Hiding geo-location data through arrangement of objects

• US 20030053654A1
• Filed: 08/12/2002
• Published: 03/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/1994
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Stach, John, Rhoads, Geoffrey B., Lofgren, Neil E., Patterson, Philip R.
• Granted Patent: US 6,993,152 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: B29C 45/1418 the inserts being deformed or preformed, e.g. by the injection pressure
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 25/29 Securities; Bank notes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0021 Image watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0052 Embedding of the watermark in the frequency domain
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/40 Document-oriented image-based pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/253 visually
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/0032 using holograms
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/0034 using watermarks
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1016 Devices or methods for securing the PIN and other transaction-data, e.g. by encryption arrangements for secret communication, see H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 Card verification
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/018 Audio watermarking, i.e. embedding inaudible data in the audio signal
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00086 Circuits for prevention of unauthorised reproduction or copying, e.g. piracy indicating unauthorised use of record carriers in general G11B23/28; scrambling for television signal recording H04N5/913; network architectures or network protocols for network security H04L63/00; cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for secret or secure communication H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00094 involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00115 wherein the record carrier stores a unique medium identifier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00166 : involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier, e.g. music or software
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00181 : using a content identifier, e.g. an international standard recording code [ISRC] or a digital object identifier [DOI]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00884 : involving a watermark, i.e. a barely perceptible transformation of the original data which can nevertheless be recognised by an algorithm
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00891 : embedded in audio data
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/665 : using psychoacoustic properties of the ear, e.g. masking effect
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00005 : relating to image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00037 : Detecting, i.e. determining the occurrence of a predetermined state H04N1/00031 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00079 : remotely
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32122 : in a separate device, e.g. in a memory or on a display separate from image data
• 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 1/32208 : involving changing the magnitude of selected pixels, e.g. overlay of information or super-imposition H04N1/32219, H04N1/32224 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32219 : involving changing the position of selected pixels, e.g. word shifting, or involving modulating the size of image components, e.g. of characters H04N1/32224 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32251 : in multilevel data, e.g. greyscale or continuous tone data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32261 : in binary data H04N1/32256 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32288 : Multiple embedding, e.g. cocktail embedding, or redundant embedding, e.g. repeating the additional information at a plurality of locations in the image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32304 : Embedding different sets of additional information
• 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 2005/91321 : the copy protection signal being a copy protection control signal, e.g. a record inhibit signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 : the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/23892 : involving embedding information at multiplex stream level, e.g. embedding a watermark at packet level
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8358 : involving watermark protecting executable software by watermarking G06F21/16; image watermarking in general G06T1/0021; watermarks inserted in still images for transmission purposes H04N1/32144; inserting watermarks during video coding H04N19/467
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3205 : of identification information, e.g. name or ID code H04N2201/3209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3207 : of an address
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3225 : of data relating to an image, a page or a document
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3226 : of identification information or the like, e.g. ID code, index, title, part of an image, reduced-size image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 : of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3239 : using a plurality of different authentication information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 : which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 : Printing or stamping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3274 : Storage or retrieval of prestored additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/328 : Processing of the additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 : for scrambling ; for copy protection

Abstract

The present invention provides steganographic-embedding techniques. In one implementation a digital watermark signal is mapped to a set of spatial positions. Physical message objects are positioned according to the set of spatial positions. The signal is provided on a physical structure such as a building or road. The signal may include geo-location information. The geo-location information identifies the location of the physical structure. In other cases the signal includes a marker or identifier. The marker or identifier provides a reference point for images depicting the physical structure.

Claims

1. A method of marking a physical structure comprising the steps of:

providing a steganographic signal;

identifying a set of spatial position points corresponding to the steganographic signal; and

arranging message objects on a surface of the physical structure to be viewable from an aerial platform, wherein the arrangement is in accordance with the spatial position points.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the physical structure comprises at least one of a bridge, house, dock, airport, runway, warehouse, street, parking lot, road, building, water or fuel tank, hospital, power utility, and dam.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the message objects comprise at least one of painted objects, painted areas including ultra-violet light fluorescing properties, painted areas including infrared light fluorescing properties, air vents, paint, cloth, physical surface texture, physical objects and lights.

4. The method claim 1 wherein the steganographic signal comprises a digital watermark signal including an indicator.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the indicator comprises geo-location information.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of interrogating a database with the indicator to retrieve related information.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of spatial position points comprises a sufficient number of points to allow detection of the steganographic signal

7. A method of providing a geo-location reference for a physical structure comprising the steps of steganographically providing machine-readable code on a top surface of the physical structure that is detectable from an aerial platform, wherein placement of the machine-readable code on the top surface of the physical structure does not betray the existence of the code to human observers of the top surface of the physical structure, but the code is detectable from image data corresponding to the top surface of the physical structure, wherein the machine readable code comprises a geo-location reference.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the machine-readable code comprises a digital watermark component.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the digital watermark component comprises a set of points spatially arranged to convey the geo-location reference.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein message objects are arranged on the physical structure to represent the set of points.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein the geo-location reference serves as a link to related information.

12. A method to determine geo-locations depicted in an image captured from an aerial platform, said method comprising the steps of:

analyzing the image to detect a signal steganographically hidden on an outer surface of a first physical structure that is depicted in the image, wherein the signal comprises a message including a geo-location indicator; and

based on the geo-location indicator determining a geo-location for the first physical structure.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the signal comprises an orientation component indicating at least rotation and scale, said method further comprising the step of determining a geo-location for an area or a second physical structure depicted in the image by interpolating a distance from the geo-location of the first physical structure to the area or second physical structure taking into account the rotation and scale as evidenced by the orientation component.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the signal is steganographically hidden on the outer surface of the first physical structure according to at least the following steps:

providing a steganographic signal;

identifying a set of spatial position points corresponding to the steganographic signal; and

arranging message objects in accordance with the spatial position points.

15. A method of determining a geo-location of a ground area or physical structure from an aerial platform comprising the steps of:

capturing an image of the ground area or physical structure, wherein the ground area or physical structure comprises a signal steganographically provided on an surface of the physical structure so as to be capable of being captured in an image taken from the aerial platform, and wherein the signal comprises a geo-location indicator;

decoding the signal to obtain the geo-location indicator; and

based on the geo-location indicator determining a location for the ground area or physical structure.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the signal is convey through a set of message objects arranged in accordance with a digital watermark signal.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein said determining step comprises interrogating a data structure with the geo-location indicator to obtain geo-location information pertaining to the ground area or physical structure.