The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
May. 31, 2011
Filed:
Mar. 01, 2006
Paul Sara, Cary, IL (US);
Robert W Springate, Belvidere, IL (US);
Sanford Lee Hertz, Hoffman Estates, IL (US);
Andrew Ubel, Saint Paul, MN (US);
Paul Sara, Cary, IL (US);
Robert W Springate, Belvidere, IL (US);
Sanford Lee Hertz, Hoffman Estates, IL (US);
Andrew Ubel, Saint Paul, MN (US);
Valspar Sourcing, Inc., Minneapolis, MN (US);
Abstract
An apparatus and method for preparing a stain to match a target color of a selected substrate (e.g., wood species). The apparatus may include a computer and hardware and/or software to store a database of stain records, create or load spectral data (e.g., a digital image) of a target sample, and display images and/or process spectral data. The apparatus may facilitate stain selection, and may also dispense colorant agents and/or vehicles to create stains. The apparatus may be used in a 'manual' mode (whereby a human compares database and target images and makes a selection); an 'automatic' mode (whereby the computer suggests a match based on the selected substrate); or a “combination” mode (whereby the computer suggests a match and the user can then compare the suggested match with various images to achieve a final selection).