Automatic Personal Play List Generation Based on External Factors Such as Weather, Financial Market, Media Sales or Calendar Data

• US 20080189319A1
• Filed: 02/13/2006
• Published: 08/07/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 02/15/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Nielen, Martinus S., Vrijsen, Alexander P.P., Burge, Stuart, Willekens, Marc
• Granted Patent: US 8,161,039 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/102
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/637 Administration of user profiles, e.g. generation, initialization, adaptation or distribution
• 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 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2220/20 Disc-shaped record carriers
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/102 Programmed access in sequence to addressed parts of tracks of operating record carriers access by moving the head G11B3/08, G11B5/54, G11B7/085, G11B21/022; by moving the record carrier G11B15/005, G11B17/005, by driving of both record carrier and head G11B15/1816
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/11 by using information not detectable on the record carrier
• 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: H04N 21/4668 for recommending content, e.g. movies
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4825 using a list of items to be played back in a given order, e.g. playlists
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/8106 involving special audio data, e.g. different tracks for different languages
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/916 Audio

Abstract

A play list of songs or other media items is automatically generated (380) based on external factors (314, 324, 334) such as weather conditions, stock market conditions, sales of songs, or calendar data, e.g., day of week, holidays or user designated dates such as birthdays, anniversaries and the like. External data (310, 320, 330) relating to the external factors can be received (115) from a radio broadcast, Internet link, or link to a vehicle computer, for instance. The external data is mapped (360) to media items to obtain matching media items (370) for the play list. The mapping may also account for user preferences (145). The user may select (305) the external factor, which represents the mood and/or current preferences of the user in a much better way than the conventional criteria such as genre, artist or album alone.

Claims

1. A method for generating a play list of media items for a media player (100), comprising:

mapping (360) at least one external factor (314, 324, 334) to a plurality of media items to select at least one of the plurality of media items as at least one matching media item (370); and

generating a play list (380) comprising the at least one matching media item.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving data, from an external source (310, 320, 330) relating to the at least one external factor;

wherein the mapping is responsive to the data from the external source.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the mapping is initiated responsive to a user selecting (305) the at least one external factor.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the mapping is initiated responsive to a user selecting (305) the at least one external factor from among a plurality of available external factors.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one external factor relates to a weather condition.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one external factor relates to a financial market condition.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one external factor relates to sales of media items.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one external factor relates to calendar data (105).

9. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the calendar data relates to a day of the week (405).

10. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the calendar data relates to a season (405).

11. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the calendar data relates to a holiday (405).

12. The method of claim 8, wherein:

the calendar data relates to a special date designated by a user (410).

13. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the at least one external factor relates to a time of day.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the play list is fixed once generated even when changes in the at least one external factor are detected by the media player.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the generated play list is updated when changes in the at least one external factor are detected by the media player.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the mapping uses meta data (340) associated with the plurality of media items.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the mapping is responsive to user preferences (145).

18. A media player, comprising:

a user interface (110, 200) for receiving a user command (305) selecting at least one external factor (314, 324, 334); and

at least one processor (130), responsive to the user command, for mapping (360) the at least one external factor to a plurality of media items to select at least one of the plurality of media items as at least one matching media item (370), and generating a play list (380) comprising the at least one matching media item.

19. At least one program storage device tangibly embodying instructions that are executable by at least one processor for performing a method for generating a play list of media items for a media player, the method comprising:

mapping (360) at least one external factor (314, 324, 334) to a plurality of media items to select at least one of the plurality of media items as at least one matching media item (370); and

generating a play list (380) comprising the at least one matching media item.