Utilizing data reduction in steganographic and cryptographic systems

• US 8,781,121 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Issued: 07/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Wistaria Trading Inc.
• Original Assignee: Blue Spike, Inc.
• Inventors: Moskowitz, Scott A., Berry, Mike W.
• Primary Examiner(s): HOFFMAN, BRANDON S
• Application Number:
  US13/802,471
• Publication Number:
  US 20130188823A1
• Time in Patent Office: 489 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 380/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/10 Protecting distributed programs or content, e.g. vending or licensing of copyrighted material protection in video systems or pay television H04N7/16 ; Digital rights management [DRM]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/16 Program or content traceability, e.g. by watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0021 Image watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/046 of operations, operands or results of the operations
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/608 Watermarking
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/16 the keys or algorithms being changed during operation
• 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 1/32272 Encryption or ciphering

Abstract

The present invention relates to methods for protecting a data signal using the following techniques: applying a data reduction technique to reduce the data signal into a reduced data signal; subtracting the reduced data signal from the data signal to produce a remainder signal; embedding a first watermark into the reduced data signal to produce a watermarked, reduced data signal; and adding the watermarked, reduced data signal to the remainder signal to produce an output signal. A second watermark may be embedded into the remainder signal before the final addition step. Further, cryptographic techniques may be used to encrypt the reduced data signals and to encrypt the remainder signals before the final addition step.

Claims

1. A machine implemented method for producing output signals encoding content, comprising:

watermarking, using a machine, a reduced data version of an original data signal, said original data signal containing content, to form a watermarked reduced data version of said original data signal;

adding, using said machine, said watermarked reduced data version of said original signal to a signal derived from said original data signal to produce an output signal.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises subtracting said reduced data version of said original data signal from said original data signal.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises watermarking a signal.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises scrambling a signal.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

splitting a data stream containing said original data signal into two physically distinct data streams;

wherein said watermarking said reduced data version is performed on one of said two physically distinct data streams;

wherein said adding adds signals from said two physically distinct data streams to produce said output signal.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

splitting said output signal into two physically distinct output signal streams.

7. The method of claim 1 further comprising decoding from said output signal said reduced data version of said original data signal.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising decoding from said output signal said signal derived from said original data signal.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein said machine is a computer system comprising:

(a) a computer processor; and

(b) at least one computer memory storing (c) a data reduction algorithm and (d) at least one digital watermarking algorithm.

10. A machine implemented method for producing an output signal encoding content, comprising:

scrambling, using a machine, a reduced data version of an original data signal to form a scrambled reduced data version of said original data signal;

adding, using said machine, said scrambled reduced data version of said original data signal to a signal derived from said original data signal to produce an output signal.

11. The method of claim 10 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises subtracting said reduced data version of said original data signal from said original data signal.

12. The method of claim 10 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises watermarking a signal.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein forming said signal derived from said original data signal comprises scrambling a signal.

14. The method of claim 10 further comprising splitting a data stream containing said original data signal into two physically distinct data streams, wherein said adding adds signals from said two physically distinct data streams to produce said output signal.

15. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

splitting a data stream containing said original data signal into two physically distinct data streams;

wherein said watermarking said reduced data version is performed on one of said two physically distinct data streams;

wherein said adding adds signals from said two physically distinct data streams to produce said output signal.

16. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

splitting said output signal into two physically distinct output signal streams.

17. The method of claim 10 further comprising decoding from said output signal said reduced data version of said original data signal.

18. The method of claim 10 further comprising decoding from said output signal said signal derived from said original data signal.

19. The method of claim 10 wherein said machine comprises a computer system comprising:

(a) a computer processor; and

(b) at least one computer memory storing (c) a data reduction algorithm and (d) at least one digital watermarking algorithm.