U.S. patent application number 10/815618 was filed with the patent office on 2004-10-07 for dynamic user registration.
This patent application is currently assigned to Silverbrook Research Pty Ltd. Invention is credited to Lapstun, Jacqueline Anne, Lapstun, Paul, Scott, Paul Quentin, Silverbrook, Kia.
Application Number | 20040199424 10/815618 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 33098678 |
Filed Date | 2004-10-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040199424 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Scott, Paul Quentin ; et
al. |
October 7, 2004 |
Dynamic user registration
Abstract
A method of enabling submission of form data to an application
via a printed form, the printed form having coded data readable by
a sensing device as the sensing device is used to interact with the
form, the method including the steps, performed in a computer
system, of: receiving, from the sensing device: interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data enabling the form data to be electronically
captured in the computer system; and a sensing device ID of the
sensing device; allocating a temporary registration to the sensing
device ID or to a user associated with the sensing device, the
registration including a return telecommunication address
associated with the sensing device ID or the user; transmitting the
form data to the application.
Inventors: |
Scott, Paul Quentin;
(Balmain, AU) ; Lapstun, Paul; (Balmain, AU)
; Lapstun, Jacqueline Anne; (Balmain, AU) ;
Silverbrook, Kia; (Balmain, AU) |
Correspondence
Address: |
SILVERBROOK RESEARCH PTY LTD
393 DARLING STREET
BALMAIN
2041
AU
|
Assignee: |
Silverbrook Research Pty
Ltd
|
Family ID: |
33098678 |
Appl. No.: |
10/815618 |
Filed: |
April 2, 2004 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
705/14.14 ;
348/E3.021 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06K 7/10722 20130101;
H04N 5/3651 20130101; G06K 7/10623 20130101; G06Q 30/0601 20130101;
G06K 7/10772 20130101; H04N 5/378 20130101; G06K 7/10693 20130101;
H04N 5/33 20130101; H04N 5/3742 20130101; G06Q 30/0236 20130101;
H04N 5/37457 20130101; G06Q 10/00 20130101; G06Q 20/20 20130101;
G06Q 30/0267 20130101; H04N 3/1568 20130101; G06Q 10/087 20130101;
G06Q 30/0217 20130101; G06F 3/0321 20130101; G06F 3/014 20130101;
G06Q 30/0212 20130101; G06K 7/10554 20130101; G06Q 30/02 20130101;
H04N 5/3765 20130101; G06Q 30/0207 20130101; G06Q 30/0259 20130101;
H04N 5/3559 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/014 |
International
Class: |
G06F 017/60 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 7, 2003 |
AU |
2003901617 |
Apr 15, 2003 |
AU |
2003901795 |
Claims
1. A method of enabling submission of form data to an application
via a printed form, the printed form having coded data readable by
a sensing device as the sensing device is used to interact with the
form, the method including the steps, performed in a computer
system, of: receiving, from the sensing device: interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data enabling the form data to be electronically
captured in the computer system; and a sensing device ID of the
sensing device; allocating a temporary registration to the sensing
device ID or to a user associated with the sensing device, the
registration including a return telecommunication address
associated with the sensing device ID or the user; transmitting the
form data to the application.
2. The method of claim 1, further including the step of sending a
message, via the return telecommunication address, confirming that
the at least some of the interaction data has been sent to the
application.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein the form is disposed on a product
label including human-readable information relating to the form,
and the coded data relates to at least an identity of the
label.
4. The method of claim 2, wherein at least some of the coded data
includes a label identifier.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein the label identifier is a unique
product item identifier.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the unique product item
identifier is an electronic product code.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein the coded data is substantially
invisible to a human.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein the sensing device ID is stored
in the sensing device and is a unique identifier of the sensing
device.
9. The method of claim 8, wherein the computer system includes a
database of sensing device IDs and the method further includes the
step of the computer system checking the unique identifier against
the database and only allocating the temporary registration if the
unique identifier is not found in the database.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the temporary registration is a
netpage user identification.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein the temporary registration is
allocated when the sensing device is first used to interact with
the form data form.
12. A method of enabling submission of form data to an application
via a printed form, the printed form including human-readable
information relating to the form and machine-readable coded data
relating to an identity of the form, the method including the
steps, performed in a computer system, of: receiving, from the
sensing device, interaction data and sensing device identification
information, the interaction data including the identity of the
form and having been generated by the sensing device based on coded
data sensed in response to the sensing device being used to
interact with the label; allocating, on the basis of the sensing
device identification information, a temporary registration to the
sensing device or a user associated with the sensing device, the
registration including a return telecommunication address
associated with the sensing device or the user; and transmitting at
least some of the interaction data to the application.
13. The method of claim 12, further including the step of sending a
message, via the return telecommunication address, confirming that
at least some of the interaction data has been sent to the
application.
14. The method of claim 13, further including the step of ensuring
that only a single temporary registration is allocated per sensing
device or user.
15. A system for enabling submission of form data to an
application, the system comprising: a sensing device having a
sensing device ID, the sensing device being configured to sense
coded data on a form and generate interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data, and having a
transmitter for transmitting the sensing device ID and interaction
data to a computer system; and a computer system configured and
programmed to: receive the sensing device ID and the interaction
data; allocate a temporary registration to the sensing device ID or
to a user associated with the sensing device, the registration
including a return telecommunication address associated with the
sensing device ID or the user; transmit the form data to the
application.
16. The system of claim 15, wherein the computer system is further
configured to send a message, via the return telecommunication
address, confirming that the at least some of the interaction data
has been sent to the application.
17. The system of claim 15, wherein the interaction data identifies
at least an identity of the form and a position of the sensing
device relative to the form.
18. A system for enabling submission of form data via a form that
includes machine-readable coded information relating to an identity
of the label, a sensing device having sensed at least some of the
machine-readable coded data as the sensing device was used to
interact with the product label and having generated interaction
data based at least partly on the sensed coded data, the
interaction data including at least the identity, the sensing
device including a sensing device ID; the system comprising a
computer system configured and programmed to: receive the sensing
device ID and the interaction data; allocate a temporary
registration to the sensing device ID or to a user associated with
the sensing device, the registration including a return
telecommunication address associated with the sensing device ID or
the user; transmit the form data to the application.
19. The system of claim 18, wherein the computer system is further
configured to send a message, via the return telecommunication
address, confirming that the at least some of the interaction data
has been sent to the application.
20. The system of claim 18, wherein the product label includes one
or more of: information fields that show information about the
competition; button fields that generate one or more actions; and
entry fields for user input.
21. The system of claim 20, wherein each button field is coincident
or adjacent machine-readable coded data, the computer being
configured to perform the action based on coded data sensed when
the sensing device was used to interact with the button field.
22. The system of claim 18, further comprising a display device
associated with the user, wherein the action associated with
interacting with at least one of the button fields using the
sensing device is displaying information on the display device.
23. The system of claim 22 wherein communication with the display
device occurs via the telecommunication address.
24. A label including human-readable information and
machine-readable coded data, the label being configured for use
with the method of claim 1 or 12, or the system of claim 15 or
18.
25. A method according to claim 1, for enabling entry to a
competition via machine-readable coded data on an entry form on a
printed label of a product, the method including the steps of:
receiving, in a computer system, interaction data from a sensing
device, the interaction data representing interaction of the
sensing device with the coded data on the entry form, the
interaction data allowing the competition entry to be
electronically captured in the computer system; and transmitting
the competition entry to a competition administrator.
26. A method according to claim 1, using a product label for
enabling entry to a competition, the product label comprising:
machine-readable coded data indicative of at least an identity of
the label, said machine-readable coded data being readable by a
sensing device as the sensing device is moved across the product
label, thereby to produce interaction data for enabling the
competition entry; human-readable information pertaining to the
competition, the human-readable information being at least
partially coincident with the machine-readable coded data, the
human-readable information including at least one field element
that has a corresponding zone defined in relation to it in a page
description stored in a remote computer system.
27. A method according to claim 1, for enabling anonymous entry to
a competition via a printed competition entry form that includes
machine-readable coded data, the method including the steps,
performed in a computer system, of: receiving interaction data
representing interaction of a sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data enabling the competition entry to be
electronically captured in the computer system; assigning a
competition alias ID to the competition entry; and transmitting the
competition entry to a competition administrator with the
competition alias ID, thereby enabling the anonymous entry to the
competition.
28. A method according to claim 1, for enabling anonymous entry to
a competition, the competition being entered by interaction of a
sensing device with a product label to generate interaction data
indicative of at least an intention to enter the competition, the
method including the steps, performed in a computer system, of:
identifying a first telecommunication address of the entrant from:
an identity of the sensing device received or determined in the
computer system; or the interaction data; associating a temporary
telecommunication address with the first telecommunication address;
sending the temporary telecommunication address and interaction
data to a competition administrator; receiving, from the
competition administrator, information from the competition
administrator addressed to said temporary telecommunication
address; and forwarding the information from the competition
administrator to the first telecommunication address.
29. A method according to claim 1, for: enabling an entrant to
enter a competition; and limiting subsequent communication between
a competition administrator and the entrant; via a sensing device
interacting with machine-readable coded data on a printed
competition entry form, the method comprising the steps, performed
in a computer system, of: (a) receiving interaction data
representing the interaction of the sensing device with the coded
data, the interaction data enabling the competition entry to be
electronically captured in the computer system; (b) transmitting
the competition entry to the competition administrator; and (c)
enabling transmission of up to a predetermined number of electronic
messages from the competition administrator to the entrant.
30. A method according to claim 1, for limiting communication
between an application and a user, via a sensing device interacting
with machine-readable coded data printed on a surface, the method
comprising the steps, performed in a computer system, of: (a)
receiving interaction data representing the interaction of the
sensing device with the coded data, the interaction data enabling
identification of the application; (b) transmitting information
based on at least some of the interaction data to the application;
and (c) enabling transmission of up to a predetermined number of
electronic messages from the application to the user.
31. A method according to claim 1, for enabling an entrant to enter
an instant win competition via a printed competition entry form
that includes machine-readable coded data that can be sensed by a
sensing device configured to generate interaction data based on the
sensed coded data, the method comprising the steps, performed in a
computer system, of: receiving the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data, the
interaction data enabling the competition entry to be captured in
the computer system; transmitting the competition entry to a
competition administrator that is configured to determine whether
the competition entry is an instant win entry.
32. A method according to claim 1, for enabling anonymous
electronic redemption of a coupon printed as part of a product
label, the product label including machine-readable coded data, the
method including the steps, performed in a computer system, of:
receiving interaction data representing interaction of a sensing
device with the coded data, the interaction data enabling
electronic capture of: coupon data of the coupon; and a product
identifier associated with the product label; assigning a
competition alias ID to the coupon data; and transmitting the
coupon data, the product identifier and the competition alias ID to
a coupon administrator configured to redeem the coupon
electronically.
33. A method according to claim 1, for enabling anonymous and
electronic redemption a plurality of coupons, wherein each the
plurality of coupons is disposed on a product label and includes
coded data that can be used to determine a unique product
identifier of the product label with which it is associated, the
method including the steps of: using a sensing device, and for each
of the plurality of coupons: (a) generating interaction data by
sensing at least some of the coded data of the coupon, the
interaction data representing interaction of the sensing device
with the coded data; and (b) forwarding the interaction data to a
computer system, for enabling the coupon offer and the product
identifier associated with the product label to be captured
electronically in the computer system, thereby enabling the
computer system to transmit the coupon offer and the product
identifier to a coupon administrator; and receiving coupon
redemption information from the coupon administrator after a
predetermined combination of coupon offers relating to a plurality
of the product identifiers and or coupon offers has been
transmitted to the coupon administrator.
34. A method according to claim 1, for validating entry to a
competition via interaction of a sensing device with a printed
competition entry form comprising coded data indicative of a unique
product identifier, the method comprising the steps, performed in
the computer system, of: receiving, from the sensing device, the
product identifier and interaction data representing interaction of
the sensing device with the coded data, the interaction data
including at least the unique product identifier and enabling a
competition entry to be electronically captured in the computer
system; and transmitting the product identifier and the competition
entry to a competition administrator for validation of the
competition entry at the competition administrator by verification
of the product identifier.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates generally to the field of promotional
competitions for retail sale of product items, typically high
volume, low cost grocery items. In particular, the invention
relates to the use of invisible product tagging.
CO-PENDING APPLICATIONS
[0002] Various methods, systems and apparatus relating to the
present invention are disclosed in the following co-pending
applications, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by
cross-reference:
1 HYC001US, HYC002US, HYC003US, HYC004US, HYC005US, HYC006US,
HYC007US, HYC008US, HYC009US, HYC011US, HYT001US, HYT002US,
HYT003US, HYT004US, HYT005US, HYT006US, HYT007US, HYT008US,
HYG001US, HYG002US, HYG003US, HYG004US, HYG005US, HYG006US,
HYG007US, HYG008US, HYG009US, HYG010US, HYG011US, HYG012US,
HYG013US, HYG014US, HYG015US, HYG016US, IRA001US, IRA002US,
IRA003US, HYJ001US, HYJ002US, HYD001US.
CROSS REFERENCES
[0003] Various methods, systems and apparatus relating to the
present invention are disclosed in the following co-pending
applications filed by the applicant or assignee of the present
invention. The disclosures of all of these co-pending applications
and granted patents are incorporated herein by cross-reference.
2 10/409,876 10/409,848 10/409,845 09/575,197 09/575,195 09/575,159
09/575,132 09/575,123 09/575,148 09/575,130 09/575,165 09/575,153
09/693,415 09/575,118 09/609,139 09/608,970 09/575,116 09/575,144
09/575,139 09/575,186 09/575,185 09/609,039 09/663,579 09/663,599
09/607,852 09/575,191 09/693,219 09/575,145 09/607,656 09/693,280
09/609/132 09/693,515 09/663,701 09/575,192 09/663,640 09/609,303
09/610,095 09/609,596 09/693,705 09/693,647 09/721,895 09/721,894
09/607,843 09/693,690 09/607,605 09/608,178 09/609,553 09/609,233
09/609,149 09/608,022 09/575,181 09/722,174 09/721,896 10/291,522
10/291,517 10/291,523 10/291,471 10/291,470 10/291,819 10/291,481
10/291,509 10/291,825 10/291,519 10/291,575 10/291,557 10/291,661
10/291,558 10/291,587 10/291,818 10/291,576 10/291,589 10/291,526
6,644,545 6,609,653 6,651,879 10/291,555 10/291,510 19/291,592
10/291,542 10/291,820 10/291,516 10/291,363 10/291,487 10/291,520
10/291,521 10/291,556 10/291,821 10/291,525 10/291,586 10/291,822
10/291,524 10/291,553 10/291,511 10/291,585 10/291,374 10/685,523
10/685,583 10/685,455 10/685,584 NPA133US 09/575,193 09/575,156
09/609,232 09/607,844 09/607,657 09/693,593 NPB008US 09/928,055
09/927,684 09/928,108 09/927,685 09/927,809 09/575,183 09/575,160
09/575,150 09/575,169 6,644,642 6,502,614 6,622,999 09/575,149
10/322,450 6,549,935 NPN004US 09/575,187 09/575,155 6,591,884
6,439,706 09/575,196 09/575,198 09/722,148 09/722,146 09/721,861
6,290,349 6,428,155 09/575,146 09/608,920 09/721,892 09/722,171
09/721,858 09/722,142 10/171,987 10/202,021 10/291,724 10/291,512
10/291,554 10/659,027 10/659,026 09/693,301 09/575,174 09/575,163
09/693,216 09/693,341 09/693,473 09/722,087 09/722,141 09/722,175
09/722,147 09/575,168 09/722,172 09/693,514 09/721,893 09/722,088
10/291,578 10/291,823 10/291,560 10/291,366 10/291,503 10/291,469
10/274,817 09/575,154 09/575,129 09/575,124 09/575,188 09/721,862
10/120,441 10/291,577 10/291,718 10/291,719 10/291,543 10/291,494
10/292,608 10/291,715 10/291,559 10/291,660 10/409,864 10/309,358
10/410,484 10/683,151 10/683,040 09/575,189 09/575,162 09/575,172
09/575,170 09/575,171 09/575,161 10/291,716 10/291,547 10/291,538
10/291,717 10/291,827 10/291,548 10/291,714 10/291,544 10/291,541
10/291,584 10/291,579 10/291,824 10/291,713 10/291,545 10/291,546
09/693,388 09/693,704 09/693,510 09/693,336 09/693,335 10/181,496
10/274,119 10/309,185 10/309,066 NPW014US NPS047US NPS048US
NPS049US NPS050US NPS051US NPS052US NPS053US NPS054US NPS045US
NPS046US NPT037US NPA138US NPA136US
[0004] Some application has been listed by docket numbers, these
will be replace when application number are known.
BACKGROUND
[0005] Due to the significant proliferation of low cost retail
outlets for staples and other consumables, there has developed a
wide range of marketing schemes to attract customers to individual
stores or specific products. These schemes are not directly based
on product or price differentiation. For instance, most customers
are familiar with the range of competitions that promote products.
These competitions typically require a customer to send in an entry
form. Many customers cannot be bothered submitting the entry forms
so the of the promotion is undermined.
[0006] Other competitions or promotions require the collection of
tokens that may be redeemed for a prize. There are also instant win
competitions that alert a customer to prize when they peel off a
label, open a cap, or similar action. In some cases it is necessary
to provide demographic data before the prize can be redeemed.
OBJECT
[0007] It is an object of the invention to provide the public with
a useful alternative to existing product promotion
competitions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In a first aspect the present invention provides a method of
enabling entry to a competition via machine-readable coded data on
an entry form on a printed label of a product, the method including
the steps of: receiving, in a computer system, interaction data
from a sensing device, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data on the entry
form, the interaction data allowing the competition entry to be
electronically captured in the computer system; and transmitting
the competition entry to a competition administrator.
[0009] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling entry to a competition via a printed label of a
product, the label including: machine-readable coded data relating
to an identity of the product label; and human-readable information
relating to the competition, the method including the steps of:
using a sensing device, reading at least some of the coded data
while the sensing device is used by a user to draw or write on the
interface, and generating interaction data based on the read coded
data, the interaction data being indicative of a position of the
sensing device relative to the interface and of the identity of the
product label; receiving, in a computer system, the interaction
data from the sensing device; and transmitting competition entry
information based on the interaction data to a competition
administrator, the competition administrator being configured to
record a competition entry based on the competition entry
information.
[0010] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling competition entry using machine-readable coded data on
a printed competition entry form on a label of a product, and a
sensing device configured to sense at least some of the coded data
from a form and generating interaction data, said interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the system including a computer system configured and programmed
to: receive the interaction data and electronically capture the
competition entry on the basis of the interaction data; and
transmit the competition entry to a competition administrator.
[0011] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling competition entry via a product label including
human-readable information relating to a competition and
machine-readable coded data relating to an identity of the label,
and a sensing device configured to sense the machine-readable coded
data as the sensing device is used to interact with the product
label, and to generate interaction data based at least partly on
the sensed coded data, the system including a computer system
configured and programmed to: receive the interaction data from the
sensing device; correlate the interaction data with a competition;
and record an entry in the competition based on the
correlation.
[0012] In another aspect the present invention provides a product
label including coded data and human-readable information, the
label being configured for use with the methods and systems of the
above paragraphs.
[0013] In a second aspect the present invention provides a product
label for enabling entry to a competition, the product label
comprising: machine-readable coded data indicative of at least an
identity of the label, said machine-readable coded data being
readable by a sensing device as the sensing device is moved across
the product label, thereby to produce interaction data for enabling
the competition entry; human-readable information pertaining to the
competition, the human-readable information being at least
partially coincident with the machine-readable coded data, the
human-readable information including at least one field element
that has a corresponding zone defined in relation to it in a page
description stored in a remote computer system.
[0014] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling entry to a competition using a product label that
includes human-readable information relating to a competition and
machine-readable coded data relating to an identity of the label,
the human-readable information including at least one field element
that has a corresponding zone defined in relation to it in a page
description stored in a remote computer system, the method
including the steps of, using a sensing device, of: sensing at
least some of the coded data as the sensing device is used to
interact with at least one of the at least one field elements;
using the sensed coded data to generate interaction data
representing the identity of the label and a position of the
sensing device relative to the interface surface; and transmitting
the interaction data to a computer system for enabling entry to the
competition via the computer system determining that the
interaction data represents interaction of the sensing device with
at least one of the at least one field elements.
[0015] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling competition entry using a printed product label, the
system comprising: a sensing device configured to: sense coded data
from the label; and generate interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data, wherein the
form comprises regions selected from the group comprising
information fields, buttons, and entry fields; and a computer
system configured to receive the interaction data and correlate the
interaction data with a competition.
[0016] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for competition entry using printed labels, the system comprising:
a product label including human-readable information relating to a
competition and machine-readable coded information relating to an
identity of the label, wherein the product label further comprises
regions selected from the group consisting of information fields,
buttons, and entry fields; a sensing device configured to sense the
machine-readable coded data as the sensing device is moved across
the product label, and to generate interaction data based on the
sensed coded data; a computer system programmed to correlate the
interaction data with a competition and to record an entry in the
competition based on the correlated interaction data.
[0017] In a third aspect the present invention provides a method of
enabling anonymous entry to a competition via a printed competition
entry form that includes machine-readable coded data, the method
including the steps, performed in a computer system, of: receiving
interaction data representing interaction of a sensing device with
the coded data, the interaction data enabling the competition entry
to be electronically captured in the computer system; assigning a
competition alias ID to the competition entry; and transmitting the
competition entry to a competition administrator with the
competition alias ID, thereby enabling the anonymous entry to the
competition.
[0018] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling anonymous entry to a competition via a printed product
label that includes human-readable information relating to the
competition and machine-readable coded data relating to an identity
of the label, the method including the steps of: receiving, in a
computer system, interaction data generated by a sensing device,
the interaction data being derived from at least some of the
machine-readable coded data sensed by a sensing device in response
to a user using the sensing device to draw, write, point or click
on the label, the interaction data being indicative of a position
of the sensing device relative to the sensed coded data; assigning
a competition alias ID to the interaction data; and transmitting
the interaction data and the competition alias ID to a competition
administrator for correlation with the competition, thereby
enabling anonymous entry to the competition.
[0019] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling anonymous competition entry, the system including: a
sensing device configured to: sense machine-readable coded data
from a form as the sensing device is used to interact with the
form; and generate interaction data representing the interaction of
the sensing device with the coded data; and a computer system
configured and programmed to: receive the interaction data;
correlate the interaction data with a competition, and assign a
competition alias ID to the interaction data, thereby enabling the
anonymous competition entry.
[0020] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for anonymous competition entry via: a product label including
human-readable information relating to the competition and
machine-readable coded information relating to an identity of the
label; and a sensing device configured to: sense at least some of
the machine-readable coded data as the sensing device is moved
across the product label; and generate interaction data based at
least partly on the sensed coded data; the system including a
computer system configured and programmed to:
[0021] (a) receive the interaction data from the sensing
device;
[0022] (b) correlate the interaction data with a competition;
[0023] (c) assign a competition alias ID to the interaction data;
and
[0024] (d) record an entry in the competition.
[0025] In a fourth aspect the present invention provides a method
of: enabling an entrant to enter a competition; and limiting
subsequent communication between a competition administrator and
the entrant; via a sensing device interacting with machine-readable
coded data on a printed competition entry form, the method
comprising the steps, performed in a computer system, of:
[0026] (a) receiving interaction data representing the interaction
of the sensing device with the coded data, the interaction data
enabling the competition entry to be electronically captured in the
computer system;
[0027] (b) transmitting the competition entry to the competition
administrator; and
[0028] (c) enabling transmission of up to a predetermined number of
electronic messages from the competition administrator to the
entrant.
[0029] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for: enabling an entrant to enter a competition; and limiting
subsequent communication between a competition administrator and
the entrant; via a sensing device interacting with machine-readable
coded data on a printed competition entry form, the system
comprising a computer system configured and programmed to:
[0030] (a) receive interaction data representing the interaction of
the sensing device with the coded data, the interaction data
enabling the competition entry to be electronically captured in the
computer system;
[0031] (b) transmit the competition entry to the competition
administrator; and
[0032] (c) enable transmission of up to a predetermined number of
electronic messages from the competition administrator to the
entrant.
[0033] In a fifth aspect the present invention provides a method of
enabling redemption of a first coupon, the first coupon being
printed on surface and including machine-readable coded data that
can be sensed by a sensing device configured to generate
interaction data based on the sensed coded data, the method
comprising the steps, performed in a computer system, of: receiving
the interaction data representing interaction of the sensing device
with the coded data, the interaction data enabling the first coupon
to be identified in the computer system; transmitting information
identifying the first coupon to a coupon administrator that is
configured to redeem the first coupon on the basis of the
information.
[0034] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling redemption of a first coupon, the first coupon being
printed on a surface and including machine-readable coded data that
can be sensed by a sensing device configured to generate
interaction data based on the sensed coded data, the system
including a computer system programmed and configured to: receive
the interaction data representing interaction of the sensing device
with the coded data, the interaction data enabling the first coupon
to be identified in the computer system; transmit information
identifying the first coupon to a coupon administrator that is
configured to redeem the first coupon on the basis of the
information.
[0035] In a sixth aspect the present invention provides a method of
enabling anonymous electronic redemption of a token printed as part
of a product label, the product label including machine-readable
coded data, the method including the steps, performed in a computer
system, of: receiving interaction data representing interaction of
a sensing device with the coded data, the interaction data enabling
electronic capture of: token data of the token; and a product
identifier associated with the product label; assigning an alias ID
to the token data; and transmitting the token data, the product
identifier- and the alias ID to a token administrator configured to
redeem the token electronically.
[0036] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling a user to anonymously redeem a token via interaction of
a sensing device with a product label, the product label including
human-readable information relating to the token and
machine-readable coded data relating to an identity of the label,
the method comprising the steps of: sensing, while the user
responds to the human-readable information by interacting drawing
on the label with the sensing device, at least some of the coded
data with the sensing device; generating, in the sensing device,
interaction data comprising an identity of the label and a position
of the sensing device relative to the coded data, the interaction
data being based at least partially on the sensed coded data; and
sending, to a computer system, the interaction data for enabling
the computer system to transmit the interaction data to a
competition administrator that correlates the interaction data with
the token offer and records a token redemption, wherein the
computer system is configured to transmit the token offer to the
competition administrator in such a way that the user remains
anonymous with respect to the competition administrator.
[0037] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling anonymous electronic redemption of a token on a
product label, via a sensing device configured to sense coded data
from the product label and generate interaction data representing
the interaction of the sensing device with the coded data, the
system including a computer system configured and programmed
to:
[0038] receive the interaction data;
[0039] correlate the interaction data with a token offer and a
product identifier;
[0040] assign an alias ID to the token data; and
[0041] transmit the token data, the product identifier and the
alias ID to a token administrator configured to redeem the token
electronically.
[0042] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling anonymous and electronic redemption of a token forming
part of a product label, the product label including human-readable
information relating to the token and machine-readable coded
information relating to an identity of the label, the system
comprising a sensing device configured to: sense at least some of
the coded data while a user responds to the human-readable
information by interacting with the label; generate interaction
data comprising an identity of the label and a position of the
sensing device relative to the coded data; send, to a computer
system, the interaction data for enabling the computer system to
transmit the interaction data to a competition administrator that
correlates the interaction data with the token offer and records a
token redemption, wherein the computer system is configured to
transmit the token offer to the competition administrator in such a
way that the user remains anonymous with respect to the competition
administrator.
[0043] In a seventh aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling electronic redemption a plurality of tokens, wherein
each the plurality of tokens is disposed on a product label and
includes coded data that can be used to determine a unique product
identifier of the product label with which it is associated, the
method including the steps of:
[0044] using a sensing device, and for each of the plurality of
tokens:
[0045] (a) generating interaction data by sensing at least some of
the coded data of the token, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data; and
[0046] (b) forwarding the interaction data to a computer system,
for enabling the product identifier associated with the product
label to be captured electronically in the computer system, thereby
enabling the computer system to transmit further information to a
token administrator; and
[0047] receiving token redemption information from the token
administrator after a predetermined combination of the further
information has been transmitted to the token administrator.
[0048] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling electronic redemption of a plurality of tokens, wherein
each the plurality of tokens is disposed on a product label and
includes coded data that can be used to determine a unique product
identifier of the product label with which it is associated, and
wherein a sensing device has been used, for each of the plurality
of product labels, to:
[0049] (a) generate interaction data by sensing at least some of
the coded data of the token, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data; and
[0050] (b) forward the interaction data to a computer system;
[0051] the method including the steps, performed in the computer
system, of:
[0052] receiving a set of the interaction data corresponding to
each of the labels;
[0053] generating further information based on each set of the
interaction data, the further information identifying a token
administrator; and
[0054] transmitting at least some of the further information to the
token administrator for enabling determination of when a
predetermined combination of tokens has been interacted with using
the sensing device.
[0055] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling electronic redemption of a plurality of tokens,
wherein each of the plurality of tokens is disposed on a product
label and includes coded data that can be used to determine a
unique product identifier of the label, the system including:
[0056] a sensing device configured to, as it used to interact with
each of the plurality of tokens:
[0057] (a) generate interaction data by sensing at least some of
the coded data of the token, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data; and
[0058] (b) forward the interaction data to a computer system, for
enabling the product identifier associated with the product label
to be captured electronically in the computer system, thereby
enabling the computer system to transmit further information to a
token administrator; and
[0059] receiving token redemption information from the token
administrator after a predetermined combination of the further
information has been transmitted to the token administrator.
[0060] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling anonymous redemption of a plurality of tokens, wherein
each the plurality of tokens is disposed on a product label and
includes coded data that can be used to determine a unique product
identifier of the product label with which it is associated, and
wherein a sensing device has been used, for each of the plurality
of product labels, to:
[0061] (a) generate interaction data by sensing at least some of
the coded data of the token, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data; and
[0062] (b) forward the interaction data to a computer system;
[0063] the system including a computer system configured and
programmed to:
[0064] receive a set of the interaction data corresponding to each
of the labels;
[0065] generate further information based on each set of the
interaction data, the further information identifying a token
administrator; and
[0066] transmit at least some of the further information to the
token administrator for enabling determination of when a
predetermined combination of tokens has been interacted with using
the sensing device.
[0067] In another aspect the present invention provides a method of
enabling electronic redemption of a plurality of tokens, wherein
each the plurality of tokens is disposed on a product label and
includes coded data that can be used to determine a unique product
identifier of the product label with which it is associated, and
wherein a sensing device has been used, for each of the plurality
of product labels, to:
[0068] (a) generate interaction data by sensing at least some of
the coded data of the token, the interaction data representing
interaction of the sensing device with the coded data; and
[0069] (b) forward the interaction data to a computer system;
[0070] the method including the steps, performed in a token
administrator, of:
[0071] receiving further information based on each set of the
interaction data;
[0072] determining when a predetermined combination of tokens has
been interacted with using the sensing device; and
[0073] outputting an indication that the predetermined combination
has been interacted with.
[0074] In an eighth aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling submission of form data to an application via a printed
form, the printed form having coded data readable by a sensing
device as the sensing device is used to interact with the form, the
method including the steps, performed in a computer system, of:
[0075] receiving, from the sensing device: interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data enabling the form data to be electronically
captured in the computer system; and a sensing device ID of the
sensing device;
[0076] allocating a temporary registration to the sensing device ID
or to a user associated with the sensing device, the registration
including a return telecommunication address associated with the
sensing device ID or the user;
[0077] transmitting the form data to the application.
[0078] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling submission of form data to an application via a printed
form, the printed form including human-readable information
relating to the form and machine-readable coded data relating to an
identity of the form, the method including the steps, performed in
a computer system, of:
[0079] receiving, from the sensing device, interaction data and
sensing device identification information, the interaction data
including the identity of the form and having been generated by the
sensing device based on coded data sensed in response to the
sensing device being used to interact with the label;
[0080] allocating, on the basis of the sensing device
identification information, a temporary registration to the sensing
device or a user associated with the sensing device, the
registration including a return telecommunication address
associated with the sensing device or the user; and
[0081] transmitting at least some of the interaction data to the
application.
[0082] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling submission of form data to an application, the system
comprising:
[0083] a sensing device having a sensing device ID, the sensing
device being configured to sense coded data on a form and generate
interaction data representing interaction of the sensing device
with the coded data, and having a transmitter for transmitting the
sensing device ID and interaction data to a computer system;
and
[0084] a computer system configured and programmed to:
[0085] receive the sensing device ID and the interaction data;
[0086] allocate a temporary registration to the sensing device ID
or to a user associated with the sensing device, the registration
including a return telecommunication address associated with the
sensing device ID or the user;
[0087] transmit the form data to the application.
[0088] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling submission of form data via a form that includes
machine-readable coded information relating to an identity of the
label, a sensing device having sensed at least some of the
machine-readable coded data as the sensing device was used to
interact with the product label and having generated interaction
data based at least partly on the sensed coded data, the
interaction data including at least the identity, the sensing
device including a sensing device ID;
[0089] the system comprising a computer system configured and
programmed to:
[0090] receive the sensing device ID and the interaction data;
[0091] allocate a temporary registration to the sensing device ID
or to a user associated with the sensing device, the registration
including a return telecommunication address associated with the
sensing device ID or the user;
[0092] transmit the form data to the application.
[0093] In a ninth aspect the present invention provides a method of
validating entry to a competition via interaction of a sensing
device with a printed competition entry form comprising coded data
indicative of a unique product identifier, the method comprising
the steps, performed in a computer system, of:
[0094] receiving, from the sensing device, interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data including at least the unique product
identifier and enabling a competition entry to be electronically
captured in the computer system; and
[0095] transmitting the product identifier and the competition
entry to a competition administrator for validation of the
competition entry at the competition administrator by verification
of the product identifier.
[0096] In a further aspect the present invention provides a method
of enabling validation of a competition entry via a product label,
the product label including human-readable information relating to
a competition and machine-readable coded data relating to an
identity of the label and including a product identifier, the
method including the steps of:
[0097] receiving, in a computer system, interaction data from the
sensing device, the interaction data including the product
identifier and movement data generated by the sensing device in
response to the sensing device being used to draw or write on the
product label, the interaction data having been generated by
sensing at least some of the machine-readable coded data; and
[0098] transmitting the interaction data to a competition
administrator for validating the competition entry by verifying the
product identification.
[0099] In another aspect the present invention provides a system
for validating entry to a competition via interaction of a sensing
device with a printed competition entry form comprising coded data
indicative of a unique product identifier, the system including a
computer system configured and programmed to:
[0100] receive, from the sensing device, interaction data
representing interaction of the sensing device with the coded data,
the interaction data including at least the unique product
identifier and enabling a competition entry to be electronically
captured in the computer system; and
[0101] transmit the product identifier and the competition entry to
a competition administrator for validation of the competition entry
at the competition administrator by verification of the product
identification.
[0102] In a further aspect the present invention provides a system
for enabling validation of a competition entry via a product label,
the product label including human-readable information relating to
a competition and machine-readable coded data identifying a product
identifier via a product identifier, the system including a
computer system configured and programmed to:
[0103] receive interaction data from the sensing device, the
interaction data including the product identifier and movement data
generated by the sensing device in response to the sensing device
being used to draw or write on the product label, the interaction
data having been generated by sensing at least some of the
machine-readable coded data; and
[0104] transmit the interaction data to a competition administrator
for validating the competition entry by verifying the product
identification.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0105] Embodiments of the invention will now be described with
reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
[0106] FIG. 1 is a schematic of a relationship between a sample
printed netpage and its online page description;
[0107] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a netpage pen and its
associated tag-sensing field-of-view cone;
[0108] FIG. 3 is a schematic of competition entry interactions;
[0109] FIG. 4 shows the competition entry user interface flow;
[0110] FIG. 5 shows a competition entry form;
[0111] FIG. 6 shows a competition details form;
[0112] FIG. 7 shows an entry confirmation message;
[0113] FIG. 8 shows an entry status message;
[0114] FIG. 9 shows a prize claim form;
[0115] FIG. 10 shows the competition entry interaction detail;
[0116] FIG. 11 shows competition win interaction detail;
[0117] FIG. 12 is a schematic of prize redemption at a
retailer;
[0118] FIG. 13 shows interaction detail for coupon-less prize
collection;
[0119] FIG. 14 is a schematic of an instant win competition user
interface;
[0120] FIG. 15 shows an instant win entry form;
[0121] FIG. 16 shows an instant win prize claim;
[0122] FIG. 17 shows interaction detail for anonymous prize
collection using a coupon;
[0123] FIG. 18 shows a schematic of competition object
management.
[0124] FIG. 19 shows a competition class diagram;
[0125] FIG. 20 shows a competition limits class diagram;
[0126] FIG. 21 shows a competition entry class diagram;
[0127] FIG. 22 shows a competition user class diagram;
[0128] FIG. 23 shows a default web terminal class diagram;
[0129] FIG. 24 shows a schematic view of a form class diagram;
[0130] FIG. 25 shows a schematic view of a digital ink class
diagram;
[0131] FIG. 26 shows a schematic view of a field element
specialization class diagram;
[0132] FIG. 27 shows a schematic view of a checkbox field class
diagram;
[0133] FIG. 28 shows a schematic view of a text field class
diagram;
[0134] FIG. 29 shows a schematic view of a signature field class
diagram;
[0135] FIG. 30 shows a flowchart of an input processing
algorithm;
[0136] FIG. 30a shows a detailed flowchart of one step of the
flowchart of FIG. 30; and
[0137] FIG. 31 shows a competition entry form class diagram
[0138] FIG. 32 shows a temporary user class diagram
[0139] FIG. 33 shows a schematic view of a hyperlink request class
diagram;
[0140] FIG. 34 shows a schematic view of a hyperlink activation
protocol.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0141] The invention employs an optical tagging technology that has
been designated "Hyperlabel.TM.". Hyperlabel.TM. is an optical
tagging technology designed for uniquely identifying individual
product items in the global supply chain. Hyperlabel.TM. consists
of covering a large portion of the surface of a product item with
optically-readable invisible tags. Hyperlabel.TM. tags are applied
during product manufacturer and/or packaging.
[0142] In the preferred embodiment, the invention is configured to
work with the netpage networked computer system. It will be
appreciated that not every implementation will necessarily embody
all or even most of the specific details and extensions discussed
below in relation to the basic system. However, the system is
described in its most complete form to reduce the need for external
reference when attempting to understand the context in which the
preferred embodiments and aspects of the present invention
operate.
[0143] In the netpage system a surface such as a page is printed
with a collection of invisible tags, each tag a couple of
millimeters in diameter. A tag uniquely identifies the surface on
which it appears, as well as its own position on the surface. The
collection of tags on a surface thus defines a high-precision
coordinate grid identifiably tied to the particular surface. When
read by a suitable sensing device operated by a user, the tags
allow the sensing device to determine its own movement relative to
the surface. When coupled with a description of the visible (and
typically printed) content of the surface, the description allows
the movement to be interpreted relative to the visible surface
content seen by the user, e.g. as a "press" on the visible
representation of a "button". The tags are printed using an
infrared ink invisible to humans, while visible surface content is
printed using colored inks which are transparent in the infrared
part of the spectrum.
[0144] For example, where a "print" function is implemented in the
earlier embodiment, it is necessary to obtain a position of the tag
(or more precisely, a position of the sensing device relative to
the tag) and the identity of the page encoded by the tag. This
information is then used in conjunction with a page description,
usually by a remote server, to determine that a "print a particular
document" function is associated with the position of the sensing
device on that particular page.
[0145] However, in an alternative embodiment, the function is
encoded directly and completely into the tag. For example, the tag
can explicitly encode the instruction to "print a particular
document" directly into the tag's data, thereby avoiding the need
for a translation of the page identity and sensing device position
via the page description. This embodiment has some advantages,
including the fact that there is no need for an external lookup,
and the fact that the same tags can be used in different documents
to perform the same function. However, in some circumstances this
embodiment may be considered somewhat limiting due to the absence
of location and page information. For example, an absence of
location information means that handwriting capture cannot be
performed using the tags as reference point relative to which the
handwriting is captured.
[0146] The netpage sensing device operated by the user may be in
the form of a pen with a marking nib, and the movement of the pen
may be interpreted as form input, such as handwritten text. Because
the netpage system captures marking input, it crucially
distinguishes between different instances of the same surface
content (such as a form).
[0147] It will be appreciated that it is not necessary to include a
marking nib in cases where it is not necessary or desirable for a
document to be marked. For example, a nib-less sensing device can
be used as a non-marking pointer. In its simplest form, this
embodiment is just a point-and-click device, designed to capture
(for example) only a single frame of tag information for decoding
in response to the user designating a location on a Netpage page.
As such, this pointer cannot be used for handwriting capture, or
for other applications in which movement of the sensing device over
time must be tracked.
[0148] Alternatively, the pointer can be otherwise identical to the
version with the nib, enabling capture of movement of the sensing
device without marking of the page.
[0149] Using an invisible (e.g. infrared) tagging scheme to
uniquely identify a product item has the significant advantage that
it allows the entire surface of a product to be tagged, or a
significant portion thereof, without impinging on the graphic
design of the product's packaging or labelling. If the entire
product surface is tagged, then the orientation of the product
doesn't affect its ability to be scanned, i.e. a significant part
of the line-of-sight disadvantage of a visible bar code is
eliminated. Furthermore, if the tags are compact and massively
replicated, then label damage no longer prevents scanning.
[0150] Hyperlabel.TM., then, consists of covering a large
proportion of the surface of a product item with optically-readable
invisible tags. When the tags utilise reflection or absorption in
the infrared spectrum they are also referred to as infrared
identification (IRID) tags. Each Hyperlabel.TM. tag uniquely
identifies the product item on which it appears. The tag may
directly encode the electronic product code (e.g. EPC) of the item,
or may encode a surrogate ID which in turn identifies the product
code via a database lookup. Each tag also optionally identifies its
own position on the surface of the product item, to provide the
downstream consumer benefits of netpage interactivity.
[0151] Hyperlabel.TM. tags are applied during product manufacture
and/or packaging using digital printers. These may be add-on
infrared printers which print the tags after the text and graphics
have been printed by other means, or integrated color and infrared
printers which print the tags, text and graphics
simultaneously.
[0152] As illustrated in FIG. 1, a printed netpage 1 represents an
interactive form that can be filled in by the user both physically,
on the printed page, and "electronically", via communication
between a sensing device (pen) and the netpage system. The example
shows a "Request" form containing name and address fields and a
submit button. The netpage consists of graphic data 2 printed using
visible ink, and coded data 3 printed as a collection of tags 4
using invisible ink. The corresponding page description 5, stored
on the netpage network, describes the individual elements of the
netpage. In particular it describes the type and spatial extent
(zone) of each interactive element (i.e. text field or button in
the example), to allow the netpage system to correctly interpret
input via the netpage. The submit button 6, for example, has a zone
7 which corresponds to the spatial extent of the corresponding
graphic 8.
[0153] The active sensing device of the netpage system is typically
a pen of the type shown in FIG. 2. The pen, generally designated by
reference numeral 20, includes a housing 21 in the form of a
plastics moulding defining an interior space for mounting the pen
components. The pen top 22 is in operation rotatably mounted at one
end 23 of the housing 21 to select a nib 24, which may be an ink
cartridge nib or non-marking stylus, through open end 25 of a metal
end piece 26. The metal end piece 26 is removable to enable ink
cartridge replacement.
[0154] As described above, the inclusion of a marking nib is
optional. It can either simply be omitted, or replaced with a
non-marking nib to enable accurate visual and tactile feedback to
the user regarding the position of the sensing device on the page.
As mentioned, the sensing device can also operate in single (or low
rate) frame capture such that continuous or frequent capture of
movement of the sensing device relative to the page using the tags
is not possible.
[0155] A semi-transparent cover 27 is secured to the opposite end
of the housing 21. The cover 27 is also of moulded plastics, and is
formed from semi-transparent material in order to enable the user
to view the status of a tri-colour LED mounted within the housing
21. The cover 27 includes a main part 27a which substantially
surrounds the end of the housing 21 and a projecting portion 27b
which projects back from the main part 27a. A radio antenna is
mounted behind the projecting portion 27b, within the housing
21.
[0156] An infrared LED is mounted within the housing 21 for
projecting infrared radiation onto a surface 28. An infrared image
sensor is mounted within the housing 21 with field of view 29 for
receiving radiation reflected from the surface 28. A radio
frequency chip, which includes an RF transmitter and RF receiver,
and a controller chip for controlling operation of the pen 20, are
also mounted within the housing.
[0157] Rubber grip pad 21a is provided towards the end of the
housing 21 to assist gripping the pen 20, and top 22 also includes
a clip 21b for clipping the pen 20 to a pocket.
[0158] The pen 20, uses the embedded controller, to capture and
decode IR position tags from a page via the image sensor. The image
sensor is a solid-state device provided with an appropriate filter
to permit sensing at only near-infrared wavelengths. The system is
able to sense when the nib is in contact with the surface, and the
pen is able to sense tags at a sufficient rate to capture human
handwriting (i.e. at 200 dpi or greater and 100 Hz or faster).
Interaction data captured by the pen is encrypted and wirelessly
transmitted to a base station, the base station interprets the data
with respect to the (known) page structure.
[0159] The preferred embodiment of the netpage pen operates both as
a normal marking ink pen and as a non-marking stylus. The marking
aspect, however, is not necessary for using the netpage system as a
browsing system, such as when it is used as an Internet interface.
Each netpage pen is registered with the netpage system and has a
unique pen ID.
[0160] When either nib is in contact with a netpage, the pen
determines its position and orientation relative to the page. The
nib is attached to a force sensor, and the force on the nib is
interpreted relative to a threshold to indicate whether the pen is
"up" or "down". This allows an interactive element on the page to
be `clicked` by pressing with the pen nib, in order to request,
say, information from a network. Furthermore, the force is captured
as a continuous value to allow, say, the full dynamics of a
signature to be verified.
[0161] The pen determines the position and orientation of its nib
on the netpage by imaging, in the infrared spectrum, the area 28 of
the page in the vicinity of the nib. It decodes the nearest tag and
computes the position of the nib relative to the tag from the
observed perspective distortion on the imaged tag and the known
geometry of the pen optics. Although the position resolution of the
tag may be low, because the tag density on the page is inversely
proportional to the tag size, the adjusted position resolution is
quite high, exceeding the minimum resolution required for accurate
handwriting recognition.
[0162] Pen actions relative to a netpage are captured as a series
of strokes. A stroke consists of a sequence of time-stamped pen
positions on the page, initiated by a pen-down event and completed
by the subsequent pen-up event. A stroke is also tagged with a page
ID of the netpage whenever the page ID changes, which, under normal
circumstances, is at the commencement of the stroke.
[0163] A sequence of captured strokes is referred to as digital
ink. Digital ink forms the basis for the digital exchange of data,
drawings and handwriting, for online recognition of handwriting,
and for online verification of signatures.
[0164] The pen is wireless and transmits digital ink to the base
station, which may be a Personal Computer or a mobile phone, for
example, via a short-range radio link. The transmitted digital ink
is encrypted for privacy and security and packetized for efficient
transmission, but is always flushed on a pen-up event to ensure
timely processing.
[0165] When the pen is out-of-range of a base station it buffers
digital ink in internal memory, which has a capacity of over ten
minutes of continuous handwriting. When the pen is once again
within range of a base station, it transfers any buffered digital
ink.
[0166] A pen can be registered with any number of base stations,
but because all state data resides in netpages both on paper and on
the network, it is largely immaterial which base station a pen is
communicating with at any particular time.
[0167] A form defines a collection of related input fields used to
capture a related set of inputs through a printed netpage. A form
allows a user to submit one or more parameters to an application
software program running on a server.
[0168] A form 867 is a group element 838 in the document hierarchy.
It ultimately contains a set of terminal field elements 839. A form
instance 868 represents a printed instance of a form. It consists
of a set of field instances 870 which correspond to the field
elements 845 of the form. Each field instance has an associated
value 871, whose type depends on the type of the corresponding
field element. Each field value records input through a particular
printed form instance, i.e. through one or more printed netpages.
The form class diagram is shown in FIG. 24.
[0169] Each form instance has a status 872 which indicates whether
the form is active, frozen, submitted, void or expired. A form is
active when first printed. A form becomes frozen once it is signed.
A form becomes submitted once one of its submission hyperlinks has
been activated, unless the hyperlink has its "submit delta"
attribute set. A form becomes void when the user invokes a void
form, reset form or duplicate form page command. A form expires
when the time the form has been active exceeds the form's specified
lifetime. While the form is active, form input is allowed. Input
through a form which is not active is instead captured in the
background field 832 of the relevant page instance. When the form
is active or frozen, form submission is allowed. Any attempt to
submit a form when the form is not active or frozen is rejected,
and instead elicits form status report.
[0170] Each form instance is associated (at reference numeral 59)
with any form instances derived from it, thus providing a version
history. This allows all but the latest version of a form in a
particular time period to be excluded from a search.
[0171] All input is captured as digital ink. Digital ink 873
consists of a set of timestamped stroke groups 874, each of which
consists of a set of styled strokes 875. Each stroke consists of a
set of timestamped pen positions 876, each of which also includes
pen orientation and nib force. The digital ink class diagram is
shown in FIG. 25.
[0172] A field element 845 can be a checkbox field 877, a text
field 878, a drawing field 879, or a signature field 880. The field
element class diagram is shown in FIG. 26. Any digital ink captured
in a field's zone is assigned to the field.
[0173] A checkbox field has an associated boolean value 881, as
shown in FIG. 27. Any mark (a tick, a cross, a stroke, a fill
zigzag, etc.) captured in a checkbox field's zone causes a true
value to be assigned to the field's value.
[0174] A text field has an associated text value 882, as shown in
FIG. 28. Any digital ink captured in a text field's zone is
automatically converted to text via online handwriting recognition,
and the text is assigned to the field's value. Online handwriting
recognition is well-understood (see, for example, Tappert, C., C.
Y. Suen and T. Wakahara, "The State of the Art in On-Line
Handwriting Recognition", IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and
Machine Intelligence, Vol.12, No.8, August 1990, the contents of
which are herein incorporated by cross-reference).
[0175] A signature field has an associated digital signature value
883, as shown in FIG. 29. Any digital ink captured in a signature
field's zone is automatically verified with respect to the identity
of the owner of the pen, and a digital signature of the content of
the form of which the field part is generated and assigned to the
field's value. The digital signature is generated using the pen
user's private signature key specific to the application which owns
the form. Online signature verification is well-understood (see,
for example, Plamondon, R. and G. Lorette, "Automatic Signature
Verification and Writer Identification--The State of the Art",
Pattern Recognition, Vol.22, No.2, 1989, the contents of which are
herein incorporated by cross-reference).
[0176] A field element is hidden if its "hidden" attribute is set.
A hidden field element does not have an input zone on a page and
does not accept input. It can have an associated field value which
is included in the form data when the form containing the field is
submitted.
[0177] "Editing" commands, such as strike-through indicating
deletion, can also be recognized in form fields.
[0178] Because the handwriting recognition algorithm works "online"
(i.e. with access to the dynamics of the pen movement), rather than
"offline" (i.e. with access only to a bitmap of pen markings), it
can recognize run-on discretely-written characters with relatively
high accuracy, without a writer-dependent training phase. A
writer-dependent model of handwriting is automatically generated
over time, however, and can be generated up-front if necessary.
[0179] Digital ink, as already stated, consists of a sequence of
strokes. Any stroke which starts in a particular element's zone is
appended to that element's digital ink stream, ready for
interpretation. Any stroke not appended to an object's digital ink
stream is appended to the background field's digital ink
stream.
[0180] Digital ink captured in the background field is interpreted
as a selection gesture. Circumscription of one or more objects is
generally interpreted as a selection of the circumscribed objects,
although the actual interpretation is application-specific.
[0181] Table 1 summarises these various pen interactions with a
netpage.
3TABLE 1 Summary of pen interactions with a netpage Object Type Pen
input Action Hyperlink General Click Submit action to application
Form Click Submit form to application Selection Click Submit
selection to application Form field Checkbox Any mark Assign true
to field Text Handwriting Convert digital ink to text; assign text
to field Drawing Digital ink Assign digital ink to field Signature
Signature Verify digital ink signature; generate digital signature
of form; assign digital signature to field None -- Circumscription
Assign digital ink to current selection
[0182] The system maintains a current selection for each pen. The
selection consists simply of the most recent stroke captured in the
background field. The selection is cleared after an inactivity
timeout to ensure predictable behavior.
[0183] The raw digital ink captured in every field is retained on
the netpage page server and is optionally transmitted with the form
data when the form is submitted to the application. This allows the
application to interrogate the raw digital ink should it suspect
the original conversion, such as the conversion of handwritten
text. This can, for example, involve human intervention at the
application level for forms which fail certain application-specific
consistency checks. As an extension to this, the entire background
area of a form can be designated as a drawing field. The
application can then decide, on the basis of the presence of
digital ink outside the explicit fields of the form, to route the
form to a human operator, on the assumption that the user may have
indicated amendments to the filled-in fields outside of those
fields.
[0184] FIG. 30 shows a flowchart of the process of handling pen
input relative to a netpage. The process consists of receiving (at
884) a stroke from the pen; identifying (at 885) the page instance
to which the page ID 50 in the stroke refers; retrieving (at 886)
the page description 5; identifying (at 887) a formatted element
835 (FIG. 24) whose zone the stroke intersects; determining (at
888) whether the formatted element corresponds to a field element,
and if so appending (at 892) the received stroke to the digital ink
of the field value 871 (FIG. 24), interpreting (at 893) the
accumulated digital ink of the field, and determining (at 894)
whether the field is part of a hyperlinked group and if so
activating (at 895) the associated hyperlink; alternatively
determining (at 889) whether the formatted element corresponds to a
hyperlink element and if so activating (at 895) the corresponding
hyperlink; alternatively, in the absence of an input field or
hyperlink, appending (at 890) the received stroke to the digital
ink of the background field; and copying (at 891) the received
stroke to the current selection of the current pen, as maintained
by the registration server.
[0185] FIG. 30a shows a detailed flowchart of step 893 in the
process shown in FIG. 30, where the accumulated digital ink of a
field is interpreted according to the type of the field. The
process consists of determining (at 896) whether the field is a
checkbox and (at 897) whether the digital ink represents a
checkmark, and if so assigning (at 898) a true value to the field
value; alternatively determining (at 899) whether the field is a
text field and if so converting (at 900) the digital ink to
computer text, with the help of the appropriate registration
server, and assigning (at 901) the converted computer text to the
field value; alternatively determining (at 902) whether the field
is a signature field and if so verifying (at 903) the digital ink
as the signature of the pen's owner, with the help of the
appropriate registration server, creating (at 904) a digital
signature of the contents of the corresponding form, also with the
help of the registration server and using the pen owner's private
signature key relating to the corresponding application, and
assigning (at 905) the digital signature to the field value.
[0186] Hyperlink Activation Protocol
[0187] A preferred embodiment of a hyperlink activation protocol is
shown in FIG. 34.
[0188] When a user clicks on a netpage with a netpage pen, the pen
communicates the click to the nearest netpage printer 10601. The
click identifies the page and a location on the page. The printer
already knows the ID 1061 of the pen from the pen connection
protocol.
[0189] The printer determines, via the DNS, the network address of
the page server 10010a handling the particular page ID 10050. The
address may already be in its cache if the user has recently
interacted with the same page. The printer then forwards the pen
ID, its own printer ID 10062, the page ID and click location to the
page server.
[0190] The page server loads the page description identified by the
page ID and determines which input element's zone, if any, the
click lies in. Assuming the relevant input element is a hyperlink
element, the page server then obtains the associated application ID
10064 and link ID 10054, and determines, via the DNS, the network
address of the application server hosting the application
10071.
[0191] The page server uses the pen ID 10061 to obtain the
corresponding user ID 10060 from the registration server 10011, and
then allocates a globally unique hyperlink request ID 10052 and
builds a hyperlink request 10934. The hyperlink request class
diagram is shown in FIG. 33. The hyperlink request records the IDs
of the requesting user and printer, and identifies the clicked
hyperlink instance 10862. The page server then sends its own server
ID 10053, the hyperlink request ID, and the link ID to the
application.
[0192] The application produces a response document according to
application-specific logic, and obtains a document ID 10051 from an
ID server 10012. It then sends the document to the page server
10010b responsible for the document's newly allocated ID, together
with the requesting page server's ID and the hyperlink request
ID.
[0193] The second page server sends the hyperlink request ID and
application ID to the first page server to obtain the corresponding
user ID and printer ID 10062. The first page server rejects the
request if the hyperlink request has expired or is for a different
application.
[0194] The second page server allocates document instance and page
IDs 10050, returns the newly allocated page IDs to the application,
adds the complete document to its own database, and finally sends
the page descriptions to the requesting printer.
[0195] The hyperlink instance may include a meaningful transaction
ID 10055, in which case the first page server includes the
transaction ID in the message sent to the application. This allows
the application to establish a transaction-specific context for the
hyperlink activation.
[0196] If the hyperlink requires a user alias, i.e. its "alias
required" attribute is set, then the first page server sends both
the pen ID 10061 and the hyperlink's application ID 10064 to the
registration server 10011 to obtain not just the user ID
corresponding to the pen ID but also the alias ID 10065
corresponding to the application ID and the user ID. It includes
the alias ID in the message sent to the application, allowing the
application to establish a user-specific context for the hyperlink
activation.
[0197] Competition Entry
[0198] The invention utilises the hyperlabel/netpage technology as
an efficient and effective vehicle for competition entry. The
competition entry interactions are depicted in FIG. 3. An entry
form is printed on a product item 30 which is read by a sensing
device, such as pen 20. When a user (entrant) invokes a function on
the entry form, the interaction data is sent to the netpage System,
from the user's netpage pen 20, via wireless communication (A). The
interaction data is transmitted from the pen to the user's netpage
base station 31. The netpage base station 31 may be the user's
mobile phone or PDA, or it may be some other netpage device, such
as a PC. The interaction data is relayed (B) to the Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32 and then on (C) to a competition administrator, which is
normally a manufacturer server 33. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32
knows the manufacturer server 33 to send the message to form the
application ID. On receipt of the interaction data, the application
identifies the desired response and sends the appropriate
action/response message (D) to the Hyperlabel.TM. server 32. The
Hyperlabel.TM. server 32, as part of the netpage system, can know
the identity and devices of the user. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32
will relay (E) the manufacturer server's response to the user's
phone 34 or (F) Web browsing device 35, as appropriate. If the
user's netpage pen 20 has LEDs then the Hyperlabel.TM. server 32
can send a command (H) to the user's pen to light the appropriate
LED(s).
[0199] When a user commences interaction between their netpage pen
and the competition entry form (product label) they become an
entrant to the competition. The terms `entrant` and `user` are used
interchangeably with the particular term used being dependent on
the context for clarity. It is desirable that every user has their
own pen so that their personal profile is recorded against the
unique pen ID. However, a retailer could maintain a stock of pens
that are assigned to users when they shop at the retailer. For
instance, the user may register at a kiosk on arrival or at a
retail outlet. The unique ID of the pen is associated with the user
for the duration of shopping. The privacy of the user can be
maintained in the manner described below. Alternatively, a user may
be able to temporarily acquire a pen at the checkout for use during
processing of their purchases.
[0200] Competition Entry User Interface
[0201] The Hyperlabel.TM. competition entry form may be printed on
any surface such as a product brochure, product packaging or a form
available at the place of purchase. A user may enter a competition
using a single click of the pen, or by drawing, writing, or
answering questions. The user may also click a button on the
competition entry form to check the status of the competition.
[0202] The Competition Entry Form user interface flow is shown in
FIG. 4. The primary user interface is the entry form shown in FIG.
5. There are three types of regions on the entry form: `information
fields` that show information about the competition; `buttons` that
generate actions; and `entry fields` for user input.
[0203] The information fields include the competition name 50,
description 51, and conditions 52. The buttons include <More
Info> 53, <Submit Entry> 54, <Print> 55 and <Have
I Won?> 56. The entry fields include text regions 57 where a
user is invited to write a few words in answer to a question, check
boxes 58 and a signature field 59.
[0204] The user presses the <More Info> button 53 to query
more details about the competition. The Competition Details, shown
in FIG. 6, are displayed on the user's default Web display
terminal. The competition details includes the competition name,
description, conditions, start date, end date, any other
competition details, and details of the prizes being offered. The
default WeB display terminal may be the user's mobile phone or PDA,
or it may be a display provided by the retailer for the
purpose.
[0205] The user enters text, and ticks check boxes to answer
questions relating to competition entry. The user signs the form in
the signature field to certify that they meet the minimum age
requirements for competition entry. The user presses the <Submit
Entry> button to submit the entry to the manufacturer via the
netpage base station and hyperlabel server, as depicted in FIG. 3.
The privacy of the user is protected by transmitting anonymous
information to the manufacturer, as explained in more detail below.
An Entry Confirmation Message is sent to the user, as shown in FIG.
7.
[0206] At any time after submitting an entry the user can press the
<Have I Won?> button. The user is sent an Entry Status
Message, as shown in FIG. 8. The Entry Status Message gives the
competition name, the date and time the entry was submitted and the
prize details. The user presses the <claim Prize> button to
opt-in and reveal their identity to the manufacturer. If the user
does not wish to reveal their information they can push the <No
Thanks> button and opt-out.
[0207] In most cases the manufacturer will wish to collect
demographic information before releasing a prize, however it is
possible to issue a prize token irrespective of the information
collected. In either case, a claim Prize message is sent to the
user, as shown in FIG. 9.
[0208] The user presses the <Print> button on the competition
entry form to print the competition entry form on a netpage
printer. This allows the user to complete an entry form on paper
rather than using the packaging. In some cases, product packaging
may be on a material that cannot easily be written on, for example,
a foil or plastic chip packet. In this case it will also be
necessary to print the entry form. The netpage printer may be a
personal printer owned by a user who personally owns a netpage pen.
Alternatively the retailer may provide a netpage printer at the
point of sale. The entry form is then completed by the method
described above.
[0209] Competition Entry Interaction Detail
[0210] As described above, a Hyperlabel.TM. competition entry form
can contain printed text, various types of input fields such as
check boxes, text input fields, drawing input fields or signature
fields, and control buttons. The form may contain printed control
buttons to submit the user's entry, or check the status of the
user's entry.
[0211] A competition may be managed by the manufacturer, or the
manufacturer may outsource the running of the competition to a
third party competition management service.
[0212] The interaction detail for manufacturer Entry is shown in
FIG. 10. The netpage user writes on an entry form and clicks a
button to submit the entry. The netpage pen 20 sends the pen id,
the product's item ID and the digital ink to the Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32 via the netpage base station 31 (FIG. 3). The
Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 sends the pen ID to the netpage
Registration server 100, along with the digital ink from the
signature field, if appropriate. The netpage Registration server
100 uses the pen ID to determine the netpage user id, and then
allocates a competition alias ID and verifies the user signature.
The competition alias id is a random number allocated by the
netpage System in order to maintain the user's anonymity. The
Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 converts the transmitted digital ink into
form data, and sends the competition alias id, form data and
signature verification status to the manufacturer server 33. The
manufacturer server 33 validates the entry and, if valid, returns
the competition alias ID and an entry confirmation message to the
Hyperlabel.TM. server 32. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 sends the
competition alias ID to the Registration server 100 which returns
the default terminal ID for the user's default Web browsing device.
The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 then sends an entry confirmation
message to the terminal id, which may be the user's preferred web
display device, such as a PDA 35. Alternatively, the terminal is
the device via which the input came.
[0213] The interaction detail for a Competition Win is shown in
FIG. 11. When a competition winner is decided the manufacturer
server 33 sends the winner's competition alias ID and the "You Have
Won" message to the Hyperlabel.TM. server 32. The Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32 sends the competition alias ID to the registration server
100 which translates this to the netpage user ID and returns the
terminal ID of the user's default Web display device 35, such as
PDA. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 then sends the competition alias
id, terminal ID and "You Have Won" message to user's Web display
device 35. The user then responds and the Web display device 35
sends the user's competition alias ID and their opt-in response to
the Hyperlabel.TM. server 32. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 sends
the competition alias id to the registration server which returns
the user's details. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 then sends the
competition alias ID, the opt-in response and the user's details to
the manufacturer server.
[0214] Alternatively opt-in may be optional and the user may be
able to collect their prize anonymously from a retailer or other
prize collection point, as described in detail below.
[0215] Single-click competition entry is possible provided no other
user-input information is required by the manufacturer. The user
clicks on the <Submit Entry> button on the competition entry
form and this results in a competition entry being sent to the
manufacturer.
[0216] Alternatively, competition entry may require the user to
write or draw something on the entry form, answer multiple choice
questions, or tick check boxes. In this case, the user fills out
the required fields using their netpage pen, and then clicks on the
<Submit Entry> button.
[0217] Manufacturers do not need to publish all Hyperlabel.TM.
items as instances to a netpage Server. Instead, the instance is
published on demand, the first time the label is used. The product
item ID is allocated as the unique transaction ID for the page
instance. In the case of the user pressing the <Print>
button, a new copy of the form is printed to the user's netpage
printer. The page instance is given the same transaction ID (i.e.
the product id), effectively superseding the original version, and
preventing the original from being re-used.
[0218] Similarly, an entry form could contain a <Copy> button
so that a copy of the entry form may be transferred to the user's
Web browsing device allowing the user to fill in the entry form
from the device and submit the entry to the manufacturer. In all
these cases the entry form "replaces" the original. The original
entry form, say from the product packaging, cannot be re-used to
enter the competition multiple times.
[0219] User Contact and Feedback
[0220] The netpage System can limit feedback from the manufacturer
to the user. A contact count may be kept which tracks the number of
times the manufacturer has contacted the user. For example, a
manufacturer may be permitted to send up to a limit of three
messages to the user in relation to a competition. The manufacturer
may send the user an "Entry Received" message, a "Competition
Closing Soon" message, and then a "Competition Results" message.
The netpage system can manage this type of contact and still
maintain the user's anonymity through the use of a competition
alias id.
[0221] The contact count will have a maximum value after which
contact with the user is disabled. The maximum value for the
contact count may be pre-set and notified to the user on the
competition entry form. Alternatively, the maximum value may be a
value that is able to be set by the user at the time of competition
entry by interaction of the sensing device with a check box or data
entry field on the competition entry form.
[0222] The user can get feedback in a variety of ways. The user's
transaction may direct a Web page to be displayed on the user's PC,
PDA or other Web browsing device. The output device is the device
via which the pen input comes, or alternatively it is an output
device registered to the user or to the pen. An email, SMS, page
message, voicemail message or phone call may be sent to the user
from the manufacturer via the Hyperlabel.TM. server (which can
maintain the user's anonymity). Each time the manufacturer sends a
message to the user the contact count is incremented for the user.
This is used to limit the number of times a manufacturer can
contact the user.
[0223] The user's netpage pen may have colored LEDs which can be
used to provide feedback. For example, if the user presses a
<Have I Won?> button, a query is sent to the manufacturer as
to the status of the competition in relation to this user. The
user's pen may show a green light if the user has won the
competition, an orange light may indicate the competition is not
yet decided, and a red light may indicate that the competition is
closed and the user has not won.
[0224] This type of query and feedback mechanism may be handled by
the netpage system, or alternatively the query may be passed to the
manufacturer's server. If the status request message is sent to the
manufacturer's server it has a "one-time-use" return path which
allows the manufacturer to send a response to the user. Another
model for feedback is the "blackboard model". This "blackboard"
refers to a general location, such as a Web page, where the
manufacturer can post information. The user can query this location
to read the information while maintaining their anonymity.
[0225] Entry Validation
[0226] The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32, manufacturer server 33, or a
competition management service can validate each competition entry.
The unique product item ID enables the manufacturer to verify that
the item was legitimately purchased, assuming that this information
is sent from the retail system to manufacturer's system at the time
of sale. It also allows the manufacturer to verify that there is a
single competition entry per item.
[0227] Validation of any input fields can be performed if required.
For example, the user may be required to write a description of why
they would like to win the competition in twenty words or less.
Validation can be performed to count the number of words written on
the form, and reject the entry if necessary.
[0228] The competition conditions may limit the number of entries
per user. It may not be possible for the manufacturer to perform
this validation, depending on how the user's alias ID has been
allocated, however a trusted identity management service, and/or
the netpage system, can perform this validation on behalf of the
manufacturer.
[0229] The competition entry form preferably has a signature field
59 (FIG. 5). This may have a variety of purposes, such as providing
a declaration that the user meets entry age requirements. The
user's signature will prove the identity of the user to the netpage
system, so competition entry conditions, such as a minimum age
requirement, can be verified by the netpage system prior to the
entry being accepted and forwarded to the manufacturer. In the
netpage System, a signature field has an associated digital
signature value. Any digital ink captured in a signature field's
zone is automatically verified with respect to the identity of the
owner of the pen. No signature digital ink or digital signature
value is passed to the manufacturer, but the netpage system will
verify the signature and set a flag indicating the verification
status of the digital signature.
[0230] If an entry fails to meet the entry requirements it can be
rejected and, optionally, a message can be sent to the user via one
of the feedback mechanisms described above.
[0231] User Anonymity
[0232] As mentioned above, the anonymity of the user can be
maintained throughout a competition. When the competition entry is
sent to a competition administrator such as a supplier or product
manufacturer, the user's identity is protected by the netpage
system. The user may remain anonymous to the product manufacturer
until such time as they choose to authorize the manufacturer to
access their identity and contact details.
[0233] Alternatively, the manufacturer may choose to use a trusted
third-party identity escrow service to manage the user's anonymity.
The third-party would be trusted by the netpage system to manage
the user's identity and maintain the user's anonymity until such
time as the user authorizes the third party to reveal the user's
identity.
[0234] When a user requests a netpage in a particular application
context, the application is able to embed a user-specific
transaction ID in the page. Subsequent input through the page is
tagged with the transaction ID, and the application is thereby able
to establish an appropriate context for the user's input.
[0235] When input occurs through a page which is not user-specific,
however, the application must use the user's unique identity to
establish a context. To protect the user's privacy, however, the
unique user ID known to the netpage system is not divulged to
applications. This is to prevent different application providers
from easily correlating independently accumulated behavioral
data.
[0236] The netpage registration server instead maintains an
anonymous relationship between a user and an application via a
unique alias ID. Whenever the user activates a hyperlink tagged
with the "registered" attribute, the netpage page server asks the
netpage registration server to translate the associated application
ID, together with the pen ID, into an alias ID. The alias ID is
then submitted to the hyperlink's application.
[0237] The application maintains state information indexed by alias
ID, and is able to retrieve user-specific state information without
knowledge of the global identity of the user.
[0238] The system also maintains an independent certificate and
private signature key for each of a user's applications, to allow
it to sign application transactions on behalf of the user using
only application-specific information.
[0239] A user's competition alias ID may be unique to a netpage
user and competition ID combination. In other words a netpage user
would have a unique competition alias ID for each competition they
entered. If a manufacturer were running more than one competition
then the user would have more than one competition alias id. The
manufacturer would not be aware of the connection between the
competition alias IDs unless the user opted in and revealed their
identity for each competition.
[0240] An alternative approach is that the competition alias ID is
unique to a netpage user and manufacturer combination. If a
manufacturer runs several competitions then a single competition
alias ID will be used for all the user's entries to these
competitions. The manufacturer can determine if a single netpage
user has entered multiple competitions. If the user opts in and
reveals their identity in one competition, the manufacturer can
correlate the user's identity with a competition alias ID across
the multiple competitions. The competition alias ID may persist
even after a competition closes.
[0241] Another possibility is that a user's competition alias ID is
unique to a netpage user and competition entry combination. In this
case the manufacturer could not tell if a single netpage user had
entered the same competition more than once.
[0242] The object model in this document uses the competition alias
ID as unique to a netpage user/manufacturer ID combination, but
other methods for allocating a competition alias ID are
possible.
[0243] Another approach to maintaining anonymity of an entrant to a
competition (user) is to provide a temporary telecommunication
address as an alias to the actual telecommunication address
recorded for the user of the sensing device. As shown in FIG. 3 and
described above, interaction of the netpage pen 20 with a product
item 30 results in interaction data to the user's netpage base
station 31 and on to Hyperlabel.TM. server 32. The Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32 maintains a database of registered users of netpage pens
and can access details of the user, such as the telecommunication
address of the user's preferred telecommunication device, be it a
PDA, mobile phone, or other similar device. The hyperlabel server
can generate a temporary telecommunication address to substitute
for the actual telecommunication address, thus maintaining the
anonymity of the telecommunication address of the user from the
manufacturer server 33.
[0244] When the manufacturer server 33 sends a message to the
temporary telecommunication address, the hyperlabel server forwards
the message to the telecommunication address of the user.
[0245] A temporary telecommunication address can be associated with
a telecommunication address of a competition entrant by any
appropriate associating means. The task may be performed by the
Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 as described, by the netpage base station
31, by the registration server 100, or by an additional server in
the system programmed for the task, such as an escrow server
associated with the manufacturer server.
[0246] One approach to generating the temporary telecommunication
address is to use encryption algorithms to generate an encrypted
telecommunication address for an entrant. The encrypted
telecommunication address is used for communication to and from the
manufacturer server. It is decrypted before any communication is
forwarded to the entrant.
[0247] The server that generates the temporary telecommunication
address may also maintain a counter to monitor the number of times
communication is forwarded to the telecommunication address of the
entrant. A limit can be placed on the number of times information
is forwarded.
[0248] Prize Collection at Retailer
[0249] If a competition user is eligible for a prize they may be
able to collect the prize directly from a retailer or other prize
collection point. The user may be able to collect their prize but
remain anonymous. The user only needs to provide something that can
identify them as being a specific competition user. If the user has
collected a pen from a retailer for the duration of their shopping
trip the need for identification will be automatically
satisfied.
[0250] When the user is notified that they have won a prize they
may collect the item they have won from the store shelf and take it
to the service desk. Alternatively the service desk may hold the
prizes in reserve.
[0251] The service operator may have a Hyperlabel.TM. prize form
from the manufacturer, listing the prizes available in the
competition. The redemption form may be printed by the operator on
demand. The form identifies the retailer and potentially the
operator's terminal. The Prize Collection at Retailer interaction
diagram is shown in FIG. 12 and the interaction detail is shown in
FIG. 13. The user clicks their pen 20 on the prize redemption form
121 provided by the service operator in order to identify
themselves (A) to the netpage base station 31 as a particular
competition user. Alternatively, the user's pen may be a
Hyperlabel.TM., allowing the operator to scan the user's pen at the
terminal, in order to verify the user's identity. Other forms of
identification that may be provided by the user are possible, and
include a rewards card, a prize token, a mobile phone or PDA
etc.
[0252] The digital ink and the user's pen ID are sent (B) from the
netpage pen 20 via a netpage base station 31 to the Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32 translates the digital ink,
and sends the pen id to the registration server 100, which returns
the pen user's competition alias ID. The competition ID, retailer
details (identifying the store, operator and service terminal), and
competition alias ID are sent (C) to the manufacturer's server 33
which looks up the prize(s) won by this user.
[0253] The manufacturer's server 33 may send (D) the prize details
to the store server 130 for notification (E) to the operator's
service terminal 131. The operator can then scan (F) the items 132
being redeemed with a fixed local scanner 133. Details of the
scanned item go (G) to the store server 130, and the store server
130 sends a message back (H) to the manufacturer's server 33
indicating the item ID of the prizes 132 collected by the
competition user.
[0254] Alternatively, the manufacturer server 33 may send a yes or
no answer to the store server 130, indicating whether the user is
eligible for any prizes, along with a redemption ID for the
competition user. The redemption ID is a temporary transaction ID.
The store server 130 then sends a message to the operator's service
terminal 131 putting the terminal into a prize redemption mode. The
operator may then scan the item(s) being claimed by the user. The
redemption ID and item ID are sent back to the manufacturer's
server 33 to validate whether this item can be claimed by the
competition user.
[0255] Rather than a user being eligible for a prize of a single
specific product, there may be a prize list from which the user can
choose. The prizes may vary and be specific to a store or retail
chain. This allows more flexibility for competitions and rewards
schemes.
[0256] Instant Win
[0257] A variation on competition entry often used by manufacturers
is the concept of "instant win".
[0258] An Instant Win Competition user interface flow is shown in
FIG. 14. The user answers the questions on the Instant Win Entry
Form 150, as shown in FIG. 15, and presses the <Submit Entry>
button 151. The Instant Win Prize claim message 170 is sent to the
user, as shown in FIG. 16. The user presses the <Print
Coupon> button 171 to print the prize claim coupon on a netpage
printer.
[0259] As with the competition entry described above, the user may
press the <Print> button 152 on the instant win entry form to
print the entry form on a netpage printer. This allows the user to
complete an entry form on paper rather than using the
packaging.
[0260] The competition entry form, in this case, may or may not
include questions that the user must answer. The user clicks on the
<Submit Entry> button 151 and the entry is sent to a
competition administrator such as the manufacturer server. If the
entry meets the competition's entry requirements the user is
automatically eligible to claim the manufacturer's offer. The
product item id, obtained from the package Hyperlabel.TM., allows
the manufacturer to verify that the product was legitimately
purchased before allowing the user to claim a prize. It also allows
the manufacturer to verify that there is a single competition entry
per item.
[0261] The manufacturer may send a message to the user's Web
display device, or through some other feedback, instructing them
how to claim the prize. The user may remain anonymous and collect
their prize from the retailer as described above. Alternatively,
the user may be required to reveal their identity in order that the
prize can be delivered. Another alternative is that an instant win
coupon 140 (FIG. 14) is printed, which can be redeemed for a prize.
The coupon is printed with a serial number, and may be a netpage
coupon i.e., invisibly tagged. The interaction detail for prize
collection using a coupon is shown in FIG. 17.
[0262] A prize may be redeemed by the user taking the coupon to the
operator service terminal 131 where the coupon is scanned and
digital ink is sent to the store server 130. The store server 130
sends the digital ink and retailer details to the Hyperlabel.TM.
server 32 that sends the digital ink to the registration server 100
which returns a competition alias ID. The Hyperlabel.TM. server 32
sends the retailer details, competition ID, competition alias ID
and coupon number to the manufacturer server 33 for verification
and authentication. The manufacturer server sends a manufacturer
ID, competition ID, competition alias ID and prize list back to the
store server 130 which passes the data to the operator service
terminal 131. The user chooses a prize from the prize list and the
operator service terminal 131 reports this to the store server with
the manufacturer ID, competition ID and competition alias ID, which
are passed to the manufacturer server 33 as confirmation.
[0263] It will be appreciated that the user may remain anonymous
throughout the instant win coupon prize collection process.
[0264] Token Collection
[0265] Another form of purchase incentive often employed by product
manufacturers is that of token or coupon collection. This refers to
some mechanism whereby a consumer provides proof of purchase for
one or more products and a coupon administrator, such as a
manufacturer, in return provides some form of reward.
[0266] This type of scheme can easily be implemented with
Hyperlabel.TM. packaging. The packaging can be printed with details
of the offer and a <Token> button. The user clicks on the
<Token> button on the required number of products, and is
then eligible for the manufacturer's offers.
[0267] The product Hyperlabel.TM. provides the product's unique
item id. This allows the manufacturer or third-party competition
manager to validate that each <Token> button is from a
separate product, and not multiple <Token> presses on the
same item. The product item ID also enables the manufacturer to
verify that the item was legitimately purchased, thereby preventing
a user from claiming an offer by clicking on <Token> buttons
in-store. Further, the product item ID allows the manufacturer to
validate that each token is used by a single user.
[0268] Once the conditions of the offer have been met, the user may
be required to explicitly provide their contact details to the
manufacturer. A message may be sent from the manufacturer or
competition manager to the user requesting this information.
Alternatively the user may be contacted and asked to merely press a
button, or perhaps provide their signature, which authorizes the
netpage system to send the user contact information to the
manufacturer. This type of communication with the user occurs in
the usual way e.g. via the user's Web terminal, mobile phone
etc.
[0269] Alternatively, once the conditions of the offer have been
met, the user may print a coupon which can be presented to a
retailer for prize redemption (as described above). Another
alternative is the user may collect their prize direct from a
retailer or other prize collection point as described earlier. This
type of collection may allow the user to collect their prize
anonymously.
[0270] Rewards Scheme
[0271] In a variation on the competition mechanism already
described, a rewards scheme can be implemented in a similar way to
the token collection scenario. A user may have a rewards scheme
card which allows the user to accumulate points towards prizes or
rewards. The card may be a Hyperlabel.TM. to allow a store operator
to scan it.
[0272] Each card has a unique identifier. A rewards scheme may be
offered by a manufacturer, or by a particular store, retail chain,
or service provider.
[0273] A Hyperlabel.TM. rewards card need not be identified as
belonging to a particular netpage user, but can be associated with
a competition user. The card may have a button which, when clicked,
allows the user to query how many points they have accumulated,
displaying the result on their default Web terminal.
[0274] Points may be accumulated in a variety of ways. The rewards
card may be scanned by a store operator at the time of product
purchase. Alternatively the netpage user may claim points by
clicking on the relevant items they have purchased. More points may
be offered by the scheme owner based on the level of participation
by the user, for example, if the user opts in to allowing email
notifications of special offers or new products they may receive
bonus points.
[0275] Dynamic User Registration
[0276] The netpage system allows for dynamic user registration if a
user and/or sensing device are not already registered with the
computer system. Most of the scenarios mentioned above rely on the
netpage registration server (or equivalent server) identifying the
user's netpage user id and the associated web display terminal id
from the pen id. If the user or pen is not already registered with
the netpage system, the user may be dynamically registered with the
netpage system when they first interact with a competition entry
form.
[0277] When the netpage Registration server receives an unknown pen
id it allocates a temporary netpage user id. The default return
messaging channel is set to point to the device that relayed the
pen's message, such as a mobile phone, PDA or PC. The return
messaging channel may be identified by a phone number, pager
number, PDA network address (e.g. IP address, MAC address etc.),
email address, network subscriber identifier etc. The relaying
device either explicitly includes the return channel address in the
message relayed to the Hyperlabel.TM. server (and hence to the
Registration server), or the Hyperlabel.TM. server determines the
address in a protocol-specific way. For example, the Hyperlabel.TM.
server may extract the IP address of the relaying device from the
message if delivered via an IP network, or may use Caller
Identification or some other telephone network mechanism to
determine the phone number of the relaying device. In the case of
an IP address the Hyperlabel.TM. server may assume a standard port
number for the return messaging channel. Dynamic registration is
only really useful if a return messaging channel can be identified.
The temporary netpage user id may be maintained forever or only for
the duration of the competition.
[0278] Competition Entry Object Model
[0279] The Competition Entry object model revolves around
competitions, competition entries, and competition users. FIG. 18
illustrates the management and organisation of these objects. The
Manufacturer or Competition Management Server 180 manages the
competition and competition prizes. The Hyperlabel.TM./netpage
System 181 manages the competition entry (hyperlabel server 33) and
user interface (registration server 100)
[0280] A competition class diagram is shown in FIG. 19. A
manufacturer may have many competitions. Each competition is
associated with a product class and a manufacturer. A competition
has a unique competition id, a name, description, a start date and
end date, status, conditions, age limit, and other details. The
status indicates whether a competition is open, i.e. no winner had
yet been drawn, or closed i.e. the winner(s) have been decided and
no more entries are being accepted. The age limit indicates the
minimum age requirements (if any) for any user submitting an
entry.
[0281] Associated with each competition, and managed by the
Hyperlabel.TM./netpage system, is a competition limits object
comprising a contact limit. The contact limit indicates the maximum
number of times a competition user may be contacted by the
manufacturer in relation to this competition. The Competition
Limits class diagram is shown in FIG. 20.
[0282] A competition has one or more prizes. Each competition prize
has a prize number which is unique within a competition, details
(giving a description of the prize), and a prize status. The prize
status indicates if the prize has been redeemed, drawn but not yet
redeemed, or not yet drawn. When a winner is drawn for a
competition, the competition user is associated with the relevant
prize and the prize status is updated.
[0283] Each competition will have a large number of competition
entries. The Competition Entry class diagram is shown in FIG. 21.
Each competition entry is associated with a product item. Each
competition entry has an entry id, unique within the competition,
and the date and time the entry was received. A competition entry
can have a number of entry elements, depending on the input fields
on the entry form. The entry may have a text element, for user
entered text, a drawing element for a user-entered drawing, a
multiple-choice option number (if the entry contained a
multiple-choice question), and a signature verification status. The
competition entry may have a token element if the competition entry
conditions involve collecting tokens.
[0284] A netpage user can enter many competitions. The Competition
User class diagram is shown in FIG. 22. A netpage user is allocated
a competition alias id. The netpage user may be allocated a unique
competition alias ID for each manufacturer, and this alias ID will
be used for all competitions associated with this manufacturer.
Another alternative is that the netpage user may be allocated a
unique competition alias ID for each competition they enter.
Regardless of how the competition alias ID is allocated, the
competition user object comprises the competition alias id, a
contact count indicating how many times the manufacturer has
contacted the user, and an opt in flag. The opt in flag is set to
true if the user has agreed to reveal their identity and contact
details to the manufacturer for the purposes of claiming an
offer.
[0285] A netpage user has a default Web terminal, with an
associated terminal id. This is the default Web display device for
the user. The Default Web Terminal class diagram is shown in FIG.
23.
[0286] As described in the section on Dynamic User Registration,
the netpage registration server may allocate a temporary user id
the first time a user enters a competition using a sensing device
that has not previously been registered. Part of the temporary user
id is recordal of a return messaging channel, which may be a phone
number, pager number, PDA network address, email address,
subscriber id, or similar communication channel. A class diagram
for the temporary user is shown in FIG. 32.
[0287] Although specific reference is made to a netpage pen, any
netpage sensing device can be used. Specific reference is made to a
Hyperlabel.TM. server, which is a specific instance of a netpage
page server, and to a registration server. The registration server
and the Hyperlabel server can be the same server.
[0288] It will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant
fields that a number of other embodiments, differing from those
specifically described, will fall within the scope of the present
invention. Accordingly, the invention is not intended to be limited
to the specific embodiments described in the specification,
including documents incorporated by cross-reference as
appropriate.
[0289] Loyalty Schemes
[0290] It will be appreciated that the tokens can be related to
participation in a loyalty or reward scheme, in which points are
allocated to purchases made by a user. Upon accumulating sufficient
points, users can exchange the points for goods or services, or for
upgrades or discounts on goods and services they wish to pay
for.
[0291] An example of such a scheme is any of the bonus programs run
by various groups of airlines, in which discounts, upgrades and
free flights can be earned by accumulating points based on
distances flown using affiliated airlines. Points can also be
accumulated by purchasing goods and services at certain outlets,
and using certain credit facilities such as particular brands of
credit card.
[0292] In the present context, points can be collected and allowed
to accumulate over time by interacting with tokens on product
labels of products. Each token can be worth a fixed number of
points, although special bonus offers for interacting with multiple
tokens of a particular type, or a particular combination of tokens
from different products or product types. Promotions can be run
whereby the points associated with a particular token or tokens can
temporarily be increased in a store or chain of stores.
[0293] If the user is registered with a particular program, a
catalogue can be accessed online (or sent periodically) informing
the user of what they can purchase for various predetermined
numbers of accumulated points. If the catalogue is provided in
printed form, it is particularly desirable that it be netpage
enabled, which allows the registered user to select (via a
checkbox, circling gesture, or in any other suitable fashion) which
goods or services they wish to purchase. The system can be set up
such that ordering and delivery of the chosen goods or services
requires no filling in of forms, or phone calls.
[0294] Similarly, if the catalogue is provided by an electronic
delivery mechanism such as email, it is preferred that it include
data such that printing it on a netpage-enabled printer results in
a netpage-enabled document that can be interacted with as described
above.
[0295] The user can also be spent special offers that are likely to
be of interest given such information as past purchases (both via
the catalogue and as part of obtaining the tokens/points in the
first place) and the number of points they have accumulated.
* * * * *