User defined autofocus area
View Patent ↗A device allows a user to select an arbitrary portion of a scene being previewed for picture taking. In one implementation, the device includes a camera; a display to preview a scene associated with the camera; an interface configured to allow a user of the device to select a portion of the scene; and autofocus logic to adjust the focus of the camera based on the selected portion of the scene.
1. A device comprising:
a camera;
a display to preview a scene associated with the camera;
an interface to receive a selected portion of the scene from a user; and
a processor to:
recognize boundaries of a shape in the scene using image processing techniques, where the shape includes the selected portion,
select the shape based on the recognized boundaries, and
adjust a focus of the camera based on the selected shape.
2. The device of claim 1 , where the processor adjusts the focus of the camera by adjusting a focal length of an optical component of the camera using image processing techniques applied to the selected portion of the scene.
3. The device of claim 1 , where the display includes a touch-screen display.
4. The device of claim 3 , where the processor is further to:
allow the user to select a portion of the scene by touching the display with a stylus or a finger.
5. The device of claim 1 , where the processor is further to:
overlay an icon on the scene, where the location of the icon is controllable to select the portion of the scene.
6. The device of claim 1 , where the processor is to adjusts the focus of the camera using a passive autofocus technique.
7. The device of claim 1 , where the processor is to adjusts the focus of the camera using an active autofocus technique.
8. The device of claim 1 , where the device is a mobile phone.
9. A method comprising:
displaying, by a display device coupled to a camera, a scene from the camera;
receiving, by an input device coupled to the camera, a selection of a portion of the scene from a user on the display device;
processing, using a processor associated with the camera, the scene to recognize boundaries of a shape in the scene using image processing techniques, where the shape includes the selected portion,
selecting, using the processor the shape based on the recognized boundaries; and
adjusting, using the processor, an optical component of the camera to optimize focus of the camera at the selected shape.
10. method of claim 9 , further comprising:
capturing an image of the scene in response to a command from the user; and
storing the captured image.
11. The method of claim 9 , where the shape is a humanoid shape.
12. The method of claim 9 , where adjusting the optical component of the camera is based on passive autofocusing techniques.
13. The method of claim 9 , where adjusting the optical component of the camera is based on active autofocusing techniques.
14. A device comprising:
means for displaying a scene from a camera;
means for receiving a selection of a portion of the scene from a user;
means for recognizing boundaries of a shape in the scene using image processing techniques, where the shape includes the selected portion;
means for selecting the shape based on the recognized boundaries; and
means for adjusting an optical component of the camera based on the selected shape.
15. The device of claim 14 , where the device includes a mobile terminal.