A method and system for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices and for providing a visually distinguishable memory device are provided. In one embodiment, graphical content to be printed onto a plurality of memory devices is identified. A graphical image is then created from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices. The graphical image is then printed onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image. Other embodiments are disclosed.
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16. A method for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices, the method comprising:
identifying graphical content to be printed onto a plurality of memory devices;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices;
printing a white layer onto the plurality of memory devices; and
printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image.
1. A method for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices, the method comprising:
identifying graphical content to be printed onto a plurality of memory devices;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices; and
printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image;
wherein each memory device comprises an identifier, and wherein the graphical content to be printed onto a given memory device is indexed by the identifier.
0. 22. A method for printing graphical content onto a memory device, the method comprising:
obtaining an identifier of a memory device, the identifier including information about the memory device, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device;
identifying graphical content to be printed onto the memory device by selecting graphical content associated with the identifier of the memory device;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises at least one sub-area that contains the identified graphical content, wherein the memory device is positioned to substantially align with a position of the sub-area in the graphical image; and
printing the graphical image, wherein the identified graphical content is printed onto the memory device.
14. A method for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices, the method comprising:
identifying graphical content to be printed onto a plurality of memory devices;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices; and
printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image;
wherein the plurality of memory devices are arranged in a tray, and wherein graphical content to be printed onto a given memory device is designated according to that given memory device's position in the tray.
0. 29. A method for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices, the method comprising:
obtaining one or more identifiers, each identifier includes information about a memory device, of a plurality of memory devices, to which it corresponds, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device;
identifying graphical content to be printed onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the graphical content to be printed onto each of the plurality of memory devices is indexed by the one or more identifiers;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices; and
printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image.
0. 31. A method for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices, the method comprising:
obtaining one or more identifiers, each identifier includes information about a memory device, of a plurality of memory devices, to which it corresponds, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device;
identifying graphical content to be printed onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the graphical content to be printed onto each of the plurality of memory devices is indexed by the one or more identifiers;
creating a graphical image from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices; and
printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image,
wherein the plurality of memory devices are arranged in a tray, and wherein graphical content to be printed onto a given memory device is selected according to that given memory device's position in the tray.
2. The method of
3. The method of
4. The method of
5. The method of
6. The method of
7. The method of
9. The method of
10. The method of
11. The method of
13. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of
15. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of
17. The method of
18. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of
0. 19. The method of claim 1 further comprising obtaining the identifiers of the memory devices, each of the obtained identifiers including information about a memory device to which it corresponds, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device.
0. 20. The method of claim 14 further comprising obtaining identifiers of the memory devices, each of the obtained identifiers including information about a memory device to which it corresponds, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device.
0. 21. The method of claim 16 further comprising obtaining identifiers of the memory devices, each of the obtained identifiers including information about a memory device to which it corresponds, wherein the information includes one or more indicia of characteristics and/or a manufacturer of the memory device.
0. 23. The method of claim 22, wherein each of the at least one sub-area contains a distinct graphical content, each distinct graphical content being indexed by a corresponding identifier.
0. 24. The method of claim 22, wherein the graphical image is created with multiple distinct graphical contents or multiple similar graphical contents or with both similar and distinct graphical contents, with each graphical content being associated with a corresponding memory device.
0. 25. The method of claim 22, wherein the graphical image is configured to be batch printed onto multiple memory devices in a mass production facility.
0. 26. The method of claim 22 further comprising printing the graphical image in batch onto multiple memory devices.
0. 27. The method of claim 26, wherein each memory device has a position while the graphical image is printed in batch, and wherein each position corresponds with a position of a sub-area in the graphical image.
0. 28. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of claim 22.
0. 30. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of claim 29.
0. 32. A memory device with a printed surface, wherein the surface is printed using the method of claim 31.
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This application is a reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 8,690,283, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/253,271, filed Oct. 20, 2009, which is hereby incorporated by reference.
Many memory devices, such as memory cards, have indicia on them to indicate the manufacturer of the memory device and its internal characteristics, such as its storage capacity. For some memory cards, such as some SD cards, the indicia is printed on a label, which is applied to the card during the manufacturing process. For other memory cards, such as some microSD cards and other memory cards where the presence of a label can result in an unacceptable overall card thickness, the indicia is printed directed onto the card during the manufacturing process. For example, during manufacturing, microSD cards can be molded together as a strip of cards and later separated into individual cards. While the cards are still together in the strip, the indicia can be printed onto the cards as a group using a pad printing process. In this process, the indicia for each of the cards is placed on a printing plate. The indicia is then transferred from the printing plate onto a silicone pad, and the silicone pad is pressed against the strip of memory cards. The memory cards are later separated from the strip. While pad printing adds less thickness to a memory card as compared to a label, pad printing generally cannot provide the rich graphical content that can be provided by a label.
Embodiments of the present invention are defined by the claims, and nothing in this section should be taken as a limitation on those claims.
By way of introduction, the embodiments described below generally relate to a method and system for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices and for providing a visually distinguishable memory device. In one embodiment, graphical content to be printed onto a plurality of memory devices is identified. A graphical image is then created from the identified graphical content, wherein the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, wherein each sub-area contains graphical content and corresponds to at least one memory device of the plurality of memory devices. The graphical image is then printed onto the plurality of memory devices, wherein the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image.
Other embodiments are provided, and each of the embodiments can be used alone or together in combination. Various embodiments will now be described with reference to the attached drawings.
Introduction
The following embodiments provide a method and system for printing graphical content onto a plurality of memory devices and for providing a visually distinguishable memory device. As used herein, a “memory device” refers to any device that comprises a memory operative to store information. Examples of memory devices include, but are not limited to, handheld, removable memory cards (such as SD or microSD cards), handheld universal serial bus (“USB”) flash drives (“UFD”), embedded memory devices, removable or non-removable hard drives (such as solid-state drives), and even “raw” memory chips (i.e., memory chips without a housing). The underlying memory in the memory device can take any suitable form; preferably solid-state memory (e.g., flash), although other types of memory can be used. In some memory devices, in addition to the memory itself, the memory device contains a controller that controls various functionality in the memory device. Also, it should be noted that while a memory device is used to illustrate the printing techniques of these embodiments, these printing techniques can be adapted for use with other items, such as items used in conjunction with memory devices (e.g., memory device readers).
As discussed above, it is often desired for a memory device to include visible indicia that provides information such as, for example, the manufacturer of the memory device and the memory device's internal characteristics, such as its storage capacity. In contrast to the prior methods discussed above that apply a sticker to the memory device or that use a pad printing process to print relatively simple indicia, the method and system disclosed herein provide a mechanism to print more complex indicia and, optionally, to print different graphical content onto one or more memory devices in a batch. Before turning to specific operational examples, the following section provides a general overview of graphical content and graphical images.
Overview of Graphical Content and Graphical Images
As used herein, the term “graphical content” refers to any indicia that can be printed onto a memory device. Examples of“graphical content” include, but are not limited to, pictures, photographs, designs, logos, colors, symbols, text, and any combination thereof. It should be noted that graphical content can include text only and does not necessarily need to include a picture. Graphical content can convey information about an internal characteristic (or “property”) of the memory device, such as its storage capacity (e.g., 1 GB, 16 GB, etc.), content stored on the memory device (e.g., audio/video content or software), processing capability (e.g., encryption capability, read/write speeds, etc.), internal hardware configuration (e.g., type of memory cell (one-time programmable or rewritable)), or other built-in features. For example, if the internal characteristic is pre-loaded content, the graphical content can be album art of an album stored in the memory device or poster art of a movie stored in the memory device.
Graphical content can also convey other information. For example, graphical content can be a decorative design or image whose only purpose is to appeal to a certain segment of the market, enticing them to purchase the memory device (e.g., a floral pattern). As another example, graphical content can be an advertisement or other information that is related or unrelated to the memory device itself (e.g., a photo of a product that is being cross-promoted with the memory device, a logo of a company for promotional purposes, etc.). Graphical content may also convey information about digital content to be stored in the memory device, as compared to digital content that is pre-stored in the memory device, to visually assist the user in organizing digital content. For example, some blank memory devices can be sold with a picture of a music note, while other blank memory devices can be sold with a picture of a camera. In this way, if the end user stores music in the “music note” memory device and digital pictures in the “camera” memory device, the end user can quickly and easily identify what is stored on the memory device by merely looking at its outward appearance. Of course, graphical content can also include information that is typically included on stickers or printed using a pad printing process (e.g., the name and/or logo of the manufacturer of the memory device). Graphical content can take many other forms, and a particular form of graphical content should not be read into a claim unless explicitly recited therein. For example, graphical content can be opaque or semitransparent and can include a “blank” area that a user can write on. This blank area can be white or tinted, to serve both as a writing area for a handwritten user label and as a color indication that can help the user recognize the memory card.
It should be noted that graphical content can be printed onto a portion of or the entirety of a memory device face (accordingly, the phrase “printed onto” encompasses both possibilities). For example, in the case of an SD card or a microSD card that has a top surface that is entirety free of exposed electrical contacts and a bottom surface that contains exposed electrical contacts, the graphical content can be printed only onto the top surface of the card (either onto the entirety of the top surface or onto only a part of the top surface (e.g., on the right-hand portion)). This alternative will be discussed in more detail below in conjunction with “keep out” zones.
In these embodiments, instead of printing graphical content onto memory devices on a memory-device-by-memory-device basis, a batch printing process is used, whereby graphical content for a plurality of memory devices is grouped together into a single graphical image and printed onto the plurality of memory devices, as if the plurality of memory devices were a single substrate (e.g., a single piece of paper). This grouping together of graphical content to form a graphical image is referred to herein as “creating a graphical image.” Such creation can be done on a computer and can be a manual, automatic, or semi-automatic process. For example, a user can cut-and-paste desired graphical content into a graphical image displayed on a display device, or the computer can automatically position and place the graphical content into the graphical image based on inputted criteria.
As shown in
After it is created from the graphical content, the composite graphical image is sent to a printer (e.g., a flat bed, ink jet printer), which prints the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices as if they were a single substrate. In this way, graphical content is simultaneously printed onto the plurality of memory devices, as compared to printing the graphical content in a serial fashion, one memory device at a time. Because of the correspondence of image sub-areas to individual memory devices, printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices results in printing respective graphical content onto respective ones of the memory devices. It should be noted that, in the printing process, the printed graphical content can be non-overlapping (i.e., each sub-area is exclusive and contains non-overlapping graphical content relative to another sub-area) or overlapping (i.e., at least one sub-area contains overlapping graphical content relative to at least one other sub-area). Also, as will be described below, when the memory devices are arranged in a tray or are otherwise spaced apart from one another, printing the graphical image onto the plurality of memory devices can result in printing areas in between the memory devices, but the sub-areas are printed to substantially cover corresponding memory devices.
It should be noted that each memory device in a print batch can receive identical graphical content (e.g., for mass production of multiple memory devices with the same graphical content) or at least one memory device in the batch can be identified with different graphical content for customizing the graphical content of one or more memory devices in the batch (e.g., in the graphical image 100 in
Exemplary Printing Process
The following paragraphs provide a description of an exemplary printing process. It should be noted that this process is merely an example and that other printing processes can be used. Accordingly, the details presented herein should not be read into the claims unless explicitly recited therein.
In this embodiment, the memory devices in a print batch have identical size and shape but at least one memory device in the print batch has a different internal characteristic than the others, and the graphical content to be printed onto each memory device is correlated with the particular internal characteristic of that memory device. Examples of “internal characteristics” include, but are not limited to, storage capacity (e.g., 1 GB, 16 GB, etc.), stored content or content to be stored in the memory device (e.g., audio/video content or pre-loaded software), processing capability (e.g., encryption capability, read/write speeds, etc.), internal hardware configuration (e.g., type of memory cell (one-time programmable or rewritable)), or other built-in features. In this particular illustration, the memory device takes the form of a microSD card, the internal characteristic is audio or video digital content to be stored in the card, and the graphical content is album art or movie poster art associated with the audio or video digital content.
In this embodiment, each memory card in a print batch comprises a respective identifier to indicate the graphical content to be printed onto that memory card. The system controller 210 stores a table or database of identifiers and graphical content (such as Table 1 below) and, using this table/database, selects the appropriate graphical content for each memory card, thereby identifying the graphical content to be printed onto the memory cards.
TABLE 1
ID
Graphical Content
0001
albumcover1.jpg
0002
albumcover2.jpg
0003
albumcover3.jpg
0004
movieposter1.jpg
0005
movieposter2.jpg
0006
movieposter3.jpg
. . .
. . .
These identifiers can be used for customized printing of multiple memory cards in one simultaneous print operation. Consider, for example, the situation in which a manufacturer wants to print art work for a Madonna album on 10 memory cards and art work for an Elton John album on 25 memory cards. Instead of printing these memory cards in two separate batches (one for the 10 memory cards to receive the Madonna album art and another for the 25 memory cards to receive the Elton John album art), all 35 memory cards can be placed in a single tray for a single, simultaneous print operation, with the various memory cards each having a respective identifier that identifies which album art to print on the memory card.
An identifier can take any suitable form, including, but not limited to, a bar code, a radio frequency identifier (RFID) tag, a color, a removable sticker, printed information that can be read using optical character recognition (OCR) technology, and data stored within the memory card. In this particular illustration, the identifier takes the form of a bar code sticker that is applied to an external surface of the memory card. Of course, other identifiers can be used, and the appropriate changes can be made to the system 200 in accordance with the particular type of identifier used.
Referring now to
Returning to
It should be noted that while a JEDEC tray is being used in this illustration, other types of trays can be used. For example, as an alternative to a tray with openings, a tray that has an at least partially transparent floor can be used (e.g., a transparent printing tray or a mesh tray). As another alternative, while
One issue that may be encountered when using a JEDEC tray or other trays is that bins in the tray for holding memory cards may not hold the memory cards tightly enough for printing purposes. For example, the size of the bins in a JEDEC tray are designed to allow some “slack” in order to allow a robotic arm to more easily grasp a memory card. Because of this slack and because of the shifting that can occur when the tray is handled before it is provided to the printer, not all of the memory cards in the tray 245 may be in the same position for printing, which can result in non-uniform printing of the graphical content onto the memory cards. Further, some forms of graphical content may require specific placement of the memory card, to make sure that the memory card is positioned in such a way to ensure that the graphical content can be printed onto the memory card in its entirety (e.g., to make sure the text is not cut off).
To address these issues, it may be desired to use a card-bin registration system 250 to physically register the memory cards in order to maintain their alignment within the tray 245 (act 330). The card-bin registration system 250 can take any suitable form. For example, the card-bin registration system 250 can be a slanted stand that holds the lowest corner of the tray 245 one to two inches lower that the highest corner. A technician can place the tray 245 on the stand and then manually tap the tray 245 (or a gentle built-in vibrator can be used to apply a directional saw-tooth vibration to the tray) to send all the memory cards to the low corner in their respective bins. Alternatively, the card-bin registration system 250 can take the form of a matching positioning plate with bosses that, when placed on top of the tray 245, position each memory card in place. It should be noted that this act of registering is optional in that, if the tray holds memory cards in a way that is sufficient for printing or if the form of graphical content does not require specific placement of the memory card, the registering act does not need to take place. It should also be noted that, if performed, this act can take place later in the process (e.g., anytime between placement of the memory cards in the tray 245 and printing). Various alternatives to this registration process are described in the following section.
Next, a tray manipulator 255 transports the tray 245 to the printer 265, and, somewhere along this path, an identifier reader 260 (here, a bar code reader) reads the identifiers on each of the memory cards in the tray 245 (act 340). The identifier reader 260 can be a stand-alone device that is positioned in the path to the printer 265, or the identifier reader 260 can be part of the printer 265 itself. The identifier reader 260 scans the bar codes visible from the openings in the bottom of the tray 245 and sends the scanned information back to the system controller 210, which identifies the corresponding graphical content to be printed onto the memory cards by indexing the bar code identifier against the stored table that associates bar code identifiers with desired graphical content (act 350). The identifier reader can also provide the system controller 210 with location information (e.g., x, y coordinates) of the reader at the time it reads the identifier. The system controller 210 can then create a graphical image by assembling the various items of identified graphical content based on their associated location information (act 360). As discussed above, the graphical image can take the form of a file containing instructions readable by the printer 265 for printing the graphical image onto the entire set of memory cards on the tray 245 (e.g., a Photoshop or PowerPoint file converted to a format specific to the printer 265).
When it receives the graphical image file, the printer 265 prints the graphical image onto the tray 245 of memory cards as if it were a single substrate (act 370). (As will be discussed in more detail in the following section, with some forms of graphical content, it may be preferred to first print a white layer onto the memory cards to act as a primer in order to maintain color integrity.) As discussed above, the graphical image comprises a plurality of sub-areas, with each sub-area containing graphical content and corresponding to at least one memory card in the tray 245 (i.e., the plurality of memory devices are positioned to substantially correspond with positions of the plurality of sub-areas in the graphical image). Accordingly, when the memory cards are registered in the tray 245 and the tray 235 is registered in the printer 265 (e.g., using a L-shaped stop in the printer to properly position the tray 245), the memory cards will be in the proper position to receive the graphical content in their associated sub-areas. In this way, a batch of memory cards (e.g., 120 microSD cards) can be printed in a single printing cycle (with the entire tray 245 of memory cards being considered the substrate) rather than printing each memory card individually in a serial fashion.
It should be noted that the graphical content in the graphical image can be sized such that graphical content for a memory card is printed beyond the edge of the memory card. This results in “image bleeding” and can compensate for any shifting of the memory cards in the bins of the tray 245 post-registration (or if registration is not performed), as well as for design inconsistencies. For example, for some forms of graphical content, printing with a 0.2-0.3 mm margin outside of the edges of a memory card may be preferable. However, such image bleeding may stain the tray 245 with ink, which may not be acceptable in some situations, such as when the tray 245 is a JEDEC tray that is to have future uses. An alternative that address this problem is discussed later in this document.
In this embodiment, graphical content is only printed on the top surface of the memory card. In an alternate embodiment, graphical content can be printed on both the top and bottom surfaces (i.e., first and second sides) of the memory card in a single printing process cycle. For example, the graphical content on the top surface of the memory card can be a color image of album art, while the graphical content on the bottom surface of the memory card can be text indicating the manufacturer of the memory card (and other logos) and its storage capacity. To print both the top and bottom surfaces, once graphical content is printed onto one of the surfaces, the memory cards can either be turned over in the tray (e.g., by a robotic arm), or the tray can be flipped over onto another tray. In any event, it is preferred to mask the metal contacts on the bottom surface of the memory cards to prevent ink from staining the contacts.
Referring again to
In this embodiment, after graphical content is printed onto the memory cards, the memory cards are placed in a printed card tray 270 (see
It should be noted that the printing process and the programming process can be performed during the same manufacturing run at the same facility, at different times at the same facility, or at different times at different facilities. Also, it should be noted that while digital content was programmed into the memory cards after graphical content was printed onto the memory cards in the above illustration, in an alternate embodiment, digital content is programmed before—not after—graphical content is printed onto the memory cards. It yet another alternate embodiment, digital content is not programmed into the memory cards at the manufacturing stage, and the memory cards (printed with graphical content) are sold as “blank” cards that the end user can field program as desired.
Exemplary Printer and Use of Color and Semi-Transparent Layers
While any suitable printer can be used, it is presently preferred that the printer 265 be a flat bed, ink jet printer. (Any suitable type of ink can be used.) A flat bed printer is preferred over printers that bend a substrate around cylinders during printing, as it is preferred not to bend the memory cards. An ink jet printer is preferred over pad printing. Pad printing is generally limited to full tone colors only, which means that two colors cannot be gently mixed together to form a color combination (i.e., only standard colors can be printed). This can be a problem for printing skin tones and pictures of sufficient quality. In contrast, ink jet printing provides half-tone imaging, which allows for color combinations and can print skin tones and pictures of a quality sufficient for album art and the like.
As an example of another advantage, some forms of graphical content require precise physical registration of the memory card at a certain location for accurate and uniform printing (e.g., when printing multiple layers on the memory card). The physical contact of a pad pressing against the memory card in the pad printing process can move the memory card and destroy this registration, thereby significantly degrading printing performance. Because an ink jet printer does not use a pad that comes in contact with a memory device and because ink jet printers use extremely light weight and low impact ink droplets, graphical content can be printed onto a memory card without moving the memory card and destroying its registration. This also provides advantages over other print processes, such as spraying and airbrushing, which apply streaming air that can move the memory card a trillion times more than an ink droplet from an ink jet printer.
While any suitable type of ink jet printer can be used, the UJF-605CII flatbed UV inkjet printer from Mimaki Engineering Co., Ltd. is one example of a printer 265 that may be used for this purpose. The UJF-605CII flatbed UV inkjet printer has a 600 mm×700 mm print table with vacuum plate and a printable area of 500 mm×600 mm. This allow up to five JEDEC trays (i.e., up to 600 microSD cards) to be positioned in the printing plate in one time. The UJF-605CII flatbed UV inkjet printer uses very small, six picoliter droplets of UV-curable ink, which produces smooth tonal images with no grainy pattern, a variable dot size, and high 1,200×2,400 dpi resolution. Additionally, the UJF-605CII flatbed UV inkjet printer is capable of printing eight colors, including white.
The ability to print white may be especially desirable in these embodiments. The printable surface on memory devices, such as microSD cards, is typically black plastic; however, printing certain colors directly onto a black surface may result in a faded looking image. Accordingly, in one embodiment, prior to printing the graphical content onto a memory device, a white layer 800 can be printed onto the memory device 810 as a “primer” (see
The use of a white layer can provide additional advantages. For example, in one embodiment, instead of being used merely as a primer, the white layer 900 can be used to store an identifier 910 that the control system uses to index the graphical content 920 to be printed on the memory device 930. Because the identifier 910 is facing the direction of printing and will eventually be printed over, a tray 1045 with a solid bottom can be used, since there is no need to read information from the bottom of the memory cards 1030 (see
While the
The level of transparency used can vary based on the application. In general, transparency can be though of as the relationship between a base layer and a top layer. If the transmission coefficient is zero, the base layer is not visible at all. If the transmission coefficient is one, the top layer will not be visible at all. Accordingly, if the transmission coefficient is somewhere between zero and one, the indicia on the base layer will be partially visible. Using, for example, the transparency tool of Microsoft's PowerPoint, a suitable transparency range can be between 5% and 45%, preferably between 30% and 40%. The printer can print a semi-transparent color in any suitable way (e.g., using half-toning, varying the intensity of ink, etc.). Also, as noted above, colors other than white can be used to provide a semi-transparent layer.
Some of the above embodiments assumed that the color of the memory device was a dark color, such as black, and a white or light-color primer was applied to the memory device before the graphical content was printed thereon. In an alternative embodiment, at least the top surface of the memory device is made of a white or light color material, thereby allowing the graphical content to be printed thereon without applying a primer. This alternate embodiment will now be discussed in conjunction with
As shown in
As an alternative to an encapsulating white cap, the thickness of the memory device can be reduced, and a thin sheet of white plastic can be glued or welded to it. For example, the white layer can be about 0.4 mm while the black body that contains the contacts and all the electronics can be about 0.3 mm. As another alternative, the entire memory card can be made from white epoxy. Typically, microSD cards are made of black epoxy. However, the epoxy does not have to be black, as the black color comes from additives used, for example, to dissipate heat. As a microSD card may be thin enough to radiate heat, it may be possible to use white epoxy without the additives that cause the card to be black. One issue that may exist with a white memory card is that the rounded corners of a microSD card are typically cut by a laser beam, which can leave burn marks that are not seen on a black card but may be visible on a white card. However, if such burn marks do exist, a thin black or brown frame can be placed around the card to conceal the burn marks, and white can be used inside the frame for printing. Besides, other cutting techniques may avoid such burn marks.
Embodiments Relating to Disposable Trays
In the above illustration, the tray took the form of a JEDEC tray. One advantage of using a JEDEC tray is that it is readily available and already sized to hold memory cards (although physical registration of the memory cards in the tray may be desired). However, because the tray serves as the substrate in the printing process, the tray may be dirtied with ink (as when the image bleeding technique discussed above is used), which may render the tray undesirable for further use. To address this problem, a second tray, preferably less expensive than a JEDEC tray and considered more disposable, can be used. This embodiment will now be discussed with reference to
When the memory cards 1200 are pressed onto the adhesive surface 1250 of the second tray 1240, the identifiers 1230 of the memory cards 1200 (and perhaps the surfaces surrounding the identifiers 1230) stick to the adhesive surface 1250. This physically registers the memory cards 1200 to the second tray 1240, while protecting the bottoms of the memory cards 1200 from being stained with excessive bleeding ink. The first tray 1220 is then removed, either by moving the first tray 1220 away from the second tray 1240, or vice versa (see
After printing is complete, the second tray 1240 can be placed over the first tray 1220, allowing the memory cards 1200 to “click” into place in the respective bins in the first tray 1220. With the memory cards 1200 secured, the adhesive surface 1250 can be peeled away from memory cards 1200. As shown diagrammatically in
If the bins in the first tray 1220 are not sized to hold the memory cards 1200 firmly in place during the process of peeling away the adhesive surface 1250, an extraction tool can be used. For example, the second tray 1240 can be perforated with small holes at the center of each memory card, which would allow entry of pins of an inverted fakir bed, for example. (Preferably, the holes are small enough (e.g., 3 mm in diameter) and placed far enough away from the memory card conductors so that they would not allow ink to contaminate the conductors.) With the array of pins pressing the memory cards 1200 onto the first tray 1220, the adhesive surface 1250 can then be peeled off.
Various alternatives can be used. For example, in the above embodiment, the memory cards 1200 were physically registered in the first tray 1220 before they were transferred to the second tray 1220. As the registration process may still result in misaligned memory cards, one alternative (shown in
As another alternative, the disposable tray can be designed to avoid both physical registration and scanning. In this alternate embodiment, the second tray is made of two layers of cardboard glued together. The bottom layer is rectangular and can be the size of one or more JEDEC trays (thereby allowing printing to be done in batches larger than one JEDEC tray). The top layer has a two dimensional array of rectangular holes that are, for example, 4 mm apart from each other. The holes are of the exact size of the maximum boundaries of the memory card (e.g., 11×15 mm). However, the holes do not need to follow the odd shape of the memory cards, as the rectangular holes accommodate the full length and width of the memory cards. When the memory cards are removed from the first tray and placed in the holes of the second tray, because of the size of the holes, the memory cards will not have any freedom to move. After printing, the memory cards can be taken out of the second tray and returned to the first tray, and the second tray (now covered with ink) can be disposed.
Identifier Alternatives
In the above illustration, the identifier took the form of a bar code sticker that was placed on the bottom of the memory card. Many alternatives can be used. For example, the identifier can take the form of a radio frequency identifier (RFID) tag, a color, text, etc. Also, as discussed in the previous sections, the identifier may be transitory, such as when a sticker is later peeled off a memory card or when the identifier is on the top surface of the memory card and is later printed over with graphical content. Further, instead of being visible indicia, an identifier can be data stored within the memory card itself. For example, a memory card can store data indicating the graphical content to be printed on that memory card (and possibly other memory cards), and such data can be read from the memory card during the printing process.
Instead of placing the identifiers on individual memory cards, the identifier can be placed near the bins that hold those cards in the tray. This alternative may be preferred where it is easier to place and read identifiers on the tray than on the memory cards themselves (e.g., when the memory cards are held in a tray that does not have an opening on the bottom through which to read an identifier). Each bin can contain an identifier, such that there is a one-to-one correspondence between identifiers on the tray and bins holding memory cards. Alternatively, one identifier on the tray can be associated with a plurality of memory cards. For example, if one or more rows (or columns) of memory cards in a tray are to be printed with the same graphical content, a single identifier can be placed near those rows (or columns) instead of near each bin. Taking this concept further, a single identifier can be associated with the entire tray in “mass production” situations where the same graphical content is to be printed on each memory device in the tray in a single printing process cycle (e.g., where all of the memory cards in a tray are to be printed with the same album art).
In yet another alternate embodiment, instead of using an identifier, graphical content for a memory device can be identified by a memory device's position in the overall print area. For example, if a tray is used to hold memory cards, various bin locations in the tray can be associated with respective graphical content. In this way, graphical content can vary on a row-by-row, column-by-column, or even bin-by-bin bases. So, using the example provided above, it can be predetermined that the “Elton John” label is printed on memory cards in first two rows of the tray, while the “Madonna” label is printed on memory cards in all of the remaining rows expect the last row, where the “Elton John” label is printed on memory cards in first two columns of that row and the “Madonna” label is printed on memory cards in the remaining columns of that row.
Colored Grip Embodiments
Memory devices, such as microSD cards, can be used to feed content into portable host devices, such as phones, music players, and cameras. These memory devices are often designed in accordance with strict standards of a memory organization (e.g., the SD Association (SDA)). As a result, such memory devices can be virtually identical to each other in their visual appearance. As a user may possess more than one memory card and as his cards are likely to carry different content, it is desirable for the user to be able to distinguish between memory cards. As memory cards are typically virtually identical in visual appearance, the problem is often solved by plugging the unrecognized card into a host device and checking the card's content electronically through the host device's display screen or audio output. However, when the host device is off, there is no way to recognize the card based on output from the host device. Additionally, even when the host device is on, it may be desirable to be able to recognize a card plugged in the host device without going through the effort of turning the device on, initializing it, and electronically checking the content of the card.
The embodiments discussed above can be used to help a user visually distinguish a memory card. For example, graphical content (e.g., album or movie art) printed on the face of a memory card can identify the digital content stored on the card, as can a memory card with a different color surface or a memory card with a user-writable semi-transparent surface. However, with those embodiments, the identifying indicia may only be seen when the card is extracted from a host device and may not be seen when the card is within the host device, and it may be desirable for a user to be able to recognize a card plugged in the host device without taking the card out of the host device.
To address these issues, in this embodiment, a memory device is presented with a colored grip that can be seen when the memory device is inserted into an open memory device socket of a host device. This allows a card consumer to easily visually recognize a specific memory card of his inventory without having to operate the host device to electronically determine the content of the memory device. Additionally, the color grip provides visual distinction when the memory device is removed from the host device and is placed among other memory devices.
Turning now to the drawings,
A memory device with a colored grip provides several advantages. First, as shown in
It should be understood that the particular areas of the grip that are colored in the foregoing figures are merely examples and different areas of the grip can be colored. This variation provides another visual distinction that can aid in distinguishing a memory device. Examples of such different areas are shown in
It should be understood that many other alternatives can be used with these embodiments. For example, while the above-described figures show a single color on the grip portion, multiple colors can be used (e.g., different colors on the left and right sides of the grip, a spectrum of colors progressing from one side of the grip to the other, etc.) Accordingly, a particular type of color and/or layout should not be read into the claims unless explicitly recited therein.
Also, the color can be placed onto the grip in any suitable manner. In one embodiment, the color is placed using a printing technique, such as, but not limited to, pad (tampon) printing, inkjet printing, and silkscreen printing. Where color is to be printing on other surfaces of the memory device for other reasons (e.g. for printing graphical content onto the face of the device), it may be preferred to have a single print operation cover all the printable areas on the device in one step to save time and ink. While any suitable printing technique can be used,
As an alternative to printing, a label can be used to provide color onto the grip. The form and shape of the label can vary based on the desired location of the color.
There are several advantages of using a label as compared to printing ink on the grip portion. For example, the colors on a label can be brighter and more complex than colors printed using ink, thereby enhancing the visual distinction. Also, the process is generally simpler and clearer than printing, and memory device manufactures may already have experience in applying labels to memory devices in other contexts. Further, although there are precise height requirements of the body of a microSD card to ensure that the card will fit into a socket of a host device, the additional thickness that the label adds to the grip portion of the card should not interfere with the instruction of the card into a host device. However, if thickness is a concern, printing may be preferred.
Embodiments Related to Printing on a Sloped Surface
In both the graphical content and colored grip embodiments discussed above, it is sometimes desired to print not only on the flat portion of the memory device (e.g., the flat top surface of the grip portion and the main top surface of a microSD card) but also on the sloped portion connecting the top surface of the grip portion and the main top surface of the microSD card (or even a substantially vertical surface). However, when printing graphics using a flatbed inkjet printer on a surface of a non-planar object, such as a microSD card, it can be difficult to obtain uniform ink coverage of both flat portions and the inclined portion, as the ink is distributed under the assumption that the entire surface is flat, and inclined portions get much less ink density. Accordingly, the resulting image tends to have poor coverage in the inclined portions. When printing a batch of many microSD cards, each having a grip area that is deliberately elevated above the main body of the card, the steep stair (i.e., the inclined/sloped portion) that connects the two flat surfaces (i.e., the grip area and the main body) will get less ink than the two flat surfaces. As the inclined portion of a micro SD card is curved, this poor ink coverage may be visible as a curved stripe of insufficient ink across the image and may be especially conspicuous when the card is black. One way to address this issue is to avoid printing on the grip area and the sloped portion, as shown, for example, in
Another way to address this issue is by controlling the direction of printing and the speed of the inkjet print head. Specifically, the inkjet printer can be programmed to move the print head at a relatively high speed and dispense ink only when moving in a single designated direction, namely, the direction of escalation of the sloped surface. This approach takes advantage of the fact that a jig or other mechanism can be used to place memory cards on a printer bed with all the stair portions being parallel and oriented in the same direction (e.g., so that the stair portions are perpendicular to the direction in which the print head travels). The print head, which typically moves in two directions, can be programmed to print only when moving in the direction of escalation of the stair portions and not in the reverse direction. The speed of the print head can be controlled such that the speed of motion of the print head can be of the same order of magnitude as the speed of the ink droplets, which is typically four meters per second. The motion of the droplets (downward toward the print medium) and the motion of the print head (forward across the print medium) create a diagonal vector of velocity of the droplet towards the surface of the print medium, enabling the inkjet droplets to hit both the flat surface of the main body of the microSD card and the inclined surface of the steep stair portion. Ideally, if the angle of the diagonal bisects the angle between the flat surface and the stair, both surfaces will see the same coverage of ink. By controlling the print head in this manner, reasonably uniform coverage of ink can be achieved by an off-the-shelf printer on all of the surfaces of multiple topographically uneven cards. This approach will be discussed in more detail in conjunction with
Also, it should be noted that graphical content printed with this “steep-surface” printing technique may need to be preconditioned so that it appears accurate to a viewer. Such preconditioning can be easily checked and calibrated using a test pattern that is printed with this preconditioning and then viewed by a user. This preconditioning may include, for example, shifting the image so that the diagonal stream of droplets will meet the substrate in the right location (in ordinary printing, there is no need to shift as the vertical droplet meets the surface exactly under the nozzle).
It should be understood that various embodiments have been provided, and each of the embodiments can be used alone or together in combination. Also, the following patent applications show and describe embodiments that can be used with the embodiments disclosed herein. Each of these patent applications is hereby incorporated by reference: “MicroSD Memory Card with Different Color Surfaces;” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 29/345,635, “MicroSD Memory Card with Semi-Transparent Color Surface,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 29/345,641, and “MicroSD Memory Card with Colored Grip,” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 29/345,643.
It is intended that the foregoing detailed description be understood as an illustration of selected forms that the invention can take and not as a definition of the invention. It is only the following claims, including all equivalents, that are intended to define the scope of the claimed invention. Finally, it should be noted that any aspect of any of the preferred embodiments described herein can be used alone or in combination with one another.
Pomerantz, Itzhak, Yairi, Rahav, Ponte, Gad
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