Invertible metering apparatus and related methods

• US 10,405,036 B2
• Filed: 06/24/2016
• Issued: 09/03/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/24/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Cooper, Timothy Scott, Vitt, James Joseph, Turnbow, Douglas Brent, Usaj, Marko, Barbis, Andrej, Vranek, Saso
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Michael H
• Application Number:
  US15/192,539
• Publication Number:
  US 20170374415A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,166 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1403 Architecture for metering, charging or billing
• 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 21/44222 Analytics of user selections, e.g. selection of programs or purchase activity monitoring of user selections in data processing systems G06F11/34; arrangements for monitoring the user's behaviour or opinions in broadcast systems H04H60/33
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 5/00 Casings, cabinets or drawers for electric apparatus

Abstract

Example invertible meter apparatus and related methods are disclosed. An example invertible meter apparatus includes a housing having a display area. The housing positionable in a first orientation or a second orientation different than the first orientation. The meter apparatus includes a stencil removably coupled to the display area of the housing. The stencil having indicia to be positioned in the display area of the housing in an upright orientation when the housing is in the first orientation. The stencil being repositionable to orient the indicia to the upright orientation when the housing is moved to the second orientation. The meter apparatus includes a cover removably coupled to the housing to enable access to the stencil in the display area.

Claims

1. An invertible meter apparatus for monitoring a media device, the invertible meter apparatus comprising:

a housing having a display area including a plurality of openings, the housing to be positioned in a first orientation or a second orientation different than the first orientation;

a plurality of lights supported by the housing, respective ones of the lights positioned to illuminate respective ones of the openings;

a stencil removably coupled to the display area of the housing, the stencil including a plurality of visual indicators, respective ones of the visual indicators to align with respective ones of the openings to enable light emitted from the respective ones of the lights passing through the respective ones of the openings to illuminate the respective ones of the visual indicators when the stencil is coupled to the display area, the visual indicators to be positioned in the display area of the housing in an upright orientation when the housing is in the first orientation, the stencil being repositionable to orient the visual indicators to the upright orientation when the housing is moved to the second orientation; and

a cover removably coupled to the housing to enable access to the stencil in the display area.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the stencil is interchangeable with another stencil.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the visual indicators are representative of different panelists.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the visual indicators include a plurality of numbers in ascending order.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the first orientation enables above-television mounting and the second orientation enables below-television mounting.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the visual indicators of the stencil are in a landscape orientation.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the visual indicators of the stencil are in a portrait orientation.

8. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the stencil includes a first stencil and a second stencil, the first stencil being interchangeable with the second stencil, the first stencil includes visual indicators in a landscape orientation and the second stencil includes visual indicators in a portrait orientation.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the stencil is a first stencil and further including a second stencil, the first stencil being interchangeable with the second stencil, the first stencil having first visual indicators in a first language and the second stencil having second visual indicators in a second language different than the first language, each of the first stencil and the second stencil to be positionable separately and removably in the display area of the housing.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the housing defines a recess to receive the stencil, the recess having a first profile corresponding to a second profile defined by a perimeter of the stencil, the perimeter of the stencil to engage an edge of the housing defined by the recess when the stencil is positioned in the recess, a portion of the stencil to extend beyond the edge defined by the recess when the stencil is positioned in the recess.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, further including a plurality of walls, respective ones of the walls positioned between respective ones of the openings.

23. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the portion of the stencil is a tab protruding from the perimeter of the stencil.

12. A method comprising:

positioning a housing of an invertible media device meter in a viewing orientation including at least one of a first viewing orientation or a second viewing orientation, the first viewing orientation being different than the second viewing orientation, the housing defining a plurality of openings;

selecting a stencil for a display area of the housing, the stencil having a plurality of visual indicators;

orientating the stencil to position the visual indicators in an upright orientation relative to the housing;

positioning the stencil in the display area of the housing with the visual indicators in the upright orientation such that respective ones of the visual indicators of the stencil align with respective ones of the openings of the housing to enable light passing through the respective ones of the openings to illuminate the respective ones of the visual indicators; and

attaching a cover to the housing.

13. A method comprising:

orientating a housing of an invertible media device meter in at least one of a first orientation or a second orientation, the first orientation being different than the second orientation, the housing having a plurality of openings and a plurality of lights, respective ones of the lights being in alignment with corresponding respective ones of the openings;

orientating a first stencil in an upright orientation relative to the housing when the housing is in the at least one of the first orientation or the second orientation such that respective ones of visual indicators of the first stencil align with corresponding respective ones of the openings to enable light from the respective ones of the lights to pass through the respective ones of the openings and illuminate the respective ones of the visual indicators; and

coupling the first stencil to the housing in the upright orientation.

14. The method of claim 13, further including mounting the housing to an upper surface of a media device when the housing is in the first orientation or mounting the housing to a lower surface of the media device when the housing is in the second orientation.

15. The method of claim 13, further including:

orientating the housing from the first orientation to the second orientation while the first stencil is positioned in the housing;

removing the first stencil from the housing;

reorienting the first stencil to the upright orientation; and

coupling the first stencil to the housing in the upright orientation when the housing is in the second orientation such that the respective ones of the visual indicators align with corresponding respective ones of the openings.

16. The method of claim 13, further including, prior to orientating the first stencil to the upright orientation, selecting the first stencil from a plurality of different stencils.

17. The method of claim 13, further including interchanging a second stencil previously included in the housing with the first stencil, the second stencil being different than the first stencil.

18. A method comprising:

rotating a housing of an invertible media device meter from a first mounting orientation to a second mounting orientation while a stencil is positioned in a display area of the housing, the first mounting orientation being different than the second mounting orientation;

removing a cover from the housing to access the stencil positioned in the display area when the housing is in the second orientation;

removing the stencil from the housing;

rotating the stencil to an upright orientation relative to the housing;

positioning the stencil in the display area in the upright orientation such that respective ones of a plurality of visual indicators of the stencil align with corresponding respective ones of a plurality of lights of the housing; and

coupling the cover to the housing to cover the stencil.

19. The method of claim 18, further including interchanging the stencil with a different stencil.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the rotating of the stencil includes inverting the stencil.

21. The method of claim 18, further including removing the housing from an upper surface of a media device prior to rotating the housing to the second orientation.

22. The method of claim 21, further including attaching the housing to a bottom surface of the media device opposite the upper surface after rotating the housing to the second orientation.