# US 8,542,909 B2 · Method and apparatus for measuring an audiovisual parameter

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 8,542,909 B2
- Document ID: US8542909B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 13/081,395
- Filed: 2011-04-06
- Published: 2011-10-13
- Granted: 2013-09-24
- Earliest claimed: 2010-04-09
- Assignees: Tektronix, Inc.
- Applicants: Antoni Caceres; Martin Norman
- Inventors: Antoni Caceres; Martin Norman
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US8542909B2

## CPC

- G11B 15/605: {without displacing the guiding means}
- G06T 7/0002: {Inspection of images, e.g. flaw detection}
- G06T 7/32: using correlation-based methods
- G06T 7/593: from stereo images
- G06T 2207/10012: Stereo images
- G06T 2207/10016: Video; Image sequence
- G06T 2207/10021: Stereoscopic video; Stereoscopic image sequence
- G06T 2207/20092: Interactive image processing based on input by user
- G06T 2207/30168: Image quality inspection
- H04N 13/398: Synchronisation thereof; Control thereof
- H04N 2013/0081: {Depth or disparity estimation from stereoscopic image signals}
- G11B: INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORD CARRIER AND TRANSDUCER (recording measured values in a way that does not require playback through a transducer G01D9/00; recording or playback apparatus using mechanically marked tape, e.g. punched paper tape, or using unit records, e.g. punched or magnetically marked cards G06K; transferring data from one type of record carrier to another G06K1/18; circuits for coupling output of reproducer to radio receiver H04B1/20; gramophone pick-ups or like acoustic electromechanical transducers or circuits therefor H04R)
- G06T: IMAGE DATA PROCESSING OR GENERATION, IN GENERAL
- H04N: PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION

## Abstract

There is provided a method of measuring 3D depth of a stereoscopic image, comprising providing left and right eye input images, applying an edge extraction filter to each of the left and right eye input images, and determining 3D depth of the stereoscopic image using the edge extracted left and right eye images. There is also provided an apparatus for carrying out the method of measuring 3D depth of a stereoscopic image.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A method of measuring 3D depth of a stereoscopic image, comprising:
providing left and right eye input images;
applying an edge extraction filter to each of the left and right eye input images;
in a processor, determining 3D depth of the stereoscopic image using the edge extracted left and right eye images including:
selecting a kernel of pixels for comparison in one of the left or right eye edge extracted images;
determining a most similar selection of pixels in another one of the left or right eye edge extracted images;
correlating the selected kernel of pixels from one of the left eye edge extracted image or the right eye edge extracted image, with a range of pixels from the other one of the left or right eye edge extracted images, in which the range of pixels from the other one of the left or right eye edge extracted images comprises a search window, said search window:
having a height equivalent to the kernel of pixels height, and a user-defined length; or
having a user-defined height greater than the kernel of pixels height, and a user-defined length.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the edge extraction filters are colour coded, and the method further comprises superimposing colour coded edge extracted left and right eye images onto a single screen for display to a user.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the edge extraction filters are applied to the luminance component of each pixel in the left and right eye images.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, further comprising determining a parallax value indicative of a depth for each pixel in a stereoscopic image.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The method of claim 4, wherein determining a parallax value comprises:
providing a separation value between the relative positions of the selected kernel from one eye edge extracted image to the other eye edge extracted image.

### Claim 6 (depends on 5)

The method of claim 5, further comprising determining if any determined parallax value exceeds a user defined positive or negative threshold.

### Claim 7 (depends on 5)

The method of claim 5, further comprising applying at least one colour according to an amount of parallax attributed to a pixel, and displaying a colour coded greyscale version of the stereoscopic image to show parallax distribution across the stereoscopic image.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein the correlation uses an inverse of a sum of absolute differences between pixels of the left or right eye edge extracted images.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The method of claim 1, wherein determining a most similar selection further comprises selecting a compared position using a sufficient peak magnitude.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9, wherein if a sufficient peak magnitude is not found, then a parallax value is omitted for the pixel under test.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

A computing device structured to perform the method of claim 1.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

Operational monitoring equipment for use in television broadcast system testing comprising the computing device of claim 11.