Display device on/off detection methods and apparatus

• US 7,882,514 B2
• Filed: 08/16/2006
• Issued: 02/01/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/16/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Original Assignee: The Nielsen Company LLC (MOOD Media Corporation)
• Inventors: Nelson, Dan, Nielsen, Christen V.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pendleton; Brian T
• Assistant Examiner(s): EKPO, NNENNA NGOZI
• Application Number:
  US11/576,328
• Publication Number:
  US 20080148307A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,630 Days
• Field of Search: 725 9- 21
• US Class Current: 725/14
• CPC Class Codes: H04H 60/32 Arrangements for monitoring conditions of receiving stations, e.g. malfunction or breakdown of receiving stations
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 17/04 for receivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 21/4394 involving operations for analysing the audio stream, e.g. detecting features or characteristics in audio streams arrangements characterised by components specially adapted for monitoring, identification or recognition of audio in broadcast systems H04H60/58

Abstract

Display device ON/OFF detection methods and apparatus are disclosed. An example method disclosed herein to determine whether a presentation device is ON or OFF comprises determining a plurality of metrics based on monitoring at least one output of the presentation device, wherein each metric in the plurality of metrics comprises a decision indicating an operating state of the presentation device, and combining the plurality of metrics to determine whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF, wherein combining the plurality of metrics comprises at least one of weighting the plurality of metrics or determining a majority vote of the plurality of metrics.

Claims

1. A method to determine whether a presentation device is ON or OFF, the method comprising

determining a plurality of individual metrics based on sensing at least one output of the presentation device using a processor, each individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics representing a respective individual decision indicating whether the presentation device is in an ON state or an OFF state, each individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics determined from a different characteristic of the at least one sensed output of the presentation device;

and

combining the plurality of individual metrics to determine a comprehensive decision metric indicating whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF using the processor, wherein combining the plurality of individual metrics comprises at least one of weighting the plurality of individual metrics or determining a majority vote of the plurality of individual metrics, and wherein weighting the plurality of individual metrics comprises at least one of assigning a value to an individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics based on a confidence associated with the individual metric or scaling the individual metric based on the confidence associated with the individual metric.

2. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the at least one output of the presentation device comprises at least two outputs of the presentation device, and wherein a first individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics is based on sensing one of the at least two outputs of the presentation device and a second individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics is based on sensing a different one of the at least two outputs of the presenting device.

3. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein a first metric in the plurality of individual metrics is based on determining a first characteristic of a first output of the presentation device and a second metric in the plurality of individual metrics is based on determining a second characteristic of a second output of the presentation device.

4. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the output of the presentation device comprises at least one of an audio output, a video output or another emission output from the presentation device.

5. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the plurality of individual metrics comprises a first one of an audio metric, a video metric or an emission metric and a second one of an audio metric, a video metric or an emission metric.

6. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein each individual metric indicates whether the presentation device is at least one of ON, probably ON, probably OFF or OFF.

7. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein the confidence comprises:

a first confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is ON;

a second confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is probably ON

a third confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is probably OFF; and

a fourth confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is OFF.

8. A method as defined in claim 7 wherein a magnitude of the first confidence level is greater than a magnitude of the second confidence level, and wherein a magnitude of the fourth confidence level is greater than a magnitude of the third confidence level.

9. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein determining the majority vote of the plurality of individual metrics comprises:

assigning a first set of values to a first set of individual metrics in the plurality of individual metrics, wherein the first set of individual metrics indicate that the presentation device is ON;

assigning a second set of values to a second set of individual metrics in the plurality of individual metrics, wherein the second set of individual metrics indicate that the presentation device is OFF; and

evaluating an addition of the first set of values and the second set of values to determine the comprehensive decision metric indicating whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF.

10. A method as defined in claim 1 wherein determining the plurality of individual metrics comprises determining a first set of individual metrics corresponding to a first type of individual metric and determining a second set of individual metrics corresponding to a second type of individual metric, and wherein the first type of individual metric corresponds to one of an audio metric, a video metric or an emission metric and the second type of individual metric corresponds to a different one of the audio metric, the video metric or the emission metric.

11. A method as defined in claim 10 wherein combining the plurality of individual metrics to determine the comprehensive decision metric indicating whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF comprises:

determining a first weighted majority vote of the first set of individual metrics;

determining a second weighted majority vote of the second set of individual metrics; and

determining a third weighted majority vote of the first weighted majority vote and the second weighted majority vote to determine the comprehensive decision metric indicating whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF.

12. A non-transitory article of manufacture storing machine readable instructions which, when executed, cause a machine to:

determine a plurality of individual metrics based on sensing at least one output of a presentation device, each individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics to provide;

an ON indication when the individual metric is to indicate that the presentation device is in an ON state,

a probably ON indication when the individual metric is to indicate that the presentation device is in the ON state, but with lower confidence than the ON indication,

an OFF indication when the individual metric is to indicate that the presentation device is in an OFF state, and

a probably OFF indication when the individual metric is to indicate that the presentation device is in the OFF state, but with lower confidence than the OFF indication; and

combine the plurality of individual metrics to determine whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF by at least one of weighting the plurality of individual metrics or determining a majority vote of the plurality of individual metrics.

13. An article of manufacture as defined in claim 12 wherein weighting the plurality of individual metrics comprises at least one of assigning a value to each individual metric in the plurality of individual metrics based on a confidence associated with the individual metric or scaling the individual metric based on the confidence associated with the individual metric.

14. An article of manufacture as defined in claim 13 wherein the confidence comprises:

a first confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is ON;

a second confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is probably ON;

a third confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is probably OFF; and

a fourth confidence level corresponding to the individual metric indicating that the presentation device is OFF.

15. An article of manufacture as defined in claim 12 wherein the machine readable instructions, when executed, further cause the machine to determine the plurality of individual metrics by determining a first set of individual metrics corresponding to a first type of individual metric and determining a second set of individual metrics corresponding to a second type of individual metric, and wherein the first type of individual metric corresponds to one of an audio metric, a video metric or an emission metric and the second type of individual metric corresponds to a different one of the audio metric, the video metric or the emission metric.

16. An article of manufacture as defined in claim 15 wherein the machine readable instructions, when executed, further cause the machine to combine the plurality of individual metrics to determine whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF by:

determining a first weighted majority vote of the first set of individual metrics;

determining a second weighted majority vote of the second set of individual metrics; and

determining a third weighted majority vote of the first weighted majority vote and the second weighted majority vote to determine whether the presentation device is one of ON or OFF.

17. A display device ON/OFF detector comprising:

at least one of an audio processor, a video processor or an emission processor to generate a plurality of individual decision outputs each indicating whether a display device monitored by the display device ON/OFF detector is in an ON state or an OFF state, each individual decision output generated based on a different characteristic of at least one sensed output signal of the display device, wherein an individual decision output in the plurality of individual decision outputs is weighted by at least one of assigning a value to the individual decision output based on a confidence associated with the individual decision output or scaling the individual decision output based on the confidence associated with the individual decision output; and

a decision processor to evaluate a weighted majority vote of the plurality of individual decision outputs to determine a comprehensive decision output indicating whether the monitored display is one of ON or OFF.

18. A display device ON/OFF detector as defined in claim 17 further comprising at least one of an audio sensor to provide an audio signal to the audio processor, a video sensor to provide a video signal to the video processor or an emission sensor to provide an emission signal to the emission processor.

19. A display device ON/OFF detector as defined in claim 18 wherein the at least one of the audio sensor, the video sensor or the emission sensor is configured to non-invasively sense a signal from the monitored display device.

20. A display device ON/OFF detector as defined in claim 17 wherein the plurality of individual decision outputs comprises a first type of individual decision output and a second type of individual decision output, and wherein determining the weighted majority vote comprises:

determining a first weighted majority vote of individual decision outputs of the first type;

determining a second weighted majority vote of individual decision outputs of the second type; and

determining a third weighted majority vote of the first weighted majority vote and the second weighted majority vote.

21. A display device ON/OFF detector as defined in claim 20 wherein the first type of individual decision output comprises one of an audio type, a video type or an emission type and wherein the second type of individual decision output comprises a different one of the audio type, the video type or the emission type.