Media experience social interface

• US 10,097,893 B2
• Filed: 08/03/2016
• Issued: 10/09/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Sonos, Inc.
• Inventors: Kuper, Ron, Coburn, IV, Arthur L., Meyer, John, Delaney, Mike
• Primary Examiner(s): Chin, Michelle
• Application Number:
  US15/227,074
• Publication Number:
  US 20160342322A1
• Time in Patent Office: 797 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/34 Indicating arrangements indicating means incorporated in magazine or cassette G11B23/046 and G11B23/0875; indicating measured values in general G01D
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 41/22 comprising specially adapted graphical user interfaces [GUI]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/10 in which an application is distributed across nodes in the network software deployment G06F8/60; multiprogramming arrangements G06F9/46
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/43615 Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals home Audio Video Interoperability [HAVI] data switching networks H04L12/2805
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4788 communicating with other users, e.g. chatting arrangements for providing for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms, to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1813; distributed application using peer-to-peer [P2P] networks H04L67/104
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4825 using a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlists

Abstract

Embodiments described herein include systems and methods for providing a social interface for sharing media experience information between households in a community. Users of different households may form the community. The social interface may be provided as an application on a mobile device or an Internet webpage as a portal to the community. An example implementation involves a device displaying representations of: a plurality of households; an indication of a selected household; one or more zones within the selected household; and a representation of media being played by a selected zone of the one or more zones. While displaying the representations, the device receives, from a server, data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households; and, in response, updates the graphical display to display at least an updated representation of media being played by the selected zone.

Claims

1. A computing device comprising:

a graphical display;

one or more processors; and

a tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the computing device to perform functions comprising;

displaying, on the graphical display, representations comprising;

(i) representations of a plurality of households, (ii) an indication of a selected household among the representation of the plurality of households, (iii) representations of one or more zones within the selected household, and (iv) a representation of media being played by a selected zone of the one or more zones;

while displaying the representations, receiving from a server, data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households; and

in response to receiving the data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households, updating the graphical display to display at least an updated representation of media being played by the selected zone based on the received updated information associated with the plurality of households.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the representations of the one or more zones indicate a first configuration of the one or more zones, wherein the updated information indicates a second configuration of the one or more zones, and wherein updating the graphical display further comprises:

updating the graphical display to display representations of the one or more zones to indicate the second configuration of the one or more zones.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the functions comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected household.

4. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the functions comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected zone.

5. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the selected zone is a zone group comprising two or more zones playing the media in synchrony.

6. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the functions further comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, transmitting, to the server, a request for information associated with the plurality of households; and

receiving, from the server, the information associated with the plurality of households, wherein displaying on the graphical display, the representations comprises displaying the representations based on the received information associated with the plurality of households.

7. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the functions further comprise:

receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of a second household in the plurality of households; and

responsive to receiving the input, updating the graphical display to display updated representations based on the updated information associated with the plurality of households, wherein the updated representations comprise;

(i) an indication of the second household among the representation of the plurality of households, (ii) representations of one or more zones within the second household, and (iii) a representation of media being rendered by a selected zone of the one or more zones within the second household.

8. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the computing device is a controller device configured to control media playback within a household of the plurality of households.

9. A method comprising:

displaying, by a computing device on a graphical display, representations comprising;

(i) representations of a plurality of households, (ii) an indication of a selected household among the representation of the plurality of households, (iii) representations of one or more zones within the selected household, and (iv) a representation of media being played by a selected zone of the one or more zones;

while displaying the representations, receiving by the computing device from a server, data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households; and

in response to receiving the data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households, updating by the computing device, the graphical display to display at least an updated representation of media being played by the selected zone based on the received updated information associated with the plurality of households.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the representations of the one or more zones indicate a first configuration of the one or more zones, wherein the updated information indicates a second configuration of the one or more zones, and wherein updating the graphical display further comprises:

updating the graphical display to display representations of the one or more zones to indicate the second configuration of the one or more zones.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected household.

12. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected zone.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

prior to displaying the representations, transmitting, by the computing device to the server, a request for information associated with the plurality of households; and

receiving, by the computing device from the server, the information associated with the plurality of households, wherein displaying on the graphical display, the representations comprises displaying the representations based on the received information associated with the plurality of households.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

receiving by the computing device via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of a second household in the plurality of households; and

responsive to receiving the input, updating, by the computing device, the graphical display to display updated representations based on the updated information associated with the plurality of households, wherein the updated representations comprise;

(i) an indication of the second household among the representation of the plurality of households, (ii) representations of one or more zones within the second household, and (iii) a representation of media being rendered by a selected zone of the one or more zones within the second household.

15. A tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause a computing device to perform functions comprising:

displaying on a graphical display, representations comprising;

(i) representations of a plurality of households, (ii) an indication of a selected household among the representation of the plurality of households, (iii) representations of one or more zones within the selected household, and (iv) a representation of media being rendered by a selected zone of the one or more zones;

while displaying the representations, receiving from a server, data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households; and

in response to receiving the data indicating updated information associated with the plurality of households, updating the graphical display to display at least an updated representation of media being played by the selected zone based on the received updated information associated with the plurality of households.

16. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the representations of the one or more zones indicate a first configuration of the one or more zones, wherein the updated information indicates a second configuration of the one or more zones, and wherein updating the graphical display further comprises:

updating the graphical display to display representations of the one or more zones to indicate the second configuration of the one or more zones.

17. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the functions further comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected household.

18. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the functions further comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of the selected zone.

19. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the functions further comprise:

prior to displaying the representations, transmitting, to the server, a request for information associated with the plurality of households; and

receiving, from the server, the information associated with the plurality of households, wherein displaying on the graphical display, the representations comprises displaying the representations based on the received information associated with the plurality of households.

20. The tangible, non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the functions further comprise:

receiving, via a user interface provided on the graphical display, an input indicating a selection of a second household in the plurality of households; and

responsive to receiving the input, updating the graphical display to display updated representations based on the updated information associated with the plurality of households, wherein the updated representations comprise;

(i) an indication of the second household among the representation of the plurality of households, (ii) representations of one or more zones within the second household, and (iii) a representation of media being rendered by a selected zone of the one or more zones within the second household.