CONFIRMING SLEEP BASED ON SECONDARY INDICIA OF USER ACTIVITY

• US 20170086732A1
• Filed: 09/30/2015
• Published: 03/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Tribble, Guy L., Greer, Stephanie, Raymann, Roy J., Dougherty, Wren N., Nag, Divya, Lambert, Deborah M., Gruber, Thomas R.
• Granted Patent: US 10,383,568 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 5/0022 Monitoring a patient using a global network, e.g. telephone networks, internet
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4809 Sleep detection, i.e. determining whether a subject is asleep or not
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6803 Head-worn items, e.g. helmets, masks, headphones or goggles
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/681 Wristwatch-type devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6898 Portable consumer electronic devices, e.g. music players, telephones, tablet computers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7221 Determining signal validity, reliability or quality A61B5/7207 and A61B5/7217 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/746 Alarms related to a physiological condition, e.g. details of setting alarm thresholds or avoiding false alarms alarms per se G08B

Abstract

In some implementations, a computing device can confirm a sleep determination for a user based on secondary indicia of user activity. For example, the computing device can be a user'"'"'s primary computing device. The primary device can predict and/or determine when the user is sleeping based on the user'"'"'s use (e.g., primary indicia), or lack of use, of the primary device. After the primary device determines that the user is sleeping, the primary device can confirm that the user is asleep based on secondary indicia of user activity. In some implementations, the secondary indicia can include user activity reported to the primary computing device by other secondary computing devices (e.g., a second user device, a household appliance, etc.). In some implementations, the secondary indicia can include user activity detected by sensors of the primary computing device (e.g., sound, light, movement, etc.).

Claims

1. A method comprising:

determining, by a first computing device, that a user of the computing device is sleeping based on data indicating that the user is not currently using the computing device;

detecting, by the first computing device, conscious human activity unrelated to the first computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, whether the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, that the user is awake when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

confirming, by the first computing device, that the user is sleeping when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device when the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device when the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting includes receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and further comprising:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting includes receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, and further comprising:

determining that the second device is a personal device of the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the second device is a personal device of the user; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting includes receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to a third device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and further comprising:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the conscious human activity is moving the second device within communications range of the third device.

9. A non-transitory computer-readable medium including one or more sequences of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, causes:

determining, by a first computing device, that a user of the computing device is sleeping based on data indicating that the user is not currently using the computing device;

detecting, by the first computing device, conscious human activity unrelated to the first computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, whether the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, that the user is awake when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions cause:

confirming, by the first computing device, that the user is sleeping when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions cause:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device when the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device.

12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 10, wherein the instructions cause:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device when the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining that the second device is a personal device of the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the second device is a personal device of the user; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to a third device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the conscious human activity is moving the second device within communications range of the third device.

17. A system comprising:

one or more processors; and

a non-transitory computer-readable medium including one or more sequences of instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, causes;

determining, by a first computing device, that a user of the computing device is sleeping based on data indicating that the user is not currently using the computing device;

detecting, by the first computing device, conscious human activity unrelated to the first computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, whether the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device;

determining, by the first computing device, that the user is awake when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions cause:

confirming, by the first computing device, that the user is sleeping when the computing device determines that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions cause:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by the user of the computing device when the detected sounds correspond to the user of the computing device.

20. The system of claim 18, wherein the instructions cause:

detecting sounds generated by the conscious human activity, and

determining that the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device; and

determining that the detected conscious human activity was performed by someone other than the user of the computing device when the detected sounds are inconsistent with sounds associated with the user of the computing device.

21. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

22. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining that the second device is a personal device of the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the second device is a personal device of the user; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

23. The system of claim 17, wherein the instructions that cause detecting include instructions that cause receiving, by the computing device, a communication from a second device indicating that the conscious human activity is being performed with respect to a third device, where the communication includes an identifier corresponding to an operator of the second device, and wherein the instructions cause:

determining whether the identifier is associated with the user of the computing device;

determining that the conscious human activity is being performed by the user of the computing device when the identifier corresponds to the user of the computing device; and

determining that the user is awake when the conscious human activity is being performed by the user.

24. The system of claim 17, wherein the conscious human activity is moving the second device within communications range of the third device.