Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Plural display systems – Remotely located
Reexamination Certificate
1998-12-15
2001-08-14
Mengistu, Amare (Department: 2778)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Plural display systems
Remotely located
C040S606040
Reexamination Certificate
active
06275201
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an advertisement system for an airport facility having a plurality of gates connected by passageways and aisles and provided in departure and arrival buildings with restaurants and shops, with information carriers emitting written and picture messages and provided on information boards and with a plurality of luggage pushcarts for transporting luggage of airport passengers inside the facility.
2. Description of the Prior Art
With an ever increasing use of airplanes as means of transportation and the accompanying increase in air traffic, the size of airport facilities is also necessarily increases. Therefore, the use of the airport facilities for advertisement purposes evokes greater and greater interest. Therefore, the airport businesses try hard to offer different, interesting advertisement board or panels. However, despite the spaciousness of an airport facility, the surface available for advertising is limited. As a result of the finite nature of the surface in an airport facility available for advertising, there exists a need in a most effective use of the available-for-advertising surface. The present conventional use of the available-for-advertising surface for single messages prevents an increased or multiple use of the limited surface available-for-advertisement.
Accordingly, an object of the present invention is an advertisement system for an airport facility which would permit a multiple use of the available-for-advertising surface, thereby permitting offering of the available-for-advertising surface to different customers and advertisers.
Another object of the present invention is an advertisement system for an airport facility which would permit offering of the available-for-advertisement surface to customers and advertisers at different pricing scales dependent on a selected advertisement message.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
These and other objects of the present invention, which will become apparent hereinafter, are achieved by providing an advertisement system including a plurality of advertisement panels each having a standard advertisement message and at least one different advertisement message stored in the advertisement panels, and means for arbitrary changing the messages so that one of the advertisement messages is displayed at a time. According to the present invention, a controlled turn-on time, which is dependent on an arbitrary number and distribution of airport passengers throughout the airport facility, is associated with turn-on/off advertisement areas available in different areas of the airport facility for advertising. The arbitrary number can be defined by a number of usable luggage pushcarts so that an advertisement space is rented for a price corresponding to an arbitrary number of pushcarts passing through the area. The pushcarts are equipped with a device for activating a predetermined advertisement message on that turn-on/off advertisement area which a pushcart passes. This, on one hand, insures a multiple arbitrary use of advertisement areas of panels and, on the other hand, permits to match the price for an advertisement to payments for rent of a certain number of pushcarts, i.e., to determine the probability of how long a certain advertisement area will be used for a certain advertisement. Thus, the probability of display of an advertisement message increases with the increase of a number of rented pushcarts.
For an advantageous multiple use of the available advertisement areas, in accordance with advantageous development of the present invention, it is further contemplated that an advertisement message is displayed for a limited time, and the switching of the advertisement on and off is effected by using a wireless remote control system, with the advertisement message being activated by a mobile transmitter. This can be effected, in a simplest case, by providing an a pushcart a signal generator, e.g., a magnet which activates a switch-on device associated with a respective advertisement area or panel upon the pushcart passing by. However, this simplest form of activation means permits to activate a very limited number of exchangeable advertisement messages.
Therefore, according to a further embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of interrogatable transponders with means for emitting coded signals are arranged on the luggage pushcarts, with respective transponders being associated with a respective advertisement message. It is further contemplated that a plurality of suitable devices for interrogating of the transponders, i.e., for receiving coded signal emitted therefrom, are associated with the advertisement areas or panels. These devices are formed as transmitter/receiver units. This makes possible to store in separate advertisement areas or panels, an arbitrary number of advertisement messages.
An optimal use of the advertisement areas or panels is increased when a limited display time is assigned to each separate advertisement message. According to the invention, an automatic time limitation of separate advertisement messages is achieved by providing a counter downstream of a respective sender/transmitter unit and which stores the entry of activation signal in case the activation signals are inputted in a quicker sequence then they can be implemented.
In order to prevent that pushcarts, which inadvertently were left within a reach region of an interrogating station, trigger a lasting display of a particular advertisement message, according to a further advantageous embodiment of the present invention, each sender/transmitter device, in addition to the counter, is associated with a timer which, upon an identification of a static activation signal limits a message repetition to a predetermined interval, e.g., to 30 minutes.
Preferably, each advertisement area or panel is programmed with a standing advertisement message which is automatically turned on in case no activation signal for triggering any advertisement message is received.
According to a further development of the present invention, the transmitter/receiver devices are stationary mounted in all of turn-offs and crossings of the passageway and the aisles of the airport facility on a ceiling. Each of the transmitter/receiver units include a transmitter and two receiver antennas mounted on opposite sides of the transmitter in alignment therewith. Each transmitter/receiver unit is so mounted on the ceiling in respective turn-offs and crossings that each receiver antenna is associated with a movement direction of a pushcart.
The present invention contemplates the use, instead of wireless remote control system for controlling the advertisement panels, of a system including a light transmitter and a light receiver.
In accordance with a still further development of the advertisement system with a multiple use of the available advertisement areas by switching time-limited advertisement messages, it is contemplated that the switching signal emitting means, e.g., transponder, can be provided on other items associated with displacement of passengers within an airport facility, e.g., on air tickets.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3868675 (1975-02-01), Firmin
patent: 4750151 (1988-06-01), Baus
patent: 4754582 (1988-07-01), Cameron
patent: 4791417 (1988-12-01), Bobak
patent: 6088008 (2000-07-01), Reeder
Kratzenberg Wolfgang
Stein Siegfried
Expresso Deutschland Transportgerate GmbH
Mengistu Amare
Sidley Austin Brown & Wood LLP
LandOfFree
Advertisement system for an airport facility does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Advertisement system for an airport facility, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Advertisement system for an airport facility will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2511815