Context-based interests in computing environments and systems

A computing system comprising:

• at least one processor;
• a memory including computer readable instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the computing system to:
• obtain information indicating changes in a context of the user and the device, the information indicating that the user and the device are in a first plurality of different contexts that are selected from the group consisting of 1) a plurality of different locations that the device and the user are in;
• 2) a plurality of different times when the user uses the device;
• 3) a plurality of different environments that are sensed by the device;
• 4) a plurality of different temperatures that are sensed by the device;
• 5) a plurality of different electrical components that are detected by the device;
• 6) a plurality of different types of motion that the device senses;
• 7) a plurality of different distances between the device and an external object;
• and 8) a plurality of different biological conditions of the user that are sensed by the device;
• obtain user data that indicates multiple usages of a device by a user over time, the user data further indicating that each usage of the device involves a particular degree of involvement by the user in the first activity, which further indicates that the user has one of a first plurality of different interest levels in the first activity, the user data further indicating that the user and the device, at the time of each usage, are in one of the first plurality of different contexts;
• based on the user data, determine a plurality of context-based interest rating components, each interest rating component associated with a particular context of the first plurality of contexts and including an interest value that estimates a degree of interest of the user in the first activity when the user is in said associated context, each interest rating component being calculated based on the usages of the device that took place in said associated context;
• obtain an input context that indicates that the user and the device are in one of the first plurality of contexts;
• identify based on said input context, one of said interest rating components as a matching interest rating component for said input context;
• determine the relevance of at least a portion of one or more other interest rating components to said matching interest rating component;
• and
• determine, based on said one or more relevancies, a projected interest value indicative of a projected interest of the user in said first activity when the user is in said input context.

A computer readable medium embodied in a tangible form including executable computer program code operable to predict an interest in an object of interest in a situation, wherein the computer readable medium includes:

• executable computer code operable to obtain information indicating changes in a context of the user and the device, the information indicating that the user and the device are in a first plurality of different contexts that are selected from the group consisting of 1) a plurality of different locations that the device and the user are in;
• 2) a plurality of different times when the user uses the device;
• 3) a plurality of different environments that are sensed by the device;
• 4) a plurality of different temperatures that are sensed by the device;
• 5) a plurality of different electrical components that are detected by the device;
• 6) a plurality of different types of motion that the device senses;
• 7) a plurality of different distances between the device and an external object;
• and 8) a plurality of different biological conditions of the user that are sensed by the device;
• executable computer code operable to obtain user data that indicates multiple usages of a device by a user over time, the user data further indicating that each usage of the device involves a particular degree of involvement by the user in the first activity, which further indicates that the user has one of a first plurality of different interest levels in the first activity, the user data further indicating that the user and the device, at the time of each usage, are in one of the first plurality of different contexts;
• executable computer code operable to determine, based on the user data, a plurality of context-based interest rating components, each interest rating component associated with a particular context of the first plurality of contexts and including an interest value that estimates a degree of interest of the user in the first activity when the user is in said associated context, each interest rating component being calculated based on the usages of the device that took place in said associated context;
• executable computer code operable to obtain an input context that indicates that the user and the device are in one of the first plurality of contexts;
• executable computer code operable to identify based on said input context, one of said interest rating components as a matching interest rating component for said input context;
• executable computer code operable to determine the relevance of at least a portion of one or more other interest rating components to said matching interest rating component;
• and
• executable computer code operable to determine, based on said one or more relevancies, a projected interest value indicative of a projected interest of the user in said first activity when the user is in said input context.

A computer-implemented method of determining a degree of interest that a user has in an activity when the user is using mobile device in a particular context wherein said method comprises:

• identifying a plurality of different possible contexts in which the user could use the device, wherein the number of possible contexts is predetermined;
• identifying a plurality of different possible levels of interest that the user could have in a particular activity, wherein the number of possible interest levels is predetermined;
• tracking multiple usages of the mobile device by a user;
• during the tracking, for each usage, forming a corresponding usage record;
• during the tracking, for each usage, storing information in the corresponding usage record that indicates which context the usage took place in;
• during the tracking, for each usage, storing information in the corresponding usage record that relates to how the user interacted with the device;
• for each usage, determining that said interaction indicates one of said possible interest levels in said activity, thereby linking each usage of the device and each corresponding usage record with one of the predetermined interest levels and one of the predetermined contexts;
• determining a plurality of vectors wherein:
• each vector is associated with a different one of the predetermined contexts;
• each vector represents an average interest level of the user when the user is in the context associated with the vector;
• the average interest level for each vector is an interest level that is calculated based on the interest levels of the relevant usage records in the user data, the relevant usage records for each vector being those usage records that are linked to the context associated with the vector;
• obtaining an input context that indicates that the user and the device are in one of the plurality of contexts;
• determining a distance between the input context and each of the plurality of vectors that includes a first and second vector wherein the first and second vectors are associated with first and second different contexts and first and second average interest levels, respectively;
• and
• calculating a projected interest level of the user in said activity based on the distance determination wherein if the distance between the first vector and the input context is smaller than the distance between the second vector and the input context, then the first average interest level will be weighed more heavily in the calculation of the projected interest level than the second average interest level,
• wherein the plurality of predetermined contexts are selected from the group consisting of:
• 1) a plurality of different locations that the device and the user are in;
• 2) a plurality of different times when the user uses the device;
• 3) a plurality of different environments that are sensed by the device;
• 4) a plurality of different temperatures that are sensed by the device;
• 5) a plurality of different electrical components that are detected by the device;
• 6) a plurality of different types of motion that the device senses;
• 7) a plurality of different distances between the device and an external object;
• and 8) a plurality of different biological conditions of the user that are sensed by the device.