Image analysis – Applications
Reexamination Certificate
1999-02-25
2001-12-11
Mehta, Bhavesh (Department: 2621)
Image analysis
Applications
C382S162000, C356S402000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06330342
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention is directed to the controlling and/or managing a marketing color which is associated with or is used to identify goods or services. More particularly, the invention is directed to the control, managing and/or the auditing of a marketing color over time where samples of an unmanaged marketing color on or a part of mass produced articles are periodically tested or audited to confirm that an unmanaged marketing color on or a part of the mass produced articles conforms to a master color standard established for the marketing color.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Color has become increasingly important in marketing goods. Color may be part of a trademark, service mark or in some way be associated with the product itself. Multinational companies which market their products throughout the world in countries having different languages have become to rely on their marks which include color to identify their products or services as coming from the same source although that source may not be expressly identified by name. Customers have become to expect that the identification of the products will be the same. Coca Cola is not only famous for its “Coke” trademark, but people have come to expect that the when the color red is used with the “Coke” name, it will be a characteristic red. The same is true of the gold color associated with the gold or yellow used in the arches and the printed arches on McDonalds structures and packages. More, recently Apple Computer Company is using color on the housings of its computers and wants all of its computers of a particular style to look precisely alike, including the color of the computer.
Companies which use color to identify their goods and services, and particularly large companies which have their marketing materials and/or products made by a plurality of vendors, have an acute problem in not only controlling the quality of their products, but also have a problem in controlling the color used in association with their marks which identify their goods or services. This corporate identification is often one of the most valuable assets of the company.
The problem of color control also should be recognized as more sophisticated than just having a color sample of the desired color and matching the desired color sample with the color being mass produced for the marketing color. Signs for business establishments may be used outside and may be illuminated by daylight or both daylight and fluorescent light. Color will appear different depending upon the type of light used to illuminate the color. Hence, it is important to control a marketing color with a recognition of the type of light with which the marketing color will be illuminated. Further, the marketing color will be produced by diverse vendors. Coca Cola may have its packaging and signs produced world wide. Hence, printers in Chicago, Ill., Turkey and China need guidance as to how to produce the same “Coke” red in their respective regions. This is not an intuitive task when there is a recognition of the diverse number of pigments there are to produce a color. As a result, expertise is needed to help the printer or formulator determine substantially the fewest number of commonly available pigments which are required to produce a color which matches a master color standard and advising those who produce the color which commonly available pigments may be used to produce the color.
Heretofore, there has been no or very little systematic means to control a marketing color which is applied to or forms a part of mass produced articles, particularly mass produced printed colors where ink has been applied to a substrate. This lack of control is particularly evident in connection with identifying how the color will visually appear under a plurality of light conditions and determining the fewest number of commonly available pigments which are required to produce a color which matches a master color standard.
It is an object of the invention to provide a method and system for the control of a marketing color on mass produced articles.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method and system for the control of a marketing color where the color is illustrated on mass produced articles by a printing ink which is printed on a substrate.
It is another object of the invention to provide a method and system for the control of a marketing color where the color is part of a mass produced pigmented plastic article.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a method and system for the control and/or audit of a marketing color on mass produced articles where the color will be viewed under a plurality of lighting conditions and where the method and system include a determination of substantially the fewest number of commonly available pigments required to produce a color which matches a master color standard.
It still another object of the invention to provide a method and system for the control and audit of a marketing color on mass produced articles where the control and/or audit of the color is done more than once or a number of times over a continuing period of time to monitor the production of the marketing color over a period of time.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention is directed to controlling and/or managing a marketing color on mass produced articles, particularly where the marketing color is used on or is a part of a mass produced article, or where the marketing color is associated with or is used to identify goods or services. In one aspect, the invention is a process which is repeated over time as an audit of samples of mass produced articles which have the marketing color or colors so that a consistent marketing color is maintained during the mass production of the articles with the marketing color. In a particularly important aspect, the marketing color is or is a part of a service mark or trade mark which is used to identify goods or services. The method of the audit provided by the invention includes:
establishing a master color standard for a marketing color which is used on mass produced articles;
establishing acceptable machine tolerances from at least one visual tolerance set for a mass produced marketing color under at least one predetermined lighting condition, the machine tolerances being limits which the mass produced marketing color can deviate from the master color standard for the acceptable display of the mass produced marketing color under the at least one predetermined lighting condition in which the mass produced marketing color is to be viewed;
obtaining at least one sample of the mass produced article having a mass produced unmanaged marketing color;
machine measuring a plurality of spectrophotometric characteristics of the at least one visual tolerance set and storing the plurality of characteristics of the at least one visual tolerance set on a storage medium;
machine measuring one or more of the plurality of spectrophotometric characteristics, which were measured of the at least one visual tolerance set, of the unmanaged marketing color of the at least one sample of the mass produced article;
determining if the machine measured spectrophotometric characteristics of the unmanaged color of the sample of the mass produced articles are within the established acceptable machine tolerances established for the mass produced marketing color;
accepting or rejecting the unmanaged color of the sample based upon the machine measurements of the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the at least one visual tolerance set;
visually comparing a visual color standard with the unmanaged color of the sample of the mass produced article under a plurality of types of light by looking at the unmanaged color of the sample of the mass produced article and the visual color standard at least one predetermined angle with the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the visual color standard being illuminated by each of the plurality of the types of light to determine if the unmanaged color of the mass produced sample and the visual c
Lerner Stanley I.
Winter Steven B.
Color Communications, Inc.
Fitch Even Tabin & Flannery
Mehta Bhavesh
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