Coupon copy protection

• US 8,559,667 B2
• Filed: 04/25/2008
• Issued: 10/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 04/27/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Quotient Technology Inc.
• Original Assignee: Quotient Technology Inc.
• Inventors: Keswani, Ravi Kant, Muthugopalakrishnan, Manicka, Guan, Qingcai, Weitzman, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): Hung, Yubin
• Application Number:
  US12/110,208
• Publication Number:
  US 20080267500A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,999 Days
• Field of Search: 382/100, 382/284, 705/14.1, 705/14.26, 725/23
• US Class Current: 382/100
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/045 using payment protocols involving tickets
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/387 Payment using discounts or coupons relating to marketing G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0225 Avoiding frauds
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/80 Recognising image objects characterised by unique random patterns
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/122 Online card verification

Abstract

A data distribution system which includes business groups, a client system and a main database system is described. Coupons and coupon data may be exchanged between the business groups, the client system and the main database system. Each coupon being exchanged may include one or more fraud protection features that can neither be altered nor tampered by users, consumers or retailers.

Claims

1. A method for generating a holographic image, the method comprising:

segmenting a product image into a plurality of image regions;

wherein coupon data for a coupon comprises the product image and one or more text regions;

for each image region of the plurality of image regions;

evaluating a first property of said each image region and a second property of said each image region, wherein evaluating the first property and the second property includes evaluating one or more of a;

luminance, contrast, variance, color, hue, and brightness of said each image region;

assigning a weighted value to said each image region, wherein the weighted value is determined based, in part, on a first result of the evaluation of the first property and a second result of the evaluation of the second property of said each image region;

selecting a particular image region with the highest weighted value of the plurality of image regions;

blending the particular image region over a predetermined portion, of the coupon, that includes a text region of the one or more text regions;

wherein blending the particular image region adds a holographic image of the particular image region to a portion of the coupon that includes the text region;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

applying a visual effect on the particular image region, wherein blending the particular image region includes overlaying the particular image region applied with the visual effect over the predetermined portion.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

selecting the particular image region includes grouping the particular image region with one or more adjacent image regions, of the plurality of image regions, having similar characteristics; and

blending the particular image region includes overlaying the grouped image regions over the predetermined portion.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein blending the particular image region includes overlaying the particular image region over a product description of the coupon.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more text regions include one or more of (a) expiration data that indicates a date when the coupon expires or (b) manufacturing data that indicates a manufacturer of a product to which the coupon pertains.

6. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions for generating a holographic image, wherein execution of the instructions by one or more processors causes:

segmenting a product image into a plurality of image regions;

wherein coupon data for a coupon comprises the product image and one or more text regions;

for each of the plurality of image regions;

evaluating a first property of said each image region and a second property of said each image region, wherein evaluating the first property and the second property includes evaluating one or more of a;

luminance, contrast, variance, color, hue, and brightness of said each image region;

assigning a weighted value to said each image region, wherein the weighted value is determined based, in part, on a first result of the evaluation of the first property and a second result of the evaluation of the second property of said each image region;

selecting a particular image region with the highest weighted value of the plurality of image regions;

blending the particular image region over a predetermined portion, of the coupon, that includes a text region of the one or more text regions;

wherein blending the particular image region adds a holographic image of the particular image region to a portion of the coupon that includes the text region.

7. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 6, where execution of the instructions by the one or more processors further causes:

applying a visual effect on the particular image region, wherein blending the particular image region includes overlaying the particular image region applied with the visual effect over the predetermined portion.

8. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 6, wherein:

selecting the particular image region includes grouping the particular image region with one or more adjacent image regions, of the plurality of image regions, having similar characteristics; and

blending the particular image region includes overlaying the grouped image regions over the predetermined portion.

9. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 6, wherein overlaying the particular image region includes blending the particular image region over a product description of the coupon.

10. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 6, wherein the one or more text regions include one or more of (a) expiration data that indicates a date when the coupon expires or (b) manufacturing data that indicates a manufacturer of a product to which the coupon pertains.

11. A method for generating a holographic image, the method comprising:

receiving a source image;

segmenting the source image into a plurality of image regions;

evaluating an image characteristic associated with the plurality of image regions;

based on the evaluation, selecting one or more particular image regions of the plurality of image regions, wherein the one or more particular image regions are less than the plurality of image regions;

stretching the one or more particular image regions to create one or more distorted image regions;

applying the one or more distorted image regions to a product coupon as a holographic image;

wherein the method is performed by one or more computing devices.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions includes segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions each having an identical dimension.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions includes segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions each region having a same shape.

14. The method of claim 11, wherein selecting one or more particular image regions of the plurality of image regions comprises:

selecting a first region of the plurality of image regions;

selecting one or more second regions of the plurality of image regions based on a determination that each region of the one or more second regions is adjacent to the first region and has one or more similar characteristics to the first region.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

blending the one or more distorted image regions over a predetermined portion of the product coupon.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

applying a visual effect on the one or more distorted image regions, wherein blending the one or more distorted image regions includes overlaying the one or more distorted image regions applied with the visual effect over the predetermined portion.

17. The method of claim 11, wherein:

evaluating an image characteristic includes assigning one or more weight values to the plurality of image regions; and

selecting the one or more particular image regions includes identifying the one or more particular image regions based on the weight values assigned to the plurality of image regions.

18. A non-transitory machine-readable storage medium comprising instructions for generating a holographic image, where execution of the instructions by one or more processors causes:

receiving a source image;

segmenting the source image into a plurality of image regions;

evaluating an image characteristic associated with the plurality of image regions;

based on the evaluation, selecting one or more particular image regions of the plurality of image regions, wherein the one or more particular image regions are less than the plurality of image regions;

stretching the one or more particular image regions to create one or more distorted image regions;

applying the one or more distorted image regions to a product coupon as a holographic image.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions includes segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions each having an identical dimension.

20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions includes segmenting the source image into the plurality of image regions each region having a same shape.

21. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein selecting one or more particular image regions of the plurality of image regions comprises:

selecting a first region of the plurality of image regions;

selecting one or more second regions of the plurality of image regions based on a determination that each region of the one or more second regions is adjacent to the first region and has one or more similar characteristics to the first region.

22. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, where execution of the instructions by the one or more processors further causes:

blending the one or more distorted image regions over a predetermined portion of a the product coupon.

23. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 22, where execution of the instructions by the one or more processors further causes:

applying a visual effect on the one or more distorted image regions, wherein blending the one or more distorted image regions includes overlaying the one or more distorted image regions applied with the visual effect over the predetermined portion.

24. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein:

evaluating an image characteristic includes assigning one or more weight values to the plurality of image regions; and

selecting one or more particular image regions includes identifying one or more particular image regions based on the weight values assigned to the plurality of image regions.