Automatic Sign Data Capture and Retrieval System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Consumers face difficulties in remembering or retrieving information from signs, such as advertisements and displays, as memorization and recording can be cumbersome, and sign content often changes, making it obsolete by the time it is needed again.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that determine a device's proximity to a sign, allowing for the automatic storage and later retrieval of sign data, including identification information and content, using signals like Wi-Fi beacons or location services, enabling users to access sign data on their mobile devices even after leaving the sign's proximity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If consumers manually record sign information, then they can retrieve the content later, but the process is cumbersome and requires consumer effort and decision-making
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs automatic sign data capture and storage without requiring consumer action. The mobile device automatically detects signs, captures their data, and stores it in the database, eliminating the need for manual recording by the consumer.
Solution Approach 2:
The system proactively captures and stores sign data before the consumer needs to retrieve it. By continuously monitoring and automatically saving sign information in the database, the system ensures data is ready for later retrieval without requiring the consumer to have recorded it manually.
2Loss of information
If consumers memorize sign content, then they can access it without recording, but memorization is difficult and content may be forgotten
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of relying on human memory, the system creates digital copies of sign data and stores them in a database. The mobile device can then retrieve these stored copies, replacing the need for human memorization with automated data storage and retrieval.
3Reliability
If sign content is recorded manually, then it can be retrieved later, but the recorded information may become obsolete if sign content changes
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors and captures sign data, ensuring that the database always contains the most current information. This continuous operation means that when consumers retrieve sign data, they receive up-to-date information regardless of when they originally encountered the sign.
Solution Approach 2:
The system provides consumers with feedback about current sign data through the mobile device, allowing them to verify that the information they retrieve is accurate and up-to-date with the current sign content.
4Loss of information
If consumers want to retrieve sign content after leaving proximity, they must have recorded it, but they may not know until later that they need the information
Solution Approach 1:
The database serves multiple functions: it stores sign data for immediate retrieval, historical retrieval, and on-demand access. The system is designed to handle various retrieval scenarios whether the consumer needs the information immediately or much later, making the system adaptable to different user needs.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems include determining that a device is proximate to a sign, providing sign identification information associated with the sign, and providing a sign history. A request for sign data associated with the sign identification information may be received, and sign data may be provided. Determining that a sign is proximate to a device may be based on a signal from the sign and/or the device. Additionally, a location of a device may be received and it may be determined that the device is proximate to a sign based on determining a location of the sign and determining that the difference in the location of the device and the location of the sign is less than a given threshold. A request for sign data associated with the sign may be sent. In response, sign data may be received, stored, and displayed.