Geographic information systems using digital watermarks
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A geographic information system (GIS) comprising a computer including a display, electronic processing circuitry and memory in communication with the electronic processing circuitry, wherein the memory includes an information layer associated with an image, an improvement comprising:
- a digital watermark embedded in the image, the digital watermark including an identifier;
digital watermark decoding instructions stored in said memory for execution on said electronic processing circuitry; and
software instructions stored in said memory for execution on said electronic processing circuitry, said software instructions comprising instructions to;
initiate decoding of the digital watermark from the image to obtain the identifier;
locate the information layer based on at least the obtained identifier; and
display the information layer relative to the image via said display.
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Abstract
The present invention relates to systems and methods for managing images and related information. In one implementation, geographic information system (GIS) layer information is registered or aligned to an image using digital watermark information embedded within the image.
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. A geographic information system (GIS) comprising a computer including a display, electronic processing circuitry and memory in communication with the electronic processing circuitry, wherein the memory includes an information layer associated with an image, an improvement comprising:
- a digital watermark embedded in the image, the digital watermark including an identifier;
digital watermark decoding instructions stored in said memory for execution on said electronic processing circuitry; and
software instructions stored in said memory for execution on said electronic processing circuitry, said software instructions comprising instructions to;
initiate decoding of the digital watermark from the image to obtain the identifier;
locate the information layer based on at least the obtained identifier; and
display the information layer relative to the image via said display. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
- a digital watermark embedded in the image, the digital watermark including an identifier;
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6. A method of correlating a geographic information system (GIS) layer with an image comprising the steps of:
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decoding a digital watermark embedded in the image, the digital watermark comprising at least an identifier;
identifying a GIS layer which is associated with the image; and
providing the GIS layer. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9)
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10. A method comprising:
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handling a digitally watermarked image, the digital watermark conveying at least a spatial location reference for an area depicted in the image; and
registering or aligning geographic information system information with the digitally watermarked image using at least the digital watermark spatial location reference.
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11. An image management method comprising the steps of:
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embedding a digital watermark in an image, the digital watermark comprising a persistent information notation, wherein the digital watermark is robustly embedded in the image so that attempts to remove the watermark will degrade image quality, and wherein the persistent information notation is redundantly embedded in the image;
associating in a data structure information that is associated with the image, the information being associated with the image via the persistent information notation; and
updating the information in the data structure to reflect activity associated with the image. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13)
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Specification