Behavior monitoring and reinforcement system and method

• US 8,560,344 B2
• Filed: 08/28/2012
• Issued: 10/15/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ZAMA Innovations LLC
• Original Assignee: Ace Ideas LLC
• Inventors: Earles, Alison C., Pawlan, Jeffrey
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TRAN N
• Application Number:
  US13/596,215
• Publication Number:
  US 20130018727A1
• Time in Patent Office: 413 Days
• Field of Search: 705/2
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0207 Discounts or incentives, e.g. coupons or rebates
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/08 Insurance
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/70 relating to mental therapies, e.g. psychological therapy or autogenous training
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/60 for the operation of medical equipment or devices

Abstract

A system, method and computer software that provides for a computer implemented system and method for comprehensive reinforcement of human behavior by capturing environmental information for participants and reinforcing their daily choices in their environments. Unique applications of technology are used to record, reinforce and document the desired behavior activities of participants in order to track, promote, encourage and further reward the desired behavior.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for comprehensive reinforcement of human behavior, comprising:

a. with a computing device, storing information to enroll a plurality of individuals such that the individuals become participants in a comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan established by a sponsor entity, wherein the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan is designed to encourage one or more desired behaviors for the participants;

b. with the computing device, storing baseline data or measurements related to the one or more desired behaviors or its impact on the one or more desired behaviors for each participant;

c. with the computing device, computing one or more handicapping factors for a participant based on the baseline data or measurements for that participant;

d. with the computing device, receiving activity data that represents participant activities that are relevant to the one or more desired behaviors for each participant;

e. with the computing device, computing for each participant performance measurement data that represents the participant'"'"'s progress towards achievement of the one or more desired behaviors based on the activity data received for that participant;

f. with the computing device, comparing the performance measurement data for a particular participant, adjusted for the particular participant'"'"'s handicapping factor, with respect to the performance measurement data for one or more other participants, adjusted for their handicapping factor; and

g. with the computing device, presenting the performance measurement data to the corresponding participant.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein (a) storing comprises assigning participants to one of a plurality of groups, wherein (e) computing comprises computing group performance measurement data based on the participant performance measurement data for participants in the corresponding group, and wherein (g) presenting comprises presenting the group performance measurement data to participants of the corresponding group and to participants of other groups.

3. The method of claim 2, and further comprising, with the computing device, computing one or more group-based incentives for which the groups compete against each other, and determining whether a particular group achieves the one or more group-based incentives based on the aggregate performance measurement data adjusted for the handicapping factors of the participants of the particular group as compared with the aggregate performance measurement data adjusted for the handicapping factors of the participants of each of the other groups.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan is designed to improve the health of the participants, and wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving activity data related to participant activities that are related to health improvement.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving from equipment deployed in or near a facility where the participants frequent physical activity data that detect identity, time and location information of the participants in or near the facility, and further comprising analyzing the physical activity data to assign a measurement value thereto.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving activity data from point of transaction equipment that enables participants to voluntarily identify themselves and register an event related to health improvement of the participant.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein (a) storing, (b) storing and (g) presenting are performed in compliance with laws and/or regulations governing privacy and security for health related information.

8. The method of claim 7, and further comprising, with the computing device, receiving from a participant an authorization to permit otherwise unauthorized entities to have access to a participant'"'"'s baseline behavior information and/or performance measurement data, and storing the authorization received from the participant, and wherein said receiving and storing of the authorization is performed in compliance with said laws and/or regulations governing privacy an security for health related information.

9. The method of claim 1, and further comprising, with the computing device, computing one or more incentives for the participants that are designed to encourage the participants to achieve the one or more desired behaviors of the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan, and determining whether a participant has achieved the one more incentives based on the participant'"'"'s performance measurement data adjusted for the participant'"'"'s one or more handicapping factors.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the sponsor entity is an employer and participants are employees of said employer, and further comprising, with the computing device, receiving one or more of:

information related to the work environment provided by said employer;

impact of the work environment and effect on the one or more desired behaviors; and

information related to potential economic impact to the employer of the one or more desired behaviors.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein (g) presenting comprises presenting performance measurement data concurrent with advertisement content from one or more advertisers that supply goods and/or services that are related to and supportive of the desired one or more behaviors.

12. The method of claim 1, and further comprising, with the computing device, computing an economic impact of improvement of behaviors of the participants;

and computing data identifying and/or describing parameters for the one or more desired behaviors based on said economic impact.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving one or more of:

data indicating a measure of physical activity of a participant related to the one or more desired behaviors;

data from a point of transaction system that indicates proof of purchase of items or services associated with the one or more desired behaviors;

data indicating presence of a participant at a facility relevant to the one or more desired behaviors;

data from a body-attachable activity monitor device on a participant that indicates a measure of an activity related to the one or more desired behaviors.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving the data through one or a combination of a wide area wireless and/or wired network and local area wireless and/or wired network.

15. The method of claim 1, and further comprising, with the computing device, storing data representing audio, video and/or text encouragement messages from one or more individuals associated with the sponsor entity at the time the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan is established, and delivering at a later time the encouragement messages to participants.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein (e) computing further comprises computing values that indicate degree of improvement or achievement of the one or more desired behaviors by a participant.

17. The method of claim 1, and further comprising, with the computing device, storing for each participant data representing points awarded to a participant based on the degree of improvement or achievement of the one or more desired behaviors by the participant, and the participants redeeming their points at a supplier of goods or services.

18. The method of claim 1, and further comprising generating for each individual that becomes a participant, unique de-identification information that is used to track a participants progress in the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan, wherein said de-identification information does not contain any information that directly reveals an identity of the participant, wherein (a) storing through (g) presenting are performed with respect to de-identification information for each individual that becomes a participant.

19. The method of claim 1, wherein (b) storing comprises storing baseline behavior information which includes information describing physical and behavioral characteristics of an environment where a participant is on a daily basis, wherein (d) receiving comprises receiving activity data representing a participant'"'"'s activity and behavioral choices in said environment, and wherein (g) presenting comprises presenting one or more messages to a participant to reinforce the participant'"'"'s daily activity and behavioral choices in their environment.

20. A comprehensive behavior reinforcement system, comprising:

a. one or more computing devices that receive, store and process data;

b. a plurality of activity data capture devices connected to the one or more computing devices by one or more;

of a wired or wireless wide area and wired or wireless local area network;

c. wherein the one or more computing devices perform functions of;

i. storing information to enroll a plurality of individuals such that the individuals become participants in a comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan established by a sponsor entity, wherein the comprehensive behavior reinforcement plan is designed to encourage one or more desired behaviors for the participants;

ii. storing baseline data or measurements related to the one or more desired behaviors or its impact on the one or more desired behaviors for each participant;

iii. computing one or more handicapping factors for a participant based on the baseline data or measurements for that participant;

iv. collecting the activity data from the plurality of activity data capture devices;

v. computing for each participant performance measurement data that represents the participant'"'"'s progress towards achievement of the one or more desired behaviors based on the activity data received for that participant;

vi. comparing the performance measurement data for a particular participant, adjusted for the particular participant'"'"'s handicapping factor, with respect to the performance measurement data for one or more other participants, adjusted for their handicapping factor; and

vii. communicating with a participant at the time of activity data collection to reinforce the one or more desired behaviors.