Radar-Based Gesture-Recognition through a Wearable Device

• US 20150346820A1
• Filed: 06/23/2014
• Published: 12/03/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Poupyrev, Ivan, Aiello, Gaetano Roberto
• Granted Patent: US 9,575,560 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/88 Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications electromagnetic prospecting or detecting of objects, e.g. near-field detection, G01V3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/89 for mapping or imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/411 Identification of targets based on measurements of radar reflectivity G01S7/415 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/014 Hand-worn input/output arrangements, e.g. data gloves
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883

Abstract

This document describes techniques and devices for radar-based gesture-recognition through a wearable device. The techniques enable an easy-to-use input interface through this wearable radar device, in contrast to small or difficult-to-use input interfaces common to wearable computing devices. Further, these techniques are not limited to interfacing with wearable computing devices, but may aid users in controlling various non-wearable devices, such as to control volume on a stereo, pause a movie playing on a television, or select a webpage on a desktop computer.

Claims

1. A radar-based gesture-recognition system comprising:

a microwave radio element configured to provide a localized radar field;

an antenna element configured to sense an interaction having multiple targets in the localized radar field; and

a signal processor configured to process the sensed interaction having the multiple targets in the localized radar field sufficient to provide gesture data usable to determine a gesture from the sensed interaction having the multiple targets.

2. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element provides the localized radar field in a three-dimensional volume, the antenna element is configured to sense the interaction having the multiple target

targets in the three-dimensional volume, and the signal processor is configured to process the sensed interaction sufficient to provide gesture data usable to determine the gesture in three dimensions.

3. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element provides the localized radar field as a surface applied to human tissue or non-human object, the antenna element is capable of sensing the interaction in the surface, and the signal processor is configured to process the sensed interaction in the surface sufficient to provide gesture data usable to determine the gesture in the surface.

4. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element is configured to emit microwave radiation in a 3 GHz to 300 GHz range and the antenna element is configured to sense the interaction of the emitted microwave radiation to track locations of two or more of the multiple targets to a resolution of approximately two to 25 millimeters, the resolution of the locations based on the 3 GHz to 300 GHz range of the emitted microwave radiation.

5. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element is configured to emit microwave radiation capable of substantially penetrating clothing and not substantially penetrating human tissue, and the antenna element or signal processor is configured to differentiate between interactions in the localized radar field caused by clothing from interactions in the localized radar field caused by human tissue.

6. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

one or more computer processors; and

one or more computer-readable storage media having instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by the one or more computer processors, perform operations comprising;

determining, based on the provided gesture data from the signal processor, the gesture;

mapping the determined gesture to a pre-configured control gesture associated with a control input for an application associated with a remote device; and

causing the transmitting device to transmit the control input to the remote device effective to enable control of the application.

7. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 6, wherein the pre-configured control gesture is one of multiple complex, three-dimensional, single-handed gestures.

8. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element is configured to emit continuously modulated radiation, ultra-wideband radiation, or sub-millimeter-frequency radiation.

9. The radar-based gesture-recognition system as recited in claim 1, wherein the microwave radio element is configured to form emitted radiation in beams, the beams enabling the antenna element and the signal processor to determine which of the beams are interrupted.

10. A computer-implemented method comprising:

determining, for an application on a computing device, a set of controls through which the application can be controlled;

indicating the set or a subset of the controls selectable through a localized radar field;

causing a radar-based gesture-recognition system to present the localized radar field;

causing the radar-based gesture-recognition system to sense an interaction in the localized radar field;

determining a control of the set or subset of the controls selected through the sensed interaction in the localized radar field; and

passing the determined control to the application.

11. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 10, wherein the computer-implemented method is performed on the computing device, the computing device being remote from the radar-based gesture-recognition system, the indicating the set or the subset of the controls is performed on a display associated with the computing device, and the method further comprises, prior to determining the selected control, receiving gesture data from the radar-based gesture-recognition system.

12. The computer-implemented method as described in claim 10, further comprising determining, for multiple other applications on the computing device, other controls through which the multiple other applications can be controlled, indicating the other controls selectable through the localized radar field, and wherein indicating the set or subset of controls and the other controls indicates one or more unique, three-dimensional gestures for those controls.

13. A wearable computing device comprising:

a radar-based gesture-recognition system configured to sense gestures;

one or more computer processors; and

one or more computer-readable storage media having instructions stored thereon that, responsive to execution by the one or more computer processors, perform operations comprising;

causing the radar-based gesture-recognition system to provide a localized radar field;

causing the radar-based gesture-recognition system to sense an interaction in the localized radar field;

determining a gesture based on the sensed interaction in the localized radar field; and

passing the determined gesture to an application or operating system of the wearable computing device effective to cause the application or operating system to receive an input corresponding to the determined gesture.

14. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein the wearable computing device further comprises a display and the operations further comprise causing the display to present a visual approximation of a location corresponding to the sensed interaction.

15. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 14, wherein the display presents an interface showing selectable control regions of the localized radar field and the visual approximation of the location corresponding to the sensed interaction indicates selection of a selectable control region responsive to sensing the interaction in the localized radar field.

16. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein the wearable computing device further comprises a display and the operations further comprise causing the display to present a visual approximation, in real time, of a movement and locations corresponding to the sensed interaction.

17. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein the wearable computing device further comprises a display and the operations further comprise:

determining an object on which the localized radar field overlays;

presenting a visual approximation of the object on the display; and

responsive to sensing the interaction in the localized radar field, presenting the sensed interaction at a location in the visual approximation for the object corresponding to the sensed interaction'"'"'s location at the object.

18. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein the operations further comprise:

determining, based on a user interface associated with the application, a set of controls for the user interface through which the user interface is capable of receiving input;

indicating, to the user interface, the set of controls or a subset of the set of controls for selection through the radar-based gesture-recognition system effective to enable the user interface to highlight or indicate the set of controls or the subset of the set of controls for selection through the radar-based gesture-recognition system; and

responsive to the sensed interaction selecting one of the set or subset of controls, causing the user interface associated with the application to indicate selection of the selected control.

19. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 18, wherein the user interface is displayed on a remote device, the remote device being remote from the wearable computing device.

20. The wearable computing device as recited in claim 18, wherein the user interface is displayed on a display associated with the wearable computing device.