Measurement system for measuring weight

• US 10,436,629 B2
• Filed: 03/16/2017
• Issued: 10/08/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kitagawa Industries Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Kitagawa Industries Company Limited
• Inventors: Yamada, Kazuki, Zhao, Lu, Kondo, Yasuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Huls, Natalie
• Application Number:
  US15/461,445
• Publication Number:
  US 20170268923A1
• Time in Patent Office: 936 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 17/00 Insoles for insertion, e.g. footbeds or inlays, for attachment to the shoe after the upper has been joined
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 3/34 with electrical or electronic arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0219 Inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt switches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0247 Pressure sensors
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/103 Detecting, measuring or recording devices for testing the shape, pattern, colour, size or movement of the body or parts thereof, for diagnostic purposes A61B5/08 takes precedence; measuring aids for tailors A41H1/00; measuring instruments specially adapted for dentistry A61C19/04
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1038 Measuring plantar pressure during gait
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6802 Sensor mounted on worn items
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6807 Footwear
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/44 for weighing persons
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 21/28 Frames, Housings

Abstract

A measurement information output system comprises an input unit and an output unit. The input unit is configured to input, to an arithmetic unit, a detected force value indicating the magnitude of force detected by one or more force sensors arranged so as to receive impact by motion of a measurement target and a detected acceleration value indicating the acceleration of the measurement target detected by an acceleration sensor arranged so as to detect the acceleration of the measurement target. The arithmetic unit is configured to compute the weight of the measurement target on the basis of the detected force value and the detected acceleration value. The output unit is configured to output, as a measured weight value, the weight of the measurement target computed by the arithmetic unit.

Claims

1. A measurement system comprising:

one or more force sensors arranged so as to receive impact generated by motion of a measurement target;

an acceleration sensor arranged to detect acceleration of the measurement target;

a processor configured to compute a weight of the measurement target, based on a ratio of a detected force value indicating a magnitude of force detected by the one or more force sensors to a detected acceleration value indicating acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor;

a display configured to display the computed weight; and

a storage unit storing a correction factor for correcting the detected force value to a value indicating magnitude of force to be detected on an assumption that the force sensor has received entire weight of the measurement target;

wherein the processor computes, as the weight of the measurement target, a ratio of a corrected detected force value to the detected acceleration value, and the corrected detected force value corresponds to a value obtained by correcting the detected force value by using the correction value stored in the storage unit.

2. The measurement system according to claim 1, wherein the weight of the measurement target is body weight of a measurement target person,

wherein the one or more force sensors are arranged so as to support the measurement target person and receive impact generated by motion of the measurement target person, and

wherein the acceleration sensor is arranged so as to move together with the measurement target person.

3. The measurement system according to claim 2, wherein,

the one or more force sensors include one or more force sensors arranged in a portion of footwear put on a foot of the measurement target person, the portion supporting the body weight of the measurement target person.

4. The measurement system according to claim 3, wherein the one or more force sensors are force sensors arranged in respective pieces of a pair of footwear put on both feet of the measurement target person.

5. The measurement system according to claim 2, wherein the processor is configured to determine that the measurement target person is walking based on at least one change in acceleration, and to compute the body weight based on the detected force value and the detected acceleration value when the measurement target person is walking.

6. The measurement system according to claim 1, wherein the processor computes the weight of the measurement target, based on the detected force value and the detected acceleration value in a period in which change of the detected acceleration value satisfies a prescribed condition.

7. The measurement system according to claim 1, wherein the processor computes the weight of the measurement target, based on a greatest value of the detected acceleration value in a period satisfying a prescribed condition and the detected force value indicating magnitude of force detected by the force sensor when the greatest value is detected or the greatest value of the detected force value in the period.

8. The measurement system according to claim 7, wherein the period satisfying the prescribed condition is a certain period after a measurement instruction is input via a user interface.

9. The measurement system according to claim 7, wherein the period satisfying the prescribed condition is a period after a measurement instruction is input via a user interface and is a certain period in which change of the detected acceleration value satisfies a prescribed condition.

10. The measurement system according to claim 7, wherein the processor is configured to instruct performing of a specific motion by the measurement target through the display, and

wherein the period satisfying the prescribed condition is a period in which the specific motion is performed in response to the instruction.

11. The measurement system according to claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to compute a statistical representative value of the weight by performing statistical processing on a group of the weights computed by repeatedly carrying out a process of computing the weight, and

wherein the processor is configured to display the representative value on the display.

12. The measurement system according to claim 1, comprising:

a mobile device; and

a wearable device configured to communicate with the mobile device;

wherein the one or more force sensors and the acceleration sensor are provided in the wearable device;

wherein the processor and the display are provided in the mobile device; and

wherein the processor is configured to acquire the detected force value and the detected acceleration value from the wearable device by communication with the wearable device.

13. The measurement system according to claim 1, comprising:

a mobile device; and

a wearable device configured to communicate with the mobile device;

wherein the one or more force sensors are provided in the wearable device;

wherein the acceleration sensor, the processor, and the display are provided in the mobile device; and

wherein the processor is configured to acquire the detected force value from the wearable device by communication with the wearable device.

14. A measurement system comprising:

one or more force sensors arranged so as to receive impact generated by motion of a measurement target;

an acceleration sensor arranged to detect acceleration of the measurement target;

a processor configured to compute a weight of the measurement target, based on a ratio of a detected force value indicating a magnitude of force detected by the one or more force sensors to a detected acceleration value indicating acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor;

a display configured to display the computed weight; and

a storage unit storing a correction factor;

wherein the processor acquires an initial value of the weight of the measurement target, acquires a detected force value and detected acceleration value as learning data, computes the correction factor and stores the correction factor in the storage unit based on the initial value and the learning data, and computes, as the weight of the measurement target, a value obtained by applying the correction factor to the ratio.

15. A measurement system comprising:

one or more force sensors arranged so as to receive impact generated by motion of a measurement target;

an acceleration sensor arranged to detect acceleration of the measurement target;

a processor configured to compute a weight of the measurement target, based on a ratio of a detected force value indicating a magnitude of force detected by the one or more force sensors to a detected acceleration value indicating acceleration detected by the acceleration sensor; and

a display configured to display the computed weight;

wherein the weight of the measurement target is body weight of a measurement target person;

wherein the one or more force sensors are arranged so as to support the measurement target person and receive impact generated by motion of the measurement target person;

wherein the acceleration sensor is arranged so as to move together with the measurement target person;

wherein the processor is configured to determine that the measurement target person is walking based on at least one change in acceleration, and to compute the body weight based on the detected force value and the detected acceleration value when the measurement target person is walking; and

wherein computing the body weight comprises;

fetching the detected force value and the detected acceleration value for a certain time period;

identifying a greatest acceleration value (Ap) in the certain time period;

identifying a detected force value (Fc) of a time point (Tp) corresponding to the greatest acceleration value (Ap); and

computing the body weight (M) using the following equation;

M=K·

Fc/Ap

wherein K is an experimentally derived correction factor.

16. The measurement system according to claim 15, wherein computing the body weight comprises:

acquiring a known initial body weight of the measurement target person;

acquiring a plurality of pairs of the greatest acceleration value (Ap) and the corresponding detected force value (Fc) when the measurement target person is walking as learning data;

computing K by using the learning data; and

storing K for use in computing the body weight (M).