IP Library Granted Patent US 8,386,313
Granted Patent B2
US 8,386,313 · App. 12/199,557 · Granted Feb 26, 2013

Stimulus placement system using subject neuro-response measurements

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 8,386,313
App. No.
12/199,557
Granted
Feb 26, 2013
Kind
B2
Abstract

A system evaluates and selects temporal and spatial locations for introduction of stimulus material. Video streams, physical locations, print advertisements, store shelves, images, commercials, etc. are analyzed to identify locations for introducing stimulus material, such as messages, brand images, products, media, marketing and/or other sales materials. The system analyzes neuro-response measurements from subjects exposed to stimulus material in different temporal and spatial locations. Examples of neuro-response measurements include Electroencephalography (EEG), Galvanic Skin Response (GSR), Electrocardiograms (EKG), Electrooculography (EOG), eye tracking, and facial emotion encoding measurements. Neuro-response measurements are analyzed to select temporal and spatial locations for introduction of stimulus material.

Claims (41)

1. A system, comprising:

a data collector to obtain first neuro-response data from a first one of a plurality of subjects exposed to source material, the data collector to obtain second neuro-response data from the first one or a second one of the plurality of subjects for a plurality of candidate advertisements or entertainment, the first neuro-response data obtained prior to inclusion of one or more of the advertisements or entertainment into the source material, the data collector to obtain third neuro-response data from the first one, the second one or a third one of the plurality of subjects exposed to a composition of the source material and one or more of the advertisements or entertainment;

a selector to identify a plurality of candidate locations in the source material for introduction of one or more of the advertisements or entertainment based on the first neuro-response data and the second neuro-response data; and

an integrator comprising a processor configured to generate the composition by including one or more of the advertisements or entertainment in the source material at one or more of the candidate locations, the selector and the integrator to change the composition based on an interaction between a first frequency band of electroencephalography data reflected in the third neuro-response data and a second frequency band of electroencephalography data reflected in the third neuro-response data, the second frequency band being different than the first frequency band, the first frequency band and the second frequency band representative of brain activity occurring at a same time, the interaction between the first frequency band and the second frequency band corresponding to a degree of phase synchrony or amplitude synchrony determined by:

detecting a first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band;

detecting a second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band; and

detecting a repeating sequence of phase angles or relative amplitude between the first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band and the second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the source material is included in a first media stream.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the advertisement or entertainment is included in a second media stream.

4. The system of claim 1 further comprising a data analyzer to determine the effectiveness of the composition based on the third neuro-response data.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the advertisement includes a brand image.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of candidate locations comprises a plurality of at least one of temporal location or spatial locations.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the selector is to identify the plurality of candidate locations based on one or more lulls in the source material.

8. The system of claim 7 , wherein the selector is to identify a lull based on the first neuro-response data indicating that a location elicits low neuro-response measurements from the subject.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the data collector is to employ a plurality of data collection modalities to collect the first, second and third neuro-response data, the plurality of modalities including at least two of electroencephalography, electrooculography, galvanic skin response, electrocardiography, pupillary dilation or eye tracking.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the data collector is to obtain first and second event related potential measurements to enable determination of differential measurements of event related potential time domain components at multiple regions of the brain.

11. The system of claim 10 further comprising a data analyzer is to subtract the first event related potential measurement from the second event related potential measurement to obtain the differential measurement, the data analyzer is to assess at least one of attention, emotion or memory retention across multiple frequency bands based on the differential measurements of event related potential.

12. The system of claim 11 , wherein the multiple frequency bands comprise at least two of a theta frequency band, an alpha frequency band, a beta frequency band, a gamma frequency band or a high gamma frequency band.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first neuro-response data or the second neuro-response data includes first data gathered using a first data collection modality and second data gathered using a second data collection modality.

14. The system of claim 13 further comprising a data analyzer to align the first data gathered using the first data collection modality with the second data gathered using the second data collection modality and to combine the aligned data.

15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the data analyzer is to at least one of time shift or phase shift at least one of the first data or the second data to align the first data with the second data.

16. A method, comprising:

obtaining first neuro-response data from a first one of a plurality of subjects exposed to source material;

obtaining second neuro-response data from the first one or a second one of the plurality of subjects for a plurality of candidate advertisements or entertainment, the first neuro-response data obtained prior to the inclusion of one or more of the advertisements or entertainment into the source material;

obtaining, with a plurality of sensors, third neuro-response data from the first one, the second one or a third one of the plurality of subjects exposed to a composition of the source material and one or more of the advertisements or entertainment;

identifying a plurality of candidate locations in the source material for introduction of one or more of the advertisements or entertainment based on the first neuro-response data and the second neuro-response data;

generating, using a processor, the composition by including one or more of the advertisements or entertainment in the source material at one or more of the candidate locations; and

initiating a change of the composition, with the processor, based on an interaction between a first frequency band of electroencephalography activity reflected in the third neuro-response data and a second frequency band of the electroencephalography activity reflected in the third neuro-response data, the second frequency band being different than the first frequency band, the first frequency band and the second frequency band being representative of brain activity occurring at a same time, the interaction between the first frequency band and the second frequency band corresponding to a degree of phase synchrony or amplitude synchrony determined by:

detecting a first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band;

detecting a second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band; and

detecting a repeating sequence of phase angles or relative amplitudes between the first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band and the second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the plurality of candidate locations comprises a plurality of at least one of temporal location or spatial locations.

18. The method of claim 16 , wherein identifying the plurality of candidate locations comprises identifying one or more lulls in the source material.

19. A tangible machine readable storage device or disc comprising machine readable instructions thereon which, when read, cause a machine to at least:

identify a plurality of candidate locations in source material for introduction of one or more of advertisements or entertainment based on first neuro-response data obtained from a first one of a plurality of subjects exposed to the source material and second neuro-response data obtained from the first one or a second one of the plurality of subjects for a plurality of candidate advertisements or entertainment, the first neuro-response data obtained prior to inclusion of one or more of the advertisements or entertainment into the source material;

generate the composition by including one or more of the advertisements or entertainment in the source material at one or more of the candidate locations; and

initiate a change of the composition, with the processor, based on an interaction between a first frequency band of electroencephalography activity and a second frequency band of the electroencephalography activity reflected in third neuro-response data obtained from the first one, the second one or a third one of the plurality of subjects exposed to a composition of the source material and one or more of the advertisements or entertainment, the second frequency band being different than the first frequency band, the first frequency band and the second frequency band being representative of brain activity occurring at a same time, the interaction between the first frequency band and the second frequency band corresponding to a degree of phase synchrony or amplitude synchrony determined by:

detecting a first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band;

detecting a second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band; and

detecting a repeating sequence of phase angles or relative amplitudes between the first pattern of oscillation in the first frequency band and the second pattern of oscillation in the second frequency band.

20. The machine readable device or disc of claim 19 wherein the plurality of candidate locations comprises a plurality of at least one of temporal location or spatial locations.

Assignments (14)
RELEASE (REEL 053473 / FRAME 0001) Recorded May 11, 2023
From: CITIBANK, N.A.
To: A. C. NIELSEN COMPANY, LLC; EXELATE, INC.; GRACENOTE, INC.; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC; NETRATINGS, LLC
Reel/Frame 063603/0001 →
RELEASE (REEL 054066 / FRAME 0064) Recorded May 11, 2023
From: CITIBANK, N.A.
To: GRACENOTE, INC.; A. C. NIELSEN COMPANY, LLC; EXELATE, INC.; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC; NETRATINGS, LLC
Reel/Frame 063605/0001 →
RELEASE (REEL 037172 / FRAME 0415) Recorded Oct 13, 2022
From: CITIBANK, N.A.
To: THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
Reel/Frame 061750/0221 →
SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Mar 25, 2021
From: NIELSEN CONSUMER LLC; BYZZER INC.
To: BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., AS ADMINISTRATIVE AGENT AND COLLATERAL AGENT
Reel/Frame 055742/0719 →
PARTIAL RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Mar 10, 2021
From: CITIBANK, N.A.
To: NIELSEN CONSUMER NEUROSCIENCE, INC.; NIELSEN CONSUMER LLC
Reel/Frame 055557/0949 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Feb 9, 2021
From: THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC
To: NIELSEN CONSUMER LLC
Reel/Frame 055265/0878 →
CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT TO CORRECT THE PATENTS LISTED ON SCHEDULE 1 RECORDED ON 6-9-2020 PREVIOUSLY RECORDED ON REEL 053473 FRAME 0001. ASSIGNOR(S) HEREBY CONFIRMS THE SUPPLEMENTAL IP SECURITY AGREEMENT. Recorded Oct 7, 2020
From: A.C. NIELSEN (ARGENTINA) S.A.; A.C. NIELSEN COMPANY, LLC; ACN HOLDINGS INC.; ACNIELSEN CORPORATION; ACNIELSEN ERATINGS.COM; AFFINNOVA, INC.; ART HOLDING, L.L.C.; ATHENIAN LEASING CORPORATION; CZT/ACN TRADEMARKS, L.L.C.; EXELATE, INC.; GRACENOTE, INC.; GRACENOTE DIGITAL VENTURES, LLC; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; NETRATINGS, LLC; NIELSEN AUDIO, INC.; NIELSEN CONSUMER INSIGHTS, INC.; NIELSEN CONSUMER NEUROSCIENCE, INC.; NIELSEN FINANCE CO.; NIELSEN FINANCE LLC; NIELSEN INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS, INC.; NIELSEN MOBILE, LLC; NMR INVESTING I, INC.; TCG DIVESTITURE INC.; TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC; VIZU CORPORATION; VNU MARKETING INFORMATION, INC.; NMR LICENSING ASSOCIATES, L.P.; NIELSEN HOLDING AND FINANCE B.V.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY B.V.; VNU INTERNATIONAL B.V.
To: CITIBANK, N.A
Reel/Frame 054066/0064 →
SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Jun 9, 2020
From: A. C. NIELSEN COMPANY, LLC; ACN HOLDINGS INC.; ACNIELSEN CORPORATION; ACNIELSEN ERATINGS.COM; AFFINNOVA, INC.; ART HOLDING, L.L.C.; ATHENIAN LEASING CORPORATION; CZT/ACN TRADEMARKS, L.L.C.; EXELATE, INC.; GRACENOTE, INC.; GRACENOTE DIGITAL VENTURES, LLC; GRACENOTE MEDIA SERVICES, LLC; NETRATINGS, LLC; NIELSEN AUDIO, INC.; NIELSEN CONSUMER INSIGHTS, INC.; NIELSEN CONSUMER NEUROSCIENCE, INC.; NIELSEN FINANCE CO.; NIELSEN FINANCE LLC; NIELSEN INTERNATIONAL HOLDINGS, INC.; NIELSEN MOBILE, LLC; NIELSEN UK FINANCE I, LLC; NMR INVESTING I, INC.; TCG DIVESTITURE INC.; TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC; VIZU CORPORATION; VNU MARKETING INFORMATION, INC.; NMR LICENSING ASSOCIATES, L.P.; NIELSEN HOLDING AND FINANCE B.V.; THE NIELSEN COMPANY B.V.; VNU INTERNATIONAL B.V.
To: CITIBANK, N.A.
Reel/Frame 053473/0001 →
SUPPLEMENTAL IP SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Nov 30, 2015
From: THE NIELSEN COMPANY ((US), LLC
To: CITIBANK, N.A., AS COLLATERAL AGENT FOR THE FIRST LIEN SECURED PARTIES
Reel/Frame 037172/0415 →
RELEASE OF SECURITY INTEREST Recorded Aug 25, 2011
From: TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.
To: NEUROFOCUS, INC.
Reel/Frame 026805/0336 →
MERGER Recorded Aug 5, 2011
From: NEUROFOCUS, INC.
To: TNC (US) HOLDINGS INC., A NEW YORK CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 026709/0556 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Aug 5, 2011
From: TNC (US) HOLDINGS INC., A NEW YORK CORPORATION
To: THE NIELSEN COMPANY (US), LLC., A DELAWARE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
Reel/Frame 026709/0625 →
SECURITY AGREEMENT Recorded Apr 5, 2010
From: NEUROFOCUS, INC.
To: TNC (US) HOLDINGS, INC.
Reel/Frame 024183/0713 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 10, 2008
From: PRADEEP, ANANTHA; KNIGHT, ROBERT T.; GURUMOORTHY, RAMACHANDRAN
To: NEUROFOCUS, INC.
Reel/Frame 021668/0837 →