HUMAN-COMPUTER INTERACTION USING WEARABLE DEVICE

• US 20160070341A1
• Filed: 06/28/2013
• Published: 03/10/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Zhang, Guangli
• Granted Patent: US 9,864,428 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: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• 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

Embodiments of apparatus and methods for human-computer interaction are described. An apparatus for human-computer interaction may have one or more processors, multiple sensors to measure motion of a body part of a user, a communication module to communicate with a remote computing device, and an interpretation module to interpret the motion of the body part of the user to be associated with an indication of a user input to the remote computing device. The components may be encased in a body configured to be worn by the user. Other embodiments may be described and/or claimed.

Claims

1. An apparatus for human-computer interaction, comprising:

one or more processors;

a sensor module coupled to the one or more processors to measure motion of a body part of a user of an application of a computing device external to the apparatus;

an interpretation module, coupled with the one or more processors and the sensor module, and configured to interpret and translate the motion of the body part of the user to an indication of a user input for the application;

a communication module, coupled to the interpretation module, configured to send the indication of the user input to the computing device for the application; and

a body encasing the one or more processors, the sensor module, the communication module, and the interpretation module, wherein the body has a shape or dimensions, and constituted with materials, configured for the apparatus to be worn by the user.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the user input is associated with one or more available actions based at least in part of a current state of the application.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the body part of the user comprises at least one of an arm, a hand, or a finger.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the communication module comprises at least one of a line-of-sight wireless transmitter, an infrared transmitter, or a radio frequency transmitter.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the motion comprises at least one of acceleration, orientation, velocity, or positional change.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensor module is configured to measure a moving force applied to the body part of the user.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the sensor module is configured to measure a force generated by a finger tendon of the user.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the interpretation module is configured to interpret and translate a pattern of a plurality of moving forces applied to the body part of the user into the indication of the user input based at least in part on a gesture estimation model.

9. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of moving forces are generated by a plurality of finger tendons of the user.

10. The apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the gesture estimation model is customizable by the user.

12. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the body is configured for the apparatus to be worn on a wrist, neck, an arm, a leg or a head of the user.

11. (canceled)

13. A method for human-computer interaction, comprising:

measuring, by a wearable computing device, motion of a body part of a user of an application of a computing device external to the wearable computing device;

interpreting, by the wearable computing device, the motion of the body part of the user into an indication of a user input for the application; and

sending, by the wearable computing device, the indication of the user input to the computing device.

14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

retrieving, by the wearable computing device, indications of a plurality of available actions from the computing device, the plurality of available actions being based at least in part on a current state of the application.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the interpretation is based at least in part on the plurality of available actions.

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein the measuring comprises at least one of measuring a moving force applied to the body part of the user, or measuring a force applied by a finger tendon of the user.

20. The method according to claim 13, wherein the interpreting comprises translating a pattern of a plurality of moving forces applied to the body part of the user into the indication of the user input based at least in part on a gesture estimation model.

22. The method according to claim 20, wherein the plurality of moving forces are generated by a plurality of finger tendons.

16. (canceled)

17. (canceled)

19. (canceled)

21. (canceled)

23. At least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, comprising a plurality of instructions, which when executed by at least one processor of a wearable computing device, cause the at least one processor to:

measure motion of a body part of a user of an application of a computing device external to the wearable computing device;

interpret the motion of the body part of the user into an indication of a user input for the application; and

send the indication of the user input to the computing device.

25. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 23, wherein the plurality of instructions further cause the at least one processor to:

retrieve indications of a plurality of available actions from the computing device, the plurality of available actions being based at least in part on a current state of the application, and

wherein interpreting the motion is based at least in part on the plurality of available actions.

26. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 23, wherein the plurality of instructions further cause the at least one processor to:

receive a feedback signal from the computing device in response to receiving the indication of the user input.

24. (canceled)