Information search and retrieval system

• US 6,721,733 B2
• Filed: 08/08/2002
• Issued: 04/13/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Original Assignee: Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Inventors: Sinha, Pawan, Lipson, Pamela R.
• Primary Examiner(s): JUNG, DAVID YIUK
• Application Number:
  US10/216,550
• Publication Number:
  US 20030018631A1
• Time in Patent Office: 614 Days
• Field of Search: 707/1-206, 382/154-285
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/583 using metadata automatically derived from the content
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5838 using colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5854 using shape and object relationship
• 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 2207/30004 Biomedical image processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30141 Printed circuit board [PCB]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30148 Semiconductor; IC; Wafer
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30152 Solder
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0006 using a design-rule based approach
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/001 using an image reference approach
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/97 Determining parameters from multiple pictures depth or shape recovery from multiple images G06T7/55; stereo camera calibration G06T7/85
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/754 involving a deformation of the sample pattern or of the reference pattern; Elastic matching
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 2201/06 Recognition of objects for industrial automation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 Pattern matching access

Abstract

An image search and retrieval system and method of operation within such a system are disclosed. The image search and retrieval system includes a search engine coupled to an image analyzer, an input system, an output system and an image database. The image search and retrieval system includes one or more feature modules which define particular regions of an image and particular measurements to make on pixels within the defined image region as well as the measurements to make on neighboring pixels in neighboring image regions for a given application and communicate this application specific information to the image analyzer thereby allowing rapid comparisons of images.

Claims

1. A method for making a symmetric measurement of an image comprising:

selecting a query image;

searching an image database using the query image;

identifying a first image in the image database using the query image;

dividing each the query image and the first image into a plurality of regions;

matching all regions of the query image to all regions of the first image;

computing a first aggregate score corresponding to a score of the match between the query image to the first image;

matching all regions of the first image to all regions of the query image;

computing a second aggregate score corresponding to a score of the match between the first image to the query image, and

combing the first and second aggregate scores to provide a composite score.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein combing the first and second aggregate scores comprises computing a mathematical average of the first and second aggregate scores.