Hand-supportable digital image-processing based bar code symbol reading system employing image cropping zone (ICZ) framing and post-image capture cropping

• US 20080135620A1
• Filed: 12/03/2004
• Published: 06/12/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Metrologic Instruments Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Metrologic Instruments Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Bonanno, John, Zhu, Xiaoxun, Knowles, C. Harry, Au, Ka Man, Liu, Yong, Liu, Liang, Schmidt, Mark, Ghosh, Sankar, Kotlarsky, Anatoly, Tao, Xi, Zhang, Wenhua, Amundsen, Thomas, Hou, Rui, Russell, Garrett, Byun, Sung, Yu, Hongpeng, Schnee, Michael, Spatafore, Pasqual
• Granted Patent: US 7,568,625 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 235/462.42
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/44526 Plug-ins; Add-ons
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2207/1012 Special detection of object
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10712 Fixed beam scanning
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10732 Light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10831 Arrangement of optical elements, e.g. lenses, mirrors, prisms optical elements per se G02B
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10851 Circuits for pulse shaping, amplifying, eliminating noise signals, checking the function of the sensing device basic electronic circuitry H03
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10881 constructional details of hand-held scanners
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence

Abstract

A method of reading bar code symbols comprising the steps of: (a) projecting an image cropping zone (ICZ) framing pattern within the FOV of an image sensing array during wide-area illumination and image capturing operation; (b) visually aligning an object to be imaged within the ICZ framing pattern; (c) forming and capturing an wide-area image of the entire FOV, which spatially encompasses the ICZ framing pattern aligned about the object to be imaged; (d) using automatic software-based image cropping algorithm to automatically crop the pixels within the spatial boundaries defined by the ICZ framing pattern, from those pixels contained in the entire wide-area image frame captured during step (c); and (e) automatically decode processing the image represented by the cropped image pixels in the ICZ framing pattern so as to read a 1D or 2D bar code symbol graphically represented therein.

Claims

1-423. -423. (canceled)

424. A method of reading bar code symbols using a hand-supportable image-processing based bar code symbol reading system having an image sensing array with a field of view, a LED-based illumination subsystem with an LED illumination array, a wide-area illumination and image capturing operation, and an automatic software-based image cropping algorithm, said method comprising the steps of:

(a) projecting an image cropping zone (ICZ) framing pattern within the FOV of said image sensing array during wide-area illumination and image capturing operation;

(b) visually aligning an object to be imaged within said ICZ framing pattern;

(c) forming and capturing an wide-area image of the entire FOV of image sensing array, which spatially encompasses said ICZ framing pattern aligned about the object to be imaged;

(d) using said automatic software-based image cropping algorithm to automatically crop the pixels within the spatial boundaries defined by said ICZ framing pattern, from those pixels contained in the entire wide-area image frame captured during step (c); and

(e) automatically decode processing the image represented by the cropped image pixels in said ICZ framing pattern so as to read a 1D or 2D bar code symbol graphically represented therein.

425. The method of claim 424, which further comprises:

(f) outputting to a host system, the symbol character data representative of the decoded 1D or 2D bar code symbol.

426. The method of claim 424, wherein step (a) comprising generating a laser beam which is transmitted through a light diffractive element to produce a plurality of laser beamlets that define the spatial boundaries of said ICZ framing pattern for the user to see during bar code illumination and imaging operations.

428. The hand-supportable image-processing based bar code symbol reading system of claim 425, wherein said an optics-based mechanism comprises a laser source for generating a visible laser beam which is transmitted through a light diffractive element so as to produce a plurality of laser beamlets that define the spatial boundaries of said ICZ framing pattern for the user to see during object illumination and imaging operations.

427. A hand-supportable image-processing based bar code symbol reading system having a wide-area illumination and image capturing operation, said hand-supportable image-processing based bar code symbol reading system comprising:

a hand-supportable housing;

an image sensing array with a field of view, disposed within said hand-supportable housing;

a LED-based illumination subsystem with an LED illumination array, disposed within said hand-supportable housing;

an image processor, disposed within said hand-supportable housing, programmed to carry out an automatic software-based image cropping algorithm;

an optics-based mechanism, disposed within said hand-supportable housing, for projecting an image cropping zone (ICZ) framing pattern within said FOV during wide-area illumination and image capturing operation; and

an image-processing based bar code symbol reading module disposed within said hand-supportable housing;

whereby, when the user visually aligns an object to be imaged within said ICZ framing pattern, an wide-area image of the entire FOV is formed and captured so that the captured wide-area image spatially encompasses said ICZ framing pattern aligned about the object to be imaged;

then said automatic software-based image cropping algorithm is used to automatically crop the pixels within the spatial boundaries defined by said ICZ framing pattern, from those pixels contained in the entire captured wide-area image frame;

then the image represented by the cropped image pixels in said ICZ framing pattern is automatically decode-processed by said image-processing based bar code symbol reading module so as to read a 1D or 2D bar code symbol graphically represented in the cropped image; and

then the symbol character data representative of the decoded 1D or 2D bar code symbol is outputted to a host system.