Device and method for characterizing and identifying an object

• US 6,527,181 B1
• Filed: 03/02/2000
• Issued: 03/04/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/09/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Bruker Biospin GMBH (Bruker Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Bruker Analytik GmbH (Bruker Corporation)
• Inventors: Kleeberg, Hans-Joachim, Hoepfel, Dieter, Reiss, Volker
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kim, Ahshik
• Application Number:
  US09/517,329
• Time in Patent Office: 1,097 Days
• Field of Search: 235/462.03, 235/462.04, 235/462.07
• US Class Current: 235/462.03
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2203/06 Arrangements on packages concerning bar-codes
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 51/245 provided with decoration, information or contents indicating devices, labels B65D81/366 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06018 one-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 2019/06243 concentric-code
• CPC Class Codes: G09F 3/0295 Labels or tickets for tubes, pipes and the like

Abstract

A device and a method for characterizing and identifying an object, e.g. a container, with a surface visible from outside the object, onto which is disposed an optically readable one-dimensional bar code consisting of bars and spaces, are characterized in that the bar code is disposed in an annular range (2) of the surface, that the bars and spaces extend in a star-like manner from a center of the annular area (2) to the outside and that the bar code is read in the circumferential direction of the annular area (2). This device and method enable automatic detection, recognition and identification of objects, like e.g. sample bottles for spectroscopic analysis in a simple technically undemanding and cheap manner, wherein automatic identification of hollow, in particular hollow cylindrical objects can also be easily realized.

Claims

1. A method for characterizing and identifying an object, the method comprising the steps of:

a) disposing a one-dimensional bar code on an upper surface of a lid, said lid closing a sample bottle, said bar code occupying an annular portion on said upper surface of said lid, said bar code having bars and spaces extending from a center of said annular area, in a star-shaped manner, towards an outside thereof, wherein said bar code is disposed on said upper surface in an annular area between a predetermined minimum radius r₁ and a predetermined maximum radius r₂;

b) reading said bar code along a circumferential direction of said annular area;

c) recording an image, comprising said annular area, using an image detecting system;

d) storing said recorded image in digitized form;

e) segmenting said digitized image into associated bar code rings and allocation thereof to individual object-related classes;

f) determing a radially inner bar code limit at a radius r₁ and a radially outer bar code limit at a radius r₂ for each object-related class;

g) reading said bar code of each object-related class at a radius r_L, wherein r₁≦

r_L≦

r₂;

h) extracting a quiet zone;

i) combining pixels of a same color black and a same color white;

j) determining a respective relative element width of signals for said bars and said spaces of said bar code as a multiple of one of a thinnest bar and a thinnest space;

k) interpreting a recognized pattern of said bars and said spaces as said bar code and associating said bar code with a corresponding known bar code type, to decode said read bar code for each object-related class; and

l) placing said sample bottle unit into one of a spectroscopic analysis device and an automated nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic device.