INFORMATION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM AND METHOD

fOOOl] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application 60/926,453 filed April 27, 2007, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

FIELD

[0002] This invention relates generally to the field of information management systems and methods. The disclosure relates more specifically to vehicle information management systems and methods.

BACKGROUND

[0003] Vehicle audio and video (A/V) systems have been employed for some time to provide observable or audible content to a vehicle occupant. Typical vehicle A/V systems include cassette tape systems, compact disc ("CD") systems, radio systems, digital versatile disc ("DVD") systems, or other systems designed to allow a user to play or control media while driving or occupying a vehicle.

[0004] Recently, digital media files have become popular. Digital media files may be, for example, audio, video, or image files and may be downloaded from the Internet, extracted from conventional sources such as CDs, recorded live, or obtained from any number of other sources. Digital media files advantageously may be easily transferred from device to device via wired or wireless data connections, stored, compressed, searched, and may include embedded meta data or tag data to allow organization or cataloging.

[0005] Typical vehicle A/V systems do not include provisions for digital media files. Digital media files are often portably stored on portable media players ("PMP"). Some recent vehicle A/V systems include inputs for PMPs so that a person may carry a PMP into the vehicle, connect an output of the PMP to a vehicle A/V system input, and hear the audio playback of the PMP through the vehicle A/V system. Some aftermarket or original equipment manufacturer ("OEM") vehicle A/V systems have begun providing slots for electronic memory storage devices that may contain media files or digital input and/or output adapters for specific PMPs.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSED EMBODIMENTS

[0006] Using a PMP in a vehicle can be a difficult or distracting task, especially if the user of the PMP is the driver, as is often the case. User interfaces provided on PMPs typically include small and dimly-lit displays and require some amount of dedicated attention to operate a user interface shown on the display. Drivers using these devices may drive with one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand holding a small PMP causing the driver to take his or her eyes off of the road. Some aftermarket or OEM A/V systems include PMP adapters having control provisions such that the controls of the vehicle A/V system may be used to control the playback and management of the media files contained on the PMP. Other aftermarket or OEM vehicle A/V systems include built-in memory for storing digital media files. Vehicle A/V systems that provide user interface features and methods for the control and management of digital media files may generally be referred to as vehicle media management systems.

[0007] It should be appreciated that other systems of the vehicle may require interactions with the driver, or other passengers of the vehicle, that are distracting or otherwise unsafe. For example, most vehicles include at least a simple heating, ^* ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) system while many vehicles include complicated HVAC systems that offer many adjustable features or options. Additionally, many vehicles now include navigation systems that also require interaction with the driver, or another passenger of the vehicle, that maybe distracting or otherwise unsafe. Likewise, many vehicles now include speaker phone systems that interact with a user's cellular phone and possibly the A/V system of the vehicle.

[0008] Together with the above-outlined media management systems, such HVAC systems, navigation systems and cellular phone systems can be referred to more generally as vehicle information management systems. In general, vehicle information management systems may be any known or later-developed system of a vehicle that requires, or offers, interaction with an occupant of the vehicle, often through a screen and a user interface.

[0009] Conventional information management systems include a relatively deep menu structure and provide a fixed and complex interface to a user. Current information management systems also include a relatively complex physical control system that may be difficult to use. When the user of the information management

system is the driver of a vehicle, such complexity and difficulty may provide distraction to the driver, causing the driver to take his or her eyes off of the road for a period of time.

[0010] Conventional information management systems also typically use a single screen in the center console of the vehicle. This single screen may be used to interact with several different information management systems, adding more complexity to the use and interaction with each specific information management system and the entire system as a whole. For example, a user may need to stop adjusting an A/V system of a vehicle, which may require several steps in and of itself, before being able to interact with a navigation system of the vehicle. Upon finishing with the navigation system and returning to the A/V interface, the user may have to start from a standard home location, having lost all interactive steps from the previous session.

[0011] Therefore, an improved information management system including a less complex and more intuitive menu structure would be desirable. An improved information management system including a less complex and more intuitive control system would also be desirable. An improved information management system including a customizable interface would also be desirable.

[0012] This invention relates to an information management system having a screen and a user interface. This invention separately relates to an information management system wherein the user interface has a visual component which is displayable on the screen and the visual component includes a series of tabs representing separate categories of information or commands.

[0013] This invention separately relates to a method for providing a graphical user interface of an information management system, wherein an information management system is used to provide display screen output to a user, the display screen output includes an active window having heading information and list content, wherein the list content may include selectable sub-categories or other selectable menu items, the display screen output also having category tabs; receiving a category selection from a user; changing the heading information and contents of the window to reflect the category selection received from the user; making the sub-category information available and scrollable in the window; receiving a sub-category selection from a user; changing the heading information and the contents of the window to reflect the sub-category selection; matching the sub-category color to the category

color; displaying an icon indicating the window displayed is a sub-category icon; creating a category tab from the category the sub-category was selected from and placing the category tab next to the window; visually indicating that the created category tab was the last active category tab (e.g., color, asterisk, icon, highlight, etc.); allowing the user to select one of a sub-category content item or a new main category; wherein the user may select the new main category (including the last active category) using a single motion of a tactile control or voice recognition command. If the system receives the selection of a subcategory content item, the selected content item will become the window heading, a content item color will be displayed, and an information status will be displayed. The method may also include creating a new tab relating to the sub-category once if the sub-category is browsed away from. The sub- category may remain a tab until a new sub-category has been selected or for some period of time before disappearing.

[0014] This invention also separately relates to a method of selecting a desired media file to be played by an information management system wherein the method includes displaying a list of categories comprising at least one category that comprises the desired media file, receiving a selection of a category comprising the ^* desired media file, displaying a list of sub-categories of the selected category comprising at least one sub-category that comprises the desired media file, receiving a selection of a desired sub-category comprising the desired media file, displaying a list of media files that comprise the selected sub-category, at least one of which is the desired media file, receiving a selection of the desired media file and playing the desired media file.

[0015] These and other features and advantages of various exemplary embodiments of systems and methods according to this invention are described in, or are apparent from, the following detailed descriptions of various exemplary embodiments of various devices, structures and/or methods according to this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] Various exemplary embodiments of the systems and methods according to this invention will be described in detail, with reference to the following figures, wherein:

[0017] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle including an exemplary embodiment of an information management device.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a plan view of the exemplary embodiment of the information management system of FIG. 1.

[0019] FIG. 3 is one exemplary embodiment of a block diagram of the information management system of FIG. 1.

[0020] FIG. 4 is one exemplary embodiment of a more detailed block diagram of the information management system of FIG. 3.

[0021] FIG. 5 is one exemplary embodiment of a process flow diagram of a media selection method usable with a media management system such as the exemplary embodiment of an information management system of FIG. 1.

[0022] FIG. 6 is one exemplary embodiment of a process flow diagram of a music selection method of the exemplary method illustrated in FIG. 5.

[0023] FIGS. 7A-7E illustrate a first exemplary embodiment of a media selection sequence of the media selection method of FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0024] FIGS. 8A-8C further illustrate the first exemplary embodiment of the ^* media selection sequence of FIGS. 5 and 6.

[0025] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a first exemplary embodiment of controls for an information management system.

[0026] FIG. 10 is a plan view of a second exemplary embodiment of controls for an information management system.

[0027] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the interior of a vehicle and an exemplary embodiment of an information management system.

[0028] FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the interior of a vehicle and an exemplary embodiment of an information management system.

[0029] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the interior of a vehicle and an exemplary embodiment of an information management system.

[0030] FIG. 14 is a process flow diagram of one exemplary embodiment of a voice activated media playback method usable with the information management system of FIG. 1.

[0031] FIG. 15 is a process flow diagram of one exemplary embodiment of a media listing method usable with the information management system of FIG. 1.

[0032] FIG. 16 is a process flow diagram of one exemplary embodiment of a method for finding phonemic matches to vocal utterances, playing the best match, and displaying the matches to a user usable with the information management system of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS [0033] Referring to FIG. 1 , a vehicle 100 includes a number of subsystems for user convenience. Vehicle 100 generally includes a heating, ventilation, and air- conditioning (HVAC) system, a sound system, and an in- vehicle control system 200. The HVAC system and sound system may be coupled to or integrated with in- vehicle control system 200, which is capable of controlling and monitoring both systems, automatically or by a manual user command. It should be noted that, in various exemplary embodiments, vehicle 100, the HVAC system, and the sound system may be of any past, present, or future design that is capable of interacting with in-vehicle control system 200. It should also be noted that each of the systems that interact with ^* in-vehicle control system 200, as well as in-vehicle control system 200, may be referred to as information management systems.

[0034] Referring generally to various exemplary embodiments, an information management system allows a driver to use a vehicle interface to locate, open, play and/or manipulate digital media files (e.g., video, pictures, music, etc.), operate the HVAC system of the vehicle, operate a navigation system, utilize a connection with a cellular phone and/or interact with any other system of the vehicle. If an information management system is designed to be particularly or exclusively useful for managing digital media files, it may be referred to as a media management system. Controls are typically tactile and may trigger audio feedback to alert the user of an information management system function or activity without causing the user to take his or her eyes off of the road. Generally, the user does not have to navigate more than two levels deep into the menu system of the information management system to conduct most tasks (e.g., in the example of a media information management system, these tasks may include, playback and/or selection of a new song, changing the artist and/or the album, etc.), reducing the complexity of the system and the amount of

distraction to the user. When the user is a driver, if the driver is able to quickly and easily make interactive control selections, the driver may pay closer attention to the road rather than the interaction with the information management system.

[0035] In various exemplary embodiments, controls for the information management system may be mounted on the vehicle steering wheel, the vehicle center console, a location near the shifter, another location within reach of the driver, or any location within reach of a vehicle occupant. In various exemplary embodiments, the controls may include pushbutton controls, rotatable controls, joystick controls, scrolling controls, touch sensitive controls, any other type of tactile control, voice activated controls, or any combination of any appropriate known or later-developed types of controls. Menus may be flat and/or color-coded, allowing the user to view and manipulate the menus of the information management system with a glance. In one exemplary embodiment, the information management system is integrated into the vehicle A/V system or vehicle control system such that the interface of the information management system is the primary user interface of the in- vehicle control system. In various alternative embodiments, the information management system is modular or removable (e.g. partially removable) from the vehicle and includes ^■ multiple displays or display screens, some of which might be the primary displays of the in- vehicle control system, and some that are secondary displays and that are dedicated to specific information management tasks.

[0036] FIG. 2 shows one exemplary embodiment of in- vehicle control system 200. As shown in FIG. 2, in- vehicle control system 200 generally includes an output display 208, one or more knobs 202, one or more pushbuttons 204, and one or more tactile user inputs or pushbuttons 206, each of which facilitate controlling various vehicle functions. Output display 208 may be configured to display data related to the control of the vehicle functions and to display various information management interfaces. In one exemplary embodiment, output display 208 may be a touch-screen display, while in other exemplary embodiments, output display 208 may be any other non-touch sensitive display. In still other exemplary embodiments, output display 208 may be of any known or later-developed technology (e.g., surface- conduction electron-emitter display, plasma, cathode ray tube, liquid crystal display, thin film transistor-liquid crystal display, light emitting diode display, organic light emitting diode display, laser-based display, etc.), configuration (e.g. portrait or

landscape), shape (e.g. polygonal, curved, curvilinear), or size. Output display 208 may have any color bit depth, resolution, lines of readable text, and may allow for animation, video and transparencies. In one exemplary embodiment, the output display is a TFT having a 121 millimeter by 37 millimeter viewable screen.

[0037] Knobs 202 and pushbuttons 204 and 206 may be configured: (i) to control functions of the HVAC system such as fan speed, cabin temperature, or routing of air flow, (ii) to control playback of media files over the sound system, (iii) to control retrieval of phonebook entries, or (iv) to control any other known or later- developed desired vehicle function. Pushbuttons 206 typically allow for the selection and display of various functions of in-vehicle control system 200 including HVAC system control, media management control, sound system control, hands-free phone use, contact or address/phone book management, calendar viewing/modification, and vehicle data logging and/or any other known or later-developed vehicle function.

[0038] The operation of pushbuttons 206 for media playback may cause the display of a media playback menu screen or cause the execution of commands that allow the user to view, select, sort, search for, and/or play audio or video files by tactile and/or oral command. The operation of pushbuttons 206 for hands-free phone ^* operation may display a menu screen or execute commands that allows the user to connect in-vehicle control system 200 to a mobile phone so that speaking into the vehicle console of in-vehicle control system 200 operates the mobile phone. The operation of pushbuttons 206 for HVAC control may display a menu screen and/or execute commands that allow the user to control cabin temperature and/or air flow by tactile and/or oral command. The operation of pushbuttons 206 for contact management may display a menu screen and/or execute commands that allow the user to view, list, select, sort, search for, edit and/or dial one or more entries containing personal contact information, by use of a tactile and/or oral command. The operation of pushbuttons 206 for calendar management may display a menu screen and/or execute commands that allow the user to view, list, select, sort, search for, edit and/or create one or more entries containing personal schedule information by tactile and/or oral command. The operation of pushbuttons 206 for vehicle log management may display a menu screen and/or execute commands that allow the user to input, view, select and/or reset information related to vehicle operation (e.g. fuel economy, engine temperature, distance to empty, etc.) by tactile and/or oral command.

[0039] Referring to FIG. 3, in-vehicle control system 200 is capable of accessing data files from a remote source 300 over a communication link 310, which may be a wired or wireless connection. For example, in-vehicle control system 200 may access digital media files, data files, phonebook data files, calendar data, and/or any other known or later-developed type of accessible data usable by in-vehicle control system 200.

[0040] In an exemplary embodiment, in-vehicle control system 200 generally includes a communication device 220, a data processing system 240, a display driver and I/O interface 260, a user interface 262, an audio input device 264, an audio output device 266, an audio system 268, and a memory device 280.

[0041] Communication device 220 is generally configured to establish communication link 310 with remote source 300. In one exemplary embodiment, in- vehicle control system 200 may establish a wireless communication link 310 such as with Bluetooth communications protocol, an IEEE 802.11 protocol, an IEEE 802.15 protocol, an IEEE 802.16 protocol, a cellular signal, a Zigbee ® protocol, a Shared Wireless Access Protocol-Cord Access (SWAP-CA) protocol, or any other suitable known or later-developed wireless technology. In another exemplary embodiment, in- ^* vehicle control system 200 may establish a wired communication link 310 such as with USB technology, Firewire technology, optical technology, other serial or parallel port technology, or any other suitable known or later-developed wired link. Communication device 220 may receive or access one or more data files from remote source 300. In various exemplary embodiments, the data files may include text, digital media files, media library files, user configuration files, "theme" or "skin" files, profiles, numeric data, and/or any other known or later-developed type (and/or format) of data file.

[0042] Data processing system 240 is coupled to communications device 220 and is generally configured to control each function of in-vehicle control system 200. Data processing system 240 may facilitate speech recognition capabilities of in- vehicle control system 200 for the convenience of the user. Data processing system 240 may include digital and/or analog processing components or be of any known or later-developed design that facilitates control of in-vehicle control system 200. Data processing system 240 may be a single data processing device having various hardware and/or software components or multiple data processing devices. Data

processing system 240 may be used to facilitate any number of audio related features, including front-to-rear or rear-to-front communications features. Data processing system 240 may also execute software and/or coordinate hardware activities of in- vehicle control system 200. In the exemplary embodiment of an in-vehicle control system 200 that is particularly useful as a media management system, data processing system 240 may execute software of the media management system that allows the control and playback of media files. For example, data processing system 240 may execute a software function when, for example, a user of in-vehicle control system 200 activates a pushbutton 204 or 206.

[0043] Display driver and I/O interface 260 is coupled to output display 208 and is typically configured to provide an electronic signal to the output display. In one exemplary embodiment, the electronic signal may include a graphical user interface, menus, indicators, lists, the text and/or numeric data of the digital media files, while in other exemplary embodiments, any other desired known or later-developed data may be included with the text and/or numeric data or by itself in the electronic signal to the output display. In another exemplary embodiment, display driver and I/O interface 260 may be configured to control output display 208 with touch-screen ^* capabilities, while in other exemplary embodiments, display driver and I/O interface 260 may be configured to control output display 208 without making use of touchscreen capabilities. In still other exemplary embodiments, display driver and I/O interface 260 may be of any known or later-developed design that allows for the control of output display 208.

[0044] User interface 262 is typically configured to facilitate tactile user interaction with in-vehicle control system 200. In various exemplary embodiments, user interface 262 may include pushbuttons or rotatable knobs in any configuration and/or may include other known or later-developed tactile user contact points (e.g., steering wheel controls, joystick controls, etc).

[0045] Audio system 268, for example an audio input receiver, may be configured to switch between various audio inputs, mix audio input signals into an audio output signal, provide volume control, filtering, attenuation, and/or other audio- related features. Audio system 268 and its accompanying audio data or audio signals may be analog-based, digital-based, or any combination thereof. Audio system 268 may include various input devices such as compact disc players, radio components,

satellite radio components, digital media players and/or any other known or later- developed component. In various exemplary embodiments, audio system 268 may only include switching, processing, or routing electronics. In various other exemplary embodiments, audio system 268 may include any number of amplifiers, or provide audio output signals to amplifiers. Audio system 268 may include audio output devices 518 or 520 and/or may provide signals to audio output devices 518 or 520. Audio system 268 may be partially or entirely built into the control system 200 or may be a stand-alone audio system that accepts control and audio inputs from control system 200 and/or the other components of vehicle 100. Audio system 268 may connect to the control system 200 via an interface module (shown as the lines connecting control system 200 and audio system 268 in FIGS. 3 and 4) of control system 200. In an exemplary embodiment, audio system 268 is any known or later- developed audio system that accepts audio inputs and has an audio output capability.

[0046] Audio input device 264, for example a microphone, is configured to receive the utterance of a user for transmission to data processing system 240 for speech recognition so that the functions of in- vehicle control system 200 may be operated by voice command. In an exemplary embodiment, audio input device 264 ^• may be configured and used to receive user utterances for amplification to other users. Audio received by audio input device 264 may be sent to and/or from other systems and components of the vehicle, such as control system 200, audio system 268, data processing system 240, memory device 280, audio output device 266, etc. The audio may be sent and/or received throughout the systems and components of vehicle 100 as audio data (e.g., audio signal(s), audio data, analog audio signal(s), digital audio signal(s), audio input signal(s), audio output signal(s), audio intonation, etc.). Regardless of whether the audio data or audio signal changes form, is processed, routed, amplified, attenuated, filtered and/or mixed, the terms "audio data" and "audio signal" are intended to encompass any data or signal having an audio component. Audio output devices (e.g., audio output device 266, etc.) may be configured to provide the user with an audio prompt of various functions, such as user selection confirmation. In an exemplary embodiment, audio output devices may exist within or externally from the housing of control system 200.

[0047] Memory device 280 is configured to store data accessed by in-vehicle control system 200. For example, memory device 280 may store digital media files,

data input by remote source 300, data created by data processing system 240 that may be used later, intermediate data of use in a current calculation, computation or the like or any other data of use by in- vehicle control system 200.

[0048] FIG. 4 shows in- vehicle control system 200 and remote source 300 in greater detail. Data processing system 240 generally includes a text-to-grammar device 242, a speech recognition device 244, and a text-to-speech device 246.

[0049] Text-to-grammar device 242 is preferably coupled to communications device 220 and is generally configured to generate a phonemic representation of the text and/or numeric data of each of the data files received by communications device 220 from remote source 300. The phonemic representation of the text and/or numeric data of each data file may be configured to facilitate speech recognition of each data file. After conversion of a data file to a phonemic representation, the data file may be accessed via an oral input command received by speech recognition device 244 via audio input device 264.

[0050] Speech recognition device 244 is typically configured to receive an oral input command from a user via audio input device 264. Speech recognition device 244 compares the received oral input command to a set of predetermined input ^* commands, which may have been configured by text-to-grammar device 242. In various exemplary embodiments, the input commands may be related to the playback of a media file, the dialing or input of a phone book entry, the entry or listing of calendar or contact data, the control of the HVAC system, or any other desired function to be performed on data. In various exemplary embodiments, the input command may be related to initiating, terminating and/or otherwise controlling front- to-rear communications functions. Speech recognition device 244 may determine an appropriate response to the oral input command received from the user, for example, whether the oral input command is a valid or invalid instruction, what command to execute, and/or any other appropriate response.

[0051] Text-to-speech device 246 is generally configured to convert the text and/or numeric data of each data file received from remote source 300 into an audible speech representation. This functionality may allow in- vehicle control system 200 to audibly give data to the user via audio output device 266 or the audio system 268. For example, in- vehicle control system 200 may repeat a user selected function back to the user, announce media file information, provide phonebook or contact information,

and/or other information related to data stored in memory device 280 or remote source 300.

[0052] Memory device 280 includes both a volatile memory 282 and a nonvolatile memory 284. Volatile memory 282 may be configured so that the contents stored in volatile memory 282 may be erased during each power cycle. Non- volatile memory 284 may be configured so that the contents stored in non-volatile memory 284 may be retained across power cycles, such that upon system power-up, data from a previous system use remains available for the user. In the exemplary embodiment of an information management system that is particularly useful as a media management system, non-volatile memory 284 may be configured to store digital media files, playlists, and/or other files that may be used to drive and/or organize media of the vehicle.

[0053] Note that remote source 300 may be any suitable known or later- developed remote source that includes a transceiver and is able to interface with in- vehicle control system 200 over communications link 310, in either a wireless or wired embodiment. In various exemplary embodiments, remote source 300 may be one or more of a mobile phone 301, a personal digital assistant (PDA) 302, a media ^* player 303, a personal navigation device (PND) 304, a pager 305, a remote server 306 that is coupled to the Internet, or various other remote data sources.

[0054] Media Management GUI Navigation and Navigation Mapping

[0055] In the exemplary embodiment outlined below, the information management system is a media management system that is particularly useful for managing audio files. It should be appreciated that a similar information management system could be used to manage, for example, video files, mixed audio and video files, HVAC controls, navigation controls, cellular phone controls or even to navigate between different information management systems.

[0056] FIGS. 5-8C, illustrate flow charts and several exemplary menu screen that further characterize the media management system. FIGS. 5 and 6 show one exemplary embodiment of a method of selecting media to be played by the media management system. As shown in FIG. 5, at step SlOO, the user selects a category (e.g., playlists, artists, albums, songs, genres, etc.). At step, SI lO, the user selects a specific item from the category selected in step SlOO. For example, as shown in step Sl 12, the user may select a specific playlist. In contrast, as shown in step Sl 14, the

user may select a specific artist, as shown in step Sl 16, the user may select a specific album, or, as shown in step Sl 18, the user may select a specific genre. It should be appreciated that, generally, if the user selects a song category, there will not be an intermediate step between selecting the category and selecting the song. At step S 120, after having selected the specific item from the desired category, the user may select a specific song that corresponds to the specific item from the desired category. At step S 130, the selected song is played by the media management system and a "Now Playing" window is shown.

[0057] FIG. 6 shows in more detail how the interface of the media management system changes while the user is selecting media. As outlined above, at step SlOO, the user selects a category. At step SlOl, the media management system alters the appearance of the interface to show the selected category and allow the user to select a sub-category. At step SI lO, the user selects the desired sub-category. As outlined above, this may mean that the user selects a specific playlist, artist, album or genre. At step Si l l, the media management system alters the appearance of the interface to show that the desired sub-category has been selected and allow the user to select media within the sub-category. At step S 120, the user selects the desired media, ^* e.g., song, from the list of media within the sub-category. At step S121, the media management system alters the appearance of the interface to show that the selected media is being played and to allow the user to navigate back through the desired categories and subcategories.

[0058] FIGS. 7-8C show various exemplary screens of the media management system that the user will encounter while the user is navigating through the interface to select a desired media file. From a main screen, the user may select a category to browse or search for media. As shown in FIGS. 7A-7E, as a user moves left to right within the interface, the user may select various categories (e.g., playlist, artist, album, song, genre, etc.) related to media files. These categories are represented as tabs 290 when not selected and as an active window 292 when selected. As shown in FIG. 8A, when a category, such as playlists, is selected, the active window 292 is opened with the category name in the window heading. Each category may be of a different color and include an icon cue 294 to facilitate the user in quickly seeing the status of the media management system.

[0059] Once a category is selected, the user may scroll through a list of sub- categories 296 (excluding, in this exemplary embodiment, the "song" category) and select a sub-category of interest. For example, the user may select a specific playlist in the playlist category, a specific artist in the artist category, a specific album in the album category, a specific genre in the genre category, etc. Alternatively, for each category, the user may select "play all" to choose a sequential or random playback of the media from the selected category. Note that, in this exemplary embodiment, the "song" category typically allows for direct selection of a desired song or songs without a sub-category.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 8B, when a selection of a sub-category is made, the active window 292 changes from a category window to a sub-category window. The selected sub-category name appears as the heading of the window. The sub-category window may also include a sub-category icon 294, shown, for example, as a target- shaped icon, to identify the window as a sub-category. The previous category window changes into a tab 290, for example to the left or right of the active window 292. In various exemplary embodiments shown in the figures, once a sub-category is selected, a new tab 290 is added to the horizontal x-axis structure, thus allowing the user to ^* move back to an original category with one controller movement (e.g., nudging a controller once to the left or right). The sub-category window color may match that of the category tab to indicate the user's navigation history. The previous category window or a different category may be selected by a single controller movement to the adjacent tab. If the user moves back to an original category, the sub-category window may be shown as a new tab 290 along the horizontal x-axis and may remain for a period of time before closing. With the sub-category window open, the user may scroll through the sub-category window and select a specific media file 298 (e.g., a song) in the sub-category.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 8C, once a specific media file is selected, the active window 292 generally changes into a "Now Playing" window of an alternate color and icon 294 and with the media name as the heading. While the "Now Playing" window is active, the status of the current media file is shown, for example the current position or time left of a playing song. The media files within the current sub-category may be scrolled through and viewed or selected by the user for playback. Media files within other sub-categories and categories may also be scrolled through

and viewed or selected by the user for playback. For example, the user may move to a tab 290 to the left or right of the active window 292 to return to the previous category window. In another example, the user may move to other category tabs 290 to the left or right of the active window 290. The "Now Playing" window typically changes back to the previous sub-category window after the media in the selected sub-category plays through.

[0062] Various Control and Hardware Features of the Information Management System

[0063] FIGS. 9 and 10 show further characterizations or embodiments of an information management system and corresponding controls. Controls 400 for the information management system may be movable on or around multiple axes to control various functions of the information management system. As shown in Fig. 9, controls 400 include a pedestal or joystick 410 and buttons 420. Pedestal or joystick 410 also includes buttons 412. Pedestal 410 and buttons 412 and 420 may be moved or pressed in multiple different ways to navigate through the information management system as outlined above. As shown in Fig. 10, the controls include a scrollable or slidable thumb wheel 430 and multiple buttons 420. According to various exemplary ^• embodiments, pedestal 410 and/or thumb wheel 430 may move on an x-axis (e.g., bumped horizontally to move between categories), moved on a y-axis (e.g., bumped vertically to scroll in a list), moved on a z-axis, (e.g., pushed in to make a selection), rotated about the z-axis (e.g., to move within a list, advance or reverse media playback, etc.), or any combination thereof. Other controls may include a hot key, a soft key, other rotary control, voice activated control, or any other known or later- developed control that may be used to access, control, and/or select options and/or information while navigating through the information management system.

[0064] In one exemplary embodiment, external media devices may be used in conjunction with the information management system. For example, the information management system may provide connectivity with an I-Pod ^® via a direct connection, an I-Pod ^® via a wireless connection, a USB drive, a radio, a cell phone, a navigation device and/or any other known or later-developed portable device.

[0065] FIG. 11 shows an exemplary embodiment of a portion of the information management system. As shown in FIG. 11, at least a portion of the information management system may be located in an overhead console 110 or a

vehicle location other than a center console. In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 11, display 208, controls 400, and/or I/O ports for the information management system are located in overhead console 110. Overhead console 110, in this embodiment, also includes a hidden (or not hidden) storage location 112 for a remote or portable digital device (e.g., a PMP, a USB drive, a cell phone, a navigation device, etc.). The remote or portable digital device may be used in conjunction with or separate from the information management system. For example, the information management system may connect to a PMP, read the metadata information, store the metadata information in a media library or database of the in- vehicle control system, and facilitate the playback and management of the media files stored on the PMP.

[0066J In one exemplary embodiment, information management display 208 installed in overhead console 110 may be a modular or removable PMP that may be used as both a display of the in- vehicle information management system and as a standalone PMP. In various exemplary embodiments, the interface features and controls may be utilized with any PMP in addition to in-vehicle control systems.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 12, an exemplary embodiment of information management display 208 may be located on a rearview mirror 120 of vehicle 100. In ^* the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 12, display 208 may be active at all times that the information management system is active, or may only be active when necessary to display information to the user. As such, rearview mirror 120 may operate normally (e.g. show an image of the environment behind the driver) when the information management system is not displaying information to the user, but may become a display, and thus not operate as a normal mirror, when the information management system needs to display information to the user.

[0068] For example, the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 12 may be particularly useful with an information management system that includes a navigation system. In such an exemplary embodiment, display 208 may normally be inactive, thus allowing rearview mirror 120 to operate normally, but will become active and display information to the user whenever navigation events are happening or about to happen, e.g., the car is approaching a turn and the user needs to be informed, the car is approaching a programed destination, etc.

[0069] As shown in FIG. 13, in another embodiment, display 208 is located in a sun visor 130 of vehicle 100. As in the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 12,

display 208 may be active at all times or may be active only when the information management system needs to display information to the user. In general, the display of the information management system may be located anywhere in the vehicle that is visible to the driver or another occupant of the vehicle. Likewise, the controls may be located anywhere in the vehicle that is accessible by at least one occupant of the vehicle. In some embodiments, it may be preferable for the display and the controls to be located in the same location, or at least very near each other. In other embodiments, it may be preferable for the display and the controls to be located in two separate and distinct locations.

[0070] Interface Customization

[0071] In another exemplary embodiment, a user may configure or customize the display of the information management system. For example, the user may customize the type, color and/or arrangement of the tabs, a menu or system color scheme, an icon, a display skin, other features of the information management system, or any combination thereof. Such customizations may be configured at the factory per settings given by the consumer, by the consumer or the dealer using provided software through an I/O port (e.g., a USB connection) or temporary storage device (e.g., an ' external drive later connected to the information management system), by the dealer, or by the consumer using downloaded configurations from the Internet (e.g., directly to the information management system or to an external drive later connected to the information management system). User customizations may be stored in a customization database residing on a memory device of the in- vehicle control system.

[0072] In various other embodiments, the information management system software provides a "settings" menu that the user may enter by pressing a settings button or otherwise navigating to a settings menu. The settings menu may contain a variety of menu options (e.g., primary color, secondary color, brightness, contrast, font, background, font size, etc.) that the user may toggle or select to change the look and feel of the interface. In various other exemplary embodiments, the user may save a set of settings as a "theme" or "skin" in a file, folder, database, or other information structure residing on a memory device of the information management system. In various other exemplary embodiments, the information management system may be configured to store different user profiles for different drivers of the vehicle. These

profiles could be set via, for example, a key fob, seat position, or selected via a graphical user interface.

[0073] Voice Driven System Operation

[0074] FIGS. 14-16 show exemplary methods of selecting an option or action of in- vehicle control system 200, an information management system which, as outlined above, may be particularly useful as a media management system. As shown in FIG. 14, a user may manipulate (e.g., play, pause, stop, next, previous, fast-forward, rewind, etc.) a media file using an entry of the media file data stored in memory 280. One exemplary embodiment of a method for speech-enabled playback using memory 280 is illustrated in FIG. 14.

[0075] At step S 150, in-vehicle control system 200 receives a command to initiate playback of a media file from a user via audio input device 264 or user interface 262. At step S 152, in-vehicle control system 200 prompts the user to indicate which media file to playback. The prompt may be played via audio output device 266 or the sound system. At step S 154, the user may provide (i.e., utter) the entry name with an oral command to play a song (e.g., "play <track title>"). At step Sl 56 and after the system receives the track title of the desired media file at step ^* S 154, the system identifies the desired entry. At step Sl 58, speech recognition device 244 determines if there is more than one entry associated with a phonemic representation. For example, if the user commands the system to "play The White Album," the system may be configured to recognize that more than one media file is associated with that album title. If there is more than one entry, in vehicle control system 200 may be configured to list (via an audible prompt or via output display 208) the associated media files (e.g., songs or tracks) for that album name. Alternatively, in-vehicle control system 200 may be configured to just begin playback of the media files (i.e., tracks) of the album from the beginning of album or from a pre-selected track number.

[0076] At step S 160, the user may select a desired media file by providing an oral command to audio input device 264 or via user interface 262. At step S 162, once a media file has been selected, in-vehicle control system 200 prompts the user via audio output device 266 and/or output display 208 to confirm the track title of the media file.' At step S 164, in-vehicle control system 200 receives confirmation of the track title via audio input device 264 or user interface 262.

[0077] Voice Driven Playback and N-Best Results

[0078] At a step S 156 and after confirmation is received at step S 164, in- vehicle control system 200 begins playback of-the media file. Alternatively, the system may be configured to determine that there is more than one album with a particular phrase in the album title (e.g., "Greatest Hits"). In this case, in- vehicle control system 200 is configured to recognize that more than one album title includes the uttered phrase, based on a confidence scoring algorithm. Speech recognition device 244 may provide the best matches, and the user may then be prompted to select the desired album from among the matches. In an exemplary embodiment, when selecting media files, categories, playlists, and/or making any other selection, in- vehicle control system 200 uses an "n-best" option to list the closest matches returned by the system. The closest matches can then be "scrolled" through and picked or selected by the user with a voice command or by a tactile control. In an alternative exemplary embodiment, in- vehicle control system 200 uses a one-hundred percent "best guess" or other high probability or confidence logic to immediately select and play the system's best guess. In yet other exemplary embodiments, while the speech recognition system may return non-media file related best guesses (e.g., "raise the ^* temperature of the vehicle" could be on the list with a song containing the word "raise"), the system may be configured to return only media-file related options.

[0079] Voice Activated and Audible List Browsing

[0080] FIG. 15 shows an exemplary embodiment of a method for audibly listing data of media files usable with in- vehicle control system 200. As shown in FIG. 15, in-vehicle control system 200 may be configured to provide a user with a listing of the data of the available media files upon request (e.g., "list albums," "list artists," etc.).

[0081] At step S 170, in-vehicle control system 200 receives an oral command from the user via an audio input device 264 to list the media file contents of memory 280 by data entry type.

[0082] At step S 172 and in response to the command, in-vehicle control system 200 audibly lists the data entries of each media file. For example, if the user's command is "list albums," each album title would be listed. The text (e.g., album title) of each media file is converted to an audio representation using text-to-speech device 246 and the audio may be played in the vehicle using speakers 262 or the

sound system. Preferably, the text of the entries is also displayed in alphanumeric order sorted by character on output display 208. A predetermined time period elapses between the playing of each entry.

[0083] At step S 174, in- vehicle control system 200 is configured to allow the user to interrupt the audible listing of the selected data by permitting the user to "barge- in." A user may barge in during the playing of an entry text or during a predetermined time after the playing of the entry in order to execute a command.

[0084] At step S 176, if the user provided a command (i.e., barges in) at step S 174, in vehicle control system 200 recognizes and performs the requested action. For example, a user may provide a command to skip to the next entry in the list of selected media data or to skip to the entry beginning at the next alphanumeric character. A user may also provide commands to select a desired media file once it is heard or to repeat a previous entry. If a media file is selected, a user may then initiate an action (e.g., playback of a media file).

[0085] At step S 178, in- vehicle control system 200 determines whether the last media file has been reached or whether a file has been selected. If the last media file has been reached or a file has been selected, method ends. If the last entry has not ^* been reached or no file has been selected, the process returns to step S 172 and continues listing data entries until either an entry is selected or the last entry in memory 280 is reached.

[0086] FIG. 16 illustrates one exemplary embodiment of a method for finding phonemic matches to vocal utterances, playing the best match, and displaying the matches to a user. At step S 180, in-vehicle control system 200 receives a request from the user via speech recognition device 244. At step S 182, phonetic combinations of available commands, including file names, execution commands, menu headings etc., are determined. At step S 184, the phonetic combinations of available commands are compared to the received request. If an available command is suitably matched with the received request, the process jumps to step S 188. If there are no available commands that suitably matched the received request, the process continues to step S 186. At step S 186, the available commands are searched to determine the closest available match. At step Sl 88, the closest available command or the command that suitably matched the received request is executed, e.g. a media file is played. At step S 190, a list of the closest matching available commands is

presented to the user. The list could be presented via text-to-speech device 246, output display 208 and/or any other suitable known or later-developed communication means. At step S 192, the user is prompted for additional input, e.g., asked to select a command that was not the closest matched available command but is in fact the desired command. The user may provide additional input by any means, including voice commands, buttons a touch screen etc.

[0087] In various exemplary embodiments, an in- vehicle control system may include a user interface having a display, a data processing system, a memory, and/or an interface to an audio system. The in- vehicle control system may also include one or more tactile control devices configured to allow the user to provide input to the control system. The data processing system and memory may be functionally coupled to a media-management engine (or include media management features) and may be configured to provide features such as:

[0088J Flat Hierarchy

[0089] in various exemplary embodiments, the menu hierarchy of the information management system is flattened as much as possible, such that users of the menu hierarchy do not have to navigate through more than two levels of menu ^* depth to accomplish information management tasks. This may allow the user to view and access a main or top level menu (e.g., to scroll between categories) without having to repeatedly press a "back" button. The top level menu options are more readily visible and available from multiple areas of navigation (e.g., at least within the primary information management interface). This feature may allow a user to see a "map" or indication of a current position in the menu hierarchy so they are unlikely to become "lost" or frustrated.

[0090] Font Size and Style

[0091] Using a standard type face, for example Helvetica or Anal, the minimum point size may be around a 14 point size, in various exemplary embodiments. In general, for a viewing distance of less than 36 inches (i.e., the distance from eye to display), the minimum font height may be no less than about 3.3mm for critical markings (e.g., categories, etc.) and be highly illuminated. In yet other exemplary embodiments, font styles may be selected by examining the variables of stroke, width, and height of the characters. Stroke refers to the line weight of the character. Width refers to the character and width, and height is the character height.

For example, when selecting white letters to be displayed on top of a black field, the stroke to height ratio for capital letters could be between 1 :8 and 1 : 10. Numbers and capital letters could have a height to width ratio of 3 :2 - 1 : 1. Lower case letters could have a height to width ratio of 5 :3 - 1 : 1. The space between words and numbers could be about one character width. Clear space between lines may be no less than the lower case height. Sans serif fonts may be preferable for readability purposes on small displays and may be the primary font style. If dark adaptation (< 0.01 fc) is desired, white markings may be used on a black background to reduce the amount of light entering the eye.

[0092] Text Orientation

[0093] When possible, text may be oriented in the standard horizontal, left to right direction. Words rotated into a vertical format facing the user may be acceptable for very small amounts of content (e.g., category labels of a menu hierarchy as displayed in various FIGS.). Text oriented away from the user (e.g., the driver) may be less acceptable.

[0094] Consistent Behavior Logic

[0095] If a system has access to multiple logic sources or can be used for ^* other functions such as navigation, the menus may be similar in layout and navigable by using the same logic structure and navigation controls (e.g., tactile controls, same types of voice recognition, etc.).

[0096] Browsing Music Library

[0097] In some exemplary embodiments of an information management system that are particularly useful as a media management system, users may have the ability to browse other sources (e.g., I-Pod®, other PMP wirelessly connected, PMPs in wired connection, USB memory key, radio, HD-radio, compact flash, cellular phone, etc.) and other menus while continuing to listen to the currently selected music. When browsing, "now playing" summary information may be available to the user at all times (e.g., moved to a margin, available if the user does not provide input for some period of time, etc.). For metadata-rich sources (e.g., tagged media sources such as digital media files stored in nonvolatile memory of the vehicle or stored on a connected PMP), one line indicating song title and status information may be at least partially displayed (e.g., scrolled in a text box or margin) while a song is playing, even if a user is navigating other systems (e.g., HVAC control).

[0098] Audible Feedback

[0099] Audible feedback may be provided to the user as an indication of the system registering (i.e., recognizing, receiving, etc.) the user's command. For example, discrete button presses or voice commands (for example in a media management system, to skip forward or back, select, play, or pause) or indiscrete commands, such as scrolling through various menu items or possibilities, may include audible feedback in the form of a click or other action. A series of clicks or other actions could be combined to give the user an indication of scrolling speed or other continuous activity or input.

[0100] Visual Feedback

[0101] When a user affects the currently displayed, active or playing source (e.g., in a media management system by skipping to the next or previous song, adjusting the volume, fast-forwarding or rewinding within a song, and pausing or resuming playback, etc.), an onscreen indication of what the user is changing may appear. This could be in the form of a "pop-up," icon, or block of information that temporarily flashes or displays.

[0102] Color Displays

[0103] Color displays may be desired by many users over monochromatic displays. Color variations may have enough tonal difference to be easily recognizable as distinct colors. Users may prefer matte display surfaces rather than specular so that contrast appears relatively high to an ordinary person. The contrast ratio for characters against the background color may be relatively high for daylight and adjustable for nighttime viewing.

[0104] Meaningful use of Color

[0105] Colors may be used to indicate behavior states of the information management system (i.e., media management, digital media, AM-Radio, FM-Radio, Satellite Radio, HD-Radio, CD, DVD, HVAC-Control, Navigation, Settings, etc.). In an exemplary embodiment of an information management system that is particularly useful as a media management system, one color may be associated with a "browsing state" to indicate that a user is browsing music and another color may be associated with a "playing state" to indicate when a song is simply playing or when a user is tracking or navigating in a currently playing (i.e., played), song list. An example of color indicating menu location is shown in the Figures as the categories are shown

having color coded tabs, text, and top bar features which may aid the user in "at a glance" navigation and recognition.

[0106] Scrolling

[0107] List management systems may have three distinct scrolling behaviors; a very precise control of slow scroll movements, a form of quick scrolling to "cruise" through options at a rapid but browsable pace, and a jump mode for skipping past multiple options with one press, click or turn.

[0108] Contextual Jumping

[0109] Rapidly moving or "jumping" directly to a menu option may be accomplished via a "jump-by-letter" or other context based method (e.g., in the media management system, jump by album letter, artist letter, jump to next genre type, etc.). When jumps occur, the screen may graphically indicate that the event has happened (e.g., a 'jump" icon is flashed, etc.). Preferably the notification will provide the user with cues as to how the jumps are occurring so users can quickly understand precisely what has happened. In other exemplary embodiments, users are given the opportunity to toggle any 'jumping" feature on and off.

[0110] Wrapping Menus

[0111] In long lists, users might want to scroll backward to reach the end of a list without having to scroll forward through the entire list to the end. For example, when attempting to play a song with a media management system that begins with the letter Z, the user may not have to scroll past a large number of songs when starting from the letter A. Users may be able to reverse scroll and move directly from the beginning of the list to the end of the list.

[0112] The same wrapping menu option may be useful for horizontal menus. For example, the above-outlined tabbed interface of the media management system may include wrapping menus that allow a user to move from the furthest left tab on the screen to the furthest right tab, and vice versa, with a single button press.

[0113] Button Placement

[0114] Buttons (i.e., tactile buttons) may be placed at a variety of locations throughout the vehicle to provide information management input devices, structures and/or controls to the user. Buttons may be placed on the steering wheel, center console, near a shifter location, etc. In various exemplary embodiments, primary controls may allow the user to minimally move his or her arm (e.g., steering wheel

controls) or the vehicle may provide support for the user's arm (e.g., an armrest may be configured to support a user's arm while the user is operating a center stack control).

[0115] Appearance of Buttons

[0116] Scroll wheels that do not have discrete positions could provide better visual cues to indicate two discrete positions instead of appearing as a continuous scroll wheel.

[0117] Physical and graphic elements may be visually and tactilely apparent by indicating how a button or switch is intended to move. Standard and accepted design elements may be omitted from a controller that is not intended to work in the fashion the elements would indicate. For example, if there are finger grooves, grips, or knurling on a cylindrical shape, an ordinary person may have the impression that the button/knob should turn when it simply presses.

[0118] Weight and proportion of controls may also affect the user's ability to understand how to interact with the control. For example, a control that is too large, somewhat block like, or provides little or no contrast with its environment may be understood as a base rather than a control.

[0119] Buttons may be clearly labeled using text or ISO icons to label buttons instead of unconventional icons or symbols. When designing new icons rigorous usability testing may be performed to increase the probability that the icon is commonly understood by an ordinary person. Any new icon may be accompanied by text.

[0120] Grouping Of Buttons

[0121] A simple uncluttered design may result in an intuitive control set as used by an ordinary person. The control set may have few unusable or invalid buttons at each point in the behavior tree.

[0122] Button redundancies are reduced in each control grouping. Providing many different controls that have the same effect on the interface may confuse the user's mental model of the system. Instead of taking the most efficient route to complete an action, the user may have learned a more complicated method of completing the action and believe the more complicated method to be the only way the task can be completed. Providing fewer solutions and/or the simplest solution may avoid such inefficiencies.

[0123] Individual buttons are not overloaded with multiple functions. For example, in a scroll application that slides to scroll (e.g., tap the top or bottom of the screen to page up/down, tap in the center to select, etc.) the possibility of user error increases compared to a scroll control (e.g., a scroll wheel, a lever, etc.) that slides to scroll.

[0124] Blind controls, or controllers that are laid out such that they can be effectively manipulated by touch, may be used to reduce driver distraction. Main navigation controls may be tactile and clustered together so users do not have to take their eyes off the road to find and operate the controls.

[0125] Physical layout of controls may naturally map to the graphical menu layout of the interface. For example, to scroll a list from top to bottom, using an up and down control layout may more naturally map to the desired onscreen action than a knob. This implementation may support the user's mental model of how to navigate the interface.

[0126] Users may prefer common controls to be located in a single control cluster. This includes common media controls such as directional navigation buttons, scrolling controls, a central select button, volume control, and previous and next ^* buttons.

[0127] Reach Data

[0128] The table below represents the possible reach zones in which the information management system may be located for a smaller person to be able to access it. Although these are the zones that a smaller person can reach, it does not imply they are the most comfortable in this zone.

Large Truck Small Oar

(all dimensions in millimeters}

[0129] Z= Up/Down, Y = Left/Right

[0130] In one exemplary embodiment, a method for providing a graphical user interface of an information management system comprises: using an information management system to provide display screen output to a user, the display screen output comprising an active window having heading information and list content,

wheiem the list content may include selectable sub-categories or other selectable menu items, the display screen output also comprising category tabs, receiving a category selection from a user, changing the heading information and contents of the window to reflect the category selection received from the user, making the sub- category information available and scrollable m the window, receiving a sub-category selection fiom a user, changing the heading information and the contents of the window to ieflect the sub-categoiy selection, matching the sub-category color to the category color, displaying an icon indicating the window displayed is a sub-category icon, creating a category tab from the categoiy the sub-category was selected from and placing the category tab next to the window, visually indicating that the created categoiy tab was the last active categoiy tab (e g , color, astensk, icon, highlight, etc ), allowing the user to select one of a sub-category content item or a new mam category, wherein the user may select the new mam category (including the last active category) using a single motion of a tactile contiol or voice recognition command If the system leceives the selection of a subcategory content item, the selected content item will become the window heading, a content item color will be displayed, and an information status will be displayed The method may also include ci eating a new tab relating to the sub-category once if the sub-category is browsed away from The sub- category may remain a tab until a new sub-category has been selected or for some penod of time before disappearing

[0131] While the exemplary embodiments illustrated m the Figuies and described above are presently pieferred, it should be understood that these embodiments aie offered by way of example only Accordingly, the present disclosure is not limited to a particular embodiment, but extends to various modifications that nevertheless fall withm the scope of the appended claims The order oi sequence of any processes or method steps may be varied or re-sequenced accoidmg to alternative embodiments

[0132] Describing the disclosuie with Figures should not be construed as imposing on the disclosuie any limitations that may be present m the Figures The present disclosure contemplates methods, systems and program products on any machine-readable media for accomplishing its operations The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented using an existing computer processors, or by a

special purpose computer processor for an appropriate vehicle system, incorporated for this or another purpose or by a hardwired system.

[0133] As noted above, embodiments within the scope of the present disclosure include program products comprising machine-readable media for carrying or having machine executable instructions or data structures stored thereon. Such machine-readable media can be any available media which can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer or other machine with a processor. By way of example, such machine-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of machine-executable instructions or data structures and which can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer or other machine with a processor. When information is transferred or provided over a network or another communications connection (either hardwired, wireless, or a combination of hardwired or wireless) to a machine, the machine properly views the connection as a machine-readable medium. Thus, any such connection is properly termed a machine-readable medium. Combinations of the ^* above are also included within the scope of machine-readable media. Machine- executable instructions comprise, for example, instructions and data which cause a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or special purpose processing machines to perfomi a certain function or group of functions.

[0134] It should be noted that although the diagrams herein may show a specific order of method steps, it is understood that the order of these steps may differ from what is depicted. Also two or more steps may be performed concurrently or with partial concurrence. Such variation will depend on the software and hardware systems chosen and on designer choice. It is understood that all such variations are within the scope of the disclosure. Likewise, software implementations of the present disclosure could be accomplished with standard programming techniques with rule based logic and other logic to accomplish the various connection steps, processing steps, comparison steps and decision steps.

[0135] The foregoing description of embodiments of the disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed, and modifications

and variations are possible m light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the disclosure. The embodiments were chosen and described m order to explain the principals of the disclosure and its practical application to enable one skilled m the art to utilize the disclosure m various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particulai use contemplated.

[0136] While this invention has been described m conjunction with the exemplary embodiments outlined above, various alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements and/or substantial equivalents, whether known or that aie or may be presently foreseen, may become apparent to those having at least ordinal y skill in the art. Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments of the invention, as set forth above, are intended to be illustrative, not limiting Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, the invention is intended to embrace all known or earlier developed alternatives, modifications, variations, improvements and/or substantial equivalents.