Image analysis – Image transformation or preprocessing – Combining image portions
Reexamination Certificate
1998-05-19
2001-01-23
Boudreau, Leo H. (Department: 2721)
Image analysis
Image transformation or preprocessing
Combining image portions
C382S173000, C382S289000, C358S453000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06178270
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to image processing, and more particularly relates to techniques for providing text and image selection from document images captured using a video camera.
2. Description of Related Art
Conventional word processor applications for the personal computer enable a user to select text or image portions within a document, corresponding to an electronically stored file, by means of button presses and dragging of a mouse cursor.
The situation is quite different when the displayed document is that captured by a document camera providing grayscale, and usually relatively low resolution, images, such as those employed in over-the-desk scanning systems. It is known to use, in such over-the-desk scanning systems, a video camera disposed above a desk to capture images of documents which are displayed to a user on a CRT monitor or other display device. More details of such systems are disclosed, for example, in EP-A-622,722 and British Patent Application 9614694.9. The capture of the document images may be for display in situ, or for transmission to a remote location as part of a videoconferencing tool.
However, a problem encountered with systems that capture images with a camera is how to provide a very efficient text selection interface for interactive face-up document camera scanning applications. There exits, therefore, a need for techniques that support the selection of rectangular regions of text and images within an image captured by the camera via a “click-and-drag” of the mouse defining two points, or a leading diagonal, and for techniques providing, in much the same way as a word processor interface, for single and multi-word text selection from such a document.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention, there is provided a method, and apparatus therefor, for selecting text and image data from documents with an image processing system in which images of documents are captured by an image capture device having a field of view. The method includes the steps of: (a) displaying an image captured by the image capture device; the displayed image containing text matter being defined by one of grayscale image data and color image data; (b) receiving a first user input defining both a start of a selection and a first position within the displayed image; (c) responsive to said step (b), freezing the displayed image to define a frozen displayed image; (d) determining a skew angle &thgr; of the text matter with respect to the field of view of the image capture device; (e) receiving a second user input defining both an end of the selection and a second position within the displayed image; the second user input defining a final user input; (f) determining, using the skew angle &thgr; determined in said step (d), a selection element; the selection element having a position, a shape, and dimensions that are, at least, dependent upon the first position; and (g) displaying the selection element superimposed on the frozen displayed image.
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European Search Report for EPO counterpart Application No. EP 98 30 4196, Sep. 2, 1999.
Lee Joe S. C.
Taylor Michael J.
Boudreau Leo H.
Sherali Ishrat
Xerox Corporation
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