Patent ID: 6941018

Claim:
An apparatus for searching corresponding points between an input image and a reference image which is an object of comparison with the input image, said apparatus comprising: a similarity degree image production unit which produces a plurality of similarity degree images each having a plurality of similarity degrees between the input image and the reference image as a plurality of pixel values; and a corresponding point detection unit which detects corresponding points between the input image and the reference image based on the similarity degree images produced by said similarity degree image production unit, wherein said similarity degree image production unit includes: a reference partial image production unit which divides the reference image into a plurality of blocks as a plurality of reference partial images; an input partial image production unit which divides the input image into a plurality of blocks as a plurality of input partial images; and a similarity degree calculation unit which calculates the similarity degrees between the input partial images and the reference partial images, wherein the similarity degree images include a first similarity degree image and a second similarity degree image, and wherein said corresponding point detection unit includes: an accumulation-addition unit which sequentially accumulation-adds a first pixel value of a first pixel selected from a group of pixels including one pixel and a plurality of pixels around the one pixel in the first similarity degree image, to a second pixel value of a second pixel in the second similarity degree image, the one pixel having a coordinate in a block defined by each of the similarity degree images, the coordinate corresponding to that of the second pixel; and a corresponding point specific unit which specifies the corresponding points based on the similarity degree images which have been accumulatively added by said accumulation-addition unit, wherein said accumulation-addition unit adds a pixel value of a pixel having a maximum pixel value from among the group of pixels, as the first pixel value.