Method and apparatus for generating halftone images by evolutionary screen dot contours
US6198545A · kind A · utility
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 27, 1995 |
| Grant date | Mar 6, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Mar 27, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S283/902
- WIPO fieldAudio-visual technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The present invention is related to the synthesis, display and printing of halftone images. The invention comprises a method capable of generating screen elements with sophisticated screen dot shapes such as artistic shapes, microletters and ideograms. The method can be used to generate screen elements whose screen dots are made of evolving artistic shapes at increasing intensity level. For generating screen elements at consecutive intensity levels, intermediate contours which bound the white and black parts of each screen element are obtained by interpolating between fixed predefined contours. Such interpolated contours defining screen dots may be transformed from a screen dot definition space to a screen dot rendition space before being converted into discrete screen elements by a scan conversion and filling operation. Since the method allows producing large screen elements made up of many distinct subscreen dot shapes, the process can be used to generate discrete subscreen elements whose geometry may vary from one subscreen dot to another for the same intensity level. Some subscreen dot shape variations may be used to avoid counterfeiting by photocopying machines and digital sca…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.