IP Library Granted Patent US 7,821,545
Granted Patent B2
US 7,821,545 · App. 11/523,624 · Granted Oct 26, 2010

Portable information terminal and image management program

View Patent ↗
Loading inventors, assignments & file history…
Monitor This Case
Get email alerts when status or documents change.
Order Certified Copies
Most orders are placed with the USPTO same day — all within 24 business hours.
Order via The Patent Place →
Pre-filled with this patent's details
Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 7,821,545
App. No.
11/523,624
Granted
Oct 26, 2010
Kind
B2
Abstract

A portable information terminal and an image management program are provided. A portable information terminal includes: a display part which has a screen capable of displaying at least an image; an in-focus value computing part which computes an in-focus value from an original image; an image cutting part which cuts a thumbnail image from the original image based on the in-focus value computed at the in-focus value computing part; a data storage part which stores data of the thumbnail image cut at the image cutting part; and a control part which reads the data of the thumbnail image stored in the data storage part as necessary and displays it on a screen of the display part.

Claims (29)

1. A portable information terminal comprising:

a display part which has a screen capable of displaying at least an image;

an in-focus value computing part which computes an in-focus value from an original image, divides the original image into a plurality of equal areas, and computes an in-focus value for each of the areas equally divided;

an image cutting part which cuts a thumbnail image from the original image based on the in-focus value computed at the in-focus value computing part, compares the in-focus value for each of the areas computed at the in-focus value computing part with a predetermined threshold based on an in-focus value distribution, detects an-areas having an in-focus value exceeding the predetermined threshold as plural in-focus areas, and cuts an image in a predetermined size including the plural in-focus area out of the original image to set it as a thumbnail image of the original image;

a data storage part which stores data of the thumbnail image cut at the image cutting part; and

a control part which reads the data of the thumbnail image stored in the data storage part as necessary and displays it on a screen of the display part.

2. The portable information terminal according to claim 1 , wherein

the image cutting part detects an area having a maximum in-focus value as an in-focus area among each of the areas that an in-focus value is computed at the in-focus value computing part, and cuts an image in a predetermined size including the in-focus area out of the original image to set it as a thumbnail image.

3. The portable information terminal according to claim 1 , wherein when the image cutting part detects a plurality of in-focus areas in the original image, it cuts an image in a predetermined size including an in-focus area closer to the center of the original image out of the original image to set it as a thumbnail image.

4. The portable information terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the in-focus value computing part computes the in-focus value from an original image taken by a camera built in the terminal, or an original image stored in the data storage part.

5. The portable information terminal according to claim 1 , wherein the in-focus value computing part computes an in-focus value by modified Laplacian computation.

6. An image management program product allowing a portable information terminal to display images, said image management program

product stored on a computer readable medium and including program code for performing steps comprising:

computing an in-focus value from an original image,

dividing the original image into a plurality of equal areas, and

computing the in-focus value for each of the areas equally divided;

cutting a thumbnail image from the original image based on the in-focus value from the original image,

comparing the in-focus value for each of the plurality of equal areas with a predetermined threshold based on an in-focus value distribution, wherein said in-focus value distribution is a three-dimensional value distribution such that the in-focus value obtained is great in an area near a focal point that includes an in-focus object and small in an area not near the focal point,

detecting an area having an in-focus value exceeding the predetermined threshold as an in-focus area, and

cutting an image in a predetermined size including the in-focus area out of the original image to set it as a thumbnail image of the original image;

storing data of the thumbnail image cut out at the image cutting part in a data storage part; and

reading the data of the thumbnail image stored in the data storage part as necessary and displays it on a screen of a display part.

7. A portable information terminal comprising:

a display part which has a screen capable of displaying at least an image;

an in-focus value computing part which computes an in-focus value from an original image, divides the original image into a plurality of equal areas, and computes an in-focus value distribution for each of the areas equally divided,

wherein the in-focus value distribution is a three-dimensional value distribution such that the in-focus value obtained is great in an area near a focal point that includes an in-focus object and small in an area not near the focal point;

an image cutting part which cuts a thumbnail image from the original image based on the in-focus value computed at the in-focus value computing part, compares the in-focus value for each of the areas computed at the in-focus value computing part with a predetermined threshold based on an in-focus value distribution, detects an area having an in-focus value exceeding the predetermined threshold as an in-focus area, and cuts an image in a predetermined size including the in-focus area out of the original image to set it as a thumbnail image of the original image;

a data storage part which stores data of the thumbnail image cut at the image cutting part; and

a control part which reads the data of the thumbnail image stored in the data storage part as necessary and displays it on a screen of the display part.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 29, 2019
From: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
To: SONY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 050459/0287 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Mar 26, 2019
From: SONY ERICSSON MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS JAPAN, INC.
To: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS JAPAN, INC.
Reel/Frame 048697/0568 →
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Mar 26, 2019
From: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS JAPAN, INC.
To: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 048698/0713 →