Patent ID: 8218202

Claim:
A method of combining multiple images wherein the images exhibit variations in illumination between one another, the method comprising: generating a plurality of images of the same portion of an object, by a hardware image sensor, each image being represented by a respective set of image data; applying, by a hardware processor, a comparative data transform to each set of image data such that the transformed comparative image data isolates and preserves first variations in the illumination between the plurality of images but suppresses second variations in the illumination between the plurality of images; determining, by the hardware processor, at least one normalization transform from the transformed comparative image data sets such that when applied to at least one of the plurality of image data sets the variation in illumination between the plurality of image data sets is minimized; applying, by the hardware processor, the at least one determined normalization transform to the at least one of the plurality of image data sets; and transforming, by the hardware processor, the normalized sets of image data to a single image of the portion of the object.