WO2016025000A1

WO2016025000A1 - Wearable apparatus and method for monitoring personal goals

Info

Publication number: WO2016025000A1
Application number: PCT/US2014/051307
Authority: WO
Inventors: Blake Mycoskie
Original assignee: Mycoskie Holdings, Llc
Priority date: 2014-08-15
Filing date: 2014-08-15
Publication date: 2016-02-18
Also published as: TW201605413A

Abstract

The present invention provides techniques to help monitor or improve an individual's spiritual wellness. It makes it easier for individuals to monitor and track their daily activities for personally, spiritually or ethically exhilarating activities or experiences, and that enable individuals to achieve specific personal, spiritual or ethical goals. A wearable apparatus may comprise an input device configured to record user input from a user, and a communication port configured to transmit data recorded by the input device to a computing device and to receive an instruction from the computing device. The wearable apparatus may further comprise a processing unit configured to execute the instruction received from the computing device to change a visual appearance of the wearable apparatus.

Description

WEARABLE APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MONITORING PERSONAL GOALS BACKGROUND

[0001] Health and well-being is becoming increasingly important to people around the world. Modern technology offers a variety of techniques to help individuals to achieve physical health. For example, exercise is important to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and individual well-being, and many individuals participate in exercise programs. In this regard, many devices are available for individuals to track their physical activities. Diet is also important to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and individual well-being, and a lot of people vigorously monitor what they eat. There are similarly a variety of devices and applications for tracking calorie and nutritional intake.

[0002] Much like physical health and well-being, spiritual and mental health is also subject to increased focus. Modern technology, however, has not been able to provide techniques to help monitor or improve an individual's spiritual wellness. What is needed are new systems and methods that make it easier for individuals to monitor and track their daily activities for personally, spiritually or ethically exhilarating activities or experiences, and that enable individuals to achieve specific personal, spiritual or ethical goals.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0003] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary apparatus according to the present disclosure.

[0004] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an exemplary system according to the present disclosure.

[0005] FIG. 3 illustrates a flow diagram of an exemplary process according to the present disclosure.

[0006] FIG. 4 illustrates a flow diagram of another exemplary process according to the present disclosure. [0007] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of another exemplary system according to the present disclosure.

[0008] FIGs. 6A and 6B illustrate block diagrams of other exemplary apparatuses according to the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0009] Certain illustrative aspects of the systems, apparatuses, and methods according to the present invention are described herein in connection with the following description and the accompanying figures. These aspects are indicative, however, of but a few of the various ways in which the principles of the invention may be employed and the present invention is intended to include all such aspects and their equivalents. Other advantages and novel features of the invention may become apparent from the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the figures.

[0010] In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. In other instances, well known structures, interfaces, and processes have not been shown in detail in order not to

unnecessarily obscure the invention. However, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that those specific details disclosed herein need not be used to practice the invention and do not represent a limitation on the scope of the invention, except as recited in the claims. It is intended that no part of this specification be construed to effect a disavowal of any part of the full scope of the invention. Although certain embodiments of the present disclosure are described, these embodiments likewise are not intended to limit the full scope of the invention.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a simplified drawing of a wearable apparatus 100 according to one embodiment. In this embodiment, the wearable apparatus 100 may be a wristband that includes an inner surface 120 (located proximate to a user's wrist when the wristband is worn) and an outer surface 110. The wearable apparatus 100 may comprise a user input device (e.g., the input device 108 in FIG. 2) configured to receive user input and a non- volatile storage configure to store any user input on the wearable apparatus 100. In one embodiment, the user input device may be a keypad or a touch screen. In another embodiment, the user input device may be an audio recording device. In yet another embodiment, the user input device may comprise both a manual input and an audio recording device. In embodiments wherein the user input device may comprise an audio recording device 108, the audio recording device may be wholly enclosed within the material for the wristband, or at least partially exposed on its inner surface 120, or at least partially exposed on its outer surface 110, or at least partially exposed on both the inner surface 120 and the outer surface 110. The user input device may be battery-powered. The battery may be rechargeable or need replacement when all its power is consumed. In some embodiments, a closable opening may be provided on the inner or outer surface for replacing the battery.

[0012] As shown in FIG. 1, an exemplary embodiment wherein the user input device is an audio recording device 108, the wearable apparatus 100 may also include a microphone opening 104 and a data connection outlet 102. The microphone opening 104 may be an optional feature and may not be present in all such embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may have at least a portion of mesh or other perforated finish on the inner or outer surface, and a microphone or audio sensor for the audio recording device may be placed underneath the mesh finish. In some other embodiments, the microphone or audio sensor for the audio recording device 108 may be sensitive enough that no opening is necessary. Thus, in those embodiments, the opening 104 may be absent. In embodiments in which the opening 104 is present, it may be located on the outer surface 110 as shown in FIG. 1, or it may be located on the inner surface 120, or even on an edge between the inner surface 120 and outer surface 110. [0013] In some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may comprise an output device. In one example, the wearable apparatus 100 may look like a wristwatch and the output device may comprise a digital display. In another example, the wearable apparatus 100 may be a bracelet having a digital display as the output device. It should be noted that in some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may comprise both the input and output devices, and in some other embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may comprise either the input or the output devices but not both.

[0014] The data connection outlet 102 may also be an optional feature and may not be present in all embodiments. For example, in some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may have one or more wireless communication ports, such as communication transceivers for cellular communication, WiFi, Bluetooth®, Near Field Communication (NFC), Peanut®, or Zigbee®. In some of these embodiments, the data connection need may be fully serviced by the wireless communication and a secondary data connection outlet 102 may be not necessary. In some other embodiments, while one or more wireless communication ports are installed on the wearable apparatus 100, the data connection outlet 102 may still be implemented to provide a communication port for wired communication. The data connection outlet 102 may support one or more of wired communication techniques, such as, but not limited to, Universal Serial Bus (USB), Ethernet, IEEE 1394, RJ-45, etc. Both wireless and wired communication ports may be used to connect the wearable apparatus 100 to a separate computing device, such as, for example, a computer, a mobile phone, a tablet, or even another wearable apparatus. Any data stored by the input device may be loaded from the wearable apparatus 100 to the computing device when the wearable apparatus 100 is connected to the computing device. It should be noted that the input device may have a built- in non-volatile storage and uses an external non-volatile storage. The non-volatile storage may be any kind of non-volatile storage known (e.g., a flash memory) or that may be developed in the future.

[0015] In some embodiments in which the input and/or output device uses a rechargeable battery, the data connection outlet 102 may also be used to charge the battery when the wearable apparatus 100 is plugged to a computer or a power source.

[0016] The wearable apparatus 100 may be configured to change its visual appearance in accordance to the present disclosure. In one aspect, a user may enter user input that captures certain activities or experiences to a wearable apparatus 100. The user input may be entered via a keypad or touch screen in certain embodiments and audio speech in some other embodiments. For example, the user may experience something he or she perceives as improving his or her mental wellbeing— e.g., the user may do a good deed, feel exhilarated by participating in a volunteer activity— and subsequently thereafter, the user may dictate a short speech or enter user input to the wearable apparatus 100 to record the activities or experiences. When the wearable apparatus 100 is connected to a computing device, such as, for example, the user' s home computer or a smart phone, the recorded data may be synced to that computing device.

[0017] In certain embodiments, the computing device may run a software program or an application that helps the user chart or keep track of where they stand in reaching their personal goals. For example, a user could set a personal goal to be more charitable and could keep track, using the wearable apparatus 100, of the number of times per day/week that the user performs a charitable act. This information could then be synced to an application running on the user's smart phone.

[0018] In some embodiments, the whole or a part of the wearable apparatus 100 may be configured to change its visual appearance to reflect the user' s personal progress in reaching his or her goals. For example, if the wearable apparatus 100 is a wristband as shown in FIG. 1 , the band could may start out with one color and change the color into a different color (e.g., from initially being red to green or blue, etc.) to reflect the accumulated steps toward reaching the user's preset goals. In one such embodiment, the wristband could comprise electrochromic or thermochromic materials, and the wearable apparatus 100 could be configured to elevate or decrease the relative voltage across the wristband, or the temperature of the wristband, respectively, depending on the user' s preference for changing visual appearance in accordance to his or her progress towards reaching the preset goals. In some embodiments, the color change may be applied to the whole wearable apparatus 100. In other embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may have a visual indicator and change the color of the visual indicator instead of the whole band. In still other embodiments, instead of changing color, it may be preferable simply to change shade, show some pattern, show some symbols, or make any suitable visual appearance change that may be conspicuous to the user, on the wearable apparatus itself or an indicator attached to the wearable apparatus. For example, the indicator may be a gem attached to the wearable apparatus and the gem may change its shade, or color or display a symbol. In still other embodiments, the wristband could be manufactured from magnetostrictive materials, and could change shape or texture depending on the user's preference for changing visual appearance in accordance to his or her progress towards reaching the preset goals.

[0019] In further embodiments, if the wearable apparatus 100 comprises an output device, it may display the progress on the output device. For example, in an embodiment with a digital display, an indicator on the display may be changed. It will be understood that the foregoing descriptions are merely exemplary, and that other visible changes in appearance or display are intended to be encompassed within the present disclosure.

[0020] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary system 200 according to the present disclosure. The system 200 may show a wearable apparatus 100 as shown in FIG. 1 connected to a computing device 202 via a communication link 130. The wearable apparatus 100 may comprise an input device 108 and a communication port 106. The input device 108 may be a keypad or touch screen, or an audio input device, though, each, as noted above, is not shown on FIG. 1. As described herein, the input device 108 may include an internal non-volatile storage or may use an external non- volatile storage for storing user input data. The communication port 106 may be a wired or wireless communication port as described above with respect to FIG. 1 and may support single or multiple communication mechanisms (e.g., both wired and wireless). In some embodiments, one or more electrical components of the wearable apparatus 100, such as, for example, the input device 108, the communication port 106 and other components not shown (which may include a battery, a microphone, storage, etc.), may be integrated together. In some other embodiments, the electrical components may each stand alone in their own respective enclosures. In both cases, the electrical components may be concealed from view.

[0021] The computing device 202 may be any type of computing device. For example, it could be a computer at a user's home, a smartphone or tablet computer of the user, or a server maintained by a service provider (e.g., hosted in a computing cloud on the Internet). The computing device 202 may include a central processing unit (CPU) 204 and a communication port 206. The communication port 206 may be a wired or wireless communication port corresponding to the communication port described above for the wearable apparatus 100, and may support single or multiple communication mechanisms (e.g., both wired and wireless). The communication link 130 may be any link supported by the communication ports 106 and 206. For example, the link 130 may be one of Bluetooth, WiFi, USB, Ethernet, or wireless cellular connection.

[0022] The computing device 202 may have a non-volatile storage (e.g., a hard drive, or flash drive, disks) configured to store a computer program or application for tracking personal goals. When the computer program is loaded in the computing device 202, the CPU 204 may be configured to chart or keep track of where a user stands in reaching the user's personal goals. For example, the computer program may be configured to accept user input to set a personal goal for charitable activities, and store the goal in the non-volatile storage. When the wearable apparatus 100 is connected to the computing device 202, the computer program may be executed by the CPU 202, which may cause the CPU 202 to import the stored data in the wearable apparatus 100 to the computing device 202 and sync the newly imported data with previously imported data. Further, by executing the computer program, the CPU 202 may be configured to compare the synced data to the user's previously-stored personal goal. In some embodiments, the personal goal may comprise one milestone (which may be the personal goal itself), or alternatively may comprise a plurality of milestones each

representing certain steps of the personal goal. For example, the personal goal may be a predefined number of times per month that the user performs a charitable act, and the milestones may be a certain number of times per day or week that the user performs a charitable act. If a milestone or the personal goal is reached, the CPU 202 may be configured to send an instruction to the wearable apparatus 100 to change its visual appearance according to a pre-defined protocol. The pre-defined protocol may specify, for example, in reaching one milestone, changing color from red to a shade of green. In another example, in reaching another milestone, the pre-defined protocol may specify changing color from a first shade of green to a different shade of green. And in yet another example, in reaching the personal goal, the pre-defined protocol may specify changing color from red to blue. As described herein, instead of changing color, the pre-defined protocol may specify visual appearance changes in shade, visual pattern, or visual symbols, or any suitable visual appearance change that may be conspicuous to the user. In some embodiments where an output device is implemented on a wearable apparatus, the progress may be displayed on the output device, for example, in characters or graphs.

[0023] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary process 300 according to the present disclosure. At block 302, user input may be received from a user. For example, a wearable apparatus 100 may receive user input (e.g., via keypad, touch screen or an audio recorder), which may include a description of good deeds done by the user or something else in which the user participated that makes the user feel good. At block 304, the user input may be stored on a non- volatile storage. For example, the wearable apparatus 100 may use its input device 108 to receive and store any user input in a non-volatile storage within the wearable apparatus 100. At block 306, a computing device may be connected to the device that has stored the user input. For example, the wearable apparatus 100 may be connected to a computing device 202 as shown in FIG. 2. At block 308, the stored user input may be transmitted to the computing device. As described above, once connected, the communication link between the computing device 202 and the wearable apparatus 100 may be used to transmit data stored on the wearable apparatus 100, which may be the user input recorded by the input device 108 (or any input via a keypad, or a touch screen or buttons etc.) and stored on the non-volatile storage in the wearable apparatus 100. In some embodiments, the data transmitted may also include information representing the current visual appearance of the wearable apparatus 100. For example, the data transmitted may include a piece of data indicating the current visual appearance setting (e.g., the current color is red, the current stage is a particular stage on the output device).

[0024] At block 310, it may be determined whether an instruction has been received from the computing device. If no, the process 300 may end. If yes, the process may proceed to block 312, at which step the visual appearance may be changed according to the received instruction. For example, if the user is making progress to achieve the user's pre-determined personal, spiritual or ethical goals, an instruction may be received from the computing device 202 by the wearable apparatus 100 directing the wearable apparatus 100 to change its visual appearance.

[0025] In some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may implement the process 300 in a microprocessor, microcontroller, field programmable gate array (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and/or System on a Chip (SoC). The functionality of the process 300 may be implemented in software, or hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. In one non-limiting embodiment, the input device may implement part or all of the functionality of the process 300 and may act as a processor on the wearable apparatus 100. In another non-limiting embodiment, there may be a separate processor that may be configured to instruct other components to perform the functionality of process 200. In both cases, the processor may be configured to instruct the input device to turn on its recording function and store the recorded input to the non- volatile storage, instruct the communication port 106 to establish communication with the computing device and transmit the stored data to the computing device, determine whether any instruction is received from the computing device and instruct the component in charge of changing visual appearance to carry out the received instruction. In embodiments in which the wristband comprises thermochromic or

electrochromic materials, the processor may be configured to control additional elements capable of raising and lowering the temperature of the wristband, or capable of altering the voltage across the wristband. In embodiments in which the wearable apparatus comprises an output device, the processor may be configured to control what is to be displayed on the output device.

[0026] In embodiments in which the input device may comprise an audio recorder device, some user input provided by a user may be speech, which is, by nature, in an analog format. To keep data sizes relatively small, in some embodiments, the wearable apparatus 100 may implement an analog to digital (A/D) conversion to store the information in digital format (it being understood that, in general, a digital recording may require less storage space than an analog recording). The audio recording device may implement A/D conversion in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. In some other embodiments in which the input device may comprise an audio recorder device, the wearable apparatus 100 may store the received user input in its original format and any A/D conversion may be performed on the user computing device (e.g., the computing device 202). In any case, the software program or application managing the personal goals may be implemented to manage personal goals in textual or numerical format, or other measurable quantity.

[0027] FIG. 4 illustrates an exemplary process 400 according to the present disclosure. At block 402, a communication link may be established between a computing device and a wearable apparatus. For example, the computing device 202, which may run a software application to maintain and track personal goals, may be connected to a wearable apparatus 100. The wearable apparatus 100 may have stored user inputs related to personal, spiritual or ethical activities and/or experiences. At block 404, the stored information may be received by the computing device from the wearable apparatus. For example, the computing device 202 may receive the recorded information related to personal, spiritual or ethical activities and/or experiences from the wearable apparatus 100. At block 406, the received data may be synced with data already stored by the computing device. For example, the computing device 202 may maintain a storage for any data received from the wearable apparatus 100 and the syncing may comprise determining whether there is already data stored by the computing device 202 and adding any newly received data. In some embodiments, the syncing may ensure that the computing device 202 does not store any duplicative data, i.e., it will determine if a piece of data has already been received from the wearable apparatus 100 and stored by the computing device 202. [0028] At block 408, the synced data may be compared to a personal goal. The personal goal may be any personal, spiritual and/or ethical targets pre-defined by the user using the software application, and the computing device 202 may be configured to perform the comparison while executing the software application. At block 410, whether a milestone is achieved may be determined. The user may have pre-defined one or more milestones for the personal goal using software. The computing device 202 may be configured to make the determination as to whether a milestone has been achieved based on the comparison of the synced data to the personal goal and/or to the one or more pre-defined milestones. If a milestone has not been achieved, the process 400 may end. If a milestone has been achieved, the process may proceed to block 414, at which point the process 400 may determine an appropriate change in visual appearance corresponding to reaching the milestone. For example, the user may pre-configure one or more protocols that prescribe what visual appearance changes need to be made in response to reaching which milestones. The computing device 202 may be configured to make the determination accordingly. At block 416, an instruction may be sent to the wearable apparatus to instruct the wearable apparatus to make the change in its visual appearance.

[0029] In some embodiments, the computing device 202 may implement the process 400 in a microprocessor, microcontroller, field programmable gate array (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and/or System on a Chip (SoC). The functionality of the process 400 may be implemented in software (e.g., a software application as referred to above), or hardware, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0030] FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary system 500 according to the present disclosure. The system 500 may show two wearable apparatuses 100 as shown in FIG. 1. In this exemplary embodiment, the two apparatuses 100 may be connected to each other in addition to a computing device 502 via communication links 130, as shown on Figure 5. The computing device 502 may be any type of mobile device, such as a tablet device or smart phone, device. In some embodiments, embodiments of the wearable apparatuses 100 may be connected via peer to peer connection. For example, users of the wearable apparatuses 100 may form groups or establish their networks and register their wearable apparatuses 100 to the group or their networks. If one wearable apparatus 100 comes close to another wearable apparatus 100 registered in the same group such that the communication link 130 may be established between the apparatuses, the two wearable apparatus 100 may establish a direct

communication link 130 between them. The users may exchange their progresses and post their activities— interaction among members of the group or network. It should be noted that the interaction may also be performed via an intermediary, for example, via the computing device 502, or a computer at a user's home, or a server maintained by a service provider (e.g., hosted in a computing cloud on the Internet). Although not shown, the computing device 502 may include a central processing unit (CPU) and a communication port suitable to

communicate with one or more wearable apparatuses 100. As described herein, the communication link 130 may be any link supported by the wearable apparatus 100 and the computing device 502. For example, the link 130 may be one of Bluetooth, WiFi, USB, Ethernet, or wireless cellular connection.

[0031] It should be noted the wearable apparatus may be implemented in a wristband as shown in FIG. 1, or alternatively, in other wearable apparatuses. FIG. 6A shows that the wearable apparatus 100 may be implemented as a necklace and FIG. 6B shows that the wearable apparatus 100 may be implemented as a ring. In both the necklace and ring implementations, the data connection outlet 102, input device 108 (and microphone opening 104, if applicable) and communication port 106 may be implemented with the functionalities identical to that of a wristband. In still other embodiments, the wearable apparatus may be implemented in the form of an anklet, a headband or a necklace pendant. In each such embodiment, the physical structure of the wearable apparatus components, however, may be adapted to fit in the respective shapes.

[0032] In some embodiments, the features of the wearable apparatus 100 may be implemented as an application on a smartphone. For example, the application may use the keypad, touch screen, or audio input devices to receive user input, store the user input using the non- volatile storage provided by the smartphone, sync the stored data with a home computer or even store all historical data on the smartphone so no syncing is necessary and display the progress made by the user towards his or her goal on the display of the smartphone.

[0033] The various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware, computer software, or combinations of both. To illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. The described functionality can be implemented in varying ways for each particular application- such as by using any combination of microprocessors, microcontrollers, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and/or System on a Chip (SoC)--but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present invention.

[0034] The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module may reside in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art.

[0035] The methods disclosed herein comprise one or more steps or actions for achieving the described method. The method steps and/or actions may be interchanged with one another without departing from the scope of the present invention. In other words, unless a specific order of steps or actions is required for proper operation of the embodiment, the order and/or use of specific steps and/or actions may be modified without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Claims

WHAT IS CLAIMED IS:

1. A wearable apparatus comprising: an input recording device configured to receive user input from a user and store the user input on the wearable apparatus;

a communication port configured to transmit data stored by the user input device to a computing device and to receive an instruction from the computing device; and

a processing unit configured to execute the instruction received from the computing device to change a visual appearance of the wearable apparatus.

2. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an indicator attached to the wearable apparatus, wherein the change of visual appearance is a change of a characteristic of the indicator.

3. The wearable apparatus of claim 2, wherein the change of the characteristic of the indicator is a change to its shade or color, or show a symbol or visual pattern.

4. The wearable apparatus of claim 3, wherein the indicator is a gem attached to the wearable apparatus.

5. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the received user input comprises description of a charitable act performed by the user.

6. The wearable apparatus of claim 5, wherein the description comprises audio and/or text.

7. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the wearable apparatus comprises a wristband.

8. The wearable apparatus of claim 7, wherein the wristband comprises electrochromic or thermochromic materials.

9. The wearable apparatus of claim 8, wherein the visual appearance to be changed is a color or shade of the wristband, or showing a symbol or visual pattern.

10. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the wearable apparatus comprises a necklace, a ring, an anklet, a headband or a necklace pendant.

11. The wearable apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the computing device comprises a mobile phone or a computer.

12. The wearable apparatus of claim 8, wherein the mobile phone or computer is configured to receive the received user input, sync the received user input to previously stored user input, compare the synced data to a personal goal for the user, determine whether the user has achieved a milestone in pursuing the personal goal and send the instruction according to the milestone achieved by the user.

13. The wearable apparatus of claim 11, wherein the personal goal comprises a spiritual or ethical goal.

14. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication port comprises a wireless transceiver configured to communicate with the computing device.

15. The wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the communication port comprises a wired connector configured to communicate with the computing device.

16. A method for showing progress towards a personal goal on a wearable apparatus, comprising: recording user input from a user using an input device of the wearable apparatus; transmitting data recorded by the input device to a computing device;

receiving an instruction from the computing device; and

executing the instruction to change a visual appearance of the wearable apparatus.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the wearable apparatus is a wristband.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the wristband comprises electrochromic or thermochromic materials.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the visual appearance to be changed is a color or shade of the wristband, or showing a symbol or visual pattern.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the personal goal comprises a spiritual or ethical goal, the recorded user input comprises description of one or more of charitable acts and exhilarated experiences, and the visual appearance to be changed represents achieving a milestone of the personal goal.