Data capture and identification system and process

• US 9,578,107 B2
• Filed: 02/05/2015
• Issued: 02/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Nant Holdings IP, LLC (NantWorks, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Nant Holdings IP, LLC (NantWorks, LLC)
• Inventors: Boncyk, Wayne C., Cohen, Ronald H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sherali, Ishrat I
• Application Number:
  US14/615,162
• Publication Number:
  US 20160012077A1
• Time in Patent Office: 747 Days
• Field of Search: 382/305, 705 261- 272
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/21 Design, administration or maintenance of databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24578 using ranking
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/51 Indexing; Data structures therefor; Storage structures
• 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: G06F 18/00 Pattern recognition
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/462 Salient features, e.g. scale invariant feature transforms [SIFT]
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/56 relating to colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/7515 Shifting the patterns to accommodate for positional errors
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 30/142 using hand-held instruments; Constructional details of the instruments
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/141 Setup of application sessions admission control or resource allocation in data switching networks H04L47/70
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0202 Portable telephone sets, e.g. cordless phones, mobile phones or bar type handsets constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. of speakers or microphones H04M1/03

Abstract

An identification method and process for objects from digitally captured images thereof that uses data characteristics to identify an object from a plurality of objects in a database. The data is broken down into parameters such as a Shape Comparison, Grayscale Comparison, Wavelet Comparison, and Color Cube Comparison with object data in one or more databases to identify the actual object of a digital image.

Claims

1. A mobile device image search system, comprising:

a database creation engine coupled with a memory storing a database, the database creation engine configured to;

obtain a first image;

obtain a first item of content information associated with the first image;

determine at least first and second image characteristics from the first image;

link the at least first and second image characteristics to the first item of content information;

populate the database with the at least first and second image characteristics as linked to the first item of content information, wherein the first item of content information is stored in the database as a first target object associated with an address; and

an image processing platform coupled with the memory and configured to;

acquire a second image via the sensor of a mobile device;

determine a plurality of image characteristics from the second image;

recognize the second image as associated with the first target object based at least in part on a search of the database using the plurality of image characteristics;

obtain the address associated with the first target object; and

present the first item of content information on a display of the mobile device based on the address.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the database creation engine is further configured to obtain a second item of content information associated with the first image, link the at least first and second image characteristics to the second item of content information, and populate the database with the second item of content information as linked to the at least first and second image characteristics.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the second item of content information is stored in the database as a second target object associated with a second address.

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the image processing platform is further configured to present a ranked subset of items of content information stored in the database, and wherein the ranked subset includes the first and second items of content information.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the second image comprises a representation of a first object, and wherein at least some of the image characteristics of the plurality of image characteristics is associated with the first object.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the at least some of the plurality of image characteristics are determined based at least in part on a position of the first object.

7. The system of claim 5, wherein the at least some of the plurality of image characteristics are determined based at least in part on a location of the first object.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least some of the plurality of image characteristics are determined based at least in part on a location of the mobile device.

9. The system of claim 5, wherein the first object includes a tag.

10. The system of claim 5, wherein the first object lacks a tag.

11. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile device comprises at least one of a computer, a mobile telephone and a personal digital assistant.

12. The system of claim 1, wherein the address is stored in the database, and wherein the first item of content information is stored in a second database separate from the database.

13. The system of claim 1, wherein the address and the first item of content information are stored in the database.

14. The system of claim 1, wherein the first image comprises a reference image used to populate the database.

15. The system of claim 1, wherein the image processing platform is further configured to acquire a third image different from the second image, determine a second plurality of image characteristics from the third image, and recognize the third image as associated with the first target object based at least in part on a search of the database using the second plurality of image characteristics.

16. The system of claim 1, wherein the image processing platform is further configured to enable an interaction with the first item of content information based on the address.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the interaction comprises a transaction.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the interaction comprises a purchase.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein a payment is billed to an account associated with a user of the mobile device.

20. The system of claim 1, wherein the address comprises at least one of the following:

a network address, an information address, and a URL.

21. A method of providing digital content to a user of a mobile device, comprising:

obtaining, via the mobile device, image data representative of a scene;

deriving or extracting, via the mobile device, a first image characteristic from the image data;

searching, via the mobile device, a database storing a plurality of image characteristics associated with a plurality of digital content target objects, wherein the plurality of image characteristics includes the first image characteristic and wherein the first image characteristic is associated with a first digital content target object;

recognizing the image data as being associated with the first digital content target object based on the step of searching;

obtaining an address associated with the first digital content target object; and

presenting, via the address and on a display of the mobile device, the first digital content target object.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the database is stored in a memory of the mobile device.

23. The method of claim 21, further comprising the steps of:

obtaining a first image;

obtaining a first item of digital content associated with the first image;

determining a second plurality of image characteristics from the first image;

linking at least some image characteristics of the second plurality of image characteristics to the first item of digital content; and

populating the database with the at least some image characteristics of the second plurality of image characteristics as linked to the first item of digital content, wherein the first item of digital content is stored in the database as a first digital content target object associated with an address.

26. The method of claim 21, wherein the first image characteristic is determined based at least in part on a location of the mobile device.

27. The method of claim 21, wherein the image data is representative of a scene including a first object, and wherein the first object includes a tag.

28. The method of claim 21, wherein the image data is representative of a scene including a first object, and wherein the first object lacks a tag.

29. The method of claim 21, wherein the image data includes symbol content.

30. The method of claim 29, wherein the symbol content comprises at least one of the following:

alphanumeric characters, a code, a matrix, a bar code, a matrix code, and a 2D code.

31. The method of claim 21, further comprising enabling an interaction with the first digital content object based on the address.

32. The method of claim 31, wherein the interaction comprises a transaction.

33. The method of claim 31, wherein the interaction comprises a purchase.

34. The method of claim 31, wherein a payment is billed to an account associated with a user of the mobile device.

35. The method of claim 21, wherein the address comprises at least one of the following:

a network address, an information address, and a URL.

24. The method of 21, wherein the image data is representative of a scene including a first object, and wherein the first image characteristic is determined based at least in part on a position of the first object.

25. The method of 21, wherein the image data is representative of a scene including a first object, and wherein the first image characteristic is determined based at least in part on a location of the first object.

36. A method of providing digital content to a user via a mobile device, comprising:

configuring the mobile device to store computer-readable instructions operative to cause a processor of the mobile device to execute the steps of;

obtaining image data representative of a scene;

deriving or extracting at least a first image characteristic from the image data;

searching, using the at least the first image characteristic, a database storing a plurality of image characteristics associated with a plurality of digital content target objects;

recognizing that the at least the first image characteristic is a match to at least one of the plurality of image characteristics associated with the plurality of digital content target objects;

obtaining an address associated with a first digital content target object of the plurality of digital content target objects based on the step of recognizing; and

presenting, on a display of the mobile device, the first digital content target object via the address.

37. The method of claim 36, wherein the database is stored in a memory of the mobile device.

38. The method of claim 36, wherein the computer-readable instructions are further operative to cause a processor of the mobile device to execute the step of:

enabling an interaction with the first digital content target object based on the address.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein the interaction comprises a transaction.

40. The method of claim 38, wherein the interaction comprises a purchase.

41. The method of claim 38, wherein a payment is billed to an account associated with the user of the mobile device.

42. The method of claim 36, wherein the image data representative of a scene includes a representation of a first object.

43. The method of claim 42, wherein the at least the first image characteristic is determined based at least in part on a position of the first object.

44. The method of claim 42, wherein the at least the first image characteristic is determined based at least in part on a location of the first object.

45. The method of claim 42, wherein the first object includes a tag.

46. The method of claim 42, wherein the first object lacks a tag.

47. The method of claim 36, wherein the image data includes symbol content.

48. The method of claim 47, wherein the symbol content comprises at least one of the following:

alphanumeric characters, a code, a matrix, a bar code, a matrix code, and a 2D code.

49. An information retrieval system, comprising:

a content linking server coupled to a database and a recognition platform, the content linking server configured to;

obtain at least a first and second image parameter from a first user;

obtain a first item of content information associated with the at least first and second image parameters; and

enable a link of the at least first and second image parameters to the first item of content information, wherein the first item of content information is associated with a first target object; and

wherein the recognition platform is configured to;

obtain digital data from a mobile device;

determine a plurality of image parameters from the digital data;

recognize the digital data as associated with the first target object based at least in part on a search of the database using the plurality of image parameters;

obtain the address associated with the first target object; and

present the first item of content information on a display of the mobile device via the address.

50. The system of claim 49, wherein the content linking platform is further configured to populate the database with the at least first and second image parameters as linked to the first item of content information, wherein the first item of content information is stored in the database as the first target object associated with an address.

51. The system of claim 49, wherein the content linking server is further configured to obtain a second item of content information associated with the at least first and second image parameters, link the at least first and second image parameters to the second item of content information, and populate the database with the second item of content information as linked to the at least first and second image characteristics.

52. The system of claim 51, wherein the second item of content information is stored in the database as a second target object associated with a second address.

53. The system of claim 52, wherein the recognition platform is further configured to present a ranked subset of items of content information stored in the database, and wherein the ranked subset includes the first and second items of content information.

54. The system of claim 49, wherein the digital data comprises a representation of a first object, and wherein the at least first and second image parameters are associated with the first object.

55. The system of claim 54, wherein the at least first and second image parameters are determined based at least in part on a position of the first object.

56. The system of claim 54, wherein the at least first and second image parameters are determined based at least in part on a location of the first object.

57. The system of claim 49, wherein the at least first and second image parameters are determined based at least in part on a location of the mobile device.

58. The system of claim 54, wherein the first object includes a tag.

59. The system of claim 54, wherein the first object lacks a tag.

60. The system of claim 49, wherein the recognition platform is further configured to enable an interaction with the first item of content information based on the address.

61. The system of claim 60, wherein the interaction comprises a transaction.

62. The system of claim 61, wherein the interaction comprises a purchase.

63. The system of claim 61, wherein a payment is billed to an account associated with a user of the mobile device.