Author: claimsbot

1. A method for calibrating a device to a reference device using augmented data, comprising
measuring, by a processor, k spectral values of each patch for a first plurality of patches generated by the device and a second plurality of patches generated by the reference device;
creating, by the processor, a first augmented data set for the device by selecting a delta (\u03b4), wherein the first augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the first plurality of patches;
initializing, by the processor, a function to create a second augmented data set for the reference device, wherein the second augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 times a gain applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the second plurality of patches and a matrix of calibration values that is based upon the first augmented data set and the second augmented data set;
solving, by the processor, the function to obtain the matrix of calibration values for the device that is based upon the first augmented data set and the second augmented data set; and
calibrating, by the processor, the device using the matrix of calibration values.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the processor is in an in-line spectrophotometer (ILS) of the device.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the \u03b4 is applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the first plurality of patches and the second plurality of patches using an orthonormal matrix that completely spans the k spectral values, wherein each vector of the orthonormal matrix determines whether the \u03b4 is added or subtracted.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein the orthonormal matrix comprises a Hadamard matrix.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the gain comprises a standard deviation of a reference device spectrum divided by a standard deviation of the device spectrum.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the solving comprises an iterative calculation comprising an initial guess using an identity matrix.
7. The method of claim 6, wherein the iterative calculation comprises a previous matrix that is calculated for each subsequent iteration after the initial guess.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the each subsequent iteration comprises the previous matrix and the identity matrix weighted by a weighting factor.
9. The method of claim 6, wherein the iterative calculation is repeated until the calculating converges to values of the matrix of calibration values.
10. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a plurality of instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations for calibrating a device to a reference device using augmented data, the operations comprising:
measuring k spectral values of each patch for a first plurality of patches generated by the device and a second plurality of patches generated by the reference device;
creating a first augmented data set for the device by selecting a delta (\u03b4), wherein the first augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the first plurality of patches;
initializing a function to create a second augmented data set for the reference device, wherein the second augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 times a gain applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the second plurality of patches and a matrix of calibration values that is based upon the first augmented data set and the second augmented data set;
solving the function to obtain the matrix of calibration values for the device that is based upon the first augmented data set and the second augmented data set; and
calibrating the device using the matrix of calibration values.
11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the processor is in an in-line spectrophotometer (ILS) of the device.
12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the \u03b4 is applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the first plurality of patches and the second plurality of patches using an orthonormal matrix that completely spans the k spectral values, wherein each vector of the orthonormal matrix determines whether the \u03b4 is added or subtracted.
13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein the orthonormal matrix comprises a Hadamard matrix.
14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the gain comprises a standard deviation of a reference device spectrum divided by a standard deviation of the device spectrum.
15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the solving comprises an iterative calculation comprising an initial guess using an identity matrix.
16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the iterative calculation comprises a previous matrix that is calculated for each subsequent iteration after the initial guess.
17. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 16, wherein the each subsequent iteration comprises the previous matrix and the identity matrix weighted by a weighting factor.
18. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the iterative calculation is repeated until the calculating converges to values of the matrix.
19. A method for calibrating a device to a reference device using augmented data, comprising:
measuring, by a processor, k spectral values of each patch for a first plurality of patches generated by the device and a second plurality of patches generated by the reference device;
creating, by the processor, the first augmented data set by selecting a delta (\u03b4), wherein the first augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the first plurality of patches;
initializing, by the processor, a function to create a second augmented data set for the reference device, wherein the second augmented data set comprises the \u03b4 times a gain applied k times to each one of the k spectral values of each one of the second plurality of patches and a matrix of calibration values that is based upon the first augmented data set and the second augmented data set;
providing, by the processor, an initial guess for calculating the matrix of calibration values of the device set using an identity matrix according to an equation,
ISIS_spectra(i,j)=ISIS_spectra(i)+g*\u03b4*I*H(j) (1\u2266j\u2266k),\u2003\u2003Eq. (8):
wherein ISIS_spectra(i) is the ith patch of the reference device, ISIS_spectra(i,j) is the jth augmented data vector generated from the ISIS_spectra(i), g is a gain comprising a standard deviation of a reference device spectrum divided by a standard deviation of the device spectrum, I is the identity matrix and H(j) is the jth basis vector of a Hadamard matrix;
solving, by the processor, the equation via an iterative process using an intermediate matrix obtained from the initial guess and each previous matrix using a second equation until the second equation converges on a solution of the matrix of calibration values, wherein the second equation comprises,
ISIS_spectra(i,j)=ISIS_spectra(i)+\u03b4*a*Mprev+(1\u2212a)*g*I*H(j) (1\u2266j\u2266k),
wherein a is a constant weighting factor that determines how much a previous iteration changes a next set of spectra and Mprev is a previous matrix that results from the previous iteration; and
calibrating, by the processor, the device using the matrix of calibration values.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the processor is in an in-line spectrophotometer (ILS) of the device.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

What is claimed is:

1. A bump forming method which comprises the steps of:
accumulating a soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece;
irradiating the accumulated soft solder alloy with at least plasma containing hydrogen; and
applying reflow treatment to the soft solder alloy that has been irradiated with at least said hydrogen-containing plasma, thereby forming solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of the workpiece.
2. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the hydrogen-containing plasma irradiation and the reflow treatment are performed in a vacuum.
3. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the reflow treatment is performed in either an inert gas atmosphere or a reductive atmosphere.
4. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the irradiating with hydrogen-containing plasma is performed at a temperature lower than the melting point of the soft solder alloy.
5. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the process gas for generating the hydrogen-containing plasma is a mixed gas containing an inert gas and hydrogen gas that contains hydrogen with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3 VV % but less than 8 VV % calculated in terms of hydrogen molecules.
6. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the duration of the plasma irradiation is limited to less than two minutes.
7. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the reflow treatment is conducted by means of heat radiation in a vacuum.
8. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein irradiation with fluorine-containing plasma is performed after the hydrogen-containing plasma irradiation.
9. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the fluorine-containing plasma contains either one of or both argon and oxygen.
10. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the duration and the temperature of irradiation with fluorine-containing plasma are respectively limited to within 60 seconds and a temperature lower than the melting point of the soft solder alloy, the range of permissible temperature including room temperature.
11. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the workpiece is preheated at a temperature not higher than 100 C. when conducting the reflow process.
12. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 1, wherein irradiation with hydrogen-containing plasma is performed again after the reflow process.
13. A soldering method which calls for bringing the soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece into contact with the surface of a bonding target, i.e. an object to which said workpiece is intended to be soldered, and thus bonding the surface of the workpiece to the surface of the bonding target by soldering during the reflow process of a bump forming method as claimed in claim 1.
14. A solder bump forming apparatus adapted to use a soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece to form solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, said solder bump forming apparatus including:
a plasma generating means adapted to generate at least hydrogen-containing plasma under a low pressure;
a gas supply means for feeding process gas to the plasma generating means;
a workpiece exposing means for exposing the soft solder alloy on the surface of the workpiece at least to hydrogen-containing plasma; and
a heating means for applying a reflow treatment the soft solder alloy in a vacuum.
15. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the plasma generating means is provided with:
a high frequency power supply and
an electrode connected to said high frequency power supply and adapted to generate plasma,
said electrode having:
a hollow electrode body adapted to receive the process gas;
supply openings that are adapted to feed the process gas and bored in the end of the electrode body facing away from the workpiece; and
through holes bored through the electrode body so as to extend from the end where the supply openings are formed to the opposite end.
16. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the heating means is provided with:
a light source adapted to heat the backside of the workpiece by radiation, and
a reflecting mirror for adjusting luminous flux from the light source.
17. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the apparatus includes a gas recovery means that defines the flow of the gas that carries plasma generated between said electrode and another electrode to the workpiece, said gas recovery means disposed such that the workpiece is positioned between the gas recovery means and the gas supply means.
18. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the heating means includes:
a light source disposed at such a location so as not to be exposed to plasma and adapted to heat the workpiece by radiation, and
a reflecting mirror adapted to form an optical path extending from the light source to the workpiece.
19. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the apparatus includes a gas supply means for supplying a process gas, which is a mixed gas containing an inert gas and hydrogen gas that contains hydrogen with a mixing ratio of equal to or more than 3 VV % but less than 8 VV % calculated in terms of hydrogen molecules.
20. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the apparatus includes a high frequency power supply having a frequency of either 13.56 MHz or 2.45 GHz.
21. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14, wherein the plasma generating means is adapted to generate fluorine-containing plasma in addition to the aforementioned hydrogen-containing plasma, said fluorine-containing plasma containing either one of or both argon and oxygen.
22. A soldering apparatus including:
a bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 14;
a positioning means for aligning and bringing the soft solder alloy on the surface of a workpiece that has been exposed to plasma and the surface of a bonding target into contact with each other; and
a heating means for applying reflow treatment to the film of the soft solder alloy, thereby soldering the surface of the workpiece and the surface of the bonding target together.
23. A bump forming method for forming bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of a workpiece by following the procedure that comprises the steps of:
roughening the surface of a soft solder alloy accumulated on the surface of the workpiece;
applying the roughened surface of the soft solder alloy surface reforming treatment that calls for forming a layer containing fluorine on the surface of the soft solder alloy; and
performing reflow of the soft solder alloy that has undergone said surface reforming treatment.
24. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the surface roughening treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of an inert gas to which hydrogen has been added.
25. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 24, wherein the quantity of the hydrogen added ranges from equal to or more than 3 VV % to less than 8 VV %.
26. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 24, wherein argon is used as the inert gas.
27. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 23, wherein the surface reforming treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of a mixed gas which contains a fluorine compound or fluorine compounds, and to which either one of or both oxygen and argon are added.
28. A bump forming method as claimed in claim 27, wherein the fluorine compound consists of at least one of the compounds selected from among carbon fluoride compounds, sulfur hexafluoride and nitrogen trifluoride.
29. A presoldering treatment method which comprises the steps of:
roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on the surface of a workpiece, and
forming a layer containing fluorine on the roughened surface of the solder bumps, thereby applying surface reforming treatment to the surface of the solder bumps.
30. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 29, wherein the surface roughening treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of an inert gas to which hydrogen has been added.
31. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 30, wherein the quantity of the hydrogen added ranges from equal to or more than 3 VV % to less than 8 VV %.
32. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 30, wherein argon is used as the inert gas.
33. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 29, wherein the surface reforming treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of a mixed gas which contains a fluorine compound or fluorine compounds, and to which either one of or both oxygen and argon are added.
34. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 33, wherein the fluorine compound consists of at least one of the compounds selected from among carbon fluoride compounds, sulfur hexafluoride and nitrogen trifluoride.
35. A soldering method for bonding together a plurality of workpieces by soldering, said soldering method comprising the steps of:
roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on one or more workpieces;
forming a layer containing fluorine on the roughened surface of the solder bumps, thereby applying surface reforming treatment to the surface of the solder bumps; and
bringing said one or more workpieces having the solder bumps that have undergone the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment into contact with other workpiece or workpieces and, in this state, performing reflow of these workpieces.
36. A soldering method as claimed in claim 35, wherein the surface roughening treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of an inert gas to which hydrogen has been added.
37. A soldering method as claimed in claim 36, wherein the quantity of the hydrogen added ranges from equal to or more than 3 VV % to less than 8 VV %.
38. A soldering method as claimed in claim 36, wherein argon is used as the inert gas.
39. A soldering method as claimed in claim 35, wherein the surface reforming treatment is performed by using plasma excitation of a mixed gas which contains a fluorine compound or fluorine compounds, and to which either one of or both oxygen and argon are added.
40. A soldering method as claimed in claim 39, wherein the fluorine compound consists of at least one of the compounds selected from among carbon fluoride compounds, sulfur hexafluoride and nitrogen trifluoride.
41. A bump forming apparatus including:
a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of a soft solder alloy accumulated on a workpiece;
a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the soft solder alloy; and
a thermal melting unit for performing reflow of the soft solder alloy having the reformed surface, thereby forming solder bumps, which will serve as connecting terminals, on the surface of said workpiece.
42. A bump forming apparatus as claimed in claim 41, wherein:
the surface roughening device is a plasma exciting device adapted to roughen the surface of a soft solder alloy by means of plasma excitation, and
the plasma exciting device and the surface reforming device are respectively operated in separate and different atmospheres without a pause between operation of the plasma exciting device and the operation of the surface reforming device.
43. A presoldering treatment apparatus including:
a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on a workpiece, and
a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps.
44. A presoldering treatment apparatus as claimed in claim 43, wherein:
the surface roughening device is a plasma exciting device adapted to roughen the surface of a soft solder alloy by means of plasma excitation, and
the plasma exciting device and the surface reforming device are respectively operated in separate and different atmospheres without a pause between operation of the plasma exciting device and the operation of the surface reforming device.
45. A presoldering treatment apparatus as claimed in claim 43, wherein the surface roughening device is adapted to roughen the surface of the solder bumps of the soft solder alloy in a mechanical way.
46. A soldering apparatus which is adapted to solder together a plurality of workpieces and includes:
a surface roughening device for roughening the surface of solder bumps of a soft solder alloy formed on one or more workpieces;
a surface reforming device for performing surface reforming treatment by forming a fluorine containing layer on the roughened surface of the solder bumps; and
a thermal melting unit for bringing one or more workpieces having the solder bumps that have undergone the surface roughening treatment and the surface reforming treatment into contact with other workpiece or workpieces and, in this state, performing reflow of these workpieces.
47. A soldering apparatus as claimed in claim 46, wherein:
the surface roughening device is a plasma exciting device adapted to roughen the surface of a soft solder alloy by means of plasma excitation, and
the plasma exciting device and the surface reforming device are respectively operated in separate and different atmospheres without a pause between operation of the plasma exciting device and the operation of the surface reforming device.
48. A soldering apparatus as claimed in claim 46, wherein the surface roughening device is adapted to mechanically roughen the surface of the solder bumps of the soft solder alloy.
49. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 29, wherein the roughening step further comprising the step of:
mechanically roughening the surface of solder bumps formed on a solder bump plate by means of a roughening member comprising:
a bumpy surface comprising minute indentations and protrusions disposed on the bumpy surface.
50. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 49, further comprising the step of:
rolling a roller having a bumpy surface including minute indentations and protrusions disposed on the bumpy surface, which contacts the surface of the solder bumps during movement; the movement includes moving at least one of said roller against the solder bumps and moving the solder bumps against the roller simultaneously flattening and roughening, the surface of the solder bumps by contacting the roller.
51. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 49, further comprising the steps of:
placing a flat plate, having a bumpy surface including minute indentations and protrusions disposed on the bumpy surface, which contact the surface of the solder bumps so the bumpy surface rests on the solder bumps
applying a given load to the flat plate so that the surface of the solder bumps is simultaneously flattened and roughened by the flat plate.
52. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 49, further comprising the step of:
placing the solder bump plate on a flat plate having a bumpy surface including minute indentations and protrusions on the bumpy disposed surface, so solder bumps formed on said solder bump plate rest on the bumpy surface of the flat plate,
applying a given load to the solder bump plate so that the surface of the solder bumps is simultaneously flattened and roughened by the flat plate.
53. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 52, further comprising the step of:
scratching, rubbing, or scrubbing the solder bump plate while applying a given load to the solder bump plate.
54. A presoldering treatment method as claimed in claim 49, wherein the surface roughening treatment further comprising the step of:
repeating a plurality of roughening actions to the surface of the same solder bumps.

1. A method of embedding a watermark signal comprising a series of watermark values in a picture signal comprising a series of picture sample values, the method comprising adjusting picture sample values based on watermark values, characterised in that adjusting comprises, for each watermark value:
combining the watermark value with a respective subset of the picture sample values using a plurality of adjustment factors, each adjustment factor being based on a local estimate of the visibility of the watermark at a corresponding picture sample location.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the magnitude of each adjustment factor is a function of the picture sample values, preferably based on the localised variance of the picture sample values.
3. A method according to claim 1, wherein the sign of each adjustment factor is a function of the watermark values.
4. A method according to claim 1, wherein combining comprises adding an adjustment factor to each picture sample value.
5. A method according to claim 1, wherein the picture sample locations for each said subset corresponding to a given watermark value are substantially adjacent.
6. A method according to claim 5, wherein a grid dividing the picture into a plurality of regions is defined and wherein each said subset comprises picture samples corresponding to a respective region of the grid.
7. A method according to claim 6, wherein the grid is substantially rectangular.
8. A method according to claim 7, wherein each region corresponds to a block of a coding process, for example MPEG or JPEG compression.
9. A method according to claim 1, wherein watermark values are assigned to substantially all of said regions of the picture.
10. A method according to claim 1, wherein watermark values are assigned to a first group of said regions and sample values of a data sequence are assigned to a second group of said regions.
11. A method according to claim 1, wherein the picture sample locations for each subset are scattered throughout the picture.
12. A method according to claim 1, wherein the watermark signal comprises a pseudo-random sequence.
13. A method according to claim 1, wherein the watermark signal comprises a regular pattern.
14. A method according to claim 1, wherein the watermark signal has a substantially zero mean whereby the global mean of the picture sample values in the picture is substantially unaffected by embedding of the watermark.
15. A method according to claim 1, wherein combining is arranged to change the local mean of the picture sample values included in each said subset, the sign of the change being determined by the corresponding watermark value.
16. A method according to claim 1, wherein each subset contains at least 16 picture sample values.
17. A method according to claim 1 wherein the adjustment factors are a function of a global modulation index variable whereby the energy of the watermark can be controlled.
18. A method according to claim 1 wherein said adjustment factors are assigned a value substantially equal to zero for regions having a measure of variance below a predetermined threshold.
19. A method according to claim 1, for embedding a watermark in a sequence of pictures corresponding to a motion video sequence, wherein the subsets to which watermark values are applied vary from picture to picture.
20. A method of embedding a watermark within a sequence of pictures corresponding to a motion video sequence wherein the watermark is combined with picture sample values characterised in that the method of combining varies from picture to picture to reduce the appearance of static artifacts in the sequence.
21. A method according to claim 20, for embedding a watermark in a sequence of pictures corresponding to a motion video sequence, wherein applying the watermark to the sequence of pictures includes compensating for motion between pictures.
22. A method according to claim 21, wherein motion compensation includes estimating average motion between pictures.
23. A method according to claim 22, wherein applying the watermark includes determining at least a local measure of accuracy of the estimate of average motion.
24. A method according to claim 23, wherein the watermark is applied so as to be reduced in visibility in areas of the picture (in the case of a local measure of accuracy) or in pictures (in the case of a global measure of accuracy) where said measure indicates that said estimate is inaccurate.
25. A method of embedding a watermark within a sequence of pictures corresponding to a motion video sequence, wherein the watermark is combined with picture sample values characterised in that the method of combining includes generating a motion-compensated version of the watermark to reduce the appearance of static artifacts in the sequence.
26. A method of embedding a watermark within a sequence of pictures corresponding to a motion video sequence, wherein the watermark is combined with picture sample values characterised in that the method of combining includes estimating average motion between the pictures and combining the watermark to reduce the appearance of static artifacts in the sequence.
27. A method according to claim 26, wherein a measure of the accuracy of said estimate is determined and the strength of the watermark is varied as a function of said measure.
28. A method according to claim 20, wherein the watermark is embedded in some but not all pictures of the sequence, preferably wherein at most one in two pictures are watermarked.
29. A method according to claim 20, wherein the pattern of picture sample values with which watermark values are combined varies from picture to picture.
30. A method according to claim 29, wherein embedding the watermark includes defining a grid dividing the picture into regions and wherein at least one characteristic of the grid, for example shape, size or alignment, is varied between pictures of the sequence.
31. A method according to claim 1 further comprising communicating or storing the watermarked picture together with information to assist in identifying the watermark.
32. A method according to claim 31 wherein said information comprises a series of local mean values, each mean value corresponding to the local mean of a subset of picture sample values prior to application of a watermark value.
33. A method according to claim 32, wherein the information is compressed, preferably JPEG compressed.
34. A method of testing for the presence of a watermark embedded in a picture signal by a method according to claim 1, comprising receiving the picture signal;
enhancing the watermark content of the received picture signal using local mean picture values;
correlating the picture signal or a processed signal derived therefrom with a watermark signal;
outputting an estimate of the presence of the watermark based on the results of said correlation.
35. (canceled)
36. A method according to claim 34 wherein enhancing, includes filtering based on received reference picture information.
37. A method according to claim 36 wherein the received reference picture information comprises reference local mean values indicative of local mean values of subsets of picture samples in the picture prior to watermarking, or compressed information from which said reference local mean values can be derived.
38. A method according to claim 37 wherein processing includes estimating local mean values indicative of local mean values of subsets of picture samples in the picture prior to watermarking.
39. A method according to claim 37, wherein processing includes subtracting the reference or estimated local mean values from local mean values determined for the received picture signal to give a difference signal.
40. A method according to claim 37, wherein a grid is defined dividing the received signal into regions corresponding to allocation of watermark values, wherein local mean values are determined for each of said regions.
41. A method according to claim 34, further comprising deriving a series of data values from the received picture signal.
42. A method according to claim 39, wherein the data sample values are determined based on the sign of the difference signal in regions corresponding to allocation of data values.
43. A method according to claim 34, wherein said correlating is performed for a plurality of offsets and the offset giving the maximum correlation is determined to give a measure of the position of the watermark within the picture.
44. A method according to claim 34, wherein correlating is performed taking into account possible effects of picture processing operations, for example rotation, scaling, shifting, cropping or re-sampling operations.
45-51. (canceled)
52. A method according to claim 34 for detecting a watermark embedded by a method wherein the watermark is derived from a combination of a number of substantially independent watermarks or wherein a number of substantially independent watermarks are embedded in each picture, wherein an estimate of the presence of each of said number of substantially independent watermarks is produced.
53. A method according to claim 52, wherein said number of substantially independent watermarks comprises a subset selected from a defined set of substantially independent watermarks, wherein the picture is cross correlated with a composite watermark derived from a sum of each of the watermarks of said defined set.
54. A method according to claim 53 wherein, at least in the event of cross correlation with said composite watermark yielding a positive result, the picture is cross correlated with each of the watermarks of said defined set.
55. A method according to claim 54, wherein the watermark is derived from a combination of three watermarks selected from a defined set of substantially independent watermarks, wherein the three watermarks giving the greatest cross-correlation values are identified.
56. A method according to claim 34, including estimating the cumulative average motion in a sequence of pictures.
57. A method according to claim 34, further comprising computing a motion-compensated average picture taking into account the average motion in the pictures.
58. A method according to claim 57, wherein the watermark is cross-correlated with the motion-compensated average picture.
59. A method of detecting a motion-compensated watermark comprising:
estimating the cumulative average motion in a sequence of pictures;
computing an average picture taking into account the average motion in the pictures;
calculating the cross-correlation function of the motion-compensated average picture and the watermark.
60. A watermarked picture, a sequence of pictures, a signal or data storage means containing a picture having a watermark embedded therein by a method according claim 1.
61. Apparatus or a computer program product arranged to perform a method according to claim 1.
62. A method of decoding data in a picture signal comprising determining local mean values of picture samples corresponding to regions of the picture in which data is carried; comparing said local mean values to estimated or reference local mean values for said regions in the absence of the data, and determining a data value from the result of each comparison, wherein preferably the data value is determined from at least the sign of the difference between the determined local mean value and the estimated or reference local mean value.
63. A method of embedding data comprising a series of data values in a picture comprising a series of picture values comprising defining a plurality of subsets of the picture values, one subset for each data value, and adding an adjustment factor to each picture value in each subset, a first component, preferably the magnitude, of each adjustment factor being a function of an estimate of the visibility of embedded data at the picture value location and being variable between the picture values of each subset, a second component, preferably the sign, of the adjustment factor being determined by the data value and being substantially constant for the picture values of each subset.
64. A method of embedding a watermark signal comprising a series of watermark values in a picture signal comprising a series of picture sample values the method comprising adjusting picture sample values based on watermark values including generating the watermark by convolving a key with a repeated data sequence to produce a data-carrying watermark.
65. A method of generating a watermark encoding data to be applied to a picture comprising convolving a key comprising a plurality of bits with a plurality of bits of data.
66. A method according to claim 65, wherein each data bit is convolved with substantially an entire key segment having a predetermined length.
67. A method according to claim 66, wherein a different key segment is convolved with each data bit.
68. A method according to claim 66, wherein each bit of the watermark is applied to a plurality of bits of the picture, preferably a block of at least 4 bits of the picture.
69. A method according to claim 64, wherein a registration watermark is applied to the picture in addition to the data carrying watermark, to facilitate decoding of data.
70. A method of embedding a watermark in a moving picture comprising changing the watermark or moving the watermark, preferably substantially randomly, at a shot change, or following detection of an accumulated change in picture content above a predetermined threshold.
71. A method of embedding a data-carrying watermark in a moving picture comprising changing the data carried by the watermark at a shot change, or following detection of an accumulated change in picture content above a predetermined threshold.
72. A method of embedding a data-carrying watermark in a moving picture comprising moving the watermark when the data content of the watermark changes, preferably at a shot change or following detection of an accumulated change in picture content above a predetermined threshold.
73. A method of labeling a frame of a moving picture signal comprising embedding an identifier of at least 64bits into the picture, by a method according to claim 1.
74. A method according to claim 73, for use in labeling a broadcast signal or signal to be distributed wherein the identifier encodes at least one of: the originator of the material, an authorised recipient and a material identifier.
75. A method according to claim 73, for use in labeling a source material in a studio, preferably implemented in a camera or recording device, wherein the identifier includes at least one of: an identifier of the source of the material, preferably including at least one of an identifier of a camera, recording time, location, conditions, and a user-definable label.
76. A method of decoding a data-carrying watermark embedded in a picture, by a method according to claim 64 comprising:
setting a positional reference, based on the position of a registration watermark;
estimating watermark values at a plurality of picture locations, preferably by determining local average values;
based on the estimated watermark values at locations corresponding to each data bit and a key value corresponding to the location, determining a value for each data bit.
77. A method according to claim 76, wherein watermark values are determined for a plurality of locations for each data bit and wherein the value for each data bit is determined by averaging the product of an estimated watermark value and a key value for each of said plurality of locations.
78. A method of detecting a watermark in a sequence of moving pictures comprising determining an expected position of the watermark and thereafter detecting the watermark based on the expected position, wherein the expected position is re-determined following a shot change or a change in picture content above a threshold.
79. (canceled)
80. A method of embedding data in a picture comprising:
generating a data-carrying watermark having a plurality of watermark values by convolving a set of data comprising a plurality of bits of data with a key comprising a plurality of bits;
applying the watermark to the picture by combining each watermark value with a plurality of picture values based on a local estimate of the visibility of the watermark
81. A method according to claim 80 for embedding a data stream in a sequence of pictures wherein sets of data are generated at intervals from the data stream and each set is embedded in a plurality of pictures.

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. A method comprising:
detecting a touch event on a touch screen display;
sampling touch attributes during the touch event;
determining a first touch location based on the touch attributes sampled at about a time of detecting actuation of a button by the touch screen display during the touch event and determining a first direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled prior to actuation of the button and a second direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled after actuation of the button; and
determining an input by determining a second location different from the first touch location based on the first touch location, the first direction of shift, and the second direction of shift.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the second location is further based on a size of the shift of the touch event.
3. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining a first touch location comprises determining an approximate point of change from the first direction of shift to the second direction of shift.
4. The method according to claim 1, comprising confirming the first touch location based on the touch attributes sampled prior to actuation of the button.
5. The method according to claim 1, comprising confirming the first touch location based on at least one of an area of contact and a contact pressure at the determined first touch location.
6. The method according to claim 1, wherein sampling the touch attributes during the touch event comprises obtaining touch attributes at regular intervals between detecting the touch event and ending the touch event.
7. The method according to claim 6, wherein sampling the touch attributes during the touch event comprises receiving touch signals and determining X and Y locations of contact from the touch signals during the touch event.
8. The method according to claim 7, comprising storing the touch attributes after each sample is taken.
9. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the first direction of shift comprises determining the first direction of shift based on a limited number of samples taken up to the actuation of the button.
10. The method according to claim 1, wherein determining the second direction of shift comprises determining the second direction of shift direction based on a limited number of samples taken after actuation of the button.
11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising confirming a change from the first direction of shift to the second direction of shift from a contact area of the touch event.
12. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second direction of shift of the touch event immediately follows the first direction of shift of the touch event.
13. An electronic device comprising:
a processor operably coupled to a touch screen display and configured to:
detect a touch event on the touch screen display,
sample touch attributes during the touch event,
determine a first touch location based on the touch attributes sampled at about a time of detecting actuation of a button by the touch screen display during the touch event and determine a first direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled prior to actuation of the button and a second direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled after actuation of the button, and

determine an input by determining a second touch location different than the first touch location based on the first touch location, the first direction of shift, and the second direction of shift.
14. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein an approximate point of change from the first direction of shift to the second direction of shift is determined and the approximate point of change is identified as the first touch location.
15. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the first touch location is confirmed based on the touch attributes sampled prior to actuation of the button.
16. The electronic device according to claim 15, wherein the first touch location is confirmed based on at least one of an area of contact and a contact pressure at the determined first touch location.
17. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the touch attributes are sampled during the touch event by obtaining touch attributes at regular intervals between detecting the touch event and ending the touch event.
18. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the electronic device comprises an actuator.
19. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the first touch location is an approximate point of change from the first direction of shift to the second direction of shift.
20. The electronic device according to claim 13, further comprising confirming a change from the first direction of shift to the second direction of shift from a contact area of the touch event.
21. The electronic device according to claim 13, wherein the second direction of shift of the touch event immediately follows the first direction of shift of the touch event.
22. A computer-readable storage device having computer-readable code embodied therein executable by a processor for detecting a touch event on a touch screen display, sampling touch attributes during the touch event, determining a first touch location based on the touch attributes sampled at about a time of detecting actuation of a button by the touch screen display during the touch event and determining a first direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled prior to actuation of the button and a second direction of shift of the touch event based on the touch attributes sampled after actuation of the button, and determining an input by determining a second location different from the first touch location based on the first touch location, the first direction of shift, and the second direction of shift.