Nail printer and method of nail printing

• US 10,548,383 B2
• Filed: 04/19/2019
• Issued: 02/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Futawatari, Shigeru
• Primary Examiner(s): Barnes, Ted W
• Application Number:
  US16/389,652
• Publication Number:
  US 20190328105A1
• Time in Patent Office: 291 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 2029/005 Printing or stamping devices for applying images or ornaments to nails
• CPC Class Codes: A45D 29/00 Manicuring or pedicuring implements
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/1318 using electro-optical elements or layers, e.g. electroluminescent sensing
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/67 by interactive indications to the user

Abstract

A nail printer includes a print head, a placement table, a fingerprint sensor, a memory, a placement table shifter and a processor. The fingerprint sensor acquires reference information including a reference fingerprint image and reference positional information on a position of the reference fingerprint image in the placement table from an object placed at a reference position which is a position suitable for printing on a nail of the object on the placement table with the print head. The processor compares positional information on a fingerprint image of the object currently placed on the placement table with the reference positional information preliminarily stored in the memory, and controls the placement table shifter to shift the object based on a result of the comparing such that the position of the object on the placement table substantially agrees with the reference position.

Claims

1. A nail printer, comprising:

a print head which performs printing on a surface of a nail to be printed;

a placement table on which an object having the nail is placed;

a fingerprint sensor which acquires reference information including a reference fingerprint image and reference positional information on a position of the reference fingerprint image in the placement table from the object placed at a reference position which is a position suitable for printing on the surface of the nail of the object on the placement table with the print head;

a memory which preliminarily stores the reference information acquired by the fingerprint sensor;

a placement table shifter which shifts the placement table in a planar direction while the object is being placed; and

a processor which is operable to;

compare positional information on a fingerprint image of the object currently placed on the placement table with the reference positional information preliminarily stored in the memory; and

control the placement table shifter to shift the object based on a result of the comparing such that the position of the object on the placement table substantially agrees with the reference position.

2. The nail printer according to claim 1, wherein the placement table shifter comprises:

an XY shifter which shifts the placement table in an X direction which is a lateral direction of the placement table and in a Y direction which is a longitudinal direction of the placement table; and

a rotator which rotates the placement table in the planar direction.

3. The nail printer according to claim 1, further comprising:

a camera which takes a nail image from the object having the nail, the object being placed on the placement table,

wherein the processor detects nail information from the nail image taken by the camera.

4. The nail printer according to claim 3, wherein the memory stores the reference information which includes the nail information in addition to the reference fingerprint image and the reference positional information.

5. The nail printer according to claim 1, wherein the memory stores the reference information which includes, in addition to the reference fingerprint image and the reference positional information, information on the object which includes at least a type of finger.

6. The nail printer according to claim 1, wherein the memory stores the reference information which further includes information that identifies an individual in addition to the reference fingerprint image and the reference positional information.

7. The nail printer according to claim 1, wherein the processor compares the fingerprint image of the object on the placement table with multiple reference fingerprint images preliminarily stored in the memory, and read out the reference fingerprint image that matches with the fingerprint image from the multiple reference fingerprint images.

8. The nail printer according to claim 1, further comprising:

a display which shows a message if the reference fingerprint image is not properly acquired.

9. A nail printing method of a nail printer having a placement table on which an object having a nail to be printed is placed, the method comprising:

acquiring reference information including a reference fingerprint image and reference positional information on a position of the reference fingerprint image in the placement table from the object placed at a reference position which is a position suitable for printing on a surface of the nail of the object on the placement table;

preliminarily storing the reference information;

comparing positional information on a fingerprint image of the object currently placed on the placement table with the reference positional information preliminarily stored; and

shifting the placement table in a planar direction while the object is being placed based on a result of the comparing such that the position of the object on the placement table substantially agrees with the reference position.