WO2021192022A1

WO2021192022A1 - Method, system and non-transitory computer readable medium to group unfamiliar participants at an event for optimum discussion productivity in a responsive and scalable way

Info

Publication number: WO2021192022A1
Application number: PCT/JP2020/012975
Authority: WO
Inventors: James Jacobus CANNON; Timothy Babajide EMIOLA
Original assignee: Djinn Mentor Kabushiki Kaisha
Priority date: 2020-03-24
Filing date: 2020-03-24
Publication date: 2021-09-30

Abstract

Provided is a method to assign a location to each participant of an event, the participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the method including:　determining which members are predicted to be participants in the event using a participation model, wherein the prediction is based on recorded information about the members; and　determining one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of the predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein the statistical productivity model optimises the predicted discussion productivity of the predicted participants, wherein the optimisation is based on recorded information about the predicted participants; and　calculating an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein the original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form the original groups; and　receiving a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and　transmitting a responding communication to one or more the predicted participants through communication with one or more the electronic device from which the grouping request was received, the responding communication including information identifying the original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.

Description

METHOD, SYSTEM AND NON-TRANSITORY COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM TO GROUP UNFAMILIAR PARTICIPANTS AT AN EVENT FOR OPTIMUM DISCUSSION PRODUCTIVITY IN A RESPONSIVE AND SCALABLE WAY

In various embodiments, the present invention relates generally to the technology to group unfamiliar participants at an event for optimum discussion productivity that can scale easily to large numbers of participants and is responsive enough to deal with real-life complications such as participants who are missing or arrive late, unexpected participants and those with special requirements.

In the above technical field, patent literature 1 discloses a method of grouping participants of an educational activity by informing participants of the identity of another participant in their group.

US Patent Laid-Open No. US2016/0078125A1

In the method described in patent literature 1, participants in an activity are grouped together. In order to facilitate grouping, an identification of another participant in the assigned group is transmitted to each participant. In the context of an educational activity, the grouping of participants can be optimised to increase discussion productivity. The success of the method described in patent literature 1 however requires a number of idealised assumptions that are often untrue in a real education setting.

Firstly, a participant identifies their assigned group by communication to them of an identification of another participant assigned to the same group. This assumes that all participants actually attend the activity. In reality, participants can arrive at the activity late, or, despite having every intention to attend, unexpectedly become unable to attend due to circumstances outside their control. Furthermore, participants may wilfully mis-represent their attendance, perhaps to avoid a penalty for absence, or join a wrong group (either deliberately or unknowingly). In such cases, the method described in patent literature 1 will fail. For this reason, a more responsive method capable of optimising discussion productivity despite missing or misplaced participants is required.

Secondly, even if all expected participants attend, identifying a group based on an identification of another participant is often difficult, especially if the number of participants is large and participants are unfamiliar with each other. Therefore the method described in patent literature 1 cannot be considered to be scalable.

Thirdly, the reality of grouping participants for optimum discussion productivity means that a method to manage unexpected participants is required; for example, those who were expected to be absent, or those that forgot to register for the activity and simply turn up unannounced. Furthermore, some participants may have physical disabilities that hinder their ability to join their assigned group.

Until now, handling such situations required the manual intervention of the teacher to re-assign groups and manage the classroom environment. This is impossible to do when there are more than a small number of participants, and is unlikely to result in optimum discussion productivity even if the teacher does manage to assemble all the actual participants into groups manually.

The present invention provides a technique to solve the above-described problem.

The present invention enables grouping of participants to achieve optimum discussion productivity of participants despite practical difficulties associated with real-world implementation. The present invention realises a method of grouping participants at an event in a way that optimises discussion productivity for all participants, and conveys this grouping information to the participants in a scalable manner, while being responsive enough to deal with real-world constraints resulting from real-world complications such as missing, unexpected and late-arriving participants. This is all achieved while avoiding the need for participants to be familiar with each other. This is achieved in part by enabling participants to identify groups by location rather than by relying on identification of other participants.

{1} A method to assign a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the method comprising:
- determining which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on recorded information about said members; and
- determining one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the predicted discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculating an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receiving a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmitting a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants through communication with one or more said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.

{2} The method of claim {1}, further comprising:
- receiving a confirming transmission from one or more said electronic devices associated with said predicted participants; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determining one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculating an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmitting a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.

{3} The method of claim {2}, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated assigned location is the same as said original assigned location.

{4} The method of claim {2}, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.

{5} The method of claim {2}, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.

{6} The method of claim {1}, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.

{7} The method of claim {1}, wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.

{8} The method of claim {1}, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.

{9} The method of claim {1}, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.

{10} The method of claim {1}, further comprising:
- receiving a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- recording each said indication of intention to participate in said event with recorded information about each said member from which said transmission was received.

{11} The method of claim {1}, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.

{12} The method of claim {1}, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.

{13} A system enabling assignment of a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the system comprising:
- a memory for storing a member database, wherein said member database includes a history of recorded information about said members; and
- a processor in operative communication with said memory, the processor being configured to:
- determine which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on said recorded information about said members; and
- determine one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the likely discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculate an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receive a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmit a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants, through communication with each said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.

{14} The system of claim {13}, the processor further configured to:
- receive a confirming transmission from one or more said predicted participants; and
- determine from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determine from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determine one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculate an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmit a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.

{15} The system of claim {14}, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions, specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated assigned location is the same as said original assigned location.

{16} The system of claim {14}, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.

{17} The system of claim {14}, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.

{18} The system of claim {13}, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.

{19} The system of claim {13} wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.

{20} The system of claim {13}, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.

{21} The system of claim {13}, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.

{22} The system of claim {13}, the processor further configured to:
- receive a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- record each said indication of intention to participate in said event together with recorded information about each said member from which said transmission was received.

{23} The system of claim {13}, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.

{24} The system of claim {13}, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.

{25} A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying information indicative of instructions for causing one or more machines to perform the method to assign a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the method comprising:
- determining which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on recorded information about said members; and
- determining one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the likely discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculating an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receiving a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmitting a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants, through communication with each said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.

{26} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, further comprising:
- receiving a confirming transmission from one or more said predicted participants; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determining one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculating an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmitting a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.

{27} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {26}, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions, specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that said updated assigned location for a subset of said present participants is the same as said original assigned location.

{28} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {26}, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.

{29} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {26}, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.

{30} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.

{31} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.

{32} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.

{33} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.

{34} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, further comprising:
- receiving a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- recording each said indication of intention to participate in said event with recorded information about each said member from which said transmission was received.

{35} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.

{36} The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim {25}, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.

The effect is to realise a high-quality education in a scalable and responsive fashion by optimising grouping of participants at an educational event for maximum discussion productivity, even when participants are missing, participating unexpectedly, late-arriving and/or unfamiliar with each other. An invention is introduced that can easily manage optimisation of discussion productivity even under conditions of missing, unexpected, and late-arriving participants, while minimising disruption to the event, as well as enabling optimum management of any participants with special group and/or location requirements.

schematically illustrates one embodiment of the technology to group participants at an event in an optimum way. schematically illustrates one embodiment of the technology to group participants at an event in an optimum way when a number of predicted participants are missing. illustrates a flow diagram of one embodiment of the technology to group unfamiliar participants at an event in an optimum way when a number of predicted participants are missing.

Indication by Reference Numerals

101 State one
102 State two
103 Members
103a Members correctly predicted to be attending
104 Electronic devices
105 Cloud server
106 Inbound communication
107 Responding communication
108 Desks
201 State three
202 State four
203a Members correctly predicted to be absent
203b Members wrongly predicted to be attending
204 Confirming communication
205 New responding communication

As used herein, a “server” is understood to be any computer such as a desktop computer located locally at the site of the event taking place or a cloud computer located remotely. Other embodiments include but are not limited to laptop computers or generally any other device upon which a processor executes commands and instructions and is capable of operative communication with other electronic devices. The processor may be a general-purpose processor or be part of one or more special-purpose hardware, or utilise any other technology, including but not limited to programmed micro-processors and peripheral integrated circuit elements, as well as digital signal processors or programmable logic devices or any other device or arrangement of devices that is capable of implementing the steps of the processes of the invention.

As used herein, the server or electronic device receiving, sending or transmitting information, whether through an “inbound communication”, “responding communication”, “confirming communication”, or otherwise, means that information is transferred between two electronic devices described, typically between a server and an electronic device distinct from the server. The method by which this is achieved includes but is not limited to Internet Message Access Protocol, Transmission Control Protocol, User Datagram Protocol and Secure Shell connection, and includes both a permanent connection and periodically polling a server for messages.

As used herein, an “event” means any form of activity, occasion, gathering, assembly, meeting, function or otherwise where a group of people come together at a specific time for a specific purpose. The people may gather together in a specific location such as a room or auditorium, or may gather virtually through a digital medium such as a computer-based online classroom or a smart-phone event application. The event may be independent from any other events or one of a series of events. In the case of a series of events, one or more participants in one event may have also have participated in a previous event in the series.

Embodiment(s) of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the relative arrangement of the components, the numerical expressions and numerical values set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present invention unless it is specifically stated otherwise.

A technology capable of grouping unfamiliar participants at an event for optimum discussion productivity in a responsive and scalable way according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 there are eight members 103 of an educational course, each member having an electronic device 104. In one embodiment, the electronic devices 104 are internet-capable smartphones. In another embodiment, the electronic devices 104 are a mixture of laptops and desktop computers. Note that the exact nature of the electronic devices 104 is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that the device 104 is capable of electronic communication with the server 105.

In this embodiment, members who attend an educational event as part of the educational course will be arranged into groups. In one embodiment, the education event is a class in a higher-education institution. In another embodiment, the education event is a public seminar. In one embodiment, participants are all located in a specified classroom in an education institution. In another embodiment, participants are located remotely from each other and the education event is an online workshop and participation is over a voice/video over internet protocol (VVoIP) service. It should be noted that the number of participants, attendees and exact nature of the educational event is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that an event with a countable number of participants drawn from a pool of members is being held with a pedagogical purpose.

The invention achieves the transition from members in a disordered state prior to the start of the event (state one 101) to an ordered state at the start of the event (state two 102). In state one 101, the participants of the event drawn from a pool of members is predicted by the server 105 using a participation model.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, of the eight members 103 shown in state one 101, six members 103a are predicted to attend the event leading to the state shown in state two 102, while the remaining two members are predicted to be absent from the event. In this embodiment, these predictions are correct. Thus, of the eight members 103 shown in state one 101, only six participants 103a are shown in state two 102.

Having predicted the participants 103a of the event, the server 105 calculates optimum grouping of participants 103a using a statistical model that optimises predicted discussion productivity of predicted participants, subject to a defined group size. In one embodiment, group sizes are specified to the server 105 by an event manager. In one embodiment, this event manager is a classroom teacher. In another embodiment, group sizes are automatically determined from a location map of the event site that contains information such as table sizes and seat arrangements. In one embodiment, group sizes are fixed, while in another embodiment an acceptable range of group sizes is defined.

Having predicted optimum grouping of participants 103a, a location is assigned to each of these participants 103a, and participants transition from state one 101 to state two 102 in preparation for the start of the event. In one embodiment, attending participants 103a are physically located in the same room and locations are assigned by row and column values corresponding to a grid of desks 108. In the embodiment shown in state two 102 in FIG. 1, locations consist of row numbers and column numbers, and two participants 103a are given the same designated location. In this embodiment, the defined group size is two participants, and given that no fewer or greater than two participants are assigned to each desk, this leads to a natural grouping of two participants per group, and correct grouping of participants 103a is naturally achieved, even in the case when participants are unfamiliar with each other. In one embodiment, participants identify their correct column and row number by counting from the 1st row at the front of the class and 1st column from the left of the class defined as when facing away from the front wall of the classroom. In another embodiment, row and column numbers are written in clearly visible locations in the room and attending participants 103a use these to quickly identify their assigned location. This allows even those at events with large numbers of participants to quickly locate their assigned location and hence assigned group. In another embodiment, participants 103a are located physically remotely, and assigned locations correspond to a location in a virtual environment accessed by computer. Note that the nature of the coordinate system, the size of the groups and nature of the locations is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that the assigned locations provide a clear means of grouping attending participants 103a together within the desired group size range and in a scalable manner.

In one embodiment, upon entering the event room, participants immediately use their electronic devices 104 to send an inbound communication 106 containing a grouping request. The server 105 then sends a responding communication 107 to each electronic device 104 with information containing the assigned location of each participant 103a. This enables the change from the disordered state shown in state one 101 to the ordered state shown in state two 102, with attending participants 103a seated in their designated locations naturally forming the designated groups. In another embodiment, the presence of a participant 103a is detected by a positioning system contained in the electronic device 104 of the participants, and a grouping request is automatically sent from the electronic devices 104 without requiring participant 103a interaction. It should be noted that the exact method by which the grouping request is initiated is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that the grouping request is received by the server 105 through an inbound communication 106 from the electronic device 104 of one or more attending participants 103a in order to generate a responding communication 107 from the server 105 containing assigned location information relevant to one or more of those participants 103a.

In one embodiment, prediction of attendance or absence of members at the event is not completely accurate, and an embodiment of the method of dealing with this will be described with reference to FIG. 2A and FIG. 2B. State three 201 shows one embodiment of all the members prior to an event, while state four 202 shows the state at the start of the event. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, the desired group size is two participants. In this embodiment, although some members are correctly predicted to attend the event 103a and some members are correctly predicted to be absent 203a, some members who were predicted to attend, are absent 203b. Thus, the initial event state (state four 202), shows two incomplete groups of just one participant each (participants “E” and “G” at locations “row 1, column 1” and “row 2, column 1”, respectively) and one complete group (participants “F” and “H” at location “row 2, column 2”).

At 210, in one embodiment in state four 202, a confirming communication 204 is received by the server 105 from the attending participants 103a, which indicates the completeness of their assigned group. At 220, the information contained in this confirming communication 204 is used to identify missing predicted participants 203b and associated incomplete groups. At 230, the server 105 predicts the discussion productivity of all present participants 103a. At 235, if the predicted discussion productivity of all participants, even in groups containing missing predicted participants 203b, is nevertheless predicted to be optimum, then no new groups are calculated by the server 105. At 240, the server 105 predicts that the discussion productivity of present participants 103a will be sub-optimum, so attending participants 103a are assigned to new groups that are predicted to result in optimum discussion productivity. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, two groups of participants (locations “row 1, column 1” and “row 2, column 1”) have only 1 participant 103a in each group, and therefore the predicted discussion productivity at the event is determined to be sub-optimum; in fact, discussion is impossible with just one participant in each of these groups. At 250, new assigned groups and locations are determined by the server 105 in order to obtain optimum discussion productivity of all participants 103a attending the event.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 2A, the participant members of incomplete groups are participants “E” and “G”, and the server 105 predicts that discussion productivity will be optimised if participants “E” and “F” form one group and participants “G” and “H” form another group. At 250 therefore, updated locations are generated by the server 105 for the participants 103a in order to realise the new groups. At 260 a new responding communication 205 is sent from the server 105 to the electronic devices 104 of the present participants 103a informing them of their new locations, and instructing them to move to their new locations. Thus, despite missing predicted participants 203b, optimum discussion productivity among attending participants 103a can be achieved.

In one embodiment, in order to minimise disruption to the event, the server 105 optimises predicted discussion productivity subject to constraints that ensure that certain participants already assigned groups and locations do not need to change group nor location. In one embodiment, with reference to FIG. 2A, the condition is that participants “F”, “H” are assigned the same group and same location as they are currently, while participant “G” is assigned the same location but different group. In this example, optimum discussion productivity is therefore achieved when participant “E” moves to “Row 2, Column 1” to join participant “G” in a group of size 2. Thus at 260 the new responding communication is only sent to participant “E” instructing her to move to her updated assigned location.

In one embodiment, the confirming transmission 204 simply contains a declaration that the participant himself is present. In another embodiment, the confirming communication 204 contains the number of participants present in the group.

In another embodiment, the responding communication 107 contains a number unique to each participant 103a, and the confirming transmission contains a single number obtained through a mathematical operation that utilises the numbers of all the attending participants 103a in the group. For example, consider an embodiment where there are four participants per group, and prior to the event, in every group each participant is assigned a different number from the set [1,2,4,8] in such a way that no two participants in any one group are assigned the same number. In one embodiment, they are required to send the sum their numbers in their confirming communications 204 and if all participants are present, each participant will send the number 15. However, if in one group only the two participants assigned numbers 2 and 8 attend, then the confirming transmission will contain the number 10, and it will be clear that the participants with numbers 1 and 4 are missing from the group, leading to identification of missing predicted participants 203b in that group. In one embodiment, a missing predicted participant 203b wilfully misrepresents her attendance by submitting a confirming transmission containing a number. However, since she cannot learn the numbers of the other members of her group without being present, there is a mismatch between her number and the number sent by other members of her assigned group, which subsequently enables the server 105 to determine that she is not in fact present. In another embodiment, a participant 103a mistakenly joins a wrong group, but since one participant from that group is unexpectedly missing, all members of the group she has joined are unaware of the mistake. In one embodiment, the participant who wrongly joined the group is assigned the code “8” in the responding communication 107 while the three correct attending members of the group are assigned codes “1”, “2” and “8”, and the unexpectedly absent participant is assigned the code “4”. Subsequently, the sum sent in the confirming transmission is “19” rather than the expected “15”. This allows the server 105 to determine that one of the two participants with code “8” in that group is in the wrong location, and the server 105 transmits a new responding communication to these two participants containing the same assigned locations and an alert to check carefully, causing these participants to re-assess and correct their location.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that there are further ways in which confirming communications 204 can be built from the information contained in the responding communications that enable identification of missing predicted participants 203b, as well as identification of those who are mistaken or wilfully misrepresenting their participation, and that the embodiments described here are not exhaustive. What is important is that at 210 a confirming communication 204 is received from the attending participants 103a which subsequently allows missing predicted participants 203b and their associated incomplete groups to be identified by the server 105 and, if required, rectified to preserve optimum discussion productivity, all without human intervention.

In one embodiment, the server 105 contains a history of recorded correct and incorrect responses to challenges or questions, and predicted discussion productivity is optimised by ensuring that each group contains participants whose history of correct and incorrect responses is maximally different. For example, if the defined group size is two participants each, and participant A answered challenge 1 correctly but challenge 2 wrongly, while participant B answered challenge 1 wrongly and challenge 2 correctly, the server 105 determines that participants A and B have a history of responses that are maximally different, and therefore predicts that they will have a productive discussion. This is because participant A is likely to be in a position to teach participant B about how to understand and complete challenge 1, and vice-versa. In another embodiment, many participants answered the same challenge incorrectly and therefore the predicted optimum productive discussion is reduced compared to the ideal case because it is impossible to have all groups contain a participant capable of answering that challenge. Nevertheless, optimum productive discussion, within constraints imposed by this condition, is predicted by the server 105.

In another embodiment, recorded information about past groups and subsequent changes in ability to complete challenges is incorporated into the prediction of optimum grouping of participants. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that there are further ways in which a history of recorded information about each participant can be incorporated into the model used to predict optimum discussion productivity, and that the embodiments described here are not exhaustive.

In one embodiment, a productive discussion is achieved when, following that discussion, an attending participant 103a is able to answer a question that they were unable to answer prior to the productive discussion. In one embodiment, optimum productive discussion is considered to be achieved when, following discussion, all participants of the event are able to answer all of a defined set of challenges correctly.

In one embodiment, optimum grouping of participants and their assigned locations is subject to a set of externally defined conditions. In one embodiment, group membership and assigned location of a 1st subset of participants is fixed to defined values, while that for a 2nd subset is restricted to a range of values. In one embodiment, the event is a class and members are students, and the 2nd subset of participants corresponds to a plurality of students arriving late to a class. The 1st subset of participants then represents students that arrived on time for the class and are already assigned groups and locations. In this embodiment, prediction of student groups for optimum discussion productivity is being performed for a second time in the class in order to accommodate late arrivals. In order to minimise disruption to the class, optimisation of groups is subject to the condition that students who are already assigned groups do not change their assigned group, nor their assigned location, while late students are restricted to locations that can accommodate the extra participants. In another embodiment, missing predicted participants 203b results in the predicted discussion productivity being sub-optimum for the given participants present 103a. Therefore in order to improve predicted discussion productivity, new groups and locations will be predicted by the server 105. In order, however, to minimise disruption to the event, a condition is that grouping and assigning of locations occurs only for a minimal number of participants 103a. In one embodiment, optimisation of discussion productivity is conducted subject to the constraint that only participants assigned to groups with missing predicted participants 203b are allowed to be assigned new groups and locations. Thus the prediction of optimum discussion productivity is responsive to the requirements of the event.

In another embodiment, the teacher in a classroom defines a requirement about the ratio of genders in each group, and prediction of participant groups for optimum discussion productivity is therefore performed with this condition. In another embodiment, some students attending the class have visual or other physical disabilities, and therefore prediction of grouping of these participants and their assigned location is restricted to groups and specific locations that can accommodate those disabilities. Note that the exact nature of the conditions imposed is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that the nature of the event and its participants can result in conditions that result in grouping and location constraints within which optimal discussion productivity is predicted.

In one embodiment, members 103 send an inbound communication 106 to a server 105 using their electronic devices 104 declaring attendance or absence of the upcoming event. Those members declaring attendance are then predicted to attend the event by the participation model utilised the server 105, while those declaring absence are predicted to be absent from the event by the same model. In another embodiment, only those members declaring intention to attend are predicted to attend, while all other members are predicted to be absent.

In another embodiment, the participation model is a statistical model that uses recorded information about members to predict the probability of participation. In one embodiment, declaration of attendance is incorporated into the probability calculation. In another embodiment, recorded information contains recent quantified progress of each member through a course and this is incorporated into the probability calculation. In another embodiment, information about presence at previous similar events is incorporated into the calculation of probability of attendance. In another embodiment, demographic information such as participant age, the forecast weather and distance to travel to the event are also incorporated into the statistical model used to assign probability to attendance. It should be noted that the exact information incorporated into the statistical model to assign probability of attendance is immaterial to this invention. What is important is that the probability of attendance is calculated from the available information.

In one embodiment, the threshold for predicting attendance or absence from the event is 50%. Therefore, members with predicted probability of attendance less than 50% are predicted not to attend the event, while those with probability of attendance greater than 50% are predicted to attend the event. In another embodiment this threshold is 80%. Note that the exact value of the threshold is immaterial to this invention, and what is important is that a threshold value enables the distinction between the binary states of predicted attendance and predicted absence of members.

The various components of the example systems and methods described herein may be produced using suitable software written in programming languages and tools including but not limited to C, C++, C#, Haskell, Java(R), JavaScript(R), Python(R), or a combination of languages and tools. The software may be embodied as an article of manufacture as a component of a system or as an entire system. Furthermore, it may be provided or maintained as part of a computer-readable medium. Other forms of software include but are not limited to forms that may be transmitted to a recipient through a network or other communication medium. Thus, in one embodiment, a computer-readable medium has a form of the communication medium as the software/firmware is downloaded from a web server to a user. In another embodiment, the computer-readable medium has a form of the storage medium as the software/firmware is maintained on a web server.

The terms and expressions employed herein are used as terms and expressions of description and not of limitation, and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of the features shown and described or portions thereof. In addition, having described certain embodiments of the invention, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other embodiments incorporating the concepts disclosed herein may be used without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects as only illustrative and not restrictive.

Reference throughout this specification to “for example”, “the example”, “one embodiment”, “the embodiment”, “another embodiment”, “an embodiment”, “this embodiment”, “other embodiments”, “these embodiments” or simply “embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the example is included in at least one example of the present technology. Thus, the occurrences of the phrases “for example”, “the example”, “one embodiment”, “the embodiment”, “another embodiment”, “an embodiment”, “this embodiment”, “other embodiments”, “these embodiments” or simply “embodiment” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, routines, steps, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more examples of the technology. The headings provided herein are for convenience only and are not intended to limit or interpret the scope or meaning of the claimed technology.

Claims

A method to assign a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the method comprising:
- determining which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on recorded information about said members; and
- determining one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the predicted discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculating an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receiving a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmitting a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants through communication with one or more said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:
- receiving a confirming transmission from one or more said electronic devices associated with said predicted participants; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determining one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculating an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmitting a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.
The method of claim 2, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated assigned location is the same as said original assigned location.
The method of claim 2, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.
The method of claim 2, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.
The method of claim 1, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.
The method of claim 1, wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.
The method of claim 1, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.
The method of claim 1, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:
- receiving a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- recording each said indication of intention to participate in said event with recorded information about each member from which said transmission was received.
The method of claim 1, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.
The method of claim 1, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.
A system enabling assignment of a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the system comprising:
- a memory for storing a member database, wherein said member database includes a history of recorded information about said members; and
- a processor in operative communication with said memory, the processor being configured to:
- determine which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on said recorded information about said members; and
- determine one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the likely discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculate an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receive a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmit a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants, through communication with each said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.
The system of claim 13, the processor further configured to:
- receive a confirming transmission from one or more said predicted participants; and
- determine from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determine from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determine one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculate an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmit a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.
The method of claim 14, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions, specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated assigned location is the same as said original assigned location.
The system of claim 14, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.
The system of claim 14, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.
The system of claim 13, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.
The system of claim 13 wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.
The system of claim 13, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.
The system of claim 13, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.
The system of claim 13, the processor further configured to:
- receive a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- record each said indication of intention to participate in said event together with recorded information about each member from which said transmission was received.
The system of claim 13, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.
The system of claim 13, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.
A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying information indicative of instructions for causing one or more machines to perform the method to assign a location to each participant of an event, said participants being a subset of members, each member being associated with an electronic device, the method comprising:
- determining which members are predicted to be participants in said event using a participation model, wherein said prediction is based on recorded information about said members; and
- determining one or more original groups, each group consisting of a plurality of said predicted participants, wherein determination of group composition is based on a statistical productivity model, wherein said statistical productivity model optimises the likely discussion productivity of said predicted participants, wherein said optimisation is based on recorded information about said predicted participants; and
- calculating an original assigned location for each predicted participant according to an original location model, wherein said original assigned location is similar or in common with original assigned locations of one or more other predicted participants, leading predicted participants to form said original groups; and
- receiving a grouping request from the electronic devices of a plurality of predicted participants; and
- transmitting a responding communication to one or more said predicted participants, through communication with each said electronic device from which said grouping request was received, said responding communication including information identifying said original assigned location of one or more predicted participants.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, further comprising:
- receiving a confirming transmission from one or more said predicted participants; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions that one or more of said original groups are incomplete, wherein each said incomplete group has one, some or all predicted participants assigned to said original group missing; and
- determining from said confirming transmissions which of said predicted participants are present; and
- determining one or more updated groups, each updated group consisting of a subset of said present participants, wherein determination of updated group composition is based on said statistical productivity model applied to said present participants only; and
- calculating an updated assigned location for said present participants, wherein said updated assigned location is similar or in common with one or more other present participants, leading said present participants to form said updated groups; and
- transmitting a new responding communication to one or more of said present participants through communication with one or more of said present participant electronic devices, said responding communication including said updated assigned location information for one or more of said present participants.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26, wherein said updated group composition is subject to one or more conditions, specifying that for a subset of said present participants said updated group is the same as said original group, and further specifying that said updated assigned location for a subset of said present participants is the same as said original assigned location.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26, wherein said confirming transmission from each said participant includes an indication of the number of participants in their said determined group who are present.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 26, wherein said responding communication includes a grouping code and said confirming transmission from each said participant contains a new code, wherein said new code is a function of one or more said grouping codes sent to said participants assigned to the same group.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein said recorded information includes a history of data quantifying member understanding of a defined subject.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein said recorded information includes a history of previous groupings.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein a productive discussion is defined as a discussion that results in an increase in the number of present participants capable of answering given questions on a defined subject correctly.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein said determination of group composition is further based upon one or more conditions defining allowed predicted participant groupings and said original location model is further based on one or more rules defining allowed locations of predicted participants.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, further comprising:
- receiving a transmission from one or more said members, wherein said transmission contains an indication of intention to participate in said event; and
- recording each said indication of intention to participate in said event with recorded information about each member from which said transmission was received.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein said participation model is a statistical model that calculates the probability of participation in said event by each said member, and wherein said prediction of participation occurs for members where said calculated probability of participation exceeds a defined threshold value.
The method of the non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 25, wherein each said location identifies a virtual location accessed by each said participant using an electronic device, wherein said virtual location enables participant communication over a communication network only between participants assigned to the same group.