Patent ID: 7513430
Filing Date: 2009-04-07
Classification: G06K

Abstract:
1. A hand-supportable digital image capture and processing system comprising: a hand-supportable housing; an image formation and detection subsystem, disposed in said hand-supportable housing, and having image formation optics for producing a field of view (FOV) upon an object to be imaged, and an area-type image sensing array for detecting imaged light reflected off the object during illumination operations in an image capture mode in which rows of sensor elements in said area-type image sensing array are enabled so as to detect a 2D digital image of the object formed on said area-type image sensing array; a narrow-band illumination subsystem, disposed in said hand-supportable housing, and having an narrow-band illumination array for producing a field of narrow-band illumination within the FOV of said image formation and detection subsystem during the image capture mode, wherein said field of narrow-band illumination consists essentially of a narrow band of wavelengths of visible illumination produced from said narrow-band illumination subsystem; a narrow-band transmission-type optical filter subsystem, disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for transmitting substantially only the narrow band of wavelengths of visible illumination produced from said narrow-band illumination subsystem, and rejecting substantially all other optical wavelengths outside said narrow band generated by ambient illumination sources; an automatic light exposure measurement subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, employing a photo-detector operated independently from said area-type image sensing array, for automatically measuring the light exposure incident upon a selected portion of said FOV, and producing an electrical signal representative of said light exposure measurement; an automatic illumination control subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for automatically controlling the operation of said narrow-band illumination subsystem, wherein said automatic illumination control subsystem responds to said electrical signal and controls the duration of narrow-band illumination produced from said narrow-band illumination subsystem during said image capture mode; an image capturing and buffering subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for capturing and buffering 2D digital images detected by said image formation and detection subsystem; an image-processing subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for processing 2D digital images captured and buffered by said image capturing and buffering subsystem and producing processed image data; and an input/output subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for outputting processed image data to an external host system or other information receiving or responding device; and a system control subsystem disposed in said hand-supportable housing, for controlling and/or coordinating the operation of one or more of the subsystems described above.