COMPUTER SYSTEM INCORPORATING A TARGET AND SYMBOL DATA SENSING ARRANGEMENT

• US 20090122352A1
• Filed: 11/18/2008
• Published: 05/14/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 05/18/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, Lapstun, Paul
• Granted Patent: US 8,312,281 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 358/3.280
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/367 involving electronic purses or money safes
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3674 involving authentication
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/018 Certifying business or products
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0185 Product, service or business identity fraud
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/12 Accounting
• CPC Class Codes: G07D 7/004 using digital security elements, e.g. information coded on a magnetic thread or strip
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/20 Manipulating the length of blocks of bits, e.g. padding or block truncation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/56 Financial cryptography, e.g. electronic payment or e-cash
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 2209/805 Lightweight hardware, e.g. radio-frequency identification [RFID] or sensor
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3247 involving digital signatures
• CPC Class Codes: Y02A 90/10 Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation

Abstract

A computer system includes a printer configured to print invisible coded data tags on print media. Each data tag includes a target and a dot arrangement representing a value. A pen-type device includes an image sensor configured to sense the targets and wirelessly transmit sensed data associated with the dot arrangements. A relay is configured to receive the transmitted data. One or more servers are interfaced to the relay, and are configured to process the received data from the relay and to perform an action based upon the processed data.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

a printer configured to print data tags on print media, each data tag including a target and a dot arrangement representing a value, said data tags each comprising

a number of targets; and

a number of regions that each represent a symbol, each symbol, in turn representing a number of bits of information;

a pen-type device including an image sensor configured to sense the targets and wirelessly transmit sensed data associated with the symbols;

a relay configured to receive the transmitted data; and

one or more servers interfaced to the relay, and configured to process the received data from the relay.

2. A computer system as claimed in claim 1, wherein each data tag includes six black circles that correspond to a six-fold rotational symmetry of the tag at a physical level.

3. A computer system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printer is configured such that the data tags are printed so that each symbol represents four bits of information, the presence of a dot representing one and the absence of a dot representing zero.

4. A compute system as claimed in claim 3, in which each dot is a macrodot printed at a resolution of 1600 dpi, to have a nominal diameter of 143 micrometers with a variation of 10%.

5. A computer system as claimed in claim 1, in which each region is substantially diamond-shaped.

6. A computer system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said servers include a document server configured to interpret the action, and an application server configured to perform the interpreted action and coupled to the document server.

7. A computer system as claimed in claim 4, wherein said servers further include a web server coupled to a personal computer fitted with another relay.