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 Title: |
US4047152:
Electronic character-reading system
[ Derwent Title ]
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| Country: |
US United States of America
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| Inventor: |
Giuliao, Ercole; Genova, Italy
Paita, Orazio; La Spezia, Italy
Stringa, Luigi; Arenzano-Genova, Italy
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| Assignee: |
Elettronica San Giorgio - ELSAG - S.p.A., Genova-Sestri, Italy
other patents from ELETTRONICA SAN GIORGIO - ELSAG - S.P.A. (169980) (approx. 10)
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| Published / Filed: |
1977-09-06
/ 1976-11-03
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| Application Number: |
US1976000738456
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| IPC Code: |
Advanced:
G06K 9/38;
G06T 1/00;
Core:
more...
IPC-7:
G06K 9/00;
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| ECLA Code: |
G06K9/38;
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| U.S. Class: |
Current:
382/272;
Original:
340/146.3AG;
340/146.3MA;
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| Field of Search: |
340/146.3 AG,146.3 H,146.3 MA
358/133,163,166,168,169,284
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| Priority Number: |
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| Abstract: |
A set of photoelectric transducers, optically scanning a line transverse to the direction of movement of a character-bearing document to be electronically read, is periodically actuated to pick up light from a multiplicity of elemental areas of that document and to generate electrical analog voltages commensurate with the brightness of these areas. The analog voltages are serially read out from one or more shift registers as a pulse train or several parallel pulse trains each undergoing digitization and subsequent storage in respective cells of an associated memory. A group of these cells contain, at a given instant, digital codes representative of the relative brightness of respective elemental areas othogonally arrayed in a square surface portion of the document divided into a middle zone and four diagonally adjoining peripheral zones, the middle zone being centered on the point currently scanned. The relative brightness of that scanned point is weighted by an adaptive field function, based on the relative brightness of the peripheral areas, to yield a responsive parameter whose joint evaluation with the relative brightness of the scanned point yields a binary output signal. A series of such output signals, derived from simultaneous readings of a corresponding number of adjoining transducers, is converted into a multibit word fed to a utilization circuit.
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| Attorney, Agent or Firm: |
Ross, Karl F. ;
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| Primary / Asst. Examiners: |
Boudreau, Leo H.;
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| INPADOC Legal Status: |
None
Family Legal Status Report
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| Family: |
Show 27 known family members
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First Claim:
Show all 15 claims |
We claim:
1. A method of electronically reading characters on a carrier moving unidirectionally past a set of photoelectric transducers positioned to scan the carrier surface along a line substantially perpendicular to the direction of carrier motion, said transducers generating individual signal voltages commensurate with the brightness of respective elemental areas of the carrier surface optically registering therewith at a given instant, comprising the steps of:
- establishing a succession of operating cycles of a duration so chosen that the advance of said carrier during each cycle is on the order of magnitude of the width of an elemental area as measured along said line, each of said cycles being divided into a multiplicity of phases;
- deriving from said signal voltages and from a reference voltage a set of electrical quantities representative of image contrasts existing at said elemental areas;
- storing, during each phase, the electrical quantities derived from the signal voltages of a plurality of said transducers optically registering with a two-dimensional array of elemental areas on said carrier, said array including a first zone containing a central elemental area and a second zone composed of several peripheral elemental areas;
- separately weighting different groups of stored electrical quantities, relating to elemental areas of said first zone and of said second zone, with a contrast-enhancing field function; and
- evaluating the most significant electrical quantity stored during any phase, relating to said central elemental area, together with a response parameter synthesized from the weighted electrical quantities to produce a binary output signal.
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| Background / Summary: |
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| Drawing Descriptions: |
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| Description: |
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| Forward References: |
Show 21 U.S. patent(s) that reference this one
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