Method and system for correlating user/device activity with spatial orientation sensors

• US 8,099,124 B2
• Filed: 04/12/2007
• Issued: 01/17/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/12/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Symbol Technologies, LLC (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Symbol Technologies, Inc. (Zebra Technologies Corporation)
• Inventors: Tilley, Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): Pan, Yuwen
• Application Number:
  US11/734,366
• Publication Number:
  US 20080254822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 455/550.1, 455/556.1, 455/557, 455/90.1
• US Class Current: 455/550.1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• 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 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1614 Image rotation following screen orientation, e.g. switching from landscape to portrait mode
• 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
• 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 1/724 User interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0254 detecting a user operation or a tactile contact or a motion of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0258 controlling an operation mode according to history or models of usage information, e.g. activity schedule or time of day
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

A system and method for determining an operating mode for a mobile unit (“MU”), comprising defining a plurality of spatial regions, tracking at least one activity of the MU when the MU is oriented within the one of the plurality of spatial regions, determining an orientation of the mobile unit, and selecting the operating mode based on the at least one of the orientation and an activity of the MU when the MU is oriented within the one of the plurality of spatial regions.

Claims

1. A method for determining an optimized operating mode for a mobile unit (“

MU”

), comprising;

defining a plurality of spatial regions relative to a predetermined reference point;

tracking an intended use of the MU when the MU is oriented and positioned within one of the spatial regions, wherein the intended use includes at least one of using an application executing on the MU and selecting an operating mode of the MU;

determining an orientation and a position of the MU within the one spatial region;

assigning a score to the intended use for the one spatial region when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region; and

selecting the optimized operating mode based on the score corresponding to the intended use of the MU when the MU is oriented within the spatial region.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the tracking the intended use of the MU is performed by at least one sensor within the MU.

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the at least one sensor includes one of a piezoelectric sensor, an optical switch, a multi-axis accelerometer, a pressure gauge, and a micro-electromechanical gyroscope.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the optimized operating mode of the MU is one of a speakerphone mode, a telephone-at-ear mode, a scanning mode, a power optimization mode, a lighting setting mode, an antenna selection mode, and an idle mode.

5. A method, comprising:

defining a plurality of spatial regions relative to a predetermined reference point;

mapping each of the spatial regions to at least one operating mode of a mobile unit (“

MU”

), the MU including an application component;

correlating an orientation and a position of the MU with one of the spatial regions;

tracking an intended use of the MU when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region, wherein the intended use includes at least one of using an application executing on the MU and selecting an operating mode of the MU;

assigning a score to the intended use for the one spatial region when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region; and

based on the score, determining an optimized operating mode for the at least one application component of the MU when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region.

6. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

tracking a further intended use of the MU within the one of the plurality of spatial regions;

adjusting the score based on the further intended use; and

based on the score, determining a further optimized operating mode for the at least one application component of the MU when the MU is oriented within the one spatial region.

7. The method according to claim 5, further comprising:

transmitting data gathered from the at least one application component of the MU to a central server.

8. The method according to claim 5, wherein the tracking the intended use of the MU is performed by at least one sensor within the MU.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the at least one sensor includes one of a piezoelectric sensor, an optical switch, a multi-axis accelerometer, a pressure gauge, and a micro-electromechanical gyroscope.

10. The method according to claim 5, wherein the at least one application component of the MU is one of a speaker, a microphone, a scanner, an antenna, a display, a touch screen, a camera, a wireless communication interface, and a keypad.

11. The method according to claim 5, wherein the at least one operating mode of the MU is one of a speakerphone mode, a telephone-at-ear mode, a scanning mode, a power optimization mode, a lighting setting mode, an antenna selection mode, and an idle mode.

12. A mobile computing device comprising:

at least one application component for gathering data;

a sensor for tracking an intended use of the mobile computing device within one of a plurality of spatial regions, and for determining an orientation and a position of the mobile computing device within the one spatial region relative to a predetermined reference point, wherein the intended use includes at least one of using an application executing on the mobile computing device and selecting an operating mode of the mobile computing device; and

a processor for assigning a score to the intended use for the one spatial region when the mobile computing device is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region, and for determining an optimized operating mode based on the score for the at least one application component when the mobile computing device is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region.

13. The mobile computing device according to claim 12, wherein the at least one sensor is one of a piezoelectric sensor, an optical switch, a multi-axis accelerometer, a pressure gauge, and a micro-electromechanical gyroscope.

14. The mobile computing device according to claim 12, wherein the at least one application component is one of a speaker, a microphone, a scanner, an antenna, a display, a touch screen, a camera, and a keypad.

15. The mobile computing device according to claim 12, wherein the optimized operating mode is one of a speakerphone mode, a telephone-at-ear mode, a scanning mode, a power optimization mode, a lighting setting mode, an antenna selection mode, and an idle mode.

16. The mobile computing device according to claim 12, wherein the data gathered from the at least one application component is transmitted to a central server.

17. A system, comprising:

a spatial region defining means defining a plurality of spatial regions relative to a predetermined reference point;

a mapping means mapping each one of the spatial regions to at least one operating mode of a mobile unit (“

MU”

), the MU including an application component;

a correlating means correlating an orientation and a position of the MU relative to the predetermined reference point with one of the spatial regions;

a tracking means tracking an intended use of the MU within the one spatial region, wherein the intended use includes at least one of using an application executing on the MU and selecting an operating mode of the MU;

an assigning means assigning a score to the intended use for the one spatial region when the MU is oriented within the one region; and

a determining means determining, based on the score, an optimized operating mode for the at least one application component of the MU when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region.

18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the tracking means tracks a further intended use of the MU within the one spatial region, wherein the assigning means adjusts the score based on the further intended use, and wherein the determining means determines, based on the score, a further optimized operating mode for the at least one application component of the MU when the MU is oriented and positioned within the one spatial region.

19. The system according to claim 17, further comprising:

a transmitting means transmitting data gathered from the at least one application component of the MU to a central server.

20. The system according to claim 17, wherein the tracking means includes at least one sensor within the MU.

21. The system according to claim 20, wherein the at least one sensor is one of a piezoelectric sensor, an optical switch, a multi-axis accelerometer, a pressure gauge, and a micro-electromechanical gyroscope.

22. The system according to claim 17, wherein the at least one application component of the MU is one of a speaker, a microphone, a scanner, an antenna, a display, a touch screen, a camera, a wireless communication interface, and a keypad.

23. The system according to claim 17, wherein the at least one operating mode of the MU is one of a speakerphone mode, a telephone-at-ear mode, a scanning mode, a power optimization mode, a lighting setting mode, an antenna selection mode, and an idle mode.