Earpiece with GPS receiver

• US 10,085,082 B2
• Filed: 03/03/2017
• Issued: 09/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bragi GmbH
• Original Assignee: Bragi GmbH
• Inventors: Dragicevic, Darko, Boesen, Peter Vincent
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Ping
• Application Number:
  US15/449,158
• Publication Number:
  US 20170264990A1
• Time in Patent Office: 571 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/14 specially adapted for specific applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/34 Power consumption
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/49 whereby the further system is an inertial position system, e.g. loosely-coupled
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1016 Earpieces of the intra-aural type
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1025 Accumulators or arrangements for charging secondary cells per se H01M10/00; charging in general H02J7/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 1/1041 Mechanical or electronic switches, or control elements switches in general H01H
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/07 Applications of wireless loudspeakers or wireless microphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2420/09 Applications of special connectors, e.g. USB, XLR, in loudspeakers, microphones or headphones
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/07 Use of position data from wide-area or local-area positioning systems in hearing devices, e.g. program or information selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04S 7/304 For headphones

Abstract

An earpiece includes an earpiece housing, a processor disposed within the earpiece, a speaker operatively connected to the processor, a microphone operatively connected the processor, and a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver disposed within the earpiece. A system may includes a first earpiece having a connector with earpiece charging contacts, a charging case for the first earpiece, the charging case having contacts for connecting with the earpiece charging contacts, and a glob& navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver disposed within the charging case.

Claims

1. An earpiece comprising:

an earpiece housing configured to fit into an ear of a user;

a processor disposed within the earpiece housing;

a speaker operatively connected to the processor;

a microphone operatively connected the processor;

a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver disposed within the earpiece;

at least one inertial sensor disposed within the earpiece housing and operatively connected to the processor, wherein the at least one inertial sensor comprises an accelerometer;

wherein the processor is adapted to determine when the GNSS receiver is not providing current location data and updating a current location of the earpiece based on a last available location from the GNSS receiver and data from the at least one inertial sensor; and

wherein the processor is configured to turn the GNSS receiver off if a temperature associated with the earpiece exceeds a threshold.

2. The earpiece of claim 1 wherein the earpiece comprises a wireless transceiver to communicate a geospatial location determined by the GNSS receiver to another earpiece.

3. The earpiece of claim 1 wherein the GNSS receiver is a global positioning system (GPS) receiver.

4. The earpiece of claim 1 wherein the processor is adapted to determine that the earpiece is not moving based on inertial data from the at least one inertial sensor and if the earpiece is not moving turn the GNSS receiver off.

5. A method of maintaining a current location of an earpiece, the method comprising steps of:

determining a geospatial location using a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) receiver disposed within the earpiece;

updating a current location of the earpiece with the geospatial location;

updating the current location of the earpiece with data from one or more inertial sensors disposed within the earpiece;

monitoring a temperature associated with the earpiece and if the temperature associated with the earpiece exceeds a threshold, turning the GNSS receiver off;

wherein the step of updating the current location of the earpiece with data from the one or more inertial sensors disposed within the earpiece is performed if the GNSS receiver is unable to determine a geospatial location; and

wherein the step of updating the current location of the earpiece with data from the one or more inertial sensors disposed within the earpiece is performed if the GNSS receiver is turned off.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein the earpiece comprising an earpiece housing configured to fit into an ear of the user.

7. The method of claim 5 further comprising if the data form the one or more inertial sensors disposed within the earpiece is indicative that the earpiece is not moving then turning the GNSS transceiver off.