Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC

Mustafa Kesal

Ramarathnam R Venkatesan

M Kivanc Mihcak

Gary Keith Starkweather

Mehmet Kivanc Mihcak

An implementation is described herein facilitates certification of goods and/or identifications of the source of such goods. At least one implementation, described herein, embeds a watermark into a relatively small amount of data in a deterministic manner. This abstract itself is not intended to limit the scope of this patent. The scope of the present invention is pointed out in the appending claims.

Watermark-based goods authentication

Exemplary methods for estimating an orientation angle and a translation values for scanned images are disclosed. The methods described herein may be embodied as logic instructions on a computer-readable medium. In one exemplary implementation meaningful image information is removed from a scanned image, resulting in a transformed image that comprises alternating, parallel lines disposed at an orientation angle relative to an orthogonal axis. The orientation angle may be determined using geometric techniques or statistical correlation techniques, and statistical correlation techniques may be implemented to determine translation values.

Estimating orientation angle and translation values of a scanned image

The present invention leverages randomly generated areas with random attributes from two-dimensional media forms to embed information relating to a media's ownership and/or distribution source. This provides a means to establish a media's source despite attacks. By providing embedded user-unique identification, media can enable detection for identifying the source of copied media without the embedded information substantially interfering with the intended purpose of the media itself. In one instance of the present invention, media is transformed into a two-dimensional media form with randomly generated areas having a subset of overlapping areas. User-unique keys are then utilized to determine attributes for each of the areas. This permits creation of statistically unique locations for each user key. The statistical qualities are biased and utilized to determine a logarithmic magnitude watermark value to embed in the media at that location. Detection is performed by utilizing a statistical correlation method to determine a user.

Media watermarking by biasing randomized statistics

Exemplary methods for performing a statistical analysis of scanned images are disclosed. The methods described herein may be embodied as logic instructions on a computer-readable medium. In one exemplary implementation a correlation value is determined between a scanned image included in a digital file and an original digital image, and a signal is generated indicating whether the correlation value exceeds a threshold.

Correlative assessment between scanned and original digital images

An implementation is described herein facilitates certification of goods and/or identifications of the source of such goods. At least one implementation, described herein, embeds a watermark into a relatively small amount of data in a deterministic manner. At least one implementation, described herein, generates an authentication transformation matrix based, at least in part, upon an authentication watermark and a pre-defined humanly perceptible authentication pattern (e.g., image, audio). With this implementation, it obtains subject goods that may have the authentication watermark embedded therein. It generates a humanly perceptible resultant pattern (e.g., image, audio) based, at least in part, upon the watermark detected in subject goods and the transformation matrix. If the detected watermark is the authentication watermark, then the resultant pattern and the pre-defined authentication pattern will match (or nearly so). At least one implementation, described herein, hides a secret key around the periphery of watermarked goods. This abstract itself is not intended to limit the scope of this patent. The scope of the present invention is pointed out in the appending claims.

Stealthy secret key encoding and decoding

An implementation of a technology, described herein, for facilitating watermarking of digital goods. At least one implementation, described herein, performs quantization watermarking based upon semi-global characteristics of multiple regions of the digital good. Such regions are permissively overlapping. The scope of the present invention is pointed out in the appending claims.

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Urbana, IL, United States of America

Mustafa Kesal