Exemplary Validity Analysis of Scanning Tech

Patent-in-suit
US 9,934,528 B2
 ontent
About the Litigation The Patented Technology –US’528

The present patent in suit relates to a system and method for indicating an existence

of a link to information pertaining to an article of commerce. The present invention

provides downloading a look-up table from a server database to a mobile device

via a communication network. The look-up table is configured to store a plurality of

UPC numbers associated with a plurality of articles of commerce and a plurality of

information link indicators. Each information link indicator is associated with a

respective UPC number and article of commerce and indicates the existence of a

link via the communication network to information pertaining to the respective

article of commerce. The mobile device allows a consumer to immediately

determine if product information is available for a particular article of commerce,

via a visual or audible indication on the mobile device, without access to the

communication network.

As part of our regular due-diligence and exemplary studies, we took this sample

case and have performed a brief validity search, and were hoping of sharing the

finding(s)

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 US9934528 B2- Asserted Patent US7812860 B2 – Potential Prior Art Reference
Claim 1. A system for indicating an [Col. 6, Line 61-63] Search engine 112 may employ and/or index information specifically about rendered
existence of a link to information pertaining documents, about their digital counterpart documents, and about documents that have a web
to an article of commerce, the system (internet) presence).
comprising:
[Col. 23, Line 13-18] Sometimes text or symbols are actually printed on an item or its packaging. An
example is the serial number or product id often found on a label on the back or underside of a piece of
electronic equipment. The system can offer the user a convenient way to purchase one or more of the
same items by capturing that text. They may also be offered manuals, support or repair services.

a mobile device comprising a portable [Col. 8, Line 50-59] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a scanner 302. The scanner 302

handheld housing and a communication comprises an optical scanning head 308 to scan information from rendered documents and convert it to

interface configured to enable the mobile machine-compatible data, and an optical path 306, typically a lens, an aperture or an image conduit

device to communicate with a to convey the image from the rendered document to the scanning head. The scanning head 308 may

communication network, the mobile incorporate a Charge-Coupled Device (CCD), a Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS)

device further comprising a signal imaging device, or an optical sensor of another type.

processing device and a visual input

[Col. 9, Line 1-10] The scanner 302 comprises logic 326 to interact with the various other components,
device, the visual input device affixed
possibly processing the received signals into different formats and/or interpretations. Logic 326 may be
within the portable handheld housing;
operable to read and write data and program instructions stored in associated storage 330 such as
RAM, ROM, flash, or other suitable memory. It may read a time signal from the clock unit 328. The
scanner 302 also includes an interface 316 to communicate scanned information and other signals to a
network and/or an associated computing device.

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digital files associated with the mobile device, [Col. 9, Line 1-10] The scanner 302 comprises logic 326 to interact with the various
other components, possibly processing the received signals into different formats
and/or interpretations. Logic 326 may be operable to read and write data and
program instructions stored in associated storage 330 such as RAM, ROM, flash, or
other suitable memory. It may read a time signal from the clock unit 328.

a server in communication with the communication network, [Col. 6, Line 55-67] The query or queries are then passed to the search and context

the server comprising a server database configured to store a analysis stage 110. Here, the system optionally attempts to identify the document

look-up table that includes at least a plurality of symbologies from which the original data was captured. To do so, the system typically uses search

associated with a plurality of articles of commerce, indices and search engines 112, knowledge about the user 114 and knowledge
about the user's context or the context in which the capture occurred 116. Search
the look-up table also storing a plurality of information link
engine 112 may employ and/or index information specifically about rendered
indicators,
documents, about their digital counterpart documents, and about documents that
each information link indicator associated with a respective
have a web (internet) presence).
symbology and article of commerce,
[Col. 7, Line 4-12] In some circumstances the next stage will be to retrieve 120 a copy
and each information link indicator being configured as a
of the document or documents that have been identified. The sources of the
status signal indicating the existence or absence of a link to
documents 124 may be directly accessible, for example from a local filing system or
information pertaining to a respective article of commerce,
database or a web server, or they may need to be contacted via some access
the link being made to the information via the
service 122 which might enforce authentication, security or payment or may provide
communication network;
other services such as conversion of the document into a desired format.

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wherein the visual input device is configured to scan [Col. 9, Line 15-22] As an example of one use of scanner 302, a reader may scan some text

an image of an article of commerce, decode the from a newspaper article with scanner 302. The text is scanned as a bit-mapped image via

image to obtain a symbology and forward data from the scanning head 308. Logic 326 causes the bit-mapped image to be stored in memory 330

the scanned image to the signal processing device; with an associated time-stamp read from the clock unit 328. Logic 326 may also perform
optical character recognition (OCR) or other post-scan processing on the bit-mapped
image to convert it to text.

wherein, in response to receiving the symbology, the [Col. 10, Line 44-52] 3.5. Local Caching of Index for Performance/Offline Use

signal processing device is configured to look up the

Sometimes the capturing device may not be in communication with the search engine or
symbology in the look-up table to determine from a
corpus at the time of the data capture. For this reason, information helpful to the offline use
respective information link indicator whether or not a
of the device may be downloaded to the device in advance, or to some entity with which
link exists for accessing information pertaining to an
the device can communicate. In some cases, all or a substantial part of an index associated
article of commerce associated with the symbology
with a corpus may be downloaded. This topic is discussed further in Section 15.3.
via the communication network,
[Col. 82, Line 3-8] In some embodiments, the system pre-caches indexes or other data
wherein the signal processing device determines
about documents that the user is likely to encounter. For example, in some embodiments,
whether or not the link exists without accessing the
the system pushes the index and markup document for the local newspaper down onto a
communication network.
user's portable scanner every morning in anticipation of the user scanning data from the
newspaper.

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