The next generation event badge — The CharmBadge is the solution you have been waiting for - a way to share your contact information with others without having to carry a box of business cards with you or type in the information of your contacts once you return to the office.

• General Information
• Details
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General Information

The CharmBadge is a computerized event badge about the size of a business card. Users simply wear the badge and it records the contact information of other CharmBadge users as they come into range. Back at the office, a user accesses his or her contact list from the event via the CharmBadge Information Access Center. Here, the attendee can sort contacts, view in the order the contact was recorded, by dwell time or other criteria, and then initiate immediate follow through, thereby decreasing the time they spend typing in the information of their contacts.

In addition to tracking contacts, the CharmBadge also encourages interactions by displaying the affinity that one user has with another using the four green LEDs on the badge. The affinity is based on users' answers to questions asked of all CharmBadge users for the specific event. For example, if four questions were asked and two users have answered all the questions the same, they have full affinity with each other and all four LEDs will glow on both CharmBadges. If two answers were the same, the affinity is 50% and only two LEDs will glow. Thus, the CharmBadges provide users with a conversation starter - a reason to figure out why the CharmBadges are showing a particular affinity, or possibly lack thereof.

Details

Each CharmBadge is assigned an IPv6 address, which corresponds to the user's contact information in the CharmBadge database. The CharmBadge exchanges this IPv6 address as well as its affinity information with other badges in its field of view via infrared transmit/receivers and tracks the time it sees another CharmBadge as an interaction. In order to access the actual contact information, the badge is downloaded at a CharmBadge Download Center and the interactions transferred to the CharmBadge database. The user may then visit the CharmBadge Information Access Center to view their contacts corresponding to that event.

User Scenario

1

• An attendee approaches the registration desk
• The attendee completes the contact information and affinity matching questions

2

• The attendee's information is input into the CharmBadge System database.
• The attendee is given his CharmBadge and a user guide.
• He hangs the badge around his neck.

3

• While walking through the conference, the attendee passes another attendee.
• Lights on the CharmBadges flash, indicating there is a 75% affinity match.
• Out of curiosity, the two begin a conversation
• During the conversation, the CharmBadges transfer contact information and keep track of the conversation time (dwell time).

4

• In the exhibits area, the attendee investigates an interesting product.
• A CharmBadge, placed by the product receives the attendee's contact information and records his dwell time.
• The product CharmBadge also transmits the product's information to the attendee's CharmBadge.

5

• During a break in the sessions, the attendee stops by the CharmBadge Download Center
• The attendee's interactions are downloaded to the CharmBadge System along with the approximate time and duration of each interaction.
• The attendee's badge is ready again for more interactions.

6

• When leaving the conference, the attendee deposits his CharmBadge at the Charmed Booth.
• A Charmed Assistant downloads the stored contact information from the badge to a secure website.

7

• During the conference or upon return from the conference, the attendee can access his interaction list via the CharmBadge Information Access Center.
• He can sort the interactions and view them in order received, by dwell time, or using other criteria. He can also write notes for each interaction.
• The attendee can save selected interactions as contacts for later import into email applications supporting the vCard or can initiate immediate follow through.