METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MEASURING AMOUNT OF USER

• US 20150289217A1
• Filed: 04/03/2015
• Published: 10/08/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: BAN, Ji-Hye, PARK, Jeong-Min, CHUN, Jae-Woong, PARK, Sun-Mi, LEE, Dae-Yong, LEE, Youn-Hee
• Granted Patent: US 9,867,152 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2560/0475 Special features of memory means, e.g. removable memory cards
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0004 characterised by the type of physiological signal transmitted
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/002 Monitoring the patient using a local or closed circuit, e.g. in a room or building A61B5/0017 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/112 Gait analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6803 Head-worn items, e.g. helmets, masks, headphones or goggles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6807 Footwear
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/681 Wristwatch-type devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7246 using correlation, e.g. template matching or determination of similarity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/001 Synchronization between nodes

Abstract

An electronic device and a method of measuring an amount of user physical activity by an electronic device are provided. The method includes establishing short range communication among a plurality of electronic devices, determining one of the plurality of electronic devices as a primary device, communicating state information of remaining electronic devices to the primary device, activating a sensor on a device having a highest priority among the plurality of electronic devices according to the state information, recording physical activity information according to physical activity sensed by the sensor, communicating the physical activity information to the primary device, calculating an amount of physical activity according to the communicated physical activity information, and synchronizing the amount of physical activity among the plurality of electronic devices.

Claims

1. A method of measuring an amount of user physical activity by an electronic device, the method comprising:

counting, by the electronic device, an amount of physical activity;

storing, by the electronic device, first count information comprising a first count start time, a first count end time, and a first amount of physical activity counted between the first count start time and the first count end time;

receiving, by the electronic device, second count information comprising a second count start time, a second count end time, and a second amount of physical activity from the at least one other device when the electronic device is connected with the at least one other device through short range communication;

determining an integrated amount of physical activity using the first count information and the second count information; and

changing an entire amount of physical activity corresponding to the electronic device according to the integrated amount of physical activity, transmitting the integrated amount of physical activity to the at least one other device, and performing synchronization between the electronic device and the at least one other device of the amount of physical activity.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of the integrated amount of physical activity comprises:

determining an overlap duration by comparing the first count start time and the first count end time with the second count start time and the second count end time;

calculating a third amount of physical activity corresponding to the overlap duration; and

determining a value obtained by subtracting the third amount of physical activity from a sum of the first amount of physical activity and the second amount of physical activity as the integrated amount of physical activity.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining of the integrated amount of physical activity comprises:

determining an overlap duration by comparing the first count start time and the first count end time with the second count start time and the second count end time;

calculating a third amount of physical activity corresponding to the overlap duration;

obtaining a difference by subtracting the third amount of physical activity from an amount of physical activity of a device having a lower priority among the electronic device and the at least one other device; and

determining a sum of the difference and an amount of physical activity of a device having a higher priority among the electronic device and the at least one other device as the integrated amount of physical activity.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

stopping counting of the amount of physical activity by the electronic device, and updating the amount of physical activity of the electronic device using a physical activity count value reported from the at least one other device, while the short range communication is maintained after the synchronization of the amount of physical activity, when a priority of the at least one other device is higher than a priority of the electronic device.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, when a plurality of other devices are connected with the electronic device through the short range communication, the receiving of the second count information from the at least one other device comprises:

receiving wearing status information from one or more of the plurality of devices;

determining a highest priority available device according to priorities of each of the plurality of devices and the received wearing status information; and

receiving the second count information from the highest priority available device.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the highest priority available device is determined again when the short range communication with the highest priority available device is disconnected.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the synchronization of the amount of physical activity is performed again when the highest priority available device is determined again.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the highest priority available device is determined again when information on a wearing status in which the highest priority available device has not been worn is received from the highest priority available device.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the synchronization of the amount of physical activity is performed again when the highest priority available device is determined again.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the counted physical activity comprises counted footsteps.

11. An electronic device comprising:

a sensor; and

a measurement module configured to count an amount of physical activity using a sensor value of the sensor, to store count information comprising a first count start time, a first count end time, and a first amount of physical activity counted between the first count start time and the first count end time in a memory, to receive second count information comprising a second count start time, a second count end time, and a second amount of physical activity from at least one other device when the electronic device is connected with the at least one other device through short range communication, to determine an integrated amount of physical activity using the second count information and the first count information, to change an entire amount of physical activity corresponding to the electronic device according to the integrated amount of physical activity, to transmit the integrated amount of physical activity to the at least one other device, and to perform synchronization between the electronic device and the at least one other device of the amount of physical activity.

12. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the measurement module determines an overlap duration by comparing the first count start time and the first count end time with the second count start time and the second count end time, calculates a third amount of physical activity corresponding to the overlap duration, and determines a value obtained by subtracting the third amount of physical activity from a sum of the first amount of physical activity and the second amount of physical activity as the integrated amount of physical activity.

13. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the measurement module determines an overlap duration by comparing the first count start time and the first count end time with the second count start time and the second count end time, calculates a third amount of physical activity corresponding to the overlap duration, obtain a difference by subtracting the third amount of physical activity from an amount of physical activity of a device having a lower priority among the electronic device and the at least one other device, and determines a sum of the difference and an amount of physical activity of a device having a higher priority among the electronic device and the at least one other device as the integrated amount of physical activity.

14. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the measurement module stops counting of the amount of physical activity by the electronic device, and updates the amount of physical activity of the electronic device using a physical activity count value reported from the at least one other device, while the short range communication is maintained after the synchronization of the amount of physical activity, when a priority of the at least one other device is higher than a priority of the electronic device.

15. The electronic device of claim 14, wherein, when a plurality of other devices are connected with the electronic device through the short range communication, the measurement module receives wearing status information from one or more the plurality of devices, determines a highest priority available device according to priorities of each of the plurality of devices and the received wearing status information, and receives the second count information from the highest priority available device.

16. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the highest priority available device is determined again when the short range communication with the highest priority available device is disconnected.

17. The electronic device of claim 16, wherein the synchronization of the amount of physical activity is performed again when the highest priority available device is determined again.

18. The electronic device of claim 15, wherein the highest priority available device is determined again when information on a status in which the highest priority available device has not been worn is received from the highest priority available device.

19. The electronic device of claim 18, wherein the synchronization of the amount of physical activity is performed again when the highest priority available device is determined again.

20. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the counted physical activity comprises counted footsteps.