US 6700999

US patent 6700999, titled "System, method, and apparatus for multiple face tracking," was filed on June 30, 2000, and issued on March 2, 2004. The original assignee was Intel Corp, and the current assignee is Cedar Lane Technologies Inc. The sole inventor listed is Liuyang Yang.

Abstract:
The patent discloses a system, method, and apparatus for automatically tracking multiple faces in a sequence of digital images. It incorporates temporal filtering to reduce false alarms and missed detections and can operate in multiple modes to optimize processor load.

Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims:

• Claim 1 (Method): This claim describes a method for tracking multiple face candidates in video. It involves receiving video frames and operating in two modes: a "first operating mode" where face tracking (score map construction, mask production, and mask filtering) is performed for every frame, and a "standby mode" that performs face-tracking operations only on a portion of the frames. The standby mode activates after a specified number of consecutive frames are processed without detecting any face candidate regions.
• Claim 6 (Method with Temporal Filtering): This claim details a method that receives video data, constructs a score map, produces a mask indicating face candidate regions, and then applies temporal filtering to this mask. The temporal filtering involves averaging each entry in the current mask with corresponding entries from at least one temporally distinct mask (from previous and/or subsequent frames).
• Claim 8 (Apparatus): This claim describes an apparatus designed for tracking multiple face candidates in video. It includes a "mapper" to create a score map from video frames, a "segmenter" to generate a mask with face candidate regions from the score map, and a "filter" to refine the mask by removing false alarms. Similar to Claim 1, this apparatus operates in a "normal operational mode" (tracking every frame) and a "standby mode" (tracking only a portion of frames), with the standby mode activating after no face candidates are found for a specified number of consecutive frames.
• Claim 13 (Apparatus with Temporal Filter): This claim describes an apparatus with a mapper, a segmenter, and a filter, where the filter is specifically a "temporal filter." This temporal filter receives the mask and produces a temporally filtered mask by averaging entries with corresponding entries from at least one temporally distinct mask derived from previous and/or subsequent frames.
• Claim 15 (System with Video Encoder): This claim describes a system that combines the face-tracking apparatus (mapper, segmenter, filter) with a video encoder. The video encoder receives both the video frame and the face-tracking mask. Critically, the encoder uses the mask information to allocate a disproportionately higher number of bits to encode regions of the frame that correspond to face candidate regions, improving the quality of the encoded faces.
• Claim 21 (System with Camera Control): This claim describes a system comprising a camera, a face-tracking apparatus (mapper, segmenter, filter with normal and standby modes as in Claim 8), and a camera control unit. The camera control unit receives the face-tracking masks and controls the camera's movement (e.g., position and/or focal length) in response to comparisons of face candidate regions across different frames, ensuring faces remain in the video sequence.
• Claim 25 (System with Camera Control and Temporal Filter): This claim is similar to Claim 21 but specifically incorporates a temporal filter within the face-tracking apparatus. The temporal filter averages mask entries across temporally distinct frames, and the camera control unit then uses these masks (presumably the temporally filtered ones, though the claim refers to "plurality of masks") to control camera movement based on face candidate region comparisons between frames.
• Claim 27 (Apparatus with Data Storage Medium - Method Claim 1 variant): This claim describes an apparatus with a data storage medium containing machine-readable code. This code, when executed, performs the method of tracking face candidate regions as outlined in independent Claim 1, including the first operating mode and the standby mode.
• Claim 32 (Apparatus with Data Storage Medium - Method Claim 6 variant): This claim describes an apparatus with a data storage medium containing machine-readable code. This code, when executed, performs the method of tracking face candidate regions with temporal filtering as outlined in independent Claim 6.

CAFC 2026 Dockets:
A review of the provided CAFC 2026 dockets and scheduled cases did not reveal any specific mentions of US patent 6700999. Therefore, there is no authoritative information available from the search results to indicate active litigation concerning this patent at the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in 2026.