Scalable solution for image retrieval
US6253201A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 23, 1998 |
| Grant date | Jun 26, 2001 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 23, 2018 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S707/99935
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
The invention is a method and apparatus for determining similarity between images based upon a count of the number of similar characterizations of the images. To provide for efficiency in the comparison process, indexed lists of image identifiers are maintained, and the count of similar characterizations of an image is determined by the count of occurrences of the image's identifier in selected lists. The selected lists are determined by a characterization of a target image from which similar images are to be identified. The indexing and retrieval techniques presented herein are suitable for a variety of image characterization techniques, such as characterizations based upon the color content or edge content of partitions of an image. Multiple indexes can be associated with one or more characteristic measures of each partition, allowing for image retrieval based on one or more characteristics of the target image.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.