HOLD STATE CHANGE DETECTION APPARATUS, HOLD STATE CHANGE DETECTION METHOD, AND COMPUTER READABLE MEDIUM

• US 20150355370A1
• Filed: 08/19/2015
• Published: 12/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 02/22/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Asahi Kasei Kabushiki Kaisha
• Original Assignee: Asahi Kasei Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: KOBAYASHI, Shiro, AKAGI, Yuko, KONDA, Masahiro, MASUDA, Tsuyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 10,126,460 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 19/34 for indicating a direction in the horizontal plane, e.g. directional gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/12 executed aboard the object being navigated; Dead reckoning
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/1654 with electromagnetic compass
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/20 Instruments for performing navigational calculations G01C21/24, G01C21/26 take precedence
• 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: G01V 7/02 Details
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10

Abstract

In order to accurately identify a hold state of a mobile device held by a user while the user is moving, provided is a hold state change detection apparatus including an acquiring section that acquires an output signal of a sensor mounted in the mobile device held by the user; a change detecting section that detects a change in a hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal of the sensor; and a hold state judging section that judges the hold state based on the output signal of the sensor. During a prescribed time from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state, information indicating the hold state prior to the detection of the change in the hold state is output. Also provided is a hold state change detection method and program.

Claims

1. A hold state change detection apparatus comprising:

an acquiring section that acquires an output signal of a sensor mounted in a mobile device held by a user;

a change detecting section that detects a change in a hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal of the sensor; and

a hold state judging section that judges the hold state based on the output signal of the sensor, wherein

the hold state judging section outputs a judgment result of the hold state after a prescribed time has passed from a time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state and does not output the judgment result of the hold state during the prescribed time from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state, and

during the prescribed time from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state, information indicating the hold state prior to the detection of the change in the hold state is output.

2. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the hold state judging section does not output the judgment result of the hold state during the prescribed time from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state.

3. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 2, wherein

the hold state judging section judges the hold state without substantially using information obtained from the output signal prior to the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device and/or information obtained from the output signal near the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

4. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the hold state judging section includes:

a first hold state judging section that judges the hold state of the mobile device of the user by performing a prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor;

a second hold state judging section that judges the hold state of the mobile device of the user by performing a computation differing from the prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor; and

a hold state judgment selecting section that selects whether to use a judgement result of the first hold state judging section or a judgment result of the second hold state judging section based on the output of the change detecting section.

5. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 4, wherein

the sensor includes a first sensor that detects a first physical amount and a second sensor that detects a second physical amount that is of a different type than the first physical amount,

the first hold state judging section judges the hold state of the mobile device of the user based on the output signal of the first sensor, and

the second hold state judging section judges the hold state of the mobile device of the user based on the output signal of the second sensor.

6. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a hold state estimating section that references the judgment result of the hold state judging section at a plurality of times and estimates the hold state of the mobile device of the user.

7. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the hold state estimating section estimates the hold state of the mobile device of the user based on the output of the change detecting section.

8. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 7, wherein

the hold state estimating section estimates the hold state based on the output signal from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

9. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 7, wherein

the hold state estimating section estimates the hold state without substantially using information obtained from the output signal prior to the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device and/or information obtained from the output signal near the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

10. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on a change in the output signal of the sensor.

11. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device in response to the output signal deviating from a periodic change pattern.

12. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device of the user based on change over time in one or more axial direction components when the output signal of the sensor is divided into a plurality of axial direction components.

13. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on change over time of at least one of amplitude and a frequency distribution of the output signal of the sensor.

14. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal accompanying walking of the user.

15. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 14, wherein

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on a change pattern of the output signal accompanying walking of the user.

16. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the change detecting section includes a gravitational acceleration estimating section that estimates one or more axial direction components of gravitational acceleration from the output of the sensor, and

the change detecting section detects the change in the hold sate of the mobile device of the user based on change over time of the one or more axial direction components of the gravitational acceleration.

17. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

the sensor includes one of an acceleration sensor, an angular velocity sensor, and a geomagnetic sensor.

18. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a positional change detecting section that detects a positional change of the user based on the output signal of the sensor.

19. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 18, wherein

the positional change detecting section detects the positional change of the user based on the output of the change detecting section.

20. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 19, wherein

the positional change detecting section detects the positional change of the user based on the output signal from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

21. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 19, wherein

the positional change detecting section detects the positional change of the user without substantially using information obtained from the output signal prior to the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device and/or information obtained from the output signal near the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

22. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the positional change detecting section includes:

a first positional change detecting section that detects the positional change of the user by performing a prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor;

a second positional change detecting section that detects the positional change of the user by performing a computation differing from the prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor; and

a selecting section that selects whether to substantially use a result of the first positional change detecting section or a result of the second positional change detecting section based on the output of the change detecting section.

23. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 22, wherein

the sensor includes a first sensor that detects a first physical amount and a second sensor that detects a second physical amount that is of a different type than the first physical amount,

the first positional change detecting section detects the positional change of the user based on the output signal of the first sensor, and

the second positional change detecting section detects the positional change of the user based on the output signal of the second sensor.

24. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 18, wherein

the positional change detecting section includes a progression direction judging section that judges a progression direction of the user based on the output signal of the sensor.

25. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 24, wherein

the progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user based on the output of the change detecting section.

26. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 25, wherein

the progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user based on the output signal from the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

27. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 25, wherein

the progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user without substantially using information obtained from the output signal prior to the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device and/or information obtained from the output signal near the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

28. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 25, wherein

the progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user by judging the progression direction of the user immediately before the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device to be the same as the progression direction of the user immediately after the time when the change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device.

29. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 25, wherein the progression direction judging section includes:

a first progression direction judging section that judges the progression direction of the user by performing a prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor;

a second progression direction judging section that judges the progression direction of the user by performing a computation differing from the prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor; and

a progression direction judgment selecting section that selects whether to use a result of the first progression direction judging section or a result of the second progression direction judging section based on the output of the change detecting section.

30. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 29, wherein

the sensor includes a first sensor that detects a first physical amount and a second sensor that detects a second physical amount that is of a different type than the first physical amount,

the first progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user based on the output signal of the first sensor, and

the second progression direction judging section judges the progression direction of the user based on the output signal of the second sensor.

31. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the change detecting section includes

a first change detecting section that detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device by performing a prescribed computation on the output signal of the sensor;

a second change detecting section that detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device by performing a computation differing from the prescribed computation on the output signal of the user; and

a third change detecting section that detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on the output of the first change detecting section and the output of the second change detecting section.

32. The hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 31, wherein

the sensor includes a first sensor that detects a first physical amount and a second sensor that detects a second physical amount that is of a different type than the first physical amount,

the first change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal of the first sensor, and

the second change detecting section detects the change in the hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal of the second sensor.

34. A computer readable medium storing thereon a program that causes a computer to function as the hold state change detection apparatus according to claim 1.

33. A hold state change detection method comprising:

acquiring an output signal of a sensor mounted in a mobile device held by a user;

detecting a change in a hold state of the mobile device based on the output signal of the sensor;

judging the hold state based on the output signal of the sensor;

not outputting the judgment result of the hold state during a prescribed time from the time when the change in the hold state is detected in the detecting the change; and

outputting the judgment result of the hold state after the prescribed time has passed.