1376results about "Voting apparatus" patented technology

A digital downloading jukebox system including a mechanism for delivering custom services to a recognized user, including services for creating playlists, communicating with others, accessing other features, etc. is provided. In some exemplary embodiments, after a user is recognized, the jukebox system allows users to access a special front-end via an Internet-enabled device or on an actual jukebox. Then, the user may, for example, create playlists, share songs with friends, send messages to friends, and access other value-added content. Such a system preferably learns about networks of friends, and enables managers to send similar messages to regular customers and/or others known to the system. In some exemplary embodiments, changes via a first user interface on a first device are reflected on second user interface on other properly-configured devices.

System and method in tangible computer-readable media are disclosed for facilitating community interaction with a playlist. A host system communicates with a plurality of portable devices to transmit information about the items in the playlist. Users of the portable device queue additional selections or vote on media items in the playlist. Based on user voting the playlist is rearranged to accommodate the preferences of the community. Both registered and guest users participate in managing the playlist. Such a system and method can be particularly useful in a variety of social gathering situations.

The present invention generally relates to blockchain technology. Specifically, this invention relates to adapting blockchain technology for the storage of voting data in an electronic voting system. The system includes a distributed network of voting machines in communication with each other. Each voting machine has a barcode scanner, a network communications device and a computer system running a voting client. Votes are received through the barcode scanner or a voter interface system and stored securely on a blockchain. The tally for various candidates in the election is updated and stored as each vote is received and counted. This creates an auditable trail of votes and the tally which can be used to detect, correct, and prevent fraud and error in the vote counting process.

A method and system is provided for improved electronic voting. The system optionally allows paper type ballots to be utilized. A plurality of cryptographic routines are utilized in a distributed data processing system to maximize the privacy of both the voter's identity and the content of completed ballots. An authentication server is utilized to interact with a voter to issue electronic ballots and receive completed electronic ballots in a manner which determines the authenticity of the identification of the voter, while maintaining the content of the completed ballot confidential. The distributed data processing system further includes a results server which tabulates the content of completed ballots in a manner which maintains the identity of the voters associated with the particular ballots confidential. The distributed data processing system may further include a journal server which records completed ballots, in a manner which facilitates the challenge of ineligible votes and the correction of erroneous votes.

A method is disclosed for providing advertising content for display in a page over a network. A plurality of advertisements are determined that are qualified for display at a location in the page. When an advertiser has stores located at a plurality of geographic sites, only one advertisement for a store located at a first geographic site may be displayed. Thereafter, the advertisement for a store located at a second geographic site different from the first geographic site may be displayed.

A system and method provide content review, distribution, ranking and access and automate creation and performance of contests among sets of content-based contestants. The system and method provide customizable interactive, ongoing, multi-level, multi-round contests with expert review of and filtered submission of content-based contestants. Among other advantages, providers may use the system and method to obtain expert and consumer review and ranking of their content.

A method for conducting transaction between first user and a remote second user interlinked through a communication network, by utilizing also a clearing office interlinked to the network. The clearing office storing the user privileged information. The method including the steps of the user and the clearing office establishing a cryptographic secured session, the user transmitting, via the session, a user privileged information and transaction specific data, the transaction specific data being indicative of a transaction identification data. The clearing office activating transaction validity checking procedure by utilizing a user privileged information and the transaction specific data. In response to affirmative result of the transaction validity checking, the clearing office producing a transaction validity indication being indicative of the transaction identification code. The clearing office and the user establishing a communication session and the clearing office transmitting, via the session, the transaction validity indication.

A computer-implemented transmission scheme is provided to control client-server interchanges within a distributed communications network, such as a real time opinion research system. Interchanges include transmitting media streams between one or more clients to a server over a computer network, including the global Internet. A polling management unit sets and manages the transmission mode that includes event-driven and periodic interchanges. Periodic interchanges can be simultaneously or staggeredly transmitted to a sampling pool of active clients. A transmission mode unit implements the transmission scheme set by the polling management unit. A parameter selector establishes the transmission interval and transmission period which are used to trigger each communication interchange. A client assignor creates one or more sampling classes from the sampling pool by applying a sampling quotient that is generated by the parameter selector. A schedule editor produces a transmission schedule for the active clients. If more than one sampling class has been created, each sampling class would receive a separate transmission schedule for providing staggered transmissions at designated transmission intervals. The transmission schedule can include other data preparation and formatting instructions for compression, aggregation and packetization.

Methods and apparatus are provided to locate a terminal within a workspace. Radio frequency identification (RFID) tags are provided in known locations, preferably in, on or adjacent the light fixtures or other workspace infrastructure. The terminal comprises an RFID tag interrogation transceiver, processor and memory. The transceiver interrogates the tags which respond with information correlatable with their unique locations. The terminal determines its locations relative to the known locations of responding tags by, for example, varying its transmit power and/or receiver sensitivity and/or by trilateration using, for example, phase or time difference of arrival measurements on the tag response signals. Once it has determined its own location it may transmit or otherwise announce its location as desired by the user. In a preferred embodiment, the natural electromagnetic radiation and/or RADAR cross section backscatter from fluorescent type fixtures, modulated with their position information, acts as the RFID infrastructure beacon.

Computer-aided methods (making and using), along with a corresponding machine, article of manufacture, and data structures, is provided for conducting a poll with high reliability to produce a demographic profile corresponding to an accumulation of response data from encrypted identities. The method includes: for each one of a plurality of local computers, carrying out registration substeps of: (i.) receiving an application for Participant registration, the application including Participant identification data and Participant demographic data; and (ii.) if the application is accepted, then issuing respective registration data, including encrypted Participant identification data; thereafter, for a portion of the local computers, carrying out polling substeps of: (iii.) receiving digital signals over the Internet including the encrypted Participant identification data and poll response data for a first question in a poll; and (iv.) responsive to said receiving of said encrypted Participant identification data, preventing more than one respective response to the first question; and associating the encrypted Participant identification data, the response data, and the demographic data, respectively, to produce a demographic profile corresponding to an accumulation of the response data from encrypted identities.

Systems and methods for enabling the formation and analysis of social structures, such as groups, in real-time among a number of participants. Embodiments of the invention are also directed to systems and methods for enabling an understanding of the responses, opinions, or decisions of individual members of a group and how those may change and coalesce into one or more consensus views of a majority of the group. Embodiments of the invention may be applied to better understand the opinions and dynamically changing membership and characteristics of social structures in a variety of settings, including but not limited to educational, business, political, marketing and related environments.

Systems, processes, user interfaces, and computer readable media are described for scoring political entities on one or more political issues. In one example, the scoring is based on text data and political contribution data associated with the political entity. For example, a process may access or determine text data and financial contribution data associated with a political entity and then score the political entity to provide a measure of the political entity's ideology or position on one or more issues. Various graphical elements and interactive user interfaces can be generated based on various information derived therefrom. Users may search various political entities to view political entity scores, text data, financial data, issues, and the like, as well as enter their own political scores and/or issues to assist in identifying political entities.

Systems and methods are provided for ranking points of interest (POIs). According to one implementation, a computer-implemented method may be provided that includes receiving geographic information from a user device, and selecting a plurality of points of interest within the geographic region. The method may also include generating an initial ranking of the selected points of interest based on voting information received from the user device, viral input from a user's social network, and/or additional input based on searches for maps and travel directions for traversing a route. In addition, the method may include calculating a modified ranking of the selected points of interest.

A “URLIT” identifier is assigned to a URL and embedded in an HTML document located at the URL. The URLIT and other data are described using a Universal Advertisement Markup Language such that high-precision searching of the World Wide Web is possible. URLIT-enabled transactions are conducted through a Universal Toolbar Utility. A search method allows user-definition of search algorithms and includes a ranking method that assigns relevancy scores to documents by polling users. Transaction reliability is enhanced by user participation in a Universal Terms of Use system and a Universal Arbitration system.

A system and method for establishing persistent collaborative on-line meeting spaces for a plurality of participants located at a plurality of different locations using computing devices across a communication network. The system includes sending invitations to the plurality of participants, and establishing the identity of potential attendees and only allowing authorized participants to enter the meeting space. The system also includes creating a virtual workspace on a workspace computer wherein the participants can interact. The interaction can include creating, adding, organizing, and deleting meeting content. The system also records status, movement and modification of the meeting content and participant activities during the meeting for later playback. The system can use user contributed objects and content, virtual sticky notes, organizer tools and other items, and can support multiple security levels.