Object imaging system

An image processing system for separating one or more objects in a scene from a background of the scene, comprising:

• a controllable light source for illuminating the scene, the controllable light source having an on illumination level and a reduced illumination level, the controllable light source positioned at an object distance from the object and a background distance from the background, a reflector of light from the object divided by the square of the object distance being greater than a reflectance of light from the background divided by the square of the background distance when the controllable light source is at the on illumination level and the reduced illumination level;
• an image input device taking two or more images of the scene, a first scene image taken with the controllable light source on and a second scene image taken with the controllable light source at the reduced illumination level, the first scene image having an object image of each of the objects brighter than the object image in the second scene;
• an opaque enclosure that encloses the image input device and the light source, the enclosure having an opening facing the object so that the light can illuminate the object and the image input device can image the object, the enclosure opening being placed a first distance from the object so that there is a reduction in the ambient light reflected from the object to the imaging input device;
• a comparator for comparing the first and second scene images, one or more pixels being object pixels that are brighter in the first scene image than in the second scene image;
• and
• a comparator designator designating the object pixels as the object image separate from a background image of the background of the scene.