Patent Document ID: 5500906
Application ID: 08181328
Patent Status: 1

Claim One:
1. A method for locating a curvilinear object in a digitized image, comprising: a) defining a range of scale variations; b) generating an enlarged submodel having dimensions larger than those expected for said curvilinear object within said range of scale variations; c) generating a reduced size submodel of said curvilinear object having dimensions smaller than those expected for said curvilinear object and within said range of scale variations; d) disposing said reduced size submodel within said enlarged submodel and tangent to said enlarged submodel; e) generating a feathered submodel by varying pixel grey scale values between said enlarged and said reduced size submodels; f) conducting a correlation search of said digitized image of said curvilinear object using said feathered submodel, whereby the point in said digitized image reported by said correlation search as having the highest correlation to said feathered submodel is deemed to be at an edge of said curvilinear object and used to compute a center of said curvilinear object to locate it.