1. Apparatus for reading and printing on an object, the apparatus comprising:
(a) a reader system for reading the object to obtain a digital signature representing a unique feature of the object; and
(b) a printer system for printing on the object if the digital signature matches a reference digital signature associated with the object.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a processor for receiving the digital signature and for sending a signal to the printer system, if the digital signature matches the reference digital signature, to cause the printer system to print on the object.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 or 2 wherein the digital signature comprises at least a digital representation of a material characteristic associated with the object.
4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the material characteristic comprises a characteristic of a feature of the substrate of the object.
5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the feature comprises a security feature of the substrate.
6. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the reference digital signature comprises a previously stored digital signature.
7. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the digital signature and the reference digital signature are each a security signature.
8. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the reader system is operable to capture a reader-system image of the object, the apparatus being operable to generate the digital signature in response to the reader-system image.
9. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the reader system is operable to generate the digital signature.
10. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the printer system comprises a transport system for transporting the object, the transport system being operable to clamp the object along one edge only of the object when transporting the object.
11. Apparatus for printing on an object, the apparatus comprising a transport system for transporting the object, the transport system being operable to clamp the object along one edge only of the object when transporting the object.
12. The apparatus of claim 10 or 11 wherein the transport system comprises a roller for contacting the object at a distance from the one edge.
13. The apparatus of claim 12 wherein the transport system comprises a transport frame and a platen, the transport frame comprising an upper frame plate, the transport system being operable to clamp the object between the platen and the upper frame plate and to move the transport frame longitudinally relative to the roller.
14. The apparatus of claim 12 or 13 comprising an entrance feeder hingedly coupled at the transport system, the entrance feeder comprising the roller, the apparatus being operable to raise the entrance feeder so as to inhibit contact between the entrance feeder and the object.
15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the entrance feeder comprises a hinge connection for hingedly coupling the entrance feeder, and comprises another roller parallel and spaced-apart from the roller.
16. The apparatus of claim 14 or 15 comprising a printer inlet, the apparatus being operable to sense the presence of the object at the printer inlet, the entrance feeder being dimensioned for guiding the object when the object is being inserted into the printer system through the printer inlet, the printer system being operable to release the object via the printer inlet.
17. The apparatus of any one of claims 10 to 16 wherein the transport system comprises a stopper for inhibiting longitudinal movement of the object beyond the stopper, the apparatus being operable to cause the transport system to clamp the object when the object is proximate the stopper.
18. The apparatus of any one of claims 10 to 17 wherein the apparatus comprises an imaging device for producing a printable-area image of the object when the object is clamped by the transport system.
19. The apparatus of claim 18 comprising a display, the apparatus being operable to receive as user input a printing area in response to displaying the printable-area image on the display.
20. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims comprising a biometric scanner.
21. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the object is a planar object.
22. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the object is a value item.
23. The apparatus of any one of the preceding claims wherein the object is a document.
24. A method of reading and printing on an object, the method comprising:
(a) reading the object by a reader system of a reader-printer;
(b) obtaining by the reader-printer a digital signature representing a unique feature of the object; and
(c) printing on the object by a printer system of the reader-printer if the digital signature matches a reference digital signature associated with the object.
25. Apparatus for verifying whether a user of an object is an authorized user of the object, the apparatus comprising:
(a) means for detecting a biometric feature of the user and generating data representing the biometric feature; and
(b) a reader-printer for reading and printing on the object, the reader-printer comprising:
(i) a reader system for reading the object to obtain a digital representation of biometric information associated with the authorized user; and
(ii) a printer system for printing on the object;
and wherein the apparatus is operable to cause the printer system to print on the object if the data matches the digital representation.
26. The apparatus of claim 25 further comprising at least one processor for determining whether the data matches the digital representation and for causing the printer system to print on the object if the data matches the digital representation.
27. The apparatus of claim 25 or 26 wherein the reader system is operable to read the object to obtain a digital signature representing a unique feature of the object, and wherein the apparatus is operable to cause the printer system to print on the object only if the digital signature matches a reference digital signature associated with the object.
28. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein the digital signature comprises at least a digital representation of a material characteristic associated with the object.
29. The apparatus of claim 28 wherein the material characteristic comprises a characteristic of a feature of the substrate of the object.
30. The apparatus of claim 29 wherein the feature comprises a security feature of the substrate.
31. The apparatus of any one of claims 27 to 30 wherein the reference digital signature comprises a previously stored digital signature.
32. The apparatus of any one of claims 27 to 31 wherein the digital signature and the reference digital signature are each a security signature.
33. The apparatus of any one of claims 27 to 32 wherein the reader system is operable to capture a reader-system image of the object, the apparatus being operable to generate the digital signature in response to the reader-system image.
34. The apparatus of any one of claims 27 to 33 wherein the reader system is operable to generate the digital signature.
35. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 34 further comprising an exit, the exit comprising at least one of an exit gate and an exit doorway, the apparatus being operable to unlock the exit if the apparatus verifies that the user is the authorized user.
36. The apparatus of any one of claims 27 to 34 further comprising an exit, the exit comprising at least one of an exit gate and an exit doorway, the apparatus being operable to unlock the exit if the data matches the digital representation and the digital signature matches the reference digital signature.
37. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 36 wherein the reader-printer comprises an imaging device for producing an image of the object when the object is received by the reader-printer.
38. The apparatus of claim 37 wherein the reader system is operable to generate the digital representation comprising the image.
39. The apparatus of claim 37 or 38 wherein the apparatus is operable to collect user information which includes the image.
40. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 39 further comprising a one-way mirror, the one-way mirror concealing from the user’s view the means for detecting the biometric features.
41. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 40 wherein the printer system comprises a transport system for transporting the object, the transport system being operable to clamp the object along one edge only of the object when transporting the object.
42. The apparatus of claim 41 wherein the transport system comprises an entrance feeder hingedly coupled at the transport system, the entrance feeder comprising a roller for contacting the object at a distance from the one edge, the reader-printer being operable to raise the entrance feeder so as to inhibit contact between the entrance feeder and the object.
43. The apparatus of claim 42 wherein the transport system comprises a platen and a transport frame having an upper frame plate, the transport system being operable to clamp the object between the platen and the upper frame plate and to move the transport frame longitudinally relative to the entrance feeder.
44. The apparatus of any one of claims 41 to 43 wherein the transport system comprises a stopper for inhibiting longitudinal movement of the object beyond the stopper, the reader-printer being operable to cause the transport system to clamp the object when the object is proximate the stopper.
45. The apparatus of any one of claims 41 to 44 wherein the printer system comprises a printer-system imaging device for producing a printable-area image of the object when the object is clamped by the transport system.
46. The apparatus of claim 45 comprising a display, the apparatus being operable to receive as user input a printing area in response to displaying the printable-area image on the display.
47. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 46 wherein the object is a planar object.
48. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 47 wherein the object is a value item.
49. The apparatus of any one of claims 25 to 48 wherein the object is a document.
50. A method for verifying whether a user of an object is an authorized user of the object, the method comprising:
(a) detecting by an apparatus a biometric feature of the user;
(b) generating data representing the biometric feature;
(c) reading the object by a reader system of the apparatus so as to obtain a digital representation of biometric information associated with the authorized user;
(d) determining whether the data matches the digital representation; and
(e) printing by a printer system of the apparatus on the object if the data matches the digital representation.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. An image processing device, comprising:
a three-dimensional image data input unit which enters three-dimensional image data representing a three-dimensional image;
a subject extraction unit which extracts a subject from the three-dimensional image data;
a spatial vector calculating unit which calculates a spatial vector of the subject from a plurality of planar image data having different viewpoints contained in the three-dimensional image data; and
a three-dimensional image data recording unit which records the spatial vector and the three-dimensional image data in association with each other.
2. The image processing device according to claim 1,
wherein the subject extraction unit further extracts a face of the subject,
wherein a face direction detecting unit which detects the subject’s face direction is further provided, and
wherein the spatial vector calculating unit uses the face direction to calculate a face spatial vector.
3. The image processing device according to claim 1,
wherein the subject extraction unit extracts a plurality of the subject’s bodily portions, and
wherein the spatial vector calculating unit calculates spatial vectors of the plurality of the subject’s bodily portions.
4. The image processing device according to claim 3,
wherein the three-dimensional image data recording unit records a greatest spatial vector among spatial vectors of the plurality of the subject’s bodily portions and the three-dimensional image data in association with each other.
5. The image processing device according to claim 1,
wherein the three-dimensional image data recording unit records the subject’s spatial vector in an Exif tag of the three-dimensional image data.
6. The image processing device according to claim 1,
wherein the three-dimensional image data recording unit records the subject’s spatial vector in a file other than a file of the three-dimensional image data.
7. The image processing device according to claim 1,
wherein the spatial vector calculating unit calculates a parallax of the subject and the distances from the viewpoints to the subject from the plurality of planar image data having different viewpoints and calculates the spatial vector of the subject from the plurality of planar image data having different viewpoints, the parallax, and the distances.
8. The image processing device according to claim 2, further comprising:
a template recording unit having therein recorded a plurality of kinds of three-dimensional image template;
a template selecting unit which selects a given number of three-dimensional image templates according to the spatial vector recorded in association with the three-dimensional image data from among a plurality of kinds of three-dimensional image templates recorded in the template recording unit; and
a synthesizing unit which combines the three-dimensional image data with one three-dimensional image template selected by a user from among a given number of three-dimensional image templates selected by the template selecting unit to produce and outputs synthesized three-dimensional image data representing a synthesized three-dimensional image.
9. The image processing device according to claim 8,
wherein the template selecting unit selects a three-dimensional image template containing a character whose pop-out amount is greater than N3 and smaller than 3N, N being the subject’s pop-out amount.
10. The image processing device according to claim 8,
wherein the template selecting unit further selects the three-dimensional image template according to the subject’s face direction and the subject’s position in the three-dimensional image.
11. The image processing device according to claim 10,
wherein the template selecting unit performs selection such that when the subject faces leftward or rightward and is placed on a left side or on a right side in the three-dimensional image and the character contained in the three-dimensional image template is placed on the left side or on the right side, and when the subject’s face direction is directed toward the character, three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s up-and-down face directions opposite from the subject’s face direction are not selected, whereas when the subject’s face direction is not directed toward the character, three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s left-and-right face directions opposite from the subject’s face direction are not selected and three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s up-and-down face directions opposite from the subject’s face direction are not selected, while three-dimensional image templates containing a character directed toward other directions are selected.
12. The image processing device according to claim 10,
wherein when the subject faces leftward or rightward and is placed on a center in the three-dimensional image and the character contained in the three-dimensional image template is placed on a left side or on a right side of the subject, the template selecting unit does not select three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s up-and-down face directions opposite from the subject’s face direction, and selects three-dimensional image templates containing a character directed toward other directions irrespective of the subject’s face direction.
13. The image processing device according to claim 10,
wherein when the subject’s face direction is directed toward a center, the template selecting unit does not select three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s up-and-down face directions opposite from the subject’s face direction and selects three-dimensional image templates containing the character’s other face directions irrespective of the subject’s position and face direction.
14. The image processing device according to claim 10,
wherein the template selecting unit sets an order of priority in the character’s pop-out amount and face direction contained in the three-dimensional image template and selects the three-dimensional image template according to the order of priority.
15. The image processing device according to claim 8,
wherein the template selecting unit displays the pop-out amount and the face direction of the character contained in the three-dimensional image template on a preview screen and selects one three-dimensional image template selected by the user from among a plurality of three-dimensional image templates displayed on the preview screen.
16. A three-dimensional image printing system, comprising:
the image processing device described in claim 1; and
a printing device for printing a synthesized three-dimensional image corresponding to synthesized three-dimensional image data outputted from the image processing device.
17. An image processing method, comprising:
a three-dimensional image data input step of receiving three-dimensional image data representing a three-dimensional image entered from an outside;
a subject extraction step of extracting a subject from the three-dimensional image data;
a spatial vector calculating step of calculating a spatial vector of the subject from a plurality of planar image data having different viewpoints contained in the three-dimensional image data; and
a three-dimensional image data recording step of recording the spatial vector and the three-dimensional image data in association with each other.
18. A non-transitory computer readable medium embodied with a program for causing a computer to execute the steps of the image processing method described in claim 17.