US6281928B1
Expired / Lapsed
US
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Positional detector device for a vehicular license plate
Assignee: UMETECH YK
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Filing: 1998-05-13
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Granted: 2001-08-28
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Expires: 2018-05-13
Abstract
Abstract In a positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle, a camera is provided to photograph a front and rear portion of a motor vehicle so as to produce an image signal. An A/D converter converts the image signal into a digital image. A positional detector detects a position of a lisence plate of a motor vehicle based on the digital image. A cut-off treatment device cuts off a specified region from an original image photographed by the camera while scanning the original image when the motor vehicle approaches the camera member within a predetermined distance. An edge refining treatment device emphasizes a contour of a pattern represented by the specified region cut off from the original image. A contraction treatment device contracts an image size of the specified region which was treated with the edge refining treatment device. A calculation treatment device feeds the contracted pattern to a learned neural network so as to calculate an output value for a positional detection neural network. A coordinate transformation device transforms the output value of the positional detection neural network to such a scale as to meet the original image. An addition treatment device adds data at specified points which were multiplied by Gaussian window so as to obtain a projective addition value after carrying out the coordinate transformation. A distinction treatment device recognizes a position of the license plate based on a maximum value on which the projective addition value falls.
Inventors
- 👤 Taizo Umezaki
- 👤 Takeo Kanade
- 👤 Noriyuki Matsumoto
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-09 18:15
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06T; G06T7/00; G06T7/10; G06T7/11; G06T7/70; G06T7/73; G06T2207/00; G06T2207/10; G06T2207/10016; G06T2207/30; G06T2207/30248; G06T2207/30252
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 6
Claim 1
Independent Claim
255 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle comprising: a camera member which photographs a front and rear portion of a motor vehicle so as to produce an image signal; an A/D converter which converts the image signal into a digital image; a positional detector member which detects a position of a lisence plate of a motor vehicle based on the digital image; a cut-off treatment member which cuts off a specified region from an original image photographed by the camera member while scanning the original image when the motor vehicle approaches the camera member within a predetermined distance; an edge refining treatment member which emphasizes a contour of a pattern represented by the specified region cut off from the original image; a contraction treatment member which contracts an image size of the specified region which was treated with the edge refining treatment member; a calculation treatment member which feeds the contracted pattern to a learned neural network so as to calculate an output value for a positional detection neural network; a coordinate transformation member which transforms the output value of the positional detection neural network to such a scale as to meet the original image; an addition treatment member which adds data at specified points which were multiplied by Gaussian window so as to obtain a projective addition value after carrying out the coordinate transformation; and a distinction treatment member which recognizes a position of the license plate based on a maximum value on which the projective addition value falls.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
255 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle comprising: a camera member which photographs a front and rear portion of a motor vehicle so as to produce an image signal; an A/D converter which converts the image signal into a digital image; a positional detector member which detects a position of a lisence plate of a motor vehicle based on the digital image; a cut-off treatment member which cuts off a specified region from an original image photographed by the camera member while scanning the original image when the motor vehicle approaches the camera member within a predetermined distance; an edge refining treatment member which emphasizes a contour of a pattern represented by the specified region cut off from the original image; a contraction treatment member which contracts an image size of the specified region which was treated with the edge refining treatment member; a calculation treatment member which feeds the contracted pattern to a learned neural network so as to calculate an output value for a positional detection neural network; a coordinate transformation member which transforms the output value of the positional detection neural network to such a scale as to meet the original image; an addition treatment member which adds data at specified points which were multiplied by Gaussian window so as to obtain a projective addition value after carrying out the coordinate transformation; and a distinction treatment member which recognizes a position of the license plate based on a maximum value on which the projective addition value falls.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
305 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle comprising: a camera member which photographs a rear portion of a motor vehicle so as to produce an image signal when the motor vehicle approaches the camera member within a predetermined distance; an A/D converter which converts the image signal into a first sized original image; a positional detector member which detects a position of a lisence plate of a motor vehicle based on the original image; a cut-off treatment member which cuts off a second sized region from the first sized original image photographed by the camera member while scanning the first sized original image; an edge refining treatment member which emphasizes a contour of a pattern represented by the second sized region cut off from the first sized original image; a contraction treatment member which contracts the second sized region into a third sized image after treated with the edge refining treatment member; a calculation treatment member which feeds the contracted pattern of the third sized image to a learned neural network so as to calculate an output value for a positional detection neural network as a fourth sized image value; a coordinate transformation member which projects the output value of the positional detection neural network to a positional distinction pattern, a size of which is the same as that of the first sized region, and transforming the fourth sized image value into the second sized region; an addition treatment member which adds data at specified points which were multiplied by Gaussian window to a positional distinction pattern of the license plate so as to obtain a projective addition value after carrying out the coordinate transformation; and a distinction treatment member which recognizes a position of the license plate based on a maximum value on which the projective addition value falls.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
305 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle comprising: a camera member which photographs a rear portion of a motor vehicle so as to produce an image signal when the motor vehicle approaches the camera member within a predetermined distance; an A/D converter which converts the image signal into a first sized original image; a positional detector member which detects a position of a lisence plate of a motor vehicle based on the original image; a cut-off treatment member which cuts off a second sized region from the first sized original image photographed by the camera member while scanning the first sized original image; an edge refining treatment member which emphasizes a contour of a pattern represented by the second sized region cut off from the first sized original image; a contraction treatment member which contracts the second sized region into a third sized image after treated with the edge refining treatment member; a calculation treatment member which feeds the contracted pattern of the third sized image to a learned neural network so as to calculate an output value for a positional detection neural network as a fourth sized image value; a coordinate transformation member which projects the output value of the positional detection neural network to a positional distinction pattern, a size of which is the same as that of the first sized region, and transforming the fourth sized image value into the second sized region; an addition treatment member which adds data at specified points which were multiplied by Gaussian window to a positional distinction pattern of the license plate so as to obtain a projective addition value after carrying out the coordinate transformation; and a distinction treatment member which recognizes a position of the license plate based on a maximum value on which the projective addition value falls.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
50 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle as recited in claim 1 or 2 , wherein learning of the neural network is based on a back propagation method which employs learning date and teaching data, and a unit threshold function is based on sigmoid function.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
47 words
A positional detector device for a license plate of a motor vehicle as recited in claim 1 or 2 , wherein the detector device is used to recognize a number of the license plate when the motor vehicle passes through a highway toll gate without stopping there.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2004-08-27 | 2005-02-26 | 2005-08-28 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2008-08-27 | 2009-02-26 | 2009-08-28 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2012-08-27 | 2013-02-26 | 2013-08-28 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |