Abstract: Ultrasonic scanning of live animals and carcases particularly for grading, which scanning is preferably carried out on live animals to determine expected carcase composition, comprises use of an elongate scanning element along a line parallel to the lie of the spine. The method and apparatus enable data to be obtained for processing to identify thicknesses of the skin/fat layer and the muscle layer there adjacent and also the fat content of the muscle.

Abstract: The present invention relates to contextual enhancement of data comprising a matrix of data elements wherein each matrix data location has contained therein data representative of certain characteristics, for example, in the case of image data, the intensity of the image within a range of intensities, or the direction of image contour flow lines at each particular data element within the matrix. A preferred embodiment of the invention described in the present application relates to the field of the enhancement of image data obtained from the scanning of a fingerprint image by a digital black and white camera. This results in a matrix of data elements each of which data elements in the matrix contains data representative of the intensity of the image at the particular matrix point, from a 0 black value to a maximum intensity white value. The variations in intensity therebetween are represented by shades of gray between black and white.

Abstract: A fingerprint image enhancement and identification system, wherein image data in digital form, is analyzed in three basic scan windows which are clocked through a matrix array of data elements each containing either intensity data, direction data or both. Using a least summed contrast method, the first window estimates data element directions by analyzing the intensity data in selected direction slits in the window to provide a preliminary direction estimate of a slit direction or "no direction". Thereafter, the second window passes through the matrix to process the preliminary direction estimates, and enhance the direction estimates to identify a slit direction which, along with the directions adjacent to it, are the directions of the predominate number of data elements in the window, or which is the average of the two slit directions which comprise the largest and second largest number of data elements, if they are sufficiently close in direction.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for the smoothing and singularity detection of the ridge contour data of a fingerprint image for classification in an automatic fingerprint identification system. A template scanning window is passed electronically over a digital matrix of ridge contour data to generate a set of correlation values corresponding to each contour data element and to a plurality of reference angle vectors. The correlation values are processed for determination of peaks and valleys. Tests are conducted to determine whether the relative values of peaks and valleys and the relative spacing between peaks and valleys satisfy certain threshold criteria for reliable extraction of fingerprint singularity points for classification. The resultant data, representing the number of correlation peaks and the direction of each, defines the location and angular orientation of cores and deltas of a fingerprint.