SENSOR FUSION

• US 20120072167A1
• Filed: 02/28/2011
• Published: 03/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: CRETELLA, Michael A. Jr., DUGGINENI, Venu Madhav, ENG, Michael Man-Cheung, HUANG, Ronald Keryuan, MOORE, Christopher, MULLENS, Christopher T.
• Granted Patent: US 8,289,115 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/150
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1677 for detecting open or closed state or particular intermediate positions assumed by movable parts of the enclosure, e.g. detection of display lid position with respect to main body in a laptop, detection of opening of the cover of battery compartment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1633 Protecting arrangement for the entire housing of the computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1634 Integrated protective display lid, e.g. for touch-sensitive display in handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/00 Arrangements for program control, e.g. control units program control for peripheral devices G06F13/10
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 24/32 having magnetic fastener

Abstract

Accurate and reliable techniques for determining a current status of an accessory device in relation to an electronic device are described.

Claims

1. A consumer electronic product, comprising:

an electronic device, the electronic device, comprising;

a processor,

a first sensor in communication with the processor arranged to detect a first type stimulus, wherein the first sensor responds to the first type stimulus by providing a first signal to the processor, the first signal indicating a first status of an accessory device in relation to the electronic device, and

a second sensor in communication with the processor arranged to detect a second type stimulus, wherein the second sensor responds to the second type stimulus by providing a second signal to the processor, the second signal indicating a second status of the accessory device in relation to the electronic device, wherein when the processor receives the first signal from the first sensor, the processor compares the first status indicated by the first signal and the second status indicated by the second signal, when the processor determines that the first and second status are the same, then the processor accepts the first signal, otherwise, the processor ignores the first signal.

2. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 1, wherein the accessory device is a protective cover, comprising:

a magnetic hinge assembly arranged to magnetically attach the protective cover and the electronic device together; and

a flap pivotally attached to the magnetic hinge assembly having a size and shape in accordance with the electronic device, wherein the flap includes a magnetic element arranged to provide a magnetic element saturating magnetic field.

3. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 2 wherein the first sensor is a Hall Effect sensor arranged to detect a saturating magnetic field, wherein the saturating magnetic field detected by the HFX sensor is the magnetic element saturating magnetic field only when the flap is in a closed configuration in relation to the electronic device.

4. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 3, wherein second sensor is any of at least an ambient light sensor arranged to detect ambient light, a camera arranged to capture an image, a magnetometer arranged to detect an external magnetic field, a multi-touch sensitive surface arranged to detect a pattern of capacitive elements included in the flap, an RFID circuit arranged to detect and RFIC chip included in the flap, and a second Hall Effect sensor arranged to detect a second magnetic element in the flap.

5. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 2, wherein first sensor is any of at least an ambient light sensor, a camera, a magnetometer, a multi-touch sensitive surface, an RFID device.

6. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 5, wherein second sensor is a Hall Effect sensor.

7. A consumer electronic product, comprising:

an electronic device, comprising;

a processor, and

a Hall Effect sensor in communication with the processor arranged to detect a saturating magnetic field and in response to the detected saturating magnetic field, provide a signal to the processor, the processor using the signal to alter an operating state of the electronic device; and

a second sensor separate and distinct from the HFX sensor

an accessory unit, comprising;

a body portion pivotally attachable to the electronic device, the body portion having at least a magnetic element, wherein when the accessory unit is in a closed configuration, an inner surface of the body portion is placed in proximity to the protective top layer such that the magnetic element presents the saturating magnetic field to the HFX sensor that then provides the signal to the processor, wherein when the processor receives the signal from the HFX sensor indicating the presence of the saturating magnetic field, the processor activates and queries the second sensor to corroborate the signal received from the HFX sensor is consistent with the accessory unit being in the closed configuration, wherein when the second sensor corroborates that the cover is in the closed configuration, the processor accepts the signal from the HFX sensor, otherwise the processor ignores the signal from the HFX sensor.

8. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 7, wherein the second sensor is an ambient light sensor (ALS) and wherein the ALS corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting less than a threshold level of ambient light.

9. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 7, wherein the second sensor is a camera and wherein the camera corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting and capturing an image.

10. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 7, wherein the second sensor is a compass and wherein the compass corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting a hard magnetic offset.

11. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 7, wherein the second sensor is a compass and wherein a third sensor is an accelerometer and gyroscope, wherein the compass and the accelerometer and gyroscope provide a dynamic resulting magnetic field, wherein the processor compares the dynamic resulting magnetic field with a reference datum, wherein if a deviation from the reference datum is greater than a predetermined value, then the processor accepts the signal from the HFX sensor.

12. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 7, wherein the flap further comprises a plurality of capacitive elements arranged in a defined pattern.

13. The consumer electronic product as recited in claim 12, wherein the second sensor is a multi-touch (MT) sensor, and wherein the MT sensor corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting the pattern from the capacitive elements in the flap.

14. In a consumer electronic product comprising an electronic device, a method performed by a processor in the electronic device, comprising:

detecting a first type stimulus at a first sensor in communication with the processor;

receiving a first signal from the first sensor at the processor, the first signal indicating a first status of an accessory device in relation to the electronic device;

detecting a second type stimulus at a second sensor in communication with the processor;

receiving a second signal from the second sensor at the processor, the second signal indicating a second status of the accessory device in relation to the electronic device;

comparing the indication of the first status and the indication of the second status by the processor; and

accepting the first signal by the processor only when the comparing indicates that the indications of the first and second status are the same.

15. The method as recited in claim 14, wherein the accessory device is a protective cover, comprising:

a magnetic hinge assembly arranged to magnetically attach the protective cover and the electronic device together; and

a flap pivotally attached to the magnetic hinge assembly having a size and shape in accordance with the electronic device, wherein the flap includes a magnetic element arranged to provide a magnetic element saturating magnetic field.

16. The method as recited in claim 15 wherein the first sensor is a Hall Effect sensor arranged to detect a saturating magnetic field, wherein the saturating magnetic field detected by the HFX sensor is the magnetic element saturating magnetic field only when the flap is in a closed configuration in relation to the electronic device.

17. The method as recited in claim 16, wherein second sensor is any of at least an ambient light sensor arranged to detect ambient light, a camera arranged to capture an image, a magnetometer arranged to detect an external magnetic field, a multi-touch sensitive surface arranged to detect a pattern of capacitive elements included in the flap, an RFID circuit arranged to detect and RFID chip included in the flap, and a second Hall Effect sensor arranged to detect a second magnetic element in the flap.

18. The method as recited in claim 15, wherein first sensor is any of at least an ambient light sensor, a camera, a magnetometer, a multi-touch sensitive surface, an RFID device.

19. The method as recited in claim 18, wherein second sensor is a Hall Effect sensor.

20. The method as recited in claim 16, wherein the flap further comprises a plurality of capacitive elements arranged in a defined pattern.

21. The method as recited in claim 20, wherein the second sensor is a multi-touch (MT) sensor, and wherein the MT sensor corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting the pattern from the capacitive elements in the flap.

22. Non-transitory computer readable medium for storing program code executable by a processor for detecting a state of a protective cover in relation to an electronic device having a processor and at least a first sensor and a second sensor, comprising:

computer code for receiving a signal from a first sensor indicating that the protective cover is in a closed configuration with respect to the electronic device;

computer code for querying the second sensor;

computer code for receiving information from the second sensor;

computer code for ignoring the signal from the first sensor when the information from the second sensor does not corroborate the signal from the first sensor;

otherwise, accepting the signal from the first sensor.

23. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 22, wherein the first sensor is a Hall Effect sensor.

24. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 23, wherein the second sensor is an ambient light sensor (ALS) and wherein the ALS corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting less than a threshold level of ambient light.

25. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 23, wherein the second sensor is a camera and wherein the camera corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting and capturing an image.

26. The computer readable medium as recited in claim 23, wherein the second sensor is a compass and wherein the compass corroborates the signal from the HFX sensor by detecting a hard magnetic offset.