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  Systems, methods, and media for providing and/or obtaining information associated with a barcodeUSPTO Application #: 20080093460Title: Systems, methods, and media for providing and/or obtaining information associated with a barcode Abstract: In some embodiments, methods for providing information associated with a barcode are provided. The methods including receiving barcode information and a user identifier from a mobile device; sending the barcode information to at least one content provider; receiving content information related to the barcode information from at least one of the at least one content provider; retrieving layout information from a database based on the user identifier; aggregating the received content information to form aggregated content information, wherein the layout of the aggregated content information is based on the retrieved layout information; and sending the aggregated content information to the mobile device. In some embodiments, methods for obtaining information associated with a barcode are provided. (end of abstract) Agent: Wilmerhale/new York - New York, NY, US Inventors: Didier FRANTZ, Avi OUTMEZGUINE USPTO Applicaton #: 20080093460 - Class: 235462460 (USPTO) Related Patent Categories: Registers, Coded Record Sensors, Particular Sensor Structure, Optical, Bar Code, Specified Housing Or Mounting Detail, Hand-held (e.g., Portable), The Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20080093460. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/168,806, filed Jun. 28, 2005, which claims the benefit of provisional application No. 60/587,250 filed Jul. 14, 2004, each of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to the field of systems capable of managing the interaction between vendors and end users. More specifically, the present invention provides a gateway for mobile devices which provides quick access to various information and content from different vendors. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Many systems currently exist which use an input to access different online resources. The most common example of such a system is a search engine such as Yahoo, Google, AltaVista, etc. Search engines allow users to search one or more databases using different combinations of search terms and Boolean connectors. The results are usually displayed in a list form, with the most relevant results at the top of the list. These search engines provide quick access to information. However, using such systems it is often difficult to access specific information. For example, if a user is looking for information on a particular person or product type, the search engine will return every instance of the search term. It may take the user a long period of time to sift through the information and find the specific link or information the user was looking for. [0004] Recently, search engines have also become available for mobile devices which have Internet access. The user can use the keypad on the mobile device to type in keywords and search the Internet much like a user would on a computer. However, due to the small sized screen and the vast amount of search results, it is usually even more difficult to sift through the results on the mobile device than on a computer. [0005] Simple database systems also currently exist which use an input term to produce one or more outputs. An example of such a system is the barcode scanning terminal and register used at most shopping centers. As the cashier scans the different products in each consumer's shopping cart, the barcode scanning terminal uses a database to associate each barcode with a price, item name, and/or item description. The register then uses this information to compute the total of the purchase. This system allows the checkout process to be extremely streamlined and efficient. However, the database requires much maintenance since every type of item in the store must be included in the database. This can lead to an extremely large database which requires a great deal of maintenance. For example, the database needs to be updated each time the store adds a new item or changes an item's price. [0006] Currently, there are systems available which can be used to link printed barcode information directly to online content using barcode scanners. These systems typically function by using the scanner to scan the barcode, connect the scanner to a computer, upload the barcode information to a server, search a barcode database to retrieve information, and send the information back to the mobile device. Since most mobile devices are not associated with an add-on barcode scanner, these systems have not yet been widely adopted. Also, these systems suffer from the burden that each barcode needs to be in the database in order for the system to function. [0007] With the advent of camera phones and other similar mobile devices equipped with digital cameras, technology has been developed to decode barcodes from digital images. For example, a system for decoding barcodes on mobile devices from digital images is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/757,095. This allows camera phones to be used as mobile barcode scanners. Therefore, camera phones can now be utilized with systems which link printed barcode information directly to online content. [0008] Therefore, there clearly exists a need for a system which links users with mobile devices equipped with a barcode scanner or digital camera to online content without the burden of maintaining a large and extensive barcode database. Such a system would allow user's quick and reliable access to online content with minimal cost to the supplier and/or vendor. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0009] Systems, methods, and media for providing and/or obtaining information associated with a barcode are provided. For example, in some embodiments, methods for providing information associated with a barcode are provided. The methods including: receiving barcode information and a user identifier from a mobile device; sending the barcode information to at least one content provider; receiving content information related to the barcode information from at least one of the at least one content provider; retrieving layout information from a database based on the user identifier; aggregating the received content information to form aggregated content information, wherein the layout of the aggregated content information is based on the retrieved layout information; and sending the aggregated content information to the mobile device. [0010] Also, for example, in some embodiments, methods for obtaining information associated with a barcode are provided. The methods including: obtaining barcode information from a barcode; sending the barcode information and a user identifier to a server; receiving aggregated content information from the server including at least one reference to content related to the barcode information from the server wherein the at least one reference to content is associated with at least one content provider and wherein the layout of the aggregated content information is based on the user identifier; displaying the aggregated content information on a screen; receiving a selection of content of the content referenced by the at least one reference to content included in the aggregated content information from a user interface; and sending an indication of content selected by the selection of content to the server. [0011] The present invention discloses a system and method for a mobile gateway which is used to manage and distribute information scanned from mobile device users to vendors. The system utilizes a mobile device equipped with a barcode scanner or digital camera, at least one item with a barcode, a wireless network, a server having a plurality of different databases (e.g., a user database and a vendor database), and a plurality of vendors and/or content providers. The mobile device may be any device capable of transmitting data over the wireless network such as a cell phone, a camera phone, a personal digital assistant, etc. [0012] Barcodes compatible with the present invention are usually found on products or in advertisements. However, it should be apparent to one skilled in the art how the barcode could be any one or two-dimensional barcode from a symbology including, but not limited to, UPC-A, UPC-E, ISBN, RSS-14, RSS-14E, RSS-14L, Interleaved 2 of 5, EAN/JAN-8, EAN/JAN-13, Code 39, Code 39 Full ASCII, Code 128, PDF417, QR Code, Data Matrix, and/or proprietary two-dimensional codes. [0013] The wireless network may be any network capable of transmitting information wirelessly between a mobile device and a computer and/or other mobile device. For example, the wireless network could be a cellular network, satellite network, Bluetooth network, Wi-Fi network, etc. [0014] To use the system, a user first scans the barcode using the mobile device. The user may scan the barcode either using a barcode scanner attached to the mobile device or by using the digital camera attached to or embedded in the device. If the user elects to take a picture of the barcode, it may be decoded optically on the device. A system for decoding barcodes on mobile devices from digital images is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/757,095, which is incorporated herein by reference. The user could also decide to take a picture of the barcode and send the snapshot or the raw data constituting the image to the control center to be decoded on a server instead of the handset (see U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/796,153, which is incorporated herein by reference). [0015] After the barcode has been decoded, the barcode information and a user identification number are sent to a server via a wireless network. In the case where the barcode is decoded by the server, the user will send the user identification number and either the snapshot or the raw data of the barcode image. The server then uses the transmitted user identification number to look up the user's preferred vendors using a user database. The user database associates each user identification number with a list of preferred vendors. The server next parses the barcode into its constituent parts if possible. For example, every UPC-A barcode contains a manufacturer code, a product code, and a checksum digit. [0016] The manufacturer code, or other similar identifying information, contained within the barcode information is used to associate the scanned barcode with a list of vendors or content providers using a vendor and/or content provider database. The server then transmits the entire decoded barcode to each of the vendors and content providers. Preferably, this step is accomplished by sending the data to the different vendors' web services via an XML post. [0017] Each vendor and content provider returns a list of options, and/or detailed information related to the barcode to the server. Preferably, this information is transmitted back to the server via XML. The server uses the information provided by the vendors/content providers to generate a WAP page on-the-fly by aggregating the information into a newly formatted page. The WAP page, list of options, content, and/or detailed information is then displayed on-screen. In a preferred embodiment, the server also utilizes information contained within the user database to construct the WAP page. For example, the user database may contain layout and/or other information which the user has preselected. The user utilizes the content of the page and/or number of options to execute the desired transaction. [0018] Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a mobile gateway capable of supplying quick and reliable content via a dynamic WAP page to users without the burden of maintaining a large and static product barcode database. [0019] It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a mobile gateway in which the content from the vendors and/or content providers is sent to the mobile device via a newly generated WAP page. [0020] Another object of the present invention is to provide a mobile gateway in which the mobile device only receives content which has been formatted by the server. Continue reading... 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