IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,462,062
Granted Patent B2
US 12,462,062 · App. 18/464,492 · Granted Nov 4, 2025

Anonymizing personally identifiable information in image data

Inventor: David Michael Herman (West Bloomfield, MI)
Assignee: Ford Global Technologies, LLC
G06F21/6254G06T9/00G06V10/25G06V20/56G06V40/161
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,462,062
App. No.
18/464,492
Granted
Nov 4, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

A computer includes a processor and a memory. The memory stores instructions executable by the processor. The computer identifies personally identifiable information (PII) in an initial image frame. The computer encodes a region containing the PII of the initial image frame to a latent vector with a lower dimensionality than the region. The computer anonymizes the region from the initial image frame, resulting in a modified image frame. The computer associates: the latent vector with the modified image frame.

Claims (42)

1 . A computer comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to:

identify personally identifiable information (PII) in an initial image frame;

encode a region containing the PII of the initial image frame to a latent vector with a lower dimensionality than the region;

anonymize the region from the initial image frame, resulting in a modified image frame;

associate the latent vector with the modified image frame;

execute a machine-learning perception algorithm using the modified image frame with the latent vector as an input; and

actuate a component of a vehicle based on the modified image frame with the latent vector and based on an output of the machine-learning perception algorithm.

2 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to receive the initial image frame from a camera of the vehicle.

3 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to execute the machine-learning perception algorithm using the initial image frame and the modified image frame with the latent vector as inputs.

4 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to embed the latent vector in the modified image frame.

5 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the modified image frame with the latent vector has a same dimensionality as the initial image frame.

6 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to transmit the modified image frame with the latent vector to a remote server.

7 . The computer of claim 6 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to refrain from transmitting the initial image frame to the remote server.

8 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the PII includes a face of a person.

9 . The computer of claim 8 , wherein the latent vector encodes non-personally identifying data about the face.

10 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the PII includes a depiction of text.

11 . The computer of claim 1 , wherein the instructions further include instructions to execute a machine-learning encoder on the PII to encode the PII to the latent vector.

12 . The computer of claim 11 , wherein the machine-learning encoder is trained as part of an encoder-decoder architecture to reconstruct the region of the initial image frame.

13 . The computer of claim 12 , wherein the encoder-decoder architecture is trained using a loss function that includes a reconstruction loss measuring similarity between an output of the encoder-decoder architecture and the region of the initial image frame inputted to the encoder-decoder architecture.

14 . The computer of claim 11 , wherein the machine-learning perception algorithm is jointly trained with the machine-learning encoder.

15 . The computer of claim 14 , wherein the machine-learning perception algorithm and the machine-learning encoder are jointly trained with the latent vector outputted by the machine-learning encoder being inputted to the machine-learning perception algorithm.

16 . The computer of claim 14 , wherein the machine-learning perception algorithm and the machine-learning encoder are jointly trained using a loss function that includes a loss measuring an accuracy at correctly identifying objects in input image frames.

17 . A method comprising:

identifying personally identifiable information (PII) in an initial image frame;

encoding a region containing the PII of the initial image frame to a latent vector with a lower dimensionality than the region;

anonymizing the region from the initial image frame, resulting in a modified image frame;

associating the latent vector with the modified image frame;

executing a machine-learning perception algorithm using the modified image frame with the latent vector as an input; and

actuating a component of a vehicle based on the modified image frame with the latent vector and based on an output of the machine-learning perception algorithm.

18 . A computer comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to:

identify personally identifiable information (PII) in an initial image frame;

encode a region containing the PII of the initial image frame to a latent vector with a lower dimensionality than the region;

anonymize the region from the initial image frame, resulting in a modified image frame;

associate the latent vector with the modified image frame; and

execute a machine-learning perception algorithm using the initial image frame and the modified image frame with the latent vector as inputs.

19 . A computer comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing instructions executable by the processor to:

identify personally identifiable information (PII) in an initial image frame;

encode a region containing the PII of the initial image frame to a latent vector with a lower dimensionality than the region;

anonymize the region from the initial image frame, resulting in a modified image frame;

associate the latent vector with the modified image frame;

execute a machine-learning encoder on the PII to encode the PII to the latent vector; and

execute a machine-learning perception algorithm using the modified image frame with the latent vector as an input, wherein the machine-learning perception algorithm is jointly trained with the machine-learning encoder.

Assignments (1)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 11, 2023
From: HERMAN, DAVID MICHAEL
To: FORD GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
Reel/Frame 064858/0761 →
Continuity (1)
Related Publication 20250086315A1 · Mar 13, 2025
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