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Sommaire du brevet 2846919 

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Disponibilité de l'Abrégé et des Revendications

L'apparition de différences dans le texte et l'image des Revendications et de l'Abrégé dépend du moment auquel le document est publié. Les textes des Revendications et de l'Abrégé sont affichés :

  • lorsque la demande peut être examinée par le public;
  • lorsque le brevet est émis (délivrance).
(12) Demande de brevet: (11) CA 2846919
(54) Titre français: MOTEUR A INTELLIGENCE EMOTIONNELLE POUR SYSTEMES
(54) Titre anglais: EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE ENGINE FOR SYSTEMS
Statut: Morte
Données bibliographiques
(51) Classification internationale des brevets (CIB):
  • A61B 5/16 (2006.01)
  • H04N 21/80 (2011.01)
  • A63F 13/65 (2014.01)
  • A63F 13/67 (2014.01)
  • G06F 3/01 (2006.01)
  • G06F 9/06 (2006.01)
  • G06F 19/00 (2011.01)
(72) Inventeurs :
  • PETERS, ALEXANDER (Canada)
  • MAHIMKER, ROHAN (Canada)
  • BERGEN, STEVE (Canada)
(73) Titulaires :
  • SMARTEACHER INIC. (Canada)
(71) Demandeurs :
  • SMARTEACHER INIC. (Canada)
(74) Agent: NORTON ROSE FULBRIGHT CANADA LLP/S.E.N.C.R.L., S.R.L.
(74) Co-agent:
(45) Délivré:
(22) Date de dépôt: 2014-03-20
(41) Mise à la disponibilité du public: 2014-09-21
Licence disponible: S.O.
(25) Langue des documents déposés: Anglais

Traité de coopération en matière de brevets (PCT): Non

(30) Données de priorité de la demande:
Numéro de la demande Pays / territoire Date
13/848,537 Etats-Unis d'Amérique 2013-03-21

Abrégés

Abrégé anglais


There is disclosed a system for adapting digital content to a user's emotional
state. In an
embodiment, the system comprises: one or more sensors for capturing
physiological data to
monitor the emotional response of a user to stimulus in their environment; an
emotional
intelligence engine for determining the emotional state of the user based on
physiological data
filtered and processed from the one or more sensors; means for correlating the
determined
emotional state of the user with one or more user performance metrics relating
to the user's
interaction with digital content; and means for adapting the digital content
in response to the
user's emotional state and one or more user performance metrics to achieve a
desired emotional
state for the user. A corresponding method may comprise: capturing
physiological data using
one or more sensors to monitor the emotional response of a user to stimulus in
their environment;
filtering and processing the physiological data from the one or more sensors;
correlating the
processed physiological data of the user with one or more user performance
metrics relating to
the user's interaction with digital content; determining the likely outcome of
a future event based
on correlations between the various physiological data sources and past
occurrences of that
event; and adapting the digital content in response to the desirability of the
predicted outcome of
the event to achieve a desired emotional state for the user.

Revendications

Note : Les revendications sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.


CLAIMS
What is claimed is:
Any and all features of novelty disclosed or suggested herein, including
without limitation the
following:
1. A method, performed by a computing device in communication with at least
one sensor,
comprising:
receiving physiological data from the at least one sensor, the physiological
data
representative of a user emotional response measured by the at least one
sensor;
correlating the received physiological data with program state data, each of
the received
physiological data and the program state data associated with a predetermined
time interval;
determining an emotional response type corresponding to the received
physiological data
by comparing the received physiological data with at least one physiological
data profile
associated with a predetermined emotional response type; and
providing an indication associated with modified program state data, the
modified
program state data based at least partly on the program state data and the
determined emotional
response type.
2. The method of claim 1 wherein the program state data comprises a program
state data
value corresponding to a respective user input at the second computing device.
3. The method of claim 2 comprising:
determining a probability of receiving a subsequent program state data value,
the
probability determining based at least partly on the determined emotional
response type and the
received program state data;
wherein the modified program state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
41

4. The method of claim 2 comprising:
determining a probability of receiving subsequent physiological data
corresponding to a
subsequent emotional response type, the probability determining based at least
partly on the
determined emotional response type and the received program state data;
wherein the modified program state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
5. The method of claim 3 wherein the probability determining is also based
at least partly on
a selected predetermined program state data value associated with the
determined
emotional response type and the received program state data.
6. The method of claim 4 wherein the probability determining is also based
at least partly on
a selected predetermined program state data value associated with the
determined
emotional response type and the received program state data.
7. The method of claim 3 comprising:
determining a second probability of receiving the subsequent program state
data value,
the second probability determining based at least partly on the determined
emotional
response type, the received program state data, and a selected predetermined
program
state data value associated with the determined emotional response type and
the received
program state data; and
in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updating the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
8. The method of claim 4 comprising:
determining a second probability of receiving the subsequent physiological
data
corresponding to the subsequent emotional response type, the second
probability
determining based at least partly on the determined emotional response type,
the received
program state data, and a selected predetermined program state data value
associated with
the determined emotional response type and the received program state data;
42

in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updating the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
9. The method of claim 5 wherein the selected predetermined program state
data is selected
from a sequence of program state data, the sequence comprising a predetermined

sequence order; the method comprising re-ordering the predetermined sequence
order in
accordance with the probability determination.
10. The method of claim 6 wherein the selected predetermined program state
data is selected
from a sequence of program state data, the sequence comprising a predetermined

sequence order; the method comprising re-ordering the predetermined sequence
order in
accordance with the probability determination.
11. The method of claim 1 comprising filtering the received physiological
data;
wherein the correlating comprises correlating the filtered physiological data
with the
program state data, each of the filtered physiological data and the program
state data
associated with the predetermined time interval; the emotional response type
determining
comprising determining the emotional response type corresponding to the
filtered
physiological data by comparing the filtered physiological data with the at
least one
physiological data profile associated with the predetermined emotional
response type.
12. The method of claim 1 wherein the prop-am state data is received from a
second
computing device in communication with the computing device; the indication
providing
comprising transmitting the modified state data to the second computing device
for
indication to the user.
13. The method of claim 1 wherein the indication providing comprises
providing an
indication associated with the modified program state data to the user at the
computing
device.
14. A method, performed by a computing device in communication with at
least one sensor
and a computer server, comprising:
43

the computing device receiving physiological data from the at least one
sensor, the
physiological data representative of a user emotional response measured by the
at least one
sensor;
the computing device transmitting the received physiological data and program
state data
to the computer server;
the computer server correlating the received physiological data with the
program state
data, each of the received physiological data and the program state data
associated with a
predetermined time interval;
the computer server determining an emotional response type corresponding to
the
received physiological data by comparing the received physiological data with
at least one
physiological data profile associated with a predetermined emotional response
type;
the computer server transmitting modified program state data to the computing
device,
the modified program state data based at least partly on the program state
data and the
determined emotional response type; and
the computing device providing an indication associated with modified program
state
data.
15. The method of claim 14 comprising the computer server updating the at
least one
physiological data profile based at least partly on the received physiological
data and
program state data.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein the at least one physiological data
profile is associated
with at least one user.
17. The method claim 16 wherein each physiological data profile associated
with any user is
updated with received physiological data associated with any other user
correlated to the
same program state data.
18. A method, performed by a computing device in communication with at
least one sensor
and a computer server, comprising:
44

the computing device receiving physiological data from the at least one
sensor, the
physiological data representative of a user emotional response measured by the
at least one
sensor;
the computing device correlating the received physiological data with the
program state
data, each of the received physiological data and the program state data
associated with a
predetermined time interval;
the computing device updating at least one physiological data profile
associated with a
predetermined emotional response type with updated physiological data received
from the
computer server;
the computing device determining an emotional response type corresponding to
the
received physiological data by comparing the received physiological data with
the received at
least one physiological data profile; and
the computing device providing an indication associated with modified program
state
data, the modified program state data based at least partly on the program
state data and the
determined emotional response type.
19. The method of claim 18 comprising:
the computing device transmitting the received physiological data and program
state data
to the computer server;
the computer server updating a server physiological data profile with the
received
physiological data and program state data, the server physiological data
profile comprising
updated physiological data associated with the program state data.
20. The method of claim 18 wherein the determined emotional response type
is one of
frustration, anxiety, and anger.
21. The method of claim 18 wherein the program state data comprises a first
indicated
question having an associated first difficulty level; the modified program
state
comprising a second question having an associated second difficulty level,
lesser than the
first indicated question difficulty level.
22. A computer system for adapting digital content comprising:

(a) one or more computers, implementing a content adapting utility, the
content adapting
utility when executed:
receives physiological data from at least one sensor, the physiological data
representative
of a user emotional response measured by the at least one sensor;
correlates the received physiological data with program state data, each of
the received
physiological data and the program state data associated with a predetermined
time interval;
determines an emotional response type corresponding to the received
physiological data
by comparing the received physiological data with at least one physiological
data profile
associated with a predetermined emotional response type; and
provides an indication associated with modified program state data, the
modified program
state data based at least partly on the program state data and the determined
emotional response
type.
23. The computer system of claim 22 wherein the program state data
comprises a program
state data value corresponding to a respective user input at the second
computing device.
24. The computer system of claim 23, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a probability of receiving a subsequent program state data value,
the
determined probability based at least partly on the determined emotional
response type and the
received program state data;
wherein the modified program state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
25. The computer system of claim 23, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a probability of receiving subsequent physiological data
corresponding to a
subsequent emotional response type, the determined probability based at least
partly on the
determined emotional response type and the received program state data;
wherein the modified program state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
26. The computer system of claim 24, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
46

determines a second probability of receiving the subsequent program state data
value, the
determined second probability based at least partly on the determined
emotional response type,
the received program state data, and a selected predetermined program state
data value
associated with the determined emotional response type and the received
program state data; and
in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updates the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
27. The computer system of claim 25, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a second probability of receiving the subsequent physiological data

corresponding to the subsequent emotional response type, the determined second
probability
based at least partly on the determined emotional response type, the received
program state data,
and a selected predetermined program state data value associated with the
determined emotional
response type and the received program state data;
in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updates the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
28. A computer system for adapting digital content comprising:
(a) one or more computers, including or linked to a device for
communication
content ("content device") to one or more users, and implementing a content
adapting utility for
adapting content generated by one or more computer programs associated with
the one or more
computers, wherein the one or more computer programs include a plurality of
rules for
communicating content to one or more users using the content device, wherein
the content
adapting utility when executed:
receives physiological data from at least one sensor, the physiological data
representative
of a user emotional response measured by the at least one sensor;
correlates the received physiological data with program state data, each of
the received
physiological data and the program state data associated with a predetermined
time interval;
determines an emotional response type corresponding to the received
physiological data
by comparing the received physiological data with one or more parameters
associated with a
47

predetermined emotional response type, including one or more of the rules for
communication
content; and
adapting digital content displayed to the one or more users based on user
emotion
response by executing the one or more rules for displaying content that
correspond to the
relevant emotional response type.
29. The computer system of claim 28 wherein the program state data
comprises a program
state data value corresponding to a respective user input at the second
computing device.
30. The computer system of claim 29, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a probability of receiving a subsequent program state data value,
the
determined probability based at least partly on the determined emotional
response type and the
received program state data;
wherein the modified program state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
31. The computer system of claim 29, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a probability of receiving subsequent physiological data
corresponding to a
subsequent emotional response type, the determined probability based at least
partly on the
determined emotional response type and the received program state data;
wherein the modified prop-am state data is based at least partly on the
determined
probability.
32. The computer system of claim 30, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a second probability of receiving the subsequent program state data
value, the
determined second probability based at least partly on the determined
emotional response type,
the received program state data, and a selected predetermined program state
data value
associated with the determined emotional response type and the received
program state data; and
in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updates the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
48

33. The computer system of claim 31, wherein the content adapting utility
when executed:
determines a second probability of receiving the subsequent physiological data

corresponding to the subsequent emotional response type, the determined second
probability
based at least partly on the determined emotional response type, the received
program state data,
and a selected predetermined program state data value associated with the
determined emotional
response type and the received program state data;
in accordance with a comparison of the determined second probability to the
determined
probability, updates the modified program state data in accordance with the
selected
predetermined program state data value.
49

Description

Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.


CA 02846919 2014-03-20
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE ENGINE FOR SYSTEMS
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims all benefit, including priority, of each
of United States Patent
Application Serial No. 13/848,537, filed March 21 2013, entitled EMOTIONAL
INTELLIGENCE ENGINE FOR SYSTEMS, the entire contents of which is incorporated
herein
by this reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This present disclosure relates generally to an emotional
intelligence engine capable
of adapting an interactive digital media program to a user's emotional state.
BACKGROUND
[0003] In human to human interaction, inferred information about the
other person's
emotional state is commonly factored into the decision making process. For
example, imagine a
human teacher who is teaching a child a complex algebra problem. During the
teaching session,
the teacher is able to infer the student's emotional state through the
student's facial expressions,
tonality, movement, and other psychophysiological responses. If the teacher
observes that the
student is frustrated, the teacher would likely react to this information by
speaking more slowly,
reviewing easier algebra concepts, or taking another action to mitigate the
student's frustration.
[0004] There are three critical issues to building an interactive
digital media system that
reacts to a user's emotions in a similar manner:
1. The definition and characteristics of certain emotions such as
'frustration' are ambiguous,
even in the psychological community.
2. Different classification methods are required for each physiological
measurement. For
example, classifying 'frustration' through Galvanic Skin Response measured at
the
fingertips, versus through facial recognition software with images from a
computer-
mounted camera would require a completely different set of criteria, tests,
and data.
3. Given an emotional state (e.g. frustration), the system would require prior
knowledge
from an expert in the field to determine an appropriate action.

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
[0005] Certain examples of interactive systems involving emotion
recognition methods or
devices are known. For example, US Publication No. 2008/0001951A1 (US
Application No.
11/801,036) relates to a system for providing affective characteristics to
computer generated
avatar during game-play, where an avatar in a video game designed to represent
real-world
[0006] While the above illustrative examples attempt to adapt a system
in response to
various user inputs and physiological measurements, prior systems may not be
particularly
SUMMARY
[0007] This present disclosure relates generally to a system, method and
an emotional
intelligence engine capable of adapting digital content (such as interactive
educational content or
gaming content) to a user's emotional state. More particularly, in one aspect,
there is disclosed a
30 experience.
2

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
[0008] In another embodiment, the system and method allows interactive
digital content to
adapt to achieve a desired emotional state in their users, in order to create
a desired user
experience.
[0009] In another embodiment, the system and method allows interactive
digital content to
predict user-driven changes in the digital content, identify a user's current
emotional response,
and predict a user's emotional response to any change in the digital content,
in order to
intelligently adapt the content to achieve a desired user experience,
consisting of preferred
outcomes in the digital content, a desired emotional response, or a
combination of both.
[0010] In another embodiment, the system and methods include an
Emotional Intelligence
Engine (EIE) implemented as a library with an associated Application
Programming Interface
(API) that is included in a Digital Content System, in order to promote a
customized outcome or
user experience. This allows third party software to adapt content in response
to a user's
emotions based on feedback from the API.
[0011] In another embodiment, the system and method is a cloud
implementation of an
emotional intelligence engine that evaluates a user's individual preferences
in order to promote a
customized user experience. This allows third party software to adapt content
in response to a
user's emotions based on feedback from a cloud.
[0012] In another embodiment, the system and method includes an EIE
implemented as a
library with an associated API that is included in a Digital Content System in
order to promote a
desired outcome or user experience. The Digital Content System interacts with
a cloud-based
EIE Training System in order to discover an optimal EIE configuration based on
data from one
or more users. This allows third party software to adapt content in response
to a user's emotions
based on feedback from the API, while allowing the flexibility to leverage
data from multiple
users in a distributed manner.
[0013] In one aspect, there is provided a method for combining the
Psychophysiological
Data (PD) from any psychophysiological sensor with the state of a Digital
Content (DC) system
to predict the DC's future state, comprising: (a) capturing physiological data
using one or more
sensors to monitor the psychophysiological response of a User to the Digital
Content's state; (b)
filtering and processing the PD into time-steps to reduce noise and allow for
more effective
pattern recognition; (c) combining the filtered PD with time-stamped Digital
Content states to
3

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
. .
identify correlations between changes in the DC state and the user's PD; and
(d) determining the
likely outcome of future DC states based on these correlations.
[0014] In another aspect, there is provided a method for the automated
classification of a
user's emotional response based on physiological data, comprising: (a)
capturing physiological
data using one or more sensors to monitor the psychophysiological response of
a User to the
Digital Content's state; (b) filtering and processing the PD into time-steps
to reduce noise and
allow for more effective pattern recognition; (c) combining the filtered PD
with Digital Content
states which have been classified as representing an emotional response to
identify correlations
between the user's PD and these Known Value States; and (d) determining the
emotional
response classification of new signals based on these correlations.
[0015] In yet another aspect, there is provided a method for predicting
the impact of digital
content on a user's emotional state, comprising: (a) capturing physiological
data using one or
more sensors to monitor the psychophysiological response of a User to the
Digital Content's
state; (b) filtering and processing the PD into time-steps to reduce noise and
allow for more
effective pattern recognition; (c) combining the PD with each change in the
digital content's state
independently to identify correlations between specific changes in the digital
content state and
the user's physiological data; and (d) predicting the user's physiological
signal for each digital
content state change to allow the reliable prediction of how digital content
can be altered to
achieve the desired emotional response from the user.
[0016] In one aspect, characteristics of the physiological sensors are
known by the emotional
response system, and filtering of the data captured by these sensors is
specific to the type of
sensors used and the characteristics of that sensor.
[0017] In another aspect, new or unknown physiological sensors can be
added to the
emotional response system, and generic filtering techniques will be applied.
[0018] In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a method,
performed by a computing device in communication with at least one sensor,
comprising:
receiving physiological data from the at least one sensor, the physiological
data representative of
a user emotional response measured by the at least one sensor; correlating the
received
physiological data with program state data, each of the received physiological
data and the
program state data associated with a predetermined time interval; determining
an emotional
response type corresponding to the received physiological data by comparing
the received
4

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
physiological data with at least one physiological data profile associated
with a predetermined
emotional response type; and providing an indication associated with modified
program state
data, the modified program state data based at least partly on the program
state data and the
determined emotional response type.
[0019] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a
method, performed by a computing device in communication with at least one
sensor and a
computer server, comprising: the computing device receiving physiological data
from the at least
one sensor, the physiological data representative of a user emotional response
measured by the at
least one sensor; the computing device transmitting the received physiological
data and program
state data to the computer server; the computer server correlating the
received physiological data
with the program state data, each of the received physiological data and the
program state data
associated with a predetermined time interval; the computer server determining
an emotional
response type corresponding to the received physiological data by comparing
the received
physiological data with at least one physiological data profile associated
with a predetermined
emotional response type; the computer server transmitting modified program
state data to the
computing device, the modified program state data based at least partly on the
program state data
and the determined emotional response type; and the computing device providing
an indication
associated with modified program state data.
[0020] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a
method, performed by a computing device in communication with at least one
sensor and a
computer server, comprising: the computing device receiving physiological data
from the at least
one sensor, the physiological data representative of a user emotional response
measured by the at
least one sensor; the computing device correlating the received physiological
data with the
program state data, each of the received physiological data and the program
state data associated
with a predetermined time interval; the computing device updating at least one
physiological
data profile associated with a predetermined emotional response type with
updated physiological
data received from the computer server; the computing device determining an
emotional
response type corresponding to the received physiological data by comparing
the received
physiological data with the received at least one physiological data profile;
and the computing
device providing an indication associated with modified program state data,
the modified
5

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
. e
program state data based at least partly on the program state data and the
determined emotional
response type.
[0021] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there
is provided a
computer system for adapting digital content comprising: (a) one or more
computers,
implementing a content adapting utility, the content adapting utility when
executed: receives
physiological data from at least one sensor, the physiological data
representative of a user
emotional response measured by the at least one sensor; correlates the
received physiological
data with program state data, each of the received physiological data and the
program state data
associated with a predetermined time interval; determines an emotional
response type
corresponding to the received physiological data by comparing the received
physiological data
with at least one physiological data profile associated with a predetermined
emotional response
type; and provides an indication associated with modified program state data,
the modified
program state data based at least partly on the program state data and the
determined emotional
response type.
[0022] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is
provided a
computer system for adapting digital content comprising: (a) one or more
computers, including
or linked to a device for communication content ("content device") to one or
more users, and
implementing a content adapting utility for adapting content generated by one
or more computer
programs associated with the one or more computers, wherein the one or more
computer
programs include a plurality of rules for communicating content to one or more
users using the
content device, wherein the content adapting utility when executed: receives
physiological data
from at least one sensor, the physiological data representative of a user
emotional response
measured by the at least one sensor; correlates the received physiological
data with program state
data, each of the received physiological data and the program state data
associated with a
predetermined time interval; determines an emotional response type
corresponding to the
received physiological data by comparing the received physiological data with
one or more
parameters associated with a predetermined emotional response type, including
one or more of
the rules for communication content; and adapting digital content displayed to
the one or more
users based on user emotion response by executing the one or more rules for
displaying content
that correspond to the relevant emotional response type.
6

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
[0023] In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the
invention in detail, it
is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to
the details of construction
and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following
description or illustrated in
the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being
practiced and carried
out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and
terminology employed
herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as
limiting.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] The invention will be better understood and objects of the
invention will become
apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description
thereof. Such
description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
[0025] FIG. 1 shows a high level description of the various components
of the system and
method in accordance with an illustrative embodiment.
[0026] FIG. 2 shows sample State Variables that comprise a Digital
Content State for an
interactive math program.
[0027] FIG. 3 shows an illustrative architecture of the Sensor(s) and
Filter(s) of the system
and method.
[0028] FIG. 3a tabulates sample GSR values and the relative difference
between subsequent
readings.
[0029] FIG. 4 shows an illustrative architecture of the Digital Content
State Prediction
System in accordance with an illustrative embodiment.
[0030] FIG. 5 shows a sample implementation of a DCSPS that is being
used in an
educational gaming application using an Artificial Neural Net as a Pattern
Recognition System, a
GSR sensor as the PD input, and predicting whether or not the user will answer
the current
question correctly, in accordance with an embodiment.
[0031] FIG. 5a shows a sample chart of a PD series and its use in training
a DCSPS with a
subsection of the series, the training set, highlighted.
[0032] FIG. 5b shows a sample chart of a PD series and its use in
training a DCSPS with an
alternate training set highlighted.
7

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[0033] FIG. 6 tabulates various Known Values States based on the Digital
Content System
type.
[0034] FIG. 7 shows an illustrative architecture of the Generic
Emotional Response
Classification System.
[0035] FIG. 8 illustrates the Known Value States (KVS) concept for three
common KVS that
appear in the video games.
[0036] FIG. 9 tabulates an illustrative example of the data used to
train a GERCS
implementation.
[0037] FIG. 10 shows a sample chart of three PD series in response to
the introduction of a
Reward.
[0038] FIG. 11 tabulates an illustrative example of three data series
obtained for the Reward
KVS.
[0039] FIG. 12 shows a sample chart of three PD series in response to
the introduction of a
Reward for three different Users.
[0040] FIG. 13 shows a sample chart of three PD series in response to the
introduction of a
Reward for three different Users, that has been transformed using Bollinger
Bands to identify
generic patterns.
[0041] FIG. 14 tabulates an illustrative example of three PD series that
have been
transformed using the Bollinger Bands method.
[0042] FIG. 15 shows an illustrative architecture of the Emotional Response
Classification
System.
[0043] FIG. 16 shows a sample chart of three separate DC State
variables: Question Correct,
Character Died, and Reward Offered.
[0044] FIG. 17 shows a sample chart of three instances of the Question
Correct state change
and the corresponding impact on the user's PD.
[0045] FIG. 18 shows an illustrative architecture of an EIE consisting
of a DCSPS and DS in
accordance with an illustrative embodiment.
8

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[0046] FIG. 19 shows an example embodiment of the EIE where the DCS is
an education
game and the system's Goal is to maintain a Correct Response rate of 75% for
the user by
incorporating values from a GSR sensor.
[0047] FIG. 20 tabulates sample inputs for an embodiment of the EIE
where the DCS is an
education game and the ERS is comprised of the DCSPS.
[0048] FIG. 21 tabulates sample outputs for an embodiment of the EIE
where the DCS is an
education game and the ERS is comprised of the DCSPS.
[0049] FIG. 22 shows an illustrative embodiment highlighting the flow of
information in the
EIE where the DCS is an education game and the ERS is comprised of the DCSPS.
[0050] FIG. 23 shows an illustrative architecture of an emotional
intelligence engine in
accordance with an embodiment.
[0051] FIG. 24 tabulates sample inputs for an embodiment of the EIE
where the DCS is an
education game for students with Autism and incorporates the DCSPS and GERCS
to create a
more complex Goal to modify the DCS.
[0052] FIG. 25 tabulates sample outputs for an embodiment of the EIE where
the DCS is an
education game for students with Autism and incorporates the DCSPS and GERCS
to create a
more complex Goal to modify the DCS.
[0053] FIG. 26 shows an illustrative embodiment highlighting the flow of
information in the
EIE where the DCS is an education game for students with Autism and the ERS is
comprised of
a DCSPS and GERCS.
[0054] FIG. 27 shows an illustrative architecture of an EIE where the
ERS is comprised of a
DCSPS, GERCS, and ERPS, and a DS, in accordance with an embodiment.
[0055] FIG. 28 tabulates sample outputs for an embodiment of the EIE
where the DCS is an
education game for students with Autism and incorporates the DCSPS, GERCS, and
ERPS to
create a more complex Goal to modify the DCS.
[0056] FIG. 29 shows an illustrative embodiment highlighting the flow of
information in the
EIE where the DCS is an education game for students with Autism and the ERS is
comprised of
a DCSPS, GERCS, and ERPS.
9

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=
[0057] FIG. 30 shows an illustrative example of an embodiment of the
system and method
where the EIE is included as a local library in the Digital Content System.
[0058] FIG. 31 shows an illustrative example of an embodiment of the
system and method
where the BIB included in a cloud implementation.
[0059] FIG. 32 shows an illustrative example of an embodiment of the system
and method
where the BIB is included as a local library in the Digital Content System and
there is a cloud-
based EIE Training System.
[0060] FIG. 33 illustrates a representative generic implementation of
the invention.
[0061] In the drawings, embodiments of the invention are illustrated by
way of example. It is
to be expressly understood that the description and drawings are only for the
purpose of
illustration and as an aid to understanding, and are not intended as a
definition of the limits of the
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0062] As noted above, the present disclosure relates generally to a
system, method and an
emotional intelligence engine capable of adapting digital content (such as
interactive educational
content or gaming content) to a user's emotional state. More particularly, in
one aspect, there is
disclosed a system and method for adapting digital content to achieve a
desired outcome in the
digital content, a desired emotional response, or a combination of both, in
the fields of education
and gaming. Any implementations of the emotional intelligence engine described
herein may be
implemented in computer hardware or as computer programming instructions
configuring a
computing device to perform the functionality of the emotional intelligence
engine as described.
[0063] In this document, a Digital Content System (DCS) is defined
broadly as an interactive
digital system that influences a user's experience. The Digital Content System
may maintain at
least one digital content state (dc state) based on user feedback and other
inputs. The dc state
may also be referred to as the program state. Program state data, or state
data, may be
representative of the program state. Psychophysiological sensors refers to
physiological sensors
which respond to changes in a user's emotional arousal or valence. Samples
include, but are not
limited to: Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) sensors, Heart Rate (HR) sensors,
Facial Recognition
(FR) software, and Electroencephalography (EEG).

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[0064] There may be several applications of the present invention. In
particular, education is
a highly competitive field in which teachers and school boards are expected to
accommodate
each child's individual needs. This is seen in numerous school boards across
Canada and the
United States. For example, the Government of Ontario states its belief that
"universal design
and differentiated instruction are effective and interconnected means of
meeting the learning or
productivity needs of any group of student...". With a wide range of abilities
present in each and
every class, teachers must spend increasing amounts of time trying to create
different content for
individual students before evaluating their progress towards provincial
proficiency standards.
[0065] In general, educators must deal with some or all of the following
issues: (1) A highly
competitive education environment for students in which grades have an
enormous impact on
post-secondary education options and future job prospects; (2) A lot of
repetitive content, where
teachers are forced to create and grade new tests for skills that have been
taught for decades; (3)
Each child learns differently, and students enter a school year with a wide
range of academic
ability and different learning styles. For example, the Province of Ontario
lists requirements for
differentiated instruction as: different modes of perception (learning
principle); differentiated
content; differentiated process; and differentiated product. Another issue
with current
educational products is that they do not actively prevent the child from
becoming overly
frustrated. This is a serious problem that can have long-lasting implications
as frustration can
reduce a child's belief in their own abilities and cause children to develop
negative feelings
towards the educational stimulus itself. It may also lead to lack of
engagement and a growing
number of distractions at home.
[0066] In a related field of gaming, the video game industry is still
relatively new and is
growing in market size. As video game developers get more competitive, the
technology used in
video games continues to advance to make games more realistic, interactive,
and adaptive.
Traditional video games take in a user's input through a hardware device, such
as a controller or
a keyboard, and generate visual feedback of the user's interaction on a video
device. Increases in
computer speed and technology have made it possible for video games to
incorporate additional
user inputs such as an image from a camera or motion from a wrist band. This
enables greater
interactivity and allows the video game to more intelligently respond to a
user's actions or inputs.
As additional inputs become available, new methods of user feedback can be
incorporated.
Some examples of this would be to modify game play mechanics and alter content
for the video
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. .
device, audio device, or a haptic feedback device. Examples of video game
platforms are
personal computers, handheld mobile devices such as iPhones and PSPs, portable
devices such
as iPads, and consoles such as the Sony Playstation and Nintendo Wii. More
recently, online
portals or services such as Facebook have also become a "platform" on which
video games exist.
Each of these platforms offers slightly different forms of interactivity with
the video game.
[0067] As interactive technology continues to develop and improve, it is
becoming
technically possible to add another dimension of interactivity. The inventors
have recognized
that various improvements may be made in capturing a user's emotional state as
an input to an
educational or gaming program. This provides the possibility of using
emotional data of users as
part of the feedback to adapt the educational or gaming program to elicit a
desired user
experience or outcome. For example, emotional feedback can be used to decide
what action to
take based on an overall goal. Once emotional response signals are classified,
the goal of the
system (e.g. to keep the user in a happy or engaged state) is defined and used
to adapt or
calibrate the educational or gaming program in various ways.
[0068] Some use case examples of implementations of the present invention
are described
under the non-limiting exemplary use case headings found later in this
document.
[0069] Now referring to FIG. 1, shown is a high-level description of
various components of
the system and method in accordance with an illustrative embodiment. As shown,
as a first step
S10, a user 1 interacts with a Digital Content System 2. In response, the
Digital Content System
2 influences or modifies the user l's experience at S12. The user l's
interaction with the Digital
Content System 2 may change the current Digital Content state, as detailed
further under the
heading "Digital Content System" below. The digital content system may be
implemented on a
single computing device, such as a desktop computer, handheld, or other mobile
device, or on a
plurality of linked devices.
[0070] Still referring to FIG. 1, one or more sensors 4 may be used to
monitor a user's
emotional response (i.e. psychophysiological response) at step S14 to stimulus
in their
environment, including interaction with the Digital Content System 2.
Sensor(s) 4 may include
sensors which would monitor a user's physiological data which are physically
attached to the
user (e.g. such as a wrist band monitoring Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) from
the user's skin),
or unattached to the user (such as webcam in combination with a facial
recognition software).
The sensor(s) 4 may transmit physiological data to an Emotional Intelligence
Engine (EIE) 20 at
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. .
step S16. The EIE 20 may reside in the digital content system 2 or all or part
of the EIE 20 may
reside in a separate computing device such as computer server, or in a
plurality of computer
servers. Accordingly, the sensor(s) 4 may be in communication with the digital
content system
2, which may forward any measured data received from the sensor(s) 4 to the
EIE 20, or the EIE
20 may receive data directly from the sensor(s) 4 not passed through the
digital content system 2.
[0071] Still referring to FIG. 1, the EIE 20 includes at least one
filter 6 to pre-processes the
physiological data from the sensors. The filters 6 may apply a variety of
methods to reduce noise
due to external factors, and may also remove user-specific biases. For
example, a user's GSR
data can be heavily influenced by external factors such as temperature or
humidity. In addition,
there can be large variations in skin resistances from one person to another
depending on factors
such as skin moisture and thickness.
[0072] Still referring to FIG. 1, the EIE 20 may also include Emotional
Response System 8
and Decision System 10. The filtered physiological data is sent to the
Emotional Response
System 8 at step S18, which classifies the filtered physiological data. The
Emotional Response
System 8 and Decision System 10 together evaluate potential modifications to
the digital content
at steps S20 to S22, based on the current digital content state(s), the
filtered physiological data,
and a desired user experience or outcome as defined by a Goal. The Decision
System 10 may
then determine which digital content modifications are most likely to achieve
the desired user
experience or outcome, and sends a corresponding command to the Digital
Content System 2 at
step S30. For example, consider a video-game implementation where a user's
virtual avatar is
engaged in a battle with a computer opponent, and the user is losing the
battle (i.e. current digital
content state variable "Winning" is "False"). Given a desired user experience
of 'minimize
frustration' and a current classification of the physiological data as
'frustrated', the Decision
System may decide to play calming music and temporarily make the user's avatar
more
powerful.
[0073] Still referring to FIG. 1, any modifications made to the digital
content in the Digital
Content System 2 changes the user experience. In turn, the user's interactions
with the Digital
Content System 2 alter its digital content state(s). The user l's interaction
with the Digital
Content System 2 also influences the user's psychophysiological response,
which is captured by
the sensor(s) 4. The Digital Content state of the Digital Content System 2 may
be communicated
to the Emotional Intelligence Engine at step S40 continuously, periodically,
whenever a change
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'
. .
in the Digital Content state occurs, or based on any other predefined
conditions. The digital
content state may be communicated by communicating program state data
generated or
processed by the digital content system 2 to the EIE 20. The program state
data may be
representative of the state of the digital content system 2 after prompting a
user for user input,
after having received user input, after providing an indication of some audio
or video to the user,
or of any other state. The program state data may also include a at least one
time code associated
with a time where the program state data was active at the digital content
system 2 or when the
program state data was communicated to the EIE 20. The time codes may be used
by the BIB 20
to correlate corresponding physiological data received from the sensor(s) 4.
Accordingly, the
sensor(s) 4 may include at least one respective time code with the
physiological data
communicated to the BIB 20 or to the digital content system 2. By matching
time codes, or time
intervals (where a time interval may be one point in time represented by one
time code, or a
range of points in time represented by a plurality of time codes) between the
physiological data
and the program state data, the BIB 20 may determine the physiological data
that was measured
from the user corresponding to a particular digital content state.
[0074] In an non-limiting example of an implementation of the present
invention, consider
the case of a child (i.e. the user 1) playing with an interactive online Role
Playing Game (RPG)
(i.e. the Digital Content System 2), where the child is engaged in a battle
with a computer
opponent, and the child must answer a question correctly to successfully
attack their opponent.
If the child answers the question incorrectly, the Avatar's attack would be
unsuccessful, and in
turn, this may result in the child becoming 'frustrated'. Here, the Digital
Content System 2 is the
interactive online game, the user 1 is the child, and a digital content state
may be a collection of
variables that describe that the child's avatar is in a battle (e.g. InBattle
= "true", Winning =
"true", Opponent = "dragon").
[0075] The Digital Content System 2 may be defined broadly as an
interactive digital system
that influences a user l's experience, and alters the Digital Content System
2's digital content
state(s) based on user feedback and other inputs.
[0076] A digital content state, or program state, may include a set of
one or more State
Variables (e.g. Is a question currently displayed on the screen?) that form a
representation of the
status of the digital content at a given time. A digital content state or
program state may provide
an explanation of the digital environment that can be used to facilitate
decision making that best
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'
. .
achieves the desired user outcome or experience. State Variables are variables
that describe a
specific element of the digital content. The program state data may include at
least one state
variable.
[0077] Now referring to FIG. 2, a table 200 is shown which may be
implemented within the
BIB 20. Table 200 may include at least one state variable each corresponding
to a respective
state variable description and a potential value. As an example, a child may
be interacting with
an educational program which asks the child a series of math questions. If the
EIE 20 determines
that a hint and lesson are currently not being displayed, and that the child
will likely answer the
current question incorrectly, it may tell the educational program to offer a
Hint or Lesson (i.e.
change the value of HintVisible or LessonVisible).
[0078] In one embodiment the Digital Content System 2 is a video-game,
where the EIE
utilizes information from physiological sensors to modify game events and
mechanics to
promote a desired user experience.
[0079] In another embodiment, the Digital Content System 2 is an
interactive educational
software, where the BIB 20 utilizes information from physiological sensors to
promote a desired
learning outcome or user experience.
[0080] One limitation of known interactive systems described in the
"Background" section is
that they are dependent on a classification of the physiological data into a
specific emotional
category or state. If instead, the physiological data were classified based on
its effectiveness
towards achieving a desired outcome or user experience, the system could be
directly trained to
achieve this. There are two main advantages to a system which does not need to
classify a user's
specific emotional state. Firstly, the system does not need prior information
on the
characteristics of the specific physiological sensor or measurement method.
For example, in the
scenario that an unknown physiological sensor was monitoring a child writing
an algebra test,
the system would be able to classify patterns in the data based on their
relation to a desired event
or outcome (e.g. answering a question correctly). As the size of the data set
increased, the
system would become increasingly accurate and less sensitive to noise.
Secondly, multiple
physiological sensors or measurement methods could be combined to reduce noise
in the overall
system due to one individual sensor or measurement method.
[0081] Now referring to FIG. 3, in one aspect, the system and method can
incorporate one or
more sensors 4 to monitor a user l's emotional response (i.e.
psychophysiological response) to

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
stimulus in their environment, including interaction with the Digital Content
System 2. These
could include sensors 4 which would monitor a user's physiological data which
are physically
attached to the user (e.g. such as a wrist band monitoring Galvanic Skin
Response (GSR) from
the user's skin), or unattached to the user (such as webcam in combination
with a facial
recognition software). The sensor(s) 4 may be linked to one another or
directly linked to the EIE
20.
[0082] Still referring to FIG. 3, in another aspect, the system and
method can utilize sensor
filtering if there are inconsistencies in the data collected by the different
sensors 4. Depending
on the sensory technology used, data from the sensor(s) 4 could contain noise
and/or bad data.
Data could also be influenced by environmental factors such as room
temperature and humidity.
In addition to environmental factors, the user's physical and psychological
conditions may
change day-to-day depending on activity level and emotional state (e.g. if
something traumatic
has occurred earlier in the day, they may be more prone to being stressed).
Furthermore, there
may be differences in the same measurement data between individuals.
[0083] Thus, the present system and method is designed to neutralize these
factors and
reduce noise in the data by the filter(s) 6 applying various techniques,
including statistical
techniques. As an example, the system and method can take a simple average of
the data for a
timed period (e.g. every 5 seconds) to lower the granularity and reduce noise.
Then a statistical
filtering technique may be applied to reduce the dependency on the user's
physical and
physiological conditions and the differences between users. A scaling method
may then be
applied to scale the value to a decimal value between 0 and 1, which more
easily processed by
the Emotional Response System 8. One example of a statistical technique is to
apply a simple
moving average calculation to the data, to compare the current data point with
the previous X
data points (e.g. if the current point is higher than 80% of the previous 20
data points, the
measure is increasing).
[0084] The sensor filtering performed by the present system and method
provides an
improved approach because each sensor 4 would have slightly different data
characteristics (e.g.
facial recognition is very prone to noise). By testing and knowing the
characteristics of various
sensory technologies (heart-rate, facial recognition, galvanic skin response),
it is possible to
better interpret the data collected from all of the different sensors. Thus,
the filtering techniques
of the present system and method eliminate not only noise, but also
environmental factors,
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'
. .
physical & psychological factors, and differences between individuals.
Filtering techniques are
then developed by the present system and method which could also apply to new
sensory
technologies which are added to the system. This would allow a multitude of
sensors to be used
in parallel, and the data derived would be synergistically used by the
Emotional Response
System 8.
[0085] Referring again to FIG. 3, in one aspect, sensor-specific filters
6 can be applied where
the characteristics of a sensor are known.
[0086] Referring now to FIG. 3a, one example of a sensor-specific filter
would be a
statistical filter to compute the increase or decrease in GSR values in a
given time interval,
because it is known that the absolute value of a user's galvanic skin response
is not useful to the
Emotional Response System 8. In the figure, the GSR Difference at time 2 is as
the relative
increase or decrease in value compared to time 1.
[0087] Referring again to FIG. 3, in another aspect, generic sensor
filters can be applied
where the characteristics of a sensor are unknown. One example of a generic
filter is to apply a
simple moving average calculation to each data point to average it with the
previous X data
points (i.e. Value(t) = Average( Data(t), Data (t-1) ... Data(t-X)) ) to
reduce the impact of
fluctuations or noise in the data. Simple moving averages are commonly used in
the financial
markets to reduce noise from daily market fluctuations and evaluate the
overall price trend of a
financial instrument.
[0088] One of the Emotional Response System 8 and Decision System 10 may
include a
Digital Content State Prediction System (DCSPS) 22, Generic Emotional Response

Classification System (GERCS) 24, and Emotional Response Prediction System
(ERPS) 26 each
of which being described in greater detail below.
Digital Content State Prediction System (DCSPS)
[0089] While previous systems have been created that attempt to incorporate
the user's
emotional state into the decision making process of specific software
applications, these systems
were limited to known physiological sensors and prior art that identified
specific emotional states
for the researcher's study group. Since psychophysiological data can be
extremely difficult to
classify and varies based on external factors like room temperature, the
inventors of the present
invention recognized that a system which could create a desired user
experience based on a
17

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
User's psychophysiological data without the use of an emotion classification
system would be
extremely valuable for a generic Digital Content System 2.
[0090] To accomplish this goal, the inventors of the present invention
devised a method for
combining the Psychophysiological Data (PD) from any psychophysiological
sensor with the
state of a Digital Content System to predict the DCS's future state,
comprising: (a) capturing
physiological data using one or more sensors to monitor the
psychophysiological response of a
User to the Digital Content's state; (b) filtering and processing the PD to
reduce noise and allow
for more effective pattern recognition; (c) combining the filtered PD with
digital content states to
identify correlations between changes in the digital content state and the
user's PD; and (d)
determining the likely outcome of future digital content states based on these
correlations. This
system is referred to as a Digital Content State Prediction System (DCSPS) 22
throughout the
rest of the document. Referring to FIG. 4, an exemplary non-limiting
embodiment of the DCSPS
22 is shown. The DCSPS 22 may be implemented as part of the Emotional Response
System 8,
the Decision 10, or as a separate system within the EIE 20.
[0091] The digital content system state data, or program state data, is
combined with the
filtered and processed data from any available psychophysiological sensors and
trained against
prior instances of right and wrong answers for the User 1 to identify patterns
in the User l's
emotional response patterns. Now referring to FIG. 5, an illustrative
embodiment is shown for
an educational gaming application using an Artificial Neural Net (ANN) as a
Pattern
Recognition System, a GSR sensor as the PD input, and predicting whether or
not the user will
answer the current question correctly. The system outlined in FIG. 5 can
identify key response
patterns, such as the user's Galvanic Skin Response is higher when they're
about to incorrectly
answer a question, or that the Facial Recognition software typically has a
Happy reading of
greater than 0.5 when a User 1 is going to answer the question correctly. With
the above
information, the education game can be modified based on the desirability of
this future digital
content state, or program state; is the user answering questions correctly
desirable? This
provides digital content system developers with the ability to program an
Expert System which
identifies the ideal Goals for each user based on the digital content states
which can be
influenced.
[0092] Still referring to FIG. 5, a developer may wish to have the user
answer 75% of the
presented questions correctly as a way to balance between boredom (answering
all questions
18

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correctly) and frustration (User unable to answer any questions correctly). By
predicting if the
user will answer the current question correctly and then comparing it with the
Goal function, the
system can take actions based on the current digital content state and PD.
[0093] This method may represent an improvement over existing systems
because by
incorporating the user's PD, a more accurate representation of the User's
state can be modeled,
allowing the Pattern Recognition system, in this case an ANN, to model more
complex
interactions. From a practical standpoint, the incorporation of PD allows the
system to predict
right/wrong answers based on the user's emotional response as inferred through
the PD. In
addition, all PD may be processed without classification into a specific
emotional response,
which may allow the system to function without an expert system or pattern
recognition system
to define the user's emotion. Finally, all potential actions may be reviewed
through the same
prediction system, which provides an efficient way to quantify the potential
impact of all of the
decision system 10's available actions and then select the optimal action
based on the Goal.
[0094] Potential actions may be communicated to the DCSPS 22 in the form
of new or
modified program state data which may be based on the program state data
received from the
digital content system 2. The modified program state data may be selected by
the decision
system 10 from amongst one or more optional program state variables each
associated with [[a
particular desired future emotional response type or ]]a desired future
program state being
achieved. Each selected modified program state may be evaluated by the DCSPS
22 to
determine the predicted probability of a future particular program state being
received. For
example, if the desired future program state is receiving a correct answer to
a question posed to
the user 1, the modified program state data may include a question associated
with a particular
difficulty level. Each difficulty level may also be associated with a
respective probability of
being answered correctly. The respective probabilities may be updated as one
or more users
answer the question either correctly or incorrectly. The respective
probability of a selected
modified program state may also be based on the user's current emotional state
and the current
state of the digital content system 2. For example, if the user's measured
physiological data is
determined to be associated with a frustrated or disinterested emotional type,
the probability of
the user correctly answering a difficult question may be reduced. Where the
predetermined goal
is to receive a correct answer from the user, the EIE 20 may therefore select
a question with an
easier difficulty level in this case.
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[0095] To identify correlations between PD and the likely outcome of a
future digital content
state without any prior information about the digital content state, a pattern
recognition system
such as an ANN may train on past occurrences of the event. More specifically,
the Pattern
Recognition system would train on the PD leading up to the event to identify
if there was any
pattern in the user's emotional response that could be used to predict that
outcome.
[0096] To reduce the number of events required and improve the
responsiveness of the
system, the Pattern Recognition system may train on (X + Y ¨ 1) PD examples
for each event,
where X <Y. In this implementation, X may be the identified time period that
the system should
train on based on the sensor type. For GSR sensors, this time period will be
longer than for
Facial Recognition software, as the user's response is expected to occur much
more quickly in
the latter sensor type. Y may be the period of time which the PD is expected
to have been a
potential indicator of the future event. For example, when trying to identify
the link between PD
and Question Correct, the PD that occurred 20 minutes ago is unlikely to be an
indicator of the
event's outcome and may not be used. In general, the closer the PD is to the
event's occurrence,
the more likely it is to be associated with the event's outcome.
[0097] Referring now to non-limiting exemplary figures FIG. 5a and FIG.
5b, the DCSPS 22
may be trained to predict if the User 1 will answer a question correctly based
on their GSR value
and the future outcome of the event. Both FIG. 5a and FIG. 5b show two
training sets for the
exact same occurrence of the "Question Correct" event highlighted as shown. By
running
through these smaller training sets, the system is looking for patterns in a
User's response that
may indicate the future outcome. In FIG. 5a, which is for illustrative
purposes only, it can be
seen that the GSR value is decreasing sharply for the 3, 4, and 5, data points
in the training set. If
this pattern was consistent across other Question Correct events, then this
correlation may be
used to predict that the user would answer a future question correctly.
Generic Emotional Response Classification System (GERCS)
[0098] It may be possible to identify changes in a user's emotional
state through the use of
sensor(s) 4. Each sensor 4 may have a variety of attributes that affects its
applicability for use
with various Digital Content System types, as well as individual response
patterns (i.e. rise time,
latency, etc) that indicate a change in a user's emotional state. A user may
generally respond to
certain situations in the same fashion, as indicated by research into emotion
classifications.

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'
. .
[0099] Still referring to the Sensor(s) and Filter(s) section, there are
known emotion
classification models in the psychological community that are constructed by
using the expected
response, or known state, of the user to a particular digital content state.
[00100] There may be a large number of states within a digital content system
that have
known attributes, referred to hereafter as Known Value States (KVS). For
example, when a user
answers a question correctly in an educational software package, that state
can be classified as
"Positive." Similarly, if a User is playing a video game and the user's avatar
dies, this state could
be classified as "Negative."
[00101] With these KVSs frequently occurring within digital content, the
inventors
recognized that they could be used to classify a signal from any
psychophysiological sensor.
Depending on the Digital Content type, the classification system can be more
or less accurate.
For example, if the Digital Content System were a horror game, then a user's
emotional response
to a digital content state specifically designed to be scary could be
classified as "Scared", rather
than "Negative" or "Positive."
[00102] The system of the present invention may use a similar method developed
by
researchers when investigating emotional responses, and then automate the
classification process
to account for variability in sensor data based on the sensor type,
accommodate individual user
differences, and support alternate classification systems based on the digital
content state type.
[00103] With the above information, a system and method is proposed for the
classification of
an individual User's emotional response based on KVS for any generic sensor
providing PD. The
method involves breaking a psychophysiological signal into discrete values
based on a variable
time step after the introduction of a stimulus and classifying them based on
the KVS. As an
example, a user's psychophysiological response can be monitored using Facial
Recognition (FR)
software in response to the introduction of a reward, an event that is
classified as a "Positive"
state. This process is then repeated for other KVS, such as answering a
question incorrectly
("Negative" state), leveling up ("Positive" state), losing a battle
("Negative" state), answering a
question correctly ("Positive"), etc. These KVS will be dependent on the type
of DC, but that
should not be viewed as limiting as creating a list of potential KVS is
trivial. Some sample KVS
based on DCS type are provided in FIG. 6 for clarity.
[00104] The quantifiable value of these KVS can then be reviewed based on
their ability to
classify a generic signal, as is done with any Pattern Recognition system.
Although this system
21

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provides for the possibility of training for each User, the PD can also be
filtered before being
classified to improve the system's performance for a larger population. This
system and method
is referred to as a Generic Emotional Response Classification System (GERCS)
24, and an
overview can be found in FIG. 7.
[00105] As indicated above, the GERCS 24 works by reviewing a User's PD during
each of
these KVS and using Pattern Recognition techniques, such as an ANN or Decision
Tree, to
characterize these signals as a response pattern. Referring now to FIG. 8, an
illustrative example
for three common KVS that appear in video games is provided along with
representative
emotional responses. Referring now to FIG. 9, which is for illustrative
purposes only, three series
of PD in response to KVS are shown. It should be noted that the data contained
within FIG. 9 are
the values used to generate the chart in FIG. 8, and in all instances the KVS
was introduced at
t(0). Using the data in FIG. 9, a pattern recognition system can be trained on
each KVS to
predict a time-stamped response to each stimulus.
[00106] Referring now to FIG. 10, a sample of three PD series in response to a
single KVS,
the introduction of a Reward, are shown. In this case, the GERCS may be likely
to identify
certain inputs as more important to the classification of the signal. As an
example, while each of
the Rewards series have a different peak value, they all occur approximately
3s after the
introduction of the stimulus. Using standard techniques such as Principal
Component Analysis,
described at the URL http://www.imedea.uib-
csic.es/master/cambioglobal/Modulo 2 06/Theory/lit support/pca wold.pdf, the
contents of
which are hereby incorporated by reference, the trained system can be reviewed
to determine
which of these inputs is the most important to the classification of the
series.
[00107] Referring now to FIG. 11, to generalize the applicability of these
classifications, the
data can be transformed to remove the absolute value of the data (e.g. PD
readings at t=0 were
194, 190, and 184, respectively), while retaining the pertinent information.
Since the data from
the physiological sensors is in many cases a time series, the inventors
recognized that some well-
known signal classification techniques from the financial industry, which are
specifically
designed to isolate changes in a signal's trend, volatility, etc, could be
used to improve the
system's accuracy. One such example is Bollinger Bands, which can be used as a
measure of
volatility, and facilitate the transformation of the absolute value of a
series of PD into a relative
value that helps identify large changes. Referring now to FIG. 12, sample PD
data for three
22

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'
. .
Users is provided in response to a Reward stimulus. As can be seen from this
image, each user
has a very different absolute value for their PD data, which would prevent
generic classification
of the stimulus.
[00108] Referring now to FIG 13., the same data has been transformed using
Bollinger Bands,
a 5-period moving average, and two standard deviations for band width, to
highlight only the
volatility of each User's response with respect to their previous PD. As can
be seen from the
second figure, these filtered signals provide a much more generic response
pattern. The GERCS
24 can then use this information to classify PD for a new User as Positive if
it exhibits the same
response pattern. One additional benefit to this technique is that it allows
for noisy PD to be
more effectively processed. An example would be in processing a Galvanic Skin
Response
(GSR) sensor. These sensors measure the skin's conductivity and their readings
can be
influenced by external factors such as the temperature of the room the User is
in. The illustrative
data used to create FIG. 13 can be found in FIG. 14.
[00109] The above system may represent an improvement over the existing art
for multiple
reasons. Firstly, the present invention allows for the classification of any
generic physiological
sensor to be completed based on the digital content system type using KVS.
This allows digital
content system developers to quickly customize an Emotional Response System 8
when crafting
a desired user experience based on the states available within the Emotional
Response System 8.
[00110] Secondly, the classification system can be modified based on the
digital content
system type. This may allow digital content system developers to increase or
decrease the
classification granularity based on their individual needs. For example, when
creating a simple
platformer-type videogame with small levels and minimal digital content
states, a developer may
only want to classify the user's emotional response as "Positive" or
"Negative." Existing art,
however, may only classify the user's response based on their own system, such
as the FACS
classification discussed in the Sensor(s) and Filter(s) section. The problem
is further
compounded when multiple physiological sensors are included and multiple
classification
methods exist.
[00111] While the accuracy of prior art in the form of research papers is
limited to the size of
the study group, the proposed system and method can be updated with
information from all users
through the filtering techniques already described. This allows for the system
to train on all
users of the DCS in order to improve its accuracy in classifying emotional
responses specifically
23

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designed o impact the DCS. Further, by training for a system-specific
implementation across a
large number of users, new Users may immediately use the proposed system the
first time they
interact with the DCS, thus reducing the need for training.
[00112] Finally, the proposed system is advantageous in that it can be used to
classify a user's
future emotional responses while they interact with the digital content system
2. Once an
implementation of the GERCS 24 has been trained, the GERCS can be used to
augment the
Emotional Response System's capabilities as outlined in Embodiment 2, below.
Emotional Response Prediction System (ERPS)
[00113] While prior systems have outlined the idea of using a video game to
alter a user's
emotional response by changing in-game parameters, these systems have no
ability to predict the
emotional response to each individual change that the digital content system 2
can affect. These
implementations were also dependent on the digital content type. As an
example, prior systems
have been developed that reduce the difficulty of a system in response to the
identification that a
user is frustrated. In this case, the assumption was made that reducing the
difficulty was the
appropriate response to an observed state, but no feedback loop was introduced
to verify the
assumption.
[00114] What the inventors recognized is that by considering each digital
content state
variable's change as a stimulus that induces an emotional response in
isolation, a system could
be developed to predict a user's emotional response to these changes. This
system also alleviates
the type-dependency present in other systems, as it reviews all digital
content state variables
independently and quantifies their ability to predict an emotional response.
When used in
conjunction with the GERCS 24, the ERPS 26 may provide a powerful method for
predicting a
user's emotional response to any change in a digital content system.
[00115] With the above information, a system and method are outlined to
predict the impact
of potential actions on the User's psychophysiological state. By reviewing
various state changes
in isolation to identify their impact on PD, the system and method allows for
the prediction of
emotional response patterns where no prior data exists. An example would be to
review the
change in PD whenever a Hint was offered in educational software. Once enough
hints have
been presented to the user, the system will be able to identify if there is
any pattern in the user's
24

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physiological data in response to this action. This system is referred to as
the Emotional
Response Prediction System (ERPS) 26.
[00116] While the ERPS 26 may consider each digital content state variable to
have created
an emotional response in isolation, this simplifying assumption is eliminated
by increasing the
accuracy requirements for the pattern recognition system. As an example, two
digital content
state changes, such as the introduction of a Reward and the user answering a
question correctly
(Question Correct), occur almost simultaneously in one instance. By filtering
the user's
emotional response through the GERCS 24, it's identified that their emotional
response was
"Positive", but due to the proximity of the two stimuli, it would be very
difficult to attribute this
reaction to one state change over the other. To alleviate this problem, the
ERPS 26 trains on a
large number of examples for both stimuli. Continuing the example, if the
Question Correct
state change wasn't the true cause of the Positive classification, other
occurrences of this
stimulus would not yield the same PD and the ERPS 26's accuracy when being
trained would
decrease. This would prevent the ERPS 26 from predicting that the Question
Correct DC state
variable would yield a PD signal consistent with a "Positive" emotional
response.
[00117] The ERPS 26 can be used to identify patterns for any DC state change
which occurs
frequently in the DCS. Referring again to FIG. 10, the ERPS 26 processes a
signal in response
to a stimulus (DC State variable change), such as the introduction of a
reward. Unlike the
GERCS 24, which uses this signal to classify the emotional response, the ERPS
26 uses the same
PD for all DC state changes in order to predict the time-stamped PD response.
Its purpose is to
break the response to a DC State change into its constituent parts and
determine which DC state
changes, if any, are valuable for the Decision System. The impact of each DC
state variable on
the user's emotional state can be quantified by the ERPS' ability to predict
each step in the
response pattern within a certain confidence interval.
[00118] In accordance with an illustrative embodiment, FIG. 15 shows an ERPS
26 in
accordance with an illustrative embodiment. Training examples for the system
are identified by
keeping time-stamped logs of the digital content system 2 state for each User.
A simplifying
assumption may be made to facilitate training: each DC State change is time
independent. The
system is then trained for each individual DC State variable in isolation.
[00119] Referring now to FIG. 16, sample data has been provided to illustrate
three separate
digital content state Change variables: Question Correct, Character Died, and
Reward Offered.

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
The ERPS 26 would train for each of these state changes independently after a
certain number of
instances had occurred (e.g. 100). The number of instances would vary
depending on the
complexity of the pattern, therefore the proposed system would have the
ability to recognize a
failed classification (e.g. Classification Accuracy < 70%) and wait for
additional instances before
retraining.
[00120] To further the example, the ERPS 26 would be trained using the three
instances
(along with many more) of the Question Correct state change to try to identify
a pattern. A
certain number of data points after the stimulus would be used, which would be
dependent on the
type of sensor. Although a generic value could be used here, by modifying the
time step between
each data point to accommodate the sensor type, the system can more accurately
model the
user's response. For example, FR responses occur much faster than the same
response as
measured by a GSR sensor. So while a time-step of 1 second may be used for the
GSR sensor, a
time-step of 200ms may be more appropriate for the FR software. Referring to
FIG. 17, the
system would attribute the PD from the available sensors to the DC State
Variable (Question
Correct), and attempt to identify a pattern for each time step after the state
change/stimulus
occurs. Once ERPS 26 has been trained, its output can be fed into the GERCS 24
to classify the
predicted emotional response to a DC State Variable change.
[00121] The system and method of the present invention may represent an
improvement over
existing systems for a number of reasons. Unlike systems which classify the
user's emotional
response in isolation, the proposed system may allow for the correlation of
digital content state
changes with the user's emotional response, facilitating automated
classification of all digital
content state changes when combined with the GERCS 24. Even further, for
digital content state
variables which are under the control of the Decision System 10, the LIE 20
gains an accurate
estimate of how its available actions will impact the user's emotional
response. This allows the
BIB 20 to gain a more accurate understanding of how its actions will impact
the user and
therefore more effectively create a desired outcome or user experience.
[00122] The system also allows for the identification of patterns where no
prior art exists
because it does not require an expert to specify which digital content state
variables will have the
largest impact. When trained across all users of a digital content system, the
system and method
of the present invention may allow developers to review which state variables
have the largest
impact on their users, and incorporate this information into future updates.
As an example, using
26

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=
=
the proposed system, a video game developer could aggregate ERPS data from all
users in
response to defeating a new boss, a state change which was expected to cause a
large "Happy"
response. If the aggregated data indicated that the average user felt
"Neutral" to the stimulus, the
developer would be able to redesign the system in an attempt to achieve the
desired user
experience.
[00123] Potential actions may be communicated to the DCSPS 22 in the form of
new or
modified program state data which may be based on the program state data
received from the
digital content system 2. The modified program state data may be selected by
the decision
system 10 from amongst one or more optional prop-am state variables each
associated with a
particular desired future emotional response type or a desired future program
state being
achieved, or a weighted or un-weighted combination of both. Each selected
modified program
state may be evaluated by the DCSPS 22 to determine the predicted probability
of a future
particular program state being received. For example, if the desired future
program state is to
have the user express a happiness emotional response type, the modified
program state data may
include at least one prop-am state variable associated with success, user-
happiness, or other
forward progression in the game or other application with which the user is
interacting on the
digital content system 2. Each program state variable may also be associated
with a respective
probability of any of those results being achieved, based on prior user
feedback or other training
data measured over time by the BIB 20. The respective probabilities may be
updated as one or
more users emit a measurable physiological response when presented with an
indication
associated with the modified program state data. The respective probabilities
may also be based
on the user's current emotional state and the current state of the digital
content system 2. For
example, if the user's measured physiological data is determined to be
associated with a
frustrated or disinterested emotional type, the probability of the user
responding to modified
program state data in a particular way may be reduced. The BIB 20 will
ultimately attempt to
communicate modified program state data to the digital content system 2 that
has a higher
probability of achieving the predetermined goal than other prop-am state data
whose
probabilities were also evaluated by the BIB 20.
[00124] In general for each digital content state the ERPS 26 may identify
correlations
between the PD that occurred after the digital content state change. For
example, if the user has
received 100 Rewards in a game, the system would train for each event by
looking only at the
27

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
=
=
PD that occurred after each instance to see if there was a pattern in how the
user reacted (e.g.
every time the User 1 receives a Reward, their GSR reading increases each time
step for 10
seconds). If the User l's PD signal isn't consistent for a given stimulus,
then the stimulus
doesn't create a reliable emotional response and it would be classified as
neutral/unknown.
[00125] Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment 1: Correlation of digital content
states with
sensor data to drive a desired outcome or user experience
[00126] In an embodiment of the BIB 20, the system and method is comprised of
a DCSPS 22
and DS 10 as outlined in FIG 18. The DCSPS 22 receives data from a variety of
physiological
sensors and combines it with the digital content state to identify
correlations between these two
types of information in order to predict the probability of the entering a
future digital content
state. Using this information, the Decision System 2 is able to make decisions
based on the
desirability of this future state with respect to the Goal function.
[00127] Continuing the Educational Gaming example from the section outlining
the Digital
Content State Prediction System 22, a User is playing an Education Game with
the DCSPS 22 as
the ERS 8 and a single GSR sensor supplying the PD. Due to the advantages
provided by the
DCSPS 22, the developer is able to set a discrete Goal for the DS 10 that
allows the HE 20 to
create a desired User Experience: the user should answer 75% of the presented
questions
correctly. The intention here is to balance between boredom (answering all
questions correctly)
and frustration (User unable to answer any questions correctly). In this
example, the User has
already been interacting with the Education Game, and therefore the system has
been trained to
identify certain response patterns. An overview of this embodiment can be
found in FIG. 19.
[00128] Referring now to FIG. 20, the system outlined in FIG. 19 has six
digital content state
variables and a single PD variable being fed into the ERS 8.
[00129] Referring now to FIG. 21, the ERS 8 has processed the system's inputs
and is
predicting that given the current state, the user will answer the question
incorrectly. Since the
Goal for this implementation is to achieve a "% Correct" of 75% and the User
is currently
answering only 60% of the questions correctly, the Decision System will try to
induce a correct
answer. Given the current digital content state and Physiological Data, there
are two education-
related actions that can be taken: "Offer a Lesson", or "Do Nothing".
Referring now to FIG. 22,
Since the "Do Nothing" response has been predicted to yield an incorrect
response, the system
can use the DCSPS 22 to review the potential effect of "Offer a Lesson"
change. Since the
28

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. .
"Offer a Lesson" action puts the Decision System closer to its goal, the
Decision System will
choose this action.
[00130] The proposed system and method represents an improvement over previous
systems
because it allows a DCS 2 to be adapted to achieve a specific goal by
incorporating the user's
emotional response into the decision-making process. By incorporating the
user's PD into the
ERS 8, the DCSPS 22 can gain a more complete picture of the user's state and
more accurately
predict the future state of the DCS 2. This allows the DS 10 to make a more
informed decision
on what potential action will create the desired outcome.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment 2
[00131] Referring now to FIG. 23, in another embodiment the GERCS 24 is
extended to work
alongside the DCSPS 22 as an additional component of the Emotional Response
System to
provide a system for predicting a future digital content state, combining it
with the user's current
emotional state, and feeding that information into a DS 10 to allow for more
complex Goal
functions. Unlike the original embodiment, this system allows DCS 2 to be more
accurately
controlled to create a desired user experience. An example would be the use of
the system in an
educational software product designed for students with Autism. For students
with Autism, a
primary goal is the minimization of frustration. Therefore, the system's Goal
function could be
extended to prioritize the minimization of frustration, while also maximizing
the number of
correct answers as a secondary goal.
[00132] Continuing the educational software example and referring to FIG. 24,
a student with
Autism is playing an education game, and has answered the last two questions
incorrectly.
Despite this fact, they're currently answering 80% of all the questions
correctly.
[00133] Referring now to FIG. 25, on the current question the ERS 8 is
predicting that the
student will answer incorrectly, and the GERCS 22 is classifying their
emotional state as
"Frustrated." Since the DS 10's goal is to minimize frustration and the user
is currently
"Frustrated", a review of the available actions is performed as indicated in
FIG. 25. Both the
"Offer Hint" and "Offer Lesson" actions are predicted to cause the user to
answer the question
correctly. Since the Question Correct state may be considered to be a positive
KVS, either of
these actions can be taken by the Decision System 10 in an attempt to improve
the student's
mood.
29

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
=
=
[00134] Unfortunately, there is no perfect decision in this example. By
offering a Hint or
Lesson to the student, the Decision System 10 will be moving farther away from
its goal of
having users answer 75% of questions correctly. On the other hand, by doing
nothing, the student
is predicted to answer the question incorrectly and enter into the KVS of
Question Incorrect,
which may be considered a negative KVS, thus contravening the goal of
minimizing frustration.
Since the Goal was written to prioritize the minimization of frustration and
the performance goal
was made a secondary consideration, the Decision System 10 will choose to
either offer a Lesson
or Hint.
[00135] While the previous embodiment represented an improvement over existing
systems,
without an understanding of the user's current emotional state, the EIE 20 had
no way to directly
incorporate the user's emotional state into the Goal of the Decision. By
adding the GERCS 22
into the ERS 8, the Decision System is provided with a more accurate picture
of the user's state
and can make more intelligent decisions on which actions will yield the
desired user experience.
Referring now to FIG. 26, a sample flow of information in the system has been
provided.
Non-Limiting Exempla?), Embodiment 3
[00136] Referring now to FIG. 27, in another embodiment, a system and method
are proposed
that incorporate the GERCS 24 , DCSPS 22, and ERPS 26 to extend the Decision
System 10's
ability to create a desired outcome and user experience. With the introduction
of the ERPS 26,
the DS 10 can run through its list of potential actions to determine what the
likely digital content
state will be and what the expected emotional response will be for the User 1,
and then compare
that information with the current digital content state and emotional state to
determine if that
action will better satisfy the Goal function.
[00137] Extending the Autism example from before and referring again to FIG.
25, by
combining these three novel systems, the Decision System 10 can select a
desired action that has
already been shown to reduce frustration. In the prior implementation, the
system could only
choose an action based on the fact that the User 1 was frustrated, without
being able to quantify
the potential change in emotional state for each available action. Its
decision was based entirely
on the expected value of the available actions, which limits the ability of
the embodiment to
intelligently adapt the DCS 2 in order to create a desired outcome and user
experience.
[00138] Referring now to FIG. 28, the additional information provided by the
ERPS 26 allows
the DS 10 to make a more intelligent decision as to which action it should
take. In the previous

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
. .
example, both the "Offer Lesson" and "Offer Hint" actions were considered
equally given that
their perceived value was based entirely on their classification as a KVS. In
this example, the
ERPS 26 has already been trained for this User, and has been able to classify
the user's expected
PD data for both the Hint and Lesson state changes. Referring again to FIG.
28, the User's
expected emotional response, after being classified by the GERCS 24, is
"Neutral" and "Happy"
for "Offer a Hint" and "Offer a Lesson", respectively. Since the goal is to
minimize frustration,
the system can now intelligently select the "Offer Lesson" action to help put
the User in a
positive emotional state. FIG. 29 outlines the flow of information through the
EIE 20 for the
provided example.
[00139] In aggregate, the proposed system represents a significant improvement
over existing
systems. The DCSPS 22 can be trained for a generic DCS 2 to predict changes in
digital content
state and enable the intelligent review of potential actions. The GERCS 24
provides the BIB 20
with the ability to classify the user's emotional state. The GERCS 24 also
allows the system to
be trained for specific DCS 2 rather than relying on prior art for the
classification system.
Finally, the ERPS provides a means of predicting how a user's PD will change
for each digital
content state change. This information is fed into the GERCS 24 for
classification, thus
providing the BIB 20 with a predicted future emotional response for each
action at its disposal.
By accurately predicting the user's behaviour, classifying their emotional
state, and predicting
their emotional response for each available action, the proposed system and
method allows for
DCS 2 to be intelligently controlled to achieve a desired outcome and user
experience.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment 4: Local API
[00140] In a non-limiting exemplary implementation, all or part of the
functionality of the BIB
20, including all or part of each of the decision system, GERCS 24, DCSPS 22,
and ERPS 26
may be resident in and executed from within the digital content system itself.
In one
embodiment of the system and method, the BIB 20 may be implemented as a
library that is
included in a Digital Content System 2, as illustrated in FIG. 30. In this
embodiment, the
sensor(s) send physiological data directly to the digital content system,
which utilizes an API
function to send it to the built-in BIB 20. In turn, the BIB 20 recommends
changes to the digital
content through another API function, in order to achieve a desired outcome or
user experience.
Physiological data is stored within the EIE 20, and the HE 20 is responsible
for periodically
updating and training based on data provided by the Digital Content System 2.
This embodiment
31

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
has the advantage of obstructing the logic of the EIE from a third-party
Digital Content System 2
and simplifying interactions with the EIE 20 through API functions. For an
example, refer to
non-limiting exemplary use case 6, below.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment 5: Cloud-Based EIE
[00141] In another embodiment of the system and method, the EIE 20 may be
included in a
cloud implementation, as illustrated in FIG. 31. In this embodiment, the one
or more sensors
send physiological data directly to the Digital Content System 2. The Digital
Content System 2
sends physiological data, digital content states, and user data to one or more
cloud services,
which store the data in one or more cloud databases. In turn, the cloud EIE 20
implementation
processes the data for each individual user and recommends changes to the
digital content for
that user in order to achieve a desired outcome or user experience. The
recommended changes to
the digital content are stored on the database(s) and send to the Digital
Content System 2 through
the cloud service(s).
[00142] Still referring to FIG. 31, in one aspect, the EIE 20 is able to train
based on data
stored in the cloud database(s) for an individual user.
[00143] Still referring to FIG. 31, in another aspect, the EIE 20 is able to
train based on
aggregate data stored in the cloud database(s) for more than one user.
[00144] By maintaining and accessing data obtained from a plurality of users,
the DE 20 may
take advantage of leveraging the larger data set from the distributed user
base, which may allow
the system to find a generalized optimal EIE 20 configuration, identify more
complex patterns,
and avoid 'over-training' (or `over-fitting'), which is a known problem for
artificial intelligence
implementations. For an example, refer to Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment
Use Case 7,
below.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Embodiment 6: Local API and Cloud Training System
[00145] In yet another embodiment of the system and method, the EIE 20 is
implemented as a
library that is included in a Digital Content System 2, as illustrated in FIG.
32. In this
embodiment, the sensor(s) send physiological data directly to the digital
content system, which
utilizes an API function to send it to the built-in EIE 20. In turn, the EIE
20 recommends
changes to the digital content through another API function, in order to
achieve a desired
outcome or user experience. Physiological data is stored within the EIE 20,
and the EIE 20 is
32

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
=
responsible for periodically updating and training based on data provided by
the Digital Content
System. In addition, the Digital Content System also sends physiological data,
digital content
states, and user data (which can be stored in the local EIE 20) to one or more
cloud services,
which store the data in one or more cloud databases. In turn, the cloud-based
EIE Training
System utilizes methods similar to those described for the generalized EIE 20
under the heading
"Emotional Response System and Decision System" to train based on data stored
in the cloud
database(s) for one or more users. It then sends a modified EIE configuration
(e.g. modified
classification method) to the Digital Content System 2 through the Cloud
Database(s) and Cloud
Services(s).
[00146] Still referring to FIG. 32, this embodiment has the advantage of
leveraging a larger
data set from a distributed user base to train a generalized EIE
configuration, but also operating
the EIE locally to minimize data transfer between the Digital Content System 2
and the Cloud
Implementation. For an example, refer to Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 8,
below.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 1
[00147] For education, an online children's educational game may implement the
present
system and method to teach elementary math skills (e.g. addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and
division). Emotions would be monitored using a physiological wristband sensor
measuring GSR
which is attached to the child. The desired outcome is to master as many math
skills as possible
in the current session. The EIE 20 would monitor the child's frustration and
engagement level, in
addition to their progress in the game. If the child is getting frustrated and
is also struggling with
content, the game would be able to offer a hint or lesson for the present math
skill to help them
understand. If the child was getting very frustrated, the game could replace
the math question
with an easier question. If frustration decreases and the child is doing well,
the EIE 20 would
make the level of math questions harder to make the game more challenging and
prevent
boredom. This would have the advantage of circumventing high levels of
frustration in the child,
which research has shown to be detrimental to learning.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 2
[00148] Also in education, an online children's game designed for children
with Special
Needs (e.g. autism, dyslexia, Down syndrome, etc.) may implement the present
system and
method to teach elementary math skills (e.g. addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division).
The desired user experience would be to keep the child in a calm emotional
state (i.e. avoid
33

= CA 02846919 2014-03-20
frustration). Emotions would be monitored using a multi-sensory wristband,
measuring GSR,
heart rate, skin temperature, and movement, which is attached to the child.
The EIE 20 would
monitor the child's frustration and engagement level, and when frustration
increases, the game
would change the question content to make it easier, or remove the child from
the current
challenge until they calm down. If frustration decreases and the child is
doing well, the EIE 20
would progress through new educational content. While this illustrative use
case is similar to the
one above, research has shown that some children with Special Needs are very
sensitive to
changes in emotional state, and that frustration is especially detrimental to
the child's learning.
Thus, this system would prioritize keeping a child in a calm emotional state
over the mastery of
new content, which would allow it to personalize its actions for the unique
requirements of
Special Needs students.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 3
[00149] Also in education, an online learning software designed to assist
students in studying
for a test, such as a standardized test, including the Graduate Management
Admission Test
(GMAT) (commonly used by business schools in the United States as one method
of evaluating
applicants) may implement the present system and method to teach and reinforce
the various
educational components of the GMAT. Emotions would be monitored using a facial
recognition
software which would use a computer-mounted camera. The desired outcome is to
achieve
mastery in all of the educational content. The EIE 20 would monitor the
student's frustration and
engagement level, in addition to their progress in the educational content. If
the student was
answering questions correctly, the software would keep increasing the
difficulty of the content
until the student started getting a significant portion of it wrong or was
very frustrated. If the
student was not frustrated and was answering questions incorrectly, the system
would substitute
the educational content for pre-requisite content. This system would have the
advantage of
maximizing the amount of new content learned by continuously challenging the
student with
content which is new and difficult, while ensuring the student does not get
overly frustrated and
quit.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 4
[00150] Also in education, a business training software for new employees to
learn the
practices and policies (e.g. compliance policies for personal financial
transactions for employees
of a Financial Institution) of a corporation may implement the present system
and method to
34

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
ensure that all of the content was covered. Emotions would be monitored using
a computer
mouse with multiple physiological sensors built in, which would detect GSR and
skin
temperature from the user's fingers. The desired outcome is to achieve mastery
in all of the
educational content. The BIB 20 would monitor the user's emotional state and
their progress
through the content. The BIB 20 would observe what elements of the content the
user found
'engaging' and what elements of the content the user found 'boring', and would
then alternate
between 'boring' and 'engaging' content so that the user does not get overly
bored. Research
has shown that boredom could cause a user to disengage with the educational
content, and in turn
impede learning. This system would have the advantage of minimizing boredom to
maximize
the amount of content the user progresses through.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 5
[00151] In the context of gaming, an illustrative example of utilizing the
present system and
method would be for integration with online Java-based Role Playing Games
(RPG) where users
have a wizard avatar and battle opponents and other characters to become more
powerful.
Emotions would be monitored using a facial recognition software using a
computer-mounted
camera, and a multi-sensory wristband, measuring GSR, heart rate, skin
temperature, and
movement, which is attached to the user. The objective of the system is to
promote a user
experience with maximum engagement at all times. An emotional response system
would
monitor the user's engagement level in the game. Whenever the user's
engagement level is
dropping, game-play mechanics and content would be changed so that the user
became re-
engaged. Examples would include increasing the sound volume and haptic
feedback in the
game, temporarily increasing or decreasing the user's avatar's power in a
battle, and varying the
opponents that the user encountered. In addition, any game mechanic that
relies on chance (e.g.
whether or not the player's attack 'misses' their opponent) can be manipulated
by the present
system and method. The BIB 20 would then monitor the user's reaction to the
feedback, and
learn what modifications have the largest impact on the user's engagement
level.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 6
[00152] Also in gaming, a mobile phone game such as an automotive racing game
for the
Apple iPhone using the iOS operating system may implement the present system
and method as
an Application Programming Interface (API) library to determine which in-game
rewards (e.g.
gaining virtual currency, winning a new car, winning racing tires for their
existing car, etc.)

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
resulted in a large emotional arousal in the user. Emotions would be monitored
using a multi-
sensory wristband, measuring GSR, heart rate, skin temperature, and movement,
which is
attached to the user. The desired outcome is to determine the 'value' of in-
game rewards by
tracking a user's emotional arousal to them, and then prioritizing assignment
of specific rewards
in the game according to their assessed value. The EIE 20 would monitor the
change in the user's
emotional state when the user was given a reward, and monitor the user's
reaction. This system
would have the advantage of figuring out what rewards the user 'values', and
making more
intelligent decisions of when it assigns the rewards.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 7
[00153] Also in gaming, the present system and method could be utilized for
interaction with
a console-based RPG, where users have a wizard avatar and battle opponents and
other
characters to become more powerful. The console, such as a Sony PlayStation 3,
would interact
with a cloud-based EIE 20. Emotions would be monitored using sensors
integrated into a hand-
held video game controller, measuring GSR, heart rate, skin temperature, and
movement, which
is attached to the user. The objective of the system is to promote a user
experience with
maximum engagement at all times. The console would send physiological data to
the cloud-
based EIE, which would monitor the user's engagement level in the game.
Whenever the user's
engagement level is dropping, the cloud-based EIE 20 would tell the console to
alter game-play
mechanics and content so that the user became re-engaged. Examples would
include increasing
the sound volume and haptic feedback in the game, temporarily increasing or
decreasing the
user's avatar's power in a battle, and varying the opponents that the user
encountered. The EIE
would then monitor the user's reaction to the feedback, and learn what
modifications have the
largest impact on the user's engagement level. This system would have the
advantage of
aggregating data from several users in a distributed manner.
Non-Limiting Exemplary Use Case 8
[00154] Also in gaming, a mobile device game such as Tetris for the Google
Nexus 7 tablet
using an Android operating system may implement the present system and method
as a local API
library used for classification, and a larger cloud-based EIE 20 (with a
similar API) used for
training. The game would visually display its user's emotional arousal level
on the tablet's
display screen. Emotions would be monitored using a facial recognition
software utilizing a
camera built into the tablet device. The desired outcome is to make the user
aware of their
36

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
emotional arousal level as the user is interacting with the game. The tablet
would use the local
API to determine a user's arousal and display this information to the user.
The tablet would also
store raw physiological data from the user, and when an internet connection
was available, it
would send aggregated data to a cloud-based EIE 20. Having received data from
multiple users,
the cloud-based EIE would train and improve its classification system, and
send the information
for the updated classification system to the tablet. This system would have
the advantage of
aggregating training data from several users in a distributed manner, while
still allowing the
system and method to be run locally in the absence of a connection to the
cloud-based EIE 20.
[00155] In any of the implementations of the present system and method
described, the goal
may be a representation of the Digital Content System 2 developer's desired
outcome or user
experience for the User 1. The Goal provides a way for the developer to
represent this
experience given the amount of information present in the HE 20. For example,
if the developer
is only incorporating the DCSPS 20, then the Goal may be limited to digital
content states that
are expected to influence the user's emotional state (e.g. ¨ Write or wrong
answers). If the
developer incorporates the GERCS 24 and ERPS 26, then higher level goals can
be set. In many
cases, the goal needs to be turned into a system that can output a number.
This can be done in a
variety of ways including simple case statements for each component of the
goal such as if the
user is 'Frustrated', then their Emotional State = -2, if the user is
'Neutral', then their Emotional
State = 0, if % correct != Goal, then Performance State = Absolute ((Current %
Correct) ¨ Target
% Correct))/Scaling Factor, where the scaling factor will depend on the
relative importance of
the outcome State (e.g. "Answer 75% of questions correctly") with respect to
the User
Experience state ("Minimize frustration"). This may also optionally be done by
a fuzzy system
for turning the outputs of the digital content system 2 into a value, or
through reinforcement
learning systems which contain a Reward and/or Value function to evaluate each
state's "value"
with respect to the goal. Some additional possible non-limiting examples
include: (i) in a
learning context, the goal could be to master specific topics; (ii) in a
gaming context, the goal
could be limited to trying to maximize Engagement (or as Maximizing a user's
emotional arousal
and ensuring that it is of a positive emotional valence); (iii) in a training
software program, the
goal could be to minimize the time taken to master new skills, while
minimizing Negative DC
states; (iv) in a horror game, the goal could be to maximize the time a User
spends in a "Scared"
or "Surprised" state; (v) if the Digital Content is a video game, the goal
could be to maximize the
User's average session length (here, the use of aggregated data may be
required, as external
37

= CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
influences, such as the user quitting to go to the movies, would have a larger
impact on the EIE
20); and (vi) for a video game, an alternate user goal could be to minimize
boredom.
[00156] Once the EIE 20 has determined that modified program state data, or
digital content
modifications, are associated with particular user experience outcomes, the
EIE 20 may select
amongst multiple modified program state data that may each be associated with
the same
outcome. In accordance with aspects of the present invention, the general
process may be to
initiate a "Potential Action Review", and then quantify how each predicted
outcome will satisfy
the goal. This is known as the expected state's "value" as would be found in a
Reinforcement
Learning implementation. In that case, the Goal function will strongly impact
which decision is
best. For example, if the Goal is set to minimize frustration while maximizing
content learned,
the weights associated with these two competing goals will impact how each
action is viewed.
The examples above highlight this point, but in general the Decision System 10
will turn the
current state into a value, compare it with the perceived value of the
potential future states, and
then select the action which leads to a state of maximum value.
[00157] In a simple implementation, when two states have the same value
associated with
them, the process may be to randomly select between the available options. The
example for
Embodiment 2 highlights this situation, where because the system doesn't have
enough
information to discern difference in the impact of Offering a Lesson or
Offering a Hint on the
user's emotional response, it may randomly pick one of the two best options.
[00158] To create a more intelligent system, online training algorithms which
can deal with a
wide variety of DC states and train on-line (e.g. Reinforcement Learning
algorithms) should be
used. In that case, the DS 10 system could have a reward function, which would
review digital
content states and then select an action that would maximize the short term
reward. At some
terminal state, which would be digital content system 2-dependent, the system
would review how
well it had accomplished the Goal through the use of a Value function. As the
system progresses
through various digital content states, the reward it receives from the Reward
function will be
used to update that state's value.
[00159] Referring again to Example 1, the Reward function could reward the DS
10 whenever
the user answers a question from an "unmastered" skill correctly and punish
the system when
they answered incorrectly in order to achieve a performance outcome ("Maximize
new skills
learned"). In addition, the Reward function may punish the DS 10 for any
action that led to the
38

. CA 02846919 2014-03-20
user becoming "Frustrated", while rewarding any action that caused the User to
enter or maintain
a "Happy" state. In the above case, the weights assigned to each of these
Reward types in the
Reward function will be dependent on the overall goal (i.e. the reward
function will require a
larger weight for keeping a User in a Happy state than for them answering a
question correctly if
the goal is to primarily maximize Happiness).
[00160] Extending the example, a Value function could be used to initiate a
review of the
system whenever a user mastered a new skill. If for a particular skill the
user answered 1,000
questions, logged 3 in-game hours, and was frustrated approximately 50% of the
time, then the
Value function may consider this a Negative outcome, and each of the states
that led to the
outcome would have their value reduced. Since the value of these states would
be reduced, the
DS 10 would be less likely to select the actions leading to those states when
making decisions in
the future.
[00161] The present system and method may be practiced in various embodiments.
A suitably
configured computer device, and associated communications networks, devices,
software and
firmware may provide a platform for enabling one or more embodiments as
described above. By
way of example, FIG. 33 shows a generic computer device 500 that may include a
central
processing unit ("CPU") 502 connected to a storage unit 504 and to a random
access memory
506. The CPU 502 may process an operating system 501, application program 503,
and data
523. The operating system 501, application program 503, and data 523 may be
stored in storage
unit 504 and loaded into memory 506, as may be required. Computer device 500
may further
include a graphics processing unit (GPU) 522 which is operatively connected to
CPU 502 and to
memory 506 to offload intensive image processing calculations from CPU 502 and
run these
calculations in parallel with CPU 502. An operator 507 may interact with the
computer device
500 using a video display 508 connected by a video interface 505, and various
input/output
devices such as a keyboard 510, mouse 512, and disk drive or solid state drive
514 connected by
an I/0 interface 509. In known manner, the mouse 512 may be configured to
control movement
of a cursor in the video display 508, and to operate various graphical user
interface (GUI)
controls appearing in the video display 508 with a mouse button. The disk
drive or solid state
drive 514 may be configured to accept computer readable media 516. The
computer device 500
may form part of a network via a network interface 511, allowing the computer
device 500 to
communicate with other suitably configured data processing systems (not
shown).
39

CA 02846919 2014-03-20
=
[00100] In further aspects, the disclosure provides systems, devices, methods,
and computer
programming products, including non-transient machine-readable instruction
sets, for use in
implementing such methods and enabling the functionality described previously.
The system
and method of the present invention may be implemented in one computer, in
several computers,
or in one or more client computers in communication with one or more computer
servers.
[00162] Although the disclosure has been described and illustrated in
exemplary forms with a
certain degree of particularity, it is noted that the description and
illustrations have been made by
way of example only. Numerous changes in the details of construction and
combination and
arrangement of parts and steps may be made. Accordingly, such changes are
intended to be
included in the invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims.
[00163] Except to the extent explicitly stated or inherent within the
processes described,
including any optional steps or components thereof, no required order,
sequence, or combination
is intended or implied. As will be will be understood by those skilled in the
relevant arts, with
respect to both processes and any systems, devices, etc., described herein, a
wide range of
variations is possible, and even advantageous, in various circumstances,
without departing from
the scope of the invention, which is to be limited only by the claims.

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États administratifs

Titre Date
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(22) Dépôt 2014-03-20
(41) Mise à la disponibilité du public 2014-09-21
Demande morte 2017-03-21

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Description du
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Page couverture 2014-10-07 1 51
Abrégé 2014-03-20 1 35
Description 2014-03-20 40 2 410
Revendications 2014-03-20 9 386
Dessins 2014-03-20 36 537
Dessins représentatifs 2014-08-26 1 7
Cession 2014-03-20 4 160