ELECTRONIC PERSONAL COMPANION

• US 20170161811A1
• Filed: 11/21/2016
• Published: 06/08/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/30/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sky Prescott Fish
• Original Assignee: Robert Douglas Fish
• Inventors: FISH, Robert D., Fish, Skylar P.
• Granted Patent: US 10,055,771 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/29 Geographical information databases
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/337 Profile generation, learning or modification
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/907 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/908 using metadata automatically derived from the content
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9535 Search customisation based on user profiles and personalisation
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0613 Third-party assisted
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/01 Social networking
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/20 in augmented reality scenes
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/00 Teaching not covered by other main groups of this subclass teaching or practice apparatus for gun-aiming or gun-laying F41G3/26
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/00 Electrically-operated educational appliances working with questions and answers G09B7/00; simulators G09B9/00; advertising or displaying in general G09F
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 7/00 Electrically-operated teaching apparatus or devices working with questions and answers mechanically operated G09B3/00; computing arrangements G06F
• CPC Class Codes: G10L 15/22 Procedures used during a speech recognition process, e.g. man-machine dialogue
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/44 Receiver circuitry for the reception of television signals according to analogue transmission standards H04N5/14 takes precedence

Abstract

Personal companions crowd-source and/or crowd-share characterizations, and optionally raw data, from real-world, virtual and/or mixed-reality experiences. Characterizations can advantageously be stored in one or more self-evolving, structured databases, and can be organized according to objects, actions, events and thoughts. Characterizations can be weighted differently for different users, and “forgotten” over time, especially in favor of maintaining higher level characterizations. Personal companions can be used to obtain additional information, and conduct interpersonal, commercial, or other interactions or transactions.

Claims

1. A system comprising a device having electronics configured to interact with a human being as follows:

crowd-source characteristic-value pairs for objects and actions from a plurality users;

infer a correlation between at least one object and at least one action based on the crowd-sourced characteristic-value pairs;

(e.g., You usually order a latte from Starbucks in the morning)

store the correlation and the characteristic-value pairs of the objects and actions in a distal service;

passively obtain sensor-based ambient data corresponding to an environment of a user;

recognize a situation of the user from the passively obtained sensor-based ambient data;

(recognize that the user is heading to the Starbucks)

deduce that the at least one object is relevant to the situation based in part on the derived correlation; and

initiate an action with respect to the at least one object. [0184]-[0185] (attempt to circumvent 101 issue here) (e.g., order a latte from that Starbucks via the Internet)

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the electronics is further configured to initiate the action with respect to the at least one object by initiating a transaction with respect to the at least one object.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the device includes further electronics sufficient to conduct an e-commerce transaction.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the electronics is further configured to initiate the action with respect to the at least one object by initiating a conversation comprising at least a question and an answer with the user.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the device includes an image sensor, and the ambient data includes image data produced by the image sensor.

6. The system of claim 1, wherein the ambient data includes at least one of image data received from a source external to the housing of the device, sound data, and biometric data.

7. The system of claim 1, wherein the electronics is further configured to crowd-source characteristic-value pairs for objects and actions from a plurality users by:

receive sensor-based ambient data corresponding to an object located within an environment of a first user;

utilize the information derived from the ambient data to initiate an audible, at least partially computer generated, question and answer conversation with the first user, by asking a question to the first user on characterizing the object;

receive an answer from the first user in response to the question;

utilize the answer to infer a characteristic-value pair that characterizes the object; and

bind the characteristic-value pair to the physical item.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the electronics is further configured to:

send information derived from the ambient data to a service distal from the device; and

receive a proposed identification from the distal service, and relate the proposed identification to the first user as part of the audible conversation.

9. The system of claim 8, wherein the information sent to the distal service comprises at least a portion of the ambient data.

10. The system of claim 8, wherein the information sent to the distal service comprises a matrix manipulation of at least a portion of the ambient data.

11. The system of claim 8, wherein the information sent to the distal service comprises a textual characterization of a feature of at least a portion of the object.

12. The system of claim 8, wherein the information sent to the distal service comprises a non-textual characterization of a feature of at least a portion of the object.

13. The system of claim 8, wherein the electronics is further configured to receive an address from the distal service, and to obtain additional information about the item by contacting the address.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the address comprises at least one of a telephone number, an email address, a SMS address, and a social networking address, and the additional information comprises at least one of price, availability, options, physical characteristics, and consumer comments.

15. The system of claim 8, wherein the electronics is further configured to receive a comment from the distal service, and render the comment as part of the audible conversation.

16. The system of claim 8, wherein the device further comprises a display apparatus, and wherein the electronics is further configured to receive image data from the distal service, and to render the image data using the display apparatus.

17. The system of claim 1, wherein the situation comprises at least one of an object, an action, and an event within the environment.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the electronics is further configured to receive an item of stored information from the distal service, and to use the item of stored information to recognize the situation.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the electronics is further configured to receive an item of stored information from the distal service, and to use the item of stored information to refrain from saying something in response to the device recognizing the situation.