Techniques for Context-Enhanced Confidence Adjustment for Gesture

• US 20130170699A1
• Filed: 01/04/2012
• Published: 07/04/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/04/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Gatzke, Alan D., Bran, Cary, Hugg, Ethan
• Granted Patent: US 8,687,848 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/103
• 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: G06V 40/28 Recognition of hand or arm movements, e.g. recognition of deaf sign language static hand signs G06V40/113

Abstract

Techniques are provided for a gesture device to detect a series of gestures performed by a user and execute corresponding electronic commands associated with the gestures. The gesture device detects a gesture constituting movements from a user in three-dimensional space and generates a confidence score value for the gesture. The gesture device selects an electronic command associated with the gesture and compares the electronic command with a prior electronic command associated with a prior gesture previously detected by the gesture device in order to determine a compatibility metric between the electronic command and the prior electronic command. The gesture device then adjusts the confidence score value based on the compatibility metric to obtain a modified confidence score value. The electronic command is executed by the gesture device when the modified confidence score value is greater than a predetermined threshold confidence score value.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

at a gesture device, detecting a gesture constituting movements from a user in three-dimensional space;

identifying a possible electronic command associated with the gesture;

generating a confidence score value for the electronic command associated with the gesture;

comparing the electronic command associated with the gesture with a prior electronic command associated with a prior gesture previously detected by the gesture device to determine a compatibility metric between the electronic command and the prior electronic command;

adjusting the confidence score value based on the compatibility metric to obtain a modified confidence score value; and

executing the electronic command when the modified confidence score value is greater than a predetermined threshold confidence score value.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining a time duration value between the gesture device detecting the gesture and the gesture device detecting the prior gesture;

determining whether the time duration value is less than a predetermined time duration value; and

performing the comparing, adjusting and executing operations when the time duration value is less than the predetermined time duration value.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein adjusting comprises adjusting the confidence score value by a scaling factor based on the time duration value.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein comparing the electronic command with the prior electronic command comprises:

accessing a database comprising a list of designated affinity gesture pairs and a list of designated repellent gesture pairs; and

determining whether the electronic command and the prior electronic command are affinity gesture pairs or repellent gesture pairs based on the list of designated affinity gesture pairs and the list of designated repellent gesture pairs.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

assigning a first value for the compatibility metric to increase the confidence score by the first value when the electronic command and the prior electronic command are affinity gesture pairs; and

assigning a second value for the compatibility metric to decrease the confidence score value by the second value when the electronic command and the prior electronic command are repellent gesture pairs.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein adjusting comprises obtaining the modified confidence score value according to the formula:

FCS=OCS+SUM(AGPM[n]*GPSM[n])−

SUM(RGPM[m]*GPSM[m]),

wherein FCS is a final confidence score, OCS is an original confidence score, AGPM is an affinity gesture pair modifier, RGPM is a repellent gesture pair modifier, and GPSM is a gesture pair synchronicity modifier that operates as a scaling factor based on how close in time the gesture and the prior gesture are detected.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting a new gesture after detecting the gesture and the prior gesture;

generating a new confidence score value for the new gesture;

selecting a new electronic command associated with the new gesture;

comparing the new electronic command with the prior electronic command to determine a new compatibility metric between the new electronic command and a most recent electronic command associated with a most recent previous gesture;

adjusting the new confidence score value based on the new compatibility metric to obtain a new modified confidence score value; and

executing the new electronic command when the new modified confidence score value is greater than the predetermined threshold confidence value.

8. A method comprising:

at a gesture device, detecting a gesture constituting movements from a user in three-dimensional space;

identifying one or more electronic commands associated with the gesture;

generating a confidence score value associated for each of the one or more electronic commands;

comparing each of the one or more electronic commands with a prior electronic command associated with a prior gesture previously detected by the gesture device to determine a compatibility metric for each of the electronic commands;

adjusting the confidence score value for each of the electronic commands by the compatibility metric for each of the electronic commands to obtain a modified confidence score value for each of the electronic commands;

determining whether the modified confidence score value for each of the electronic commands is greater than a predetermined threshold confidence score value; and

executing one of the electronic commands when the one electronic command has a modified confidence score value that is above the predetermined threshold confidence score value and has a highest modified confidence score value of the modified confidence score for each of the electronic commands.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein adjusting comprises obtaining the modified confidence score value for each of the electronic commands according to the formula:

FCS=OCS+SUM(AGPM[n]*GPSM[n])−

SUM(RGPM[m]*GPSM[m]),

wherein FCS is a final confidence score, OCS is an original confidence score, AGPM is an affinity gesture pair modifier, RGPM is a repellent gesture pair modifier, and GPSM is a gesture pair synchronicity modifier that operates as a scaling factor based on how close in time the gesture and the prior gesture are detected.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a sensor array unit configured to detect a gesture constituting movements from a user in three-dimensional space;

a memory; and

a processor coupled to the sensor array unit and the memory, and configured to;

receive data for the gesture from the sensor array unit;

identify a possible electronic command associated with the gesture;

generate a confidence score value for the electronic command associated with the gesture;

compare the electronic command associated with the gesture with a prior electronic command associated with a prior gesture previously detected to determine a compatibility metric between the electronic command and the prior electronic command;

adjust the confidence score value based on the compatibility metric to obtain a modified confidence score value; and

execute the electronic command when the modified confidence score value is greater than a predetermined threshold confidence score value.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine a time duration value between detecting the gesture and detecting the prior gesture;

determine whether the time duration value is less than a predetermined time duration value; and

perform the comparing, adjusting and executing operations when the time duration value is less than the predetermined time duration value.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the processor is further configured to adjust the confidence score value by a scaling factor based on the time duration value.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

access a database comprising a list of designated affinity gesture pairs and a list of designated repellent gesture pairs; and

determine whether the electronic command and the prior electronic command are affinity gesture pairs or repellent gesture pairs based on the list of designated affinity gesture pairs and the list of designated repellent gesture pairs.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

assign a first value for the compatibility metric to increase the confidence score by the first value when the electronic command and the prior electronic command are affinity gesture pairs; and

assign a second value for the compatibility metric to decrease the confidence score value by the second value when the electronic command and the prior electronic command are repellent gesture pairs.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to obtain the modified confidence score value according to the formula:

FCS=OCS+SUM(AGPM[n]*GPSM[n])−

SUM(RGPM[m]*GPSM[m]),

wherein FCS is a final confidence score, OCS is an original confidence score, AGPM is an affinity gesture pair modifier, RGPM is a repellent gesture pair modifier, and GPSM is a gesture pair synchronicity modifier that operates as a scaling factor based on how close in time the gesture and the prior gesture are detected.

16. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

detect a new gesture after detecting the gesture and the prior gesture;

generate a new confidence score value for the new gesture;

select a new electronic command associated with the new gesture;

compare the new electronic command with the prior electronic command to determine a new compatibility metric between the new electronic command and a most recent electronic command associated with a most recent previous gesture;

adjust the new confidence score value based on the new compatibility metric to obtain a new modified confidence score value; and

execute the new electronic command when the new modified confidence score value is greater than the predetermined threshold confidence value.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the processor is further configured to:

identify one or more electronic commands associated with the gesture;

generate one or more confidence score values associated for each of the one or more electronic commands;

compare each of the one or more electronic commands with the prior electronic command;

adjust the confidence score values for each of the electronic commands to obtain one or more modified confidence score values for each of the electronic commands;

determine whether the modified confidence score values for each of the electronic commands is greater than a predetermined threshold confidence score value; and

execute one of the electronic commands when the one electronic command has one of the modified confidence score values that is above the predetermined threshold confidence score value and has a highest one of the modified confidence score values for each of the electronic commands.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the sensor array unit is configured to detect a new gesture after detecting the gesture and detecting the prior gesture and wherein the processor is further configured to:

receive data for the new gesture from the sensor array unit;

identify a new possible electronic command associated with the new gesture;

generate a new confidence score value for the new electronic command associated with the new gesture;

compare the new electronic command associated with the gesture with the electronic command associated with the gesture and with the prior electronic command associated with the prior gesture to determine a new compatibility metric between the new electronic command, the electronic command and the prior electronic command;

adjust the confidence score value based on the new compatibility metric to obtain a new modified confidence score value; and

execute the new electronic command when the new modified confidence score value is greater than the predetermined threshold value.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein the processor is further configured to:

determine a new time duration value between detecting the new gesture and detecting the gesture and the prior gesture;

determine whether the new time duration value is less than the predetermined time duration value; and

perform the comparing, adjusting and executing operations for the new electronic command when the new time duration value is less than the predetermined time duration value.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to adjust the new confidence score value by a new scaling factor based on the new time duration value.