Did You Know...
...that the Eveready Battery began as an invention called the "electric flowerpot," which was a tube with a battery and light bulb inside? The idea was to fasten this gizmo to the side of a flowerpot so it would illuminate the flowers from the bottom. The idea died on the vine and the businessman who licensed the flower pot, Conrad Huber, was left with a pile of useless tubes -- until he found a way to market them as batteries to light the world!
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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8189070 | Image capturing devices using Sunny f/16 rule to override metered exposure settings Several methods and apparatuses for implementing automatic exposure mechanisms for image capturing devices are described. In one embodiment, an automatic exposure mechanism can use data from a light meter of an image capturing device to determine a metered exposure ... | 05/29/2012 |
| 8189069 | Image processing apparatus and method An image processing apparatus is provided that determines a correction gain factor at a high rate of speed to synthesize an image. The apparatus includes a long second middle luminance image detecting unit for detecting a pixel having a pixel value in a first middle... | 05/29/2012 |
| 8169504 | Image processing device and image processing method This invention provides an image processing device and an image processing method capable of performing image processing of higher accuracy using the synthetic image data with enlarged dynamic range. An image processing method including the steps of acquiring a plur... | 05/01/2012 |
| 8164651 | Concentric exposure sequence for image sensor A method for image capture includes providing an image sensor having at least one segmented row of pixels, wherein the at least one segmented row comprises at least first and second disjoint row subsets of pixels, wherein the reset and readout operations for each ro... | 04/24/2012 |
| 8159557 | Method of generating a gain of an image frame A method of generating a gain of an image frame according to a look up table of gain which is set up based on luminance sensitivity of human eyes is proposed. The method includes setting a gain of an image frame to 1, scanning images of a plurality of front rows of ... | 04/17/2012 |
| 8159559 | Image pick-up apparatus with synchronization, image pick-up method and recording medium Image light from an object is dispersed by a light dispersing device. When a plurality of image sensors are used for picking up images, an image in which a moving object is stopped is picked up with a high shutter speed, and at the same time, a motion-blurred image ... | 04/17/2012 |
| 8159558 | Image processing circuit, semiconductor device and image processing device According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an image processing device that performs brightness conversion processing according to a brightness conversion coefficient on each pixel of an input image and produces an output image. The image pro... | 04/17/2012 |
| 8154619 | Imaging apparatus, imaging processing method, and imaging control program An imaging apparatus includes: an imaging device outputting, during a unit period of time, a long-exposure-time image signal having a relatively long exposure time and a short-exposure-time image signal having a relatively short exposure time; a first clipping proce... | 04/10/2012 |
| 8154620 | Imaging apparatus and imaging method An imaging apparatus includes: first and second light receiving elements that photoelectrically convert light, capable of being controlled independently from each other and arranged in a predetermined arrangement; imaging control means, for controlling the first and... | 04/10/2012 |
| 8154621 | Photographing apparatus and photographing method An image of a subject is focused on an image pickup device through a zoom lens and a diaphragm. The image focused on the image pickup device is photoelectrically converted into an electric signal. The electric signal as a picture signal is supplied to an amplifying ... | 04/10/2012 |
| 8144215 | Method and apparatus of using processor with analog-to-digital converter within image sensor to achieve high dynamic range of image sensor A scheme is provided that enhances the dynamic range performance of images via multiple readouts during one exposure. The readout process circuit structure includes at least an analog-to-digital converter (ADC). The analog-to-digital converter converts analog data g... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8144214 | Imaging apparatus, imaging method, integrated circuit, and storage medium An imaging apparatus captures a large dynamic range image of a scene including a backlit person with a blue sky background in a manner that the person's face has an appropriate luminance level without saturating the background sky. An imaging unit obtains analogue i... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8144216 | Imaging apparatus and imaging method An imaging apparatus includes: an image sensor; a pixel output judging processor which judges that at least one of a pixel output of a pixel of a specific color and a pixel output of a pixel of a color other than the specific color in the vicinity of the pixel of th... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8125536 | Wide dynamic range image capturing system method and apparatus An image capture system is presented where the dynamic range of photo imaging devices, such as a still or video camera, is increased by varying sensor exposure time on a pixel-by-pixel basis under digital camera processor control. The system's photo sensors are cont... | 02/28/2012 |
| 8125535 | Imaging apparatus, continuous shooting control method, and program therefor Herein disclosed is an imaging apparatus, carrying out a step of calculating an exposure value based on image data obtained by the imaging section, a step of computing a shutter speed by mean of, for example, a program AE control in accordance with the exposure valu... | 02/28/2012 |
| RE43161 | Photic image processing method The present invention relates to a photic image processing method which includes steps of (1) processing a photic image unit to generate a photic image signal having a plurality of basic image signals, (2) performing a first regulating compensation to each of the ba... | 02/07/2012 |
| 8102438 | Imaging device An imaging device of the present invention includes a solid-state image sensing device; a vertical transfer drive circuit for feeding a subpulse to the solid-state image sensing device; and a control circuit, and repeats a series of photographing operations in a cyc... | 01/24/2012 |
| 8094210 | Image synthesis apparatus, image pickup apparatus, image synthesis method, and program An image synthesis apparatus is provided. The image synthesis apparatus includes a synthesis control block configured to determine a synthesized gain from a plurality of image signals having different exposure times, and a synthesis processing block configured to sy... | 01/10/2012 |
| 8094211 | Method and apparatus for obtaining image using entropy An image obtaining method and apparatus are provided. The method of obtaining an image by an image obtaining apparatus includes calculating entropy of an input image, determining an optimal exposure time at which the entropy reaches a maximum value, and obtaining an... | 01/10/2012 |
| 8089530 | Solid-state image pickup apparatus, drive method for the solid-state image pickup apparatus, and image pickup apparatus In a solid-state image pickup apparatus having a pixel array unit composed by two-dimensionally arranging pixels for detecting a physical quantity in a row-column manner, pixel signals of a plurality of systems having different sensitivities are read from the pixel ... | 01/03/2012 |
| 8085316 | Image-processing unit, imaging apparatus, and computer program product An image-processing unit, comprising an exposure conversion circuit, a standard image-setting circuit, a contour extraction circuit, a contour comparison circuit, a final setting circuit, and an image synthesis circuit, is provided. The exposure conversion circuit g... | 12/27/2011 |
| 8085315 | Imaging apparatus for enhancing appearance of image data An imaging apparatus includes a photometry section, an exposure calculating section, an imaging section, and an image processing section. The photometry section performs the photometry of a subject. The exposure calculating section sets exposure conditions based on ... | 12/27/2011 |
| 8081236 | Camera system capable of performing exposure control processing combined with gradation conversion processing A camera system is provided, which performs exposure amount control operation in combination with gradation conversion processing for an image signal acquired from a CCD. With such a camera system, a control unit performs control operation so as to perform pre-shoot... | 12/20/2011 |
| 8072507 | Method and system of generating high dynamic range image corresponding to specific scene A method of generating a high dynamic range image corresponding to a specific scene. The method includes shooting a specific scene to generate a base image; selecting a bright area and a dark area from the base image; determining base luminance according to the base... | 12/06/2011 |
| 8072508 | Photographing apparatus having first and second operation devices A photographing apparatus comprises an imaging sensor, a controller, and an exposure-mode-selecting device. The controller performs a photometric operation on a photographing subject and obtains a luminance value of the photographing subject based on the photometric... | 12/06/2011 |
| 8068149 | Image processing device, image processing method, and image pickup apparatus An image processing device includes a corrector for performing an optical correction of correcting a distortion of an image by interpolating image data of the distorted picked-up image resulting from an optical characteristic of an image pickup section, and locally ... | 11/29/2011 |
| 8054339 | Digital exposure circuit for an image sensor Automatic exposure adjusting device considers the image on a pixel-by-pixel basis. Each pixel is characterized according to its most significant bits. After the pixels are characterized, the number of pixels in any particular group is counted. That counting is compa... | 11/08/2011 |
| 8049791 | Method, apparatus and system using hierarchical histogram for automatic exposure adjustment of an image An automatic exposure control circuit and a method for generating a hierarchical histogram for exposure control. The control circuit and the method result in the generation of a histogram with sub-histograms of differing resolutions. The sub-histograms are used to a... | 11/01/2011 |
| 8040394 | Digital exposure circuit for an image sensor Automatic exposure adjusting device considers the image on a pixel-by-pixel basis. Each pixel is characterized according to its most significant bits. After the pixels are characterized, the number of pixels in any particular group is counted. That counting is compa... | 10/18/2011 |
| 8026955 | Camera exposure controller including imaging devices for capturing an image using stereo-imaging In an exposure controller of a camera mounted on a robot for taking an image utilizing incident light from external world in which an object such as a human being is present, a brightness histogram of the image is generated and exposure parameters are set based on t... | 09/27/2011 |
| 8023004 | Imaging apparatus, imaging method, and program for selectively controlling gain in a normal imaging mode and a combined imaging mode An imaging apparatus includes an imaging unit capable of selectively executing an imaging operation in a normal imaging mode that outputs a normal exposure image signal in a unit period and an imaging operation in a combined imaging mode that outputs a long-time-exp... | 09/20/2011 |
| 8013909 | Method and apparatus for adjusting exposure in digital imaging The invention relates to electronic equipment for performing imaging, including a camera (CAM) for forming image frames (FRp, FRc), using set exposure parameters (ET, AG, DG), and a unit for determining the total exposure level (EV), from at least some of the image ... | 09/06/2011 |
| 8013910 | Imaging apparatus, imaging circuit and imaging method An image by using a solid-state imaging sensor, the imaging apparatus including: a compression section configured to compress image data by dividing the image data into blocks each composed of same color component pixels adjacent to each other as a unit of compressi... | 09/06/2011 |
| 8013911 | Method for mixing high-gain and low-gain signal for wide dynamic range image sensor A wide dynamic range image sensor method combines the response of high-gain sensing cells and low-gain sensing cells with better linearity than the prior art. A search is made in successive central regions within the response curve of the high-gain and low-gain cell... | 09/06/2011 |
| 8004579 | Gain measurement structure A CCD Device of the type for providing charge gain by impact ionisation has a multiplication register. Gain provided by a subset of the elements of the multiplication register are independently controllable from other elements in the register. This enables the regis... | 08/23/2011 |
| 7995114 | Method for providing image illumination calibration for an imaging apparatus A method for providing image illumination calibration includes: generating a plurality of images of a calibration target at a plurality of exposure levels, each image of the plurality of images being represented by a total pixel area; identifying a plurality of zone... | 08/09/2011 |
| 7995113 | High gain digital imaging system The present invention provides digital imaging architectures comprising detectors coupled to readout circuitry, wherein the readout circuitry is capable of providing large amplification to small, noise sensitive input signals to improve their noise immunity, as well... | 08/09/2011 |
| 7995116 | Varying camera self-determination based on subject motion In a method and digital camera, an initial set of evaluation images are captured. A plurality of characteristics of the initial set of evaluation images are assessed to provide a first assessment. The characteristics include subject motion between the initial set of... | 08/09/2011 |
| 7995115 | Image pickup device, image pickup system, image pickup method, and image processing device An image pickup device includes: an image pickup unit which picks up a subject at first and second exposure times; a high dynamic range (HDR) image data generating unit which generates first HDR image data configured by pixel data of which pixel values are expressed... | 08/09/2011 |
| 7990433 | Imaging apparatus and imaging method An apparatus and method that determines an appropriate light exposure condition to generate an appropriate synthesized image signal for an imaging scene for which an appropriate light exposure condition cannot be obtained by conventional techniques. The apparatus in... | 08/02/2011 |
