Method and apparatus for display screens and coupons

What is claimed is:

1. A method of displaying a screen display in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of display data, a plurality of sets of commands, and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of display data describing a display screen, each set of commands specifying a set of display data and including a series of commands for controlling display of a display screen, and each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a set of commands and a scheduled time period to display a display screen, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when a display screen will be displayed;

sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is one of a set of display data, a set of commands, and a set of transaction data;

receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data;

adding, by the remote processor, the received set of data to the plurality of sets of display data, the plurality of sets of commands, or the plurality of sets of transaction data already stored in the memory;

determining whether the received set of data is a set of transaction data;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands from the plurality of sets of commands as specified by the received set of transaction data, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of display data from the plurality of sets of display data as specified by the retrieved set of commands, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data; and

displaying, by the remote processor when the set of data is a set of transaction data, a display screen described by the retrieved set of display data, only at the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified in the received set of transaction data.

2. The method recited in claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

prior to the sending step, storing in the host processor locations in the remote processor of the plurality of sets of data; and

prior to the determining step, storing in the memory of the host processor a location in the remote processor of the sent set of data.

3. The method of claim 1, further including the steps of:

compacting the set of data, by the host processor, before the sending step, using one of a plurality of compaction methods most suited to the set of data; and

decompacting the set of data, by the remote processor, after the receiving step.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of data is a set of display data, the plurality of sets of display data have a predetermined format, and the method further includes the steps, performed before the sending step of:

inputting an image by the host processor to the remote processor; and

converting the input image to a set of display data having the predetermined format.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the set of commands includes display screen erase, text display and display screen hold commands and the displaying step further includes the steps of:

erasing the display screen described by the set of display data after a predetermined period of time when a next command in the set of commands is a display screen erase command;

displaying a text message superimposed on the display screen described by the display data when a next command in the set of commands is a text display command; and

displaying the display screen described by the set of display data for a predetermined period of time when a next command in the set of commands is a display screen hold command.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein the step of storing a plurality of sets of display data includes the step of storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of display data, each set of display data describing a plurality of display screens;

wherein the step of retrieving a set of display data specified by the retrieved set of commands includes the step of retrieving a first portion of display data, describing a first display screen, from a plurality of portions in the retrieved set of display data;

wherein the step of displaying the retrieved set of display data according to the retrieved set of commands includes the step of displaying the first portion of display data for a predetermined period of time; and

wherein the retrieving and displaying steps are repeated iteratively for each of the plurality of portions of retrieved display data, resulting in an animated display.

7. A method of displaying a screen display in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of display data and a plurality of sets of commands, each set of display data describing a display screen and each set of commands specifying a set of display data and including a series of commands for controlling display of a display screen;

receiving, by the remote processor from the host processor, a set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed, said set of transaction data specifying one of the plurality of sets of commands and a scheduled time period to display a display screen, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when a display screen will be displayed;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor the set of commands specified by the received set of transaction data;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of display data specified by the retrieved set of commands; and

displaying, by the remote processor, a display screen described by the retrieved set of display data, only at the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified in the received set of transaction data.

8. A method of displaying a screen display in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

sending, by the host processor, a set of display data, a set of commands, and a set of transaction data to the remote processor, the set of display data describing a display screen, the set of commands specifying a set of display data and including a series of commands for controlling display of a display screen, and the set of transaction data specifying a set of commands and a scheduled time period to display a display screen, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when a display screen will be displayed;

receiving, by the remote processor, the set of display data, the set of commands, and the set of transaction data;

storing the received set of display data in a memory of the remote processor;

storing the received set of commands in the memory of the remote processor;

storing the received set of transaction data in the memory of the remote processor;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor the set of commands specified by the set of transaction data sent by the host processor;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor the set of display data specified by the retrieved set of commands; and

displaying, by the remote processor, a display screen described by the retrieved set of display data, only at the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified in the received set of transaction data.

9. A method of printing a coupon in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of commands and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a set of commands and a scheduled time period during which printing of a coupon is authorized, and each set of commands describing the coupon to be printed and including instructions for printing the coupon, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when the coupon can be printed at the remote processor;

sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is one of a set of commands and a set of transaction data;

receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data;

adding, by the remote processor, the received set of data to the plurality of sets of commands or the plurality of sets of transaction data already stored in the memory;

determining whether the set of data is a set of transaction data;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands from the plurality of sets of commands as specified by the received set of transaction data, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data; and

printing, by the remote processor when the received set of data is a set of transaction data, a coupon described by the retrieved set of commands, only during the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified in the received set of transaction data.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the steps of:

prior to the sending step, storing in the host processor addresses in the remote processor of the plurality of sets of data; and

prior to the determining step, storing in the memory of the host processor a location in the remote processor of the sent set of data.

11. The method of claim 9, further including the steps of:

compacting the set of data, by the host processor, before the sending step, using one of a plurality of compaction methods most suited to the set of data; and

decompacting the set of data, by the remote processor, after the receiving step.

12. A method of printing a coupon in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of commands, each set of commands describing a coupon to be printed and including instructions for printing the coupon;

receiving, by the remote processor, a set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed, the set of transaction data specifying one of the plurality of sets of commands and a scheduled time period during which a coupon may be printed, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when the coupon can be printed at the remote processor;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor the set of commands specified by the received set of transaction data;

printing, by the remote processor, a coupon described by the retrieved set of commands, only during the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified in the received set of transaction data.

13. A method of printing a coupon in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of commands, each set of commands describing a coupon to be printed and including instructions for printing the coupon;

sending, by the host processor, a set of commands, and a set of transaction data to the remote processor, the set of transaction data specifying one of the plurality of sets of commands and a scheduled time period during which a coupon may be printed, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when the coupon can be printed at the remote processor;

receiving, by the remote processor, the set of commands and the set of transaction data;

storing the received set of commands in the memory of the remote processor;

storing the received set of transaction data in the memory of the remote processor;

retrieving from the memory of the remote processor the set of commands specified by the set of transaction data sent by the host processor;

printing, by the remote processor, a coupon described by the retrieved set of commands, only at the times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified by the received set of transaction data.

14. An apparatus for displaying a screen display in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the apparatus comprising:

means for storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of display data, a plurality of sets of commands, and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of display data describing a display screen, each set of commands specifying a set of display data and including a series of commands for controlling display of a display screen, and each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a set of commands and a scheduled time period to display a display screen, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when the display screen will be displayed;

means for sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is one of a set of display data, a set of commands, and a set of transaction data;

means for receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data;

means for adding, by the remote processor, the received set of data to the plurality of sets of display data, the plurality of sets of commands, or the plurality of sets of transaction data already stored in the memory;

means for determining whether the received set of data is a set of transaction data;

means for retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands from the plurality of sets of commands as specified by the received set of transaction data, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data;

means for retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of display data from the plurality of sets of display data as specified by the retrieved set of commands, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data; and

means for displaying, by the remote processor when the received set of data is a set of transaction data, a display screen described by the retrieved set of display data, only at the one or more times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified by the received set of transaction data.

15. An apparatus for printing a coupon in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, comprising:

means for storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of commands and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a set of commands and a scheduled time period during which a coupon may be printed, and each set of commands describing the coupon to be printed and including instructions for printing the coupon, the scheduled time period indicating one or more times of day when the coupon can be printed at the remote processor;

means for sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is one of a set of commands and a set of transaction data;

means for receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data;

means for adding, by the remote processor, the received set of data to the plurality of sets of commands or the plurality of sets of transaction data already stored in the memory;

means for determining whether the set of data is a set of transaction data;

means for retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands from the plurality of sets of commands as specified by the received set of transaction data, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data; and

means for printing, by the remote processor when the received set of data is a set of transaction data, a coupon described by the retrieved set of commands, only during the times of day indicated by the scheduled time period as specified by the received set of transaction data.

Description Submit all comments and votes

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates to the field of display advertising, and in particular, to the display and printing of graphic information in a distributed data processing system. In a conventional distributed data processing system, a host system is connected to and controls several remote systems. The remote systems are usually slaved to the host system, but are also capable of operating independently of the host system. The remote systems accept data and instructions from the host system, process the data and instructions, and notify the host system of the results of the processing. It is not uncommon for the host system to send different data and instructions to each of the remote systems under its control.

In some distributed processing systems, the host system may send different graphics data and instructions to each of several remote systems for display. For example, first graphics data and instructions may be sent to a first remote system, second graphics data and instructions may be sent to a second remote system, and so on. In such a system, the type of graphics data to be displayed changes often. For example, if the remote systems are displaying graphics or printing coupons relating to retail advertisements, the advertisements or coupons may run at different times on different days of the week. Similarly, advertisements or coupons may be cancelled or new advertisements or coupons added or the manner in which the advertisements are displayed, such as dissolve, fadeout, etc., may change. A need exists for an extremely flexible retail graphics display system that would take into account the almost constant alteration of the displayed information, while still keeping system overhead to a minimum.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to allow flexibility in the display of retail advertisement graphics and the printing of retail coupons.

It is a further object of the present invention to keep system overhead of a distributed processing system to a minimum.

It is a still further object of the present invention to allow a host system to alter all information concerning a retail graphic advertisement stored in a remote system.

It is a still further object of the present invention to allow a host system to alter all information concerning a retail coupon stored in a remote system.

It is a still further object of the present invention to compact data sent to the remote system to a greatest degree possible.

Additional advantages of the present invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will be obvious from that description or may be learned by practice of the invention. The advantages of this invention may be realized and obtained by the methods and apparatus particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The present invention obtains the objects listed above by allowing the host system to alter all information concerning retail graphics advertisements and coupons by downloading information to the remote system and by sending files that refer to the downloaded information.

To achieve the objects and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, the invention involves downloading all information required to display graphics or print coupons and organizing the information in sets of display data, sets of commands, and sets of transaction data.

In another aspect, the present invention is a method of displaying a screen display in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of: storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of display data, a plurality of sets of commands, and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of display data describing a display screen, each set of commands specifying a set of display data, and each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a scheduled time to display a display screen and further specifying a set of commands; sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is a set of display data, a set of commands or a set of transaction data; receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data; storing, by the remote processor, the received set of data as part of the plurality of sets of display data, part of the plurality of sets of commands, or part of the plurality of sets of transaction data; determining whether the set of data is a set of transaction data; retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands specified by the received set of transaction data from the plurality of sets of commands, when the set of data is a set of transaction data; retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of display data specified by the retrieved set of commands from the plurality of sets of display data, when the set of data is a set of transaction data; and displaying, by the remote processor, a display screen described by the retrieved set of display data, at the predetermined time, according to the retrieved set of commands, when the set of data is a set of transaction data.

In still another aspect, the present invention is a method of printing a coupon in a system including an interconnected host processor and remote processor, the method comprising the steps of: storing in a memory of the remote processor a plurality of sets of data, including a plurality of sets of commands and a plurality of sets of transaction data, each set of transaction data corresponding to a transaction to be performed and specifying a scheduled time period during which a coupon may be printed and further specifying a set of commands, and each set of commands describing the coupon to be printed and including instructions for printing the coupon; sending, by the host processor to the remote processor, a set of data that is a set of commands or a set of transaction data; receiving, by the remote processor, the set of data; storing, by the remote processor, the received set of data as part of the plurality of sets of commands or the plurality of sets of transaction data; determining whether the set of data is a set of transaction data; retrieving from the memory of the remote processor a set of commands specified by the received set of transaction data from the plurality of sets of commands, when the received set of data is a set of transaction data; and printing, by the remote processor, a coupon described by the retrieved set of commands, during the scheduled time period when the received set of data is a set of transaction data.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and which constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one embodiment of the invention and, together with the description, explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a distributed processing system including a host system having a memory and several remote systems, each having a display controller with a plurality of display screens and a plurality of reverse vending machines;

FIG. 2 shows a format of a table for recording the names and locations of files in the memories of the remote processors of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a format of a table for recording the names and locations of files in the memory of the host processor of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 shows a format of a table for recording in the memory of the host processor of FIG. 1, the distribution of files for ads and coupons in the remote processors of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 shows a format of a table for recording in the memory of the host processor of FIG. 1, the retrieval status of files for ads and coupons in the remote processors of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 shows a format of one line of a transaction file for ads or coupons in the memory of a remote system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 shows a format of a command file for ads in the memory of a remote system of FIG. 1 by way of an example;

FIG. 8 shows a format of a display file for ads in the memory of a remote system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 shows a format of a command file for coupons in the memory of a remote system of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 10A and 10B further show the format of commands in a command file for coupons in the memory of a remote system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 shows an example of a command file for coupons having the format of FIGS. 9 and 10;

FIG. 12 shows a continuation of the example of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 is a flow chart of a method for downloading a display file of FIG. 8, a command file of FIGS. 7 or 9-12, or a transaction file of FIG. 6;

FIG. 14 shows an example of a coupon displayed by the present invention;

FIG. 15 shows a format of a coupon.sub.-- tracking or ad.sub.-- tracking table in the memory of the host system of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to a presently preferred embodiment of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

The present invention is preferably embodied in a retail display system called a "reverse vending machine." The reverse vending machine resembles a conventional vending machine, with the addition of a display screen, an input slot and a coupon printer. When a user places an empty beverage container, such as a plastic milk jug or a soft drink can or bottle, in the input slot, the user chooses one of a plurality of methods of remuneration, such as cash, a cash voucher, a monetary gift to be donated to charity, etc. Such machines are usually placed in retail outlets such as grocery stores to allow customers to dispose of their empty beverage containers.

While beverage containers are being inserted into the reverse vending machine, the reverse vending machine preferably displays a variety of advertisements and public service announcements (both hereinafter called ads) on a built-in display. These ads can be either static, i.e., non-moving, or animated, i.e., containing moving components. The present invention is directed to the display of these ads in a distributed display system. By way of example, one embodiment of the invention is directed to the display of these ads in a reverse vending machine system. The present invention could, however, be embodied in any type of distributed display system. For example, the present invention could be embodied in a system whose sole function is to display ads in a retail store.

Some embodiments of the present invention also include a mechanism for printing and dispensing retail coupons. For example, a coupon for a discount on a retail product may be printed and dispensed whenever beverage containers are inserted into the reverse vending machine. The present invention is directed to the printing of these coupons. By way of example, one embodiment of the invention is directed to the printing of coupons in a reverse vending machine system. The present invention could, however, be embodied in any type of distributed display system.

Other embodiments of the present invention also include a compact disk player, which plays ads from compact disks on the screen. Ads stored on compact disks may be static ads or "full video" ads and will be discussed further below.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a distributed processing system 100 including a host system 110 and a plurality of remote systems 115(l). . .115(n). Host system 110 includes a memory 140 and a processor 145. Each remote system 115(l). . .115(n) includes a display controller 130, at least one display 150, and at least one reverse vending machine system 160. Each display controller 130 includes a processor 132, a memory 134 and a clock 136, and is connected to at least one display 150. Each reverse vending machine system 160 includes a reverse vending machine 170 and a printer 190, connected to the reverse vending machine by a serial communications line 180 and a parallel communications line 185. Each reverse vending machine 170 includes a processor 172, a memory 174, and a clock 176.

Host system 110 and remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) are interconnected by a transmission line 125. In a preferred embodiment, the host system 110 and each of remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) are equipped with a modem, and transmission line 125 is a standard telephone line. Transmission line 125 could also be a dedicated transmission line physically connecting host system 110 and remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) or any apparatus that allows signals to pass between the systems.

As stated above, host system 110 includes a memory 140. Memory 140 is preferably a hard disk, but may also include RAM, floppy disk drives, tape, or the like. Memory 140 includes a plurality of files, some of which are described below, which include information relating to the display of various ads on remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) and information relating to printing of various coupons on remote systems 115(l). . .115(n). Portions of these files are described below.

Memory 140 includes a variety of tables for tracking and manipulating files between the host processor 110 and remote systems 115(l). . .115(n), including a "site file table," "host file table," "file distribution table," and "file retrieval table" as shown in FIGS. 2-5 and described below.

Information is transmitted along transmission line 125 from host system 110 to remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) regarding which ads to display and which coupons to print. In the present embodiment, this information is transmitted at a scheduled time, at the occurrence of an error in a remote system, or when the host system instructs the remote system to transmit. However, in other embodiments transmission may be initiated based upon whatever other criteria are desirable.

As stated above, each remote system 115(l). . .115(n) includes a memory 134 and a memory 174, which are preferably hard disks, but may also include RAMs, optical disks, or the like. The files used by each remote system 115(l). . .115(n) are stored in memory 134 and memory 174.

To achieve the greatest flexibility in the system of the present invention, a certain amount of information is directly placed in each of memories 134 and 174 upon installation of the remote processor and all other information stored in memories 134 and 174 is downloaded to remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) from memory 140 of host system 110. The downloaded information for ads and coupons are sent to the remote systems 115(l). . .115(n) according to the information in the file distribution tables, without distinction as to what type of files they are.

The transmitted files are functionally organized into "display files," "command files" and "transaction files." These files have a predetermined format, as described below.

Each remote system 115 receives data describing different ads and coupons. Once the display files, the command files and the transaction files have been downloaded to remote system 115, remote system 115 displays retail graphic ads and prints coupons according to the downloaded files. For display ads, a transaction file indicates a command file to execute a display and a time to execute the display. The command file indicates at least one display file, which contains graphics information describing a video ad. For coupons, a transaction file indicates a command file to print a coupon and a time period during which the coupon may be printed. The command file describes a coupon appearance and contains commands for printing the coupon.

These files can be downloaded periodically. Preferably, display files are downloaded to the remote systems weekly. Thus, information describing new static, animated, and full video displays, as well as coupons are introduced into the remote systems every week. Preferably, command files are downloaded weekly. Thus, new ads and coupons are introduced into the remote systems every week. Preferably, transaction files are downloaded weekly. Thus, instructions to display certain ads or to print new coupons at certain times are introduced into the remote systems every week.

Next, information stored in memory 140 of host system 110 and used to generate the display files is discussed. Memory 140 of host system 110 contains data describing all ads and coupons that can be displayed by the remote system.