Microsoft patents image editing method that smooths out brightness levels
Microsoft describes a system that adjusts the brightness of digital images by comparing their current color distribution to a smoothed target version. The process involves counting how many pixels share similar brightness values and then remapping them to create a more balanced final image.
In the filing’s own words
A system for facilitating tone mapping is configurable to (i) generate an input image histogram based on one or more input images, the input image histogram comprising a plurality of bins, wherein each bin of the plurality of bins is associated with one or more pixel values and indicates a quantity of pixels that comprise the one or more pixel values; (ii) generate a target histogram based at least on the input image histogram; and (iii) generate an output image by using the target histogram to map pixel values of at least one of the one or more input images to corresponding pixel values in the output image.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. A system for facilitating tone mapping, the system comprising: one or more processors; and one or more hardware storage devices that store instructions that are executable by the one or more processors to configure the system to: generate an input image histogram based on one or more input images, the input image histogram comprising a plurality of bins, wherein each bin of the plurality of bins is associated with one or more pixel values and indicates a quantity of pixels that comprise the one or more pixel values; generate a target histogram based at least on the input image histogram by applying one or more smoothing operations to the input image histogram generated based on the one or more input images; and generate an output image by using the target histogram to map pixel values of at least one of the one or more input images to corresponding pixel values in the output image.
Facts
- Company
- Microsoft (MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING, LLC)
- Official title
- Tone mapping via dynamic histogram matching
- Patent number
- US12755340B2
- Application number
- 18325437
- Filed
- May 30, 2023
- Granted
- Oct 6, 2026
- Inventors
- 3
- Claims
- 12
Classified under
G06T 5/40 Physics & computingG06T 5/10 Physics & computingG06T 5/50 Physics & computingG06T 5/70 Physics & computingMore from Microsoft in AI & software
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.