Mobile telephone for printing a business card

• US 7,952,743 B2
• Filed: 12/17/2009
• Issued: 05/31/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Original Assignee: Silverbrook Research Pty Limited
• Inventors: Silverbrook, Kia, Lapstun, Paul, Walmsley, Simon Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): Haskins; Twyler L
• Assistant Examiner(s): Dicker; Dennis
• Application Number:
  US12/641,313
• Publication Number:
  US 20100099459A1
• Time in Patent Office: 530 Days
• Field of Search: 358/1.15, 358/1.18, 358/473, 358/305, 358/448, 455/556, 235/462.01, 235/462.09, 235/375, 235/380, 235/381, 235/493, 235/387, 235/492
• US Class Current: 358/1.15
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 13/12 specially adapted for small cards, envelopes, or the like , e.g. credit cards, cut visiting cards
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 19/207 Encoding along a bar
• CPC Class Codes: B41J 3/445 Printers integrated in other types of apparatus, e.g. printers integrated in cameras
• CPC Class Codes: B42D 15/02 Postcards; Greeting, menu, business or like cards; Letter cards or letter-sheets B42D25/00 takes precedence; envelopes B65D27/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/06037 multi-dimensional coding
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/02 Reservations, e.g. for tickets, services or events
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3829 involving key management

Abstract

A mobile telephone is provided for printing a business card on a print medium. The print medium has coded data indicative of a print medium identifier and the mobile telephone has an inbuilt printer module to print the business card on the print medium such that the print medium shows at least one contact detail relevant to a business. The mobile telephone also has an interface for connection to a remote server, a sensor module to sense a print media identifier of the print medium and, a processor to generate an association between the print medium identifier and the at least one contact detail. Sensing the coded data with the sensor module to derive the print medium identifier, allows the processor to perform an action in relation to the contact detail.

Claims

1. A mobile telephone for printing a business card on a print medium that has coded data indicative of a print medium identifier, the mobile telephone comprising:

an inbuilt printer module to print the business card on the print medium such that the print medium shows at least one contact detail relevant to a business;

an interface for connection to a remote server;

a sensor module to sense a print media identifier of the print medium;

a media feed path, such that when the print medium is presented in the media feed path at least some of the coded data is read using the sensor module, and the print media identifier is determined using the at least some read coded data; and

,

a processor to generate an association between the print medium identifier and the at least one contact detail such that sensing the coded data with the sensor module to derive the print medium identifier, allows the processor to perform an action in relation to the contact detail;

wherein the coded data comprises first coded data in a first format and second coded data in a second format, the first coded data encoding first information and the second coded data encoding second information, at least some of the first information being indicative of the print media identifier, the first format being a linear pattern, at least some of the second information being indicative of the print media identifier and of a two-dimensional coordinate grid, the second format being a two-dimensional pattern.

2. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the processor accesses information associated with the business card stored in an archive in response to sensing the coded data with the sensor module.

3. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the printer module prints at least some of the coded data on the print medium.

4. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the association of the at least one contact detail with the print media identifier is stored in a database stored remotely at the remote server.

5. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 2, wherein information associated with the business card can be subsequently retrieved from the archive using the print media identifier.

6. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 5, wherein the print medium includes at least one interactive element associated with a linked object, and the linked object is associated with a region of the print medium using the second coded data, and the linked object is stored in an object repository.

7. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein printing requires payment.

8. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 2, wherein the coded data is further indicative of at least part of a digital signature associated with the print media identifier, wherein during use, the printer module prints the business card upon successful authentication of the digital signature.

9. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 2, wherein the printed business card is a permission token readable using the sensor module to retrieve information associated with the business card, the information including at least one of:

a name;

an address;

a telephone number;

a facsimile number;

an e-mail address;

a web address;

a photograph; and

contact details.

10. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 2, wherein the processor stores the information associated with the business card in the archive in response to printing the business card.

11. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 10, wherein the information associated with the business card includes one or more of:

the business card;

a visual description of the business card;

an image of the business card;

an interactive description of the business card;

contents of the business card; and

business card details.

12. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the business card includes at least one of:

a name;

an address;

a telephone number;

a facsimile number;

an e-mail address;

a web address;

a photograph; and

contact details printed on the print medium.

13. The mobile telephone as claimed in claim 1, wherein the business card is received wirelessly by the mobile communications device.