Imaging terminal, imaging sensor to determine document orientation based on bar code orientation and methods for operating the same

• US 9,785,815 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2016
• Issued: 10/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hand Held Products Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hand Held Products Incorporated (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Li, Jingquan, Hussey, Robert M., Meier, Timothy P.
• Primary Examiner(s): STANFORD, CHRISTOPHER J
• Application Number:
  US15/081,970
• Publication Number:
  US 20160210490A1
• Time in Patent Office: 561 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1417 2D bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1443 locating of the code in an image
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1447 extracting optical codes from image or text carrying said optical code
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1456 determining the orientation of the optical code with respect to the reader and correcting therefore
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1478 of characters or characters lines

Abstract

Embodiments of an image reader and/or methods of operating an image reader can capture an image, identify a bar code or IBI form within the captured image, and, store or display the captured image responsive to the an orientation of the bar code.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

receiving a frame of image data comprising a document image, wherein a portion of the document image comprises a barcode;

cropping the document image to obtain a cropped document image comprising the barcode and additional data;

correcting the cropped document image for a spatial relationship between a document and an imaging system to obtain a corrected document image;

aligning a two dimensional orientation of the corrected document image to a two dimensional orientation of the frame of image data to obtain an aligned document image;

determining an orientation of a barcode within the aligned document image by decoding the barcode to determine sequenced corners of a position of the barcode within the aligned document image; and

storing or displaying the aligned document image in a prescribed orientation responsive to an orientation of the barcode in the aligned document image.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein cropping the document image comprises:

determining if the document image comprises a known pattern; and

if the document image comprises a known pattern, locating breaks in the known pattern.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the known pattern comprises evenly spaced dots and/or a grid.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the prescribed orientation of the document image or cropped document image is configured to provide a topdown, left-to-right visual representation of material in the document image or the cropped document image.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the prescribed orientation of the document image or the cropped document image is the first orientation of the barcode rotated by 90°

clockwise or by 90°

counterclockwise.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the method comprises correcting for imaging system distortion caused when an imaging axis of the imaging system is non-perpendicular to a document being imaged.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional data includes text.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional data includes handwritten data.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the additional data includes a picture.

10. A method, comprising:

capturing an image of a document, wherein a portion of the document image comprises a barcode;

cropping the document image to obtain a cropped document image comprising the barcode and additional data;

correcting the cropped document image for a spatial relationship between a document and an imaging system to obtain a corrected document image;

aligning a two dimensional orientation of the corrected document image to a two dimensional orientation of the frame of image data to obtain an aligned document image;

determining an orientation of a barcode within the aligned document image by decoding the barcode to determine sequenced corners of a position of the barcode within the aligned document image;

formatting the aligned document image such that a top of a formatted document image represents a top of the document in a proper orientation based on the determined orientation of the barcode; and

displaying or saving the formatted document image.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein cropping the document image comprises:

determining if the document image comprises a known pattern; and

if the document image comprises a known pattern, locating breaks in the known pattern.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the known pattern comprises evenly spaced dots and/or a grid.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein decoding the barcode comprises:

sub-image decoding an area identified by corners of the cropped document image;

or

image decoding an area identified by the corners of the document as a whole.

14. The method of claim 10, comprising storing a prescribed relationship of an orientation of the barcode relative to a document orientation.

15. The method of claim 10, comprising storing data for a plurality of document types, wherein a document type of the plurality of document types has a preset barcode location and a preset barcode orientation.

16. The method of claim 10, comprising storing, with a terminal, the captured image in memory communicatively connected to the imaging system, wherein:

the terminal comprises the memory and the imaging system;

the terminal is operative in an indicia decode mode in which the terminal, in response to an operator initiated command, captures a frame of image data and processes the frame of image data for attempting to decode a decodable indicia representation; and

the terminal is operative in a picture taking mode in which the terminal, in response to an operator initiated command captures a frame of image data and processes the frame of image data for attempting to output an image or color image data.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein the method comprises correcting for imaging system distortion caused when an imaging axis of the imaging system is non-perpendicular to a document being imaged.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the additional data includes text.

19. The method of claim 10, wherein the additional data includes handwritten data.

20. The method of claim 10, wherein the additional data includes a second barcode.