WO2013071499A1

WO2013071499A1 - Method and apparatus for providing food safety identification and warning

Info

Publication number: WO2013071499A1
Application number: PCT/CN2011/082305
Authority: WO
Inventors: Wei Wang; Hao Yang; Hao Wang
Original assignee: Nokia Inc
Current assignee: Nokia Inc
Priority date: 2011-11-16
Filing date: 2011-11-16
Publication date: 2013-05-23
Anticipated expiration: 2014-05-16
Also published as: CN103890791A

Abstract

An approach is provided for food safety identification and warning. The approach involves processing and/or facilitating a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items. The safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The approach also includes determining a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof The approach further includes determining one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

Description

METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR

PROVIDING FOOD SAFETY IDENTIFICATION AND WARNING

BACKGROUND

[0001] Service providers (e.g., wireless, cellular, etc.) and device manufacturers are continually challenged to deliver value and convenience to consumers by, for example, providing compelling network services that address significant problems of the day. One such problem has been the growing concern over food safety (e.g., food recalls, outbreaks of foodborne illnesses, etc.). As a result, service providers and device manufacturers face significant technical challenges to facilitating monitoring and dissemination of food safety information to consumers, producers, regulators, and other interested parties.

SOME EXAMPLE EMBODIMENTS

[0002] Therefore, there is a need for an approach for efficiently providing food safety identification and warning.

[0003] According to one embodiment, a method comprises processing and/or facilitating a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items. The safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The method also comprises determining a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof. The method further comprises determining one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

[0004] According to another embodiment, an apparatus comprises at least one processor, and at least one memory including computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause, at least in part, the apparatus to process and/or facilitate a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items. The safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The apparatus is also caused to determine a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof. The apparatus is further caused to determine one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

[0005] According to another embodiment, a computer-readable storage medium carries one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause, at least in part, an apparatus to process and/or facilitate a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items. The safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The apparatus is also caused to determine a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof. The apparatus is further caused to determine one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

[0006] According to another embodiment, an apparatus comprises means for processing and/or facilitating a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items. The safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The apparatus also comprises means for detennining a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof. The apparatus further comprises means for determining one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

[0007] In addition, for various example embodiments of the invention, the following is applicable: a method comprising facilitating a processing of and/or processing (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal, the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal based, at least in part, on (including derived at least in part from) any one or any combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of the invention.

[0008] For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is also applicable: a method comprising facilitating access to at least one interface configured to allow access to at least one service, the at least one service configured to perform any one or any combination of network or service provider methods (or processes) disclosed in this application.

[0009] For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is also applicable: a method comprising facilitating creating and/or facilitating modifying (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality, the (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality based, at least in part, on data and/or information resulting from one or any combination of methods or processes disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of the invention, and/or at least one signal resulting from one or any combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of the invention.

[0010] For various example embodiments of the invention, the following is also applicable: a method comprising creating and/or modifying (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality, the (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality based at least in part on data and/or information resulting from one or any combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of the invention, and/or at least one signal resulting from one or any combination of methods (or processes) disclosed in this application as relevant to any embodiment of the invention.

[0011] In various example embodiments, the methods (or processes) can be accomplished on the service provider side or on the mobile device side or in any shared way between service provider and mobile device with actions being performed on both sides.

[0012] For various example embodiments, the following is applicable: An apparatus comprising means for performing the method of any of originally filed claims 1-30 and 51-53.

[0013] In various example embodiments, the methods (or processes) can be accomplished on the service provider side or on the mobile device side or in any shared way between service provider and mobile device with actions being performed on both sides.

[0014] Still other aspects, features, and advantages of the invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description, simply by illustrating a number of particular embodiments and implementations, including the best mode contemplated for carrying out the invention. The invention is also capable of other and different embodiments, and its several details can be modified in various obvious respects, all without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0015] The embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings:

[0016] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a system capable of providing food safety identification and warning, according to one embodiment;

[0017] FIG. 2 is a diagram of components of a food safety platform, according to one embodiment; [0018] FIG. 3 is a diagram depicting an overview of a process for notifying users of food safety information, according to one embodiment; [0019] FIG. 4 is a diagram depicting an overview of a process for determining foods potentially affected by a food safety incident, according to one embodiment;

[0020] FIG. 5 is a diagram of a food production network, according to one embodiment;

[0021] FIG. 6 is a diagram of a graph model representation of a food production network, according to one embodiment;

[0022] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a process for food safety identification and warning, according to one embodiment;

[0023] FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a process for food safety identification and warning over a food production network, according to one embodiment;

[0024] FIG. 9 is a diagram of determining food safety identification over nodes of a food production network, according to one embodiment;

[0025] FIG. 10 is a diagram of a user interface for submitting a food safety incident report, according to one embodiment;

[0026] FIG. 1 1 is a diagram of a user interface for providing voting information related to food safety information, according to one embodiment;

[0027] FIGs. 12A-12C are diagrams of user interfaces for providing a food safety warning based on scanning information, according to various embodiments;

[0028] FIGs. 13 A and 13B are diagrams of user interfaces for providing a food safety warning based on context information, according to various embodiments;

[0029] FIG. 14 is a diagram of hardware that can be used to implement an embodiment of the invention;

[0030] FIG. 15 is a diagram of a chip set that can be used to implement an embodiment of the invention; and

[0031] FIG. 16 is a diagram of a mobile terminal (e.g., handset) that can be used to implement an embodiment of the invention. DESCRIPTION OF SOME EMBODIMENTS

[0032] Examples of a method, apparatus, and computer program for providing food safety information and warning are disclosed. In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments of the invention. It is apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the embodiments of the invention may be practiced without these specific details or with an equivalent arrangement. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the embodiments of the invention.

[0033] FIG. 1 is a diagram of a system capable of providing food safety identification and warning, according to one embodiment. As noted above, with the advances in mass food production and distribution, food safety has become a serious concern in many countries. For example, food items that may pose health or safety threats can be quickly distributed over a potentially expansive area before any food safety problems are discovered or noticed by consumers. Because modern food production can span multiple layers (e.g., from producers to distributors to stores/restaurants to consumers), any party in the food production network could be the cause of a food safety incident, and potentially affect a large number of food items if the root cause of the incident is located in the upper or primary stages of the food production network. This leads to the potential situation where large numbers of consumers can be exposed to those threats before governmental or other regulatory authorities can act. [0034] Traditionally, food safety incidents, for instance, are identified when many consumers are affected (e.g., become ill) and reported by news organizations. In many cases, the news of the incidents reach consumers after the consumers have already consumed the food items of potential concern. In other cases, regulators and/or other governmental authorities monitor food safety conditions. However, because of limited resources, such inspections typically are conducted at random. In other words, due to the time and cost of a thorough inspection, such random sampling usually covers only a very limited number of foods. In addition, the regulators often do not know what specific food items to target based on the foods that pose the most threat or based on what most consumers prefer. Therefore, to minimize the extent of the threat, all parties of the food distribution network as well as regulators and other authorities need to be able to identify food safety incidents as early as possible with as much specificity as possible so that they can quickly warn potentially affected parties.

[0035] To address this problem, a system 100 of FIG, 1 introduces the capability to collect and fuse information from various sources (e.g., news information from social network feeds and/or other news feeds) related to food safety to identify food safety incidents. In one embodiment, for each incident, the system 100 extracts the corresponding food item, place, time, and/or other contextual information (e.g., activity, behavior, preference, etc.). In some embodiments, the system can then any combination of the following:

• Identify users who have visited the identified place around the identified time and send then a warning, alert, notification, etc. about the potential food safety incident;

• Identify users who may visit the identified place in the near future (e.g., based on whether the identified place is a significant place to the user) and send them a warning, alert, notification, etc.;

• When new users are close to the identified place, send them a warning, alert, notification, etc.;

• When users scan (e.g., via a mobile device camera) or otherwise indicate a preference for the identified food, send them a warning, alert, notification, etc.; and

• When user scan food similar or related to the identified food, send them a warning, alert, notification, etc.

[0036] In another embodiment, after identifying the food safety incidents and/or affected food items, the system 100 associates potentially affected food items with one or more nodes of a food production network (e.g., see the discussion with respect to FIGs, 5 and 6 for additional details of a food production network), In one embodiment, starting from the identified nodes, the system 100 traverses or goes upstream in the food production network to identify the source(s) of the food safety incidents. From the identified source(s), the system 100 can then go downstream to identify potentially affected foods at the end of the food production chain.

[0037] In one embodiment, due to the capacity or resources available for inspection, the system 100 can prioritize the potentially affected foods for inspection. For example, the system 100 can initially rank the potentially affected foods by a calculated probability that the food is affected by the incident (e.g., based on factors such as ingredients in the foods, distribution chains, historical relationships, etc.). In some embodiments, this initial ranking can then be presented to the user for voting, selection, etc. For example, users can vote or indicate a preference for the food they consume the most. The system 100 can then adjust the ranking based, at least in part, on the probability and the user's vote and/or preferences.

[0038] As shown in FIG. 1 , the system 100 comprises one or more user equipment (UEs) l Ola-l Oln (also collectively referred to as UEs 101) having connectivity to a food safety platform 103. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 performs the processes for identifying food safety incidents from news information and then generating warnings or alerts based on the foods and/or places it has confirmed that are affected by the incidents. The UE 101 may include or have access to an application 107 (e.g., applications 107 -107n) to enable the UE 101 to interact with, for instance, the food safety platform 103 to report food safety incidents and/or to receive warnings, alerts, notifications, etc. from the food safety platform 103. In some embodiments, the application 107 may include an augmented reality application, a camera application, a gallery application, etc. for scanning food items and/or displaying times/locations of food safety incidents.

[0039] In another embodiment, the food safety platform 103 may include or have access to a food production network 117 or a model (e.g., a graph model) of the food production network 1 17. By way of example, the food safety platform 103 can interact with the food production network 117 to identity potential sources, potentially affected food items, etc. associated with the determined food safety incidents, The various of sources of information for determining the food safety incidents may, for instance, be provided by a service platform 11 1, one or more services 1 13a-l 13k (also collectively referred to as services 1 13; e.g., social networking service, news services, etc.), one or more content providers 115a-115m (also collectively referred to as content providers 115), and/or other services or information sources available over the communication network 105. For example, a particular service 1 13 may obtain content (e.g., news feeds) from a particular content provider 115 to offer the content to the food safety platform 103 for processing. It is noted that the food safety platform 103 may be a separate entity of the system 100, a part of the one or more services 1 13 of the service platform 1 11, or included within the UE 101 (e.g., as part of the application 107).

[0040] Still further, in certain embodiments, the system 100 may use context information to determine, for instance, when a UE 101 should receive food incident warnings. By way of example, context information may pertain to real-time or historical interactions that occur between a user and their respective UE 101. It is noted that how a person uses a device can be examined to show specific patterns that represent that user's behaviors or tendencies relative to a given activity or food preference. The current way in which the user interacts with their device may also provide a reason for matching users against particular food safety warnings or incidents. Also, by way of example, some mobile devices 101 keep records of a user's interactions with their device at given moments, such as when the user engages the device for: (1) communicating via text messaging or e-mail (e.g. through maintenance of a communication log/history); (2) playing media files or streaming data; (3) social networking; (4) using certain applications; etc. Data is recorded, therefore, as "context information," which pertains to any data indicative of the current activity the user is engaged in with respect to the device that can be indicative of food safety information.

[0041] By way of example, in certain embodiments, context information may also include data transmitted during an instance of device engagement with the social networking service 113 over the communication network 105. Also, by way of example, context information may pertain to any data gathered by one or more sensors 111a of the device, said data representing sensory phenomena useful for characterizing the present moment interaction between the device and one or more devices, objects or users and/or determining ambient environmental characteristics (e.g., light and darkness sensors to determine when a user is outdoors vs. indoors, etc.). Exemplary sensors may include, but is not limited to, a sound recorder, light sensor, global positioning system (GPS) and/or spatio-temporal detector, temperature sensor, motion sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, camera and/or any other device for perceiving sensory and environmental phenomena. Objects for which the device may interact may include, but is not limited to, other user devices (e.g., cell phones), peripheral devices such as Bluetooth headsets, keyboards and server devices or entities within the immediate environment or context of use such as buildings, landmarks, machines, vehicles or people.

[0042] By way of example, the communication network 105 of system 100 includes one or more networks such as a data network (not shown), a wireless network (not shown), a telephony network (not shown), or any combination thereof. It is contemplated that the data network may be any local area network (LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), wide area network (WAN), a public data network (e.g., the Internet), short range wireless network, or any other suitable packet-switched network, such as a commercially owned, proprietary packet-switched network, e.g., a proprietary cable or fiber-optic network, and the like, or any combination thereof. In addition, the wireless network may be, for example, a cellular network and may employ various technologies including enhanced data rates for global evolution (EDGE), general packet radio service (GPRS), global system for mobile communications (GSM), Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), etc., as well as any other suitable wireless medium, e.g., worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks, code division multiple access (CDMA), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), wireless fidelity (WiFi), wireless LAN (WLAN), Bluetooth®, Internet Protocol (IP) data casting, satellite, mobile ad-hoc network (MANET), and the like, or any combination thereof.

[0043] The UE 101 is any type of mobile terminal, fixed terminal, or portable terminal including a mobile handset, station, unit, device, multimedia computer, multimedia tablet, Internet node, communicator, desktop computer, laptop computer, notebook computer, netbook computer, tablet computer, personal communication system (PCS) device, personal navigation device, personal digital assistants (PDAs), audio/video player, digital camera/camcorder, positioning device, television receiver, radio broadcast receiver, electronic book device, game device, or any combination thereof, including the accessories and peripherals of these devices, or any combination thereof. It is also contemplated that the UE 101 can support any type of interface to the user (such as "wearable" circuitry, etc.). In one embodiment, the UE 101 can be a device that simulates or provides a virtual telescope-like function. This type of UE 101 can be, for instance, mounted in a public place (e.g., a shopping center, hotel, etc.) to enable users to view information presented as described herein.

[0044] By way of example, the UE 101 , processing platform 103 and social networking service 1 13 communicate with each other and other components of the communication network 105 using well known, new or still developing protocols. In this context, a protocol includes a set of rules defining how the network nodes within the communication network 105 interact with each other based on information sent over the communication links. The protocols are effective at different layers of operation within each node, from generating and receiving physical signals of various types, to selecting a link for transferring those signals, to the format of information indicated by those signals, to identifying which software application executing on a computer system sends or receives the information. The conceptually different layers of protocols for exchanging information over a network are described in the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Reference Model.

[0045] Communications between the network nodes are typically effected by exchanging discrete packets of data. Each packet typically comprises (1) header information associated with a particular protocol, and (2) payload information that follows the header information and contains information that may be processed independently of that particular protocol. In some protocols, the packet includes (3) trailer information following the payload and indicating the end of the payload information. The header includes information such as the source of the packet, its destination, the length of the payload, and other properties used by the protocol. Often, the data in the payload for the particular protocol includes a header and payload for a different protocol associated with a different, higher layer of the OSI Reference Model. The header for a particular protocol typically indicates a type for the next protocol contained in its payload. The higher layer protocol is said to be encapsulated in the lower layer protocol. The headers included in a packet traversing multiple heterogeneous networks, such as the Internet, typically include a physical (layer 1) header, a data-link (layer 2) header, an internetwork (layer 3) header and a transport (layer 4) header, and various application headers (layer 5, layer 6 and layer 7) as defined by the OSI Reference Model.

[0046] In one embodiment, the application 107 and the food safety platform 103 may interact according to a client-server model. According to the client-server model, a client process sends a message including a request to a server process, and the server process responds by providing a service (e.g., providing map information). The server process may also return a message with a response to the client process. Often the client process and server process execute on different computer devices, called hosts, and communicate via a network using one or more protocols for network communications. The term "server" is conventionally used to refer to the process that provides the service, or the host computer on which the process operates. Similarly, the term "client" is conventionally used to refer to the process that makes the request, or the host computer on which the process operates. As used herein, the terms "client" and "server" refer to the processes, rather than the host computers, unless otherwise clear from the context. In addition, the process performed by a server can be broken up to run as multiple processes on multiple hosts (sometimes called tiers) for reasons that include reliability, scalability, and redundancy, among others.

[0047] FIG. 2 is a diagram of components of a food safety platform, according to one embodiment. By way of example, the food safety platform 103 includes one or more components for providing food safety identification and warning. It is contemplated that the functions of these components may be combined in one or more components or performed by other components of equivalent functionality. In this embodiment, the food safety platform 103 includes (1) a control logic (or processor) 201 ; (2) memory 203 for storing program code, variables, data, etc. related to the operation of the food safety platform 103; (3) an information collection and fusion module 205 for aggregating news information related to food safety and then extracting and/or identifying food safety incidents from the news information; (4) an identification module 207 for evaluating nodes of a food production network 113 to determine whether the nodes that are associated with foods that are identified in the food safety incidents; (4) an alert module 209 for generating food safety notifications, alerts, warnings, etc.; (5) a presentation module 21 1 for presenting a user interface and other related information; and (6) a communication interface 213 for transmitting alerts and interfacing with other components of the system 100. By way of example, the control logic 201 executes at least one algorithm for executing functions of the food safety platform 103. In the particular, the control logic 201 interacts with the information collection and fusion module 205, the identification module 207, and the presentation module 21 1 to provide food safety information and warning as discussed with respect to the various embodiments described herein.

J0048] As noted above, the control logic 201 may utilize the communication interface 213 to communicate with other components of the system 100, the UEs 101 , the service platform 11 1, and/or the content providers 115. For example, the communication interface 213 may transmit notifications, warnings, alerts, etc. to the UEs 101 regarding food safety incidents, food items and/or places identified in the food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. The communication interface 213 may further include multiple means of communication. In one use case, the communication interface 213 may be able to communicate over SMS, internet protocol, instant messaging, voice sessions (e.g., via a phone network), or other types of communi cati on.

[0049] The operation of the other modules of the food safety platform 103 is further discussed below with respect to FIGs. 3 and 4. FIG. 3 is a diagram depicting an overview of a process for notifying users of food safety information, according to one embodiment; and FIG. 4 is a diagram depicting an overview of a process for identifying potentially affected foods and places with the information of a food production network, according to one embodiment.

[0050] As shown in FIG. 3, the information collection and fusion module 205 collects news information 301 including, for instance, information from various sources such as social network feeds (e.g., tweets), news feeds from news organizations, as well as self-reported food safety incident reports submitted by users. The information collection and fusion module 205 then processes the news information in order to identify food safety incidents and extract corresponding information regarding the food items 303, locations or places 305, and/or other contextual data (e.g., times) associated with the food incidents. [0051] In one embodiment, the identification module 207 then processes the food safety incident reports to determine which nodes of the food production network 117 are associated with potentially affected foods. A list of the potentially affected foods is generated based on, for instance, an upstream and downstream analysis of food distribution and/or contribution from one node to another (as further described with respect to FIG. 4). In one embodiment, the potentially affected foods are ranked according to a probability that they are affected by the identified food incidents. In some embodiments, the ranking of the foods can also be adjusted by on voting or preference information provided by consumers. The ranked list of potentially affected foods are then transmitted or otherwise provided to one or more inspection facilities, authorities, etc. to initiate inspections of the foods.

[0052] Once the inspection facility issues the official reports on the identified foods, the alert module 209 can generate one or more notifications, warnings, alerts, etc. to notify users 307 of the foods, places, times, etc. associated with food safety incidents. In one embodiment, the alert module 209 may use contextual information to determine which users 307 to notify. For example, UEs 101 associated with the users 307 may upload location information (e.g., location histories, travel patterns, etc). In addition or alternatively, the UEs 101 may upload information on what foods the users 307 have scanned (e.g., barcode scanning via camera modules). The alert module 209 may then processes the information to generate a list of significant places associated with the users 307, learn food preferences associated with the users 307, and/or other patterns to indicate whether the users 307 are likely to be affected by the identified foods and/or places associated with the confirmed food safety incidents.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 4, the components of the food safety platform 103 may also use the determined food safety incidents as part of a identification program of a food production network 1 17. As discussed with respect to FIG. 3, the information collection and fusion module 205 aggregates news information 301 for identification of the food safety incidents. In this embodiment, the food items identified from the food safety incidents are then associated with one or more nodes of the food production network 117. . The identification module 207 can then further traverse upstream of the food production network 117 to identify the sources of the food items in the food safety incidents. Once the source nodes are identified, the identification module 207 can traverse downstream nodes from the identified sources to determine other potentially affected food items. In one embodiment, the identification module 207 can calculate "affection probabilities" (e.g., probabilities that other food items are potentially affected by the food safety incidents) and rank the list of potentially affected foods accordingly. [0054] The identification module 207 via, for instance, the presentation module 211, can present the rank lists to users 307 to collect voting and/or preference information. For example, voters can vote on which of the potentially affected foods are most important or common. The identification module 207 can then use the voting information to adjust the rankings of the potentially affected foods. This adjusted list can then be sent to regulators or other authorities to initiate inspections. In some embodiments, the results of the inspections can be used by the identification module 207 to refine or adjust the rankings of the potentially affected foods and to release the inspection results to the public.

[0055] FIG. 5 is a diagram of a food production network, according to one embodiment. FIG. 5 illustrates different levels of a food production network 1 17. In this example, the food production network 1 17 includes, at least in part, (1) an agricultural level 501 (e.g., farms) where food items are grown or produced, (2) a food processing level 503 (e.g., food manufacturers, processing plants, etc.) where the food is processed or refined for consumption, (3) a distribution and consumption level 505 (e.g., markets, shops, etc.), and a consumer level 507 (e.g., end users, buyers, etc.). It is contemplated that the food production network 117 can include any number or layers or hierarchies. By way of example, food safety incidents can occur at any of the levels, but incidents occurring further upstream (e.g., at the agricultural level 501 or food processing level 503) can potentially affected a greater number of food items further downstream. Examples of food safety incidents at the difference levels include: (1) pesticide or hormone contamination at the agricultural level 501, (2) additive contamination at the food processing level 503, and (3) storage failure (e.g., refrigeration malfunction) at the distribution and consumption level 505.

[0056] In the various embodiments, it is assumed that the system 100 has access to information regarding all or part of the food production network 117 for a relevant jurisdiction (e.g., country, state, province, municipality, etc.). For example, in some countries or jurisdictions implement a nationwide barcode or other identification system for each producer in the food processing level 503. This system can be extended to include all producers and distributors in the food production network 1 17 to ensure that each party in the food production network 117 can be identified.

[0057] FIG. 6 is a diagram of a graph model representation of a food production network, according to one embodiment. To facilitate processing by the food safety platform 103, the food production network 1 17 can be modeled as a graph based on distribution, food relationships, etc. among the different nodes of the network. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, root nodes 601 (e.g., at the top of the graph) correlate to higher levels (e.g., agricultural level 501) of the food production network 1 17 with consumers (e.g., consumer level 507) at the bottom or downstream nodes 603 of the food production network 117. In addition, the graph can depict values 605 that indicate how much of a particular node's output constitute the food products or items of its child or downstream nodes. [0058] In one embodiment, the nodes reflect information recorded by the system 100 to indicate places relevant to food safety, e.g., restaurants, supermarkets, fanner's markets, etc. In some embodiments, the system 100 can depict or render food-related points of interest on a map in addition to the modeled graph. In this way, the system can compare the locations of the food- related points of interest to locations associated with a particular user's or UE 101 's location history. In other words, for each user, the system 100 knows what food-safety-related places he/she has visited and the corresponding time. The system 100 can also learn the significant or most common food-related places preferred or visited by a user or UE 101. In other embodiments, in addition to a location history, the system 100 can maintain a food preference history for each user or UE 101 to further aid in determining when a particular user should be alerted or notified of a food safety incident.

[0059] FIG. 7 is a flowchart of a process for food safety identification and warning, according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, the food safety manager 103 performs the process 700 and is implemented in, for instance, a chip set including a processor and a memory as shown FIG. 15. It is noted that the process 700 generically describes a food safety identification and warning mechanism, while the process of FIG. 8 below provides a more detailed process of applying the mechanism to identify specific nodes of a food production network that may be associated with foods identified in the food safety incidents. [0060] At step 701, the food safety platform 103 identifies one or more food safety incidents. In one embodiment, the information collection and fusion module 205 of the food safety platform 103 performs the step. More specifically, the food safety platform 103 processes and/or facilitates a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items, wherein the safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof. For example, the food safety platform 103 can check how many times the locations and/or the affected food items have been reported collectively by different users and within a time window (e.g., most recent two days). If the count exceeds a threshold, the food safety platform 103 identifies the food safety incident and outputs the food, place, time, etc.

[0061] In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 determines the news information from one or more social networking feeds, one or more news feeds, or any other information source for food safety information (e.g., governmental announcements, health records, etc.). By way of example, for news feeds (e.g., safety news, government announcements), the food safety platform 103 can treat one news item/announcement as corresponding to a food safety incident. The food safety platform 103 can then extract the time, location (place), as well as identify the affected food item(s) of the incident directly from the source news information.

[0062] In addition or alternatively, for social networking news feeds (e.g., tweets), the food safety platform 103 can use predefined keywords such as "food safety", "diarrhea", etc. to filter feeds or news information potentially related to food safety incidents. For each news item or feed that passes the first filtering, the food safety platform 103 can perform a full analysis (e.g., using specialized mining algorithms) to determine the news information reports a food safety incident. If so, the food safety platform 103 can extract the corresponding food items, place, time, and/or other associated information.

[0063] In another embodiment, the food safety platform 103 determines the news information from one or more incident reports. These incidents reports, for instance, may be self-reported by users via applications 107 executing on their respective UEs 101. In the case of self-reported incidents, the food safety platform 103 may determine the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on contextual information associated one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof submitting the one or more incident reports.

[0064] In one embodiment, self-reporting can also trigger being selected by the food safety platform 103 for notification. For example, for users who reported a specific food and/or place, the food safety platform 103 can send any food safety incidents associated with that particular food and/or place. For self-reports that are not certain or specific about the food and/or place of the incident, the food safety platform 103 can perform an analysis of determine the missing or uncertain information. For example, with respect to a missing or uncertain location of the incident, the food safety platform 103 can examine all of the food-safety-related places, the reporting users have visited during a time window (e.g., one day) to identity common locations or places that can be the location of the food safety incident. In another embodiment, the food safety platform 103 can also calculate the likelihood score that the reported incident is associated with each of the determined common places. For example, the score will increase with the number of reporting users who have visited the place. In addition, the platform 103 can also take into account the number keywords matching between the reporting users' descriptions in the report and the descriptions of the each of the common places. [0065] The food safety platform 103 then determines a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof. Next, the food safety platform 103 determines one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria. It is noted that, in one embodiment, the term "confirmed food safety incident" refers to a potential food safety incident that the food safety platform 103 has determined to meet criteria for identifying that the food safety incident has potentially occurred. It does not necessarily mean that the food safety incident has been confirmed to have actually occurred.

[0066] At step 703, the food safety platform 103 (e.g., via the identification module 207) identifies one or more food items potentially affected by the confirmed food safety incidents and generates a list. By way of example, the food safety platform 103 generates this list by causing, at least in part, a ranking of the one or more other food items based, at least in part, on probability information that the one or more other food items are potentially affected by the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

[0067] At step 705, the food safety platform 103 pushes the potentially affected food list to the users to collect voting information, preference information, popularity information, etc. The food safety platform 103 can then use this information to adjust the ranking of the one or more potentially affected food items based, on the voting information, preference information, popularity information, or other user information (step 707). This prioritized list of potentially affected food items can then be sent to regulatory authorities (e.g., an inspection institute), governmental authorities, affected parties, etc. (step 709). As discussed previously, the results of the inspection can then be used to provide feedback to the public or to users who reported, voted, or otherwise participated in the food safety identification and warning process.

[0068] At step 713, the food safety platform 103 performs a user selection process to push (1) notifications of the foods or places identified from the food safety incidents, (2) results of the inspection, (3) etc. to users who may consume or come in contact with the affected foods in their nearby places of interest. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 processing and/or facilitating a processing of contextual information associated with one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof for comparison against the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to cause, at least in part, a generation of one or more safety alerts for the one or more devices or users.

[0069] In one embodiment, the contextual information includes, at least in part, one or more locations, one or more movement patterns, sensor information regarding one or more ambient environmental conditions, food preference information, or a combination thereof. In the addition, the contextual information can include, at least in part, historical information, substantially current information, substantially real-time information, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, the food safety platform 103 causes, at least in part, an initiation of the processing of the contextual information based, at least in part, on a determination that the one or more devices has scanned the one or more food items, one or more identifiers associated with the one or more food items, or a combination thereof.

[0070] More specifically, for places associated with foods identified from the food safety incidents, the food safety platform 103 matches the places with a user's location history around the identified time to find users who visited the places (e.g., through inference algorithms) when the incidents were happening. By way of example, the inference algorithms may determine whether a user has visited the identified places by evaluating GPS or other location data to determine if the user has been close to the target place. The inference algorithm may also look for movement patterns that match specific food-related places (e.g., restaurants are associated with still movements; supermarkets are associated with patterns of walk, stop, walk, etc.). Other algorithms are based on keyword recognition (e.g., restaurants associated with "menu", "order", "check", etc.; supermarket associated with "find", "houseware", "kitchen", etc. Yet other algorithms may rely on determining ambient environmental conditions such as light and sound. For example, restaurants can be associated with soft, warm light, and music; and supermarkets are associated with bright lights, and advertisement broadcasts. It is contemplated that the food safety platform 103 may use any combination of these or other inference algorithms.

[0071] The food safety platform 103 can also match the identified locations with a user's significant or favorite places to predict whether the user will visit a certain affected location. In yet another embodiment, the food safety platform 103 can identify when new users are visiting the identified location. The food safety platform 103 can notify users who meet one or more of these criteria.

[0072] For food items identified in the food safety incidents, the food safety platform 103 can match the user's scan history to find users who may have consumed the food. In addition, the food safety platform 103 can also match the identified food items with a user's food preferences (e.g., as learned by the system). For example, the platform 103 can identify users who have consumed similar foods and who may be likely to consume the affected foods as well. Users who meet one or more of these criteria can be notified as well.

[0073] FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a process for food safety identification and warning over a food production network, according to one embodiment. In one embodiment, the food safety manager 103 performs the process 800 and is implemented in, for instance, a chip set including a processor and a memory as shown FIG. 15. The process 800 is similar to the process 700 of FIG. 7 but provides additional details to functions of the identification module 207 in associating food safety incidents with nodes of a food production network 1 17. [0074] At step 801, the food safety platform 103 (e.g., via the information collection and fusion module 205) evaluates news information (e.g., news feeds, government announcements, consumer incident reports, etc.) to extract information related to food safety. At step 803, the food safety platform 103 concludes that there is a food safety incident as described with respect to FIG. 7 above. [0075] Next, the identification module 207 of the food safety platform 103 associates the foods identified in the food safety incident with one or more nodes of the food production network 117. More specifically, the food safety platform 103 processes and/or facilitates a processing of the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination of the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to associate the one or more food items with one or more nodes of a food production network. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 causes, at least in part, a modeling of the food production network as a hierarchical graph wherein the one or more nodes include, at least in part, one or more production nodes, one or more processing nodes, one or more storage nodes, one or more distribution nodes, one or more consumer nodes, or a combination thereof.

[0076] The food safety platform 103 also causes, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more upstream nodes of the food production network as one or more potential sources of the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 further causes, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more downstream nodes of the food production network with one or more other food items that are potentially affected by of the one or more food items associated the one or more confirmed food safety incidents (step 807).

[0077] As discussed in the process 700 of FIG. 7, the food safety platform 103 pushes the food and place list generated from the determined food safety incidents to the users for their vote (step 809). The ranking of the foods in the list can then be adjusted based on the voting information (step 81 1). This prioritized list is then sent for inspection (step 813). In addition, the food safety platform 103 provides warnings, notifications, alerts, etc. to relevant users based, at least in part, on their context, voting input, preference information, etc. (step 815). At step 817, the food safety platform 103 can perform user selection to push the notifications, warnings, alerts, etc. to those users who may consume some of the affected food in their nearby places of interest (step 817). [0078] FIG. 9 is a diagram of determining food safety identification over nodes of a food production network, according to one embodiment. As shown in graph 901, the food service platform 103 identifies a node 903 of a food production network 117 that is associated with a determined food safety incident. In graph 905, the food safety platform 103 has traversed the graph upstream to identify source nodes 907 that have contributed food items to the identified node 903. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 employs a first probabilistic model to calculate the likelihood an upstream node 907 is the source of the incident or the food items identified from the incident. For example, the food safety platform 103 can select the most likely upstream nodes 907, according to threshold criteria, as the identified sources. In one embodiment, the current identified node 903 itself, and any of its parents, could be the source of the incident. The food safety platform 103 can calculate the probability of being the source as being proportional to the contribution of the upstream node to the food item of the identified node 903. [0079] In graph 909, the food safety platform 103 traverses downstream from the source nodes 907 to identify all downstream nodes 911 that are likely to have been affected by the food incident report associated with the identified node 903. For downstream nodes 911, the food safety platform 103 may use a second probabilistic mode to calculate the likelihood a downstream node 911of the identified source nodes (e.g., upstream nodes 907, identified node 903) could be affected. In one embodiment, the safety platform 103 can select the most likely downstream nodes 91 1 as the potentially affected nodes. For example, the safety platform 103 can set the weight of the identified source to 1. The platform 103 then propagates the weight to its child nodes proportionally to its contribution to the food items of the child nodes. By way of example, the weight of any node 911 is the sum of the weight from all of its parent nodes. The food safety platform 103 can then iteratively go downstream until reaching the leaf nodes.

[0080] In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 can refine the two probabilistic models (e.g., upstream and downstream) based on actual inspection results. For example, the proportion constant can be adjusted to match the prediction with actual inspection results.

[0081] FIG. 10 is a diagram of a user interface for submitting a food safety incident report, according to one embodiment. As shown, the user interface 1000 provides fields for reporting a food safety incident by one or more reporting users. In this example, the user interface 1000 provides input fields for a time 1001 , a location 1003, a food item 1005, and one or more symptoms 1007 of the reported food safety incident. Each field enables users to enter information with varying levels of specificity. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 can suggest missing entries or more specific entries based on the reporting users context information history. The incident report can then be processed in combination with other news items or reports to facilitate the determination of a food safety incident. [0082] FIG. 11 is a diagram of a user interface for providing voting information related to food safety information, according to one embodiment. Once a food safety incident 1101 (e.g., "EHEC in Europe continues spreading") is identified, the food safety platform 103 identifies a list of food items (e.g., 342 food items) that are potentially affected by the food safety incident. Because the list is large, the food safety platform 103 asks the user to vote on the top ten food items from the list of 342. The potentially affected food items are listed in section 1 103 and can be sorted by probability of being affected, relevance (e.g., distance) to the reporting user, and voting result.

[0083] The food safety platform 103 then aggregates the voting information to prioritize the list for transmission to inspection authorities. In one embodiment, the food safety platform 103 tracks who reports or votes on particular items and sends notifications, warnings, alerts, etc. associated with the food items of interest to the reporting user.

[0084] FIGs. 12A-12C are diagrams of user interfaces for providing a food safety warning based on scanning information, according to various embodiments. As shown in FIG. 12A, the user interface 1201 enables a user to scan a food item (e.g., barcodes of the food items). On scanning, the food safety platform 103 can determine whether there are any related food safety items. As shown in FIG. 12B, the user interface 1211 indicates that the scanned food (e.g., "Sacramento Peanut Butter") is the subject of a food safety incident and provides a link to more information about the incident. In addition, as shown in FIG. 12C, the user interface 1221 can present food safety incidents of foods related to the scanned food item.

[0085] FIGs. 13 A and 13B are diagrams of user interfaces for providing a food safety warning based on context information, according to various embodiments. In the example of FIG. 13 A, the food safety platform 103 evaluates a user's contextual history to determine the recent places a user as traveled to. Based on this information, the food safety platform 103 can determine whether a user has visited any locations that were associated with food safety incidents determined at times at least approximately concurrently with the user's visit. The user interface 1301 presents a list of places visited by the user that are the subject of food safety incidents. Similarly, in FIG. 13B, the food safety platform 103 can also determine a user's present or current context to determine whether the user is near one or more places associated with a food safety incident. The user interface 131 1 presents information on current places nearby a user that have food safety incidents.

[0086] The processes described herein for providing food safety information and warning may be advantageously implemented via software, hardware, firmware or a combination of software and/or firmware and/or hardware. For example, the processes described herein, may be advantageously implemented via processor(s), Digital Signal Processing (DSP) chip, an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), etc. Such exemplary hardware for performing the described functions is detailed below.

[0087] FIG. 14 illustrates a computer system 1400 upon which an embodiment of the invention may be implemented. Although computer system 1400 is depicted with respect to a particular device or equipment, it is contemplated that other devices or equipment (e.g., network elements, servers, etc.) within FIG. 14 can deploy the illustrated hardware and components of system 1400. Computer system 1400 is programmed (e.g., via computer program code or instructions) to provide food safety information and warning as described herein and includes a communication mechanism such as a bus 1410 for passing information between other internal and external components of the computer system 1400. Information (also called data) is represented as a physical expression of a measurable phenomenon, typically electric voltages, but including, in other embodiments, such phenomena as magnetic, electromagnetic, pressure, chemical, biological, molecular, atomic, sub-atomic and quantum interactions. For example, north and south magnetic fields, or a zero and non-zero electric voltage, represent two states (0, 1) of a binary digit (bit). Other phenomena can represent digits of a higher base. A superposition of multiple simultaneous quantum states before measurement represents a quantum bit (qubit). A sequence of one or more digits constitutes digital data that is used to represent a number or code for a character. In some embodiments, information called analog data is represented by a near continuum of measurable values within a particular range. Computer system 1400, or a portion thereof, constitutes a means for performing one or more steps of providing food safety information and warning. [0088] A bus 1410 includes one or more parallel conductors of information so that information is transferred quickly among devices coupled to the bus 1410. One or more processors 1402 for processing information are coupled with the bus 1410.

[0089] A processor (or multiple processors) 1402 performs a set of operations on information as specified by computer program code related to providing food safety information and warning. The computer program code is a set of instructions or statements providing instructions for the operation of the processor and/or the computer system to perform specified functions. The code, for example, may be written in a computer programming language that is compiled into a native instruction set of the processor. The code may also be written directly using the native instruction set (e.g., machine language). The set of operations include bringing information in from the bus 1410 and placing information on the bus 1410. The set of operations also typically include comparing two or more units of information, shifting positions of units of information, and combining two or more units of information, such as by addition or multiplication or logical operations like OR, exclusive OR (XOR), and AND. Each operation of the set of operations that can be performed by the processor is represented to the processor by information called instructions, such as an operation code of one or more digits. A sequence of operations to be executed by the processor 1402, such as a sequence of operation codes, constitute processor instructions, also called computer system instructions or, simply, computer instructions. Processors may be implemented as mechanical, electrical, magnetic, optical, chemical or quantum components, among others, alone or in combination.

[0090] Computer system 1400 also includes a memory 1404 coupled to bus 1410. The memory 1404, such as a random access memory (RAM) or any other dynamic storage device, stores information including processor instructions for providing food safety information and warning. Dynamic memory allows information stored therein to be changed by the computer system 1400. RAM allows a unit of information stored at a location called a memory address to be stored and retrieved independently of information at neighboring addresses. The memory 1404 is also used by the processor 1402 to store temporary values during execution of processor instructions. The computer system 1400 also includes a read only memory (ROM) 1406 or any other static storage device coupled to the bus 1410 for storing static information, including instructions, that is not changed by the computer system 1400. Some memory is composed of volatile storage that loses the information stored thereon when power is lost. Also coupled to bus 1410 is a non- volatile (persistent) storage device 1408, such as a magnetic disk, optical disk or flash card, for storing information, including instructions, that persists even when the computer system 1400 is turned off or otherwise loses power.

[0091] Information, including instructions for providing food safety information and warning, is provided to the bus 1410 for use by the processor from an external input device 1412, such as a keyboard containing alphanumeric keys operated by a human user, or a sensor. A sensor detects conditions in its vicinity and transforms those detections into physical expression compatible with the measurable phenomenon used to represent information in computer system 1400. Other external devices coupled to bus 1410, used primarily for interacting with humans, include a display device 1414, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode (LED) display, an organic LED (OLED) display, a plasma screen, or a printer for presenting text or images, and a pointing device 1416, such as a mouse, a trackball, cursor direction keys, or a motion sensor, for controlling a position of a small cursor image presented on the display 1414 and issuing commands associated with graphical elements presented on the display 1414. In some embodiments, for example, in embodiments in which the computer system 1400 performs all functions automatically without human input, one or more of external input device 1412, display device 1414 and pointing device 1416 is omitted. [0092] In the illustrated embodiment, special purpose hardware, such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) 1420, is coupled to bus 1410. The special purpose hardware is configured to perform operations not performed by processor 1402 quickly enough for special purposes. Examples of ASICs include graphics accelerator cards for generating images for display 1414, cryptographic boards for encrypting and decrypting messages sent over a network, speech recognition, and interfaces to special external devices, such as robotic arms and medical scanning equipment that repeatedly perform some complex sequence of operations that are more efficiently implemented in hardware. [0093] Computer system 1400 also includes one or more instances of a communications interface 1470 coupled to bus 1410. Communication interface 1470 provides a one-way or two-way communication coupling to a variety of external devices that operate with their own processors, such as printers, scanners and external disks. In general the coupling is with a network link 1478 that is connected to a local network 1480 to which a variety of external devices with their own processors are connected. For example, communication interface 1470 may be a parallel port or a serial port or a universal serial bus (USB) port on a personal computer. In some embodiments, communications interface 1470 is an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card or a digital subscriber line (DSL) card or a telephone modem that provides an information communication connection to a corresponding type of telephone line. In some embodiments, a communication interface 1470 is a cable modem that converts signals on bus 1410 into signals for a communication connection over a coaxial cable or into optical signals for a communication connection over a fiber optic cable. As another example, communications interface 1470 may be a local area network (LAN) card to provide a data communication connection to a compatible LAN, such as Ethernet. Wireless links may also be implemented. For wireless links, the communications interface 1470 sends or receives or both sends and receives electrical, acoustic or electromagnetic signals, including infrared and optical signals, that carry information streams, such as digital data. For example, in wireless handheld devices, such as mobile telephones like cell phones, the communications interface 1470 includes a radio band electromagnetic transmitter and receiver called a radio transceiver. In certain embodiments, the communications interface 1470 enables connection to the communication network 105 for providing food safety information and warning.

[0094] The term "computer-readable medium" as used herein refers to any medium that participates in providing information to processor 1402, including instructions for execution. Such a medium may take many forms, including, but not limited to computer-readable storage medium (e.g., non-volatile media, volatile media), and transmission media. Non-transitory media, such as non-volatile media, include, for example, optical or magnetic disks, such as storage device 1408. Volatile media include, for example, dynamic memory 1404. Transmission media include, for example, twisted pair cables, coaxial cables, copper wire, fiber optic cables, and carrier waves that travel through space without wires or cables, such as acoustic waves and electromagnetic waves, including radio, optical and infrared waves. Signals include man-made transient variations in amplitude, frequency, phase, polarization or other physical properties transmitted through the transmission media. Common forms of computer-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, CDRW, DVD, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, optical mark sheets, any other physical medium with patterns of holes or other optically recognizable indicia, a RAM, a PROM, an EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, an EEPROM, a flash memory, any other memory chip or cartridge, a carrier wave, or any other medium from which a computer can read. The term computer-readable storage medium is used herein to refer to any computer-readable medium except transmission media.

[0095] Logic encoded in one or more tangible media includes one or both of processor instructions on a computer-readable storage media and special purpose hardware, such as ASIC 1420. [0096] Network link 1478 typically provides information communication using transmission media through one or more networks to other devices that use or process the information. For example, network link 1 78 may provide a connection through local network 1480 to a host computer 1482 or to equipment 1484 operated by an Internet Service Provider (ISP). ISP equipment 1484 in turn provides data communication services through the public, world-wide packet-switching communication network of networks now commonly referred to as the Internet 1490.

[0097] A computer called a server host 1492 connected to the Internet hosts a process that provides a service in response to information received over the Internet. For example, server host 1492 hosts a process that provides information representing video data for presentation at display 1414. It is contemplated that the components of system 1400 can be deployed in various configurations within other computer systems, e.g., host 1482 and server 1492.

[0098] At least some embodiments of the invention are related to the use of computer system 1400 for implementing some or all of the techniques described herein. According to one embodiment of the invention, those techniques are performed by computer system 1400 in response to processor 1402 executing one or more sequences of one or more processor instructions contained in memory 1404. Such instructions, also called computer instructions, software and program code, may be read into memory 1404 from another computer-readable medium such as storage device 1408 or network link 1478. Execution of the sequences of instructions contained in memory 1404 causes processor 1402 to perform one or more of the method steps described herein. In alternative embodiments, hardware, such as ASIC 1420, may be used in place of or in combination with software to implement the invention. Thus, embodiments of the invention are not limited to any specific combination of hardware and software, unless otherwise explicitly stated herein.

[0099] The signals transmitted over network link 1478 and other networks through communications interface 1470, carry information to and from computer system 1400. Computer system 1400 can send and receive information, including program code, through the networks 1480, 1490 among others, through network link 1478 and communications interface 1470. In an example using the Internet 1490, a server host 1492 transmits program code for a particular application, requested by a message sent from computer 1400, through Internet 1490, ISP equipment 1484, local network 1480 and communications interface 1470. The received code may be executed by processor 1402 as it is received, or may be stored in memory 1404 or in storage device 1408 or any other non- volatile storage for later execution, or both. In this manner, computer system 1400 may obtain application program code in the form of signals on a carrier wave.

[0100] Various forms of computer readable media may be involved in carrying one or more sequence of instructions or data or both to processor 1402 for execution. For example, instructions and data may initially be carried on a magnetic disk of a remote computer such as host 1482. The remote computer loads the instructions and data into its dynamic memory and sends the instructions and data over a telephone line using a modem. A modem local to the computer system 1400 receives the instructions and data on a telephone line and uses an infra-red transmitter to convert the instructions and data to a signal on an infra-red carrier wave serving as the network link 1478. An infrared detector serving as communications interface 1470 receives the instructions and data carried in the infrared signal and places information representing the instructions and data onto bus 1410. Bus 1410 carries the information to memory 1404 from which processor 1402 retrieves and executes the instructions using some of the data sent with the instructions. The instructions and data received in memory 1404 may optionally be stored on storage device 1408, either before or after execution by the processor 1402.

[0101] FIG. 15 illustrates a chip set or chip 1500 upon which an embodiment of the invention may be implemented. Chip set 1500 is programmed to provide food safety information and warning as described herein and includes, for instance, the processor and memory components described with respect to FIG. 14 incorporated in one or more physical packages (e.g., chips). By way of example, a physical package includes an arrangement of one or more materials, components, and/or wires on a structural assembly (e.g., a baseboard) to provide one or more characteristics such as physical strength, conservation of size, and/or limitation of electrical interaction. It is contemplated that in certain embodiments the chip set 1500 can be implemented in a single chip. It is further contemplated that in certain embodiments the chip set or chip 1500 can be implemented as a single "system on a chip." It is further contemplated that in certain embodiments a separate ASIC would not be used, for example, and that all relevant functions as disclosed herein would be performed by a processor or processors. Chip set or chip 1500, or a portion thereof, constitutes a means for performing one or more steps of providing user interface navigation information associated with the availability of functions. Chip set or chip 1500, or a portion thereof, constitutes a means for performing one or more steps of providing food safety information and warning.

[0102] In one embodiment, the chip set or chip 1500 includes a communication mechanism such as a bus 1501 for passing information among the components of the chip set 1500. A processor 1503 has connectivity to the bus 1501 to execute instructions and process information stored in, for example, a memory 1505. The processor 1503 may include one or more processing cores with each core configured to perform independently. A multi-core processor enables multiprocessing within a single physical package. Examples of a multi-core processor include two, four, eight, or greater numbers of processing cores. Alternatively or in addition, the processor 1503 may include one or more microprocessors configured in tandem via the bus 1501 to enable independent execution of instructions, pipelining, and multithreading. The processor 1503 may also be accompanied with one or more specialized components to perform certain processing functions and tasks such as one or more digital signal processors (DSP) 1507, or one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC) 1509. A DSP 1507 typically is configured to process real-world signals (e.g., sound) in real time independently of the processor 1503. Similarly, an ASIC 1509 can be configured to performed specialized functions not easily performed by a more general purpose processor. Other specialized components to aid in performing the inventive functions described herein may include one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) (not shown), one or more controllers (not shown), or one or more other special-purpose computer chips.

[0103] In one embodiment, the chip set or chip 1500 includes merely one or more processors and some software and/or firmware supporting and/or relating to and/or for the one or more processors.

[0104] The processor 1503 and accompanying components have connectivity to the memory 1505 via the bus 1501. The memory 1505 includes both dynamic memory (e.g., RAM, magnetic disk, writable optical disk, etc.) and static memory (e.g., ROM, CD-ROM, etc.) for storing executable instructions that when executed perform the inventive steps described herein to provide food safety information and warning. The memory 1505 also stores the data associated with or generated by the execution of the inventive steps. [0105] FIG. 16 is a diagram of exemplary components of a mobile terminal (e.g., handset) for communications, which is capable of operating in the system of FIG. 1 , according to one embodiment. In some embodiments, mobile terminal 1601 , or a portion thereof, constitutes a means for performing one or more steps of providing food safety information and warning. Generally, a radio receiver is often defined in terms of front-end and back-end characteristics. The front-end of the receiver encompasses all of the Radio Frequency (RF) circuitry whereas the back-end encompasses all of the base-band processing circuitry. As used in this application, the term "circuitry" refers to both: (1) hardware-only implementations (such as implementations in only analog and/or digital circuitry), and (2) to combinations of circuitry and software (and/or firmware) (such as, if applicable to the particular context, to a combination of processor(s), including digital signal processor(s), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions). This definition of "circuitry" applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application and if applicable to the particular context, the term "circuitry" would also cover an implementation of merely a processor (or multiple processors) and its (or their) accompanying software/or firmware. The term "circuitry" would also cover if applicable to the particular context, for example, a baseband integrated circuit or applications processor integrated circuit in a mobile phone or a similar integrated circuit in a cellular network device or other network devices.

[0106] Pertinent internal components of the telephone include a Main Control Unit (MCU) 1603, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP) 1605, and a receiver/transmitter unit including a microphone gain control unit and a speaker gain control unit. A main display unit 1607 provides a display to the user in support of various applications and mobile terminal functions that perform or support the steps of providing food safety information and warning. The display 1607 includes display circuitry configured to display at least a portion of a user interface of the mobile terminal (e.g., mobile telephone). Additionally, the display 1607 and display circuitry are configured to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile terminal. An audio function circuitry 1609 includes a microphone 1611 and microphone amplifier that amplifies the speech signal output from the microphone 1611. The amplified speech signal output from the microphone 1 1 1 is fed to a coder/decoder (CODEC) 1613,

[0107] A radio section 1615 amplifies power and converts frequency in order to communicate with a base station, which is included in a mobile communication system, via antenna 1617. The power amplifier (PA) 619 and the transmitter/modulation circuitry are operationally responsive to the MCU 1603, with an output from the PA 1619 coupled to the duplexer 1621 or circulator or antenna switch, as known in the art. The PA 1619 also couples to a battery interface and power control unit 1620. [0108] In use, a user of mobile terminal 1601 speaks into the microphone 161 1 and his or her voice along with any detected background noise is converted into an analog voltage. The analog voltage is then converted into a digital signal through the Analog to Digital Converter (ADC) 1623. The control unit 1603 routes the digital signal into the DSP 1605 for processing therein, such as speech encoding, channel encoding, encrypting, and interleaving. In one embodiment, the processed voice signals are encoded, by units not separately shown, using a cellular transmission protocol such as enhanced data rates for global evolution (EDGE), general packet radio service (GPRS), global system for mobile communications (GSM), Internet protocol multimedia subsystem (IMS), universal mobile telecommunications system (UMTS), etc., as well as any other suitable wireless medium, e.g., microwave access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE) networks, code division multiple access (CDMA), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), wireless fidelity (WiFi), satellite, and the like, or any combination thereof.

[0109] The encoded signals are then routed to an equalizer 1625 for compensation of any frequency-dependent impairments that occur during transmission though the air such as phase and amplitude distortion. After equalizing the bit stream, the modulator 1627 combines the signal with a RF signal generated in the RF interface 1629. The modulator 1627 generates a sine wave by way of frequency or phase modulation. In order to prepare the signal for transmission, an up-converter 1631 combines the sine wave output from the modulator 1627 with another sine wave generated by a synthesizer 1633 to achieve the desired frequency of transmission. The signal is then sent through a PA 1619 to increase the signal to an appropriate power level. In practical systems, the PA 1619 acts as a variable gain amplifier whose gain is controlled by the DSP 1605 from information received from a network base station. The signal is then filtered within the duplexer 1621 and optionally sent to an antenna coupler 1635 to match impedances to provide maximum power transfer. Finally, the signal is transmitted via antenna 1617 to a local base station. An automatic gain control (AGC) can be supplied to control the gain of the final stages of the receiver. The signals may be forwarded from there to a remote telephone which may be another cellular telephone, any other mobile phone or a land-line connected to a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), or other telephony networks. [0110] Voice signals transmitted to the mobile terminal 1601 are received via antenna 1617 and immediately amplified by a low noise amplifier (LNA) 1637. A down-converter 1639 lowers the carrier frequency while the demodulator 1641 strips away the RF leaving only a digital bit stream. The signal then goes through the equalizer 1625 and is processed by the DSP 05. A Digital to Analog Converter (DAC) 1643 converts the signal and the resulting output is transmitted to the user through the speaker 1645, all under control of a Main Control Unit (MCU) 1603 which can be implemented as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) (not shown).

[0111] The MCU 1603 receives various signals including input signals from the keyboard 1647. The keyboard 1647 and/or the MCU 1603 in combination with other user input components (e.g., the microphone 161 1) comprise a user interface circuitry for managing user input. The MCU 1603 runs a user interface software to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile terminal 1601 to provide food safety information and warning. The MCU 1603 also delivers a display command and a switch command to the display 1607 and to the speech output switching controller, respectively. Further, the MCU 1603 exchanges information with the DSP 1605 and can access an optionally incorporated SIM card 1649 and a memory 1651. In addition, the MCU 1603 executes various control functions required of the terminal. The DSP 1605 may, depending upon the implementation, perform any of a variety of conventional digital processing functions on the voice signals. Additionally, DSP 1605 determines the background noise level of the local environment from the signals detected by microphone 161 1 and sets the gain of microphone 161 1 to a level selected to compensate for the natural tendency of the user of the mobile terminal 1601.

[0112] The CODEC 1613 includes the ADC 1623 and DAC 1643. The memory 1651 stores various data including call incoming tone data and is capable of storing other data including music data received via, e.g., the global Internet. The software module could reside in RAM memory, flash memory, registers, or any other form of writable storage medium known in the art. The memory device 1651 may be, but not limited to, a single memory, CD, DVD, ROM, RAM, EEPROM, optical storage, magnetic disk storage, flash memory storage, or any other nonvolatile storage medium capable of storing digital data. [0113] An optionally incorporated SIM card 1649 carries, for instance, important information, such as the cellular phone number, the carrier supplying service, subscription details, and security information. The SIM card 1649 serves primarily to identify the mobile terminal 1601 on a radio network. The card 1649 also contains a memory for storing a personal telephone number registry, text messages, and user specific mobile terminal settings,

[0114] While the invention has been described in connection with a number of embodiments and implementations, the invention is not so limited but covers various obvious modifications and equivalent arrangements, which fall within the purview of the appended claims. Although features of the invention are expressed in certain combinations among the claims, it is contemplated that these features can be arranged in any combination and order.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A method comprising facilitating a processing of and/or processing (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal, the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal based, at least in part, on the following:

a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items, wherein the safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof;

at least one determination of a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof; and

at least one determination of one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

2. A method of claim 1, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

at least one determination of the news information from one or more social networking feeds, one or more news feeds, or a combination thereof.

3. A method according to any of claims 1 and 2, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

at least one determination of the news information from one or more incident reports.

4. A method of claim 3, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following: at least one determination of the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof based, at least in part, on contextual information associated one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof submitting the one or more incident reports.

5. A method according to any of claims 1-4, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

a processing of contextual information associated with one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof for comparison against the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to cause, at least in part, a generation of one or more safety alerts for the one or more devices.

6. A method of claim 5, wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, one or more locations, one or more movement patterns, sensor information regarding one or more ambient environmental conditions, food preference information, or a combination thereof.

7. A method according to any of claims 5 and 6, wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, historical information, substantially current information, substantially real-time information, or a combination thereof.

8. A method according to any of claims 5-7, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

an initiation of the processing of the contextual information based, at least in part, on a

determination that the one or more devices has scanned the one or more food items, one or more identifiers associated with the one or more food items, or a combination thereof.

9. A method according to any of claims 1-8, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following: a processing of the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to associate the one or more food items with one or more nodes of a food production network.

10. A method of claim 9, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more upstream nodes of the food production network as one or more potential sources of the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

1 1. A method according to any of claims 9 and 10, wherein the ( 1 ) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following: a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more downstream nodes of the food production network with one or more other food items that are potentially affected by of the one or more food items associated the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

12. A method of claim 11, wherein the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal are further based, at least in part, on the following:

a ranking of the one or more other food items based, at least in part, on probability

information that the one or more other food items are potentially affected by the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

13. A method of claim 12, wherein the ranking is further based, at least in part, on voting information, popularity information, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more other food items.

14. A method according to any of claims 12 and 13, further comprising: a generation of an inspection list of at least a portion of the one or more downstream nodes based, at least in part, on the ranking.

15. A method according to any of claims 9-14, further comprising:

a modeling of the food production network as a hierarchical graph wherein the one or more nodes include, at least in part, one or more production nodes, one or more processing nodes, one or more storage nodes, one or more distribution nodes, one or more consumer nodes, or a combination thereof.

16. A method comprising:

processing and/or facilitating a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items, wherein the safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof;

determining a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof; and

determining one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on

comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria.

17. A method of claim 16, further comprising:

determining the news information from one or more social networking feeds, one or more news feeds, or a combination thereof.

18. A method according to any of claims 16 and 17, further comprising:

determining the news information from one or more incident reports.

19. A method of claim 18, further comprising:

determining the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof based, at least in part, on contextual information associated one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof submitting the one or more incident reports.

20. A method according to any of claims 16-19, further comprising:

processing and/or facilitating a processing of contextual information associated with one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof for comparison against the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to cause, at least in part, a generation of one or more safety alerts for the one or more devices,

21. A method of claim 20, wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, one or more locations, one or more movement patterns, sensor information regarding one or more ambient environmental conditions, food preference information, or a combination thereof.

22. A method according to any of claims 20 and 21 , wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, historical information, substantially current information, substantially real-time information, or a combination thereof.

23. A method according to any of claims 20-22, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, an initiation of the processing of the contextual information based, at least in part, on a determination that the one or more devices has scanned the one or more food items, one or more identifiers associated with the one or more food items, or a combination thereof.

24. A method according to any of claims 16-23, further comprising: processing and/or facilitating a processing of the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to associate the one or more food items with one or more nodes of a food production network.

25. A method of claim 24, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more upstream nodes of the food production network as one or more potential sources of the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

26. A method according to any of claims 24 and 25, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more downstream nodes of the food production network with one or more other food items that are potentially affected by of the one or more food items associated the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

27. A method of claim 26, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, a ranking of the one or more other food items based, at least in part, on probability information that the one or more other food items are potentially affected by the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

28. A method of claim 27, wherein the ranking is further based, at least in part, on voting information, popularity information, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more other food items.

29. A method according to any of claims 27 and 28, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, a generation of an inspection list of at least a portion of the one or more downstream nodes based, at least in part, on the ranking.

30. A method according to any of claims 24-29, further comprising:

causing, at least in part, a modeling of the food production network as a hierarchical graph wherein the one or more nodes include, at least in part, one or more production nodes, one or more processing nodes, one or more storage nodes, one or more distribution nodes, one or more consumer nodes, or a combination thereof.

31. An apparatus comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory including computer program code for one or more programs,

the at least one memory and the computer program code configured to, with the at least one processor, cause the apparatus to perform at least the following,

process and/or facilitate a processing of news information to cause, at least in part, an extraction of safety information related to one or more food items, wherein the safety information includes, at least in part, one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective times of the one or more potential food safety incidents, one or more respective locations of the one or more potential food safety incidents, or a combination thereof;

determine a number of the one or more potential food safety incidents with respect to the one or more food items, the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof; and

determine one or more confirmed food safety incidents based, at least in part, on

comparison of the number against one or more threshold criteria,

32. An apparatus of claim 31 , wherein the apparatus is further caused to :

determine the news information from one or more social networking feeds, one or more news feeds, or a combination thereof.

33. An apparatus according to any of claims 31 and 32, wherein the apparatus is further caused to: determine the news information from one or more incident reports.

34. An apparatus of claim 33, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

determine the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof based, at least in part, on contextual information associated one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof submitting the one or more incident reports,

35. An apparatus according to any of claims 31-34, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

process and/or facilitate a processing of contextual information associated with one or more devices, one or more users of the one or more devices, or a combination thereof for comparison against the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to cause, at least in part, a generation of one or more safety alerts for the one or more devices.

36. An apparatus of claim 35, wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, one or more locations, one or more movement patterns, sensor information regarding one or more ambient environmental conditions, food preference information, or a combination thereof.

37. An apparatus according to any of claims 35 and 36, wherein the contextual information includes, at least in part, historical infonnation, substantially current information, substantially real-time information, or a combination thereof.

38. An apparatus according to any of claims 35-37, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, an initiation of the processing of the contextual information based, at least in part, on a determination that the one or more devices has scanned the one or more food items, one or more identifiers associated with the one or more food items, or a combination thereof.

39. An apparatus according to any of claims 31-38, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

process and/or facilitate a processing of the one or more times, the one or more locations, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents to associate the one or more food items with one or more nodes of a food production network.

40. An apparatus of claim 39, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more upstream nodes of the food production network as one or more potential sources of the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

41. An apparatus according to any of claims 39 and 40, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a traversal of the food production network to identify one or more downstream nodes of the food production network with one or more other food items that are potentially affected by of the one or more food items associated the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

42. An apparatus of claim 41, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a ranking of the one or more other food items based, at least in part, on probability information that the one or more other food items are potentially affected by the one or more food items associated with the one or more confirmed food safety incidents.

43. An apparatus of claim 42, wherein the ranking is further based, at least in part, on voting information, popularity information, or a combination thereof associated with the one or more other food items.

44. An apparatus according to any of claims 42 and 43, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a generation of an inspection list of at least a portion of the one or more downstream nodes based, at least in part, on the ranking,

45. An apparatus according to any of claims 39-44, wherein the apparatus is further caused to:

cause, at least in part, a modeling of the food production network as a hierarchical graph

wherein the one or more nodes include, at least in part, one or more production nodes, one or more processing nodes, one or more storage nodes, one or more distribution nodes, one or more consumer nodes, or a combination thereof.

46. An apparatus according to any of claims 31-45, wherein the apparatus is a mobile phone further comprising:

user interface circuitry and user interface software configured to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile phone through use of a display and configured to respond to user input; and

a display and display circuitry configured to display at least a portion of a user interface of the mobile phone, the display and display circuitry configured to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile phone.

47. A computer-readable storage medium carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to perform at least a method of any of claims 16-30.

48. An apparatus comprising means for performing a method of any of claims 16-30,

49. An apparatus of claim 48, wherein the apparatus is a mobile phone further comprising: user interface circuitry and user interface software configured to facilitate user control of at least some functions of the mobile phone through use of a display and configured to respond to user input; and

50. A computer program product including one or more sequences of one or more instructions which, when executed by one or more processors, cause an apparatus to at least perform the steps of a method of any of claims 16-30.

51. A method comprising facilitating access to at least one interface configured to allow access to at least one service, the at least one service configured to perform a method of any of claims 16-30.

52. A method comprising facilitating a processing of and/or processing (1 ) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal, the (1) data and/or (2) information and/or (3) at least one signal based, at least in part, on the method of any of claims 1 -30.

53. A method comprising facilitating creating and/or facilitating modifying (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality, the (1) at least one device user interface element and/or (2) at least one device user interface functionality based, at least in part, on the method of any of claims 16-30.