公开(公告)号：US20220331841A1

公开(公告)日：2022-10-20

申请号：US17721694

申请日：2022-04-15

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Tomas Filler ,  Vojtech Holub ,  Ravi K. Sharma ,  Tony F. Rodriguez ,  Osama M. Alattar ,  Adnan M. Alattar ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  Brett A. Bradley ,  Ajith M. Kamath

IPC: B07C5/342 ,  B65G47/26 ,  G06K9/62

Abstract: A waste stream is analyzed and sorted to segregate different items for recycling. Certain features of the technology improve the accuracy with which waste stream items are diverted to collection repositories. Other features concern adaptation of neural networks in accordance with context information sensed from the waste. Still other features serve to automate and simplify maintenance of machine vision systems used in waste sorting. Yet other aspects of the technology concern marking 2D machine readable code data on items having complex surfaces (e.g., food containers with integral ribbing for structural strength or juice pooling), to mitigate issues that such surfaces can introduce in code reading. Still other aspects of the technology concern prioritizing certain blocks of conveyor belt imagery for analysis. Yet other aspects of the technology concern joint use of near infrared spectroscopy, artificial intelligence, digital watermarking, and/or other techniques, for waste sorting. A variety of further features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US20220141373A1

公开(公告)日：2022-05-05

申请号：US17521697

申请日：2021-11-08

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Hugh L. Brunk ,  John D. Lord ,  Tomas Filler

IPC: H04N5/235 ,  H04N5/225 ,  G06T7/00 ,  H05B45/10 ,  H05K7/20

Abstract: In one aspect, an elongated lighting module includes plural colors of LEDs that flash in a cyclical sequence to provide multi-spectral illumination. Several such modules can be arranged end-to-end to span a conveyor system that transports a stream of plastic waste items in a recycling center, enabling capture of differently-illuminated image frames depicting the items. Each module may include N LEDs of a first color (e.g., red) and M LEDs of a second color (e.g., blue), where N and M are different. Drive circuitry can be simplified by configuring the LEDs in strings of common colors, but with different counts. Electrical noise due to switching transients can be reduced by operating the LEDs at a low current when not being flashed. A great variety of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US20220055071A1

公开(公告)日：2022-02-24

申请号：US17470674

申请日：2021-09-09

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Ravi K. Sharma ,  Tomas Filler ,  Vojtech Holub ,  Osama M. Alattar ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  John D. Lord ,  Geoffrey B. Rhoads ,  William Y. Conwell ,  Ajith M. Kamath

IPC: B07C5/34 ,  B07C5/342

Abstract: A plastic item, such as a beverage bottle, can convey two distinct digital watermarks, encoded using two distinct signaling protocols. A first, printed label watermark conveys a retailing payload, including a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) used by a point-of-sale scanner in a retail store to identify and price the item when presented for checkout. A second, plastic texture watermark may convey a recycling payload, including data identifying the composition of the plastic. The use of two different signaling protocols assures that a point-of-sale scanner will not spend its limited time and computational resources working to decode the recycling watermark, which may lack data needed for retail checkout. In some embodiments, a recycling apparatus makes advantageous use of both types of watermarks to identify the plastic composition of the item (e.g., relating GTIN to plastic type using an associated database), thereby increasing the fraction of items that are correctly identified for sorting and recycling. In other embodiments the plastic item (or a label thereon) bears only a single watermark. A great number of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US20210352192A1

公开(公告)日：2021-11-11

申请号：US17371964

申请日：2021-07-09

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Ravi K. Sharma ,  Tomas Filler ,  Vojtech Holub ,  Osama M. Alattar ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  John D. Lord ,  William Y. Conwell

IPC: H04N5/225 ,  G06F21/16 ,  H04N21/44 ,  H04N21/2389 ,  H04N21/8358 ,  G09C5/00

Abstract: A plastic item, such as a beverage bottle, conveys two distinct digital watermarks, encoded using two distinct signaling protocols. A first, printed label watermark conveys a retailing payload, including a Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) used by a point-of-sale scanner in a retail store to identify and price the item when presented for checkout. A second, plastic texture watermark conveys a recycling payload, including data identifying the composition of the plastic. The use of two different signaling protocols assures that a point-of-sale scanner will not spend its limited time and computational resources working to decode the recycling watermark, which lacks the data needed for retail checkout. In some embodiments, a recycling apparatus makes advantageous use of both types of watermarks to identify the plastic composition of the item (e.g., relating GTIN to plastic type using an associated database), thereby increasing the fraction of items that are correctly identified for sorting and recycling. A great number of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US11062108B2

公开(公告)日：2021-07-13

申请号：US16405621

申请日：2019-05-07

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Brett A. Bradley ,  Vojtech Holub ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  Tomas Filler

IPC: G06K7/10 ,  G06K9/36 ,  G06K9/80 ,  G06K7/14

Abstract: The parameters of an optical code are optimized to achieve improved signal robustness, reliability, capacity and/or visual quality. An optimization program can determine spatial density, dot distance, dot size and signal component priority to optimize robustness. An optical code generator employs these parameters to produce an optical code at the desired spatial density and robustness. The optical code is merged into a host image, such as imagery, text and graphics of a package or label, or it may be printed by itself, e.g., on an otherwise blank label or carton. A great number of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US20190171856A1

公开(公告)日：2019-06-06

申请号：US16002989

申请日：2018-06-07

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Ravi K. Sharma ,  Tomas Denemark ,  Brett A. Bradley ,  Geoffrey B. Rhoads ,  Eoin C. Sinclair ,  Vojtech Holub ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  Trent J. Brundage ,  John F. Stach ,  John D. Lord ,  Joel R. Meyer

IPC: G06K7/14 ,  G06K19/06

Abstract: The parameters of an optical code are optimized to achieve improved signal robustness, reliability, capacity and/or visual quality. An optimization program can determine spatial density, dot distance, dot size and signal component priority to optimize robustness. An optical code generator employs these parameters to produce an optical code at the desired spatial density and robustness. The optical code is merged into a host image, such as imagery, text and graphics of a package or label, or it may be printed by itself, e.g., on an otherwise blank label or carton. A great number of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US10113910B2

公开(公告)日：2018-10-30

申请号：US14836878

申请日：2015-08-26

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Hugh L. Brunk ,  Geoffrey B. Rhoads ,  Cynthia Archer ,  Arlie Conner

IPC: G01J3/28 ,  G06K9/62 ,  H04N9/04 ,  G06K9/46 ,  G06K9/20 ,  G01J3/02 ,  G01J3/10 ,  H04N5/235

Abstract: An image capture device, such as a smartphone or point of sale scanner, is adapted for use as an imaging spectrometer, by synchronized pulsing of different LED light sources as different image frames are captured by the image sensor. A particular implementation employs the CIE color matching functions, and/or their orthogonally transformed functions, to enable direct chromaticity capture. These and various other configurations of spectral capture devices are employed to capture spectral images comprised of spectral vectors having multi-dimensions per pixel. These spectral images are processed for use in object identification, classification, and a variety of other applications. Particular applications include produce (e.g., fruit or vegetable) identification. A great variety of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

公开(公告)号：US10027868B2

公开(公告)日：2018-07-17

申请号：US15456300

申请日：2017-03-10

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Geoffrey B. Rhoads ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  John D. Lord

IPC: H04N5/225 ,  G06K9/48 ,  G01J3/10 ,  G06K9/62 ,  H04N5/235 ,  G01J3/36 ,  G01J3/28 ,  G01J3/02 ,  G01J3/447 ,  G06K9/46 ,  H04N9/04 ,  H04N9/69

Abstract: A spectral imaging device is configured to capture color images synchronized with controlled illumination from different color light emitting diodes. A processor in the device applies a coupling factor to sampled color images to convert sampled pixels into spectral channels corresponding to LED color and color filter. Multi-spectral spectricity vectors produced at pixel locations are used along with spatial information to classify objects, such as produce items.

公开(公告)号：US09753115B2

公开(公告)日：2017-09-05

申请号：US13863617

申请日：2013-04-16

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Geoffrey B. Rhoads ,  Tom Tewalt ,  Hugh L. Brunk ,  Tyler J. McKinley

IPC: G01S5/00 ,  H04W24/00 ,  H04W64/00

CPC classification number: G01S5/0081 ,  H04W24/00 ,  H04W64/00

Abstract: A system for determining location and timing information in a cellular network includes a space-time calibration unit (SCU) and a plurality of nodes in communication with the SCU. Each node includes a node ping driver that receives frame synchronization information from a respective subset of cell sites, and associates the frame synchronization information with respective receive count stamps generated using a local node clock. The system also includes a user handset that includes a handset ping driver that receives the frame synchronization information from a serving cell site and one or more neighbor cell sites, and associates the frame synchronization information with respective receive count stamps generated using a local handset clock. The SCU uses the information from the node and handset ping drivers to determine a handset location.

公开(公告)号：US09559839B2

公开(公告)日：2017-01-31

申请号：US14799321

申请日：2015-07-14

Applicant: Digimarc Corporation

Inventor： Trent J. Brundage ,  Hugh L. Brunk

IPC: H04L9/08 ,  G06T1/00 ,  H04N1/32 ,  H04N21/2389 ,  H04N21/266 ,  H04N21/8358 ,  G10L19/018

CPC classification number: H04L9/0819 ,  G06T1/0071 ,  G10L19/018 ,  H04L9/0816 ,  H04N1/32144 ,  H04N1/32154 ,  H04N1/32272 ,  H04N1/32288 ,  H04N21/23892 ,  H04N21/26613 ,  H04N21/8358 ,  H04N2201/3233 ,  H04N2201/3269 ,  H04N2201/3281 ,  H04N2201/3284

Abstract: The disclosure relates to message encoding. One claim recites an apparatus comprising: an input to receive a message key for transforming a plural-bit message, the message key having been generated through transforming a multi-bit seed with a randomizing process, and encoding the transformed multi-bit seed with error correction encoding, the transforming and encoding yielding the message key; electronic memory for storing a plural-bit message; and an electronic processor programmed for transforming the plural-bit message with the message key to yield a transformed message, and programmed as an encoder for encoding the transformed message key in data representing audio or imagery, thereby transforming the data representing audio or imagery. Of course, other claims and combinations are provided too.

Abstract translation: 本公开涉及消息编码。 一个权利要求记载一种装置，包括：接收用于变换多位消息的消息密钥的输入，已经通过利用随机化过程转换多位种子而生成的消息密钥，以及对具有错误的变换的多位种子进行编码 校正编码，转换和编码产生消息密钥; 用于存储多位消息的电子存储器; 以及电子处理器，其被编程用于利用消息密钥变换多位消息以产生变换的消息，并且被编程为用于对表示音频或图像的数据中的变换的消息密钥进行编码的编码器，由此变换表示音频或图像的数据。 当然，也提供其他权利要求和组合。