Spatial Barcode Association via Image Position Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Associating barcodes corresponding to items in bulk scans is time-consuming and error-prone due to the need for manual intervention, especially when multiple barcodes specify different attributes for each unit.
Innovation Solution
A data capture device that captures images of indicia, detects their positions, and determines predefined spatial relationships between pairs of barcodes, automatically presenting decoded values and indicators of related data.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual intervention is used to associate barcodes with items, then accuracy of association can be maintained through human judgment, but time consumption increases significantly and error rates rise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of barcode association with an automated optical imaging system. The image-based scanner captures multiple barcodes in a single frame, and software algorithms automatically detect, decode, and associate barcodes with corresponding items based on spatial relationships, eliminating manual intervention entirely while maintaining accuracy through programmed association rules
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by capturing all barcodes in a bulk scan simultaneously using a single image frame. The spatial positions of all barcodes are detected and recorded before any association processing occurs, allowing the system to pre-establish the geometric relationships between barcodes and their corresponding items, thereby enabling rapid automated association without sequential manual scanning
2Loss of information
If multiple barcodes are provided for each unit to specify different attributes, then information completeness improves, but complexity of association increases due to need for matching multiple barcodes per item
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the association process into distinct automated stages: image capture, barcode detection, decoding, spatial relationship analysis, and attribute mapping. Each stage handles a specific aspect of the complex association task, breaking down the multifaceted problem of matching multiple barcodes with different attributes to corresponding items into manageable computational steps that can be executed automatically
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary computational layer that acts as a mediator between the captured barcodes and the item database. This intermediary software component analyzes spatial relationships, decodes multiple barcodes, matches them with item attributes based on predefined rules, and resolves conflicts automatically, thereby simplifying the overall association process despite the complexity of handling multiple barcodes per item
Data Source
AI summary
A method of decoding spatially related indicia includes: at an imaging controller, controlling an image sensor to capture an image containing a plurality of indicia; at the imaging controller, detecting image positions of each of the indicia; at the imaging controller, for each of a plurality of indicia pairs: determining whether the image positions of the indicia in the pair have a predefined spatial relationship; and responsive to determining that the indicia in the pair have the predefined spatial relationship, presenting (i) values decoded from the indicia in the pair, and (ii) an indicator that the decoded values are related.