Method and system for selecting product colors

• US 6,349,300 B1
• Filed: 04/16/1999
• Issued: 02/19/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: SABIC Global Technologies BV (Government of Saudi Arabia)
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Scholz, Bernhard Joseph, Davis, Jeffrey James, Graf, John Frederick
• Primary Examiner(s): Alam, Hosain T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Kindred, Alford W.
• Application Number:
  US09/292,917
• Time in Patent Office: 1,040 Days
• Field of Search: 707/100, 707/1-6, 707/102, 707/500, 707/526-528, 345/431-439, 345/425-430, 345/112-116, 345/131-133, 345/147, 345/501, 382/162, 382/167, 205/26, 205/27
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/46 Measurement of colour; Colour measuring devices, e.g. colorimeters measuring colour temperature G01J5/60
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/463 Colour matching
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/06 Buying, selling or leasing transactions
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99933 Query processing, i.e. searching
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99934 Query formulation, input preparation, or translation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99935 Query augmenting and refining, e.g. inexact access

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a process for facilitating a purchaser'"'"'s selection of a color for a product. In one embodiment, a purchaser is able to interact with a library of available colors for a product over a digital communication network, such as the Internet. The purchaser is able to browse the color library to identify a color of interest. Additionally, the purchaser is able to compare a color of interest to the available colors in the library to assess whether an available color for the product is close enough to the color of interest. Further, the purchaser can order chips or plaques of the available colors identified during a session so that a comparison of the color of interest to actual color samples of the product can be made before an order is placed.

Claims

1. A method for facilitating the selection of a color from a color database for a product, comprising:

providing a digital communication network for communicating digital data between at least two locations;

first conveying, using said digital communication network, a request relating to the color database for the product, said request coming from a first location associated with a potential purchaser of the product and being directed to a second location that is capable of accessing the color database;

second conveying, using said digital communication network, a response to said request, said response coming from the second location and being directed to the first location.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said first conveying includes conveying a target color description to be used in searching the color database for a product.

3. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

said second conveying includes conveying a color from the color database for a product that is in a form that is displayable on a color output peripheral and is within a predetermined range of closeness to said target color.

4. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

said second conveying includes conveying an indication of the closeness of a color in the color database for the product to said target color.

5. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

said second conveying includes conveying a color identification number for a color from the color database for a product that is within a predetermined range of closeness to said target color.

6. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

said second conveying includes conveying a virtual color table that is in a form that is displayable on a color output peripheral and includes said target color and at least one color from the color database for the product.

7. The method as claimed in claim 6, wherein:

said target color is a background color and the color from the color database for the product is a foreground color.

8. The method as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

said target color description is in one of the following formats;

RGB and L*a*b*.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said first conveying includes conveying an index color description for use in browsing the color database for the product.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9, wherein:

said second conveying includes conveying a color from the color database for a product that is in a form that is displayable on a color output peripheral and is within a predetermined range of closeness to said index color.

11. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

said first conveying includes conveying a request that includes an order for a physical sample.

12. A method for facilitating the selection of a color from a color database for a product, comprising:

providing a digital communication network for communicating digital data between at least two locations;

first conveying, using said digital communication network, a request relating to a color library, said request coming from a first location associated with a potential purchaser and directed to a second location that is capable of accessing the color database;

processing, at said second location, said request to provide a response to said request;

second conveying, using said digital communication network, said response to said request, said response coming from the second location and directed to the first location.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein:

said digital communication network includes the World Wide Web.

14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein:

said first conveying includes conveying a three-dimensional target color description to be used in searching the color database for a product.

15. The method as claimed in claim 14, wherein:

said processing includes conducting a first search of a first three-dimensional space of the color database for colors that are close to said target color, said three-dimensional space defined by a predetermined first tolerance relative to each value of said three-dimensional target color.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein:

said processing includes conducting a second search of a second three-dimensional space of the color database if said first search identifies a different number of colors within said first three-dimensional space than a predetermined number.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein:

said second three-dimensional space defined by a second tolerance relative to each value of said three dimensional target color, said second tolerance having a binary relationship to said first tolerance.

18. A method for facilitating the selection of a color from a color database for a product, comprising:

providing a computer system that includes a color database for a product;

receiving, using said computer system, a request relating to said color database, said request having originated at a first location associated with a potential purchaser of the product;

processing, using said computer system, said request to produce a response to said request;

transmitting, using said computer system, said response towards said first location associated with the potential purchaser.

19. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein:

said request includes a target color description to use in searching said color database.

20. The method as claimed in claim 19, wherein:

said processing includes searching said color database for colors that are within a predetermined range of said target color.

21. The method as claimed in claim 20, wherein:

said processing includes determining the closeness of each color within said predetermined range to said target color.

22. A method for enabling a customer to select a color from a color database for a product over a network, comprising:

providing the customer with access to the color database over the network;

receiving a request to search the color database for a specified target color from the customer;

in response to the customer request, finding a color in the color database that is within a predetermined range of closeness to the specified target color; and

providing the color in the color database that is within the predetermined range of closeness to the specified target color to the customer.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein the request to search the color database for a specified target color comprises providing a description in a color identification format.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the color identification format comprise at least one of a RGB format and L*a*b* format.

25. The method according to claim 23, wherein the finding of a color in the color database comprises searching the color database according to the provided description.

26. The method according to claim 22, wherein the finding of a color in the color database comprises modifying the predetermined range of closeness if there are an unsatisfactory number of colors in the color database that conform to the predetermined range of closeness.

27. The method according to claim 26, further comprises searching the color database for a color that is within the modified predetermined range of closeness.

28. The method according to claim 22, wherein the providing of a color to the customer comprises providing a closeness value for a color that is within the predetermined range of closeness to the specified target color, wherein the closeness value is representative of the similarity between the color and the specified target color.

29. The method according to claim 22, wherein the providing of a color to the customer comprises providing a virtual color table that includes the specified target color and at least one color from the color database.

30. The method according to claim 29, wherein the virtual color table comprises a background region and a plurality of swatches overlying the background region.

31. The method according to claim 30, wherein the virtual color table displays the specified target color in the background region and the at least one color from the color database in at least one of the plurality of swatches.

32. The method according to claim 31, further comprising providing a closeness value for each of the plurality of swatches, wherein the closeness value is representative of the similarity between color display in each of the swatches with the specified target color.

33. The method according to claim 22, further comprising receiving a request to browse the color database for colors that are available for the product.

34. The method according to claim 33, further comprising in response to the customer request, finding the colors in the color database that are available for the product.

35. The method according to claim 34, further comprising providing a spectrum of the available colors to the customer.

36. The method according to claim 35, further comprising prompting the customer to order the product in at least one of the available colors.

37. The method according to claim 36, further comprising processing an order made by the customer.

38. The method according to claim 22, further comprising prompting the customer to order the product in the color provided thereto.

39. The method according to claim 38, further comprising processing an order made by the customer.

40. A method in a computer system for displaying a plurality of pages to enable a customer to select a color from a color database for a product over a network, comprising:

displaying a screen view for permitting the customer to access the color database over the network;

displaying a screen view for permitting the customer to input a request to search the color database for a specified target color; and

displaying a screen view for providing the color in the color database that is within a predetermined range of closeness to the specified target color to the customer.

41. The method according to claim 40, wherein the displaying of a screen view for permitting a request to search the color database for a specified target color comprises displaying a screen view for inputting a description in a color identification format.

42. The method according to claim 41, wherein the color identification format comprise at least one of a RGB format and L*a*b* format.

43. The method according to claim 40, wherein the displaying of a screen view for providing a color to the customer comprises providing a closeness value for a color that is within the predetermined range of closeness to the specified target color, wherein the closeness value is representative of the similarity between the color and the specified target color.

44. The method according to claim 40, wherein the displaying of a screen view for providing a color to the customer comprises displaying a screen view for providing a virtual color table that includes the specified target color and at least one color from the color database.

45. The method according to claim 44, wherein the virtual color table comprises a background region and a plurality of swatches overlying the background region.

46. The method according to claim 45, wherein the virtual color table displays the specified target color in the background region and the at least one color from the color database in at least one of the plurality of swatches.

47. The method according to claim 46, further comprising providing a closeness value for each of the plurality of swatches, wherein the closeness value is representative of the similarity between color display in each of the swatches with the specified target color.

48. The method according to claim 40, further comprising displaying a screen view for permitting the customer to input a request to browse the color database for colors that are available for the product.

49. The method according to claim 48, further comprising displaying a screen view for providing a spectrum of the available colors to the customer.

50. The method according to claim 49, further comprising displaying a screen view for prompting the customer to order the product in at least one of the available colors.

51. The method according to claim 40, further comprising displaying a screen view for prompting the customer to order the product in the color provided thereto.