On January 8, 2015 the US Patent & Trademark Office published a patent application from Samsung titled "Electronic Device and Eye Region Detection Method in Electronic Device." Samsung's invention covers a method and an electronic device in association with iris recognition. The patent filing indicates that Samsung is working with lndustry-Academic Cooperation Foundation Yonsei University on this new iris scanning system as they're noted as being one of the patent assignees. In October 2013 rumors began to surface about Samsung working on a new iris recognition system and a month later Patently Mobile reported that the U.S. Patent office published Samsung's patent application covering such an invention. Today's newly discovered patent application greatly advances Samsung's method for iris scanning and recognition.
Recently, technologies based on biometrics have been widely applied to electronic devices. The biometric technology is a technology that measures physical and behavioral characteristics of humans through an automated device, and utilizes the measured data for personal identification. The biometric technology may recognize physical characteristics, for example, a fingerprint, a palm print, a face, the shape of a hand, an iris, a vein, and the like, so as to utilize the recognized data as a means of personal identification.
The iris recognition of the biometric technology is a technology that recognizes an iris that has a unique pattern for each person. The iris of a person has features that do not change over the course of their life and is unique to that person, and, thus, iris recognition is an actively conducted biometric technology. Also, the iris recognition has a faster processing rate and a higher reliability and recognition rate than other biometric technologies and, thus, may be acknowledged as an important branch of biometric technology.
In order to apply iris recognition to a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone and the like, there is a need for a technology which can detect an eye region from a high-definition facial image in real time.
Samsung's invention is provide an electronic device that detects, with a few operations, an eye region from a high-definition facial image in real time in a mobile environment, and an eye region detection method implemented in an electronic device.
In accordance with an aspect of Samsung's invention, there is provided an electronic device. The electronic device includes a camera module that obtains a Near-Infrared Ray (NIR) image, and a controller that converts the NIR image into an integral image, detects at least one candidate eye region from the integral image using at least one mask, detects a pupil region and an eyebrow region from the at least one candidate eye region, and to detect an eye region based on the pupil region.
In accordance with another aspect of Samsung's invention, there is provided a method of detecting an eye region in an electronic device. The method includes obtaining a Near-Infrared Ray (NIR) image, converting the NIR image into an integral image, detecting at least one candidate eye region from the integral image using at least one mask, detecting a pupil region and an eyebrow region from the candidate eye region, and detecting an eye region based on the pupil region.
Samsung's FIG. 1 noted above is a block diagram of a portable terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Samsung's FIGS. 4A and 4B noted below are diagrams illustrating a method of detecting a first candidate eye region using a first mask according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Samsung's patent FIG. 2 noted below is a flowchart of an eye region detection method in a portable terminal according to their January 8, 2015 patent application.
Samsung's U.S. patent application filing under number 20150009314 was filed in July 2014. Considering that this is a patent application, the timing of such a product to market is unknown at this time.
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