Method of producing a business card using a mobile telecommunications device

Abstract

A method of producing a printed business card using a mobile telecommunications device, the mobile telecommunications device including processing means, a mobile transceiver for communicating with a mobile telecommunications network, and a printhead, the method comprising the steps, performed in the mobile telecommunications device, of: (a) determining a business card to print; (b) providing dot data to the printhead based on the business card determined in step (a); and (c) printing the dot data onto a print medium using the printhead, thereby to produce the printed business card.

1 . A method of producing a printed business card using a mobile telecommunications device, the mobile telecommunications device including processing means, a mobile transceiver for communicating with a mobile telecommunications network, and a printhead, the method comprising the steps, performed in the mobile telecommunications device, of: 
 (a) determining a business card to print;    (b) providing dot data to the printhead based on the business card determined in step (a); and    (c) printing the dot data onto a print medium using the printhead, thereby to produce the printed business card.    
     
     
         2 . A method according to  claim 1 , the mobile telecommunications device including a memory for storing information related to at least one business card, step (a) including accessing the information related to the at least one of the business cards stored in the memory.  
     
     
         3 . A method according to  claim 2 , wherein the print medium includes pre-printed coded data and step (a) includes determining a relationship between coded data and the dot data, and step (c) includes printing the coded data in accordance with the determined relationship.  
     
     
         4 . A method according to  claim 3 , including the step of determining a position of the print medium relative to the printhead prior to commencing printing, thereby to enable the printing to be performed in accordance with the relationship.  
     
     
         5 . A method according to  claim 4 , wherein the medium includes a linear-encoded data track extending in a direction of intended printing, the method comprising the steps of:. using a sensor in the mobile telecommunications device, sensing the data track during printing; 
 deriving a clock signal from the sensed data track; and    synchronizing the printing based on the clock signal.    
     
     
         6 . A method according to  claim 5 , wherein the data track includes only a clock code.  
     
     
         7 . A method according to  claim 5 , wherein the data track encodes first information, the clock code being embedded in the data track for extraction with the first information.  
     
     
         8 . A method according to  claim 5 , wherein the data track includes parallel first and second tracks, the first track including a clock code and the second track encoding first information.  
     
     
         9 . A method according to  claim 7 , wherein the print medium includes further coded data encoding second information, wherein the first information is indicative of the second information.  
     
     
         10 . A method according to  claim 9 , wherein the further coded data is indicative of a plurality of reference points of the business card.  
     
     
         11 . A method according to  claim 11 , wherein the further coded data is indicative of an identity of the print medium.  
     
     
         12 . A method according to  claim 5 , wherein the coded data takes the form of a two-dimensional array of data, the sensor being configured to capture an image of a subset of the coded data, the subset of the coded data being sufficient to enable the location to be determined.  
     
     
         13 . A method according to  claim 12 , the processing means being configured to determine a position of the print medium relative to the sensor at the time the coded data was sensed, based at least partly on the determined location and a position of the captured coded data in a capture field of the sensor.  
     
     
         14 . A method according to  claim 13 , the mobile device further including a light emitting device, the method including the step of using the light emitting device to illuminate the print medium while the sensor senses the coded data.  
     
     
         15 . A method according to  claim 1 , wherein the determining step includes retrieving, from a remote computer system and using the transceiver, information related to the business card.  
     
     
         16 . A method according to  claim 15 , wherein the information includes personal information related to a user of the mobile telecommunications device.  
     
     
         17 . A method according to  claim 1 , further including a step of determining a registration between the printed dot data and pre-printed coded data on the print medium, and using the transceiver to send, to a remote computer system, data indicative of the registration.  
     
     
         18 . A method according to  claim 17 , comprising determining the registration during printing.  
     
     
         19 . A method according to  claim 17 , comprising determining the registration prior to printing.