Patent Document ID: 8630498
Application ID: 11424296
Patent Status: 1

Claim One:
1. A method for detecting a pictorial region in a digital image, said method comprising: forming a masked image of a digital image, wherein said masked image comprises a first plurality of pixel locations, whereat each pixel in said first plurality of pixel locations in said masked image is assigned a mask-pixel value, wherein said first plurality of pixel locations in said masked image corresponds to a first plurality of pixel locations in said digital image whereat a masking condition based on edge strength is satisfied; and said masked image further comprises a second plurality of pixel locations, wherein said second plurality of pixel locations in said masked image corresponds to a second plurality of pixel locations in said digital image whereat said masking condition is not satisfied, and wherein each pixel in said second plurality of pixel locations in said masked image is assigned a value of said corresponding pixel in said digital image; in a region-detection system comprising a calculator, calculating a masked entropy value for each pixel in a third plurality of pixels in said masked image, wherein said masked entropy value for said each pixel is based on a frequency-of-occurrence, in said masked image, of pixel values not equal to said mask-pixel value, in a region proximate to said each pixel, and a function of said frequency-of-occurrence, wherein said function comprises a mathematical characteristic similar to a logarithmic function; determining, in said region-detection system, a confidence level for said each pixel in said third plurality of pixels in said masked image based on said masking condition; determining, in said region-detection system, a seed region comprising a seed-region pixel, wherein said determining a seed region comprises selecting said seed-region pixel, from said third plurality of pixels in said masked image, when said masked entropy value calculated for said seed-region pixel is a reliable value, wherein said reliable value is a relatively high masked entropy value; and in said region-detection system, growing said seed region based on said confidence levels thereby producing a pictorial region wherein said pictorial region comprises pictorial-region pixels from said third plurality of pixels in said masked image.