Hand held image capture device with multi-core processor and wireless interface to input device

• US 8,953,060 B2
• Filed: 09/15/2012
• Issued: 02/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia
• Primary Examiner(s): GILES, NICHOLAS G
• Application Number:
  US13/621,009
• Publication Number:
  US 20130010122A1
• Time in Patent Office: 878 Days
• Field of Search: 348/207.99, 348/207.2, 348/222.1, 348/294, 348/302
• US Class Current: 348/222.1
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/0005 Curl smoothing, i.e. smoothing down corrugated printing material, e.g. by pressing means acting on wrinkled printing material
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/005 Guides in the printing zone, e.g. guides for preventing contact of conveyed sheets with printhead
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 11/70 cutting perpendicular to the direction of paper feed
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 15/04 Supporting, feeding, or guiding devices; Mountings for web rolls or spindles
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14314 Structure of ink jet print heads with electrostatically actuated membrane
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/14427 Structure of ink jet print heads with thermal bend detached actuators
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/16585 for paper-width or non-reciprocating print heads
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17513 Inner structure
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2/17596 Ink pumps, ink valves
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2002/041 Electromagnetic transducer
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 2202/21 Line printing
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B82Y 30/00 Nanotechnology for materials or surface science, e.g. nanocomposites
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 15/00 Digital computers in general details G06F1/00 – G06F13/00; Data processing equipment in general
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/79 in semiconductor storage media, e.g. directly-addressable memories
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/86 Secure or tamper-resistant housings
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2129 Authenticate client device independently of the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/57 Arithmetic logic units [ALU], i.e. arrangements or devices for performing two or more of the operations covered by groups G06F7/483 – G06F7/556 or for performing logical operations G06F7/49, G06F7/491 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/226 Microinstruction function, e.g. input/output microinstruction; diagnostic microinstruction; microinstruction format
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/265 by address selection on input of storage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/30094 : Condition code generation, e.g. Carry, Zero flag
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/30101 : Special purpose registers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/3885 : using a plurality of independent parallel functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 1/121 : by printing code marks applying code marks to labels B65C9/46; marking or coding completed packages B65B61/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/00 : Arrangements for producing a permanent visual presentation of the output data , e.g. computer output printersprinting or plotting combined with another operation, e.g. with conveying, G06K17/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06037 : multi-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/073 : Special arrangements for circuits, e.g. for protecting identification code in memory protection against unauthorised use of computer memory G06F12/14
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10762 : Relative movement
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/14 : using light without selection of wavelength, e.g. sensing reflected white light G06K7/10831 - G06K7/1097 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/1417 : 2D bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: G11C 11/56 : using storage elements with more than two stable states represented by steps, e.g. of voltage, current, phase, frequency
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 23/576 : using active circuits
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/00 : Indexing scheme for arrangements or methods for connecting or disconnecting semiconductor or solid-state bodies as covered by H01L24/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 2924/0002 : Not covered by any one of groups H01L24/00, H01L24/00 and H01L2224/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 : Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00278 : with a printing apparatus, e.g. a laser beam printer
• 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 1/0044 : for image preview or review, e.g. to help the user position a sheet
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00965 : using a plug-in memory module, e.g. memory card, memory stick
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00968 : by scanning marks on a sheet mark-sheet input means H04N1/00355; sensing record carriers G06K7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2112 : using still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/2154 : the still video camera incorporating a hardcopy reproducing device, e.g. a printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32101 : Display, printing, storage or transmission of additional information, e.g. ID code, date and time or title
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32133 : on the same paper sheet, e.g. a facsimile page header
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32561 : using a programmed control device, e.g. a microprocessor
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32587 : Controller
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32593 : Using a plurality of controllers, e.g. for controlling different interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32603 : Multi-bus systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/46 : Colour picture communication systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2101/00 : Still video cameras
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0008 : Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 : Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3222 : of processing required or performed, e.g. forwarding, urgent or confidential handling
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3261 : of multimedia information, e.g. a sound signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3264 : of sound signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3269 : of machine readable codes or marks, e.g. bar codes or glyphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3276 : of a customised additional information profile, e.g. a profile specific to a user ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/328 : Processing of the additional information
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/00 : Cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors; Control thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/40 : Circuit details for pick-up tubes
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/70 : Circuitry for compensating brightness variation in the scene
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 : Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 25/75 : Circuitry for providing, modifying or processing image signals from the pixel array
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/2628 : Alteration of picture size, shape, position or orientation, e.g. zooming, rotation, rolling, perspective, translation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/76 : Television signal recording

Abstract

A hand held electronic device that has a CMOS image sensor for capturing image data, a wireless device port for wireless connection to a user input device and, a central processor. The central processor has multiple processing units, an image sensor interface and a wireless device interface integrated onto a single chip. The image sensor interface receives the image data from the CMOS image sensor, and the wireless device interface being configured to receive user inputs from the wireless device port. The multiple processing units are configured to process the image data in parallel together with the user inputs from the wireless device interface.

Claims

1. A hand held electronic device, comprising:

a CMOS image sensor for capturing image data;

a user input device; and

,

a central processor having;

multiple processing units,

a signal interface,

an image sensor interface, and

a user input device interface,

wherein the image sensor interface is configured to receive the image data from the CMOS image sensor, and the user input device interface is configured to receive user input from the user input device;

wherein the multiple processing units are configured to process the image data in parallel together with the user input from the user input device by executing image processing instructions that correspond to a signal, received at the signal interface, that is associated with a user selectable graphic representative of a manipulation to the image data.

2. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1 wherein the central processor further comprises an input FIFO (first in, first out) for receiving data from the image sensor interface and inputting the data to the multiple processing units, and an output FIFO for receiving processed data.

3. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the central processor further comprises a crossbar switch for interconnecting each of the multiple processing units.

4. The hand held electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the central processor further comprises a central processing unit and a data bus connecting the central processing unit to the input FIFO and the output FIFO, the central processing unit providing a processing core to operatively control the multiple processing units.

5. The hand held electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the central processor further comprises a data cache to store the processed data.

6. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the multiple processing units perform one or more processing tasks selected from:

rotating the input image data;

color converting the input image data; and

dithering the input image data.

7. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, wherein each of the multiple processing units includes a RAM (random access memory) for microcode to operatively control the processing unit in which the RAM is included.

8. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising a display, wherein the central processor further includes a display interface such that processed data is transmitted from the central processor to the display.

9. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the image processing instructions comprise a script.

10. The hand held electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the graphic comprises a bit pattern based on pixels, and the central processor is configured to decode the bit pattern based on pixels to generate the image processing instructions.

11. A processor, comprising:

a first interface for receiving image data from an image sensor;

a second interface for receiving user input data from a user input device;

a signal interface for receiving a signal that is associated with a user selectable graphic representative of a manipulation to the image data;

a plurality of processing units capable of concurrently processing the data received by the first and second interfaces based on image processing instructions that correspond to the signal received at the signal interface; and

a display interface for outputting processed data to a display.

12. The processor according to claim 11, wherein the graphic comprises a bit pattern based on pixels, wherein the bit pattern is decoded to generate the image processing instructions.

13. The processor according to claim 11, further comprising a memory, wherein the image processing instructions are stored in the memory as a script.