Game console based digital photo album

• US 6,833,848 B1
• Filed: 06/05/2000
• Issued: 12/21/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/1999
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Tanaka, Makoto, Wolff, Gregory J., Balabanovic, Marko
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAN, MYLINH T
• Application Number:
  US09/589,924
• Time in Patent Office: 1,660 Days
• Field of Search: 345/719, 345/720, 345/722, 345/723, 345/730, 345/732, 345/737, 345/738, 711/5
• US Class Current: 715/719
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/031 Electronic editing of digitised analogue information signals, e.g. audio or video signals
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/102 Programmed access in sequence to addressed parts of tracks of operating record carriers access by moving the head G11B3/08, G11B5/54, G11B7/085, G11B21/022; by moving the record carrier G11B15/005, G11B17/005, by driving of both record carrier and head G11B15/1816
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/322 used signal is digitally coded

Abstract

A method and a system that combine capabilities for storing, authoring, and viewing various forms of digital media are described. In one embodiment, an exemplary method includes accepting a cartridge having a slot for receiving a media card storing a plurality of media objects, displaying the plurality of media objects in reduced visual representations displayed in a plurality of tracks, and navigating among the reduced visual representations.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

means for accepting a cartridge having a slot for receiving a removable memory device to store a plurality of media objects;

means for displaying the plurality of media objects in reduced visual representations in at least one track; and

means for navigating among the reduced visual representations,

wherein the display means displays imported objects in a first track, authored stories in a second track and in a third track, at least one of the authored stories on the third track being part of a story under creation,

wherein means for navigating among the reduced visual representations comprises

means for selecting the media object from the first track and/or from the second track,

means for adding a representation of the selected media object to the third track to enable a user to author a new story,

means for moving one of the authored stories from the second track to the third track to enable the user to edit the authored story, and

means for selecting background music from a plurality of pre-recorded background music songs and means for associating the selected background music with the authored story,

wherein the means for selecting comprises a game controller having a joystick and a plurality of control buttons.

2. The system of claim 1 wherein the plurality of media objects stored in the memory device are transferred to the cartridge when the memory device is inserted into the slot.

3. The system of claim 2 wherein the memory device is a flash memory card.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the imported objects are provided from the memory device and comprise the imported stories.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the joystick is used to scroll among the first track, the second track and the third track, and wherein the plurality of control buttons comprise an add button and a delete button for adding and deleting, respectively, the media object in the third track.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the joystick and the plurality of control buttons specify an Internet email address to send the plurality of media objects to a recipient.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the plurality of control buttons and joystick specify the Internet email address by selecting a plurality of alphanumeric characters with the plurality of control buttons.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the plurality of control buttons and joystick select the Internet email address from a list of previously generated Internet email addresses.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the second track displays previously generated Internet email addresses, and wherein the third track displays the selected Internet email address.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the memory device is a flash memory card.

11. A method comprising:

accepting a cartridge having a slot for receiving a media card storing a plurality of media objects;

displaying the plurality of media objects in reduced visual representations displayed in a plurality of tracks; and

navigating among the reduced visual representations, wherein navigating among the reduced visual representations comprises

moving the media object from the first track and/or from the second track to the third track to enable a user to author a new story, and

moving the authored story from the second track to the third track to enable the user to edit the authored story,

wherein moving the media object comprises using a game controller having a joystick and a plurality of control buttons.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising transferring the plurality of media objects stored in the media card to the cartridge when the media card is inserted into the slot.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the media card comprises a flash memory card.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein displaying the plurality of media objects comprises displaying imported stories in a first track on a display, authored stories in a second track and in a third track on the display, an authored story on the third track being a story under creation.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising transferring the imported stories from the media card, wherein the imported stories comprise of one or more media objects.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising using the joystick and the plurality of control buttons to specify an Internet email address of a recipient to send the plurality of media objects.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein specifying the Internet email address comprises selecting a plurality of alphanumeric characters.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein specifying the Internet email address comprises selecting the Internet email address from a list of previously generated Internet email addresses.

19. The method of claim 16, further comprising the second track displaying previously generated Internet email addresses, and the third track displaying the selected Internet email address.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising displaying the plurality of media objects on a television screen.