WO2001080577A1

WO2001080577A1 - Personalized electronic information subscription service

Info

Publication number: WO2001080577A1
Application number: PCT/US2001/012602
Authority: WO
Inventors: Randolph M. Blotky; Gregory B. Thagard; John H. Dargan
Original assignee: Time Warner Entertainment Co., L.P.
Priority date: 2000-04-18
Filing date: 2001-04-18
Publication date: 2001-10-25
Also published as: AU2001259088A1

Abstract

An electronic information subscription system includes a server, a plurality of beacons and a plurality of portable electronic devices that are small enough to be carried in a wallet or purse. The server is networked to each beacon, and each beacon has information storage and an information transmitter for transferring information between the server and a device. Each device has a microprocessor (30), RAM (32), user interface (12, 14, 16, 18), PC connection (36), information transmitter and receiver to transfer information between the device and a beacon. A personal profile configured by the user contains predetermined selection criteria for selective downloads and configuration information for how and when the downloads occur. Downloading is performed by any acceptable transmission method, such as RF antenna (22), infrared transmission, cellular telephony, or physical connection.

Description

PERSONALIZED ELECTRONIC INFORMATION SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the field of electronic information subscription services and more particularly to the field of electronic information subscription services that employ personalized electronic devices to which information can be downloaded.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There are a number of ways in which news and other information is personally delivered by electronic transmission. Electronic newspapers and magazines are delivered through e-mail. Paging services transmit headline news to alphanumeric pagers. The delivered information, however, is typically selected by the news provider. The subscriber must receive all the information transmitted by the provider with little or no choice in what kind or type of information is received. As a result, wasted and unwanted information is transmitted.

Electronic subscription services that do allow the user to pick and choose the type of information he receives require the user to contact the provider about his choices. The profiles for each subscriber, outlining the subscriber's preferences, are maintained on the provider's database, out of reach from the subscriber, so that any change must be done through the provider, requiring a troublesome and time- consuming process.

These services also typically provide periodic updates. The updates, however, occur at the discretion of the provider, with the subscriber having no choice as to when or how the updates occur. Thus, it is desirable to provide an electronic information subscription service where the user can pick and choose the types of information he receives and has access to his selections, providing the ability for the subscriber to modify the selections himself without requiring any action on the part of the provider. It is also desirable for the user to have the ability to determine how and when he receives the pre-selected information.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the principles of the present invention, there is provided an electronic information subscription system comprising a server, a plurality of beacons and a plurality of portable electronic transceiving devices that are small enough to be carried in a wallet or purse. The server is networked to each of the beacons, and each beacon has information storage means and information transmitting means for transferring information between the server and one of the transceiving devices. Each transceiving device has a microprocessor, RAM, a user interface, a PC connection, and information transceiving means adapted to transfer information between one of the beacons. A personal profile configured by the user contains pre-determined selection criteria for selective downloads and configuration information for how and when the selective downloads should occur. Downloading is performed by any acceptable transmission method, such as an RF antennae, infrared transmission, cellular telephony, or a physical connection.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an electronic information subscription system that allows a subscriber to pick and choose the content of the information he receives.

It is another object of the present invention to provide the subscriber with the ability to modify his selections himself without requiring any action on the part of the provider. Another object of the present invention is to provide a system that allows the user to determine how and when information is downloaded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following description can be better understood in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIG.1 depicts an electronic information subscription system in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 2a depicts a flowchart for the process of an automatic download according to the principles of the present invention; FIG. 2b depicts a flowchart for the process of a manual download according to the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 3 depicts a personal electronic transceiving device in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the elements of the transceiving device of FIG. 3; FIG. 5 depicts the directory tree organization of information stored on the smart device of FIG. 3; and,

FIG. 6 depicts the "Personal Profile" menu on the smart device of FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The present invention provides an electronic information subscription system whereby a personal profile, defining a user's preferences for information and the method of downloading the pre-selected information to a personal electronic transceiving device, can be accessed and modified by the user. PC connectivity is also provided for the transfer of information between the device and a PC. Referring to FIG.1 , there is shown an electronic information subscription system according to the principles of the present invention. The information of the system is maintained on a server 40. The server 40 is connected to a number of networks 42 which reside at pre-selected sites to provide the service in accordance with the present invention. The networks consist of beacons 44 which handle the distribution of information to personal electronic information receiving devices 48, preferably sized to fit into a wallet or purse of a subscriber. The networks 42 may be positioned throughout various public places in cities, airports, or any other area where it is desirable to provide the service of the present invention.

When a user purchases one of the personal electronic information transceiving devices 48 it is accompanied by a subscription to the electronic information service of the present invention. A registration process activates the service and allow the subscriber to receive information via the transceiving device 48. Registration is typically done on-line through a website of the information provider. During the registration process, a personal profile is created whereby the user selects various types of information of interest. The method for downloading the pre-selected information is determined by the particular model purchased. For example, the transceiving device 48 may be available as a wireless model or a hard-wired model.

To register, a user visits the provider's website and completes an on-line registration form requiring personal information and product information, such as the device's serial number and an authorization code included with the device 48 that activates the service. After the registration form is completed, the user can create his personal profile. This information may be stored on the server 40 or another server (not shown). Registration may be accomplished through the device 48 or through a standalone machine such as a PC (not shown).

As part of the registration process, a menu is displayed to the user listing all the topics of information that are available through the service and the user chooses the information he wants. After selecting information content, the user configures the method of downloading according to the model he purchased, i.e., wireless transmission for a wireless model.

An automatic download, or one that does not require any action on the part of the user, may be performed with a wireless model using a transfer technology that does not require a line of sight between the beacon and the device. The ability to transfer information through objects such as clothes or the wall of a briefcase is essential for an automatic download so that no action on the part of the user is required for the download to occur.

Wired models or wireless models that do need a line of sight, such as a model outfitted with infrared (IR) ports, can only download information manually, in which case, some action on the part of the user is required to perform the download. Wired models establish their connection by plugging the device into a port on the beacon or connecting with the system's server over a phone line through a modem connection.

For this purpose, the appropriate jacks are provided on the device. For example, a phone jack is provided for connecting to a modem. Another connection is available for connecting directly to a beacon when the device is placed in a cradle and plugged into a port on the beacons.

Once all the required information is entered, an account and a personal profile are created for the user and his registration information is stored in a main database. After registering and creating the personal profile, information is downloaded to the device over the internet connection immediately following the completion of the registration process through the PC connection provided on the device, or the user can wait until he comes into contact with one of the system's beacons. The personal profile can also be downloaded to the device through a PC connection so that modifications can be made on the device without having to connect to the internet. Any modifications made to the profile on the device are communicated to the provider's database when the device links to a beacon for an update. The different types of transmission technologies described above can be incorporated into a device by themselves or in combination. The configuration of transmission technologies used for the device is a design choice.

FIG. 2a shows a flowchart for the process followed by a beacons 44 to perform an automatic update to a wireless model of the device. The beacon 44 continually scans its immediate surrounding area within some predetermined range for a transceiving device 48 (step 61). When a device is detected within the predetermined range, the beacon 44 establishes a connection thereto (step 62). Once a connection has been established, the beacon 44 requests and the device 48 sends its ID number which corresponds to the user's account information and personal profile on the provider's database. After receiving the ID number, the beacon checks with the provider's database to verify that the device has been registered and the user's account is not delinquent (step 63). If any of the above conditions are not satisfied, then the ID is not valid and the beacons returns to scanning for a device (Step 61 ). If the ID is valid (the device has been registered and the user's account is not delinquent) the beacon checks for previous updates (step 65). If an update is not necessary, i.e., no new information is available, the beacon returns to scanning for devices (step 61 ). If an update is required, the beacon 44 gets the user's personal profile from the database or the device itself (step 67). The location of the personal profile is a design choice and either method will work effectively. After receiving the profile, the beacon 44 will transfer the pre-selected information determined by the user's preferences in the profile (step 68). During the transfer, the beacon 44 continually checks the communications link for an interruption in case the link is broken before the update is completed (steps 69 and 71). If the communications link between the device and the beacon is lost before the update is completed, the database is notified and a record is made (step 72) indicating where the update left off so that the next update can continue at that point. In addition, a message such as "DOWNLOAD INCOMPLETE" will be displayed on the device 48 to notify the user of the interrupted update. The beacon 44 then returns to scanning for devices 48 in its pre-determined range (step 61).

If the transfer finishes without interruption, the beacon 44 sends a message to the device 48 to signal a completed transfer and terminates the connection (step 71). The beacon 44 then records the completed update in the provider's database (step 74).

A flowchart for a manual update is depicted in FIG. 2b and follows the same process as depicted in FIG. 2a, except for the scanning process block (step 61). Instead, the beacon queries its connection port for the presence of a device (step 75). When a user connects a device to the port of the beacon, the connection for a manual download is established. Once the connection is established, the beacon goes to process block 63 of FIG. 2a and follows the same steps for performing an automatic update.

FIG. 3 depicts a transceiving device 48 according to the principles of the present invention. Information and a user interface are provided on a display 12. PC connectivity may be provided by any acceptable port for the transfer of information, such as a parallel port 25 or USB port 26. Up 14 and down 16 buttons are provided to navigate menus on the display 12 and a select button 18 is provided to select a highlighted choice. The device 48 depicted in FIG. 3 has all the previously discussed downloading interfaces incorporated into its design for the sake of convenience and efficiency of illustration. As previously mentioned, the device 48 can be designed to have any combination of transmission technologies.

FIG. 4 depicts a block diagram of the hardware components in the transceiving device 48. A microprocessor 30 is operatively connected to the display 12, RAM 32, a PC connection 36 which may be a USB connection 26 or a parallel port 25. The downloading interface can be an RF antennae 22, a plug-in port 20, a modem connection24, or any combination thereof. It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the specifically enumerated transmission technologies mentioned above.

Display is preferably a low-cost device made, for example from a light emitting polymer or other similar materials.

Information on the device is organized in a tree directory structure like that depicted in FIG. 5 with each topic having sub-topics. Each sub-topic contains further sub-topics or information when selected. The up an down buttons 14 and 16 and the select button 18 are used to navigate through the directories. The main menu 50 shown in FIG. 5 is at the top of the directory tree which is the first screen to appear on the display 12. When the main menu is displayed, one of the topics has a highlight bar over it, indicating that it is selected. Using the arrow keys 14 and 16 on the device, the user can move the highlight bar to navigate through the menu to select a desired topic. Selecting a topic will display its sub-topic menu or, if there is no sub-topic menu, the downloaded information under that sub-topic is displayed. For example, if "BUSINESS" is selected from the main menu 50, the sub-topics of "BUSINESS" are displayed in another menu 52 on the display 12 of the device, namely "STOCK QUOTES" and "HEADLINE NEWS". At this point, selecting either "STOCK QUOTES" or "HEADLINE NEWS" will display its associated information because there are no further sub-topics.

The other sub-topics of the main menu 50 are also depicted in FIG. 5. The sub- topic menu for "Sports" 54 further divides the topic into specific sports such as baseball, football, hockey, etc.. These sub-topics may be further divided into specific teams so that the user can be kept up-to-date on scores for his favorite teams. "Entertainment" is further divided into movie listings, special events, a listing of restaurants and a directory of nightclubs 56. "Advertisements" contains information on current sales and special offers available only to users of the present invention 58. The "Classifieds" topic contains all the usual information in any classifieds section of an ordinary newspaper 59.

The combination and configuration of the information included and its organization is a design choice. The exact configuration of the information directory tree and the exact topics included may vary substantially within the scope of the present invention.

There is also a selection for the personal profile in the main menu 50 where the user can modify his personal profile on the device without connecting to the provider's website. When the user modifies his personal profile on the device, a beacon will be notified at the next update and the beacon will make the necessary changes with the provider's database.

FIG. 5 shows the menu for the "PERSONAL PROFILE" choice of the main menu 50. All the topics that are available through the service of the present invention are displayed and the user selects the topics he wants to download. Selecting each topic will display its sub-topics, if any, and the user can further choose which sub-topics he would like to download. Selecting each sub-topic will result in all the information in that sub-topic being downloaded to the device.

The description disclosed in this specification is meant to illustrate a preferred embodiment and the principles of the present invention and not to limit its uses or application.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic information subscription system whereby a user determines a content of delivered electronic information, said system comprising: a plurality of electronic information transceiving devices; a network of a plurality of beacons; a server operably connected to said network; each of said beacons having information storage means and being constructed and arranged to transfer said electronic information between said server and one of said beacons, said beacon being further constructed and arranged to selectively transfer said electronic information between one of said beacons and one of said transceiving devices; wherein each of said transceiving devices has a microprocessor, electronic memory, a user interface, and a receiver adapted to receive said electronic information from one of said beacons and said device at the discretion of a user; and, a personal profile configured by said user and being descriptive of preferences of said user for said content of delivered electronic information.

2. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 further comprising a user database for storing details of system users residing on said server.

3. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 wherein said transceiving devices are arranged to communicate with said beacon using a wireless transmission.

4. The electronic information subscription system of claim 3 wherein said transceiving device card includes a transceiver for wireless transmission said transceiver being adapted to exchange .

5. The electronic information subscription system of claim 3 wherein said wireless transmission further comprises infrared ports.

6. The electronic information subscription system of claim 3 wherein the wireless transmission technology further comprises a radio frequency antennae.

7. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 wherein said beacon and said transceiving device are adapted to communicate through a hard wired connection.

8. The electronic information subscription system of claim 6 wherein the hard wired connection further comprises a plug-in port for receiving one of said devices.

9. The electronic information subscription system of claim 6 wherein the hard wired connection further comprises a modem connection.

10. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 wherein said device is sized to fit in a wallet or purse.

11. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 wherein said PC connection is a USB port.

12. The electronic information subscription system of claim 1 wherein said PC connection is a parallel port.

13. The electronic information subscription system of claim 16 wherein said PC connection is an infrared port.

14. A method of distributing electronic information to users comprising the steps of: storing said electronic information on a server; transferring said electronic information from said server to a beacon; transferring pre-selected parts of said electronic information from said beacon to a device, said pre-selection being determined by a personal profile containing selection criteria, said personal profile configured and modified by said users.

15. The method of claim 15 wherein said transferring of pre-selected parts of said electronic information from said beacon to an electronic transceiving device is automatic and further comprises the steps of: scanning a pre-determined area around said beacon for said device; establishing a connection between said beacon and said device when said device is detected within said pre-determined area; obtaining said personal profile; and, transferring information from said beacon to said device pre-selected by said personal profile.

16. The method of claim 15 wherein said transferring of pre-selected parts of said electronic information from said beacon to an electronic transceiving device is manual and further comprises the steps of: scanning a plug-in port on said beacon for said device; establishing a connection between said beacon and said device when said device is detected in said plug-in port; obtaining said personal profile; and, transferring information from said beacon to said device pre-selected by said personal profile.