GRIP PRESSURE SENSOR

• US 20120087213A1
• Filed: 10/09/2011
• Published: 04/12/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ning Chen, Theodore Caldwell
• Original Assignee: Ning Chen, Theodore Caldwell
• Inventors: Caldwell, Theodore, Chen, Ning
• Granted Patent: US 8,491,397 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 368/11
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2060/464 Means for indicating or measuring the pressure on the grip
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0627 when used improperly, e.g. by giving a warning
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0661 arranged on the user
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2071/0663 worn on the wrist, e.g. wrist bands
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2209/10 with adhesive type surfaces, i.e. hook and loop-type fastener
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/56 Pressure
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/836 Sensors arranged on the body of the user
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/0002 for baseball
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/3608 Attachments on the body, e.g. for measuring, aligning, restraining A63B69/0059, A63B69/3673 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 69/38 for tennis A63B61/006, A63B69/0073 and A63B69/0097 take precedence

Abstract

A watch includes a wrist band and a housing mounted to the wrist band where the housing includes a wrist side and an opposing side, a pliable domed shape pressure plate that extends outwardly from the wrist side of the housing to contact a palm side of a wrist and that responds to movements of muscles and tendons in the wrist that correspond to varying grip pressures applied by a hand extending from the wrist, a battery, memory, circuitry powered by the battery to convert responses of the pliable domed shape pressure plate to digital data, and circuitry powered by the battery to record the digital data to the memory.

Claims

1. A watch comprising:

a wrist band; and

a housing mounted to the wrist band wherein the housing comprises

a wrist side and an opposing side,

a pliable domed shape pressure plate that extends outwardly from the wrist side of the housing to contact a palm side of a wrist and that responds to movements of muscles and tendons in the wrist that correspond to varying grip pressures applied by a hand extending from the wrist,

a battery,

memory,

circuitry powered by the battery to convert responses of the pliable domed shape pressure plate to digital data, and

circuitry powered by the battery to record the digital data to the memory.

2. The watch of claim 1 further comprising a display to display one or more values based on the recorded digital data.

3. The watch of claim 1 further comprising an alarm.

4. The watch of claim 3 wherein the alarm comprises an audible alarm.

5. The watch of claim 3 wherein the alarm comprises a visual alarm.

6. The watch of claim 3 wherein the alarm responds to a deviation of one digital data value from another digital data value.

7. The watch of claim 6 wherein the alarm comprises an audible alarm.

8. The watch of claim 6 wherein the alarm comprises a visual alarm.

9. The watch of claim 1 wherein the pliable domed shape pressure plate comprises a metal plate.

10. The watch of claim 1 interchangeably mountable on a right wrist or a left wrist.

11. The watch of claim 1 further comprising a display to display an arrow to indicate a tighter grip pressure and an opposing arrow to indicate a looser grip pressure.

12. The watch of claim 1 further comprising a display to display a non numeric representation of a direction of a deviation of one digital data value from another digital data value.

13. The watch of claim 1 wherein the circuitry powered by the battery to record the digital data to the memory comprises circuitry to record discrete digital data values that correspond to varying grip pressures with respect to time.

14. The watch of claim 1 further comprising circuitry powered by the battery to perform a data collection process.

15. The watch of claim 1 wherein the wrist band is configurable on the wrist to maintain contact between the pliable domed shape pressure plate and the palm side of the wrist.

16. A data collection process comprising:

providing a watch mounted to a wrist wherein the watch comprises circuits, memory and a pliable domed shape pressure plate that contacts a palm side of the wrist and that responds to movements of muscles and tendons in the wrist that correspond to varying grip pressures applied by a hand extending from the wrist;

varying with respect to time grip pressures applied by the hand extending from the wrist;

converting to digital data responses of the pliable domed shape pressure plate to the varying grip pressures applied by the hand extending from the wrist using at least one of the circuits; and

recording the digital data to the memory to provide a record of a distribution of grip pressures with respect to time using at least one of the circuits.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising providing a display and displaying a non numeric representation of a direction of a deviation of one digital data value responsive to a grip pressure from another digital data value.

18. The method of claim 16 further comprising providing an alarm and indicating via the alarm that a digital data value responsive to a grip pressure deviates from another digital data value.