Patent Publication Number: US-11663267-B2

Title: Systems and methods for leveraging metadata for cross product playlist addition via voice control

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     The present disclosure relates to in-vehicle on-demand audio signal processing and, more particularly, to systems and methods related to in-vehicle command-based audio content management techniques. 
     SUMMARY 
     At the fingertip of the internet user lies a web of interwoven infrastructure nearly single-handedly responsible for transforming our modern-day living from online shopping to digital interactions to content streaming, just to name a few examples. The internet was initially brought to the office of the consumer, then to the residence of the consumer, and more recently it is trending to the vehicle of the consumer with formidable contributions such as guiding self-driving vehicles, tooling onboard navigation systems, and enabling internet-based media entertainment. The driver of a self-driving car is provided with real-time, internet-guided auto-steering mechanisms for promoting a handsfree driving experience. The driver of a conventional vehicle is provided with mobile, real-time, and easy access to an internet-based navigational guidance system for locating a desired destination location. The driver of an internet-ready vehicle, self-driving or not, is provided with selective access to internet-based radio broadcast channels for a customized audio content-streaming experience. 
     Taking the example of a vehicular internet audio-streaming feature, certain application programming interfaces (APIs) are specifically tailored to provide riders with internet-based or terrestrially provided music choices by connecting the vehicle to online music stations or terrestrial-broadcast radio stations through an intermediary vehicle entertainment device. The Apple-manufactured Car Play is an example application that, when executed, causes the projection of a user&#39;s smart device screen display onto the vehicle entertainment device screen display bringing the digital audio experience to the internet-ready vehicle. The driver or passenger can select between various types of streamed audio content, such as podcasts, eBooks, and music but only when connected, wirelessly or with wire, to an application executing on and externally located to the vehicle entertainment device, such as the smart device. Another available vehicle-specific API, Gracenote, provides audio-related information display supplementing the rider&#39;s driving experience with audio content data. Neither application is without consumer service-providing limitations. In both scenarios, the consumer experience is lacking in the absence of a seamless vehicle-to-internet direct audio coupling. The Car Play option falls short of offering an integrated audio content-streaming service, and the Gracenote option, largely focused on song, song title, and artist recognition features, offers little by way of an in-vehicle audio content play processing. Add to that manually driven search entry and application installation and updating, and the user experience is dramatically diminished. 
     A fully integrated and seamless internet-based vehicular entertainment system, with no external smart device prerequisite, provides a nearly opposite experience, one that is user enhanced. In disclosed embodiments, a vehicle entertainment system includes a fully integrated audio-streaming and processing service, imparting to the user an application-free and internet-based entertainment experience. The user can selectively activate an internet- or terrestrial-sourced audio-streaming service with on-demand, command-driven, and real-time audio playlist-building capabilities. In some cases, a driver or a vehicle passenger can enjoy a handsfree, automated playlist processing service in the car. While listening to terrestrial broadcast or internet-based audio, the rider selectively commands, with a short utterance, transferring an audio content item, an audio content identifier, or both to a remote third-party service, such as Spotify, Pandora, or other audio services, for playlist building. 
     In accordance with various embodiments, a method of automatically generating a playlist of audio content from a vehicle is disclosed. A vehicle entertainment system of the vehicle receives an audio input including an audio command trigger and an audio playlist command. For example, the vehicle entertainment system may receive an audio input, “TIVO, add this song to my Spotify playlist,” that includes an audio command trigger, “TIVO” and an audio playlist command, “add this song to my Spotify playlist.” In response to detecting the audio command trigger in the audio input, the vehicle entertainment system parses the audio playlist command to extract a third-party provider identification (e.g., Spotify). The system determines an item of metadata of an audio content item that identifies an audio content item currently playing on the vehicle entertainment system of the vehicle. Various information may be extracted from the metadata regarding the currently playing audio content item on the vehicle entertainment system, for example, the audio content item&#39;s title (e.g., the song “Dream On)”, the artist (e.g., Aerosmith), and various other audio content-related data. In accordance with the audio playlist command, identification of the audio content item (e.g., the song “Dream On”,) and related information are subsequently bundled into a proxy file and transmitted by the vehicle entertainment system to a third-party server of the user-specified third-party service for adding the audio content item identified in the proxy file to a user audio content playlist. In some cases, the third-party service may be extracted from the audio playlist command of the audio input. 
     The audio input may be received while the audio content item is played by the vehicle entertainment system. For example, the song, “Dream On” may be playing in the car when the vehicle entertainment system receives the audio input “TIVO, add this song to my Spotify playlist.” Similarly, the audio command trigger may be detected while the audio content item is playing in the vehicle. For example, the audio trigger “TIVO” may be detected while the vehicle entertainment system plays the song “Dream On.” 
     In some embodiments, at least a part of the metadata may require translation to a metadata recognizable third-party service provider. For example, the metadata of the currently playing audio content item may include an identification unique and recognizable to TIVO (e.g., audio content identifier) yet foreign and unrecognizable to Spotify. In this case, the system performs a translation operation to convert the TIVO-recognizable identification—audio content identifier—to a Spotify-recognizable identification—third-party content identifier—to ensure proper identification of the audio content item of interest in the proxy file to the third-party recipient, Spotify. In some embodiments, the audio content identifier may be a song identification, a key specifying a third-party playlist service, for example, Spotify, a playlist parameter, or a combination thereof. 
     In some embodiments, the vehicle entertainment system may build or edit the audio content playlist without resorting to a third-party service, based on the audio playlist command. In this case, the vehicle entertainment system and the third-party service may perform playlist-related operations such as maintaining, building and editing the audio content playlist. 
     Whether the audio content playlist is third-party-generated or in-vehicle generated, the audio content playlist may be based on an audio content category. For example, the playlist may be organized by artist or genre. The audio content item or an identifier of the audio content item may be transmitted to a remote third-party server affiliated with the third-party service. In some cases, the audio content item, an audio content identifier, or a combination, of the audio content playlist may be saved in a database, remotely located from the vehicle, and may be transmitted from the database to the remote third-party service under the control of the vehicle entertainment system for building or editing the playlist. The audio content item may be sourced by an internet network device, or it may be terrestrially sourced, both remotely and externally located to the vehicle. For example, the song “Dream On” may be received from the server of an internet radio station or it may be received from a frequency modulated (FM) radio station. 
     In some cases, the database stores and maintains audio content (or identifiers of audio content) for audio content playlists. For example, audio content identifiers, transmitted by the vehicle entertainment system, may be stored and categorized for subsequent transmission to a third-party server of the third-party service. Upon receipt of the stored information, the third-party server may construct or edit the playlist and transmit the constructed or edited playlist back to the database or the vehicle entertainment system. In some cases, the database may store playlist content or content identifies from more than one source. For example, the database may collect user-identified audio content identifiers of audio content from various audio content sources for building a playlist from the collected audio content. The multi-sourced audio content may be from a user home device, a user office device, and the user vehicle entertainment device; the collective sum of all identified content may ultimately become the subject of a user playlist under construction. That is, the collected identified content may be transmitted to a third-party service for building or modifying the user playlist of audio content, including a combination of the collected identified content and the content identified by the user vehicle entertainment system for subsequent transmission to a third-party service to build or modify a user playlist. A third-party server affiliated with the third-party service may be directed to transmit the built or edited playlist to the vehicle entertainment system, the database, or another destination device or system. 
     In some embodiments, detecting the audio command trigger indicates to the vehicle entertainment system to perform an action related to one or more audio content items vis-a-vis one or more audio content playlists. For example, the audio command “TIVO” may be indicative of taking an audio playlist action to add or even to remove a song from a user playlist. 
     The audio content identifier in the metadata may be translated to a third-party audio content identifier based on a protocol. With continued reference to the above example, the audio content identifier may need translation to an identifier recognizable to Spotify for adding the song “Dream On” to a corresponding user playlist, in accordance with a Spotify-specific protocol. The audio content identifier uniquely identifies the audio content to the vehicle entertainment system, and the third-party audio content identifier uniquely identifies the audio content and in some cases, the audio content playlist corresponding to the audio content, to a remote server (e.g., a Spotify-affiliated server) for inclusion of the audio content item in the audio content playlist. The third-party audio content identifier is then transmitted by the vehicle entertainment system to the remote third-party server for adding the audio content item to the audio content playlist. 
     A third-party audio content identifier and the audio content identifier each identify audio content for inclusion in corresponding audio content playlists that may or may not be based on audio content categories. In some cases, an audio content identifier or a third-party audio content identifier may be a song identification, a key, a playlist parameter, or some combination thereof. It is understood that the foregoing identifier examples are not all-encompassing and that identifiers, for playlists or otherwise, may suitably carry other types of information relating to audio content and audio content-related information, such as, without limitation, audio content playlists. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other objects and advantages of the disclosure will be apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters refer to like parts throughout, and in which: 
         FIGS.  1 - 2    each show an illustrative diagram of an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  3 A  shows an illustrative diagram of an example of an audio input received by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  3 B  shows an illustrative diagram of an example of a playlist generated by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  3 C  shows an illustrative diagram of an example of a proxy file implemented by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  4    shows an illustrative diagram of an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  5    depicts a block diagram of an illustrative example of a user equipment device, in accordance with one embodiment; 
         FIG.  6    depicts an example of an illustrative system implementing the user equipment device, in accordance with one embodiment; 
         FIG.  7    depicts a block diagram of an illustrative example of a user equipment device, in accordance with one embodiment; 
         FIG.  8    shows an illustrative diagram of an example vehicle employing an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; 
         FIG.  9    shows an illustrative diagram of an example user interface employed in an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure; and 
         FIGS.  10 - 11    each depict an illustrative flowchart of an audio playlist generation process, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present disclosure is, in some embodiments, directed to methods and systems for in-vehicle audio playlist generation, processing, and maintenance, and more particularly to in-vehicle voice command-triggered audio playlist generation and editing techniques. 
       FIG.  1    shows an illustrative diagram of an exemplary audio playlist generation system  100 , in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In some embodiments, system  100  performs on-demand vehicle-commanded audio playlist generation, processing, management, and maintenance based on audio content items played and displayed in the vehicle and sourced from one or more audio content types. The system is voice command-triggered to perform certain audio playlist actions based on one or more audio content types from one or more variety of audio content sources (e.g., terrestrial, internet) and geographical origins available to a user or occupant of a vehicle. 
     In one embodiment, as shown in  FIG.  1   , a system  100  includes an array  104  of antennas ( 104   a ,  104   b ,  104   c ,  104   d  . . .  104   n , “n” being an integer value), a vehicle  106  with antenna array  108  and including a vehicle entertainment system  110 , a third-party server  107 , a database  102 , and a communication network  120 . Vehicle  106  with antenna array  108  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may comprise an audio playlist generation system, such as without limitation, vehicle entertainment system  110  of various disclosed embodiments. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may comprise an audio playlist generation system in various embodiments. 
     While an array  104  of a specific number of antennas ( 104   a - 104   d ), located in various geographical regions (e.g., Seattle, California, Austin, and Boston, respectively) is shown in  FIG.  1    and described herein, it is understood that array  104  may include a different number of (up to n) antennas dispersed in various geographical regions. In some embodiments, some or all of the antennas of array  104  are collectively located in a single region. In some embodiments, broadcast-generated (terrestrial-generated) audio content items  105  may be broadcast from various locations around the entire country. In some embodiments, internet-generated audio content items  109  may be received from one or more audio content-producing internet devices. For both the broadcast- and internet-sourced content items, selection of audio content items is a matter of a user selection or based on a machine-selection model. In the former case, for example, a driver or occupant of vehicle  106  may select a broadcast radio station or an internet-based station for in-vehicle listening pleasure. Additionally, or alternatively, a machine-learning model may be trained with training data representing user (e.g., a registered owner or regular driver of vehicle  106 )-selected broadcast and internet station and channel selections over time. The trained model may then become the source of in-vehicle broadcast and internet radio station and channel selection for a user handsfree experience, a particularly useful feature of an autonomous vehicle. 
     Vehicle  106  may be a passenger car, a truck, a bus, or a minivan. Vehicle  106  may be any vehicle type capable of human transportation, equipped with an on-board entertainment system and internet-ready. In some embodiments, vehicle  106  may be autonomous, but vehicle  106  need not be self-driving and may be a conventional vehicle requiring manual guidance by a human driver. Vehicle  106  may be a hybrid vehicle, for example, a semi self-driving vehicle with some but not all driving features automated. For example, vehicle  106  may be equipped with automated lane-changing mechanisms but manual steering features. 
     Each of the antennas ( 104   a ,  104   b ,  104   c ,  104   d  . . .  104   n ) of array  104  may be a broadcast receiving antenna and a broadcast-transmitting antenna. For example, each of the antennas of array  104  may be an omnidirectional antenna suitable for transmitting and receiving broadcast signals. According to an embodiment, array  104  may communicate over one or more wireless networks that operate according to a 5G specification or standard. In some embodiments, the wireless network includes one or more wireless networks that operate according to a specification or a standard other than a 5G specification or standard. For example, the wireless network may operate as a 3G network, a 4G network, an LTE network, an LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) network, a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network, a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) network, an Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB) network, a High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) network, an Evolution Data Optimized (EV-DO) network, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) network, or some other type of wireless network (e.g., an ad hoc network, a non-land-based wireless network, etc.). According to an exemplary implementation, a wireless network includes a radio access network (RAN) and a core network. 
     In some embodiments, vehicle  106  receives broadcast audio content items  105  through a vehicle antenna  108  positioned on vehicle  106 . Antenna  108  may be positioned at any location externally or internally to the vehicle that is suitable for transmitting and receiving broadcast signals of audio content items detectable by vehicle  106 , to and from array  104 , respectively. In the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , antenna  108  is shown positioned on a top surface (e.g., roof) of vehicle  106 , but antenna  108  need not be positioned as shown in  FIG.  1   . 
     In some embodiments, vehicle  106  may receive broadcast audio content items  105  indirectly. For example, vehicle  106  may receive audio content from database  102 . In such cases, database  102  requires an antenna or another type of a receiving and transmitting mechanism for communicating with vehicle  106 . Database  102  can store all or some received or broadcast audio, content items from the broadcast content sources. Database  102  may analogously store all received internet-generated audio content items  109  from internet-generating audio sources. For example, database  102  may receive broadcast audio content items  105  from the antennas of array  104  and store the received broadcast content items in a storage local or externally coupled to database  102 . Similarly, database  102  may receive and store audio content items  109 . In the case of broadcast audio content items (e.g., audio content items  105 ), while not shown in  FIG.  1   , database  102  may include the broadcast audio content items  105 , or database  102  may be coupled to transmit and receive audio signals the broadcast audio content items  105 . Analogously, database  102  may receive internet-generated audio content items  109  from communication network  120  and store the received content items in a storage local or externally coupled to database  102 . In such cases, while not shown in  FIG.  1   , database  102  may include the broadcast audio content items  105 , or database  102  may be coupled to transmit and receive audio signals representing the broadcast audio content items  105  and internet-generated audio content items  109 . Database  102  can include a server or a collection of servers designed to receive and store the broadcast audio content items and the internet-generated audio content items. Broadcast content sources, for example, from California via antenna  104   b , can include over-the-air digital signals or over-the-air analog signals. In some embodiments, system  100  may convert over-the-air, analog, or digital signals to MPEG or MP3 (audio) signals for storage and processing. For example, vehicle  106  may convert over-the-air or analog signals, transmitted from array  104  or communication network  120 , to MPEG or MP3 signals, and MP3 signals may be used to carry audio signals with audio content of audio content items subsequently the subject of an in-vehicle and user-specified audio playlist. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  converts, at least in part, over-the-air, analog, or digital signals to MPEG or MP3 signals. 
     Vehicle  106  includes a vehicle entertainment system  110  configured to process, construct, and in some cases maintain, audio playlists based on a user selection of an audio content item. In some embodiments, vehicle  106  receives an audio input at vehicle entertainment system  110 . Vehicle  106  may be listening for an audio command trigger while receiving an audio input. Vehicle  106  may receive an audio input while an audio content item is currently played by the vehicle entertainment system (e.g., the song “Dream On” by the band Aerosmith). The audio content item may be terrestrially sourced—broadcast audio content received from array  104 —or internet-sourced—internet-generated audio content from communication network  120 . The audio input includes an audio command trigger and an audio playlist command. In response to detecting the audio command trigger in the audio input, vehicle entertainment system  110  parses the audio input to determine the audio playlist command. In some embodiments, the audio playlist command is a user (e.g., driver or occupant of vehicle  106 ) command, a commanded action on a user-specified audio playlist (e.g., “Add this song to my Spotify playlist” or “Generate a playlist of the same genre on Spotify”). In response to detecting the audio command trigger, vehicle entertainment system  110  may determine a metadata associated with the audio content item of the audio content playing in vehicle  106  and, in response to determining the audio playlist command, vehicle entertainment system  110  may cause the audio content item to be added to an audio content playlist of a third-party service based on the metadata of the audio content item. 
     With continued reference to  FIG.  1   , database  102  may be a relational database, NoSQL, or object-oriented database. Database  102  may be any database or storage space (e.g., persistent or non-persistent storage) suitably configurable for housing audio content—and audio content identifiers—information related to audio content, as shown and discussed herein. In some embodiments, database  102  includes one or more database devices, which may be of a common database type, such as, without limitation, one or more relational databases, or of differing database types, such as, without limitation, one or more relational and one or more object-oriented database types. 
     In  FIG.  1   , database  102  and other systems may be communicatively coupled through communication network  120 . In the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , database  102  and server  107  are shown communicatively coupled through communication network  120 . Specifically, database  102  and server  107  are shown communicatively coupled through interface  134  to communication network  120  for facilitating the exchange of audio content and audio content identifier information for use by vehicle entertainment system  110 . Database  102  and communication network  120  may be communicatively coupled wirelessly or with wire. In some embodiments, database  102  may be coupled directly or indirectly, wirelessly, to vehicle entertainment system  110 . Similarly, server  107  and communication network  120  may be communicatively coupled wirelessly or wired. In some embodiments, server  107  may be coupled directly or indirectly, and wirelessly, to vehicle entertainment system  110  through interfaces  112  and  114  of communication network  120 . In the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , database  102  and vehicle entertainment system  110  are shown coupled through an interface  124 . Database  102  may be wirelessly communicatively coupled to vehicle entertainment system  110  for housing audio content items and audio content identifier information for the ultimate building or editing of an audio playlist, as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, database  102  and vehicle entertainment system  110  communicate through interface  125  of communication network  120 , as further discussed below. In some embodiments, system  100  does not include database  102 . In such an embodiment, the relevant functions of database  102  may be performed, at least in part, by vehicle entertainment system  110  or a combination of vehicle entertainment system  110 , communication network  120 , and server  107 . In an example implementation, database  102  may be a physically local storage device or storage space that is in part or in whole incorporated into vehicle entertainment system  110  or an electronic device of vehicle  106  other than and communicatively coupled to vehicle entertainment system  110 . 
     In some embodiments, such as shown in the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , database  102  is organized into storage spaces for housing a combination of user profile items, audio content, audio content identifiers or other audio content-related information. User profile items may include user-favorite audio content items, for example, based on historical user selections, and/or other user-specific information. Database  102  may further house user audio playlist selections and machine learning-based audio playlist selections, as further discussed below. 
     Third-party server  107  may be a database or other storage types such as discussed above relative to database  102 . Server  107  may be a networking device affiliated with a third-party audio content management service (e.g., Spotify, Pandora) for building audio playlists pursuant to requests from vehicle entertainment system  110 . For example, server  107  may receive a request through interface  112 , from vehicle entertainment service  110 , to add an audio content item to an existing user playlist (e.g., one of a particular genre) or to build a new playlist based on the audio content item, for example. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  is equipped to communicate with an application programming interface (API)  132  of server  107  to effect user-commanded playlist actions. For example, vehicle entertainment system  110  may store JavaScript Object Notation (JSON)-formatted code that when executed by a processor of, coupled to, or accessed by vehicle entertainment system  110  causes an content item played in-vehicle (e.g., the song “Dream On”) to be added to a user playlist by server  107 . Vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit a request to add an audio content item to an existing or new playlist through interface  112  and communication network  120  and may, in return, receive an updated or newly constructed playlist from server  107  through interface  114  and communication network  120 . In some cases, vehicle entertainment system  110  may construct or update a playlist without, or in addition to, resorting to server  107 . Vehicle entertainment system  110  and server  107  may exchange other types of information, as further discussed herein. Server  107  may be located internally or externally to a network cloud. For example, server  107  may be a part of communication network  120  or externally located and communicatively coupled to communication network  120 , as shown in the embodiment of  FIG.  1   . Server  107  may be any networking or storage device with the capability to communicate and acknowledge requests from vehicle entertainment system  110  and to generate, update, and process audio playlists on-demand. 
     In some embodiments, the JSON code includes metadata associated with a TiVo entertainment system, such as vehicle entertainment system  110  of  FIG.  1   , or TiVo in general. For example, a TiVo entertainment system implemented in an internet-connected car, such as vehicle  106  of  FIG.  1   , can use JSON code to program the metadata associated with a song that is playing in vehicle  106 . For example, the TiVo entertainment system may be programmed with the following raw JSON code: 
     {“status”:“ok”, “code”:200, “messages”:null,“build”:“1.0”,“parameters”: {“apiKey”: “crw5myhx6caazcmsky56ud9s”, “id”: “Dream On”, “include”: “all”, “format”: “json”, “country”: “US”, “language”: “en”}, “serverName”: “tul1csprcs6.corporate.local”, “startTime”: “2020-04-26T19:20; 54Z”, “duration”: 135, “song”:{“ids”:{“amgClassicalTrackId”: null, “amgPopTrackId”: “T841898”, “irscId”: “US SM10011897”, “muzeID”: “2750616”, “trackID”: “MT0008867553”}, “title”: “Dream On”, “primaryArtists”:[{“id”: “MN0006048252”, “name”&gt;“Aerosmith”}], “isPick”:true, “genres”:[{“id”: “MA0000002613”, “name”: “Pop/Rock”, “weight”:8}], “attributes”:null, “attributesUri”:null, “appearances”:[{“ids“:{albumId”: “MW0002654019”, “released”: “MR0005179349”, “trackId”: “MT0057453193”}, “title”: “Live Rock Songs”, “label”: “Universal”, “year”: “ ”, “rating”:0, “isPick”:false, “hasReview”:false, “sample”: “ ”, “sonySample”: false, “duration”:291}, {“ids”:{“albumId”: “MW0000318767”, “released”: “MR0000270828”, “trackId”: “MT0008271885”{, “title”: “Metalmania”, “label”: “Columbia”, “year”: “ ”, “rating”:5, “isPick”:false, “hasReview”:false, “sample”: “ ”, “sonySample”:false, “duration”:0}, {“ids”:{“albumId”: “MW0002189526”, “released”: “MR0003416489”, “trackId”: “MT0042070145”}, “title”:“Permanent Rock: Live In Boston”, “label”: “Access All Areas/Intergroove”, “year”: “ ”, “rating”:0, “isPick”:false, “hasReview”:false, “sample”: “ ”, “sonySample”:false, “duration”:}, {“ids”:{albumId”: “MW0002891688”, “released”: “MR0004482166”, “trackId”: “MT0052840681”}, “title”: “Rockin&#39; Roots of Aerosmith”, “label”: “Laser
 
The above JSON code may be represented in a user-friendly format as follows:
 
JSON
 
     status: ok 
     code: 200 
     messages: null 
     build: 1.0 
     parameters
         apiKey: crw5myhx6caazcmsky56ud9s   id: Dream On   include: all   format: json   country: US   language: en       

     serverName: tul1csprcs6.corporate.local 
     startTime: 2020-04-26T19:30:547 
     endTime: 2020-04-26T21:35:547 
     duration: 135 
     song
         ids
           amgClassicalTrackId: null   amgPopTrackID: T 841898   isrcId: USSM10011897   muzeId: 2750616   trackId: MT0008867553   
           title: Dream On   primaryArtist
           0
               id: MN0000604852   name: Aerosmith   
               
           isPick: true   genres
           0
               id: MA0000002613   name: Pop/Rock   weight: 8   
               
           attributes: null   attributesUri: null   appearances   appearancesUri: http://rcs.rovicorp.com/v1.1/song/appearances?format=json&amp;apikey=crw5myhx6caazcmsky56ud9s&amp;trackId=MT0008867553&amp;allowsmeclip=false
 
The above JSON code may identify the audio content identifier—the identifier for the song “Dream On”—with the “apiKey” parameter or the “trackid”. In the same code, the playlist genre may be indicated as “Pop/Rock”. For example, vehicle entertainment system  110  may create a playlist of audio content items, including the song “Dream On” by the band Aerosmith, of the pop/rock genre.
       

     Vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106  may be coupled to one or more remaining electrically powered automobile devices or a central electronic back panel device communicatively coupling various electronic devices, including vehicle entertainment system  110 , to each other. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  is communicatively coupled to other in-vehicle devices of vehicle  106  through an interface  130 . Interface  130  may be a wired or wireless interface. In some embodiments, communication of audio content, audio content identifier, and audio input between vehicle entertainment system  110  and other devices (e.g., database  102 , server  107 , communication network  120 ) may be facilitated through interface  130  using a wired connection, such as an audio cable, USB cable, ethernet cable or the like attached to a corresponding input port, or may be accomplished using a wireless connection, such as through Bluetooth, WIFI, WiMAX, GSM, UTMS, CDMA, TDMA, 3G, 4G, 5G, Li-Fi, LTE, or any other suitable wireless transmission protocol. 
     Vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106  may include an audio transceiver with the capability to transmit, receive, and process audio signals, such as, without limitation, audio content items transmitted through audio content-related signals for building audio playlists. The audio transceiver may be used for transmitting and receiving message-carrying signals, such as, without limitation, audio playlist build or edit commands, communicated between server  107  and database  102 , for example. Alternatively, an audio receiver located externally and coupled to vehicle entertainment system  110  and positioned internally to vehicle  106 , may serve as an audio signal transceiver for receiving and transmitting audio signals from and to vehicle entertainment system  110 . 
     In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  can present and play a selection of audio content for generating or editing an audio playlist, in some cases via a user interface (an example of which is shown and discussed relative to  FIG.  2   ), based on user selections. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may receive broadcast-sourced audio signals from array  104  via antenna array  108 , and internet-sourced signals from communication network  120 . Vehicle entertainment system  110  may request third-party server  107  to generate an audio playlist based on a user voice command-triggered selection from the received broadcast and/or internet-based audio content. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit identifying information and possibly other types of information relating to a selected audio content to third-party server  107  of a third-party audio service provider for generating an audio playlist based on the selection from the received broadcast sources from array  104  or internet sources. 
     Communication network  120  may be a wide area network (WAN), a local area network (LAN), or any other suitable network system. Communication network  120  may include one or more network systems. For example, communication network  120  may include a WAN and a LAN, two or more LANs, two or more WANs, or a combination thereof. In some embodiments, communication network  120  and vehicle entertainment system  110  are communicatively coupled through one or more network communication interfaces. For example, communication network  120  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may be communicatively coupled through interfaces  112 ,  114 , and  125 , as shown in  FIG.  1   . Communication network  120  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may be communicatively coupled wirelessly. In some example implementations, communication network  120  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may be communicatively coupled through the interfaces shown and discussed relative to  FIGS.  5 - 7    herein. In some embodiments, communication network  120  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may be communicatively coupled in accordance with one or more suitable network communication interfaces not necessarily shown and discussed herein. 
     Communication network  120  generally includes various networking infrastructures supporting network traffic transmission. In the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , communication network  120  is shown to include a server farm  116  and communication servers  118  ( 118   a ,  118   b , and  118   c ) for facilitating internet communication between vehicle entertainment system  106  and third-party server  107 . In some embodiments, communication network  120  further facilitates internet communication between database  102  and server  107 . For example, database  102  and server  107  may communicate through communication server  118   c  of communication network  120  although most often, the networking equipment through which systems external to the communication system communicate is not the same. Sometimes, even a single communication kernel of data is broken up and each divided portion is transmitted through one or more different networking devices of communication network  120 . It is understood that while communication network  120  is shown to include a limited amount of networking equipment, such as servers  118  and server farm  116 , communication network  120  may indeed and typically does include another amount of networking equipment. Additionally, or alternatively, communication network  120  may and often does include other types of networking equipment than those shown in the embodiment of  FIG.  1    through which various illustrated systems establish communication. For example, server  107  and vehicle entertainment system  110  are shown to communicate through servers  118   a  and  118   b  in  FIG.  1   . In some embodiments, server  107  and vehicle entertainment system  110  may communicate through routers in addition to or in place of servers  118   a  and  118   b . Server farm  116  may include one or more network devices for transmitting internet-generated audio content items; for example, server farm  116  may include one or more servers for transmitting a particular internet audio channel. 
     In some cases, while not shown in  FIG.  1   , communication network  120  may further facilitate internet communication between vehicle entertainment system  110  and database  102 . For example, instead of or in addition to database  102  communicating with vehicle entertainment system  110  through interface  124 , database  102  may communicate through communication networking equipment of communication network  120  to vehicle entertainment system  110 . Similarly, server farm  116  may be made of different networking equipment or vehicle entertainment system  110  may receive internet-generated (streamed) audio content from additional or other networking equipment in communication network  120 . 
     In some embodiments, vehicle  106  is internet-ready and configured to receive internet-streamed audio content instead of or in addition to broadcast audio content items  105 . In some embodiments, speech data packets are received at an audio receiver of vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106 . For example, vehicle  106  may receive packets of audio-streamed content from an internet radio station generated from server farm  116 . Vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106  may play an audio content item received from a broadcast or internet-streamed. Alternatively, or additionally, another audio transmitting device in vehicle  106  may play the audio content. While the audio content is playing in vehicle  106 , vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit audio content data relating to the audio content being played to server  107  for building or editing a user-specified audio playlist based on the audio content corresponding to the transmitted audio content data. Vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106  may instead or in addition, transmit the audio content data to database  102  for storage. For example, vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit audio content data identifying various audio content playing in vehicle  106  at various times to database  102  for storage and subsequent transmission to server  107  for building or editing a user-specified playlist. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may build or edit an in-vehicle audio playlist in addition to or in place of the audio playlist built or edited by server  107 . 
     In some embodiments, the system listens for and receives an audio input (e.g., a user-uttered command) in-vehicle and, based on the audio input, generates or edits, or requests generating or editing, one or more audio playlists with an audio content item. The audio content item may be a currently in-vehicle playing audio content item. Playlist generation, processing, or editing may be triggered by an audio command trigger preceding an audio playlist command (e.g., the uttered command) that when detected by the system, causes the system to process the command. The audio playlist command may be related to an action the system is directed to take in connection with an audio playlist. An example of an audio input including an audio command trigger and an audio playlist command is provided in  FIG.  3 A . 
     In one embodiment, as shown in  FIG.  1   , the system facilitates in-vehicle generation or editing of audio playlists based on a selection of audio content items received from multiple broadcast streams from different geographical areas (e.g., New Jersey, California, Texas, etc.) or from internet-streaming sources of server farm  116 . The system may solicit a third-party audio service over a network, for example server  107 , for building and editing audio playlists. The system receives one or more broadcast audio content items (e.g., content provided by radio stations) from audio content sources and/or internet-generated audio content streaming from one or more internet radio stations. In some embodiments broadcast sources and internet sources are radio stations broadcasting and transmitting, respectively, audio (sometimes with related metadata) by radio waves and internet communications, respectively, that is intended to reach a wide audience. The system receives the broadcast content items from the entire country (e.g., USA) or a geographical area (e.g., North America) and internet content items from internet radio stations as selected by the user. In some embodiments, the system receives all broadcast content items from the entire country (e.g., USA) or a geographical area (e.g., North America) as selected by the user. The received broadcast and/or streamed content items can be for a time period (e.g., 30 minutes, 60 minutes or 120 minutes) or continuously recorded. For example, the system may record the broadcast and streamed content items for a specific time period from broadcast content sources and internet content sources (e.g., radio stations) for processing and use in generating the playlist. In an embodiment, after the specific time period has passed, the recorded broadcast and streamed content items are deleted. In another embodiment, the system records all broadcasts and streaming continuously and provides such recordings for processing and use in generating the playlist. The received broadcast and streamed content items are optionally stored in a database  102  for processing and used in generating the playlist. In some embodiments, the received broadcast and streamed content items are optionally stored in a storage incorporated in or coupled to vehicle entertainment system (e.g., storage  514  of  FIG.  5   .) 
     The system processes each of the broadcast audio content items and internet audio content items by performing content recognition and in some cases, geographical origin recognition, to determine metadata for each audio content item. For example, a first broadcast or streamed audio content item is processed and determined to be the song “Dream On” and/or music from a radio station in Memphis. In some embodiments, all broadcast and streamed audio content items are processed to determine at least a content type. 
     As previously discussed, vehicle  106  may be an autonomous vehicle, a vehicle that is capable of sensing its environment and moving safely with little or no human input. The vehicle can be an internet-connected vehicle, a vehicle that can communicate bidirectionally with other systems outside of the vehicle. The vehicle can communicate bidirectionally via antenna array  108  with array  104  and communication network  120 , respectively, to facilitate generating the playlist based on the selections and the received broadcast and streamed content items. 
     In an example implementation, at  1 ) in  FIG.  1   , vehicle entertainment system  110  receives internet-generated audio content items  109  from server farms  116  of communication network  120  and broadcast audio content items  105  from various geographic regions in the U.S. Vehicle entertainment system  110  plays the received audio content items in vehicle  106 . A particular audio content item currently playing in vehicle  106  may be indicated by a command utterance from a driver or occupant of vehicle  106 , at  2 ) in  FIG.  1   . For example, the song “Dream On” may be playing in vehicle  106  and an occupant may utter “TIVO: Add this song to my Spotify playlist.” In this case, the word “TIVO” is a trigger to vehicle entertainment system  110 . In an embodiment, vehicle entertainment system  110  listens for a trigger that may not necessarily be “TIVO” but is rather another word or phrase known to vehicle entertainment system  110  to signify an upcoming uttered playlist-related command. With continued reference to the above example, vehicle entertainment system  110  may detect the utterance “TIVO” by implementing a speech recognition algorithm as further discussed below. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may further detect the command “Add this song to my Spotify playlist” and determine a metadata. The metadata includes identifying information (i.e., audio content identifier) regarding the currently playing audio content such as, without limitation, the title, artist, and genre of the song. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may further detect the third-party service, Spotify, in the audio playlist command of the audio input. In the above example, Spotify is identified as the third-party service and server  107  may be a Spotify server. In some embodiments, at  3 ), vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit the audio content identifying part of the metadata—the audio content identifier—of the currently playing song to database  102  for storage, processing, and use in building or editing a playlist of a particular category, for example. 
     In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  may translate the audio content identifier of the metadata detected in the currently playing audio content to an identifier recognizable to the third-party service, in the above example, Spotify. The third-party service may or may not employ a unique identifier and may recognize the audio content identifier of the metadata in the currently playing audio content in which case, no translation is necessary and vehicle entertainment system  110  transmits the audio content identifier to server  107  through interface  112 , at step  4 ) in  FIG.  1   . In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  transmits the audio content identifier to server  107  in a proxy file, as shown in  FIG.  1   . In embodiments where vehicle entertainment system  110  translates the audio content identifier to a third party audio content identifier, vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit the third party audio content identifier instead of the audio content identifier of the metadata to server  107 . To determine whether or not the audio content identifier requires translation, vehicle entertainment system  110  may maintain and search a table of correspondences between third-party services and third-party audio content identifiers, and if vehicle entertainment system  110  fails to find such a correspondence in the table, vehicle entertainment system  110  may determine no translation is necessary and vehicle entertainment system  110  may determine to transmit the audio content identifier from the metadata of the currently playing audio content with the proxy file at step  4 ) to server  107 . Whereas, if vehicle entertainment system  110  finds an associated third-party audio content identifier in the table, vehicle entertainment system  110  may determine to transmit the associated third-party audio content identifier with the proxy file at step  4 ) to server  107 . For example, in the case where vehicle entertainment system  110  finds a unique audio content identifier (third-party audio content identifier) for “Spotify” in a maintained table, vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit the unique identifier to server  107  for recognition of the song “Dream On” by Spotify. The third-party audio content identifier may be compliant with a protocol unique to the third-party service. For example, a certain sequence of numbers or letters in the beginning of the identifier may have a certain significance in identifying the third-party service. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  does not transmit the audio content (e.g., the song “Dream On”) with the proxy file at  4 ) because the audio content may be a large file and unnecessary for the recognition of the song given the metadata audio content identifier. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  may transmit the audio content with the proxy file for possible faster audio content identification by server  107 . 
     Next, at  5 ) in  FIG.  1   , vehicle entertainment system  110  receives a playlist of one or more audio content identifiers of the audio content in the playlist built by server  107 . The playlist includes the audio content identifier of the audio content that was playing in vehicle  106  when the vehicle occupant asked to add the content to a Spotify playlist. Accordingly, system  100  builds a user- or occupant-commanded playlist without the need or assistance of an externally located device to vehicle entertainment system  110 , such as a smartphone. Unlike conventional techniques, system  100  does not require an application-to-application communication to consummate playlist processing based on a currently playing audio content item. 
     In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  110  is self-contained and includes a vehicle content interface application that when executed by one or more processers of vehicle entertainment system  110  may cause the above-identified steps and steps as discussed and shown relative to the embodiment of  FIG.  1    to be performed by vehicle entertainment system  110 . 
     In an embodiment, vehicle  106  of system  100  may recognize content in an audio input received from a user or occupant of vehicle  106 , for example a driver utterance, by implementing a natural language detection process. In some embodiments, system  100  may detect an utterance, for example an audio input (e.g., “TIVO: Add this song to my Spotify playlist”), by implementing natural language processes. Vehicle entertainment system  110  may implement or solicit a speech detection algorithm to determine the start and end of a phrase based on a sequence validating technique. For example, vehicle entertainment system  110  may implement a segmental conditional random field (CRF) algorithm or use a hidden Markov model (HMM) or a long short-term memory (LSTM) model to predict the end of the audio signal corresponding to a phrase or sentence. In implementations using model-based prediction, such as with the use of HMM or LSTM models, the model may be trained to predict whether the uttered word is a start of the sentence, an intermediate word or the last word of the sentence. A model may be trained in a variety of ways to predict features such as, without limitation, question tags, WH (“what”) words, articles, part-of-speech tags, intonations, syllables, or any other suitable language attributes. The term “tag,” as used herein, refers to a label that is attached to, stored with, or otherwise associated with a word or a phrase. For instance, “verb” is an example of a part-of-speech tag that may be associated with the word “running.” Part of speech is one example of a feature or a type of tag value. An influential word is another example of a feature or a type of tag value. During the training of the model, a collection of word-to-tag mappings is fed to the model along with an input sentence. As used herein, the term “label” refers to a value or outcome that corresponds to a sample input (e.g., a query, features, or the like) and that may be employed during training of the model. In some examples, the model is trained by way of supervised learning based on labeled data, such as sample inputs and corresponding labels. In some examples, features may be referred to as dependent variables, and labels may be referred to as independent variables. 
     A sequence validation technique may be executed on a sentence or phrase in a forward and a backward direction for improved prediction reliability but at the expense of requiring a separate model and model training for each direction, a rather costly approach. A sequence structure validation may be employed using conditional probability at its base, for example, the Bayes theorem, to store states at different points in time of a sentence. In some embodiments, an extension to the basic sequence structure validation algorithm may be implemented with Markov chains. Markov chains introduce hidden states at every state transition, for example, between the words of a phrase or sentence, or between syllables of words of a phrase or sentence. The labels used for each such training example are the points in time at which the phrase (spoken utterance) may start and end. 
     In some embodiments, the start of a phrase is typically driven by decisions taken during the handling of the last packet of a phrase, and a list of contextual information is passed to the next audio chunk (or packet). In some cases, a silent duration of a predefined duration may be detected in real time to help shift to a new context. In some embodiments, silent duration detection may be implemented based on heuristics. 
       FIG.  2    shows an illustrative diagram of an exemplary audio playlist generation system  200 , in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In some embodiments, system  200  is configured as system  100  of  FIG.  1    and similarly performs on-demand vehicle-commanded audio playlist generation, processing, management, and maintenance based on audio content items played in the vehicle and sourced from one or more audio content types. For example, as shown in  FIG.  2   , system  200  includes an array  204  of antennas ( 204   a ,  204   b ,  204   c ,  204   d  . . .  204   n , “n” being an integer value), analogous to array  104  of  FIG.  1   ; a vehicle  206  with antenna array  208  having a vehicle entertainment system  210 , and third-party server  207 , analogous to vehicle  106  with antenna array  108  having a vehicle entertainment system  110 , and third-party server  107 , respectively, of  FIG.  1   , and a communication network  220  analogous to communication network  120  of  FIG.  1   . Similarly, vehicle  206  of  FIG.  2    includes a vehicle entertainment system  210 , analogous to vehicle entertainment system  120  of vehicle  106  of  FIG.  1   . Vehicle entertainment system  210 , server  207 , and communication network  220  of  FIG.  2    may be coupled as discussed and shown relative to vehicle entertainment system  110 , server  107 , and communication network  120  of  FIG.  1   , respectively. It is understood that while a database, such as database  102 , is not shown in the embodiment of  FIG.  2   , in some embodiments, such a database may be communicatively coupled to vehicle  206 , server  207 , and communication network  220 , as shown and described relative to vehicle  106 , server  107 , and communication network  120 , of  FIG.  1   , respectively. 
     With reference to  FIG.  2   , vehicle entertainment system  210  of vehicle  206  is further shown to include a user interface  211 . User interface  211  may display information in connection with a currently playing audio content item (e.g., the song “Dream On”) and one or more third-party services. In an example embodiment, user interface  211  displays currently playing audio content item  210   g , metadata item  210   a  associated with the currently playing audio content item (e.g., artist name, genre . . . ), third-party service identification item  210   e , username item  210   b , password item  210   c , and touchscreen keyboard item  210   d , which may include an “Enter” option for completing a user selection when activated. It is understood that user interface  211  is merely an example display and that other types of audio content information or more or less audio content information may be displayed with user interface  211 . In some embodiments, the displayed items are user-selectable, for example, by an occupant or driver of vehicle  206 . Username and password items  210   b  and  210   c  are collectively user service account information with a third-party service. For example, they may be the username and password of an occupant or driver of vehicle  206  with a Spotify account. In some embodiments, vehicle entertainment system  210  may store an occupant&#39;s third-party service account information for convenience and may determine the user account credentials based on a stored correspondence in a table of correspondences of user identification and associated third-party user account information. In some embodiments, the account credentials may be user-entered as shown in  FIG.  2   . 
     In one example, a vehicle content interface application executing on a processor vehicle entertainment system  210  may display the user interface  211  with options for selection. For example, the user interface  211  may provide a selection for third-party service identification  210   f  (Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, etc.) 
     The system generates an audio playlist based on vehicle  206  user or occupant selections and the received broadcast and internet audio content items. In some embodiments, the received broadcast and internet audio content items are stored in a database, such as database  102  of  FIG.  1   , not shown in  FIG.  2   . For example, based on an audio input, the system determines a metadata of a currently playing broadcast or internet-generated audio content, an audio content identifier and optional other audio content information extracted from the metadata may be transmitted to server  207  for building a playlist. The playlist may include the currently playing audio content item received from server  207 . In some embodiments, the playlist may be buffered for presentation in vehicle  206 . 
     In an example implementation, the vehicle content interface application executing in vehicle entertainment system  210  may cause a certain sequence of steps to be performed based on the received internet and/or broadcast audio content items, as shown at step  1 ) (encircled) in  FIG.  2   . At step  2 ) in  FIG.  2   , while an audio content item, broadcast or internet-generated, is playing on vehicle entertainment system  210 , vehicle entertainment system  210  receives an audio input including an audio command trigger (e.g., “TIVO”) and an audio playlist command (e.g., “Add this song to my Spotify playlist”). At step  3 ), the items shown and discussed above relative to user interface  211  may be displayed on a display of vehicle entertainment system  210  or a display coupled to vehicle entertainment system  210 . In the former case, the items may be displayed on a console of vehicle  206 , which may be a part of vehicle entertainment system  210  or externally located to the vehicle entertainment system  210 , in vehicle  206 . Part of the displayed items of user interface  211  may be displayed prior to step  3 ). For example, metadata item  210   a  and audio content identification item  210   g  may be displayed before step  3 ), at a time when the currently displayed item is playing. User interface  211  may display metadata item  210   a  and audio content identification item  210   g , or other information regarding a currently playing audio content item, at the beginning of the time the currently playing audio content item starts to play. It is understood that other audio content-related information may be displayed before step  3 ) in  FIG.  2   . 
     At step  4 ) of  FIG.  2   , vehicle entertainment system  210  may verify the user credentials (account information) with a corresponding third-party-affiliated server based on the user or occupant selection or input of user account credentials at user interface  211 . For example, vehicle entertainment system  210  may verify username item  210   b  and password item  210   c , as entered in user interface  211 , with server  207  through interface  226  and communication network  220  before a user-specified audio playlist may be generated. Upon receiving confirmation of the user account credentials from server  207  through interface  228  and communication network  220 , vehicle entertainment system  210  may request to build or edit a playlist that includes the user-specified audio content item request at step  2 ) in accordance with the steps shown and discussed relative to the embodiment of  FIG.  1   . 
       FIG.  3 A  shows an illustrative example of an audio input employed in an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In  FIG.  3 A , an example audio input  300  is shown for implementation in an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. Audio input  300  may be uttered by a user or occupant of a vehicle such as, without limitation, a user or occupant of vehicles  106  and  206  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively, to cause a respective vehicle entertainment system, such as, without limitation, systems  110  and  210  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , to perform certain playlist processing actions. As shown in  FIG.  3 A , audio input  300  includes two distinct audio input portions. A first portion is an audio command trigger  302  for prompting the vehicle entertainment system to expect to receive a following playlist command. The second portion of audio input  300  is an audio playlist command  304  for performing a specific action on a playlist. In the example of  FIG.  3 A , audio command trigger  302  is the utterance “TIVO,” an advance notice of a command to follow. In some embodiments, every time the vehicle entertainment system detects trigger  302 , the vehicle entertainment system prepares for the immediately following utterance to be a vehicle entertainment-related comment. For example, the following utterance may be a playlist-related command. The following utterance need not be a command or playlist-related and may be any comment recognizable to the vehicle entertainment system for performing or processing an action related to the corresponding vehicle. For example, the utterance following trigger  302  may be to gauge the inside temperature of the vehicle (e.g., “TIVO: Check car temperature”) or to ensure the windows of the vehicle are rolled up (e.g., “TIVO: Car windows status check”). It is understood that trigger  302  need not be “TIVO.”. In the former case, the vehicle entertainment system may include or have access to a temperature sensor device for measuring the inside temperature of the corresponding vehicle. 
     In some embodiments, trigger  302  may be another word a phrase, or a sentence programmed into the vehicle entertainment system to invoke a subprogram, a subroutine, or a part of a main program for processing the command, audio playlist command  304 , to be performed by the vehicle entertainment system. In some embodiments, hardware or a combination of hardware and software in the vehicle entertainment system may be designed to detect trigger  302  and to process the action to follow. Audio playlist command  304  may be a word, a phrase, or a sentence that when detected signifies a playlist-related action to be performed. For example, in  FIG.  3 A , audio playlist command  304  is the following part of the above example: “Add this song to my Spotify playlist.” Upon detecting this phrase, a vehicle entertainment system knows to look for a third-party service identification, such as “Spotify,” and to perform a playlist-related action with a third-party service, such as to “add” the currently playing song to a “playlist.” 
     In some embodiments, the vehicle entertainment system maintains a list of known third-party service providers, such as, without limitation, Spotify, Pandora, iHeartRadio, etc. The system may compare a detected name in command  304  with the list and, in response to a match, direct a server or other network equipment of a corresponding service to build the playlist with the currently playing song. In some embodiments, in accordance with command  304 , the vehicle entertainment system may request an action on a playlist based on an audio content item not currently playing. For example, command  304  may include the utterance “Add the last song to my Spotify playlist,” in which case the song immediately preceding the currently playing song may be added to the user Spotify playlist. In embodiments with systems having the capability to maintain a recording of past content, for example, the last 30 minutes of content, as previously discussed herein, the vehicle entertainment system may identify, for example, the song that immediately preceded the currently playing song from the recording and add or requests, adding the recorded song to the playlist accordingly. In some embodiments, command  304  may be in reference to a playlist category or playlist type. For example, command  304  may be the utterance “Generate a playlist of the same genre on Spotify.” In this case, the vehicle entertainment system creates a new playlist of music of a genre common to the genre of a currently playing music. For example, assuming “Dream On” is currently playing, the vehicle entertainment system may make a request to a Spotify server, such as servers  107  and  207  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively, to start a soft rock genre playlist. The vehicle entertainment system may detect an audio content genre type based on a maintained database of audio content items by category and finds a match between the particular genre of the currently playing audio content, based on the currently playing audio content metadata and the stored list of audio contents by genre. For example, assuming the currently played audio content item is the song “Dream On” and the metadata of “Dream On” indicates the genre, the vehicle entertainment system searches the audio content items by genre in the database (e.g., database  102  of  FIG.  1   ), and if the vehicle entertainment system detects a match, the vehicle entertainment system determines that the detected genre is the same genre as the song “Dream On.” A playlist may be generated or processed based on categories other than genre, for example, a playlist may be generated based on artist or producer. In some embodiments, a database communicatively coupled to a vehicle entertainment system may maintain playlist categories. For example, in the embodiment of  FIG.  1   , database  102  may maintain audio content items by playlist categories. In some embodiments, the database stores the playlist categories in accordance with audio content identifiers instead of the audio content. In some embodiments, the database may further or alternatively maintain the audio content identifiers by service providers, such as Spotify or Pandora, or by other audio content-related categories. In some embodiments, the information stated above to be stored in a database may be stored in a storage incorporated in or coupled or accessible to the vehicle entertainment system (e.g.,  514  of  FIG.  5   .) 
     Command  304  may not necessarily identify Spotify or any other playlist service, in which case, the vehicle entertainment system may take various actions. The vehicle entertainment system may ignore and not process the command. Alternatively, the vehicle entertainment system may perform the command without assistance from a service provider. For example, the vehicle entertainment system may add the currently playing audio content item to a playlist maintained by the vehicle entertainment system or a storage device coupled or accessible to the vehicle entertainment system. In some embodiments, the option of generating or processing an in-vehicle playlist or a third-party service playlist is a user selection made by a driver or occupant of the vehicle, for example, from a selection presented on a user interface of vehicle  106  or vehicle  206  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively. An example of third-party and in-vehicle playlist selections available to a user is shown and described relative to  FIG.  9   . 
       FIG.  3 B  shows an illustrative example of an audio playlist generated by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In  FIG.  3 B , an example audio playlist  320  is shown for implementation in an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In nonlimiting examples, playlist  320  may be built, processed, and maintained by systems  100  and  200  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2   . In an example application, vehicle entertainment systems  110  and  210  of systems  100  and  200 , respectively, may receive playlist  320  from respective servers  107 ,  207 , in response to a request from a corresponding vehicle entertainment system to add an audio content item to an existing playlist or to build a new playlist based on the audio content item. In some embodiments, playlist  320  is built or edited by vehicle entertainment systems  110  or  210 . 
     With reference to  FIG.  3 B , playlist  320  is shown to include a series of audio content items separated by corresponding content metadata. More specifically, playlist  320  is shown to include two audio contents items, audio content item A  320   a  and audio content item B  320   c , separated by content item B metadata  320   b . Content item A metadata  320   d  corresponds to audio content item A  320   a , and content item B metadata  320   b  corresponds to audio content item B  320   c . Each of the content item metadata includes information or data relating to a corresponding audio content item. For example, metadata  320   d  and metadata  320   b  may each include all or part of the following information regarding corresponding audio content item A  320   a  and audio content item B  320   c:  
         Title   Artist   Album   Song title   Genre   Album artwork   Song number
 
Each metadata may have audio content-related information other than the information listed above. Each of the above or other metadata type of information may be an audio content identifier identifying a corresponding audio content item (e.g., Title) or information relating to the audio content (e.g., Artist, Album, etc.) to a vehicle entertainment system. For example, an audio content identifier in the metadata may identify a corresponding audio content item by title. Each of the above or other metadata type of information may be a third-party audio content identifier identifying a corresponding audio content to a third-party service. For example, the Title may be identified to a third-party service, such as servers  107  and  207  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively, after translation to a third-party audio content identifier. In some embodiments, one or more of the audio content identifiers listed above may be stored in a memory or storage location or instead, a reference to the location of the identifiers in a memory or storage location may be stored.
       

     In some embodiments, a playlist may include-a higher or lowernumber of audio content items than the number of audio content items shown in  FIG.  3 B . The metadata of each audio content item is shown located immediately prior to the corresponding audio content item, in  FIG.  3 B . For example, content item B metadata  320   b  is located immediately prior to audio content item B  320   c . In some embodiments, the metadata may be located in a different position relative to a corresponding audio content item, for example and without limitation, at the end of and immediately following the audio content item or in the middle or embedded elsewhere in the audio content item. In some embodiments, the metadata may be split in parts, for example, references to the metadata and the metadata parts may be dispersed in multiple distinct locations of a corresponding audio content item. For example, a first part of the metadata may be located in front of the corresponding audio content (in the metadata location shown in  FIG.  3 B ), another part of the metadata may be located in the middle of the corresponding audio content item and a last part of the metadata may be located immediately following the corresponding audio content item. 
     In some embodiments, the playlist may be a list of audio content items, where the audio content of the audio content items is separately stored in a content database. With continued reference to  FIG.  3 B  and with additional reference to  FIG.  1   , for example, the audio content of audio content item A  320   a , audio content item B  320   c , and the audio content of the remaining audio content items of playlist  320  may be stored in database  102  ( FIG.  1   ). In some embodiments, the metadata or audio content identifiers of audio content items may be separately stored in the content database. For example, metadata  320   d ,  320   b , and the remaining metadata or audio content identifiers of corresponding metadata may be stored in database  102 . In both of these cases, vehicle entertainment system  110  of vehicle  106  may directly or indirectly store the audio content, metadata, or audio content identifier in database  102 . 
       FIG.  3 C  shows an illustrative example of a proxy file generated by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In  FIG.  3 C , an example proxy file  350  is shown generated by an audio playlist generation system, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In nonlimiting examples, playlist  350  may be generated and transmitted to a corresponding third-party server by vehicle entertainment systems  106 ,  206  of respective systems  100 ,  200  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   . Proxy file  350  generally includes information recognizable to a targeted service and relating to a playlist to be built or updated. In some embodiments, proxy file  350  includes information recognizable to a targeted third-party service relating to a playlist to be constructed that includes a currently playing audio content item by a vehicle entertainment system, such as systems  110 ,  210  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively. 
     A proxy file may carry various audio content-related information. In the example of  FIG.  3 C , proxy file  350  is shown to include third-party user identifier  350   a , third-party category identifier  350   b , and third-party (audio) content identifier  350   c . Each, all, or a combination of the three may have a format pursuant to a particular service-specified protocol. In some embodiments, third-party user identifier  350   a  is a string uniquely identifying a provider account holder (or user) to a corresponding third-party service. For example, identifier  350   a  may identify a user or occupant of vehicles  106 ,  206  to servers  107 ,  207  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2   . Third-party category identifier  350   b  may be a string uniquely identifying a particular third-party audio category, for example, genre, album, artist, etc., such as described above relative to  FIG.  3 B . It is understood that proxy file  350  may include additional or fewer third-party information items than the three that are shown in  FIG.  3 C . Additionally, or alternatively, proxy file  350  may include different or additional audio content information types useful for identifying certain audio content information to a third party. For example, while not shown in  FIG.  3 C , proxy file  350  may include additional fields, such as a third-party uniform resource identifier (URI) field and/or a third-party uniform resource locator (URL) field. With continued reference to the Spotify example above, proxy file  350  may include a Spotify URL for user access to the audio content items of a playlist under construction at a vehicle entertainment system of various embodiments of the disclosure, or at an externally located computer. Proxy file  350  is not limited to the foregoing fields and may include additional, fewer, and different kinds of fields related to a third-party playlist service provider, audio content items, and the playlist under construction. 
       FIG.  4    shows an illustrative diagram of an exemplary audio playlist generation system  400 , in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In some embodiments, system  400  is configured as system  100  or system  200  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2   , respectively, and similarly performs on-demand vehicle-commanded audio playlist generation, processing, management, and maintenance based on audio content items played in the vehicle and sourced from one or more audio content types. For example, as shown in  FIG.  4   , system  400  includes a vehicle  406  with antenna array  408  having a vehicle entertainment system  410 , and third-party server  407 , analogous to vehicle  106  with antenna array  108  having vehicle entertainment system  106 , and third-party server  107 , respectively, of  FIG.  1   , and a communication network  420  analogous to communication network  120  of  FIG.  1   . Vehicle entertainment system  410 , server  407 , and communication network  420  of  FIG.  4    may be coupled as discussed and shown relative to vehicle entertainment system  110 , server  107 , and communication network  120  of  FIG.  1   , respectively. It is understood that while a database, such as database  102 , is not shown in the embodiment of  FIG.  4   , such a database may be communicatively coupled to vehicle  406 , server  407 , and communication network  420 , as shown and described relative to vehicle  106 , server  107 , and communication network  120 , of  FIG.  1   , respectively. 
     In some embodiments, each of vehicles  106 ,  206 , and  406  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4    is an internet-connected car, and the vehicle entertainment system thereof, for example, vehicle entertainment systems  110 ,  210 , and  410  of vehicles  106 ,  206 , and  406 , respectively, is a TIVO entertainment system in an internet-connected car. 
     With continued reference to  FIG.  4   , vehicle entertainment system  410  of vehicle  406  is shown to further include vehicle control interface application  432  which may be program code, stored in memory or storage, that when executed by one or more processors is caused to perform the functions and processes discussed below and those discussed earlier relative to the vehicle entertainment system of previous embodiments. In some embodiments, vehicle control interface application  432  may be implemented in hardware and in some embodiments, vehicle control interface application  432  may be implemented in a combination of hardware and software (such as by execution of program code). Vehicle control interface application  432  is shown to include a playlist preprocessor engine  434  and a file generator  436  for building a proxy file  440  and transmitting the proxy file  440  through interface  438  to communication network  420  and ultimately third-party server  407 , analogous to the illustration and related discussion of the proxy file of  FIG.  1   . In an example embodiment, proxy file  440  is analogous to proxy file  350  of  FIG.  3 C . In some embodiments, proxy file  440  need not be analogous to proxy file  350  or the proxy file of  FIG.  1    and may instead include different file content than proxy file  350  and the proxy file of  FIG.  1   . Proxy file  440  generally includes information useful to a third-party server, such as server  407 , for recognizing audio content items and related information that is being added to or removed from a playlist. In an example application, proxy file  440  includes a third-party audio content identifier identifying an audio content item playing in vehicle  406  that is interesting to a user or occupant of vehicle  406  (at  1 ) in  FIG.  4   ), as identified by a user audio input. The audio content is to be added to a playlist of a third-party service affiliated with server  407 , such as 
     Spotify. 
     In response to a user command in the corresponding audio input to add the currently playing audio content to a Spotify playlist, at  2 ), in  FIG.  4   , an audio command parser  438  of playlist preprocessor engine  434  parses the audio input into an audio command trigger and an audio playlist command, analogous to trigger  302  and command  304  of  FIG.  3 A , respectively. Playlist preprocess engine  434  determines from the parsed audio input that the audio content is to be added to a playlist of a third-party service with the user account. Accordingly, engine  434  may verify the user account credentials with the third party, Spotify, in  FIG.  4   , as discussed above relative to  FIG.  2    and as discussed below relative to  FIG.  9   . 
     Upon successful verification of the user account, service provider search engine  442  of playlist preprocessor engine  434  may search for Spotify in association with the user account in a table of associations between verified users and corresponding third-party services at which the users are verified. In response to successful verification of the user account, i.e., finding a match between the user and Spotify, file generator  436  builds and transmits proxy file  440  as discussed above. In some embodiments, application  432  may receive the built playlist including the audio content or audio content identifier requested to be added to the playlist by the user or occupant of vehicle  406  from server  407 . In some embodiments, application  432  may present the audio content items of the playlist from server  407  on a display of a user interface of vehicle entertainment system  410 , such as user interface  211  of  FIG.  2    or user interface  911  of  FIG.  9   . In some embodiments, application  432  may further play one or more of the audio content items of the playlist from server  407  on vehicle entertainment system  410 . 
     The user or occupant of a vehicle may access audio content items and the vehicle content interface application (and its display screens described above and below) from one or more of corresponding user equipment devices.  FIG.  5    shows a generalized embodiment of illustrative user equipment device  500 . More specific implementations of user equipment devices are discussed above in connection with  FIG.  5   . User equipment device  500  may receive content and data via input/output (hereinafter “I/O”) path  516 . I/O path  516  may provide content (e.g., broadcast programming, on-demand programming, internet content, content available over a local area network (LAN) or wide area network (WAN), and/or other content) and data to control circuitry  512 , which includes processing circuitry  510  and storage  514 . Control circuitry  512  may be used to send and receive commands, requests, and other suitable data using I/O path  516 . 
     In some embodiments, I/O path  516  is configured as interface  130  of  FIG.  1   . 
     Control circuitry  512  may be based on any suitable processing circuitry such as processing circuitry  510 . As referred to herein, processing circuitry should be understood to mean circuitry based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, programmable logic devices, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc., and may include a multi-core processor (e.g., dual-core, quad-core, hexa-core, or any suitable number of cores) or supercomputer. In some embodiments, processing circuitry may be distributed across multiple separate processors or processing units. In some embodiments, control circuitry  512  executes instructions for a vehicle content interface application stored in memory (i.e., storage  514 ). Specifically, control circuitry  512  may be instructed by the vehicle content interface application to perform the functions discussed above and below. For example, the vehicle content interface application may provide instructions to control circuitry  512  to generate the audio content display. In some implementations, any action performed by control circuitry  512  may be based on instructions received from the vehicle content interface application. 
     In some embodiments, control circuitry  512  is configured, in part or in whole, as vehicle entertainment system  110 ,  210 , and  410  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , respectively; antenna array  508  is configured as antenna array  108 ,  208 , and  408  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , respectively; user input interface  502  may be configured as user interface  211  and interface  911  of  FIGS.  2  and  9   , respectively. In some embodiments, display  504  is a display of user interface  211  and user interface  911  of  FIGS.  2  and  9   , respectively. In some embodiments, speakers  506  are configured as speakers of vehicle entertainment system  110 ,  210 , and  410  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , respectively, for playing an audio content item in vehicle  106 ,  206 , and  406  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , respectively. 
     In client-server-based embodiments, control circuitry  512  may include communications circuitry suitable for communicating with a content application server or other networks or servers. The instructions for carrying out the above-mentioned functionality may be stored on the content application server. Communications circuitry may include a cable modem, an integrated-services digital network (ISDN) modem, a digital subscriber line (DSL) modem, a telephone modem, Ethernet card, or a wireless modem for communications with other equipment, or any other suitable communications circuitry. Such communications may involve the internet or any other suitable communications network or paths (which are described in more detail in connection with  FIG.  6   ). In some embodiments, an antenna  508  is provided in the user equipment device  400 . The antenna  508  may be used for communication with the network of antennas. In addition, communications circuitry may include circuitry that enables peer-to-peer communication of user equipment devices, or communication of user equipment devices in locations remote from each other (described in more detail below). 
     Memory may be an electronic storage device provided as storage  514  that is part of control circuitry  512 . As referred to herein, the phrase “electronic storage device” or “storage device” should be understood to mean any device for storing electronic data, computer software, or firmware, such as random-access memory, read-only memory, hard drives, optical drives, digital video disc (DVD) recorders, compact disc (CD) recorders, BLU-RAY disc (BD) recorders, BLU-RAY 3D disc recorders, digital video recorders (DVR, sometimes called a personal video recorder, or PVR), solid state devices, quantum storage devices, gaming consoles, gaming media, or any other suitable fixed or removable storage devices, and/or any combination of the same. Storage  514  may be used to store various types of content described herein as well as content data and content application data that are described above. Nonvolatile memory may also be used (e.g., to launch a boot-up routine and other instructions). Cloud-based storage may be used to supplement storage  514  or instead of storage  514 . 
     Control circuitry  512  may include video generating circuitry and tuning circuitry, such as one or more analog tuners, one or more MPEG-2 decoders or other digital decoding circuitry, high-definition tuners, or any other suitable tuning or video circuits or combinations of such circuits. Encoding circuitry (e.g., for converting over-the-air, analog, or digital signals to MPEG signals for storage) may also be provided. Control circuitry  512  may also include scaler circuitry for upconverting and down-converting content into the preferred output format of the user equipment device  500 . Control Circuitry  512  may also include digital-to-analog converter circuitry and analog-to-digital converter circuitry for converting between digital and analog signals. The tuning and encoding circuitry may be used by the user equipment device to receive and to display, play, or record content. In some embodiments, the control circuitry may include an HD antenna. 
     In one embodiment, speakers  506  may be provided as integrated with other elements of user equipment device  500  or may be stand-alone units. The audio and other content displayed on display  504  may be played through speakers  506 . In some embodiments, the audio may be distributed to a receiver (not shown), which processes and outputs the audio via speakers  506 . For example, vehicle entertainment system  110  of system  100  may play an audio content item via speakers  506  in vehicle  106  ( FIG.  1   .) 
     In some embodiments, a sensor (not shown) is provided in the user equipment device  500 . The sensor may be used to monitor, identify, and determine vehicular data. For example, the vehicle content interface application may receive vehicular speed data from the sensor or any other vehicular status data (e.g., global positioning data of the vehicle, driving condition of the vehicle, etc.) received from any other vehicular circuitry and/or component that describes the vehicular status of the vehicle. 
     The vehicle content interface application may be implemented using any suitable architecture. For example, it may be a stand-alone application wholly implemented on user equipment device  500 . In such an approach, instructions of the application are stored locally (e.g., in storage  514 ), and data for use by the application is downloaded on a periodic basis (e.g., from an out-of-band feed, from an internet resource, or using another suitable approach). Control circuitry  512  may retrieve instructions of the application from storage  514  and process the instructions to generate any of the displays discussed herein. Based on the processed instructions, control circuitry  512  may determine what action to perform when input is received from input interface  502 . For example, movement of a cursor on an audio user interface element may be indicated by the processed instructions when input interface  502  indicates that a user interface  211  was selected. 
     In some embodiments, the vehicle content interface application is a client-server based application. Data for use by a thick or thin client implemented on user equipment device  500  is retrieved on-demand by issuing requests to a server remote to the user equipment device  500 . In one example of a client-server based content application, control circuitry  512  runs a web browser that interprets web pages provided by a remote server. For example, the remote server may store the instructions for the application in a storage device. The remote server may process the stored instructions using circuitry (e.g., control circuitry  512 ) and generate the displays discussed above and below. The client device may receive the displays generated by the remote server and may display the content of the displays locally on user equipment device  500 . This way, the processing of the instructions is performed remotely by the server while the resulting displays are provided locally on user equipment device  500 . User equipment device  500  may receive inputs from the user or occupant of the vehicle via input interface  502  and transmit those inputs to the remote server for processing and generating the corresponding displays. For example, user equipment device  500  may transmit, via antenna  508 , a communication to the remote server indicating that a user interface element was selected via input interface  502 . The remote server may process instructions in accordance with that input and generate a display of content identifiers associated with the selected user interface element as described in greater detail with reference to  FIGS.  2  and  9   . The generated display is then transmitted to user equipment device  500  for presentation to the user or occupant of the vehicle. 
     In some embodiments, the vehicle content interface application is downloaded and interpreted or otherwise run by an interpreter or virtual machine (executed by control circuitry  512 ). In some embodiments, the vehicle content interface application may be encoded in the ETV Binary Interchange Format (EBIF), received by control circuitry  512  as part of a suitable feed, and interpreted by a user agent running on control circuitry  512 . For example, the vehicle content interface application may be an EBIF application. In some embodiments, the vehicle content interface application may be defined by a series of JAVA-based files that are received and run by a local virtual machine or other suitable middleware executed by control circuitry  512 . In some of such embodiments (e.g., those employing MPEG-2 or other digital media encoding schemes), the vehicle content interface application may be, for example, encoded and transmitted in an MPEG-2 object carousel with the MPEG audio of a program. 
     User equipment device  500  of  FIG.  5    can be implemented in system  600  of  FIG.  6    as vehicle media equipment  614 , vehicle computer equipment  618 , wireless user communications device  622  or any other type of user equipment suitable for accessing content, such as a non-portable gaming machine. For simplicity, these devices may be referred to herein collectively as user equipment or user equipment devices and may be substantially similar to user equipment devices described above. User equipment devices, on which a vehicle content interface application may be implemented, may function as stand-alone devices or may be part of a network of devices. Various network configurations of devices may be implemented and are discussed in more detail below. 
     A user equipment device utilizing at least some of the system features described above in connection with  FIG.  6    may not be classified solely as vehicle media equipment  614 , vehicle computer equipment  616 , or a wireless user communications device  622 . For example, vehicle media equipment  614  may, like some vehicle computer equipment  616 , be internet-enabled, allowing for access to internet content, while wireless user computer equipment  622  may, like some vehicle media equipment  614 , include a tuner allowing for access to media programming. The vehicle content interface application may have the same layout on various types of user equipment or may be tailored to the display capabilities of the user equipment. For example, on wireless user computer equipment  618 , the vehicle content interface application may be provided as a website accessed by a web browser. In another example, the vehicle content interface application may be scaled down for wireless user communications devices  622 . 
     The user equipment devices may be coupled to communication network  610 . Communication network  610  may be one or more networks including the internet, a mobile phone network, mobile voice or data network (e.g., a 4G, 5G or LTE network), cable network, public switched telephone network, or other types of communications network or combinations of communications networks. 
     System  600  includes content source  602  and vehicle content interface data source  604  coupled to communication network  610 . Communications with the content source  602  and the data source  604  may be exchanged over one or more communications paths but are shown as a single path in  FIG.  6    to avoid overcomplicating the drawing. Although communications between sources  602  and  604  with user equipment devices  614 ,  618 , and  622  are shown as through communication network  610 , in some embodiments, sources  602  and  604  may communicate directly with user equipment devices  614 ,  618 , and  622 . In some embodiments, communication network  610  may be configured as communication network  120 , communication network  220 , and communication network  420  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , respectively. In  FIG.  6   , content source  602  may be communicatively coupled to communication network  610  through interface  606 ; vehicle media equipment  614  may be communicatively coupled to communication network  610  through interface  612 , vehicle content interface data source  604  may be communicatively coupled to communication network  610  through interface  608  and wireless user communications device  622  may be communicatively coupled to communication network  610  through interface  620 . In some embodiments, interface  612  may be configured as one or more of interfaces  112 ,  114 , and  125  of  FIG.  1   ; and interface  606  may be configured as interface  134  of  FIG.  1   . 
     Content source  602  may include one or more types of content distribution equipment including a media distribution facility, satellite distribution facility, programming sources, intermediate distribution facilities and/or servers, Internet providers, on-demand media servers, and other content providers. In some embodiments, content source  602  is configured as an audio content source of systems  100 ,  200 , and  400  of  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  400   . Vehicle content interface data source  604  may provide content data, such as the audio described above. Vehicle content interface application data may be provided to the user equipment devices using any suitable approach. In some embodiments, vehicle content interface data from vehicle content interface data source  604  may be provided to users&#39; equipment using a client-server approach. For example, a user equipment device may pull content data from a server, or a server may present the content data to a user equipment device. Data source  604  may provide user equipment devices  614 ,  618  and  622  the vehicle content interface application itself or software updates for the vehicle content interface application. 
       FIG.  7    shows a generalized embodiment of an illustrative system  700  in which user equipment device  500  of  FIG.  5    and the system  600  of  FIG.  6    can be implemented. System  700  includes an array of antennas (e.g.,  702   a ,  702   b , and  702   c ) connected to collectors (e.g.,  704   a ,  704   b , and  704 ) coupled to storage device  706 , server  708  and a vehicle  710 . The vehicle  710  can communicate bidirectionally with other systems outside of the vehicle. Communications with the array of antennas ( 702   a ,  702   b , and  702   c ) and the collectors (e.g.,  704   a ,  704   b , and  704   c ) and storage device  706  may be exchanged over one or more communications paths but are shown as a single path in  FIG.  7    to avoid overcomplicating the drawing. 
     The array of antennas (e.g.,  702   a ,  702   b , and  702   c ) may include a plurality of antennas dispersed around the country coupled to receive broadcast content items from all terrestrial broadcast content sources. The antennas may be coupled to collectors  704  that collect all of the broadcast content items from broadcast content sources and deliver it to the storage device  706 . The broadcast content items are connected to the server  708  for processing for content recognition and geographical origin determination. The broadcast content items are processed through an automated content recognition. The automated content recognition can store, allocate based on content recognition and process for presentation of the broadcast content items. The server  708  may be a collection of servers connected to the storage device for improved processing. The vehicle includes a user interface  712  and an antenna  714  that communicates with the storage device  706 . All of the communication between the antennas, collectors, servers and vehicle may be through one or more networks including the internet, a mobile phone network, mobile voice or data network (e.g., a 4G, 5G or LTE network), or other types of communication network or combinations of communication networks for in-vehicle use. 
     In one embodiment, user equipment may refer to components incorporated into, coupled to, or accessible by a vehicle such as vehicle  800  in  FIG.  8   . In some embodiments, vehicle  800  is analogous to vehicles  106 ,  206 , or  406  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   . Vehicle  800  need not be configured as vehicles  106 ,  206 , or  406 , and may be instead configured as any vehicle suitable for incorporating, coupling or accessing a vehicle entertainment system, as shown and described herein. The vehicle  800  is equipped with a vehicle content interface application that may be further used to enable/disable content options. For example, a user  812  in vehicle  800  may use vehicle content interface component  810  to access content on the vehicle  800 . In some embodiments, the vehicle content interface component  810  may be an audio system incorporated into vehicle  800 , as discussed earlier with reference to vehicle entertainment systems  110 ,  210 , and  410  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   , or user equipment used to access such content while using vehicle  800 . 
     In an example operation, user  812  utters a command carried by audio signals  806 , which are received by vehicle content interface component  810 . The uttered user command may be an audio input carried by audio signals  806  to vehicle content interface component  810 . In some embodiments, the audio input carried by audio signals  806  analogous to audio input  300  of  FIG.  3 A  and may include audio command trigger  302  and audio playlist command  304 . For example, the audio input received from user  812  may be “TIVO: Add this song to my Spotify playlist,” as shown at  804  in  FIG.  8    and discussed above relative to previous figures. 
     As discussed above, in some embodiments, a user or occupant of the vehicle  800 , such as user  812 , may select a user interface  911  as shown in  FIG.  9   , analogous to user interface  211  ( FIG.  2   ). User interface  911  is incorporated into or accompanying a vehicle content interface component  910  by direct input into the user interface (e.g., activating the system via user interface  911 ). In some embodiments, vehicle content interface component  910  is configured as vehicle entertainment system  110 ,  210 , and  410  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 , and  4   . Upon a user&#39;s selection of the user interface  911 , a list of audio content selections  904 ,  906 ,  908 ,  912 ,  914  and  916  are displayed on the display screen  900  of vehicle content interface component  910  as shown in  FIG.  9   . When the user or occupant of the vehicle selects one of the content selectors via the user interface (e.g., user input interface  211  of  FIG.  2   ) incorporated into or accompanying the vehicle content interface component  810 , the selected audio content corresponding to the content selector is displayed on the screen. 
     As discussed above, in some embodiments, to generate a unique playlist, a user interface  911  is displayed on the screen of the vehicle content interface component  810 . In one example, a user in the vehicle  800  may select the user interface  911  incorporated into or accompanying the vehicle content interface component  810  by direct input into the user interface (e.g., user interface  911 ). Upon the user&#39;s selection of the user interface  911 , a list of audio content selections  904 ,  906 ,  908 ,  912 ,  914  and  916  is displayed on the display screen  900  as shown in  FIG.  9   . When the user selects one of the content types  904 ,  906 ,  908  via the user interface (e.g., user input interface  911  or user interface  211  ( FIG.  2   )) incorporated into or accompanying the vehicle content interface component  810 , the selected content type corresponds to a content selection displayed on the screen. For example, the user selects the content types  904 ,  906 , and  908  and is prompted to select from a corresponding choice of the content selections. In some embodiments, the user is prompted to select content types for audio content identification  904 , third-party service playlist content identification  906 , and vehicle playlist content identification  908 , corresponding to content selections audio content item  912 , third-party service playlist audio content item  5   914 , and vehicle playlist audio content item  2   916 . The content type and content selection correspond to each other. 
     When the user selects one of the content identifications  912 - 916  via the user interface (e.g., user input interface  900  ( FIG.  9   )) incorporated into or accompanying the vehicle content interface component  810 , identifying information of the selected audio content type corresponding to the content selection is displayed on the screen, played via vehicle speakers, or both. For example, in response to the user&#39;s selection of identification  904  and the audio content item  912 , “Dream On” is played in the vehicle and an album cover from the album including the song “Dream On” is displayed at  916  of user interface  911 . In addition to the album cover, other audio content identifiers (e.g., the artist “Aerosmith”) may be extracted from the metadata embedded in the song “Dream On” and displayed at  918  of user interface  911 , in  FIG.  9   . Additionally, component  810  may play, or cause to be played, the song “Dream On” in the vehicle. Identifications  906  and  908  are third-party playlist and in-vehicle playlist selections, respectively. For example, user  812  may select identification  906  to direct component  810  to start the process of building a Spotify playlist in accordance with various methods and processes disclosed herein. User  812  may select identification  908  to direct component  810  to start the process of building an in-vehicle playlist, in accordance with various methods and processes disclosed herein. 
       FIG.  10    shows an illustrative flowchart of an audio playlist generation process, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In  FIG.  10   , an audio playlist generation process  1000  may be performed by a vehicle entertainment system in a vehicle, such as, without limitation, systems  110 ,  210 ,  410 ,  810 , and  910  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 ,  4 ,  8 , and  9   . In some embodiments, the steps of process  1000  may be performed by processing circuitry  510  of  FIG.  5    and vehicle media equipment  110  of  FIG.  1   . In some embodiments, the steps of process  1000  may be performed by any in-vehicle device configured to receive, process, and transmit audio content, audio playlists, and associated identifiers, and to build audio playlists as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, processing circuitry  510  may execute program code stored in storage  514  for carrying out the steps of process  1000 . In some embodiments, process  1000  may be implemented, in part or in whole, in hardware. In some embodiments, process  1000  may be implemented by a combination of executing program code and hardware. In the discussion below, process  1000  is presumed performed by execution of program code, for example, processing circuitry  510  executing program code stored in storage  514  ( FIG.  5   ). For simplicity of illustration, vehicle entertainment system  110  of system  100  of  FIG.  1    is referenced in the below discussion of process  1000 , with interchangeable references to processing circuitry  510  and other components of  FIG.  5    to illustrate an example implementation of process  1000 . It is understood that while processing circuitry  510  is discussed below to perform the steps of process  1000 , other circuitry suitable for carrying out the steps of process  1000  may be employed. 
     At step  1002 , vehicle entertainment system  110  of system  100  receives broadcast audio content and/or internet-generated audio content. For example, processing circuitry  510  executes program code stored in storage  514  to cause speakers  506  to play a particular audio content item in vehicle  106 . At step  1004  of  FIG.  10   , processing circuitry  510  receives audio input. For example, processing circuit  510  may receive audio input  300  of  FIG.  3 A . At step  1006 , processing circuitry detects an audio command trigger in the received audio input of step  1004 . For example, at step  1004 , processing circuitry  510  may receive the audio input “TIVO: Add this song to my Spotify playlist.” At step  1006 , processing circuitry  510  detects the word “TIVO” as the audio commandl trigger and therefore expects a playlist action following the audio command trigger. At step  1008 , processing circuitry  510  parses the audio playlist command (e.g., “Add this song to my Spotify playlist”) from the audio input received at step  1004 . In an embodiment, processing circuitry  510  may perform the functions described and shown herein relative to the audio command parser  438  of  FIG.  4    to parse the audio playlist command from the audio input, at step  1008 . In some embodiments, processing circuitry  510  determines that the audio content item currently playing in the vehicle, for example, vehicle  106 , is to be added to or removed from a user or occupant of the vehicle&#39;s Spotify playlist, because processing circuitry  510  is programmed to determine, for example, that the word “this” refers to the currently playing audio content item. Processing circuitry may determine “this” refers to the currently playing audio content item by performing a speech detection algorithm suitable for determining the words of the parsed audio playlist command, such as previously described. Processing circuitry  510  further determines that a third-party playlist, namely Spotify&#39;s playlist, is to be processed by implementing a suitable speech detection algorithm on the parsed audio playlist command. Accordingly, processing circuitry  510  may confirm the user or occupant of the vehicle with Spotify by confirming the user&#39;s account credentials, for example, the username and password, as described relative to user interface  211  of  FIG.  2   , with Spotify. 
     At step  1010 , processing circuitry  510  confirms with a Spotify-affiliated authentication server, such as server  107 , that the user or occupant of the vehicle has an authorized account with Spotify, and the process proceeds to step  1012 . In the event processing circuitry  510  determines that Spotify has not authorized the user account at step  1010 , processing circuitry proceeds to step  1018 . At step  1018 , processing circuitry  510  has an option of ending process  1000  with no playlist built or building an in-vehicle playlist and proceeds accordingly. At step  1018 , if the processing circuitry  510  determines to build an in-vehicle playlist, processing circuitry  510  determines an audio content identifier of a metadata of the currently playing audio content item and builds the playlist based on the determined audio content identifier. The option to end the process or to build an in-vehicle playlist may be a matter of a user or occupant of the vehicle&#39;s selection. In some embodiments, for example, a user or occupant of the vehicle may select to build an in-vehicle playlist by use of a user interface selection, such as discussed relative to user interface  211  of  FIG.  2    and user interface  911  of  FIG.  9   . 
     At step  1012 , processing circuitry  510  determines a metadata of the audio content item currently playing in the vehicle and further determines an audio content identifier of the metadata, for example, the audio content item&#39;s title. Processing circuitry  510  may determine the metadata and the audio content identifier at an earlier step, for example, step  1008 . At step  1012 , processing circuitry  510  determines whether the third-party service provider (e.g., Spotify) named in the audio playlist command of the audio input has an associated third-party audio content identifier, for example, as discussed with reference to service provider search engine  440  in  FIG.  4   . In the case where processing circuitry  510  determines the third party has a unique identifier, processing circuitry  510  proceeds to step  1014 ; otherwise, processing circuitry  510  proceeds to step  1016  and skips step  1014 . At step  1014 , processing translates the audio content identifier to the unique third-party audio content identifier. For example, processing circuitry  510  may perform the translation of step  1014  as discussed relative to service provider search engine  440  of  FIG.  4   . At step  1016 , processing circuitry  510  generates and transmits a proxy file with either the audio content identifier or the third-party audio content identifier (e.g., an identifier of the song “Dream On” recognizable to Spotify) to the sum of a third-party service, such as Spotify. For example, processing circuitry  510  may transmit the proxy file to server  107  of  FIG.  1   . In response to receiving the playlist from the third-party server, processing circuitry  510  may display the audio contents of the playlist on a user interface of a vehicle entertainment system of the vehicle, for example, system  110 , and/or play the audio contents of the playlist on the vehicle entertainment system, as previously described. In some embodiments, the playlist may be an existing playlist, or it may be a new playlist. 
       FIG.  11    shows an illustrative flowchart of an audio playlist generation process, in accordance with some embodiments of the disclosure. In  FIG.  11   , an audio playlist generation process  1100  may be performed by a vehicle entertainment system in a vehicle, such as, without limitation, systems  110 ,  210 ,  410 ,  810 , and  910  of respective  FIGS.  1 ,  2 ,  4 ,  8 , and  9   . In some embodiments, the steps of process  1100  may be performed by processing circuitry  510  of  FIG.  5    and vehicle media equipment  110  of  FIG.  1   , for example. In some embodiments, the steps of process  1100  may be performed by any in-vehicle device configured to receive, process, and transmit audio content, audio playlists, and associated identifiers, and to build audio playlists as disclosed herein. In some embodiments, processing circuitry  510  may execute program code stored in storage  514  for carrying out the steps of process  1100 . In some embodiments, process  1100  may be implemented, in part or in whole, in hardware. In some embodiments, process  1100  may be implemented by a combination of executing program code and hardware. In the discussion below, process  1100  is presumed performed by execution of program code, for example, processing circuitry  510  executing program code stored in storage  514  ( FIG.  5   ). For simplicity of illustration, vehicle entertainment system  110  of system  100  of  FIG.  1    is referenced in the below discussion of process  1000 , with interchangeable references to processing circuitry  510  and other components of  FIG.  5    to illustrate an example implementation of process  1100 . It is understood that while processing circuitry  510  is discussed below to perform the steps of process  1100 , other circuitry suitable for carrying out the steps of process  1100  may be employed. 
     At step  1102 , in  FIG.  11   , the account of a user or occupant of vehicle  106  is confirmed with a third-party playlist service provider. For example, processing circuitry  510  confirms the user account with server  107 , as discussed relative to  FIG.  2    above. At step  1104 , in response to confirmation of the user or occupant account, processing circuitry  510  may send a request to the third-party server for a playlist action. For example, processing circuitry  510  may transmit a request through interface  226  ( FIG.  2   ) to server  107  to add an audio content item to a user or occupant playlist. The processing circuitry  510  may make such a request by providing a third-party audio content identifier that identifies the audio content to be added to the third-party server. At step  1106 , processing circuitry  510  receives acknowledgment of the request of step  1104 . For example, processing circuit  510  may receive an acknowledgment through interface  228  of  FIG.  2    from server  207 . 
     At step  1108 , processing circuitry  510  may make a determination as to whether the user or occupant of vehicle  106  is selecting to build the playlist in-vehicle or by a third-party service. Processing circuitry  510  may make the determination of step  1108  in response to a user or occupant selection on a user interface of vehicle entertainment system  110 , for example user interfaces  211  and  911  of  FIGS.  2  and  9   , respectively. In some embodiments, an in-vehicle playlist may be built when a third-party playlist is built, as a default feature, in which case step  1108  may be skipped. If, at step  1108 , processing circuitry  510  determines an in-vehicle playlist action is requested, process  1100  proceeds to step  1110 ; otherwise, process  1100  proceeds to step  1112 . At step  1110 , processing circuitry  510  builds an in-vehicle playlist based on a user or occupant selection through a user interface of vehicle entertainment system  110  or based on the in-vehicle currently playing or an in-vehicle previously playing audio content. At step  1112 , processing circuitry  510  receives a third-party playlist from server  107 . In the scenario of  FIG.  11   , if processing circuitry  510  performs both steps  1110  and  1112 , two audio playlists are generated, an in-vehicle audio playlist, created or updated by vehicle entertainment system  110 , at step  1110 , and an audio playlist created or updated by server  107 , at step  1112 . The two playlists may or may not be identical. For example, assuming the playlist action at step  1104  is to add an audio content item, the audio content item being added may be the fifth audio content item in the server-provided playlist, whereas the same audio content may be the second audio content item in the in-vehicle playlist, as shown by user interface  911 , in  FIG.  9   . Referring still to  FIG.  11   , at step  1114 , processing circuitry  510  may cause audio contents of one or both playlists to be presented at a display, for example, display  504  ( FIG.  5   ), the display of vehicle entertainment system  110  ( FIG.  1   ), or the vehicle entertainment system  210  ( FIG.  2   ). Processing circuit  510  may also or alternatively play the audio contents of one or both playlists. 
     It is understood that the order of steps of each of the processes  1000 , and  1100 , as shown in the flowcharts of  FIGS.  10  and  11   , respectively, may be suitably changed or exchanged. For example, one or more steps, as may be suitable, can be added to or deleted from each of the processes  1000  and  1100 . 
     The systems and processes discussed above are intended to be illustrative and not limiting. One skilled in the art would appreciate that the actions of the processes discussed herein may be omitted, modified, combined, and/or rearranged, and any additional actions may be performed without departing from the scope of the invention. More generally, the above disclosure is meant to be exemplary and not limiting. Only the claims that follow are meant to set bounds as to what the present disclosure includes. Furthermore, it should be noted that the features and limitations described in any one embodiment may be applied to any other embodiment herein, and flowcharts or examples relating to one embodiment may be combined with any other embodiment in a suitable manner, done in different orders, or done in parallel. In addition, the systems and methods described herein may be performed in real time. It should also be noted that the systems and/or methods described above may be applied to, or used in accordance with, other systems and/or methods.