Patent ID: 8224019

Claim:
A method for embedding information in a document comprising: encoding information as a plurality of data carrying dot patterns; for at least a portion of a document page to be rendered, partitioning the portion into a regular two dimensional array of blocks of equal size and shape, some of the blocks in the array including image data and some of the blocks being blank, thereafter, for each of a plurality of the blocks in the array, determining whether the block is blank and embedding each of the plurality of data carrying dot patterns in a respective blank block, wherein, prior to receiving the image data for a page of a document in which information is to be embedded, parameters of the partitioned page are stored as a template and the template is applied to the page of the document in which information is to be embedded, and wherein the determining whether each block is blank comprises examining the document page in a predetermined order of blocks in the template to see if the block is blank; and rendering the document with the embedded data carrying dot patterns.