Wearable communication device

• US 7,536,020 B2
• Filed: 05/13/2005
• Issued: 05/19/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation
• Inventors: Tonomura, Yoshinobu, Fukumoto, Masaaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Young; Wayne R
• Assistant Examiner(s): PENDLETON, DIONNE
• Application Number:
  US11/128,853
• Publication Number:
  US 20050207599A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,467 Days
• Field of Search: 482/131, 368168-183, 368243-275, 368/13, 340/407.1, 340/407.2, 340/5.51, 340/5.63, 340/825.39, 340/825.19, 340/7.6, 340/384.1, 340/384.4, 340/384.5, 340/384.7, 340/384.72, 340/384.73, 340/388.1, 340/390.2, 340/391.1, 340/393.3, 340/398.1, 340/566, 340/384.6, 379/433.1, 379/434, 379/442, 379/443, 379/433.06, 607/62, 607/68, 341/20, 341/27, 341/34, 434/112, 434/113, 434/114, 434/116
• US Class Current: 381/151
• 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: G09B 21/00 Teaching, or communicating with, the blind, deaf or mute audible presentation of material to be studied G09B5/04; devices or methods for replacing direct visual or auditory perception by another kind of perception A61F9/08, A61F11/04; audible indication of meter readings or of colour G01D7/12; watches for blind persons G04B25/02; speech analysis, speech recognition G10L; sound-recording or reproducing, per se G11B
• CPC Class Codes: H04R 2460/13 Hearing devices using bone conduction transducers

Abstract

A wearable communication device includes a bone conduction actuator which is applicable for being in contact with a user'"'"'s wrist, hand, back of the hand, finger or nail in order to transmit voice signals. The user inserts the user'"'"'s finger into the user'"'"'s ear canal, or touches the user'"'"'s finger to a part near the user'"'"'s ear, or puts the user'"'"'s fingertip or nail on the user'"'"'s ear canal so as to block the user'"'"'s ear canal when the user uses the wearable communication device. Also, the wearable command input device includes a first part for detecting shock or acceleration which arises when the user taps the user'"'"'s fingertip on the surface of an object or when the user taps the fingertips mutually and which is transmitted through the user'"'"'s finger, a second part for detecting specific frequency components which are included in signals from the first part and for detecting the presence or the absence of the tap of the finger of the user, and a part for determining and executing commands based on series of signals output from the second part.

Claims

1. A wearable command input device for inputting information by tapping a finger of a user on a surface of an object or by tapping the fingertips mutually, wherein said wearable command input device can be mounted on the user'"'"'s body and comprises:

detecting means for detecting tap vibrations which arise when the user taps the finger on the surface of the object and are transmitted through the user'"'"'s finger;

a vibration generator, applicable to be mounted on the user'"'"'s wrist, for generating wrist vibrations which arise when the user'"'"'s wrist is bent or twisted and which have specific frequencies different from the frequencies of the tap vibrations;

extracting means for extracting tap signals which are signal components of the tap vibrations and wrist signals which are signal components of the wrist vibrations from output signals from said detecting means;

a trigger generator for outputting a series of trigger signals by detecting the presence or the absence of the tap signals while suppressing the detection of the tap signals from said extracting means if the wrist signals from said extracting means are detected; and

a command generator for outputting commands corresponding to said trigger signals.

2. The wearable command input device as claimed in claim 1, said wearable command input device further comprising a command table for storing each command corresponding to each series of trigger signals, wherein said command generator outputs the command corresponding to the series of trigger signals with reference to said command table.