Automatic tuning of scanner lighting

• US 9,311,515 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2014
• Issued: 04/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: NCR Voyix Corporation
• Original Assignee: NCR Corporation (NCR Voyix Corporation)
• Inventors: Pacina, Andreval Diego, Ynclino, Eugene S. V, Calderon, Ferdinand Uy
• Primary Examiner(s): Frech, Karl D
• Application Number:
  US14/472,654
• Publication Number:
  US 20160063291A1
• Time in Patent Office: 592 Days
• Field of Search: 235/383, 235/462.06, 235/462.2, 235/462.22, 235/462.23, 235/462.42
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10732 Light sources
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/00 Cash registers alarm indicators G07G3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0045 with a code reader for reading of an identifying code of the article to be registered, e.g. barcode reader or radio-frequency identity [RFID] reader

Abstract

Various embodiments herein each include devices, system, methods, and software for automatic scanner lighting tuning. One method embodiment includes determining a distance from a scanning surface to a surface of an item presented for scanning, determining an illumination setting based on the determined distance, and illuminating a scanning field according to the determined setting. Another embodiment is a scanner including a scanning module with a scanning surface imaged by an imaging device and a lighting module including at least one adjustable lighting element that illuminates according a received illumination setting. The scanner further includes a distance determining module that determines a distance between the scanning surface and a presented item and a lighting controller that receives a determined distance from the distance determining module, determines the illumination setting based on the determined distance, and provides the illumination command to the lighting module.

Claims

1. A method of illuminating a scanning field comprising:

determining a distance measurement from a scanning surface to a surface of an item presented for scanning;

determining an illumination setting based on the determined distance measurement;

illuminating a scanning field according to the determined illumination setting; and

sending a control signal to a scanning device including an imaging device to scan the presented item.

2. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 1, wherein determining the distance measurement from the scanning surface to the presented item includes receiving the distance measurement from a distance sensor to the surface of the presented item.

3. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 1, the method further comprising:

receiving the image from the scanning device;

determining whether an image brightness is adequate, too low, or too high;

when the image brightness is determined to be;

adequate, sending a second control signal to the scanning device to scan the presented item;

too low, storing an increase to the illumination setting for the determined distance measurement and sending a second control signal to the scanning device to scan the presented item; and

too high, storing a decrease to the illumination setting for the determined distance measurement and sending a second control signal to the scanning device to scan the presented item.

4. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 1, wherein:

the scanning surface is a first scanning surface of a bi-optic scanner, the first scanning surface imaged by a first imaging device;

the bi-optic scanner includes a second scanning surface approximately perpendicular to the first scanning surface, the second scanning surface imaged by a second imaging device;

the surface of the presented item is approximately parallel to the first scanning surface and approximately perpendicular to the second scanning surface; and

determining the distance measurement from the first scanning surface to the presented item surface includes;

capturing an image by a second imaging device; and

identifying a location of the presented item surface in the captured image in relation to known distance measurements to the first scanning surface within a field of view of the second imaging device.

5. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 4, wherein:

the presented item surface is a first surface of the presented item;

the determined distance measurement is a first determined distance measurement;

the illumination setting is a first illumination setting; and

the scanning field is a first scanning field of the first imaging device;

the method further comprising;

determining a second distance measurement from the second scanning surface to a second surface of the presented item, the determining of the second distance measurement including;

capturing an image by the first imaging device; and

identifying a location of the second surface of the presented item in the image captured by the first imaging device in relation to known distance measurements to the second scanning surface within a field of view of the first imaging device;

determining a second illumination setting based on the second determined distance measurement; and

illuminating a second scanning field of the second imaging device according to the determined second illumination setting.

6. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 1, wherein determining the illumination setting based on the determined distance measurement includes retrieving at least one illumination setting from a memory device of a scanner controller.

7. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 6, wherein the at least one illumination setting includes at least one of data identifying one or more lighting arrays to illuminate and data defining a brightness setting.

8. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 7, wherein retrieving the at least one illumination setting based on the determined distance measurement includes retrieving an illumination setting to illuminate:

a first set of light emitting diodes (LEDs) that each transmit light through a wide angle lens of the LED when the determined distance measurement is less than a distance threshold; and

a second set of LEDs that each transmit light through a narrow angle lens of the LED when the determined distance measurement is greater than the distance threshold.

9. The method of illuminating a scanning field of claim 8, wherein:

the distance threshold is a range; and

retrieving the at least one illumination setting based on the determined distance measurement further includes retrieving an illumination setting to illuminate both first and second sets of LEDs when the determined distance measurement is within the distance threshold.

10. A method of an imaging scanner lighting controller comprising:

receiving, from a distance determining module, a determined distance measurement between a scanning surface imaged by an imaging device of the imaging scanner and a surface of an item presented for scanning;

selecting at least one illumination setting for a lighting module including at least one lighting array based on the determined distance measurement; and

providing the selected illumination setting to the lighting array.

11. The method of the scanner lighting controller of claim 10, wherein the at least one illumination setting for the lighting module selected based on the determined distance measurement includes illumination settings to illuminate two lighting arrays.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the illumination setting to illuminate the two arrays include a brightness setting for each of the two lighting arrays.

13. A scanner comprising:

a scanning module including a scanning surface imaged by an imaging device;

a lighting module including at least one adjustable lighting element that is illuminated according to a received illumination setting;

a distance determining module that determines a distance measurement between the scanning surface and a presented item; and

a lighting controller that receives a determined distance measurement from the distance determining module, determines the illumination setting based on the determined distance measurement, and provides the illumination command to the lighting module.

14. The scanner of claim 13, wherein the distance determining module includes an ultrasonic sensor.

15. The scanner of claim 13, wherein the scanner is a bi-optic scanner having two imaging surfaces, each imaging surface including a scanning module, a lighting module, and distance determining module.

16. The scanner of claim 15, wherein the lighting controller is shared by the two imaging surfaces.

17. The scanner of claim 16, wherein two imaging surface are first and second imaging surfaces and the distance determining module of the first imaging surface determines the determined distance measurement from an image received from the scanning module imaging device of the second imaging surface.

18. The scanner of claim 13, wherein the lighting controller determines the illumination setting by retrieving at least one illumination setting from a memory device, the illumination setting including at least one of data identifying one or more lighting arrays of the lighting module to illuminate and data defining a brightness setting.

19. The scanner of claim 18, wherein the at least one illumination setting retrieved by the lighting controller based on the determined distance measurement includes retrieving an illumination setting to illuminate:

a first set of light emitting diodes (LEDs) that each transmit light through a wide angle lens of the LED when the determined distance measurement is less than a distance threshold; and

a second set of LEDs that each transmit light through a narrow angle lens of the LED when the determined distance measurement is greater than the distance threshold.