Optical narrowcasting augmented reality

• US 9,747,503 B2
• Filed: 12/30/2016
• Issued: 08/29/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Aron Surefire, LLC
• Original Assignee: SureFire LLC (Surefire Holdings LLC)
• Inventors: Shatz, Narkis E., Bortz, John C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sams, Michelle L
• Application Number:
  US15/395,793
• Publication Number:
  US 20170193300A1
• Time in Patent Office: 242 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 13/0015 characterised by the lens design
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0009 having refractive surfaces only
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0023 at least one surface having optical power
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/009 for use with infrared radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 19/0095 for use with ultraviolet radiation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/14 Digital output to display device ; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0277 Online advertisement
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/00 2D [Two Dimensional] image generation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/60 Editing figures and text; Combining figures or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/006 Mixed reality object pose determination, tracking or camera calibration for mixed reality G06T7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/04 involving 3D image data
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/70 Determining position or orientation of objects or cameras camera calibration G06T7/80
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/20 in augmented reality scenes
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 23/04 using light waves, e.g. infrared
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/11 Arrangements specific to free-space transmission, i.e. transmission through air or vacuum
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/114 Indoor or close-range type systems
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/1141 One-way transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/1143 : Bidirectional transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/116 : Visible light communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/50 : Transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/516 : Details of coding or modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/5162 : Return-to-zero modulation schemes
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/541 : Digital intensity or amplitude modulation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/60 : Receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/615 : Arrangements affecting the optical part of the receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/616 : Details of the electronic signal processing in coherent optical receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/66 : Non-coherent receivers, e.g. using direct detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/697 : Arrangements for reducing noise and distortion
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 17/23 : Indication means, e.g. displays, alarms, audible means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72403 : with means for local support of applications that increase the functionality
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/737 : Characterised by transmission of electromagnetic waves other than radio waves, e.g. infrared waves
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4126 : The peripheral being portable, e.g. PDAs or mobile phones
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/42204 : User interfaces specially adapted for controlling a client device through a remote control device; Remote control devices therefor constructive details of casings for the remote control device H01H9/0235; user interfaces for controlling a tuning device of a television receiver through a remote control H03J9/00; remote control of peripheral devices connected to a television receiver through the remote control device of the television receiver H04B1/205
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/62 : Control of parameters via user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/69 : Control of means for changing angle of the field of view, e.g. optical zoom objectives or electronic zooming
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 23/71 : Circuitry for evaluating the brightness variation
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 5/272 : Means for inserting a foreground image in a background image, i.e. inlay, outlay
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/22 : Adaptations for optical transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 : for social networking applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/005 : Discovery of network devices, e.g. terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 : Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/16 : Gateway arrangements

Abstract

Systems and methods for optical narrowcasting are provided for transmitting various types of content. Optical narrowcasting content indicative of the presence of additional information along with identifying information may be transmitted. The additional information (which may include meaningful amounts of advertising information, media, or any other content) may also be transmitted as optical narrowcasting content. Elements of an optical narrowcasting system may include optical transmitters and optical receivers which can be configured to be operative at distances ranging from, e.g., 400 meters to 1200 meters. Moreover, the elements can be implemented on a miniaturized scale in conjunction with small, user devices such as smartphones, thereby also realizing optical ad-hoc networking, as well as interoperability with other types of data networks. Optically narrowcast content can be used to augment a real-world experience, enhance and/or spawn new forms of social-media and media content.

Claims

1. A method for presenting an augmented reality experience utilizing optically narrowcast information, comprising:

capturing a live scene;

detecting the presence of a beacon at an optical receiver;

determining an angular position of the beacon by concentrating, via a lens of the optical receiver, optical-signal flux of the beacon onto a detector of a detector array implemented as part of the optical receiver, and measuring a propagation direction of incidence of the beacon relative to a position of the detector on the detector array, the detector array representing a field of view of the optical receiver;

extracting identification data from the beacon indicative of a source of the beacon;

augmenting the live scene with an augmented reality representation of the beacon'"'"'s angular positioning and identification data;

receiving a selection regarding the augmented reality representation;

extracting descriptive data from an optical signal transmitted by the source of the beacon or an optical signal source associated with the source of the beacon; and

presenting the extracted descriptive data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the presenting of the extracted descriptive data comprises augmenting the live scene with an augmented reality representation of the extracted descriptive data in conjunction with or as a replacement for the augmented reality representation of the beacon'"'"'s angular positioning and identification data.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the presenting of the extracted description data occurs on a user device with which the live scene is captured.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising pointing one or more optical receivers in a direction of the source of the beacon based on the angular position of the beacon.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising forwarding the extracted descriptive data to one or more applications that when executed cause one or more processors to display the extracted descriptive data.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the one or more processors comprise an additional user device other than a user device with which the live scene is captured.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising forwarding the extracted descriptive data to one or more applications that when executed cause one or more processors to display a website associated with the source of the beacon.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises a universal resource locator directing the one or more applications to the website, the one or more applications comprising a web browser.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises advertising information associated with one or more objects of interest within a field of view of the captured live scene commensurate with the field of view of the optical receiver.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises advertising information regarding an entity associated with at least one of the source of the beacon or the optical signal source.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the angular position of the beacon comprises at least one of a horizontal and vertical angular position within a field of view of the optical beacon receiver.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising, converting concentrated optical-signal flux into one or more electrical signals from which the angular position is determined.

13. A system, comprising:

a camera adapted to capture a live scene;

an optical beacon receiver adapted to;

detect the presence of a beacon incident on the optical beacon receiver;

determine an angular position of the beacon by concentrating, via a lens of the optical receiver, optical-signal flux of the beacon onto a detector of a detector array implemented as part of the optical receiver, and measuring a propagation direction of incidence of the beacon relative to a position of the detector on the detector array, the detector array representing a field of view of the optical receiver; and

extract identification data from the beacon indicative of a source of the beacon;

one or more processors operatively connected to a non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer executable program code embodied thereon, the computer executable program code, when executed, cause the one or more processors to augment the live scene with an augmented reality representation of the beacon'"'"'s angular positioning and identification data; and

an optical signal receiver adapted to extract descriptive data from an optical signal transmitted by the source of the beacon or an optical signal source associated with the source of the beacon upon receiving a selection regarding the augmented reality representation;

wherein the computer executable program code, when executed, further causes the one or more processors to present the extracted descriptive data.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the computer executable program code causing the one or more processors to present the extracted descriptive data further causes the one or more processors to augment the live scene with an augmented reality representation of the extracted descriptive data in conjunction with or as a replacement for the augmented reality representation of the beacon'"'"'s angular positioning and identification data.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the presentation of the extracted description data occurs on a display operatively connected to the camera with which the live scene is captured.

16. The system of claim 13, wherein the computer executable program code, when executed, further causes the one or more processors to forward the extracted descriptive data to one or more applications that when executed cause one or more processors to display the extracted description data.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the one or more applications are executed on the system or a user device remotely located from the system.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the computer executable program code, when executed, further causes the one or more processors to forward the extracted descriptive data to one or more applications that when executed cause one or more processors to display a website associated with the source of the beacon.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises a universal resource locator directing the one or more applications to the website, the one or more applications comprising a web browser.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises advertising information associated with one or more objects of interest within a field of view of the captured live scene commensurate with the field of the view of the optical receiver.

21. The system of claim 13, wherein the extracted descriptive data comprises advertising information regarding an entity associated with at least one of the source of the beacon or the optical signal source.

22. The system of claim 13, wherein the optical beacon receiver and the optical signal receiver are implemented within a single optical receiver assembly.

23. The system of claim 13, wherein the angular position of the beacon comprises at least one of a horizontal and vertical angular position within the field of view of the optical beacon receiver.

24. The system of claim 13, wherein the lens is one of an array of lenses upon which the beacon is incident, each of the array of lenses corresponding to each of the detectors of the detector array.