U.S. patent application number 13/667658 was filed with the patent office on 2013-05-09 for system for distributing advertisements to multiple locations.
This patent application is currently assigned to Neal Harley Landers. The applicant listed for this patent is Neal Harley Landers. Invention is credited to Neal Harley Landers.
Application Number | 20130117100 13/667658 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 48223031 |
Filed Date | 2013-05-09 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130117100 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Landers; Neal Harley |
May 9, 2013 |
System for Distributing Advertisements to Multiple Locations
Abstract
Systems and methods for distributing an advertisement are
provided. In one embodiment, an advertisement distribution device
comprises a database manager configured to select an advertisement
to be retrieved from a database. The advertisement is selected
based on at least a time when the advertisement is to be run. The
advertisement distribution device further comprises an interface
device configured to transmit the advertisement to a ticket
printing device.
Inventors: |
Landers; Neal Harley;
(Duluth, GA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Landers; Neal Harley |
Duluth |
GA |
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
Landers; Neal Harley
Duluth
GA
|
Family ID: |
48223031 |
Appl. No.: |
13/667658 |
Filed: |
November 2, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61555842 |
Nov 4, 2011 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/14.41 ;
705/14.48; 705/14.61 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/0241
20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/14.41 ;
705/14.61; 705/14.48 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 30/02 20120101
G06Q030/02 |
Claims
1. An advertisement distribution device comprising: a database
manager configured to select an advertisement to be retrieved from
a database, the advertisement being selected based on at least a
time when the advertisement is to be run; and an interface device
configured to transmit the advertisement to a ticket printing
device.
2. The advertisement distribution device of claim 1, wherein the
interface device is configured to transmit the advertisement to a
server that is configured to further transmit the advertisement to
the ticket printing device via a private network.
3. The advertisement distribution device of claim 1, wherein the
interface device is further configured to receive ticket
information, the ticket information related to information to be
printed on a ticket.
4. The advertisement distribution device of claim 3, wherein the
ticket information and advertisement are to be printed on a single
ticket.
5. The advertisement distribution device of claim 4, wherein the
single ticket is a lottery ticket.
6. The advertisement distribution device of claim 4, further
comprising an image combiner for combining the ticket information
and advertisement into a single image and storing the single image
in an image file, wherein the interface device is further
configured to transmit the image file to the ticket printing
device.
7. The advertisement distribution device of claim 3, wherein the
advertisement distribution device is part of a system associated
with a lottery server.
8. The advertisement distribution device of claim 1, wherein the
database manager is further configured to select a plurality of
advertisements to be retrieved from the database, the plurality of
advertisements being selected based on at least a time period when
the plurality of advertisements are to be printed and a specific
ticket printing device where the plurality of advertisements are to
be printed.
9. The advertisement distribution device of claim 8, further
comprising a processing device configured to bundle the plurality
of advertisements into an ad bundle, wherein the interface device
is further configured to transmit the ad bundle to the specific
ticket printing device.
10. The advertisement distribution device of claim 9, wherein the
interface device is configured to transmit the ad bundle to the
specific ticket printing device before the time period.
11. The advertisement distribution device of claim 1, wherein the
advertisement being selected is based on a cost to run the
advertisement, and wherein a first advertisement having a higher
cost to run is selected before a second advertisement having a
lower cost.
12. The advertisement distribution device of claim 1, further
comprising a print tracking module configured to receive a
confirmation from the ticket printing device when the advertisement
is printed.
13. The advertisement distribution device of claim 12, wherein the
print tracking module is further configured to receive statistics
about a number of times that the advertisement is printed.
14. A system comprising: an advertisement distribution device
configured to select an advertisement to be retrieved from a
database, the advertisement being selected based on at least a time
when the advertisement is to be run, the advertisement distribution
device further configured to retrieve the selected advertisement
from the database and transmit the advertisement to a ticket
printing device; and a print verification device configured to
receive a confirmation from the ticket printing device when the
advertisement is printed.
15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a financial
management device configured to charge a fee to an advertiser
associated with the advertisement when the advertisement is
printed.
16. The system of claim 14, wherein the ticket printing device is a
lottery ticket printing device.
17. A method of distributing an advertisement, the method
comprising the steps of: retrieving an advertisement strategy from
a database, the advertisement strategy including at least an
advertisement, a run time parameter indicating a time period when
the advertisement is to be run, and a location parameter indicating
at least a first remote device where the advertisement is to be
run; and transmitting the advertisement strategy to the first
remote device with instructions to run the advertisement during the
time period.
18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of
receiving a confirmation from the first remote device that the
advertisement was revealed during the time period.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the step of receiving the
confirmation further includes receiving time and date information
from the first remote device indicating each time and date that the
advertisement was revealed.
20. The method of claim 17, wherein the first remote device is a
ticket printing device.
21. The method of claim 17, wherein the time period includes day
and hour parameters.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C.
.sctn.119 of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/555,842, filed on
Nov. 4, 2011, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by
reference herein.
[0002] This application is related to co-pending U.S. patent
application Ser. No. ______, filed on ______, and entitled, "System
for Creating an Advertisement Strategy," the entire disclosure of
which is incorporated by reference herein. This application is also
related to co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______,
filed on ______, titled, "System for Printing an Advertisement on a
Ticket," the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by
reference herein.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0003] The present disclosure generally relates to advertising, and
more particularly relates to systems and methods for distributing
advertisements to a number of locations.
BACKGROUND
[0004] For years, businesses have created advertisements to endorse
their products, brands, etc. Normally, these advertisements can be
presented to an audience in a number of ways. For example, some
advertisements may be presented in printed form and published in
newspapers, magazines, flyers, etc. Other advertisements may be
presented in audible form, such as those communicated over the
radio. Still others may include both visual and audible elements,
such as those that are commonly presented on television or on a
computer. Regarding printed advertisements, some businesses, such
as restaurants, may choose to advertise by printing coupons. These
coupons can be combined with other coupons from other businesses in
coupon books, printed in newspapers and magazines, or printed on
individual cards or flyers. Despite the numerous ways that a
business may advertise, businesses are continually looking for new
ways to distribute advertisements and coupons to their
audience.
[0005] Also, businesses usually attempt to present their
advertisements in a way that will reach the type of audience that
they intend to target. For example, businesses may wish to purchase
television advertisement slots to show commercials to an audience
that may be more likely to buy their products or patronize their
establishments. The advertisements can then more sharply focus on
viewers who might have more of a tendency to watch the associated
television programs. This can be done to expose the intended
audience with their advertisements. It would be desirable for a
business, however, to have greater flexibility in advertising to be
able to target their audience so that advertisements can reach the
people that may be more likely to use their products or visit their
establishments.
SUMMARY
[0006] The present disclosure describes various implementations of
systems and methods for distributing advertisements to a number of
locations. According to one implementation, an advertisement
distributing device, as described in the present disclosure,
includes a database manager configured to select an advertisement
to be retrieved from a database, the advertisement being selected
based on at least a time when the advertisement is to be run. The
advertisement distributing device also includes an interface device
configured to transmit the advertisement to a ticket printing
device.
[0007] The present disclosure also describes a system, which
comprises an advertisement distribution device configured to select
an advertisement to be retrieved from a database. The advertisement
is selected based on at least a time when the advertisement is to
be run. The advertisement distribution device is further configured
to retrieve the selected advertisement from the database and
transmit the advertisement to a ticket printing device. The system
may also comprise a print verification device configured to receive
a confirmation from the ticket printing device when the
advertisement is printed.
[0008] The present disclosure also describes a method, which
comprises the step of retrieving an advertisement strategy from a
database. The advertisement strategy includes at least an
advertisement, a run time parameter indicating a time period when
the advertisement is to be run, and a location parameter indicating
at least a first remote device where the advertisement is to be
run. The method also comprises the step of transmitting the
advertisement strategy to the first remote device with instructions
to run the advertisement during the time period.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The features illustrated in the following figures are
intended to emphasize the general principles of the present
disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale. Consistent
reference characters are used throughout the figures to designate
corresponding features.
[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a conventional ticket
distribution system.
[0011] FIGS. 2A-2D are block diagrams showing advertisement systems
according to various implementations of the present disclosure.
[0012] FIGS. 3A and 3B are block diagrams showing more
advertisement systems according to various implementations of the
present disclosure.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an advertisement managing
system according to various implementations of the present
disclosure.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a data table related to printing
devices, according to various implementations of the present
disclosure.
[0015] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a data table related to
advertisement information, according to various implementations of
the present disclosure.
[0016] FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating the advertisement
distribution device shown in FIG. 4, according to various
implementations of the present disclosure.
[0017] FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating the print
confirmation device shown in FIG. 4, according to various
implementations of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0018] The present disclosure describes systems and methods for
creating an advertisement strategy, which may include not only the
advertisement itself, but also time and location information for
specifying when and where the advertisement is to be run. However,
rather than using conventional means of presenting an advertisement
to an audience, the advertisements according to various
implementations of the present disclosure may be printed on any
suitable type of ticket, such as a movie ticket, sporting event
ticket, concert ticket, theater ticket, lottery ticket, rapid
transit ticket, train ticket, airline ticket, or ticket for other
events or purposes. In particular, the implementations disclosed
herein may be combined with a lottery system, whereas an
advertisement can be printed on a lottery ticket that is
distributed to a person purchasing the lottery ticket. In
particular, lottery tickets (and other types of tickets) represent
a unique purchase in that they are printed for an individual at a
known location and time. Unlike coupons that might normally get
thrown away or ignored, the lottery ticket is usually held by the
purchaser and read multiple times during the short lifespan of the
ticket.
[0019] Using the implementations described in the present
disclosure, an advertiser can create one or more advertisement
strategies using a process involving online systems. The
advertisements can then be distributed to ticket printing devices
to be printed for individuals who wish to purchase some type of
ticket. The regular ticket information is printed on the ticket
along with the advertisement, and the ticket can be handed to the
customer. With the example of lottery tickets, the advertisement
can be printed on the same ticket that includes the lottery
numbers. By allowing the advertisers to choose where the
advertisements are printed, the advertisements can be distributed
to people who might live or work in a specific area (e.g., near a
particular restaurant). For example, lottery ticket printing
devices, sometimes referred to as point-of-sale (POS) lottery
machines, are usually housed in known, fixed locations, such as in
convenience stores, gas stations, grocery stores, restaurants,
bars, and other venues.
[0020] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a conventional ticket
distribution system 10. As shown, the ticket distribution system 10
includes a ticket managing server 12 and a plurality of ticket
printing devices 14, where the ticket managing server 12
communicates with the ticket printing devices 14 via a private
network 16. The ticket managing server 12 may store ticket
information in a database 18. In some embodiments, the ticket
printing devices 14 do not communicate with each other, but only
communicate with the ticket managing server 12. The ticket
distribution system 10 may be a closed system that would normally
not operate over the Internet. For security purposes, the private
network 16 is normally inaccessible to devices outside the ticket
distribution system 10.
[0021] In some embodiments, the ticket distribution system 10 is a
lottery system that manages and controls the distribution and
printing of lottery tickets. The ticket managing server 12 may
include one or more computers for a state lottery system or may be
the main computer(s) for a lottery system that extends into
multiple states, such as the Mega Millions and Power Ball lottery
systems. The ticket printing devices 14 may represent the point-of
sale (POS) lottery machines where a customer can purchase a lottery
ticket. In other embodiments, the ticket distribution system 10 may
be related to a system for distributing and printing other types of
tickets, such as movie tickets, concert tickets, airline tickets,
etc.
[0022] When a customer wishes to purchase a lottery ticket (e.g., a
ticket for Mega Millions, Power Ball, Daily Double, Pick 3, Pick 4,
Win For Life, or other lottery game), the ticket printing device 14
prints out the lottery ticket with a certain number of lottery
numbers. These lottery numbers may be selected by the customer or
may be randomly selected. When random numbers are selected, the
ticket distribution system 10 may include two different scenarios
for picking the random numbers. In one embodiment, the ticket
managing server 12 may be informed by a particular ticket printing
device 14 that numbers are to be selected and will then pick random
numbers (e.g., using a random number generator) and supply these
numbers to the particular ticket printing device 14. In another
embodiment, the ticket printing device 14 itself may be configured
to randomly pick numbers if the device is equipped with a random
number generator. Once the numbers are picked, the ticket printing
device 14 can print the lottery ticket.
[0023] When the ticket printing device 14 selects the random
numbers (or if the numbers are selected by the customer), the
lottery numbers are communicated to the ticket managing server 12
in order that the ticket managing server 12 can store information
about the lottery ticket sold, such as the lottery numbers on the
ticket, the time and date when the ticket was sold, and the
location where the ticket was sold (i.e., an establishment that
houses the ticket printing device 14). If the ticket managing
server 12 picks the random numbers, the ticket managing server 12
stores the same information about the lottery ticket sold (i.e.,
the lottery numbers, time, date, and location information). This
information can be stored in the database 18.
[0024] According to some reports, the sale of lottery tickets in
the United States exceeded $50 billion in 2011, which is about $200
per capita. Also, there were over 200,000 lottery ticket printing
devices 14 operating in the U.S. in 2011, and the number of devices
continues to rise. From this information, it can be determined that
a typical ticket printing device 14 may print over 200,000 tickets
per year, or more than about 20 per hour.
[0025] FIGS. 2A through 2D are block diagrams illustrating various
embodiments of advertisement systems according to various
implementations of the present disclosure. The advertisement
systems of FIGS. 2A-2D include advertisement distribution systems
combined with ticket distribution systems. The advertisement
distribution systems can be incorporated with any type of ticket
distribution system that includes printing facilities located in
specific locations where an advertisement can be printed on any
suitable medium. In some embodiments, the ticket distribution
systems are lottery systems. The ticket printing devices 34 in
these embodiments may be configured to print any type of tickets,
depending on the type of system in which they are deployed. For
example, in a sporting event ticket printing system, the ticket
printing devices 34 may be configured to print tickets for a
particular sporting event. The printed tickets may include lottery
tickets, movie tickets, concert tickets, sporting event tickets,
rapid transit tickets, airline tickets, or other types of tickets.
In some embodiments, the ticket printing devices 34 may
alternatively be configured to print other types of items (e.g.,
pamphlets, brochures, flyers, newspapers, magazines, etc.).
[0026] The advertisement systems of FIGS. 2A-2D may represent a
system that is configured for a single state (e.g., Georgia),
multiple states, a country, multiple countries, or other
geographical or political regions. For example, when configured
with a lottery system, one advertisement system may be located in
each state, and communication may take place between systems of
other states, particularly for interstate lottery games (e.g., Mega
Millions, Power Ball, etc.).
[0027] It should be noted that each advertisement system of FIGS.
2A-2D may include security measures that are incorporated
throughout the respective system. Thus, when an advertisement is
created, security elements are added. Also, when advertisements are
distributed to the ticket printing devices 34, the security
elements can be verified to ensure that the advertisements are
authentic. Furthermore, when an advertisement is printed, the
ticket printing devices 34 may also check the security elements.
The security elements may include encoding/decoding protocols,
encryption/decryption protocols, or other protocols that are known
by some or all of the components (e.g., the ticket managing server
32, ticket printing devices 34, and advertisement managing system
40) of the systems of FIG. 2. In some embodiments, the components
of the systems may utilize code characters, passwords, or other
codes that are configured to change in a certain way. For example,
a code number may increase by a certain value on a regular basis
(e.g., every day). Also, the components of the systems may be
configured to use and check for certain advertisement
characteristics to ensure security. For example, these
advertisement characteristics may include a specific size of an
image of the advertisement, a specific type of file, a file naming
convention, a specific number of dots per inch (dpi) for the
advertisements, or other characteristics.
[0028] The advertisement systems of FIGS. 2A-2D may allow an
advertiser to promote local events, drive business to a particular
store, promote band affinity with local organizations (e.g., local
sports teams), promote special events (e.g., sporting events,
fairs, festivals, etc.), and even raise money for charity. The
advertisement systems allow advertisers to easily target specific
areas. Also, advertisers can run advertisements at specific times,
depending on local events or other occurrences that may have a
limited duration (e.g., a fair or circus in a local area,
etc.).
[0029] As opposed to a system that includes an advertisement for
one advertiser that is printed on all tickets in a batch, the
advertisement systems of the present disclosure enable multiple
advertisers to advertise as many advertisements as they wish and
have the advertisements targeted at only certain locations. In this
regard, the present disclosure provides a variable system that can
select from among a plurality of advertisements, depending on
various parameters. Also, the advertisements can be printed on a
ticket, as opposed to other media, which may normally be maintained
more carefully by its holder than a typical coupon. Therefore, it
may be more likely that the holder will view the advertisement more
often.
[0030] FIG. 2A shows an embodiment of an advertisement system 30.
In this embodiment, the advertisement system 30 includes a ticket
managing server 32, ticket printing devices 34, a private network
36 interconnecting the ticket managing server 32 with the ticket
printing devices 34, an advertisement managing system 40, user
devices 42, and a second network 44 interconnecting the
advertisement managing system 40 with the user devices 42. Although
not shown, the ticket printing devices 34 may, according to some
implementations, be connected to the network 44. As shown, the
private network 36 and second network 44 are separate from each
other.
[0031] The advertisement system 30 may be incorporated into an
already existing ticket distribution system that includes, for
example, the ticket managing server 32, ticket printing devices 34,
and private network 36. These elements may be similar to the
corresponding elements shown in FIG. 1. However, according to the
embodiments described in the present disclosure, the ticket
distribution system portion of the advertisement system 30 not only
prints tickets and records information about the tickets, but also
may be configured to alter the tickets, such as by creating a space
or place holder that allows one or more advertisements to also be
printed on the ticket. Advertisements that are created by the
advertisement managing system 40 may be stored in a database or
other memory device. According to various embodiments, one or more
databases or memory devices may be connected to the ticket managing
server 32, the advertisement managing system 40, and/or the ticket
printing devices 34. Then, when a ticket is to be printed, an
advertisement is retrieved from the database and printed along with
the ticket information.
[0032] Regarding the aspect of creating an advertisement or
planning an advertisement strategy, the advertisement system 30
uses the advertisement managing system 40. The advertisement
managing system 40 is configured to communicate with one or more
user devices 42 via the network 44. According to some embodiments,
the network 44 may be a local area network (LAN) and/or a wide area
network (WAN), such as the Internet. The network 44 may include
wired and/or wireless components. In some embodiments, the network
44 may be omitted altogether such that communication between the
user devices 42 and the advertisement managing system 40 involves
physically delivering a data storage device (e.g., CD, flash drive,
or other portable storage device) from one device to the other.
[0033] When the network 44 is configured for local communication,
the user devices 42 may represent terminals used by people who are
associated with the advertisement managing system 40 for inputting
advertisement orders for various clients. In other embodiments, the
user devices 42 may represent computers or other processing devices
connected to the advertisement managing system 40 via the Internet,
where these user devices 42 are used by advertisers who wish to
create an advertisement online. In this respect, the advertisement
managing system 40 may include a web server for providing a website
where users can create one or more advertisements and/or plan
advertisement strategies or campaigns.
[0034] The ticket distribution portion and advertisement portion
are combined in the embodiment of FIG. 2A by a bridge 46, which may
include a permanent or removable conductor connecting the ticket
managing server 32 with the advertisement managing system 40. The
bridge 46 may include USB connections, a dedicated conductor, a
Secure Shell (SSH) connection, or other suitable connectivity
between the various servers. The servers may be synchronized using
an SSH protocol. In some embodiments, the bridge 46 may be replaced
with an indirect connection, such as providing information on a
memory device (e.g., CD, flash drive, etc.) and physically
transferring information from one device to the other. In some
embodiments, the ticket managing server 32 and advertisement
managing system 40 may communicate using a third network on which
only these two systems communicate.
[0035] Regardless of the manner in which the devices are connected,
the advertisement managing system 40 communicates advertisements
and associated information to the ticket managing server 32 to
enable printing of the advertisements on tickets according to
specific instructions. Also, the ticket managing server 32
communicates information back to the advertisement managing system
40 providing verification that all or some of the advertisements to
be printed have indeed been printed. The verification information
may include advertisement information (which advertisement(s) were
printed), the time and date when the advertisement(s) were printed
on the tickets, when the ticket was handed to a customer, and the
locations where the advertisement(s) were printed. Ticket
information does not normally need to be supplied to the
advertisement portion of the advertisement system 30. Therefore,
the bridge 46 may provide secure communication and may prevent the
user devices 42 or other components of the advertising portion of
the system 30 from communicating with or hacking into the ticket
managing server 32.
[0036] Communication between the ticket distribution portion of the
advertisement system 30 and the advertisement portion of the
advertisement system 30 may be made on a limited basis. For
example, advertisements may be communicated to the ticket portion
on an hourly basis, daily basis, weekly basis, or other suitable
time intervals. Also, confirmation of the printing of
advertisements may be communicated back to the advertisement
portion on an hourly, daily, weekly, or other timely basis. It
should be noted that some or all of the features described herein
with respect to FIG. 2A may also be applicable to FIGS. 2B-2D as
well.
[0037] FIG. 2B is a second embodiment of an advertisement system
50. The advertisement system 50 in this embodiment is similar to
the system 30 of FIG. 2A, except that the ticket managing server 32
and advertisement managing system 40 are combined into one server
or computer system, labeled as a ticket/advertisement managing
system 52. In some embodiments, the ticket managing server 32 shown
in FIG. 2A may be modified to include the features of the
advertisement managing system 40 to provide the
ticket/advertisement managing system 52. The modified ticket server
in this respect may include a second interface device to allow
communication on the second network 44. According to some
embodiments, the ticket/advertisement managing system 52 may
include a switch (e.g., electrical, mechanical, or
electromechanical switch) that enables the system 52 to operate as
a ticket managing server at some times and to operate as an
advertisement managing system at other times. The switch can also
be used to switch between operating over the private network 36 at
some times while operating on the second network 44 at other
times.
[0038] FIG. 2C shows another embodiment of an advertisement system
60. In this embodiment, the bridge 46 shown in FIG. 2A is omitted
and instead the advertisement managing system 40 is configured to
connect to the private network 36 via a secure connector 62. The
secure connector 62 may limit the operations of the advertisement
managing system 40 within the private network 36. As such, the
advertisement managing system 40 may provide advertisements to the
ticket managing server 32 and/or ticket printing devices 34 and
receive confirmation from the ticket printing devices 34 or ticket
managing server 32 as to when and where the advertisements are
printed.
[0039] FIG. 2D shows another embodiment of an advertisement system
70. In this embodiment, the bridge 46 shown in FIG. 2A is omitted
and instead the ticket managing server 32 is configured to connect
to the network 44 via a secure connector 72. The secure connector
72 may limit or restrict the access that the components on the
network 44 may have with the ticket managing server 32. The ticket
managing server 32 may retrieve advertisements from the
advertisement managing system 40 via the network 44 and may provide
confirmation information to the advertisement managing system 40,
or even directly to the user devices 42. The confirmation
information may be designed to confirm which advertisements have
been printed, the time and date of printing, and the locations
where they were printed.
[0040] FIGS. 3A and 3B are block diagrams showing other embodiments
of advertising systems according to the present disclosure. In
these embodiments, in contrast to the embodiments of FIGS. 2A-2D
that operate over two separate networks, the ticket distribution
portions and advertisement portions exist together and operate over
a common network. For example, the network in these embodiments may
include a secure network. Since it may be much more expensive to
operate on and maintain the private network 36, costs can be
reduced by operating on a single network. Therefore, the
advertisement systems of FIGS. 3A and 3B, which include both the
ticket distribution portion and the advertisement portion, can
operate on the Internet or other wide area network, which may be a
less expensive alternative and save a large amount of money for the
ticket distribution systems or state lottery systems. Additional
security measures in this case may be added to prevent unauthorized
access into the ticket distribution system (e.g., lottery system)
via the Internet.
[0041] FIG. 3A shows an embodiment of an advertisement system 80,
which includes a ticket/advertisement managing system 82, a
plurality of ticket printing devices 84, and a plurality of user
devices 86, interconnected by way of a network 88. The network 88
may include the Internet and may also include local or other wide
area networks. In this embodiment, the ticket/advertisement
managing system 82 communicates with the ticket printing devices 84
via the network 88. The ticket/advertisement managing system 82 in
this embodiment may be configured to perform the ticket
distribution functions and perform the advertisement functions as
described in the present disclosure.
[0042] In some embodiments, the ticket/advertisement managing
system 82 may be configured to communicate with the user devices 86
in a limited capacity. The user devices 86 may be used as mentioned
above to create or plan an advertisement strategy. The user devices
86 may access the ticket/advertisement managing system 82 to
perform the advertisement functions.
[0043] Information regarding the advertisement strategies that are
created by the ticket/advertisement managing system 82 is
configured to combine the advertisements, according to the
advertisement strategies, with the ticket information (e.g.,
lottery numbers). The advertisement information and ticket
information may be stored on separate databases or in the same
database. The ticket/advertisement managing system 82 instructs the
respective ticket printing devices 84 that when a ticket is to be
printed, it is printed with the combination of a selected
advertisement and ticket information on the ticket. The
ticket/advertisement managing system 82 may also provide
information about printed advertisements to the specific user
devices 86 to inform the respective advertisers or agents
associated with advertisers of the results of the advertisement
strategies.
[0044] FIG. 3B is a block diagram of another advertisement system
100, which is similar to FIG. 3A. In this embodiment, however, the
ticket managing server 102 and advertisement managing system 104
are individually configured as separate components on the network
88. In this way, it may be easier to separate the ticket
distribution functions from the advertisement functions. Also, the
ticket managing server 102 may be specifically configured to limit
or restrict access by the user devices 86.
[0045] According to additional embodiments with respect to the
present disclosure, the embodiments of FIGS. 2A-2D, 3A, and 3B may
further include means for issuing mobile tickets, such as mobile
lottery tickets or other types of mobile tickets. For example, in
place of the ticket printing devices 34 and 84, a transmitter or
wireless communication device may be employed using any suitable
wireless protocol. The wireless communication device in this case
may be configured to conduct the sale of virtual tickets to users
of mobile devices (e.g., mobile phones, smart phones, tablets,
laptop computers, or other mobile devices) and receive a fee for
the sale of the virtual ticket.
[0046] In addition to ticket information that might normally be
displayed on a display screen of the mobile device, the virtual
tickets may also include an area for an advertisement. Therefore,
when the ticket information is displayed, the advertisement may
also be displayed on the same screen whenever the virtual ticket is
shown. In some embodiments, the advertisement may be displayed on
the screen independently of the display of the ticket information.
For example, the advertisement may be flashed on the screen when
the virtual ticket is first purchased or may be displayed at random
or predetermined times after purchase.
[0047] Advertisements using the mobile device may allow the
particular establishment to offer a unique advertisement to mobile
device users. For example, in a restaurant environment, if a
customer purchases a ticket (e.g., virtual lottery ticket), the
same restaurant may utilize the advertisement systems of the
present disclosure to send an ad to the customer while the customer
is still on the premises. The advertisement in this case may
include an instruction for the customer to "Call your waitress to
find out about getting a dessert for half off" or some other type
of message.
[0048] In addition to using mobile devices for receiving a virtual
ticket, mobile devices may also be used in place of the user device
42, 86. Thus, the mobile device can communicated with the
advertisement portion of the advertisement systems of FIGS. 2 and
3. Particularly, a user may wish to access the advertisement
managing system 40, 104 via the network 44, 88 using the mobile
device. In this example, the network 44, 88 may be configured to
include cellular communication, Wi-Fi, or other wireless protocols.
In this respect, the user may be enabled to create an advertisement
and advertisement strategy using a smart phone or other mobile
device.
[0049] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of an
advertisement managing system 120. For example, the advertisement
managing system 120 may represent any of the advertisement managing
systems 40, 104 and/or ticket/advertisement managing systems 52, 82
described above with respect to FIGS. 2 and 3. For the sake of
clarity, when the advertisement managing system 120 represents the
ticket/advertisement managing systems 52, 82, it should be noted
that the portions of the system that relate to ticket management
functions have been omitted. In some embodiments, some or all of
the components of the advertisement managing system 120 may be
incorporated in the ticket managing server 32, 102 described above
with respect to FIGS. 2 and 3.
[0050] As shown in FIG. 4, the advertisement managing system 120
includes an advertisement planning device 122, an advertisement
verification device 124, a database 126, an advertisement
distribution device 128, a print confirmation device 130, and a
financial management device 132. The components of the
advertisement managing system 120 may be configured in a single
computer or may be configured in multiple computer systems and
interconnected by a suitable network or bus interface. The
computer(s) may include one or more processing devices, such as
general-purpose or specific purpose processors or microcontrollers
for controlling the operations and functions of the advertisement
managing system 120.
[0051] The computer(s) may also include one or more memory devices,
which may be configured as internally fixed storage units,
removable storage units, and/or remotely accessible storage units,
each including a tangible, non-transitory storage medium. The
various storage units may include any combination of volatile
memory (e.g., random access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), etc.)
and non-volatile memory (e.g., read only memory (ROM), electrically
erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, etc.). The
storage units may be configured to store any combination of
information, data, instructions, software code, etc.
[0052] In some embodiments, the components of the advertisement
managing system 120 may be implemented in hardware, software,
firmware, or any combinations thereof. For example, portions of the
advertisement managing system 120 that are implemented in software
or firmware may be stored on a non-transitory memory device, such
as a computer-readable media device, and may be executable by a
suitable instruction execution system, such as a processing device.
The portions implemented in hardware may include discrete logic
circuitry, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a
programmable gate array (PGA), a field programmable gate array
(FPGA), or any combinations thereof.
[0053] The functions, operations, and/or programs executed by the
advertisement managing system 120 may comprise an ordered listing
of executable instructions for implementing logical functions and
can be embodied in any non-transitory computer-readable medium for
use by an instruction execution system or device, such as a
computer-based system, processor-controlled system, etc. In the
context of the present disclosure, a computer-readable medium can
be any medium that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or
transport programs for execution by the instruction execution
system or device. Examples of computer-readable medium may include
electronic, magnetic, electromagnetic, optical, infrared, or other
systems or devices.
[0054] As described in more detail below, the advertisement
planning device 122 shown in FIG. 4 may be configured with the
network 44, 88 and one or more user devices 42, 86 to enable a user
associated with the user device 42, 86 to create an advertisement
strategy. The advertisement strategy, for example, may include
electronically arranged elements of an advertisement, a time period
when the advertisement is to be run, and one or more predetermined
locations where the advertisement is to be run. The user device 42,
86 is configured to communicate with the advertisement planning
device 122 via the network 44, 88 to enable the user to create the
advertisement strategy.
[0055] The advertisement managing system 120 further comprises the
advertisement verification device 124, which may be in direct
communication with the advertisement planning device 122. The
advertisement verification device 124 is configured to
automatically check for obscene or vulgar content in the
advertisement. If any such content is found, the advertisement can
be rejected. The automatic check may be performed by searching for
profanity, certain obscene, vulgar, indecent, or morally
questionable language in the text portions of the advertisement.
The advertisement verification device 124 may also be configured to
allow a person, such as an advertisement verifier, to visually
check the content of the advertisement. This check may allow the
person to prevent inappropriate content to be placed in the
advertisements that might be displayed on the lottery ticket. For
example, the visual check may include searching images and text for
inappropriate content.
[0056] When an advertisement is created and verified, an
advertisement strategy can also be created. The advertisement
strategy may include, for example, the actual advertisement content
(e.g., images and text), run times when the advertisement is to be
revealed, and one or more locations where the advertisement is to
be revealed. When completed, the advertisement strategies are
stored in the database 126. The advertisement distribution device
128 accessed the database 126 in a controlled manner to retrieve
advertisements from the database 126 and distribute them according
to the time and location information. It may be preferable that
advertisements to be revealed during a certain time period are
bundled together and distributed to the ticket managing server 32
or individual ticket printing devices 34 before the actual run time
so that the advertisements can be revealed at the proper times.
[0057] The print confirmation device 130 tracks the advertisements
to confirm that the advertisements have been printed according to
their associated time and location parameters. Also, if one or more
of the ticket printing devices 34, 84 is saturated with
advertisements, or, in other words, has more advertisements to
print during a certain time period than actual lottery tickets that
were printed during that time period, the print confirmation device
130 tracks how many of each of the advertisements were actually
printed. The print confirmation device 130 may track information
for the actual advertisements printed, the times and dates when
they were printed, and the ticket printing devices 34, 84 that
printed the advertisements (or establishment where the respective
ticket printing device is located). The tracking information may be
submitted to the financial management device 132 to calculate how
much an advertiser might pay for the advertisements that were
actually printed. The financial management device 132 may also be
configured to charge an advertiser a certain fee, such as about
$5.00, to submit an ad for confirmation, which will be checked by
the advertisement verification device 124. The reason for charging
this fee is that a person would normally be required to actually
perform the visual confirmation of the ad. However, an additional
fee would not be required if an ad is reused, as long as it is not
edited to such an extent that another confirmation check is
needed.
[0058] The advertisement planning device 122 may be further
configured to introduce security elements to the advertisement
strategies that are stored. These security elements can be used
throughout the system to ensure that the advertisement information
is communicated securely. The security elements are designed to
prevent hackers from accessing the advertisements and introducing
unauthorized content into the ads. The security elements also
prevent other types of unfavorable intrusion into the system. The
security elements may be added to the advertisement strategy
information, filenames assigned to the advertisement strategies, or
other files associated with the advertisement strategies.
[0059] FIG. 5 is a table showing an example of data that may be
stored in a database. The table includes information regarding a
number of printing devices, such as lottery ticket printing
devices. For example, a state lottery system may include thousands
of lottery ticket printing devices distributed throughout the state
and may be located, for example, in gas stations, convenience
stores, grocery stores, restaurants, or other locations. In order
for the advertisement managing system 40, 104 (or
ticket/advertisement managing system 52, 82) to communicate with
these printing devices, the MAC address and/or IP address of each
device is known. This information is entered in the table to enable
proper communication. Also, the physical address (e.g., including
the street number, city, and state) of the printing devices may
also be stored. The physical address may be used, for example, when
an advertiser wishes to determine the location of the printing
devices to decide which printing devices are to print the
advertisement.
[0060] It should also be noted that the MAC address and IP address
of the advertisement distribution device 128 (or advertisement
managing system 120) is provided to each of the printing devices
(if they are configured to communication with the advertisement
managing system 120). The MAC and IP addresses are also provided to
the ticket managing server 32, 82. In this way, the other devices
can use security checks to make sure information from the
advertisement distribution device 128 is coming from an authentic
device.
[0061] FIG. 6 is a table showing an example of other data, which in
this example include data related to advertisements and
advertisement strategies that have already been created and stored.
The advertisements and advertisement strategies may be entered by
the advertisement planning device 122. The advertisement data can
be stored, for example, in a database that is accessible by the
advertisement managing system 40, 104 (or ticket/advertisement
managing system 52, 82) shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. When an
advertisement is created, it is given an Advertisement
Identification number (i.e., Ad Id No.). The ad is associated with
a particular advertiser having a certain account number, which is
also stored in the table.
[0062] In addition, the table shows that one or more images (e.g.,
graphics, logos, trademark images, etc.) may be inserted into an
ad. The table includes at least one column for the images (e.g.,
Image #1), which includes a file name for the image and at least
one column for code that defines the location of that image within
an advertisement window. Also, the table may also include one or
more text files and associated text location code for storing text
(e.g., "Come visit Big Bob's Pizza", "Half Off a Large Pizza",
etc.) and the location within the advertisement window where that
text will be displayed. In some embodiments, the images and text
elements may already be combined and finalized into a single image
file that may be stored in the database.
[0063] The table of FIG. 6 also includes time information for
defining a time period when the advertisement is to be revealed,
printed, displayed, etc. The time information includes a Start
Date, Start Time, End Date, and End Time. In some embodiments, the
time period may be indefinite or ongoing. In this case, the start
date and time may be entered as "0" and the end date and time may
be entered as "9999" to indicate that the advertisement is to run
on an ongoing basis. The advertisements may then be run when it is
convenient, at random times, or as a default.
[0064] The table also includes a Quantity column for storing the
requested number of times the advertisement is to be printed. This
is entered by the user for the advertiser and may represent a
maximum number of times that the advertisement is to be printed. In
an alternative embodiment, the advertiser may instead choose a
Quantity per Time parameter for ongoing advertisements to define
how many times the advertisement is displayed during each
particular time period (e.g., "200/wk"). The table also includes a
Cost per Ad column to define an amount that the advertiser will pay
for each time the advertisement is displayed. For example, if an
advertiser wishes to have an advertisement printed 1000 times
during a particular time period and the agreed upon cost is 25
cents per ad, and if it is confirmed that the advertisement is
indeed printed 1000 times, then the advertiser will be billed
$250.
[0065] According to some embodiments, the table of FIG. 6 may
further include a location information column. This column includes
information about the printing devices, such as those defined by
the table of FIG. 5, and particularly identifies which of the
printing devices where the advertisements are to be printed. The
file may use certain codes to indicate a nationwide scope,
statewide scope, or other regional scope. The information may be in
the form of a file or may include a list the devices where the ads
are to be printed. However, according to other embodiments, the
table of FIG. 6 may represent only the advertisements that are to
be printed on one single printing device, where, in this case, one
table is created for each printing device. If this is the case, the
location information column is not needed since the respective
printing device for which the table is prepared is the only
printing location of concern.
[0066] The table of FIG. 6 may also include a "Number of Ads
Already Printed" column, which includes a running total of the
times that each ad has already been printed. This can be updated on
an ongoing basis. For example, the printing devices may provide
feedback information about the advertisements that were printed
during a previous time period. Updates may be provided back to the
database on an hourly basis, daily basis, weekly basis, or
according to other time schedules. Also, another column of the
table (i.e., "Number of Ads Left to be Printed") includes a running
total of the ads yet to be printed. This may simply be the
difference between the Quantity (i.e., number of times the
advertiser wishes to have the ad printed) and the Number of Ads
Already Printed.
[0067] According to some embodiments, the table of FIG. 6 may also
include columns related to a coupon that is part of the
advertisement. In this case, the coupon may have a redemption start
date indicating a time after which the coupon is valid, and, as is
more common, an expiration date (or Coupon Redemption End Date)
indicating a time after which the coupon is no longer valid.
[0068] Referring again to FIG. 4, when advertisements and
advertisement strategies are created by the advertisement planning
device 122, the information is stored in the database 126. The
database 126 may contain the information described with respect to
the tables of FIGS. 5 and 6 and may additionally store other
information as needed. In this way, advertisement strategies may be
created, updated, modified, and stored. When this information is
stored, the advertisement distribution device 128 is configured to
access the database 126 to properly distribute the advertisement to
the ticket printing devices 34, 84, either directly as per FIGS.
2B, 2C, 3A, or 3B or indirectly via the ticket managing server 32,
102, as per FIGS. 2A or 2D.
[0069] FIG. 7 shows a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of
the advertisement distribution device 128 shown in FIG. 4. In this
embodiment, the advertisement distribution device 128 comprises a
processing device 150, a database manager 152, an interface device
156, an image combiner 158, a memory 160, and a
security/identification module 162. The processing device 150 may
include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers for
controlling the operations of the advertisement distribution device
128.
[0070] The database manager 152 is configured to select an
advertisement to be retrieved from the database 126. The
advertisement, for example, may be selected based on at least a
time when the advertisement is to be run. The database manager 152
may then be configured to retrieve the selected advertisement from
the database 126 for advertisements that may have a run time period
that is approaching or is already in progress. The interface device
156 may be configured to transmit the advertisement to the specific
ticket printing device 34, 84. In some embodiments, the interface
device 156 may be configured to transmit the advertisement to the
ticket managing server 32, 102, which then may be configured to
further transmit the advertisement to the ticket printing device
34, 84 via the private network 36.
[0071] According to some embodiments, the interface device 156 may
also be configured to receive ticket information (e.g., lottery
ticket information, such as lottery numbers and other information
to be printed on the lottery portion of the ticket). This ticket
information is related to the information that might normally be
printed on a ticket. The ticket information does not necessarily
have to be lottery ticket information, but may be used with other
ticket printing devices that may be configured to print movie
tickets, theater tickets, concert tickets, sports event tickets, or
other types of tickets. It is intended that the ticket information
and advertisement are to be printed on a single ticket, such that
the ticket information (e.g., lottery ticket information) is to be
printed on one portion (e.g., top, bottom, or side) of the ticket,
while the advertisement is to be printed on the other portion
(e.g., bottom, top, or other side) of the ticket. The image
combiner 158 is configured to combine the ticket information and
advertisement into a single image, which may be stored as an image
file in memory 160. The interface device 156 may further be
configured to transmit the image file to the ticket printing device
34, 84.
[0072] The database manager 152 may further be configured to select
a plurality of advertisements to be retrieved from the database
126. The plurality of advertisements being selected may be based on
at least a time period when the plurality of advertisements are to
be printed and a specific ticket printing device 34, 84 where the
plurality of advertisements are to be printed. The processing
device 150 may be configured to bundle the plurality of
advertisements into an ad bundle and the interface device 156 may
transmit the ad bundle to the specific ticket printing device 34,
84, preferably before the time period when the ads are to be
printed. The respective ticket printing device 34, 84 can then
store the ads locally and print them with the ticket
information.
[0073] The database manager 152 may use any suitable ad selection
algorithm for selecting the ads. For example, the advertisements
may be selected based on a cost to run the advertisement (i.e.,
Cost per Ad in the table of FIG. 6), where a first advertisement
having a higher cost to run is selected before a second
advertisement having a lower cost. The ad selection algorithm may
also be based on which advertiser was the first to order or create
an advertisement strategy, or may be based on an advertiser
requesting to print a larger quantity (i.e., higher Quantity in the
table of FIG. 6). The ad selection algorithm may also be based on a
calculation related to how near an End Date and End Time parameters
and/or the Number of Ads Left to be Printed parameter. The database
manager 152 may also be configured to calculate whether or not an
accurate prediction can be made as to whether a busy or overbooked
advertising time will be able to handle a certain volume of
advertisements for a plurality of advertisers and determine
alternate times when these advertisements may be printed instead,
in order to provide relief for the busy or overbooked time.
[0074] The advertisement distribution device 128 may be configured
to select and distribute ads to spread them out at different times
to maximize printing. For example, if a first advertiser requests
to have 1000 ads printed between 2 pm and 8 pm and a second
advertiser requests to have 1000 ads printed between 2 pm and 4 pm,
the database manager 152 may use certain logical algorithms to
select the second advertisers ads first and wait until 4 pm to
start printing the first advertiser's ads.
[0075] The security/identification module 162 is configured to
check to make sure that ads include the proper identification
information and security codes. This check is performed when ads
are retrieved from the database, but before ads are distributed to
the printing devices.
[0076] It is desirable to receive confirmation that the
advertisements are printed as planned. The print confirmation
device 130 shown in FIG. 4 is configured to verify that the
printing has actually occurred.
[0077] FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of the
print confirmation device 130 shown in FIG. 4. In this embodiment,
the print confirmation device 130 includes a processing device 170,
a database manager 172, a print tracking/verification module 174, a
first interface device 176, a second interface device 177, and a
coupon redemption tracking module 178. According to various
embodiments, the coupon redemption tracking module 178 may be
omitted or incorporated in a separate device. Particularly, the
coupon redemption tracking module 178 provides functionality for
tracking information about the redemption of coupons and may be
separate from the functionality of tracking the printing of the
advertisements.
[0078] In some embodiments, the print confirmation device 130 (or
parts thereof) may be incorporated into the advertisement
distribution device 128 described with respect to FIGS. 4 and 7.
The processing device 170 may be configured as one or more
microprocessors or microcontrollers for controlling the operations
of the print confirmation device 130. In embodiments where the
print confirmation device 130 is combined with the advertisement
distribution device 128, the devices may share a single processing
device.
[0079] The print tracking/verification module 174 is configured to
receive a confirmation from the ticket printing device 34, 84 when
an advertisement is printed. This information may be communicated
during times that are not busy, such as during the night or when
the store that houses the printing device is closed. It may be
preferable that the print tracking/verification module 174 receives
time and location information regarding the printing of multiple
advertisements during a certain time period. The print confirmation
information may be communicated in bulk form, including the times
when each advertisement is printed for a plurality of
advertisements. The information is received via the first interface
device 176 and may be transmitted directly from the printing
devices 34, 84 or may be forwarded from the ticket managing server
32, 102. The print tracking/verification module 174 is further
configured to determine a number of times that the advertisement is
to be printed, which may involve accessing and updating the
database 126 via the database manager 172.
[0080] The print tracking/verification module 174 also includes
verification functionality to check whether the time and location
information of advertisement printing matches the proper printing
devices. This can be done using the security codes incorporated in
the advertisement strategies, based on identification of device
addresses, etc. Also, when the statistics for the printing of
advertisements is accumulated, the print tracking/verification
module 174 can communicate with the financial management device 132
(FIG. 4), which may then be able to determine the costs that the
advertisers will be billed for running the ads.
[0081] From information gathered by the print tracking/verification
module 174, the database manager 172 can update the records in the
database 126. Also, the database manager 172 may be configured to
store records of the times when each ad was printed and the
locations where each ad was printed.
[0082] The second interface device 177 may be configured to
communicate with the user devices 42 via the network 44. In this
respect, the user devices 42 may be associated with a business at a
particular business location. The second interface device 177 may
receive input from the business of information that relates to a
coupon from an advertisement being redeemed. For example, if the
ticket is printed with a QR code or barcode, a person at the
business may scan the code and send that code to the processing
device 170 via the second interface device 177 to communicate that
the coupon was redeemed. The processing device 170 forwards this
information to the coupon redemption tracking module 178 to process
the input from the businesses. The input may also be received in
other forms, such as from entered data in a terminal related to the
user device 42. The coupon redemption tracking module 178 may be
configured to match the redemption information with the
advertisement information. The coupon redemption tracking module
178 may process the statistics to determine the success of ads. It
can also verify that an ad was printed when and where it was
intended to be printed.
[0083] According to some implementations, an advertisement managing
system may comprise the advertisement distribution device 128,
which is configured to select an advertisement to be retrieved from
the database 126. The advertisement is selected based on at least a
time when the advertisement is to be run. The advertisement
distribution device 128 is further configured to retrieve the
selected advertisement from the database 126 and transmit the
advertisement to a specific ticket printing device 34, 84. The
system may also comprise the print confirmation device 130, which
is configured to receive a confirmation from the ticket printing
device 34, 84 when the advertisement is printed.
[0084] The system may also comprise the financial management device
132, which may be configured to charge a fee to an advertiser
associated with the advertisement when the advertisement is
printed. When confirmation is made that a certain advertisement has
been printed a certain number of times, the financial management
device 132 may provide a bill to the advertiser based on the number
of ads printed and the Cost per Ad. In addition to the bill,
information regarding the times when the advertisements were
printed and the locations where the advertisements were printed may
also be provided to the advertisers.
[0085] The present disclosure also provides a method of
distributing an advertisement. The method according to some
implementations may comprise the steps of retrieving an
advertisement strategy from a database, wherein the advertisement
strategy includes at least an advertisement, a run time parameter
indicating a time period when the advertisement is to be run, and a
location parameter indicating at least a first remote device where
the advertisement is to be run. The method also includes
transmitting the advertisement strategy to the first remote device
with instructions to run the advertisement during the time period.
Furthermore, the method may also comprise the step of receiving a
confirmation from the first remote device that the advertisement
was revealed during the time period. The step of receiving the
confirmation may further include receiving time and date
information from the first remote device indicating each time and
date that the advertisement was revealed.
[0086] It should be understood that the routines, steps, processes,
or operations described herein may represent any module or code
sequence that can be implemented in software or firmware. In this
regard, these modules and code sequences can include commands or
instructions for executing the specific logical routines, steps,
processes, or operations within physical components. It should
further be understood that two or more of the routines, steps,
processes, and/or operations described herein may be executed
substantially simultaneously or in a different order than
explicitly described, as would be understood by one of ordinary
skill in the art.
[0087] The implementations described herein represent a number of
possible implementations and examples and are not intended to
necessarily limit the present disclosure to any specific
implementations. Instead, various modifications can be made to
these implementations as would be understood by one of ordinary
skill in the art. Any such modifications are intended to be
included within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and
protected by the following claims.
* * * * *