Patents Examined by Katrina Fujita
  • Patent number: 9478024
    Abstract: Described herein is an approach for analyzing perfusion characteristics of heterogeneous tissues in 4D data set (i.e., a time series of contrast enhanced 3D volumes) in which spatially entangled tissue components are separated into individual tissue components and perfusion maps for the individual tissue components are generated and visually presented. In one instance, the approach includes obtaining the 4D data set in electronic format, generating a different time activity curve point for each of the different tissue components for each voxel being evaluated for each time frame being evaluated, and generating a signal indicative of a different parameter map for each of the different tissue components based at least on the time activity curves. Optionally, relations between parameters of the different components are determined and presented in relation maps.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 31, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 25, 2016
    Assignee: KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V.
    Inventor: Raz Carmi
  • Patent number: 9466012
    Abstract: A computing device uses image metadata to perform a first sub-classification of an image, wherein the first sub-classification is deterministic, then uses a combination of image data and the image metadata to perform a second sub-classification, further in a third sub-classification, uses image data to make a probabilistic classification of an image according to a likely phantom type. Alternatively or additionally, a computing device receives a set of image analysis data, identifies an image analysis model to be trained, using the image analysis data, determines that the image analysis model can include an image permutation, and trains a new image analysis model including the image permutation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2013
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: Radiological Imaging Technology, Inc.
    Inventors: Daniel M. Ritt, Logan Flewellen, Matthew L. Whitaker, Ryan Young
  • Patent number: 9454823
    Abstract: A method for medical image segmentation. The method includes accessing and updating a knowledge-base in accordance with embodiments of the present invention. The techniques include: receiving a medical image and computing a sparse landmark signature based on the medical image content. Next, a knowledge-base is searched for representative matches to form a base set, wherein the base set comprises a plurality of reference image sets. A portion of the plurality of reference image sets of the base set is deformed to generate mappings from the base set to the medical image set. Finally a weighted average segmentation for each structure of interest of the medical image set is determined.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 28, 2010
    Date of Patent: September 27, 2016
    Assignee: arian Medical Systems, Inc.
    Inventor: Corey Zankowski
  • Patent number: 9449255
    Abstract: A method for the determination of classification parameters or adaptation parameters for the classification of bank notes in different classes by means of a bank note processing apparatus includes: sensing measurement data for a plurality of reference bank notes having known properties by means of a sensor device of the bank note processing apparatus, at least some of the reference bank notes being provided with an adhesive strip; determining a set of classification parameters; ascertaining the distribution of the plurality of reference bank notes over the different classes on the basis of the measurement data of the reference bank notes and the set of classification parameters; and comparing the distribution over the different classes determined for the plurality of reference bank notes, with the optimal distribution of the reference bank notes over the different classes, and ascertained from the known properties of the plurality of reference bank notes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 20, 2016
    Assignee: GIESECKE & DEVRIENT GMBH
    Inventors: Matthias Hecht, Stefan Kokrhoun
  • Patent number: 9443160
    Abstract: A method to extract irradiation field areas in an X-ray image represented by a digital signal representation comprising the steps of segmenting the image in multiple regions of pixels which have similar local image characteristics, fitting line segments to the boundaries of these regions whereby said line segments correspond with candidate irradiation field boundaries and constitute a segmentation map, classifying regions in said segmentation map into at least two classes, one class being irradiation field and the other class being collimated region on the basis of at least one of local, regional and global image characteristics.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 27, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 13, 2016
    Assignee: AGFA HEALTHCARE NV
    Inventor: Tom Bertens
  • Patent number: 9424468
    Abstract: A position, behavior state and movement state of a moving object are detected, together with plural categories of track segment region and stationary object regions, using an environment detection section. A presence probability is applied to the detected track segment regions and stationary object regions and a presence probability map is generated, using a map generation section. A moving object position distribution and movement state distribution are generated by a moving object generation section based on the detected moving object position, behavior state and movement state, and recorded on the presence probability map. The moving object position distribution is moved by a position update section based on the moving object movement state distribution. The moved position distribution is changed by a distribution change section based on the presence probabilities of the presence probability map, and a future position distribution of the moving object is predicted on the presence probability map.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2016
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Tsukasa Shimizu, Yoshihiro Ohama, Shinichi Nagata, Masayuki Shimizu, Jun Sakugawa
  • Patent number: 9406183
    Abstract: A valuable document authentication method and device. Whether a valuable document, an image sensor or a first sensor has shifted or not, the effect of authenticating the valuable document will not be affected, because a reference unit is needed to determine the location relationship between the image sensor and the first sensor before the valuable document is authenticated, thereby preventing an error occurring with the authenticated valuable document due to the fact that each sensor has shifted; moreover, when the valuable document is authenticated, even if the valuable document has shifted, the correctness of the valuable document authenticated can also be guaranteed by the conversion of the location relationship between a detection object and the sensor. Therefore, the solution provided in the present invention improves the identification accuracy and working efficiency of the authentication device, thereby providing convenience for users.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2013
    Date of Patent: August 2, 2016
    Assignee: GRG Banking Equipment Co., Ltd.
    Inventors: Tiancai Liang, Yuanchao Yu, Weifeng Wang, Kun Wang
  • Patent number: 9341728
    Abstract: A method of analysing seismic data from a geological volume is provided. The geological volume is divided into a plurality of voxels. For each voxel a respective neighbourhood is defined which includes that voxel and a predetermined arrangement of neighbouring voxels. For each voxel, the respective normal vectors of a seismic attribute vector field derived from the seismic data are calculated. For each voxel, a respective local structure tensor based on the normal vectors of the voxels of the respective neighbourhood is calculated. For each voxel, the value of an expression which includes one or more of the eigenvalues (?1, ?2, ?3) of the respective local structure tensor is calculated. The method can be used for seismic surveying, or to manage operation of or drilling of a subterranean well.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 2013
    Date of Patent: May 17, 2016
    Assignee: WESTERNGECO L.L.C.
    Inventors: Aicha Bounaim, Oda Roaldsdotter Ravndal, Jarle Haukås
  • Patent number: 9330426
    Abstract: A digitally encoded video fingerprinting system for generating and comparing/matching finger-prints from digitally encoded video which has been encoded according to an encoding method which involves the generation of residual macroblocks of pixels and the generation of quantized transform coefficients of the residual macroblocks, or of portions of the residual macroblocks, comprises a fingerprint database (5) and a video processing subsystem (10). The video processing subsystem (10) includes a fingerprint sequence selection module (14, 24) which is operable to select one or more sets of frames from input video content to be processed in order to generate a fingerprint; a fingerprint calculation module (14, 26) which is operable to generate a fingerprint based on a set of frames selected by the fingerprint sequence selection module; and a fingerprint comparator module (14, 28) which is operable to compare two fingerprints and to output a similarity score of the compared fingerprints.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 30, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2016
    Assignee: BRITISH TELECOMMUNICATIONS PUBLIC LIMITED COMPANY
    Inventor: Andrew Gordon Davis
  • Patent number: 9329683
    Abstract: A gaze point detection device 1 has four cameras 2a, 2b, 2c, 2d, light sources 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d, control circuits 4, 5, 6, and an image processor 7. The image processor 7 calculates vectors r, each of which is from a corneal reflection point to the center of a pupil, on a plane that is vertical to base lines. The image processor 7 also calculates angles ? of the line of sight on the basis of the vectors r and by using a function f including M parameters. Moreover, the image processor 7 determines the M parameters based on the angles ?, and detects a point of gaze Q based on the line of sight direction calculated using the determined parameters. The number of cameras is set at M×½ or higher.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2016
    Assignee: NATIONAL UNIVERSITY CORPORATION SHIZUOKA UNIVERSITY
    Inventor: Yoshinobu Ebisawa
  • Patent number: 9317744
    Abstract: A device for determining a gesture includes a light emitting unit, an image sensing device and a processing circuit. The light emitting unit emits a light beam. The image sensing device captures an image of a hand reflecting the light beam. The processing circuit obtains the image and determines a gesture of the hand by performing an operation on the image; wherein the operation includes: selecting pixels in the image having a brightness greater than or equal to a brightness threshold; dividing the selected pixels; and determining the gesture of the hand according to a number of group of divided pixels. A method for determining a gesture and an operation method of the aforementioned device are also provided.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 2, 2015
    Date of Patent: April 19, 2016
    Assignee: Pixart Imaging Inc.
    Inventors: Yu-Hao Huang, Ming-Tsan Kao, Sen-Huang Huang, Nien-Tse Chen, En-Feng Hsu, Yi-Yuan Chen
  • Patent number: 9305415
    Abstract: A banknote management system 1 includes a banknote handling apparatus 2 having stackers for stacking banknotes, the banknote handling apparatus sorting the banknotes based on sorting conditions set for the respective stackers, and sequentially stacking the sorted banknotes in the stackers corresponding to the sorting conditions; and a banknote management apparatus 3 managing the banknote handling apparatus. The system includes a DB registration specifying unit 32B specifying a stacker 11 a DB registration necessity of which is specified among the stackers; a banknote detailed information creating unit 37B creating banknote detailed information for recognizing a banknote that is stacked in the stacker a DB registration of which is set to be necessary; and a DB control unit 37D registering the banknote detailed information in a database 33. The system can minimize a memory capacity of the database and a volume of banknote detailed information to be registered in the database.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 22, 2008
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2016
    Assignee: GLORY LTD.
    Inventors: Gui Fu, Hajime Morino
  • Patent number: 9305224
    Abstract: A method for instant recognition of traffic lights countdown image that can quickly scan and confirm the circular feature image of a traffic light, and retrieve the countdown image thereof by calculating the displacement ratio from the circular image, then enhance, cut and converse the countdown image to display a feature image thereof, and proceed similarity comparison with collected data to calculate the percentage of similarity. The method eventually brings out a result from the image comparisons, so as to fulfill the effectiveness of searching and instantly recognizing the countdown image of a traffic light.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 29, 2014
    Date of Patent: April 5, 2016
    Assignee: Yuan Ze University
    Inventors: Duan-Yu Chen, Yi-Tung Chou
  • Patent number: 9280837
    Abstract: The present invention refers to an angiographic image acquisition system and method which can beneficially be used in the scope of minimally invasive image-guided interventions. In particular, the present invention relates to a system and method for graphically visualizing a pre-interventionally virtual 3D representation of a patient's coronary artery tree's vessel segments in a region of interest of a patient's cardiovascular system to be three-dimensionally reconstructed. Optionally, this 3D representation can then be fused with an intraoperatively acquired fluoroscopic 2D live image of an interventional tool.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 2009
    Date of Patent: March 8, 2016
    Assignee: KONINKLIJKE PHILIPS N.V.
    Inventors: Michael Grass, Dirk Schaefer, Gert Antonius Franciscus Schoonenberg
  • Patent number: 9275277
    Abstract: A method of determining hand features information using both two dimensional (2D) image data and three dimensional (3D) image data is described. In one implementation, a method includes: receiving a 2D image frame; receiving 3D image data corresponding to the 2D image frame; using the 3D image data corresponding to the 2D image frame, transforming the 2D image frame; and using the 3D image data corresponding to the 2D image frame, scaling the 2D image frame, where the transforming and scaling results in a normalized 2D image frame, where the normalized 2D image frame is a scaled and transformed version of the 2D image frame, and where the scaling and transforming is performed using a computer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: Kaiser Foundation Hospitals
    Inventors: Cengiz Onen, Shruti Krishnagiri
  • Patent number: 9275276
    Abstract: A posture estimation device that is capable of highly precisely estimating the posture of an object comprising multiple parts. Said device (100) comprises: a posture information database (110) that for each of multiple postures, holds posture information that defines the placement of multiple parts; a fitting unit (160) that computes, for each of the parts in an image, a correlation level between the placement of the parts and the posture information; a difficulty level information table (130) that holds an estimation difficulty level that is a degree of difficulty of estimating each part position and computed on the basis of each parallel line components of each of the parts contained in the posture information; and a posture estimation unit (170) that to the correlation level, applies a weighting based on the estimation difficulty level, and on the basis of the weighted correlation level, estimates the posture of the object.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: PANASONIC CORPORATION
    Inventor: Kyoko Kawaguchi
  • Patent number: 9275470
    Abstract: A computer processor of the mobile device may overlay a shape graphic on a fixed area of a screen of the mobile device. A camera of the mobile device may search the fixed area for a ball with a marking. The computer processor may recognize the marking on the ball. The computer processor may calibrate the movement of the ball in the overlayed shape graphic in view of the recognized marking of the ball. The camera may track and may record data pertaining to the movement of the ball. The computer processor may calculate one or more metrics relating to ball controlling abilities from the data. The computer processor may display the one or more metrics on the screen.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2015
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: NAROBO, INC.
    Inventors: Eric Forkosh, Marc Forkosh
  • Patent number: 9275300
    Abstract: This invention relates to a method and an apparatus for generating an image description vector, an image detection method and apparatus. The method for generating an image description vector comprising: an encoding step of encoding each of a plurality of pixel regions of an image into M pieces of N-bit binary codes, wherein each bit of an N-bit binary code represents a neighboring pixel region which is in neighborhood of a corresponding pixel region; and a generating step of generating an image description vector of the image based on matching at least one of the M pieces of N-bit binary code of each pixel region of the plurality of pixel regions with a particular code pattern, where M is an integer of 3 or larger, and N is an integer of 3 or larger.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 22, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 1, 2016
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Yong Jiang, Wenwen Zhang, Lifeng Xu
  • Patent number: 9262822
    Abstract: An image analysis embodiment comprises subsampling a digital image by a subsample factor related to a first anomaly size scale, thereby generating a subsampled image, smoothing the subsampled image to generate a smoothed image, determining a minimum negative second derivative for each pixel in the smoothed image, determining each pixel having a convex down curvature based on a negative minimum negative second derivative value for the respective pixel, joining each eight-neighbor connected pixels having convex down curvature to identify each initial anomaly area, selecting the initial anomaly areas having strongest convex down curvatures based on a respective maximum negative second derivative for each of the initial anomaly areas, extracting one or more classification features for each selected anomaly area, and classifying the selected anomaly areas based on the extracted one or more classification features.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 16, 2016
    Assignee: VUCOMP, INC.
    Inventors: Jeffrey C. Wehnes, James H. Pike
  • Patent number: 9235895
    Abstract: The invention is directed to detecting a boundary position between a foot and a lower leg of a person in an image acquired by an imaging unit, the boundary position being a substantial boundary part, in a lower limb, between the foot, which is a part from a malleolus to a tip part, and the lower leg; detecting a feature quantity that makes it possible to classify a ground and a part other than the ground in the image; setting, in a peripheral region around the boundary position, a plurality of local regions having positional information and/or direction information relative to the boundary position, and determining whether each of the local regions is the ground or the part other than the ground by using the feature quantity unique to the ground; determining a foot region from the local region determined as the part other than the ground; and estimating a direction of the foot of the person from the local region classified as the foot region and from the information.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 12, 2016
    Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
    Inventors: Taishi Ueda, Ryosuke Nakamura, Azusa Amino