Retrieval and manipulation of electronically stored information via pointers embedded in the associated printed material

• US 6,964,374 B1
• Filed: 10/02/1998
• Issued: 11/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: WSOU Investments, LLC (WSOU Holdings, LLC)
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Freidenfelds, John, Djuknic, Goran M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Diane I.
• Application Number:
  US09/166,144
• Time in Patent Office: 2,601 Days
• Field of Search: 235/462.01, 235/462.45, 235/462.46, 235/462.49, 235/468, 235/470, 235/472.03, 235/375, 235/435, 235/462.08, 235/462.25, 235/462.16, 707/2, 707/4, 707/10, 707/1, 283/70, 283/72, 283/90, 283/113, 283/901, 705/23, 705 26- 27
• US Class Current: 235/462.01
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9554 by using bar codes

Abstract

A method of retrieving and manipulating electronic information that relates to a printed document. Each printed document contains an initialization marking that is recognizable by an external sensory device and unique to the printed document. When a reader of the printed document desires to retrieve and manipulate electronic information that relates to the printed document, the reader initializes the system by using the sensory device to recognize the initialization marking. The sensory device transfers a code embedded in the initialization marking to a computing device. This configures the computing device to access the stored data and instruction sets associated with the printed document. In addition to the initialization marking, areas throughout the printed document (e.g., text, tables, figures, etc.) also contain markings that are recognizable by the external sensory device. The reader of the printed document uses the sensory device to recognize the markings and transfer the code embedded in the markings to the computing device. The computing device uses the code to retrieve and display the electronic information that relates to that area of the printed document.

Claims

1. An apparatus for retrieving and manipulating information in printed materials, comprising:

a sole initialization designator uniquely marked to printed materials, as a first pointer having a first format, located outside the printed materials for identification purposes and initializing the apparatus when activated;

one or more embedded machine-readable markings, which may be of the same or different format from the first format, as a second pointer, located within the printed materials, independent of the initialization designator and initiating executable tasks when activated;

a scanner that recognizes the sole initialization designator once and thereafter recognizes at least one embedded machine readable marking in the printed document independent of the sole initialization designator in retrieving and manipulating information, each embedded machine-readable marking being associated with at least one printed item, each embedded machine-readable marking further being associated with a specific machine-executable task; and

a processor that interprets the initialization designator, as the first pointer, and the embedded machine-readable marking, as the second pointer, and performs the specific machine-executable task after recognition of the initialization designator and the embedded machine-readable marking, wherein the initialization designator includes an International Standard Book Number (ISBN),

wherein special embedded machine-readable markings, layered with printed text, are invisible to the human eye, and wherein a portion of the at least one printed item associated with each embedded machine-readable marking indicates the existence of each embedded machine-readable marking.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the initialization designator further comprises at least one of a bar code, an icon, and text altered in appearance and the scanner is adapted to recognize at least one of the bar code, the icon, and the text altered in appearance.

3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the initialization designator is a bar code and is only recognizable by the scanner.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the initialization designator further includes at least one instruction for accessing a web site.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the scanner includes a translator for at least partially translating the initialization designator.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the scanner includes a translator for at least partially translating the embedded machine-readable marking.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the embedded machine-readable marking comprises at least on of a bar code, an icon, and text altered in appearance and the scanner is adapted to recognize at least one of the bar code, the icon, and the text altered in appearance.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the embedded machine-readable marking is the bar code and is only recognizable by the scanner.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the specific machine-executable task includes at least one instruction for accessing a web site.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the processor comprises at least one networked data repository.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the specific machine-executable task comprises retrieving and displaying information from the at least one networked data repository.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an output device for reporting the outcome of the machine-executable task to a user.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the output device comprises at least one of a data display, a printer, and a monitor.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the output device displays data retrieved from at least one networked data repository.

15. A method for retrieval and manipulation of electronic information associated with a printed document comprising:

installing a sole initialization designator, as a first pointer having a first format that identities a printed document and preferably located outside the printed materials and initializing the apparatus when activated;

installing one or more embedded machine-readable markings, in the same or a different format from the first format, as second pointers, located within the printed materials, independent of the initialization designator and initiating executable tasks when activated, wherein the initialization designator includes an International Standard Book Number (ISBN);

uniquely identifying the printed document using the initialization designator only once in retrieving and manipulating information;

subsequently recognizing at least one embedded machine-readable marking in the printed document, independent of the sole initialization designator, each embedded machine-readable marking being associated with a specific printed item in said at least one printed item, each embedded machine-readable marking further being associated with a specific machine-executable task;

interpreting the embedded machine-readable marking’

, and

performing the specific machine-executable task, wherein special embedded machine-readable markings, layered with printed text, are invisible to the human eye, and wherein a portion of the specific printed item in said at least one printed item associated with each embedded machine-readable marking indicates the existence of each embedded machine-readable marking.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the initializing step includes the recognition of the initialization designator with a scanner.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the initialization designator further comprises at least one of a bar code, an icon, and text altered in appearance and the scanner is adapted to recognize at least one of the bar code, the icon, and the text altered in appearance.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the initialization designator is the bar code and is only recognizable by the scanner.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the initializing step includes accessing a web site.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the embedded machine-readable marking of the recognizing step comprises at least one of a bar code, an icon, and text altered in appearance and the scanner is adapted to recognize at least on of the bar code, the icon, and the text altered in appearance.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the embedded machine-readable marking is the bar code and is only recognizable by the scanner.

22. The method of claim 15, wherein the performing step includes accessing at least one web site.

23. The method of claim 15, wherein the performing step includes accessing at least one networked data repository.

24. The method of claim 15, further comprising the step of communicating the outcome of the machine-executable task to the user.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein the communicating step comprises displaying the outcome on at least one of a data display, a printer, and a monitor.