Patent ID: 8285056

Claim:
A degree of matching computing apparatus for comparing an input image and a template image, and computing a degree of matching between the input image and the template image based on the compared result, comprising: a transforming unit configured to transform the input image in a manner so as to be matched to a template object region corresponding to an object region of the template image; and a computing unit configured to compute a degree of matching between the transformed input image and the template image; wherein the transforming unit includes: an object corresponding region processing unit configured to shape a non-background region to the form of the template object region in an object corresponding region of the input image that corresponds with the template object region, wherein the object corresponding region processing unit includes: a unit configured to allocate distance information to a target pixel of the object corresponding region of the input image by referring to the distance information, and to replace a pixel value of the target pixel with a pixel value of a target pixel located in a predetermined range and having an allocated distance equal to that of the target pixel, an object non-corresponding region processing unit configured to arrange an oozed region corresponding with a non-background region contacting with the template object corresponding region in an object non-corresponding region of the input image that does not correspond with the template object region so that the oozed region has no substantial impact on the degree of matching, and a unit configured to create distance information used to store distance information indicating a distance between a pixel of the template image and a boundary of the template object region, thereby acting as pre-processing unit to the object corresponding region processing unit, used to execute the shaping.