WRIST WEARABLE APPARATUS WITH TRANSFORMABLE SUBSTRATE

• US 20150222742A1
• Filed: 01/29/2015
• Published: 08/06/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute
• Inventors: SON, Yong-Ki, CHO, Il-Yeon, LEE, Dong-Woo, SHIN, Hyung-Cheol, KIM, Ji-Eun, SOHN, Jong-Moo, JEONG, Hyun-Tae, SHIN, Sung-Yong
• Granted Patent: US 9,560,186 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/385 Transceivers carried on the body, e.g. in helmets
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/3855 carried in a belt or harness
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/3861 carried in a hand or on fingers
• 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

Abstract

Provided is to a wrist wearable apparatus with a transformable substrate. The apparatus has a transformable substrate having a flat state, a deformed state, a partially deformed state, and the like, and thus provides a function and a user interface that change according to the deformed state when a user wears the apparatus on his or her wrist and the flat extended state when the user detaches the apparatus from his or her wrist. When the method suggested in the present invention is used, the user can conveniently carry the apparatus on his or her wrist and use the apparatus on or off the wrist as necessary, thereby resolving inconveniences of carrying and using an existing mobile apparatus.

Claims

1. A wrist wearable apparatus comprising:

a transformable substrate having a structure detachably attachable to a wrist of a user;

a sensor unit including a deformation state detection unit which is able to detect a deformation state of the apparatus;

an input and output unit including a user input unit, a video input/output unit, and an audio input/output unit; and

a signal processor including a signal processing unit determining an input/output method or a function supported by the input/output unit in accordance with the deformation state of the apparatus detected by the sensor unit.

2. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transformable substrate is a material having a bi-stable structure or a transformable material.

3. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the deformation state detection unit of the sensor unit is able to distinguish a flat state, a partially deformed state, and a fully deformed state as the deformation state of the apparatus.

4. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal processor is able to detect a deformed state or a detached state from the wrist by using the deformation state detection unit, and an IMU sensor or a proximal sensor in combination.

5. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a battery and an antenna.

6. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the signal processor processes signals input into and output from the apparatus.

7. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a communication processing unit configured to couple the apparatus with an external apparatus and connect the apparatus directly to a wireless communication network.

8. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 1, wherein the input/output unit further includes an acceleration sensor or a gyro sensor which is a unit capable of detecting a motion of the apparatus, or an inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensor configured as a combination of the acceleration sensor and the gyro sensor.

9. The wrist wearable apparatus of claim 8, wherein the input/output unit further includes a finger motion detection unit.