Product simulation and control system for user navigation and interaction

• US 20190121499A1
• Filed: 12/20/2017
• Published: 04/25/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Swatchbook, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Swatchbook, Inc.
• Inventors: Malkosh, Yazan W.
• Granted Patent: US 10,613,710 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0603 Catalogue ordering
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0643 Graphical representation of items or shoppers
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 15/80 Shading
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/20 Editing of 3D images, e.g. changing shapes or colours, aligning objects or positioning parts
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2200/24 involving graphical user interfaces [GUIs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2210/16 Cloth
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/2016 Rotation, translation, scaling

Abstract

A product simulation and control system includes: a server, including a product storage; and a device, including a processor, non-transitory memory, input/output, product browser, product simulator that simulates physical movement of products, and a product classifier that uses machine learning to optimize a product classification function. Also disclosed is a method for product simulation and control, including browsing, favoriting, tagging, selecting, page browsing, pinching, stretching, and simulating movement of products.

Claims

1. A product simulation and control system, comprising:

a) a product simulation and control server; and

b) a product simulation and control device;

wherein the product simulation and control device is configured to allow a user to browse catalogues of products, and review product information and interact with physical simulations of selected products.

2. The product simulation and control system of claim 1, wherein the product simulation and control server further comprises:

a) a processor;

b) a non-transitory memory;

c) an input/output component; and

d) a product storage, which is configured to store the catalogues, including the product information;

all connected via

e) a data bus.

3. The product simulation and control system of claim 1, wherein the product simulation and control device further comprises:

a) a processor;

b) a non-transitory memory;

c) an input/output component; and

d) a product browser;

all connected via

e) a data bus;

wherein the product browser is configured to show a plurality of rendered material rolls, which are shown as stacked on top of each other, in a continuous stack of material rolls, such that the product browser is configured to allow the user to scroll up or down in the continuous stack, by swiping up or down with a fingertip of the user;

wherein the product browser is configured to render the plurality of material rolls based on the product information, which is retrieved in communication with the product simulation and control server.

4. The product simulation and control system of claim 1, wherein the product simulation and control device further comprises:

a product simulator; and

wherein the product simulator is configured to store a digital material representation for each product in the catalogues of products, such that the digital material representation is based on a high-precision scan of a physical material sample.

5. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is configured to generate a representation of a roll mesh.

6. The product simulation and control system of claim 5, wherein the product simulator is configured to overlay the digital material representation onto the roll mesh representation, in order to generate a digital roll rendering.

7. The product simulation and control system of claim 6, wherein the product simulator is configured to generate views of the digital roll rendering with lighting shadowing and depth of field added, to simulate the appearance of a physical material roll.

8. The product simulation and control system of claim 6, wherein the product browser is configured to show a transition from the digital roll rendering to a material sample corresponding to the digital roll rendering, when the user selects the digital roll rendering from the plurality of rendered material rolls.

9. The product simulation and control system of claim 8, wherein the first material sample comprises a material swatch header and a material swatch rendering.

10. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is configured to:

a) enable the user to do a right page swipe on a first material sample, such that the product simulator transitions from showing the first material sample to showing a second material sample; and

b) enable the user to do a left page swipe on the second material sample, such that the product simulator transitions from showing the second material sample to showing the first material sample.

11. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is configured with a predetermined device scale factor, which scales a representation of a material swatch rendering of a material sample on a screen of the product simulation and control device, such that the product simulator is configured to show the material swatch rendering with a normal size with a 1:

1 scale factor in relation to the physical material sample, by resizing the representation of the material swatch rendering with the predetermined device scale factor.

12. The product simulation and control system of claim 10, wherein the product simulator is configured to calculate a sheet movement simulation, which models a physical movement of the first material sample during the right and left page swipe movements, such that the folding of the first material sample is modeled based on physical characteristics of the first material sample, using a method of sheet modeling within a gravitational and physical calculation engine.

13. The product simulation and control system of claim 12, wherein the physical characteristics include density;

vertical, horizontal, and diagonal elasticity; and

vertical, horizontal, and diagonal bending coefficients.

14. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is further configured to model a physical movement of a material swatch rendering of a material sample during a pinching movement with two fingers of the user;

and during a stretching movement with the two fingers;

such that the curvature and flexible movement of the material swatch rendering is modeled based on physical characteristics of the material sample, using a method of sheet modeling within a gravitational and physical calculation engine.

15. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is further configured to model a draping of a material swatch rendering of a material sample on an object, such that the curvature and flexible movement of the material swatch rendering is modeled based on physical characteristics of the material sample, using a method of sheet modeling within a gravitational and physical calculation engine.

16. The product simulation and control system of claim 15, wherein the product simulator is further configured to model and show that the material swatch rendering falls and floats down, starting from a flat horizontal configuration, such that the material swatch rendering impacts with the object and is draped on the object.

17. The product simulation and control system of claim 15, wherein the product simulator is further configured to model that the object is rotated with the material swatch rendering draped on the object, such that the material swatch rendering is simulated to rotate and lift, to show how the material swatch rendering behaves under impact of forces.

18. The product simulation and control system of claim 4, wherein the product simulator is configured to enable a user to associate a material sample with a plurality of descriptive tags, to indicate material properties.

19. The product simulation and control system of claim 18, wherein the product simulation and control device further comprises:

a product classifier;

wherein the product classifier is configured to use a machine learning algorithm to calculate a product classification function based on analysis of stored material samples with associated tags, such that the machine learning algorithm optimizes the product classification function to map the material sample, physical characteristics of the first material sample, and a test descriptive tag of the plurality of descriptive tags to an association confidence.

20. The product simulation and control system of claim 19, wherein the machine learning algorithm is a convolutional artificial neural network with at least two hidden layers, such that the product classification function is implemented by a trained convolutional artificial neural network, which is trained using a non-linear function optimization method.

21. A product simulation and control device, comprising:

a) a processor;

b) a non-transitory memory;

c) an input/output component; and

d) a product browser;

all connected via

e) a data bus;

wherein the product simulation and control device is configured to allow a user to browse catalogues of products, and review product information and interact with physical simulations of selected products;

wherein the product browser is configured to show a plurality of rendered material rolls, which are shown as stacked on top of each other, in a continuous stack of material rolls, such that the product browser is configured to allow the user to scroll up or down in the continuous stack, by swiping up or down with a fingertip of the user;

wherein the product browser is configured to render the plurality of material rolls based on the product information.

22. The product simulation and control device of claim 21, further comprising:

a product simulator; and

wherein the product simulator is configured to store a digital material representation for each product in the catalogues of products, such that the digital material representation is based on a high-precision scan of a physical material sample;

wherein the product simulator is configured to generate a representation of a roll mesh;

wherein the product simulator is configured to overlay the digital material representation onto the roll mesh representation, in order to generate a digital roll rendering.

23. The product simulation and control device of claim 22, wherein the product browser is configured to show a transition from the digital roll rendering to a first material sample corresponding to the digital roll rendering, when the user selects the digital roll rendering from the plurality of rendered material rolls.

24. The product simulation and control device of claim 22, wherein the product simulator is configured to:

a) enable the user to do a right page swipe on a first material sample, such that the product browser transitions from showing the first material sample to showing a second material sample; and

b) enable the user to do a left page swipe on the second material sample, such that the product browser transitions from showing the second material sample to showing the first material sample.

25. The product simulation and control device of claim 22, wherein the product simulator is configured with a predetermined device scale factor, which scales a representation of a material swatch rendering of a material sample on a screen of the product simulation and control device, such that the product simulator is configured to show the material swatch rendering with a normal size with a 1:

1 scale factor in relation to the physical material sample, by resizing the representation of the material swatch rendering with the predetermined device scale factor.

26. The product simulation and control system of claim 24, wherein the product simulator is configured to calculate a sheet movement simulation, which models the physical movement of the first material sample during the right and left page swipe movements, such that the folding of the first material sample is modeled based on physical characteristics of the first material sample, using a method of sheet modeling within a gravitational and physical calculation engine.