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| Number | Title | Issue Date |
| 8144240 | Digital photographing apparatuses, methods of controlling the same, and recording medium storing computer readable instructions for executing the methods A digital photographing apparatus capable of automatically determining whether a macro mode is an appropriate mode, a methods of controlling the same, and a computer readable recording medium storing instructions for executing the method(s) is disclosed A lens posit... | 03/27/2012 |
| 8035726 | Digital camera and focus control method A focus evaluation value representing a focusing state of a taking lens is repeatedly calculated on the basis of an image signal output from an imaging section of a digital camera, a change in the focus evaluation value generated by the movement of the taking lens i... | 10/11/2011 |
| 7932951 | Focus adjustment device, imaging device and focus adjustment method A video camera constructed according to one aspect of the focus adjustment device moves a focus lens forward and backward and detects peak values of an AF evaluation value of the focus lens in the forward moving direction and in the backward moving direction. The vi... | 04/26/2011 |
| 7688379 | Selecting quality images from multiple captured images A method, apparatus, and system are disclosed for selecting quality images from multiple captured images. One embodiment is an image capturing system. The system includes hardware for capturing a plurality of consecutive images and a processor for determining a qual... | 03/30/2010 |
| 7511759 | Image pickup apparatus, control method thereof, control program thereof and storage medium, with movement of focus lens on basis of evaluation values extracted by long period scan upon failure of detection of peak position by short period scan Evaluation values are extracted at first timings with respect to a movement of a focus lens, and evaluation values are extracted at second timings having higher frequency than the first timings on the basis of the evaluation values extracted at the first timings. Th... | 03/31/2009 |
| 7440690 | Focus detection apparatus and control method thereof An output from an auto focus sensor is converted into a digital signal by an A/D converting section, and an output from the A/C converting section is stored in a memory section. Further, a second AF arithmetic section is used to concurrently execute a plurality of f... | 10/21/2008 |
| 7432975 | Automatic focusing method and digital photographing apparatus using the same Provided are an automatic focusing method in which a photograph region is brought into focus through automatic movement of a focal lens to a focal position, in response to a photographing-command signal, and a digital photographing apparatus using the method. The me... | 10/07/2008 |
| 7421195 | Apparatus for acquiring focussing information and method of acquiring focusing information A storage unit is configured to store beforehand a table that shows a relation between spread parameters and command values supplied to a control unit to acquire a focused image of an object, and information that designates a command value corresponding to an inflec... | 09/02/2008 |
| 7397510 | Automatic focus adjustment apparatus and method A focus adjustment apparatus, which attains focus adjustment by extracting, as a focal point voltage, a predetermined frequency component of a video signal obtained from an image sensor upon sensing an image of an object, and moving a focus adjustment member in an o... | 07/08/2008 |
| 7394943 | Methods, software, and apparatus for focusing an optical system using computer image analysis Methods, software, and apparatus for focusing an image in biological instrument are disclosed. Focusing elements are moved to various focus positions within a focus element travel range, and sample images are captured at the various focus positions. The sample image... | 07/01/2008 |
| 7382411 | Method for focus adjusting and camera A method for focus adjusting through which a subject image formed with a photographic optical system is captured by an image-capturing device and a focus match position for the photographic optical system is calculated based upon focus evaluation values calculated b... | 06/03/2008 |
| 7365789 | Autofocus method and apparatus An object of this invention is to provide an autofocus method and apparatus capable of always performing proper focusing operation. To achieve this object, a control device drives a focus lens in accordance with the operation of an operation device, and stores the s... | 04/29/2008 |
| 7327395 | Autofocus apparatus When a high-frequency component of a video signal that is output from a CCD image sensor (1-2) can be extracted from band-pass filters (1-13, 1-14), the band-pass filters (1-13, 1-14) are changed in accordance ... | 02/05/2008 |
| 7295243 | Autofocus apparatus having a flash synchronized to an autofocus sampling time The autofocus apparatus determines a focus position according to a result of sampling an AF evaluated value and drives a lens system to the focus position. This autofocus apparatus further performs a flash in synchronism with a sampling timing of an AF evaluated val... | 11/13/2007 |
| 7196729 | AF evaluation value calculating device The present invention provides an AF evaluation value calculating device in which speed of AF control does not deteriorate even when a number of AF areas are set. The AF evaluation value calculating device for calculating an AF evaluation value used for AF (auto-foc... | 03/27/2007 |
| 7193196 | Methods and systems for evaluating optical systems Systems and method for determining, based on a gray scale image, focus of an imaging system. A method of this invention includes the steps of: a) acquiring a gray scale image of a test target, b) binarizing the acquired gray scale image, c) analyzing the binarized a... | 03/20/2007 |
| 7181082 | Blur detection system A system of estimating and reducing image blur in digital images stored in a digital file as a sequence of DCT coefficients arranged in a plurality of blocks. The disclosed system may preferably calculate one or more blur indicators from selected ones of the sequenc... | 02/20/2007 |
| 7127125 | Registration of separations Images may be registered using temporal (time-based) and spatial information. In a film implementation, because film is a sequence of frames, using information from neighboring frames may enable a temporally smoother visual experience. In addition, it may be benefic... | 10/24/2006 |
| 7102681 | Focus detecting apparatus In a focus detection apparatus, an accumulation-type sensor formed of a plurality of sensor cells accumulates an image signal, and a component of the image signal is read from each cell for a focus detection calculation. A signal is read from a part of the cells in ... | 09/05/2006 |
| 7079187 | Focus adjusting apparatus and focus adjusting method An apparatus, such as a focus adjusting apparatus, includes a focus adjusting system, a driving device which drives the focus adjusting system from one of a state in which a near-distance object is in focus and a state in which a far-distance object is in focus to t... | 07/18/2006 |
| 7079180 | Electronic camera In an electronic camera, during a photographing operation for photographing a white sheet of paper or the like to obtain white balance data, a plurality of distance measuring points provided in an automatic focusing mechanism are restricted to only the one that is l... | 07/18/2006 |
| 7038708 | Film scanner system with an automatic focusing device In a film scanner with an automatic focusing device in which the film images are shown line by line by means of an objective on at least one line sensor, with a still film the adjusting range of the objective is passed through according to a predefined program. The ... | 05/02/2006 |
| 7024107 | Focusing device and method An automatic focus adjustment device has an image sensing element for converting an object optical image into an electrical signal, and outputting an image signal, a filter for extracting high-frequency components of the image signal obtained by the image sensing el... | 04/04/2006 |
| 6989864 | Automatic focusing device for film scanner An image recorded on a photo film is projected through an imaging lens onto an image sensor. In accordance with a selected mode, set values are read out from a data ROM and are applied to a band pass filter having programmable digital filters. Pixel signals from the... | 01/24/2006 |
| 6972797 | Automatic focusing device and the electronic image pickup apparatus using the same An auto-focusing device and an electronic image pickup apparatus facilitates realizing a high focusing accuracy and a quick focusing operation simultaneously using an inexpensive plastic lens mount. The auto-focusing device according includes a means for correcting ... | 12/06/2005 |
| 6972798 | Focusing device and method An automatic focus adjustment device has an image sensing element for converting an object optical image into an electrical signal, and outputting an image signal, a filter for extracting high-frequency components of the image signal obtained by the image sensing el... | 12/06/2005 |
| 6967686 | Image sensing method, image sensing apparatus, lens control method therefor, and storage medium It is an object of this invention to provide an image sensing method which allows object focus tracking during zooming regardless of the shutter speed. In order to achieve this object, a zoom motor for driving a zoom lens is controlled by a lens control microcompute... | 11/22/2005 |
| 6930720 | Video camera system with interchangeable lens assembly A video camera system having a camera (128) and an interchangeable lens assembly (127) attachable to and detachable from the camera. A distance measurement frame is set by a distance measurement frame controller (129) on photographer's line-of-s... | 08/16/2005 |
| 6928241 | Autofocus apparatus and method and image sensing apparatus An object of this invention is to provide an autofocus apparatus and method, and an image sensing apparatus capable of shortening the AF time without decreasing the AF precision even when the total number of acquired AF evaluation signals is large. To achieve this o... | 08/09/2005 |
| 6927376 | Autofocusing method for telescopes pertaining to surveying equipment The invention relates to an autofocusing method, particularly for telescopes for surveying instruments which are fitted with image sensors that resolve the image signal into individual image elements (pixels), such as CCD lines and/or matrices as well as CMOS image ... | 08/09/2005 |
| 6822688 | Movable-lens position control apparatus An optical apparatus having an image-forming optical system comprising a movable lens, comprises a lens drive mechanism for moving the movable lens, a focus adjusting device for automatically adjusting an imaging position by moving the movable lens or another optica... | 11/23/2004 |
| 6798455 | Image pickup apparatus having a common circuit portion for autofocusing and outline emphazising circuits A luminance signal is extracted from an image pickup signal photographed by a solid state image pickup device and at least a high frequency component in the extracted luminance signal is extracted by a filter. A gain of at least the high frequency component in the l... | 09/28/2004 |
| 6765618 | Subject selection device and in-focus portion indicating device A subject selection device comprises a light source and an imaging device, such as a CCD, having a plurality of photo-diodes. The light source radiates a distance measuring light beam toward a plurality of objects. A reflected light beam, generated by the objects du... | 07/20/2004 |
| 6721499 | Camera A camera includes an imaging element that picks up an image of an object through a taking-lens, an evaluation value calculator that calculates focus evaluation value based upon a picked-up imaging signal, a selector that selects one focusing mode from a plurality of... | 04/13/2004 |
| 6512549 | Automatic focusing apparatus There is disclosed an integrated circuit for focus control, which is obtained by integrating, on a single chip, a filter circuit for extracting a predetermined signal component, which changes in accordance with a focusing state, from an image pickup signa... | 01/28/2003 |
| 6490375 | Methods for finding peaks in a characteristic surface of an image An efficient and reliable method that identifies possible reference sites in an image is disclosed. The method emphasizes customizing the identification of reference sites for each application by providing for initialization of various parameters, such as... | 12/03/2002 |
| 6441855 | Focusing device A focusing device includes a movable focusing lens adapted to be moved to different positions, a conversion element for converting light incident on and transmitted through the focusing lens into a signal, and a lens driving mechanism for moving the focus... | 08/27/2002 |
| 6342922 | Image pickup apparatus having normal and high resolution modes An image pickup apparatus with operation modes including a normal-resolution mode and a high-resolution mode has the capability of automatically adjusting the focus by driving a part of an imaging optical system wherein the minimum amount of movement in d... | 01/29/2002 |
| 6166771 | Peak hold method and apparatus for detecting a peak value from a plurality of input sections An adaptive peak value detector, wherein the peak value for a peak hold section is detected, the peak hold section being selected by a peak hold control circuit. A solid-state imaging sensor generates pixel signals representative of an image and the peak ... | 12/26/2000 |
| 6094537 | Auto focus camera An auto focus camera includes a motor drive circuit. This motor drive circuit causes an AF lens to move by a first predetermined amount a time. A micro-computer determines AF evaluation values at respective lens positions. The AF evaluation values thus de... | 07/25/2000 |
