Guided Interaction Between a Companion Device and a User

Number: 20230209123
Published: 2023-06-29
Filed: 2023-03-01
Assignee: Disney Enterprises, Inc.
Inventors: Comito; Keith et al.
CPC: H04N21/44218; G11B27/10; H04N21/8547; H04N21/43637; H04N21/4104; H04N21/8545; H04N21/4302
Verdict: Set aside companion-device content feature, business
Source: Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline

Abstract

According to one implementation, a method of guiding an interaction between a companion module and a user includes identifying a media content for playout by a media player device, transmitting, to a remote server, an interaction schema request identifying the media content and the companion module, and receiving, from the remote server, behavioral manifest data including an instruction for guiding the interaction between the companion module and the user. Such a method also includes obtaining a play head state of the media player device and a playout timecode state of the media content, and identifying a user interaction behavior for the companion module based on the behavioral manifest data, the play head state of the media player device, and the playout timecode state of the media content.

Background

BACKGROUND

Animated television (TV) characters like the Blue Falcons's assistant Dynomutt, Rosie the robot from the Jetsons, and Robo-Dog from the series PAW Patrol testify to the enduring human fascination with the concept of mechanical companionship. In addition, the commonplace actions of children at play, such as dancing with a doll while listening to music, or speaking to a toy while watching TV, reveal the basic desire to share meaningful experiences with a toy based not just on the child's own actions, but also in relation to external stimuli.

The electronics and toy industries have attempted to respond to the desire for mechanical companionship with a variety of products. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a solution enabling a device or virtual entity to engage in real-time interactions with a user and media content.

Claims

21. A method comprising: obtaining behavioral manifest data configured to guide interactions between a system and a user during playout of media content, the behavioral manifest data including a plurality of alternative interaction schema versions, wherein each of the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions includes a respective script of the interactions between the system and the user, the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions being conditioned upon a playout status of the media content; obtaining the playout status of the media content; and identifying, based on the obtained playout status and the behavioral manifest data including the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions, a user interaction behavior for performance by the system. || 31. A system comprising: a software code stored in the memory; a hardware processor configured to execute the software code to: obtain behavioral manifest data configured to guide interactions between the system and a user during playout of media content, the behavioral manifest data including a plurality of alternative interaction schema versions, wherein each of the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions includes a respective script of the interactions between the system and the user, the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions being conditioned upon a playout status of the media content; obtain the playout status of the media content; and identify, based on the obtained playout status and the behavioral manifest data including the plurality of alternative interaction schema versions, a user interaction behavior for performance by the system.