Method for calculating the activity of a user

• US 20150335291A1
• Filed: 05/20/2015
• Published: 11/26/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Withings S.A.
• Original Assignee: Withings S.A.
• Inventors: Saadi, Rachid, Buard, Nadine, Hutchings, Cedric
• Granted Patent: US 11,120,901 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1123 Discriminating type of movement, e.g. walking or running A61B5/1116, A61B5/112 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4866 Evaluating metabolism A61B5/083 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6898 Portable consumer electronic devices, e.g. music players, telephones, tablet computers
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 22/00 Measuring distance traversed on the ground by vehicles, persons, animals or other moving solid bodies, e.g. using odometers, using pedometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 22/006 Pedometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01P 15/02 by making use of inertia forces using solid seismic massesG01P15/14 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/19 Sporting applications
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/35 Constructional details or hardware or software details of the signal processing chain
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/49 whereby the further system is an inertial position system, e.g. loosely-coupled
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 5/017 Detecting state or type of motion
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/30 relating to physical therapies or activities, e.g. physiotherapy, acupressure or exercising

Abstract

The method for calculating the activity of a user, said method being implemented by a personal activity monitor intended to be securely associated with the body of the user, and by a smartphone equipped with a geolocation function, exchanging data over a wireless connection, the method comprising the steps of:

• -a- the activity monitor detects and counts the steps of the user,
• -b- the smartphone determines a first geolocation at a first time,
• -c- the smartphone determines a second geolocation at a second time,
• -d- one of the two devices calculates a distance traveled between the two geolocations,
• -e- one of the two devices calculates, based on the distance traveled and the number of steps taken between the two geolocations, the average stride and/or average step of the user.

Claims

1. A method for calculating the activity of a user, said method being implemented by a portable electronic first device consisting of a personal activity monitor intended to be securely associated with the body of the user and capable of detecting the accelerations experienced, and by a portable electronic second device consisting of a smartphone equipped with a geolocation function, the first and second devices being physically independent and configured to exchange data over a wireless connection, the method comprising the steps of:

-a- the first device measures the signals of accelerations experienced and counts substantially continuously the steps or cycles performed by the user,

-b- the second device determines the current geolocation of the user at a first time, which constitutes the first geolocation,

-c- the second device determines the current geolocation of the user at a second time, which constitutes the second geolocation,

-d- one of the two devices calculates a first distance traveled between the first and second geolocations,

-e1- deducing, based on the levels of acceleration experienced between the first and second times and on the first distance traveled, the current type of activity among a plurality of types of activity including walking, running, bicycling, horseback riding, racket sports, and golf,

-e2- deducing a calculation of the calorie expenditure between the first and second times,

-e3- if the current type of activity is walking, running, or bicycling, one of the two devices calculates, by means of said first distance traveled and the number of steps taken between the first and second geolocations, the average stride and/or average step and/or average gear ratio of the user between the first and second geolocations, such that the first device can personalize its own data concerning that particular user.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, in steps -b- and -c-, the second device determines the current geolocation of the user in response to a request from the first device.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the first device sends geolocation queries to the second device according to one or more of the following predetermined criteria:

in particular at the beginning or end of an activity, and/or in case of a change in activity level, and/or after N1 steps since the last query, and/or after X1 minutes since the last query.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein in step -d- it is the second device that calculates the first distance traveled and sends this to the first device, the latter performing steps -e1-, -e2-, and -e3-.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein in step -d-, the first distance traveled is calculated as a geometric distance between the first and second geolocations.

6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the geolocation function of the second device comprises access to a mapping database, and wherein the second device calculates, by means of the access to the mapping database, the actual distance traveled by the user along the map route between the first and second geolocations.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises, between steps -b- and -c-, a step of determining one or more intermediate geolocations between the first and second geolocations, the distance calculation then summing the distances between successive intermediate geolocations.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the geolocation function of the second device is provided by a GPS receiver.

9. The method according to claim 1, wherein the geolocation function of the second device is provided by the determination of antenna signals from antennas of known location, particularly the antennas of cellular telephone networks, the antennas of Wifi hotspots, or the equivalent.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the antenna signals are complemented in the second device by the use of a magnetometer or gyroscope.

11. The method according to claim 1, wherein, after each geolocation determination, the second device sends the geographic coordinates of the first and second geolocations to the first device, said first device then performing steps -d-, -e1-, -e2-, and -e3.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein the second device sends to the first device, spontaneously at regular intervals, the geographic coordinates of the user'"'"'s current geolocation.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein steps -d- and -e3- are performed by the second device.

14. The method according to claim 1, wherein a database is provided that relates a plurality of geolocation data and a type of user activity, in order to improve the determination of the average stride of the user.

15. An information system for a user, comprising a portable electronic first device consisting of a personal activity monitor intended to be securely associated with the body of the user, having a weight less than 50 grams and without its own means of geolocation, and a portable electronic second device consisting of a smartphone equipped with a geolocation function, the first and second devices being physically independent devices configured to exchange data over a wireless connection,

the first device being configured to measure the signals of accelerations experienced and to count substantially continuously the user steps or cycles,

the second device being configured to determine the current geolocation of the user at a first time, which constitutes the first geolocation,

the second device being configured to determine the current geolocation of the user at a second time, which constitutes the second geolocation,

the second device being configured to calculate a first distance traveled between geolocations,

the first device being configured to calculate, using said first distance traveled and the number of steps taken between the first and second geolocations, the average stride and/or average step and/or average gear ratio of the user between the first and second geolocations, whereby the first device can refine the average step and stride values for that particular user.