Metrologic Instruments, Inc.

Other

Metrologic Instruemtns, Inc.

Mark C Schmidt

C Harry Knowles

Xiaoxun Zhu

Garrett K Russell

Anatoly Kotlarsky

Ka Man Au

Yong Liu

Xi Tao

Sung Byun

Thomas A Amundsen

Patrick Anthony Giordano

John Bonanno

Michael Schnee

Sankar Ghosh

Timothy A Good

David M Wilz

Liang Liu

George B Rockstein

Rui Hou

Hongpeng Yu

Wenhua Zhang

Pasqual Spatafore

Robert E Blake

Stephen J Colavito

Tao Xian

John A Furlong

Mark Hernandez

Michael L Veksland

Jie Ren

Donald T Hudrick

Duane Ellis

Steven Essinger

JiBin Liu

Sean Phillip Kearney

John Gardner

Ming Zhuo

Nicholas Ciarlante

Congwei Xu

Carl Harry Knowles

Shawn Defoney

Constantine J Tsikos

Charles A Naylor

Lin Wang

Min Jiang

Meng Hu

Hongjian Jin

MingQing Ji

Shamei Shi

Edward Skypala

Dale Fisher

Allan Wirth

Andrew J Jankevics

George Kolis

Russell Joseph Dobbs

William Svedas

Jeffery Yorsz

Barry E Schwartz

Steven Y Kim

David W Wilz, Sr

Jon Van Tassell

Pirooz Vatan

Nicola Ciarlante

Peter Bressler

Kevin DiPlacido

Shane Michael Edmonds

Mikhail L Veksland

Kai Ji

William Martin

Wuqing Zhang

Benjamin Hejl

Mark Lucera

James Osborn

Matt Jefferson

Harry C Knowles

James C Nahill

Peter Byar

Joan M Perotti

Zoey Juhng

Sergio Movsessian

Steve Y Kim

Dale M Fischer

David M Witz, Sr

Frank J Travea

Matthew Jefferson

Mathieu Turpault

Charles P Naylor

Ronald Jackson

An assembly of blocks for use in yard and garden environments includes a plurality of discrete blocks each having a body portion and a joining portion, the joining portion having a plurality of angled teeth. The teeth of a first one of the plurality of blocks interlock with the teeth of a second one of the plurality of blocks such that the first and second blocks are connected together and arranged perpendicular relative to one another so that the plurality of blocks has an L-shaped configuration.

Landscape edging block system

A multi-stage laser beam despeckling device including a first laser beam despeckling module for optically multiplexing an input laser beam into a temporal/spatial coherence-reduced output laser beam; and a second laser beam despeckling module, optically coupled to the first laser beam despeckling module, for receiving the temporal/spatial coherence-reduced as an input laser beam to the second despeckling module and producing a further temporal/spatial coherence-reduced output laser beam.

Laser beam despeckling devices

Digital image capture and processing systems and methods for generating and projecting coplanar illumination and imaging planes and/or coextensive area-type illumination and imaging zones, through one or more imaging windows, and into a 3D imaging volume in a retail POS environments, while employing automatic object motion and/or velocity detection, real-time image analysis and other techniques to capture and processing high-quality digital images of objects passing through the 3D imaging volume, and intelligently controlling and/or managing the use of visible and invisible forms of illumination, during object illumination and imaging operations, that might otherwise annoy or disturb human operators and/or customers working and/or shopping in such retail environments.

Method of reading bar code symbols on objects at a point-of-sale station by passing said objects through a complex of stationary coplanar illumination and imaging planes projected into a 3D imaging volume

The wireless PDT of the present invention employs a 'display-on bottom' design which places the unit perfectly centered in the hand of the operator, allowing for the best possible viewing as well as providing comfortable single-handed operation. The high-resolution LCD display allows the PCT to show sharp, clear bitmap images while supporting all Windows-recognized font types and sizes. With the auto back-lit feature, the brightness adjusts automatically making the screen easy to read in all light conditions. The PDT is designed for support within the download/charger cradle of a base station which interfaces with a host system using either USB or RS232 interface. Two standard 'AA' or rechargeable Li-Ion batteries provide more than 100 hours of operation. In addition, the PDT comes standard with 2 MB of RAM providing enough memory to store over 100,000 records. Applications for the PDT can be developed using a novel integrated development and deployment environment (IDE) which contains an easy-to-use Windows-based application generator and download utilities. For advanced programming, developers can choose to write software using an advanced application generator or 'C' programming application generator which provides the developer with simple programming and fast setup. Further enhancements available in the application generator include drag and drop icons, time/datestamp, battery level indicator and variable fonts, giving the developer the ability to create custom screen layouts.

Wireless bar code symbol driven portable data terminal (PDT) system for running application programs on an operating system emulated on a virtual machine

A POS-based digital image capturing and processing system for illuminating objects using automatic object detection and spectral-mixing illumination technique. The system comprises an area-type illumination and imaging station for projecting a coextensive area-type illumination and imaging field (i.e. zone) into a 3D imaging volume during object illumination and imaging operations. The area-type illumination and imaging station includes an illumination subsystem for producing a first field of visible illumination from an array of visible LEDs, and producing a second field of invisible illumination from an array of infrared (IR) LEDs. wherein the first and second fields of illumination spatially overlap and intermix with each other and are substantially coextensive with the FOV of the image sensing array. An automatic object motion detection subsystem automatically detects the motion of an object moving through the 3D imaging volume, while an illumination control subsystem controls the relative power ratio (VIS/IR) of visible illumination and invisible illumination during system operation so as to minimize the amount of visible illumination energy required to capture sufficiently high-contrast images of said objects and successfully process the same.

POS-based digital image capturing and processing system employing automatic object motion detection and spectral-mixing based illumination techniques

Novel POS-based bar code symbol reading systems are disclosed having an integrated customer-kiosk terminal. Also disclosed are novel POS-based bar code reading cash register Systems having integrated Internet-enabled customer-kiosk terminals.

POS-based checkout system configured to enable the reading of code symbols on cashier and customer sides thereof, during a retail transaction being carried out at a point-of-sale (POS) station

A hand-supportable planar laser illumination and imaging (PLIIM) based code symbol reader includes: a hand-supportable housing having light transmission aperture; a linear image formation and detection module having a linear image detection array; and a planar laser illumination beam (PLIB) producing device having at least one visible laser diode (VLD) for producing a planar light illumination beam (PLIB). The code symbol reader further includes image grabber for grabbing digital linear images formed and detected by the image formation and detection module, an image data buffer for buffering the digital linear images grabbed by the image grabber and constructing a two-dimensional image from a series of buffered linear digital images, and an image processing computer for processing the buffered two-dimensional digital image so as to read code symbols graphically represented in the two-dimensional digital linear image. During object illumination and imaging operations, a controller automatically controls the linear image formation and detection module, the PLIB producing device, the image frame grabber, and the image data buffer.

Hand-supported planar laser illumination and imaging (PLIIM) based systems with laser despeckling mechanisms integrated therein

Digital image capturing and processing network for use in a retail POS environment, comprising a plurality of digital image capturing systems, and a remote image processing server. Each digital image capturing system is installed at a POS station and includes a system housing having an imaging window and containing a plurality of coplanar illumination and imaging stations, for generating and projecting a complex of coplanar illumination and imaging planes through the imaging window, and into a 3D imaging volume definable relative to the imaging window, and producing digital images of objects passed through the 3D imaging volume. The remote image processing server is arranged in two-way data communication with each digital image capturing system, for (i) receiving and processing digital images produced by each digital image capturing system, (ii) performing at least one information abstraction process on the digital images, and (iii) transmitting information back to the POS station regarding said information abstraction process.

Network of digital image capturing systems installed at retail POS-based stations and serviced by a remote image processing server in communication therewith

A digital image capturing and processing system for automatically recognizing objects in a POS environment. The system includes a system housing having an imaging window; illumination and imaging stations for generating and projecting illumination and imaging planes or zones through the imaging window, and into a 3D imaging volume definable relative to the imaging window, for digital imaging an object passing through the 3D imaging volume, and generating digital linear images of the object as the object intersects the illumination and imaging planes or zones during system operation. A digital image processor processes the digital images and automatically recognizes the object, such as produce and fruit, graphically represented by the digital images.

Digital image capturing and processing system for automatically recognizing objects in a POS environment

A laser beam generation system having an integrated coherence reduction mechanism. The system includes: a flexible circuit having a first end portion and a second end portion; a laser diode mounted on the first end portion of the flexible circuit, for producing a laser beam having a central characteristic wavelength; diode current drive circuitry for producing a diode drive current to drive the laser diode and produce said laser beam; and high frequency modulation (HFM) circuitry also mounted on the first end portion of the flexible circuit, for modulating the diode drive current at a sufficiently high frequency to cause the laser diode to produce a laser beam having a spectral side-band components about the central characteristic wavelength, and thereby reducing the coherence as well as coherence length of the laser beam.

Laser beam generation system employing a laser diode and high-frequency modulation circuitry mounted on a flexible circuit

A laser illumination beam generation system including a laser diode (LD) for producing a laser beam in response to a diode current supplied thereto, wherein the laser beam has a central characteristic wavelength. Diode current drive circuitry generates the diode current and supplies the same to the VLD. A high frequency modulation (HFM) circuitry modulates the diode current supplied to the laser diode, so as to produce a spectral side-band components about the central characteristic wavelength, and thereby reduces the coherence of the laser illumination beam as well as its coherence length. An optical multiplexing (OMUX) device receives the laser beam as an input beam and generates multiple laser beams therefrom and recombines the multiple laser beams so as to produce a composite output laser illumination beam having reduce coherence.

Laser illumination beam generation system employing despeckling of the laser beam using high-frequency modulation of the laser diode current and optical multiplexing of the component laser beams

A digital image capturing and processing system including a system housing having an imaging window; illumination and imaging stations for generating and projecting illumination and imaging planes or zones through the imaging window, and into a 3D imaging volume definable relative to the imaging window, for digital imaging an object passing through the 3D imaging volume, and generating digital linear images of the object as the object intersects the illumination and imaging planes or zones during system operation. A digital image processor processes the digital images and automatically recognizes graphical intelligence (e.g. bar code symbols, alphanumeric characters etc) graphically represented in the digital images.

Digital image capturing and processing system for automatically recognizing graphical intelligence graphically represented in digital images of objects

A planar laser illumination module (PLIM) including: (i) a laser illumination source driven preferably by high frequency modulated (HFM) diode current drive circuitry; (ii) a beam collimating optics disposed beyond the laser illumination source; (ii) an optical beam multiplexer (OMUX) device disposed beyond the collimating optics; and (iv) a planarizing-type illumination lens array disposed beyond the OMUX device, and arranged for generating a plurality of substantially planar coherence-reduced laser illumination beams (PLIBs) that form a composite substantially planar laser illumination beam (PLIB) having substantially reduced spatial/temporal coherence.

Planar laser illumination module (PLIM) employing high-frequency modulation (HFM) of the laser drive currents and optical multplexing of the output laser beams

A method of driving a plurality of visible and invisible laser diodes so as to produce an illumination beam having a dynamically managed ratio of visible to invisible (IR) spectral energy/power during object illumination and imaging operations. The method involves supplying a plurality of visible laser and invisible laser diodes with a predetermined/default values of diode drive currents so as to illuminate the object with a spectral mixture of illumination during object illumination and imaging operations. One or more digital images of the illuminated object are captured and the image contrast quality thereof is measured, in real-time, so as to generate feedback or control data. This feedback or control data is used to dynamically generate the necessary values for the adjusted diode drive currents that are used to drive the visible and invisible laser diodes and produce an illumination beam having a dynamically managed ratio of visible to invisible (IR) spectral energy/power required to produce images of sufficient image contrast to ensure satisfactory image processing, while minimizing visual brightness to humans, at a POS station during object illumination and imaging operations.

Method of driving a plurality of visible and invisible LEDs so as to produce an illumination beam having a dynamically managed ratio of visible to invisible (IR) spectral energy/power during object illumination and imaging operations

A laser beam despeckling device including a laser diode for producing a laser beam having a central characteristic wavelength. The device includes diode current drive circuitry for producing a diode drive current to drive said laser diode and produce said laser beam. High frequency modulation (HFM) circuitry modulates the diode drive current at a sufficiently high frequency to cause said laser diode to produce spectral side-band components about the central characteristic wavelength, and reducing the coherence as well as coherence length of the laser beam. An optical beam multiplexing (OMUX) module is provided for receiving the laser beam as input beam, a generating as output, a plurality of laser beam components that are recombined to produce a composite laser beam having substantially reduced coherence for use in illumination applications where a substantial reduction in speckle pattern noise is achieved.

Device for producing a laser beam of reduced coherency using high-frequency modulation of the laser diode current and optical multiplexing of the output laser beam

Growing community of inventors

Blackwood, NJ, United States of America

Mark C Schmidt