PROCESSING AND PROVIDING AN IMAGE IN WHICH A PLURALITY OF SYMBOLS ARE ENCODED

• US 20160301987A1
• Filed: 04/07/2015
• Published: 10/13/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saturn Licensing LLC (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: EYER, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 9,756,401 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0028 Adaptive watermarking, e.g. Human Visual System [HVS]-based watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/28 involving image processing hardware
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0051 Embedding of the watermark in the spatial domain
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0202 whereby the quality of watermarked images is measured; Measuring quality or performance of watermarking methods; Balancing between quality and robustness
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/235 Processing of additional data, e.g. scrambling of additional data or processing content descriptors
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44008 involving operations for analysing video streams, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in the video stream arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of video in broadcast systems H04H60/59
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4622 Retrieving content or additional data from different sources, e.g. from a broadcast channel and the Internet web site content organization and management for information retrieval from the Internet G06F16/958; transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82; stock exchange data over packet-switching network H04L12/1804; push services including data channel over packet-switching network H04L12/1859
• 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 21/84 Generation or processing of descriptive data, e.g. content descriptors systems specially adapted for using meta-information in broadcast systems H04H60/73
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8586 by using a URL processing chained hypermedia data for information retrieval G06F16/94; information retrieval from the Internet by using URLs G06F16/955; URL in broadcast information H04H20/93; Web-based protocols H04L67/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/025 Systems for the transmission of digital non-picture data, e.g. of text during the active part of a television frame transmission of digital non-picture data during the vertical blanking interval only H04N7/088
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/08 Systems for the simultaneous or sequential transmission of more than one television signal, e.g. additional information signals, the signals occupying wholly or partially the same frequency band , e.g. by time division H04N7/007 takes precedence

Abstract

A reception apparatus, method, and non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for processing an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded, and an information providing apparatus for providing the image. The reception apparatus includes circuitry configured to receive or retrieve an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded. The circuitry determines a set of luminance values used to encode the symbols based on luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image. The circuitry determines a highest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image based on the determined set of luminance values. Further, the circuitry derives data values of the symbols encoded in the image based on the set of luminance values and using the determined highest luminance value.

Claims

1. A reception apparatus, comprising:

circuitry configured to

receive or retrieve an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded,

determine a set of luminance values used to encode the symbols based on luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image,

determine a highest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image based on the determined set of luminance values, and

derive data values of the symbols encoded in the image based on the set of luminance values and using the determined highest luminance value.

2. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the set of luminance values by averaging different subsets of the luminance values of the plurality of pixels included in the image.

3. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to

determine a slice point by using the following equation:

slice point=M+(N−

M)/2,

where M equals a lowest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image and N equals the determined highest luminance value, and

derive the data values of the symbols by comparing the set of luminance values with the slice point.

4. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to determine the highest luminance value used to encode the symbols based on a number of instances of each luminance value within a predetermined range of luminance values, the highest luminance value being the luminance value within the predetermined range of luminance values having the highest number of instances.

5. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the highest luminance value used to encode the symbols is restricted to a predetermined set of values.

6. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the image is a video frame, and

the symbols are encoded in the first line of the video frame.

7. The reception apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the circuitry is configured to:

determine whether a predetermined fixed pattern of symbol data values is encoded in the image, and

only when the predetermined fixed pattern of symbol data values is determined to be encoded in the image, determine the set of luminance values, determine the highest luminance value, and derive the data values of the symbols.

8. A method for processing an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded, the method comprising:

receiving or retrieving, by circuitry of a reception apparatus, the image in which the plurality of symbols is encoded;

determining a set of luminance values used to encode the symbols based on luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image;

determining, by the circuitry, a highest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image based on the determined set of luminance values; and

deriving, by the circuitry, data values of the symbols encoded in the image based on the set of luminance values and using the determined highest luminance value.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the step of determining the set of luminance values comprises:

determining the set of luminance values by averaging different subsets of the luminance values of the plurality of pixels included in the image.

10. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

determining a slice point using the following equation;

slice point=M+(N−

M)/2,

where M equals a lowest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image and N equals the determined highest luminance value, wherein

the step of deriving the symbols includes deriving the data values of the symbols by comparing the set of luminance values with the slice point.

11. The method according to claim 8, wherein the step of determining the highest luminance value includes determining the highest luminance value used to encode the symbols based on a number of instances of each luminance value within a predetermined range of luminance values, the highest luminance value being the luminance value within the predetermined range of luminance values having the highest number of instances.

12. The method according to claim 8, wherein the highest luminance value used to encode the symbols is restricted to a predetermined set of values.

13. The method according to claim 8, wherein

the image is a video frame, and

the symbols are encoded in the first line of the video frame.

14. The method according to claim 8, further comprising:

determining whether a predetermined fixed pattern of symbol data values is encoded in the image, wherein

the steps of determining the set of luminance values, determining the highest luminance value, and deriving the data values of the symbols are only performed when the predetermined fixed pattern of symbol data values is determined to be encoded in the image.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform a method for processing an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded, the method comprising:

receiving or retrieving the image in which the plurality of symbols is encoded;

determining a set of luminance values used to encode the symbols based on luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image;

determining a highest luminance value used to encode the symbols in the image based on the determined set of luminance values; and

deriving data values of the symbols encoded in the image based on the set of luminance values and using the determined highest luminance value.

16. An information providing apparatus, comprising:

circuitry configured to

receive or retrieve an image in which a plurality of symbols is to be encoded,

encode the plurality of symbols in the image, the plurality of symbols being encoded in the image using luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image, and

provide the image in which the plurality of symbols is encoded to a reception apparatus, wherein

a luminance value used to encode at least one of the plurality of symbols is set by an operator.

17. The information providing apparatus according to claim 16, wherein data values of a subset of the plurality of symbols identify the luminance value set by the operator.

18. A method for providing an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded, the method comprising:

receiving or retrieving an image in which the plurality of symbols is to be encoded,

encoding, by circuitry of an information providing apparatus, the plurality of symbols in the image, the plurality of symbols being encoded in the image using luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image, and

providing, by the circuitry, the image in which the plurality of symbols is encoded to a reception apparatus, wherein

a luminance value used to encode at least one of the plurality of symbols is set by an operator.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein data values of a subset of the plurality of symbols identify the luminance value set by the operator.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform a method for providing an image in which a plurality of symbols is encoded, the method comprising:

receiving or retrieving an image in which the plurality of symbols is to be encoded,

encoding the plurality of symbols in the image, the plurality of symbols being encoded in the image using luminance values of a plurality of pixels included in the image, and

providing the image in which the plurality of symbols is encoded to a reception apparatus, wherein

a luminance value used to encode at least one of the plurality of symbols is set by an operator.