Service provision system and automatic photography system

• US 20060056832A1
• Filed: 09/22/2004
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fuji Photo Film Co Limited (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Hiroshi, Enomoto, Jun, Nakamura, Yoichi, Shinohara, Mamoru
• Granted Patent: US 7,477,841 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 396/56
• CPC Class Codes: G03B 17/00 Details of cameras or camera bodies; Accessories therefor lens hoods or caps G03B11/04
• 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 1/00137 Transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00143 Ordering
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00148 Storage information retrieval G06F16/00
• 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

Abstract

In a system for providing a service to members of a group, a more complex form of the group can be flexibly and appropriately dealt with, and the service that is more convenient for the group can be provided. A group management database stores a group property, thereby a quantity of prints printed by a laboratory and information provided by a terminal can be determined based on the group property and the number of the members, for example. Furthermore, the group can be changed. In addition, security of image search can be set for the group by using the terminal. One of the members in charge of payment is registered for the group so that the member can collectively pay for the group.

Claims

1. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers, by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers, and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the group to each of the members of the group, wherein

the group registration means further registers a property of the group by relating the property of the group to the group identification information of the group, and

the service provision means provides the service according to the property of the group.

2. The service provision system according to claim 1, the service provision means providing an automatic photography service and comprising:

identification information transmission means for transmitting the personal identification information while being held by each of the customers;

photography means for carrying out automatic photography of the customers having the identification information transmission means upon reception of the personal identification information from the identification information transmission means;

image storage means for storing an image output through the automatic photography by relating the image to the personal identification information received by the photography means; and

image output means for obtaining the image from the image storage means and for outputting the image in a predetermined medium, wherein

the image output means determines a quantity of the image to be output based on the property of the group identified by the group identification information related to the personal identification information related to the image.

3. The service provision system according to claim 1, wherein the service provision means provides an information provision service and comprises:

information storage means for storing information on various goods and/or services to be provided to the customers, by relating the information to the property, which is suitable for provision of the information, of the group; and

information output means for outputting the information appropriate for the customers of the group, based on the property of the group identified by the group identification information related to the personal identification information of the customers.

4. The service provision system according to claim 3,

the service provision means further comprising customer registration means for registering a property of each of the customers by relating the property to the personal identification information thereof,

the information storage means storing the information by further relating the information to the property, which is suitable for provision of the information, of each of the customers, and the information output means outputting the information appropriate for each of the customers, based on the property of each of the customers related to the personal identification information thereof.

38. The service provision system according to claim 1, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

5. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers, and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the group to each of the members of the group, wherein

the group registration means enables registration of the personal identification information by relating the personal identification information to the group identification information of two or more groups.

6. The service provision system according to claim 5, wherein the group identification information of the two or more groups related to the personal identification information is for identifying the groups having a hierarchical structure.

39. The service provision system according to claim 5, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

7. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers;

group changing means for registering one or more of the members of the group identified by the personal identification information related to the group identification information, as a member or members of another group by relating the personal identification information to the group identification information for identifying the group to which the member or members newly belong; and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the groups, to each of the members of the groups.

8. The service provision system according to claim 7, wherein the group changing means registers an effective period of membership of each of the customers in each of the groups by relating the effective period to the group identification information of each of the groups.

40. The service provision system according to claim 7, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

9. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers, and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the group to each of the members of the group, wherein

the service provision means provides the service according to the number of the members in the group.

10. The service provision system according to claim 9, wherein the service provision means provides an information provision service and comprises:

information storage means for storing information on various goods and/or services to be provided to the customers, by relating the information to the number of the members, which is suitable for provision of the information, in the group; and

information output means for outputting the information appropriate for the customers in the group, based on the number of the members in the group identified by the group identification information related to the personal identification information of the customers.

11. The service provision system according to claim 10,

the service provision means further comprising customer registration means for registering a property of each of the customers by relating the property to the personal identification information thereof,

the information storage means storing the information by further relating the information to the property, which is suitable for provision of the information, of each of the customers, and

the information output means outputting the information appropriate for each of the customers, based on the property of each of the customers related to the personal identification information thereof.

41. The service provision system according to claim 9, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

12. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers, and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the group to each of the members of the group, wherein

the service provision means comprises;

identification information transmission means held by each of the customers for transmitting the personal identification information thereof;

photography means for carrying out automatic photography of the customers having the identification information transmission means in response to reception of the personal identification information from the identification information transmission means;

image storage means for storing an image output through the automatic photography by relating the image to the personal identification information received by the photography means;

image search means for obtaining the image related to the personal identification information of the customers through a search of the image storage means for the image in response to a search request of any one of the customers; and

search permission/prohibition setting means for permitting or prohibiting the search for the image by the image search means, for the group identified by the group identification information related to the personal identification information related to the image.

42. The service provision system according to claim 12, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

13. A service provision system comprising:

group registration means for registering respective members of a group comprising customers by relating group identification information for identifying the group to personal identification information for identifying each of the customers, and

service provision means for providing a service of high convenience for the group to each of the members of the group, wherein

the group registration means registers the personal identification information of one of the members in charge of payment for predetermined goods and/or services by relating the personal identification information of the member to the group identification information of the group, and

the service provision means totals up prices and/or charges for the predetermined goods and/or services for the group and the member in charge of payment collectively pays therefor.

43. The service provision system according to claim 13, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

14. An automatic photography system for automatically photographing a group of customers, the automatic photography system comprising:

a camera installed at a predetermined position;

first communication means distributed to each of the customers for transmitting personal identification information specific thereto;

second communication means installed at a known position for receiving the personal identification information transmitted from the first communication means;

group information management means for managing information on the group by relating the information to the personal identification information of each of the customers;

position detection means for detecting a position of each of the customers based on the personal identification information received by the second communication means; and

photography timing control means for controlling timing of photography of the group by the camera, based on output from the position detection means and the information managed by the group information management means.

15. The automatic photography system according to claim 14, wherein the photography timing control means compares the number of the customers in the group with the number of the customers in the group in a photography range, and causes the camera to carry out the photography if the number of the customers in the photography range is equal to the number of the customers in the group, and causes the camera to stand by for the photography if the number of the customers in the photography range is smaller than the number of the customers in the group.

16. The automatic photography system according to claim 14, wherein the photography timing control means controls the timing based on state flow monitoring of each of the customers in the group.

17. The automatic photography system according to claim 14, the automatic photography system further comprising notification means for notifying the photography timing to the group to be photographed or to a group not to be photographed, based on output from the photography timing control means.

18. The automatic photography system according to claim 15, the automatic photography system further comprising notification means for notifying the photography timing to the group to be photographed or to a group not to be photographed, based on output from the photography timing control means.

19. The automatic photography system according to claim 16, the automatic photography system further comprising notification means for notifying the photography timing to the group to be photographed or to a group not to be photographed, based on output from the photography timing control means.

20. The automatic photography system according to claim 14, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

21. The automatic photography system according to claim 15, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

22. The automatic photography system according to claim 16, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

23. The automatic photography system according to claim 17, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

24. The automatic photography system according to claim 18, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

25. The automatic photography system according to claim 19, wherein the second communication means notifies the first communication means of the photography timing, based on output from the photography timing control means.

44. The automatic photography system according to claim 14, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

26. An automatic photography system comprising:

identification information transmission means held by a customer for transmitting personal identification information for identifying the customer;

photography means for carrying out automatic photography of the customer in response to reception of the personal identification information sent from the identification information transmission means; and

image storage means for storing an image output through the automatic photography by relating the image to the personal identification information received by the photography means, the automatic photography system further comprising;

customer information storage means for storing the personal identification information transmitted by the identification information transmission means by relating the personal identification information to customer information for identifying the customer holding the identification information transmission means;

media output means for outputting a distribution medium to be distributed to the customer by recording the personal identification information of the customer in the distribution medium; and

access enabling means for enabling access to the customer information based on the personal identification information in subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer who received the distribution medium, by reading the personal identification information recorded in the distribution medium and by relating the customer information stored in the customer information storage means by being related to the personal identification information to the personal identification information transmitted by the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use.

27. The automatic photography system according to claim 26, wherein the media output means outputs the distribution medium to be provided to the customer identified by the personal identification information, by recording in the distribution medium the personal identification information and the image stored in the image storage means by being related to the personal identification information.

28. The automatic photography system according to claim 26, wherein, in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer who received the distribution medium, the access enabling means enables access to the image by reading the personal identification information recorded in the distribution medium and by further relating the image stored in the image storage means by being related to the personal identification information to the personal identification information transmitted by the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use.

29. The automatic photography system according to claim 26, the customer information including date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer,

the automatic photography system further comprising system update information storage means for storing information on update of the automatic photography system by relating the information to date of the update;

and

the media output means obtaining from the customer information storage means the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer identified by the personal identification information to be recorded in the distribution medium, obtaining from the system update information storage means the information on the update of the automatic photography system carried out after the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and outputting the information on the update by recording the information in the distribution medium.

32. The automatic photography systems according to claim 28, the image storage means storing a photography condition used at the time of the photography of the image by the photography means by relating the photography condition to the image,

the photography means obtaining, prior to the photography in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer, from the image storage means the photography condition regarding the image of the customer that was photographed before the subsequent use and became accessible by the access enabling means, based on the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means in the subsequent use, and the photography means setting the photography condition in the subsequent use according to the photography condition having been obtained.

34. The automatic photography system according to claim 28, the automatic photography system further comprising:

image processing means for obtaining the image from the image storage means according to an order placed by the customer and for carrying out image processing for editing and processing the image; and

image processing condition storage means for storing a condition of the image processing regarding the image, wherein

the image processing means obtains, prior to the image processing in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer, from the image processing condition storage means the condition of the image processing on the image of the customer that was photographed before the subsequent use and became accessible by the access enabling means, based on the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use, and the image processing means sets the condition of the image processing in the subsequent use, based on the condition having been obtained.

36. The automatic photography system according to claim 28, the customer information including date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and

the automatic photography system further comprising:

system update information storage means for storing information on update of the automatic photography system by relating the information to date of the update; and

notification means for obtaining from the customer information storage means the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer identified by the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system, for obtaining from the system update information storage means the information on the update of the automatic photography system carried out after the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and for notifying the customer of the information on the update.

45. The automatic photography system according to claim 26, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).

30. An automatic photography system comprising:

identification information transmission means held by a customer for transmitting personal identification information for identifying the customer;

photography means for carrying out automatic photography of the customer in response to reception of the personal identification information sent from the identification information transmission means; and

image storage means for storing an image output through the automatic photography by relating the image to the personal identification information received by the photography means, the automatic photography system further comprising;

customer information storage means for storing customer information for identifying the customer holding the identification information transmission means, by relating the customer information to the personal identification information sent by the identification information transmission means;

effective period storage means for storing an effective period during which the automatic photography system can be used based on the personal identification information; and

access enabling means for obtaining from the effective period storage means the effective period regarding the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means held by the customer in subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and for enabling access to the customer information stored in the customer information storage means by being related to the personal identification information transmitted by the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the case where the effective period has not expired.

31. The automatic photography system according to claim 30, wherein, in the case where the customer information can be accessed, the access enabling means also enables access to the image stored in the image storage means by being related to the personal identification information of the customer.

33. The automatic photography systems according to claim 31, the image storage means storing a photography condition used at the time of the photography of the image by the photography means by relating the photography condition to the image,

the photography means obtaining, prior to the photography in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer, from the image storage means the photography condition regarding the image of the customer that was photographed before the subsequent use and became accessible by the access enabling means, based on the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means in the subsequent use, and the photography means setting the photography condition in the subsequent use according to the photography condition having been obtained.

35. The automatic photography system according to claim 31, the automatic photography system further comprising:

image processing means for obtaining the image from the image storage means according to an order placed by the customer and for carrying out image processing for editing and processing the image; and

image processing condition storage means for storing a condition of the image processing regarding the image, wherein

the image processing means obtains, prior to the image processing in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system by the customer, from the image processing condition storage means the condition of the image processing on the image of the customer that was photographed before the subsequent use and became accessible by the access enabling means, based on the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use, and the image processing means sets the condition of the image processing in the subsequent use, based on the condition having been obtained.

37. The automatic photography system according to claim 31, the customer information including date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and

the automatic photography system further comprising:

system update information storage means for storing information on update of the automatic photography system by relating the information to date of the update; and

notification means for obtaining from the customer information storage means the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer identified by the personal identification information transmitted from the identification information transmission means held by the customer in the subsequent use of the automatic photography system, for obtaining from the system update information storage means the information on the update of the automatic photography system carried out after the date of last use of the automatic photography system by the customer, and for notifying the customer of the information on the update.

46. The automatic photography system according to claim 30, wherein the personal identification information is recorded in an RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification).