Dating images from scanned watermarks
AssigneeEastman Kodak Company
InventorsAnthony Scalise, Andrew C. Blose
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A method for dating photographic prints comprising scanning a front side of a photographic print forming an image scan; scanning a back side of the photographic print forming a back scan; defining a database of photographic print watermarks, each photographic print watermark comprising a representation of a watermark pattern and an associated date range; analyzing the back scan using a cross-correlation process between the back scan and the watermark patterns in the database of photographic print watermarks to identify a matching photographic print watermark; determining a date range for the image scan responsive to the identified matching photographic print watermark; and associating the determined date range with the image scan.
Claims19
A method for dating photographic prints comprising:
- a) scanning a front side of a photographic print forming an image scan;
- b) scanning a back side of the photographic print forming a back scan;
- c) defining a database of photographic print watermarks, each photographic print watermark comprising a representation of a watermark pattern and an associated date range;
- d) analyzing the back scan using a cross-correlation process between the back scan and the watermark patterns in the database of photographic print watermarks to identify a matching photographic print watermark, and by further analyzing the back scan to determine a color of the photographic print watermark in;
- e) determining a date range for the image scan responsive to the identified matching photographic print watermark and the determined color of the photographic print watermark;
- and
- f) associating the determined date range with the image scan;
- wherein a matching photographic print watermark is identified when a signal generated by the cross-correlation process exceeds a predetermined watermark-dependent threshold value associated with each photographic print watermark, wherein a training process is used to determine the watermark-dependent threshold value for each photographic print watermark.
A system for dating photographic prints comprising:
- a) a scanner for scanning a front side of a photographic print forming an image scan;
- b) a scanner for scanning a back side of the photographic print forming a back scan;
- c) a database of photographic print watermarks, each photographic print watermark comprising a representation of a watermark pattern and an associated date range;
- d) a processor for analyzing the back scan using a cross-correlation process between the back scan and the watermark patterns to identify a matching photographic print watermark from the database of photographic print watermarks, analyzing the back scan to determine a color of the photographic print watermark, and determining a date range responsive to the matching photographic print watermark and the determined color of the photographic print watermark, wherein a matching photographic print watermark is identified when a signal generated by the cross-correlation process exceeds a predetermined watermark-dependent threshold value associated with each photographic print watermark, wherein a training process is used to determine the watermark-dependent threshold value for each photographic print watermark;
- and
- e) a means for associating the date range associated with the identified photographic print watermark with the image scan.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.