Media exposure linking utilizing bluetooth signal characteristics

• US 9,313,286 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2014
• Issued: 04/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Jain, Anand, Stavropoulos, John, Neuhauser, Alan, Lynch, Wendell, Kuznetsov, Vladimir, Crystal, Jack
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Tuan A
• Application Number:
  US14/303,032
• Publication Number:
  US 20140295764A1
• Time in Patent Office: 670 Days
• Field of Search: 455/3.01, 455/3.05, 455/3.06, 455/456.1, 455/456.5, 455/456.6, 455/457, 455/41.2, 455/500, 455/507, 455/509, 455/513, 455/514, 455/67.11, 455/67.13, 455/68, 455/69
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 24/08 Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0245 according to signal strength
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A computer-implemented method for establishing media data exposure for a computer processing device, where media data received in the computer processing device. The computer processing device pairs itself with a plurality of portable computing devices using a Bluetooth connection when media data is received. A signal strength characteristic of the Bluetooth connection is established in the computer processing device for each of the paired plurality of portable computing devices. Each signal strength characteristic with the received media data is then established to determine which signal strength characteristic is the strongest when the media data was received in the computer processing device.

Claims

1. An apparatus to monitor media exposure via a computer, comprising:

a processor; and

a storage memory comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

pair the computer with a plurality of portable devices using corresponding Bluetooth connections when media is received at the computer;

obtain signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections for corresponding ones of the paired plurality of portable devices; and

associate the signal strength characteristics with the received media to facilitate determining which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media data was received in the computer.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for the respective portable devices during the time at which the media was received at the computer.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, cause the processor to send the signal strength characteristics associated with the received media to a server to facilitate awarding media exposure credit to the portable device with a strongest signal strength characteristic at the time the media was received at the computer.

8. An apparatus to collect media exposure data, comprising:

a processor; and

a storage memory comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

obtain media exposure data relating to media data that was received in a computer,

obtain a plurality of signal strength characteristics relating to Bluetooth connections made between the computer and a plurality of portable devices;

associate respective ones of the signal strength characteristics with the media; and

determine which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media was received in the computer.

9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

10. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

11. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

13. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for the corresponding portable devices during the time at which the media is received in the computer.

14. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, cause the processor to send the signal strength characteristics associated with the media to a server to facilitate awarding media exposure credit to one of the portable devices with a strongest signal strength characteristic at the time the media was received in the computer.

15. An apparatus to monitor media exposure via a computer processing device, comprising:

a processor; and

a storage memory comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause the processor to;

store media exposure data relating to media received in the computer;

obtain pairing data related to the pairing of the computer with a plurality of portable devices using Bluetooth connections when the media is received in the computer;

process signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections for corresponding ones of the paired plurality of portable devices;

associate respective ones of the signal strength characteristics with the media to facilitate determining which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media was received in the computer; and

associate a strongest signal strength characteristic of the signal strength characteristics with the media exposure data.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

20. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for respective ones of the portable devices during the time at which the media was received at the computer.

21. A computer readable storage device or storage disk comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to at least:

pair the computer with a plurality of portable devices using corresponding Bluetooth connections when media is received at the computer;

obtain signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections for corresponding ones of the paired plurality of portable devices; and

associate the signal strength characteristics with the received media to facilitate determining which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media was received in the computer.

22. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 21, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

23. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 21, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

24. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 21, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

25. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 24, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

26. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 24, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for the respective portable devices during the time at which the media was received at the computer.

27. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 21, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to send the signal strength characteristics associated with the received media to a server to facilitate awarding media exposure credit to the portable device with a strongest signal strength characteristic at the time the media was received at the computer.

28. A computer readable storage device or storage disk comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to at least:

obtain media exposure data relating to media that was received in a computer;

obtain a plurality of signal strength characteristics relating to Bluetooth connections made between the computer and a plurality of portable devices;

associate respective ones of the signal strength characteristics the media; and

determine which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media was received in the computer.

29. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 28, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

30. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 28, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

31. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 28, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

32. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 31, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

33. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 31, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for the corresponding ones of the portable devices during the time at which the media is received in the computer.

34. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 28, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to send the signal strength characteristics associated with the media to a server to facilitate awarding media exposure credit to one of the portable devices with a strongest signal strength characteristic at the time the media was received in the computer.

35. A computer readable storage device or storage disk comprising computer readable instructions that, when executed, cause a processor to at least:

store media exposure data relating to media received in the computer;

obtain pairing data related to the pairing of the computer with a plurality of portable devices using Bluetooth connections when the media is received at the computer;

process signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections for corresponding ones of the paired plurality of portable devices;

associate respective ones of the signal strength characteristics with the media to facilitate determining which of the signal strength characteristics was the strongest when the media was received in the computer; and

associate the strongest signal strength characteristic of the signal strength characteristics with the media exposure data.

36. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 35, wherein the media comprises at least one of audio, video, audio/video, text, an image, a web page or streaming media.

37. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 35, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to collect exposure data relating to the media, the exposure data comprising at least one of a cookie, a logfile or a page tag.

38. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 35, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections comprise a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) value.

39. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 38, wherein the signal strength characteristics of the Bluetooth connections further comprise at least one of a Transmit Power Level (TPL) value or a Link Quality (LQ) value.

40. The computer readable storage device or storage disk of claim 38, wherein the computer readable instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to generate an overall signal strength by averaging the RSSI values for respective ones of the portable devices during the time at which the media was received at the computer.