Image processing apparatus and image processing method

An image processing apparatus comprising:

• a face detecting unit to detect a human face in an input depth data;
• a background model producing/updating unit to produce a background model using a depth data of an input first frame and detection results of the face detecting unit;
• a candidate region extracting unit to produce a candidate region that will serve as a human body region by comparing the background model with a depth data of an input second or subsequent frame and to extract a final candidate region by removing a region, which is judged using the detection results of the face detecting unit as containing a moving object other than a human, from the candidate region, wherein the candidate region extracting unit is configured to set a closer region than the background model as the candidate region;
• and
• a human body region extracting unit to extract the human body region from the candidate region that is extracted from the depth data of a current frame using a human body region extracted from the depth data of a previous frame, the human body region extracting unit including,
• a first calculator to search the human body region from the candidate region extracted from the depth data of the current frame via implementation of tracking using hard constraint conditions,
• a second calculator to expand the human body region, searched by the first calculator, via implementation of tracking using soft constraint conditions to complete the human body region, and
• a third calculator to extract a new human body region via inspection of the candidate region that remains rather than being extracted as the human body region during tracking using the hard constraint conditions used by the first calculator and tracking using the soft constraint conditions used by the second calculator, the new body region being different than the body region extracted from the depth data of the previous frame.

An image processing method comprising:

• detecting a human face in an input image;
• producing a background model using a depth data of an input first frame and the face detection results;
• producing a candidate region that will serve as a human body region by comparing the background model with a depth data of an input second or subsequent frame, wherein the producing the candidate region includes setting a closer region than the background model as the candidate region;
• extracting a final candidate region by removing a region, which is judged using the detection results of the face detecting unit as containing a moving object other than a human, from the candidate region;
• and
• extracting the human body region from the candidate region that is extracted from the depth data of a current frame using a human body region extracted from the depth data of a previous frame, the extracting the human body region including,
• searching the human body region from the candidate region extracted from the depth data of the current frame via implementation of tracking using hard constraint conditions,
• expanding the human body region, searched via implementation of tracking using hard constraint conditions, via implementation of tracking using soft constraint conditions, to complete the human body region, and
• extracting a new human body region via inspection of the candidate region that remains rather than being extracted as the human body region during tracking using the hard constraint conditions used during the searching and tracking using the soft constraint conditions used during the expanding, the new body region being different than the body region extracted from the depth data of the previous frame.

An image processing method comprising:

• detecting a human face in an input depth data;
• producing a background model using a depth data of an input first frame and the face detection results;
• producing a candidate region that will serve as a human body region by comparing the background model with a depth data of an input second or subsequent frame, wherein the producing the candidate region includes setting a closer region than the background model as the candidate region;
• extracting a final candidate region by removing a region, which is judged using the face detection results as containing a moving object other than a human, from the candidate region;
• and
• extracting the human body region from the candidate region that is extracted from the depth data of a current frame using a human body region extracted from the depth data of a previous frame, the extracting the human body region including,
• searching the human body region from the candidate region extracted from the depth data of the current frame via implementation of tracking using hard constraint conditions,
• expanding the human body region, searched via implementation of tracking using hard constraint conditions, via implementation of tracking using soft constraint conditions, to complete the human body region, and
• extracting a new human body region via inspection of the candidate region that remains rather than being extracted as the human body region during tracking using the hard constraint conditions used during the searching and tracking using the soft constraint conditions used during the expanding, the new body region being different than the body region extracted from the depth data of the previous frame.