Watermarking with separate application of the grid and payload signals

• US 20020145759A1
• Filed: 05/22/2002
• Published: 10/10/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Miller, Marc
• Granted Patent: US 6,973,197 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/3.28
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/00 Pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0028 Adaptive watermarking, e.g. Human Visual System [HVS]-based watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32144 embedded in the image data, i.e. enclosed or integrated in the image, e.g. watermark, super-imposed logo or stamp
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32304 Embedding different sets of additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32309 in colour image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32352 Controlling detectability or arrangements to facilitate detection or retrieval of the embedded information, e.g. using markers for decoding, detection or retrieval operations H04N1/32149 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes

Abstract

The watermark grid signal and the watermark payload signal are separately applied to an image. The process is particularly useful in situations where variable data such as serial numbers (or other image specific data) is being embedded in a series of images. In such situations the grid signal can be uniform over an entire sequence of images and only the payload signal need be changed before being printed on each image. The time, computational and labor intensive processes can be applied to the task of embedding the grid signal in the image to insure that visual artifacts are not created. After the image has been changed to embed the grid signal, the payload data can be inserted into at least a selected part of the image. Since the payload signal is less likely to create visual artifacts than the uniform grid signal, less effort need be used to avoid creating visual artifacts due to the payload signal. The relatively random nature of the payload data can be relied upon to avoid creating significant visual artifacts. The same bifurcated process can be used to apply digital watermarks to other media such as sound recordings where potential artifacts are in the nature of sound anomalies rather that visual artifacts.

Claims

1. ) a method of applying serialized data to a series of images,

creating a first watermark tile containing grid information,

creating a series of second watermark tiles containing serialized payload data,

embedding said first watermark tile in a first image,

printing a high quality document with said first image using a high quality printing process, and

embedding said series of second watermark tiles in a second series of images, and

printing said second series of images on a series of said high quality documents using a fast printing process:

2. ) A method of printing a document with watermarked images,

first printing said document with an image containing a watermark grid signal, and

then printing at least a portion of said document with an image containing a watermark payload signal.

3. ) The method recited in claim 2 where said first printing is done utilizing a high quality printing process.

4. ) The method recited in claim 2 wherein said image containing said watermark payload signal is printed using a high speed printing process.

5. ) A method of printing a watermarked document comprising,

watermarking a first image with a watermark grid signal,

printing said first image on said document,

watermarking a second image with a watermark payload document,

printing said second image on said document, said second image being printed in alignment with the printing of said first image,

whereby said watermark payload can be read from said document by first detecting said grid signal and using the alignment and scale from said grid signal to read said watermark payload data.

6. ) The method recited in claim 5 wherein said first image is printed with a high quality printing process.

7. ) The method recited in claim 5 wherein said watermark payload comprises serialization information.

8. ) The method recited in claim 5 wherein there are a plurality of different watermark payloads and wherein a plurality of images are watermarked with said different watermark payloads and wherein there is a plurality of said first watermarked images are printed and wherein a different one of said second images is printed in alignment with different ones of said first images.

9. ) The method recited in claim 5 wherein said second image is printed using a high speed printing process.

10. ) The method recited in claim 6 wherein said watermark payload comprises serialization information.

11. ) A method of printing a watermarked image which comprises,

printing a first image which contains a watermark grid signal, and

printing a second image which contains watermark payload data,

said two images being printed in alignment with each other.