data
  • G06F16/51—Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N1/00—Scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission; Details thereof
  • H04N1/21—Intermediate information storage
  • H04N1/2166—Intermediate information storage for mass storage, e.g. in document filing systems
  • H04N1/217—Interfaces allowing access to a single user
  • H04N1/2175—Interfaces allowing access to a single user with local image input
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N2201/00—Indexing scheme relating to scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, and to details thereof
  • H04N2201/0077—Types of the still picture apparatus
  • H04N2201/0081—Image reader
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N2201/00—Indexing scheme relating to scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, and to details thereof
  • H04N2201/0077—Types of the still picture apparatus
  • H04N2201/0082—Image hardcopy reproducer
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
  • H04N2201/00—Indexing scheme relating to scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, and to details thereof
  • H04N2201/0077—Types of the still picture apparatus
  • H04N2201/0089—Image display device

Definitions

• the present invention relates in general to digitized image data processing systems and is particularly directed to a mechanism for accessing the contents of a two-dimensional image-representative database and rapidly displaying an image the resolution of which is iteratively increased during successive scans of the database.
• Digital imaging systems such as those employed for converting still color photographic slides into a digital format for display on a color television monitor, customarily encode the output of an electronic imaging device, such as a digital color camera, to some prescribed resolution and store the encoded image in an associated database as a respective image file on a digital storage medium.
• an electronic imaging device such as a digital color camera
• the contents of the respective addresses of the database in which the digitized image has been stored are read out and coupled to display driver circuitry for energizing corresponding pixels of a display device.
• the considerable "viewing delay" encountered in accessing a digital image from a relatively high resolution database using a conventional sequential data access scheme is substantially reduced by a readout and display control mechanism that rapidly provides the viewer with an initially relatively low resolution image and thereafter automatically increases the resolution of the displayed image.
• the present invention enables the viewer to determine whether the image being displayed is of interest, so that the viewer has the immediate option of calling up another stored image or permitting the currently displayed low resolution image to be iteratively enhanced.
• the present invention incorporates a memory addressing mechanism through which first partitioned data entries of the image database, which are respectively associated with a two- dimensional sub-array of R X S picture elements of the image and the spatial resolution of which is less than that of the M X N picture elements of the display, are sequentially accessed at the transfer rate of the digital storage device (e.g. the above-referenced 167.4 kbytes/sec rate of a compact disc player) and stored in a corresponding sub-array of R X S pixels in the playback device. Because, the size of the R X S sub- array is a fraction (e.g. one-fourth) of the M X N picture elements of the display, it is necessary to interpolate the remaining (adjacent) display pixels.
• the transfer rate of the digital storage device e.g. the above-referenced 167.4 kbytes/sec rate of a compact disc player
• the interpolation mechanism is preferably executed by replicating each accessed data value for one or more adjacent pixels, so that each respective pixel of image data from the first partitioned picture region R X S sub-array, is initially coupled to a selected plurality (e.g. four) of display pixels, thereby rapidly providing the viewer with a low resolution image.
• R X S sub-arrays of data entries associated with pixels whose values were originally replicated from the first R X S sub-array are accessed, so that successive sub-arrays of (replicated) pixel values are iteratively replaced by actual data values from the database.
• R X S sub-arrays are read out from database into the playback device, at the CD player's (low speed) transfer rate, this successive sub-array replacement operation will result in a final display having an increased resolution image.
• Figure 1 diagrammatically illustrates a photographic color slide processing system in which the present invention may be employed
• Figure 2 diagrammatically shows a 512 row by 768 column array of image picture elements (pixels) ;
• Figure 3 diagrammatically shows the sub-array components of an 8 X 8 pixel image
• Figure 4 diagrammatically illustrates replicating each accessed data value for a plurality of four adjacent pixels
• FIGs 5, 6 and 7 diagrammatically illustrate the iterative updating of the output image obtained by sequentially accessing the four partitioned sub-arrays of the image database of Figure 3.
• Figure 1 diagrammatically illustrates a photographic color film processing system in which the present invention may be employed.
• a photographic color film processing system in which the present invention may be employed.
• such a system may be of the type described, for example, in co-pending Patent application Serial Number , filed , by S. Kristy, entitled “Multiresolution Digital Imagery Photofinishing System, " assigned to the assignee of the present application and the disclosure of which is incorporated herein.
• the system described in the above-referenced co- pending application is merely an example of one type of system in which the invention may be used and is not to be considered limitative of the invention.
• the invention may be incorporated in any digitized imagery processing system.
• photographic images are scanned by a high resolution opto-electronic film scanner 12, such as a commercially available Eikonix Model 1435 scanner.
• Scanner 12 outputs digitally encoded data representative of the response of its image sensing array onto which the photographic image contained on a respective color negative is projected.
• This digitally encoded data, or "digitized" image is coupled in the form of an imaging pixel array- representative bit map to an attendant image processing workstation 14, which contains a frame store and image processing application software through which the digitized image may be processed (e.g. enlarged, rotated, cropped, subjected to scene color balance correction, etc.) to achieve a desired image appearance.
• an image file is written onto a transportable medium, such as an optical compact disc 16, for subsequent playback by a disc player 20 which allows the image to be displayed, for example, on a relatively moderate resolution consumer television set 22, or printed as a finished color print, using a high resolution thermal color printer 24.
• a transportable medium such as an optical compact disc 16
• a disc player 20 which allows the image to be displayed, for example, on a relatively moderate resolution consumer television set 22, or printed as a finished color print, using a high resolution thermal color printer 24.
• each captured image is stored as a respective image data file in the form of a low resolution image bit map file and a plurality of residual images associated with respectively different degrees of image resolution.
• a readout device such as a color video display or hard copy printer.
• the low resolution bit map file to which the original high resolution image is reduced may comprise a 512 row by 768 column array of pixel values, as diagrammatically shown in Figure 2, and such that there is substantially a one-for-one correspondence between the spatial values of the low resolution image array and the pixels of an associated display, such as the 480 X 640 "square pixel" display capability of an NTSC television receiver, where the center 480 rows and 640 columns of the database pixels correspond, one-for-one, with the display pixels.
• the stored 512 row by 768 column image is preferably formatted into a plurality (e.g. four) partitioned sub- arrays, respective image locations of which are immediately adjacent to one another, so as to form an array of contiguous image components.
• the database may be considered to comprise a 256 X 384 array of "blocks-of-four" image components 1, 2, 3 and 4, several of which are shown in Figure 2.
• the discussion to follow will treat an image comprised of eight rows R1...R8 and eight columns C1...C8 of image values, as diagrammatically shown in Figure 3. It should be observed that the example of an 8 X 8 image is merely for purposes of simplifying the description and illustration and, like the 512 X 768 pixel image, referenced above, is not to be considered limitative of the invention.
• the 8 X 8 pixel image of Figure 3 is depicted as comprising a 4 X 4 array of partitioned "blocks-of- four" image blocks B1...B16, each of which contains four adjacent pixels.
• Image block Bl contains pixels 1-1, 1-2, 1-3 and 1-4.
• image block B2 contains pixels 2-1, 2-2, 2-3 and 2-4, and so on, down through block B16, which contains pixels 16-1, 16-2, 16-3 and 16-4.
• block B16 contains pixels 16-1, 16-2, 16-3 and 16-4.
• the remaining "replicated" entries of the image are successively "filled-in” with their true values, until the image is completed. More particularly, when a digitized image read out by CD player in Figure 1 from compact disc 16 is to be displayed on video display 22, the first partitioned sub-array of pixel values (1-1...1-16 in Figure 3) is transferred to a video framestore resident in CD player 20. As the first sub-array of pixels is transferred and stored in the CD player framestore, the framestore is addressed so as to store the respective entries of only one of its low resolution sub-arrays, such as 4 X 4 sub-array 1, containing sub-array data entries 1-1...1-16.
• the interpolation mechanism is preferably executed by replicating each pixel value of the first partitioned sub-array for one or more adjacent pixels, as diagrammatically illustrated in Figure 4, so that each respective pixel of the first partitioned sub-array (1- 1...1-16) is initially coupled to a selected plurality (here four) of display pixels, thereby rapidly providing the viewer with a low resolution image.
• the phrase "increased" resolution image is intended to mean an image whose resolution is greater than that originally presented using only the first partitioned sub-array , as shown in Figure 4.
• the originally displayed image is a 240 X 320 pixel image
• the final "increased" resolution image is a 480 X 640 pixel image.
• the "increased" resolution image is not necessarily the maximum resolution image available after iterative residual processing of the bit-mapped image within the original database which provides a "high" resolution image, for example a 2048 X 3072 pixel image suitable for producing a high quality color print.
• the present invention is able to substantially reduce the considerable "viewing delay" encountered when accessing a digital image from a relatively high resolution database using a conventional sequential low speed data transfer scheme.
• the present invention enables the viewer to determine whether the image being displayed is of interest, so that the viewer has the immediate option of calling up another stored image or permitting the currently displayed low resolution image to be iteratively enhanced.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
• Multimedia (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
• Software Systems (AREA)
• Data Mining & Analysis (AREA)
• Databases & Information Systems (AREA)
• General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Processing Or Creating Images (AREA)
• Editing Of Facsimile Originals (AREA)
• Fittings On The Vehicle Exterior For Carrying Loads, And Devices For Holding Or Mounting Articles (AREA)
• Controls And Circuits For Display Device (AREA)
• Control Of Indicators Other Than Cathode Ray Tubes (AREA)

Priority Applications (2)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=24330180

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (9)

Cited By (13)

Families Citing this family (1)

Citations (6)

• 1991
  • 1991-09-12 CA CA002068723A patent/CA2068723A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1991-09-12 AU AU87611/91A patent/AU8761191A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1991-09-12 JP JP3517866A patent/JPH05502782A/ja active Pending
  • 1991-09-12 WO PCT/US1991/006614 patent/WO1992005655A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1991-09-12 EP EP91918696A patent/EP0500924A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 1991-09-12 BR BR919105918A patent/BR9105918A/pt unknown
  • 1991-09-12 KR KR1019920701114A patent/KR920702586A/ko not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 1991-09-13 MX MX9101096A patent/MX9101096A/es unknown
  • 1991-09-14 CN CN91109778A patent/CN1062253A/zh active Pending

Patent Citations (6)

Non-Patent Citations (2)

Also Published As

Similar Documents

Legal Events