INFERRING PLACEMENT OF MOBILE ELECTRONIC DEVICES

• US 20140274159A1
• Filed: 03/15/2013
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Zhigu Holdings Limited
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Wiese, Jason, Bernheim Brush, Alice Jane, Saponas, T. Scott
• Granted Patent: US 9,244,888 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/456.4
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 17/18 for evaluating statistical data , e.g. average values, frequency distributions, probability functions, regression analysis forecasting specially adapted for a specific administrative, business or logistic context G06Q10/04
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72412 using two-way short-range wireless interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/72454 according to context-related or environment-related conditions
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 64/00 Locating users or terminals or network equipment for network management purposes, e.g. mobility management

Abstract

A “Placement Detector” enables handheld or mobile electronic devices such as phones, media players, tablets, etc., to infer their current position or placement. Placement inference is performed by evaluating one or more sensors associated with the device relative to one or more trained probabilistic models to infer device relative to a user. Example placement inferences include, but are not limited to, inferring whether the device is currently in a user'"'"'s pocket, in a user'"'"'s purse (or other carrying bag or backpack), in a closed area such as a drawer or box, in an open area such as on a table, indoors, outdoors, etc. These types of placement inferences facilitate a wide range of automated user-device interactions, including, but not limited to, placement-dependent notifications, placement-dependent responses to various inputs, prevention of inadvertent “pocket dialing,” prevention of inadvertent power cycling of devices, lost or misplaced device location assistance, etc.

Claims

1. A mobile electronic device, comprising:

one or more sensors;

one or more trained sensor-based probabilistic placement models;

a sensor evaluation module for evaluating inputs received from one or more of the sensors relative to one or more of the probabilistic models to probabilistically infer a current device placement relative to a user; and

a placement response module for automatically initiating one or more actions in response to the inferred device placement.

2. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 further comprising an input evaluation module for evaluating sensors available to the mobile electronic device, and selecting one or more of the available sensors to provide input to the sensor evaluation module.

3. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 wherein the probabilistic inference of device placement comprises a determination as to whether the mobile electronic device is in an enclosed space.

4. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 wherein the probabilistic inference of device placement comprises a determination as to whether the mobile electronic device is within a user'"'"'s pocket.

5. The mobile electronic device of claim 4 wherein a capacitive sensor array associated with the mobile electronic device is used to measure a capacitive signal generated in response to near contact with the body of a user through material lining the pocket positioned between the capacitive sensor array and the body of the user.

6. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 wherein the probabilistic inference of device placement comprises a determination as to whether the mobile electronic device is within a user'"'"'s carrying bag.

7. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 wherein the sensors include one or more of a proximity sensor, a light sensor, a capacitive sensor array, and a multi-spectral sensor.

8. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 further comprising automatically preventing call initiation when the inferred device placement is a user'"'"'s pocket or carrying bag.

9. The mobile electronic device of claim 1 wherein the mobile electronic device is a carrying case for holding a mobile computing device.

10. A computer-implemented process, comprising using a computing device to perform process actions for:

receiving sensor data from one or more sensors associated with the computing device;

evaluating the sensor data relative to one or more trained probabilistic models to automatically infer a current computing device placement relative to a user; and

initiating one or more actions in response to the inferred computing device placement.

11. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the automatic inference of computing device placement comprises a determination as to whether the computing device is in an enclosed space.

12. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the automatic inference of computing device placement comprises a determination as to whether the computing device is within a user'"'"'s pocket.

13. The computer-implemented process of claim 12 wherein a capacitive sensor array associated with the computing device is used to measure a capacitive signal generated in response to near contact with the body of a user through material lining the pocket positioned between the capacitive sensor array and the body of the user.

14. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the computing device is a phone and further comprising automatically preventing call initiation when the inferred computing device placement is an enclosed space.

15. The computer-implemented process of claim 10 wherein the computing device is a carrying case for holding other objects.

16. A computer-readable medium having computer executable instructions stored therein, said instructions causing a computing device to execute a method comprising:

receiving sensor data from one or more sensors associated with the computing device;

evaluating the sensor data relative to one or more trained probabilistic models to automatically infer a current computing device placement relative to a user; and

initiating one or more predefined actions in response to the inferred computing device placement.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 16 wherein the automatic inference of computing device placement comprises a determination as to whether the computing device is in an enclosed space.

18. The computer-readable medium of claim 16 wherein the automatic inference of computing device placement comprises a determination as to whether the computing device is within a user'"'"'s pocket.

19. The computer-readable medium of claim 18 wherein a capacitive sensor array associated with the computing device is used to measure a capacitive signal generated in response to near contact with the body of a user through material lining the pocket positioned between the capacitive sensor array and the body of the user.

20. The computer-readable medium of claim 16 wherein the computing device is a phone and further comprising automatically preventing call initiation when the inferred computing device placement is an enclosed space.