Processing container images and identifiers using optical character recognition and geolocation

• US 9,177,210 B2
• Filed: 09/03/2013
• Issued: 11/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HKI Systems and Service LLC
• Original Assignee: HKI Systems and Service LLC
• Inventors: King, Henry S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Kim, Ahshik
• Application Number:
  US14/017,078
• Publication Number:
  US 20140009612A1
• Time in Patent Office: 791 Days
• Field of Search: 235/385, 235/454, 235/375, 340/10.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/0755 Position control; Position detectors
• CPC Class Codes: B66F 9/186 Container lifting frames
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/51 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5866 using information manually generated, e.g. tags, keywords, comments, manually generated location and time information
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06028 using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30252 Vehicle exterior; Vicinity of vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/00 Image analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/52 Surveillance or monitoring of activities, e.g. for recognising suspicious objects recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/06 Recognition of objects for industrial automation
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/10 Recognition assisted with metadata
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/10 Character recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/153 using recognition of characters or words
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/224 of printed characters having additional code marks or containing code marks
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/413 Classification of content, e.g. text, photographs or tables
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/422 Technical drawings; Geographical maps
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/57 Mechanical or electrical details of cameras or camera modules specially adapted for being embedded in other devices

Abstract

Embodiments include a system configured to process location information for objects in a site comprising an imaging device configured to take a picture of an object, the picture containing a unique identifier of the object; a global positioning system (GPS) component associated with the imaging device and configured to tag the image of the object with GPS location information of the object to generate a tagged image; a communications interface configured to transmit the tagged image to a server computer remote from the imaging device over an Internet Protocol (IP) network; and a processor of the server configured to perform Optical Character Recognition (OCR) on the picture and to create an indicator code corresponding to the identifier of the object, wherein the processor is further configured to create a processed result containing the indicator code and the location to locate the object within the site.

Claims

1. An apparatus, comprising:

an imaging device configured to take a picture of an object, the picture containing an alphanumeric identifier of the object;

a global positioning system (GPS) component associated with the imaging device and configured to tag the image of the object with GPS location information of the object to generate a tagged image;

a communications interface configured to transmit the tagged image to a server computer remote from the imaging device over an Internet Protocol IP network; and

a processor of the server configured to perform Optical Character Recognition (OCR) on the picture and to create an indicator code corresponding to the identifier of the object, wherein the processor is further configured to create a processed result containing the indicator code and the location to locate the object within a site;

wherein the object comprises a container of at least twenty feet long and a chassis configured to carry at least one containers, and wherein the tagged image comprises metadata including the identifier and information of the container or of handling equipment of the container.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the imaging device comprises a handheld smartphone comprising a camera and a telecommunications interface.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the GPS component comprises a circuit resident in the smartphone.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the imaging device is a camera mounted on a mobile vehicle configured to drive around the site.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said processor is configured to receive said tagged image through a web site.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the tagged image is displayed and processed in a web page displaying location information of the object in the site.

7. The apparatus of claim 6 wherein the web page comprises a plurality of display areas showing the location of the object relative to a map of the site and a description of the location relative to defined coordinates of the site.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 further comprising an audit process providing display area configured to allow a user to correct an identifier processed by the OCR in the event of an error character recognition.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the site comprises a container storage and transport terminal, and wherein the imaging device is mounted on at least one of:

a front end loader, top-handler, a rubber tire gantry crane, and a rail-mounted gantry crane.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the imaging device is mounted at a gate location of the site for imaging container transport vehicles as they enter or exit the site.

11. A method comprising:

receiving an image captured by an image capture device of an object within a defined site, the image containing a unique identifier of the object;

determining a geographical location of the object within the site relative;

embedding the location of the object with the image of the object to create a tagged image;

receiving the tagged image from the image capture device over an Internet Protocol (IP) network; and

performing Optical Character Recognition (OCR) of the identifier in the image to create an indicator code including the image and the location of the object, wherein the object comprises a container of at least twenty feet long and a chassis configured to carry at least one containers, and wherein the tagged image comprises metadata including the identifier and information of the container or of handling equipment of the container.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the imaging device comprises a handheld smartphone comprising a camera and a telecommunications interface.

13. The method of claim 12 wherein the GPS component comprises a circuit resident in the smartphone.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein the imaging device is a camera mounted on a mobile vehicle configured to drive around the site.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said processor is configured to receive said tagged image through a web site.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein the tagged image is displayed and processed in a web page displaying location information of the object in the site.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein the web page comprises a plurality of display areas showing the location of the object relative to a map of the site and a description of the location relative to defined coordinates of the site.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising an audit process providing display area configured to allow a user to correct an identifier processed by the OCR in the event of an error character recognition.