HK1155234B - Methods and systems for compliance confirmation and incentives - Google Patents

Description

Method and system for compliance verification and stimulation

Methods and systems for monitoring user usage of a research device are disclosed. The disclosed systems and methods may be used to monitor use of a research device according to predetermined criteria, provide incentives for compliant use thereof, and/or analyze data related to use thereof.

Background

Research work is conducted by establishing a group of participants commonly referred to as "panelists". In some research efforts, a portable monitoring device is provided for a subject to collect research data. In other research efforts, research data is collected using the subject's own portable monitoring device. In either case, the panelist is instructed to carry the portable device with him or her during the day to collect research data, such as data indicative of exposure to media and/or other market research data.

Organizations funded for using these market research data expect that the reliability of the data be guaranteed. In particular, if the panelist does not actually carry the portable monitoring device throughout the day, the panelist's experience cannot be reflected regardless of what data the portable monitoring device collects. Those who pay for the use of such research data therefore wish to make reasonable assurance to the research institution that the portable monitoring devices used to collect the data are indeed carried by or at least accompany the panelist during the time that they collect the research data.

Arbitron inc, which was the first to use portable monitoring devices to collect research data, has developed and implemented techniques to provide such guarantees to organizations authorized to collect research data. These techniques are the subject matter of U.S. patent No. 5,483,276 issued in 1996, 1/9 in the name of Brooks et al, which is owned by the assignee of the present application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

Notice

For purposes of this application, the following terms and definitions shall apply:

the term "data" as used herein means all indicia, signals, symbols, fields, symbol sets, representations, and all other physical forms of representing information, whether permanent or temporary, and whether visible, audible, acoustic, electronic, magnetic, electromagnetic or otherwise manifested. The term "data" is used to represent predetermined information in one physical form, which should be construed to encompass any and all corresponding information in one or more different physical forms.

The terms "media data" and "media" as used herein mean data that is widely available, whether by broadcast or by cable, satellite, network, internet (including the internet), print, display, distribution over storage media, or by any other human perceptible manner or technique, and regardless of the form or content of the data, and includes, but is not limited to, audio, video, audio/video, text, images, animations, databases, broadcasts, displays (including but not limited to video displays, posters, and billboards), signs, signals, web pages, print media, and streaming media data.

The term "research data" as used herein is meant to encompass the following types of data: (1) data relating to media usage; (2) data relating to the contact medium; and/or (3) market research data.

The term "presentation data" as used herein means media data, content other than media data, or a message displayed to a user.

The term "database" as used herein means an organized collection of related data, regardless of the manner in which the data or organized collection thereof is represented. For example, the organized collection of related data may be in the form of a table, graph, grid, package, frame, file, email, message, document, list, or any other form.

The term "correlation" as used herein refers to a process of determining relationships between or among data, including, but not limited to, identity relationships, correspondence relationships or other relationships of such data to further data, inclusion relationships of data sets, exclusion relationships of data sets, predefined mathematical relationships between or among data and/or to further data, and common aspects existing between or among data.

The terms "purchase" and "purchasing" as used herein refer to the process of obtaining ownership, permission, possession, or other rights in or to goods or services in exchange for consideration, whether payment, exchange of goods or other legally sufficient consideration, or as a promotional sample. The terms "goods" and "services" as used herein include, but are not limited to, data and rights in or to data.

The term "network" as used herein includes all types of networks and internetworks (including the Internet), but is not limited to any particular network or internetwork.

The terms "first," "second," "primary," and "secondary" are used herein to distinguish elements, sets, data, objects, steps, flows, functions, activities, or things, from one another and are not used to specify relative position, timing, or relative importance, unless otherwise explicitly stated.

The terms "couple," "coupled" and "coupled to" as used herein each mean a relationship between or among two or more devices, apparatuses, files, circuits, elements, functions, operations, flows, programs, media, components, networks, systems, subsystems, and/or means, consisting of one or more of the following (a) connected in communication, whether directly or through one or more other devices, apparatuses, files, circuits, elements, functions, operations, flows, programs, media, components, networks, systems, subsystems, or means (b), whether directly or through one or more other devices, apparatuses, files, circuits, elements, functions, operations, flows, programs, media, components, networks, systems, subsystems, or means; (c) functional relationships wherein the operation of any one or more devices, apparatus, files, circuits, elements, functions, operations, flows, programs, media, components, networks, systems, subsystems, or modes depends, in whole or in part, on the operation of any one or more of the other items described above.

The terms "deliver" and "delivering" as used herein include transferring data from a source to a destination and transmitting data to a communication medium, system, channel, network, device, line, cable, light, circuit, and/or link for delivery to a destination. The term "communication" as used herein includes one or more communication media, systems, channels, networks, devices, lines, cables, rays, circuits, and links.

The term "message" as used herein includes data to be transferred, being transferred, or already transferred.

The term "processor" as used herein means processing devices, apparatus, programs, circuits, elements, systems and subsystems, whether implemented in hardware, software, or both, and whether programmed or not. The term "processor" as used herein includes, but is not limited to, one or more computers, hardwired circuitry, signal modifying devices and systems, devices and machines for controlling systems, central processing units, programmable devices and systems, field programmable gate arrays, application specific integrated circuits, chip systems, systems of individual elements and/or circuits, real machines, virtual machines, data processors, processing facilities, and any combination of the foregoing.

The terms "memory" and "data store" as used herein refer to data storage devices, apparatus, programs, circuits, elements, systems, subsystems, and storage media that temporarily or permanently retain data and can provide retained data.

The terms "panelist," "panelist," and "participant" are used interchangeably herein and refer to an individual who is intentionally or unintentionally enrolled in a study whose activity information is collected electronically, by survey, or otherwise.

The term "home" as used herein should be broadly construed to include family members, families living at the same address, a group of people living at the same address, related or unrelated, and a group of people living in a common facility (e.g., a affiliated place, apartment house, or other similar structure or arrangement) (the aggregate unrelated population does not exceed a predetermined number).

As used herein, the term "activity" includes, but is not limited to, purchasing behavior, shopping habits, viewing habits, computers, Internet usage, contact media, personal attitudes, awareness, opinion and belief, and other forms of activity discussed herein.

The term "portable user device" (abbreviated herein for convenience as "PUA") as used herein means an electrical or non-electrical device that can be carried or attached next to the skin of a user or placed on, in or within an actual object (e.g., briefcase, handbag) that can be carried or attached by a user and that possesses at least one function that is primarily beneficial to the user, including but not limited to cell phones, personal digital assistants (abbreviated "PDAs"), (e.g., personal digital assistants ("PDAs")),Equipment, radio, television, game system (e.g. for television and gameDevice), notebook computer, laptop computer, GPS device, personal audio device (e.g., MP3 player), DVD player, two-way radio, personal communication device, telematics device, remote control device, wireless headset, wrist watch, portable data storage device (e.g., Thumb)^TMActuators), cameras, recorders, keypad-less input devices, rings, combs, pens, pencils, notepads, wallets, tools, flashlights, appliances, eyes, clothing, belts, buckles, watch chains, jewelry, shoes or other foot wear (e.g., sandals), coats, hats, and devices that combine any of the above or its functions.

The term "research device" as used herein refers to (1) a portable user device configured or otherwise enabled to collect, store and/or communicate research data or to cooperate with other devices to collect, store and/or communicate research data; and/or (2) research data collection, storage, and/or delivery devices.

The term "user-friendly function" as used herein means a function that is initiated or performed by a person using the PUA, which has a major benefit to that person.

A method of monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from the user of the portable research device; receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; comparing compliance-related data contained in the reply message with reference data; and generating compliance data indicating whether the user is in compliance with the at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or the user compliance level based on the comparison.

A system for monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising available communications for communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from the user of the portable research device; receiving available communications of a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; a processor coupled to the communication to receive the response message and operable to compare the compliance-related data contained in the response message with the reference data and to generate compliance data indicating whether the user complies with at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a level of user compliance based on the comparison; and a memory coupled to the processor to receive and store the compliance data.

A method of monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from the user of the portable research device; receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; and generating compliance data based on the comparison of the compliance-related data in the response message with the reference data, the compliance data indicating (a) whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or (b) a level of compliance at which the user meets at least one predetermined use criterion.

A system for monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising available communications for communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from the user of the portable research device; receiving available communications of a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; a processor coupled to the communication to receive the response message and to generate compliance data based on a comparison of the compliance-related data contained in the response message with the reference data, the compliance data indicating (a) whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or (b) a level of compliance at which the user meets at least one predetermined use criterion.

A method of monitoring user usage of a portable research device, comprising generating monitoring data by monitoring at least one of: heart activity of the user, respiratory activity of the user, borborygmus of the user, gait of the user, voice of the user, data input by the user to the portable research device, keyboard usage characteristics of the user, vascularity of the user, facial and/or ear characteristics of the user, signature of the user, fingerprint and/or palm print of the user, hand geometry characteristics of the user, retina and/or iris pattern of the user, air biochemistry indices of the user, muscle activity of the user, body temperature of the user, other biometric parameters of the user, presence indication signals or personal identification signals emitted by the device from the user's own interior or surface, voice external to the portable research device, pressure applied to the portable research device, impact of other objects on the portable research device, portable research device location or change in location; comparing the monitored data with the reference data; and determining whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined criterion based on the comparison.

A system for monitoring user usage of a portable research device, comprising a monitor for generating monitoring data by monitoring at least one of: heart activity of the user, respiratory activity of the user, borborygmus of the user, gait of the user, voice of the user, data input by the user to the portable research device, keyboard usage characteristics of the user, vascularity of the user, facial and/or ear characteristics of the user, signature of the user, fingerprint and/or palm print of the user, hand geometry characteristics of the user, retina and/or iris pattern of the user, air biochemistry indices of the user, muscle activity of the user, body temperature of the user, other biometric parameters of the user, presence indication signals or personal identification signals emitted by the device from the user's own interior or surface, voice external to the portable research device, pressure applied to the portable research device, impact of other objects on the portable research device, portable research device location or change in location; and a processor coupled to the monitor to receive the monitored data, the processor operable to compare the monitored data to the reference data and determine whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined criterion based on the comparison.

A method of monitoring whether a user is using a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising actively monitoring the user's use of the portable research device by communicating a message to a user request reply; receiving a request response from a user; passively monitoring the use of the portable research device by the user by detecting at least one parameter indicative of whether the portable research device is being used in accordance with at least one predetermined criterion to generate monitoring data; comparing the response and the monitoring data of the at least one request with the reference data; and generating compliance data based on the comparison.

A system for monitoring the usage of a portable research device by a user in accordance with at least one predetermined usage criterion includes an available first monitoring subsystem for actively monitoring the user's usage of the portable research device by communicating a message to the user requesting a response; receiving a request response from a user; passively monitoring the use of the portable research device by the user by detecting at least one parameter indicative of whether the portable research device is being used in accordance with at least one predetermined criterion to generate monitoring data; a processor operable to receive the request response and the monitoring data, to compare the response to the at least one request and the monitoring data with reference data, and to generate compliance data based on the comparison.

A method of encouraging a user to use a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined standard of use, comprising generating compliance data indicative of whether the portable research device is used in accordance with the at least one predetermined standard of use for a plurality of different times; generating level data indicative of a level of user compliance based on a result of the comparison of the compliance data and the reference data; and communicating a message to the user indicating the level of user compliance based on the level data. [00034] A system for encouraging a user to use a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined standard of use, comprising an available processor for generating compliance data indicative of whether the portable research device is to be used in accordance with the at least one predetermined standard of use for a plurality of different times, and for generating level data indicative of a level of compliance of the user based on a comparison of the compliance data with reference data; and communicating a message to the user indicating the available communication based on the user compliance level of the level data.

A method of monitoring whether a user is using a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined usage criterion includes generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device, communicating a request message from a monitoring system to the portable research device, automatically generating a response message to use the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on the passive monitoring data, communicating the response message to the monitoring system, and determining in the monitoring system whether use of the PUA meets the at least one predetermined usage criterion based on a comparison of the passive monitoring data and reference data.

A method of monitoring the use of a portable research device by a user in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising generating, by the portable research device, monitoring data representative of at least two of the following parameters: heart activity, pulse, respiration, borygmus, gait, sound, keyboard usage characteristics, body temperature, vascularity, facial characteristics, ear characteristics, signatures, fingerprints, palm prints, handprints, hand geometry, retinal patterns, iris patterns, air biochemistry indices, muscle activity or other biometric parameters of the user, presence indication or personal identification signals emitted by the device from the user's own interior or surface, remaining charge of the portable research device, recharging of the portable research device, location of the portable research device, changes in location of the portable research device, motion of the portable research device, pressure applied to the portable research device, and impact of other objects on the portable research device; and generating compliance data indicating whether the user complies with the at least one predetermined usage criterion based on the comparison of the monitoring data and the reference data.

A method of monitoring whether a user is using a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined usage criterion includes generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device, communicating a request message from a monitoring system to the portable research device, automatically generating a response message to use the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on the passive monitoring data, communicating the response message to the monitoring system, and determining in the monitoring system whether the usage behaviour of the user meets the at least one predetermined usage criterion based on a comparison of the passive monitoring data and reference data.

The following publications describe certain embodiments of the methods and systems in connection with the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1A illustrates various monitoring systems including a portable user device ("PUA" for short) used by a user and configured as a research device;

FIG. 1B is a block diagram illustrating certain details of the monitoring system of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 1C is a block diagram showing some details of the monitoring system of FIG. 1A, including a PUA coupled to a docking station;

FIGS. 2A and 2B are flow diagrams illustrating operation of the monitoring system of FIGS. 1A-1C for actively monitoring PUA usage;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are flow diagrams illustrating operation of the monitoring system for passively monitoring PUA usage of FIGS. 1A-1C;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating operation of the monitoring system of FIGS. 1A-1C for actively and passively monitoring PUA usage;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing operation of the monitoring system of FIGS. 1A-1C for actively and passively monitoring usage, which determines usage compliance at different times;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a handset configured as a research device;

FIG. 6A is a functional block diagram illustrating certain embodiments involving use of the handset of FIG. 6;

various types of research work may be performed using research equipment, including but not limited to the measurement of television and radio program ratings; exposure to various media advertisements, such as television, radio, print, outdoor advertising, and the like; consumer spending habits; consumer shopping habits including specific retail stores and other locations visited in shopping and entertainment activities; travel patterns, such as specific routes between home and work units and other locations; consumer attitudes, beliefs, awareness, and preferences; and others. The specific activity of the individual may be monitored for the desired media to be performed and/or the type of market research effort. During a research job, research data relating to two or more of the above will be collected, while in other jobs only one type of data will be collected.

Various monitoring techniques are applicable. For example, the habits of watching television or listening to a broadcast, including exposure to advertisements therein, may be monitored using a variety of techniques. In some techniques, the acoustic energy received by an individual may be monitored to generate data identifying or summarizing characteristics of the individual viewing or listening to a program, song, station, channel, advertisement, or the like. Where the audio medium includes ancillary code providing such information, the encoded information may be detected using suitable techniques, such as U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,450,490 and 5,764,763 issued 3/2005 to Jensen et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,579,124 to Aijala et al, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,574,962, 5,581,800 and 5,787,334 to Fardeau et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,871,180 to Neuhauser et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,862,355 to Kolesar et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,845,360 issued 18/2005 to Jensen et al. Each of the above patents is assigned to the assignee of the present application and all of the above patents are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Other suitable decoding technology patents are PCT publication No. WO 00/04662 to Srinivasan, U.S. Pat. No. 5,319,735 to Preuss et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,175,627 to Petrovich et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,828,325 to Wosewicz et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,154,484 to Lee et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,945,932 to Smith et al, PCT publication No. WO 99/59275 to Lu et al, PCT publication No. WO 98/26529 to Lu et al, PCT publication No. WO 96/27264 to Lu et al, U.S. Pat. No. 7,006,555 to Srinivasan, U.S. Pat. No. 6,968,564 to Srinivasan, PCT publication No. WO 05/99385 to Ramasumaswamy et al, U.S. Pat. 6,879,652 to Srinivasan, U.S. Pat. 6,621,881 to Srinivasan, and U.S. Pat. 6,807,230 to Srinivasan, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

In some cases, a signature may be extracted from the converted media data to identify by matching with a reference signature of known media data. Suitable techniques for this purpose include those disclosed in U.S. patent No. 5,612,729 to Ellis et al and U.S. patent No. 4,739,398 to Thomas et al, each of which is assigned to the assignee of the present application and both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Other suitable technical patents are U.S. Pat. No. 2,662,168 to Scherbatskoy, U.S. Pat. No. 3,919,479 to Moon et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,697,209 to Kiewit et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,677,466 to Lert et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,512,933 to Wheatley et al, U.S. Pat. No. 4,955,070 to Welsh, U.S. Pat. No. 4,918,730 to Schulze, U.S. patent No. 4,843,562 to Kenyon et al, U.S. patent No. 4,450,551 to Kenyon et al, U.S. patent No. 4,230,990 to Lert et al, U.S. patent No. 5,594,934 to Lu et al, european published patent application No. EP 0887958 to Bichsel and PCT publication No. WO 91/11062 to Young et al, PCT publication No. WO 05/006768 to Lee et al, PCT publication No. WO 06/023770 to Srinivasan and PCT publication No. WO 05/046201 to Lee, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

An advantageous technique is disclosed in U.S. published patent application No. 2003/0005430 to Ronald s.kolesmar, published on 2/1/2003, which is assigned to the assignee of the present application and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, to remotely perform one or both of code detection and signature extraction tasks from a location where research data is collected.

If location tracking or exposure to outdoor advertising is desired, different techniques are used to achieve this. Suitable techniques for location tracking or monitoring outdoor advertising exposure are issued at 25.10.2005, U.S. patent 6,958,710 issued to Jack k.zhang, Jack c.crystal and James m.jensen and published U.S. published patent application No. 2005/0035857a1 at 17.2.2005, filed on 13.8.2003, each assigned to the assignee of the present application and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

In monitoring the use of publications such as journals, books and magazines, suitable techniques such as those disclosed in U.S. patent application No. 11/084,481 filed on 3/18/2005 under the names James m.jensen, Jack c.crystal, Alan r.neuhauser, Jack Zhang, Daniel w.pugh, Douglas j.visnius and Eugene l.flanagan III, assigned to the assignee of the present application and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, should be employed for this purpose.

In addition to the types of research data described above and the various techniques for collecting such data, other types of research data may be collected and other types of techniques may be employed. For example, research data relating to consumer shopping behavior, consumer product return behavior, consumer contact with products, and presence and/or proximity to commercial establishments may be collected and various techniques employed therefor. Suitable techniques for gathering data regarding the presence and/or proximity of commercial establishments are disclosed in U.S. published patent application No. 2005/0200476a1, filed on 3.15.2004 and published on 9.15.2005 under the name of David Patrick fort, James m.jensen and Eugene l.flanagan III, and U.S. published patent application No. 2005/0243784a1, filed on 3.29.2005 and published on 11.3.2005 under the name of Joan Fitzgerald, Jack Crystal, alanneauser, James m.jensen, David Patrick fort and Eugene l.flanagan III. A suitable technique for collecting data regarding consumer contact with a product is disclosed in U.S. published patent application No. 2005/0203798a1, filed on 3/15/2004 and published on 9/15/2005 under the names James m.

Additionally, techniques involving active participation by the panelist may be used in the research efforts. For example, the survey method may be employed when a subject is asked a question after recruitment to use their research facility. Thus, it should be understood that the example types of research data to be collected and the example manners of collecting research data discussed herein are merely illustrative, and that other types of research data may be collected and other techniques may be employed for collecting research data.

Certain research devices, including many of the patents and applications cited herein by reference, are intended for research work only and do not have the functionality to provide the primary benefit to the user. Other research devices may be used by, in, or in combination with the PUA.

Various PUAs already possess functionality sufficient to implement the desired monitoring technique or techniques to be employed in research work for use as research equipment. For example, a cell phone has a microphone that converts acoustic energy into audio data and a GPS receiver for determining location. Various handsets also have more processing and memory functions.

In certain embodiments, various existing PUAs can be modified to perform research work, simply by software and/or minor hardware changes. In other embodiments, the PUA may need to be redesigned and fully rebuilt.

In certain embodiments, the research device itself may be used to collect research data. In certain embodiments, the research device transmits data that triggers other devices to collect research data. These embodiments include those disclosed in the aforementioned U.S. patent No. 6,958,710 and U.S. patent application No. 11/084,481, as well as in U.S. provisional patent application No. 60/751,825, filed on 20.12.2005 and assigned to the assignee of the present application and hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. In certain embodiments, the research device may be used to collect research data simultaneously with the initiation of other devices to collect research data.

Various embodiments of methods and systems for monitoring the use of a research device by one or more users are described below. Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic diagrams of a monitoring system 1 including a PUA2 and a processor 5 for use by a user 3. In certain embodiments that otherwise correspond to the embodiments of FIGS. 1A and 1B, PUA2 is replaced by research equipment that does not include PUA. Processor 5 may include one or more processors, centralized or separate from each other, located within or controlled by one or more facilities. As shown, PUA2 may be coupled with processor 5 through communications 7 that allow data to be exchanged between PUA2 and processor 5. In certain embodiments, the PUA2 is wirelessly coupled to the processor 5 via communications 7.

In some embodiments, the monitoring system 1 also includes a memory 6 for storing data, including but not limited to data received and/or processed by the central processor 5. In some embodiments, memory 6 also includes one or more memory units, located in the same or different locations, either collectively or separately from each other. In certain embodiments, the memory 6 is included in the processor 5.

Fig. 1B shows in further detail one embodiment of the monitoring system 1, wherein the PUA2 is modified to communicate wirelessly with the processor 5 using wireless communication 8. The PUA2 comprises a communication interface 9 for transmitting and receiving data via a communication 8. As shown, PUA2 also includes a message input 11 that allows a user of PUA2 to input a message into PUA 2. The message input 11 is coupled to the communication interface 9 of the PUA2 such that messages input using the message input 11 can be communicated from the PUA2 via the communication 8. It goes without saying that messages entered using message input 11 may also be passed to processor 5 or to other PUAs 2, or to other locations or devices associated with communication 8. In the illustrated embodiment shown in fig. 1B, the message input 11 comprises a plurality of keys 11a in the form of a keyboard. The configuration of message input 11 may vary, for example, message input 11 may include one or more keys, buttons, switches, keyboards, microphones, cameras, touch pads, accelerometers, motion detectors, touch screens, tablets, scroll wheels, or the like.

In the schematic configuration shown in fig. 1B, the PUA2 also comprises a sensor or detector 13 for detecting one or more parameters. The one or more parameters detected by the sensor/detector 13 include, but are not limited to, a remaining charge of the PUA2, one or more user biometric functions or parameters, a position of the PUA2, a change in a position of the PUA2, a data input to the PUA by a user, a sound external to the PUA2, a motion of the PUA2, a pressure applied to the PUA2, or an impact of another object on the PUA 2. In some embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 detects a presence-indicating signal or a personal identification signal emitted by a signal emitter 14 carried in or on the user's body. In one of these embodiments, signal emitter 14 comprises a device worn or carried by the user, such as a ring, necklace, jewelry, wristwatch, key chain or article of clothing that emits a predetermined signal indicative of the user's presence or the identity of the user wearing or carrying the device. The signal may be transmitted as an acoustic signal, a radio frequency or other electromagnetic or chemical signal or an electrical signal that may be received by the sensor/detector 13. In some embodiments, signal emitter 14 comprises a device implanted in the body of the user, for example subcutaneously. In certain embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 includes a plurality of sensors or detectors for detecting one or more various parameters, respectively.

As shown in fig. 1B, the sensor/probe 13 is coupled to the communication interface 9 of the PUA2 such that sensed or detected data of the sensor/probe 13 can be communicated from the PUA2 to the processor 5. Although the PUA2 shown in fig. 1B includes a message input 11 and a sensor/detector 13, it goes without saying that in other embodiments one of these elements may be removed depending on the design of the PUA2 and the requirements of the monitoring system 1.

As shown in FIG. 1A, the schematic configuration of the monitoring system 1 shown in FIG. 1B includes a memory 6 coupled to or contained within the processor 5 to store data including data received and/or processed by the processor 5. The data stored in the memory 6 may also be retrieved by the processor 5 when required.

PUA2 shown in fig. 1A and 1B may be powered by an ac power source or other power source, or may use one or more batteries or other on-board power sources (not shown for purposes of simplicity and clarity). It goes without saying that the batteries used to power PUA2 include all types of batteries suitable for use in a particular PUA2, whether rechargeable or not. In certain embodiments, power for PUA2 is from a rechargeable battery or other type of rechargeable power source such as a capacitor, and/or from a radiant energy converter (e.g., a photoelectric converter), or a mechanical energy converter (e.g., a microelectronic generator). In certain embodiments, PUA2 may be connected to a docking station from time to time for charging PUA2 and/or transmitting data stored in PUA2 to processor 5. Fig. 1C shows an embodiment of a PUA2 for use with a docking station 15. The docking station 15, which is not typically carried by the user and is not coupled to the PUA2, may be modified to be coupled to the PUA2 via a connector 16 while the PUA is carried by the user. The junction 16 may be a direct connection between the PUA2 and the docking station 15 to charge the PUA2 and/or for data transfer between the PUA2 and the docking station 15. In certain embodiments, data is communicated from the PUA to the docking station via a wireless, infrared, radio frequency, capacitive, or inductive link. In certain embodiments, data is passed from the PUA2 to the processor 5 via a cellular connection or other wired or wireless network or device coupling.

As shown in fig. 1C, in certain embodiments, the docking station is connected to a power source 17 to provide power for charging of the PUA2 when the PUA2 is coupled with the docking station 15. Additionally, in some embodiments, the docking station 15 includes a communication interface 19 adapted to communicate with the processor 5 via the communication 7. When the PUA2 is coupled to the docking station 15 by the connector 16, data stored in the PUA2, for example data collected by the PUA2 when carried by a user, is transmitted to the docking station 15 using the connector 16 and then transferred to the processor 5 via the communication 7 using the communication interface 19. In these embodiments, the use of the docking station 15 (rather than the PUA 2) to communicate the data collected by the PUA2 to the processor 5 can conserve power in the PUA2 or use an internal power source that is relatively low in power. In certain embodiments, the docking station 15 is also configured to receive data from the processor 5 via the communication 7 and to transmit the received data from the docking station 15 to the PUA2 via the connection 16 when the PUA2 is coupled to the docking station 15.

It will be appreciated that the configuration of the docking station 15 is not limited to the configuration shown in fig. 1C and may depend on different embodiments. For example, in certain embodiments, the docking station is used only to charge the PUA2 and does not include the communication interface 19. In this embodiment, the docking station 15 acts in a different manner as a cradle or standard ac-dc adapter for placing the PUA2, just like a cell phone charger. In other embodiments, the docking station 15 is only used to transfer data between the PUA2 and the processor 5, and does not charge the PUA 2. In this embodiment, the PUA2 may be connected to a power source charging independent of the docking station 15 or charged using an internal power converter, or to replace one or more batteries.

In some embodiments, PUA2 shown in FIGS. 1A-1C may optionally include an output (not shown for simplicity and clarity) for outputting messages to a user. This output may be in the form of a display screen for displaying text, one or more symbols and/or images, a speaker or headphones for outputting voice mail or voice messages, or one or more LEDs or light bulbs for indicating messages to the user. Needless to say, the one or more outputs are not limited to the examples provided herein and can include any one or more outputs adapted to provide a message to a user.

The monitoring system 1 shown in fig. 1A and 1B is used for monitoring whether the usage behavior of a user of a PUA2 meets at least one predetermined usage criterion. The at least one predetermined usage criterion includes one or more of the following: carrying and/or using PUA 2; a specific user carries and/or uses PUA 2; opening the PUA 2; charging the PUA 2; the PUA2 maintains the lowest power; the PUA2 is or was docking or connecting to the docking station 15 for a predetermined length of time at some time or predetermined period of time; the PUA works normally, and benefits can be provided for users; PUA2 is capable of collecting, storing and/or communicating research data, or is capable of accomplishing this in conjunction with one or more other devices. Other predetermined usage criteria not mentioned above may also be employed in monitoring the use of the PUA.

In certain embodiments, a method of monitoring whether a user of a research device, such as PUA2, is using according to at least one predetermined usage criterion includes communicating a request message to the research device, requesting a PUA user response, receiving a response message communicated by the research device in response to the request message, and storing data indicating whether the user's usage complies with the at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a user compliance level. This monitoring method is described in detail in fig. 2A, which shows a block diagram of the operations performed by the monitoring system shown in fig. 1A-1C.

As shown in fig. 2A, the request message is first passed 100 to a processor having two-way communication capabilities and containing a remote location (e.g., processor 5 of fig. 1A-1C) to request a PUA user response. In some embodiments, the request message includes a text message, a telephone call, a voicemail, an email, a voice message, a sound, a variety of sounds, a web page, a video, a light alert, or any combination thereof or any other data submitted to the user via the PUA that indicates to the user that a response is requested. If the request message is a telephone, voicemail, voice message, sound, or multiple sounds, then the message is presented to the user using an appropriate output (e.g., a sound reproduction device such as a speaker or headset); if the message is a text message, an email, a web page or other images, the message is displayed visually; and/or one or more light emitting devices (e.g., LEDs or light bulbs) if the message is a light alert. In some embodiments, the request message requests a predetermined response or a general response by the PUA user, such as a response confirming receipt of the request message. In some embodiments, the request is accompanied by data of interest to the user, such as access to certain websites or content, such as music, videos, news, or electronic coupons. In some of the above embodiments, the data is obtained conditional on the request being provided in response to the request, according to parameters expressed in the request message or otherwise predetermined parameters. In certain embodiments, the processor operates as one or more programmable processors to control a communication manager in communication with the PUA and/or its users and other PUAs to request a response including readable compliance data. In some of the embodiments described above, these communications are planned in advance by the programming module, with or without reference to a database storing planning data representative of these communications, and are performed automatically by means of the communication 7. In some such embodiments, this communication preplanks and notifies an operator who initiates a call to the PUA and/or PUA user as scheduled to request an answer containing readable compliance data. In some such embodiments, the automatic communication and the manually-initiated communication described above may be performed simultaneously.

In response to the request message, the PUA generates a response message 102. In some embodiments, this reply message is generated by a user input reply message entered using a PUA message. In particular, in some embodiments where the response message contains a code, including alphabetic characters, numeric characters, or symbols, or a combination thereof, the response message is generated using the message input of the PUA. In addition, the response message includes data stored in the PUA, and in this case, the response message is generated by selecting the stored data through message input. In other embodiments, the reply message is a reply signal generated by activating a message input, such as by toggling one or more switches or pressing one or more buttons of the message input. When the reply message contains one or more voiced sounds, the reply message is generated by inputting the sounds using the message input. In these embodiments, the message input comprises an audio input device, such as an acoustic transducer. As described above, the response message may be generated when a request for a predetermined response is answered or when a request for a general response is answered.

After the PUA generates the response message, the response message will be communicated from the PUA by communication of the PUA and received 104 by a remote processor (e.g., processor 5). In certain embodiments, these communications include cell phone communications, PCS communications, wireless network communications, satellite communications, or bluetooth, ZigBee, electro-optical, or other wireless links. In certain embodiments, these communications include an ethernet interface, a telephone modem, a USB port, a firewire connection, a cable modem, an audio or video connection, or other network or device interface. Upon receipt of a response message from the PUA or upon the passage of a predetermined time but no response message, the processor may provide data indicating whether the use of the PUA meets at least one predetermined criterion and/or a level of user compliance. The processor-provided data is then stored 106 by the processor. In certain embodiments, the processor provides data indicating user compliance and/or a level of user compliance based on whether a reply message is received from the PUA. In other embodiments, the processor provides the compliance and/or compliance level data based on the content of the reply message and/or the length of time it takes before the reply message from the PUA is received and/or other factors discussed in detail below. In some embodiments, the processor acts as one or more programmable processors running a compliance analysis program module that receives data returned by the PUA and/or the PUA user to the communication manager, and the program analyzes the user's compliance based on the data and compliance rules stored in a memory (e.g., memory 6 of FIGS. 1A-1C). Based on the analysis, the compliance analysis program module generates compliance data that indicates whether the user meets the predetermined usage criteria and/or the level of compliance.

In some embodiments, the user may be provided with a reward when the user's use of the PUA meets a predetermined use criterion or when the user's compliance level is above a pre-selected compliance level. This reward may be in the form of cash, credit, a prize or benefit, such as a free service or points available to purchase or obtain a prize through the PUA or other means or service. In some embodiments, the reward contains data of interest to the user, such as access to certain websites or content, such as music, videos, news, or electronic coupons. As shown in fig. 2A, a reward 108 may be determined to be awarded to the user when data indicating compliance or a level of compliance above a preselected level of compliance is generated and/or stored. The reward to the user, including the type of reward and/or the amount or quality of the reward, is determined by the processor of the monitoring system from stored data indicative of the user's compliance or level of compliance. In determining the reward based on the user compliance level, in some embodiments the condition for providing the reward to the user is that the user compliance level is above a predetermined level, and/or the type and/or amount of reward determined in 108 is dependent on an increase or decrease in the user compliance level. For example, in some embodiments, the number of credits rewarded to the user that may be used to purchase goods or services may be greater when the user responds to a greater proportion of request messages, or may increase as the number of request messages that the user responds increases.

Providing a user of the PUA with a reward for using the PUA in compliance with a predetermined usage criterion may encourage the user to continue to comply with the usage requirement to win the reward or higher. Thus, providing a user of a PUA with a reward for correct use of the PUA also facilitates future correct use of the PUA in accordance with one or more predetermined usage criteria.

In some embodiments, the monitoring system also communicates a message to the user of the PUA indicating compliance with the predetermined usage criteria and/or the level of compliance and/or the prize earned by the user 110 for the PUA. The message delivered to the user may be in the form of a text message, telephone, voicemail, voice message, email, video, or a combination thereof, delivered through the PUA or otherwise. In some embodiments, this message may take the form of a light-emitting indication, such as by illuminating an LED or light bulb to indicate whether the use of the PUA is in compliance or whether the user has won a reward. As shown in FIG. 2A, the determination of the reward 108 to the user and the messaging 110 to the user are optional operations by the monitoring system in monitoring the user's usage of the PUA. In some configurations, for example, the determination of the reward is omitted and the monitoring system continues to communicate a message to the user indicating the user's compliance and/or level of compliance. In other configurations, however, the monitoring system determines the reward to the user and automatically provides the user, for example by sending the reward directly to the user or awarding the reward to an account of the user, without having to communicate any message to the user indicating the user's compliance, level of compliance or reward earned. In some embodiments, when the monitoring system has determined that the user is not meeting the criteria, it may send one or more messages to the user and/or the user's PUA to inform of this non-compliance behavior, with or without message content encouraging future compliance. In some such embodiments, the message notifying of the non-compliance behavior is sent in a number of different forms, such as simultaneously through a text message and a voice call, which may be automatically or manually generated. In some embodiments, reward decisions are made by one or more programmable processors executing a reward decision program module that receives compliance data generated by the compliance analysis program module, and the reward module generates reward data, specifying (if any) what reward (including type and amount) to give to the user generating the compliance data based on stored rules, such as rules stored in the memory 6. Based on the reward data, the communication manager module communicates a notification of the reward to the PUA and/or its user, and/or communicates instructions to a service (e.g., a provider of goods or services, which may include content and other data) to provide the determined reward to the user or credit the user's account with the reward.

In some embodiments, the manner of monitoring the use of the research device is; the method includes the steps of communicating a request message to the research device, the request message requesting a response from a user of the research device, receiving a response message from the research device communicated in response to the request message, and determining whether the user's use of the research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion. FIG. 2B illustrates an embodiment of a monitoring system for monitoring the use of a research device, i.e., a user's PUA. In certain other embodiments that otherwise correspond to the embodiment of FIG. 2B, the user's PUA is replaced with a research device that does not contain a PUA.

As shown in FIG. 2B, at 200, a request message is sent from the monitoring system to the PUA, a response message is generated 202 in the PUA and passed to the monitoring system to reply to the request message, and the monitoring system receives a response message 204 (or records not received) from the PUA. These operations performed by the monitoring system are similar to the operations in fig. 2A (i.e., 100, 102, and 104 described above) and are therefore not described in detail herein for purposes of clarity and simplicity. As further shown in FIG. 2B, upon receiving a response message from the PUA, the monitoring system determines 205 whether the user's usage of the PUA meets at least one predetermined usage criterion. This determination is made 205 by the processor of the monitoring system. As described above, the predetermined criteria include, but are not limited to, carrying PUA; a specific user carries the PUA; opening the PUA; charging the PUA; the PUA maintains a minimum amount of power; the PUA docking or connecting to a docking station for a predetermined length of time and/or docking or connecting for a predetermined length of time in certain times or predetermined periods of time; the PUA works correctly; and the PUA can collect, store and/or communicate research data, or be used in conjunction with one or more other devices to accomplish this.

In some embodiments, it is determined whether the use of the PUA meets a predetermined criterion 205 based on at least one receipt or non-receipt 204 of a reply message from the PUA, a time of receipt of the reply message, and a content of the reply message. For example, when this decision 205 is made based on a received or non-received PUA response message, the processor determines that the use of the PUA is not compliant when a response message is not received within the agreed-upon period of time since the request message was sent to the PUA in 200. In some of the above embodiments, when a request message requesting a user response (e.g., a text message or voice prompt) is sent to the PUA at fixed time intervals throughout the day, the time intervals are determined in parts of the day or virtual plans, and the user response prompts (if any) are used to determine the amount of rewards to be given to the user.

When compliance with the predetermined usage criteria is determined based on the time of receipt of the reply message, the processor determines how much time has elapsed between the time the request message was sent to the PUA and the time the reply message for the PUA was received and compares it to the selected compliance reply time. The compliance response time in some embodiments is a fixed period of time for all users, all PUAs, all request message types, all locations, and all times. In certain other embodiments, the compliance response time is selected based on the user's demographic information or personal profile. In some embodiments, the compliance response time depends on the type of request message and/or its content. In some such embodiments, the compliance response time is specified in the message, such as "please respond within ten minutes". In some embodiments, the compliant response time is selected based on the type of PUA that is received, e.g., the response time of a cell phone or blackberry device is relatively shorter than a personal audio or DVD player, which is more suitable for a relatively longer response time. In some embodiments, the compliance response time is selected based on the manner in which the request message is provided to the user. For example, if the receipt of a message is indicated to the user by an audible alert or vibration of the device, the response time may be expected to be shorter than if the message were provided by visual means only. In some embodiments, the compliance response time is selected based on the time of day. For example, during driving in the morning or afternoon, the response time may be lengthened because the user may not be able to respond as quickly as when at home in the evening. In some embodiments, the compliance response time is selected based on the location of the user. For example, it is common in some places to reply to a message perhaps faster than elsewhere. In certain embodiments, the compliance response time is selected based on a combination of two or more of the factors described above.

If the time between the request message sending and the receipt of the response is less than the selected response time, it is determined that the user's use of the PUA meets a predetermined criterion. However, if more time is spent than the selected response time, it is determined that the use of the PUA does not meet the predetermined criteria. In some embodiments, the length of time elapsed between sending the request message 200 and receiving the reply message 204 is used to determine the user's compliance level with the predetermined usage criteria. In particular, the level of compliance determined by the processor will depend on how quickly the response message is received by the processor, the shorter the time taken between hiding the send request message 200 and receiving the response message 204, the higher the level of compliance.

Upon determining whether the user's use of the PUA meets at least one or more predetermined criteria based on the response message content, the processor determines whether the content of the response message meets predetermined parameters. In these embodiments, a selected response message meeting predetermined parameters is requested 200 by a request message delivered to the PUA, and upon determining compliance and/or a level of compliance, the processor compares the response message 204 received from the PUA with the requested response. In an exemplary embodiment, the request message 200 delivered to the PUA includes a request for a user's password or a specific code, such as the user's screen name or real name, and the reply message 204 received in reply to the request message is compared by the processor to pre-stored data, such as the password, code, screen name or real name stored in a database, to determine whether the use of the PUA meets the predetermined criteria 205. If the received reply message matches a stored message, i.e., a password, name (e.g., a screen name or real name selected by the user) or code stored in the database, the processor may assume that the user meets the predetermined criteria. By requesting a selected response message, such as a password, name or code, the monitoring system can not only confirm that the PUA is being carried and/or used by the user, but also confirm that the PUA is being carried and/or used by a particular user.

In some embodiments, the requested response contains information from the user in addition to or in lieu of other requested information, such as what the user was doing at the time the message was received or otherwise, the user's location or locations at various points in time, the user's contact, media or products that have purchased or used, are scheduled to purchase or use, the user's thoughts, and/or the user's mindsets. In some embodiments, in addition to or in lieu of other requested information, the response to the request includes information regarding the operational status of the PUA (e.g., as indicated by it or as determined by the user), whether and/or when the user performs some operation (e.g., docking or charging the PUA), and/or whether and/or how the user carries the PUA.

In certain embodiments, the processor determines the compliance level 205 of the PUA user based on the message content. In this illustrative embodiment, the received reply message 204 is compared to data stored in a database, such as a password, name, or code, and a compliance level is determined based on how well the reply message matches the stored data. In some such embodiments, a first or highest compliance level is identified when the reply message matches the stored message, a next level of compliance below the first level is identified when the reply message does not match the stored message, and a third or lowest compliance level is identified when the reply message 204 is not received from the PUA. In some embodiments, if a reply message is received but does not match the stored message, a variety of different intermediate compliance levels may be determined in place of the second level compliance level. In these embodiments, the level of the determination is based on the degree of similarity between the response message and the pre-stored data. Thus, for example, the intermediate compliance level when the reply message 204 received from the PUA differs from the stored message by only one character may be higher than when the reply message received from the PUA is completely different from the stored message.

In some embodiments, the user's determination of compliance and/or level of compliance is based not only on the content of the reply message, but also on the time of receipt of the reply message. In some such embodiments, the compliance of the user will depend on whether the reply message matches the stored data and how quickly the reply message is received from the PUA. In some such embodiments, the highest compliance level is determined by the response message received from the PUA matching the stored data and the time taken between sending the request message to the PUA and receiving the response message being less than a selected time. If the reply message does not match the stored data and/or the time elapsed between sending the request message and receiving the reply message is greater than a selected time, the identified compliance level 205 is selected to be one level between the highest and lowest compliance levels. If no reply message is received from the PUA, the monitoring system may assume a minimum level of compliance or no compliance.

In some embodiments, the monitoring system also determines and/or provides a reward 206 to the user 206 that meets the predetermined criteria and/or sends a message to the user indicating at least one of user compliance, level of compliance, and reward 208 to the user. In particular, after the monitoring system determines whether the usage of the PUA meets predetermined usage criteria and/or compliance levels of the user, the monitoring system may continue to determine and/or provide rewards 206 to the user of the PUA. The system may then communicate a message to the user 208 indicating the user's compliance, level of compliance, and/or the prize won by the user. These operations performed by the monitoring system are similar to the operations (106 and 108) described in FIG. 2A and therefore will not be described in detail herein. In the above-described embodiment in connection with fig. 2A, the determination and/or provision 206 of the reward and the communication 208 of the message indicating compliance, level of compliance and/or reward is optional. Additionally, in the embodiments described above in connection with FIG. 2A, in some embodiments the determination and/or provision of the reward is made when no message is delivered to the user, while in other embodiments the delivery 208 of the message is made when no reward 206 is determined and/or provided.

In some embodiments of the monitoring methods and systems, the monitoring system monitors one or more parameters, such as biometric parameters, sounds outside of the research device, impacts of other objects on the research device, motion of the research device, distance of the research device from the user's body or presence of an indicator or personal identification device, pressure applied to the research device, charging of the research device, charge level thereof, docking of the research device, data input (e.g., messages) of the research device, location of the research device, and/or changes in location of the research device, to determine whether use of the research device meets at least one predetermined criterion. In an exemplary embodiment, the monitoring system generates the monitoring data by monitoring at least one of: heart activity of the user, brain activity of the user, respiratory activity of the user, pulse of the user, blood oxygen level of the user, borborborygmus (gi chime) of the user, gait of the user, sound of the user, keys of the user, keypad or keyboard usage characteristics (e.g., keystroke recognition), vascularity of the user, facial or ear characteristics of the user, air biochemical indicators of the user (sometimes referred to as "body-taste characteristics" of the user), muscle activity of the user, body temperature of the user, sounds outside of the research device, motion of the research device, pressure applied to the research device, charging of the research device, its charge, docking of the research device, impact of other objects on the research device, data input by the user to the research device, location of the research device, and changes in location of the research device, and determining whether the usage of the user research device meets at least one predetermined criterion based on the monitoring data. FIG. 3A illustrates the operation of the monitoring system used in monitoring the PUA in these exemplary embodiments. It should be understood that the embodiment of FIG. 3A is also applicable to non-PUA research devices.

As shown in fig. 3A, the monitoring data is generated by monitoring at least one of biometric parameters 222, distance of the PUA from the user himself, distance of the PUA from the user's own body or a personal identification device present in or on the user's body, external sounds 224, position of the PUA, changes in position of the PUA 226, impact of data inputs 228 and other objects on the PUA, pressure applied to the PUA, power level of the PUA, movement, charging, docking 230. In monitoring the one or more biometric parameters 222, the parameters include, but are not limited to, one or more of a user's heart activity, a user's brain activity, a user's respiratory activity, a user's pulse, a user's blood oxygen level, a user's borborygmus, a user's gait, a user's key press, keypad or keyboard usage characteristics, a user's voice, a user's fingerprint, a user's palm print or hand geometry, a user's retina or iris pattern, a user's body odor characteristics, a user's blood vessel distribution, a user's facial or ear characteristics, a user's muscle activity pattern, a user's signature, and a user's body temperature.

Referring again to fig. 1B, monitoring of biometric parameters 222, external sounds, pressure indicating signals, personal identification signals 224, PUA position, changes in PUA position 226, data input 228 and/or impact of other objects on the PUA, pressure applied to the PUA, motion of the PUA, charging, charge level, docking 230 is performed in the PUA2 by the sensor/detector 13 in cooperation with a processor (not shown for simplicity and clarity) of the PUA. As described above, the sensor/detector 13 in some embodiments includes a plurality of sensors and/or detectors that monitor a variety of parameters. Where the sensor/detector 13 monitors one or more biometric parameters 222 of the PUA user, the sensor/detector 13 includes one or more cardiac monitors for monitoring the user's cardiac activity, one or more EEG monitors for monitoring the user's brain activity, a respiratory monitor for monitoring the user's respiratory activity (including but not limited to the user's respiratory rate), a pulse monitor, a pulse oximeter, a sound detector for monitoring the user's borborygmus and/or sounds, a gait sensor and/or gait analyzer for detecting a gait indicative of the user's gait (e.g., a motion sensor or accelerometer that may also be used to monitor muscle activity, a camera for detecting motion as a function of changes in its output image signal over time, a temperature sensor for monitoring the user's body temperature, one or more electrodes for picking up EKG and/or EEG signals, and a fingerprint or palm print for detecting the user's fingerprint or palm print A scanner. In monitoring the user's retina or iris pattern, the sensor/detector 13 includes a low intensity light source for scanning, detecting, or otherwise sensing the user's retina or iris pattern. In detecting the geometric characteristics of the user's hand, the sensor/detector 13 includes a device configured to be imaged by an optical sensor or other imaging device to acquire predetermined parameters of the user's hand, such as the shape of the hand, finger length, finger thickness, finger curvature, and/or any portion thereof. In detecting the user's body odor characteristics, the sensor/detector 13 includes an electronic sensor, a chemical sensor, and/or an electronic or chemical sensor configured as an array of chemical sensors, each of which can detect a particular odor or other biochemical indicator. In detecting the vascularity of the user, the sensor/detector 13 includes an optical or other radiant energy scanning or imaging device to detect the vascularity or other tissue structure or blood flow or blood pressure characteristics of the user's hand or other body part. In detecting facial or ear features of the user, the sensor/detector 13 includes a camera, optical scanner or other device sufficient to identify one or more facial features or one or more features of the user's ear or other body part. In some such embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 is mounted in or on the PUA2, while in other embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 is separate from the PUA2 and communicates therewith by cable or radio frequency, inductive, acoustic, infrared or other wireless link.

While the sensor/detector 13 of the PUA2 monitors external sounds 224 of the PUA, the sensor/detector 13 comprises an acoustic sensor, such as a microphone or any other sound detector suitable for detecting external sounds. In certain embodiments, a sensor/detector 13 that monitors external sounds cooperates with the processor to analyze the detected external sounds. The external sounds detected by the sensor/detector 13 include, but are not limited to, ambient noise, the sound of the PUA2 rubbing against the user's clothing or other external objects, vehicle sounds (e.g., engine noise and sound characteristics of opening and closing the doors), sound characteristics of the user, dropping of the PUA, average atmospheric noise levels, and the like. In embodiments where the sensor/detector 13 receives a presence-indicating signal or a personal identification signal from the signal transmitter 14, the sensor/detector 13 comprises a device operable to receive the signal, such as a radio frequency receiver, a microphone, an optical sensor, an inductive pickup, a capacitive pickup, a chemical sensor, or a conductive connection.

In embodiments where the sensor/detector 13 monitors user data input 228 (e.g., messages or inputs that control various operations of the PUA, such as by an application running thereon, e.g., a game), the sensor/detector 13 includes a pressure sensor for sensing a user applying pressure to the message input. Alternatively or additionally, the sensor/detector 13 includes a utility, such as a keystroke logging program running on the processor of the PUA, to determine and log its usage.

In embodiments that monitor the change in position 226, the sensor/detector 13 detects a change in the position of the PUA directly or indirectly. The detection between the positions of the PUAs is done by detecting the positions of the PUAs and the changes of the positions of the PUAs over time. In this case, the sensor/detector 13 comprises a satellite positioning system such as a GPS receiver, ultra-wideband position detector, cell phone position detector, angle of arrival at position detector, time difference of arrival at position detector, enhanced signal strength position detector, position fingerprinting position detector, inertial position monitor, short range position signal receiver, or any other suitable position detector. These same methods can also be used to determine the position of the PUA. The indirect detection of a change in the position of the PUA is accomplished by detecting a predetermined parameter directly or indirectly related to the position of the PUA and determining from the change in the predetermined parameter whether the position of the PUA has changed. One of these predetermined parameters detected by the sensor/detector 13 may be a change in the strength of the radio frequency signal received by the PUA, in which case the sensor/detector 13 comprises a radio frequency signal receiver. When location change data is available, such data is used in some embodiments to determine whether and when the PUA was or is being carried by the user.

While the sensor/sonde 13 is monitoring the impact 230 of other objects on the PUA2, the sensor/sonde 13 includes an impact detector for measuring a predetermined level of impact of other objects on the PUA 2. In some embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 includes an accelerometer for detecting relatively large accelerations when other objects impact the PUA 2.

In embodiments where the pressure applied to the PUA is monitored, a pressure sensor may be placed on or mechanically coupled to the housing of the PUA to receive the pressure applied to the housing. In some such embodiments, the pressure measurements over time and/or position on the housing are analyzed to determine whether the PUA is or was being carried and/or its manner of use and/or unused events.

In certain embodiments where the motion of the PUA is monitored, the camera of the PUA is used as a motion sensor. In some such embodiments, changes in the image data output by the camera (either the entire image or one or more portions thereof) are processed to determine a range of motion of the motion or image over time to detect whether the PUA is translated or rotated. Techniques for generating motion vectors indicative of image motion or range of motion are well known and are used in some embodiments herein to assess whether the PUA is moving and/or the range of such motion. In some such embodiments, changes in light intensity or color composition over time of the image data (either the entire image or one or more portions thereof) output by the camera are used to detect motion of the PUA. In certain embodiments where the motion of the PUA is monitored, a light sensitive device, such as a photodiode of the PUA, is used as the motion sensor. The change in the output of the photosensitive device, which characterizes the motion, over time is used to indicate whether the PUA is being carried.

As shown in fig. 1C, in certain embodiments, the one or more parameters also include a remaining charge in the PUA, a charging of the PUA, and/or an event coupling the PUA with a docking station to dock the PUA. In such embodiments, the monitoring system generates monitoring data by monitoring the amount of remaining power in the PUA and/or the connectivity of the PUA at the docking station. In embodiments where the PUA is being docked, the monitoring system monitors the length of time the PUA is docked with the docking station, the range of times the PUA is docked with the docking station, the time the PUA is docked, the time the PUA is out of the docked state, whether the PUA is docked with the docking station, and/or the time elapsed since the last time the PUA was docked at the docking station.

Monitoring of one or more parameters 222-230 by the monitoring system, as described above, generates monitoring data indicating whether at least the PUA is carried and/or used in one or more different ways. For example, if the monitoring includes monitoring of one or more biometric parameters of the user, the monitoring data indicates at least whether the biometric parameter being monitored is detected. Likewise, in monitoring a change in position of the PUA, external sounds, data input, pressure, motion, changes in light, and/or impact of other objects on the PUA, the monitored data includes data indicating whether at least one of these parameters is being monitored. The monitoring data indicating the one or more parameters detected in the PUA may in turn indicate that the PUA is carried and/or used, whereas the monitoring data indicating that the one or more monitoring parameters are not detected indicates that the PUA is not carried or used.

In certain embodiments, the generated monitoring data indicates whether at least the PUA is charged and/or whether the PUA is docked to the docking station according to predetermined time parameters. In monitoring the charging of the PUA, the monitoring data includes data indicating whether at least the PUA is charging, and in some embodiments, the monitoring data indicates whether the amount of charge remaining in the PUA is above a predetermined minimum value. In some embodiments, the monitoring data indicates whether at least the PUA is docked to the docking station at any time, and in some embodiments, the monitoring data indicates one or more of whether the PUA is docked at the docking station for a predetermined length of time, a frequency at which the PUA is docked, a time at which the PUA is undocked, and/or a time range at which the PUA is docked. The monitoring data generated in these embodiments may be used to determine whether the use of the PUA meets the criteria for charging and/or docking the PUA.

In some embodiments, the monitoring data includes data that can be used to confirm the identity of the PUA user. For example, if the sensor/detector monitors one or more biometric parameters of the user, the monitoring data includes one or more of heart rate or other cardiac activity or parameters, EEG, blood oxygen levels, respiratory rate or other respiratory activity or parameters, borborygmus, gait, sound, voice analysis, key presses, keypad or keyboard usage characteristics, fingerprints, palm prints, hand set characteristics, pulse, retina or iris patterns, odor characteristics or other biochemical indicators, muscle activity patterns, blood vessel distribution, facial or ear characteristics, signatures, and/or body temperature indicative or related to the user detected one or more times or within a predetermined time. In some embodiments, the user passes the signal from the signal transmitter 14; to identify. In other examples, if the location of the PUA is monitored for changes, the monitoring data may include data relating to the specific location or change in location of the PUA and/or data relating to the specific radio frequency signal strength of the PUA detected at one time or multiple times within a predetermined time.

Referring to FIG. 3A above, monitored data generated by monitoring at least one of user biometric parameters, external sounds, PUA position or positional variations, data input, pressure applied to the PUA, impact of other objects on the PUA, signals from signal transmitter 14, motion of the PUA, power level of the PUA, charging and docking of the PUA at the docking station is used to determine whether the user's use of the PUA meets predetermined criteria and/or compliance level 242 of the user. In some embodiments, the determination of compliance and/or level of compliance is made in the PUA by its processor, while in other embodiments the monitoring data generated in the PUA is communicated to the processor 5 via its communications component, and the processor 5 then determines the user's level of compliance and/or compliance.

In certain embodiments, compliance and/or a level of compliance is determined based on detection or non-detection of one or more monitored parameters indicated by the monitoring data to determine whether the PUA was carried and/or charged at the time of monitoring and/or whether the PUA was docked and/or undocked at a predetermined point in time or within a period of time. In certain embodiments, as described above, when the monitoring data includes more specific or extensive data, the determination of compliance and/or level of compliance includes not only the fact that the PUA is carried, but also a confirmation that the PUA is carried by the particular user. In these embodiments, compliance is determined by comparing the monitored data to pre-stored data associated with the particular user to determine whether the PUA is carried and whether the user carrying the PUA is the particular user. Specifically, if the monitoring data corresponds to the stored data of a specific user, the user carrying the PUA can be deemed to be the specific user. However, if the monitoring data does not correspond to the stored data of the specific user, it can be determined that the user carrying the PUA is not the specific user. The determination of whether the usage of the PUA meets a predetermined criterion and/or the determination of the user's compliance level is based on whether the PUA is being carried and whether the user carrying the PUA is a particular user.

In some embodiments, if the PUA is determined to be carried by a particular user, usage of the PUA is deemed to meet a predetermined criterion, and if the PUA is determined not to be carried, usage is deemed to be not in compliance. Depending on the requirements of the monitoring system and predetermined criteria, in some embodiments, if the PUA is determined to be carried by a person other than the particular user, the usage compliance or partial compliance of the PUA is identified. In other embodiments, however, the monitoring system deems the use of the PUA to not meet predetermined criteria if the PUA is deemed to be carried by a person other than the particular user.

With respect to the specification of a compliance level, in some embodiments, a compliance level is specified to be highest if the PUA is determined to be carried by a particular user, and a compliance level is specified to be lowest if the PUA is determined not to be carried. In some embodiments, if the PUA is carried by a person other than the particular user at all or a portion of the monitoring time points, it is determined to be below the maximum level and above the minimum level of intermediate compliance. The value of the intermediate compliance level may depend on whether the PUA is carried by a person other than the particular user at all or part of the monitoring time points, and the number of time points at which the PUA is determined to be carried by a person other than the particular user (if determined multiple times).

As shown in fig. 3A, a PUA user may be given an opportunity to receive a reward for meeting predetermined usage criteria. As described above, providing a user with a reward in return for use of a PUA compliance may incentivize the user to comply with PUA usage requirements in the future. In embodiments where the monitoring system provides rewards to the user, the reward 244 to the user is made after determining compliance and/or compliance levels 242. The determination of the reward is based on whether the user meets predetermined usage criteria and/or based on a level of compliance of the user, and may be performed in the PUA or in the processor. As discussed in relation to fig. 2A and 2B, the reward to the user may include cash, credit, points available for purchase by the user, services, or other benefits to the user.

As further shown in FIG. 3A, in some embodiments, the monitoring system may optionally communicate a message to the PUA user indicating the user's compliance and/or compliance level 246 and/or winnings. In these embodiments, this message may be in the form of a telephone, text message, voice mail, voice message, image, email, web page, written notification, or any other indication suitable to the user. In some such embodiments, lights may be lit or flashed or sounded (similar to a voicemail notification) at fixed intervals (e.g., intervals of one to five minutes) to indicate compliance or non-compliance. When the light and sound notification indicates non-compliance, its intensity and/or frequency may increase over time to draw the attention of the user. Referring now to fig. 1B, if the determination of compliance, level of compliance, and/or reward is made by the processor of the PUA, a message indicating the compliance, level of compliance, and/or reward may be communicated by the PUA to the user. On the other hand, if a determination of compliance, level of compliance and/or reward is made by the processor 5, a message may be delivered to the PUA to be provided to the user or may be otherwise delivered to the user.

As described above, the award 244 to the user and the message 246 delivered to the user are optional. Thus, it goes without saying that the monitoring system may perform two, only one or none of these operations depending on the arrangement of the PUAs and the requirements of the monitoring system.

In certain other embodiments, methods and systems for monitoring use by a user of a research device include generating monitoring data by monitoring one or more parameters, generating identification data that identifies the user based on the monitoring data, and identifying whether the user is using the research device based on the identification data in compliance with at least one predetermined use criterion. FIG. 3B illustrates the operations performed by the monitoring system of this embodiment, wherein the research device includes one PUA, but it should be understood that the monitoring system may also be applicable in embodiments wherein the research device does not include one PUA. In fig. 3B, the monitoring system performs operations similar to those depicted in fig. 3A, again using the same reference numbers as in fig. 3A.

As shown in FIG. 3B, the monitoring system monitors at least one of a user's biometric parameters 222, external sounds, presence indication signals, personal identification signals 224, PUA location changes 226, data input 228 to the PUA and impact of other objects on the PUA, motion of the PUA, pressure 230 applied to the PUA. As discussed above in relation to fig. 3A and with reference to fig. 1B, monitoring is performed by the sensor/detector 13 in the PUA2, and this monitoring provides monitoring data relating to the monitored parameter. In some such embodiments, the monitor stores one or more signatures, feature sets, or other feature data of the panelists assigned to the PUAs (and thus should be the only users thereof) for comparison with the monitored data to determine if the data matches. This comparison provides an indication of whether the PUA was actually carried and/or used by the correct user. For example, if the monitoring system monitors sounds external to the PUA, the monitoring data may include not only an indication that an external sound was detected, but also data related to the detected sounds, such as an analysis of the detected sounds, a frequency of the detected sounds, voice recognition data, and/or data related to the detected sounds, where a voice signature or set of characteristics may be generated to evaluate whether the PUA is owned by the correct user as compared to a stored signature or set of characteristics. In some embodiments, the monitoring data is used to determine whether the PUA is being carried. Thus, for example, if the monitoring system monitors a change in the position of the PUA, the monitoring data will not only include data indicative of the change in the position of the PUA, but may also infer that the monitor is in the hand of the user carrying it.

Referring to fig. 3B, monitoring data generated by monitoring one or more of the above parameters is used to provide identification data, which in turn is used to identify the user 251 of the PUA. In certain embodiments, the identification data is provided by the PUA and/or the docking station, while in other embodiments, the monitoring data is communicated from the PUA to the processor 5 via the communication component, and the processor 5 then provides the identification data based on the monitoring data. In certain embodiments, the identification data is produced by comparing the monitoring data to pre-stored data associated with at least one PUA user to determine the identity of the PUA user and/or to confirm that the PUA user is a specific user corresponding to the pre-stored data. The pre-stored data may be based on data previously obtained from a particular user relating to the PUA user, or may be based on previously collected monitoring data. By providing identification data relating to the identity of the user, the monitoring system is adapted to confirm that a particular person, but not others, is carrying and/or using the PUA.

Upon generating the identification data at 251, the monitoring system determines whether the usage of the PUA meets at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or the user's compliance level 242. This determination 242 is based on identification data identifying the user. In some embodiments, upon the identification data indicating that the person carrying and/or using the PUA corresponds to or is the correct PUA user, the monitoring system determines at 242 that the PUA user meets at least one predetermined usage criterion. The compliance level of the user may be determined based on whether the PUA is carried and/or used according to a predetermined standard and whether a person carrying and/or using the PUA is indicated to be in compliance with a corresponding user of the PUA based on the identification data and based on a frequency of the compliance use indication. Thus, for example, a first level of compliance is determined when the identification data indicates that the PUA is being carried by a user corresponding to a PUA-specific user, a second level of compliance that is lower than the first level of compliance is determined when the identification data indicates that the PUA is not being carried by a user corresponding to a PUA-specific user, and a third level of compliance that is lower than the first and second levels is determined when the identification data indicates that the PUA is not being carried by any user. It goes without saying that these compliance levels are illustrative and that the number of levels and the method of determining these levels may vary.

As illustrated in FIG. 3A, in some embodiments, the monitoring system provides a reward 244 to the user for meeting a predetermined criteria and/or sends a message to the user indicating at least one of compliance, a level of compliance, and a reward 246. Specifically, after identifying the user's compliance and level of compliance, in some embodiments, the monitoring system determines a reward 244 to the PUA user and/or communicates a message to the user indicating the user's compliance, level of compliance and/or reward 246 to the user. These operations are similar to the operations described above in connection with fig. 3A, and are otherwise also similar to the descriptions 108 and 110 described above in connection with fig. 2A and the descriptions 206 and 208 described above in connection with fig. 2B. Therefore, a detailed description is not necessary here.

In some embodiments described herein, methods and systems for monitoring the compliance of the use of a research device with at least one predetermined use criterion include: actively monitoring the use of the research device by the user by communicating a message to the user requesting a response, and passively monitoring the use of the research device by the user by detecting at least one parameter indicative of whether the research device is used in accordance with at least one predetermined criterion. Figure 4 illustrates the operations performed by the monitoring system in these embodiments where the research device comprises a PUA. In other embodiments, the monitoring system monitors the use of research equipment that does not include a PUA.

As shown in fig. 4, the monitoring system actively and passively monitors the use of the PUA. The active monitoring 260 of the use of the PUA comprises requesting the user to act to display compliance with at least one predetermined use criterion and in particular to communicate a request message to the user requesting a response to the request message. These active monitoring are similar to the description of monitoring system operations 100, 102, and 104 described above in connection with fig. 2A and 2B and therefore need not be described in detail herein.

Unlike active monitoring 260, passive monitoring 262 does not request any specific action to be performed by the user to indicate compliance with the PUA usage criteria and includes detecting or probing one or more parameters indicating whether the PUA is used in accordance with at least one predetermined criteria. Referring to fig. 1B, the detection or probing is performed by a sensor/probe 13 in the PUA2 and includes, but is not limited to, one or more of sensing a biometric parameter of the user, sensing a presence indication signal or personal identification signal, sensing an external sound, detecting a position of the PUA, detecting a change in the position of the PUA, detecting a motion of the PUA, detecting a data input, sensing a pressure applied to the PUA, detecting a charge, and/or docking of the PUA, and other impacts of objects against the PUA. These passive monitoring activities are similar to those described above in connection with fig. 3A and 3B and need not be described in detail herein.

Referring to FIG. 4, the monitoring system determines whether the usage of the PUA meets at least one predetermined criterion and/or a compliance level 264 of the user based on active monitoring 260 and passive monitoring 262 of the usage of the PUA. In particular, active monitoring 260 and passive monitoring 262 provide data for determining whether usage of the PUA meets at least one predetermined criterion and/or a compliance level 264 of the user. As described above, the compliance and/or compliance level determination indicates whether the PUA is being carried and/or used, whether the PUA is being charged, whether the PUA was being charged and/or docked, whether the PUA is being carried and/or used by a particular user, whether the PUA is open, whether the PUA is working properly, whether the PUA is being carried and is a particular user, and whether the PUA2 is capable of collecting, storing and/or communicating research data, or is being used in conjunction with one or more other devices to accomplish one or more of these purposes. In some embodiments, the monitoring system notifies 264 the user of compliance or non-compliance and/or the user's level of compliance with the predetermined criteria by communicating a message to the user after compliance determination. In some embodiments, the monitoring system also determines a reward to the user based on the user's compliance and/or compliance level, and communicates a message to the user informing the user of the reward. These operations are described in detail in the discussion associated with fig. 2A-3B and are not described in detail herein. Needless to say, as in the embodiment of fig. 2A-3B, the determination of the reward and the communication to the user of a message indicating compliance, level of compliance and/or reward is optional.

In certain embodiments, the PUA performs passive monitoring to generate passive monitoring data, the monitoring system communicates a request message to the PUA, the PUA automatically generates a response including and/or based on the passive monitoring data and communicates the response to the monitoring system, and the monitoring system determines whether usage of the PUA meets at least one predetermined usage criterion based on the passive monitoring data. In some such embodiments, the PUA delivers its response as it is carried on a predetermined schedule. In some such embodiments, the monitoring system communicates its request when the PUA is carried according to a predetermined schedule.

In certain embodiments, the user's compliant use of the research device is facilitated by: by generating compliance data at a plurality of different points in time and/or over a period of time, indicating whether the research device is in use according to at least one predetermined use criterion, generating compliance level data, presenting the compliance level of the user and communicating a message to the user to indicate the user compliance level based on the level data. These embodiments relating to the use of PUA are depicted in fig. 5, but it should be understood that these embodiments may also be applied to research facilities that do not contain PUA.

As shown in FIG. 5, the monitoring system determines whether the usage of the PUA first time meets at least one predetermined criterion 270, i.e., at T₁At a point in time (or within a selected time period), and then determining the PUAWhether the at least one predetermined criterion is met for the second time 272, i.e. at T, is used₂A point in time (or a selected period of time). These compliance determinations are based on one of the descriptions of active monitoring and passive monitoring associated with fig. 2A-4. Needless to say, the number of compliance claims is not limited to two, and the monitoring system may be at T₁To T_nSuch compliance determination is made at a point in time where n is any predetermined number or any desired number of time periods. These determinations are made at predetermined time intervals, at preselected times of day, and/or at randomly selected time points. In some embodiments, the monitoring system sends a message to the PUA on schedule to request data that can evaluate compliance. In some such embodiments, the plan is generated using a pseudo-random time and date sequence. In some such embodiments, the schedule is generated to ensure that messages are sent during predetermined time periods of the day, such as during selected part of the day.

The plurality of compliance assertions 270, 272 of the monitoring system provide compliance data indicating whether the PUA is to be used in accordance with at least one predetermined usage criterion. Referring now to fig. 1B, compliance data is provided by the PUA and/or the processor 5 of the monitoring system 1.

Referring again to FIG. 5, the monitoring system determines a compliance level 274 for the user based on the compliance data generated in the plurality of compliance claims 270 and 272. The user compliance level is identified by the PUA2 or the processor 5 of the monitoring system 1 of fig. 1B using the compliance data to determine to what extent the user meets at least one predetermined usage criterion. As a result of the compliance level determination, level data indicative of the user's compliance level will be provided.

After identifying the user's compliance level, the monitoring system communicates a message to the user indicating his compliance level 276. The message to the user is generated in PUA2 or by processor 5 of the system based on the level data produced by the monitoring system at 274. In some embodiments, the message is delivered to the user via communication 7 when the message is generated by the processor 5. As described above, this message may be in the form of a text message, a voicemail, a voice message, an email, a web page, a telephone call, a video, or any other indication of the user's compliance level. This message may be delivered to the user using input from the PUA, for example by displaying the message on its display screen or playing the message using its speaker or headphones. Alternatively, the message may be delivered to the user using other suitable devices.

A message is communicated to the user indicating compliance with the usage requirements and/or the user compliance level, informing the user whether their usage is in compliance with the usage requirements to facilitate proper use of the PUA. In this way, the user may compare their own compliance levels at different times and strive to increase the compliance levels over time.

In some embodiments, the monitoring system facilitates use of the research device by a plurality of users by generating data indicative of a level of compliance that each of the plurality of research device users is in compliance and communicating a message to each user to indicate the user's compliance relative to other research device users. In some such embodiments, the level data includes comparative compliance ranking data that indicates a user compliance ranking or level to which the user compares with compliance rankings or levels of a plurality of other research device users. The determination of the comparative compliance ranking or level data for each user is made by the processor 5 of the monitoring system 1 of FIG. 1B, which processes the data relating to compliance and/or compliance levels and provides a relative compliance level indicating the selected user as compared to the compliance levels of other research device users.

In certain embodiments, the level data represents a compliance ranking or level of the user compared to all other research device user compliance rankings or levels monitored by the monitoring system. In certain other embodiments, research device users may be divided into multiple user groups, where each user belongs to at least one user group. Each user group is determined based on common user characteristics such as age, gender, income, occupation, location, preferences and/or interests, family relations and other characteristics. In such embodiments, the level data generated by the monitoring system represents a compliance ranking or level of the user compared to compliance rankings or levels of other users within the same group. Thus, for example, research device users may be divided into groups of users including members of the same address, and the level data provided by the monitoring system indicates the relative compliance levels of the users as compared to the compliance levels of other users within the same address.

Based on the level data generated by the monitoring system, a message is generated and delivered to each user. The messages to the users indicate the user's compliance level with respect to other multiple research device users. This message may be in the form of a text message, voice mail, voice message, video, telephone, email, web page, written message, or any other suitable message capable of notifying the user of its relative compliance. In the monitoring system of fig. 1B, this message is generated by the processor 5 and may be communicated to the respective user via communication 7. This message may be delivered directly to the user, such as by telephone, text message, email, etc., to the user's research device or any other suitable device, or by any other suitable means. Messages communicated to users indicating user compliance promote competition between users, members of a user group, for example members of the same address that research devices may divide into groups as discussed above. This in turn encourages each user to use the research device according to the intended use requirements. [00047] Fig. 6 is a block diagram of handset 20 modified to perform research work. Handset 20 includes a processor 30 operable for overall control and processing of audio and other data for transmission or reception, and a communication 40 coupled to processor 30 and under the control of processor 30 performing the functions required to establish and maintain a bidirectional wireless communication link with a corresponding cell of the handset network. In some embodiments, processor 30 may also be used to execute applications that facilitate or are unrelated to handset communication behavior, for example, as an application that downloads audio and/or video data to be rendered by handset 20, an email client, and an application that allows a user to play games using handset 20. In some embodiments, processor 30 includes two or more processing devices, such as a first processing device (e.g., a digital signal processor) that processes audio and a second processing device that controls the operation of handset 20 as a whole. In some embodiments, processor 30 may employ a single processing device. In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality of processor 30 is implemented by hardwired circuitry.

Handset 20 further includes a memory 50 coupled to processor 30 and operable to store data as needed. In some embodiments, memory 50 comprises a single memory device, while in other embodiments memory 50 comprises a plurality of memory devices. In some embodiments, a single device performs some of the functions of both processor 30 and memory 50.

In addition, handset 20 includes a microphone 60 coupled to processor 30 to transduce user's voice to encoded electrical signals provided to processor 30, and a speaker and/or earphone 70 coupled to processor 30 to transduce audio received from processor 30 to audible output that can be heard by the user. Handset 20 also includes a user input 80, such as a keypad, coupled to processor 30 for entering telephone numbers and other control data, and a display 90 coupled to processor 30 for providing visual data to a user under the control of processor 30.

In some embodiments, handset 20 provides additional functionality and/or includes additional elements. In some such embodiments, handset 20 provides email, text messaging, and/or network access through its wireless communication capabilities to provide access to media and other content. For example, the Internet interface of handset 20 allows access to video and/or audio content that the handset can reproduce for the user, such as songs, video-on-demand, video clips, and streaming media. In some embodiments, storage 50 stores software that provides audio and/or video download and reproduction functionality, e.g.Software that allows a user to render audio and/or video content downloaded from a source, such as a personal computer connected via communication 40 or the internet via communication 40.

To enable handset 20 to collect research data, i.e., data indicative of audio exposure to programs, music, and announcements, research software is installed on memory 50 to control processor 30 to collect such data and transmit it to the research institution via communication 40. The research software in certain embodiments also controls the processor 30 to store data for subsequent communications.

In certain embodiments, research software control processor 30 decodes ancillary codes in the transmitted audio from microphone 60 using one or more of the known techniques described above, and then stores and/or transfers the decoded data for use as research data indicating which encoded audio the user is exposed to. In certain embodiments, research software control processor 30 extracts signatures in the transmitted audio from microphone 60 using one or more of the known techniques described above, and then stores and/or transfers the extracted signatures for use as research data that matches reference signatures representing known audio or that detects audio that is touched by a user. In certain embodiments, research software simultaneously decodes ancillary codes in transmitted audio and extracts signatures therefrom to identify which audio a user is exposed to. In certain embodiments, research software control processor 30 stores samples of the transmitted audio in compressed or uncompressed format for subsequent processing to decode ancillary code therein or extract signatures therein. In some such embodiments, the compressed or uncompressed audio is passed to a remote processor to decode and/or extract the signature.

In some embodiments where handset 20 possesses the capability to download and/or render presentation data, handset 20 may collect research data regarding the use and/or exposure of such presentation data, as well as audio data acoustically received via microphone 60, in accordance with the techniques depicted in the functional block diagram of FIG. 6A. The memory 50 in fig. 6 provides an audio buffer 54 for audio data from a handset using a microphone 60. In some such embodiments, memory 50 provides a buffer 56 for presentation data downloaded and/or rendered by handset 20 while contacted by a user via speaker and/or headset 70 or display 90 or a device coupled to handset 20 to receive data therefrom for presentation to the user. In some such embodiments, the reproduction data is from downloaded data, such as songs, web pages, or audio/video data (e.g., power, television programs, video clips). In some such embodiments, the reproduction data comes from a broadcast or satellite broadcast receiver or the like (not shown for purposes of simplicity and clarity) of the handset 20. In some such embodiments, memory 50 provides a buffer 56 for metadata of presentation data rendered by handset 20, while the user is in contact with a device that receives data therefrom for presentation to the user via speaker and/or headphones 70 or display screen 90 or otherwise coupled with handset 20. Such metadata may be, for example, a URL to obtain the presentation data, channel tuning data, program identification data, an identification of a prerecorded file of reproduction data, or any data that identifies and/or summarizes characteristics of the presentation data or its source. While the buffer 56 stores audio data, the buffers 54 and 56 store their audio data independently of each other (either in the time domain or in the frequency domain). While the buffer 56 stores metadata of the audio data, the buffer 54 stores the audio data independently (either in the time domain or in the frequency domain), while the buffer 56 stores its metadata independently.

Processor 30 generates study data 58 from the contents of each of buffers 54 and 56, respectively, and stores it in memory 50. In some such embodiments, one or both of buffers 54 and 56 serve as a circular buffer that stores predetermined audio data representing data received by microphone 60 and/or reproduced by speaker and/or headset 70, or a recent time interval downloaded by handset 20 for reproduction by other devices associated with handset 20. The processor 30 extracts the signature in the buffered audio data and/or decodes the ancillary code therein to generate the research data. In embodiments where metadata is received in buffer 56, the metadata is used in whole or in part as research data 58 or processed to produce research data 58. Thus, the research data collected represents the user's exposure to and/or use of audio data received by handset 20 in acoustic form and the presentation data received in non-acoustic form (e.g., as handset communications, electrical signals over cable to other devices through a personal computer, as broadcast or satellite signals, or otherwise).

In certain embodiments, handset 20 provides a coupled research data source 96 via a wired or wireless connection by processor 30 for collecting further or alternative research data to be communicated to the research institution. In some such embodiments, research data source 96 includes a location-generating device or function that provides data indicative of the location of handset 20. Various devices suitable as source 96 include satellite position signal receivers, terrestrial position signal receivers, wireless network devices that receive position data from a network, inertial position monitoring devices, and position data generation services provided by a cell phone service provider. In some embodiments, research data source 96 includes a device or function for monitoring exposure to print media, deciding on use at or outside home, monitoring exposure to products, exposure to presentations (e.g., outdoor advertising), gathering research data (e.g., consumption attitude, preferences, or opinion data) at or near a commercial establishment, or by conducting surveys of the user of cell phone 20. In certain embodiments, research data source 96 includes one or more devices that receive, detect, or probe functions in performing one or more of the functions described above, other research data handset functions, and/or generate functions that facilitate the collection, storage, and/or communication of research data (e.g., data indicating whether a panelist is in compliance with predetermined rules restricting their activities or the degree of compliance thereof). These devices include, but are not limited to, motion sensors, accelerometers, temperature sensors, distance detectors, satellite positioning signal receivers, cameras, image scanners using visible or infrared light or other radiant energy, chemical sensors, digital tablets, blood flow sensors, pulse oximeters, pulse monitors, radio frequency tag readers, radio frequency receivers, wireless network transceivers, wireless device connection transceivers, pressure sensors, deformation sensors, electric field detectors, magnetic field detectors, optical sensors, electrodes (e.g., EEG and/or EKG electrodes), audio sensors, and the like. In certain embodiments, these devices are included in a cell phone to provide functionality that is advantageous to the user, such that their functionality may also be used to collect research data and/or collect data indicating whether a panelist meets predetermined usage criteria. These devices include, but are not limited to, microphones, cameras, and satellite positioning signal receivers.

In some embodiments, handset 20 includes or carries a dedicated data collection device to assess compliance, such as sensor/detector 13 described above in connection with fig. 1B, 3A, and 3B. In some such embodiments, sensor/detector 13 comprises a digital tablet for entering a user's digital handwritten signature to assess whether handset 20 is being carried by the correct person. In accordance with known handwriting recognition techniques, the memory 50 stores signature recognition software to control the processor 30 to compare the current user's input of a signature through the digital writing pad with stored templates of the correct user's handwritten signature to determine if they match. Based on the matching results, data indicating whether the current user's signature matches the signature in the stored template is generated to assess whether the current user of handset 20 is the subject of consent to carry and use handset 20 to collect research data. The panelist's signature template is generated in a training mode of the signature recognition software, wherein the panelist enters one or more signatures using a digital writing pad and the template is generated therefrom by the processor 30 and stored in the memory 50. In some such embodiments, handset 20 includes a digital tablet that allows for user-friendly functions, such as recording of notes, thereby eliminating the need to provide a dedicated digital tablet as sensor/detector 13.

In some such embodiments, voice-print recognition techniques may be used to assess whether handset 20 is being carried by the correct person. In accordance with known voice print recognition techniques, memory 50 stores voice print recognition software to control processor 30 to compare the current user's voice input through microphone 60 with the stored voice print of the correct user's voice to determine if they match. Based on the matching results, data indicating whether the current user's voice matches the stored voice voiceprint is generated to assess whether the current user of handset 20 is the subject of consent to carry and use handset 20 to collect research data. The voice print of the panelist's voice is generated in a training mode of the speech recognition software in which the panelist speaks into the microphone 20 to generate data from which the voice print is generated by the processor 30 and then stored in the memory 50. Various such embodiments may extract the user's voice voiceprint in different situations. In one such embodiment, the user's voice print is extracted when the user uses the handset to conduct a voice call in response to a request message from the monitoring system. In other such embodiments, processor 30 extracts the voiceprint from the output of microphone 60 continuously or at predetermined points in time or at predetermined intervals or when the output from microphone 60 indicates that a person is speaking into it (e.g., as indicated by its output magnitude and/or time and/or frequency characteristics, etc.). The extracted voice voiceprint is compared to the stored voice voiceprint to assess whether handset 20 is being used by the correct person.

In some such embodiments, sensor/detector 13 comprises an imaging device, such as a camera or other radiant energy detector, such as a line scanner implemented by a CCD or photodiode array, to input data representing an image or line scan of a user's body features, such as an image of the iris, retina, user's face, fingers, palm, hand, or all or part of the ear, to assess whether handset 20 is being used by the correct person. When using iris or retinal images, the input data is processed to extract iris or retinal pattern codes. The facial image is processed to extract user-specific data, such as a signature or set of features representing facial skeletal structures. The image of the finger, palm or hand is processed to extract fingerprint or palm print or other characteristic data, such as hand geometric features or tissue vessel structure. The memory 50 stores pattern recognition software to control the processor 30 to compare the current user's iris or retina pattern code, facial signature or feature set or other feature data entered by way of the sensor/detector 13 with the stored pattern code, signature, feature set or other feature data of the correct user, e.g., where a match may be determined, in accordance with known pattern recognition techniques. These characteristic data may be stored in memory 50 or in storage of a stand-alone device, system or processing facility. Based on the matching results, processor 30, under the control of the pattern recognition software, generates data to assess whether the current user of handset 20 is the subject of consent to carry and use handset 20 to collect research data. The pattern code, signature, feature set or other feature data for the correct user is generated in a training mode of the pattern recognition software, wherein the corresponding physical features of the subject are scanned or imaged one or more times by the sensor/detector 13, from which the required data is generated by the processor 30 and then stored in the memory 50. In some embodiments, the relevant body features may be scanned or imaged from a plurality of different directions to produce the desired data. In some of the above embodiments, handset 20 includes a digital camera, such as a digital camera or video camera, that allows the user to benefit from the functionality, so that a dedicated imaging device or scanner need not be provided as sensor/detector 13.

In some such embodiments where user input 80 includes one or more keys, keypad dynamics techniques will be used to assess whether handset 20 is being used by the correct person. According to known key monitoring techniques, the memory 50 stores keystroke monitoring software to control the processor 30 to collect keystroke characterization parameters, such as data indicating how long the user pressed the input 80 key, the time delay between strokes (referred to as "latency"), and the frequency of use of particular keys, such as the delete key. While other parameters such as the speed of input and the manner in which the user employs the key combination (e.g., key monitoring shortcut) may still be monitored by the processor 30. These parameters are processed in a known manner to produce a feature set that summarizes the user's key usage style characteristics and then compared to a stored feature set that represents the correct user style. Based on the matching results, data indicating whether the current user's key usage style matches the key usage style of the correct user in the stored feature set is generated to assess whether the current user of handset 20 is the subject of consent to carry and use handset 20 to collect research data. A feature set representing the key usage style of a panelist is generated in a training mode of the software, wherein the panelist will generate data therefrom using one or more key generation processors 30 of the user input 80 and then stored in the memory 50.

In some such embodiments, sensor/detector 13 includes a motion sensitive device, such as an accelerometer, to generate data related to movement of handpiece 20. This data is used to generate a set of features defining the motion characteristics of the handpiece 20 and the gait of the person carrying the handpiece. In accordance with known gait recognition techniques, the memory 50 stores pattern recognition software to control the processor 30 to compare the currently used set of gait features with a stored set of features representing the correct user's gait to determine if there is a match. Based on the matching results, data indicating whether the current user's gait matches the gait in the stored feature set is generated to assess whether the current user of handset 20 is the subject of consent to carry and use handset 20 to collect research data. The feature set for the panelist's gait is generated in a training mode of the pattern recognition software wherein the panelist walks with the cell phone 20 while the sensor/detector 13 generating processor 30 generates therefrom data for the reference feature set which is then stored in the memory 50. In some such embodiments, handset 20 includes an accelerometer as an input device that provides advantageous user functions, such as game control input or scroll command input, so that a dedicated accelerometer need not be provided as sensor/detector 13.

In some such embodiments, multiple devices and pattern recognition techniques may be employed to more accurately and reliably identify a user than if only one pattern recognition technique were used. In some embodiments, one or more of such pattern recognition techniques or other passive data collection techniques may be employed to assess whether handset 20 is not in the correct user's hand, and such detection may be based on a determination by processor 30 of the amount of difference between the monitored set of features and the stored set of features representing the correct user's features. When processor 30 generates data indicating that handset 20 may not be in the hand of the correct user, in some embodiments processor 30 controls the speaker, headset, or visual display of handset 20 to provide a message to the user requesting an answer from which to determine the identity of the correct user or other person, or processor 30 may send a message to the monitoring system via communication 40 indicating that the message should be submitted to the user. In the latter, the monitoring system, in response to this message from processor 30, sends a message to handset 20 to provide the user with a corresponding answer to the user, from which processor 30 or the monitoring system determines whether the user's identity is the correct user or someone else. The user's reply to this message will be used to determine whether the actual user is the correct user.

In some embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 comprises a device adapted to receive a presence-indicating signal or a personal identification signal from a signal transmitter 14 worn or carried or implanted by the user. In such embodiments, the sensor/detector 13 comprises a suitable one of a radio frequency receiver, a microphone, an optical sensor, an inductive pickup, a capacitive pickup, a chemical sensor, or a conductive connection.

Although embodiments of the invention have been described with reference to particular component arrangements and functions, etc., these should not be construed as all possible arrangements or functions, and indeed many other embodiments, modifications and variations will be ascertainable to those of skill in the art.

Claims (4)

1. A method of monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising actively monitoring use of the portable research device and passively monitoring use of the portable research device, wherein,

actively monitoring use of the portable research device includes communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from a user of the portable research device; receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; comparing compliance-related data contained in the reply message with reference data; and generating compliance data indicating whether the user complies with at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a level of user compliance based on the comparison;

passive monitoring use of the portable research device includes generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device; communicating a request message to the portable research device; receiving a response message automatically generated by and communicated by the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on passive monitoring data generated in the portable research device; and determining whether the use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion based on the comparison of the passive monitoring data and the reference data;

wherein the method further comprises

Whether the usage of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a user compliance level is determined based on active monitoring of the usage of the portable research device and passive monitoring of the usage of the portable research device.

2. A system for monitoring the use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising means for actively monitoring the use of the portable research device and means for passively monitoring the use of the portable research device, wherein,

the means for actively monitoring use of the portable research device comprises means for communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from a user of the portable research device; means for receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in reply to the request message; means for comparing compliance-related data contained in the reply message with reference data; and means for generating compliance data indicating whether the user complies with at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a level of user compliance based on the comparison;

the means for passively monitoring use of the portable research device comprises means for generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device; means for communicating a request message to the portable research device; means for receiving a response message automatically generated by and communicated by the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on passive monitoring data generated in the portable research device; and means for determining whether usage of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined usage criterion based on the comparison of the passive monitoring data and the reference data;

wherein the system further comprises means for determining whether the use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or user compliance level based on the active monitoring of the use of the portable research device and the passive monitoring of the use of the portable research device.

3. A method of monitoring use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising actively monitoring use of the portable research device and passively monitoring use of the portable research device, wherein,

actively monitoring use of the portable research device includes communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from a user of the portable research device; receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in response to the request message; and generating compliance data based on the comparison of the compliance-related data in the response message with the reference data, indicating (a) whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or (b) a level of compliance of the user meets at least one predetermined use criterion;

passive monitoring use of the portable research device includes generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device; communicating a request message to the portable research device; receiving a response message automatically generated using and communicated by the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on passive monitoring data generated in the portable research device; and determining whether the use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion based on the comparison of the passive monitoring data and the reference data;

wherein the method further comprises

Whether the usage of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined usage criterion and/or a user compliance level is determined based on active monitoring of the usage of the portable research device and passive monitoring of the usage of the portable research device.

4. A system for monitoring the use by a user of a portable research device in accordance with at least one predetermined use criterion, comprising means for actively monitoring the use of the portable research device and means for passively monitoring the use of the portable research device, wherein,

the means for actively monitoring use of the portable research device comprises means for communicating a request message to the portable research device, the request message requesting a response from a user of the portable research device; means for receiving a response message communicated by the portable research device in reply to the request message; means for generating compliance data based on a comparison of the compliance-related data contained in the response message with the reference data, the compliance data indicating (a) whether the user's use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or (b) a level of compliance of the user meets at least one predetermined use criterion;

the means for passively monitoring use of the portable research device comprises means for generating passive monitoring data in the portable research device; means for communicating a request message to the portable research device; means for receiving a response message automatically generated using and communicated by the portable research device, the response message including and/or being based on passive monitoring data generated in the portable research device; and means for determining whether usage of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined usage criterion based on the comparison of the passive monitoring data and the reference data;

wherein the system further comprises means for determining whether the use of the portable research device meets at least one predetermined use criterion and/or user compliance level based on the active monitoring of the use of the portable research device and the passive monitoring of the use of the portable research device.