Symbol Technologies, LLC

Zebra Technologies Corporation

Dayou Wang

Michelle X Wang

Joseph Cai

Vladimir P Gurevich

Edward D Barkan

Duanfeng He

Carl D Wittenberg

Dariusz J Madej

Matthew D Blasczak

Thomas Lackemann

Igor R Vinogradov

Miroslav Trajkovic

Justin F Barish

Rong Liu

Daniel F Brown

Ming Yu

John P Evans

Andrew Cornell

Pierre Craen

Ke Zhang

Yu Sun

Edward Chen

Askold V Strat

Darek Madej

Joe Cai

Jackson He

Methods and apparatus for locating small indicia in large images are disclosed herein. An example method includes: identifying an aiming pattern zone that includes a detected or presumed location of an aiming light pattern, wherein an offset between the location and a center of image data varies due to a parallax; determining one or more coordinates of the aiming pattern zone; capturing image data representing an image of an environment appearing within a field of view (FOV) of a scanner including the indicia; encoding the one or more coordinates into a tagline of the image; and providing the image with the tagline to an indicia decoder such that the indicia decoder attempts to decode the indicia from the image data starting in a region of the image data selected based upon the one or more coordinates.

Methods and apparatus for locating small indicia in large images

An indicia reading system and associated methods discriminate between types of media upon which encoded indicia is rendered. Encoded indicia rendered upon a medium are imaged using different sets of image acquisition parameter settings. An attempt to decode the encoded indicia that are imaged is made and the image acquisition parameter settings corresponding to successfully decoding the encoded indicia are identified. A type of the medium upon which the encoded indicia is rendered is determined based on which of the sets of image acquisition parameter settings correspond to the encoded indicia being successfully decoded.

Indicia reading systems and associated methods for determining a type of media upon which encoded indicia are rendered

Methods and devices for improving indicia decoding with an imaging device are disclosed herein. An example method includes: (a) searching, by an imaging device, a search region within a current image for an indicia, wherein the search region includes a plurality of search seeds; (b) attempting, by the imaging device, to decode the indicia within the search region by analyzing image data corresponding to each seed of the plurality of search seeds; (c) responsive to not decoding the indicia, capturing, by the imaging device, a subsequent image featuring the indicia; (d) adjusting, by the imaging device, the search region based on a distance between the imaging device and the indicia featured in the subsequent image; (e) designating the subsequent image as the current image; and (f) iteratively performing (a)-(f) until the imaging device decodes the indicia.

Methods and devices for improving indicia decoding with an imaging device

Systems and methods for adaptively determining a region of interest (ROI) are disclosed herein. An example device includes an imaging assembly and a controller. The imaging assembly captures image data comprising pixel data from a plurality of pixels. The controller calculates a contrast value for each pixel of the plurality of pixels, generates a histogram of contrast values, calculates an area under the curve of the histogram, and determines a contrast value threshold to delineate between high-contrast value pixels and low-contrast value pixels. The controller also identifies a ROI within the image data by locating a region within the image data that (i) satisfies a pre-determined size threshold and (ii) contains a largest number of high-contrast value pixels relative to all other regions that satisfy the pre-determined size threshold, and adjusts imaging parameters of the imaging assembly based on the ROI to capture at least one subsequent image.

Systems and methods for determining an adaptive region of interest (ROI) for image metrics calculations

Methods and apparatus for locating small indicia in large images are disclosed herein. An example method includes: identifying an aiming pattern zone that includes a detected or presumed location of an aiming light pattern, wherein an offset between the location and a center of image data varies due to a parallax; determining one or more coordinates of the aiming pattern zone; capturing image data representing an image of an environment appearing within a field of view (FOV) of a handheld scanner including the indicia; encoding the one or more coordinates into a tagline of the image; and providing the image with the tagline to an indicia decoder such that the indicia decoder attempts to decode the indicia from the image data starting in a region of the image data selected based upon the one or more coordinates.

Systems and methods for user choice of barcode scanning ranges are provided. This is achieved through the identification of a predetermined pixel-per-module threshold range. The pixel-per-module of a barcode being read by a reader is compared to the predetermined pixel-per-module threshold range, and a successful decode of the barcode is carried out only if the pixel-per-module of the barcode falls within the predetermined range. Thus, a user may select a desired reading distance range such that barcodes within a working distance range may not generate successful decodes if such barcodes are outside of the desired reading distance range.

Systems and methods for user choice of barcode scanning range

A method of decoding a barcode includes determining number of barcode candidates in the image captured and processing the image captured in accordance with the number of barcode candidates found. If the number of barcode candidates is one, the image captured is processed to decode the only one barcode candidate in the image captured. If the number of barcode candidates is larger than one, the image captured is processed to find a barcode candidate that overlays with an aiming location between a first location and a second location on a scan line and to decode the barcode candidate that is found that overlays with the aiming location.

Decoding barcode using smart linear picklist

A system for, and a method of, configuring an electro-optical reader as a keyboard device having a selected keyboard layout containing keyboard layout data, encode each of a plurality of configuration symbols with a symbol sequence number, a total number of the configuration symbols, and a fractional amount of the keyboard layout data. During a configuration procedure, all the configuration symbols are electro-optically scanned and decoded, and the symbol sequence number, the total number of the configuration symbols, and the fractional amount of the keyboard layout data are extracted for each configuration symbol. The keyboard layout data for all the configuration symbols are linked in a sequence determined by each symbol sequence number and the total number of the configuration symbols. All the keyboard layout data is processed to configure the reader during the configuration procedure.

System for, and method of, configuring electro-optical reader as a keyboard device having a selected keyboard layout

An arrangement for, and a method of, minimizing misdecodes of GS1 DataBar Limited (Databar-limited) symbols in a reader for electro-optically reading symbols of different symbologies, such as Universal Product Code (UPC) Version A (UPC-A) symbols, includes a data capture assembly for capturing light from a target symbol, and for generating an electrical signal indicative of the captured light; and a controller for processing and decoding the electrical signal, and for determining whether the decoded signal is indicative of a Databar-limited symbol, and for determining whether the decoded signal has characteristics indicative of a different symbology, such as the UPC-A symbol, to indicate whether a misdecode of the Databar-limited symbol has occurred.

Minimizing misdecodes in electro-optical readers

An arrangement for, and a method of, enhancing performance of an imaging reader for imaging symbols to be read, include a solid-state imager supported by the reader and having an array of image sensors for capturing return light from a symbol as pixel data over a field of view, and a controller operatively connected to the imager, for mapping a virtual scan line in the field of view, for determining whether the virtual scan line extends entirely over the symbol, for remapping the virtual scan line as a remapped virtual scan line that extends entirely over the symbol upon determining that the virtual scan line extends partially over the symbol, and for decoding the pixel data that lies on the remapped virtual scan line.

Arrangement for and method of reducing short reads in an imaging reader

A method of decoding a barcode includes generating a first illumination towards a target object with a first illumination level, capturing a first image during a first exposure time period, and determining a first location and a second location on a scan line in the first image to find a switchover condition. If the switchover condition indicates the presence of a mobile display device, the method further includes generating a second illumination towards the target object with a second illumination level, capturing a second image during a second exposure time period, and decoding the barcode in the second image. Here, at least one of the second illumination level and the second exposure time period is determined based on values of pixels on the scan line between the first location and the second location.

Decoding barcodes displayed on cell phone

An arrangement for, and a method of, preventing a misread of a one-dimensional symbol that can be read in either one of two polarities in an electro-optical reader. A data capture assembly captures light from the symbol, and generates an electrical signal indicative of the captured light. A controller simultaneously processes and decodes the electrical signal as a first decoded result of one of the polarities and as a second decoded result of the other of the polarities. The controller also determines the validity of the first and second decoded results, and generates an output in dependence upon the validity determination.

Arrangement for and method of preventing symbol misreads in electro-optical readers

A method includes (1) obtaining a captured image of a document physically placed on a background having specifically designed patterns; (2) storing into a memory the captured image that includes an image of the document and an image of the background surrounding the document; and (3) analyzing the captured image to search for a boundary of the document in the captured image, where step of analyzing includes distinguishing the image of the background from the image of the document.

Document capture with imaging-based bar code readers

A method and apparatus for setting the amount of exposure for the photodetector array in a barcode scanner. An image is captured with the photodetector array. The type for each sub-region in the multiple sub-regions in the image captured is determined. Each sub-region in the multiple sub-regions is assigned a weight based on the type of the sub-region. The amount of exposure for the photodetector array in the barcode scanner is set automatically based on the weight for each sub-region in the multiple sub-regions. In some embodiments, the predetermined image area are repartitioned into new multiple sub-regions based on the image captured, and the amount of exposure for the photodetector array in the barcode scanner is set automatically based on the weight for each sub-region in the new multiple sub-regions.

Method of setting amount of exposure for photodetector array in barcode scanner

A target distance to a system target located at variable distances from an imaging system is determined by illuminating a calibration target at a calibration distance with a collimated light beam during a calibration mode of operation, by illuminating the system target at the variable target distance with the collimated light beam during an imaging mode of operation, by configuring the collimated light beam with a beam spot of a generally constant size during both modes of operation, by capturing return light of a calibration image size from the calibration target during the calibration mode, by capturing return light of a target image size from the system target during the imaging mode, and by determining the variable target distance based on the calibration distance, the calibration image size, and the target image size.

Growing community of inventors

Mount Sinai, NY, United States of America

Dayou Wang