Wrist-Mounted Gesture Device

• US 20110199292A1
• Filed: 02/18/2010
• Published: 08/18/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2010
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Paul E. Kilbride
• Original Assignee: Paul E. Kilbride
• Inventors: Kilbride, Paul E.
• Application Number:
  US12/707,799
• Publication Number:
  US 20110199292A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/014 Hand-worn input/output arrangements, e.g. data gloves
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883

Abstract

A wrist-mounted gesture device, system, and method is disclosed. The wrist-mounted gesture device includes at least one accelerometer adapted to detect acceleration caused by one or more gestures of the user. The accelerometer provides data to a microcontroller which is adapted to interpret the gesture data and match it with corresponding predefined gestures. The device includes wireless connection circuitry which allows the device to be wirelessly interfaced with an electronic device. The electronic device may be a device within the living space or environment of the user. A highly effective gesture system is ideally utilized in order to produce accurately recognizable gestures, in either one, two, or three dimensions. In certain embodiments, movements corresponding to movements toward and away from numbers in a standard keypad arrangement can be used, and vertical and horizontal movements corresponding to affirmative and negative gestures are used. In other embodiments, the device can be used in a mapping system of a room or interior space to assist users in finding objects or locations in such a room. In still other embodiments, the device can be used to assess tremors in a patient.

Claims

1. A wrist-mounted gesture device comprising:

at least one accelerometer adapted to detect acceleration caused by one or more gestures of a user,

a microcontroller interfaced with said accelerometer for receiving gesture data from said accelerometer and adapted to determine whether the gesture data matches a pre-defined gesture,

wireless connection circuitry enabling said device to be wirelessly interfaced with an electronic device.

2. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 1, wherein said microcontroller is adapted to access a database of gesture profiles and compare said gesture data with profiles in said database of gesture profiles to determine whether said gesture data matches one of said gesture profiles.

3. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 1, wherein said microcontroller is programmed to use a Hidden Markov Model to analyze said gesture data.

4. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 1, wherein said electronic device is a non-gaming device.

5. The wrist -mounted gesture device according to claim 1, wherein said device provides input to said electronic device, which input corresponds with said gesture data.

6. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said microcontroller recognizes gestures which correspond with numbers.

7. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 6, wherein said gestures which correspond with numbers comprise motions in a two-dimensional plane.

8. The wrist -mounted gesture device according to claim 7, wherein said gestures which correspond with numbers comprise gestures which correspond to the layout of a standard keypad.

9. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 8, wherein the layout of the standard keypad comprises a location of numbers 1, 2, and 3 in a top row consecutively from left to right, numbers 4, 5, and 6 in a middle row consecutively from left to right, and numbers 7, 8, and 9 in a bottom row consecutively from left to right, and wherein said gestures which correspond with numbers comprise movements between a middle position on said keypad layout toward a desired number.

10. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 9, wherein said gestures which correspond with numbers further comprise movements between a middle position on said keypad layout toward a desired number from said middle position toward said desired number and then back to said middle position.

11. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 10, wherein said middle position corresponds to a layout location for the number 5, and wherein a gesture for the number 5 comprises a movement substantially perpendicular to said 2-dimensional plane.

12. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 11, wherein a gesture for the number 0 comprises a movement substantially perpendicular to said 2-dimensional plane distinct from said gesture for the number 5.

13. The wrist -mounted gesture device according to claim 11, wherein said electronic device is a phone.

14. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 11, wherein said electronic device is communications equipment.

15. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 1, wherein said electronic device accesses mapping data, and wherein said electronic device provides feedback to a user corresponding to a location of said gesture device.

16. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 15, wherein said feedback comprises information for directing a user to a desired location.

17. The wrist -mounted gesture device according to claim 16, wherein said mapping data comprises mapping data corresponding to the layout of an interior of a room.

18. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said gestures comprise movements which correspond to natural movements associated with a desired function.

19. The wrist -mounted gesture device according to claim 18, wherein said function comprises answering a phone, and wherein said natural movements comprise lifting a user'"'"'s hand toward a user'"'"'s ear.

20. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said microcontroller recognizes gestures which correspond with an affirmative gesture, and wherein said affirmative gesture comprises a substantially vertical movement of the wrist.

21. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said microcontroller recognizes gestures which correspond with a negative gesture, and wherein said negative gesture comprises a substantially horizontal movement of the wrist.

22. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said microcontroller recognizes gestures which correspond to movements in a two-dimensional plane.

23. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said microcontroller recognizes gestures which correspond to movements in a three-dimensional space.

24. The wrist-mounted gesture device according to claim 5, wherein said electronic device comprises a device disposed in a living space of a user.

25. A method for assessing hand tremor comprising the steps of:

receiving data from a hand held or hand mounted or wrist mounted gesture device having an accelerometer therein and a microcontroller operatively interfaced with said accelerometer via an electronic assessment tool, and

tracking sequences of said data and interpreting said data to correspond with hand tremor activity.