Online decorating system for edible products

• US 9,314,050 B1
• Filed: 12/12/2014
• Issued: 04/19/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: DecoPac Incorporated
• Original Assignee: DecoPac Incorporated
• Inventors: Davila, Carlos A., Anderson, John R., Schnoebelen, Andy, Whitten, Kent D.
• Primary Examiner(s): Rust, Eric A
• Application Number:
  US14/569,224
• Time in Patent Office: 494 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.1, 358/1.15
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A21C 15/002 Apparatus for spreading granular material on, or sweeping or coating the surface of baked articles of pieces of dough A21C9/04; for confectionary A23G3/28
• CPC Class Codes: A21D 13/47 Decorated or decorative products
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 3/0097 Decorating sweetmeats or confectionery
• CPC Class Codes: A23G 3/28 Apparatus for decorating sweetmeats or confectionery
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 20/15 Apparatus or processes for coating with liquid or semi-liquid products
• CPC Class Codes: A23P 2020/253 Coating food items by printing onto them; Printing layers of food products
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/126 Job scheduling, e.g. queuing, determine appropriate device
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1285 Remote printer device, e.g. being remote from client or server
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/1894 Outputting the image data to the printing elements
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 15/4045 Managing the interface to the data source, e.g. choosing an interface for data reception
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00145 from a remote location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00164 at a remote location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00167 Processing or editing H04N1/00196 - H04N1/00201 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00188 Printing, e.g. prints or reprints H04N1/0019, H04N1/00196 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/0019 on souvenir-type products or the like, e.g. T-shirts or mugs

Abstract

A web-enabled standalone application may, in selected implementations, prevent received license-controlled image data from unauthorized re-use, editing, or distribution, and permits image processing, such as applying the International Color Consortium'"'"'s color correction process, at the local control device. The web-enabled standalone application may further generate a printer specific byte stream based on post-image processed data, providing a color managed workflow independent of local control device operating system print drivers.

Claims

1. A method for printing images on edible media sheets, comprising:

receiving, at each of a plurality of local clients, a set of user instructions including decorating instructions and a selection of an image stored on a mobile device;

transmitting, by a respective local client of the plurality of local clients to a central control device, each of the sets of user instructions;

generating, by the central control device, a plurality of print commands, wherein each print command is unique to a corresponding set of user instructions;

selecting, by the central control device, a local client to receive each print command based on data contained in the set of user instructions, wherein the selection may be of any local client communicatively coupled to the central control device;

serving, by the central control device, the print commands to the selected, respective local clients;

transmitting, at each of the local clients, a print file including a representation of the subject image to a separate edible media printer uniquely associated with the respective local client;

printing, at each edible media printer, an image on an edible media sheet, wherein the edible media printer is equipped with edible ink and specifically adapted to print on edible media sheets; and

applying an edible substrate layer of each edible media sheet to a cake.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each print command is uniquely associated with a given user of a plurality of users.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein each set of user instructions includes an image uploaded from a different mobile device.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein printing comprises printing one edible media sheet according to each print file.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting the print file comprises bypassing an operating system print driver.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the decorating instructions include a cake size.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the decorating instructions include a cake shape.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the central control device provides different sets of users of a plurality of users access to different sets of images of a plurality of sets of images for printing on the edible media sheets, wherein a particular user of the plurality of users is denied access to a particular set of images of the plurality of sets of images based on at least one of a geographic location of the particular user and a lack of authorization of the particular user.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the central control device maintains profiles for each of the users.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein each local client includes at least one image capture device, the method further comprising:

capturing, at each of the local clients by the respective image capture device, a video signal comprising the respective printed edible substrate layer; and

providing, by each of the local clients, the respective video signal to an augmented reality module for recognition of an augmented reality marker printed upon the respective printed edible substrate layer.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein each local client includes a desktop computer.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein a plurality of users associated with the sets of user instructions are bakery operators.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein each edible media sheet includes an edible substrate layer adapted to receive edible ink and a backing layer that adheres to the edible substrate layer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the backing layer is adhered to the edible substrate layer during operation of the edible media printers and is readily removable from the edible substrate layer by a bakery operator after being printed upon by the edible media printer.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the print file is a color corrected print file which accounts for the use of at least one of the edible ink and the edible media sheets.

16. A method for printing images on edible media sheets, comprising:

receiving, at each of a plurality of local clients, a set of user instructions including decorating instructions and a selection of an image stored on a mobile device, wherein

each set of user instructions further includes an image uploaded from a different mobile device;

transmitting, to a central control device by a respective local client of the plurality of local clients, each of the sets of user instructions;

generating, by the central control device, a plurality of print commands, wherein each print command is unique to a corresponding set of user instructions;

selecting, by the central control device, a local client to receive each print command based on data contained in the set of user instructions, wherein the selection may be of any local client system of the plurality of local clients communicatively coupled to the central control device;

serving, by the central control device, the print commands to the selected, respective local clients;

transmitting, at each of the local clients, a print file including a representation of the subject image to a separate edible media printer; and

printing, at each edible media printer, an image on an edible media sheet, wherein the edible media printer is equipped with edible ink and specifically adapted to print on edible media sheets.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein each set of print commands is uniquely associated with a given user of a plurality of users.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein each set of user instructions includes an image uploaded from a different mobile device.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein printing comprises printing one edible media sheet according to each print file.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein transmitting the respective print file comprises bypassing an operating system print driver.

21. The method of claim 16, wherein the decorating instructions include a cake size.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the decorating instructions include a cake shape.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein the central control device provides different sets of users access to different sets of images of a plurality of sets of images for printing on the edible media sheets, wherein a particular user of the plurality of users is denied access to a particular set of images of the plurality of sets of images based on at least one of a geographic location of the particular user and a lack of authorization of the particular user.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the central control device maintains a profile for each user.

25. The method of claim 16, wherein each local client includes at least one image capture device, the method further comprising:

capturing, at each of the local clients by the respective image capture device, a video signal comprising the respective printed edible substrate layer; and

providing, by each of the local clients, the respective video signal to an augmented reality module for recognition of an augmented reality marker printed upon the respective printed edible substrate layer.

26. The method of claim 16, wherein each local client includes a desktop computer.

27. The method of claim 16, wherein a plurality of users associated with the sets of user instructions are bakery operators.

28. The method of claim 16, wherein each edible media sheet includes an edible substrate layer adapted to receive edible ink and a backing layer that adheres to the edible substrate layer.

29. The method of claim 28, wherein the backing layer is adhered to the edible substrate layer during operation of the edible media printer, and is readily removable from the edible substrate layer by a bakery operator after being printed upon by the edible media printer.

30. The method of claim 16, wherein the print file is a color corrected print file which accounts for the use of at least one of the edible ink and edible media sheets.