Photography system

• US 20090066810A1
• Filed: 09/22/2008
• Published: 03/12/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shutterfly, LLC
• Original Assignee: Lifetouch Incorporated (Shutterfly, LLC)
• Inventors: Holmes, Jon A.
• Granted Patent: US 8,130,276 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/231.200
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00129 with a display device, e.g. CRT or LCD monitor with a television apparatus H04N1/00283; arrangements for control of display devices G09G
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00148 Storage information retrieval G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00167 Processing or editing H04N1/00196 - H04N1/00201 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00172 directly from a still digital camera or from a storage medium mounted in a still digital camera H04N1/0018 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00188 Printing, e.g. prints or reprints H04N1/0019, H04N1/00196 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00193 to a portable storage medium, e.g. a read-writable compact disk
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00278 with a printing apparatus, e.g. a laser beam printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00286 with studio circuitry, devices or equipment, e.g. television cameras television studio circuitry, devices or equipment per se H04N5/222
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00326 with a data reading, recognizing or recording apparatus, e.g. with a bar-code apparatus arrangements for the associated working of recording or reproducing apparatus with related apparatus G11B31/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00334 with an apparatus processing barcodes or the like arrangements for sensing record carriers G06K7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0041 Point to point H04N2201/0039 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0049 By wire, cable or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0075 by a user operated remote control device, e.g. receiving instructions from a user via a computer terminal or mobile telephone handset
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3242 of processing required or performed, e.g. for reproduction or before recording H04N2201/3256 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3247 Data linking a set of images to one another, e.g. sequence, burst or continuous capture mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/51 Housings
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/64 : Computer-aided capture of images, e.g. transfer from script file into camera, check of taken image quality, advice or proposal for image composition or decision on when to take image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 : Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 : Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/222 : Studio circuitry; Studio devices; Studio equipment cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors, or control thereof H04N23/00

Abstract

A photographic processing system is disclosed in which subject and other data is stored in a database and such data is automatically linked to photographs taken using either a film or digital camera.

Claims

1. A photography system comprising a camera for capturing at least one digital image of a subject, user input means for capturing data related to said subject, a storage device used to store both said captured digital image and said captured data, and a processor that creates a link between said data and said image as said data and said image are captured so that said data and said image can be immediately retrieved together from said storage device.

2. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is a card reader.

3. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is a bar code scanner.

4. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is a keyboard.

5. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is connected via a port.

6. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is connected via a wireless connection.

7. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said user input means is a computer having a user interface.

8. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said subject data is supplied before the image is captured and said link is completed when the captured image is stored.

9. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said subject data is supplied after the image is captured and said link is completed when said subject data is stored.

10. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said storage device is a hard drive.

11. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said storage device is a flash memory card, a memory stick or a smart memory card.

12. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said camera has a camera body and said storage device is located within said camera body.

13. The photography system of claim 1 wherein said camera has a camera body and said storage device is located outside of the camera body.

14. The photography system of claim 13 wherein said camera includes a port used to transfer images from the camera body for storage on said storage device.

15. The photography system of claim 14 wherein said port is an RS232 port, a USB port or a fire wire port.

16. The photography system of claim 13 further including a wireless device, wherein said wireless device is used to transfer images from said camera body for storage on said storage device.

17. The photography system of claim 1 further including means for outputting an image together with the subject data linked to the image.

18. The photography system of claim 1 further including means for editing said subject data stored on said storage device.

19. The photography system of claim 1 further including means for supplementing said subject data stored on said storage device.

20. A method of linking digital images of a subject to data related to said subject, the method comprising:

a. inputting data related to the subject into a digital camera system;

b. acquiring an image of said subject using said digital camera system;

c. when said image is acquired,

simultaneously completing a permanent link associating said image with said subject data and storing said image and said subject data on a storage device so that said image and said subject data can be immediately retrieved together.

21. The method of claim 20 further including the step of retrieving and simultaneously displaying said image and at least some of said subject data to check for errors.

22. The method of claim 20 wherein said data related to the subject is stored in a data file and said image is stored in an image file.

23. The method of claim 20 wherein said data file contains only data related to the subject of the image stored in the linked image file.

24. The method of claim 20 wherein said data file contains data for multiple subjects and said image file is linked only to data in the data file related to the subject of the image stored in the image file.

25. A method for linking digital images to subject data comprising:

a. inputting subject data related to a subject into a digital camera;

b. storing said subject data on a storage device of said digital camera;

c. acquiring an image of said subject using the digital camera;

d. storing said image on a storage device of said digital camera;

e. completing a link between said image of said subject and said subject data related to said subject so that said image of said subject and said subject data can be immediately retrieved together as soon as both the subject data and the image have been stored.

26. The method of claim 25 further including the step of retrieving and displaying together said image and at least some of said subject data.

27. The method of claim 25 wherein said subject data is inputted after said image is acquired.

28. The method of claim 25 wherein said subject data is inputted before said image is acquired.

29. The method of claim 25 wherein said subject data and said image are stored on the same storage device of the digital camera.

30. The method of claim 25 wherein said subject data is stored in a data file and said image is stored in a separate image file.

31. The method of claim 25 wherein said data file contains subject data for multiple subjects and said link links said image only to the subject data in the data file pertaining to the subject of the image.

32. A photography system comprising a user input device, a digital camera, a processor, and a storage device, wherein said user input device captures data related to a subject, said digital camera captures a digital image of said subject, said processor links said data related to said subject to said digital image of said subject as said data or said digital image is captured, and said storage device stores said linked data and image for immediate retrieval together.

33. The photography system of claim 32 wherein said digital camera includes a camera body.

34. The photography system of claim 33 wherein said storage device is located within said camera body.

35. The photography system of claim 33 wherein said storage device is located outside of said camera body.

36. The photography system of claim 33 wherein said captured digital image is transferred from said camera body for storage on said storage device using a data communication connection.

37. The photography system of claim 36 wherein said data communication connection is USB or fire wire connection.

38. The photography system of claim 36 wherein said data connection is a wireless connection.

39. The photography system of claim 32 wherein said storage device is a hard drive.

40. The photography system of claim 32 wherein said storage device is a server.

41. The photography system of claim 32 wherein said storage device is a flash memory card, a memory stick or a smart memory card.