Bar code reading terminal with video capturing mode

• US 8,496,177 B2
• Filed: 06/28/2007
• Issued: 07/30/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hand Held Products Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hand Held Products Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Sevier, Mitchel P., Doren, Michael, Gomez, Garrison, Kosecki, James, Yeakley, Daniel D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hess, Daniel
• Assistant Examiner(s): TARDIF, DAVID P
• Application Number:
  US11/823,838
• Publication Number:
  US 20090001173A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,224 Days
• Field of Search: 235/462.15
• US Class Current: 235/462.15
• 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 7/1495 the method including an image compression step
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/422 Input-only peripherals , i.e. input devices connected to specially adapted client devices, e.g. global positioning system [GPS] input devices also receiving signals from specially adapted client devices H04N21/4104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4223 Cameras H04N23/00 takes precedence
• 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 21/440236 by media transcoding, e.g. video is transformed into a slideshow of still pictures, audio is converted into text
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6125 involving transmission via Internet transmission by internet of broadcast information H04H60/82
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6336 directed to decoder
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8146 involving graphical data, e.g. 3D object, 2D graphics
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/85406 involving a specific file format, e.g. MP4 format
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/173 with two-way working, e.g. subscriber sending a programme selection signal

Abstract

A bar code reading terminal can, in one embodiment, include a two-dimensional image sensor and an imaging assembly. The terminal can be configured, in response to receipt of a trigger signal, to buffer a set of frames and subject each frame of the set of frames to a decode attempt. The terminal can also be configured to convert the convert the captured set of video frames into a compressed video format, and transfer the resulting video file to a file server or to one or more playback devices, in response to a user interface action, or in response to difficult read condition having been detected. The terminal can also be configured to establish two-way video- and audio-communication with a remote video- and audio-streaming device. The video capturing and streaming operation of the terminal can be controlled remotely from a playback device via web interface.

Claims

1. A method to train bar code reading terminal operators comprising the steps of:

providing a bar code reading terminal;

providing a bar code to be read by said bar code reading terminal;

imaging said bar code using said bar code reading terminal;

storing a plurality of images into a buffer memory;

recalling each image of said plurality of images one at a time from said buffer memory;

attempting to decode said each image of said plurality of images to extract bar code data;

determining if said attempt to decode said bar code data was successful;

if said attempt to decode said bar code data was unsuccessful, transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images subjected to decoding for later viewing, wherein an attempt to decode is determined to be unsuccessful if a decoding fails for N successive frames, wherein N>

1, and wherein the N successive frames include a most recent frame of the N successive frames, and

subjecting the at least a subset of said plurality of images to video viewing to evaluate an imaging technique employed by an operator of said bar code reading terminal, wherein the at least a subset of the plurality of images includes a frame taken before the most recent frame of the N successive frames.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images comprises the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images subjected to decoding in a raw video format for later viewing, if the bar code decoding attempt was unsuccessful.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images comprises the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images subjected to decoding in an encoded video format for later viewing, if the bar code decoding attempt was unsuccessful.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images comprises the step of transferring at least a subset of said plurality of images subjected to decoding for later viewing, if the bar code decoding attempt was successful for later recall and viewing to demonstrate a good imaging technique.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said method includes actuating a manual trigger, wherein said imaging said bar code is responsive to said actuating said manual trigger.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein said method includes subjecting an initial frame acquired responsively to said manual trigger being actuated to an attempt to decode.

7. A bar code reading terminal comprising:

a two-dimensional image sensor;

a lens assembly focusing an image onto said two-dimensional image sensor;

wherein said bar code reading terminal in response to receiving a trigger signal captures a set of frames, buffers said set of frames into a buffer memory, reads each frame of said set of frames one at a time from said buffer memory and subjects said each frame of said set of frames to a decode attempt; and

wherein said bar code reading terminal in response to a difficult read condition being detected transfers at least a subset of frames of said set of frames that have been subject to a decode attempt to another location for later viewing, wherein a determination that a difficult read condition is present is based on a processing of N successive frames, wherein N>

1, and wherein the N successive frames include a most recent frame, and wherein the at least a subset of frames includes a frame taken before the most recent frame.

8. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said at least a subset of frames is transferred to a second memory within said bar code reading terminal.

9. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said at least a subset of frames is transferred to a server.

10. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said bar code reading terminal converts said at least a subset of frames to a raw video file.

11. The bar code reading terminal of claim 10, wherein said bar code reading terminal further encodes said raw video file into a compressed video file format.

12. The bar code reading terminal of claim 11, wherein said compressed video file format is one of MJPEG format, MPEG-4 format, RealVideo format, WMV format.

13. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said server is a server adapted to convert said at least a subset of frames to a raw video file.

14. The bar code reading terminal of claim 13, wherein said server further encodes said raw video file into a compressed video file format.

15. The bar code reading terminal of claim 14, wherein said compressed video file format is one of MJPEG format, MPEG-4 format, RealVideo format, WMV format.

16. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said bar code reading terminal subjects an initial frame acquired responsively to said receiving a trigger signal to an attempt to decode.

17. The bar code reading terminal of claim 7, wherein said bar code reading terminal includes a manual trigger for activating the trigger signal.