Gesture-related feedback in eletronic entertainment system

• US 8,380,119 B2
• Filed: 05/15/2008
• Issued: 02/19/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 05/15/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Rubio, Vasco, Filer, Eric, Reas, Loren Douglas, Tom, Dennis W.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hu, Kang
• Application Number:
  US12/121,240
• Publication Number:
  US 20090286601A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 434/247, 434/307.A, 434/308, 434/167, 463/1, 463/7, 463/37, 345/156, 345/161, 345173-175, 381 56- 59, 381/61, 381/124
• US Class Current: 434/307.A
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/013 Eye tracking input arrangements G06F3/015 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 17/3295 Games involving skill, e.g. dexterity, memory, thinking
• 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: G10H 1/0008 Associated control or indicating means
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 1/361 Recording/reproducing of accompaniment for use with an external source, e.g. karaoke systems
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2210/091 for performance evaluation, i.e. judging, grading or scoring the musical qualities or faithfulness of a performance, e.g. with respect to pitch, tempo or other timings of a reference performance
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/201 for movement interpretation, i.e. capturing and recognizing a gesture or a specific kind of movement, e.g. to control a musical instrument
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/211 for microphones, i.e. control of musical parameters either directly from microphone signals or by physically associated peripherals, e.g. karaoke control switches or rhythm sensing accelerometer within the microphone casing microphones per se H04R
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/395 Acceleration sensing or accelerometer use, e.g. 3D movement computation by integration of accelerometer data, angle sensing with respect to the vertical, i.e. gravity sensing. conductor baton movement sensing G10H2220/206, angle sensing without reference to gravity G10H2220/391; player body joint angle sensing G10H2220/321
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2220/401 3D sensing, i.e. three-dimensional (x, y, z) position or movement sensing. movement pattern or gesture sensing G10H2220/201; geolocation sensing G10H2220/355, 3D sensing with accelerometer G10H2220/395
• CPC Class Codes: G10H 2240/211 Wireless transmission, e.g. of music parameters or control data by radio, infrared or ultrasound beam G10H2220/405
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2499/11 Transducers incorporated or for use in hand-held devices, e.g. mobile phones, PDA's, camera's

Abstract

Various embodiments related to providing user feedback in an electronic entertainment system are disclosed herein. For example, one disclosed embodiment provides a method of providing user feedback in a karaoke system, comprising inviting a microphone gesture input from a user, receiving the microphone gesture input from the user via one or more motion sensors located on a microphone, comparing the microphone gesture input to an expected gesture input, rating the microphone gesture input based upon comparing the microphone gesture input to the expected gesture input, and providing feedback to the user based upon the rating.

Claims

1. A method of providing user feedback in a karaoke system, the karaoke system comprising a microphone with one or more motion sensors, the karaoke system also comprising an entertainment controller in communication with the microphone, the method comprising:

inviting a microphone gesture input from a user;

receiving the microphone gesture input from the user via the one or more motion sensors;

receiving an audio input from the user;

comparing the microphone gesture input and the audio input to an expected gesture input and an expected audio input;

determining a rating for a user performance based upon comparing the microphone gesture input to the expected gesture input and the audio input to the expected audio input; and

providing feedback to the user based upon the rating.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein inviting a microphone gesture input comprises displaying on a display a gesture to be imitated by the user.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising detecting a setting down of the microphone on a surface via the one or more motion sensors, and then changing a mode of the microphone from an operating mode to an inactive mode.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising detecting a lifting of the microphone from the surface, and then changing the mode of the microphone from the inactive mode to the operating mode.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising sending the microphone gesture input to the entertainment controller for comparing to the expected gesture input.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein sending the microphone gesture input comprises sending data periodically from the one or more motion sensors to the entertainment controller.

7. A method of providing feedback to a karaoke user, comprising:

inviting a user to imitate an expected gesture input by performing a microphone gesture input;

receiving the microphone gesture input from the user via a microphone that comprises an audio receiver and one or more motion sensors;

receiving an audio input from the user;

sending the microphone gesture input and the audio input from the microphone to an entertainment controller;

at the entertainment controller, comparing the microphone gesture input from the microphone to the expected gesture input and the audio input to an expected audio input;

determining a rating for a user performance based upon comparing the microphone gesture input to the expected gesture input and comparing the audio input to the expected audio input; and

sending the rating to the microphone.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein inviting a microphone gesture input comprises displaying on a display the expected gesture input to be imitated by the user.

9. The method of claim 7, further comprising detecting a setting down of the microphone onto a surface via the one or more motion sensors, and then changing a mode of the microphone from an operating mode to an inactive mode.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising detecting a lifting of the microphone from the surface, and then changing the mode of the microphone from the inactive mode to the operating mode.

11. The method of claim 7, wherein sending the microphone gesture input comprises sending a stream of periodic data from the one or more motion sensors.

12. A karaoke system, comprising:

an entertainment controller configured to control a presentation of a karaoke audio/video selection to a user;

a hand-held wireless microphone in communication with the entertainment controller and comprising an audio receiver and one or more motion sensors;

code stored on the entertainment controller and executable to receive a gesture input and a vocal input sent by the microphone, to assign a rating to a user performance based upon a comparison of the gesture input and the vocal input to an expected gesture input and expected vocal input, and to send the rating to the microphone; and

code stored on the microphone and executable to receive the gesture input and the vocal input, to send the gesture input and the vocal input to the entertainment controller, and to provide user feedback based upon the rating.

13. The karaoke system of claim 12, wherein the one or more motion sensors comprises a three-axis accelerometer.

14. The karaoke system of claim 12, wherein the microphone further comprises one or more light sources, and further comprising code stored on one or more of the microphone and the entertainment controller and executable to provide user feedback via the one or more light sources.

15. The karaoke system of claim 12, wherein the entertainment controller is configured to be connected to a display, and further comprising code stored on the entertainment controller and executable to display on the display a gesture to be imitated by the user.

16. The karaoke system of claim 12, further comprising code executable to detect a setting down of the microphone on a surface via the one or more motion sensors, and then to change a mode of the microphone from an operating mode to an inactive mode.

17. The karaoke system of claim 12, wherein the code executable to send the gesture input and the vocal input to the entertainment controller comprises code executable to periodically send data from the one or more motion sensors to the entertainment controller.