ELECTRONIC DEVICE MAGNETIC INTERFERENCE INDICATION METHOD

• US 20140130361A1
• Filed: 11/13/2012
• Published: 05/15/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/13/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Research In Motion Limited (Blackberry Limited)
• Inventors: OLIVER, Robert George, PARCO, Adam Louis, GRANT, Christopher James
• Granted Patent: US 9,021,709 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 33/301
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 17/28 Electromagnetic compasses with north seeking magnetic elements and having electric pick-offs G01C17/26
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 17/38 Testing, calibrating, or compensating of compasses

Abstract

A method of indicating an interference magnetic field at an electronic device includes: displaying a first arrow indicating a direction of magnetic north on a display of the electronic device, the direction of the first arrow corrected to remove interference caused by an interference magnetic field; and displaying a second arrow indicating a direction of a source of the interference magnetic field on a display of the electronic device.

Claims

1. A method of indicating an interference magnetic field at an electronic device comprising:

displaying a first arrow indicating a direction of magnetic north on a display of the electronic device, the direction of the first arrow corrected to remove interference caused by an interference magnetic field; and

displaying a second arrow indicating a direction of a source of the interference magnetic field on a display of the electronic device.

2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first arrow is a magnetic north vector having a length that corresponds to a certainty of a direction of magnetic north.

3. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the second arrow is an interference vector having a length that corresponds to a strength of the interference magnetic field.

4. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a change in strength of the interference magnetic field is indicated by modifying an appearance of the second arrow on the display.

5. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein a change in certainty of a direction of magnetic north is indicated by modifying an appearance of the first arrow on the display.

6. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first arrow is a magnetic north vector having a length that corresponds to a certainty of a direction of magnetic north, the second arrow is an interference vector having a length that corresponds to a strength of the interference magnetic field and an inverse relationship is provided between the magnetic north vector and the interference vector.

7. A method as claimed in claim 6, wherein when a strength of the interference magnetic field increases, a length of the interference vector increases and a length of the magnetic north vector decreases.

8. A method as claimed in claim 6, wherein when a strength of the interference magnetic field decreases, a length of the interference vector decreases and a length of the magnetic north vector increases.

9. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein an inverse relationship is provided between features of displayed images of the first arrow and the second arrow.

10. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising displaying a third arrow representing a vector sum of the first arrow and the second arrow.

11. A method as claimed in claim 1, comprising displaying a frame of reference of a virtual compass on the display, the first arrow and the second arrow originating at a virtual pivot of the virtual compass.

12. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions executable on a processor of the electronic device for implementing the method of claim 1.

13. An electronic device, comprising:

a magnetometer for generating magnetic north data based on a location of the electronic device;

an accelerometer for generating orientation data based on an orientation of the electronic device;

a memory for storing corrected magnetic north data and interference direction data, the corrected magnetic north data and the interference direction data calculated using the magnetic north data, the orientation data and Earth'"'"'s magnetic field data associated with the location of the electronic device, the corrected magnetic north data corrected to remove interference caused by an interference magnetic field;

a display; and

a processor in communication with the magnetometer, the accelerometer and the display, the processor for rendering a first arrow and a second arrow on the display of the electronic device, the first arrow indicating a direction of magnetic north and the second arrow indicating a direction of a source of the interference magnetic field.

14. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, comprising a gyroscope for generating further orientation data based on an orientation of the electronic device, the corrected magnetic north data calculated using the further orientation data.

15. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the Earth'"'"'s magnetic field data is determined using the World Magnetic Model (WMM), the location of the electronic device being received from a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receiver in communication with the processor.

16. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the Earth'"'"'s magnetic field data is determined locally based on previously generated magnetic north data.

17. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the first arrow is a magnetic north vector having a length that corresponds to a certainty of a direction of magnetic north.

18. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein the second arrow is an interference vector having a length that corresponds to a strength of the interference magnetic field.

19. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein a change in strength of the interference magnetic field is indicated by modifying an appearance of the second arrow on the display.

20. An electronic device as claimed in claim 13, wherein a change in certainty of a direction of magnetic north is indicated by modifying an appearance of the first arrow on the display.