WO2015191637A1

WO2015191637A1 - Puzzle creation and sharing over a network

Info

Publication number: WO2015191637A1
Application number: PCT/US2015/034972
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ryo P. IMAI; Glenn A. MERCANTE; Lee John COLLINS SR.
Original assignee: Phumble LLC
Priority date: 2014-06-09
Filing date: 2015-06-09
Publication date: 2015-12-17
Also published as: US20150352435A1

Abstract

A system and method are provided for generating a puzzle from media content. The method includes receiving input indicative of a selection of a media content (1002) to be converted into puzzle content, receiving input indicative of at least one edit (1004) to be applied to the puzzle content, receiving input indicative of at least one puzzle property (1006) to be applied to the puzzle content, generating (1014) the puzzle content based on the at least one edit and the at least one puzzle property, and sending (1014) the puzzle content to a recipient. The system includes a computing device (1200) having a processor (1202) and a memory (1204) configured to implement the method.

Description

PUZZLE CREATION AND SHARING OVER A NETWORK

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of and claims priority to United States Provisional Patent Application Number 62/009,878 entitled "PUZZLE CREATION AND SHARING OVER A NETWORK" and filed on June 9, 2014 for Ryo P. Imai, and to United States

Provisional Patent Application Number 62/052,648 entitled "PUZZLE CREATION AND SHARING OVER A NETWORK" and filed on September 19, 2014, both of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to gaming systems, and more particularly, relates to providing a platform for integrating a social network and games created from media.

BACKGROUND

Traditional jigsaw puzzles are well known, having been popular for over 100 years.

Generally, a jigsaw puzzle consists of irregularly shaped pieces of wood, plastic, or cardboard, that when assembled properly form an image. Jigsaw puzzles can be used purely for entertainment purposes, as many people enjoy solving jigsaw puzzles with friends.

Additionally, jigsaw puzzles can be used for teaching. For example, a jigsaw puzzle of the

United States can be helpful to teach children and adults geography through the proper placement of puzzle pieces.

With the proliferation of electronic computing devices, such as PCs, tablets, and smartphones, many games that were traditionally played face-to-face have been implemented in an electronic format that tends to remove the friendship element of the traditional game.

However, much of the enjoyment of playing a jigsaw puzzle is the involvement of friends.

SUMMARY

A system and method are provided for generating a puzzle from media content. The method includes receiving input indicative of a selection of a media content to be converted into puzzle content, receiving input indicative of at least one edit to be applied to the puzzle content, receiving input indicative of at least one puzzle property to be applied to the puzzle content, generating the puzzle content based on the at least one edit and the at least one puzzle property, and sending the puzzle content to a recipient.

In one embodiment, the generated puzzle content comprises an altered version of the media content that is partitioned into a quantity of portions according to the difficulty level and scrambled. The method includes, in another embodiment, presenting at a recipient device an unaltered version of the media content in response to the recipient solving the puzzle content according to the at least one puzzle property. The method may also include receiving an indication, at the at least one computing device, that the generated puzzle content has been solved by the recipient in accordance with the at least one puzzle property.

In another example, the at least one puzzle property comprises defining a puzzle duration, where the puzzle duration comprises a quantity of time for the recipient to solve the puzzle content. In one embodiment, the method also includes receiving an indication that the recipient has failed to solve the puzzle content according to the puzzle duration, and accepting or denying a request for additional time.

In one embodiment, the at least one edit to be applied to the puzzle content further comprises at least one of: adding text to an image; altering a hue, cropping, or applying a filter. Additionally, the media content comprises at least one of an image file or a video file.

The system, in one embodiment, comprises at least one computing device and at least one software module that are together configured for performing the above described method.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the advantages of the embodiments of the invention will be readily understood, a more particular description of the embodiments briefly described above will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments that are illustrated in the appended drawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only some embodiments and are not therefore to be considered to be limiting of scope, the embodiments will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 depicts one embodiment of a system for puzzle creation and sharing;

Fig. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a client module in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

Fig. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a server module in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure;

Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a client device presenting a user interface for editing an image;

Figs. 5 and 6 are diagrams illustrating one embodiment of a client device presenting a user interface for setting puzzle properties of the image;

Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a user interface for previewing puzzle content in accordance with the present disclosure;

Figs. 8 and 9 are diagrams illustrating embodiments of user interfaces for solving puzzle content; Fig. 10 illustrates a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method for generating puzzle content;

Fig. 11 illustrates a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method for receiving puzzle content;

Fig. 12 is a diagram of one embodiment of a computer system for facilitating template generation;

Fig. 13 is a schematic block diagram illustrating another embodiment of a client module in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure; and

Fig. 14 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a user interface for modifying videos with puzzle content in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Aspects of the present disclosure may be embodied as a system, method or computer program product. Accordingly, aspects of the present disclosure may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.) or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects that may all generally be referred to herein as a "circuit," "module" or "system." Furthermore, aspects of the present disclosure may take the form of a computer program product embodied in one or more computer readable storage media having computer readable program code embodied thereon.

Many of the functional units described in this specification have been labeled as modules, in order to more particularly emphasize their implementation independence. For example, a module may be implemented as a hardware circuit comprising custom VLSI circuits or gate arrays, off-the-shelf semiconductors such as logic chips, transistors, or other discrete components. A module may also be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays, programmable array logic, programmable logic devices or the like.

Modules may also be implemented in software for execution by various types of processors. An identified module of executable code may, for instance, comprise one or more physical or logical blocks of computer instructions which may, for instance, be organized as an object, procedure, or function. Nevertheless, the executables of an identified module need not be physically located together, but may comprise disparate instructions stored in different locations which, when joined logically together, comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose for the module. Indeed, a module of executable code may be a single instruction, or many instructions, and may even be distributed over several different code segments, among different programs, and across several memory devices. Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated herein within modules, and may be embodied in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may be collected as a single data set, or may be distributed over different locations including over different storage devices, and may exist, at least partially, merely as electronic signals on a system or network. Where a module or portions of a module are implemented in software, the software portions are stored on one or more computer readable storage media.

Any combination of one or more computer readable storage media may be utilized. A computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer readable storage medium would include the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD- ROM), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a Blu-ray disc, an optical storage device, a magnetic tape, a Bernoulli drive, a magnetic disk, a magnetic storage device, a punch card, integrated circuits, other digital processing apparatus memory devices, or any suitable combination of the foregoing, but would not include propagating signals. In the context of this document, a computer readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Computer program code for carrying out operations for aspects of the present disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java, Python, C++ or the like and conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or similar programming languages. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).

Reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," or similar language means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. Thus, appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment," "in an embodiment," and similar language throughout this specification may, but do not necessarily, all refer to the same embodiment, but mean "one or more but not all embodiments" unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms "including," "comprising," "having," and variations thereof mean "including but not limited to" unless expressly specified otherwise. An enumerated listing of items does not imply that any or all of the items are mutually exclusive and/or mutually inclusive, unless expressly specified otherwise. The terms "a," "an," and "the" also refer to "one or more" unless expressly specified otherwise.

Furthermore, the described features, structures, or characteristics of the disclosure may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. In the following description, numerous specific details are provided, such as examples of programming, software modules, user selections, network transactions, database queries, database structures, hardware modules, hardware circuits, hardware chips, etc., to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the disclosure. However, the disclosure may be practiced without one or more of the specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, and so forth. In other instances, well-known structures, materials, or operations are not shown or described in detail to avoid obscuring aspects of the disclosure.

Aspects of the present disclosure are described below with reference to schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams of methods, apparatuses, systems, and computer program products according to embodiments of the disclosure. It will be understood that each block of the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams block or blocks. These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instructions which implement the function/act specified in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams block or blocks. The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other devices to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable apparatus or other devices to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide processes for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks.

The schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of apparatuses, systems, methods and computer program products according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. In this regard, each block in the schematic flowchart diagrams and/or schematic block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s).

It should also be noted that, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved. Other steps and methods may be conceived that are equivalent in function, logic, or effect to one or more blocks, or portions thereof, of the illustrated figures.

Although various arrow types and line types may be employed in the flowchart and/or block diagrams, they are understood not to limit the scope of the corresponding

embodiments. Indeed, some arrows or other connectors may be used to indicate only the logical flow of the depicted embodiment. For instance, an arrow may indicate a waiting or monitoring period of unspecified duration between enumerated steps of the depicted embodiment. It will also be noted that each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart diagrams, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations of special purpose hardware and computer instructions. The description of elements in each figure may refer to elements of proceeding figures. Like numbers refer to like elements in all figures, including alternate embodiments of like elements.

Fig. 1 depicts one embodiment of a system 100 for puzzle creation and sharing. The system 100, in the depicted embodiment, includes a puzzle server 102, a data network 104, and one or more clients 106. In the depicted embodiment, the puzzle server 102 may communicate with one or more clients 106 over the data network 104. In one embodiment, a client 106 may include any device capable of displaying puzzle content for a user. For example, in some embodiments, clients 106 may include devices such as a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a tablet, a smartphone or other mobile device, or the like.

In another embodiment, the puzzle server 102 may be any server capable of delivering puzzle content to a client 106 (or "client device") over the data network 104. For example, in some embodiments, the puzzle server 102 may include a standalone server, a dedicated server, a virtual server, a blade server, a cluster of servers, or the like. In many embodiments, the data network 104 connecting the puzzle server 102 to clients 106 is the

Internet; however, in another embodiment, the data network 104 may include another type of network, such as an intranet network, a local area network (LAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), a wide area network (WAN), or the like.

The devices 106 connect to the data network 104, in one embodiment, by a data link 108. The data link 108 may be any data connection that enables routable traffic between the puzzle server 102 and the client 106 to traverse the data network 104. Examples include, but are not limited to cellular data connections, wired data connections (e.g., Ethernet), and wireless data connections (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.). In another embodiment, the clients 106 are capable of communicating directly with the puzzle server 102 via an ad-hoc connection.

As will be described below, the puzzle server 102 is configured to enable the sharing of puzzle content between client 106 devices. As used herein, the term "puzzle content" refers to a multimedia message in the form of a game that is to be solved by a recipient. In one example, a solvable multimedia message in the form of a game is an image that has been converted to a jigsaw puzzle. Each client device 106 is configured to allow a user to solve the jigsaw puzzle before allowing the user to view the image upon which the jigsaw puzzle was based. In a similar manner, puzzle content may be configured for allowing a user to listen to a song or view a video after, for example, a puzzle is solved, where the puzzle is based on a screenshot of the video or an album cover. Each client 106 includes a client module {see Figure 2), and the puzzle server 102 includes a server module {see Figure 3) for enabling the above described features.

Fig. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a client module 200 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The client module 200 is configured to allow the creation and exchange of puzzle content between client devices 106.

The client module 200, in one embodiment, is configured with a register module 202, a contact module 204, an image module 206, a puzzle module 208, a mailbox module 210, a promotion module 212, and a chat module 214.

In one embodiment, the register module 202 is configured to allow a user to register or login to the puzzle server 102. The register module 202 is configured to generate a user interface to be displayed on the client device 106. The user interface may be configured to prompt for and receive user login credentials. The login credentials may include a username and a password. Alternatively, the login credentials may comprise a unique identifier of the device 106. The unique identifier may be associated with a particular user. For example, the unique identifier may be a phone number associated with the client device 106, or a MAC address associated with the client device 106. Other types of login credentials usable for logging in to the puzzle server 102 include, but are not limited to, smart cards, fingerprints, etc.

In one embodiment, the contact module 204 is configured for maintaining a list of contacts associated with the user. For example, the contact module 204 may be configured for retrieving from the puzzle server 102 a listing of all contacts/friends/associates of the user. In some embodiments, the contact module 204 is also configured to generating and presenting a user interface for finding and adding a new contact or friend to the list of contacts. The new contact or friend may be added by, for example, username, phone number, email address, etc. The contact module 204 is also configured to update the puzzle server 102 when a user adds or removes a friend or contact. In another embodiment, the contact module 204 may be configured to import a list of user contacts from another social media service or website.

In one embodiment, the image module 206 is configured for identifying and manipulating an image. For example, the image module 206 may be configured to generate a user interface for receiving input from the user that is indicative of how a user wishes to select an image {see Fig. 4). The image module 206 may be configured to allow a user to capture an image from an image capture device (e.g., camera), or alternatively, to allow a user to select an already captured image. The already captured image may be stored locally on the same device as the client module or remotely on another client device 106 or another server, like the puzzle server 102 or a third party image sharing service.

In some embodiments, the image module 206 is also configured to generate a user interface for manipulating the selected or captured image. The image module 206 may provide a user interface for editing or manipulating the image. Examples of editing or manipulating the image include, but are not limited to, the abilities to resize or crop the image, lighten/darken the contrast of the image, apply a filter, apply a watermark, remove blemishes (e.g., redeye, etc.), add custom text to the image (i.e., custom fonts, font size, etc.), remove or modify image metadata (e.g., exif data), combine one or more images, and draw on the image.

The puzzle module 208, in one embodiment, is configured to generate puzzle content from the image. The puzzle module 208 receives the image from the image module 206 and provides a user interface configured to receive input from the user regarding puzzle properties. In one embodiment, the term "puzzle properties" refers to any user-definable property or configuration of the puzzle content. Examples of "puzzle properties" include, but are not limited to difficulty, and puzzle duration. The difficulty of the puzzle content, in one example, is related to a number of puzzle pieces that the image is divided into. In other words, the puzzle module 208 is configured to divide the image into a number of puzzle pieces that are randomly positionable to create a jigsaw puzzle. The number of puzzle pieces may be in the range of between about 2 and 1000 or more.

The puzzle module 208, in certain embodiments, prompts the user to select a number of puzzle pieces. In other embodiments, the puzzle module 208 is configured to receive a difficulty level, examples of which include but are not limited to "easy," "medium," "hard," and "extra hard." The difficulty levels may be assigned to a particular number of puzzle pieces (or range of numbers). For example, a selection of the "easy" level may result in puzzle content having 4 pieces, while a selection of "hard" may result in puzzle content having 16 pieces. An example of the graphical user interface generated by the puzzle module 208 will be discussed below with reference to Fig. 5.

As described, the puzzle module 208 is configured to define other puzzle properties, such as puzzle duration. The term "puzzle duration" refers to a user-definable time period for solving the puzzle content before the puzzle content expires. In other words, the user may set, for example, a 3 minute period for the recipient to solve the puzzle content. If, at the end of the 3 minute period the recipient has been unable to solve the puzzle content, the puzzle module 208 may define how the puzzle content expires. In one example, the puzzle content may disappear. The user may, via the puzzle module 208, require other actions at the expiration of the time period. Examples include, but are not limited to, an animation showing how to solve the puzzle, an option to save the image, an option to share the image, etc.

In another embodiment, the puzzle module 208 is also configured to render received puzzle content. Puzzle content sent from another user is received, as will be described below, by the mailbox module 210 and passed to the puzzle module 208. The puzzle module 208 of the recipient is configured to enforce the puzzle properties defined by the puzzle module 208 of the sender. In other words, if the sender of the puzzle content has defined a 10 minute expiration or timeout period, the puzzle module 208 of the recipient enforces the

10 minute expiration and executes the desired timeout action (e.g., disappearing image, animation showing how to solve the puzzle, etc.).

In another embodiment, the puzzle module 208 is also configured to enable a user to manipulate the puzzle content. For example, the puzzle module 208 is configured to allow the recipient user to move puzzle pieces around. In one embodiment, the puzzle module 208 allows the recipient user to move one piece at a time, in alternative embodiment, the puzzle module 208 allows the user to move multiple pieces or tiles simultaneously.

In one embodiment, the mailbox module 210 is configured to send and receive puzzle content. Stated differently the mailbox module 210 is configured for sending puzzle content created by the user via the puzzle module 208, and receive puzzle content from other users.

The mailbox module 210, in a further embodiment, monitors the progress of other users in relation to puzzle content created and sent. In other words, the mailbox module 210 is configured to determine if a recipient of puzzle content was able to solve the puzzle content. The mailbox module 210 may query directly the client device 106 of the recipient periodically to determine the resolution (e.g., solved or unsolved) of the puzzle content. In an alternative embodiment, the mailbox module 210 queries or receives an indication from the puzzle server 102 that the recipient has been successful/unsuccessful. In another embodiment, the mailbox module 210 of the recipient client device 106 sends updates either directly to the sender or to the sender via the puzzle server 102.

In one embodiment, the promotion module 212 is configured to identify promotions in the puzzle content 212. For example, a retailer may distribute promotions or coupons as puzzle content with the stipulation that the puzzle content be solved within a certain time period. If the recipient is able to solve the puzzle content then a promotion or coupon code is made available to the recipient for use at the retailer' s place of business or website. The promotion module 212, in one embodiment, receives and stores the promotion or coupon until the recipient user is ready to use the promotion or coupon.

In one embodiment, the client module 200 also includes a chat module 214 for enabling chatting between senders and recipients (e.g., one-to-one or multi-user chat). The chat module 214, in one embodiment, communicates directly between the sending user client module 200 and the recipient user client module 200. In alternative embodiment, the chat modules 214 of the sender and the recipient communicate through the puzzle server 102.

Fig. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a server module 300 in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure. The server module 300, as described above, is configured to execute on at least one network attached computing device.

The server module 300, in one embodiment, operates on the server 102 of Fig. 1. The server module 300 comprises a user module 302, a communication module 304, a server promotion module 306, and a user database 308.

In one embodiment, the user module 302 is configured for registering and authenticating users over the network. The user module 302, via the communication module

304, communicates with the client modules 200 of each client device 106. The user module 302 further maintains user records in the user database 308. Each user has a corresponding user record or profile in the user database. Each record or profile may include user identifiable information. Additionally, each record may include user demographic information, including but not limited to, age, location, gender, income bracket, likes, dislikes, hobbies, interests, political inclination, etc. In a further embodiment, each user record includes a history of puzzle content activity. In other words, each record includes a history of puzzles the user has attempted to solve, if the user has been successful, and if successful, how long did it take to solve, etc. The user database also maintains copies of user-created puzzle content.

In one embodiment, the server promotion module 306 is configured for managing promotions for third-party entities. Examples include, retailers, other businesses, charities, political organizations, etc. A third-party entity may desire to engage users with solvable puzzle content. The server promotion module 306, in one embodiment, is configured to receive promotion details from the third-party entity and distribute puzzle content based on the promotion details. Examples of promotion details include, but are not limited to, specific users based on demographics, location, or previous purchase history. In one example, a retailer may submit a promotion campaign to the promotion module 306 that specifies sending coupons as puzzle content to women between the age of 19 and 35 that live in a 10 mile radius of the retailer. Accordingly, the promotion module queries the user database 308 to filter users based on the promotion details and sends out the puzzle content via the communication module 304.

Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a client device 106 presenting a user interface for editing an image. As described above, the client module 200 may provide a user interface for selecting, and then (as depicted) editing an image. The image may be captured from a camera, or selected from a photo gallery or other photo depository. The image may be edited by adding text 402, drawing 404, coloring 406, or adding filters 408 or other effects.

Figs. 5 and 6 are diagrams illustrating one embodiment of a client device 106 presenting a user interface for setting puzzle properties of the image. In one embodiment, and as described above, one of the puzzle properties of the image is the difficulty of a jigsaw puzzle. The client module 200 is configured to receive a difficulty as selected by the user via button 502. As depicted, the easy button 502 will partition the image into four pieces, the medium into nine, and the hard into 16 or more. Button 504 enables a user to toggle between puzzle properties. In this depiction, the user may toggle between the difficulty screen and the timer screen. Other puzzle properties or actions are contemplated, including but not limited to, background music, animation/movie/gif to play upon completion, amount of retries if a person fails, etc.

Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating one embodiment of a user interface for previewing puzzle content in accordance with the present disclosure. The client module 200 is configured to provide a preview of the puzzle content following receipt of at least one puzzle property. In the depicted embodiment, the sending user has selected a puzzle name of "Puppy Chow," a medium difficulty with 9 tiles or portions, and an expiration timer with a value of 1 min 30 sec. Although the tiles are depicted having a generally rectangular shape, other shapes, such as traditional jigsaw shapes, are contemplated.

Figs. 8 and 9 are diagrams illustrating embodiments of user interfaces for solving puzzle content. In Fig. 8, the recipient user has arranged the puzzle tiles in the correct order within the allocated timeframe. As discussed above, the client module 200 allows a successful recipient to share the image on a social network, and/or save the image to the gallery or cameral roll. In Fig. 9, the recipient user has not successfully solved the puzzle, and is given the option to quit or request from the sending user more time. The client module 200 is configured to send a request either directly to the sending user, or via the puzzle server 102, requesting additional time to solve the puzzle. Fig. 10 illustrates a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method 1000 for generating puzzle content. The method is performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (circuitry, dedicated logic, etc.), software (such as is run on a general purpose computer system or a dedicated machine), or a combination of both. In one embodiment, the method is performed by a client module (e.g., client module 200 of Fig. 2).

The method 1000 starts, and the processing logic, at block 1002, receives an image. In some embodiment, the processing logic receives the image by capturing the image from a camera, or alternatively by receiving a selection from an image gallery or other image depository. At block 1004 the processing logic receives input indicative of a user's desire to edit the image, and the processing logic provides a user interface for editing the image.

Examples of editing, as discussed above, include adding drawings, text, changing brightness, contrast, and color, applying a filter, etc. Also, the processing logic may receive, at block 1004, a name for the puzzle content.

At block 1006, the processing logic receives a puzzle property. The puzzle property, in one embodiment, is a difficulty level as discussed above. Additionally, the puzzle property may comprise an expiration timer (at block 1008). The processing logic, at block 1010, receives an indication of which contact(s) to send the puzzle content to, and then at block 1012 provides a preview of the puzzle content.

At block 1014, the processing logic saves and sends the image, and then monitors the results of the recipient user. At block 1016 the processing logic provides the results to the sending user. The method 1000 then ends.

Fig. 11 illustrates a flow diagram of one embodiment of a method 1000 for receiving puzzle content. The method is performed by processing logic that may comprise hardware (circuitry, dedicated logic, etc.), software (such as is run on a general purpose computer system or a dedicated machine), or a combination of both. In one embodiment, the method is performed by a client module (e.g., client module 200 of Fig. 2).

The method 1100 starts and a recipient user receives puzzle content at block 1102. The processing logic receives the puzzle content from a sending user and presents the puzzle content to the recipient user. Upon acceptance by the recipient user, the processing logic enforces the puzzle properties. In the depicted embodiment, the processing logic enforces the puzzle properties by, at block 1104, beginning the timer.

At decision block 1106, if the recipient user is able to solve the puzzle, the processing logic allows the recipient user to share and/or save the image, at block 1108. The processing logic then, at block 1110, sends results to the sending user. If, however, at decision block 1106, the processing logic determines that the recipient user has not solved the puzzle content according to the puzzle properties (i.e., within a defined time period), the processing logic deletes the puzzle at block 1112. The processing logic may, at block 1114, allow the recipient user to request more time, and if granted, return to block 1104 to begin a time period again for solving the puzzle content. In an alternative embodiment, the processing logic may allow the user to request more time before deleting the puzzle content, so as to not require that the puzzle content gets retransmitted to the user. If additional time is not granted, the processing logic proceeds to block 1110 and sends the "unsolved" results to the sending user. The method 1100 then ends.

Fig. 12 is a diagram of one embodiment of a computer system for facilitating template generation. Within the computer system 1200 is a set of instructions for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. In alternative embodiments, the machine may be connected (e.g., networked) to other machines in a LAN, an intranet, an extranet, or the Internet. The machine may be a host in a cloud, a cloud provider system, a cloud controller or any other machine.

The machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client machine in a client- server network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine may be a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a console device or set-top box (STB), a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a cellular telephone, a web appliance, a server, a network router, switch or bridge, or any machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. Further, while only a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall also be taken to include any collection of machines (e.g., computers) that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

The exemplary computer system 1200 includes a processing device 1202, a main memory 1204 (e.g., read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, dynamic random access memory (DRAM) such as synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) or DRAM (RDRAM), etc.), a static memory 1206 (e.g., flash memory, static random access memory

(SRAM), etc.), and a secondary memory 1218 (e.g., a data storage device in the form of a drive unit, which may include fixed or removable computer-readable storage medium), which communicate with each other via a bus 1230.

The processing device 1202 represents one or more general-purpose processing devices such as a microprocessor, central processing unit, or the like. More particularly, the processing device 1202 may be a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, reduced instruction set computing (RISC) microprocessor, very long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, processor implementing other instruction sets, or processors implementing a combination of instruction sets. The processing device 1202 may also be one or more special-purpose processing devices such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), network processor, or the like. The processing device 1202 is configured to execute the instructions 1226 for performing the operations and steps discussed herein.

The computer system 1200 may further include a network interface device 1222. The computer system 1200 also may include a video display unit 1210 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) or a cathode ray tube (CRT)) connected to the computer system through a graphics port and graphics chipset, an alphanumeric input device 1212 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device 1214 (e.g., a mouse), and a signal generation device 1220 (e.g., a speaker).

The secondary memory 1218 may include a machine-readable storage medium (or more specifically a computer-readable storage medium) 1224 on which is stored one or more sets of instructions 1226 embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. In one embodiment, the instructions 1226 include instructions for the template generator 300. The instructions 1226 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory 1204 and/or within the processing device 1202 during execution thereof by the computer system 1200. The main memory 1204 and the processing device 1202 also constituting machine-readable storage media.

The computer-readable storage medium 1224 or computer storage device may also be used to store the instructions 1226 persistently. While the computer-readable storage medium 1224 is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term "computer-readable storage medium" should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term "computer-readable storage medium" shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. The term "computer-readable storage medium" shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media.

The instructions 1226, components and other features described herein can be implemented as discrete hardware components or integrated in the functionality of hardware components such as ASICS, FPGAs, DSPs or similar devices. In addition, the instructions

1226 can be implemented as firmware or functional circuitry within hardware devices. Further, the instructions 1226 can be implemented in any combination hardware devices and software components.

Fig. 13 is a schematic block diagram illustrating another embodiment of a client module 1300 in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure. As described above, the client module is configured for the creation and sharing of solvable multimedia messages, or puzzle content. In one example, a solvable multimedia message in the form of a game is an image that has been converted to a jigsaw puzzle. Although discussed herein below as a "jigsaw puzzle" or a "jigsaw", the below description is equally applicable to any type of multimedia game. Each client device 106 is configured to allow a user to solve the jigsaw puzzle before allowing the user to view the image upon which the jigsaw puzzle was based. In a similar manner, puzzle content may be configured for allowing a user to listen to a song or view a video after, for example, a puzzle is solved, where the puzzle is based on a screenshot of the video or an album cover. To enable this functionality, the client module 1300 may include a video module 1302.

The video module 1302 is configured to receiving a selection of video content to be shared. The selection of video content to be shared may be received from a user browsing a multimedia gallery, or accessing an online repository of videos. The video module 1302 is further configured to present a user interface for playback of the video, with playback control so that a user may pause the video at any point and select the paused video frame to be used as an image for creating a jigsaw puzzle.

In an alternative embodiment, the video module 1302 is configured to allow a user to insert any image accessible to the user into the video as puzzle content. Stated differently, the video module 1302 is configured to receive an image, convert the image into a puzzle, via the puzzle module 208, and insert the puzzle into the video. The video module 1302 is further configured to enforce any puzzle properties defined by the user. For example, if the user set a specific duration and difficulty, the video module 1302 may require a recipient to solve the puzzle according to the puzzle properties before allowing the user to watch the remainder of the video. One or more puzzles may be inserted into the video content at any point in the timeline of the video. Additionally, the video module 1302 may be configured to allow the recipient of the video puzzle to save the video after successfully solving all puzzles embedded in the video.

The video module 1302 is also configured for rendering a received video puzzle, and enforcing any puzzle properties defined by the sender. As described above, if the recipient is able to solve all of the puzzles inserted into the video, the video module 1302 presents options to the recipient to save and/or share the video.

In some embodiments, the video module 1302 is configured to generate a user interface for manipulating the selected or captured video. Examples of editing or manipulating the video include, but are not limited to, cropping the length of the video, adjusting brightness/contrast, applying a watermark, adding custom text, and adding additional audio tracks. Examples of additional audio tracks may include, but are not limited to, warnings that a time to solve the puzzle is about to expire, motivational or taunting voice tracks, etc.

The client module 1300, in one embodiment, may also include a flashcard module

1304. The flashcard module 1304 may be configured for implementing a puzzle-based flashcard. One example of a puzzle-based flashcard is a jigsaw puzzle that includes flashcard elements. Other examples include, but are not limited to, a matching game that includes flashcard elements. Traditional flashcards are useful for teaching subjects such as vocabulary, historical facts, mathematics, language, etc. Traditional flashcards typically include information on both sides of the card. Given a prompt, a user responds with an answer, and then verifies the answer on the opposite side of the flashcard.

The flashcard module 1304 is configured to incorporate flashcard elements into, for example, the jigsaw puzzle created by the puzzle module 208. For example, the flashcard module 1304 may be configured to generate a flashcard of a cat jigsaw. The flashcard module 1304 prompts a recipient to solve the jigsaw puzzle of the cat, and then prompt the user (e.g., small child) to identify the animal in the jigsaw. The flashcard module 1304 may be configured to animate the image of the cat and "flip it" to verify that the animal is a cat. The verification may be the text "cat" or alternatively, a text- to- speech engine that announces the word "cat." Time limits, and any other puzzle property described above, may be applied to the flashcard style jigsaw puzzle. The creation of the flashcards may be achieved via user interfaces described above, and created by either the flashcard module 1304 or the image module 206. In another embodiment, the flashcard module 1304 is configured to generate a flashcard video jigsaw- type puzzle. Incorporating the features described above, the flashcard module 1304 may implement a jigsaw puzzle that when solved, displays a video prompt to a user. The video prompt may subsequently be followed by a "flipping card" animation for a visual verification, or alternatively the text-to-speech engine may announce the verification.

Fig. 14 is a schematic block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a user interface for modifying videos with puzzle content in accordance with embodiments of the disclosure. The user interface 1400 may include a viewing area 1402 located above a control area 1404. The viewing area 1402 is configured to display the video. The control area 1404, in one embodiment, includes buttons 1406 for controlling playback of content. The buttons may include, but are not limited to, play 1406a, pause 1406b, rewind 1406c, and fast forward 1406d.

In a further embodiment, the user interface 1400 further includes a timeline 1408 that is configured to represent the selected video content. The timeline 1408, in the depicted embodiment illustrates video portions 1410 that are separated by puzzle content, depicted as the lines separating the potions 1410. In other words, a jigsaw puzzle is inserted at each of the depicted lines separating potions 1410. In this particular example, the video content includes 4 jigsaw puzzles that must be solved before a recipient is allowed to view the next portion 1410.

The video module 1302, via the user interface 1400, is configured to allow a user to create the jigsaw-enabled video by allowing the user to drag the control bar 1412 to different points along the timeline, and insert a jigsaw puzzle via the insert button 1406e. Inserting a jigsaw puzzle results in video portions 1410 that are separated by the jigsaw puzzle. A portion adjacent and after the jigsaw puzzle on the timeline is viewable in its entirety until the next jigsaw puzzle is presented. The following video portion 1410 becomes viewable once the new jigsaw puzzle is solved. The user interface 1400 may also include volume controls 1414.

In the above description, numerous details are set forth. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form, rather than in detail, in order to avoid obscuring the present invention.

Some portions of the detailed description are presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of steps leading to a result. The steps are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like.

It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the following discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as "providing," "generating," "detecting," "identifying," "storing," "receiving," "sending," or the like, refer to the actions and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (e.g., electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.

The present invention also relates to an apparatus for performing the operations herein. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes, or it may comprise a general purpose computer selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in the computer. Such a computer program may be stored in a computer readable storage medium, such as, but not limited to, any type of disk including floppy disks, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magnetic-optical disks, read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic or optical cards, or any type of media suitable for storing electronic instructions, each coupled to a computer system bus.

The present invention may be provided as a computer program product, or software, that may include a machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions, which may be used to program a computer system (or other electronic devices) to perform a process according to the present invention. A machine-readable medium includes any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer). For example, a machine-readable (e.g., computer-readable) medium includes a machine (e.g., a computer) readable storage medium such as a read only memory ("ROM"), random access memory ("RAM"), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, etc.

It is to be understood that the above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. Many other embodiments will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reading and understanding the above description. Although the present invention has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments, it will be recognized that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described, but can be practiced with modification and alteration within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense. The scope of the invention should, therefore, be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.

Claims

1. A method performed on at least one computing device that includes a processor and a memory, the method comprising:

receiving input, via a touch screen of the at least one computing device, indicative of a selection of a media content to be converted into puzzle content;

receiving input indicative of at least one edit to be applied to the puzzle content, where the at least one edit comprises generating a puzzle name;

receiving input indicative of at least one puzzle property to be applied to the puzzle content, where the at least one puzzle property comprises a difficulty level;

generating the puzzle content based on the at least one edit and the at least one puzzle property; and

sending the puzzle content to a recipient.

2. The method of claim 1, where the generated puzzle content comprises an altered version of the media content that is partitioned into a quantity of portions according to the difficulty level and scrambled.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising presenting, at a recipient device, an unaltered version of the media content in response to the recipient solving the puzzle content according to the at least one puzzle property.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving an indication, at the at least one computing device, that the generated puzzle content has been solved by the recipient in accordance with the at least one puzzle property.

5. The method of claim 2, where the at least one puzzle property comprises defining a puzzle duration, the puzzle duration comprising a quantity of time for the recipient to solve the puzzle content.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising receiving an indication that the recipient has failed to solve the puzzle content according to the puzzle duration, and accepting or denying a request for additional time.

7. The method of claim 1, where the at least one edit to be applied to the puzzle content further comprises at least one of: adding text to an image; altering a hue, cropping, or applying a filter.

8. The method of claim 1, where the media content comprises at least one of an image file or a video file.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising receiving an indication of a frame within the video file for use in generating the puzzle content.

10. A system comprising at least one computing device and at least one software module that are together configured for performing actions, where the at least one computing device includes a processor and a memory, the actions comprising:

sending the puzzle content to a recipient.

11. The system of claim 10, where the generated puzzle content comprises an altered version of the media content that is partitioned into a quantity of portions according to the difficulty level and scrambled.

12. The system of claim 11, further comprising presenting, at a recipient device, an unaltered version of the media content in response to the recipient solving the puzzle content according to the at least one puzzle property.

13. The system of claim 11, further comprising receiving an indication, at the at least one computing device, that the generated puzzle content has been solved by the recipient in accordance with the at least one puzzle property.

14. The system of claim 11, where the at least one puzzle property comprises defining a puzzle duration, the puzzle duration comprising a quantity of time for the recipient to solve the puzzle content.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising receiving an indication that the recipient has failed to solve the puzzle content according to the puzzle duration, and accepting or denying a request for additional time.

16. The system of claim 10, where the at least one edit to be applied to the puzzle content further comprises at least one of: adding text to an image; altering a hue, cropping, or applying a filter.

17. The system of claim 10, where the media content comprises at least one of an image file or a video file.

18. The system of claim 17, further comprising receiving an indication of a frame within the video file for use in generating the puzzle content.

19. At least one computer storage device storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor of a computing device that includes a memory, cause the computing device to perform actions comprising:

sending the puzzle content to a recipient.

20. The at least one computer storage device, where the generated puzzle content comprises an altered version of the media content that is partitioned into a quantity of portions according to the difficulty level and scrambled.