Smart workstation method and system

• US 10,459,611 B1
• Filed: 02/15/2018
• Issued: 10/29/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Steelcase Incorporated
• Inventors: Sculley, Darrin, Anderson, Bo, Neiman, Rachel Anne, Buckingham, Brandon
• Primary Examiner(s): Odom, Curtis B
• Application Number:
  US15/898,175
• Time in Patent Office: 621 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A47B 83/001 Office desks or work-stations combined with other pieces of furniture, e.g. work space management systems
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 31/12 Means, e.g. measuring means for adapting chairs, beds or mattresses to the shape or weight of persons body measuring means for clothing manufacture A41H1/00
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 31/126 for chairs
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/00 Parts, details, or accessories of chairs or stools attaching to floor A47B91/08
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/72 Adaptations for incorporating lamps, radio sets, bars, telephones, ventilation, heating or cooling arrangements or the like
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/723 with display screens
• CPC Class Codes: A47C 7/727 with speakers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2457 with adaptation to user needs
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3827 Portable transceivers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/12 specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 9/3231 Biological data, e.g. fingerprint, voice or retina network architectures or network communication protocols for supporting authentication of entities using biometrical features in a packet data network H04L63/0861
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/021 Services related to particular areas, e.g. point of interest [POI] services, venue services or geofences
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/30 Services specially adapted for particular environments, situations or purposes
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 76/11 Allocation or use of connection identifiers

Abstract

A method and system for anonymously associating a workstation user'"'"'s station control preferences with a workstation, the method comprising the steps of correlating anonymous user IDs with user preference sets in a database, obtaining input from a user at a workstation, comparing the user input to the anonymous user IDs to distinguish one distinguished user from other users without determining the identity of the user, accessing the user preference set associated with the distinguished user and controlling workstation affordances per the accessed user preferences while the user is located within a present zone proximate the workstation.

Claims

1. A method for associating a user'"'"'s portable computing device with a workstation, the method comprising the steps of:

sensing a link activity at the workstation indicating that a user wants to associate the user'"'"'s portable computing device with the workstation;

determining that the user'"'"'s portable computing device is located within a wireless near field zone;

establishing wireless communication between the workstation and the user'"'"'s portable computing device;

receiving a user workstation settings input at the user'"'"'s portable computing device, the user workstation settings input including at least a workstation standing height preference and a workstation sitting height preference;

monitoring the location of the user'"'"'s portable computing device within a wireless present zone associated with the workstation wherein the wireless present zone is larger than the near field zone; and

if the user'"'"'s portable computing device is detected within the wireless present zone, adjusting height of the workstation using the user workstation settings input; and

if the user'"'"'s portable computing device is no longer detected within the wireless present zone, removing a workstation control interface from the display screen.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the wireless present zone is a wireless transceiver range.

3. The method according to claim 1, the method further comprising, while the workstation control interface is presented on the display screen, receiving a workstation control signal from the portable device and controlling workstation affordances per the workstation control signal.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the establishing wireless communication comprises establishing an association between the user'"'"'s portable computing device and a workstation processor.

5. The method according to claim 4, the method further comprising:

monitoring the location of the user'"'"'s portable computing device within a wireless station zone associated with the workstation, wherein the wireless station zone is larger than the present zone; and

if the user'"'"'s portable computing device is no longer detected within the wireless present zone and is still within the wireless station zone, maintaining the association between the user'"'"'s portable computing device and the workstation processor; and

if the user'"'"'s portable computing device is outside the wireless station zone, disassociating the user'"'"'s portable computing device from the workstation processor.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the workstation includes a height adjustable tabletop driven between different heights by a processor-controlled motor, wherein the workstation control interface is configured to control the processor-controlled motor.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the workstation includes one or more other affordances and the workstation control interface is configured to control the one or more other affordances.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the one or more other affordances includes an adjustable chair and the workstation control interface is configured to control the adjustable chair.

9. The method according to claim 7, wherein the one or more other affordances includes at least one light device controllable via the workstation control interface.

10. A method for anonymously acquiring and utilizing a workstation user'"'"'s usage data, the method comprising the steps of:

correlating anonymous user IDs with user usage data sets in a database;

obtaining input from a user at a workstation;

comparing the user input to the anonymous user IDs to distinguish one distinguished user from other users without determining the identity of the user;

receiving workstation usage data for the user at the workstation, the workstation usage data acquired by a workstation sensor of the workstation; and

updating the user usage data set associated with the distinguished user to include the received workstation usage data.

11. A method for associating a user'"'"'s portable computing device with a workstation, the method comprising the steps of:

sensing a link activity at the workstation indicating that a user wants to associate the user'"'"'s portable computing device with the workstation;

determining that the user'"'"'s portable computing device is located within a wireless near field zone;

establishing wireless communication between the workstation and the user'"'"'s portable computing device;

receiving a user workstation settings input including at least one workstation height preference; and

adjusting height of the workstation using the user workstation settings input.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the sensing a link activity comprises sensing activity at a workstation sensor of the workstation.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein the sensing a link activity comprises sensing activity at the user'"'"'s portable computing device.

14. The method according to claim 11, wherein the determining step comprises detecting a near field wireless signal.

15. The method according to claim 11, wherein the establishing wireless communication comprises establishing Bluetooth communication.

16. The method according to claim 11, wherein the user workstation settings input is stored on a server that is remote from the workstation and/or the user'"'"'s portable computing device.

17. The method according to claim 11, wherein the adjusting height requires a user confirmation prior to the adjusting.

18. The method according to claim 11, wherein the adjusting height is automatic or semi-automatic.

19. The method according to claim 11, wherein the adjusting height follows a height adjustment schedule.

20. The method according to claim 11, wherein receiving the user workstation settings input is at least partly derived from a calculation based on one or more physical properties of the user.

21. The method according to claim 11, wherein the workstation includes one or more other affordances and the user'"'"'s portable computing device is configured to control the one or more other affordances.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein the one or more other affordances include a light, a speaker, a heating device or a camera.

23. The method according to claim 22, further comprising the step of storing a user preference corresponding to the one or more affordances.

24. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of querying a user about pain while using a chair and forming a pain signature for the user and storing the pain signature.

25. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of providing a signal when the user'"'"'s portable computing device is associated with the workstation.

26. The method according to claim 25, wherein the signal is provided by at least one of a vibrator, a speaker, and a light.

27. The method according to claim 25, wherein a device for providing the signal is associated with the workstation.

28. The method according to claim 25, further comprising the step of providing a signal when the user'"'"'s portable computing device is associated with an affordance associated with the workstation.

29. The method according to claim 23, further comprising the step of anonymously associating the user preferences with the workstation.

30. The method according to claim 23, wherein the user preferences are accessed using biometric data.

31. The method according to claim 23, wherein the user preferences are accessed using a unique identification number.

32. The method according to claim 23, wherein the user preferences are stored on a user personal device.

33. The method according to claim 23, wherein the user preferences include at least one of a standing height, a sitting height, and a reminder interval.

34. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of storing a user guidance activity for retrieval by a user.

35. The method according to claim 34, wherein the user guidance activity comprises a program providing recommendations to a user based on timing and sensed user positions.

36. The method according to claim 35, wherein the program is a sit-stand program.

37. The method according to claim 34, wherein the recommendation is based on a sensed parameter.

38. The method according to claim 37, wherein the sensed parameter is at least one of a heart rate and a temperature.

39. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of applying a commissioning procedure to establish at least one of an initial posture signature and a good posture signal.

40. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the step of associating a virtual wireless address with corresponding affordances to form a network of corresponding affordances.

41. The method of claim 18, wherein each of the corresponding affordances includes a resource tag or resource code configured to be read by the user'"'"'s personal computing device.