System and method to manipulate an image

• US 8,630,491 B2
• Filed: 05/02/2008
• Issued: 01/14/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/03/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hand Held Products Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Andrew Longacre Jr
• Inventors: Longacre, Andrew Jr., Hawley, Thomas, Pankow, Matthew
• Primary Examiner(s): STREGE, JOHN B
• Application Number:
  US12/151,103
• Publication Number:
  US 20090022429A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,083 Days
• Field of Search: 382/199, 382/313
• US Class Current: 382/199
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1443 locating of the code in an image
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1447 extracting optical codes from image or text carrying said optical code
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1452 detecting bar code edges
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1456 determining the orientation of the optical code with respect to the reader and correcting therefore
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/146 the method including quality enhancement steps
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/242 by image rotation, e.g. by 90 degrees
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/243 by compensating for image skew or non-uniform image deformations
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/25 Determination of region of interest [ROI] or a volume of interest [VOI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/142 using hand-held instruments; Constructional details of the instruments
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/40068 Modification of image resolution, i.e. determining the values of picture elements at new relative positions H04N1/3935 takes precedence

Abstract

A method of operating an image reader includes the steps of: searching a digital image for nominally straight edges; characterizing the nominally straight edges in terms of length and/or direction; determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges; establishing a group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image; establishing a group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions; and, transmuting a rectangle bounding those edges into a rectified image; wherein a rectified image is an image that is cropped or rotated.

Claims

1. A method of operating an image reader comprising the steps of:

providing a location of a stand relative to an area to be imaged;

searching a digital image for nominally straight edges, the searching comprising searching an image in high resolution and low resolution;

characterizing the nominally straight edges in terms of one of the following;

length, direction, or length and direction vectors;

determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges;

establishing a first group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image;

establishing a second group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions;

transmuting a rectangle bounding the first group of edges and the second group of edges into a rectified image,

wherein the rectified image is an image that is cropped by discarding portions of the digital image outside of the rectangle, and

wherein image reader is placed on the stand for viewing a document which is placed on a platen; and

determining angular distortion based on the location of the stand relative to the area and applying a correction.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of discarding edges not nominally parallel or perpendicular to the predominate orientation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the steps occur automatically after an image is captured.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein searching comprises searching an image in high resolution and low resolution derived from a single image capture viewed both at high resolution and at lower resolution.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein some edges appear in both high and low resolution images.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges utilizes a histogram.

6. A method of operating an image reader comprising the steps of:

searching a digital image at a high resolution for nominally straight edges;

providing a location of a stand relative to an area to be imaged;

searching the digital image at a low resolution for nominally straight edges, the searching comprising searching an image in high resolution and low resolution;

characterizing the nominally straight edges in terms of length and direction vectors;

determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges;

discarding edges not nominally parallel or perpendicular to the predominate orientation;

establishing a first group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image;

establishing a second group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions; and

transmuting a rectangle bounding the first group of edges and the second group of edges into a rectified image,

wherein a rectified image is an image that is cropped by discarding portions of the digital image outside of the rectangle, and

wherein image reader is placed on the stand for viewing a document which is placed on a platen; and

determining angular distortion based on the location of the stand relative to the area and applying a correction.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the steps occur automatically after an image is captured.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the image in high resolution and low resolution is derived from a single image capture viewed both at high resolution and at lower resolution.

9. The method of claim 6, wherein some edges appear in both high and low resolution images.

20. The method of claim 6, wherein determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges utilizes a histogram.

10. An image reader comprising:

an image sensor for converting light into output signals representative of an image in a

field of view (FOV) of the image sensor;

an illumination source for illuminating the field of view;

receive optics for directing light to the image sensor; and

a processor configured to perform a method comprising;

searching an image for nominally straight edges, the searching comprising searching an image in high resolution and low resolution;

characterizing the nominally straight edges in terms of one of the following;

length, direction, or length and direction vectors;

determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges;

establishing a first group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image;

establishing a second group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions; and

transmuting a rectangle bounding the first group of edges and the second group of edges into a rectified image,

wherein a rectified image is an image that is cropped by discarding portions of the digital image outside of the rectangle, and

wherein image reader is placed on a stand relative to an area to be imaged for viewing a document which is placed on a platen; and

determining angular distortion based on the location of the stand relative to the area and applying a correction.

11. The image reader of claim 10, the method further comprising discarding edges not nominally parallel or perpendicular to the predominate orientation.

12. The image reader of claim 10, wherein the processor performs the method automatically after an image is captured.

13. The image reader of claim 10, wherein searching comprises searching an image in high resolution and low resolution derived from a single image capture viewed both at high resolution and at lower resolution.

14. The image reader of claim 10, wherein some edges appear in both high and low resolution images.

21. The image reader of claim 10, wherein determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges utilizes a histogram.

15. An image reader comprising:

an image sensor for converting light into output signals representative of an image in a field of view (FOV) of the image sensor;

an illumination source for illuminating the field of view;

receive optics for directing light to the image sensor;

and a processor configured to perform a method comprising;

searching a digital image at a high resolution for nominally straight edges;

searching the digital image at a low resolution for nominally straight edges;

characterizing the nominally straight edges, in terms of one of the following;

length, direction, or length and direction vectors;

determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges;

discarding edges not nominally parallel or perpendicular to the predominate orientation;

image;

establishing a first group of edges as a function of their proximity to the center of the image;

establishing a second group of edges as a function of their proximity to other remaining edge positions; and

transmuting a rectangle bounding the first group of edges and the second group of edges into a rectified image,

wherein a rectified image is an image that is cropped by discarding portions of the digital image outside of the rectangle, and

wherein image reader is placed on a stand relative to an area to be imaged for viewing a document which is placed on a platen; and

determining angular distortion based on the location of the stand relative to the area and applying a correction.

16. The image reader of claim 15, wherein the processor performs the method automatically after an image is captured.

17. The image reader of claim 15, wherein searching comprises searching an image in high resolution and low resolution derived from a single image capture viewed both at high resolution and at lower resolution.

18. The image reader of claim 15, wherein some edges appear in both high and low resolution images.

22. The image reader of claim 15, wherein determining a predominant orientation of the nominally straight edges utilizes a histogram.