Patent Application
20140252716
The present invention relates generally to a game format, which, in non-limiting embodiments, can provide entertainment and educational value for all ages. One such embodiment is the board game. Some other embodiments such as web based online game, video game, TV game and a hybrid (mixed media) game are also described. The hybrid game spans multiple mediums. One example involving TV and online medium is presented as an example.
The board game comprises, six circular game pieces in different colors with a circular magnifying lens embedded in each of them. Each represents a player.
A dice with dotted indica on each face numbering 1-6. One side of the cube will be red with six dots on it.
Stacks of pictorial cards are included. These cards have two sides. The front side has a picture/sketch/diagram. The back side has six questions relating to the picture on the other side. The answers are also written somewhere on the backside of the card. The present invention includes 60-80 pictorial cards.
A rectangular picture holder with one of the longest side open to insert the pictorial card, is also included. One side of the plastic picture holder is darkened so that the picture/image remains hidden to the player/team answering the question. The other side is transparent. The same holder is used earlier to show the picture to the team for a specified time interval with the question/answers facing the dark/opaque side.
A buzzer/hour glass to time the whole game i.e the time taken to answer each question or time taken to view the image.
Lastly an essentially rectangular and planar game board is included which is rigid in structure. The game board has a playing surface with the sketch/picture of a large magnifying glass in the centre. The starting point of the board starts at the base of the magnifying glass and traverses most of the circumference of the lens to end near the other base of the rim.
The object of the game is to answer questions correctly and get ahead in the game and advance spaces to reach the end/finishing point first.
The video game is played through game consoles. One player starts a game where they are shown an image (still or moving) for a fixed amount of time and are asked questions based on it. The user can invite other players also to join the same game through same or different devices or computers. They can play the game as competitors or collaborators.
The online game comprises of a website accessed by players through computer or other mobile devices. One player starts a game where they are shown an image (still or moving) for a fixed amount of time and are asked questions based on it. The user can invite other players also to join the same game through different devices or computers. They can play the game as competitors or collaborators.
The TV game comprises of a game host, a large display for displaying image(s) and questions, small consoles in front of the players. The game starts with multiple players who are asked the same question based on one image at a time. They are scored based on the time they take to answer each question. The player(s) with low scores are removed in steps from the game and the last one remaining in the game is declared the winner.
The hybrid game comprises of a web based system where product advertisers (audio visual content owners) submit question and its answer based upon a particular message (content) they plan on airing. They also define the timing and geographic details of the viewers they intend to target for their message within the system. The prize information and winning criteria are also defined in the system.
The system tags such messages with a visual and/or audio signature identified by a unique key within the web based system.
Once such a message is aired on TV, a logo of the Keen Eye game is displayed on the TV, which acts as a cue and directs people to access Keen Eye's web site where they answer a question based on the message displayed earlier. It is also possible for the question to appear automatically on a person's smartphone device if they have subscribed to the KeenEye system and have installed the KeenEye mobile application.
The system runs the game for some time after the message runs and closes it (to avoid people recording the message and detecting the answer by repeatedly viewing it) after a predetermined interval.
Once a viewer logs into the Keen Eye system and views the question based on a particular message, they are allowed a small duration within which to answer it.
The system selects winner(s) based on the answers and the criteria submitted earlier by the message owner.
By mixed media we mean a combination of multiple media (such as TV, Radio, Cinema, online, mobile etc). Examples provided here are using TV/online and TV/mobile combinations. In these examples, users answer a question based on a message seen on TV through online or mobile mediums. Other possibilites could be online/online, online/mobile, Radio/online, Radio/mobile and so on.
The essential features of this game format include players watching a visual (still or moving image, slide, text etc) for a fixed duration and then interacting with the KeenEye system for answering question(s) based on the visual.
Different embodiments of the game allow for different objectives to be achieved. For example, the board game embodiment is meant for fun and entertainment with an element of chance through the throw of a dice. Online game introduces an element of collaboration through its structure. TV game is competitive like the board game but depends upon the human element and drama for making it interesting. The Hybrid (mixed media) game allows users to interact with media in a new and novel way. It also introduces an incentive for people to pay attention to a message.
The Keen eye game system is aimed to test the observation' skills of a player or team of players in a fun and entertaining manner. It rewards those who have a “keen eye” or unusual knack for details.
The system is described in multiple embodiments in this Specification. In some embodiments, it provides a means for fun and entertainment, in others it is used in a competitive environment. In still other embodiments, this system allows users to interact with live audio visual content in unique ways while providing incentive for people to pay attention to messages which they might otherwise ignore.
In certain embodiments, the game disclosed can be played on a computer. As used herein, “computer” should be interpreted broadly as it is not limited to traditional personal computer or laptop or mobile phones. For instance, the term encompasses any computing device such as, but not limited to, personal digital assistants, portable e-mail devices, other handhold devices, pagers, cell phones, smart phones, or the like. The game can be stored or accessed on a computer readable medium. Computer readable medium includes, but is in no way limited to, media such as any memory device, a hard drive, a CD, a DVD, a flash device, a floppy disk, a tape or a file resident on a server or other storage. In certain aspects, a first player can be a human while the second player can be a computer or computer program. Also, the game can be played on-line (e.g. through an internet connection) via a computer or as a T.V game show. Any standard computer and programming technique can be used to write a program that can be used to play the game disclosed herein. The above text describes non-limiting examples of various embodiments of the invention. The game board, playing pieces, corresponding methods of use, etc. can “comprise”,“consist essentially of”, or “consist of” any of the elements disclosed throughout the specification.
It is contemplated that any embodiment discussed in the specification can be implemented with respect to any method, apparatus, game board, game pieces etc. of the invention, and vice versa. The use of the word “a” or “an” when used in conjunction with the term “comprising” in the claims and/or the specification may mean “one”, but it is also consistent with the meaning of “one or more”, “at least one”, and “one or more than one”.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the invention in order that the detailed description thereof that follows maybe better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are, of course, additional features of the invention that will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
As such, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception, upon which this disclosure is based, may readily be utilized as a basis for the designing of other structures, methods and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions in so far as they do not depart from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new game system (including but not limited to a board game) relating to observation skills.
It is an objective of the present invention to make the game easily accessible online through the use of internet connected devices.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a game format which can be easily branded for its simplicity, clear objectives, features and advantages.
It is an objective of the present invention to allow for audio visual media to be tagged in a way that makes their consumption easier for the users (both the creators and consumers of such media). The invention presents a new way to identify such media.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a new board game relating to observation skills which may be easily and efficiently manufactured and marketed.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a new board game relating to observation skills which is of durable and reliable construction.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a new board game relating to observation skills, comprising a plurality of game pieces each representing a player, a plurality or stack of pictorial images/cards (sketches or pictures) required to be observed in detail to pinpoint an area of interest, a game board indicating a starting point representing points as earned, and an ending point representing the completion of the game by a player or a team in the game, a six headed dice that corresponds with the question number at the back of each card or a challenge question in case the dice head is Red, and a buzzer to time the whole operation.
It is an objective of the present invention to make the board game interesting by introducing an element of chance by having the result of the dice rolled out being directly proportional to the difficulty of the question presented.
These together with other objects of the invention, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the invention, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its uniqueness and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated preferred embodiments of the invention.
KeenEye is a game format which revolves around testing one's observation skills. In this format, users (players) observe a visual for a specified amount of time and then answer one or more questions based on the visual they just saw. The format remains consistent whether players are playing the board game, video game, online game or a TV game. The format in these embodiments is a means to test one's observation skills. In the hybrid (mixed media) embodiment, the same format is a means to allow for a richer interaction with the media.
The Keen Eye Board game is the preferred embodiment of this invention. Specifically, the board game includes five major components. These are the game pieces, dice, pictorial images/cards, a unique game board and a rectangular picture holder. These components along with the rules of the game provide the intended function.
The object of the game is to answer questions correctly and get ahead in the game. The game tests the player's observation skills and/or knowledge about the subject in the pictorial cards.
The game starts with all the teams securing an order (the order they will each play the game in) by throwing a dice. The game proceeds by the playing team being offered a pictorial card for observation and then being asked one question according to the dice rolled by them. They move their game piece on the board by answering the question correctly. The result of the dice rolled out is directly proportional to the ease factor of the queston. The resultant indica on the dice is also the number of points the playing team earns on correctly answering the question. Only when the resultant indica is six and red, will the player jump 10 spaces or points on the board by answering the question correctly.
When a playing team's turn arrives, the team ordered lower than them (called scoring team) picks the pictorial card from the stack and hands it over to the playing team to examine it. (The card can be inserted in the picture holder (see fig) which has one side darkened). This way the playing team is only able to see the picture and not the question/answer on the other side of the card. The buzzer/hour glass timer can be started (optional) so that the observation time does not exceed a pre-determined interval. After the time is up, the card is handed back to the scoring team who puts the card back in the picture holder in such a way that this time the picture will be hidden from the player's view. Now the playing team rolls a dice and the scoring team reads out the question no. that corresponds with the resulting dice indica rolled out. (Optionally, a buzzer/hour glass is set to start again and the answering time is set to 1 or ½ minute as agreed by the players prior to the game). Within the set time-frame the playing team is required to answer the question correctly to be able to move its playing piece further on the board. The playing piece will travel the same number of spaces as the resultant dice indica. In case the playing team fails to answer the question correctly, their game piece doesn't move. Next, the scoring team/player gets to play in the same way. In case of a challenge question (when the resultant dice indica is six and the dice head is red, the player having answered the question correctly gets 10 points and moves 10 spaces ahead.
The winner of the game is the player/team that reaches the end point at the base of the other end of the magnifying glass first. If playing with 2,3,4,5, or 6 teams, those who reach the ending point after the winner are declared to be in the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th spots respectively.
Approximate playing time will vary from 45-75 minutes with two teams or players, or upto 2-3 hours with six players.
This game is aimed to test the observation skills of a player or team of players while providing entertainment—it determines who has the keenest eye of them all and who has an unusual knack for details.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realised that the optimum dimensions for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and the manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modification and changes will readily occur, to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modification and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.
There can be several different ways of playing this game on T.V. and should not be limited to the structure of game depicted here, provided the basic idea (of answering questions based on a pictorial card/slide/text/audio/video footage/video clip) remains the same. Other formats could also be employed—for example—it can be played between teams. Teams are equally divided into a set number of players. A visual is shown for a certain amount of time and a question is posed based on the visual just shown. Whoever answers the question first and correctly is able to score points. A selection might be provided to the team(s) and they can chose the theme of the visuals based on their knowledge and interest in certain fields, like literature, science, sports, technology, history, geography, entertainment, current affairs etc. The teams would compete until a winner is chosen. The game would be neatly woven with several twists and turns along the way to keep the interest and energy level up. One such twist could be a random challenge question carrying a high score which could change the result of the game. Another twist could be audiences being shown some visuals (picture/clips/videos) and asked to participate in the proceedings with commensurate rewards. Similar mode of play could also be employed with multiple players instead of groups or teams.
Another way of playing this game would be to randomly select a player from the audience. The host follows the same format of questions/answers as depicted above. With every correct answer the prize money and the difficulty level of the question goes up.
Similar method could be employed when playing this game online. The computer would randomly pick visuals (card/slide/text/video/audio footage) for the player based on his field of interest and would keep calculating his score with every correct answer received, until the player reaches a certain level where he is declared the winner.
The player could chose to play on his own with the computer or gaming console. They could compete or even co-operate with other players online or offline at the same time.
Online game could be hosted through a website, where a player can log in and play the game as described above.
Similar method could be employed when playing this game on a gaming console. The console would randomly pick visuals (card/slide/text/video/audio footage) for the player based on his field of interest and would keep calculating his score with every correct answer received, until the player reaches a certain level where he is declared the winner.
The player could chose to play on his own or compete or even co-operate with other players online at the same time.
Video game is distributed on media which users purchase and plug into their game console before playing the game as described above:
The system (Keen Eye web based system) can also be used to provide incentives to audiences watching TV for paying more attention to an advertiser's message. Advertisers setup the questions, answers, their target demographic, geographic, time preferences and reward criteria within Keen Eye system (see
This system is beneficial for all the parties involved ie the advertisers, TV networks and the audiences. The advertiser/sponsor can make sure that their messages are observed and understood. The audiences win a reward for paying attention to the message. TV networks can demonstrate to the advertisers that their advertising expenses are justified. It might pay off handsomely to have a keen eye. Keen Eye system manages the logistics of this entire interaction.
Here are the key components of this hybrid (mixed media) game (See
1) Keen Eye online system which interacts with advertisers, TV networks and TV viewers. Advertisers describe the criteria for posing the question to the viewers and the criteria to select winners. This includes which messages to ask the questions for, what question to ask, the possible right answer(s), preferred time during which to ask the question, preferred demographic/psychographic to target (segmentation) etc. TV networks receive the data about the applicable messages from Keen Eye system. KeenEye system provides the TV networks with a copy of the advertisement, which contains the KeenEye logo (tag) at the end of the advertisement. TV networks broadcast the ‘tagged’ advertisment according to the segmentation criteria submitted by advertisers. TV viewers interact with Keen Eye system to submit their answers or interact with the advertisement in some other way (
2) Keen Eye mobile application (
The system defined in 1) above works the same way whether it is an advertisement displayed on TV, cinema screens, radio, websites or any other medium. The appearance of KeenEye logo can incent users to pay more attention to the message. There is another advantage to tagging the media audio visually in the manner described here. This tagging allows users to identify the media, since the identification information for the media is encoded in the tag and also stored in KeenEye web based system. Users either see the tag visually on the media or their mobile device “detects” the ultrasonic signal containing the key information about the media. They access the KeenEye web based system either by accessing the website manually or letting their mobile device do it for them automatically. These actions let them identify and interact with live media.
A very different usage of this system is when new audio tracks are aired on radio. If the audio tracks are tagged with ultrasonic signal at the end, then these tags can trigger the KeenEye application on the user's smartphone, which can display the track information on the user's smartphone. The application can also allow user to favorite the song and let user chose other songs by the same singer or group. This allows user to interact with the media in a different way.
Description of Prior Art
The board game formats prevalent today are centered around user's knowledge of trivia or popular culture or some other theme. The KeenEye board game relies on user's capacity for details and memory.
The process defined for tagging the media audio visually is also different from other tagging systems in vogue today. Those tags are used for searching content based on the tags associated with the media. A user generally submits the tags they are interested in to a computer system and the system searches for these tags and returns associated media to the user. These tags are meant to be used for stored media and not generally associated with Live media.
The idea presented here is for tags to be visible or audible (through ultrasonic signals) at the moment media is being played. This allows for detection of media at the time it is being played. In the prior art, tags are a means for searching for content which user knows about (for example, searching for a song by your favorite artist). The KeenEye visible tags let user identify content they may not be familiar with. Imagine that you are traveling in a foreign country and there is a song by a local artist being played on the radio. You do not know the artist, but you like the song. KeenEye visible tag makes the song and perhaps other content by the same artist available to you through the identification process defined earlier.
Content providers also define the prize and criteria to select the winner. Some such criteria are
Broadcasters use the targeting information to display the KeenEye logo after the content is displayed. In the example displayed in
Screen 1—User logs in using their KeenEye system ID and password
Screen 2—User selects the channel where they saw the KeenEye logo. KeenEye web based system identifies the applicable message based upon the time, channel selected and user's geographic details. The user is presented with a question about the ad/message preceding the KeenEye logo. User submits the answer to the question.
Screen 3—User sees a confirmation that their answer has been submitted to the KeenEye system.
Screen 1 User starts their KeenEye application loaded in their mobile device and selects the channel where they saw the KeenEye logo. User need not log into the application because the application contains the user's profile.
Screen 2 User is presented with the question about the ad/message preceding the KeenEye logo. User submits the answer to the question.
Screen 3 User sees a confirmation that their answer has been submitted to the KeenEye system. The confirmation screen automatically goes away after some time if the user has not taken any action.
Screen 1 KeenEye logo upon becoming visible after an ad/message, emits an ultrasonic signal. The signal is detected by the KeenEye application running in the background of the user's mobile device. The signal contains the channel information for that ad/message. Because of this automatic detection, user need not select the channel before seeing the question.
Screen 2 Upon detecting the ultrasonic signal, KeenEye application activates itself and based on the channel, presents the question along with other information about the ad/message preceding the KeenEye logo. User submits the answer to the question.
Screen 1 KeenEye logo upon becoming visible with some content, emits an ultrasonc signal. The signal is detected by the KeenEye application running in the background of the user's mobile device. The signal contains the unique key identifying the content.
Screen 2 KeenEye application sends this unique key to the KeenEye web based system and retrieves the associated information about the content. The application presents some options for the user to interact with the content. The screen disappears after a set amount of time if user does not take any action.
Screen 1 The ultrasonic signal is detected by the KeenEye application running in the background of the user's mobile device. The signal contains the unique key identifying the content.
Screen 2 KeenEye application sends this unique key to the KeenEye web based system and retrieves the associated information about the content. The application presents some options for the user to interact with the content. The screen disappears after a set amount of time if user does not take any action.
This card has an image/drawing/sketch on the front and question and answer related to it at the back.
