PORTABLE IMAGE PROCESSING AND MULTIMEDIA INTERFACE

Abstract

A portable device configured to provide enhanced shopping information is provided. The portable device has a display screen and an image capture device and the portable device is configured to access databases through a wireless network. The portable device includes image recognition logic that is configured to perform analysis of an image of an object that includes a bar code associated with a product. The analysis determines if the graphics found on the object correspond to a bar code and a portion of an image with the bar code is communicated through the wireless network to the databases to identify the product. The portable device further includes image generation logic that is configured to obtain product information for the identified product from the databases and present the product information on the display screen of the portable device.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of and claims priority from U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/922,514 filed on Aug. 19, 2004 and entitled “PORTABLE AUGMENTED REALITY DEVICE AND METHOD”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates generally to augmented reality applications and more particularly to combining image recognition features with augmented reality applications in order to enrich the augmented reality applications.

2. Description of the Related Art

Augmented reality (AR) attempts to enrich a user's real environment by adding spatially aligned virtual objects (3D models, 2D textures, textual annotations, etc.) to the user's environment. The goal is to create the impression that the virtual object is a part of the real environment. The users of the AR system experience the augmented environment through special display devices that are typically worn on the body, e.g., head mounts.

Current augmented reality systems suffer from issues with general registration problems, i.e., getting the computer graphics to stick to a real-world scene. For example, due to the use of multiple sensors, artifacts, such as miss-movement of the computer graphics with the real-world scene may occur. These artifacts are due to the multiple sensors having different speeds. Additionally, delays between the head tracking system and the camera used to capture the real-world scene along with the need to merge the computer graphics into the real-world scene, cause misalignment/registration problems. These registration problems may even become serious enough to cause a user to become uncomfortable when viewing the image. Additionally, the augmented reality systems tend to be complex systems that are not portable. Accordingly, there are no viable consumer applications for these augmented reality systems.

As a result, there is a need to solve the problems of the prior art to provide a method and apparatus for providing a portable device capable of providing an augmented reality experience.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Broadly speaking, the present invention fills these needs by providing a method and device for providing an enhanced shopping experience using a portable device. It should be appreciated that the present invention can be implemented in numerous ways, including as a method, a system, computer readable media or a device. Several inventive embodiments of the present invention are described below.

In one embodiment, a portable device configured to provide enhanced shopping information is included. The portable device has a display screen and an image capture device and the portable device is configured to access databases through a wireless network. The portable device includes image recognition logic that is configured to perform analysis of an image of an object that includes a bar code associated with a product. The analysis determines if the graphics found on the object corresponds to a bar code and a portion of the image with the bar code is communicated through the wireless network to databases to identify the product. The portable device further includes image generation logic that is configured to obtain product information for the identified product from the databases and present the product information on the display screen of the portable device.

In another embodiment, a method for obtaining product information through a portable device is provided. An image of an object including a bar code associated with a product is captured using an image capture device. The captured image is analyzed to determine if graphics found on the object correspond to a bar code. A portion of the image with the bar code is transmitted to databases through a wireless network and the product associated with the bar code is identified. Product information from the databases is obtained and presented through image generation logic incorporated into the portable device. The presented product information defines multimedia data in a graphical user interface that includes one of an image or text information about the product.

Other aspects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrating by way of example the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention will be readily understood by the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, and like reference numerals designate like structural elements.

FIG. 1 is a simplified schematic diagram of a device having image capture capability, which may be used in an augmented reality application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are side views of the portable device illustrated in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a simplified schematic diagram of an image capture device being utilized in an augmented reality application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating yet another application of the incorporation of computer graphics into a real world scene in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a simplified schematic diagram showing the plurality of users viewing a display monitor with a handheld device in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show yet another application of the use of a portable device capable of recognizing graphical data in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating the use of a portable device and a card game application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating the method operations for augmenting display data presented to a viewer in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating the method operations for providing information in a portable environment in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating the modules within the portable device in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

An invention is described for a system, device and method that provide an enhanced augmented reality environment. It will be obvious, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well known process operations have not been described in detail in order not to unnecessarily obscure the present invention.

The embodiments of the present invention provide a system and method for enabling a low cost consumer application related to augmented reality for entertainment and informational purposes. In one embodiment, a portable device with a display, a camera and software configured to execute the functionality described below is provided. One exemplary illustration of the portable device is the PLAYSTATION PORTABLE (PSP) entertainment product combined with a universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 camera attachment and application software delivered on a universal media disk (UMD) or some other suitable optical disc media. However, the invention could also apply to cell phones with cameras or PDAs with cameras. In another embodiment, the portable device can be further augmented through use of wireless networking which is a standard option on the PSP. One skilled in the art will appreciate that Augmented Reality (AR) is a general term for when computer graphics are mixed with real video in such a way as the computer graphics adds extra information to the real scene.

In one aspect of the invention a user points the portable device having a display and a camera at a real world scene. The camera shows the scene on the portable device such that it seems that the user is seeing the world through the device. Software stored on the device or accessed through wireless network displays the real world image, and uses image processing techniques to recognize certain objects in the camera's field of vision. Based on this recognition, the portable device constructs appropriate computer graphics and overlays these graphics on the display device on top of the real world image.

As the device is a portable hand held device with limited computing resources, certain objects may be used so that the image recognition software can recognize the object with relative ease, i.e., in manner suitable for the limited processing capabilities of the portable device. Some exemplary objects are listed below. It should be appreciated that this list is not exhaustive and other objects that are recognizable may be used with the embodiments described herein.

Collectable or regular playing cards are one suitable object. In one embodiment, the playing cards have a fixed colored design in high contrast. The design graphics are easy for the device to recognize through the image recognition software. In addition, the graphics may be chosen so that the device can easily determine the orientation of the card. The portable device can then take the real image, remove the special recognized graphic and replace it with a computer-generated image and then show the resulting combination of real and computer graphics to the user on the display. As the card or the camera moves, the computer graphics move in the same way. In one embodiment, an animating character could be superimposed on the card. Alternatively, a book could be used. Similar to the cards, a clear design is used and then the portable device overlays registered computer graphics before displaying the scene to the user.

In another embodiment, the clear graphic images can be displayed on a television (TV) either from a computer game, the Internet or broadcast TV. Depending upon the software application on the device, the user would see different superimposed computer graphics on the portable display as described further below.

In yet another embodiment, a user with the device can get additional product information by analyzing the standard bar code with the camera attachment. The additional product information may include price, size, color, quantity in stock, or any other suitable physical or merchandise attribute. Alternatively, by using a special graphic design recognized by the portable device, graphics can be superimposed on the retail packaging as seen by the portable device. In addition, through a wireless network of the store in which the merchandise is located, catalogue information may be obtained about the merchandise. In one embodiment, the image data captured by the portable device is used to search for a match of the product through a library of data accessed through the wireless network. It should be appreciated that the embodiments described herein enable a user to obtain the information from a bar code without the use of special purpose laser scanning equipment. The user would also own the device and could take it from store to store. This would enable the user to do comparison-shopping more easily. Also, the device would be capable of much richer graphics than bar code scanners available in-store. In one embodiment, retailers or manufacturers could provide optical disc media with catalogues of product information. The user would put the disc in the device and then point the camera at a bar code and they would see detailed product information.

With respect to music and video, the bar code would enable the portable device to access a sample of the music and play so the user can effectively listen to a part of the CD simply by capturing an image of the bar code. Similarly, for DVD and VHS videos, a trailer can be stored in the product catalogue on the removable media of the device. This trailer can be played back to the user after they capture the bar code and the portable device processes the captured image and matches it to the corresponding trailer associated with the bar code. Likewise, a demo of a video game could be played for video game products. It should be appreciated that there are other possible uses including product reviews, cross promotions, etc. Furthermore, it should be appreciated that the portable device is not scanning the bar code as conventional scanners. The portable device performs image processing on a captured image of the bar code and matches it with a corresponding image to access the relevant data. Furthermore, with an in-store wireless networked and a portable device like the PSP (which is wireless network enabled), there is no need for a special removable disc media catalogue. Here, the catalogue can be provided directly by the in-store wireless network.

In another embodiment, the portable device may be used as a secondary personal display in conjunction with a main display that is shared by several users. For example, several people may play a video game on a single TV and use the portable devices for additional information that is unique for each player. Likewise, for broadcast TV (e.g. game show) where several people in the home watch a single broadcast, but see different personal information on their portable device depending upon their preferences. The portable device may be used to obtain additional information from the main display. For example, with respect to a sports game, additional player information or statistics may be displayed for a selected player. It may be necessary to synchronize the graphics on the main display with those on the portable display. One approach is to use a wireless network or broadcast and to send information to each display using this network. An alternative method is to use visual cues from the main display to drive the synchronization with the portable display. As such no additional expensive network connections are required.

FIG. 1 is a simplified schematic diagram of a device having image capture capability, which may be used in an augmented reality application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Portable device 100 includes navigation buttons 104 and display screen 102. Device 100 is capable of accepting memory card 106 and image capture device 108. Image capture device 108 may include a charge couple device (CCD) in order to capture an image of a real-world scene. Alternatively, the camera functionality may be provided by a complimentary metal oxide semiconductor chip that uses an active pixel architecture to perform camera functions on-chip. In one embodiment, device 100 is a PSP device having image capture capability.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are side views of the portable device illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 2A shows device 100 with memory card slot 110 and display panel 102. Image capture device 108 is located on a top surface of device 100. It should be appreciated that image capture device 108 may be a pluggable device or may be hard-wired into device 100. FIG. 2B illustrates an alternative embodiment of device 100 of FIG. 1. Here, image capture device 108 is located on a backside of device 100. Therefore, a user viewing the display screen 102 may have the same viewing angle as image capture device 108. As illustrated, device 100 of FIG. 2B also includes memory card slot 110. It should be appreciated that the memory card may be interchanged between users in order to swap information with other users.

FIG. 3 is a simplified schematic diagram of an image capture device being utilized in an augmented reality application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Here, device 100 is being held by a user with a real-world scene 103 being augmented with computer graphics on display screen 102. Real-world scene 103 includes a street bordering buildings having mountain scenery in the background. The computer graphics incorporated into real-world scene 103 is car 105. In one embodiment, logic within the portable device recognizes the road or a marker on the road, e.g., the dividing line of the road, and incorporates the car into the scene. It should be appreciated that while a PLAYSTATION PORTABLE device is illustrated in FIGS. 1-3 the embodiments described herein may be incorporated into any handheld device having camera capability. Other suitable devices include a cell phone, a personal digital assistant, a web tablet, and a pocket PC.

FIG. 4 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating yet another application of the incorporation of computer graphics into a real world scene in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Here, a user is holding portable device 100, which includes display 102. It should be noted that display 102 is expanded relative to device 100 for ease of explanation. An image capture device, which is incorporated into device 100, captures a scene being displayed on display device 112, which may be a television. Here, display device 112 illustrates a tree 114 being shown. Device 100 captures the image being displayed on device 112 and displays tree 114 on display screen 102. In addition to tree 114 being shown on display screen 102, device 100 incorporates additional objects into the scene. For example, sun 116 is incorporated into the scene being displayed on display screen 102. As described above, a marker, such as marker 115 of the first display device, may cause the incorporation of additional objects such as sun 116 into the second display device. It should be appreciated that device 100 includes a logic capable of recognizing objects such as tree 114 or marker 115 and thereafter responding to the recognition of such objects or markers by adding appropriate computer graphics such as sun 116 into the scene being displayed on device 100. Furthermore, the image capture device incorporated into portable device 100 may be a video capture device that continuously captures the changing frames on display device 112 and incorporates additional objects accordingly. As mentioned above, visual cues from the main display may be used to drive the synchronization with the portable display.

FIG. 5 is a simplified schematic diagram showing the plurality of users viewing a display monitor with a handheld device in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Here, display device 120 is a single display device but is illustrated three different times for ease of explanation. Users 101a through 101c have corresponding handheld portable devices 100a through 100c, respectively. It should be appreciated that a game show, computer game, sporting event or some other suitable display may be being presented on display screen 120. Display devices 100a, 100b, and 100c capture the image being displayed on display screen 120 and augment image data or graphics into the captured image in order to provide additional information to users 101a through 101c. In one embodiment, a game show being displayed on display device 120 is being viewed by each of users 101a through 101c, so that users 101a through 101c may compete with each other. In another embodiment, the display on display screen 120, which is captured by devices 100a through 100c, includes data which may be analyzed by logic within device 100a through 100c so that each of the users see somewhat different displays on the corresponding display screens. For example, with reference to a game of charades, one of the users 101a through 101c may have access to what the answer is while the other users do not have this access. In this embodiment, the television broadcast system may be used to incorporate extra data into the display data being shown by display 120 in order to provide extra functionality for users 101a through 101c. In essence, devices 100a through 100c enable extra data in the image being displayed on display 120 to be turned on. The extra data may be triggered by graphics within display 120 which are recognized by image recognition logic of the portable device.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show yet another application of the use of a portable device capable of recognizing graphical data in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Here, a user has a portable device 100a with display screen 102a. As mentioned above, display screen 102a is enlarged for ease of explanation. Device 100a is capable of being networked to in-store network 131a. Device 100a captures an image of a barcode 132a associated with product 130a. By recognizing barcode 132a and communicating with in-store network 131a wirelessly, device 100a is enabled to download information concerning the characteristics of item 130a. It should be appreciated that in place of barcode 132a device 100a may recognize a storage box containing item 130a or item 130a itself. Then, by communicating with in-store network 131a, a comparison of the captured image data with a library from in-store network 131a device 100a is able to locate the characteristics such as price, size, color, etc., of item 130a. The user then may move to store Y and use device 100a to download characteristics associated with item 130b. Here again, a barcode 132b or image data of item 130d or its storage container may be used to access the item characteristics, which can be any catalogue characteristics from in-store network 133a. From this data, the user is then able to compare the characteristics of item 130a in store X and 130b in store Y. Thus, where item 130a and 130b are the same items, the user is able to perform comparison-shopping in the different locations.

FIG. 7 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating the use of a portable device and a card game application in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Here, the user is pointing device 100 toward cards 140b and 140b. The cards 140 and 140b may have symbols or some kind of graphical data, which is recognized by logic within device 100. For example, cards 140a has image 142a and numbers 142b, which may be recognized by image device 100. Card 140b includes barcode 142c and marker 142d which also may be recognized by device 100. In one application, these markings may indicate the value of the cards in order to determine which card is the highest. Once each of the images/markings of cards 140a and 140b are processed by the logic within device 100, a simulated fight may take place on display screen 102 where the winner of the fight will be associated with the higher of cards 140a and 140b. With respect to collectable cards, by using portable device 100 and a special recognizable design on the card (possibly the back of the card), a new computer generated graphic can be superimposed on the card and displayed on the portable display. For example, for sports cards, the sports person or team on the card can be superimposed in a real 3D view and animated throwing the ball, etc. For role-playing games, it is possible to combine the cards and a video game on the portable device so that collecting physical cards becomes an important part of the game. In this case, a character of the game may be personalized by the player and this information could be swapped with other players via wireless network or via removable media (e.g. Memory Stick).

A similar technique could be used to augment business cards. In addition to the normal printed material on a business (or personal) card, a special identifying graphic could be included. This graphic can be associated with the individual and will reference information about that person potentially including photos, video, audio as well as the normal contact info. The personal information could be exchanged via removable media. In another embodiment a unique graphic is indexed an on-line database via a wireless network to get the information about that person. Having accessed the information, a superimposed graphic, e.g., the person's photo, can be created in place of the graphic on the portable display.

FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating the method operations for augmenting display data presented to a viewer in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The method initiates with operation 150 where the display data on a first display device is presented. Here, the display is shown on a television, computer monitor or some other suitable display device. Then in operation 152, the display data on the display device is captured with an image capture device. For example, the portable device having image capture capability discussed above is one exemplary device having image capture capability, which includes video capture capability. The captured display data is then analyzed in operation 154. This analysis is performed by logic within the portable device. The logic includes software or hardware or some combination of the two. In operation 156 a marker within the captured display data is identified. The marker may be a any suitable marker, such as the markers illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 7. In operation 158 additional display data is defined in response to identifying the marker. The additional display data is generated by image generation logic of the portable device. Alternatively, the additional data may be downloaded from a wireless network. The captured display data and the additional display data are then presented on a display screen of the image capture device in operation 160.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating the method operations for providing information in a portable environment in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The method initiates with operation 170 where an image of a first object is captured in a first location. For example, an image of an item in a first store may be captured here. In operation 172 the object characteristics of the first object are accessed based upon the image of the first object. For example, a wireless network may be accessed within the store in order to obtain the object characteristics of the first object. Then, in operation 174 the user may move to a second location. In operation 176 an image of a second object in the second location is captured. The object characteristics of the second object are accessed based upon the image of the second object in operation 178. It should be appreciated that in operations 172 and 178 the image data is used to access the object characteristics and not laser scan data. In operation 180 the object characteristics of the first object and the object characteristics of the second object are presented to a user. Thus, the user may perform comparison shopping with the use of a portable device based upon the recognition of video image data and the access of in-store networks.

FIG. 10 is a simplified schematic diagram illustrating the modules within the portable device in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. Portable device 100 includes central processing unit (CPU) 200, augmented reality logic block 202, memory 210 and charged couple device (CCD) logic 212. As mentioned above, a complimentary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor may perform the camera functions on-chip in place of CCD logic 212. One skilled in the art will appreciate that a CMOS image sensor draws less power than a CCD. Each module is in communication with each other through bus 208. Augmented reality logic block 202 includes image recognition logic 204 and image generation logic 206. It should be appreciated that augmented reality logic block 202 may be a semiconductor chip incorporating the logic to execute the functionality described herein. Alternatively, the functionality described with respect to augmented reality logic block 202, image recognition logic 204 and image generation logic 206 may be performed in software. Here the code may be stored within memory 210.

In summary, the above-described invention describes a portable device capable of providing an enriched augmented reality experience. It should be appreciated that while the markers and graphics that are recognized by the system are computer generated, the invention is not limited to computer-generated markers. For example, a set of pre-authored symbols and a set of user definable symbols can be created which can be recognized even when drawn by hand in a manner recognizable to the camera of the image capture device. In this way, players could create complex 3D computer graphics via drawing simple symbols. In one embodiment, a player might draw a smiley face character and this might be recognized by the device and shown on the display as a popular cartoon or game character smiling. With user definable designs, users can also establish secret communications using these symbols.

With the above embodiments in mind, it should be understood that the invention may employ various computer-implemented operations involving data stored in computer systems. These operations include operations requiring physical manipulation of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. Further, the manipulations performed are often referred to in terms, such as producing, identifying, determining, or comparing.

The above-described invention may be practiced with other computer system configurations including hand-held devices, microprocessor systems, microprocessor-based or programmable consumer electronics, minicomputers, mainframe computers and the like. The invention may also be practiced in distributing computing environments where tasks are performed by remote processing devices that are linked through a communications network.

The invention can also be embodied as computer readable code on a computer readable medium. The computer readable medium is any data storage device that can store data, which can be thereafter read by a computer system. Examples of the computer readable medium include hard drives, network attached storage (NAS), read-only memory, random-access memory, CD-ROMs, CD-Rs, CD-RWs, magnetic tapes, and other optical and non-optical data storage devices. The computer readable medium can also be distributed over a network coupled computer system so that the computer readable code is stored and executed in a distributed fashion.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in some detail for purposes of clarity of understanding, it will be apparent that certain changes and modifications may be practiced within the scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the present embodiments are to be considered as illustrative and not restrictive, and the invention is not to be limited to the details given herein, but may be modified within the scope and equivalents of the appended claims. In the claims, elements and/or steps do not imply any particular order of operation, unless explicitly stated in the claims.

Claims

1. A portable device configured to provide enhanced shopping information, comprising:

the portable device configured to access a wireless network, the portable device having a display screen and an image capture device, the portable device configured to access at least one database through the wireless network, the portable device including, image recognition logic configured to perform analysis of an image of an object captured using the image capture device, the object including a bar code associated with a product, the analysis being done on the image to determine if graphics found on the object correspond to the bar code, an image portion having the bar code is communicated through the wireless network to the one or more databases to identify the product associated with the bar code; and image generation logic configured to obtain a plurality of product information for the identified product from the one or more databases and presenting the plurality of product information on the display screen of the portable device, wherein the presenting defines multimedia data in a graphical user interface that includes one of an image of the product or text information about the product.

2. The portable device of claim 1, wherein analysis of the image of the object recognizes the bar code from the graphics found on the object.

3. The portable device of claim 2, wherein recognition of the bar code in the image of the object triggers communication of the image portion having the bar code to the database.

4. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the image portion having the bar code is matched to a corresponding entry in the database.

5. The portable device of claim 1, wherein capturing the image of the object is performed without scanning the image of the object.

6. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of product information includes pricing, product reviews, and quantity in stock associated with the identified product.

7. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the portable device is one of a cell phone, a personal digital assistant, a web tablet, or a pocket PC.

8. A method for obtaining product information through a portable device, comprising:

capturing an image of an object using an image capture device, the object including a bar code associated with a product;

analyzing the image of the object to determine if graphics found on the object correspond to a bar code;

transmitting an image portion having the bar code to at least one database through a wireless network;

identifying the product associated with the bar code through the image portion having the bar code that is provided to the one or more databases;

obtaining a plurality of product information from the one or more databases; and

presenting the plurality of product information associated with the identified product, wherein the presenting defines multimedia data in a graphical user interface that includes one of an image of the product or text information about the product.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

recognizing the bar code from the graphics of the object.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

triggering communication of the image portion having the bar code to the database upon recognition of the bar code in the image of the object.

11. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

matching the transmitted image portion having the bar code to a corresponding entry in the database.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of product information includes audio/video media associated with the identified product.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the audio/video media associated with the identified product includes an audio clip representing a portion of a music compact disc or a video clip of a movie.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the audio/video media associated with the identified product represents a portion of a video game.

15. A computer readable media including program instructions for presenting product data associated with an identified product to a viewer, comprising:

program instructions for capturing an image of an object, the object having a bar code associated with a product;

program instructions for analyzing the image of the object to determine if graphics found on the object correspond to the bar code;

program instructions for transmitting an image portion having the bar code to at least one database through a wireless network;

program instructions for identifying the product associated with the bar code through the image portion having the bar code that is transmitted to the one or more databases;

program instructions for obtaining a plurality of product information associated with the identified product from the one or more databases; and

program instructions for presenting the plurality of product information associated with the identified product, wherein the presenting defines multimedia data in a graphical user interface that includes one of an image of the product or text information about the product.

16. The computer readable media of claim 15, further comprising:

program instructions for recognizing the bar code from the graphics of the object.

17. The computer readable media of claim 15, further comprising:

program instructions for matching the transmitted image portion having the bar code to a corresponding entry in the database.

18. The computer readable media of claim 15, further comprising:

program instructions for triggering communication of the image portion having the bar code to the database upon recognition of the image of the bar code in the image of the object

19. The computer readable media of claim 15, wherein the plurality of product information includes catalogue information associated with the identified product.

20. The computer readable media of claim 15, wherein the multimedia data associated with the identified product includes an audio clip representing a portion of a music compact disc or a video clip of a movie.