Patent ID: 7257265

Claim:
An image processing apparatus, comprising: moving-image input means for inputting a moving image composed of a plurality of frames; background-image acquisition means for acquiring a background image relating to the moving image that has been input; object extraction means for extracting an object by comparing each of the frames constituting the moving image with the background image; abnormal-data discrimination means for discriminating whether shape data representing the shape of the extracted object is abnormal or not; shape-data correction means for correcting the shape data based upon a result of discrimination of the shape data; image-data correction means for generating image data, which represents the image of the object, conforming to the shape data that has been corrected by said shape-data correction means; and coding means for coding the shape data and the image data, wherein said abnormal-data discrimination means discriminates the necessity of correcting the shape data by comparing the shape data of the object from frame to frame of a plurality of frames that differ in time, and wherein said abnormal-data discrimination means comprises: first comparison means for comparing the shape data of the object using a present frame and a preceding frame; second comparison means for comparing the shape data of the object using the preceding frame and a succeeding frame; and decision means for deciding that correction of the present frame is necessary if a difference in the shape data of the object between the present frame and the preceding frame is large and a difference in the shape data of the object between the preceding frame and the succeeding frame is small.