SELECTABLE COMMUNICATION INTERFACE CONFIGURATIONS FOR MOTION SENSING DEVICE

• US 20110215952A1
• Filed: 03/02/2010
• Published: 09/08/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Invensense Incorporated (TDK Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Invensense Incorporated (TDK Corporation)
• Inventors: SEEGER, Joseph, SACHS, David, ARIA, Behrad
• Granted Patent: US 8,310,380 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 341/20
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03 Arrangements for converting the position or the displacement of a member into a coded form
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0412 Digitisers structurally integrated in a display

Abstract

Selectable communication interface configurations for motion sensing devices. In one aspect, a module for a motion sensing device includes a motion processor connected to a device component and a first motion sensor, and a multiplexer having first and second positions. Only one of the multiplexer positions is selectable at a time, where the first position selectively couples the first motion sensor and the device component using a first bus, and the second position selectively couples the first motion sensor and the motion processor using a second bus, wherein communication of information over the second bus does not influence a communication bandwidth of the first bus.

Claims

1. A module for a motion sensing device, the module comprising:

a motion processor connected to a device component and a first motion sensor; and

a multiplexer having first and second positions, only one of the positions being selectable at a time, the first position selectively coupling the first motion sensor and the device component using a first bus, and the second position selectively coupling the first motion sensor and the motion processor using a second bus, wherein communication of information over the second bus does not influence a communication bandwidth of the first bus.

2. The module of claim 1 wherein the first bus is a multidrop bus and the second bus is a point-to-point bus.

3. The module of claim 2 wherein the multidrop bus and the point-to-point bus use at least some of the same set of lines between the processor and the first motion sensor.

4. The module of claim 2 wherein the point-to-point bus uses a subset of the lines used for the multidrop bus.

5. The module of claim 2 wherein the multidrop bus uses a separate set of lines than the point-to-point bus.

6. The module of claim 1, wherein the first motion sensor senses motion of the device with respect to at least a first axis, and further comprising a second motion sensor sensing motion of the device with respect to at least a second axis.

7. The module of claim 6 wherein the first motion sensor or the second motion sensor is included with the motion processor and the switch in the module of the motion sensing device.

8. The module of claim 6 wherein the first motion sensor is at least one accelerometer and the second motion sensor is at least one gyroscope or at least one magnetometer.

9. The module of claim 8 wherein the first motion sensor includes at least three accelerometers, and wherein the second motion sensor includes at least three gyroscopes.

10. The module of claim 7 wherein the device component is an application processor that includes a first bus master for the first bus.

11. The module of claim 10 further comprising a second bus master, wherein the first bus master is connected to the first motion sensor using the first bus while the switch is in the first position, and wherein the second bus master is connected to the first motion sensor using the second bus while the switch is in the second position.

12. The module of claim 2 wherein the multidrop bus is an Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus or a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) bus.

13. The module of claim 2 wherein the motion sensor includes an associated multiplexer having two positions, wherein only one of the positions is selectable at a time, a first of the positions selectively coupling the motion sensor in a multidrop bus connection, and the second of the positions selectively coupling the associated motion sensor in a point-to-point bus connection.

14. A motion sensing device, the device comprising:

a plurality of device components, the device components including;

a motion sensor operative to sense motion of the motion sensing device;

a sensor bridge including a motion processor; and

an application processor;

at least one bus connecting each device component to one or more of the other device components; and

a multiplexer having first and second positions, only one of the positions being selectable at a time, the first position selectively coupling the motion sensor and the application processor using a first bus, and the second position selectively coupling the motion sensor and the motion processor using a second bus, wherein communication of information over the second bus does not influence a communication bandwidth of the first bus.

15. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the first bus is a multidrop bus and the second bus is a point-to-point bus.

16. The motion sensing device of claim 14 further comprising a memory coupled to the application processor and external to the sensor bridge, wherein the sensor bridge is coupled to the memory by a parallel bus and the motion processor is operative to store data from the motion processor directly into the memory.

17. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the sensor bridge includes at least one channel module coupled to the motion sensor, the channel module and the motion sensor coupled to each other via a communication bus and a timing bus.

18. The motion sensing device of claim 17 wherein the at least one channel module includes a control module coupled to the communication bus, a timing configuration block coupled to the timing bus, and at least one sensor register that stores sensor data received from the motion sensor.

19. The motion sensing device of claim 18 wherein the sensor bridge includes a memory operable to store sensor data received from the at least one sensor register.

20. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the motion sensor is one of a plurality of sensors coupled to the sensor bridge, and wherein the sensor bridge includes a plurality of channel modules, each channel module coupled to at least one of the sensors.

21. The motion sensing device of claim 18 wherein while the multiplexer is in the first position, the application processor uses the at least one channel module to connect to the motion sensor.

22. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the sensor bridge further comprises a configuration and control block, the configuration and control block receiving instructions from the application processor indicating which of the positions to set the multiplexer, and indicating a communication protocol the application processor is to communicate such that a number of lines connected to the multiplexer are selected to be active, the number of lines being appropriate to the communication protocol.

23. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the sensor bridge includes at least one internal motion sensor, the internal motion sensor providing sensor data to the motion processor.

24. The motion sensing device of claim 18 wherein the at least one channel module includes an analog-to-digital converter that is coupled to an analog bus, and wherein the motion sensor provides an analog output that is output on the analog bus.

25. The motion sensing device of claim 14 wherein the motion sensor is at least one accelerometer or at least one gyroscope.

26. The motion sensing device of claim 15 wherein the multidrop bus and the point-to-point bus use at least some of the same set of lines between the motion processor and the motion sensor.

27. The motion sensing device of claim 15 wherein the multidrop bus is an Inter-Integrated Circuit (I2C) bus or a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) bus.

29. The method of claim 27 wherein the different bus connection is a point-to-point bus connection.

28. A method for providing communication between device components in a motion sensing device, the method comprising:

providing a multidrop bus connection between at least two of the device components of the motion sensing device;

determining that a motion processor of the device components is to receive motion data from a motion sensor of the device components; and

changing at least one multiplexer of the motion sensing device such that the multidrop bus connection is severed for the motion sensor and a different bus connection is established between the motion processor and the motion sensor to communicate the motion data from the motion sensor to the motion processor, wherein communication of information over the different bus connection does not influence a communication bandwidth of the multidrop bus connection.

30. The method of claim 28 wherein the motion sensor is an accelerometer and the motion data describes acceleration of the motion sensing device in space.

31. The method of claim 28 wherein the motion sensor includes at least one accelerometer.

32. The method of claim 28 wherein the multidrop bus connection is provided between device components including the motion sensor and an application processor.