Graphical playlist

• US 20070204227A1
• Filed: 02/24/2006
• Published: 08/30/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 02/24/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Mobile Communications AB (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Mobile Communications AB (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kretz, Hans
• Granted Patent: US 8,739,062 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/727
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/68 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/034 on discs G11B27/036, G11B27/038 take precedence
• 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

Abstract

A method may include playing a number of media files and outputting a graph illustrating at least two pieces of information associated with each of the media files. A first axis of the graph may be associated with a first piece of information and a second axis of the graph may be associated with a second piece of information.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

playing a plurality of songs; and

outputting a graph illustrating at least two pieces of information associated with each of the plurality of songs, a first axis of the graph being associated with a first piece of information and a second axis of the graph being associated with a second piece of information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first piece of information comprises a year in which a song was recorded and the second piece of information comprises a genre of music associated with a song.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving input from a user identifying a portion of the plurality of songs represented in the graph; and

outputting titles of the identified portion of the plurality of songs.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the input received from the user comprises:

graphical input enclosing a number of points illustrated in the graph.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the input received from the user comprises:

input highlighting a number of points illustrated in the graph.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

identifying, for each of the plurality of songs, at least two of a year in which the song was recorded, a genre associated with the song, an artist associated with the song or a rating associated with the song; and

storing the identified information for each of the plurality of songs.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

generating the graph based on the identified information.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

displaying abbreviated titles for each of the plurality of songs in the graph.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving input from a user identifying a portion of the plurality of songs represented in the graph;

automatically identifying additional songs based on the identified portion of the plurality of songs; and

at least one of displaying a title or playing one of the additional songs.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the graph represents songs played over a first period of time by a first device, the method further comprising:

superimposing a second graph over the graph, the second graph representing songs played over a second period of time by the first device or songs played by a second device.

11. A device, comprising:

logic configured to play a plurality of songs; and

a display configured to;

display a graph illustrating information associated with each of the plurality of songs, a first axis of the graph being associated with a first item of information and a second axis of the graph being associated with a second item of information.

12. The device of claim 11, wherein the first and second items of information each comprise at least one of one of a year, a genre of music, an artist or a rating.

13. The device of claim 11, further comprising:

an input device configured to receive input from a user identifying at least a portion of the plurality of songs represented in the graph, wherein the display is further configured to;

display titles of the identified portion of the plurality of songs.

14. The device of claim 13, wherein the input from the user comprises:

graphical input enclosing a number of points illustrated in the graph.

15. The device of claim 13, wherein the input received from the user comprises:

input highlighting a number of points illustrated in the graph.

16. The device of claim 11, further comprising:

a transmitter configured to transmit the graph to a second device; and

a receiver configured to receive a second graph from the second device.

17. The device of claim 11, further comprising:

a memory,

wherein the logic is further configured to;

identify, for each of the plurality of songs, at least two of a year in which the song was recorded, a genre associated with the song, an artist associated with the song or a rating associated with the song, and

store the identified information for each of the plurality of songs in the memory.

18. The device of claim 17, wherein the logic is further configured to:

generate the graph based on the identified information for each of the plurality of songs.

19. The device of claim 11, further comprising:

an input device configured to receive input from a user identifying at least a portion of the plurality of songs represented in the graph,

wherein the logic is further configured to at least one of;

identify additional songs based on the identified portion of the plurality of songs.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein the logic is further configured to:

play one of the additional songs.

21. The device of claim 11, wherein the logic is further configured to:

provide a link to a music vendor on the display.

22. A computer-readable medium having stored thereon a plurality of sequences of instructions which, when executed by at least one processor, cause the processor to:

play a plurality of songs;

generate a graph illustrating information associated with each of the plurality of songs, a first axis of the graph being associated with a first item of information and a second axis of the graph being associated with a second item of information; and

output the graph to a display.

23. The computer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the first and second items of information each comprise at least one of a year in which a song was recorded, a genre of music, an artist or a rating.

24. The computer-readable medium of claim 22, wherein the instructions further cause the processor to:

receive graphical input from a user that at least one of encloses a number of points illustrated in the graph or highlights a number of points illustrated in the graph.

25. A device, comprising:

means for playing a plurality of files;

means for generating a graph illustrating information associated with each of the plurality of files, a first axis of the graph being associated with a first item of information and a second axis of the graph being associated with a second item of information; and

means for outputting the graph to a display.

26. The device of claim 25, wherein the plurality of files comprise at least one of music files, video files or video games.

27. A method for generating a playlist, comprising:

displaying a plurality of media files as data points on a multi-dimensional graph; and

selecting at least some of the data points to obtain the playlist.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein the multi-dimensional graph comprises at least one of a three dimensional graph or a four dimensional graph.