Watermarking to convey auxiliary information, and media embodying same

• US 7,702,511 B2
• Filed: 02/02/2007
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/08/1995
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Rhoads, Geoffrey B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Johns; Andrew W
• Application Number:
  US11/670,852
• Publication Number:
  US 20070274523A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,173 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/232, 380/31, 380/42, 380/252, 380/287, 704/200.1, 704/270, 704/273, 370/522, 370/523, 370/527, 370/528, 370/529, 381/73.1
• US Class Current: 704/270
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/341 Active cards, i.e. cards including their own processing means, e.g. including an IC or chip
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/40145 Biometric identity checks
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/005 Robust watermarking, e.g. average attack or collusion attack resistant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0064 Geometric transfor invariant watermarking, e.g. affine transform invariant
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0052 Embedding of the watermark in the frequency domain
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2201/0065 Extraction of an embedded watermark; Reliable detection
• CPC Class Codes: G07C 9/253 visually
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/0032 using holograms
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/16 for devices exhibiting advertisements, announcements, pictures or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/08 by coded identity card or credit card or other personal identification means without personal verification means G07F7/02
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/086 by passive credit-cards adapted therefor, e.g. constructive particularities to avoid counterfeiting, e.g. by inclusion of a physical or chemical security-layer for security documents G07D7/00; for the reading of record-carriers in general G06K7/00; for the design of coded credit-cards G06K19/10
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1008 Active credit-cards provided with means to personalise their use, e.g. with PIN-introduction/comparison system
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/1016 Devices or methods for securing the PIN and other transaction-data, e.g. by encryption arrangements for secret communication, see H04L9/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/12 Card verification
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 19/018 Audio watermarking, i.e. embedding inaudible data in the audio signal
• 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 20/00094 involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00115 wherein the record carrier stores a unique medium identifier
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00166 : involving measures which result in a restriction to authorised contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier, e.g. music or software
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/00181 : using a content identifier, e.g. an international standard recording code [ISRC] or a digital object identifier [DOI]
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 20/0021 : involving encryption or decryption of contents recorded on or reproduced from a record carrier
• 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 20/00891 : embedded in audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10537 : Audio or video recording
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/665 : using psychoacoustic properties of the ear, e.g. masking effect
• CPC Class Codes: H04K 1/02 : by adding a second signal to make the desired signal unintelligible
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00005 : relating to image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00037 : Detecting, i.e. determining the occurrence of a predetermined state H04N1/00031 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00079 : remotely
• 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 1/32154 : Transform domain methods H04N1/32309 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/3216 : using Fourier transforms
• 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 1/32251 : in multilevel data, e.g. greyscale or continuous tone data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32288 : Multiple embedding, e.g. cocktail embedding, or redundant embedding, e.g. repeating the additional information at a plurality of locations in the image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91307 : by adding a copy protection signal to the video signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91321 : the copy protection signal being a copy protection control signal, e.g. a record inhibit signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91335 : the copy protection signal being a watermark
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2005/91342 : the copy protection signal being an authentication signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3205 : of identification information, e.g. name or ID code H04N2201/3209 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3207 : of an address
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3226 : of identification information or the like, e.g. ID code, index, title, part of an image, reduced-size image
• 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 2201/3271 : Printing or stamping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/328 : Processing of the additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/913 : for scrambling ; for copy protection
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 9/8205 : involving the multiplexing of an additional signal and the colour video signal

Abstract

The present invention related generally to audio encoding and decoding. Various arrangements are disclosed. One method obtains audio, wherein authorized or original audio comprises in-band information and associated out-of-band information; searches for out-of-band information associated with obtained audio; searches the obtain audio for in-band information associated with the obtained audio; and based at least in part on a result of the searching for out-of-band information and the searching the obtained audio for in-band information, reaches a decision regarding the obtained audio. Other arrangements are disclosed as well.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

(a) receiving data associated with audio, the data comprising a first portion and an associated second portion, said first portion representing audio elements to be rendered a consumer, and the second portion not representing audio elements to be rendered to the consumer;

(b) decoding information hidden in the first portion; and

(c) making a determination concerning said audio by reference to said decoded information and said second portion.

2. The method of claim 1 in which said determination relates to whether a recording capability should be enabled or disabled.

3. The method of claim 1 in which (c) includes checking reliability of the second portion by reference to decoded information.

4. The method of claim 1 in which the information is steganographically hidden in the first portion by a method that adapts encoding of the information to features of the audio, to reduce perceptibility of the information in the audio.

5. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon to cause an electronic processor to perform the method of claim 4.

6. The method of claim 1 where the second portion comprises management data.

7. The method of claim 1 in which the second portion comprises metadata associated with the audio.

8. The method of claim 1 in which the first and second portions are received in a data structure comprising header data and compressed audio information.

9. The method of claim 8 in which said data structure comprises a file.

10. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon to cause an electronic processor to perform the method of claim 1.

11. A programmed computing device comprising instructions stored in memory, said instructions cause said programmed computing device to perform the method of claim 1.

12. The method of claim 1 in which a programmed electronic processor performs at least item (b).

13. The method of claim 1 in which a programmed electronic processor performs at least said act of searching the obtain audio for in-band information associated with the obtained audio.

14. A method comprising:

obtaining audio, wherein authorized or original audio comprises in-band information and associated out-of-band information;

searching for out-of-band information associated with obtained audio;

searching the obtain audio for in-band information associated with the obtained audio; and

based at least in part on a result of said searching for out-of-band information and said searching the obtained audio for in-band information, reaching a decision regarding the obtained audio.

15. The method of claim 14 in which the decision relates to whether a recording capability should be enabled or disabled.

16. The method of claim 14 in which the decision relates to a reliability of the out-of-band information.

17. The method of claim 14 in which the in-band information is steganographically encoded by a process that adapts encoding of the in-band information to features of the audio, to reduce perceptibility of in-band information in the audio.

18. The method of claim 14 wherein the in-band information comprises steganographic encoding.

19. The method of claim 14 in which the out-of-band information comprises audio management information.

20. The method of claim 14 in which the out-of-band information comprises metadata related to the audio.

21. The method of claim 14 wherein the out-of-band information comprises a header.

22. A programmed computing device comprising instructions stored in memory, said instructions cause said programmed computing device to perform the method of claim 14.

23. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon to cause an electronic processor to perform the method of claim 14.

24. A method comprising:

obtaining audio;

encoding—

in-band—

information in obtained audio, the information encoded in portions representing the obtained audio to be rendered a consumer,

the information being related to out-of-band information that is associated with the obtained audio,

in which a conclusion regarding the audio can be reached through searching for the in-band information and searching for the out-of-band information; and

providing encoded audio.

25. The method of claim 24 wherein the out-of-band information comprises a header.

26. The method of claim 24 wherein said act of encoding adapts encoding of the in-band information to features of the obtained audio, to reduce perceptibility of in-band information in the obtained audio.

27. The method of claim 24 in which the conclusion relates to whether a recording capability should be enabled or disabled.

28. The method of claim 24 in which the conclusion relates to a reliability of the out-of-band information.

29. The method of claim 24 in which said act of encoding comprises steganographic encoding.

30. A programmed computing device comprising instructions stored in memory, said instructions cause said programmed computing device to perform the method of claim 24.

31. The method of claim 24 in which a programmed electronic processor performs at least said act of encoding.

32. A computer readable medium comprising instructions stored thereon to cause an electronic processor to perform the method of claim 24.

33. An apparatus comprising:

electronic memory to buffer obtained audio, in which authorized or original audio comprises in-band information and associated out-of-band information; and

an electronic processor programmed for;

searching for out-of-band information associated with the obtained audio;

searching the obtain audio for in-band information associated with the obtained audio; and

based at least in part on a result of said searching for out-of-band information and said searching the obtained audio for in-band information, reaching a decision regarding the obtained audio.

34. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the decision relates to whether a recording capability should be enabled or disabled.

35. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the decision relates to a reliability of the out-of-band information.

36. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the in-band information is steganographically encoded by a process that adapts encoding of the in-band information to features of the audio, to reduce perceptibility of in-band information in the audio.

37. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the in-band information comprises steganographic encoding.

38. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the out-of-band information comprises audio management information.

39. The apparatus of claim 33 in which the out-of-band information comprises metadata related to the audio.

40. The apparatus of claim 33 in which said electronic processor is operating to perform at least one of the functions recited therein.

41. A method comprising:

electronic memory to buffer obtained audio; and

an electronic processor programmed for;

encoding—

in-band—

information in obtained audio, the information encoded in portions representing the obtained audio to be rendered a consumer,

the information being related to out-of-band information that is associated with the obtained audio,

in which a conclusion regarding the audio can be reached through searching for the in-band information and searching for the out-of-band information; and

providing encoded audio.

42. The apparatus of claim 41 in which the out-of-band information comprises a header.

43. The apparatus of claim 41 in which said encoding adapts encoding of the in-band information to features of the obtained audio, to reduce perceptibility of in-band information in the obtained audio.

44. The apparatus of claim 41 in which the conclusion relates to whether a recording capability should be enabled or disabled.

45. The apparatus of claim 41 in which the conclusion relates to a reliability of the out-of-band information.

46. The apparatus of claim 41 in which said encoding comprises steganographic encoding.

47. The apparatus of claim 41 in which said electronic processor is operating to perform at least one of the functions recited therein.