MULTIMEDIA SYSTEM FOR TRANSFORMING ANY ROOM INTO A SHOW ENVIRONMENT

Number: 20180103287
Published: 2018-04-12
Filed: 2016-10-12
Assignee: DISNEY ENTERPRISES, INC.
Inventors: REICHOW; MARK A.; VORIS; JEFFREY L.; SMITH; JOHN DAVID; KENNEDY; ZACHERY W.; LANDRY; PRESTON TIMOTHY
CPC: H04N9/3141; H04N9/3185; H04N7/002; H04N9/3179; H04N21/43074; H04N21/2143; H04N9/3147; H05B47/155; H04N21/4131; H04N21/4122
Verdict: High Hardware
Source: Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline

The keeper's note

Room-transforming immersive show projection system.

Abstract

A show system or in-room entertainment or show system configured to provide engaging and immersive multimedia shows or presentations in nearly any space (or “room”) that is defined by one or more walls. The in-room show system generally includes a controller for selectively operating a display device (e.g., a television or the like), a video projector, an audio system (e.g., one or more speakers), and other show components (e.g., one or more lights, a fan, a mechanical device, and so on). Media content is predefined for the room, and the controller operates (such as in response to a triggering switch or remote control device that may take the form of a show prop activated by someone in the room) to serve the media content to tell a story and/or magically transform the space into a multidimensional and immersive entertainment space.

Background

BACKGROUND1. Field of the Description

The present description relates, in general, to entertainment and show systems and, more particularly, to a show system (e.g., an in-room multimedia entertainment or show system) for transforming any space (or any room) into a location for a multimedia show presentation and experience.2. Relevant Background

There are many settings where it is desirable to provide in-room entertainment to make people's stay in that room or space more enjoyable. These spaces may range from waiting areas (e.g., airport and other transportation staging areas, health and other service waiting rooms, and so on) to hotel rooms to a room in someone's home, and each of these spaces may be considered a “room” in this description. To date, the types of entertainment provided in these spaces or “in-room” has been quite limited.

For example, hotel rooms have long been rather generic environments distinguished from each other mainly by their furnishings, decor, the hotel's location, and out-of-room amenities provided in the hotel or its grounds. Conventional thinking in the hotel industry has been that it is desirable to make their guest very comfortable while they sleep but to otherwise encourage their guests to leave their room to partake in entertaining activities such as shopping and dining on-site or elsewhere in a resort or nearby city.

The idea of in-room entertainment generally has been to provide room service for dining and providing a

Claims

1. A system for providing entertainment with multimedia content matched to a particular space or room, comprising: a display device positioned in a room; a projector positioned in the room for projecting on one or more surfaces in the room; an audio system for providing audio output into the room; and a show controller operating, based on a show file defining display content, projector content, and audio content for a show, the display device to display the display content, the projector to project the projector content onto the one or more surfaces in the room, and the audio system to output the audio content for the show into the room, wherein the projector content is mapped, prior to the show controller operating, to the one or more surfaces in the room using projection mapping. 9. A system for providing entertainment, comprising: a room defined by one or more walls; a plurality of show components including a set of speakers and a video projector; a show controller running a show program generating a set of control signals to operate each of the show components including playing a soundtrack on the speakers and operating the video projector to project video mapped to a surface of at least one of the walls by projection mapping; and a remote control device transmitting a show signal to the controller, wherein the show controller responds to the show signal to determine an identifier for the remote control device and to initiate or modify operations of the show components in the room based on the identifier. 15. A method of providing in-room entertainment, comprising: with a display device in a room, displaying a first set of content; with a projector, projecting a second set of content on one or more surfaces of the room; with a surround sound system, playing a soundtrack associated with the first and second content; and with a lighting system, lighting the room in response to at least one of the first and second contents, wherein the lighting of the room includes varying brightness or color during at least one of the displaying and projecting steps, and wherein the second set of content is mapped to the one or more surfaces of the room.