Vendor website GUI for marketing greeting cards

• US 9,310,968 B2
• Filed: 02/06/2015
• Issued: 04/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Minted LLC
• Original Assignee: Minted LLC
• Inventors: Patel, Namrata, Belling, Sean, Meade, Erica, Tanaka, Wesley, Bravo, Adrian, Naficy, Mariam B.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pan, Yongjia
• Application Number:
  US14/615,522
• Publication Number:
  US 20150169149A1
• Time in Patent Office: 431 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0621 Item configuration or customization
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0641 Shopping interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/80 2D [Two Dimensional] animation, e.g. using sprites
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]

Abstract

A system stores, in a database, different stock templates and also, for each stock template, a stock image to be displayed with the template. The system receives a user-designated image. The system then displays items simultaneously. Each item incorporates a different one of the stock templates along with the respective template'"'"'s stock image. The system provides an image selector that is in a first position and capable of being switched by a user to a second position. Each time the user switches the selector to the second position, the system transforms the stock images in the displayed items simultaneously to the user-designated image. Each time the user switches the selector to the first position, the system transforms the stock images in the displayed items simultaneously to the items'"'"' respective stock images.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

storing, by a server in a database, different stock templates and also, for each stock template, a stock image to be displayed with the template;

receiving, by the server via a graphical user interface (GUI), a user-designated image;

causing, by the server, the GUI to display items simultaneously on a display screen, each item incorporating a different one of the stock templates along with the respective template'"'"'s stock image;

providing, by the server through the GUI, to a user, an image selector that is in a first position and capable of being switched by the user to a second position;

each time the user switches the selector to the second position, the server causing the GUI to transform the stock images in the displayed items simultaneously to the user-designated image; and

each time the user switches the selector to the first position, the server causing the GUI to transform the user designated image in the displayed items simultaneously to the items'"'"' respective stock images;

wherein the displaying is a result of a user-requested search for design product items, and the search is based on a user-specified text to appear on the design product items; and

the search gives preference to templates whose space for containing the user specified text best matches a length of the user-entered text.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the user-designated image is a first user-designated image and the image selector is further capable of being switched by the user to a third position, and the method further comprising:

receiving a second user-designated image; and

each time the user switches the selector to the third position, transforming the first user designated image in the displayed items simultaneously to the second user-designated image.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein the transforming to the user-designated image is gradual such that the user can perceive each stock image gradually disappearing while being gradually replaced with the user-designated image, and wherein the transforming to the stock images is gradual such that the user can perceive the user designated image disappearing while being gradually replaced with the respective stock image.

4. The method of claim 3 wherein progress of each transformation corresponds to a position of the selector, such that a rate of each image transformation is based on a speed of movement of the selector.

5. The method of claim 3 wherein movement of the selector from the first position to only a midway position between the first and second positions and then back to the first position causes the stock image to transform only midway to the user-designated image and then back to the stock image, and wherein movement of the selector from the second position to only the midway position and then back to the second position causes the user-designated image to transform only midway to the stock image and then back to the user-designated image.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the displayed items include both user-requested items which are of a product type requested by the user and ancillary items which are not of a product type requested by the user.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the steps of receiving, causing, and providing are performed by a vendor website of a merchant that sells the displayed items, and wherein the method further comprises:

the user arriving at the vendor website by selecting a link on an external website that holds personal photographs of the user.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the server hosts a vendor website of a merchant that sells the displayed items, and wherein the GUI enables the user to perform, on the user designated image, color adjustment, red-eye correction, transformation in sepia, transformation into black-and-white, cropping, rotation, and aspect ratio adjustment.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying is a result of a user-requested search for design product items, and the search is based on the user indicating a combination of colors by selecting a non-color term that is associated with the combination of colors.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying is a result of a user-requested search for design product items, and the search is based on the user-designated image'"'"'s shape, aspect ratio, color and level of clutter.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying is a result of a user-requested search for design products, and the search is based on the user-designated image'"'"'s shape, aspect ratio, style, color and level of clutter.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the design items include greeting cards.