Educational or toy systems with ad-HOC groups of wireless elements

Abstract

A toy or educational system including wireless elements and a user device. Each wireless element has a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device, wherein each wireless element is configured to5 maintain a group identifier responsive to a user interaction therewith. The user interaction is indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad- hoc group of wireless elements. The group identifier identifies the ad-hoc group. The wireless elements transmit advertisement messages identifying the wireless element and the group identifier. The user device is configured to: receive information about a target group identifier; and receive advertisement messages from one or more of the wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements. Each advertisement message identifies one of the wireless elements available for pairing and a group identifier thereof. The user device is further configured to: selectively initiate a pairing operation with the wireless elements that are available for pairing and identify the target group identifier.

Description

[0001] EDUCATIONAL OR TOY SYSTEMS WITH AD-HOC GROUPS

[0002] OF WIRELESS ELEMENTS

[0003] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0004] The present disclosure relates in one aspect to a toy or educational system, i.e. a system adapted for toy or educational use, wherein the system comprises a plurality of wireless elements and a user device. Each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements comprises a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device. Typically, said wireless communication interface is also adapted to facilitate communication of the wireless elements with each other. According to a particularly advantageous aspect, the wireless elements are modular construction elements of a modular construction system. In a particular aspect, the present disclosure further relates to a method for establishing paired connections between a user device and wireless elements of such a toy or educational system.

[0005] BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0006] Modular toy elements and educational systems exploiting the advantages of modular toy systems for enhanced learning and play experiences have been known and appreciated for years. Systems for use as toys and / or for educational purposes may include a large variety of interacting / cooperating elements of different functionality, which may be arranged, combined, and assembled for use in a playful and educational experience. Such playful and educational experiences may involve multiple users at the same time. Moreover such playful and educational experiences may often be set up and held for multiple user groups at the same time. Such users and / or user groups may work, play and act together in many different settings, e.g., a science class, a playful STEM / STEAM education program, a construction competition, a robotics challenge, a role-playing game, an amusement park or otherwise themed entertainment, treasure hunts, or simply a group of users meeting up for creative play. Depending on the setting, users of such systems may thus include children and learners of all ages.

[0007] Known toy systems or educational systems often use wired connections to link the different elements, such as switches, sensors, motors, light, and / or sound emitters,controllers, and processors together. While useful, these wired connections may sometimes be challenging, or even limiting, for the possibilities of freely combining the different interacting and / or cooperating elements of the system with each other. As a result, the implementation of certain play or educational experiences may simply not be possible.

[0008] SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0009] In some toy systems, such as wand duelling or role-playing systems, this has been addressed by using wireless communication to link elements of a play system together. However, these systems typically fail to address issues of high data traffic load and interference, as more and more elements are added to the system, or when many users participate in the playful and educational experience. Such systems using wireless elements typically also fail to address issues of unintentional crosstalk between different elements of the system, or interference with other devices using the same wireless communication infrastructure. When creating a functional toy construction model, when solving an educational challenge, or when setting up an interactive play experience using interacting wireless elements, some users may also have a need to divide a set of interacting wireless elements into multiple subsets, in order to facilitate selective interaction of wireless elements in one subset without interfering with other subsets of wireless elements. For example, users may desire to define functional sub-groups of a more complex machine, or to define team subsets of devices in an interactive play experience with multiple teams.

[0010] Common to settings involving multiple interacting or cooperating elements in a toy or educational system is therefore a need to facilitate selective interaction within one subset of elements (e.g., elements belonging to one user group, construction model, or play set) without interfering with other subsets of wireless elements (e.g., wireless elements belonging to other users, another construction model, or another play set).

[0011] Furthermore, there is a need for an improved user-friendly set-up routine that allows for easy management of multiple groups involving multiple participants or groups of participants, each working with a respective set of wireless elements.In some settings of using toy or educational systems with wireless elements, it is desirable to establish a paired wireless connection between at least some of the wireless elements and a user device, such as a laptop computer, a personal computer, a tablet computer, or a smartphone. Such a paired wireless connection can be useful, e.g., to transfer large amounts of data, to update firmware or software in the wireless element(s), or to directly program (or modify the programming of) the wireless elements).

[0012] At the same time, as mentioned above, a toy or educational system comprising a plurality of wireless elements may require large flexibility when grouping wireless elements for interactive play or educational experiences, where changes to the grouping of the wireless elements may occur frequently and ad-hoc, e.g., in order to form new groups, or to re-group, depending on the play project or educational tasks. The number of wireless elements in a group, or the number of groups are therefore user-determined and may vary throughout a given play or educational task. Therefore, there is a desire to facilitate, or at least accommodate, this flexibility and reconfigurability of interactive experiences in an intuitive manner, during any use and configuration of the toy or educational system.

[0013] According to some embodiments, at least some of the above-mentioned challenges are solved by implementing a process for establishing paired connections between a user device and members of a group of wireless elements, where the group is an ad-hoc group that is created based on a user-interaction with the wireless elements.

[0014] The disclosure is defined by the appended independent claims, with advantageous embodiments as disclosed in the dependent claims, and as further disclosed in the following. Thereby, an easy and intuitive routine for establishing a paired connection between a user device and an ad-hoc defined set or sub-set of wireless elements of the toy or educational system is achieved, which allows for flexible configuration and re-configuration of the set or sub-set, as further detailed in the following.

[0015] A first aspect of the disclosure relates to a toy or educational system comprising a plurality of wireless elements and a user device; wherein each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements comprises a wireless communication interfaceconfigured for wireless communication with the user device; and wherein each wireless element is configured to maintain a group identifier responsive to a user interaction with the wireless element, the user interaction being indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements, and the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, and to transmit advertisement messages, the advertisement messages identifying the wireless element and the group identifier maintained by the wireless element; wherein the user device comprises a wireless communications interface configured for wireless communication with each of the plurality of wireless elements, and wherein the user device is configured to receive information about a target group identifier, to receive advertisement messages from one or more of the wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements, each advertisement message identifying one of the wireless elements being available for pairing, and the advertisement message further identifying a group identifier of said wireless element being available for pairing, and to selectively initiate a pairing operation with the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying said wireless element as being available for pairing and identifying the target group identifier.

[0016] The wireless elements may be any suitable interactive element adapted for use in a playful and / or educational context, where a group of the wireless elements may be configured to provide, in combination, a linked interactive user experience. Typically, to achieve such a linked interactive user experience, the wireless elements are also adapted to communicate with each other in order to bring about a linked interactive experience. As further detailed below, the wireless communication interface of each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements is therefore typically also configured for wireless communication with one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements. As also mentioned below, in some embodiments, the wireless elements in an ad-hoc group may form paired connections for communicating with each other. Furthermore, in some embodiments the wireless elements in an ad-hoc group do not form paired connections for communicating with each other.

[0017] Users of the toy or educational system may select a number of wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements and group the selected wireless elements for use in a linked interactive user experience. The selection and grouping is conditioned bya user interaction, thereby allowing the user to expressly control the grouping. The selection, grouping, and re-grouping typically occurs ad-hoc as part of the normal use of the toy or educational system for its conceived purpose, i.e. in a playful and / or educational context.

[0018] User interactions with a wireless element may be one or more of: presenting an RFID / NFC tag, performing a group-specific gesture with the wireless element, activating a button or other Ul on the wireless element, reading a QR code, reading an optical code and / or a colour, or the like. The user interaction with the wireless element allows the user to expressly indicate the intent to establish an ad-hoc group including the wireless element and provides a mechanism for user initiated and / or user controlled ad-hoc grouping of wireless elements.

[0019] The term ad-hoc group as used herein refers to a user-established (or user-selectable) group of wireless elements of the toy or educational system. Owing to the highly dynamic character of playful interactions and educational projects with the toy or educational system, the number of wireless elements in a user-established ad-hoc group may be variable, and is not determined beforehand (as would be the case e.g., in a factory setting). Typically, the ad-hoc grouping allows for a variable group size, i.e. a number of wireless elements in the ad-hoc groups may be varied during use of the toy or educational system. Once an ad-hoc group is defined, and identified as a target group vis-a-vis the user device, the user device may selectively initiate a pairing operation as further detailed below.

[0020] An ad-hoc group of wireless elements can dynamically be established and the user can selectively add or remove elements from the group. Generally, an ad-hoc group may be formed at any point in time when operating the toy or educational system. Thus, group membership may change dynamically, possibly even after some group members have been paired with the user device. To handle this dynamic behaviour, each of the wireless elements comprises a dedicated handler for ad-hoc group formation, which is responsive to user interactions regarding the formation of ad-hoc groups, and which is configured to keep track of the current ad-hoc group membership of the wireless element and to share that information through advertisement messages. The handler for ad-hoc group formation is a processing mechanismwhereby each of the wireless elements is configured to maintain a group identifier responsive to a user interaction with the wireless element, the user interaction being indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements, and the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, transmit advertisement messages, the advertisement messages identifying the wireless element and the group identifier maintained by the wireless element. This supports the highly dynamic character of typical user interactions with a toy or educational system.

[0021] If applicable, corresponding user interactions for expressing a user intent as described above with respect to user interactions with the wireless elements may also be performed in respect of the user device in an analogue manner, e.g., for the purpose of providing information about a target group identifier, e.g., for the purpose of establishing paired connections with members of the targeted ad-hoc group that are available for pairing.

[0022] The user device may be any suitable data processing device, such as a smartphone, tablet computer, laptop computer, personal computer or the like. The user device has a display, such as a graphical display, configured to present information about the pairing process to a user, or an equivalent output device for making said information accessible to a visually impaired user. In some embodiments, the wireless elements do not have a display and / or are not adapted to present a list of wireless elements that are available for pairing to a user.

[0023] The user device is different from the wireless elements of the toy or educational system. However, the user device may run operating software, including user interface software, generic web interface software configured to allow communicating with the wireless elements of the toy or educational system, and / or dedicated application software. The user device may thus be specifically adapted for use in the toy or educational system. The user device may communicate with one or more of the wireless elements of the toy or educational system, e.g., for the configuration, updating, and / or maintenance of the wireless elements. The user device may also partake in the use of the toy or educational system by communicating with one or more of the wireless elements of the toy or educational system, e.g., for the purpose ofprogramming, configuring, and / or controlling one or more of the wireless elements during any playful or educational task.

[0024] In some embodiments, the user device may also be used to communicate with wireless elements of the toy or educational system emulating one or more wireless elements, e.g., for the purpose of simulating and testing, for illustrating or developing a functionality, or for any other playful purposes or educational tasks. In some embodiments, the user device may also be configured to emulate one or more wireless elements of the toy or educational system, e.g., for the purpose of communicating with one or more of the plurality of wireless elements of the toy or educational system. In this way, the user device may act as a wireless element, such as a sensor element, and may also be assigned a group identifier, e.g., the target group identifier. The user device may then issue, e.g., broadcast, advertisement messages to a given group according to the group identifier, e.g., to the target group. The user device may also listen for advertisement messages of a given group according to the group identifier, e.g., advertisement messages from the target group, and establish a paired connection to the corresponding members of that group, e.g., the target group, for which advertisement messages have been received.

[0025] In some embodiments, the user device may be configured to maintain a group identifier responsive to a user interaction with the user device, the user interaction being indicative of inclusion of the user device in a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements, and the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group.

[0026] A pairing operation may be an automatic pairing operation (without user involvement, e.g., transparent to the user) or a pairing operation that involves / requires a user interaction, e.g., prompting the user for confirmation that the initiated pairing operation is to be completed. For example, the user device may selectively initiate a pairing operation including to prompt the user with a list of the ad-hoc group members that are available for pairing, and where the user confirms for completion, e.g., the user may confirm by selecting one or more of the wireless elements on the list of ad-hoc group members provided by the user device, or the user may activate a button on the one or more wireless devices available for pairing.The toy or educational system of the present disclosure thus provides a highly flexible and modular as well as user-friendly way of handling paired wireless connections from the user device to wireless elements in ad-hoc groups of wireless elements.

[0027] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the wireless communications interfaces of the user device and of the wireless elements are configured to perform wireless communication according to a standardised protocol for wireless communication, preferably a Bluetooth Low Energy standard. Any suitable standardised protocol for operating a wireless communication infrastructure may be used, such as protocols for infrastructure compliant with Bluetooth 5, Bluetooth BLE, ZigBee, Z-wave, or a similar radiofrequency broadcast infrastructure, wherein a Bluetooth Low Energy standard may be preferred. Thereby a standardised, reliable and energy saving protocol is provided for the communication between the user device and the wireless elements of the toy or educational system. This gives a large degree of flexibility, e.g., in the choice of user devices that may connect to the wireless elements of the toy or educational system. The thus enhanced portability allows a broader group of users to benefit from the toy or educational system.

[0028] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each of the transmitted advertisement messages comprises a device name identifying the wireless element transmitting the advertisement message. This facilitates a prompt and selective reply, and thus a reliable ad-hoc group management minimizing lag in response to changes in the ad-hoc grouping.

[0029] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each wireless element is configured, responsive to said user interaction, to change its device name to an ad-hoc device name, the ad-hoc device name including information about the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group. This further facilitates a prompt and selective reply, and thus a reliable ad-hoc group management minimizing lag in response to changes in the ad-hoc grouping. Furthermore, ad-hoc group membership can thus easily be determined from device name, e.g., on a user interface prompting a user to complete a pairing operation. Thereby user-friendliness of the system is enhanced.Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the ad-hoc device name includes a code encoding a graphical representation of the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, in particular an emoji representing a group identified by the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, and wherein the user device is configured to display the encoded graphical representation in a list of wireless elements that are available for pairing. This further facilitates a prompt and selective reply, and thus a reliable ad-hoc group management minimizing lag in response to changes in the ad-hoc grouping. Furthermore, ad-hoc group membership can even more easily be determined from device name by a broader group of users, e.g., on a user interface prompting a user to complete a pairing operation. In particular, this embodiment allows to overcome certain impairments, such as inability or to read, dyslexia, colour-blindness, or the like, thereby giving a broader group of users access to the system without barriers. Thereby user-friendliness and accessibility of the system is further enhanced.

[0030] In some embodiments, wireless elements that are grouped in an ad-hoc group may form paired connections with each other. In some embodiments, wireless elements that are grouped in an ad-hoc group do not form paired connections with each other.

[0031] Advantageously, embodiments of the disclosure allow for operating a plurality of wireless elements in broadcast groups, the wireless elements at least including one or more transmitters and one or more receivers. In some embodiments, the broadcast groups may coincide with ad-hoc groups formed by a user to selectively interact with a group of wireless elements of the toy or educational system. For example, the user may want to program or modify an interactive behaviour of the wireless elements when operated in combination in a group, e.g., to adapt their behaviour to a given project or task. Operating a plurality of wireless elements in such broadcast groups allows for a highly flexible and modular way of building linked interactive user experiences from multiple wireless elements by combining the functionalities of multiple wireless elements that selectively communicate with each other in broadcast groups and configuring their individual and / or combined behaviour.A system and method for grouped wireless broadcast in a toy or educational system is disclosed in the co-pending international patent application PCT / EP2024 / 067483 which is hereby incorporated by reference herein. In brief, a broadcast group may be defined, e.g., by using a group token carrying group configuration data. To read the configuration data, a wireless element comprises a reader adapted to read the configuration data, typically when the group token is brought in close proximity of the wireless element using near field communication technology (NFC), an optical data reader, or the like. The required proximity may be referred to as a reading distance. The data messages may be broadcast using one or more data channels of a wireless communication infrastructure, such as infrastructure compliant with Bluetooth 5, Bluetooth BLE, ZigBee, Z-wave, or a similar radiofrequency broadcast infrastructure. When the wireless elements are assigned to a given broadcast group, the transmitters label broadcast data messages with the corresponding group identifier, which may then be used by the receivers in the broadcast group to select the data messages destined for them. Thereby, a selective transmission is facilitated for the selective distribution of data messages from one or more transmitters to one or more receivers, only within the broadcast group. While the receivers may receive any data message broadcast through the one or more data channels, the receivers only process the selected messages, thereby avoiding potential interference from other broadcast groups in the vicinity and reducing waste of processing power. Such a grouped broadcast is particularly useful in the context of toy or educational systems, e.g., a classroom setting where multiple users or groups of users may operate next to each other, and where each user or user group uses a plurality of wireless elements that are configured to interact with each other, e.g., in an educational assembly, or in a game play set-up.

[0032] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the toy or educational system further comprises one or more group tokens, each carrying group configuration data indicative of a group identifier. Any suitable items or devices may be used as group tokens, as long as they are adapted to carry the required configuration data and to share the stored configuration data with the wireless elements and / or the user device. Correspondingly, the configuration data may carried in any suitable form, as long as it allows for storing the required configuration data and to share the stored configuration data with the wireless elements and / orthe user device. For example, the configuration data may be carried as one or more of data stored in a memory portion of an NFC tag, such as an RFID tag, as a colour code, as an optical code (e.g., a one or two dimensional optical code like barcodes or QR codes), as text and / or graphical information (e.g., comprising alphanumeric characters, symbols, glyphs, emojis, and / or encoded as tactile information).

[0033] Advantageously, a group token may be shaped and dimensioned for handheld operation, in particular if the conceived use involves bringing the group token close to the wireless elements. For example, the group token may be shaped as, attached to, or integrated with a card (e.g., an RFID or NFC card), a key fob, a figurine, an ornamental object, or the like. Alternatively or in addition thereto, in some embodiments, a group token may be provided in a form that is conceived to receive the wireless elements, e.g., in the course of using or for storing elements of the toy or educational system. For example, the group token may be shaped as, attached to, or integrated with a wireless power transmitter (e.g., a wireless charging pad), a storage container, a lid or a recipient of a storage container, or the like. Conceivably, also an external processing device, such as a user device may be adapted to store and share the configuration data. For example, a group token may also be implemented on any of the user devices mentioned herein, such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a personal computer, a single board computer, or the like.

[0034] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each of the wireless elements further comprises a token reader adapted to obtain group configuration data stored on a group token, when the group token is placed in a proximity of the token reader. This facilitates implementation of an intuitive gesture allowing a user to express the user’s intent of passing group configuration data to a wireless element by bringing the token (the information carrier) and the wireless element (the information recipient) in proximity of each other.

[0035] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each of the one or more group tokens comprises an RFID / NFC tag and wherein the token reader comprises an RFID / NFC reader. Thereby, a particularly robust and reliable implementation of a group token is provided that further enhances the user friendliness and intuitive character of the procedure of transferring configuration data.Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each wireless element is configured, upon reading group configuration data from one of the one or more group tokens, to set a group identifier of said wireless element based on the group configuration data read from said one of the one or more group tokens. Thereby, a further direct association of the group token with defining an ad-hoc group is provided that further enhances the user friendliness and intuitive character of the procedure of forming and maintaining ad-hoc groups and their connections.

[0036] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the wireless communication interface of each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements is further configured for wireless communication with one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements. As mentioned above, the wireless elements of the toy or educational system disclosed herein are typically used selectively in a grouped manner, e.g., to bring about a linked interactive user experience. Therefore, the wireless elements are typically adapted for wireless communication with one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements. Advantageously, the same wireless communication interface that is configured for communication with the user device is also used for the purpose of communication among the wireless elements, such as by communication through grouped broadcast of data messages. Thereby, an efficient and flexible implementation of the wireless communication is provided for communication with both the user device as well as among the wireless elements.

[0037] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless sensor elements, each wireless sensor element comprising a sensor adapted to produce sensor data representative of an interaction or property detected by the sensor and to broadcast the sensor data as one or more advertisement messages, wherein the advertisement messages include the group identifier of the wireless sensor element.

[0038] Thereby a wireless input element for sensor input is provided, which is adapted for use in embodiments of a toy or educational system of the present disclosure. Inparticular, the wireless input element is useful in embodiments adapted for providing a linked interactive user experience, wherein wireless elements are grouped to cooperate and share data by grouped broadcast. More particularly, in this embodiment, advertisement messages are used to transfer sensor data, here by grouped broadcast.

[0039] The wireless sensor elements may include any suitable sensor adapted for use in a toy or educational use. For example, sensors may be adapted to pick up or measure parameters indicative of environmental quantities or user interactions as also mentioned elsewhere herein. By way of example, sensors may include a proximity sensor, a colour sensor, an imaging sensor, a user-operable input element, an angular sensor, a motion sensor, an orientation sensor, a magnetic field sensor, a light sensor, a sound sensor, a microphone, a pressure sensor, a temperature sensor, a capacitive sensor, or the like.

[0040] This embodiment thus further supports the flexible and modular nature of providing a playful and / or educational user experience, wherein the wireless elements are configured to communicate with each other in a wireless broadcast network, thereby facilitating fast and instantaneous sharing of data without the need of complying with complex registration or pairing protocols. More particularly, broadcast is configured to be selective within broadcast groups, each broadcast group comprising at least one wireless element with a transmitter and at least one wireless element with a receiver. The broadcast groups may be defined in a simple and effective manner by using respective group tokens as also mentioned described elsewhere herein, wherein both transmitters and receivers may be grouped using the same group token.

[0041] Advantageously, the behaviour of the wireless sensor element may be configured and / or programmed. Advantageously, the sensor comprises a programmable control circuit. For example, parameters for sensor sensitivity and / or calibration for detecting an interaction or property may be configured and / or a sensor response function may be programmed. For example, the sensor response function may be programmed to determine how the sensor data produced by the wireless sensor element are representative of an interaction or property detected by the sensor.Advantageously, the wireless sensor further comprises a processor, wherein the processor is operationally connected to the sensor, wherein the sensor behaviour may be controlled from the processor.

[0042] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless function elements, each wireless function element comprising a function device and a control circuit adapted to control the function device to produce a user-perceptible output. Thereby, a wireless function element for generating a user-perceptible output is provided, which is adapted for use in embodiments of a toy or educational system of the present disclosure. In particular, the wireless function element is useful in embodiments adapted for providing a linked interactive user experience, wherein wireless elements are grouped to cooperate and share data by grouped broadcast.

[0043] The wireless function elements may include any suitable function device adapted for use in a toy or educational use. For example, function devices may be adapted to generate motion output, light, and / or sound as also mentioned elsewhere herein. By way of example, function devices may include motors, light emitters (e.g., one or more LEDs), image displays, sound emitters (e.g., a loudspeaker), vibration generators, or the like.

[0044] This embodiment thus further supports the flexible and modular nature of providing a playful and / or educational user experience, wherein the wireless elements are configured to communicate with each other in a wireless broadcast network, thereby facilitating fast and instantaneous sharing of data without the need of complying with complex registration or pairing protocols. More particularly, broadcast is configured to be selective within broadcast groups, each broadcast group comprising at least one wireless element with a transmitter and at least one wireless element with a receiver. The broadcast groups may be defined in a simple and effective manner by using respective group tokens as also mentioned described elsewhere herein, wherein both transmitters and receivers may be grouped using the same group token.Advantageously, the behaviour of the wireless function element may be configured and / or programmed. For example, parameters for generating a user-perceptible output or a sequence of such function output may be programmed. For example, the control circuit of the function device may be configured and / or programmed to determine how the function device responds to a received input signal. Advantageously, the wireless function element further comprises a processor, wherein the processor is operationally connected to the function device, wherein the function behaviour may be controlled from the processor.

[0045] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each wireless function element is configured to control the function device of said wireless function element responsive to a received advertisement message from one of the wireless sensor elements, provided that the received advertisement message identifies a group identifier matching the group identifier of the wireless function device.

[0046] This embodiment even further supports the flexible and modular nature of providing a playful and / or educational user experience, wherein the wireless elements may be configured to communicate, and cooperate, with each other in a wireless broadcast network. By combining wireless sensor elements and wireless function elements in ad-hoc groups, and allowing the ad-hoc groups to selectively connect to a user device through paired connections, a particularly useful and inspiring educational and / or playful experience is achieved.

[0047] The embodiment further facilitates fast and instantaneous sharing of data without the need of complying with complex registration or pairing protocols. More particularly, broadcast is configured to be selective within broadcast groups, each broadcast group comprising at least one wireless element with a transmitter and at least one wireless element with a receiver. The broadcast groups may be defined in a simple and effective manner by using respective group tokens as also mentioned described elsewhere herein, wherein both transmitters and receivers may be grouped using the same group token.

[0048] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the system is a modular construction system comprising modular construction elements,the modular construction elements comprising coupling members for detachably connecting the modular construction elements to each other so as to construct a toy or educational construction model, wherein the wireless elements are modular construction elements of the modular construction system, and wherein the modular construction system further comprises conventional modular construction elements.

[0049] Thereby, a particularly satisfying user experience is provided allowing for the construction of functional models, where the construction of a model from modular construction elements goes hand in hand with the construction of functionality from modular wireless elements, such as from wireless sensor and / or function elements that may be grouped together in ad-hoc groups, operated in ad-hoc groups in combination, and groupwise connected to a user device as described herein.

[0050] The modular construction elements of the modular construction system include coupling members adapted for connecting the modular construction elements with each other in a detachable manner, so as to construct a toy or educational construction model. The coupling members of the modular construction elements may include coupling members using friction engagement, snap-fit engagement, or a combination of both, in order to support a detachable mechanical connection between the modular construction elements. Alternatively, or in addition thereto, detachable mechanical connections to construct toy or educational construction models may also be formed between modular construction elements using coupling members providing a detachable form-locking positive connection. Alternatively, or in addition thereto, detachable mechanical connections to construct toy or educational construction models may also be formed between modular construction elements using magnetic coupling members, i.e. cooperating coupling members relying on an attractive magnetic force.

[0051] Conventional modular construction elements may include passive modular construction elements without any function beyond their suitability for model building. Conventional modular construction elements may also include passive modular construction elements with simple mechanical functions. Conventional modular construction elements may further include modular construction elements with simple functionality, such as motors, light emitters, loudspeakers, switches, sensors, andthe like, without, however, providing the wireless communication functionality as disclosed herein.

[0052] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises automatically initiating the pairing operation, in particular automatically transmitting respective pairing requests to the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying the target group identifier. Thereby, a simple and user-friendly procedure is provided that exploits the information on the ad-hoc groups to efficiently initiate only relevant pairing operations in an automated manner. The relevant pairing operation may furthermore be completed, e.g., in an automated manner (and even transparent to the user) or in a user-controlled manner, e.g., subject to input from the user prompted for confirmation of the relevant pairing operations.

[0053] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises displaying an indication of the identified wireless elements of the target group on a display of the user device and providing a user-interface functionality allowing a user to input a command to perform the initiated pairing operation. Thus, the user device may selectively display an indication of the identified wireless elements of the target group on a display thereof, and provide a user-interface functionality allowing a user to input a command to perform the initiated pairing operation. By only including identified wireless elements of the target group in the displayed indication, a further simplified and user-friendly procedure is provided that exploits the information on the ad-hoc groups to efficiently initiate only relevant pairing operations. The relevant pairing operation may then be completed in a user-controlled manner, subject to input from the user prompted for confirmation of the relevant pairing operations.

[0054] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises: performing a pairing operation with a first wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements, receiving a group identifier of the first wireless element from the first wireless element, and setting the target group identifier to be the received group identifier of the first wireless element. This way, information about the identifier of the targeted ad-hoc group is provided tothe user device in an easy and intuitive way, in natural extension of selecting a first wireless element of a targeted ad-hoc group and performing the first pairing process. The paired connection with the first wireless element of the ad-hoc group may be used as a proxy for retrieving further relevant information regarding the ad-hoc for selectively initiating only relevant pairing operations. Alternatively, the user device may use the information about the target group identifier thus received to directly initiate pairing operations selectively with other members of the targeted ad-hoc group.

[0055] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, the user device is further configured to request information from the first wireless element about other members of the group identified by the target group identifier, and wherein the first wireless device is configured to: receive advertisement messages from one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements, based on the received advertisement messages, create a list of other wireless elements that have a group identifier matching the target group identifier, and to forward the created list to the user device.

[0056] Thereby, the first wireless element of the ad-hoc group is used as a proxy for retrieving the relevant information regarding the ad-hoc group through the already established paired connection. The information may then be used for selectively initiating only relevant pairing operations. Embodiments using such a configuration are less demanding on the complexity of the programming interface to be provided on the user device. Thereby, portability of the disclosed process for selectively initiating pairing operations to different programming platforms is significantly enhanced. This allows a broader variety of user devices to be used in the toy or educational system. For example, a designer of the toy or educational system may choose to implement the process using a generic web-interface and / or in a dedicated application environment (i.e. a dedicated app on the user device). The enhanced portability gives a toy or educational kit designer a larger design flexibility and may also give a broader user group access to the enhanced pairing functionality of the disclosed toy or educational system. This may even be achieved with no or little trade-off on the complexity requirements for the processing capabilities of the wireless elements.Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, each wireless element is configured to send advertisement messages, the advertisement messages being indicative of the availability for pairing, only responsive to a user interaction with the wireless element. Requiring the user to interact with each of the (relevant) wireless elements to only send advertisement messages when the user intends on establishing paired connections reduces load on the bandwidth. Instead, the bandwidth may be used by the wireless elements for communicating with each other to cooperate in providing a linked interactive user experience. Thereby, lag for the cooperative operation of the wireless elements may be significantly reduced. Alternatively or in addition, the reduced load on the bandwidth for wireless communication may also reduce the hardware requirements for the wireless communication components to be used in the wireless communication interfaces of the wireless elements, thereby reducing both footprint and cost of the wireless elements.

[0057] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, at least a first wireless element is configured to send an advertisement message responsive to a user interaction with the first wireless element, the advertisement message being indicative of the availability for pairing, and to broadcast an advertisement request message indicative of the group identifier of the first wireless element, and wherein at least a second wireless element is configured to send an advertisement message responsive to receipt of an advertisement request message from the first wireless element and subject to the group identifier of the first wireless element matching the group identifier of the second wireless element, the advertisement message sent by the second wireless element being indicative of the availability for pairing. Embodiments using this scheme for initiating pairing operations may require significantly fewer user interactions, thereby simplifying the process and increasing user-friendliness.

[0058] In some embodiments, the user interaction with the first wireless element may be any suitable user interaction for indicating a user’s intent to start a pairing procedure with wireless elements, in particular wireless elements of a targeted ad-hoc group. For example, a user interaction with a wireless element may include one or more of: pressing a button, operating a switch, activating a user interface element, that may be visible or invisible, performing (and detecting) a gesture with or aimed at thewireless element, presenting an RFID / NFC tag, reading a QR code, reading an optical code or colour, or similar user interactions as also described elsewhere herein.

[0059] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises receiving from one of the one or more group tokens configuration data indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received configuration data. Thereby, information about the target group identifier (e.g., the target group identifier as such) may be transferred to the user device from a group token. Typically, such a user interaction involves using the group token to initiate a transfer of configuration data from the group token to the user device, thereby expressly assigning the target group identifier by user intent. In some embodiments, the user interaction may include a gesture involving the group token vis-a-vis the user device in order to cause the user device to read configuration data stored on the group token, e.g., presenting the group token to a suitable optical sensor, camera, wireless data reader, or the like. Such a procedure for receiving information about the target group identifier from a group token is particularly intuitive, if the same gesture / mechanism is also used for assigning ad-hoc group identifiers to wireless elements, more particularly if the same group token is used for assigning the target group identifier to the user device as used for assigning group membership of wireless elements in the targeted group.

[0060] Further according to some embodiments of the toy or educational system, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises receiving user input indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received user input. The user may thus explicitly control the assignment of the target group identifier to the user device. Any suitable input means may be used to do so, thereby providing a large degree of flexibility (and portability). Furthermore, the above-mentioned mechanism of receiving the target group identifier from a group token may also be used as a user input mechanism.

[0061] According to further aspects, a method of initiating paired connections between a user device and a plurality of wireless elements of a toy or educational system is provided with advantageous embodiments as defined in the appended claims anddisclosed in the following. Thereby, the same or analogue advantages are achieved as discussed above with respect to the disclosed toy or educational system.

[0062] In some embodiments, a method of initiating paired connections between a user device and a plurality of wireless elements of a toy or educational system is provided, wherein each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements comprises a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device, wherein the user device comprises a wireless communications interface configured for wireless communication with each of the plurality of wireless elements; the method comprising:

[0063] detecting, at a wireless element, a user interaction, the user interaction being indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements;

[0064] responsive to the detected user interaction with the wireless element, maintaining, at the wireless element, a group identifier, the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group,

[0065] transmitting, from the wireless element, advertisement messages, the advertisement messages identifying the wireless element and the group identifier maintained by the wireless element;

[0066] receiving, at the user device, information about a target group identifier, receiving, at the user device, advertisement messages from one or more of the wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements, each advertisement message identifying one of the wireless elements being available for pairing, and the advertisement message further identifying a group identifier of said wireless element being available for pairing, and

[0067] selectively initiating a pairing operation with the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying said wireless element as being available for pairing and identifying the target group identifier.

[0068] Furthermore, advantageous embodiments of the method are also correspondingly defined by advantageous features disclosed above in the context of embodiments of the toy or educational system and as given in the following, by way of example.In some embodiments, the method may further comprise performing wireless communication according to a Bluetooth Low Energy standard.

[0069] In some embodiments of the method, each of the transmitted advertisement messages comprises a device name identifying the wireless element transmitting the advertisement message.

[0070] In some embodiments, the method may comprise, responsive to said user interaction, changing, at the wireless element, its device name to an ad-hoc device name, the ad-hoc device name including information about the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group.

[0071] In some embodiments of the method, the ad-hoc device name includes a code encoding a graphical representation of the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, in particular an emoji representing a group identified by the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, and the user device is configured to display the encoded graphical representation in a list of wireless elements that are available for pairing.

[0072] In some embodiments of the method, the toy or educational system may further comprise one or more group tokens, each carrying group configuration data indicative of a group identifier. Furthermore, each of the wireless elements may further comprise a token reader adapted to obtain group configuration data stored on a group token, when the group token is placed in a proximity of the token reader. Advantageously, each of the one or more group tokens comprises an RFID / NFC tag and the token reader comprises an RFID / NFC reader. Advantageously, the method may further comprise, upon reading group configuration data from one of the one or more group tokens, at the wireless element, setting a group identifier of said wireless element based on the group configuration data read from said one of the one or more group tokens.

[0073] In some embodiments of the method, the wireless communication interface of each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements is further configured forwireless communication with one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements.

[0074] In some embodiments of the method, the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless sensor elements, each wireless sensor element comprising a sensor adapted to produce sensor data representative of an interaction or property detected by the sensor and to broadcast the sensor data as one or more advertisement messages, wherein the advertisement messages include the group identifier of the wireless sensor element.

[0075] In some embodiments of the method, the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless function elements, each wireless function element comprising a function device and a control circuit adapted to control the function device to produce a user-perceptible output.

[0076] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise controlling at a wireless function element, control the function device of said wireless function element responsive to a received advertisement message from one of the wireless sensor elements, provided that the received advertisement message identifies a group identifier matching the group identifier of the wireless function device.

[0077] In some embodiments of the method, the toy or educational system is a modular construction system comprising modular construction elements, the modular construction elements comprising coupling members for detachably connecting the modular construction elements to each other so as to construct a toy or educational construction model, wherein the wireless elements are modular construction elements of the modular construction system, and wherein the modular construction system further comprises conventional modular construction elements.

[0078] In some embodiments of the method, selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises automatically initiating the pairing operation, in particular automatically transmitting respective pairing requests to the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying the target group identifier.In some embodiments of the method, selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises displaying an indication of the identified wireless elements of the target group on a display of the user device and providing a user-interface functionality allowing a user to input a command to perform the initiated pairing operation.

[0079] In some embodiments of the method, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises performing a pairing operation with a first wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements, receiving a group identifier of the first wireless element from the first wireless element, and setting the target group identifier to be the received group identifier of the first wireless element.

[0080] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise, at the user device, requesting information from the first wireless element about other members of the group identified by the target group identifier, and, at the first wireless device, receiving advertisement messages from one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements, based on the received advertisement messages, creating a list of other wireless elements that have a group identifier matching the target group identifier, and forwarding the created list to the user device.

[0081] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise, at the wireless element, sending advertisement messages, the advertisement messages being indicative of the availability for pairing. The advertisement messages may only be sent in response to a user interaction with the wireless element.

[0082] In some embodiments, the method may further comprise, at least at a first wireless element, sending an advertisement message responsive to a user interaction with the first wireless element, the advertisement message being indicative of the availability for pairing, and broadcasting an advertisement request message indicative of the group identifier of the first wireless element, and, at least at a second wireless element, sending an advertisement message responsive to receipt of an advertisement request message from the first wireless element and subject to the group identifier of the first wireless element matching the group identifier of the second wireless element, the advertisement message sent by the second wireless element being indicative of the availability for pairing.In some embodiments of the method, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises receiving from one of the one or more group tokens configuration data indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received configuration data.

[0083] In some embodiments of the method, receiving information about a target group identifier comprises receiving user input indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received user input.

[0084] BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0085] Embodiments of the disclosure will be described in more detail in the following in connection with the appended drawings.

[0086] Fig. 1 schematically shows a first scenario of establishing a paired connection with an ad-hoc group of wireless elements in a toy or educational system according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0087] Fig. 2 schematically shows a second scenario of establishing a paired connection with an ad-hoc group of wireless elements in a toy or educational system according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0088] Fig. 3 schematically shows a third scenario of establishing a paired connection with an ad-hoc group of wireless elements in a toy or educational system according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0089] Fig. 4 schematically shows an embodiment of a wireless element for use in a toy or educational system according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

[0090] Fig. 5 shows modular elements of a prior art toy construction system.

[0091] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0092] As discussed above, a plurality of wireless elements of a toy or educational system may be used and arranged together for a playful and educational experience. Suchplayful and educational experience may involve many users at the same time in many different settings. Common to all these settings involving multiple users is a need to facilitate selective interaction within one subset of wireless elements, e.g., wireless elements belonging to one user group or construction model, without interfering with other subsets of wireless elements, e.g., wireless elements belonging to other users, or another construction model.

[0093] In some embodiments, the wireless elements may be configured to communicate with each other in a grouped broadcast network facilitating fast and instantaneous sharing of data, without the need of complying with complex registration or pairing protocols. More particularly, the broadcast may be selective within broadcast groups, which are configured in a simple and effective manner, e.g., using respective group tokens for assigning a common group identifier to each of the members of a given group.

[0094] However, some settings may benefit from or even require a paired wireless connection between wireless elements and a user device, the paired wireless connection e.g., using a standardized wireless communication infrastructure, such as using a Bluetooth Low Energy standard. In particular, when using a user device, such as a smart phone, tablet, laptop computer, or a personal computer, to connect with one or more wireless elements of a toy or educational system according to the present disclosure, a paired connection may be useful. For example, the user may want to program or modify an interactive behaviour of one or more of the wireless elements in order to solve a particular task. In particular, a user may want to establish a paired connection to a group of such wireless elements of the toy or educational system which has been formed ad-hoc in the course of using the toy or educational system for a playful and / or educational project. For example, the user may want to use the paired connection to program or modify a linked interactive behaviour of the group of wireless elements acting in combination, in order to solve a task. Furthermore, besides establishing one or more ad-hoc groups of wireless elements, the user may want to change the grouping ad-hoc, e.g., adding and / or removing wireless elements to the ad-hoc group, or even terminate the grouping during the project. The toy or educational system according to the present disclosure then provides an efficient mechanism to adapt the paired connections to such changes in the grouping.Referring to Figs.1-3 in the following, different scenarios for selectively initiating pairing operations from a user device are described, where pairing is targeted to wireless elements of a specified user-established ad-hoc group. Figs. 1-3 show a toy or educational system 100 comprising a user device 101 and a plurality of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150.

[0095] Each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 comprises a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device. Typically, the wireless interface of each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 is also configured for wireless communication with the other ones of the plurality of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150, thereby facilitating the operation of multiple wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 in combination, e.g., to provide a linked interactive user experience. Alternatively, a separate wireless interface may be provided in each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150, which is configured for wireless communication with the other ones of the plurality of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 to facilitate such co-operation of multiple wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150.

[0096] Each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 comprises a processing mechanism 111, 121, 131, 141, 151 configured to maintain a group identifier responsive to an interaction 9 from a user 99 with the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150. The user interaction 9 is indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements and the group identifier identifies said ad-hoc group. Furthermore, each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 is configured to transmit advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50. The advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 identify the wireless element and the group identifier maintained by the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150. The processing mechanism 111, 121, 131, 141, 151 may be implemented as a set of programmed instructions, which when executed cause the wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 to maintain said group identifier responsive to the user’s interaction 9 with the wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150.The user device 101 comprises a wireless communications interface 102 configured for wireless communication with each of the plurality of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150. The user device 101 is configured to receive information about a target group identifier 103. In Fig. 1, the value of the group identifier is “001”. The user device 101 is also configured to receive advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 from one or more of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 of the plurality of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150. The user device 101 may receive the information identifying a target group as input from the user 99, e.g., through a user interaction 19.

[0097] Each advertisement message 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 identifies one of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 being available for pairing. Each advertisement message 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 further identifies a group identifier of said wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 being available for pairing. Furthermore, the user device 101 is configured to selectively initiate a pairing operation 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 with the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 from which the user device 101 has received an advertisement message 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 identifying said wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 as being available for pairing and identifying the target group identifier 103.

[0098] The wireless communications interfaces of the user device 101 and of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may use any suitable protocol for wireless communication. Advantageously, the wireless communications interfaces of the user device 101 and of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 are configured to perform wireless communication according to a standardised protocol, such as a Bluetooth Low Energy standard.

[0099] Each of the transmitted advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 comprises a device name 112, 122, 132, 142, 152 identifying the wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 transmitting the advertisement message 10, 20, 30, 40, 50. For example, in Fig. 1, element 110 includes the group identifier “001” and the element label or name “S1” as well as other information that may be included.Furthermore, each wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may be configured, responsive to the user interaction 9 therewith, to change its device name 112, 122, 132, 142, 152 to an ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a, the ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a including information about the group identifier 103 identifying said ad-hoc group. For example in Fig. 2, the ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a may include a code encoding a graphical representation 109 of the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group. In one embodiment, the code may denote an emoji representing a group identified by the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group. The user device 101 may then further be configured to display the encoded graphical representation 109 in a list 104 of ad-hoc device names 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a of wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 that are available for pairing. This facilitates an easy verification by the user 99 of the ad-hoc group membership of each wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 listed as being available for pairing.

[0100] The toy or educational system 100 may further comprise one or more group tokens 1, 2 (see Figures 1 and 2), each carrying group configuration data indicative of a group identifier “001”, “010” and a code encoding a graphical representation 109. Each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may further comprise a token reader adapted to obtain group configuration data stored on a group token 1, 2, when the group token 1 , 2 is placed in a proximity of the token reader. Each of the one or more group tokens 1 , 2 may comprise an RFID / NFC tag and the token reader may comprise an RFID / NFC reader. Each RFID / NFC tag may store such group configuration data, which may be read by the RFID / NFC reader of any of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150. Alternatively or in addition thereto, the one or more group tokens 1, 2 may carry group configuration data in any suitable form, such as graphically, optically encoded, magnetically encoded, or the like, and the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may comprise a compatible reader adapted to read the group configuration data provided in such form. Furthermore, each wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may be configured, upon reading group configuration data from one of the one or more group tokens 1 , 2, to set the group identifier “001”, “010” as ad-hoc group identifier of said wireless element 110, 120, 130, 140, 150, based on the group configuration data read from said one of the one or more group tokens 1,2. Alternatively or in addition thereto, the wirelesselements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may also comprise a user interface allowing the user 99 to set an ad-hoc group identifier in direct interaction with the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150.

[0101] In the scenario of Figure 1, a user 99 may select the three wireless elements 110, 120, 130 to establish an ad-hoc group 36 so identified and illustrated as being in a dashed line box. The user 99 performs an interaction 9 with each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 to indicate their inclusion into the user-established ad-hoc group 36. The ad-hoc group 36 is identified by the ad-hoc group identifier “001”. Each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 responds to the user interaction 9 by setting their group identifier to “001”, i.e. to the ad-hoc group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group 36. This is done in each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 by means of the processing mechanisms 111, 121, 131, respectively. The selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 may then be activated to transmit advertisement messages 10, 20, 30. The advertisement messages 10, 20, 30 identify the wireless element 110, 120, 130, here labelled “S1”, “S2”, and “F1”, respectively, as well as the group identifier “001” maintained by the wireless element 110, 120, 130.

[0102] The other wireless elements 140, 150, which are not subject to the user interaction 9, and which are thus not included in the ad-hoc group 36, do not respond by changing the group identifier identifying an ad-hoc group. Instead, the processing mechanisms 141, 151 in the other wireless elements 140, 150 may keep the group identifiers at a default value, such as “NUL”. Each of the other wireless elements 140, 150 may also be activated to transmit a corresponding advertisement messages 40, 50 identifying the wireless element 140, 150, here labelled “S3” and “F2”, respectively. However, since the other wireless elements 140, 150 are not part of the ad-hoc group 36, the advertisement messages 40, 50 do not include the group identifier “001”.

[0103] The user 99 may further proceed to establish a first paired connection 11 between the user device 101 and a first one 110 of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130 in the ad-hoc group 36. The user 99 may further identify the ad-hoc group 36 as the target group, by providing the ad-hoc group identifier “001” to the user device 101.This may be done in any suitable manner, e.g., as illustrated by arrow 18 as part of the pairing procedure for establishing a paired connection with the first wireless element 110, or as illustrated by arrow 19 as a separate user input to the user device 101.

[0104] The user device 101 may use the received information about the target group identifier 103 to select among received advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 the advertisement messages 10, 20, 30 identifying the target group identifier “001” of the targeted ad-hoc group 36. The user device 101 may further select only the advertisement messages identifying the corresponding wireless elements 120, 130 as being available for pairing. As illustrated by arrow 91, the user device 101 uses the information from the selected advertisement messages 20, 30, to selectively initiate a pairing operation with the further ad-hoc group members 120, 130 that are also available for pairing, for the purpose of establishing paired connections 12, 13.

[0105] The user device may receive the advertisement messages in any suitable manner. For example, using the first wireless element 110 as a proxy, the user device 101 may query the first wireless element for further group members. The first wireless element which may then issue, e.g., broadcast a command to all of the ad-hoc group members with the group identifier “001” to transmit advertisement messages. Following this command, the first wireless element 110 may listen for advertisement messages 20, 30 with a group identifier matching the targeted group identifier “001”, e.g., for a predetermined period of time, to collect the values of any wireless element names received, here “S2” and “F1”. The first wireless element 110 may then concatenate a list of further ad-hoc group members {S2 , F 1 }, and forward the list through the paired connection 11 to the user device 101. The user device 101 may then at arrow 91 selectively initiate a pairing operation with the identified further wireless elements 120, 130 for the purpose of establishing further paired connections 12, 13 between the user device 101 and the further wireless elements 120, 130 of the ad-hoc group 36. For example, the user device 101 may on a user interface thereof selectively prompt the user 99 for establishing one or more further paired connections, listing only the further wireless elements 120, 130. The user device 101 may be configured to complete the pairing operation subject to a user input in response to such a prompt and / or proceed to complete the pairing operation automatically.An ad-hoc group may be formed in any suitable manner. For example, a force sensor may be grouped in an ad-hoc group together with a motor. The force sensor can be used as a user input sensor so that upon pressing the sensing element, like a protrusion (e.g., button), the paired motor is toggled between “on” and “off.” As can be seen, by using a token for grouping without having to connect wires to the user device or between the force sensor and motor, set up is facilitated so that more time is spent playing and learning. The force sensor and motor may be directly physically connected, or part of the same structure as well as not even physically connected at all.

[0106] In the scenario of Figure 2, a user 99 has selected the same three wireless elements 110, 120, 130 to establish an ad-hoc group 36. The user 99 performs an interaction 9 with each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 to indicate their inclusion into the user-established ad-hoc group 36. In the scenario of Figure 2, the user 99 uses group token 1 , such as a card carrying an RFID tag therein to perform the interaction 9 with each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130. The ad-hoc group 36 is thus identified by the ad-hoc group identifier “001”. As in the scenario of Figure 1, each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 responds to the user interaction 9 by setting their group identifier to “001”, i.e. to the ad-hoc group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group 36. This is done in each of the selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 by means of the processing mechanisms 111, 121, 131, respectively. The selected wireless elements 110, 120, 130 may then be activated to transmit advertisement messages 10, 20, 30. The advertisement messages 10, 20, 30 identify the wireless element 110, 120, 130, here labelled “S1”, “S2”, and “F1”, respectively, as well as the group identifier “001” maintained by the wireless element 110, 120, 130.

[0107] In the scenario of Figure 2, the user 99 furthermore picks the two other wireless elements 140, 150 to establish another ad-hoc group 29 (e.g., the group labelled “010”). The user 99 performs an interaction 8 with each of the other wireless elements 140, 150 to indicate their inclusion into the other user-established ad-hoc group 29. The user 99 uses another group token 2, such as a card carrying an RFID tag therein to perform the interaction 8 with each of the other wireless elements 140,150. The ad-hoc group 29 is thus identified by the ad-hoc group identifier “010”. Again, each of the other wireless elements 140, 150 responds to the user interaction 8 by setting their group identifier to “010”, i.e. to the ad-hoc group identifier identifying said other ad-hoc group 29. This is done in each of the other wireless elements 140, 150 by means of the processing mechanisms 141, 151, respectively. If activated to do so, the other wireless elements 140, 150 may then transmit advertisement messages 40, 50. The advertisement messages 40, 50 identify the corresponding wireless element 140, 150, here labelled “S3” and “F2”, respectively, as well as the group identifier “010” maintained by the wireless element 140, 150.

[0108] The user 99 may further identify the ad-hoc group 36 as the target group, by providing the ad-hoc group identifier “001” to the user device 101, e.g., as a separate user input 19 to the user device 101. This may be done in any suitable manner, as discussed above. For example, the user 99 may at arrow 19 present the group token 1 to a suitable reader included in the user device 101 , for the user device 101 to read configuration data comprising the ad-hoc group identifier “001” and assign the read ad-hoc group identifier “001” of the group token 1 as the target group identifier 103. Note that the other wireless elements 140, 150 are not part of the ad-hoc group 36, and the advertisement messages 40, 50 do not identify the correct value “001” for target group 103. Instead, the other wireless elements 140, 150 maintain the other ad-hoc group identifier “010”, and thus identify the other group identifier “010” in their advertisement messages 40, 50 as described above.

[0109] The user device may receive the advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 in any suitable manner. For example, as shown in Figure 2, the user device 101 may receive the advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 directly from the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 that are activated for transmission (and available for pairing), at the wireless communication interface 102.

[0110] The user device 101 may use the received information to select among received advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 the advertisement messages 10, 20, 30 identifying the target group identifier “001” of the targeted ad-hoc group 36. The user device 101 may further select only the advertisement messages identifying the corresponding wireless elements 110, 120, 130 as being available for pairing.At arrow 92, the user device 101 uses the information from the selected advertisement messages 10, 20, 30, to selectively initiate a pairing operation with each of the ad-hoc group members 110, 120, 130 that are also available for pairing, for the purpose of establishing paired connections 11, 12, 13 between the user device 101 and the wireless elements 110, 120, 130 of the ad-hoc group 36. For example, the user device 101 may on a user interface thereof selectively prompt the user 99 for establishing one or more paired connections, listing only the wireless elements 110, 120, 130 and disregarding any of the other wireless elements 140, 150 that are not part of the targeted ad-hoc group 36. The user device 101 may be configured to complete the pairing operations 11, 12, 13 subject to a user input in response to such a prompt and / or proceed to complete the pairing operation automatically. Further, the user can present the second token 2 (e.g., group identifier “010” with a heart-shaped code) to other elements to form the second ad-hoc group 29 in the same manner.

[0111] As also seen in Figure 2, each of the wireless elements 110, 120, 130, 140, 150 may be configured to change its device name 112, 122, 132, 142, 152 to an ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a, where the ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a, 142a, 152a includes a code 109 comprising an emoji representing a group identified by the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group. By way of example, the ad-hoc group identifier “001” of the targeted ad-hoc group 36 may be represented by a happy smiley, and all wireless elements 110, 120, 130 that are member of the same ad-hoc group 36 may change their respective device names 112, 122, 132 to an ad-hoc device name 112a, 122a, 132a including a happy smiley. Further by way of example, the ad-hoc group identifier “010” of the other ad-hoc group 29 may be represented by a heart, and all wireless elements 140, 150 that are members of the other ad-hoc group 29 may change their respective device names 142, 152 to an ad-hoc device name 142a, 152a including a heart. The user device 101 may then further be configured to display the encoded graphical representation 109 in a list 104 of ad-hoc device names 112a, 122a, 132a, of wireless elements 110, 120, 130 that are member of the targeted ad-hoc group. This facilitates an easy and intuitive verification by the user 99 of the ad-hoc group membership of each wireless element 110, 120, 130 listed as being available for pairing.The scenario of Figure 3 is an extension of any of the scenarios of figures 1 or 2. In the scenario of Figure 3, the user 99 modifies the targeted ad-hoc group 36 to also include the wireless devices 140, 150, thereby forming a new targeted ad-hoc group 65. Since the user 99 merely modifies the targeted ad-hoc group 36, the user device may re-use the previously received information about the target group identifier 103. Accordingly, the target group identifier 103 remains “001” as in figures 1 and 2.

[0112] The wireless devices 140, 150 are added to the ad-hoc group 36 with the ad-hoc group identifier “001” by a simple user interaction 9, e.g., using the group token 1 as shown in Figure 3 in the same manner as described above with respect to Figure 2. The processing mechanisms 141, 151 of the wireless elements 140, 150 respond to the user interaction 9 by setting the respective group identifiers to the (new) ad-hoc group identifier value “001”. The newly selected wireless elements 140, 150 may furthermore change their respective device names 142, 152 to an ad-hoc device name 142a, 152a, now including a graphical representation in the form of a happy smiley. When activated to do so, the wireless elements 140, 150, transmit advertisement messages 40, 50. The advertisement messages 40, 50 identify the wireless elements 140, 150 as being available for pairing and the group identifier maintained by the wireless elements. The wireless elements 140, 150 may be identified, e.g., by their device names 142, 152 or by their ad-hoc device names 142a, 152a, as applicable. As in Figure 1, another one of the wireless elements may be used as a proxy to convey the information about other members 140, 150 of the ad-hoc group 65 that are available for pairing to the user device. For example, the first wireless element 110 may collect the information and provide a list of the newly added wireless elements 140, 150 to the user device through the already established paired connection 11. Alternatively, the information about the newly added wireless elements 140, 150 may also be collected directly at the user device 101, by receiving the advertisement messages 40, 50 at the wireless communication interface 102 similar to what has been described above with respect to Figure 2. At arrow 93, the user device 101 may then initiate a pairing operation in respect of the identified wireless elements 140, 150, and may be completed in the same way as above to also establish paired connections 14, 15 between the user device 101 and the wireless elements 140, 150.Figure 4 shows schematically a wireless element 400 adapted for use in an embodiment of a toy or educational system according to the disclosure. The wireless element 400 may be a modular construction element of a modular construction system. Each modular construction element of the modular construction system comprises coupling members 480 adapted for connecting the modular construction elements with each other in a detachable manner, so as to construct a construction model as also detailed further below. A housing 401 of the wireless element 400 may therefore be shaped and dimensioned to be compatible with modular construction elements of a modular construction system and may comprise corresponding coupling members 480, both male and female, of the modular construction system.

[0113] Generally, the wireless element 400 includes a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device. The wireless communication interface comprises a transmitter module 440 and a receiver module 450. The wireless element 400 may further include: a group token reader 410 adapted to read configuration data from a group token; a status indicator 420 adapted to provide a user-perceptible output according to a group status of the wireless element; an input device 430 adapted to collect input, such as user input and / or sensor input or data from an external data source, such as for providing timing data or trigger instructions; and a function device 460 adapted to provide a user perceptible output, such as motion, light, sound, image or video display, audio or similar. Generally, the wireless element further includes a processor 470 operationally coupled to the group token reader 410, the status indicator 420, the input device 430, the wireless communication interface with transmitter and receiver modules 440, 450, and the function device 460.

[0114] The processor 470 may be configured to detect user interaction received, e.g., through the token reader 410 or the input device 430, and identify user interaction as indicating inclusion of the wireless element 400 in an ad-hoc group of wireless elements. The ad-hoc group of wireless elements is identified by a group identifier that is common for all ad-hoc group members. Responsive to determining inclusion in the ad-hoc group, the processor 470 may set the maintained group identifier to correspond to the ad-hoc group identifier. In an analogue manner, when determining a user interaction indicating inclusion in a new / different ad-hoc group, the processor470 may change the group identifier to the group identifier identifying the new / differ-ent ad-hoc group. Furthermore, in an analogue manner, the processor 470 may set the group identifier to a default value, e.g., “NUL”, when determining a user interaction indicating removal of the wireless element from an ad-hoc group. The processor 470 may further receive activation input requiring the transmission of advertisement messages. The advertisement messages may identify the wireless element 400 and the group identifier maintained by the wireless element 400. Advertisement messages may be data messages that are transmitted, e.g., broadcast, without requiring a specified recipient.

[0115] The group token reader 410 may be adapted to read configuration data from a group token, such as the group tokens 1, 2 carrying ad-hoc group identifiers “001”, “010” as described above with reference to figures 1-3. The processor 470 may further be configured to set a group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, based on configuration data read from a group token.

[0116] The status indicator 420 may be adapted to provide a user-perceptible output according to a group status of the wireless element. The processor 470 may be configured to set the group status based on configuration data read from a group token. More particularly, the group status indicator 420 may be controlled by the processor 470 to provide a status output corresponding to a group label, such as light emission in a colour corresponding to a group label specified as a colour.

[0117] The input device 430 may be adapted to collect input, such as user input and / or sensor input or data from an external data source, such as for providing timing data or trigger instructions. An input device 430 may include a sensor adapted to sense physical quantities and provide corresponding sensor data representative of the sensed physical quantity, such as mechanical, electrical, and optical quantities, or a combination of these. By way of example, such sensors may include a switch, a keyboard, a position sensor, a proximity sensor, a motion sensor, an acceleration sensor, a pressure sensor, a light sensor, a temperature sensor, a gyroscope, a touch sensor, a microphone, or the like. The input device 430 is further adapted to pass any collected input to the processor 470 for further handling.The transmitter module 440 may be adapted to broadcast data messages through one or more channels of a wireless communication infrastructure, such as Bluetooth, or similar. The transmitter module 440 is furthermore operationally coupled to the processor 470, which controls operation of the transmitter module 440 and provides the data messages to be broadcast.

[0118] The receiver module 450 may be adapted to receive data messages through the one or more channels of a wireless communication infrastructure, such as Bluetooth, or similar. The receiver module 450 is furthermore operationally coupled to the processor 470, which controls operation of the receiver module 450, and handles any received data messages, including selection of data messages by group identifier, and any further processing of selected data messages.

[0119] The function device 460 may be adapted to provide a user perceptible output, such as motion, light, sound, image or video display, audio or similar. The function device is operationally coupled to the processor 470, which controls its operation. For example, the processor 470 may control the operation of the function based on any programmed instructions or data collected from the reader 410 or the receiver 450. The wireless element 400 is thereby adapted for operation in a grouped broadcast network.

[0120] Generally, the wireless element 400 may be adapted to transmit data messages, to receive data messages, or both. Generally, the wireless element 400 may be adapted to collect input, to generate user-perceptible output, or both.

[0121] While the wireless element 400 shown schematically in Fig. 4 includes all the above-mentioned components, it will be appreciated that a wireless communication interface with transmitter and receiver modules 440, 450 and a processor 470 are present in all wireless elements 400, together with an appropriate power supply (not shown in the drawing), whereas the other components 410, 420, 430, 460 may or may not be present in a given wireless element 400. The optional components include the token reader 410, the status indicator 420, the input device 430, and the function device 460.Generally, the processor 470 of a wireless element 400 includes programmed instructions controlling the behaviour of the wireless element 400. For example, the programmed instructions on an input wireless element for obtaining sensor input (such as the above-mentioned wireless elements 110, 120, 140 labelled “S1”, “S2”, and “S3”) may control the frequency of data collection, the conversion of the input into input device output data, and the parsing of the input device output data in a data message for broadcast by the transmitter module 440. The programmed instructions on a receiver wireless element for performing a user-perceptible function (such as the above-mentioned wireless elements 130, 150 labelled “F1” and “F2”) may control the response to received data messages, and the details of the response output, such as a motion pattern or speed, or a colour and duration of a light emission or of a sequence of light pulses. The programmed instructions may be written to the wireless element 400, modified, or replaced, in order to program the behaviour of the wireless element 400. The wireless element 400 may read programmed instructions included in configuration data from a group token. Alternatively or in addition thereto, the wireless element 400 may be configured to read such programmed instructions from a dedicated programming token that may be provided separately. Furthermore, the toy or educational system may provide a programming interface operated on a user device 101, such as a personal computer, a tablet computer, a mobile phone, or a similar smart device, which may connect to the processor 470 of the wireless element 400 through a paired connection via the wireless communication interface with transmitter and receiver modules 440, 450, or through a dedicated programming port (not shown).

[0122] Fig. 5 shows examples of conventional modular construction elements, that are well known in the art of toy construction systems, and which are equally useful and well-known in the context of construction systems for educational purposes. Such modular construction elements may even include input and / or function devices (not shown). The conventional modular construction elements may be part of an educational set 500, such as a classroom set, provided in a box 510 along with an instruction book 520 with guidance for educational tasks that can be completed using the educational set 500. However, the conventional modular construction elements do not include the wireless functionality as described herein. The modular construction elements include coupling members adapted for mechanically connecting themodular construction elements with each other in a detachable manner, so as to construct a toy or educational construction model. By way of example, the coupling members of the conventional modular construction elements shown in Fig. 5 may include coupling members using friction engagement, snap-fit engagement, or a combination of both, in order to support a detachable connection between the modular construction elements. Alternatively or in addition thereto, detachable mechanical connections may also be formed between modular construction elements using coupling members providing a detachable form-locking positive connection. Alternatively or in addition thereto, detachable mechanical connections may also be formed between modular construction elements using magnetic coupling members, i.e. cooperating coupling members relying on an attractive magnetic force.

[0123] The construction elements of Figure 5 may also be electrically connected by electrical cables and connectors. In addition to all of the elements mentioned above, the elements could include battery modules for power, colour sensors, angular motors, light matrix modules, communication hub modules and the like. One or more of these features may be combined into a single element such as a communication hub also having a light matrix that can display the code (e.g., a heart shape) to the user. As it will be appreciated, such a set can greatly benefit from the technology of the subject disclosure to avoid complex registration and pairing protocols and tricky small electrical connections that may not even be within the skill level of young children. By being able to utilize group tokens to form ad-hoc groups, desired structures may not only be quickly built but grouped. For example, a robot may be built, then grouped using a group token to form the robot elements into an ad-hoc group so that upon pressing a single activation button, all of the robot elements are activated. In one embodiment, the group token may take the form of a coloured card, read by a colour sensor, that includes an image of the ad-hoc groups code.

[0124] It is envisioned that the same elements may be utilized for children of various ages by including games or instructions targeted for various ages. For the very young, a toy vehicle may be assembled with quickly and easily grouped elements including an accelerometer. By utilizing the accelerometer data, the young can begin to learn about acceleration and velocity and how to graphically represent data. These figuresof merit can be used to identify the fastest vehicle. By minimizing the set up time, the play and learning time can be maximized in a timed educational setting.

[0125] For more advanced ages, the velocity of the vehicles may be determined and utilized to set up a synchronized arrival at a station of one or more vehicles. The students will be able to calculate the head starts needed for the slower vehicles to arrive at the station at the same time as the faster vehicles, thereby enhancing measurement skills and calculations for a speed to cross a distance.

[0126] According to some embodiments, the wireless elements of a toy or educational system as disclosed herein may be modular construction elements that are adapted to be compatible with conventional modular construction elements. Further according to some embodiments, a toy or educational system may further comprise conventional modular construction elements, besides a plurality of wireless elements adapted for modular construction, and one or more group tokens.

[0127] It will be appreciated that the functions of several elements may, in alternative embodiments, be carried out by fewer elements, or a single element. Similarly, in some embodiments, any functional element may perform fewer, or different, operations than those described with respect to the illustrated embodiment. Also, functional elements (e.g., modules, transmitters, receivers, readers, interfaces, processors and the like) shown as distinct for purposes of illustration may be incorporated within other functional elements in a particular implementation.

[0128] While the subject technology has been described with respect to preferred embodiments, it will be appreciated that various changes and / or modifications can be made to the subject technology without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

42CLAIMS1. A toy or educational system comprising: a plurality of wireless elements and a user device,wherein each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements comprises a wireless communication interface configured for wireless communication with the user device; and wherein each wireless element is configured to:maintain a group identifier responsive to a user interaction with the wireless element, the user interaction being indicative of inclusion of the wireless element into a user-established ad-hoc group of wireless elements, and the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group; andtransmit advertisement messages, the advertisement messages identifying the wireless element and the group identifier maintained by the wireless element; andwherein the user device comprises a wireless communications interface configured for wireless communication with each of the plurality of wireless elements, and wherein the user device is configured to:receive information about a target group identifier;receive advertisement messages from one or more of the wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements, each advertisement message identifying one of the wireless elements being available for pairing, and the advertisement message further identifying a group identifier of said wireless element being available for pairing; andselectively initiate a pairing operation with the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying said wireless element as being available for pairing and identifying the target group identifier.

2. The toy or educational system according to claim 1 , wherein the wireless communications interfaces of the user device and of the wireless elements are configured to perform wireless communication according to a Bluetooth Low Energy standard.

433. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein each of the transmitted advertisement messages comprises a device name identifying the wireless element transmitting the advertisement message.

4. The toy or educational system according to claim 3, wherein each wireless element is configured, responsive to said user interaction, to change the respective device name to an ad-hoc device name, the ad-hoc device name including information about the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group.

5. The toy or educational system according to claim 4, wherein the ad-hoc device name includes a code encoding a graphical representation of the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group, and wherein the user device is configured to display the encoded graphical representation in a list of wireless elements that are available for pairing.

6. The toy or educational system according to claim 5, wherein the graphical representation is an emoji representing a group identified by the group identifier identifying said ad-hoc group.

7. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising one or more group tokens, each group token carrying group configuration data indicative of a group identifier.

8. The toy or educational system according to claim 7, wherein each of the wireless elements further comprises a token reader adapted to obtain group configuration data stored on a group token, when the group token is placed in a proximity of the token reader.

9. The toy or educational system according to claim 8, wherein each of the one or more group tokens comprises an RFID / NFC tag and wherein the token reader comprises an RFID / NFC reader.

10. The toy or educational system according to claim 8 or 9, wherein each wireless element is configured, upon reading group configuration data from one of the one or44more group tokens, to set a group identifier of said wireless element based on the group configuration data read from said one of the one or more group tokens.

11. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the wireless communication interface of each wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements is further configured for wireless communication with one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements.

12. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless sensor elements, each wireless sensor element comprising a sensor adapted to produce sensor data representative of an interaction or property detected by the sensor and to broadcast the sensor data as one or more advertisement messages, wherein the advertisement messages include the group identifier of the wireless sensor element.

13. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the plurality of wireless elements comprises one or more wireless function elements, each wireless function element comprising a function device and a control circuit adapted to control the function device to produce a user-perceptible output.

14. The toy or educational system according to claim 13, when dependent on claim 12, wherein each wireless function element is configured to control the function device of said wireless function element responsive to a received advertisement message from one of the wireless sensor elements, provided that the received advertisement message identifies a group identifier matching the group identifier of the wireless function device.

15. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the system is a modular construction system comprising modular construction elements, the modular construction elements comprising coupling members for detachably connecting the modular construction elements to each other so as to construct a toy or educational construction model, wherein the wireless elements are modular construction elements of the modular construction system, and whereinthe modular construction system further comprises conventional modular construction elements.

16. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises automatically initiating the pairing operation, in particular automatically transmitting respective pairing requests to the wireless elements from which the user device has received an advertisement message identifying the target group identifier.

17. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein selectively initiating a pairing operation comprises displaying an indication of the identified wireless elements of the target group on a display of the user device and providing a user-interface functionality allowing a user to input a command to perform the initiated pairing operation.

18. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein receiving information about a target group identifier comprises:performing a pairing operation with a first wireless element of the plurality of wireless elements,receiving a group identifier of the first wireless element from the first wireless element and setting the target group identifier to be the received group identifier of the first wireless element.

19. The toy or educational system according to claim 18, wherein the user device is further configured to request information from the first wireless element about other members of the group identified by the target group identifier, and wherein the first wireless device is configured to:receive advertisement messages from one or more other wireless elements of the plurality of wireless elements,based on the received advertisement messages, create a list of other wireless elements that have a group identifier matching the target group identifier, and toforward the created list to the user device.

20. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein each wireless element is configured to send advertisement messages, the advertisement messages being indicative of the availability for pairing, only responsive to a user interaction with the wireless element.

21. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least a first wireless element is configured to send an advertisement message responsive to a user interaction with the first wireless element, the advertisement message being indicative of the availability for pairing, and to broadcast an advertisement request message indicative of the group identifier of the first wireless element, and wherein at least a second wireless element is configured to send an advertisement message responsive to receipt of an advertisement request message from the first wireless element and subject to the group identifier of the first wireless element matching the group identifier of the second wireless element, the advertisement message sent by the second wireless element being indicative of the availability for pairing.

22. The toy or educational system according to any one of claims 7-21 , wherein receiving information about a target group identifier comprises:receiving from one of the one or more group tokens configuration data indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received configuration data.

23. The toy or educational system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein receiving information about a target group identifier comprises:receiving user input indicative of a group identifier and setting the target group identifier according to the received user input.

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