Methods and apparatus for embedding data and for detecting and recovering embedded data

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data including a plurality of data items, said data items having a different relative importance with respect to each other, said apparatus comprising:

• an encoding processor operable to encode each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code;
• a combining processor operable to combine said encoded data items with said information material in accordance with an application strength;
• and
• a control processor operable to receive data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded and to control said encoding processor and said combining processor to encode and embed said data items in accordance with said relative importance,
• wherein said combining processor is operable in combination with said encoding processor to allocate an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material, as each of said data items being encoded and embedded to the effect that said proportion of said limited data embedding capacity and said application strength are allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance and to embed control information in the information material indicative of at lead one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data including a plurality of data items, said data items having a different relative importance with respect to each other, said apparatus comprising:

• an encoding processor operable to encode each of said data items;
• a combining processor operable to combine said encoded data items with said information material, encoding processor including a modulator operable to generate predetermined data sequences and to encode said data items by modulating said predetermined data sequences with data symbols of said data items, and to combine said modulated predetermined data sequences within a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material;
• and
• a control processor operable to receive data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded and to control said encoding processor and said combining processor to encode and embed said data items in accordance with said relative importance,
• wherein said predetermined data sequences are allocated to the effect that a greater amount of spreading of said data items is provided to the more important data items in accordance with said limited data embedding capacity and the control processor is operable to embed control information in the information material indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items.

A method of embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said method comprising:

• receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code;
• combining said encoded data items with said information material;
• and
• controlling the encoding and the combining of said data items to the effect that an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items is allocated in accordance with said relative importance to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding, capacity is allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance;
• and
• embedding control information in the information material indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items.

A method of embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said method comprising:

• receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• allocating an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material in accordance with an application strength;
• encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code, an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items being allocated in accordance with said relative importance;
• combining said encoded data items with said information material;
• and
• embedding control information in the information material indicative of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items,
• wherein said allocating and generating has an effect that a proportion of said limited data embedded capacity is allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance, and said application strength are allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance.

A method of embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said method comprising:

• receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• allocating an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material in accordance with said relative importance,
• encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code, an amount of said redundant data, included in said encoded data items being allocated in accordance with said relative importance;
• generating predetermined data sequences;
• encoding said data items by modulating said predetermined data sequences with data, symbols of said data items,
• combining said modulated predetermined data sequences with said information material, and
• embedding control information in the information material indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items,
• wherein said predetermined data sequences are allocated to the effect that a greater amount of spreading of said data items is provided to the more important data items in accordance with said limited data embedding capacity.

A method of embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said method comprising:

• receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• encoding each of said data items;
• combining said encoded data items with said information material within a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material, said encoding and said combining of said data items being performed in accordance with said received relative importance of said data items, to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said data items in accordance with said relative importance;
• and
• embedding control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items.

A method of detecting and recovering data embedded in information, material said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, the data having been encoded and embedded in said information material within a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said data items in accordance with said relative importance, and the embedded data also including control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to the data items, said method comprising

• detecting the control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to the data items;
• detecting said embedded encoded data items from said information material to generate a recovered version of said encoded data items;
• and
• decoding said encoded data items using the control information to generate a recovered version of said data items in accordance with the encoding applied to said encoded data items according to the relative importance of said data items.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data including a plurality of data items, said apparatus comprising:

• a combining processor operable to combine said encoded data items with said information material, said information material providing a limited data embedding capacity;
• and
• a control processor operable to select said data items in accordance with an order of relative importance and to control said combining processor to embed said selected data items in said information material within said limited data embedding capacity,
• wherein said control processor selects said data items to the effect that more important data items are embedded before less important data items until said data embedding capacity limit is reached.

An apparatus for detecting and recovering data embedded in information material, said data comprising a plurality of source data items each having been encoded in accordance with a systematic error correction code to produce encoded data items each comprising the corresponding source data item and redundant data, said encoded data items being embedded in the information material, said apparatus comprising:

• an embedded data detector operable to detect and generate a recovered version of said encoded data from said information material;
• an error processor operable, for each of said recovered encoded data items, to determine whether said recovered encoded data item is deemed too erroneous, and if not, decoding said encoded data, item to generate a recovered version of said data item;
• a data store for storing said recovered version of said data item;
• and
• a recovery data processor operable, if said error processor determines that one of said recovered encoded data items is deemed too erroneous, to compare the source data item of said encoded data item, with at least one other source data item from said data store, and to estimate said source data of said item erroneous encoded data item in dependence upon a corresponding value of said at least one other recovered data item.

A system for embedding and removing data from information material, said system comprising:

• an apparatus for embedding the data into the information material, said data comprising a plurality of source data items, said apparatus for embedding comprising:
• an error correction encoder operable to encode each of said data items in accordance with a systematic error correction code to produce encoded data items each comprising the source data item and redundant data;
• and
• a combining processor operable to combine said encoded data items with said information material;
• and
• an apparatus for detecting and removing the data from the information material, said apparatus for detecting and recovering comprising:
• an embedded data detector operable to detect and generate a recovered version of said encoded data from said information material;
• an error processor operable;
• for each of said recovered encoded data items, to determine whether said recovered encoded data item is deemed too erroneous, and if not decoding said encoded data item to generate a recovered version of said data item;
• a data store for storing said recovered version of said data item;
• and
• a recovery data processor operable, if said error processor determines that one of said recovered encoded data items is deemed too erroneous, to compare the source data item of said encoded data item, with at least one other source data item from said data store, and to estimate said source data item of said erroneous encoded data item in dependence upon a corresponding value of said at least one other recovered data item.

A method of detecting and recovering data embedded in information material, said data comprising a plurality of source data items each having been encoded in accordance with a systematic error correction code to produce encoded data items, each encoded data, item comprising the corresponding source data item and redundant data, said encoded data items being embedded in the information material, said method comprising:

• detecting and generating a recovered version of said encoded data items from said information material;
• determining, for each of said encoded data items, whether the recovered version of said encoded data item is deemed too errored, and
• if not, decoding said encoded data item to generate a recovered version of said data item, and storing said recovered version of said data item, and
• if said erroneous encoded data item is deemed too erroneous, comparing said source data from said erroneous encoded data item with at least one other source data item from said data store, and estimating said source data item of said erroneous encoded data item in dependence upon a corresponding value of said other recovered data item.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said apparatus comprising:

• means for receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• means for allocating an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material;
• means for encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code, an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items being allocated in accordance with said relative importance;
• means for controlling the means for encoding and the means for combining of said data items in accordance with said relative importance to the effect that an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items is allocated in accordance with said relative importance to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance;
• means for combining said encoded data items with said information material;
• and
• means for embedding control information in the information material indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items,
• wherein said allocating and generating has an effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said apparatus comprising:

• means for receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• means for allocating an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material in accordance with an application strength;
• means for encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code, an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items being allocated in accordance with said relative importance;
• means for combing said encoded data items with said information material;
• means for embedding control information in the information material indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items,
• wherein said allocating and generating has an effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance and said application strength are allocated to said encoded data items in accordance with said relative importance.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said apparatus comprising:

• means for receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• means for allocating an amount of a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material;
• means for encoding each of said data items in accordance with at least one error correction code, said encoded data items including redundant data introduced by said error correction code, an amount of said redundant data included in said encoded data items being allocated in accordance with said relative importance;
• means for generating predetermined data sequences;
• means for encoding said data items by modulating said predetermined data sequences with data symbols of said data items;
• and
• means for combining said modulated predetermined data sequences with said information material,
• wherein said predetermined data sequences are allocated to the effect that a greater amount of spreading of said data items is provided to the more important data items in accordance with said limited data embedding capacity.

An apparatus for embedding data in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, said apparatus comprising:

• means for receiving data indicative of said relative importance of said data items to be embedded;
• means for encoding each of said data items;
• means for combining said encoded data items with said information material within a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material,
• said encoding and said combining of said data items being performed in accordance with said received relative importance of said data items, to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said data items in accordance with said relative importance;
• and
• means for embedding control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to said data items.

An apparatus for detecting and recovering data embedded in information material, said data being a plurality of data items each having a different relative importance, the data having been encoded and embedded in said information material within a limited data embedding capacity provided by said information material to the effect that a proportion of said limited data embedding capacity is allocated to said data items in accordance with said relative importance, the embedded data also including control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding, applied to the data items, said apparatus comprising:

• means for detecting the control information indicative of at least one of the encoding and embedding applied to the data items;
• means for detecting said embedded encoded data from said information material to generate a recovered version of said encoded data;
• and
• means for decoding said encoded data items using the control information to generate a recovered version of said data items in accordance with the encoding applied to said encoded data items according to the relative importance of said data items.

An apparatus for detecting and recovering data embedded in information material, said data comprising:

• a plurality of source data items each having been encoded in accordance with a systematic error correction code to produce encoded data items, each encoded data item comprising the corresponding source data item and redundant data, said encoded data items being embedded in the information material, said apparatus comprising:
• means for detecting and generating a recovered version of said encoded data items from said information material;
• means for determining, for each of said encoded data items, whether the recovered version of said encoded data item is deemed too erroneous;
• means for decoding said encoded data item if said encoded data item is not too erroneous, to generate a recovered version of said data item, and storing said recovered version of said data item, and if said erroneous encoded data item is deemed too erroneous;
• and
• means for comparing said source data from said erroneous encoded data item with at least one other source data item from said data store, and means for estimating said source data item of said erroneous encoded data item in dependence upon a corresponding value of said other recovered data item.