Embedded hidden identification codes in digital objects

• US 5,530,751 A
• Filed: 06/30/1994
• Issued: 06/25/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Company (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Morris, Dale C.
• Primary Examiner(s): CANGIALOSI, SALVATORE A
• Application Number:
  US08/269,807
• Time in Patent Office: 726 Days
• Field of Search: 380/4, 380/25
• US Class Current: 380/202
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2211/007 Encryption, En-/decode, En-/decipher, En-/decypher, Scramble, (De-)compress
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0028 Adaptive watermarking, e.g. Human Visual System [HVS]-based watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0051 Embedding of the watermark in the spatial domain
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0081 whereby both original and watermarked images are required at decoder, e.g. destination-based, non-blind, non-oblivious
• 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 20/0071 involving a purchase action
• 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 20/10527 Audio or video recording; Data buffering arrangements G11B20/12 - G11B20/18 take precedence
• 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 2005/91328 the copy protection signal being a copy management signal, e.g. a copy generation management signal [CGMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3233 of authentication information, e.g. digital signature, watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/327 which are undetectable to the naked eye, e.g. embedded codes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 for scrambling ; for copy protection

Abstract

A method and apparatus for encoding identification information into a stream of digital data representing an object. The digital data representing an object is modified to add embedded identification information into the data. This modification is done such that the resultant changes to the object are not objectionable to the user. By comparing the original digital data to the modified data, the possessor of the original data can recover the embedded identification information. However the identification information is effectively unavailable to anyone not possessing the original data.

Claims

1. An apparatus implemented in a programmable machine for creating a modified digital object and for recording said modified digital object on a digital storage medium, said apparatus encoding an identification number, into a copy of an original digital object that is recorded on an original storage medium to create said modified digital object, where the identification number includes at least one discrete value, and where the original digital object and the copy of the digital object consist of a plurality of discrete values, said apparatus comprising:

a combiner operative to combine a first discrete value of the identification number with a first discrete value of the digital object thereby creating a first modified value, wherein said first modified value is temporarily stored in a first temporary storage medium,

a copier operative to make a copy of the original digital object, wherein said copy is temporarily stored in a second temporary storage location,

a modifier operative to substitute the first modified value for a discrete value in the copy of the original digital object that corresponds to the first discrete value in the original digital object and for recording the copy of the original digital object with the substituted modified value on said digital storage medium as said modified digital object having said encoded identification number embedded within it.

2. An apparatus as in claim 1 wherein:

the identification number has a plurality of discrete values;

the combiner operates to combine the plurality of discrete values of the identification number with a plurality of discrete values of the original digital object creating a plurality of modified values; and

the modifier operates to substitute the plurality of modified values for the plurality of discrete values in the copy of the original digital object that correspond to the plurality of discrete values in the original digital object that were combined with values from the identification number.

3. An apparatus as in claim 2 wherein the identification number is comprised of a plurality of digits, in a particular number base, and each digit is a discrete value.

4. An apparatus as in claim 3 wherein the digits of the identification number are binary digits and each binary number is a discrete value of the identification number.

5. An apparatus as in claim 1 wherein:

the combiner is operative to combine a first discrete value of the identification number with a second discrete value of the digital object thereby creating a second modified value; and

the modifier is operative to substitute the second modified value for a discrete value, in the copy of the original digital object, that corresponds to the second discrete value in the original digital object;

whereby the copy of the original digital object with the substituted first and second modified values constitutes a modified digital object having an encoded identification number embedded within it a plurality of times.

6. An apparatus implemented in a programmable machine for recovering an embedded identification number from within a modified digital object that is recorded on a digital storage medium comprising:

said modified digital object created by;

a. utilizing a combiner operative to combine a discrete value of an identification number with a discrete value of an original digital object that is recorded on an original storage medium and thereby create a first modified value, wherein said first modified value is temporarily stored in a first temporary storage medium; and

b. utilizing a copier operative to make a copy of the original digital object, wherein said copy is temporarily stored in a second, and

c. utilizing a modifier operative to substitute the first modified value for a discrete value of the copy of the original digital object that corresponds to the first discrete value in the original digital object and to record the copy of the original digital object with the substituted modified value on said digital storage medium as said modified digital object having said embedded identification number; and

an extractor operative to receive a value from the modified digital object recorded on said digital storage medium and to receive a value from the original digital object recorded on said original storage medium; and

the extractor is operative to recover the identification number embedded within the modified digital object recorded on said digital Storage medium to uniquely identify said modified digital object.

7. An apparatus as in claim 6 wherein:

the extractor subtracts a value of the original digital object from a value of the modified digital object if the combiner added a value of the identification number to a value of the original digital object; and

the extractor subtracts a value of the modified digital object from a value of the original digital object if the combiner subtracted a value of the identification number to a value of the original digital object.

8. An apparatus as in claim 6 wherein:

the combiner combines a plurality of discrete values of an identification number with a plurality of discrete values of the original digital object thereby creating a plurality of modified values;

the modifier operates to substitute the plurality of modified values for a plurality of discrete values in the copy of the digital object that correspond to the plurality of discrete values in the original digital object that were combined with values from the identification number; and

the extractor is operative to recover the identification number values embedded within the modified digital object.