JP2003316979A - Order receiving device for printed matter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an order receiving device for a printed matter capable of providing a commodity printed with an image desired by a customer. <P>SOLUTION: From a client, the order receiving device receives the designation of at least one commodity to be purchased from commodities stored in a database, and the designation of the image to be printed on the commodity (step S402). A three-dimensional image of the commodity printed with the designated image is prepared on the basis of information regarding a printing environment stored in a database. The prepared three-dimensional image is provided to the client in a form of a Web page (step S410). <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a printed matter order receiving apparatus, and more particularly to a printed matter order receiving apparatus for receiving an order for a printed matter printed with an image on a product via a network.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, with the development of Internet technologies centering on the WWW (World Wide Web), a server that stores and stores electronic contents of images is used, and products are sold interactively with a client computer through a communication network. Electronic commerce for providing services has been actively conducted.

In such a situation, when selling a product to a client, a form of transaction in which an image of which designation is received from the client is printed on the purchased product for sale is being devised or commercialized.

[0004] For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-160098 discloses an order-sale system for manufacturing an original food by processing an image received from an orderer and covering the food with an edible sheet on which the image is printed. ing. Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-296981 stores design data, creates print data using a design selected by a customer using a terminal, and a printer creates a three-dimensional shape based on the print data. A printing system is disclosed. Furthermore, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-781
Japanese Patent Publication No. 29 discloses a technique of preparing an electronic medium containing product item information and printing a digital image uploaded through the electronic medium on a predetermined product.

[0005]

In the case of order receiving processing using the conventional system as described above, the server generally presents the design prepared in advance to the client. The client selects a desired design from the presented designs. Here, depending on the printing conditions such as the material of the product and the type of ink used to print an image on the product, a product with a different color or texture than the one envisioned may be manufactured after manufacturing. . However, there is a problem that the customer cannot confirm the image of the final product of the printed matter that he / she wants to purchase.

Further, in order to confirm the image of such a final product, a sample of a printed matter is prepared and photographed, and the photographed photograph is provided to the customer. However, such a process is complicated, and at the same time, in the case of a photograph, there is a problem that the angle of the product that the customer can browse is limited.

Further, in the case of the conventional order receiving process for printed matter, it is not possible to specify in detail how the design is printed on the product. For example, there is a problem that it is not possible to make detailed designations such as at which position on the product or in what size the designated design should be printed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an order receiving apparatus for printed matter, which can provide a product on which an image is printed, in accordance with a customer's request. To provide.

[0009]

In order to achieve such an object, the invention according to claim 1 is a printed matter order receiving device for receiving an order for a printed matter in which an image is printed on a product,
A storage unit that stores information about a plurality of products and a printing environment for printing an image on the products, and a first reception unit that receives designation of at least one purchased product from the products stored in the storage unit. And a second accepting unit that receives designation of an image to be printed on the purchased product, and the image designated by the second accepting unit is printed based on information about the printing environment stored in the storage unit. It is characterized by further comprising: a creating unit that creates an image of the purchased product and a providing unit that provides the image created by the creating unit.

The invention described in claim 2 is the same as claim 1.
In the printed matter order receiving apparatus described in (1), the information regarding the printing environment includes information regarding ink for printing an image on the product.

The invention described in claim 3 is the same as claim 1.
Alternatively, in the printed matter order receiving apparatus described in the item 2, the product is formed by in-mold forming.

The invention according to claim 4 is the same as claim 3
In the printed matter order receiving apparatus described in the paragraph 1, the information about the printing environment includes information about a printing substrate used for the in-mold molding.

[0013]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings, taking an electronic device on which an image is printed as a printed matter as an example. The present invention can also be applied to resin products such as toys.

In the present embodiment, the image desired by the customer is printed on the casing of the electronic device on the Internet for sale. Here, it is assumed that the in-mold molding is used when manufacturing the housing of the electronic device, and the image is printed on the electronic device by the decoration processing during the in-mold molding.

In-mold molding is a resin processing technique in which a film on which an image is printed is inserted into a mold during injection molding and injection molding is performed. More specifically, this in-mold molding can be performed as follows. That is, an ink receiving layer is provided by coating a transparent resin base material (printing base material) of polycarbonate with a sol in which silica and alumina are dispersed in water. Here, as a binder,
It is preferable to use polyvinyl alcohol. A printing substrate in which the receiving layer thus provided is decorated with ink is molded into a three-dimensional shape. Then, the decorative base material is attached to the mold having the surface conforming to the three-dimensional shape. Then, the molten resin can be injected into the mold to manufacture a decorated three-dimensional component.

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a printed matter order receiving system according to the present invention. The print order receiving system according to the present embodiment is used in the Internet 101 or an intranet 102 connected to the Internet 101 via a gateway 111c. Order receiving device 122 for processing information related to the present invention
Is the Internet 10 via the gateway 111a.
Connected to 1. The client 121 used by the user of the printed matter ordering system is the gateway 1
11b, the clients 131a and 131b are connected to the intranet 1
02 is directly connected.

The order receiving device 12 to which the printer 124 is connected
An information processing device 2 is used by a manufacturer that manufactures electronic devices. The order receiving device 122 holds the product information regarding a plurality of products and a plurality of images to be printed on the products, and also provides a Web page for interactively selling these products to the clients 121 and 131.
WWW (World Wide Web) provided to a and 131b
It functions as a server. Then, a two-dimensional (2D) or three-dimensional (3D) image of the purchased product is created in accordance with the computer environment, the product, and the image designation from the clients 121, 131a, and 131b received via the Web page. As the order receiving device 122, specifically, a personal computer, a workstation, or the like is used.

Clients 121, 131a and 13
Reference numeral 1b denotes an information processing device for receiving the sales service of electronic devices by the order receiving device 122, and includes an Internet connection function in addition to a commercially available personal computer installed in an individual home, a convenience store, an automobile shop, or the like. Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) and other mobile terminals, mobile phones, PHS and T
It is also possible to use V or the like.

The order receiving device 122 may be directly connected to the intranet 102 so that the clients 121, 131a and 131b can access it. Further, the clients 121, 131a and 131b are
It suffices that it can be connected to the Internet 101 or the intranet 102 regardless of whether it is wired or wireless.

With such a configuration, the client 121, 131a or 131b can access the order receiving device 122 via the Internet 101, the Internet 101 or the intranet 102. The order accepting device 122, which has been accessed by the client, stores necessary data from a database (not shown) in accordance with the designation of the purchased product and image and the instruction to create an image of the purchased product transmitted from the client 121, 131a, or 131b. Take it out.

Then, after a three-dimensional image of the purchased product is created based on the taken-out image, W including the three-dimensional image is created.
Create an eb page. At the same time, the client 121,
The URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the created website is notified to 131a or 131b. The client 121, 131a, or 131b can browse the three-dimensional image of the purchased product by referring to the notified URL. The order receiving device 122 stores application programs for executing these functions.

Client 121, 131a or 13
In 1b, an image can be displayed on the display based on the image data provided from the order receiving device 122, or the printer can be instructed to print the image.

Next, referring to FIG. 2, the hardware configuration of the order receiving device in the print order receiving system according to the present embodiment will be described. The order receiving device 122 includes a central processing unit (CPU) 201 that controls the entire server, a ROM 202 that stores a program, and a RAM 203 that temporarily stores data required to execute the program. It is connected via the bus 204.

An input / output interface unit 206 for controlling peripheral devices is connected to the bus 204. The input / output interface unit 206 includes a communication device 205.
, Display device 207, hard disk (H
D) 123 is connected. Further, the input / output interface unit 206 is provided with a printer 124 for printing out a color image on a sheet-shaped printing base material used for in-mold molding according to the image data and the printing instruction transmitted from the order receiving device 122. Are connected.

The communication device 205 is the Internet 101.
Alternatively, it connects to a network such as the intranet 102. The display device 207 generates a display screen to be transmitted to the client of the customer. The hard disk (HD) 123 is a Web server application for creating a Web page and providing it to the client, We.
a CGI application for performing arithmetic processing based on information received from the client through page b,
It stores a computer program that realizes the functions related to the present invention, such as an image processing application for creating a three-dimensional image and a communication program for communicating via the Internet. Also, this hard disk (HD)
Reference numeral 123 stores a file set (database) or the like in which a large amount of image data and the like are accumulated. Specifically, the following information is stored in the database.

(1) Information about the printing environment in which the manufacturer prints an image on the housing of the electronic device / Material, color tone, and base treatment of the printing substrate on which the image is printed. -Alumina sol composition, concentration, and binder type. Information about the materials used to manufacture the housing of the electronic device, such as the resin material, color and composition. A three-dimensional image of the shape of the mold used to mold the housing of the electronic device and the shape of the product created by this mold. -Information about printing devices such as computer and printer models used as order receiving devices, video boards, and ink information. -Temperature, pressure, time and other molding conditions for products. (2) Images to be printed on purchased products-A plurality of two-dimensional images to be printed on the housing of electronic equipment. (3) Customer information-Customer designation, address, e-mail address, information on purchased products, etc.

With such a configuration, a connection request from the client 121, 131a or 131b of the customer is sent via the Internet 101 or the intranet 102, the communication device 205, the input / output interface unit 206, and the bus 204. Sent to the CPU 201. In response to this request, the CPU 201 displays the login screen from the display device 207 on the client 12 of the customer.
1, 131a or 131b. The customer enters the necessary information on the login screen and sends the CP as well as the connection request.
Send to U201. The login screen is, for example, HTML.
When described by (Hyper Text Markup Language), the operation of buttons and the storage location of input information are defined using tags.

The order receiving device 122 is the display device 20.
7 to customer client 121, 131a or 13
Use the display screen on 1b to provide information or urge input of information. The provision of such information is achieved by the CPU 201 executing a computer program stored in the ROM 202 or the hard disk.

Next, referring to FIG. 3, a hardware configuration of the client according to the present embodiment will be described by taking the client 121 as an example. The client 121
CPU 301 for controlling the entire apparatus, this CPU 301
R that stores the program read and executed by
OM 302, RAM 303 for temporarily storing data necessary for executing programs, bus 304, communication device 30
5, input / output interface unit 306, display (image output device) 307, and hard disk (HD) 32
It consists of three.

The bus 304 has a CPU 301 and a ROM 3
02 and RAM 303, an input / output interface unit 306 for controlling peripheral devices is connected. The input / output interface unit 306 includes a communication device 30.
5, image output device 307 and hard disk (HD)
323 is connected.

The communication device 305 is the Internet 101.
Alternatively, it connects to a network such as the intranet 102. The image output device 307 is the display device 20.
The image and the like generated by 7 are displayed. The hard disk 323 has an order receiving device 12 functioning as a WWW server.
Various computer programs such as a WWW browser which is a program for accessing 2 and reading data and a communication program are stored.

With such a configuration, the CPU 301 of the client 121 is configured so that the hard disk 323
By loading the WWW browser stored in, the image is displayed on the image output device 307, or the communication device 305 is instructed to access the order receiving device 122. The communication device 305 transmits and receives information in response to this command.

The various functions related to the present invention are performed by the CPU of each information processing device by reading and executing a computer program stored in a storage device such as a ROM, a RAM, or an HD, or by executing the computer program according to the present invention. This is achieved by supplying a stored computer-readable recording medium to each information device. In the latter case,
The CPU of the information processing device reads out and executes the program stored in the recording medium.

As a recording medium for supplying the computer program to each information processing device, specifically, a flexible disk, a hard disk, a magneto-optical disk, an optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a DVD-R.
Besides OM, DVD-R, DVD-RW, magnetic tape, non-volatile memory card and ROM, flash memory such as Compact Flash (registered trademark) can also be used.

The term "computer program" used in this embodiment is BASIC, C language, C ++.
In addition to those written in programming languages such as high-level programming languages such as, assembly language, and machine language,
HTM analyzed and executed by browser software
L, XML (Extensible Markup Language), C-HT
It is used as a concept including text described in a markup language such as ML (compact-HTML).

Next, with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 4, the procedure of the method for ordering a printed matter according to this embodiment will be described.

First, the customer uses the client 121 to access the order receiving device 122. Ordering device 122
Responds to this access by causing the display of the client 121 to display a Web page for prompting the input of customer information. The customer can display the W displayed on the display.
Customer information including the name, address, and e-mail address of the user is input to the eb page and transmitted to the order receiving device 122 (step S401). The order receiving device 122 registers the received customer information in the database (DB) 408. At the same time, a Web page including information about a plurality of products and a plurality of images is displayed on the display of the client 121, and the purchase product and an image to be printed on the purchase product are specified.

On the displayed Web page, the customer specifies the purchased product and image from the displayed products and images. Next, specify the printing conditions such as image print position, size (print range), image background type (eg mosaic), color tone, shade and gloss (eg silky) when printing the image on the purchased product in detail. (Step S402).

In step S402, the image prepared by the customer may be designated when the image to be printed on the purchased product is designated.

When the product designation and the image information input are completed in step S402, the customer is the client 1
21 instructs the order receiving device 122 to create a three-dimensional image showing the image of the purchased product on which the image is printed (step S404). Here, in step S402, when an image prepared by the customer is designated as the image to be printed, the prepared image is transmitted to the order receiving device 122 together with an instruction to create a three-dimensional image.

The order receiving device 122 is the client 1 of the customer.
Designation of purchased products and image information received from 21
An in-mold image is created based on the information about the printing environment of the manufacturer stored in the database 408 (step S406). This image is created as an image to be printed on the two-dimensionally shaped printing substrate used for in-mold molding. This makes it possible to create an image of the final product that is close to the actual product in consideration of the material of the product, the type of printing substrate, and the like.

Then, the in-mold forming image is formed into a three-dimensional shape in the virtual space based on the in-mold forming image created in step S406 and the information about the printing environment (shape of the mold, etc.). Thus, a three-dimensional image for confirming the purchased product is created.

The process of shaping a two-dimensional image into a three-dimensional image is as follows.
This can be performed by an image processing technique such as texture mapping in which an image is pasted on the surface of a three-dimensional object. Here, the three-dimensional object is created by a wire frame in which a solid is represented only by lines, a polygon having three-dimensional coordinates of each vertex, or the like. This makes it possible to create an image of the electronic device that can be confirmed from the direction of 360 ° in the virtual space.

The three-dimensional image created in this way is
W on the URL accessible by the client 121
It is arranged in the form of an eb page. At the same time, the ordering device 12
2 to client 121 Web including 3D image
Information of the URL where the page is arranged is notified (step S410). In this way, the created three-dimensional image for confirmation can be provided to the client 121.

The data arranged in the URL accessible by the client 121 is specifically a three-dimensional image for confirming the purchased product, as well as the change or image of the product represented by the three-dimensional image. It is configured as a Web page on which a correction button for receiving a correction and an order button for receiving an order for purchasing the product are arranged.

URL notified by the client 121
Access to the ordering device 122 on the display.
A web page based on the data transmitted from is displayed (step S418). The customer can confirm the finished image of the purchased product by browsing the three-dimensional image on this Web page (step S4).
20).

When it is desired to change the purchased product or to correct the image in step S422, the process returns to step S402 by pressing the above-mentioned correction button, and the processes from the product and image designation process are repeated. On the other hand, step S4
If the customer decides to purchase the product designated by the customer at 22, the process proceeds to step S424 by pressing the order button described above, and the delivery information such as the address and the telephone number required to deliver the purchased product, the payment method. The payment information indicating the above is input to the client 121 and transmitted to the order receiving device 122 (step S424). The order receiving device 122 stores the received delivery information and payment method in the storage device as order receiving information.

In step S406, the manufacturer prints the image for in-mold molding on the sheet-shaped printing base material by using the printer 124 based on the order information held by the order receiving device 122. The manufacturer performs in-mold molding of the resin using the mold corresponding to the purchased product and the printing substrate on which the image is printed in step S412 (step S414). Purchased products are manufactured using the casing thus formed. Thereafter, the purchased product is delivered based on the content of the customer's order information, and payment is made between the manufacturer and the customer (step S41).
6).

Next, with reference to FIGS. 5 to 8, an example of a screen displayed on the display of the client 121 in the printed matter order receiving method according to the present embodiment will be described.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen for designating a purchased product displayed on the display of the client 121 in step S402. At the bottom of the drawing,
A menu 502 for selecting the type (genre) of electronic equipment is arranged. In the figure, genres of electronic devices include “camera”, “personal computer”, “mobile phone”, and “AV device”. Further, more detailed genres are prepared for each genre, and for example, detailed genres such as "notebook personal computer" and "desktop personal computer" are prepared for the genre "personal computer".

A link to a Web page for designating an electronic device is defined in each of the character strings 504 indicating these genres. The customer can display a menu for designating the electronic device by clicking a desired character string displayed on the menu 502 using a mouse or the like.

FIG. 6 shows a character string 5 in which the customer uses the mouse to write "notebook personal computer" on the screen shown in FIG.
It is a figure which shows the example of the screen displayed on a display, when 06 is clicked. As shown in the figure, a list 602 of notebook computers including images of the notebook computers, manufacturer names, product names, and selling prices is displayed on the screen. The customer can select the purchased product by clicking the image of the desired product on this screen.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display when the customer selects a purchased product on the screen shown in the example of FIG. When the image to be printed on the housing of the electronic device is designated from the image prepared by the order receiving device 122, the customer can select the image by clicking the option button 702 and pressing the button 704. . On the other hand, when the customer wants to print the image prepared on the housing of the electronic device, the customer may click the option button 703 and then press the button 706.

Similarly, when designating a print position for printing an image on the housing of an electronic device, a button 708 is pressed. Also, when selecting the size of the image to be printed,
The button 710 is pressed. Also, the background, color tone, shade,
And to specify the image quality of art materials etc., the button 712
Is selected. Furthermore, the button 714 is pressed to instruct the order receiving device 122 to create a three-dimensional image of a purchased product. Using the screen shown in this figure, the customer can specify the image to be printed on the housing of the electronic device that the customer desires to purchase.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display when the customer accesses the site for checking the purchased commodities in step S418. When the customer clicks on the image 802, the order receiving device 1
A three-dimensional image of the purchased product is downloaded from 22 and displayed on the display. The three-dimensional image may be displayed in the form of a Web page to which the image is pasted, or a well-known image processing application capable of browsing the three-dimensional image may be installed in the client in advance and the application may be executed. It may be performed based on. In the latter case, the customer can confirm the image of the purchased product from various angles by changing the angle of the displayed image using a mouse or the like.

Although the preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described above, it goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to this embodiment and can be implemented in various other modes. For example, the present invention can be applied not only to in-mold molding using a mold but also to production of resin products by stereolithography.

Further, the provision of the three-dimensional image from the order receiving device to the client is not limited to the form of the Web page, but can be performed by various methods such as electronic mail.

The Internet and the intranet in the above-mentioned embodiments are examples of networks, and include LAN (including both wired / wireless), VAN,
A public telephone network (including both analog / digital), a dedicated line network (including both analog / digital), a satellite communication network, and the like may be included.

Further, various modifications other than the above-described modes are possible. However, as long as the modification is based on the technical idea described in the claims, the modification is also within the technical scope of the present invention.

[0060]

As described above, according to the present invention,
The order receiving device stores a plurality of products and information about a printing environment for printing an image on the products, and the client stores
Receiving at least one purchased product from the stored products and an image to be printed on the purchased product,
Based on the stored information about the printing environment, a 3D image of the purchased product on which the designated image is printed is created, and the created 3D image is provided to the client, so the original product on which the desired image is printed Can be provided to the customer.

At the time of receiving an order for merchandise, it is possible to provide the customer with an image of the purchased merchandise.

Since the image to be printed on the purchased product is received from the client, the image prepared by the customer can be printed on the purchased product.

Further, since the client further receives the designation of the printing position or size of the image to be printed on the purchased product, it is possible to manufacture a printed matter that matches the customer's request.

Further, since the modification of the provided three-dimensional image is accepted from the client, the customer can pursue the quality of the original product in accordance with his / her wish.

Since the created three-dimensional image is provided in the form of a Web page, the customer can browse the three-dimensional image of the purchased product by using well-known browser software.

Since the information on the printing environment includes the information on the material of the product, it is possible to create a fine image in consideration of the material and the color tone of the material used for the product.

Since the information on the printing environment includes the information on the ink for printing the image on the product, it is possible to reproduce the delicate color tone of the printed matter.

Since the products are molded by in-mold molding, it is possible to receive an order for original products with images printed on them from various products manufactured by molding plastic.

Further, since the information on the printing environment includes the information on the printing base material used for in-mold molding, it is possible to create a fine image in consideration of the material, the color tone, etc. of the printing base material.

Furthermore, since an image to be printed on the printing substrate is created and a three-dimensional shape is created based on the created image, it is possible to create a three-dimensional image of the product that can be confirmed from various directions.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an example of a printed matter ordering system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a hardware configuration diagram of an order receiving server in the print order receiving system according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a hardware configuration diagram of a client in the printed matter order receiving system of the present embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a method for ordering a printed matter according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display of the client.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display of the client.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display of the client.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a screen displayed on the display of the client.

[Explanation of symbols]

101 Internet 102 Intranet 111a, 111b, 111c Gateway 121, 131a, 131b Client 122 Ordering device 123 Hard disk 124 Printer 201 CPU 202 ROM 203 RAM 204 Bus 205 Communication device 206 Input / output interface 207 Display device 301 CPU 302 ROM 303 RAM 304 Bus 305 communication device 306 input / output interface 307 image output device 323 hard disk 408 database 502 menu 504, 506 genre 602 list 702, 703 option button 704, 706, 708, 710, 712, 714 button 802 image

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Ryoko Osawa             1-12-1 Yurakucho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Asahi             Glass Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 2C061 AP01 HH03 HJ08 HK04 HK11                       HN05 HN15 HN26

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A print order receiving device for receiving an order for a print product having an image printed on a product, comprising: a plurality of products; and storage means for storing information on a printing environment for printing an image on the product, A first receiving unit that receives designation of at least one purchased product from the products stored in the storage unit; a second receiving unit that receives designation of an image to be printed on the purchased product; Providing means for creating an image of the purchased product on which the image designated by the second accepting means is printed, based on the stored information about the printing environment, and providing the image created by the creating means. An order receiving device for printed matter, comprising: 2. The printed matter order receiving apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the information on the printing environment includes information on ink for printing an image on the product. 3. The printed matter order receiving device according to claim 1, wherein the product is molded by in-mold molding. 4. The printed matter order accepting device according to claim 3, wherein the information on the printing environment includes information on a printing substrate used for the in-mold molding.