Image Annotation System Using Automated Recognition and Metadata Extraction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for annotating images to facilitate interactions between commercial and social users are prone to inaccuracies and delays, and often compromise the end-user experience by overlaying images with obstructive graphics, reducing their visual aesthetics.
Innovation Solution
An image annotation system that matches social users with commercial users by storing annotated images with judgment data and user identifiers, allowing for precise communication and data retrieval, and utilizing statistical data to update and refine image records based on user interactions, while maintaining the visual integrity of the images.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If third parties tag images with product information, then image annotation capability is provided, but accuracy decreases due to lack of product knowledge and delays occur between image capture and tagging
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary system that automatically extracts product information from images using image recognition technology, acting as a mediator between the image and the tagging system. This intermediary process eliminates the need for third parties to manually tag images, thereby improving accuracy while maintaining annotation capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary automatic tagging at the time of image capture by analyzing the image content and pre-assigning product information. This preliminary action eliminates the delay between image capture and tagging, as the annotation is completed immediately rather than requiring subsequent manual intervention.
2Loss of information
If overlays are added to images to indicate tagging, then user awareness of tagged content is improved, but visual aesthetics deteriorate due to obstructive graphics
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the tagging information from the visual domain and places it in the data domain. Instead of displaying visual overlays on images, the system stores metadata separately and provides access through non-intrusive interfaces such as tooltips, side panels, or search results, thereby preserving image aesthetics while maintaining user awareness of tagged content.
3Adaptability or versatility
If manual tagging by third parties is used, then image annotation is achieved, but time consumption increases between image capture and annotation completion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical manual tagging process with an automated image recognition system. The automated system analyzes image content and generates tags algorithmically, eliminating the time-consuming manual intervention required in traditional approaches while maintaining the annotation function.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables images to self-annotate by automatically analyzing their own content and generating appropriate tags. This self-service capability eliminates the need for external third parties to perform tagging, thereby reducing time delays while preserving the annotation functionality.
Data Source
AI summary
A method and system matches social users and commercial users of an image annotation system, where annotated images are stored on a database. Image data records associated with the annotated images comprise judgment data corresponding to judgments made by social users regarding the images and social user identifiers for enabling a communication module to communicate with computing devices of respective social users who made the judgments. Commercial user records are also stored on the database, and contain information regarding commercial users for enabling the communication module to communicate with computing devices of respective commercial users. The commercial user records are searched based on a search criterion derived from an annotated image to determine a commercial user that satisfies the search criterion. Information regarding the commercial user may be communicated to social users associated with the annotated image, and information regarding these social users may be communicated to the commercial user.