Image processing apparatus, image processing method, and computer-readable recording medium

An image processing method comprising:

• a feature point extracting step of extracting first feature points from a first image, and extracting second feature points from a second image obtained by capturing an image of a portion of a subject in the first image;
• a combination specifying step of specifying combinations of a first feature point and a second feature point that satisfy a setting requirement, from among the extracted first feature points and the second feature points;
• a normalization processing step of normalizing position information of a first feature point and a second feature point such that a position of the first feature point and a position of the second feature point becomes closer to each other, for each of the specified combinations;
• an encoding step of encoding feature amounts of the first feature point and the second feature point in a state where the normalized position information is added thereto;
• and
• a matching processing step of executing matching processing on the encoded first feature point and second feature point, and specifying a pair of first and second feature points that correspond to each other.

A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium that includes a program including instructions recorded thereon, the instructions causing a computer to carry out:

• a feature point extracting step of extracting first feature points from a first image, and extracting second feature points from a second image obtained by capturing an image of a portion of a subject in the first image;
• a combination specifying step of specifying combinations of a first feature point and a second feature point that satisfy a setting requirement, from among the extracted first feature points and the second feature points;
• a normalization processing step of normalizing position information of a first feature point and a second feature point such that a position of the first feature point and a position of the second feature point become closer to each other, for each of the specified combinations;
• an encoding step for encoding feature amounts of the first feature point and the second feature point in a state where the normalized position information is added thereto;
• and
• a matching processing step of executing matching processing on the encoded first feature point and second feature point, and specifying a pair of first and second feature points that correspond to each other.