Digital watermarking is adapted for the variable data printing. A reference signal serves as a proxy for optimizing the embedding a watermark in a host image to be printed. Using the reference signal, embedding parameters are generated, which are a function of constraints such as visual quality and robustness of the machine readable data. Adjustments needed to embed a unique payload in each printed piece are generated using the embedding parameters. These adjustments are stored in a manner that enables them to be efficiently obtained and applied within the RIP or press during operation of the press. Various other methods, system configurations and applications are also detailed.

The present disclosure relates generally to data hiding for retail product packaging and other printed objects such as substrates. One embodiment embeds an information signal in a spot color for printing on various substrates. The spot color is screened, and overprinted with process color tint. The tint is modulated prior to overprinting with optimized signal tweaks. The optimization can include consideration of a detector spectral dependency (e.g., red and/or green illumination). Many other embodiments and combinations are described in the subject patent document.

A system, device and method for fingerprint authentication using a watermarked digital image is provided. A device includes a display device including a touch screen configured to detect fingerprints; and, a controller. The controller: generates, at the display device, an image that includes, in one or more given areas, image-embedded fingerprint information; detects, at one or more portions of the touch screen respectively corresponding to the one or more given areas, user-fingerprint information representing a fingerprint; implements a comparison between the user-fingerprint information and the image-embedded fingerprint information; and when the comparison between the user-fingerprint information and the image-embedded fingerprint information is successful, implement an access process.

Authenticity of a sticker (e.g., a mark-down sticker on a retail item), or integrity of a closure (e.g., on a delivery bag or package), is confirmed by reference to spatial information. In some embodiments a fingerprint is formed from parameters describing spatial placement of a sticker or pattern on a substrate. In some embodiments a digital watermark pattern provides a spatial frame of reference within which one or more other features can be located. A great many other features and arrangements are also detailed.

Systems and methods are described for obfuscating variants of content segments. Variants of content segments can be used to encode an identifying sequence in a transmission of content. The variants of the content segments can each include one or more marked frames and one or more unmarked frames. Variations can be introduced into the unmarked frames for each of the variants of the content segments.

Methods, systems, and computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, that relate to extracting digital watermarks from images, irrespective of distortions introduced into these images. Methods can include inputting a first data item into a channel encoder that can generate a first encoded data item that is greater in length than the first data item and that (1) includes the input data item and (2) new data this is redundant of the input data item. Based on the first encoded data item and a first image, an encoder model can generate a first encoded image into which the first encoded data is embedded as a digital watermark. A decoder model can decode the first encoded data item to generate a second data, which can be decoded by the channel decoder to generate data that is predicted to be the first data.

A method for authenticating digital information includes obtaining, in digital form, information for authentication; preparing the information for processing, such preparation including converting the information into a digital image; identifying segments of content in the digital image; grouping the segments of content into one or more segment groups; generating a marking sequence comprising shifting at least one of the one or more segment groups in one or more directions; and applying the marking sequence to the digital image, creating a unique marked copy of the digital image.

Artwork carrying machine readable data is generated by editing artwork according to a data signal or transforming the data signal into artwork. The machine-readable data signal is generated from a digital payload and converted into an image tile. Artwork is edited according to the image tile by moving graphic elements, adapting intersections of lines, or altering line density, among other techniques. Artwork is generated from the data signal by skeletonizing it and applying morphological operators to a skeletal representation, such as a medial axis transform. Artistic effects are introduced by filtering the data signal with directional blurring or shape filters.

A computer implemented method and a system configured to receive digital content; draw the digital content onto a drawing board; draw a watermark on the drawing board over the digital content, the watermark comprising a series of non-linear lines with the lines having random spacing therebetween in the x and y axes, and save the content of the drawing board in a desired file format.

A watermark encoder receives a current video image together with current metadata associated with the current image. A metadata delay also makes available to the watermark decoder delayed metadata associated respectively with four or more of the preceding. Then the watermark encoder modifies pixel values of the current image not only to encode the current metadata but also the delayed metadata. At a decoder, if metadata for the current image is corrupted or missing, it can be recovered from one of the succeeding images.