Patent ID: 7784943

Claim:
An eyelid detecting apparatus comprising: an image capturing means for capturing a face image; a red-eye effect detecting means for detecting a red-eye effect in which a light appears red at the pupil in the face image, the light entering through the pupil, reflecting on a choroidea of the eye, and exiting from the pupil; and an eyelid detecting means for detecting an upper eyelid and a lower eyelid in the face image on the basis of an edge appearing on a boundary between a bright portion and a dark portion; and the eyelid detecting means ignoring the edge of a red-eye effect occurring pupil so as not to be considered as the upper eyelid and the lower eyelid when the red-eye effect detecting means detects the red-eye effect, wherein the eyelid detecting means includes a possible eyelid detecting means for detecting a possible upper eyelid and a possible lower eyelid on the basis of the edge appearing on the boundary between the bright portion and the dark portion, wherein the eyelid detecting means ignores the edge of the red-eye effect occurring pupil so as not to be considered as the possible upper eyelid and the possible lower eyelid when the red-eye effect detecting means detects the red-eye effect.