SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CREATING A CUSTOMIZED DIGITAL IMAGE

• US 20120144282A1
• Filed: 02/10/2012
• Published: 06/07/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Edward J. Mccabe, Michael R. Loeb
• Original Assignee: Edward J. Mccabe, Michael R. Loeb
• Inventors: McCabe, Edward J., LOEB, MICHAEL R.
• Granted Patent: US 9,081,802 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2423 Interactive query statement specification based on a database schema
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5866 using information manually generated, e.g. tags, keywords, comments, manually generated location and time information
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9538 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/134 Hyperlinking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0241 Advertisements

Abstract

There are provided methods and systems for providing viewers of a digital image with information about identifiable and scenes within the image. In an embodiment, digital images, uploaded to a host website, are customized through the incorporation of some number of selectable informational links and other text based information to provide viewers of the image real-time access to social and advertising related information regarding certain identifiable objects and scenes in the image. The selectable information links are incorporated within and around the digital image in a process referred to herein as image tagging.

Claims

1. A computer based method for creating a customized digital image which provides viewers of the customized digital image with information about objects and scenes displayed within identifiable areas of the customized digital image, the method comprising:

(a) identifying objects and scenes of interest displayed within identifiable areas of the digital image, wherein the identifiable areas comprise less than the entire digital image;

(b) identifying one or more product information hyperlinks to be associated with at least one of the identifiable areas of the digital image;

(c) linking the identified product information hyperlinks with corresponding identifiable areas of the digital image to produce a customized digital image; and

(d) displaying the customized digital image to a viewer.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

(e) receiving, from the viewer, a selection for a given displayed product information hyperlink in said customized digital image, wherein the selection is made in association with one of the identifiable areas of the customized digital image;

(f) retrieving information, from an address included in said viewer selected product information hyperlink that identifies a location of content on an electronic network, and

(g) displaying said retrieved information to the viewer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the objects and scenes of interest in the digital image are associated with the identifiable areas of the digital image by circumscribing an area around each identified object and scene of interest.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of identifying one or more product information hyperlinks to be associated with at least one of the identifiable areas of the digital image, further comprises:

performing a search query based on descriptive text input, wherein said descriptive text describes certain of the objects and scenes of interest in the identifiable areas of the digital image;

receiving a list of product information hyperlinks as output from the search query;

selecting one or more of the received product information hyperlinks as an identified product information hyperlink.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the address is one of:

(a) a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), (b) a Uniform Resource Identifier, (c) an Internet Protocol (IP) address, (d) a file transfer protocol (“

FTP”

) address.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the retrieved information is displayed to a viewer whenever the viewer scrolls over one of said identifiable areas in which a user has provided an associated product information hyperlink.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the product information hyperlinks are displayed to a viewer as part of a pop-up window.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein the product information hyperlinks are displayed to a viewer as part of a banner ad.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein certain of the associated product information hyperlinks change between viewing instances.

10. The method according to claim 1, wherein said descriptive text comprises one or more keywords.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein said descriptive text comprises a text string.

12. A system for creating a customized digital image which provides viewers of the customized digital image with information about objects and scenes displayed within identifiable areas of the customized digital image, the system comprising:

a processor;

a memory connected to the processor and storing instructions for operating the processor to perform the steps of;

(a) identifying objects and scenes of interest displayed within identifiable areas of the digital image, wherein the identifiable areas comprise less than the entire digital image;

(b) identifying one or more product information hyperlinks to be associated with at least one of the identifiable areas of the digital image;

(c) linking the identified product information hyperlinks with corresponding identifiable areas of the digital image to produce a customized digital image; and

(d) displaying the customized digital image to a viewer.

13. The system of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving, from the viewer, a selection for a given displayed product information hyperlink in said customized digital image, wherein the selection is made in association with one of the identifiable areas of the customized digital image;

retrieving information, from an address included in said viewer selected product information hyperlink that identifies a location of content on an electronic network, and

displaying said retrieved information to the viewer.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the objects and scenes of interest in the digital image are associated with the identifiable areas of the digital image by circumscribing an area around each identified object and scene of interest.

15. The system of claim 12, wherein the step of identifying one or more product information hyperlinks to be associated with at least one of the identifiable areas of the digital image, further comprises:

performing a search query based on descriptive text input, wherein said descriptive text describes certain of the objects and scenes of interest in the identifiable areas of the digital image;

receiving a list of product information hyperlinks as output from the search query;

selecting one or more of the received product information hyperlinks as an identified product information hyperlink.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the address is one of:

(a) a Uniform Resource Locator (URL), (b) a Uniform Resource Identifier, (c) an Internet Protocol (IP) address, (d) a file transfer protocol (“

FTP”

) address.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the retrieved information is displayed to a viewer whenever the viewer scrolls over one of said identifiable areas in which a user has provided an associated product information hyperlink.

18. The system of claim 15, wherein the product information hyperlinks are displayed to a viewer as part of a pop-up window.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the product information hyperlinks are displayed to a viewer as part of a banner ad.

20. The system of claim 12, wherein certain of the associated product information hyperlinks change between viewing instances.

21. The system according to claim 12, wherein said descriptive text comprises one or more keywords.

22. The system according to claim 12, wherein said descriptive text comprises a text string.