Optical Indicia Reading via Multiple Symmetrical Transforms
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing optical indicia reading systems often capture images that are unreadable due to inaccurate aiming, insufficient reflected light, or being out of the reader's depth of field, requiring multiple readings and inefficient processes to correct.
Innovation Solution
The system captures multiple images of the same field of view and applies symmetrical transforms, such as Fourier, Karhunen-Loeve, or Wavelet transforms, to identify characteristic features in the frequency domain, creating modified representations that are combined to improve image quality and readability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a single image is captured by the optical indicia reader, then the reading process is fast, but the image may be unreadable due to inaccurate aiming, insufficient light, or being out of depth of field
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple captured images of the optical indicia into a single composite image. By merging several images taken at different positions or under different conditions, the system creates a composite image that contains sufficient readable information even when individual images are degraded or out of focus.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary image capture and processing steps by capturing multiple images before attempting to read the indicia. This preliminary action of gathering multiple images ensures that sufficient data is available for creating a readable composite image, avoiding the need to return for additional scans.
2Reliability
If the reader captures images from multiple positions to improve readability, then more readable images can be obtained, but the reading time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system maintains continuous useful action by capturing multiple images in rapid succession without interrupting the reading process. The images are captured continuously from different positions or angles, and the processing occurs in the background, ensuring that the overall reading time is minimized while still obtaining multiple images for composite creation.
3Measurement precision
If filtering or Fourier transformation is applied to improve image readability, then some problems can be removed, but if the transformed image is not readable, the process must start over requiring a new image acquisition
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies image processing techniques such as filtering and Fourier transformation as preliminary steps to multiple captured images before attempting to read the indicia. By processing multiple images in advance and creating a composite, the system ensures that at least one processed image will be readable, eliminating the need to restart the entire process if a single processed image fails.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for reading optical indicia involving the application of different symmetrical transforms to each of a plurality of images of an optical indicia. Characteristic features are identified in the transformed frequency domain representation of each transformed image, the characteristic features corresponding to repetitive features found in the original non-transformed representation of each image. Modified images are created by subjecting the frequency-domain representation of each image to an inverse transformation. The modified images can be combined to create an improved representation of the optical indicia being read. Thus, the depth of field and efficiency of an optical indicia reader can be enhanced.