COMPOSITE IMAGE FORMED FROM AN IMAGE SEQUENCE

1 . A method for forming a composite image from a sequence of digital images, comprising:

receiving a sequence of digital images of a scene, each digital image being captured at a different time, wherein the scene includes a moving object;

using a data processor to automatically analyze two or more of the digital images in the sequence of digital images to determine a rate of motion for the moving object;

determining a frame rate responsive to the rate of motion for the moving object;

selecting a subset of the digital images from the sequence of digital images corresponding to the determined frame rate; and

forming the composite image by combining the selected subset of digital images from the sequence of digital images.

2 . The method of claim 1 wherein the rate of motion includes both a direction and a magnitude.

3 . The method of claim 1 wherein the determination of the frame rate includes:

determining an initial object position for the moving object;

determining a projected time interval required for the moving object to reach the edge of the image based on the rate of motion; and

determining the frame rate responsive to the projected time interval and a specified number of digital images.

4 . The method of claim 3 wherein the specified number of digital images is predefined.

5 . The method of claim 3 wherein the specified number of digital images is user-selectable using a user interface.

6 . The method of claim 3 wherein the specified number of digital images is determined responsive to the rate of motion.

7 . The method of claim 3 wherein the specified number of digital images is determined responsive to a size of the moving object.

8 . The method of claim 3 wherein the specified number of digital images is determined such that the image of the moving object in each of the captured digital images will be substantially non-overlapping with the images of the moving object in the other captured digital images.

9 . The method of claim 1 wherein the moving object is a main subject in the scene as determined using a main subject detection algorithm.

10 . The method of claim 1 wherein the moving object is a foreground object in the scene.

11 . The method of claim 1 wherein the moving object is an object determined to be the fastest moving object in the scene.

12 . The method of claim 1 wherein each of the digital images in the stored set of captured digital images are stored in separate digital image files.

13 . The method of claim 1 wherein the composite image is a montage image including each of the selected subset of digital images.

14 . The method of claim 1 wherein the composite image is formed by extracting the moving object from the selected subset of digital images and combining them onto a common background image.

15 . The method of claim 14 wherein the common background image corresponds to the background from one of the digital images in the selected subset of digital images, or to a combination of the backgrounds from a plurality of the digital images in the selected subset of digital images.

16 . The method of claim 1 wherein rates of motion are determined for a plurality of moving objects, and wherein the frame rate is determined responsive to the rates of motion for the plurality of moving objects.

17 . The method of claim 1 wherein the sequence of digital images is a digital video sequence.