Patent ID: 7480407

Claim:
A method for identifying layout of a plurality of surface regions on an object, the method comprising the steps of: (a) acquiring a plurality of images of the object under a plurality of mutually different illumination conditions; (b) obtaining layouts of a plurality of image areas different from the layout of the plurality of surface regions on the object by performing segmentation on the plurality of images respectively; and (c) identifying the layout of the plurality of surface regions based on the layouts of the plurality of image areas, wherein the step (a) includes the steps of acquiring a first image of the object under a first illumination condition wherein an image area corresponding to a first surface region among the plurality of surface regions is reproducible by segmentation of the first image; and acquiring a second image of the object under a second illumination condition wherein an image area corresponding to a second surface region among the plurality of surface regions is reproducible by segmentation of the second image, the second surface region being to be represented by two or more image areas in a segmentation result of the first image, and the step (b) includes the steps of: (b1) obtaining a layout of an image area corresponding to a surface region including the first surface region by segmentation of at least a part of the first image; and (b2) obtaining a layout of an image area corresponding to a surface region including the second surface region by segmentation of the second image.