Omni-directional digital image capturing and processing system employing coplanar illumination and imaging planes and area-type illumination and imaging zones within the system housing

An omni-directional digital image capturing and processing system for use in a POS environment, comprising a system housing having an imaging window, and a plurality of coplanar illumination and imaging stations, disposed in the system housing, for generating and projecting a complex of coplanar illumination and imaging planes through said imaging window. At least one area-type illumination and imaging station is also disposed in the system housing, for generating and projecting an area-type illumination and imaging zone through the imaging window, which intersects with the complex of coplanar illumination and imaging planes within a 3D imaging volume definable relative to the imaging window, for omni-directional digital imaging of objects passing through the 3D imaging volume. Digital linear images of the object are generated when the object intersects with coplanar illumination and imaging planes, and digital area-type images of the object are generated when the object intersects with the area-type illumination and imaging zone, within the 3D imaging volume during system operation. The system also includes an object motion detection subsystem for automatically detecting the motion of objects passing through the 3D imaging volume, and generating motion data representative of the detected object motion within the 3D imaging volume.