Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CONTENT DISTRIBUTION PLATFORM FOR BEVERAGE DISPENSING
ENVIRONMENTS
BACKGROUND
The proliferation of electronic communications technologies has allowed for
mass delivery
of information. For example, technologies such as electronic mail, instant
messaging, web
browsers, etc., have provided a medium by which to deliver electronic
information to a large
number of people very quickly. Electronic devices including, for example,
personal computers,
mobile phones, personal digital assistants, smart phones, and television set-
top boxes (e.g., cable
set top boxes, satellite set top boxes, etc.), provide ready access to
consumers of information. The
type and content of information that may be delivered via modem communication
technologies
varies greatly and comprises everything from personal information to public
advertisements.
Current practices leverage the electronic communications technologies to
deliver
electronic content according to a number of content delivery paradigms. Such
paradigms prescribe
delivering content according to one or more selected criteria including, among
others, user
behavior (i.e., how a user has historically interacted with previously
delivered electronic content),
and geography (e.g., location-based search services). The context of the
electronic content (e.g.,
the type of content to be delivered) can also be used when determining where,
when, or to whom
the electronic content will be delivered. For example, a content provider can
select to
electronically deliver electronic sports content to users during a particular
sports season, i.e.,
deliver football content during football
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season. Additionally, in connection with arguably the most pervasive
electronic
content distribution network, ¨i.e., the Internet, users can select the type
of
content that they want electronically delivered by navigating the world-wide-
web to identify and request selected electronic content.
Thus, systems exist for the distribution of data. However, Applicants
have noted that there is a need for information distribution systems that
employ
new paradigms that deliver content during a user's beverage purchase
experience in environments conducive to beverage dispensing.
SUMMARY
This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a
simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description.
This Summary is not intended to identify key features or essential features of
the
claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of
the
claimed subject matter.
The herein described systems and methods provide a computer-
implemented interactive system and methods allowing for the management and
distribution of content, electronically, or otherwise, to one or more
cooperating
sustainable media/substrates according to a selected content management and
distribution paradigm premised on one or more environment conditions of the
one or more cooperating sustainable media/substrates (e.g., digital displays).
In
an illustrative implementation, a content distribution environment comprises a
content management and distribution engine operable to manage and distribute
content to one or more cooperating media/substrates (e.g., digital displays),
and
an instruction set comprising at least one instruction to instruct the content
management and distribution engine to process data representative of one or
more environment conditions for the one or more media/substrates (e.g.,
digital
displays) and select content for distribution to the one or more cooperating
media/substrates (e.g., digital displays) based on the environment condition
data.
In the illustrative implementation, the content is distributed to one or more
cooperating displays located within a beverage dispensing environment.
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In an illustrative operation, the exemplary content management and
distribution engine can associate one or more media/substrates (e.g., digital
displays) identifiers to one or more cooperating media/substrates (e.g.,
digital
displays). In the illustrative operation, the exemplary content management and
distribution engine can process environment condition data representative of
one
or more environment conditions of the one or more cooperating media/substrates
(e.g., digital displays) to identify one or more environment conditions
criteria to
be applied and apply the one or more environment condition criteria for the
one
or more cooperating displays. In the illustrative operation, the exemplary
content management and distribution engine can distribute selected content to
the one or more cooperating media/substrates (e.g., digital displays)
according to
any one or more of the identified environment conditions, content provider
sponsorship program, and/or applied environment condition criteria.
Illustratively operatively, the exemplary content management and distribution
engine can track the distribution of content of the cooperating
media/substrates
(e.g., digital displays) and generate reports for display/storage having data
representative of the content that has been distributed.
In an exemplary implementation, the media/substrates may comprise a
medium at which information may be presented to consumers. For example, in
an illustrative embodiment, the medium may comprise a light emitting diode
display, a liquid crystal display, or other suitable technology for
electronically
displaying information. In an exemplary embodiment, the medium may
comprise a display area for presenting information in a non-electronic format.
The media/substrates can be positioned, for example, at/on physical locations
such as, for example, trash receptacles, billboards, vending machines,
benches,
or any other location that is accessible to potential viewers.
In an exemplary implementation, the media/substrate may further
comprise one or more sensors or other mechanism to collect data regarding the
environment conditions in the area or vicinity of the media/substrate. For
example, in an exemplary implementation, the media/substrate may comprises a
sensor system operable to collect data including but not limited to the number
of
people or vehicles that are in, or that travel through, the vicinity of the
particular
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media/substrate at a particular time or during a particular time period, and
the
location of a person/vehicle. In an exemplary embodiment, the media/substrate
may be adapted to communicate the data regarding the environment conditions
via a communications link to the content management and distribution system.
In an exemplary embodiment, the content management and distribution
engine may be adapted to aggregate the received data regarding the environment
conditions. In an exemplary implementation, the content management and
distribution system may associate an identifier with each of the
media/substrates.
As data regarding the environment conditions is received from the
media/substrates, the content management and distribution system may store the
received data in relation to an identifier corresponding to the
media/substrate to
which the data is relevant.
In an exemplary implementation, the content management and
distribution system may be further adapted to process the environment
conditions data and iD identify content for distribution to particular
media/substrates depending upon the environmental conditions data collected
for
the particular media/substrates. For example, in an illustrative
implementation,
the content management and distribution system may process the received
environment condition data to identify those media/substrates that regularly
have
a high volume of persons that pass the media/substrate during a particular
period
of time.
In an exemplary implementation, the exemplary content management and
distribution system may further comprise one or more sensors integrated in one
or more beverage dispensing apparatuses (e.g., beer tap, fountain soda
machine/dispenser, ice tea dispenser, water fountain, or wine bottle tap) to
allow
for the communication of data regarding one of the environmental conditions
surrounding the one or more beverage dispensing apparatuses to the content
management and distribution system. En the
exemplary/illustrative
implementation, the content management and distribution system may be further
configured to process environment conditions data from the one or more
beverage dispensing apparatuses and/or media/substrates and to identify
content
for distribution to particular media/substrates depending upon the
environmental
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conditions data collected for the particular media/substrates and/or beverage
dispensing
apparatuses. For example, in an illustrative implementation, the content
management and
distribution system may process the received environment condition data to
identify one or more
commercial transactions involving the purchase of one or more selected
beverages at a particular
location proximate to one or more cooperating media/substrates in a beverage
dispensing
environment (e.g., bar/restaurant/hotel, entertainment venue, or home) and
select content for
delivery to the cooperating media/substrates based on monitored commercial
transactions. In the
exemplary implementation, the selected content can comprise but is not limited
to coupons (e.g.,
time limited coupons, open ended coupons, or a combination thereof) for the
purchase of additional
beverages, rewards points as part of a reward program for use in the
acquisition of selected prizes
(e.g., beverage promotional materials comprises hats, t-shirts, or posters),
and/or incentives to earn
giveaway products/services.
In an illustrative implementation, the content management and distribution
system may
manage the distribution of particular digital content to those
media/substrates that have a
determined level of commercial activity related to the purchase of one or more
selected beverages
at particular dates and times. In an illustrative embodiment, the content may
be distributed to the
media/substrates electronically or non-electronically. The content may be
received and displayed
at the media/substrates.
In a broad aspect, moreover, the present invention provides a content
management and
distribution system for use in beverage dispensing environments, comprising:
at least one display
system; environment condition sensing devices operatively cooperating with the
at least one
display system; at least one computing processor; and a computing memory
communicatively
coupled with the at least one computing processor, the computing memory having
stored thereon
computer executable instructions that cause the content management and
distribution system to
perform operations, comprising: selecting by the content management and
distribution system,
based upon at least one display system factor comprising at least one of (i) a
location of the at least
one display system, (ii) a physical size of the at least one display system,
(iii) a physical orientation
of the at least one display system and (iv) an operating status of the at
least one display system, a
set of selection criteria to be used in identifying information for display at
the at least one display
system; receiving by the content management and distribution system data
representative of at
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least one environment condition that is collected by the one or more
environment condition sensing
devices operatively cooperating with the at least one display system, the
environment conditions
comprising at least one physical environment condition relating to dispensing
a beverage, the at
least one display system being operatively connected to a communications
network providing at
least one data service comprising one of voice service, television service and
broadband
connectivity service, and at least one physical environment condition
occurring within a
predetermined distance from the at least one display system comprising: a
number of people, an
occurrence of a commercial transaction, an occurrence of at least one physical
gesture from at least
one person, an utterance of spoken words, a movement of the at least one
person, an interaction
with at least one data element on the at least one display system, a shape of
the at least one person,
an amount of hair on the at least one person, a presence of facial hair on the
at least one person, a
height of the at least one person, a skin tone of the at least one person, a
presence of makeup on
the at least one person, a length of time the at least one person looks at the
at least one display
system, a number of beverages being dispensed, and a type of beverage being
dispensed; applying
by the content management and distribution system the selected set of
selection criteria and the
data representative of the at least one environment condition in querying
content data residing on
the data store to select content for distribution; and communicating the
selected content to at least
one display system.
In a broad aspect, moreover, the prevent invention further provides a computer
implemented
method for managing and/or distributing content, comprising: selecting, at a
computing system,
by a content management and distribution system, based upon at least one
display system factor
of at least one display system comprising at least one of (i) the at least one
display system, (ii) a
physical size of the at least one display system, (iii) a physical orientation
of the at least one display
system, and (iv) an operating status of the at least one display system, a set
of selection criteria to
be used in identifying information for display at the at least one display
system; receiving, at the
computing system, by the content management and distribution system data
representative of at
least one environment condition that is collected by at least one environment
condition sensing
device operatively cooperating with the at least one display system, the
environment conditions
comprising at least one physical environment condition relating to dispensing
a beverage, the at
least one display system being operatively connected to a communications
network providing at
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least one data service comprising one of voice service, television service and
broadband
connectivity service, and at least one physical environment condition
occurring within a
predetermined distance from the at least one display system comprising: a
number of people, an
occurrence of a commercial transaction, an occurrence of a one or more
physical gestures from at
least one person, an utterance of spoken words, a movement of the at least one
person, an
interaction with at least data element on the at least one display system, a
shape of the at least one
person, an amount of hair on the at least one persons, a presence of facial
hair on the at least one
person, a height of the at least one person, a skin tone of the at least one
person, a presence of
makeup on the at least one person, a length of time the at least a person
looks at the at least one
display system, a number of beverages being dispensed, and a type of beverage
being dispensed;
applying, at the computing system, by the content management and distribution
system the selected
set of selection criteria and the data representative of the at least one
environment condition in
querying content data residing on the data store to select content for
distribution; and
.. communicating, at a computing system, the selected content to the at least
one display system.
In a broad aspect, moreover, the present invention further provides a non-
transitory
computer-readable storage medium comprising computer readable instructions
that, when
executed by a computing system cause the computing system to perform
operations, comprising:
selecting, at a computing system, by a content management and distribution
system, based upon
at least one display system factor of at least one display system comprising
at least one of (i) a
location of the at least one display system, (ii) a physical size of the at
least one display system,
(iii) a physical orientation of the at least one display system (iv) and an
operating status of the at
least one display system, a set of selection criteria to be used in
identifying information for display
at the one or more display systems; receiving, at the computing system, by the
content management
.. and distribution system data representative of at least one environment
condition that is collected
by at least one environment condition sensing device operatively cooperating
with the at least one
display system, the environment conditions comprising at least one physical
environment
condition relating to dispensing a beverage, the at least one display system
being operatively
connected to a communications network providing at least one data service
comprising one of
voice service, television service and broadband connectivity service, and at
least one physical
environment condition occurring within a predetermined distance from the at
least one or more
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display systems comprising: a number of people, an occurrence of a commercial
transaction, an
occurrence of at least one physical gesture from at least one person, an
utterance of spoken words,
a movement of at least one person, an interaction with at least one data
element on the at least one
display system, a shape of the at least one person, an amount of hair on the
at least one person, a
presence of facial hair on the at least one person, a height of the at least
one person, a skin tone of
the at least one person, a presence of makeup on the at least one person, a
length of time the at
least one person looks at the at least one display system, a number of
beverages being dispensed,
and a type of beverage being dispensed; applying, at the computing system, by
the content
management and distribution system the selected set of selection criteria and
the data
representative of the at least one environment condition in querying content
data residing on the
data store to select content for distribution; and communicating, at a
computing system, the
selected content to the at least one display system.
The following description and the annexed drawings set forth in detail certain
illustrative
aspects of the subject matter. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a
few of the various
ways in which the subject matter can be employed and the claimed subject
matter is intended to
include all such aspects and their equivalents.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary computing environment in accordance
with an
illustrative implementation of the herein described systems and methods;
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FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary networked computing
environment in accordance with an illustrative implementation of the herein
described systems and methods;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the cooperation of exemplary
components of an illustrative implementation in accordance with the herein
described systems and methods;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing an illustrative block representation of
an illustrative implementation of an exemplary content management and
distribution system in accordance with the herein described systems and
methods;
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of one or more cooperating components of an
exemplary media/substrate in accordance with the herein described systems and
methods.
FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing an illustrative block representation of
an illustrative implementation of an exemplary content management and
distribution system operative as part of an exemplary beverage dispensing
environment in accordance with the herein described systems and methods;
FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of illustrative processing performed to manage
and/or distribute content in accordance with the herein described systems and
methods;
FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of illustrative processing performed to identify
selected content for management/distribution in accordance with the herein
described systems and methods;
FIG. 9 is a flow diagram of illustrative processing performed to identify
selected content for management/distribution as part of a beverage dispensing
environment in accordance with the herein described systems and methods; and
FIG. 10 is a flow diagram of illustrative processing performed to
distribute selected content for managemenUclistribution as part of a beverage
dispensing environment in accordance with the herein described systems and
methods.
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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS
The claimed subject matter is now described with reference to the
drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements
throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation,
numerous
specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of
the
claimed subject matter. It may be evident, however, that the claimed subject
matter may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances,
well-
known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to
facilitate describing the claimed subject matter.
As used in this application, the word "exemplary" is used herein to mean
serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any aspect or design
described
herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or
advantageous over other aspects or designs. Rather, use of the word exemplary
is intended to present concepts in a concrete fashion.
Additionally, the term "or- is intended to mean an inclusive "or- rather
than an exclusive "or". 'That is, unless specified otherwise, or clear from
context, "X employs A or B" is intended to mean any of the natural inclusive
permutations. That is, if X employs A; X employs B; or X employs both A and
B, then "X employs A or B" is satisfied under any of the foregoing instances.
In
addition, the articles "a" and "an" as used in this application and the
appended
claims should generally be construed to mean "one or more- unless specified
otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form.
Moreover, the terms "system," "component," "module," "interface,-,
"model- or the like are generally intended to refer to a computer-related
entity,
either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software
in execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a
process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable, a
thread of
execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of illustration, both an
application running on a controller and the controller can be a component. One
or more components may reside within a process ancUor thread of execution and
a component may be localized on one computer and/or distributed between two
or more computers.
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Although the subject matter described herein may be described in the
context of illustrative illustrations to process one or more computing
application
features/operations for a computing application having user-interactive
components the subject matter is not limited to these particular embodiments.
Rather, the techniques described herein can be applied to any suitable type of
user-interactive component execution management methods, systems, platforms,
and/or apparatus.
Illustrative Computing Environment:
FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary computing system 100 that may be used to
implement various aspects of the herein described systems and methods.
Referring to FIG. 1, the computing system 100 is capable of executing a
variety
of computing applications 180. Computing application 180 may comprise, for
example, a computing application, a computing applet, a computing program
and other instruction set operative on computing system 100 to perform at
least
one function, operation, and/or procedure. Exemplary computing system 100 is
controlled primarily by computer readable instructions, which may be in the
form of software. The computer readable instructions can contain instructions
for computing system 100 for storing and accessing the computer readable
instructions themselves. Such software may be executed within central
processing unit (CPU) 110 to cause the computing system 100 to operate. In
many known computer servers, workstations and personal computers, CPU 110
is implemented by micro-electronic chips CPUs called microprocessors. A
coprocessor 115 is an optional processor, distinct from the main CPU 110 that
performs additional functions or assists the CPU 110. The CPU 110 may be
connected to co-processor 115 through interconnect 112. One common type of
coprocessor is the floating-point coprocessor, also called a numeric or math
coprocessor, which is designed to perform numeric calculations faster and
better
than the general-purpose CPU 110.
10 In operation, the CPU 110
fetches, decodes, and executes instructions,
and transfers information to and from other resources via the computer's main
data-transfer path, system bus 105. Such a system bus connects the components
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in the computing system 100 and defines the medium for data exchange.
Memory devices coupled to the system bus 105 include random access memory
(RAM) 125 and read only memory (ROM) 130. Such memories include
circuitry that allows information to be stored and retrieved. The ROMs 130
generally contain stored data that cannot be modified. Data stored in the RAM
125 can he read or changed by CPU 110 or other hardware devices. Access to
the RAM 125 and/or ROM 130 may be controlled by memory controller 120.
The memory controller 120 may provide an address translation function that
translates virtual addresses into physical addresses as instructions are
executed.
In addition, the computing system 100 can contain peripherals controller
135 responsible for communicating instructions from the CPU 110 to
peripherals, such as, printer 140, keyboard 145, mouse 150, and data storage
drive 155. Display 165, which is controlled by a display controller 163, is
used
to display visual output generated by the computing system 100. Such visual
output may include text, graphics, animated graphics, audio, and video. The
display controller 163 includes electronic components required to generate a
video signal that is sent to display 165. Further, the computing system 100
can
contain network adaptor 170 which may be used to connect the computing
system 100 to an external communication network 160.
Computing system 1.00 may be adapted for use in implementing the
systems described herein, including, for example, the content management
distribution system, operator computing system, content provider computing
system and/or the media/substrates that are described herein.
Illustrative Computer Network Environment:
Computing system 100, described above, can be deployed as part of a
computer network. In general, the above
description for computing
environments applies to both server computers and client computers deployed in
a network environment. FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary illustrative networked
computing environment, with a server in communication with client devices via
a communications network 160, in which the herein described apparatus and
methods may be employed. As shown in Figure 2, server 205 may be
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interconnected via a communications network 160 (which may be either of, or a
combination of a fixed-wire or wireless LAN, WAN, intranet, extranet, peer-to-
peer network, virtual private network, the Internet, or other communications
network) with a number of client computing environments. Client computing
environments may comprise devices such as, for example, tablet personal
computer 210. mobile telephone 215, telephone 220, personal computer 100,
personal digital assistant 225, srnartwatch 230, smartphone 235, and other
wearable computing devices 240 (e.g., (loogle GLASS, FitBit, etc.). In
connection with the herein described systems and methods, client computing
environments may further comprise media/substrate 217, which may comprise
an electronic device adapted to collect environment content data, such as the
number of persons passing by the media/substrate in a set period of time, or
the
purchase/dispensing of a beverage from a beverage dispensing device, and
communicate the environment condition data to a server system 205. In an
exemplary embodiment, media/substrate 217 may be adapted to display
(electronically or otherwise) content received from the server system 205. In
connection with the herein described systems and methods, server 205 may he
employed, for example, to provide content management and distribution services
as described herein.
In a network environment in which the communications network 160 is
the Internet, for example, server 205 can be dedicated computing environment
servers operable to process and communicate data to and from client computing
environments 100, 210, 215, 217, 220, 225, 230, 235, and 240 via any of a
number of known protocols, such as, hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP), file
transfer protocol (FTP), simple object access protocol (SOAP), or wireless
application protocol (WAP). Additionally, networked computing environment
200 can utilize various data security protocols such as secured socket layer
(SST.) or pretty good privacy (POP). Each client computing environment 100,
210. 215, 217, 220, 225, 230, 235 and 240 can be equipped with operating
system 180 operable to support one or more computing applications, such as a
web browser (not shown), or other graphical user interface (not shown), or a
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mobile desktop environment (not shown) to gain access to server computing
environment 205.
During operation, a user (not shown) may interact with a computing
application running on a client computing environments to obtain desired data
and/or computing applications. The data and/or computing applications may be
stored on server computing environment 205 and communicated to cooperating
users through client computing environments 100, 210, 215, 217, 220, 225, 230,
235, and 240 over exemplary communications network 160. A participating
user may request access to specific data and applications housed in whole or
in
part on server computing environment 205. These data may be communicated
between client computing environments 100, 210, 215, 217, 220,225,230, 235,
and 240 and server computing environments for processing and storage. Server
computing environment 205 may host computing applications, processes and
applets for the generation, authentication, encryption, and communication of
data and applications and may cooperate with other server computing
environments (not shown), third party service providers (not shown), network
attached storage (NAS) and storage area networks (SAN) to realize
application/data transactions.
It is appreciated that media/substrate 217 can include but is not limited to
various components operable to display sustainable content electronically, or
otherwise (e.g., flexible and/or non-flexible liquid crystal displays,
flexible and
non-flexible LED displays, substrates operative to receive content presented
by
eco-friendly/recyclable materials). It is further appreciated that sustainable
content can include but is not limited to electronic content displayable on
the
cooperating media/substrate that is illustratively powered by a sustainable
power
source (e.g., solar power, turbine power, or other sustainable power) and/or
content that is presented on the media/substrate that is eco-friendly and/or
recyclable (e.g., organic paint).
Content Management And Distribution:
FIG. 3 shows an illustrative implementation of exemplary content
management and distribution environment 300. Referring to FIG. 3, exemplary
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content management and distribution environment 300 comprises
media/substrates 320 and 325 through 330. Media/substrates 320, 325, 330 are
adapted to present information that is forwarded from content server computing
environment 360. In an exemplary embodiment, media/substrates 320, 325, and
330 may comprise a display device such as, for example, an LCD display, an
LED display, or any other device or surface that is suitable for presenting
information content. In an illustrative embodiment, media/substrates 320, 325,
and 330 comprise a medium or area for receiving and displaying information
content through non-electronic means.
Media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 are adapted to receive and present
distributed content 305, 310, 315, respectively, that may be received via
communications network 335 or other mechanism from server computing
environment 360. For example, in an illustrative embodiment, media/substrates
320, 325, and 330 may receive content via network 335 and display the content
electronically. In exemplary embodiment, content may be distributed to
media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 through other than network 335, e.g.
manually, and displayed in non-electronic fashion. For example, the content
may comprised or be comprised on a poster that is affixed to the particular
media/substrate.
Distributed content 305, 310, 315 may be any information that may be
displayed, viewed, transmitted, searched, copied, retrieved, annotated,
navigated,
and/or printed from media/substrates 320, 325, and 330, respectively. In an
illustrative implementation or embodiment, distributed content 305, 310, 315
may be, for example, advertising data, safety information data, environment
condition data, public announcement data, etc.
Each of media/substrates 320, 325, 330 are further adapted to collect
information regarding the environment in or proximate to its particular
vicinity.
For example, media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 may comprise various sensor
devices for collecting information regarding the circumstances of its
surroundings. In an exemplary implementation, media/substrates 320, 325, and
330 may comprise infrared detector systems that are operable to detect, for
example, the number of entities, including, for example, people, animals,
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machines, and/or vehicles, passing the particular media/substrate in a
particular
length of time or period. Media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 further comprise
sensors adapted to sense additional environment and weather conditions such
as,
for example, time, location, temperature, wind, brightness, precipitation,
etc.,
proximate the particular media/substrate. In another exemplary implementation,
media substrates 320, 325, 330 may collect information regarding transactions
such as commercial purchases that may be made proximate to the particular
substrate. Media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 may be adapted to collect any
type of information regarding the circumstances of its
surroundings/environment. Such information is described herein generally as
environment condition data. It is appreciated that the term environment
conditions is not meant to be limiting and can include but is not limited to
one or
more environment conditions which a cooperating one or more media/substrate
experience including, but not limited to, the location of the media/substrate,
the
size of the media/substrate, traffic (e.g., number of people walking by,
number
of people driving by, size of vehicles passing by) proximate to or in the
vicinity
of the media/substrate (e.g., as ascertained by a cooperating traffic monitor
¨
object counter), weather surrounding the media/substrate, etc.
Each of media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 may be adapted to collect
and/or store the environment condition data, which in an exemplary
implementation may be stored in relation to the time that the data was
collected.
Media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 may be adapted to forward the data over
communications network 335 or via other means to server 360 where the data is
stored as environment condition data 349. Media/substrates 320, 325, and 330
may be adapted to forward data in real-time as it is being collected.
Alternatively, or in addition, media/substrates 320, 325, and 330 may
communicate collected environment data at prescribed/scheduled intervals
whereupon it is received by the content management and distribution engine.
For example, the data may be communicated at intervals of IS, 30, 45, 60
minutes.
In an illustrative embodiment, the data can be communicated by the
media/substrates over network 335. Communication network 335 may comprise
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any communications technologies suitable for communicating electronic data
including, for example, WAN, LAN, internet, wire line, and wireless
technologies.
Content management and distribution engine 350 executes on server
computing environment 360 and is adapted to manage digital content and
control the distribution of that digital content to media/substrates 320, 325,
and
330 according to a content and distribution paradigm. Content delivery
guidelines 347 comprise rules and/or criteria that are used by content
management and distribution engine 350 to identify content that is suitable
for
particular media substrates. l'or example, in an exemplary implementation,
content delivery guidelines 347 may specify that a particular content 342 or a
particular type of digital content should be presented at media/substrates
during
time periods over which the media/substrates have a particular level of
persons
in the vicinity. In an exemplary implementation, content delivery guidelines
347
may specify that at other periods of time content 342 reflecting public
announcements should be presented on media/substrates meeting a particular
profile.
Content management and distribution engine 350, when applying content
delivery guidelines 347 to identify data for distribution, may refer to the
environment condition data 349 that is constantly being collected and
aggregated
from media substrates 320, 325, and 330. Content management and distribution
engine 350 may further reference media/substrate tracking/monitoring data 340
to identify content for distribution at particular times. Media/substrate
tracking
monitoring data 340 reflects data that has been gathered about the individual
media/substrate. In an illustrative
implementation. the media/substrate
tracking/monitoring data may identify, for example, for each media/substrate
the
content that has been previously delivered, when the content was delivered,
how
long the content was displayed, periods of time that the particular
media/substrate was unavailable or is scheduled to he unavailable and the
reasons for the unavailability, etc. In an exemplary implementation, content
management and distribution engine 350 assigns a unique identifier to each of
media substrates 320, 325, and 330 so that data such as environment condition
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data 349 and media/substrate tracking/monitoring data 340 may be stored in
relation to the identifier for the appropriate media substrate and easily
retrieved
for the particular substrate.
Content management and distribution engine 350 is further adapted to
generate reports relating to all aspects of the operation of the system. For
example, reports and the associated reporting data 345 may be generated
relating
to the usage of content, i.e., what content was distributed, when the content
was
distributed, and to which media/substrate. Reports 345 may be generated
regarding the operation of particular media substrates, i.e., what content was
received, when the content was received, how long the content was displayed,
what environmental data was applied to the media/substrate during particular
periods of time. Reports may be generated automatically at determined and
scheduled intervals of time but may also be generated selectively in response
to
requests from operators of the system and providers of digital content that
may
make requests of the system.
FIG. 4 provides a view of an illustrative implementation of an exemplary
content management and distribution environment 400. Content management
and distribution platform 420 has access to digital content 417,
media/substrate
tracking/monitoring data 410, and reporting data 415. In an exemplary
implementation, content management and distribution application 437 may be a
software application that executes on content management and distribution
platform 420 and may employ/execute distribution guidelines 439 (e.g.,
environment condition criteria) to determine the content that should be
distributed to a media substrate at particular times. Environment condition
data
may be stored separately at content management and distribution platform 420.
In an illustrative implementation, content management and distribution
platform 420 can be operatively coupled (electronically or otherwise, e.g.,
via
manual monitoring) to media/substrate 425, and electronically coupled to
content providers computing environment 440, and media/substrate operator
computing environment 460 via communications network 435. In an illustrative
implementation, communications network 435 may comprise fixed-wire and/or
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wireless intranets, extranets, local area networks, wide area networks, and
the
Internet.
Media/substrate 425 may be adapted, via programming instructions or
otherwise, to collect and communicate environment condition data to content
management/distribution platform 420 and to receive and display distributed
content 450 that is received from content management/distribution platform
420.
In an illustrative operation, media/substrate environment 425 can be
associated
by content management/distribution platform 420 according to a content
management and distribution paradigm (e.g., the distribution paradigm can look
to a number of environment condition criteria when associating
media/substrates
including but not limited to the size of a given media/substrate, the location
of
the given media/substrate, etc.).
Participating users 430 may interface with media/substrate 425 in both
active and passive capacities. Participating users 430 may comprise, for
example, people that pass in the vicinity of the media/substrate 425, but may
also comprise, for example, vehicles that pass the vicinity. In an example
implementation, the media/substrate 425 may have sensors that identify
environment condition data for the vicinity. The environment condition data
may comprise, for example, information collected by the sensors about, amongst
others, the participating users 430. For example, in an
exemplary
implementation, media/substrate 425 comprises infrared sensors to detect
participating users 430 in the vicinity as well as the time and velocity of
users
while they are in the vicinity. In an illustrative implementation, exemplary
media/substrates 425 may be equipped with one or more sensors to detect one or
more physical environment conditions that can include but are not limited to,
the
number of people passing by a particular media/substrate 425, the occurrence
of
a commercial transaction, an occurrence of at least one physical gesture from
at
least one person, the utterance of spoken words, the movement of at least one
person, the interaction with at least one data element on the at least one
display
system, the shape of the at least one person, the amount of hair on the at
least
one person, the presence of facial hair on the at least one person, the height
of
the at least one person, the skin tone of the at least one person, the
presence of
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makeup on the at least one person, and/or the length of time the at least one
person looks at the at exemplary media/substrate 425.
Participating users 430 may actively interface with media/substrate 425.
For example, media/substrate may provide an interface that allows
participating
users 430 to input information about themselves or the environment to
media/substrate 425. Users 430 may answer questions displayed on
media/substrate 425 or otherwise input information. Media/substrate 425 may
further comprise hardware and software to receive all types of inputs from
users
430. For example, media/substrate 425 may accept voice input, keyboard input,
i.e. text, electromagnetic card input, identification inputs, payment inputs,
bionietric scans, or any other mechanism for transmitting information from
users
430. The information gathered from users is communicated as environment
condition data to content management distribution platform where it is used by
content management and distribution application 437 to determine what content
should be distributed to the media/substrate. Thus, a participating user 430
may
make an input into media/substrate that triggers the distribution of content
to
media/substrate 425 by contributing to one or more selected environment
conditions which satisfy one or more selected environment condition criteria.
The environment condition data collected at media/substrate 425 may be
communicated (electronically or otherwise) to content management/distribution
platform 420. The environment condition data may be communicated in real
time or at determined intervals. Responsive to receiving the data
representative
of the environment conditions, content management/distribution platform 420
executing content management/distribution application 437 processes the
environment condition data and data representative of the media/substrate
environment 425 (e.g., media/substrate tracking/monitoring data 410) according
to one or more distribution guidelines 439 (e.g., environment condition
criteria)
to identify selected content 417 for distribution to media/substrate 425 as
distributed content 450. Content management/distribution platform 420 may be
operable to select particular distribution guidelines 439 depending upon
various
selection criteria including, for example, the location of a media/substrate,
the
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weather conditions proximate to the media/substrate, the size of a display at
the
media/substrate, and the operational state of the media/substrate.
In the illustrative operation, content management/distribution platform
420 can store media/substrate track/monitoring data representative or content
that is distributed to media/substrate environment 425 and/or content that is
not
distributed and process media/substrate tracking/monitoring data to generate
reporting data 415 that is representative of content 417 that is distributed
and/or
content 417 that is not selected for distribution. In the illustrative
operation,
content management/distribution platform 420 can communicate with content
providers computing environment 440 to communicate the generated reporting
data. Further in the
illustrative operation, depending on the received
environment condition data (e.g., no one has passed by a given media/substrate
for a selected period of time, the time of day, the weather, etc.), content
management/distribution platform 420 can operatively communicate with
media/substrate environment 425 to request that the media/substrate 425 power
down according to one or more selected power management paradigms executed
by media/substrate environment 425.
Content providers computing environment 440 is also communicatively
coupled via communications network 435 to content management and
distribution platform 420. Content providers 445 may use environment 440 to
access content management and distribution platform 420 for any number of
reasons. For example, in an exemplary implementation, content providers 445
may use providers computing environment 440 to perform the following: input
new content, change content, and/or change or select criteria for presenting
particular items of content. The information input at providers computing
environment 440 is communicated to and received at the content management
and distribution system.
Media/operator computing environment 460 may be communicatively
coupled via communications network 435 to content management and
distribution platform 420 and media substrate 425. At media/operator
computing environment 460, media/substrate operators 465 can interface with
environment 460 to control the system. For example, media/substrate operators
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465 may input preferences. rules, and/or criteria that dictate what content is
distributed and the circumstances under which the distribution takes place.
Media/substrate operators 465 may input preferences, rules, and/or selection
criteria that determine which distribution guidelines or rules are to be
employed.
Media/substrate operators 465 may also input content. The inputs by operators
465 are received by content management distribution platform 420 and may be
reflected in one or more of the distribution guidelines as well as content
417.
Media/substrate operators 465 may access system 460 to generate reports 415.
Thus, media/substrate operators 465 can set one or more selected
environment condition criteria as preferences for the delivery of selected
content
by content providers 445. In the illustrative operation, such content
providers
445 preferences can be electronically communicated to media/substrate operator
465 using content providers computing environment 440 in communication with
media/substrate operator computing environment 465 using communications
network 435. Such environment condition criteria can be communicated by
media/substrate operators 465 to content management/distribution platform 420
for processing and application to content 417. In the illustrative operation,
such
environment condition criteria can be stored as distribution guidelines 439
that
are processed by content management/distribution application 427.
FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary media/substrate environment 500 which
may be used, for example, in connection with the media/substrate of FIG. 's 3
and 4. As is shown in FIG. 5, in an illustrative implementation, exemplary
media/substrate environment 500 comprises media/substrate 505 comprising one
or more cooperating components including but not limited to communications
component 510, display component 520 (operative to display electronic and
non-electronic content), environment condition data aggregator 530, and data
store 540.
In the illustrative implementation, environment condition aggregator 530
may comprise one or more electronic/non-
electronic
mechanisms/apparatus/sensors operative to collect data about one or more
environment conditions. For example, environment condition aggregator 530
may comprise infrared sensors, temperature sensors, clocks, or any other
device
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that is adapted to capture environmental data that is of interest. Environment
condition aggregator 530 may be adapted to detect, sense, and record, for
example, the number of people passing by a given physical location, the number
of vehicles passing by a given physical location, and/or the weather proximate
to
a given physical location. In an exemplary implementation, environment
condition aggregator 530 may be adapted to capture commercial activity in the
vicinity of a particular media/substrate. For example, aggregator 530 may be
adapted (via hardware and/or software) to record commercial transactions
and/or
purchases proximate to a given physical location. Data regarding commercial
transactions may be received from one or more other cooperating data
collection
components such as, for example, a nearby vending machine, cash register, or
other device adapted to record transactions. Aggregator 530 may be further
adapted to monitor and record environment conditions relating to the
operational
status of components of the media/substrate environment 500 including
media/substrate 505, communications component 510, display component 520,
data store 540, and environment condition aggregator 530. For example,
aggregator 530 may be adapted to record whether any of the components are
inoperable or operating at a reduced capacity.
Data store 540 may be adapted for storing data relevant to the operation
of media/substrate environment 500 including, for example, the data that is
collected by environment condition data aggregator 530. Generally, data that
is
collected by aggregator 530 and stored in data store 540 is stored in relation
to
the time that it was collected. Data store 540 further comprises the digital
content that is to be displayed or otherwise communicated by media/substrate.
Display component 520 may be adapted to display the content that is
communicated to the media/substrate as determined and managed by the content
management and distribution application. Display component 520 may be any
device and/or medium that is suitable for displaying the content and may
comprise one or both of electronic and non-electronic display portions. In an
exemplary implementation, display component may comprise, for example,
LED displays, LCD displays, computer monitors, or any other device that is
suitable to display the relevant content. In an exemplary implementation,
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display component 520 may be composed of flexible materials such as flexible
light emitting diodes (LEDs) and liquid crystal displays (LCDs). In an
exemplary implementation, display component 520 may comprise a surface area
adapted to receive information in non-electronic printed form such as, for
example, on a poster or other article suitable for display of information.
Communications component 510 may be adapted to communicate
information between the media/substrate environment 500 and the content
management and distribution application. Communications component 510 may
comprise any device(s) and/or networks that are suitable to communicate the
relevant data including, for example, environment condition data and
distributed
content data. For example, communications component 510 may comprise any
of wireless or wire line communication networks and may use any relevant
technology including, for example, LAN. WAN, and Internet technologies.
In an illustrative implementation, media/substrate environment 500
comprises one or more collectors of sustainable energy. For example,
media/substrate environment 500 may comprise a solar energy collector system.
Alternatively, or in addition, media/substrate environment 500 may comprise a
wind energy collector system. In an illustrative implementation, the
sustainable
energy source provides power for operating the components of the
media/substrate environment.
Part or all of exemplary media/substrate environment 500 may be
physically located in flexible and/or rigid form in various physical locations
including but not limited to trash receptacles, billboards, vehicles,
buildings,
vending machines, benches, bus stops, train platforms, airports, and floating
billboards. Furthermore, the environment may incorporate substrates that are
comprised of eco-friendly and recyclable materials. For example, the substrate
may incorporate organic paint.
In an illustrative operation, exemplary media/substrate environment 500
can operatively cooperate with a content management and distribution platform
to receive content for display and interaction. In the illustrative operation,
according to a selected content management and distribution paradigm,
exemplary media/substrate environment 500 can operatively through one or
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more components of exemplary media/substrate environment aggregate various
environment condition data for communication to a cooperating content
management and distribution platform for use in selecting content for
management and/or distribution by the cooperating content management and
distribution platform to the media/substrate environment.
FIG. 6 provides a view of an illustrative implementation of an exemplary
beverage dispensing content management and distribution environment 600.
Content management and distribution platform 620 has access to digital content
635 (e.g., sponsor content), media/substrate tracking/monitoring data 630, and
reporting data 625. In an exemplary implementation, content management and
distribution application 640 may be a software application that executes on
content management and distribution platform 620 and may employ/execute
distribution guidelines 645 (e.g., environment condition criteria) to
determine
the content that should be distributed to a media/substrate at particular
times.
Environment condition data may be stored separately at content management
and distribution platform 620.
In an illustrative implementation, content management and distribution
platform 620 can be operatively coupled (electronically or otherwise, e.g.,
via
manual monitoring) to media/substrate 650 and 665, and electronically coupled
to beverage dispensing monitoring apparatus 610 operatively connected to one
or more beverage dispensing mechanisms (e.g., beer taps, soda taps, or wine
taps) 605a, 605b, 605c, 605d, and/or 605e, and via communications network(s)
615. In an illustrative implementation, communications network 615 may
comprise fixed-wire and/or wireless intranets, mobile networks, extranets,
local
area networks, wide area networks, or the Internet.
Media/substrates 650 or 665 may be configured, via programming
instructions or otherwise, to collect and communicate environment condition
data through one or more environment condition monitoring apparatuses 652
(e.g., camera, person density counter, infrared sensors, or UPS) to content
management/distribution platform 620 and to receive and display distributed
content 650a (e.g., trigger content comprising content that is intended to
illicit a
commercial activity from one or more participating users 655) that is received
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from content management/distribution platform 620. In an illustrative
operation,
media/substrate environment 650 or 665 can be associated by content
management/distribution platform 620 according to a content management and
distribution paradigm (e.g., the distribution paradigm can look to a number of
environment condition criteria when associating media/substrates including but
not limited to the size of a given media/substrate, or the location of the
given
media/substrate).
Participating users 655 may interface with media/substrate 650 or 665 in
both active and passive capacities. Participating users 655 may comprise, for
example, people that pass in the vicinity of the media/substrate 650 or have
media substrate 655 on their person, but may also comprise, for example,
counting the number of a selected beverage within a proximate distance from
media/substrate 650 or 665. In an exemplary implementation, the
media/substrate 650 or 665 may have sensors that identify environment
condition data for the vicinity. The environment condition data may comprise,
for example, information collected by the environment condition monitoring
apparatuses 652 about, amongst others, the participating users 655, the types
of
beverages located proximate to media/substrates 650 or 665, and/or the
number/frequency/timing of selected beverages being dispensed by a selected
beverage dispensing apparatus through data collected from exemplary beverage
dispensing monitoring apparatus 610 operatively connected to the one or more
beverage dispensing mechanisms (e.g., beer taps, soda taps, or wine taps)
605a,
605b, 605c, 605d, and/or 605e. For example, in an exemplary implementation,
media/substrate 650 can comprise infrared, camera, and/or GPS sensors to
detect
participating users 655 in the vicinity, and/or the type of beverage the
participating users 655 are purchasing or have purchased. Additionally, in an
illustrative implementation, media/substrate 665 can comprise a GPS sensor to
identify the location of the participating user 655 that may own
media/substrate
665 for use by a cooperating app (not shown) to communicate to content
management/distribution platform 620 for use in selecting and delivering
content specific to the participating user 655 owning media/substrate 665 to
allow the participating user to have one or more commercial advantages (e.g.,
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discounts, giveaways, or rewards) in connection with the procurement of a
desired beverage 660.
Participating users 655 may actively interface with media/substrate 650
or 665. For example, media/substrate may provide an interface that allows
participating users 650 or 665 to input information about themselves or about
the
environment to media/substrate 650 or 665. Users 655 may answer questions,
engage in a trivia game, displayed on media/substrate 650 or 665 or otherwise
input information. Media/substrate 650 or 665 may further comprise hardware
and software to receive all types of inputs from users 655. For example,
media/substrate 650 or 665 may accept voice input, gesture input, keyboard
input, Le., text, electromagnetic card input, identification inputs, payment
inputs,
biometric scans, or any other mechanism for transmitting information from
users
655. The information gathered from users is communicated as environment
condition data to content management distribution platform 620 where it can be
used by content management and distribution application 640 to determine what
content should be distributed to the media/substrate 650 or 665. 'Thus, a
participating user 655 may make an input into media/substrate 650 or 665 that
triggers the distribution of content to media/substrate 650 or 665 by
contributing
to one or more selected environment conditions which satisfy one or more
selected environment condition criteria.
The environment condition data collected at media/substrate 650 or 655
and/or beverage dispensing monitoring apparatuses 610 may be communicated
(electronically or otherwise) to content management/distribution platform 620.
The environment condition data may be communicated in real time or at
determined intervals. Responsive to receiving the data representative of the
environment conditions, content management/distribution platform 620
executing content management/distribution application 640 is illustratively
operative to process the environment condition data and data representative of
the media/substrate 650 or 665 (e.g., media/substrate tracking/monitoring data
630) according to one or more distribution guidelines 645 (e.g., environment
condition criteria) to identify digital content 635 for distribution to
media/substrate distributed content 650a. Content management/distribution
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platform 620 may be operable to select particular distribution guidelines 645
depending upon various selection criteria including but not limited to, for
example, the location of a media/substrate 660 or 655, the weather conditions
proximate to the media/substrate 650 or 665, the size of a display at the
media/substrate 650 or 665, the operational state of the media/substrate 650
or
665, and/or the commercial activity as it relates to the dispensing of
beverages
proximate to media substrate 650 or 665.
In the illustrative operation, content management/distribution platform
620 can store media/substrate track/monitoring data representative of content
that is distributed to media/substrate environment 650 or 665 and/or content
that
is not distributed and can process media/substrate tracking/monitoring data to
generate reporting data 625 that is representative of content 635 that is
distributed and/or content 635 that is not selected for distribution. In the
illustrative operation, content management/distribution platform 620 can
communicate with content providers computing environment 670 to
communicate the generated reporting data. Further in the illustrative
operation,
depending on the received environment condition data (e.g., no one has passed
by a given media/substrate for a selected period of time, the time of day, the
weather, etc.), content management/distribution platform 620 can operatively
communicate with media/substrate environment 650 or 665 to request that the
media/substrate 650 or 665 power down according to one or more selected
power management paradigms executed by media/substrate environment 650 or
665.
As is shown in FIG. 6, exemplary beverage dispensing content
management and distribution environment 600 can further comprise content
provider computing environment 670 operable to electronically cooperate with
content management and distribution platform 620. Content providers
computing environment 670 can operatively communicate data, via
communications network(s) 615 to content management and distribution
platform 620. Content providers 675 may use computing environment 670 to
access content management and distribution platform 620 for any number of
reasons. For example, in an exemplary implementation, content providers 675
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may use content providers computing environment 670 to perform one or more
functions, such as input new content, change content, and/or change or select
criteria for presenting particular items of content. The information input at
content providers computing environment 670 is communicated to and received
at the content management and distribution platform 620 for use when selecting
and distributing content 650a on an exemplary media/substrate 650 or 665.
In an illustrative operation, participating users 655 can participate in a
beverage dispensing environment 600 to purchase a desired beverage 660 that
can be dispensed from one or more beverage dispensing apparatuses 605a to
650e. Illustratively, as the beverage 660 is being dispensed from the one or
more beverage dispensing apparatuses 605a to 650e, an exemplary beverage
dispensing monitoring device 610 communicatively coupled to the one or more
beverage dispensing apparatuses 605a to 650e can operatively communicate
over communications network(s) 615 data representative of the dispensing of
the
beverage (e.g., beverage dispensing environment condition data) 660 to content
management and distribution platform 620 for processing. Responsive to
receiving the beverage dispensing environment condition data, content
management and distribution platform 620 can operatively select digital
content
635 for communication to one or more media/substrates 650 or 665 that are
proximate to the beverage dispensing apparatus that is dispensing the desired
beverage (e.g., 605a to 650e), i.e., the selected distributed content having
relevance or context to the beverage 660 that is purchased by the user 655. In
the
illustrative operation, the selected and distributed content 650 can comprise
various data including but not limited to one or more coupons, one or more
rewards, one or more incentives, one or more redeemable giveaways, and/or
comprise data representative of a trivia game which the user can interact with
the
media/substrate to win any of including but not limited to one or more
coupons,
one or more rewards, one or more incentives, and/or one or more redeemable
giveaways.
In an illustrative operation, the participating user 655 can run an app (not
shown) on the media/substrate 665 that cooperatively communicates with
content management and distribution platform 620 over communications
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network(s) 615 to provide data representative of the user's specific beverage
purchase profile (e.g., the type, styles, brands, and prices of beverages that
the
user prefers and other demographic information) which can be used by content
management and distribution platform 620 to select content 635 specific to the
user that will be relevant to a specific user based on the user's profile
(e.g.,
coupon for a specific type, style, brand, and/or price of beverage or beverage
related product, such as a meal, or promotional materials).
FIG. 7 is a flow chart of exemplary processing performed by illustrative
content management and distribution platforms of FIGS. 3 and 4. At block 700,
content management and distribution application associates identifiers with
one
or more cooperating media/substrates. Thus, each of media/substrates is
associated with an identifier that is used by the content management and
distribution system to store data related to the particular media/substrate as
well
as to identify data for distribution to the media/substrate.
At block 710, environment condition data is processed so as to be
available for use in identifying content for distribution. Environment content
data is collected at the media/substrates as described above. The environment
content data may comprise, for example, the number of people passing by one or
more media/substrates, the number of vehicles passing one or more
media/substrates, the weather proximate to the one or more media/substrates,
and purchases being made proximate to the one or more media/substrates. The
environment content data is communicated to the content management
distribution system where it is stored in relation to an identifier
corresponding to
the particular media/substrate from which the data derived.
In addition to aggregating the environment content data, the content
management distribution system determines the set of environment condition
selection criteria that should be applied to the environment content data in
order
to identify content for distribution. Different environment condition
selection
criteria may be employed depending upon any number of factors. For example,
the environment condition selection criteria may be selected based upon, for
example, the time of day or year, the location of the one or more
media/substrates, the size of the one or more media/substrates, the weather
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proximate to the one or more media/substrates, and the operational state of
the
one or more media substrates. These inputs may be used to identify the set of
selection criteria that are then used to query the environment condition data.
At block 720, one or more environment conditions criteria is applied to
identify selected content for distribution to the one or more
media/substrates.
The content management and distribution application may apply the relevant
content distribution guidelines or conditions criteria to, for example, the
environment condition data, in order to determine which content should be
delivered to which media/substrates. For example, the content
distribution/delivery guidelines may specify that media/substrates located at
a
particular area and with a determined amount of individuals in the vicinity
for a
particular time frame are to receive a particular set of content. The content
conditions selection criteria may specify, for example, that one or more
media/substrates with a particular threshold of traffic in the vicinity or
proximate
thereto (i.e., the number of persons and/or vehicles passing in the vicinity)
are
candidates for receiving a particular advertisement or public notice. The
content
conditions selection criteria may specify, for example, that a media/substrate
having a particular location, experiencing a particular weather condition,
and/or
having a commercial transaction taking place in proximity is a candidate for
receiving a particular advertisement.
At block 730, content management and distribution system manages the
distribution of the identified selected content to the one or more cooperating
media-substrates. The system may manage the distribution by, for example,
specifying: the content to be distributed, the media/substrate(s) to which the
content is to be distributed, the time the content is to be distributed, the
means
by which the content is to be distributed, and/or the person(s) responsible
for
managing the distribution. The content management and distribution system
may communicate the selected data electronically over the conununications
network at a system specified data and time. The selected data may be
displayed
at a media/substrate via electronic means such as, for example, an LCD
display.
In an exemplary implementation, content management and distribution system
may manage the distribution of content by, for example, identifying that
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particular content is to be communicated manually. The content may be
displayed on a surface of a media/substrate in non-electronic form.
At block 740, information relevant to the content that is distributed to the
media/substrates is tracked and/or monitored as well as the non-selected
content.
In an exemplary implementation, relevant information that is he tracked may
comprise, for example, the content that was distributed, the media/substrates
to
which the content was distributed, the time that the content was distributed,
the
duration for which the content was displayed, etc. The tracking and monitoring
data is stored for later retrieval.
At block 750, one or more reports are generated for display/storage.
Reports may be generated from any and all of the data that is collected by the
content management and distribution platform. For example, reports may be
generated from the tracking and monitoring data. Reports may be generated for
any number of purposes and regarding any number of items. For example,
reports may be generated that illustrate the particular content that was
distributed
as well as the content that was not selected for distribution. Reports may be
generated that illustrate the operation of particular media/substrates. The
reports
may be generated at predetermined intervals or in response to requests by
content providers and/or operators of the system. The reporting data may be
stored for later retrieval.
FIG. 8 depicts an exemplary process that may be performed by
illustrative content management and distribution platforms of FIGS. 3 and 4.
As
shown, at block 700, one or more environment condition criteria are defined to
associate selected content with one or more selected environment conditions.
In
an illustrative implementation, such environment condition criteria can
include
but are not limited to location of the media/substrate, the weather proximate
to
the media/substrate, the size of the media/substrate, and the operational
state of
the media/substrate. Based on the environment condition criteria, selected
content can be identified for distribution to one or more cooperating
media/substrates. In an illustrative implementation, an advertisement for a
car
(i.e., exemplary selected content) can be associated for distribution to a
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cooperating media having the adequate size to display a car-type advertisement
and is located near a gas station (e.g., environment condition criteria).
At block 810, environment content data is collected at the
media/substrates as described above. The environment content data may
comprise, for example, the number of people passing by one or more
media/substrates, the number of vehicles passing one or more media/substrates,
the weather proximate to the one or more media/substrates, and commercial
transactions (e.g., purchase of a soda) made proximate to the one or more
media/substrates. The environment content data is communicated to the content
management distribution system where it is stored in relation to the
particular
media/substrate from which it derived.
At block 820, the environment condition criteria is applied to the
collected environment condition data to identify which selected content to
distribute to the one or more cooperating media/substrates that are
experiencing
the one or more environment conditions. The content management and
distribution application applies the relevant content distribution
guidelines/criteria/rules to determine which content should be delivered to
which
media/substrates. For example, the content distribution/delivery guidelines
may
specify that media/substrates located at a particular area and with a
determined
amount of individuals in the vicinity for a particular time frame are to
receive a
particular set of content.
At block 830, the identified content is distributed to cooperating
media/substrates. The selected data may be communicated electronically over
the communications network. In another implementation, the content may be
communicated via other means such as, for example, manually.
At block 840, the content management and distribution platform tracks
information relevant to the content that is distributed to the
media/substrates as
well as the content that is not selected for distribution. In an exemplary
implementation, relevant information that is he tracked may comprise, for
example, the content that was distributed, the media/substrates to which the
content was distributed, the time that the content was distributed, the
duration
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for which the content was displayed, etc. The tracking and monitoring data is
stored for later retrieval.
At block 850, content management and distribution platform generates
one or more reports. The reports may be stored and/or displayed. The reports
may reflect information relating to content that has been distributed, hut may
also reflect information regarding content that was not selected for
distribution.
FIG. 9 is a flow chart of exemplary processing performed by illustrative
content management and distribution platforms of FIGS. 3, 4, and 6 operative
as
part of exemplary beverage dispensing environment 600 of FIG. 6. At block
900, a content management and distribution application associates identifiers
with one or more cooperating media/substrates as part of an exemplary beverage
dispensing environment (e.g., 600 of FIG. 6). Thus, each media/substrates is
associated with an identifier that is used by the content management and
distribution system to store data related to the particular media/substrate as
well
as to identify data for distribution to the media/substrate.
At block 910, environment condition data is processed so as to be
available for use in identifying content for distribution. Environment content
data is collected at the media/substrates as described above. The environment
content data may comprise any of including but not limited to, for example,
the
number of people passing by one or more media/substrates, the number of a
particular type of beverage being dispensed proximate to one or more
media/substrates, the purchases of a particular beverage being made proximate
to the one or more media/substrates, and/or the number of various types of
beverages proximate to the media/substrates. The environment content data is
communicated to the content management distribution system where it is stored
in relation to an identifier corresponding to the particular media/substrate
from
which the data was derived.
In addition to aggregating the environment content data, the content
management distribution system determines the set of environment condition
selection criteria that should be applied to the environment content data in
order
to identify content for distribution. Different environment condition
selection
criteria may be employed depending upon any number of factors. For example,
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the environment condition selection criteria may be selected based upon, for
example, the time of day or year, the location of the one or more
media/substrates, the size of the one or more media/substrates, the weather
proximate to the one or more media/substrates, the operational state of the
one or
more media substrates, the type of one or more events (e.g., sports event,
theater
event, music concert, moving screening, or gaming event) that is proximate to
the media/substrates, the progress of the event that is proximate to the
media/substrates (e.g., beginning, middle, end, intermission, or halftime),
the
score of the event, or the attendance at the event and other event
characteristics.
These inputs may be used to identify the set of selection criteria that are
then
used to query the environment condition data.
At block 920, one or more environment conditions criteria is applied to
identify selected content for distribution to the one or more
media/substrates.
The content management and distribution application may apply the relevant
content distribution guidelines or conditions criteria to, for example, the
environment condition data, in order to determine which content should be
delivered to which media/substrates. For example, the
content
distribution/delivery guidelines may specify that media/substrates located at
a
particular area and with a determined amount of individuals in the vicinity
for a
particular time frame are to receive a particular set of content based on
beverage
dispensing, purchase, or beverage inquiry. The content conditions selection
criteria may specify, for example, that one or more media/substrates with a
particular threshold of human traffic holding a particular beverage in the
vicinity
or proximate thereto are candidates for receiving a particular advertisement
or
public notice. The content conditions selection criteria may specify, for
example, that a media/substrate having a particular location, experiencing a
particular weather condition, and/or having a commercial transaction (e.g.,
beverage purchase) taking place in proximity is a candidate for receiving a
particular advertisement.
At block 930, content management and distribution system manages the
distribution of the identified selected content to the one or more cooperating
media-substrates. The system may manage the distribution by, for example,
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specifying the content to be distributed, the media/substrate(s) to which the
content is to be distributed, the time the content is to be distributed, the
way in
which the content is to be distributed, and/or the person(s) responsible for
managing the distribution. The content management and distribution system
may communicate the selected data electronically over the communications
network at a system specified data and time. The selected data may he
displayed
at a media/substrate electronically, such as via an LCD display. In an
exemplary implementation, content management and distribution system may
manage the distribution of content by, for example, identifying that
particular
content is to be communicated manually. The content may be displayed on a
surface of a media/substrate in non-electronic form.
At block 940, information relevant to the content that is distributed to the
media/substrates is tracked and/or monitored as well as the non-selected
content.
In an exemplary implementation, relevant information that is be tracked may
comprise, for example, the content that was distributed, the media/substrates
to
which the content was distributed, the time that the content was distributed,
the
duration for which the content was displayed, or the redemption of incentives
(e.g., coupons, rewards, or giveaways). The tracking and monitoring data is
stored for later retrieval.
At block 950, one or more reports are generated for display/storage.
Reports may be generated from any and all of the data that is collected by the
content management and distribution platform. For example, reports may be
generated from the tracking and monitoring data. Reports may he generated for
any number of purposes and regarding any number of items. For example,
reports may be generated that illustrate the particular content that was
distributed
as well as the content that was not selected for distribution. Reports may be
generated that illustrate the operation of particular media/substrates. The
reports
may be generated at predetermined intervals or in response to requests by
content providers and/or operators of the system. The reporting data may he
stored for later retrieval.
FIG. 10 depicts an exemplary process that may be performed by
illustrative content management and distribution platforms of FIGS. 3, 4, and
6
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as part of an illustrative beverage dispensing environment of FIG. 6. As
shown,
at block 1000, one or more environment condition criteria are defined to
associate selected content with one or more selected environment conditions.
In
an illustrative implementation, such environment condition criteria can
include
but are not limited to location of the media/substrate, the weather proximate
to
the media/substrate, the size of the media/substrate, commercial activity
proximate to the media/substrate (e.g., beverage transactions, inquiries, or
redemptions) and/or the operational state of the media/substrate. Based on the
environment condition criteria, selected content can be identified for
distribution
to one or more cooperating media/substrates. In an illustrative
implementation,
an advertisement for a selected beverage and associated materials (Le.,
exemplary selected content) can be associated for distribution to a
cooperating
media/substrate having the adequate size to display a beverage type
advertisement and is located in a beverage dispensing environment
(bar/restaurant, hotel, or event venue) (e.g., environment condition
criteria).
At block 1010, environment content data is collected at the
media/substrates as described above. The environment content data may
comprise, for example, the number of people passing by one or more
media/substrates, the number and type of beverages proximate to one or more
media/substrates, the weather proximate to the one or more media/substrates,
the
dispensing of a beverage, and commercial transactions (e.g., purchase of a
beverage) made proximate to the one or more media/substrates. The
environment content data is communicated to the content management
distribution system where it is stored in relation to the particular
media/substrate
from which it was derived.
At block 1020, the environment condition criteria is applied to the
collected environment condition data to identify which selected content to
distribute to the one or more cooperating media/substrates that are
experiencing
the one or more environment conditions. The content management and
distribution application applies the relevant content distribution
guidelines/criteria/rules to determine which content should be delivered to
which
media/substrates. 1kv example, the content distribution/delivery guidelines
may
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specify that media/substrates located at a particular area and with a
determined
amount of individuals who purchased a particular beverage in the vicinity for
a
particular time frame are to receive a particular set of content.
At block 1030, the identified content is distributed to cooperating
media/substrates. The selected data may be communicated electronically over
the communications network. In another implementation, the content may be
communicated in other ways, such as manually.
At block 1040, the content management and distribution platform tracks
information relevant to the content that is distributed to the
media/substrates as
well as the content that is not selected for distribution. In an exemplary
implementation, relevant information that is be tracked may comprise, for
example, the content that was distributed, the media/substrates to which the
content was distributed, the time that the content was distributed, or the
duration
for which the content was displayed. The tracking and monitoring data is
stored
for later retrieval.
At block 1050, content management and distribution platform generates
one or more reports. The reports may be stored and/or displayed. The reports
may reflect information relating to content that has been distributed, but may
also reflect information regarding content that was not selected for
distribution.
Thus, systems and methods for managing and distributing digital content
have been disclosed. In an exemplary implementation, content is selected for
distribution, in part, based upon the environment conditions at the device
where
the electronic content is to be displayed. The embodiments and implementations
disclosed herein are for exemplary purposes only. Additional embodiments that
may not be explicitly disclosed fall within the contemplated implementations.
For example, any suitable device may be used to collect environment data and
display content. Furthermore, any type of environment condition data may be
collected and used in the determination of content to be delivered. Still
further,
any type of selection criteria/guidelines/rules may be used to identify
content for
distribution to particular media/substrates.
The methods and adaptations of the disclosed systems that are described
herein can be implemented by computer-executable instructions stored on one or
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more computer-readable media or conveyed by a signal of any suitable type.
The methods can be implemented at least in part manually. The steps of the
methods can be implemented by software or combinations of software and
hardware and in any of the ways described above. The computer-executable
instructions can be the same process executing on a single or a plurality of
microprocessors or multiple processes executing on a single or a plurality of
microprocessors. The methods can be repeated any number of times as needed
and the steps of the methods can be performed in any suitable order.
The subject matter described herein can operate in the general context of
computer-executable instructions, such as program modules, executed by one or
more components. Generally, program modules include routines, programs,
objects. data structures, etc., that perform particular tasks or implement
particular abstract data types. Typically, the functionality of the program
modules can be combined or distributed as desired. Although the description
above relates generally to computer-executable instructions of a computer
program that runs on a computer and/or computers, the user interfaces, methods
and systems also can be implemented in combination with other program
modules. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, components,
data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks and/or implement
particular
abstract data types.
Moreover, the subject matter described herein can be practiced with most
any suitable computer system configurations, including single-processor or
multiprocessor computer systems, mini-computing devices, mainframe
computers, personal computers, stand-alone computers, hand-held computing
devices, wearable computing devices, microprocessor-based or programmable
consumer electronics, and the like as well as distributed computing
environments in which tasks are performed by remote processing devices that
are linked through a communications network. In a distributed computing
environment, program modules can be located in both local and remote memory
storage devices. The methods and systems described herein can be embodied on
a computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions as well as
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signals (e.g., electronic signals) manufactured to transmit such information,
for
instance, on a network.
Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to
structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that
the
subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to
the
specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features and
acts
described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing some of the
claims.
It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable combination
of components or methodologies that fall within the claimed subject matter,
and
many further combinations and permutations of the subject matter are possible.
While a particular feature may have been disclosed with respect to only one of
several implementations, such feature can be combined with one or more other
features of the other implementations of the subject matter as may be desired
and
advantageous for any given or particular application.
Moreover, it is to be appreciated that various aspects as described herein
can be implemented on portable computing devices and other aspects can be
implemented across distributed computing platforms. Likewise, various aspects
as described herein can be implemented as a set of services.
It is understood that the herein described systems and methods are
susceptible to various modifications and alternative constructions. There is
no
intention to limit the herein described systems and methods to the specific
constructions described herein. On the contrary, the herein described systems
and methods are intended to cover all modifications, alternative
constructions,
and equivalents falling within the scope and spirit of the herein described
systems and methods.
It should also be noted that the herein described systems and methods
can be implemented in a variety of electronic environments (including both non-
wireless and wireless computer environments), partial computing environments,
and real world environments. The various techniques described herein may be
implemented in hardware or software, or a combination of both. Preferably, the
techniques are implemented in computing environments maintaining
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programmable computers that include a computer network, processor, servers, a
storage medium readable by the processor (including volatile and non-volatile
memory and/or storage elements), at least one input device, and at least one
output device. Computing hardware logic cooperating with various instructions
sets are applied to data to perform the functions described above and to
generate
output information. The output information is applied to one or more output
devices. Programs used by the exemplary computing hardware may be
preferably implemented in various programming languages, including high level
procedural or object oriented programming language to communicate with a
computer system. Illustratively the herein described apparatus and methods may
be implemented in assembly or machine language, if desired. In any case, the
language may be a compiled or interpreted language. Each such computer
program is preferably stored on a storage medium or device (e.g., ROM or
magnetic disk) that is readable by a general or special purpose programmable
computer for configuring and operating the computer when the storage medium
or device is read by the computer to perform the procedures described above.
The apparatus can also be considered to be implemented as a computer-readable
storage medium, configured with a computer program, where the storage
medium so configured causes a computer to operate in a specific and predefined
manner.
Although exemplary implementations of the herein described systems
and methods have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will
readily appreciate that many additional modifications are possible in the
exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings
and advantages of the herein described systems and methods. Accordingly,
these and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope
of
the herein described systems and methods.
What has been described above includes examples of the claimed subject
matter. It is, of course, not possible to describe every conceivable
combination
of components or methodologies for purposes of describing the claimed subject
matter, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many further
combinations and permutations of the claimed subject matter are possible.
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Accordingly, the claimed subject matter is intended to embrace all such
alterations, modifications and variations that fall within the spirit and
scope of
the appended claims. Furthermore, to the extent that the term "includes" is
used
in either the detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to be
inclusive in a manner similar to the term "comprising- as "comprising- is
interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.
The herein described systems and methods may be better defined by the
following exemplary claims.
