Parallel Pattern Detection Engine

• US 20070150622A1
• Filed: 03/06/2007
• Published: 06/28/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/14/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Trend Micro Inc.
• Original Assignee: Ali Saidi, Jan Slyfield, Kerry Kravec, Pascal Tannhof
• Inventors: Saidi, Ali, Tannhof, Pascal, Kravec, Kerry, Slyfield, Jan
• Granted Patent: US 7,502,875 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/751 Comparing pixel values or logical combinations thereof, or feature values having positional relevance, e.g. template matching
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/955 using specific electronic processors

Abstract

A parallel pattern detection engine (PPDE) comprise multiple processing units (PUs) customized to do various modes of pattern recognition. The PUs are loaded with different patterns and the input data to be matched is provided to the PUs in parallel. Each pattern has an Opcode that defines what action to take when a particular data in the input data stream either matches or does not match the corresponding data being compared during a clock cycle. Each of the PUs communicate selected information so that PUs may be cascaded to enable longer patterns to be matched or to allow more patterns to be processed in parallel for a particular input data stream.

Claims

1-32. -32. (canceled)

33. A method to recognize objects comprising:

providing a database of patterns representative of objects to be recognized;

storing an operation code with predefined sector of said database;

generating a data stream representative of unknown objects;

providing an address pointer to select patterns in said database;

correlating a pattern selected with a block of data from said data stream; and

generating a status signal based upon result of the correlation and the operation code stored with the selected pattern.

34. The method of claim 33 wherein correlation includes comparing the block of data from the data stream with the pattern selected from said database of patterns.

35. The method of claim 33 wherein predefined sector includes eight bits.

36. The method of claim 33 wherein a selected block of data includes eight bits.

37. The method of claim 33 wherein said status signal, indicating unknown object identified, is being generated only if relationship between the data from said data stream and selected pattern is consistent with operation code stored with said selected pattern.

38. The method of claim 33 wherein said status signal, indicating unknown object not identified, is being generated only if relationship between the data from said data stream and the selected pattern is inconsistent with the operation code stored with said selected pattern.

39. The method of claim 33 further including selectively modifying the address pointer in response to results of said correlation and the operation code stored with the selected pattern.

40. The method of claim 33 wherein the objects include digitized representation of faces.

41. The method of claim 33 or 34 wherein the block of data includes eight bits.