Patent Application
20080178500
The present description relates generally to a calendar having a separate calendar sheet for each day within a specific period (i.e., a daily calendar), and a method of providing such a calendar to a customer. More particularly, the present description relates to a daily calendar that includes one or more images (e.g., photographs, etc.) printed on each separate calendar sheet and a method of allowing the customer to personalize or customize a daily calendar by providing and/or selecting the images that are to be printed on the separate calendar sheets of the daily calendar.
Calendars are useful tools used daily by a large number of people for various reasons such as, but not limited to, determining the present date, recording an upcoming event (e.g., meeting, appointment, birthday, anniversary, party, etc.) for future reference, providing a medium for making notes. Various types of calendars exist (e.g., monthly calendars, weekly calendars, etc.). One type of calendar is a daily calendar, sometimes referred to a desk calendar or a box calendar, which generally includes a separate calendar sheet or page (e.g., sheet of paper, etc.) whereby each calendar sheet represents an individual day of a year. Daily calendars will often combine certain days on the same calendar sheet, and therefore, often include less than 365 calendar sheets. For example, it is know to combine Saturdays and Sundays on the same calendar sheet thereby providing a daily calendar with approximately 313 calendar sheets.
Daily calendars, like other types of calendars, can serve an aesthetic purpose in addition to being a useful tool. For example, daily calendars often include pre-determined images (e.g., cartoons, photographs, drawings, etc.) and/or text (e.g., motivational phrases, quotes, poetry, etc.) printed on each calendar sheet along with the practical calendar information (e.g., month, day, year, month layout, week layout, etc.). These predetermined images and/or text are selected by the calendar manufacturer without any input on the part of the end user. Many calendar users would rather display personalized or otherwise customized photographs and/or text on each separate calendar sheet than view a pre-determined canned image and/or text for each particular day. Further, a larger market for daily calendars may exist if people and/or entities were able to personalize or customize their daily calendars with their own photographs or photographs that they otherwise selected.
In addition to being a useful tool for a user and capable of having aesthetic value, a daily calendar may also serve as a marketing tool by a business (e.g., travel agency, etc.) and/or a fundraising tool by a charitable organization. For example, daily calendars printed with the name of a business could be sent to clients and/or prospective clients. Daily calendars provide valuable marketing opportunities since a daily calendar is always in front of an end user and requires the end user to attend the daily calendar (e.g., tear off a calendar sheet and look at, etc.) on a somewhat regular basis (e.g., each and every day, etc.). As such, a daily calendar having the name of a business on the individual calendar sheets would heighten an end user's awareness of the business being promoted by the daily calendar. Further still, if a business was able to customize a daily calendar by selecting its own photographs to appear on each calendar sheet, these daily calendars would become an even more valuable marketing tool.
Accordingly, there is a need for a daily calendar having a customer-provided photograph on each calendar sheet and a method of providing a daily calendar having a customer-provided photograph on each calendar sheet to a customer. There is also a need for a daily calendar and a method of providing a daily calendar wherein the customer-provided photograph used for each calendar sheet is a color photograph. There is further a need for a method of allowing a customer to provide a calendar manufacturer with a sufficient number of photographs so that a different photograph can appear on each separate calendar sheet of a daily calendar (or enough so that it gives the appearance as if a different photograph is provided on each separate calendar sheet). There is further a need to allow a customer to view a sample of a daily calendar containing photographs provided by the customer before the calendar is printed in paper form. There is further a need to allow a customer to provide a calendar manufacturer with a large number of photographs that the calendar manufacturer will than use to create a daily calendar without requiring significant input from the customer. There is further a need for a daily calendar and/or a method of providing a daily calendar addressing these and/or any other needs.
One exemplary embodiment relates to a method of providing a daily calendar with customer-selected photograph on each calendar sheet. The method includes the steps of receiving a plurality of photographs from a customer, receiving instructions from the customer, printing the daily calendar with the photographs from the customer using the instructions received from the customer, and delivering the daily calendar to the customer. The instructions received from the customer includes instructions for a format for the calendar sheet, a designated start day for the daily calendar and assignment of the photographs to a particular a calendar sheet.
Another exemplary embodiment relates to a method of providing a daily calendar with customer-provided photographs on each calendar sheet. The method includes the steps of receiving a plurality of photographs in a digital format from a customer, receiving instructions from the customer for a designated start day, assigning one photograph from the plurality of photographs to each calendar sheet, reassigning an already assigned photograph to a second calendar sheet if the plurality of calendar sheets is less than the number of calendar sheets, printing the daily calendar with the photographs from the customer, and delivering the daily calendar to the customer.
Another exemplary embodiment relates to a daily calendar personalized by a customer and produced on a commercial scale by a calendar manufacturer. The daily calendar includes a separate calendar sheet for a specific day. Each calendar sheet has a front surface. The daily calendar further includes a different photograph printed on the front surface of each calendar sheet. The photographs printed on the front surfaces of the calendar sheets are provided to the calendar manufacturer by the customer.
Referring generally to the FIGURES, a personalized or otherwise customized daily calendar 10 and a method of providing daily calendar 10 to a customer is shown according to exemplary embodiments. Generally, daily calendar 10 includes a series of pages (e.g., sheets, cards, etc.), referred to broadly herein as calendar sheets, combined to form a pad. The pad includes a sufficient number of calendar sheets for a specific period. For example, the pad may include a sufficient number of calendar sheets for each day of a year (e.g., 365 calendar sheets if a separate calendar sheet is provided for each day, 313 calendar sheets if Saturdays and Sundays are combined on the same calendar sheet, etc.). Daily calendar 10 is configured so that on a regular basis (e.g., daily, etc.) a user manipulates (e.g., moves, removes, etc.) a calendar sheet on the pad to display the calendar sheet for the next day or combination of days. Provided on a front surface of each calendar sheet 12, in addition to typical calendar information (e.g., month, day, and/or year, etc.), is at least one photograph (e.g., a colored photograph, etc.) that has been provided to a manufacturer of the daily calendar by the customer.
As such, daily calendar 10 is calendar product that allows a customer (e.g., end user, family member, business, etc.) to selectively pick the photograph that will appear on each and every calendar sheet of the calendar. According to various exemplary embodiments, such a customized or personalized calendar product may be used to display a number of relatively unrelated photographs selected by the customer for inclusion in the calendar (e.g., family pictures, company pictures, etc.), or alternatively, may be used to display a large number of related photographs taken from an event (e.g., corporate retreat, convention, vacation, etc.) or having a common theme (e.g., travel pictures for use in the promotion of a travel agency, animal pictures for use in the promotion of a veterinary clinic, etc.). According to one nonexclusive exemplary embodiment, daily calendar 10 may be customized to include photographs taken during a significant family event, such as a wedding.
It should be noted that while daily calendar 10, and a method of providing daily calendar 10, may be illustrated and/or described with reference to a daily calendar configured to display photographs taken from a weddings, daily calendar 10, and the method of providing daily calendar 10, may be used for displaying photographs relating to any of a number of subject matters.
Referring now to
Each calendar sheet 12 is shown as being generally rectangular in shape and defined by a first edge, shown as a top edge 14, a second edge, shown as a bottom edge 16, a third edge, shown as a left edge 18, and a fourth edge, shown as a right edge 20. According to an exemplary embodiment, each calendar sheet 12 has a width that is between approximately five inches and approximately six inches and a height that is between approximately four inches and approximately five inches. For example, each calendar sheet 12 may have a width that is approximately five and a half inches and a height that is approximately four and a quarter inches. According to the various alternative embodiments, each calendar sheet 12 may have any of a number of sizes and/or shapes (e.g., circular, triangular, in the shape of an object, etc.).
Calendar sheets 12 can be made from a variety of materials including, but not limited to, paper, cardstock, cardboard, plastic or any other material that may be suitable for calendar sheets 12. According to an exemplary embodiment, calendar sheets 12 are formed of paper.
Calendar sheets 12 are coupled together to form a pad 22. It should be noted that for purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” is used broadly to mean the joining or combining of two or more members (e.g., calendar sheets, components, materials, etc.) directly or indirectly to one another. Such joining or combining may be relatively stationary (e.g., fixed, etc.) in nature or movable (e.g., reconfigurable, etc.) in nature. Such joining or combining may be achieved with two members or two members and any additional intermediate members being integrally formed as a single unitary body with one another (e.g., one-piece, etc.) or with the two members or the two members and any additional intermediate members being attached to one another. Such joining or combining may be intended to be relatively permanent in nature or alternatively may be intended to be relatively detachable or removable in nature.
According to an exemplary embodiment, calendar sheets 12 are coupled together along top edges 14 using an adhesive that binds calendar sheets 12 together. A relatively rigid member (e.g., a backing, etc.) may be provided after the last calendar sheet 12 to provide support for pad 22. Such a rigid member may be formed of cardboard or any other suitable backing material and may be coupled to pad 22 using the same technique coupling together calendar sheets 12.
As stated above, daily calendar 10 is configured so that on a regular basis (e.g., a daily basis, etc.) a user manipulates the exposed calendar sheet 12 to display another calendar sheet 12 for the next day or combination of days. According to an exemplary embodiment, daily calendar 10 is configured so that a user must remove (e.g., tear off, etc.) calendar sheets 12. A demarcation or perforated line may run laterally across each calendar sheet 12 to assist a user in removing calendar sheet 12 from pad 22. According to the embodiment illustrated, the bond securing calendar sheets 12 together is of such a nature that a user can readily remove the entire calendar sheet 12 without a perforated line. According to the various alternative embodiments, daily calendar 10 may be configured so that on a regular basis, a user simply moves (e.g., flips, etc.) calendar sheet 12 rather than removing the sheet.
Referring to
Referring back to
First calendar indicia 34 and second calendar indicia 36 provide a user with useful calendar information. According to the embodiment illustrated, first calendar indicia 34 is a visual representation of the current month and is provided in a lower left-hand side of front surface 30, while second calendar indicia 36 includes text reciting the present day (or combination of days) and date of the week and is provided in a lower right-hand side of front surface. Lines 38 provide an area on front surface 30 where a user may write down notes, important dates, appointments, meetings, or the like. According to the various alternative embodiments, any of a number of combinations of first calendar indicia 34, second calendar indicia 36 and lines 38 may be used. Further, the calendar indicia may be provided in other forms (e.g., weekly views, an hourly breakdown for each day, etc.) depending on needs of a target user.
Referring further to
To create photograph 40, a customer provides the calendar manufacturer with one or more photographs. According to an exemplary embodiment, the customer provides the manufacturer with enough photographs so that each calendar sheet 12 includes a different photograph 40. The customer may instruct the calendar manufacturer as to what photograph should be used with each calendar sheet 12, or alternatively, may leave it to the calendar manufacturer to select the order that the photographs will appear in daily calendar 10. If fewer photographs are given to the calendar manufacturer than the number of calendar sheets 12, the calendar manufacturer simply reuses a photograph used previously. The method of providing the photographs and manufacturing daily calendar 10 with photographs 40 is detailed below with reference to
The subject matter of photograph 40 is controlled by the customer. For example, the customer may provide the calendar manufacturer with a plurality of photographs from a significant family event, such as a wedding. A daily calendar 10 filled with photographs from an event will allow the customer to memorialize the event and/or to share the memories of the event with others by distributing the customized daily calendars 10 to friends and/or relatives. Alternatively, a business may provide the calendar manufacturer with a plurality of photographs relating to its business. These daily calendars can than be sent to clients of the business and/or prospective clients as a marketing tool for the business.
One nonexclusive example of a business that may find daily calendar 10 desirable for its marketing efforts is a professional sports team. Such a business can provide the calendar manufacturer with a number of photographs relating to the team and/or the particular sport. Rather than creating a calendar for an entire year, the business may request that daily calendar 10 only includes calendar sheets 12 for the particular sport's season (e.g., April through October for baseball, etc.). The business can then provide these customized daily calendars 10 to season ticket holders or prospective ticket holders in an effort to generate interest about the team. In addition to photographs 40, such daily calendars 10 may include text on the appropriate calendar sheets 12 indicating the time of the game and the opponent. According to the various alternative embodiments, any type of business may utilize a customized daily calendar 10 as a marketing tool.
Referring again to
Referring to
Referring to
Calendar manufacturer 110 includes a database 120 that is connected to a printing process 122 through a computer 118. Database 120 is configured to receive the digital images submitted by the customer, while computer 118 supports software configured to take the digital images and provide instructions for printing to printing process 122. According to an exemplary embodiment, calendar manufacturer 110 is capable of transferring digital images that have been submitted on a portable storage device (e.g., disk, memory card, etc.), shown as a compact disc 112, to database 120. Such capabilities may allow a customer to conveniently submit a large number of digital images to calendar manufacturer 110. According to another exemplary embodiment, calendar manufacturer 110 includes a website having a webpage that can be accessed by the customer.
To support the website and webpage, calendar manufacturer 110 includes a web server 116 that is connected to computer 118 that allows the customer to submit digital images over an online network to calendar manufacturer 110. The online network may be any network that supports the TCCP/IP protocol (such as the Internet 114 or an intranet). Web server 116 is a hardware component that includes software that receives, manages and responds to the customers request for and/or submittal of documents. 100381 According to the embodiment illustrated, the customer accesses the website of calendar manufacturer 110 over the internet 114. The customer than creates a personal account with calendar manufacturer 110 wherein the customer will be asked to submit certain personal information (e.g., name, contact information, billing information, etc.) and in return receives a password allowing the customer to access a file transfer protocol (“FTP”) site of the company. The FTP site is used to connect computer 108 of the customer to computer 118 of calendar manufacturer 110 over the internet 114 so that the customer can transfer digital image files to server 116 and/or computer 114 of calendar manufacturer 110. The digital images may be transferred in any suitable file format including, but not limited to, .pdf, .tiff, .bmp, or .jpeg. Once connected to the FTP site, the customer can do a number of file manipulation operations such as uploading files to web server 116, download files from web server 116, rename or delete files on web server 116 and so on.
It should be noted that system 100 can be implemented on any platform such as computer 118 or other suitable workstation in communication with printing process 122. According to various alternative embodiments, a customer can implement the process (at least partially) on its own computer 108 using software downloadable from the calendar manufacturer. Equipment for system 100 is shown for illustrative purposes only, as it is not discussed in a limiting fashion.
In a step 138, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions from the customer relating to what title or heading should appear on each calendar sheet 12. In a step 140, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions relating to the format or layout of each calendar sheet 12. According to an exemplary embodiment, the calendar manufacturer may offer a number of standard formats for calendar sheet 12 that can be selected by the customer. According to the various alternative embodiments, the customer may be able to submit a customized template for calendar sheet 12.
In a step 142, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions from the customer relating to the desired start date for daily calendar 10. The start date may be any date selected by the customer and need not be the first of the year. Step 142 may also allow the customer to select a termination date for daily calendar 10 (i.e., the date at which daily calendar 10 will be exhausted of calendar sheets 12). Based on the instructions provided by the customer, daily calendar 10 may be designed to last one year, greater than one year or less than one year.
After the calendar manufacturer receives the digital images and one or more of the instructions provided by the customer in steps 132 through steps 142, the calendar manufacture uses such digital images and instructions to create an electronic sample of daily calendar 10. This electronic sample may be first proofed by the calendar manufacturer, but is ultimately made available to the customer for viewing in a step 144. Step 144 also allows the customer to edit (e.g., make changes, additions, deletions, etc.) the sample calendar. Once the customer is satisfied with the appearance of the sample calendar, the customer provides instructions to the calendar manufacturer to print daily calendar 10. Upon receiving these instructions, the calendar manufacturer prints daily calendar 10 in a step 146 using a process detailed below and shown in
The above-described method may be most attractive to an individual customer who is willing to spend the time required to pick out a photograph for each calendar sheet 12 (or at least assign the order of the photographs) and create text to be added variably throughout. For example, this method may be used by the card manufacturer when working with someone who wants to create a daily calendar having photographs of his or her family. This method may also be attractive to a business and/or charitable organization that intends to use daily calendar 10 as a marketing tool. Such a customer is likely to have the personnel and/or motivation to invest the amount time required in this method.
It is recognized that the method detailed above may not provide a cost and/or time efficient method that is likely to be desirable by certain customers (e.g., professional photographers, etc.). To accommodate these customers, a second method of manufacturing daily calendar 10 is provided. Referring to
In a step 154, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions relating to the format or layout of each calendar sheet 12. According to an exemplary embodiment, the calendar manufacturer may offer a number of standard formats for calendar sheet 12 that can be selected by the customer. In a step 156, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions from the customer relating to the desired start date for daily calendar 10 and/or the desired termination date. In a step 158, the calendar manufacturer receives instructions from the customer relating to what title or heading should appear on each calendar sheet 12 (e.g., the name of the couple that got married, etc.).
Unlike the method detailed above with reference to
Eliminating the step of assigning individual photographs to particular calendar sheets 12 for the customer may allow the customer to offer these daily calendars to an end user at a lower price. For example, with the above method, a professional photographer hired to take photographs for a wedding may offer the daily calendars as part of a wedding photograph package at a nominal cost in comparison to the entire cost of the package. The professional photographer can simply deposit the photographs taken at the wedding with the calendar manufacturer, along with at least the name of the couple that was married, and receive a personalized daily calendar without any further effort.
It should also be noted that the information received in step 154 through step 158 can be submitted to the calendar manufacturer through the website of the calendar manufacturer or by any other means that may be more convenient to the customer. For example, the customer may simply provide the calendar manufacturer with written instructions via email or standard mail or may simply provide the instructions orally to the calendar manufacturer.
After the calendar manufacturer receives the digital images and one or more of the instructions provided by the customer in steps 154 through steps 158, the calendar manufacturer uses such digital images and instructions to create an electronic sample of daily calendar 10. This electronic sample is proofed by the calendar manufacturer in a step 160 and is then printed in a step 162 using a process detailed below and shown in
Referring now to
It should be noted that the method of printing daily calendar 10 detailed above is not limited to printing daily calendar 10 using VDP. According to the various alternative embodiments, daily calendar 10 may be printed using any known or otherwise suitable printing technique including, but not limited to, an offset printing technique. For certain orders, offset printing may be more cost effective to use than VDP. For example, with the current state of printing technology, offset printing may prove to be a more cost effective printing technique over VDP for high volume orders (e.g., orders greater than approximately 10,000 daily calendars, etc.).
The foregoing description of embodiments has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to be limited to the precise forms disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and its practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. Although only a few embodiments of the present inventions have been described in detail in this disclosure, those skilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in methods of manufacturing, variations in sizes, dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements, use of materials, colors, orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of the subject matter recited. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present inventions. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and omissions may be made in the design, operating conditions and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present inventions.
It will further be appreciated that system 100 may perform fewer or additional functions as compared to those described herein. For example, a calendar provider (e.g., manufacturer) that performs only some of the above-mentioned processes may use a computer system that contains only a subset of the functions described herein. Additionally, one or more of the systems or functions of system 100 may be variously combined in alternative configurations.
The order or sequence of any process or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced according to alternative embodiments. In the claims, any means-plus-function clause is intended to cover the structures described herein as performing the recited function and not only structural equivalents but also equivalent structures. Other substitutions, modifications, changes and omissions may be made in the design, operating configuration and arrangement of the preferred and other exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of the inventions as expressed in the appended claims.
