Methods and systems for testing ability to conduct a research operation

• US 8,185,351 B2
• Filed: 12/20/2006
• Issued: 05/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/20/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Arbitron Inc. (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Crystal, Jack C., Neuhauser, Alan R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Charioui, Mohamed
• Application Number:
  US11/643,161
• Publication Number:
  US 20070294057A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,980 Days
• Field of Search: 702/57, 702/58, 702/65, 702/69, 702 74- 77, 702/104, 702/106, 702/116, 702/120, 702/122, 702/126, 702/177, 702/183, 702/185, 702/186, 702/188, 455/2.01, 375/344, 725/11, 725/18
• US Class Current: 702/186
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/00 Administration; Management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0203 Market surveys; Market polls
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0208 Trade or exchange of goods or services in exchange for incentives or rewards
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3833 Hand-held transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/385 Transceivers carried on the body, e.g. in helmets
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/02 Services making use of location information
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

Methods and systems for testing an ability of a Portable User Appliance (PUA) and/or a research data gathering system coupled therewith are disclosed. A method for testing an ability of a PUA to carry out a research operation, comprises communicating a testing message to the PUA and/or research data gathering system coupled therewith, the testing message comprising one of a test command to test its ability to carry out a research operation, and test data to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof to test its ability to carry out a research operation.

Claims

1. A method for testing an ability of at least one of a portable user appliance (PUA) and a research data gathering system coupled therewith to carry out a research operation, comprising:

communicating a testing message to at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system, the testing message comprising at least one of;

a test command for the at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system to execute a testing function for testing an ability in advance to carry out a research operation, and

test data for the at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof to test its ability in advance to carry out a research operation; and

receiving a test result in response to the testing message.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the testing message comprises test data to be processed by the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to test an ability thereof to carry out a research operation.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the PUA implements a function for converting time-domain data to frequency-domain data, and the test data comprises time-domain data to be operated on by the function.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the test data comprises time-domain audio data.

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the PUA includes a clock and the test data is provided for testing an operational characteristic of the clock.

6. The method of claim 1, comprising processing the test data to provide a capability of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to test its ability to carry out a research operation.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the test data comprises software for running on a processor of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system, and processing the test data comprises storing the software therein.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the testing message serves to command the PUA to conduct a test of its ability to carry out a research operation as configured at the time of testing, or to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof to test its ability to carry out a research operation as configured at the time of testing.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the testing message serves to command the PUA to conduct a test of its ability to carry out a research operation if configured with hardware and/or software to interact with pre-existing hardware and/or software of the PUA, or to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof to test its ability to carry out a research operation if thus configured with hardware and/or software.

10. The method of claim 1, comprising, in response to the test command, conducting an operation of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to test its ability to carry out a research operation.

11. A method implemented in one of a portable user appliance (PUA) and a research data gathering system coupled therewith for testing an ability of at least one thereof to carry out a research operation, comprising:

receiving a testing message in at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system, the testing message comprising at least one of;

a test command for the at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system to execute a testing function for testing an ability in advance to carry out a research operation, and

test data for the at least one of the PUA and the research data gathering system to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof to test its ability in advance to carry out a research operation; and

carrying out a test of the ability of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to carry out a research operation in advance based on the at least one of the test command and the test data.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the testing message, received in the PUA, comprises test data to be processed by the PUA to test its ability thereof to carry out a research operation.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the research data gathering system comprises a function for converting time-domain data to frequency-domain data, and the test data comprises time-domain data to be operated on by the function.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the test data comprises time-domain audio data.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein the PUA includes a clock and the test data is provided for testing an operational characteristic of the clock when the testing message is received in the PUA.

16. The method of claim 11, comprising processing the test data to provide a capability of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to test its ability to carry out a research operation.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the test data comprises software for running on a processor of the PUA and/or the research data processing system and processing the test data comprises storing the software therein.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the test is carried out when production of data indicates one of a faulty operation and an inoperative state.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising communicating the results of the test to a processing facility.

20. The method of claim 11, wherein the testing message comprises a test command, and comprising, in response to the test command, conducting an operation of the PUA and/or the research data gathering system to test its ability to carry out a research operation.

21. A method of testing an ability of a research data gathering system implemented in a portable user appliance (PUA), or coupled therewith, to carry out a research operation, comprising:

conducting a test of the research data gathering system to produce test results data indicating, in advance, an ability of the research data gathering system to carry out a research operation, said test results data being produced in response to one of;

a test command received at the research data gathering system for executing a testing function, and

test data received at the research data gathering system to establish, enable or provide a capability thereof; and

communicating the test results data from the PUA to a test data processing facility.

22. The method of claim 21, comprising conducting the test in response to the occurrence of a predetermined event.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the predetermined event comprises receipt of a test request message by the PUA and/or the research data gathering system coupled therewith.

24. The method of claim 22, wherein the predetermined event comprises the occurrence of an operational condition within the research data gathering system.

25. The method of claim 22, wherein the predetermined event comprises the occurrence of a predetermined time.

26. The method of claim 21, comprising receiving test data in the PUA and/or the research data gathering system coupled therewith for use in conducting the test.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein the research data gathering system comprises a time domain to frequency domain conversion function, the test data comprises data having a predetermined frequency content, and conducting the test comprises supplying the test data to the conversion function and gathering frequency data as an output of the conversion function.