Image processing method, recording medium, image processing apparatus, and image processing system
An image processing method performed by an image processing apparatus includes acquiring multiple still images of omnidirectional views captured at different image-capturing positions in a site by an image-capturing apparatus; acquiring a moving image captured by the image-capturing apparatus during movement of the image-capturing apparatus from a first location to a second location in the site; estimating the image-capturing positions of the multiple still images based on the acquired moving image; and generating a processed image including the multiple still images associated with each other based on the estimated image-capturing positions.
1 . An image processing method, comprising:
acquiring multiple still images of omnidirectional views captured at different image-capturing positions in corresponding spaces in a site, wherein each image-capturing position is captured within a different space of the spaces in the site;
acquiring a moving image during movement from a first location to a second location in the site such that the moving image is acquired at least from the first location and the second location;
estimating the image-capturing positions of the multiple still images of the spaces based on the acquired moving image;
generating a path that associates the image-capturing positions of the multiple still images of the spaces with each other; and
generating, based on the path, a virtual tour image for viewing the spaces inside the structure, the virtual tour image including the multiple still images associated with each other.
2 . The image processing method according to claim 1 , further comprising:
estimating shapes of the spaces in the site reflected in the moving image, wherein
the estimating of the image-capturing positions is performed based on the acquired moving image and the estimated shape, and
the generating of the path is performed based on the estimated image-capturing positions and the estimated shapes.
3 . The image processing method according to claim 2 , further comprising:
detecting, from the estimated shapes, a shape to which a point on the path belongs, wherein
in response to detecting that the point belongs to two or more of the shapes, the generating of the path is performed such that the point belongs to a shape closest to the point.
4 . The image processing method according to claim 3 , further comprising:
determining an intended use of each of the spaces, wherein
the generating of the path is performed based on the determined intended use.
5 . The image processing method according to claim 4 , wherein the generating of the path sets a starting point of the path based on the determined intended use.
6 . The image processing method according to claim 1 , wherein the moving image has a lower resolution than resolution of the multiple still images.
7 . The image processing method according to claim 1 , wherein the acquiring acquires spherical images.
8 . A non-transitory computer readable recording medium storing a computer-readable code for controlling a computer to carry out the image processing method according to claim 1 .
9 . An image processing apparatus, comprising:
still-image acquisition circuitry configured to acquire multiple still images of omnidirectional views captured at different image-capturing positions in corresponding spaces in a site, wherein each image-capturing position is captured within a different space of the spaces in the site;
moving-image acquisition circuitry configured to acquire a moving image captured during a movement from a first location to a second location in the site;
position estimation circuitry configured to estimate the image-capturing positions of the multiple still images of the spaces based on the acquired moving image; and
image processing circuitry configured to
generate a path that associates the image-capturing positions of the multiple still images of the spaces with each other; and
generate, based on the path, a virtual tour image for viewing the spaces inside the structure, the virtual tour image including the multiple still images associated with each other.
10 . An image processing system, comprising:
the image processing apparatus according to claim 9 ; and
an image-capturing apparatus to capture the moving image and the multiple still image, wherein
the image-capturing apparatus includes image-capturing control circuitry configured to switch between a still-image capturing mode to capture the still images and a moving-image capturing mode to capture the moving image in a time-division manner.
11 . The image processing system according to claim 10 , wherein the image-capturing control circuitry switches between the multiple still-image capturing mode and the moving-image capturing mode according to a movement state of the image-capturing apparatus in the site.
12 . The image processing system according to claim 10 , further comprising:
a communication terminal communicable with the image processing apparatus, the communication terminal including display control circuitry configured to display the processed image generated by the image processing apparatus.
13 . The image processing system according to claim 12 , wherein the display control circuitry displays the virtual tour image in which the path associating the multiple still image with each other are superimposed on the multiple still images.