Data capture from rendered documents using handheld device

• US 8,447,144 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2009
• Issued: 05/21/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kyocera Corporation
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: King, Martin Towle, Grover, Dale L., Kushler, Clifford A., Stafford-Fraser, James Quentin
• Primary Examiner(s): MARIAM, DANIEL G
• Application Number:
  US12/542,811
• Publication Number:
  US 20100183246A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,372 Days
• Field of Search: 382/190, 382/209, 382/229, 382305-306, 382312-314, 358/403, 707707-708, 707/E17.058, 715/200, 715/206, 235/472.01
• US Class Current: 382/313
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/316 Indexing structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/332 Query formulation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/41 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/433 using audio data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/434 using image data, e.g. images, photos, pictures taken by a user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/435 Filtering based on additional data, e.g. user or group profiles
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• 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 16/93 Document management systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/955 using information identifiers, e.g. uniform resource locators [URL]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9554 by using bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/00 Pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/117 Tagging; Marking up details of markup languages G06F40/143; Designating a block; Setting of attributes style sheets, e.g. eXtensible Stylesheet Language Transformation [XSLT], G06F40/154
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/14 Tree-structured documents parsing G06F40/205; validation G06F40/226
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/169 Annotation, e.g. comment data or footnotes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/0016 : Selecting or retrieving of images by means of their associated code-marks, e.g. coded microfilm or microfiche microfilm reading G03B21/11; computers therefor G06F16/00; teaching devices G09B5/02; accessing record carriers G11B27/002; static digital stores using optical elements G11C13/04; intermediate storage of facsimile picture signals H04N1/21
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 : Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 : Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/102 : Bill distribution or payments
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/12 : specially adapted for electronic shopping systems
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4012 : Verifying personal identification numbers [PIN]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 : Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 : Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 : Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 : Advertisements
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0283 : Price estimation or determination
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 : Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 : Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0601 : Electronic shopping [e-shopping]
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 : Catalogue ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0623 : Item investigation
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 : Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 : Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/04 : Trading; Exchange, e.g. stocks, commodities, derivatives or currency exchange
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/10 : Character recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/142 : using hand-held instruments; Constructional details of the instruments
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1444 : Selective acquisition, locating or processing of specific regions, e.g. highlighted text, fiducial marks or predetermined fields
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/1448 : based on markings or identifiers characterising the document or the area
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/248 : involving plural approaches, e.g. verification by template match; Resolving confusion among similar patterns, e.g. "O" versus "Q" G06V30/242 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/262 : using context analysis, e.g. lexical, syntactic or semantic context
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/40 : Document-oriented image-based pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/40 : for devices for accepting orders, advertisements, or the like
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/00 : Cash registers alarm indicators G07G3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 : with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 : with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00326 : with a data reading, recognizing or recording apparatus, e.g. with a bar-code apparatus arrangements for the associated working of recording or reproducing apparatus with related apparatus G11B31/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0036 : Alphanumeric symbols
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00363 : Bar codes or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00374 : on the same page as at least a part of the image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00381 : Input by recognition or interpretation of visible user gestures manual input means, e.g. digitisers, writing tablets H04N1/00392; gesture input to computers G06F3/017; recognition algorithms G06V40/20
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/107 : with manual scanning
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2166 : for mass storage, e.g. in document filing systems information retrieval G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2187 : with image input from a plurality of different locations or from a non-central location, e.g. from one or more users
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32128 : attached to the image data, e.g. file header, transmitted message header, information on the same page or in the same computer file as the image for information embedded in the image H04N1/32144
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/34 : for coin-freed systems ; Pay systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0081 : Image reader H04N2201/0091 - H04N2201/0094 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3215 : of a time or duration
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3249 : data relating to a linked page or object, e.g. hyperlink
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3253 : Position information, e.g. geographical position at time of capture, GPS data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3263 : of a graphical motif or symbol, e.g. Christmas symbol, logo H04N2201/3211 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3266 : of text or character information, e.g. text accompanying an image H04N2201/3226 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3277 : The additional information being stored in the same storage device as the image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3278 : Transmission
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 90/10 : Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99931 : Database or file accessing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 : Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99936 : Pattern matching access
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 : Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 : Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

A portable device having scanning, imaging or other data-capture capability is described. In some cases, the portable device can indicate to the user when enough information has been captured to uniquely identify a source document. In some cases, the portable device calculates timestamps and location-stamps indicating when and where a data capture occurred. In some cases, the portable device is controlled by gestures. In some cases, the portable scanning device has associated billing and content/service subscription information.

Claims

1. A portable data capture device, comprising:

control logic;

memory coupled with the control logic for storing data and instructions executable by the control logic;

a user interface;

a data capture element for capturing data from a paper document while the portable data capture device operates in an offline state;

instructions stored in memory that, when executed by the control logic, cause the data capture element to detect that the captured data comprises a number of user-readable words that equals or exceeds a threshold number for identification of the paper document and to cause the user interface to present an indication that enough information has been acquired to identify an electronic version of the paper document; and

instructions stored in memory that, when executed by the control logic, cause the portable data capture device to automatically submit at least a portion of the captured text to a search engine in response to the portable data capture device transitioning from the offline state to an online state.

2. A portable device having scanning capability, the portable device comprising:

an image capture device for acquiring images;

a memory device for storing the images captured by the image capture device and a threshold number for identification of a document;

a processor operable to execute program instructions to detect that an image captured by the image capture device comprises a number of user-readable words that equals or exceeds the threshold number for identification of a document;

a communications interface for transmitting information to external devices and receiving information from external devices; and

a user interface operable to indicate to a user that enough information has been acquired to identify a source document of the captured image, wherein the processor instructs the user interface to provide the indication in response to the processor detecting that the image captured by the image capture device comprises a number of user-readable words that equals or exceeds the threshold number for identification of a document.

3. The portable device of claim 2 further comprising image compression logic for compressing the images captured by the image capture device.

4. The portable device of claim 2 further comprising an internal power supply.

5. The portable device of claim 4 further comprising power management logic for monitoring power consumption of the portable device and prolonging operational life of the internal power supply.

6. The portable device of claim 2 further comprising an illumination source.

7. The portable device of claim 2 further comprising a location module.

8. The portable device of claim 7 in which the location module comprises at least one location determination capability selected from the group of GPS, A-GPS, DGPS, triangulation, monitoring of local transceiver pilot signals, TDOA, EOTD, and angle of arrival.

9. A portable scanner, comprising:

a processor;

a memory device operatively connected with the processor;

a user interface; and

an image capture device;

wherein the memory device contains program instructions, a first threshold that identifies a minimum number of characters per word, and a second threshold that identifies a minimum number of user-readable words, and

wherein the program instructions comprise instructions executable by the processor to determine that an image captured via the image capture device comprises a number of user-readable words that equals or exceeds the second threshold, each of those user-readable words having a number of characters that equals or exceeds the first threshold, and to responsively cause the user interface to provide an indication that a sufficient number of user-readable words have been detected within the captured image to uniquely identify a document comprising the user-readable words contained within the captured image.

10. The portable scanner of claim 9 in which the memory is a subscriber identity module.

11. The portable scanner of claim 9 in which the memory is a smart card.

12. A method of informing a user that sufficient data has been scanned from a document to identify the document, the method comprising:

scanning the document, via a portable device, to acquire a scanned image;

executing program instructions, stored in memory of the portable device, to detect user-readable words within the scanned image and to count a number of words the portable device detected within the scanned image;

comparing the number of words the portable device detected within the scanned image to a threshold number for identifying a document; and

indicating, via a user interface of the portable device, that a sufficient number of user-readable words have been detected within the scanned image to identify the document.

13. The method of claim 12 in which the indicating is a visual signal discernible by a user of the portable scanning device.

14. The method of claim 12 in which the threshold number for identifying a document is within the range of four to ten words.

15. The method of claim 12 in which the threshold number is less than 10 words.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the words in the count of the number of words the portable device detected within the scanned image only include words that comprise more than three characters.