Accessing additional information associated with the image and sending the additional information to a second user terminal

• US 7,502,133 B2
• Filed: 09/09/2004
• Issued: 03/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meta Platforms, Inc. (f/k/a Facebook, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukunaga, Yoshitsugu, Suzuki, Tadashi, Shimomura, Takuya
• Primary Examiner(s): Popovici; Dov
• Application Number:
  US10/936,587
• Publication Number:
  US 20050052695A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,643 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.15, 358/1.13, 358/1.1, 358/1.2, 358/1.5, 358/1.6, 358/1.9, 358/1.14, 358/1.16, 358/1.18, 358/407, 358/468, 379/88.13, 705/14, 709/219, 709/207, 347/2, 347/3, 347/5, 399/1, 399/8, 707/104.1, 707/10, 707/9
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• 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 1/00145 from a remote location
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00188 Printing, e.g. prints or reprints H04N1/0019, H04N1/00196 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00244 with a server, e.g. an internet server fax-servers or the like for store and forward H04N1/324
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/00307 with a mobile telephone apparatus constructional features of portable telephone sets H04M1/0202; mobile radio systems H04W84/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32101 Display, printing, storage or transmission of additional information, e.g. ID code, date and time or title
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32122 in a separate device, e.g. in a memory or on a display separate from image data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 1/32133 on the same paper sheet, e.g. a facsimile page header
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/0084 Digital still camera
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3249 data relating to a linked page or object, e.g. hyperlink
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3264 of sound signals
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3269 of machine readable codes or marks, e.g. bar codes or glyphs
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3271 Printing or stamping
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 2201/3274 Storage or retrieval of prestored additional information

Abstract

An image uploaded from a camera-equipped cellular phone, and additional information attached to the image such as voice information and the like are managed in a database in a service server. Then, an URL for accessing the additional information is issued and converted into a QR code. Order information including the image and the QR code are sent to the print device, and a photo print having the image and the QR code printed on a print paper is produced. When the camera-equipped cellular phone reads the QR code on the photo print and accesses by use of the URL acquired by decrypting the above described QR code, the managed additional information on the image is read from the database correspondingly to the URL, and sent to the camera-equipped cellular phone which has accessed.

Claims

1. A service server for communicating with a first user terminal and a second user terminal via a network and accepting a print instruction for an image uploaded from the first user terminal, comprising:

a receiving device which receives the image for which the print instruction is given from the first user terminal, and additional information associated with the image;

a database which manages the additional information on the received image;

an access information issuing device which issues access information for accessing the additional information managed in the database;

a print instruction device which sends a string or a code including the access information, along with the image for which the print instruction has been accepted, to a printer to print the string or the code and the image on a print medium;

and a sending device which, when the second user terminal accesses, based on the string or the code including the access information printed on the print medium, by using the access information, reads from the database the additional information corresponding to the access information, and sends the additional information to the second user terminal which has accessed.

2. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the additional information includes at least one of voice information, position information, text information and music information.

3. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the additional information includes shooting position information, and the sending device sends, based on the shooting position information read out from the database, map information including the position.

4. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the printer is a printer in the service server, or a printer in a printer server connected to the network.

5. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the database manages the received image and the additional information associated with the image, and when the second user terminal accesses, based on the string or the code including the access information printed on the print medium, by using The access information, The sending device reads from the database an image managed correspondingly to the access information, and sends the image to the second user terminal.

6. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the additional information includes voice information, and when the receiving device receives newly the voice information associated with the image managed in the database, from the first or the second user terminal, the newly received voice information is attached to the image in the database, or the voice information on the image is updated with the newly received voice information.

7. The service server according to claim 1, wherein the first user terminal is a camera-equipped cellular phone.

8. The service server according to claim 1, wherein The code including the access information is a two-dimensional code.

9. The service server according to claim 8, wherein the second user terminal is a camera-equipped cellular phone having a function of decrypting the image in which a two-dimensional code has been shot to acquire the access information.

10. The service sewer according to claim 1, wherein the first user terminal and the second user terminal are identical to each other.

11. A print service method for performing print service via a network, comprising the steps of:

uploading an image for which a print instruction is given from a first user terminal via a network, and additional information associated with the image to a service server;

managing the additional information in a database;

issuing access information for accessing the additional information;

printing a string or a code including the access information, along with the image for which the print instruction has been accepted, onto a print medium;

accessing from a second user terminal, based on the string or the code including the access information printed on the print medium, by using the access information; and

when the access is executed by using the access information, reading from the database the additional information corresponding to the access information, and sending the additional information to the second user terminal.

12. A user terminal, in an image data communication system in which the user terminal and a service server may communicate with each other via a network, comprising:

a print image designation device which designates the image data to be printed;

a print image display device which displays image data to be printed;

an additional information input device which inputs additional information associated with the image data to be printed;

an additional information sending device which sends the additional information inputted by the additional information input device, to the service server;

an access information input device which inputs a string or a code including access information for accessing the additional information issued by the service server;

an access information sending device which sends the access information to the service server;

an additional information receiving device which receives the additional information corresponding to the access information from the service server; and

an additional information output device which outputs the additional information.

13. The user terminal according to claim 12, further comprising:

a print image storage device which stores at least one or more of the image data to be printed, and a print image sending device which sends the image data to be printed, to the service server.