Abstract: The present invention has an object to facilitate investigation of access status in internet. To achieve this object, when the HTTP server (203) transmits prescribed image data, identity information meeting the access from the terminal unit (30) is generated in the identity information adding process (205), and added to prescribed image data. The corresponding relationship between the identity information and the image data containing the added identity information is recorded in the database (206).

Abstract: The present invention is directed to a method and apparatus of objectively testing the low contrast performance of an imaging system. Images of a uniform phantom and images of a low contrast detectability phantom are reconstructed. Thereafter, a group of pixels from an image of the uniform phantom are removed and replaced with a group of pixels from an image of the LCD phantom. A user or test observer is then prompted to identify which quadrant of the first phantom image contains a group of pixels from the LCD phantom. An accuracy of a user response is then determined and conveyed to the user. The present invention is applicable with a number of imaging modalities including computer tomography, magnetic resonance imaging, PET, ultrasound, and the like.

Abstract: There are provided a watermark information embedding device and a watermark information detection device which can correctly extract classified information. In the watermark information embedding device, a plurality of dot patterns the wave directions and/or wavelengths of which are changed depending on dot arrangements are prepared, one symbol is given to one of the dot patterns, and the dot patterns are combined and arranged, so that the classified information is given. The watermark information detection device includes two-dimensional wavelet filters the number of which is equal to the number of dot patterns and which have the same wave directions and the same wavelengths as those of the dot patterns. Convolutions between an arbitrary region in a watermarked image and the plurality of two-dimensional wavelet filters are calculated, and it is determined that the dot pattern corresponding to the two-dimensional wavelet filter having the maximum convolution is embedded in the region.

Abstract: A system is provided for controlling access at a personnel control gate, comprising: a proximity reader (38) connected to the control gate (36) for controlling access through the control gate; and an ancillary reader (40) located adjacent to the proximity reader, the ancillary reader enabled to return an RF transponder (48) signal recognizable by the proximity reader whenever the ancillary reader detects an authorized access code present on an ID badge (20), thereby causing the proximity reader to control the control gate and allow the bearer of the ID badge access through the control gate.

Abstract: A system for storing geospecific data for use by an interactive computing environment utilizes separate terrain height data storage and image data storage. The terrain height data storage stores blocks of terrain height data which are defined as discrete terrain heights coinciding with a grid of discrete points at the surface of a planetary body. Terrain heights for each block are stored in a row major order starting with one discrete point of a grid associated therewith being referenced to a latitude and longitude. In a similar fashion, the image data storage stores blocks of image data defined as discrete image intensities coinciding with a grid of discrete points at the surface of the planetary body. Image intensities for each block are stored in a row major order starting with one discrete point of a grid associated therewith being referenced to a latitude and longitude.

Abstract: The method of processing postal objects of large size in order to read automatically a postal address (AD) on each object consists in acquiring a digital image of each object at a certain level of resolution; in detecting in the image one or more zones of interest (ZI) apparently containing a postal address; in performing automatic address recognition on each zone of interest in order to extract a postal address (AD) of the object, and in the event of the automatic address recogition failing, in displaying each zone of interest (ZI) on a screen so that a video-coding operator can read the postal address (AD) of the object. Each zone of interest (ZI) is displayed on the screen on a screen context background (F) that is representative of the object but at a level of resolution that is lower than the level of resolution of the digital image and the zone of interest.

Abstract: An improved orientation system includes a lens pre-distorting an image generated by imaging apparatus such that a non-linearity, the degree of which is dependent on the off-axis distance of an imaged object, is generated so as to increase the strength of a signal indicating said non-linearity.

Abstract: A method for measuring a bone mineral density, by use of an x-ray image, in a bone mineral density measuring system, includes the steps of: (a) obtaining an X-ray image of bone; (b) setting a region of interest on the obtained X-ray image of bone; (c) calculating a background trend due to soft tissues, at a bone portion within the selected region of interest; and (d) calculating an index of the bone mineral density by removing the background trend due to the soft tissues, at the bone portion within the selected region of interest.

Abstract: A satellite image analysis and processing apparatus includes a DEM extraction unit for extracting digital elevation model information having topography data and steeple-shaped building data; a topography situation recognition unit for discriminating a kind of topography and recognizing a topographic situation from the topography data of the digital elevation model information; a steeple-shaped building recognition unit for recognizing shape and location information of steeple-shaped buildings from the steeple-shaped building data of the digital elevation model information; a time series recognition unit for recognizing a change with time; and an altitude visibility information preservation unit for preserving altitude visibility information obtained by combining information acquired by the topography situation recognition unit, information acquired by the steeple-shaped building recognition unit, and information acquired by the time series recognition unit in an altitude visibility information database provid

Abstract: The computer analyzes a representation of a digitized image to determine contiguous edges of the image; select edges for modulation in accordance with a data hiding criterion; apply a watermark-dependent edge point modulation to pixels on the selected edges; and wherein said analyzing to determine contiguous edges produces lists of pixel pointers, each list containing pointers to pixel locations of a contiguous edge; and wherein said criterion selects lists corresponding to low contrast, low smoothness edges.

Abstract: In an adaptive motion direction detecting apparatus, an image input unit inputs two-dimensional pixel data of an object. A response output unit includes a plurality of response element arrays each having different time phases, and each of the response element arrays includes a plurality of response elements. Each of the response elements generates a response output for one of a plurality of local areas partly superposed thereon, and the two-dimensional pixel data is divided into the local areas. A correlation function calculating unit calculates spatial and time correlation functions between the response outputs of the response elements. A response output selecting unit selects response outputs of the response output unit for each of the local areas in accordance with the spatial and time correlation functions. A motion direction detecting unit includes a plurality of detection elements each corresponding to the response elements.

Abstract: There are disclosed a watermark information embedment device capable of accurately embedding secret information, and a watermark information detection device. In the watermark information embedment device, there are prepared a plurality of different sorts of dot patterns in which the wave propagation direction and the wave length are changed depending on the dot arrangement. Each dot pattern of the same sort is given the same symbol, and the secret information is represented by combining these dot patterns. In the watermark information detection device, there are provided 2-dimensional wavelet filters having the same wave propagation direction and the wave length as the different sorts of dot patterns.

Abstract: The present invention involves a new system and method for probabilistic exemplar-based tracking of patterns or objects. Tracking is accomplished by first extracting a set of exemplars from training data. The exemplars are then clustered using conventional statistical techniques. Such clustering techniques include k-medoids clustering which is based on a distance function for determining the distance or similarity between the exemplars. A dimensionality for each exemplar cluster is then estimated and used for generating a probabilistic likelihood function for each exemplar cluster. Any of a number of conventional tracking algorithms is then used in combination with the exemplars and the probabilistic likelihood functions for tracking patterns or objects in a sequence of images, or in a space, or frequency domain.

Abstract: A method of detecting high risk movements of an infant relating to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome includes generating a reference image of an infant by signaling a controller a location of a first plurality of pixels. The first plurality of pixels are stored in a controller generating a reference image. A second electronic image of the infant is generating a second plurality of pixels that are signaled to the controller. The controller compares the second electronic image to the first electronic image by determining a correlation between the first plurality of pixels to the second plurality of pixels for determining if the infant has made a high risk movement.

Abstract: A personal authentication system using biometrics information, which identifies or authenticates an individual by verifying to-be-verified biometrics characteristic data against previously registered biometrics characteristic data. The system includes a biometrics information inputting section having a function to acquire the to-be-verified biometrics information; a biometrics information converting section converting said to-be-verified biometrics information, acquired through said biometrics information inputting section, into a state to be acquired on a predetermined acquisition condition, said predetermined acquisition condition being a same condition under which the registered biometric information was acquired; and a biometrics characteristic data extracting section extracting to-be-verified biometrics characteristic data from the to-be-verified biometrics information obtained by the conversion in said biometrics information converting section.

Abstract: In a technique for video segmentation, classification and summarization based on the singular value decomposition, frames of the input video sequence are represented by vectors composed of concatenated histograms descriptive of the spatial distributions of colors within the video frames. The singular value decomposition maps these vectors into a refined feature space. In the refined feature space produced by the singular value decomposition, the invention uses a metric to measure the amount of information contained in each video shot of the input video sequence. The most static video shot is defined as an information unit, and the content value computed from this shot is used as a threshold to cluster the remaining frames. The clustered frames are displayed using a set of static keyframes or a summary video sequence. The video segmentation technique relies on the distance between the frames in the refined feature space to calculate the similarity between frames in the input video sequence.

Abstract: Current methods of embedding hidden data in an image inevitably distort the original image by noise. This distortion cannot generally be removed completely because of quantization, bit-replacement, or truncation at the grayscales 0 and 255. The distortion, though often small, may make the original image unacceptable for medical applications, or for military and law enforcement applications where an image must be inspected under unusual viewing conditions (e.g., after filtering or extreme zoom). The present invention provides high-capacity embedding of data that is lossless (or distortion-free) because, after embedded information is extracted from a cover image, we revert to an exact copy of the original image before the embedding took place. This new technique is a powerful tool for a variety of tasks, including lossless robust watermarking, lossless authentication with fragile watermarks, and steganalysis. The technique is applicable to raw, uncompressed formats (e.g., BMP, PCX, PGM, RAS, etc.

Abstract: A method for determining affective information for at least one image in an imaging system includes displaying a digital image for viewing by a user; monitoring the facial expression of the user as the user views the digital image; and using the facial expression of the user to determine affective information for the digital image.

Abstract: The instant invention is a system and method for converting improvement images to geographically referenced chart symbols and for combining improvement images with other geographically referenced information to create composite images. The instant invention provides for marking specific reference points on the improvement image with textual strings and using a system configured to recognize textual strings, to understand the information, and to determine the appropriate translation, rotation angle, and scale factor of the improvement image to render a geographically referenced image.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of processing data, which may be pixels (P[i,j]) representing a sequence of pictures, previously encoded and decoded. The method comprises at least in series a first step (ED) of detecting edge pixels within a picture, followed by a subsequent step (TEST) in which a choice is made from the pixels not detected as edges in the previous step, as to whether these pixels are to be filtered or not. Then, the method comprises a filtering step (SAF) which consists in replacing at least a pixel to be filtered with a pixel belonging to a close neighborhood of said pixel, said close neighborhood comprising said pixel and pixels adjacent to said pixel.