Light source direction estimating method and apparatus

A light source direction estimating apparatus, wherein an image is obtained, which image has been formed by performing an image recording operation on an object under a substantially single light source, the object containing an area, which has approximately uniform surface reflectivity and which exhibits diffuse reflection, and wherein a direction of the light source, under which the image recording operation was performed, is estimated in accordance with the image, the apparatus comprising:

• means for estimating the direction of the light source, under which the image recording operation was performed, in accordance with signal values of an object image signal, which represents an object image embedded in the image having been obtained from the image recording operation, and relationship between a position of a three-dimensional body image, which is represented by a position-matched three-dimensional shape signal that has been obtained from position matching performed on the object image signal and a three-dimensional shape signal representing a three-dimensional shape of the object, and positions of virtual light sources having been set in a plurality of arbitrary directions.

A recording medium, on which a program for causing a computer to execute a light source direction estimating method has been recorded and from which the computer is capable of reading the program, the light source direction estimating method comprising obtaining an image, which has been formed by performing an image recording operation on an object under a substantially single light source, the object containing an area, which has approximately uniform surface reflectivity and which exhibits diffuse reflection, and estimating a direction of the light source, under which the image recording operation was performed, in accordance with the image,

• wherein the program comprises the procedure for:
• estimating the direction of the light source, under which the image recording operation was performed, in accordance with signal values of an object image signal, which represents an object image embedded in the image having been obtained from the image recording operation, and relationship between a position of a three-dimensional body image, which is represented by a position-matched three-dimensional shape signal that has been obtained from position matching performed on the object image signal and a three-dimensional shape signal representing a three-dimensional shape of the object, and positions of virtual light sources having been set in a plurality of arbitrary directions.

A light source direction estimating method, wherein an image is obtained, which image has been formed by performing an image recording operation on an object under a plurality of light sources such that light interception occurs, the object containing an area, which has approximately uniform surface reflectivity and which exhibits diffuse reflection, and wherein a direction of each of the light sources, under which the image recording operation was performed, is estimated in accordance with the image, the method comprising the step of:

• estimating the direction of each of the light sources, under which the image recording operation was performed, in accordance with signal values of an object image signal, which represents an object image embedded in the image having been obtained from the image recording operation, and relationship between a position of a three-dimensional body image, which is represented by a position-matched three-dimensional shape signal that has been obtained from position matching performed on the object image signal and a three-dimensional shape signal representing a three-dimensional shape of the object, and positions of virtual light sources having been set in a plurality of arbitrary directions.

A light source direction estimating apparatus, wherein an image is obtained, which image has been formed by performing an image recording operation on an object under a plurality of light sources such that light interception occurs, the object containing an area, which has approximately uniform surface reflectivity and which exhibits diffuse reflection, and wherein a direction of each of the light sources, under which the image recording operation was performed, is estimated in accordance with the image, the apparatus comprising:

• means for estimating the direction of each of the light sources, under which the image recording operation was performed, in accordance with signal values of an object image signal, which represents an object image embedded in the image having been obtained from the image recording operation, and relationship between a position of a three-dimensional body image, which is represented by a position-matched three-dimensional shape signal that has been obtained from position matching performed on the object image signal and a three-dimensional shape signal representing a three-dimensional shape of the object, and positions of virtual light sources having been set in a plurality of arbitrary directions.