# US 7,609,894 B2 · Adaptive sampling region for a region editing tool > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 7,609,894 B2 - Document ID: US7609894B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 10/940,596 - Filed: 2004-09-14 - Published: 2005-08-18 - Granted: 2009-10-27 - Earliest claimed: 2004-02-17 - Assignees: Corel Corporation - Inventors: Krzysztof Antoni Zaklika; Mikhail Ivanovich Trifonov; Leonid Borisovich Lalyko - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US7609894B2 ## CPC - G06T 5/00: Image enhancement or restoration - G06T 2207/20092: Interactive image processing based on input by user - G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL ## Abstract Properties of pixels in a digital image are sampled within different subdivisions of an editing tool impression to produce different property distributions. The different subdivisions can automatically alter their size, geometry, and/or location, based on image content within one or more of the subdivisions, in order to encompass a set of pixels having a substantially uniform distribution of a pixel property. Uniformity can be defined relative to the editing operation or context of the image. The property distributions from each region are classified to identify different edit classes within the property space, which are then used to apply an edit effect to the digital image within the tool impression. The edit classes may be represented by an edit profile in two or more dimensions. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A method comprising: sampling pixels in a first region within a tool impression in a digital image to determine a first distribution of a pixel property of the pixels in the first region using a processing unit; modifying the first region within the tool impression to encompass a set of additional pixels within the tool impression; determining a second distribution of the pixel property based on the pixels in the modified first region using the processing unit; sampling pixels in a second region within the tool impression to determine a third distribution of the pixel property of the pixels in the second region using the processing unit; and editing at least one pixel within the tool impression based on the second and third distributions. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a detection of an abrupt change in a pixel property trend within the first region. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a uniformity metric. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a pixel property trend in the first region. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a trend in a measure of variability of a pixel property in the first region. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a uniformity metric trend in the first region. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first distribution is characterized by a measure of variability and a measure of central tendency of pixel property difference, and the ratio of the measure of variability and the measure of central tendency of the pixel property difference is less than a defined threshold. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the second distribution is characterized by a measure of variability and a measure of central tendency of pixel property difference and the ratio of the measure of variability and the measure of central tendency of pixel property difference is less than a defined threshold. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has an area and the modifying operation comprises: increasing the area of the first region by one or more pixels to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region uniformly to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region non-uniformly to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 13 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region uniformly in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform; and reverting to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region non-uniformly in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform; and reverting to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform. ### Claim 15 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery that defines an area and the modifying operation comprises: growing the area of the first region to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The method of claim 1 wherein the first region has a periphery that defines an area and the modifying operation comprises: growing the area of the first region without violating a sampling criterion to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 17 A computer readable medium encoding a computer program for executing on a computer system a computer process, the computer process comprising: sampling pixels in a first region within a tool impression in a digital image to determine a first distribution of a pixel property of the pixels in the first region; modifying the first region within the tool impression to encompass a set of additional pixels within the tool impression; determining a second distribution of the pixel property based on the pixels in the modified first region; sampling pixels in a second region within the tool impression to determine a third distribution of the pixel property of the pixels in the second region; and editing at least one pixel within the tool impression based on the second and third distributions. ### Claim 18 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion. ### Claim 19 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a detection of an abrupt change in a pixel property trend within the first region. ### Claim 20 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a uniformity metric. ### Claim 21 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a pixel property trend in the first region. ### Claim 22 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a trend in a measure of variability of a pixel property in the first region. ### Claim 23 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the modifying operation is limited by a sampling criterion based on a uniformity metric trend in the first region. ### Claim 24 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first distribution is characterized by a measure of variability and a measure of central tendency of pixel property difference, and the ratio of the measure of variability and the measure of central tendency of the pixel property difference is less than a defined threshold. ### Claim 25 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the second distribution is characterized by a measure of variability and a measure of central tendency of pixel property difference and the ratio of the measure of variability and the measure of central tendency of pixel property difference is less than a defined threshold. ### Claim 26 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has an area and the modifying operation comprises: increasing the area of the first region by one or more pixels to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 27 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region uniformly to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 28 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region non-uniformly to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 29 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region uniformly in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform; and reverting to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform. ### Claim 30 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery and the modifying operation comprises: modifying the periphery of the first region non-uniformly in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform; and reverting to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform. ### Claim 31 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery that defines an area and the modifying operation comprises: growing the area of the first region to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 32 (depends on 17) The computer readable medium of claim 17 wherein the first region has a periphery that defines an area and the modifying operation comprises: growing the area of the first region without violating a sampling criterion to generate the modified first region. ### Claim 33 A computer-readable medium encoding a computer program for execution on a computer system, the computer program comprising: a region sampling module that samples pixels in a first region within a tool impression in a digital image to determine a first distribution of a pixel property of the pixels in the first region and samples pixels in a second region within the tool impression to determine a second distribution of the pixel property of the pixels in the second region; an adaptive sampling region module that modifies the first region within the tool impression to encompass a set of additional pixels within the tool impression and determines a third distribution of the pixel property based on the pixels in the modified first region; and an editing module that edits at least one pixel within the tool impression based on the second and third distributions. ### Claim 34 (depends on 33) The computer readable medium of claim 33 wherein the first region has a periphery and the adaptive sampling region module further modifies the periphery of the first region uniformly in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform, and reverts to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform. ### Claim 35 A system comprising: means for sampling pixels in a first region within a tool impression in a digital image to determine a first distribution of a pixel property of the pixels in the first region; means for modifying the first region within the tool impression to encompass a set of additional pixels within the tool impression; means for determining a second distribution of the pixel property based on the pixels in the modified first region; means for sampling pixels in a second region within the tool impression to determine a third distribution of the pixel property of the pixels in the second region; and means for editing at least one pixel within the tool impression based on the second and third distributions. ### Claim 36 (depends on 35) The system of claim 35 wherein the first region has a periphery and the means for modifying comprise: means for modifying the periphery of the first region in stages to generate the modified first region until a distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is no longer substantially uniform; and means for reverting to the modified first region of a previous stage in which the distribution of the pixel property of the set of pixels encompassed by the modified first region is substantially uniform.