System and method for generating a playlist from a mood gradient

• US 9,830,351 B2
• Filed: 11/06/2013
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/31/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: R2 Solutions LLC (Acacia Research Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Yahoo! Inc. (Apollo Global Management, Inc.)
• Inventors: White, William, Slaney, Malcolm
• Primary Examiner(s): DWIVEDI, MAHESH H
• Application Number:
  US14/072,981
• Publication Number:
  US 20140189512A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,483 Days
• Field of Search: 707705, 707748
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/24 Querying
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/40 of multimedia data, e.g. slideshows comprising image and additional audio data retrieval of still image data G06F16/50; retrieval of audio data G06F16/60; retrieval of video data G06F16/70
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/48 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/634 Query by example, e.g. query by humming
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/638 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/639 using playlists
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/64 Browsing; Visualisation therefor generation of a list or set of audio data G06F16/638
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/68 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/683 using metadata automatically derived from the content
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 27/105 of operating discs

Abstract

Systems and methods for generating and playing a sequence of media objects based on a mood gradient are also disclosed. A mood gradient is a sequence of items, in which each item is media object having known characteristics or a representative set of characteristics of a media object, that is created or used by a user for a specific purpose. Given a mood gradient, one or more new media objects are selected for each item in the mood gradient based on the characteristics associated with that item. In this way, a sequence of new media objects is created but the sequence exhibits a similar variation in media object characteristics. The mood gradient may be presented to a user or created via a display illustrating a three-dimensional space in which each dimension corresponds to a different characteristic. The mood gradient may be represented as a path through the three-dimensional space and icons representing media objects are located within the three-dimensional space based on their characteristics.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

receiving a request for a playlist of songs, the request comprising a requested mood;

retrieving a defined mood gradient corresponding to the requested mood, the mood gradient comprising a sequence of target value sets corresponding to the requested mood, each target value set in the sequence including a plurality of values in which each value represents a different objective musical characteristic;

for each target value set in the mood gradient'"'"'s sequence of target value sets, selecting a song based on the plurality of values in the target value set; and

generating the playlist of songs in accordance with the requested mood using the mood gradient'"'"'s sequence of target value sets, the playlist containing each selected song, the songs included in the playlist being ordered in accordance with the sequence of target value sets in the mood gradient.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving a defined mood gradient further comprises:

identifying a user associated with the request; and

selecting the defined mood gradient based on the user associated with the request and the requested mood.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein retrieving a defined mood gradient further comprises:

selecting the defined mood gradient based on a mood gradient identifier contained in the request, the mood gradient identifier identifying the requested mood.

4. The method of claim 1, the selecting a song further comprising:

for a target value set of the mood gradient;

retrieving a value set for each song of a plurality of songs, each song'"'"'s value set being based on audio data of the song and comprising a plurality of values in which each value represents a different objective musical characteristic of the song;

comparing the target value set to each song'"'"'s retrieved value set; and

selecting a song from the plurality of songs corresponding to the target value set based on the comparison.

5. The method of claim 4, the selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

selecting the song having the song value set that most closely matches the target value set.

6. The method of claim 4, the selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

identifying a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set; and

randomly selecting the song from the set of similar songs.

7. The method of claim 4, the selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

identifying a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set;

filtering the set of similar songs based on one or more filter criteria; and

selecting the song from the filtered set of similar songs.

8. The method of claim wherein the request for a playlist is received from a first user and the mood gradient was created by a second user different from the first.

9. A system comprising:

at least one computing device, each computing device comprising a processor and a non-transitory storage medium for tangibly storing thereon program logic for execution by the processor the stored program logic comprising;

receiving logic executed by the processor for receiving a request for a playlist of songs, the request comprising a requested mood;

retrieving logic executed by the processor for retrieving a defined mood gradient corresponding to the requested mood, the mood gradient comprising a sequence of target value sets corresponding to the requested mood, each target value set in the sequence comprising a plurality of values, each value of the plurality in the target value set representing a different objective musical characteristic;

selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting, for each target value set in the mood gradient'"'"'s sequence of target value sets, a song based on the plurality of values in the target value set; and

generating logic executed by the processor for generating the playlist of songs in accordance with the requested mood using the mood gradient, the playlist comprising each selected song, songs selected for the playlist being ordered in accordance with the sequence of target value sets in the mood gradient.

10. The system of claim 9, the retrieving logic executed by the processor for retrieving further comprising:

identifying logic executed by the processor for identifying a user associated with the request; and

selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting the defined mood gradient based on the user associated with the request and the requested mood.

11. The system of claim 9, the retrieving logic executed by the processor for retrieving a defined mood gradient further comprising:

selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting the defined mood gradient based on a mood gradient identifier contained in the request, the mood gradient identifier identifying the requested mood.

12. The system of claim 9, the selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting a song further comprising:

for a target value set of the mood gradient;

retrieving logic executed by the processor for retrieving a value set for each song of the plurality of songs, each song'"'"'s value set being based on audio data of the song and comprising a plurality of values in which each value represents a different objective musical characteristic of the song;

comparing logic executed by the processor for comparing the target value set to each song'"'"'s retrieved value set; and

selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting a song from the plurality of songs corresponding to the target value set based on the comparison.

13. The system of claim 12, the selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

selecting the song having the song value set that most closely matches the target value set.

14. The system of claim 12, the selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

identifying logic executed by the processor for identifying a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set; and

selecting logic executed by the processor for randomly selecting the song from the set of similar songs.

15. The system of claim 12, the selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting a song from the plurality of songs further comprising:

identifying logic executed by the processor for identifying a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set;

filtering logic executed by the processor for filtering the set of similar songs based on one or more filter criteria; and

selecting logic executed by the processor for selecting the song from the filtered set of similar songs.

16. A computer-readable non-transitory storage medium for tangibly storing thereon computer readable instructions that when executed cause at least one processor to:

receive a request for a playlist of songs, the request comprising a requested mood;

retrieve a defined mood gradient corresponding to the requested mood, the mood gradient comprising a sequence of target value sets corresponding to the requested mood, each target value set in the sequence comprising a plurality of values, each value of the plurality in the target value set representing a different objective musical characteristic;

select, for each target value set in the mood gradient'"'"'s sequence of target value sets, a song based on the plurality of values in the target value set; and

generate the playlist of songs in accordance with the requested mood using the mood gradient'"'"'s sequence of target value sets, the playlist containing each selected song, the songs included in the playlist being ordered in accordance with the sequence of target value sets in the mood gradient.

17. The computer-readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 16, the instructions further comprising instructions to:

for the target value set of the mood gradient;

retrieve a value set for each song of the plurality of songs, each song'"'"'s value set being based on audio data of the song and comprising a plurality of values in which each value represents a different objective musical characteristic of the song;

compare the target value set to each song'"'"'s retrieved value set; and

select a song from the plurality of songs corresponding to the target value set based on the comparison.

18. The computer-readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 17, the instructions to select further comprising instructions to:

select the song having the song value set that most closely matches the target value set.

19. The computer-readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 17, the instructions to select further comprising instructions to:

identify a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set; and

randomly select the song from the set of similar songs.

20. The computer-readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 17, the instructions to select further comprising instructions to:

identify a set of similar songs having song value sets within a predetermined variation of the target value set;

filter the set of similar songs based on one or more filter criteria; and

select the song from the filtered set of similar songs.