Patents Examined by Sean Motsinger
  • Patent number: 8995760
    Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for coloring a cosmetic covering. The apparatus includes image acquisition apparatus (18) operative to acquire an image of a part of a human or animal body to provide a digital color image, processing apparatus (20) operative to determine a calibration transform for colors of an image acquired by the image acquisition apparatus, the processing apparatus being further operative to transform the digital color image with the calibration transform to provide a color compensated digital color image, pigment mixing apparatus (26) operative to mix a plurality of pigments of different colors in dependence on at least one color characteristic of at least one color within the color compensated digital color image to produce at least one mixed pigment, and pigment applying apparatus (24) operative to apply the at least one mixed pigment to a cosmetic covering.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: March 31, 2015
    Assignee: Touch Bionics Limited
    Inventor: Hugh Gill
  • Patent number: 8983170
    Abstract: Systems and methods are provided for assessing whether mobile deposit processing engines meet specified standards for mobile deposit of financial documents. A mobile deposit processing engine (MDE) is evaluated to determine if it can perform technical capabilities for improving the quality of and extracting content from an image of a financial document. A verification process then begins, where the MDE performs the image quality enhancements and text extraction steps on sets of images from a test deck. The results of the processing of the test deck are then evaluated by comparing confidence levels with thresholds to determine if each set of images should be accepted or rejected. Further analysis determines whether any of the sets of images were falsely accepted or rejected in error. An overall error rate is then compared with minimum accuracy criteria, and if the criteria are met, the MDE meets the standard for mobile deposit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 15, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 17, 2015
    Assignee: Mitek Systems, Inc.
    Inventors: Grigori Nepomniachtchi, Mike Strange
  • Patent number: 8977008
    Abstract: A driver assistance system for a vehicle includes an imager disposed in the vehicle and viewing forward of the vehicle through the vehicle windshield. The imager has a field of view exterior the vehicle and is operable to capture image data. The imager includes (i) a lens, (ii) a spectral filter and (iii) a CMOS photosensor array of photosensor elements. The system includes a control that may be operable to process captured image data for at least a first application and a second application, with the first application including lane departure warning and the second application selected from the group consisting of (i) headlamp control, (ii) vehicle detection and (iii) rain sensing. The control may be operable to adjust a parameter or setting of the imager.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: March 10, 2015
    Assignee: Donnelly Corporation
    Inventors: Joseph Camilleri, Joel S. Gibson, Kenneth Schofield
  • Patent number: 8965124
    Abstract: A video is segmented to produce volumetric video regions. Descriptors are created for the video regions. A region graph is created for the video, where the region graph has weighted edges incident to video regions and the weight of an edge is calculated responsive to the descriptors of the video regions incident to the edge. The region graph is segmented responsive to the weights of the edges incident to the video regions to produce a new region graph having new volumetric video regions comprised of merged video regions of the first region graph. The descriptions of the region graphs are stored in a data storage.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 21, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 24, 2015
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventors: Vivek Kwatra, Mei Han, Matthias Grundmann
  • Patent number: 8958637
    Abstract: An image processing apparatus includes the following elements. A receiving device receives an image. An estimating device estimates, for each of pixels within the image received by the receiving device, on the basis of the received image, an amount of fog, which is a difference between a luminance value of the pixel and an original luminance value of the pixel. A measuring device measures, for each of the pixels within the received image, a chroma value of the pixel. A determining device determines a correction target value for luminance values of pixels of a background portion within the received image. A correcting device corrects the chroma value of the pixel measured by the measuring device on the basis of the amount of fog estimated by the estimating device, the correction target value determined by the determining device, and a distance from the chroma value to an achromatic color.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Fuji Xerox Co., Ltd.
    Inventor: Masakazu Fukunaga
  • Patent number: 8958636
    Abstract: Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method of color trapping to improve perceived image quality. The color trapping may be subject to one or more configurable parameters, to accommodate differences in printing processes and conditions.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Marvell International Ltd.
    Inventors: Jay McDougal, Douglas G. Keithley
  • Patent number: 8948515
    Abstract: A method for determining a predictability of a media entity portion, the method includes: receiving or generating (a) reference media descriptors, and (b) probability estimations of descriptor space representatives given the reference media descriptors; wherein the descriptor space representatives are representative of a set of media entities; and calculating a predictability score of the media entity portion based on at least (a) the probability estimations of the descriptor space representatives given the reference media descriptors, and (b) relationships between the media entity portion descriptors and the descriptor space representatives. A method for processing media streams, the method may include: applying probabilistic non-parametric process on the media stream to locate media portions of interest; and generating metadata indicative of the media portions of interest.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 18, 2011
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Sightera Technologies Ltd.
    Inventors: Oren Boiman, Alex Rav-Acha
  • Patent number: 8948507
    Abstract: A controller converts the original image data into converted image data representing a first converted image, analyzes the original image data and counts a number of first characters recognized in the original image represented by the original image data, and analyzes the converted image data and count a number of second characters recognized in the converted image represented by the first converted image data. The controller compares the number of first characters with the number of second characters and determine which one of the number of first characters and the number of second characters is greater than the other. The controller outputs the original image data when the controller determines that the number of first characters is greater than the number of second characters, and outputs the converted image data when the controller determines that the number of second characters is greater than the number of first characters.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 21, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 3, 2015
    Assignee: Brother Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventor: Kazumasa Ozaki
  • Patent number: 8942509
    Abstract: An apparatus and method creating a ghost-free High Dynamic Range Image (HDRI) based on filtering are provided. It is possible to effectively prevent a ghost phenomenon from occurring when a single HDRI is created from a plurality of LDRIs, by defining a ghost area using a probability based on a global transfer function indicating a relationship for intensities of several frames, rather than searching for or identifying a ghost area in a single or each image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 27, 2015
    Assignees: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., SNU R&DB Foundation
    Inventors: Joon Hyuk Cha, Kyoung Mu Lee, Yong Seok Heo, Young Su Moon, Sang Uk Lee, Shi Hwa Lee
  • Patent number: 8934735
    Abstract: In a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, an automated, computerized method is provided for processing an image. According to a feature of the present invention, the method comprises the steps of providing an image represented in a spatial plane, organizing spatio-spectral information for the image in a matrix equation expressed by normal and tangential constraints determined as a function of a spatial orientation of selected image locations, relative to the spatial plane of the image and utilizing the matrix equation to solve for an intrinsic image corresponding to the image.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 13, 2015
    Assignee: Tandent Vision Science, Inc.
    Inventors: Andrew Neil Stein, Jean-Francois Lalonde
  • Patent number: 8929672
    Abstract: In a method of compressing image data which include a plurality of pixel values which are associated with a respective pixel, the pixel values are coded for at least some pixels in accordance with the following steps: determining an estimated pixel value of the respective pixel in dependence on the pixel value of at least one predetermined other pixel while using an estimation rule; and forming a difference value of the respective pixel which corresponds to a predefined relation between the pixel value and the estimated pixel value of the respective pixel and quantization of the difference value in accordance with a difference value quantization rule. The quantized difference values of the pixels are compressed in accordance with a compression rule.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2011
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Arnold & Richter Cine Technik GmbH & Co. Betriebs KG
    Inventors: Michael Cieslinski, Stefano Andriani
  • Patent number: 8929657
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a system for providing a supplementary service by identifying an object in an image and comprises: an image service server and a user terminal. The image service server provides image information and includes a database that manages metadata for the provision of the service. The user terminal dynamically generates control command information according to the information for the object selected in the image. In addition, the user terminal receives the information for the object selected in the image that is displayed on screen and transfers the information to the image service server. Furthermore, the user terminal receives from the image service server the preset supplementary service that corresponds to the information for the object selected.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 22, 2009
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Inventor: Tae Woo Jung
  • Patent number: 8929674
    Abstract: A method of storing an image is disclosed. A frequency-domain representation of the image is received, the frequency-domain representation having a plurality of bit-planes. The frequency-domain representation is divided into a first set of bit-planes and a second set of bit-planes, the first set of bit-planes being a higher set of bit-planes than the second set of bit-planes. The first set of bit-planes and the second set of bit-planes is partitioned into a plurality of partitions. At least one partition from the second set of bit-planes is inserted into the plurality of partitions of the first set of bit-planes to produce a plurality of arranged partitions of the image. The arranged partitions of the image are stored.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2012
    Date of Patent: January 6, 2015
    Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Qiang Liu, David Robert James Monaghan, Dixon De Sheng Deng
  • Patent number: 8923614
    Abstract: In order to solve the problem that the resolution of a back-scattered electron image without a contrast difference between materials with close atomic numbers is low, an image processing apparatus that performs an image process on a back-scattered electron image as an input image includes: a material peak detection unit that determines a peak luminance value with a peak of a frequency of a luminance histogram based on a luminance value obtained for each measurement position by using the input image as an input and information about material-dependent back-scattered electron generation efficiency, and that outputs the peak luminance value for each material; and an image information adjustment unit that emphasizes a material-dependent contrast on the basis of the input image and the peak luminance value for each material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2013
    Date of Patent: December 30, 2014
    Assignee: Hitachi High-Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: Hideki Itai, Zhigang Wang, Kazunari Asao
  • Patent number: 8917930
    Abstract: Methods for selecting metrics for substrate classification, and apparatus to perform such methods. The methods include determining a value of a metric from an image of a substrate sample for each substrate sample of a plurality of substrate samples, wherein the metric is indicative of a surface texture of each substrate sample and iteratively assigning substrate samples of the plurality of substrate samples to an aggregate of a particular number of aggregates in response to a value of the metric for each substrate sample until a convergence of clustering is deemed achieved, then determining an indication of cluster tightness of the particular number of aggregates. The methods further include selecting or ignoring the metric for substrate classification in response to the indication of cluster tightness of the particular number of aggregates.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 8, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 23, 2014
    Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P.
    Inventors: Steven J Simske, Malgorzata M Sturgill, Guy Adams, Paul S Everest
  • Patent number: 8913827
    Abstract: Systems, methods and computer program products for image color correction are described herein. An embodiment includes identifying color candidates of mean color correspondences between a first image having desired color characteristics and a second image to which the desired color characteristics are to be applied, training a classifier to provide a metric that corresponds a degree of difference between the first image and the second image, and iteratively determining mean color correspondences between the first image and the second image using the metric as an objective function and generating a color-corrected image having the desired color characteristics of the first image using the determined mean color correspondences.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: December 16, 2014
    Assignee: Google Inc.
    Inventor: Hui Fang
  • Patent number: 8897566
    Abstract: This image identity scale calculation system can calculate an identity scale representing a degree of identity of two images in consideration of identification capability and robustness. An image feature comparison unit is supplied with hierarchical quantization index codes, which are encodings allowing unique specification of quantization indexes of a plurality of hierarchies calculated by hierarchical quantization for each quantization target region of the two images, and selects a quantization index set used for comparison as a comparing quantization index set based on additionally supplied information in accordance with a previously defined hierarchical quantization method. Then, the image feature comparison unit compares the hierarchical quantization index codes of the two images by using the comparing quantization index set, and calculates an identity scale of the two images.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 14, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 25, 2014
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventors: Kota Iwamoto, Ryoma Oami
  • Patent number: 8891863
    Abstract: HDR images are coded and distributed. An initial HDR image is received. Processing the received HDR image creates a JPEG-2000 DCI-compliant coded baseline image and an HDR-enhancement image. The coded baseline image has one or more color components, each of which provide enhancement information that allows reconstruction of an instance of the initial HDR image using the baseline image and the HDR-enhancement images. A data packet is computed, which has a first and a second data set. The first data set relates to the baseline image color components, each of which has an application marker that relates to the HDR-enhancement images. The second data set relates to the HDR-enhancement image. The data packets are sent in a DCI-compliant bit stream.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: Dolby Laboratories Licensing Corporation
    Inventors: Ajit Ninan, Samir Hulyalkar
  • Patent number: 8891856
    Abstract: A method of detecting image format includes dividing a single-frame image into a plurality of macro-blocks; calculating a correlation coefficient of a left-half image of the single-frame image and a right-half image of the single-frame image as a first global similarity; calculating a correlation coefficient of a top-half image of the single-frame image and a bottom-half image of the single-frame image as a second global similarity; calculating a portion difference of each macro-block; comparing the portion differences of the left-half image and the right-half image, for acquiring a first local similarity; comparing the portion differences of the top-half image and the bottom-half image, for acquiring a second local similarity; and detecting an image format of the single-frame image according to the first global similarity, the second global similarity, the first local similarity, the second local similarity, a first threshold and a second threshold.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 29, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: NOVATEK Microelectronics Corp.
    Inventors: Lei Zhou, Guangzhi Liu, Heng Yu, Chun Wang
  • Patent number: 8891871
    Abstract: One system to which the present invention is applied obtains the digitized form image of a form, recognizes a character string existing in the obtained form image, extracts a headline wording being a predetermined character string from the recognized character strings, determines a table structure existing in the form image, on the basis of the extracted headline wording and the arrangement of headline wordings in the form image and specifies a correspondence relationship between a headline wording and a character string other than the headline wording that is recognized, using the determination result.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 19, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 18, 2014
    Assignee: Fujitsu Frontech Limited
    Inventors: Shinichi Eguchi, Hajime Kawashima, Kouichi Kanamoto, Shohei Hasegawa, Katsutoshi Kobara, Maki Yabuki