Reporting informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of a skin

• US 8,634,648 B2
• Filed: 12/07/2011
• Issued: 01/21/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Elwha LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Hyde, Roderick A., Kare, Jordin T., Leuthardt, Eric C., Lieberman, Erez, Rivet, Dennis J., Sweeney, Elizabeth A., Wood, Lowell L. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Seth, Manav
• Application Number:
  US13/374,005
• Publication Number:
  US 20130148870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 776 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 382/190
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30028 Colon; Small intestine
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30088 Skin; Dermal
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/33 using feature-based methods

Abstract

Described embodiments include a system, method, and program product. A described system includes a circuit that extracts a human-perceivable feature included in each medical skin image of a plurality of medical skin images. Each medical skin image includes a respective portion of a region of interest of a surface of the skin of the individual human, and was acquired by a handheld device. A circuit determines a substantial correspondence between (x) a human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of a selected medical skin image and (y) a human-perceivable feature included in each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image. A circuit gathers the determined substantial correspondences. A circuit outputs informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

(a) a feature-detection circuit configured to extract at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in each medical image of a plurality of medical images of the skin of an individual human (hereafter “

medical skin images”

), the each medical image of plurality of medical skin images includes a respective portion of a region of interest of a surface of the skin of the individual human, and was acquired by a handheld digital image acquisition device;

(b) a feature-matching circuit configured to determine a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of a selected medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images and

(y) an extracted at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image;

(c) a data collection circuit configured to gather the determined substantial correspondences for the human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image; and

(d) a reporting circuit configured to output informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image, the informational data responsive to an absence of a determined substantial correspondence between the extracted human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the extracted at least one respective feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an image receiver circuit configured to receive the plurality of medical skin images.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the image receiver circuit includes:

an image receiver circuit configured to retrieve the plurality of medical skin images acquired by the handheld digital image acquisition device from a memory and/or storage device of the handheld digital image acquisition device.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the image receiver circuit includes:

an image receiver circuit configured to import from third-party device the plurality of medical skin images acquired by the handheld digital image acquisition device.

5. The system of claim 2, wherein the image receiver circuit includes:

an image receiver circuit configured to receive a push of the plurality of medical skin images from the handheld digital image acquisition device.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of medical skin images were acquired during an imaging session by the handheld digital image acquisition device.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the handheld digital image acquisition device includes a handheld digital imaging device configured to capture the plurality of medical skin images.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the handheld digital image acquisition device includes a handheld digital image acquisition device held by the individual human.

9. The system of claim 1, wherein the handheld digital image acquisition device includes a handheld digital image acquisition device held and operated by a third-party human.

10. The system of claim 1, wherein the reporting circuit includes a reporting circuit configured to output the informational data in substantially real-time.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the reporting circuit includes:

a reporting circuit configured in cooperation with the feature-detection circuit, the feature-matching circuit, and the data collection circuit to output the informational data in substantially real-time.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time includes while the handheld digital image acquisition device is in motion acquiring the plurality of medical skin images.

13. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time includes less than approximately 15 minutes after the plurality of medical skin images are received by the system.

14. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time is less than approximately 2 minutes after the plurality of medical skin images are received by the system.

15. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time includes less than approximately 30 seconds after the plurality of medical skin images are received by the system.

16. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time includes less than approximately 7 seconds after the plurality of medical skin images are received by the system.

17. The system of claim 10, wherein substantially real-time includes less than approximately 2 seconds after the plurality of medical skin images are received by the system.

18. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a border region detection circuit configured to detect the border region segment of a medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the feature-matching circuit includes:

a feature-matching circuit configured to determine a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a detected border region segment of a selected medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images and

(y) an extracted at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

20. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

an overlap-analysis circuit configured to generate data indicative of a border region-overlap status of the selected medical skin image, the data generated at least partially in response to the gathered determined substantial correspondences between the extracted perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the at least one respective perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

21. The system of claim 20, wherein the reporting circuit includes:

a reporting circuit configured to output informational data indicative of the border region-overlap status of the selected medical skin image, the informational data at least partially based on the data indicative of a border region-overlap status of the selected medical skin image.

22. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is physically incorporated within the handheld digital image acquisition device.

23. The system of claim 1, wherein the system is configured to wirelessly communicate with the handheld digital image acquisition device.

24. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a communication device configured to provide a notification at least partially based on the informational data to at least one of a human, computer, or system.

25. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a communication device configured to display a human-perceivable depiction of the informational data.

26. The system of claim 1, further comprising:

a communication device configured to output a signal usable in displaying a human-perceivable depiction of the informational data.

27. A method implemented in a computing device, the method comprising:

(a) extracting at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in each medical image of a plurality of medical images of the skin of an individual human (hereafter “

medical skin images”

), the each medical image of plurality of medical skin images includes a respective portion of a region of interest of a surface of the skin of the individual human, and was acquired by a handheld digital image acquisition device;

(b) determining a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of a selected medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images and

(y) an extracted at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image;

(c) gathering the determined substantial correspondences for the human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image; and

(d) outputting informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image, the informational data responsive to an absence of a determined substantial correspondence between the extracted human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the extracted at least one respective feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the outputting informational data includes:

outputting informational data in substantially real time, the informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image.

29. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

generating data indicative of a border region-overlap status of the selected medical skin image, the data generated at least partially in response to the determined substantial correspondences between the human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the extracted at least one respective perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

30. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

iteratively designating a next medical skin image from the plurality of medical skin images as the selected medical skin image until each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images has been designated, and

initiating a processing of each of the iteratively designated next medical skin image, the processing including operations (b), (c), and (d) of claim 27.

31. The method of claim 27, wherein the outputting informational data includes:

outputting informational data usable in displaying a human-perceivable indication of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the surface.

32. The method of claim 27, wherein the outputting informational data includes:

transforming the informational data into a particular visual depiction of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the surface, and outputting the transformed informational data.

33. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

displaying the informational data.

34. The method of claim 27, further comprising:

(e) extracting at least one human-perceivable feature included in a follow-on medical image of the skin of the individual human (hereafter “

follow-on medical skin image”

), the follow-on medical skin image including an image of a portion of the region of interest of the surface of the skin of the individual human, and acquired by the handheld digital image acquisition device subsequent to the acquisition of the plurality of medical skin images;

(f) determining a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of the follow-on medical skin image and

(y) an extracted at least one human-perceivable feature included in the selected medical skin image;

(g) gathering the determined substantial correspondences for the border region segment of the follow-on medical skin image; and

(h) outputting updated informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image, the informational data responsive to an absence of a determined substantial correspondence for the border region segment of the follow-on medical skin image.

35. A computer program product comprising:

(a) a non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions stored thereon which, when executed by a processor of a computing device, cause the computing device to perform a process including;

(i) extracting at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in each medical image of a plurality of medical images of the skin of an individual human (hereafter “

medical skin images”

), the each medical image of plurality of medical skin images includes a respective portion of a region of interest of a surface of the skin of the individual human, and was acquired by a handheld digital image acquisition device;

(ii) determining a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of a selected medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images and

(y) an extracted at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image;

(iii) gathering the determined substantial correspondences for the border region segment of the selected medical skin image; and

(iv) outputting informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image, the informational data responsive to an absence of a determined substantial correspondence between the extracted human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the extracted at least one respective feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.

36. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein the process further includes:

receiving the plurality of medical skin images.

37. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein the process further includes:

detecting a border region segment of a medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images.

38. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein the process further includes:

displaying the informational data.

39. The computer program product of claim 35, wherein the non-transitory computer-readable medium includes a tangible computer-readable media.

40. A system comprising:

means for extracting at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in each medical image of a plurality of medical images of the skin of an individual human (hereafter “

medical skin images”

), the each medical image of plurality of medical skin images includes a respective portion of a region of interest of a surface of the skin of the individual human, and was acquired by a handheld digital image acquisition device;

means for determining a substantial correspondence between

(x) an extracted human-perceivable feature included in a border region segment of a selected medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images and

(y) an extracted at least one respective human-perceivable feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image;

means for gathering the determined substantial correspondences for the border region segment of the selected medical skin image; and

means for outputting informational data indicative of a possible non-imaged portion of the region of interest of the skin of the individual human adjacent to the selected medical skin image, the informational data responsive to an absence of a determined substantial correspondence between the extracted human-perceivable feature included in the border region segment of the selected medical skin image and the extracted at least one respective feature included in the each medical skin image of the plurality of medical skin images other than the selected medical skin image.