Interactive food packaging
First Claim
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1. A food product for delivering an audible, visual or tactile message to a consumer of the food product, comprising:
- a food packaging component;
a tag having encoded information associated with the food packaging component; and
a separate reader for translating the encoded information into the audible, visual or tactile message, such that before, during or after consuming the food product, the consumer may obtain the message from the encoded information of the tag by activating the reader to read the tag;
wherein the reader comprises an antenna, and wherein the tag comprises a chip and an antenna.
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Abstract
The invention provides a food product for delivering an audible, visual and/or tactile message to a consumer of the food product. The food product contains a food packaging component; a tag having encoded information associated with the food packaging component; and a separate reader for translating the encoded information into an audible, visual and/or tactile message. This message may be obtained before, during or after consuming the food product.
129 Citations
29 Claims
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1. A food product for delivering an audible, visual or tactile message to a consumer of the food product, comprising:
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a food packaging component;
a tag having encoded information associated with the food packaging component; and
a separate reader for translating the encoded information into the audible, visual or tactile message, such that before, during or after consuming the food product, the consumer may obtain the message from the encoded information of the tag by activating the reader to read the tag;
wherein the reader comprises an antenna, and wherein the tag comprises a chip and an antenna. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
a sound chip that includes a memory for storing a prerecorded message associated with the encoded information;
a sound-generating unit for audible play-back of the prerecorded message associated with the encoded information; and
a mechanism for retrieving from the memory the prerecorded message associated with the encoded information.
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4. The food product of claim 2 wherein the sensory output mechanism comprises:
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a memory for storing a prerecorded message associated with the encoded information;
a text-generating unit for visual display of the prerecorded message associated with the encoded information; and
a mechanism for retrieving from the memory the prerecorded message associated with the encoded information.
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5. The food product of claim 1 wherein the reader can obtain the encoded information from the tag at a distance of up to about 5 centimeters.
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6. The food product of claim 1 wherein the reader further comprises a sound chip and a speaker.
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7. The food product of claim 1 wherein the food packaging component comprises a stick, cone, cup, or tube attached to, integral with, or contained within the packaging component, and wherein the tag is attached to the stick, cone, cup, or tube.
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8. The food product of claim 1 wherein the tag is affixed to the food packaging component and releases no toxic compounds which may cause injury if ingested.
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9. The food product of claim 1 wherein the tag is affixed to the food packaging component contains no metal of a quantity sufficient to set off a food metal detector.
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10. The food product of claim 1 further comprising a plurality of tags and a plurality of different food packaging components, wherein a different tag is associated with each different food packaging component so that the reader provides a different message for each tag.
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11. The food product of claim 1 which further comprises a wrapper wherein the tag is disposed upon or affixed to the wrapper.
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12. The food product of claim 1 which further comprises a box for containing a plurality of food products wherein an additional tag is associated with the box.
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13. The food product of claim 12 in the form of an ice cream product having a stick or wrapper or both, wherein the tag is associated with either the stick, the wrapper or both.
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14. The food product of claim 1 wherein the separate reader is a point-of-sale device.
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15. The food product of claim 2 wherein the sensory output includes text, a voice, or both, wherein the messages are stored in a plurality of languages, and wherein the reader comprises a controller to select the language for sensory output.
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16. The food product of claim 1, wherein the information is stored on the tag chip, the tag antenna is configured for transmitting the information from the chip, and the reader antenna is configured for receiving the transmitted information.
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17. The food product of claim 1, wherein the packaging element comprises an ice cream stick, and the food product comprises ice cream.
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18. The food product of claim 1, further comprising:
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a housing that houses the reader; and
an activation element associated with the reader for activating the reader when in contact with the food packaging component.
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19. The food product of claim 18, wherein:
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the housing defines an opening configured for receiving the packaging component; and
the activation element comprises a switch positioned and configured for activation by the packaging component received in the opening.
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20. The food product of claim 1, wherein the encoded information comprises the message in encoded form.
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21. The food product of claim 1, further comprising a housing that houses the reader and that is configured as a child'"'"'s toy, wherein the message corresponds to the characteristics of the type of said toy.
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22. The food product of claim 21, further comprising a sensory output mechanism including a speaker, where in the message comprises a sound corresponding to said type of toy.
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23. A food product system for delivering a message to a consumer of the food product, comprising:
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a food packaging component;
a tag associated with the food packaging component and comprising encoded information that includes a message in encoded form;
a housing separate from the food packaging component; and
a reader connected to the housing and configured for translating the encoded information into the message, such that before, during or after consuming the food product, the consumer may obtain the message from the encoded information of the tag by activating the reader to read the tag. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A food product system for delivering a message to a consumer of the food product, comprising:
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a food packaging component;
a tag associated with the food packaging component and comprising encoded information;
a housing separate from the food packaging component and comprising a movable portion;
a reader connected to the housing and configured for translating the encoded information into the message, such that before, during or after consuming the food product, the consumer may obtain the message from the encoded information of the tag by activating the reader to read the tag;
a motor connected to the housing and operably associated for moving the movable portion; and
a sensory output mechanism connected to the housing and configured for actuating the motor to move the movable portion in response to and depending on the translated message. - View Dependent Claims (29)
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Specification