Abstract: Audio processing apparatus comprises one or more touch-sensitive controls for adjusting a gain applied to an audio processing channel in response to movement of a user's hand while touching the controls; a detector for detecting a predetermined sequence of activation of a touch sensitive control by the user; and a signal switch responsive to a detection of the predetermined sequence of activations to toggle between a first mode of operation in which the audio processing channel is operable to suppress an input audio signal and a second mode of operation in which the input audio signal is not suppressed.

Abstract: The benefits of rapid modeling and prototyping of a hearing instrument housing can be increased by fashioning the housing as a monolithic unit, incorporating the faceplate as an integral part of the housing. An opening in the faceplate region of the housing can be created to accept a module containing various electronic components of the hearing instrument.

Abstract: A hearing improvement device using a multi-coil coupling system and methods for operating such a device are disclosed. An embodiment of the present invention may use an array microphone to provide highly directional reception. The received audio signal may be filtered, amplified, and converted into a magnetic field for coupling to the telecoil in a conventional hearing aid. Multiple transmit inductors may be used to effectively couple to both in-the-ear and behind-the-ear type hearing aids, and an additional embodiment is disclosed which may be used with an earphone, for users not requiring a hearing aid.

Abstract: A high comfort sound delivery system (10) for use with a personal communications device such as a telephone. The high comfort sound delivery system (10) has a behind the ear piece (12) for holding the device on or near an ear of the user, and a sound horn (14) to be positioned at or near the ear canal of the user. Sound is produced by a speaker (26) in a speaker enclosure portion (15) of the behind the ear piece (12) and is delivered to the sound horn (14) through a generally flexible connecting member (16). Rotational adjustment is provide to rotating the connecting member (16) in relation to a speaker tube connection projection (20) and/or a sound horn tube connection projection (46). A length adjustment is provided by moving an elongated portion (66) of the connecting member (16) of the sound horn tube connection projection (46). Alternate sound horn bodies (42a, 42b, 42c, 42d, 42e, 42f) provide addition rotational adjustment points.

Abstract: A chair equipped the a speaker is provided with a frame that forms the structural skeleton of the chair, and a speaker unit that is installed to the frame; and wherein hollow pipe is used for the frame, and furthermore wherein the frame functions as an acoustical resonating section or acoustical space for the speaker.

Abstract: A magnetic circuit includes an annular magnet magnetized in the axial direction thereof; an annular stacked plate disposed on the magnet and including first and second annular plates; and a yoke facing the inner circumferential surface of the stacked plate across a cylindrical space. Upper and lower magnetic gaps are provided at two axially separated positions in the cylindrical space. A loudspeaker includes the magnetic circuit; a voice coil placed in the upper and lower magnetic gaps; a diaphragm connected to the voice coil; and a frame fixed to the stacked plate and supporting the diaphragm in a vibratable manner. The inner circumferential portions of the first and second annular plates are axially deformed downward and upward, respectively, such that the inner circumferential surface of the stacked plate faces the lower and upper magnetic gaps. The remaining portions of the first and second annular plates are stacked on the magnet.

Abstract: To determine preference of a user based on content of broadcast selected by the user and content of a recording medium so that content of broadcast can be selectively recorded and provided.

Abstract: A method of calibrating one or more image sensors in terms of position and/or attitude comprising capturing the image of a moving object such as an aircraft at one or more locations determining the 2-d position on the image (sensor). The 3-d position of the aircraft may be known or unknown. The moving object may be captured at a number of locations to improve accuracy.

Abstract: To provide a developing apparatus capable of carrying out movement for moving a substance to be developed from a detachable position to a developing area below a developing unit, and two-dimensional movement (direction of axis of ordinate and direction of axis of abscissa) of a substance to be developed in a developing area by a simple mechanism, and an image processing system provided with such a developing apparatus as described.

Abstract: A personal identification instrument (PII) including a naked-eye-viewable image of a legitimate PII owner and an encoded image of said legitimate PII owner disposed on a substrate, wherein the naked-eye-viewable image and the encoded image comprise different aspects of the legitimate PII owner.

Abstract: The number of high luminance lines whose luminance value is equal to or greater than a predetermined value among the lines contained in a thinned image of an image picked up by a telephoto camera oriented toward the iris position of an authentication object is compared with a set value. In case the number of high luminance lines equal to or greater than the set value exists, an iris illuminating direction is switched to obtain the illuminating direction where the number of high luminance lines is smaller than the set value, the iris is illuminated in the illuminating direction thus obtained and a focus position of the iris is searched for using a thinned image of an image picked up by the telephoto camera to acquire an iris image as an object of authentication. This rapidly acquires an iris image containing only a small amount of illuminating light.

Abstract: A plurality of iris images of a person to be authenticated in which the positions of extraneous light reflection are respectively different are captured by using an image capturing device. Iris codes, that is, features for authentication, are respectively extracted from the plural iris images, and the plural iris codes thus extracted are respectively compared with a registered iris code, so as to generate a plurality of comparison results. The plural comparison results are integrated to obtain an ultimate comparison score, which is used for the authentication.

Abstract: A method and system for personal authentication using sequences of partial fingerprint signatures provides a high security capability to various processes requiring positive identification of individuals. In a baseline usage, the sequential partial fingerprint sequence techniques augments sentinel systems for gaining access to restricted areas, and when used in combination with financial cards, offer a unique and greatly simplified means for authenticating or identifying individuals. A highly automated technique initially obtains eight (illustratively) linear partial fingerprint signatures which serve as reference data against which later proffered candidate data in the form of at least two linear partial fingerprint signatures are compared for authentication. The particular two candidate signatures used and the sequence in which they are submitted are selected with the user's consent and serve as a PIN-like unique personal code.

Abstract: This invention relates to a user authenticating system and a method using aone-time fingerprint template. The system and the method according to the invention are improvements of the conventional user authentication based on the manner of comparing the fingerprint feature data only, for the purpose of preventing a false authentication by misusing fingerprint feature data, if exposed in the course of transfer thereof. In the system and the method according to the invention, fingerprint feature data of a user are combined with an OTT key transferred from a server. The combined result is encoded and transferred to an authenticating server. The authenticating server then confirms validity of the OTT key and authenticates the user based on the fingerprint. Thus, the present invention has an advantage of preventing a false authentication through hacking, etc., even if the OTT key is exposed to a network, because the OTT key is used only once for authentication.

Abstract: Technology is disclosed for highly accurate automated execution of processing for alignment of a detection area to a DNA microarray image file and processing for quantitative determination of success/failure of the alignment during DNA microarray analysis. A probe reactive chip used for the technology comprises a substrate; a spot area wherein spots for fixing a probe capable of specifically reacting to a sample marked so as to be optically detectable are formed in a matrix on a surface of the substrate; and a reference pattern area, which is arranged within the spot area or approximate to the spot area, and comprises a plurality of different alignment marks in order to correct misalignment of the spot during analysis of the sample on the surface of the substrate.

Abstract: Technology is disclosed for highly accurate automated execution of processing for alignment of a detection area to a DNA microarray image file and processing for quantitative determination of success/failure of the alignment during DNA microarray analysis. A probe reactive chip used for the technology comprises a substrate; a spot region wherein spots for fixing a probe capable of specifically reacting to a sample marked so as to be optically detectable are formed in a matrix on a surface of the substrate; and a reference pattern area, which is arranged within the spot region or approximate to the spot region, and comprises a plurality of different alignment marks in order to correct misalignment of the spot during analysis of the sample on the surface of the substrate.

Abstract: A method of compensation for the thickness of an organ in an X-ray machine of the type comprising an X-ray source and a means of detection of the beam of X-rays after it has passed through the said organ, the detection means being capable of converting the X-ray beam into a digital electronic signal, in which, from a digitized image, an image of the radiologic thicknesses of an organ traversed by the X-ray beam is calculated, a thickness threshold is defined, from this there is derived an algebraic compensation image to bring the pixels of a level below or above the said threshold back to the value of the threshold, and the thickness image and a proportion of the compensation image are summed up, to obtain a compensated thickness image.

Abstract: The present technique provides a variety of processing schemes for decomposing soft tissue and bone images more accurately from low and high-energy images acquired from an imaging system, such as a dual-energy digital radiography system using flat-panel technology. In particular, a parameter selection process is provided for automatically computing the decomposition parameters WS and WB to create soft tissue and bone images, respectively. The parameter selection process modifies a default decomposition parameter based on a variety of image and technique variables, such as intensity levels of the low and high-energy images, the patient size, and the collimator filtration setting. The parameter selection process avoids robustness problems associated with image-based algorithms, and the process may operate without any direct user interaction.

Abstract: A method for detecting and attenuating grid artifacts in a digital radiographic image comprising; providing an input digital radiographic image; processing the input digital radiographic image with a detection algorithm based on 2-D dynamic correlation in both spatial and frequency domains to determine whether the input digital radiographic image has a grid artifacts; and if it does detecting the grid orientation, frequency, and signal-to-noise ratio of the grid artifacts, designing a frequency bandstop (notch) digital 1-D filter as a function of the grid frequency and attenuation level; and suppressing the grid artifacts by further processing said input digital radiographic image with said designed filter to produce an output digital radiographic image of improved image quality.

Abstract: One embodiment of the invention provides a system that facilitates auto-alignment of images for defect inspection and defect analysis. The system operates by first receiving a reference image and a test image. Next, the system creates a horizontal cut line across the reference image and chooses a vertical feature on the reference image with a specified width along the horizontal cut line. The system also creates a vertical cut line across the reference image and chooses a horizontal feature on the reference image with the specified width along the vertical cut line. Finally, the system locates the vertical feature and the horizontal feature on the test image so that the reference image and the test image can be aligned to perform defect inspection and defect analysis.

Abstract: A plural number of letters or characters, inferred from the results of letter/character recognition of an image photographed by a CCD camera (20), a plural number of kana readings inferred from the letters or characters and the way of pronunciation corresponding to the kana readings are generated in an pronunciation information generating unit (150) and the plural readings obtained are matched to the pronunciation from the user acquired by a microphone (23) to specify one kana reading and the way of pronunciation (reading) from among the plural generated candidates.

Abstract: A method and system for recognizing and selecting a portion of an image. The method and system employs user-controlled region growing to select a region within an image. The user manipulates a user input device to interactively increase or decrease the number of iterations performed by a region growing routine. The progress of the growth of the region is displayed to the user on a display. In the case of a three dimensional image, the user may select sectional or volume views of the image within which to monitor the growth of the region. Once the user determines an appropriately sized region has been grown, the remainder of the image is scalpelled away and the selected region is displayed on the display. Alternatively, the region is scalpelled away and the remainder of the image is displayed on the display.

Abstract: The digital camera being capable of recording stereoscopic first and second still images includes an imaging device that captures the first and second still images in this order, a display unit that displays a moving image captured by the imaging device to allow framing an image to be taken. The display unit superimpose a framing assisting pattern on the moving image to facilitate the framing of the image to be taken. A grid pattern may be utilized as the framing assisting pattern. After the first still image is captured, the display unit displays the first still image, with the framing assisting pattern superimposed thereon, besides the moving image after said first still image is captured.

Abstract: A method and system for processing stereoscopic images includes a computer program operable to acquire stereoscopic data from image sensors. The computer program is further operable to process the stereoscopic data from image sensors into output that can be satisfactorily resolved by human vision.

Abstract: A color conversion device and method are provided in which six hues and inter-hue areas are corrected independently, and the conversion characteristics can be changed flexibly, and which does not require a large-capacity memory. Coefficients of second-order and first-order calculation terms relating to the respective hues, first-order calculation term using comparison-result data relating to the respective inter-hue areas, and product terms based on the comparison-result data and the hue data are changed so as to change the target hue or inter-hue area, without influencing other hues or inter-hue areas.

Abstract: A system is disclosed for equalizing the distribution of pixel intensities in an image displayed by an oscilloscope. In a primarily software implementation, the maximum pixel intensity (I) present in the rasterized input image, the maximum available display intensity (P) and the desired image resolution (R) are the input variables which permit the calculation of thresholds or bins to which each pixel is assigned. By iteratively performing the analysis of existing pixel intensities and bin thresholds, the number of pixels in each bin may be optimized to form an equalized histogram. Another implementation of the histogram equalization system utilizes software to optimize a hardware-based histogram collector.

Abstract: The invention concerns a method and a device for the automatic perception of an event. Said device comprises a control unit, a data bus, a back-annotation bus and at least a histogram computing unit.

Abstract: In a computer system that accepts handwritten input, a digitizer tracks the location of a user's pen while the pen is not in contact with the digitizer's writing surface. The digitizer maps the pen's three-dimensional location into a two-dimensional location on the digitizer's writing surface. Handwriting-recognition is triggered for handwriting entered into a handwriting-recognition task area upon detecting that the user has lifted the pen off of the digitizer's writing surface and that the pen has moved out of proximity from the handwriting-recognition task area. The handwriting-recognition triggering may be inhibited when the pen is down and in contact with the digitizer's writing surface in an inking orientation.

Abstract: The invention described herein provides a method and apparatus for document processing that efficiently separates and interrelates single modalities, such as text, handwriting, and images. In particular, the present invention starts with the recognition of text characters and words for the efficient separation of text paragraphs from images by maintaining their relationships for a possible reconstruction of the original page. The text separation and extraction is based on a hierarchical framing process. The process starts with the framing of a single character, after its recognition, continues with the recognition and framing of a word, and ends with the framing of all text lines. The method and apparatus described herein can process different types of documents, such as typed, handwritten, skewed, mixed, but not half-tone ones.

Abstract: An image encoding device capable of maintaining high efficiency to encode data and also reducing erroneous substitution of an input pattern through encoding, includes an input pattern extractor (305) extracting an input pattern from image data, a representative pattern extractor (311) comparing extracted input patterns for each constituent portion of the input patterns to extract a single representative pattern from similar input patterns, a representative pattern image compressor (318) compressing an image of a representative pattern, and an input pattern information compressor (317) compressing a position of a coordinate of an input pattern.

Abstract: An object detection apparatus is provided for detecting both stationary objects and moving objects accurately from an image captured from a moving mobile unit.

Abstract: A method for processing multiple digital images using an imaging input device so as to reduce bleeding of edges of the multiple digital images by determining the boundaries of each of the digital images, including detecting a boundary of a first image; detecting a boundary of a second image; determining an overlap between the detected boundaries of the first image and second images; calculating the overlap between the first and second images and modeling a third image from the calculated overlap of the first and second images wherein the third image contains at least said first and second images and represents a depiction of said first and second images without an overlap between said first and second images.

Abstract: Parametric shape recognition is achieved through a decomposition of shapes into a hierarchy of subshapes ordered by their decreasing restrictions. Instances of each of the subshapes are individually located in the design shape and then reconstructed to form an instance of the entire shape. The basis for the hierarchy of subshapes can be specified by the designer or based on the default parameter relations that come from architectural and engineering knowledge. The levels of the hierarchy are defined so that the most constrained lines of a shape are those lines that the designer intended exactly. These most constrained lines have specified parametric relations to other line segments and those relations, if altered, will compromise the designer's intentions. Conversely, the lowest level of the hierarchy, which contains the least constrained line segments, only implies a specific connectivity between line segments, necessitating a vaster search.

Abstract: A system and method for reading the information stored in holograms and other diffractive objects. The information is read by analyzing the diffraction pattern produced when a laser beam is focused onto a small spot on the object and scanned across the object.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are disclosed for testing the accuracy of digital test images by comparing the value of each test image pixel with the average value of a corresponding reference image pixel array. The local image quantification verification test program accepts absolute differences between corresponding pixel and array values that are less than a specified difference maximum. The user may specify a difference maximum and a maximum array size, and may restrict the test image comparison to specified regions of the test image with specific difference tolerances for each region. This allows the user to focus the comparison on certain regions as more important than others and to focus a region on a particular object or group of objects.

Abstract: An image of an inspection object is picked up by an image pickup unit, and a characteristics quantity of an image of a defect part extracted by a defect extracting unit is extracted and digitized by a characteristics extracting unit. A database preparing unit regroups defects having similar characteristics by a defect classification unit on the basis of the characteristics information digitized by the characteristics extracting unit with respect to defects belonging to a defect group selected and designated by an operator via a display/input unit, and prepares on a database memory a database in which the defects of the inspection object are hierarchically classified.

Abstract: A method and a system by which a document image is analyzed for the purposes of establishing a searchable data structure characterizing ground-truthed contents of the document represented by the document image operates by segmenting a document image into a set of image objects, and linking the image objects with fields that store metadata. Image objects identified by segmenting the document image are grouped into subsets. The image objects are grouped according to characteristics suggesting that the image objects may have common ground-truthed metadata. By grouping the image objects into subsets, the image objects may be indexed to facilitate the ground-truthing process. In some embodiments, the index of representative image objects is presented to the user in a table form. A database of image objects with ground-truthed metadata is formed. Interactive tools and processes facilitate ground-truthing based on paired image objects and metadata.

Abstract: The invention of the present application provides data compression and archival features for data that has previously been transformed and compressed. In a first aspect of the present invention, compressed data that has previously been transformed and compressed is received, and coefficients in the compressed data are selected and discarded to reduce the amount of storage space required by the compressed data. In another aspect, the compressed data has previously been sub-sampled by a wavelet transform, and wavelet coefficients in the compressed data are selected and discarded. In another aspect, wavelet coefficients in the compressed data are dequantized, wavelet coefficients in the compressed data having less value for the data are selected, and the wavelet coefficients are requantized so as to cause more loss of data for the selected coefficients to reduce the amount of storage space required by the compressed data.

Abstract: An image coding apparatus includes a coding unit 100 for generating a code A, a coding unit 110 for generating a code B, an image reproduction unit 200, an image reproduction memory 204, and a motion vector detection unit 300. The motion vector detection unit 300 detects a motion vector using an image in the image reproduction memory 204, whereby the coding unit 100 generates the code A, while the image reproduction unit 200 reconstructs an image on the basis of output from the coding unit 100 and stores the image in the image reproduction memory 204. In the operation for generating the code B, the coding unit 110 is employed as a coding unit for generating the code B, while commonly employing the image reproduction memory 204, the motion vector detection unit 300, and the image reproduction unit 200 as employed in the generation operation for code A.

Abstract: The present invention provides an image processing device, an image processing method, and an image reading method, by which encoded data can be easily generated from sub-sampled image data, without a complicated circuit or an increase in the data amount. A one-dimensional wavelet transform in a predetermined direction is omitted in stage 1, where components 1 and 2 of input image data have been sub-sampled. When coefficient data generated through such a two-dimensional wavelet transform are to be encoded, sub-bands that are not contained in the coefficient data in comparison with the coefficient data of a component 0 should be considered to have been truncated.

Abstract: In a four-by-four orthogonal transform mode, an input data buffer enters a first half of entered eight pieces of pixel data, i.e., “x0A”, “x1A”, “x2A”, and “x3A”, into each of the first to fourth multiply-and-accumulation (MAC) operation circuits, while feeding a second half of the entered eight pieces of pixel data, i.e., “x0B”, “x1B”, “x2B”, and “x3B”, into each of the fifth to eighth MAC operation circuits. In an eight-by-eight orthogonal transform mode, the input data buffer feeds entered eight pieces of pixel data into each of the first to eighth MAC operation circuits. Since the input data buffer receives the eight pieces of pixel data in each of the four-by-four and eight-by-eight orthogonal transform modes, an orthogonal transform circuit is activated once in each of the four-by-four and eight-by-eight orthogonal transform modes.

Abstract: Provided are a method, system and program for fractionally shifting input data subject to a first transform process without first applying an inverse transformation by using a second transform process. The second transform process applies a transformed matrix to the transformed data. At least one transformed matrix is provided in non-volatile storage, wherein each transformed matrix is generated by applying the first transform process to a fractional shift matrix operator. The input data that was transformed using the first transform process is received and the at least one transformed matrix is applied to the transformed input data to generate transformed data that represents fractionally shifted transformed output data.

Abstract: This invention relates to image correction device and image correction method for compensating both the contrast and the brightness of the original image, suppressing the contrast enhancement, improving the lightness, and transforming an image with extremely bright areas or extremely dark areas into an image with correct contrast and lightness. To correct the contrast, the original image is divided into a plurality of areas, a histogram fabricated to show the frequency distribution for the pixel lightness in each area and a lightness mapping curve made for the accumulated value. The pixel lightness for each area within the image is converted based on the lightness mapping curve. To correct the lightness of the original image, the average lightness is compensated when determined to be extremely bright or extremely dark.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for predicting human vision perception and perceptual differences provides a perceptual difference model that merges two human vision systems, one for a reference video signal and the other for an impaired version of the reference video signal. The respective video signals are processed by spatio-temporal filters and, prior to differencing, by noise masking modules that apply a noise mask as a function of pupil size and luminance. The differenced filtered signal is an initial perceptual difference map to which other masking is applied to take into account correlation and contrast gain based upon the noise masks and filtered luminance from the spatio-temporal filters. The result is a more precise output perceptual difference map.

Abstract: During post-processing of video data in a YUV color space it may be necessary, for instance for immersive video conferences, to separate a video object in the image foreground from the known image background. Hitherto, rapid, locally limited deviations in illumination in the actual image to be examined, in particular shadows and brightenings, could not be compensated. The inventive recognition and compensation method, however, can compensate in real time shadows and brightenings, even at great quantities of image data by directly utilizing different properties of the technically based YUV color space. Chrominance, color saturation and color intensity of an actual pixel (P1) are approximated directly from associated YUV values (&agr;, a, b) which leads to the avoidance of time-consuming calculations.

Abstract: An image-generating system for generating data of an image on the basis of data of a photographic image obtained by capturing an image of an object. The image-generating system includes a color sample to be arranged in the proximity of an object, an illumination unit, an image pick-up unit, a color sample specifying unit and an image processing unit. The illumination unit can illuminate the object and the color sample with light lower in light quantity than ordinary light. The image pick-up unit obtains a photographic image by capturing an image of the object together with the color sample illuminated by the illumination unit. The color sample specifying unit specifies the color sample in the photographic image. The image processing unit converts colors of the object in the photographic image, taking the color sample specified by the color sample specifying unit as a reference.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an image reduction method and apparatus to be preferably used to digitize and process, for example, an image signal. Therefore, in the case of the present invention, level values a to h of peripheral pixels of a pattern 1, the level value o of a watched pixel, and the value of a reference level &thgr; are input and level values a to h in which absolute values for differences between level values of peripheral pixels and the watched pixel are smaller than the value of the reference level &thgr; are output to output ports 3. Moreover, the value of the number of output ports 3 to which level values a to h is output to an output port 4. Moreover, the level value o of the watched pixel is supplied to a multiplier 9 and multiplied by an optional gain set value &agr;, and the multiplication value is supplied to an adder 5 and added with the level values a to h output from the output ports 3 of a selection circuit 2 and the addition value is supplied to a divider 7.

Abstract: A method, system, and computer program product for adjusting a unit image area within an input image according to information importance within the unit area. An image receiver configured to receive the input image. An image warper is coupled to an importance map as is configured to generate a warped image such that regions of higher importance in the input image are expanded in the warped image and regions of lower importance in the input image are compressed in the warped image. The importance map is configured to delineate the regions of higher importance and the regions of lower importance in the input image. Texture coordinates may also be warped in a similar manner. Thus, the image is unwarped automatically by modern graphics adapters having texture mapping capabilities.

Abstract: A method for determining the orientation of a digital image, includes the steps of: employing a semantic object detection method to detect the presence and orientation of a semantic object; employing a scene layout detection method to detect the orientation of a scene layout; and employing an arbitration method to produce an estimate of the image orientation from the orientation of the detected semantic object and the detected orientation of the scene layout.

Abstract: A patterned mask is located at a distance from a linear detector array. A point radiating source illuminates the aperture to cast an image onto the array. A computer is employed to identify frequencies in the frequency domain to determine the image scale and shift along the detector array axis. Determination of the magnification of the aperture image is made employing frequency domain techniques, the aperture pattern being re-scaled to match that of the actual image, so that determination of pattern shift can be made. A first embodiment of the present invention has two variations, one of which employs the use of multiple single frequency components and phase methodology, the second of which uses multiple single frequency components as well as a variable frequency component. In a second embodiment, a composite image is also used except that only one single frequency component is used in addition to a non-periodic function.