Vision - May/June 2008 - (Page 31)

by Murray Slovick ] • [ defining the digital world activate auto-focusing based on the location of the detected face; the camera will focus automatically on the person rather than other objects elsewhere in the frame. The face detection system also can adjust exposure to compensate for uneven lighting and unwanted shadows, handle flash intensity and modify color balance as well as correct skin tone and eliminate red eye. When the feature first appeared at the end of 2006, digital cameras relied exclusively on frontal face detection; you were required to pretty much aim the camera at a subject facing forward, not in profile. Since then newer algorithms have emerged that solve the technical problems of subjects not looking directly at the camera; these systems can recognize profiles at up to a 90-degree angle. Still, face detection is not totally foolproof and the system may not recognize a face if it is too near or far from the camera, or if some portion of the face is covered. Cameras that include this feature rely on algorithms embedded on an IC chip that can almost instantly—the process takes only a few hundredths of a second— select the area to focus on while you aim the camera. Often there Murray Slovick is a separate LSI (large-scale integrated circuit) within the camera to run the face detection feature. In the case of Fujifilm’s “Image Intelligence” system, for example, a chip inside the camera constantly scans the image in its viewfinder for eyes, a nose, mouth and ears, identifying as many as 10 faces at a time before you’ve hit the shutter. Face detection in Canon’s digital cameras happen through its fast DIGIC III processor. Similarly, powered by its Bionz processor, Sony’s enhanced face detection feature can identify and focus on as many as eight faces in a scene, automatically adjusting focus and exposure for clearer portraits. At the 2008 International CES, both Panasonic and Sony also introduced camcorders with built-in face detection. tech speak What’s Next? A great deal of recent engineering work has been aimed at adding a smile detection mode to face detection, determining when your subject smiles. As an example, consider SmileCheck from Fotonation, a company that supplies face detection technology to camera makers such as Pentax and Samsung. The circuitry first looks for faces in the scene of the photo, then, when the shutter release is pressed, waits until all faces in the scene are smiling before capturing the image. Note: FotoNation recently was acquired by electronics supplier Tessera Technologies. Thanks to cleverly designed programming, Version 3 of Oki’s FSE (Face Sensing Engine) middleware also can trigger a digital camera (or mobile phone) shutter automatically when the subject in the photo frame smiles. Used by Casio Exilim cameras, among others, one virtue of FSE is that it is a compact program requiring only 393KB for all functions, just 115KB for face area detection/tracking only. Once faces are detected, software behind Sony’s “Smile Shutter” mode looks for facial features associated with smiles, such as a subject’s cheekbones moving higher. Smile-detection accuracy also rises, when the subject delivers a broad smile with teeth visible and narrowed eyes. Not to be outdone, ArcSoft, a leading provider of digital imaging technologies, has come up with Blink Detection, alerting the user to any closed eyes detected in the frame. General Imaging’s 2008 models are among the first on the market to offer both smile detection and blink detection to allow users to capture their subjects at exactly the right moment. In a typical scenario a blink warning appears on the camera’s display when the system detects that a subject has closed his or her eyes. So this year keep your eyes open for digital cameras complete with face detection to find and focus on a person’s face anywhere they happen to be. • O Your Face in Perfect Focus ne year it was a megapixelresolution horsepower race. Another year everyone was talking up anti-shake image stabilization. And then there was the contest to be king of telephoto zoom ratios. Is there a sure-fire answer to what’s the must-have feature in digital cameras this year? Based on products introduced at or since the 2008 International CES, this year the well-appointed compact digital camera comes with face detection to find and focus on a person’s face anywhere in the picture frame. Market research indicates that many of us soon will make the move to automatic face detection as a standard part of our photographic diet. More than two-thirds of new digital cameras now provide some variation of the feature with all of the major camera manufacturers participating, including industry stalwarts Canon, Casio, Fujifilm, GE, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Pentax, Samsung and Sony. Facial detection systems work by scanning for known details, including the shape of a human face and facial elements (eyes, nose, etc.). Once found, the information is used to www.ce.org Marcus Mok/Getty Images Market research indicates that many of us soon will make the move to automatic face detection as a standard part of our photographic diet. 31 May/June 2008 http://www.ce.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Vision - May/June 2008

Vision - May/June 2008 Contents Shapiro's Spectrum In This Issue The Economist C4 Trends Visionary Making the Smartphone Truly Intelligent Shipping Strategies for CE Companies IP in BRIC Countries CEA Newsline Tech Speak Eye on Business Tech Policy Market Insider Just the Stats

Vision - May/June 2008

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