Photography system to organize digital photographs and information regarding the subjects therein

• US 8,427,543 B2
• Filed: 02/02/2012
• Issued: 04/23/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/08/2002
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Shutterfly, LLC
• Original Assignee: Lifetouch Incorporated (Shutterfly, LLC)
• Inventors: Holmes, Jon A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Misleh, Justin P
• Application Number:
  US13/364,951
• Publication Number:
  US 20120127340A1
• Time in Patent Office: 446 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 348/207.99
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00127 Connection or combination of a still picture apparatus with another apparatus, e.g. for storage, processing or transmission of still picture signals or of information associated with a still picture
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00129 with a display device, e.g. CRT or LCD monitor with a television apparatus H04N1/00283; arrangements for control of display devices G09G
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00132 in a digital photofinishing system, i.e. a system where digital photographic images undergo typical photofinishing processing, e.g. printing ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00148 Storage information retrieval G06F16/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00167 Processing or editing H04N1/00196 - H04N1/00201 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00172 directly from a still digital camera or from a storage medium mounted in a still digital camera H04N1/0018 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00188 Printing, e.g. prints or reprints H04N1/0019, H04N1/00196 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00193 to a portable storage medium, e.g. a read-writable compact disk
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00204 with a digital computer or a digital computer system, e.g. an internet server programmed control between transmitter and receiver or between image input and image output device H04N1/32561
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00278 with a printing apparatus, e.g. a laser beam printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00286 with studio circuitry, devices or equipment, e.g. television cameras television studio circuitry, devices or equipment per se H04N5/222
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00326 with a data reading, recognizing or recording apparatus, e.g. with a bar-code apparatus arrangements for the associated working of recording or reproducing apparatus with related apparatus G11B31/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00334 with an apparatus processing barcodes or the like arrangements for sensing record carriers G06K7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0041 Point to point H04N2201/0039 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0049 By wire, cable or the like
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0075 by a user operated remote control device, e.g. receiving instructions from a user via a computer terminal or mobile telephone handset
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3242 of processing required or performed, e.g. for reproduction or before recording H04N2201/3256 and subgroups take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3247 Data linking a set of images to one another, e.g. sequence, burst or continuous capture mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/51 Housings
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/64 : Computer-aided capture of images, e.g. transfer from script file into camera, check of taken image quality, advice or proposal for image composition or decision on when to take image
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/66 : Remote control of cameras or camera parts, e.g. by remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/80 : Camera processing pipelines; Components thereof
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/222 : Studio circuitry; Studio devices; Studio equipment cameras or camera modules comprising electronic image sensors, or control thereof H04N23/00

Abstract

A photographic processing system in which subject and other data is stored in a database and such data is automatically linked to photographs taken using either a film or digital camera.

Claims

1. A photography system comprising:

an image capture device that captures at least one digital image of one or more subjects, the at least one digital image being associated with an image identification code;

a user input device that receives data including a subject identification code and other data;

a storage device that stores a relational database, the relational database having different data groups to store the image identification code, the subject identification code, and the other data; and

a processor that stores the image identification code, the subject identification code, and the other data within the relational database to relationally link the at least one digital image with the other data, to relationally link the subject identification code to the other data, and to organize the image identification code, the subject identification code, and the other data according to the plurality of different data groups.

2. The photography system of claim 1, wherein the relational database comprises at least one table.

3. The photography system of claim 1, wherein the relational database comprises a plurality of tables, the plurality of tables being arranged and configured to organize the image identification code, the subject identification code, and the other data according to the plurality of different data groups.

4. The photography system of claim 1, wherein the other data includes one or more of subject data, frame data, composition data, group data, order data, link data, or school data.

5. The photography system of claim 4, wherein the other data includes group data for a group, the group data including one or more of a name of the group, names of members of the group, names of the group'"'"'s leaders, or a name of an organization with which the group is affiliated.

6. The photography system of claim 4, wherein the other data includes subject data, the subject data including identification data including one or more of a name, an address, a telephone number, an email address, a school the subject attends, a class the subject is enrolled in, a student identification number, or other data identifying the subject.

7. The photography system of claim 6, wherein the subject identification code is selected from the subject data.

8. The system of claim 1, wherein at least some data stored in the relational database is stored in the image capture device as part of the digital image.