Promoting exploration

• US 8,388,427 B2
• Filed: 06/16/2011
• Issued: 03/05/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/16/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Yariv, Eran, Fitoussi, Hen
• Primary Examiner(s): Ahmed, Masud
• Application Number:
  US13/162,551
• Publication Number:
  US 20120323347A1
• Time in Patent Office: 628 Days
• Field of Search: 463 31- 42, 463/9, 705/7
• US Class Current: 463/9
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/798 for assessing skills or for ranking players, e.g. for generating a hall of fame computing the game score A63F13/46
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/5573 player location
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/558 by assessing the players' skills or ranking
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/029 Location-based management or tracking services

Abstract

Exploration outside of a person'"'"'s normal area may be detected and rewarded. In one example, a game (or other type of application) may be built around such exploration. A device carried by a user (pursuant to appropriate permission obtained from the user) may report the user'"'"'s location to a presence detector. The presence detector may use this information to build a heat map, indicating the user'"'"'s areas of common presence. When the location information received from the device indicates that the user has ventured outside of the user'"'"'s area of common presence, this exploration event may be rewarded with an increase in the user'"'"'s score. The user'"'"'s score may be published on social media.

Claims

1. One or more computer-readable storage media that store executable instructions to encourage exploration of a physical area, the executable instructions, when executed by a computer, causing the computer to perform acts comprising:

maintaining an exploration score for a user;

first determining where said user is located;

second determining, based on a heat map of said user'"'"'s historical movement, that said user is physically outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence;

based on said user'"'"'s being in a place that is outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence, increasing said user'"'"'s exploration score; and

publishing said user'"'"'s exploration score,

said user having previously visited said place before said first determining, said acts further comprising;

third determining an amount of time that has passed between said user'"'"'s previously visiting said place and said first determining, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on said amount of time.

2. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on a non-likelihood of said user'"'"'s being in said place.

3. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on a duration of time since said user has been outside of said area of common presence.

4. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, said acts further comprising:

determining a distance between said place and said user'"'"'s area of common presence, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on said distance.

5. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, said publishing comprising:

posting said user'"'"'s score, or an indication of where said user has traveled to, on a social medium.

6. The one or more computer-readable storage media of claim 1, said acts further comprising:

displaying a score board showing exploration scores of a plurality of users, including said user.

7. A method of encouraging exploration of a physical area, the method comprising:

using a processor to perform acts comprising;

receiving a plurality of location data indicating a user'"'"'s location at points in time;

first determining, based on said plurality of location data, said user'"'"'s area of common presence;

second determining where said user is located at a point in time;

third determining, based on said user'"'"'s area of common presence, that said user is, at said point in time, physically in a place that is outside of said area of common presence;

based on said user'"'"'s being in a place that is outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence, increasing an exploration score of said user; and

publishing said user'"'"'s exploration score,

said user having previously visited said place before said second determining, said acts further comprising;

determining a amount of time that has passed between said user'"'"'s previously visiting said place and said point in time, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on said amount of time.

8. The method of claim 7, said acts further comprising:

using a heat map of said user'"'"'s historical locations to determine a likelihood of said user'"'"'s being in said place, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on said likelihood.

9. The method of claim 7, said acts further comprising:

determining a distance between said area of common presence and said place, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on said distance.

10. The method of claim 7, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score being based on an amount of time since said user has been outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence.

11. The method of claim 7, said publishing comprising:

posting said user'"'"'s score, or an indication of where said user has traveled to, on a social medium.

12. The method of claim 7, said acts further comprising:

displaying a score board showing exploration scores of a plurality of users, including said user.

13. A system for encouraging exploration of a physical area, the system comprising:

a memory;

a processor;

a score generator that maintains an exploration score for a user;

an exploration detector that determines where said user is located and that determines, based on a heat map of said user'"'"'s historical movement, that said user is physically outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence, said score generator increasing, based on said user'"'"'s being in a place that is outside of said user'"'"'s area of common presence, said user'"'"'s exploration score; and

a score publisher that publishes said user'"'"'s exploration score, said user having previously visited said place plural times, said score generator determining an amount of time that has passed between said user'"'"'s visits to said place, said score generator increasing said user'"'"'s score based on said amount of time.

14. The system of claim 13, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score by said score generator being based on a non-likelihood of said user'"'"'s being in said place.

15. The system of claim 13, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score by said score generator being based on a duration of time since said user has been outside of said area of common presence.

16. The system of claim 13, said score generator determining a distance between said place and said user'"'"'s area of common presence, said increasing of said user'"'"'s score by said score generator being based on said distance.

17. The system of claim 13, further comprising:

a score publisher that posts said user'"'"'s score, or an indication of where said user has traveled to, on a social medium.