METHODS AND APPARATUS TO MONITOR CONSUMER ACTIVITY

• US 20080147461A1
• Filed: 12/14/2007
• Published: 06/19/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nielsen Company (US), LLC
• Original Assignee: Nielsen Company (US), LLC
• Inventors: Lee, Morris, Ramaswamy, Arun
• Application Number:
  US11/957,227
• Publication Number:
  US 20080147461A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/7
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/206 specially adapted for indoor navigation
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/68 Marker, boundary, call-sign, or like beacons transmitting signals not carrying directional information
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/70 using electromagnetic waves other than radio waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/7034 Mounting or deployment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 1/72 using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2201/02 Indoor positioning, e.g. in covered car-parks, mining facilities, warehouses
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/02 Marketing; Price estimation or determination; Fundraising
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0205 Location or geographical consideration
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0273 Determination of fees for advertising
• CPC Class Codes: G07G 1/0081 the reader being a portable scanner or data reader G07G1/009 takes precedence

Abstract

Methods and apparatus to monitor consumer activity are disclosed herein. In a disclosed example method, a first signal is received via a portable device from a first one of a plurality of stationary devices positioned throughout a monitored environment. A first stationary device location of the first stationary device is determined based on the first signal. Absolute location information indicative of a first portable device location of the portable device is determined based on the first stationary device location. Navigational sensing information is generated by the portable device. Relative location information is determined based on the absolute location information and the navigational sensing information, wherein the relative location information is indicative of a second portable device location of the portable device.

Claims

1. A method of monitoring a person'"'"'s activity, the method comprising:

receiving via a portable device a first signal from a first one of a plurality of stationary devices positioned throughout a monitored environment;

determining a first stationary device location of the first stationary device based on the first signal;

determining absolute location information indicative of a first portable device location of the portable device based on the first stationary device location;

generating navigational sensing information via the portable device; and

determining relative location information based on the absolute location information and the navigational sensing information, wherein the relative location information is indicative of a second portable device location of the portable device.

2. A method as defined in claim 1, wherein the navigational sensing information is at least one of motion information or direction information.

3. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising receiving via the portable device a second signal from a second one of the plurality of stationary devices and determining the absolute location information indicative of the first portable device location based on the first and second signals.

9. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising determining whether a person was exposed to at least one of a product or an advertisement based on at least one of the absolute location information or the relative location information.

10. A method as defined in claim 9, wherein determining whether the person was exposed to the at least one of the product or the advertisement comprises comparing the at least one of the absolute location information or the relative location information to location information stored in a database in association with an identifier indicative of the at least one of the product or the advertisement.

17. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising determining at least one characteristic of the first signal, storing a representation of the at least one characteristic, and discarding the first signal.

18. A method as defined in claim 17, wherein the at least one characteristic is one of a signal strength or a unique identifier of the first stationary device.

24. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising using the absolute location information to correct a path of travel generated using other relative location information generated prior to determining the absolute location information.

29. A method as defined in claim 1, further comprising retrieving an identifier from the first signal corresponding to the first stationary device and determining the first location of the first stationary device based on the identifier.

30. A method as defined in claim 29, wherein the identifier is one of a location coordinate or a unique identification of the first stationary device.

4-8. -8. (canceled)

11-16. -16. (canceled)

19-23. -23. (canceled)

25-28. -28. (canceled)

31. An apparatus to monitor a person'"'"'s activity, the apparatus comprising:

a signal receiver to receive a first signal from a first one of a plurality of stationary devices positioned throughout a monitored environment;

a processor to determine absolute location information indicative of a first portable device location of the portable device based on a first location associated with the first signal; and

a navigational data sensor to generate navigational sensing information, wherein the processor is further to determine relative location information based on the absolute location information and the navigational sensing information, and wherein the relative location information is indicative of a second portable device location of the portable device.

32. An apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the first location associated with the first signal is a location of the first stationary device.

33. An apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the navigational data sensor is at least one of a motion sensor or a compass.

45. An apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising an audio encoder to generate an audio representation of the first signal and a memory to store the audio representation of the first signal.

48. An apparatus as defined in claim 31, further comprising a housing containing the processor, the housing having a toroid-shaped form factor.

52. An apparatus as defined in claim 31, wherein the processor determines the relative location information by determining the relative location information using a dead reckoning process.

34-44. -44. (canceled)

46-47. -47. (canceled)

49-51. -51. (canceled)

53-63. -63. (canceled)

64. A system to monitor a person'"'"'s activity, the system comprising:

a portable device having a toroid-shaped body defining an aperture extending therethrough, the body having a first communication interface to communicate information; and

a docking station having a base and a protrusion extending therefrom to receive the toroid-shaped body by penetrating the aperture of the portable device, wherein the docking station includes a second communication interface to be communicatively coupled to the first communication interface of the portable device to receive the information from the portable device.

65. A system as defined in claim 64, wherein the docking station is to receive the portable device and a second portable device in a stacked configuration, and wherein the toroid-shaped body further includes a first planar surface to engage the base of the docking station and a second planar surface to engage the second portable device.

67. A system as defined in claim 64, wherein the first communication interface of the portable device is a mechanical contact positioned on an inner surface of the body within the aperture.

69. A system as defined in claim 64, wherein the information is associated with location information indicative of a path of travel of the portable device.

66. (canceled)

68. (canceled)

70. (canceled)

71. A system to monitor a person'"'"'s activity, the system comprising:

a first portable device comprising a body having a first communication interface to communicate first information; and

a docking station having a base to receive the first portable device and at least a second portable device in a stacked configuration, wherein the docking station includes a second communication interface to be communicatively coupled to the first communication interface of the first portable device to receive the first information from the first portable device and to be communicatively coupled to a third communication interface of the second portable device to receive second information from the second portable device.

72. A system as defined in claim 71, wherein the first information is associated with first location information indicative of a first path of travel of the first portable device, and wherein the second information is associated with second location information indicative of a second path of travel of the second portable device.

73-75. -75. (canceled)

76. A system to monitor a person'"'"'s activity, the system comprising:

a portable device to generate first information representative of a first signal received from a first one of a plurality of stationary devices positioned throughout a monitored environment and generate navigational sensing information via a navigational data sensor; and

a processor system to receive the first information and the navigational sensing information from the portable device and determine absolute location information indicative of a first portable device location of the portable device based on the first information and determine relative location information based on the absolute location information and the navigational sensing information, wherein the relative location information is indicative of a second portable device location of the portable device.

77. A system as defined in claim 76, wherein the first information is indicative of a location of the first one of the plurality of stationary devices.

82. A system as defined in claim 76, wherein the navigational data sensor is at least one of a motion sensor or a compass.

78-81. -81. (canceled)

83. (canceled)