FRAMEWORKS AND METHODOLOGIES CONFIGURED TO ENABLE GAMIFICATION VIA SENSOR-BASED MONITORING OF PHYSICALLY PERFORMED SKILLS, INCLUDING LOCATION-SPECIFIC GAMIFICATION

• US 20180161624A1
• Filed: 05/27/2016
• Published: 06/14/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Rlt IP Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Gn Ip Pty Ltd.
• Inventors: Wrigg, Darren
• Granted Patent: US 10,441,847 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0006 Computerised comparison for qualitative assessment of motion sequences or the course of a movement
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 60/46 Measurement devices associated with golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like for measuring physical parameters relating to sporting activity, e.g. baseball bats with impact indicators or bracelets for measuring the golf swing
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 19/003 Repetitive work cycles; Sequence of movements
• CPC Class Codes: G09B 5/125 the stations being mobile
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences

Abstract

The application relates to technological frameworks whereby user skill performances are monitored using Performance Sensor Units (PSUs), and data derived from those PSUs is processed thereby to determine attributes of the user skill performances. For example, the identification of attributes of performances is used to drive computer processes, such as computer processes described herein. Particular focus is given to technologies which enable the gamification of skills via delivery of competitive challenges, such challenges being driven by data derived from PSUs that monitor physical performances. For example, in one embodiment users compete in the context of performing a particular skill or skills “better” than others (for example in the context of amplitude, power, accuracy, successive completions, and so on).

Claims

1. A method for enabling a user of end-user hardware including one or more Motion Sensor Units (MSUs) to participate in a competitive activity, the method including:

maintaining, at a server device, a plurality of challenge data sets, wherein each challenge data set is representative of a challenge activity that is configured to be attempted by a user of end-user hardware including one or more MSUs, wherein each challenge data set includes data representative of;

(i) one or more challenge skills, wherein each of the one or more challenge skills is associated with skill-specific configuration data, wherein the skill-specific configuration data is downloadable to the end user hardware thereby to configure the end user hardware to enable identification and analysis of performance events of the challenge skill based on Motion Sensor Data (MSD) derived from the one or more of MSUs; and

(ii) data representative of one or more competitive parameters;

enabling a user of the end-user hardware including one or more MSUs to participate in a given challenge activity, wherein enabling the user to participate in the given challenge activity includes;

(i) causing the user'"'"'s end-user hardware to apply the skill-specific configuration data for the one or more challenge skills; and

(ii) causing analysis of data derived from the one or more MSUs, based on the applied skill-specific configuration data, thereby to enable assessment relative to the one or more competitive parameters.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the end-user hardware includes a MSU-enabled garment.

3. A method according to claim 1 including providing an authoring interface that is configured to enable an activity-author user to define a challenge data set for a competitive activity.

4. A method according to claim 3 further comprising:

accessing data representative of skill performance events associated with both of (i) the activity-author user; and

(ii) a challenge location, wherein a given skill performance event is defined by way of a process including analysis of data collected via a set of worn motion sensor units.

5. A method according to claim 4 wherein the authoring interface is configured to process the data representative of skill performance events associated with the activity-author user at the challenge location thereby to enable the author to define a challenge data set based upon an activity completed by the activity-author user.

6. A method according to claim 5 wherein the authoring interface is configured to process the data representative of skill performance events associated with the activity-author user at the challenge location, and based on that processing suggest one or more challenge data set attributes thereby to enable the author to define a challenge data set based upon to an activity completed by the activity-author user.

7. A method according to claim 6 wherein the suggestions are configured to enable the activity-author user to define a challenge data set corresponding to an activity (i) completed by the activity-author user;

and (ii) for which the activity-author user is a current competition leader.

8. A method according to claim 1 wherein one or more of the challenge data sets includes data defining a challenge location, wherein the data defining a challenge location is representative of a region at which the challenge activity is able to be completed.

9. A method according to claim 1 wherein, for a given challenge data set, the one or more competitive parameters define how a first participant in the competitive activity is judged against a second participant in the competitive activity.

10. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a count of how many times a particular skill is performed in succession.

11. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a count of how many times a particular skill is performed relative to defined timing parameters.

12. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a count of how many unique skills are performed in succession.

13. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a count of how many unique skills are performed relative to defined timing parameters.

14. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a time period to perform a defined set of skills.

15. A method according to claim 14 wherein the defined set of skills includes multiple instances of a single skill.

16. A method according to claim 1 wherein the one or more competitive parameters include a parameter affected by a value derived from one or more performance attributes for a given skill performance event.

17. A method according to claim 16 wherein the one or more of the performance attributes defined based on one or more of:

performance of the skill relative to defined optimal performance;

one or more motion-based attributes observed in the performance of the skill;

a skill performance height attribute;

a skill performance distance attribute;

a skill performance power attribute;

a skill performance speed attribute; and

a skill performance duration attribute.

18. A method according to claim 3 wherein the authoring interface is available in a local mode, whereby the interface is presented on a local user interface device, and the interface accesses skill performance data associated with the activity-author user from a local storage repository.

19. A method according to claim 18 wherein the authoring interface is additionally available in an online mode, whereby the interface accesses skill performance data associated with the activity-author user from a central storage repository.

20. A method according to claim 1 wherein enabling a user of the end-user hardware including one or more MSUs to participate in a given challenge activity includes configuring a device local to the activity-participant user to monitor performance of the challenge skills relative to the competitive parameters in an offline mode.

21. A method according to claim 1 wherein enabling a user of the end-user hardware including one or more MSUs to participate in a given challenge activity includes:

(i) determining a location for an activity participant user; and

(ii) displaying to the user-activity user data representative of one or more predefined competitive activities associated with the determined location.

22. A method according to claim 1 including executing an automated process thereby to define, without user input, one or more competitive activities for a given location based on performances identified at that location.

23. A method according to claim 1 wherein a given one of the challenge skills is defined by a performance recording process by the activity-author user.

78. A computer system configured to perform a method according to claim 1.

24. A method for operating user of end-user hardware including one or more Motion Sensor Units (MSUs), the method including:

identifying a challenge data sets, wherein the challenge data set is representative of a challenge activity that is configured to be attempted by a user of end-user hardware including one or more MSUs, wherein each challenge data set includes data representative of;

(i) one or more challenge skills, wherein each of the one or more challenge skills is associated with skill-specific configuration data, wherein the skill-specific configuration data is downloadable to the end user hardware thereby to configure the end user hardware to enable identification and analysis of performance events of the challenge skill based on Motion Sensor Data (MSD) derived from the one or more of MSUs; and

(ii) data representative of one or more competitive parameters;

enabling a user of the end-user hardware including one or more MSUs to participate in a given challenge activity, wherein enabling the user to participate in the given challenge activity includes;

(i) causing the user'"'"'s end-user hardware to apply the skill-specific configuration data for the one or more challenge skills; and

(ii) causing analysis of data derived from the one or more MSUs, based on the applied skill-specific configuration data, thereby to enable assessment relative to the one or more competitive parameters.

25-45. -45. (canceled)

46. A method for providing a multi-user competitive activity, the method including:

providing an authoring interface that is configured to enable an activity-author user to define a challenge data set for a competitive activity, wherein each challenge data set includes;

(i) data representative of location information for a challenge location;

(ii) data representative of one or more challenge skills, wherein each of the one or more challenge skills are selected from a repository of challenge skills that are configured to be identified via end-user worn motion sensor units; and

(iii) data representative of one or more competitive parameters;

making the competitive activity available to a plurality of activity-participant users, wherein a given activity-participant participates in the competitive activity based on analysis of data derived from a motion-sensing garment associated with the user.

47-65. -65. (canceled)

66. A method for providing a multi-user competitive activity, the method including:

identifying location information associated with an activity-participant user;

identifying one or more predefined competitive activities associated with the location information, wherein each competitive activity is associated with a respective challenge data set, wherein each challenge data set includes;

(i) data representative of location information for a challenge location;

(ii) data representative of one or more challenge skills, wherein each of the one or more challenge skills are selected from a repository of challenge skills that are configured to be identified via end-user worn motion sensor units; and

(iii) data representative of one or more competitive parameters;

processing data derived from a set of worn motion sensor units associated with the activity-participant user thereby to determine, for a given one of the identified predefined competitive activities, assess the activity-participant user relative to the one or more competitive parameters.

67-77. -77. (canceled)