Image related methods and systems

• US 8,842,875 B2
• Filed: 05/31/2011
• Issued: 09/23/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Original Assignee: Digimarc Corporation
• Inventors: Rodriguez, Tony F.
• Primary Examiner(s): Liew, Alex
• Application Number:
  US13/149,334
• Publication Number:
  US 20120300974A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,211 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382115-118, 382124-127
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5866 using information manually generated, e.g. tags, keywords, comments, manually generated location and time information
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 1/0092 Payload characteristic determination in a watermarking scheme, e.g. number of bits to be embedded
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00 Scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission; Details thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32122 in a separate device, e.g. in a memory or on a display separate from image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3235 Checking or certification of the authentication information, e.g. by comparison with data stored independently
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3261 of multimedia information, e.g. a sound signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3274 Storage or retrieval of prestored additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3278 Transmission

Abstract

Digital watermark encoding—and associated registry transactions—are made transparent to consumers—performed as built-in features of common image processing operations, such as taking a picture, or printing a picture. In one arrangement, a user interacts with buttons and other controls of a graphical user interface on the touchscreen of a printer to author specific experiences that should be triggered by a hardcopy image—such as launching a related video, playing a recorded audio clip, displaying other images in a story narrative to which the hardcopy image relates, etc. The printer then attends to interactions with network infrastructure components needed to give the hardcopy print the user-desired functionality. In another arrangement, the content experience triggered by a printed image is authored automatically, e.g., by reference to data mined from the image'"'"'s online context (e.g., Facebook photo album). A great variety of other features and arrangements are also detailed.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a request to assign a watermark identifier for use with a first content object represented by digital data, said watermark identifier comprising an identifier that is to be digitally-watermarked into the first content object by a remote device;

assigning a watermark identifier for use with the first content object, and transmitting the assigned watermark identifier to the remote device, the assignment of the watermark identifier proceeding independently of the digital data representing the object; and

checking to determine if a watermark identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object.

2. The method of claim 1 that includes:

determining that an identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object; and

associating together, in a database, an identifier assigned to the first content object, and the identifier earlier assigned to the former content object, so that the database indicates that the first content object and the former content object have a perceptual similarity.

3. The method of claim 1 that includes:

determining that an identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object; and

assigning said earlier-assigned identifier as the first identifier, wherein both the first content object and the former content object are assigned the same identifier.

4. The method of claim 1 in which the first content object is associated with a first proprietor, and the checking comprises checking to see if an identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object associated with said first proprietor.

5. The method of claim 1 that includes obtaining first fingerprint data associated with the first content object, and in which the checking comprises checking a data store for corresponding fingerprint data associated with a former content object.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein said received request does not also include the first content object itself, and wherein the method further includes receiving the fingerprint data corresponding to the first content object from a remote device.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein said received request includes the first content object itself, and wherein the method further includes computing the fingerprint data corresponding to the first content object.

8. The method of claim 5 wherein said fingerprint data comprises facial recognition data.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the content object comprises data representing a photograph captured by a user'"'"'s camera-equipped phone.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein the content object comprises a color image.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the assigning comprising assigning the identifier sequentially.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein the assigning comprises assigning an identifier having different fields.

15. The method of claim 14 wherein one of said fields indicates a registry that issued the identifier, or a device that requested issuance of the identifier.

9. A system for use in connection with an image identifier for a first image, the system comprising:

a computer and a memory, the memory including a data structure that associates information with said image identifier;

an interface for exchanging data with users;

the data structure including first information expressing a relationship between the first image and a different second image, said relationship having been indicated by a first user via data received through the interface from said first user;

the data structure including second information expressing a relationship between the first image and a different third image, said relationship having been indicated by a second user via data received through the interface from said second user;

the system being adapted to output, in response to a user'"'"'s submission of the first image identifier, data relating to at least the second image;

wherein the system defines a social network of imagery, which can be queried through the interface to enable exploration of imagery indicated—

by different users—

as related to said first image.

10. The system of claim 9 in which the system is adapted to output, with said data relating to at least the second image, an identification of the first user who indicated a relationship between the first image and the second image.

16. An article of manufacture comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium having instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by a computer device, cause the computer device to perform actions including:

receiving a request to assign a watermark identifier for use with a first content object represented by digital data, said watermark identified comprising an identifier that is to be digitally-watermarked into the first content object by a remote device;

assigning a watermark for use with the first content object, and transmitting the assigned watermark identifier the remote device, the assignment of the watermark identifier proceeding independently of the digital data representing the object; and

checking to determine if watermark identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object.

17. The article of claim 16 in which said actions further include:

determining that an identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object; and

associating together, in a database, an identifier assigned to the first content object, and the identifier earlier assigned to the former content object, so that the database indicates that the first content object and the former content object have a perceptual similarity.

18. The article of claim 16 in which said actions further include:

determining that an identifier has earlier been assigned to a former content object having a perceptual similarity with the first content object; and

assigning said earlier-assigned identifier as the first identifier, wherein both the first content object and the former content object are assigned the same identifier.

19. The article of claim 16 in which said actions include obtaining first fingerprint data associated with the first content object, and wherein the checking comprises checking a data store for corresponding fingerprint data associated with a former content object.