Patent ID: 8270753

Claim:
An image processing device comprising: a computer, wherein: the computer extracts a saturated area corresponding to a saturated pixel from an image expressed by a color component signal of a predetermined color system corresponding to a pixel, acquires color information from a color component signal corresponding to a pixel contained in an area in contact with the saturated area of the image, and modifies a color component signal of a pixel in the saturated area so that color information on the saturated pixel contained in the saturated area approaches the color information acquired by the computer; wherein the color information includes signal ratios of a plurality of color component signals corresponding to pixels; and the computer judges whether or not all of a plurality of color component signals corresponding to the saturated pixel are saturated, and if all the color component signals are saturated, selects from among the plurality of color component signals a signal of a color component having a narrowest range of saturated area as a criterion signal, and calculates the criterion signal using color component signals corresponding to pixels contained in an area in contact with the saturated area of the image, and modifies the color component signal of the saturated pixel based on the calculated criterion signal and the signal ratios of the plurality of color component signals to the criterion signal.