INPUT DEVICE WITH AN ACCELEROMETER

• US 20110159857A1
• Filed: 11/24/2010
• Published: 06/30/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 11/25/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Visa International Service Association (Visa, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Visa International Service Association (Visa, Inc.)
• Inventors: Faith, Patrick, Hammad, Ayman, Carlson, Mark
• Granted Patent: US 8,260,269 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/414.3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/00 Security arrangements for protecting computers, components thereof, programs or data against unauthorised activity
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2218/00 Aspects of pattern recognition specially adapted for signal processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0261 based on user location
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/20 Movements or behaviour, e.g. gesture recognition recognition of facial expressions G06V40/16
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0861 using biometrical features, e.g. fingerprint, retina-scan cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication using biological data H04L9/3231
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/812 involving advertisement data advertising per se G06Q30/02
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/18 Information format or content conversion, e.g. adaptation by the network of the transmitted or received information for the purpose of wireless delivery to users or terminals

Abstract

Methods, devices, and systems are described for bumping a mobile device, such as a smart phone, against a fixed poster board display at a store to initiate a download of coupons, advertisements, or other benefits to the mobile device. Products can be rated by a user'"'"'s up/down bump or other bump patterns. Using accelerometer-based inertial measurements, multiple users can control multiple mouse cursors on a large display with their mobile devices in order to select information to be downloaded to their mobile devices.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a first message from a mobile device, the first message indicating a bump sensed by an accelerometer coupled to the mobile device;

receiving a second message from a second device, the second message indicating a bump sensed by the second device;

temporally correlating the messages from the mobile and second devices as an event;

determining a benefit associated with the second device; and

sending data associated with the benefit to the mobile device based on the event.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the second device comprises a poster display.

3. The method of claim 2 wherein:

the poster display comprises multiple bump areas; and

the benefit is associated with an area bumped by the mobile device.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the data associated with the benefit includes a coupon having a bar code.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein the second message indicates a bump sensed by a pressure sensitive transducer coupled to the second device.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein the second message indicates a bump sensed by an accelerometer coupled to the second device.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein the mobile device comprises a smart phone.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein determining a benefit associated with the second device includes sending to a database a request for an advertisement or coupon and receiving the advertisement or coupon from the database.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

determining a telephone number associated with the mobile device; and

sending data associated with the benefit in a multimedia messaging service (MMS) message to the telephone number.

10. A method comprising:

receiving a first message from a mobile device, the first message indicating a bump sensed by an accelerometer coupled to the mobile device;

receiving a second message from a second device displaying a benefit, the second message indicating a bump sensed by the second device;

temporally correlating the messages from the mobile and second devices as an event; and

recording the event,

thereby allowing future analysis of a consumer'"'"'s acknowledgement of the benefit.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

receiving a list of products from the mobile device based on the event;

looking up information about each product in the list of products; and

sending the information about each product.

12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

displaying the information on a display.

13. The method of claim 10 wherein the information about each product includes a location of each product in a store.

14. The method of claim 10 wherein:

at least one of the first message and second messages indicates a bump intensity; and

the bump intensity is recorded with the event.

15. The method of claim 10 wherein:

at least one of the first message and second messages indicates a multiple bump pattern; and

the multiple bump pattern is recorded with the event.

16. The method of claim 10 wherein:

at least one of the first message and second messages indicates a bump direction; and

the bump direction is recorded with the event.

17. A method comprising:

receiving a first pointer location on a fixed display from a first mobile device;

receiving a second pointer location on the fixed display from a second mobile device;

displaying simultaneously a first cursor at the first pointer location and a second cursor at the second pointer location;

receiving a selection indicator from the first mobile device; and

recording a selection based on the selection indicator and the first pointer location,

thereby allowing future analysis of a user'"'"'s selection on the fixed display.

18. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

sending information to the first mobile device based on the selection indicator and the first pointer location.

19. The method of claim 18 wherein the information comprises an advertisement or coupon.

20. The method of claim 17 further comprising:

receiving a second selection indicator from the second mobile device; and

recording a second selection based on the second selection indicator and the second pointer location,

thereby allowing a second user'"'"'s selection on the fixed display nearly simultaneously to another user'"'"'s selection.