Information providing method, information providing system, terminal apparatus, and storage medium storing information providing program

• US 7,433,868 B1
• Filed: 04/11/2000
• Issued: 10/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 04/14/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Inoue, Atsushi, Kasai, Kenji, Satomi, Hiroshi, Masukawa, Akihiro, Ito, Kosuke, Izumi, Jiro, Fukunaga, Shinji
• Primary Examiner(s): Colbert; Ella
• Application Number:
  US09/547,284
• Time in Patent Office: 3,101 Days
• Field of Search: 707/3, 707/100, 707/101, 707/5, 707/1, 700 96- 99, 709223-226, 709/209, 713/176, 713/200, 713/201, 713/202, 713/229, 705/26, 705/27, 705/14, 715/500, 715/513, 715/521, 715/527, 358/1.6, 358/1.18, 358/1.15
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising

Abstract

An information providing method, information providing system, terminal apparatus, and storage medium storing an information providing program, which enable to extract actually desired information and appropriately extract information desired next, are provided. A predetermined code is input from a P service terminal (100). A P service server (200) searches the first database for first information corresponding to the code and extracts the information. When a predetermined condition is satisfied, second information is searched for from the second database and extracted. The extracted second information is attached to the first information. The first information or the first information having the second information is returned to the P service terminal (100).

Claims

1. A method of controlling an information processing apparatus accessible to a first database and a second database, the first database storing a plurality of pieces of first information and their properties associated with unique identification codes, and the second database storing a plurality of pieces of second information and their properties, said method comprising the steps of:

receiving a unique identification code from an external communication apparatus;

retrieving a piece of the first information and its property corresponding to the received unique identification code from the first database in a first retrieval step;

retrieving for a plurality of pieces of the second information and their properties from the second database based on the property of the retrieved piece of the first information in a second retrieval step;

setting a printing priority on each of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the properties of the retrieved pieces of the second information;

preparing a plurality of printing layout examples for printing the retrieved pieces of the second information to be printed with the retrieved piece of the first information, each of the printing layout examples including at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the printing priorities;

selecting one printing layout example from the plurality of printing layout examples; and

creating printing data for printing the retrieved piece of the first information and the at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information according to the selected printing layout example.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the properties of the plurality of pieces of the second information include at least one of limitations on printing, term for printing, and opportunities for printing.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second information contains arbitrary advertisement information.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising a step of setting whether the second information is to be printed or not, and wherein said second retrieval step is performed in accordance with the setting.

5. An information processing apparatus accessible to a first database and a second database, the first database storing a plurality of pieces of first information and their properties associated with unique identification codes, and the second database storing a plurality of pieces of second information and their properties, said apparatus comprising:

receiving means for receiving a unique identification code from an external communication apparatus;

first retrieval means for retrieving a piece of the first information and its property corresponding to the received unique identification code from the first database;

second retrieval means for retrieving for a plurality of pieces of the second information and their properties from the second database based on the property of the retrieved piece of the first information;

setting means for setting a printing priority on each of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the properties of the retrieved pieces of the second information;

preparation means for preparing a plurality of printing layout examples for printing the retrieved pieces of the second information to be printed with the retrieved piece of the first information, each of the printing layout examples including at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the printing priorities;

selection means for selecting one printing layout example from the plurality of printing layout examples; and

creating means for creating printing data for printing the retrieved piece of the first information and the at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information according to the selected printing layout example.

6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the properties of the plurality of pieces of the second information are registered and comprise at least one of limitations on printing, term for printing, and opportunities for printing.

7. The system according to claim 5, wherein the second information contains arbitrary advertisement information.

8. The system according to claim 5, further comprising means for setting whether the second information is to be printed or not, and wherein said second retrieval means performs in accordance with the setting.

9. A computer-readable storage medium which stores computer-executable program code for controlling an information processing apparatus accessible to a first database and a second database, the first database storing a plurality of pieces of first information and their properties associated with unique identification codes, and the second database storing a plurality of pieces of second information and their properties, the program code comprising code for performing the steps of:

receiving a unique identification code from an external communication apparatus;

retrieving a piece of the first information and its property corresponding to the received unique identification code from the first database in a first retrieval step;

retrieving a plurality of pieces of the second information and their properties from the second database based on the property of the retrieved piece of the first information in a second retrieval step;

setting a printing priority on each of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the properties of the retrieved pieces of the second information;

preparing a plurality of printing layout examples for printing the retrieved pieces of the second information to be printed with the retrieved piece of the first information, each of the printing layout examples including at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information based on the printing priorities;

selecting one printing layout example from the plurality of printing layout examples; and

creating printing data for printing the retrieved piece of the first information and the at least one of the retrieved pieces of the second information according to the selected printing layout example.