Logging individuals for TV measurement compliance

• US 10,327,020 B2
• Filed: 10/02/2017
• Issued: 06/18/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 07/18/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Rowe, Simon Michael, Arini, Nicholas Salvatore, Charlebois, Owen
• Primary Examiner(s): Parra, Omar S
• Application Number:
  US15/722,065
• Publication Number:
  US 20190014365A1
• Time in Patent Office: 624 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/31 Arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/37 for identifying segments of broadcast information, e.g. scenes or extracting programme ID
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/45 for identifying users
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/58 of audio determination or detection of speech characteristics in general G10L25/00; speech recognition in general G10L15/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/82 the transmission system being the Internet
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/94 Telephonic networks for accessing the Internet H04H60/84
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/252 Processing of multiple end-users' preferences to derive collaborative data
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/25891 being end-user preferences retrieval of video data in a video database based on user preferences G06F16/739; arrangements for recognizing users' preferences H04H60/46; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/41265 having a remote control device for bidirectional communication between the remote control device and client device unidirectional remote control device H04N21/42204
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42201 biosensors, e.g. heat sensor for presence detection, EEG sensors or any limb activity sensors worn by the user input arrangements for interaction with the human body based on nervous system activity detection G06F3/015
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42218 for mapping a matrix of displayed objects on the screen to the numerical key-matrix of the remote control
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/441 Acquiring end-user identification , e.g. using personal code sent by the remote control or by inserting a card
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44204 Monitoring of content usage, e.g. the number of times a movie has been viewed, copied or the amount which has been watched monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; protecting generic digital content where the protection is independent of the precise nature of the content G06F21/10; arrangements for monitoring the use made of the broadcast services in broadcast systems H04H60/31
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/44218 Detecting physical presence or behaviour of the user, e.g. using sensors to detect if the user is leaving the room or changes his face expression during a TV program methods or arrangements for recognising human body or animal bodies or body parts G06V40/10; methods or arrangements for acquiring or recognising human faces, facial parts, facial sketches, facial expressions G06V40/16; methods or arrangements for recognising movements or behaviour G06V40/20; arrangements for identifying users in broadcast systems H04H60/45
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4532 involving end-user characteristics, e.g. viewer profile, preferences monitoring of user activities for profile generation for accessing a video database G06F16/739; user profiles in network data switching protocols H04L67/306; processing of user preferences or user profiles in wireless networks H04W8/18
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4758 for providing answers, e.g. voting
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4882 for displaying messages, e.g. warnings, reminders arrangements for providing short real-time information to substation in data switching networks H04L12/1895
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/6582 Data stored in the client, e.g. viewing habits, hardware capabilities, credit card number arrangements where receivers interact with the broadcast H04H20/38

Abstract

A TV audience survey system for determining the TV viewing activities of a plurality of individuals in a household includes a master device and multiple tags, each tag assigned to an individual. After an individual logs into the system and starts watching the TV, the master device communicates with the corresponding tag repeatedly to accumulate data representing the individual'"'"'s TV viewing activities. Such data can be used to determine when the individual stops watching the TV for an extended period of time without logging out of the system and when the household member remains watching the TV after logging or being logged out of the system. The master device then reports the accumulated data to a remote server, which uses the data to determine whether the individual complies with the logging protocol defined by the TV audience survey system and update the TV viewership data associated with this household.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving, at a computer server, a plurality of TV audience records from a TV audience survey system, the TV audience survey system comprising a master device and one or more tags each associated with a respective individual, wherein a respective TV audience record includes the respective individual'"'"'s TV viewing activities including generated status update entries based on locations of the one or more tags relative to the master device, the locations determined by a respective broadcast strength of signals sent by the one or more tags to the master device, and wherein the plurality of TV audience records comprises an audience status update entry indicating that the respective individual has been outside a predefined TV watching zone because the respective broadcast strength of signals is less than a predefined threshold for a predefined period of time;

receiving a plurality of TV broadcast records from the TV audience survey system, wherein a respective TV broadcast record includes an audio fingerprint derived from a TV program being broadcast at the household and an associated timestamp;

correlating the plurality of TV broadcast records with the plurality of TV audience records to generate TV viewership data for the individuals in the household based on the respective associated timestamps and based on the locations determined by the respective broadcast strength of signals sent by the one or more tags to the master device being within a predefined distance from the master device, wherein the TV viewership data includes a plurality of records, each record identifying a TV program broadcast at the household and one or more individuals that have watched the TV program by comparing the respective TV broadcast record with a plurality of TV broadcast reference records to identify one TV broadcast reference record that has the same audio fingerprint as the respective TV broadcast record;

generating an alert message indicating that the respective individual has not watched the TV program based on the correlation; and

notifying the respective individual of the alert message.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a plurality of TV viewership metering records from a set top box in the household, wherein a respective TV viewership metering record includes information identifying a TV program and one or more individuals in the household that registered to watch the TV program;

for a respective TV viewership metering record;

identifying a TV audience measurement record associated with the same TV program as the respective TV metering record; and

updating the registered individual'"'"'s information in the TV viewership metering record using the identified TV audience measurement record to add individuals that actually watched but did not register for watching the TV program and delete the respective individual that registered for watching but did not actually watch the TV program; and

sending an alert message to the TV audience survey system if the update to the registered individuals information satisfies a predefined condition.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the set top box is configured to send the plurality of TV viewership metering records to the computer server via a wired communication network.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the respective TV audience record includes a plurality of audience status update entries each comprising a location of a tag carried by an individual relative to the master device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the TV audience survey system is configured to send the plurality of TV audience records and the plurality of TV broadcast records to the computer server via a wireless communication network.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving an aggregated audio fingerprint, wherein the aggregated audio fingerprint is derived from multiple consecutive audio signals; and

determining a TV program corresponding to the multiple consecutive audio signals.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the master device is configured to communicate with a plurality of tags, each of the plurality of tags being assigned to a unique individual and having a unique tag identifier included in the signals transmitted from the tag to the master device, and wherein the TV audience records associated with respective individuals comprise the respective unique tag identifiers.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the TV audience record comprises a last timestamp that is updated whenever the master device receives a new signal transmitted from the one or more tags.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein each audience status update entry comprises a timestamp indicating when the individual starts watching the TV or stops watching the TV by moving into or out of a passive mode region in which the master device can detect the signals from the one or more tags.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the passive mode region is a region within a predefined distance from the master device.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the master device is configured to detect audio signals from the TV at a predefined constant time interval.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the tag is configured to transmit a signal in response to a query signal from the master device.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the master device is configured to notify the respective individual by causing a respective tag of the one or more tags to produce a beep or vibrate.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the master device is configured to notify the respective individual by generating a blinking signal through its display.

15. A method for determining the TV viewing activities of an individual using a master device adjacent a TV and a tag carried by the individual, the method comprising:

at the master device having memory and one or more processors;

detecting a plurality of audio signals from the TV;

in response to detecting the plurality of audio signals, generating a plurality of TV broadcast records, each TV broadcast record including an audio fingerprint derived from the plurality of audio signals;

detecting a plurality of signals from the tag;

in response to detecting the plurality of signals, generating a TV audience record for the individual, the TV audience record including a plurality of audience status update entries, wherein the plurality of audience status update entries keep track of the individual'"'"'s locations relative to the master device, the locations determined by a respective broadcast strength of the plurality of signals from the tag;

inserting a new audience status update entry into the TV audience record indicating that the individual has been outside a predefined TV watching zone if the broadcast strength is less than a predefined threshold for a predefined period of time; and

sending the plurality of TV broadcast records and the TV audience record to a remote server, wherein the remote server is configured to;

correlate the plurality of TV broadcast records with the TV audience record to determine one or more TV programs watched by the individual based on the locations determined by the respective broadcast strength of the plurality of signals from the tag being within a predefined distance from the master device,

generate an alert message indicating that the individual has not watched the TV based on the correlation, and

notify the individual of the alert message.

16. A TV audience survey system, comprising:

a tag, configured to be carried by an individual; and

a master device including memory and one or more processors, wherein the master device is located adjacent a TV, wherein the memory of the master device stores one or more programs to be executed by the one or more processors of the master device, the one or more programs comprising instructions configured to cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising;

detecting a plurality of signals from the tag;

in response to detecting the plurality of signals, generating a TV audience record for the individual, the TV audience record including a plurality of audience status update entries, wherein the plurality of audience status update entries keep track of the individual'"'"'s locations relative to the master device, the locations determined by a respective broadcast strength of the plurality of signals from the tag;

inserting a new audience status update entry into the TV audience record indicating that the individual has been outside a predefined TV watching zone if the broadcast strength is less than a predefined threshold for a predefined period of time; and

sending the plurality of TV broadcast records and the TV audience record to a remote server, wherein the remote server is configured to;

correlate the plurality of TV broadcast records with the TV audience record to determine one or more TV programs watched by the individual based on the locations determined by the respective broadcast strength of the plurality of signals from the tag being within a predefined distance from the master device,

generate an alert message indicating that the individual has not watched one of the one or more TV programs based on the correlation, and

notify the individual of the alert message.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the master device is configured to communicate with a plurality of tags, each of the plurality of tags being assigned to a unique individual and having a unique tag identifier included in the signals transmitted from the tag to the master device, and wherein the TV audience records associated with respective individuals comprise the respective unique tag identifiers.