Card customization by tailored intergenerational historic snapshots

• US 8,751,474 B2
• Filed: 11/16/2012
• Issued: 06/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/08/2007
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John W.L. Ogilvie
• Original Assignee: John W.L. Ogilvie
• Inventors: Ogilvie, John W., Ogilvie, Kristy Lyn
• Primary Examiner(s): Mamillapalli, Pavan
• Application Number:
  US13/679,952
• Publication Number:
  US 20130080866A1
• Time in Patent Office: 571 Days
• Field of Search: 707/706
• US Class Current: 707/706
• CPC Class Codes: B33Y 80/00 Products made by additive manufacturing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/10 Text processing natural language analysis G06F40/20; semantic analysis G06F40/30; processing or translation of natural language G06F40/40
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/174 Form filling; Merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/20 Natural language analysis semantic analysis of natural language G06F40/30
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 7/00 Methods or arrangements for processing data by operating upon the order or content of the data handled logic circuits H03K19/00

Abstract

A user-customized card includes a tailored intergenerational historic snapshot message which informs a younger person about the world an older person lived in when they were young. The older person'"'"'s age and the younger person'"'"'s age may be used to identify a historic time period in which the older person was the same age as the younger person. A circumstance which occurred in the historic time period may be selected from a database or web search result. The message may be tailored to the ages of the people involved. The message may also be tailored to recite circumstances specific to a topic area or a geographic location. The message may be used in the text generally, and in photo captions specifically, for example. The card may be a greeting card, birthday card, gift card, or other card. Items other than cards may also be customized with such a message.

Claims

1. A method of producing a customized card containing a tailored intergenerational historic snapshot message, the method comprising the steps of:

obtaining digital values for parameters of a tailored historic snapshot message template data structure stored in a computer-readable memory, the template data structure having predefined text and parameters, the text being interleaved with the parameters to form sentences, the predefined text and parameters of the template data structure including at least one of the following pairs within a sentence;

“

from where you are” and

a distance parameter,

“

was your age” and

a familial relationship parameter,

“

when she/he turned” and

a person'"'"'s age parameter,

“

like to know” and

a person'"'"'s name parameter,

“

in the year” and

a date parameter based on an elder person'"'"'s birthdate and a younger person'"'"'s age,

“

people in it” and

a historic date population parameter,

“

population of” and

a historic date population parameter,

“

just . . . invented” and

a historic event parameter with the ellipsis representing text rather than being literal,

“

first successful” and

a historic event parameter,

“

world . . . changed” and

a person'"'"'s age parameter, with the ellipsis representing text rather than being literal;

generating by execution of code with a computer processor a tailored historic snapshot message from the parameters and the template data structure; and

including a version of the tailored historic snapshot message in an electronic version of the customized card, the customized card containing text tailored for at least one of the following subjects;

an anniversary, a birthday, a congratulation, a gift, a graduation, a seasonal greeting, a holiday, an expression of sympathy.

2. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises splitting the message across multiple pages of the card.

3. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the card includes visual images, and the including step comprises splitting the message across multiple visual images of the card, by using at least a respective portion of the message as at least one of the following for each respective visual image:

a caption, a heading, a watermark, a displayed label, a text displayed on at least two sides of the visual image.

4. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises using at least a portion of the message as a visual image caption in the card.

5. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises using at least a portion of the message as an opening line of the card.

6. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises including at least a portion of the message on a back page of the card.

7. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises including at least a portion of the message in a customized gift card.

8. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises including in the card a photo of at least one of the following:

the elder person, the younger person, the historic event.

9. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises including in the card a user-edited version of the message.

10. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step comprises including in the card a photo and/or a name of a person whose age parameter is obtained in the obtaining step.

11. The card production method of claim 1, further comprising sending the electronic version of the card to a printing service with an instruction to print at least one tangible copy of the card.

12. The card production method of claim 1, further comprising selecting a layout template of the card which specifies at least one location in which text is permitted, and wherein the message text appears in at least one location permitted by the layout template.

13. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the receiving step receives through a web browser-based user interface a user selection of digital values for parameters of the tailored historic snapshot message template data structure.

14. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the receiving step receives through an app-based user interface a user selection of digital values for parameters of the tailored historic snapshot message template data structure.

15. The card production method of claim 1, further comprising placing the message on at least one non-card item.

16. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the including step includes at least a portion of the message in at least one of the following cards which are also designed to be received by multiple recipients:

a seasonal greeting card, a congratulatory card.

17. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the card includes text referring to at least one of the following circumstances:

a wedding, a moment in the life of a baby (namely, a person less than one year old), a moment in the life of a young child (one less than eleven years old), a family vacation, a travel adventure.

18. The card production method of claim 1, further comprising printing the tailored historic snapshot message on the card using at least one of the following technologies:

lithography, embossing, engraving, laser printing, ink jet printing, 3D printing, silk screening.

19. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the message included in the card comprises “

was your age” and

a familial relationship parameter.

20. The card production method of claim 1, wherein the message included in the card comprises “

in the year” and

a date parameter based on an elder person'"'"'s birthdate and a younger person'"'"'s age.