WO2023275162A1

WO2023275162A1 - A media management system

Info

Publication number: WO2023275162A1
Application number: PCT/EP2022/067934
Authority: WO
Inventors: Théodore Michel MARESCAUX; Pieter Jan PALMERS; Alyssa Lesley Kelly Daisy LANSSIERS; Michael Rudolf Marie-Paule GHYSELS; Mona Christine Yves MARCHETTI; William Damian MOFFAT
Original assignee: Muuselabs Nv
Priority date: 2021-06-29
Filing date: 2022-06-29
Publication date: 2023-01-05

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a media management system comprising at least one anchor device to which at least one attribute is assigned, the anchor device including an identifier; an anchor sensor configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier, and at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain, the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device; and to perform a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute.

Description

A MEDIA MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Technical Field

[01] The present disclosure relates to a media management system. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to a media management system which is particularly suitable for use by children or elderly people.

Background

[02] Conventional media systems often include a navigation panel, such as a display, and/or control means, such as click wheels and/or buttons, for managing media content, for example for selecting and/or locating a particular media file the user wants to play. In particular, media systems often include an application, installed for example on a laptop, a tablet or on a smartphone, to manage media content, i.e. create playlists including media content, label favoured media content, or download media content to a local memory. Such media systems are often unsuitable for use by elderly people or children because these users may have difficulties with reading or are unable to read, and often lack the motor skills required to perform fine motor tasks, such as scrolling a click wheel or pushing on navigation buttons to locate and select the desired media content files. Moreover, even when children can already manipulate computer devices, it is still discouraged to have children spend a lot of time in front of a screen.

[03] Media systems partially overcoming the above issues have been developed. Such media systems can for example include a media key, such as a card or a chip. The media key, often referred to as an anchor or a token, is provided with machine- readable information which may be associated with particular media content, such as an audio file or a video file. Media keys may be purchased together with, or separately from, a media playing device. However, these media keys generally come with a fixed and pre-programmed content or function, thus limiting the use of the media system to the available media keys and its associated content or function, which can limit the overall user’s experience. Summary

[04] It is an object of embodiments of the present disclosure to provide a media management system suitable for users like elderly people and children enhancing their overall user’s experience. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a media management system allowing users to manage media content and/or to request and receive a media content recommendation without a need for a screen.

[05] The scope of protection sought for various embodiments of the invention is set out by the independent claims. The embodiments and features described in this specification that do not fall within the scope of the independent claims, if any, are to be interpreted as examples useful for understanding various embodiments of the invention.

[06] This object is achieved, according to a first aspect of the present disclosure, by a media management system having the features of claim 1. In particular, the media management system comprises at least one anchor device to which at least one attribute is assigned, the anchor device including an identifier. The system further comprises an anchor sensor configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier, for example an RFID based identifier or any other type of identifier. The anchor sensor may for example be configured to detect said at least one anchor device when the at least one anchor device is positioned on or within a predetermined distance from the anchor sensor or when the anchor device is temporarily passed over or within a predetermined distance from the anchor sensor, for example by scanning the at least one anchor device over the anchor sensor. The media management system further comprises at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device and to perform a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute. The at least one attribute may be obtained via the retrieved identifier, for example via a database linking the identifiers to the respective attributes, or in any other way, known to the person skilled in the art. The media content management action includes requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content.

[07] Media content may for example be audio media content, such as stories, songs, music, etc. Media content may have the form of for example a machine-readable file or a list of machine-readable files, commonly called a playlist. Media content may also include a video media content, such as a film, a series, a clip, etc. Managing media content is to be understood as the management of such media content files and does not include the playing of media content of such media content files.

[08] In an innovative way, the performance of a media content management action is triggered by the detection of an anchor device by an anchor sensor and by the at least one attribute which is assigned to the at least one detected anchor sensor. In this way, a user can instruct and/or operate a media management system by presenting anchor devices to the anchor sensor instead of having to use a screen on which there may be readable commands.

[09] According to an example embodiment, the performing the media content management action of managing media content may for example include linking media content to the at least one detected anchor device. The attribute assigned to the detected anchor device may for example be ‘blank’ indicating that the anchor device does not yet include a link to media content. When a user is listening to a given media content file he/she likes, the user may for example present an anchor device to which the attribute ‘blank’ is assigned to the anchor sensor and the media management system can then link said media content to the detected anchor device, for example by associating a storage location of said media content file as attribute assigned to the detected anchor device. Thereto, the media management system may first obtain data associated with the media content, such as the storage location of the media content, or media content descriptors, such as artist name, audio or video file title, the order of the audio or video files, and so on. The obtained data may then be linked to the at least one attribute of the detected anchor device. In other words, when performing the media content management action of managing media content, the media management system can link media content and media content descriptors with the at least one attribute of the detected anchor device thus effectively programming the detected anchor device. Additionally, and/or alternatively, managing media content may further include moving and/or copying a link linking media content to a first anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device to a second anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device. In case media content includes a list of media content files, managing media content may also include reordering and/or shuffling an order of a plurality of media content files linked to a detected anchor device. In this way, a plurality of known media management actions can be performed relatively easily without the need for a screen or for the ability to read.

[10] According to an example embodiment, the at least one memory and computer program code may further be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain position information indicative for a position of the at least one detected anchor device relative to the anchor sensor. The performing a media content management action can then further comprise taking into account the obtained position information. In other words, predetermined positions or distances of the detected anchor device with respect to the anchor sensor may be associated with predetermined media management actions. As an example, a predetermined position may be associated with the request of media content recommendation, or with a linking action, while other positions may be associated with other media content management actions.

[11] In other words, in addition to the obtained attributes, the media management system may obtain information indicative of a position of the at least one anchor device, in particular of the position of the anchor device relative to the anchor sensor. This information may include a relative distance of the anchor device along the x-, y- and/or z-direction with respect to the anchor sensor, i.e. , spatial information of the position of the anchor device. This spatial information may be exploited by the media management system in various ways. For example, this information may be used to automatically identify a source anchor device from a destination anchor device in a media content management action such as copying or moving links of media content. Alternatively, placing two anchor devices to which attribute media content is linked on top of another anchor device to which attribute no media content is linked, may be interpreted by the media management system as a “mix content” action. Thus, the placement of the anchor devices and their relative position may allow the media management system to determine, on the one hand, which media content management action is to be performed, and, on the other hand, how that media content management action is to be performed. As a result, a highly adaptable, flexible, and user-friendly media management system is provided.

[12] According to an example embodiment, the at least one memory and computer program code may further be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain detection information indicative for a number of detections of the at least one anchor device and/or an order of detections of the at least one anchor device. The performing a media content management action may further comprise taking into account the obtained detection information. As an example, the detection of two anchor devices may for example cause the system to perform the media content management action of copying links to media content from the first detected anchor device to the second detected anchor device, while the order of detection of the two anchor devices may or may not be taken into account. As another example, the detection of three anchor devices may for example cause the system to perform the media content management action of mixing media content linked to two of the three devices and linking said mixed media content to the third detected anchor device. All these media content management actions are performed based on the obtained attributes of the detected anchor devices such that a user can perform a variety of media management actions with a relatively limited number of anchor devices.

[13] According to an example embodiment, the media management system may include a plurality of anchor sensors, each configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier. The at least one memory and computer program code may then be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain directional information indicative for a direction in which the at least one anchor device is detected by the anchor sensor. In other words, a direction of scanning the at least one anchor device over the anchor sensor may then be detected. In other words, the anchor sensor may be capable of sensing a scanning direction of an anchor device over the anchor sensor. The performing a media content management action may further comprise taking into account the obtained directional information. As an example, scanning an anchor device over the anchor sensors in a first direction may be associated to a different media content management action than scanning an anchor device over the anchor sensors in a second direction. For example, by swiping the anchor device from left to right over the anchor sensor, a media content file may be added to an end of a media content playlist linked to the at least one attribute associated with the anchor device, while swiping the anchor device from right to left over the anchor sensor may cause the media content management system to add said media content file to a beginning of said playlist. In this way, the user can control an order of a media content playlist. Again, a variety of media management actions may be performed with a relatively limited number of anchor devices.

[14] As a result, when performing the media content management action of managing media content, such as linking, copying or moving media content to a detected anchor device, the ‘destination’ anchor device, to which media content can be linked, moved or copied, can be identified in one of a plurality of ways: it may be the detected anchor device which is positioned closest or most distant relative to the anchor sensor, or which is positioned at the bottom or on top of a stack of anchor devices, it may be a detected anchor device to which a predetermined attribute, such as ‘blank’ or ‘unprogrammed’ is assigned, or it may be the anchor device which has been detected most recently. Furthermore, the media management system may use a combination of the above ways to automatically identify a destination anchor device for linking, copying or moving media content. In this way, the media management system may be capable of automatically identifying a destination anchor device.

[15] According to an example embodiment, the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one anchor device may include a media content management attribute causing said media management system to manage media content. In particular, the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one anchor device may include a media content linking attribute causing said media management system to link said attribute to media content. Other media content management attributes may for example cause the media management system to copy, move or shuffle media content. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one anchor device may include a media content request attribute causing said media management system to request and receive a media content recommendation. In other words, the media management system may include different types of attributes causing the media management system to perform a different type of action.

[16] According to an example embodiment, the media content request attribute may preferably include at least one of a media content type, a media content atmosphere and a media content activity, wherein the requesting a media content recommendation is at least partly based on said at least one media content request attribute assigned to the detected anchor device. A media content type may for example include attributes such as ‘story’, ‘music’, ‘pop’, ‘eighties’ or other attributes characterizing a type of media content. A media content atmosphere may for example include attributes such as ‘calm’, ‘happy’, ‘sad’, or other attributes characterizing an atmosphere of media content. A media content activity may for example include attributes such as ‘dancing’, ‘sleeping’, ‘singing’, or other activities which a user may want to perform using the media content. In this way, a user can request a media content recommendation using one or more anchor devices to which desired attributes are assigned. By presenting for example two anchor devices to the anchor sensor, one to which the attributes ‘dancing’ and ‘music’ are assigned, and another one to which the attribute ‘happy’ is assigned, the media management device will request and receive a media content recommendation based on the obtained attributes thus providing a media content recommendation for happy dancing music.

[17] According to an example embodiment, the at least one memory and computer program code may further be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain further user data including at least one of user profile data (UP), user activity data (UA), and a user environment data (UEnv). The requesting a media content recommendation may then at least partly be based on said obtained further user data. In other words, in addition to the obtained at least one attribute, the media management system may obtain further user data. As an example, user profile data may include data characterizing the user, for example the user’s gender, the user’s age, the user’s musical preferences, or other profile data. Such data may be obtained from various sources, for example from online user profiles of various websites or apps, or may be collected in and/or by a dedicated system. User activity data may for example include data on previous uses of the media management system. User environment data may for example include data on the date, the time, the season of the year, or other data relating to an environment of the user.

[18] According to an example embodiment, the media management system may further comprise a media content playing device configured to play media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor sensor or configured to play media content of the requested and received media content recommendation. The media content playing device may be a dedicated media content playing device for the media management system. The media content playing device may for example be an audio playing device for children. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the media content playing device may also include a video playing device, for example for children. The at least one anchor sensor of the media management system may be integrated into the media content playing device. Alternatively, the media content playing device may be a device which is separate and/or remote from the anchor sensor. Alternatively, the media management system does not include any media content playing device but is only configured to connect, preferably wirelessly, to any known media content playing device, such as a mobile phone, a tablet, a computer, an mp3 player, etc including any protocol allowing a wired or preferably a wireless connection to the media management system such that the media content playing device can receive instructions to play predetermined media content. The media content to be played may for example be streamed, or may be downloaded locally, or played in any other known way.

[19] According to an example embodiment, the user activity data may include data on manipulation by the user of said media content playing device, for example when the media management system includes a media content playing device. Manipulation of said media content playing device may for example include increasing or decreasing volume when playing media content, skipping or repeating media content files, or other types of manipulation. Such manipulation may provide indirect data from which a user’s preference may be derived. In this way, the media management system can obtain additional information on which a media content recommendation may at least partly be based such that the media content recommendation can be highly personalized. [20] According to an example embodiment, requesting a media content recommendation is at least partly based on metadata associated to media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the detected anchor device. In other words, the at least one memory and computer program code may further be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain not only the at least one attribute assigned to the detected anchor device but also metadata associated to media content linked to said at least one attribute. In particular, a user may position an anchor device on or near the anchor sensor. The anchor sensor detects the anchor device and retrieves its identifier. The media management system then obtains the at least one attribute assigned to said anchor device. Said attribute may for example be a media content linking attribute linking said attribute to media content, for example to one or more music files, for example to a playlist including some music files. Music files, or other media files, usually include metadata associated to said media files. For a music file, such metadata may for example include factual data such as the name of the song, the composer, the name of the album, the year in which the song was released, and/or descriptive data such as style, suitable occasion or other metadata. Said metadata associated to an existing playlist may also be obtained by the media management system and may at least partly serve as input for requesting a media content recommendation. The requested media content recommendation can then provide a recommendation of media content which is similar in style, or from the same artist, or including music for a similar occasion, or many other combinations.

[21] According to an example embodiment, the at least one anchor device may be a toy. The at least one anchor device may for example be a figurine representing a person, animal or object recognizable by a child. Alternatively, the at least one anchor device may have a regular but abstract 3D-shape, such as a cube, a beam, a pyramid, a octahedron, a ball, a disc or alternatively, any other irregular 3D-shape. It is preferred that the shape of the at least one anchor device can be associated by a child with the at least one attribute assigned to the respective anchor device. As an example, an anchor sensor in the shape of a dragon may have the assigned attributes of ‘dragon stories’. An anchor device having a sign of a smiley on it may include the assigned attribute ‘happy’ and can for example be used to request a recommendation for media content including happy music or stories. In an advantageous way, a plurality of anchor devices may be distributed along a surface or a body of the toy. For example, if the anchor device is a cube, a plurality of anchor devices may be provided on the respective faces of the cube. If the anchor device is a figurine with extending members, anchor devices may be provided in the different members of the figurine. Furthermore, the various surface areas of the anchor may be provided with a light indicator which may be light up by the anchor sensor. This way a visual indication is provided to the user indicating how the metadata is modified by lighting up the surface area based on how the anchor is positioned with respect to the anchor sensor.

[22] Additionally, and/or alternatively, the at least one anchor sensor may be included in a toy. Such a toy can preferably include an anchor device receiving space, configured to receive at least one, and preferably a plurality of, anchor devices. The toy may for example include a box having a top side configured to be said anchor device receiving space, on which the at least anchor device can for example stand. The toy may for example at least partly be manufactured in a shock-absorbing material such that delicate parts, such as the anchor sensor or other electronic parts, can be well protected against a relatively rough manipulation by a child. Colours of the toy may be chosen such that the toy has an appealing aspect to children.

[23] According to an example embodiment, the media management system may further include a recommendation engine configured to provide a media content recommendation requested by the media management system. Such a recommendation engine may for example be a cloud-based recommendation engine. Existing recommendation engines may be used within the media management system. Alternatively, a dedicated recommendation engine may be included in the media management system. The recommendation engine may for example be specifically developed to provide media content recommendation for children.

[24] According to an example embodiment, the at least one memory and computer program code may further be configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to take into account weight factors, associated with the at least one attribute and/or with the further user data and/or with the metadata associated to media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the detected anchor device. In other words, the at least one attribute or the further user data or the metadate may be given a weight according to a respective importance of said data for a media content recommendation. Said weights are preferably adjustable by the user. This allows modifying the importance of the attributes or (meta)data which in turn allows to further personalize the media content recommendation to the user specifics.

[25] According to a second example aspect of the invention, a computer implemented method for performing a media content management action by a media management system is disclosed. The media management system comprises at least one anchor device to which at least one attribute is assigned, the anchor device including an identifier. The media management system further comprises an anchor sensor configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier. The media management system is preferably a media management system according to the first example aspect of the invention. The method comprises the steps of obtaining the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device; and performing a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute. The media content management action includes requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content. Said method can provide one or more of the above-mentioned advantages.

[26] According to a third example aspect of the invention, a computer program product is disclosed comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a computer to perform the steps according to the second example aspect of the invention.

[27] According to a fourth example aspect of the invention, a computer readable storage medium is disclosed comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the steps according to the second example aspect of the invention when the program is run on a computer.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[28] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. [29] Figure 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a media management system according to the invention;

[30] Figures 2A, 2B and 2C show alternative embodiments of the at least one anchor device of the media management system of Figure 1 ;

[31] Figures 3A and 3B show examples of attributes associated to an anchor device according of the media management system of Figure 1 ;

[32] Figure 4A shows a schematic diagram of a preferred embodiment of the computer implemented method for performing a media content management action by a media management system according to an aspect of the invention;

[33] Figure 4B shows a schematic diagram of potential steps following the diagram of Figure 4A.

Detailed Description of Embodiment(s)

[34] Figure 1 shows a preferred embodiment of a media management system 100 according to the invention. The media management system 100 is preferably suitable for individuals who are unable to read and/or who lack fine motors skills to perform fine motor tasks to operate the media system, such as for example a child 1 or elderly people. The media management system 100 comprises at least one anchor device 20, and more preferably a set of anchor devices 20. Said at least one anchor device 20 includes an identifier, for example an RFID tag or any other suitable identifier. The anchor device 20 can preferably be a 3D shaped element, more preferably a toy-like element, for example 3D figurines, such as animals, characters, puppets or other 3D shapes. The anchor device 20 may also include substantially abstract shaped 3D elements, such as blocks, balls or other shapes, for example shapes which allow stacking some of said plurality of anchor devices. Said anchor devices may preferably have colours and/or shapes which can be easily recognized and distinguished by children. At least one attribute is assigned to each of the anchor devices 20. A shape and/or colour of the anchor device may be chosen such that a child can easily remember which attribute is associated to which anchor device. As an example, the attribute “night” may be associated to an anchor device in the shape of an owl. Or an attribute “knight resp. princess stories” may be associated to an anchor device in the shape of a figurine representing a knight or a princess.

[35] The media management system 100 further comprises an anchor sensor 12 which is configured to detect said at least one anchor device 20 and retrieve its respective identifier, for example when the anchor device 20 is placed on or near or within a predetermined distance of said anchor sensor 12. The anchor sensor 12 may use short-range range wireless or optical communications. Such an anchor sensor 12 can for example be included in a media management device 10, for example embedded within the media management device 10 or alternatively, be placed or mounted on a surface of the media management device 10. The anchor sensor 12 is configured to detect a presence of one or more anchor devices when one or more anchors are in physical contact with the anchor sensor 12 or when the one or more anchor devices are held in close proximity to the anchor sensor 12, for example, within a range of less than 10 cm or more or less from the anchor sensor, such that the anchor sensor 12 is able to detect and retrieve the identifier of the anchor device, for example using short-range wireless communications. The media management device 10 may preferably be embodied as a toy, for example having a shape, colour and/or material feeling which is attractive to children and which can resist handling by children. The device 10 may for example simply have a boxlike shape as shown. Other suitable shapes are possible as well, as long as the device 10 includes an anchor device receiving space configured to receive the at least one anchor device 20. The device 10 may for example be configured to have a substantially flat upper side on which the at least one anchor device 20 may be positioned.

[36] The media management system 100 further includes at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code 11 , the at least one memory and computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to perform at least two actions: obtain the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device 20 and perform a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute. The media content management action includes requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content. Managing media content is not to be understood as playing media content, but is limited to the management of media content, such as for example moving, copying and/or reordering media content or other management actions. The computer program code 11 may for example be stored in the cloud 40 and may be configured to interact at least with the anchor sensor 12. In this way, updates of the computer program code may be easily accessible for all users of the media management system 100. Alternatively, the computer program code 11 may be stored on a dedicated device, for example on the device 10, which may include at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code such that the code is stored locally and that the anchor sensor 10 and the computer program code are included in the same dedicated device 10. In still another embodiment, the media management system 100 may include any other device including at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code 11 , such as for example a smart phone, a tablet or a computer, such that the computer program code may run on said device without said device being dedicated to the media management system 100 only.

[37] The media management system 100 may, but need not, include a media content player 30. Such a media content player 30 may for example be a remote media content playing device which is configured to operatively connect to the media management system 100 to receive instructions to play media content. Such a media content player 30 may be a dedicated media content player, or, alternatively, existing media content players configured to play media content may be used, such as for example a mobile phone, a computer, a HiFi-system, a television. Connection with the media management system may be performed using WiFi, Bluetooth, or any other known connection protocol. Media content may preferably include audio media content, such as music, songs, sounds and/or stories, in an interactive way or not. Alternatively, media content may also include visual media content, such as film extracts, series, clips etcetera. In an alternative embodiment, the media content playing device 30 may also be integrated into the media management device 10. In an alternative embodiment, the media content playing device 30 may include the anchor sensor 12.

[38] As will be clear to the person skilled in the art, the media management system may further include one or more interfaces to allow operative connection between the various elements of the system. The media management system may further include one or more databases, stored locally or cloud-based, or at least be configured to interact with said databases to retrieve and send data from and to said databases, as will be explained further on.

[39] A preferred use of the media management system may include requesting and receiving a media content recommendation. When a user, for example a child 1 , wishes to find music for sleeping, the child may put a first anchor device 20, for example the owl anchor device, near the anchor sensor 12, for example on the media management device 10 including said anchor sensor 12. The attribute “night” may for example be associated to said owl anchor device. The anchor sensor 12 included in the media management device 10 then detects the anchor device 20 and retrieves the identifier of the anchor device 20. Computer program code or software 11 , be it in the cloud 40 or on the media management device 10 or on any other suitable device, can then cause the media management system 100 to obtain the at least one attribute, for example the attribute “night”, assigned to the detected anchor device 20. Said attribute may for example be stored on, and/or obtained from, the anchor device 20 or the media management device 10 or remotely, for example in a database, and may be obtained via the identifier. Based on said obtained attribute, the media management system can then perform a media content management action, for example request and receive a media content recommendation, for example for music and/or stories about the night. The media content recommendation may for example be received as a media content playlist including one or more media content files including stories and/or songs.

[40] When the media management system has received the media content recommendation, the user 1 may decide to listen to the recommended media content, for example via a remote media content player 30. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the user might decide not to listen to the recommended media content but to perform the media content management action of managing media content, for example said received and recommended media content. As an example, the user may want to link said recommended media content, for example a playlist including night songs, to an anchor device 20. Thereto, the user 1 may place a further anchor device 20, for example the anchor device shaped as a pawn, near the anchor sensor 12, for example on the media management device 10. The anchor sensor 12 then detects the anchor device 20 and the media management system 100 obtains the attribute associated to the pawn anchor device, for example “empty”. Based on this attribute, the media management system 100 then performs the managing of media content, in particular the linking of the media content to said detected anchor device 20. In this way, a child can manage media content without using any screen, just by manipulating one or more anchor devices 20 near an anchor sensor 12.

[41] Figures 2A, 2B and 2C show further potential embodiments of the at least one anchor device of the media management system 100. Each anchor device 20’ comprises an identifier 25 which may be mounted on a surface of the anchor device or embedded within the anchor device. The identifier 25 may for example be a near-field radio identification, such as a radio-frequency identification (RFID) tag, or an optical identifier, such as a two-dimensional barcode, for example a quick response (QR) code, or a steganographically encoded identifier embedded onto an image printed on an anchor device. The anchor devices may have various shapes, for example an anchor device 20’ shaped as a card with the identifier 25 placed on a first face of the card, an anchor device 20’ shaped as a disk with the identifier 25 placed on a rim of the disk, an anchor device 20’ shaped as a cube with the identifier 10 placed on a surface of the cube. Alternatively, the anchor devices 20” may be shaped as figurines with the identifier 25 embedded within the feet of the figurines, or within the body, for example at the hip level. Each identifier 25 includes an identifier configured to identify the anchor device. The identifier may include a predetermined number and a universally unique identifier, UUID. The predetermined number of the identifier may for example be a unique static number or a serial number of a respective anchor device 20, 20’, 20”. Optionally, each identifier may be encrypted, i.e. each anchor device may be cryptographically signed with for example a single key, a public key, or a private key, to authenticate the identifier associated with the anchor device 20, 20’, 20”. Further, each anchor device may be cryptographically signed with a private key of a Root Private Key of the Root Signing Device.

[42] In Figure 2B, the anchor devices 20’ are shaped as cubes and may configured to be stacked. Two cube-shaped anchor devices may be positioned next to each other, or two cube-shaped anchor devices 20’ may be placed on top of each other, three cube-shaped anchor devices may be stacked to form a pyramid. Such stackable anchor devices may for example be included in a media management system which is programmed to obtain position information indicative for a position of the at least one detected anchor device relative to the anchor sensor 12 and to further take into account the obtained position information when performing a media content management action. As an example, stacking an anchor device on top of another anchor device, or putting these anchor devices side by side, may cause the cause the media management system to copy attributes associated to the first anchor device from the first anchor device to the second anchor device, or vice versa. Building a pyramid of anchor devices may for example cause the media management system to mix media content linked to the at least one attributes of the two anchor devices underneath and link the mix to one of the least one attribute of the third anchor device on top of the pyramid. As the skilled person will understand, a lot of different media content management actions may be associated with, and triggered by, one of the numerous potential positions of the anchor devices with respect to each other and with respect to the anchor sensor. To allow to obtain position information, the anchor sensor may be configured to detect such position data of a detected anchor device in addition to only retrieving the identifier of the detected anchor device. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the media management system may include a plurality of anchor sensors distributed over a predetermined area such that a combination of data obtained from said plurality of anchor sensors may provide position information. Alternatively, the media management system may include only one anchor sensor and a plurality of switchable antennas in said predetermined area, again such that the combination of data from the anchor sensor and said plurality of antennas can provide the position information of the at least one detected anchor device.

[43] In a similar way, the media management system may be configured to obtain detection information indicative for a number of detections of the at least one anchor device and/or an order of detections of the at least one anchor device. When performing a media content management action, the obtained detection information may further be taken into account. As an example, an order of detection of two anchor devices may for example trigger a copying or moving action of attributes from the anchor device which has first been detected to the anchor device which has been detected afterwards, or vice versa. Again, the skilled person will understand that a large variety of different media content management actions may be associated with, and triggered by, one of the numerous potential order or number of detections of the anchor devices with respect to each other and with respect to the anchor sensor. [44] In Figure 2C, a further embodiment on an anchor device 20’” is shown. Instead of using a plurality of anchor devices each having a unique identifier, the anchor device 20’” includes a plurality of identifiers 25a, 25b, 25c, each mounted to, or embedded in, a different side of the anchor device. The anchor sensor may be configured to not only detect and retrieve the identifier but may also be configured to detect a position of the identifier with respect to the anchor sensor. Depending on the position of said anchor device, a different identifier will be closest to, respectively furthest from, the anchor sensor. As explained above, also an order of detection or a number of detections may be taken into account for performing a media content management action, for example detection of a first identifier 25a, followed by the detection of a second identifier 25b or 25c may cause the media management system to perform a predetermined media content management action. It is also possible to include a plurality of identifiers in respective members of anchor devices embodied as human-like or animal-like figurines as the last example of Figure 2A. When positioning such an anchor device on or near the anchor sensor, the different members have different distances to the anchor sensor, which differences may be detected by the anchor sensor and transmitted as position information. Such anchor devices may advantageously be provided with one or more controllable LEDs. The LEDs may have a fixed light color or may have adjustable light colors. Further, each LED may have a corresponding light color or the same light color. The LEDs may be provided on the face of the anchor device where the identifier 25 is mounted. The LEDs may be configured to light up, for example according to a predetermined colour code, depending on the identifier identified by the anchor sensor as feedback to the user. A light intensity of the LEDs may be configured to vary according to a weight associated to a given attribute.

[45] In still a further embodiment, the media management system 100 may comprise a plurality of anchor sensors, and/or, the anchor sensor may comprise multiple antennas such that the media management system is configured to detect a scanning direction of an anchor device over the plurality of anchor sensors.

[46] Figures 3A and 3B show examples of attributes associated to an anchor device according of the media management system of Figure 1. The media management system 100 may include an anchor association database. The anchor association database may be configured to store entries that associate the anchor identifier for each distinct anchor with the at least one attribute associated to the anchor device. Said anchor association database may be stored in the form of for example a look-up table or in any other suitable form. The database may be cloud based or may be stored on a dedicated server. The database may further comprise links to media content linked to the at least one attributes. Media content may include a media file or an ensemble of media files such as a media playlist. An ensemble of media files may form an interactive audio/video composition, such as for example an interactive story or interactive music or video composition. Said media content may be stored in the cloud or elsewhere, in the form of a database or in any other suitable form.

[47] The at least one attribute assigned to the at least one anchor device may include different types of attributes, for example a media content management attribute causing the media management system to manage media content. As an example, a media content management attribute may include attributes like ‘blank’, ‘copy’, ‘shuffle’ or others. Another type of attribute may be a media content linking attribute causing said media management system to link said attribute to media content. Attributes linking to media content could for example include a media content storage location and/or media content descriptors such as a type of the media content, e.g., audio or video, the genre of the media content, information about the media content, such as an artist name, song title, playlist name, playlist title, order of audio file in the playlist or album, and so on.

[48] A further type of attribute may be a media content request attribute causing said media management system to request and receive a media content recommendation, the attribute for example including at least one of a media content type, a media content atmosphere and a media content activity. Such attributes may include a specific music genre such as pop music, dance music, traditional music, children’s music for 3+ or 5+ years old, French music, or a specific movie genre such as adventurous or fairy tale movies. Other attributes may include a mood or emotion, such as happy or sad, a season, or a time of the year such as Easter or Christmas.

[49] In Example 1 of Figure 3A, the attributes associated to a detected anchor device with a predetermined identifier is linked to an audio playlist with “music” and “title” attributes describing the music content of the audio playlist, and “tracks” attribute describing the order of the tracks in the playlist. In this example, the tracks identify the file names and the storage location of the respective audio files. Media content linked to the attributes is static in this example. In Example 2 of Figure 3A, the attributes associated to a detected anchor device with a predetermined identifier is also linked to an audio playlist. The attributes indicate that the storage location of the music files is external to the media management system, for example in the cloud, and that the music needs to be streamed. In this example, this is defined by the “streaming” set of attributes which define the unique “streamID”. The attributes, in particular the “source” field, may further indicate that the playlist was created by a request for media content recommendation based on a name of a given artist, “Stevie Ray Vaughan” in the example. The “uri” field shows the unique resource identifier based on which the audio playlist is dynamically created with the “DABBAD00DABBAD00” identifying a unique identifier for the given artist. In this example, the playlist is dynamically created each time such a request for media content recommendation is performed, and the “tracks” attribute is left empty.

[50] Example 1 of Figure 3B may be an example of a playlist which may be the result of a request for media content recommendation based on several different types of attributes associated to detected anchor devices. The attributes may include “emotion” set to “happy”, “energy” set to 60%, “danceability” set to 82%, and “music genre” set to ["dance”, “house”]. All these attributes can characterize the requested media content to be recommended in a media media content management action of requesting and receiving a media content recommendation. The attribute “age-range” set to 7 may define that the recommended media content should be suitable for above 7-year-olds, and the “artist” attribute set to include the list of ["deadmau5”, “David Guetta”, “Avicii”] artists can allow to further narrow down the recommendation to the listed artists.

[51] Requesting a media content recommendation may at least partly be based on metadata associated to media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the detected anchor device. As an example, if the detected anchor device is associated to attributes linking to the playlist shown in Example 1 of Figure 3B, the user may want to request a media content recommendation which is similar to the result of the request in Example 1 . Example 2 of Figure 3B shows attributes that allow a request for media content recommendation to be based on metadata obtained from the results of a previous query, e.g. the results obtained based on the attributes shown in Example 1. Note that the “metasource” field of the “source” attribute has the same value “stream: metasource: CAFEDABADOODABB” as the “uri” field in the Example 1. This means that the results obtained from Example 1 are used as metadata input, that is further modified with metadata from Example 2. Specifically, the metadata of Example 1 , i.e. , “energy”, “danceability”, “artist”, ... , may be modified with “genre” set to ["French”, “electro”] and “age-range”, i.e., for above 3-year-olds. In this way, the media management system can become very intuitive as it is sufficient for the user to place a previous anchor device linking to a playlist the user likes and place an additional anchor device to which another attribute is associated, for example, a different genre, language, age-range, or any other attribute to request and receive a new media content recommendation.

[52] Figure 4A shows a schematic diagram of a preferred embodiment of the computer implemented method for performing a media content management action by a media management system as described above. Once the anchor sensor of the media management system has detected the at least one anchor device and retrieves its identifier, the media management system obtains the attributes associated to the detected and identified anchor device, for example by accessing an anchor association database. The media management system may further obtain additional information, such as position information 504 of the anchor device with respect to the anchor sensor or detection information 506 on a number of detections of an anchor device or on an order of detection of a plurality of anchor devices, as previously explained. The media management system may obtain information about the last 10 to 20 anchor devices detected by the anchor sensor, or about the anchor devices detected in the last period of 1 to 5 mins, or the entire history of all anchor device detections.

[53] The media management system may further obtain metadata 508 associated to media content linked to the obtained attribute, as previously explained. The media management system may further obtain further user data 510. Such further user data may for example include at least one of user profile data (UP), user activity data (UA), and a user environment data (UEnv). Examples of user activity data (UA) may include the media content played recently, e.g., the media content played in the last day, week or month, the media content played at a specific time of the day, e.g., morning or evening, the media content played during holidays, e.g., Christmas, or the media content played during the different seasons, e.g., spring, summer, autumn and winter, and so on. Examples of user profile data (UP) may include information such as age of the user or user preferences, for example derived explicitly or implicitly from rankings or markings as favourite media content. Examples of environmental factors (Env) may include the time of the day, the season and/or the holiday, the geographic location of the user, etc. Such further user data characterizing the user preferences and environmental factors may be obtained from attributes associated to dedicated anchor devices and/or from a dedicated user profile database, either cloud-based or locally stored. Finally, the media management system may obtain weight or importance factors linked to predetermined attributes. Weights may be included in attributes and/or weights may be modifiable by dedicated anchor devices. Obviously, the steps of obtaining position or detection information 504 and 506 may be performed simultaneously with step 502. Additionally, and/or alternatively, steps 504 and 506 may be performed in parallel to any of the steps 508 to 512.

[54] Based on the obtained attributes and at least partly on the additional information, the media management system performs 530 the media content management action. The media content management action includes either requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content. The media content management actions may be performed in sequence one after another or in parallel. In the latter case, actions like ranking and linking media content or actions like ranking and ordering media content may be performed.

[55] Figure 4B shows a schematic diagram of potential steps following the diagram of Figure 4A, in particular when the media content management action is requesting and receiving a media content recommendation. The media management system may thereto include a recommendation engine configured to provide a media content recommendation requested by the media management system. Such a recommendation engine may for example be a cloud-based recommendation engine. Existing recommendation engines may be used within the media management system. The media management system may be configured to connect to a remote server or database, such as for example Spotify or any other known provider of media content. Alternatively, the media management system may include a dedicated media content database or may be configured to connect to a dedicated media content database. Alternatively, a dedicated recommendation engine may be included in the media management system, which is preferable for privacy reasons for children. The recommendation engine may for example be specifically developed to provide media content recommendation for children. Even if a recommendation engine based on a cloud service may be more practical as it is not limited by the storage or computation power inherent to the media management system, a locally running recommendation engine or system may be preferred in cases where network connectivity is at least temporarily unavailable. It may not be practical to store an entire content service locally, but media content file samples truncated to a predetermined length, for instance to 30 seconds, could be made available so that offline requests for a media content recommendation can be immediately answered. Results from a local recommendation engine can be improved by re-issuing the request to a cloud-based recommendation engine once connectivity has been re-established.

[56] Such a recommendation engine may for example also be configured to retrieve further user data, such as user activity data, user profile data or user environment data. The recommendation engine may further be configured to operatively connect to a media content database storing media content and associated metadata such as genre, type, and many more, from which the recommendation engine may select suitable media content corresponding to the request for media content recommendation based on the at least one attribute. The media management system may for example be configured to transmit user activity data to such a recommendation engine. Said user activity may for example include increasing or decreasing volume when listening and/or watching media content, or skipping media content, which may be indicative for an appreciation by the user of said media content. Preferences of a user may be stored in a user profile as user profile data, which may be updated by user activity data within the media management system.

[57] In Figure 4B, the media content management actions are requesting and receiving a media content recommendation 532, ranking received and recommended media content 534, and linking said media content with an anchor device 536. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the recommended media content may also be reordered. When a user has received a media content recommendation, the user may want to discover said media content. Thereto, the recommended media content may for example be played in a discovery mode, i.e. playing a predetermined amount of time of every recommended media content file, for example the first 30 seconds of each recommended media content file. The media management system, and in particular the recommendation engine, may then be configured to derive and store the liking by the user of the recommended media content. Thereto, the user can for example use an anchor device to which the attribute ‘like’ is associated and have said anchor device detected by the anchor sensor. The media management system may further be configured to obtain a number of scannings by the anchor sensor, for example such that the more often the ‘like’ anchor device is detected, the higher the recommended media content is ranked. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the media management system may be configured to derive liking from user activity. As an example, when a media file is often skipped by the user during playing, the media management system may consider the skipping as a sign of dislike, while for example increasing volume during playing may be considered as a liking. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the media management system may include a dedicated ‘like’ or ‘dislike’ button, for example on the device including the anchor sensor. Said user control buttons may be operationally connected to the media management system and include buttons or knobs, such as, for example, a power on/off button for turning the media management system 100, or a media content playing device 30, on and off, a ‘previous’ button or knob and a ‘next’ button or knob for controlling the position in a given playlist, and a volume knob or button for controlling the volume of the media playing device 30. The user controls may additionally include a dedicated button for example a “like” indicator. By pressing the button, the user indicates to ‘like’ the media file being currently played by the media content playing device 30. A long press of said button can be interpreted as a “like a lot” indication and rank the currently played media as “most liked”. Not pressing the button can be interpreted as a neutral indication, skipping to the next track as a “dislike” action and a long pressing of the ‘next’ button as a strong dislike action. Additionally, and/or alternatively, a number of pressings may be linked to a ranking, for example, a 3-star or 5-star rating scale. For example, if a 3-star rating scale is adopted, pressing the dedicated button once will mark the media file as “fair”, pressing the dedicated button twice will mark the media file as “good”, and pressing the dedicated button three times as “very good”, while a long press of the dedicated button may mark the media file as “not good”. Ranking data on liked and disliked media content may for example be stored with the user profile data or elsewhere in a dedicated database, or in a media content file database or in any other type of database, for example in the form of a look-up table. The ranking information may also be embedded in metadata of the media content files itself, for example, in the form of a tag, which ranking data may be stored in an association database. Ranking the recommended media content can allow to dynamically refine the recommendation engine and thus improve the quality of the media content recommendation.

[58] Independently of the media content management action of ranking media content, such as for example a playlist of media content files, recommended media content may also be linked to an anchor device. The linking may for example be performed by linking said media content to an attribute associated to the anchor device. Said attribute may thereto be overwritten or changed. Said anchor device may be an empty anchor device, i.e. to which attribute no media content is linked, or the media content may be added to media content already linked to an attribute associated to the anchor device. An empty anchor device may be an anchor device to which the attribute ‘empty’ is associated. The media content itself may be, but is preferably not, downloaded to a local storage.

[59] In Figure 4A, the media content management action may also directly be managing media content without first requesting and receiving a media content recommendation. An example of a media content management action of managing media content may be moving and/or copying a link linking media content to a first anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device to a second anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device. Such a copying or moving action may be triggered in several ways: either by detection of an anchor device to which an attribute ‘copy’ is associated, which may be considered as a media content management attribute causing said media management system to manage media content, for example to copy or move media content. Additionally, and/or alternatively, a copying or moving action may be triggered by positional or detection information, as explained with respect to Figure 2B. [60] For a copy media content action, at least two anchor devices, for example a source anchor device and a destination anchor device, may be positioned on or near the anchor sensor 12, simultaneously or sequentially. The anchor sensor 12 detects the anchor devices 10 and reads their respective identifier. The media management system obtains any associated attributes. Optionally, the media management system may obtain any position information 506 as described above. Additionally, and/or alternatively, the media management system may obtain temporal detection information 506. From the obtained attributes and/or any position or detection information, the media content management system determines that the media management action is a copying action and performs said copying action. To determine the source and the destination anchor device, the obtained position information or detection information may be exploited. Alternatively, the source and destination anchor device may be determined based on the obtained attributes.

[61] The media content copying action includes linking new media content to the attribute associated to the destination anchor device, which may for example be done via an association database, rather than actually copying of media content files. The copying is in fact just an update of such an association database linking media content to an attribute via the identifier of the anchor device.

[62] If the anchor sensor identifies two destination anchor devices rather than one, then the copy action may link the media content linked to the attribute associated with the source anchor device to both destination anchor devices. Alternatively, if the anchor sensor identifies two source anchor devices and one destination anchor device, then the copy action may link the media content linked to the attribute associated with both source anchor devices to the destination anchor. In the latter case, the copy action may include a mixing content action.

[63] Similarly, a move media content action may be performed. In that case, after the media management system has linked the media content linked to the attribute associated with the source anchor device to the destination anchor device as described above, the link of the media content linked to the attribute of the source anchor device will be deleted. [64] The media management system may further be configured to obtain user input data on media content, such that a user may modify metadata of media content files or modify weight of parameters. As an example, when a user request and receives a media content recommendation based on the attribute ‘happy’ associated to the detected anchor device, the user may listen to the media content recommendation, and may want to indicate that the recommended media content is ‘extremely happy’, or, to the contrary, that it is sad. This may be done for example by scanning the ‘happy’ anchor device two or three times, or by user controls such as turning knobs or others. In a similar way, the media management system may be configured to allow modification of weight factors in the request for media content recommendation.

[65] Modification of attributes, metadata or weight factors may also be performed via touch sensitive areas or touch sensors included in the anchor device. The touch sensors may be provided on one or more surfaces or faces of the anchor. In this case, the user can modify attributes, metadata and/or weight factors associated to the attributes by touching once or more times the various touch sensitive zones.

[66] Although the present invention has been illustrated by reference to specific embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative embodiments, and that the present invention may be embodied with various changes and modifications without departing from the scope thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the scope of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

[67] It will furthermore be understood by the reader of this patent application that the words "comprising" or "comprise" do not exclude other elements or steps, that the words "a" or "an" do not exclude a plurality, and that a single element, such as a computer system, a processor, or another integrated unit may fulfil the functions of several means recited in the claims. Any reference signs in the claims shall not be construed as limiting the respective claims concerned. The terms "first", "second", "third", "a", "b", "c", and the like, when used in the description or in the claims are introduced to distinguish between similar elements or steps and are not necessarily describing a sequential or chronological order. Similarly, the terms "top", "bottom", "over", "under", and the like are introduced for descriptive purposes and not necessarily to denote relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances and embodiments of the invention are capable of operating according to the present invention in other sequences, or in orientations different from the one(s) described or illustrated above.

Claims

1. A media management system comprising

- at least one anchor device to which at least one attribute is assigned, the anchor device including an identifier;

- an anchor sensor configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier, and

- at least one processor and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to:

- obtain, the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device;

- perform a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute, wherein the media content management action includes requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content.

2. The media management system according to claim 1, wherein the performing the media content management action of managing media content includes

- linking media content to the at least one detected anchor device;

- moving and/or copying a link linking media content to a first anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device to a second anchor device of the at least one detected anchor device; or

- reorder an order of a plurality of media content linked to a detected anchor device.

3. The media management system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one memory and computer program code are further configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain position information indicative for a position of the at least one detected anchor device relative to the anchor sensor; and wherein the performing a media content management action further comprises taking into account the obtained position information.

4. The media management system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one memory and computer program code are further configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain detection information indicative for a number of detections of the at least one anchor device and/or an order of detections of the at least one anchor device; and wherein the performing a media content management action further comprises taking into account the obtained detection information.

5. The media management system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one anchor device includes

- a media content management attribute causing said media management system to manage media content;

- a media content linking attribute causing said media management system to link said attribute to media content; or

- a media content request attribute causing said media management system to request and receive a media content recommendation.

6. The media management system according to claim 5, wherein the media content request attribute includes at least one of a media content type, a media content atmosphere and a media content activity, wherein the requesting a media content recommendation is at least partly based on said at least one media content request attribute assigned to the detected anchor device.

7. The media management system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein at least one memory and computer program code are further configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the media management system to obtain further user data including at least one of user profile data (UP), user activity data (UA), and a user environment data (UEnv), wherein the requesting a media content recommendation is at least partly based on said obtained further user data.

8. The media management system according to any of the preceding claims, further comprising a media content playing device configured to play media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor sensor or configured to play media content of the requested and received media content recommendation.

9. The media management system according to claims 7 and 8, wherein the user activity data include data on manipulation by the user of the media content playing device.

10. The media management system according to any of the preceding claims 8 - 9, wherein the media content playing device includes the anchor sensor.

11 . The media management system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the requesting a media content recommendation is at least partly based on metadata associated to media content linked to the at least one attribute assigned to the detected anchor device.

12. The media management system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one anchor device is a toy, and/or wherein the anchor sensor is included in a toy.

13. A computer implemented method for performing a media content management action by a media management system, the media management system comprising at least one anchor device to which at least one attribute is assigned, the anchor device including an identifier, the media management system further comprising an anchor sensor configured to detect said at least one anchor device and retrieve said identifier, the method comprising the steps of : a. obtaining the at least one attribute assigned to the at least one detected anchor device; b. performing a media content management action based on the obtained at least one attribute, wherein the media content management action includes requesting and receiving a media content recommendation and/or managing media content.

14. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions for causing a computer to perform the steps according to claim 13.

15. A computer readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions for performing the steps according to claim 13 when the program is run on a computer.