Author: claimsbot

1. A method, comprising:
detecting, at a server, a request from a user to facilitate a decision making process for a group of users, including the user, wherein, the group of users are participating in a communication thread via user devices;
assimilating, by the server, user information from the group of users relevant to identifying candidate suggestions towards which the decision is to be made;
using the user information, identifying relevant data of the candidate suggestions for the server to facilitate the decision making process among the group of users;
presenting the candidate suggestions to the group of users to advance the decision making process among the group of users; and
when the users of the group are unable to make a decision from among the candidate suggestions, making by the server the decision on behalf of the group of users by selecting one of the candidate suggestions.
2. The method of claim 1, further comprising randomly selecting one of the candidate suggestions.
3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
providing a facility for one or more users of the group of users to participate in a game to select the suggestion from the set of suggestions.
4. A computer-readable storage medium that is not a carrier wave containing computer-executable instructions for controlling a computing system to facilitate a decision making process among a group of users, the computer-executable instructions including:
instructions that receive from a user a request to facilitate a group of users in deciding an activity to engage in, the group of users currently participating in a communication thread via their computing devices;
instructions that receive, from one or more users of the group via sidebar communications to the communication thread, criteria for the activity, the criteria specifying preferences and limitations relating to the activity;
instructions that retrieve additional criteria for the activity, the additional criteria previously received from a user of the group prior to being requested to facilitate the group of users in deciding the activity to engage in;
instructions that search for candidate activities that satisfy the criteria for the activity;
instructions that present the candidate activities to the users of the group as suggestions for the activity to engage in;
instructions that, when the users are unable to reach a decision based on the candidate activities, refine the candidate activities by collecting additional criteria for the activity, searching for refined candidate activities based on the criteria for the activity, and presenting the candidate activities to the users of the group.
5. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 4 including instructions that receive an indication of a decision of an activity to engage in and broadcast that decision to the users of the group.
6. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 4 including instructions that make a decision of an activity to engage in on behalf of the group and broadcasts that decision to the users of the group.
7. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 6 wherein the decision is made by randomly selecting one of the candidate activities.
8. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 4 wherein the criteria includes one or more of a time frame, a start time, a start location, an end time, and end location.
9. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 4 wherein the instructions that search for candidates activities access a database of business listings.
10. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the database includes static and dynamic content for the business listings.
11. The computer-readable storage medium of claim 9 wherein the instructions that search for candidate activities collect information in real-time from a business.
12. A computing system for facilitating a decision making process among a group of users, the computing system comprising:
a memory storing computer-executable instructions that:
receive from a user a request to facilitate a group of users in deciding an activity to engage in, the group of users currently engaged in a communication thread via their computing devices;
receive from one or more users of the group criteria for the activity;
search for candidate activities that satisfy the criteria for the activity;
present the candidate activities to the users of the group as suggestions for the activity to engage in;
receive an indication that the users are unable to reach a decision on which candidate activity to engage in; and
when the users are unable to reach a decision on which candidate activity to engage in, make a decision of an activity to engage in on behalf of the group by selecting one of the candidate activities for the group to engage in; and

a processor that executes the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory.
13. The computing system of claim 12 wherein the memory stores instructions that, before making a decision of an activity to engage in on behalf of the group, refine the candidate activities by collecting additional criteria for the activity, searching for refined candidate activities based on the criteria for the activity, and presenting the candidate activities to the users of the group.
14. The computing system of claim 12 wherein the memory stores instructions that retrieve additional criteria for the activity, the additional criteria previously received from a user of the group prior to being requested to facilitate the group of users in deciding the activity to engage in.
15. The computing system of claim 12 wherein the decision is made on behalf of the group by randomly selecting one of the candidate activities.
16. The computing system of claim 12 wherein the instructions that search for candidates activities access a database of business listings.
17. The computing system of claim 16 wherein the database includes static and dynamic content for the business listings.
18. The computing system of claim 16 wherein instructions that search for candidate activities collect information in real-time from a business.
19. The computing system of claim 12 wherein the criteria is received from a user via a sidebar communication to the communication thread.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A tent structure with an improved ventilation system, the tent structure comprising:
a pole assembly;
a lower section defined by a plurality of walls and a floor;
an upper section having an inner layer and an outer layer,
the inner layer comprising a first set of openings covered by an air permeable material, a perimeter of the inner layer fixedly attached to a top portion of the lower section to form an enclosure,
the outer layer disposed above the inner layer, a second set of openings formed between a perimeter of the outer layer and the top portion of the lower section;
a first set of connecting members connecting the inner and outer lavers and forming a space therebetween;
a second set of connecting members connecting, the outer layer and the pole assembly, wherein the second set of openings is covered with an air permeable material which is fixedly attached to the top portion of the lower section; and
an outer seam along the top portion of the lower section formed from joining the inner and outer layers wherein water from precipitation is collected and prevented from entering onto mid portions of the walls.
2. A tent structure with an improved ventilation system, the tent structure comprising:
a pole assembly having at least two collapsible sections;
a lower section defined by a plurality of walls and a floor; and
an upper section having an inner layer and an outer layer,
the inner layer comprising a first set of openings covered by an air permeable material, a perimeter of the inner layer fixedly attached to a top portion of the lower section to form an enclosure,
the outer layer disposed above the inner layer, a second set of openings formed between a perimeter of the outer layer and the perimeter of the inner layer; and
an outer seam along the top portion of the lower section formed from joining the inner layer wherein water from precipitation is collected and prevented from entering onto mid portions of the walls;
wherein the inner and outer layers are attached together by a first set of connecting members and forms a space therebetween, and the pole assembly is attached to the outer layer and the lower section b a second set of connecting members.
3. A tent structure with an improved ventilation system, the tent structure comprising:
a pole assembly;
a lower section defined by a plurality of walls and a floor;
an upper section having an inner layer and an outer layer,
the inner layer comprising a first set of openings covered by an air permeable material, a perimeter of the inner layer fixedly attached to a top portion of the lower section to form an enclosure,
the outer layer disposed above the inner layer, a second set of openings formed between a perimeter of the outer layer and the top portion of the lower section;
a first set of connecting members connecting the inner and outer layers and forming a space therebetween;
a second set of connecting members connecting the outer layer and the pole assembly; and
an outer seam along the top portion of the lower section formed from joining the inner and outer layers wherein water from precipitation is collected and prevented from entering onto mid portions of the walls.

1. A battery-based grid energy storage for balancing the load of a power grid comprises:
a battery array;
a bi-directional inverter system configured to charge the battery array using power from the power grid, or conversely, to transmit power from the battery array to the power grid;
a monitor system configured to detect the load, frequency and phase of the power grid, and control the bi-directional inverter system to charge the battery array using power from the power grid, or conversely, transmit power from the battery array to the power grid in accordance with the frequency and phase of the power grid.
2. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1 further comprises a transformer, wherein
the transformer is configured to transform high voltage electric power of the power grid into low voltage electric power, wherein the low voltage electric power is supplied to the bi-directional inverter system to charge the battery array; and
the transformer is configured to transform low voltage electric power of the bi-directional inverter system into high voltage electric power, wherein the high voltage electric power is transmitted to the power grid.
3. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system performs the following steps in an averaging mode:
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to discharge the battery array when the present time is in a discharging time period;
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to charge the battery array when the present time is in a charging time period; and
switching the bi-directional inverter system to a stand-by mode before entering the next time period, when the battery array completes discharging before the discharging time period ends, or when the battery array completes charging before the charging time period ends.
4. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system performs the following steps in a peak value cutting mode:
detecting the load in the power grid;
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to discharge the battery array when the present time is in a discharging time period, and the load of the power grid is above a predefined discharging threshold;
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to charge the battery array when the present time is in a charging time period, and the load of the power grid is below a predefined charging threshold;
switching the bi-directional inverter system to a stand-by mode before entering next time period, when the battery array completes discharging before the discharging time period ends, or when the battery array completes charging before the charging time period ends.
5. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 4, wherein the predefined discharging threshold is 80% of the power grid capacity, and the predefined charging threshold is 60% of the power grid capacity.
6. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 5, wherein the discharging time period and charging time period are determined by factors including at least a unit price of the electric power, wherein
a time period is set to be the discharging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is higher than a predefined value; and
a time period is set to be the charging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is lower than a predefined value.
7. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 3, wherein the discharging time period and charging time period are determined by factors including at least a unit price of the electric power, wherein
a time period is set to be the discharging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is higher than a predefined value; and
a time period is set to be the charging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is lower than a predefined value.
8. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 4, wherein the discharging time period and charging time period are determined by factors including at least a unit price of the electric power, wherein
a time period is set to be the discharging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is higher than a predefined value; and
a time period is set to be the charging time period when the unit price of the electric power of the time period is lower than a predefined value.
9. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system performs the following step in a compulsory charging mode:
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to charge the battery array until charging completes or it switches to a different mode.
10. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system performs the following step in a compulsory discharging mode:
controlling the bi-directional inverter system to discharge the battery array until discharging completes or it switches to a different mode.
11. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, further comprises an electric and relay protection system, wherein the electric and relay protection system is used to protect the transformer.
12. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 2, further comprises an electric and relay protection system, wherein the electric and relay protection system is used to protect the transformer.
13. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system further detects the electric energy storage level of the battery array, and controls the bi-directional inverter system based on the detected electric energy storage level so as to keep the battery array within a predetermined electric energy storage range.
14. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 2, wherein the monitor system further detects the electric energy storage level of the battery array, and controls the bi-directional inverter system based on the detected electric energy storage level so as to keep the battery array within a predetermined electric energy storage range.
15. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system further detects the temperature of the battery array, and controls the bi-directional inverter system based on the detected temperature so as to keep the battery array within a predetermined temperature range.
16. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 2, wherein the monitor system further detects the temperature of the battery array, and controls the bi-directional inverter system based on the detected temperature so as to keep the battery array within a predetermined temperature range.
17. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system further detects the load of the power grid, and adjusts the charging power of the battery array based on to the detected load of the power grid to protect the power grid from overload.
18. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 2, wherein the monitor system further detects the load of the power grid, and adjusts the charging power of the battery array based on to the detected load of the power grid to protect the power grid from overload.
19. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 1, wherein the monitor system further detects the load of the power grid, and adjusts the discharging power of the battery array based on the detected load of the power grid such that the power grid after receiving the electric power from the battery array does not exceed its capacity.
20. The battery-based grid energy storage in claim 2, wherein the monitor system further detects the load of the power grid, and adjusts the discharging power of the battery array based on the detected load of the power grid such that the power grid after receiving the electric power from the battery array does not exceed its capacity.

The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.

1. A toothbrush, comprising:
a body with a speaker, the bottom of the body configured to rest against a support surface when the toothbrush is oriented in a standing position; and
the speaker configured to output an audio signal through an opening on the body of the toothbrush, the speaker and the opening are angled at an acute angle relative to the support surface and with respect to the bottom of the body to prevent water from contacting the speaker when the toothbrush is in the standing position.
2. The toothbrush of claim 1, comprising wherein the speaker is located adjacent to the bottom of the body.
3. A toothbrush, comprising:
a body configured to store an audio component, the audio component configured to be removably housed within a cavity of the body; and
the audio component configured to operate as a microphone to receive an audio signal in a first mode of operation and to operate as a speaker to output the audio signal through the body of the toothbrush in a second mode of operation.
4. The toothbrush of claim 3, further comprising:
a memory configured to store the audio signal, the memory being located within the body of the toothbrush.
5. The toothbrush of claim 3, further comprising an operation mode button configured to activate a processor to change operation of the audio component between the first mode of operation and the second mode of operation.
6. A toothbrush, comprising:
a storage unit including an output for transmitting a stored audio signal and a power source, wherein the storage unit is configured to be removably housed within a cavity of a body;
an oral care region attached to the body, a portion of the body being configured for gripping by a user, the oral care region including tooth cleaning elements configured to move when powered by the power source; and
a single operation mode button configured to change a mode of operation of the toothbrush,
wherein in a first mode of operation, the tooth cleaning elements are powered by the power supply and the stored audio signal is transmitted through the output,
wherein in a second mode of operation, the tooth cleaning elements are not powered and the stored audio signal is transmitted through the output.
7. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein the single operation mode button is configured to change the mode of operation of the toothbrush based upon how long the single operation mode button is depressed.
8. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein the single operation mode button is configured to change the mode of operation of the toothbrush based upon how many times the single operation mode button is depressed.
9. The toothbrush of claim 6, the single operation mode button including a plurality of depressible locations, wherein the single operation mode button is configured to change the mode of operation of the toothbrush based upon a location of depression on the single operation mode button of the plurality of depressible locations.
10. The toothbrush of claim 9, wherein depression of the single operation mode button at a first location of the plurality of depressible locations operates the toothbrush in the first mode of operation, and depression of the single operation mode button at a second location of the plurality of depressible locations operates the toothbrush in the second mode of operation, the first and second locations being different.
11. The toothbrush of claim 6, wherein in a third mode of operation, the tooth cleaning elements are powered by the power supply and the stored audio signal is not transmitted through the output.