Method and system for data communication using a body

• US 8,155,586 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2008
• Issued: 04/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 01/25/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
• Original Assignee: Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology
• Inventors: Kim, Jin-Seok, Cheung, Han, Cho, Won-Woo, Yoon, Nan-Young, Kim, Young-Rok, Kim, Tae-Song, Park, Jong-Oh, Kim, Byung-Kyu
• Primary Examiner(s): NGUYEN, TUAN HOANG
• Application Number:
  US12/210,073
• Publication Number:
  US 20090004982A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,306 Days
• Field of Search: 455/41.1, 455/128, 455/130, 128/899, 128/903, 600/160
• US Class Current: 455/41.1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00016 using wireless means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/00036 Means for power saving, e.g. sleeping mode
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/041 Capsule endoscopes for imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0028 Body tissue as transmission medium, i.e. transmission systems where the medium is the human body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0031 Implanted circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/073 Intestinal transmitters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 13/005 Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/903 Radio telemetry

Abstract

A portable device for data communication using a body as a conductor to transmit data to a receiver, the portable device includes a data receiving unit to receive data, a controller unit to control processing of data to be transmitted, a current limiting circuit to limit a current of a signal corresponding to the data to be transmitted to a predetermined value, and transmitting electrodes connected to the current limiting circuit and to contact the body to transmit the signal having the current of predetermined value to the receiver.

Claims

1. A portable device for data communication using a body as a conductor to transmit data to a receiver, the portable device comprising:

a controller unit to control processing of data to be transmitted;

a current limiting circuit to limit a current of a signal corresponding to the data to be transmitted to a predetermined value; and

transmitting electrodes connected to the current limiting circuit and contacted with the body to generate electric potential difference therebetween, so that the signal having the current of predetermined value flows from the transmitting electrode having higher electric potential through the body to the receiver and sinks to the transmitting electrode having lower electric potential,

wherein the controller unit changes the transmitter electrodes according to the data to be transmitted so that a digital “

1”

is represented as a first state when a plus voltage is applied to a first transmitting electrode and a second transmitting electrode serves as a ground, and a digital “

0”

is represented as a second state when the first transmitting electrode serves as the ground and the plus voltage is applied to the second transmitting electrode.

2. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the signal is transmitted by controlling a voltage polarity of the transmitting electrodes.

3. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the number of the transmitting electrodes are at least two.

4. The portable device of claim 1, further comprising:

a data storage to store the data; and

an interfacing unit to interface with a user.

5. The portable device of claim 4, wherein:

the data stored in the data storage is video and/or audio data, and

the portable device is one of a sound player, an MP3 player, a cellular phone, a portable media player, and a navigation device.

6. The portable device of claim 4, further comprising:

a display unit to display content corresponding to the data stored in the data storage;

a sound output unit to convert the signal decoded by the controller unit to an analog signal; and

a power source, wherein the data receiving unit comprises a universal serial bus controller and a universal serial bus connector to receive the data.

7. The portable device of claim 4, wherein each of the transmitting electrodes is disposed on a rear surface of the portable device in the form of a clip, an ‘

L’

shaped electrode, or a curved surfaced electrode.

8. The portable device of claim 1, further comprising a data storage to store the data, wherein the data stored in the data storage corresponds to an electronic key, and the transmitting electrodes transmits a signal corresponding to the electronic key having a current of the predetermined value to gain access controlled by the receiver.

9. The portable device of claim 8, further comprising:

an encryption unit to encrypt the electronic key;

an encoding unit to encode the encrypted electronic key; and

a switching circuit to modulate the encoded electronic key to output to the current limiting circuit.

10. The portable device of claim 1, wherein the body is a human body.

11. A method of communicating data wirelessly using a body as a conductor to transmit the data from a portable device to a receiver, the method comprising:

controlling transmitting electrodes of the portable device to generate electric potential difference between the transmitting electrodes according to the data to be transmitted, wherein the transmitting electrodes contact the body and the body contacts receiving electrodes of the receiver;

limiting a current of the transmitting electrodes to a predetermined value; and

supplying the current from the transmitting electrode having higher electric potential to the body so that the current flows in form of digital through the surface of the body to the receiving electrodes of the receiver and sinks to the transmitting electrode having lower electric potential,

wherein the controlling comprises changing the transmitter electrodes according to the data to be transmitted so that a digital “

1”

is represented as a first state when a plus voltage is applied to a first transmitting electrode and a second transmitting electrode serves as a ground, and a digital “

0”

is represented as a second state when the first transmitting electrode serves as the ground and the plus voltage is applied to the second transmitting electrode.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the controlling of the transmitting electrodes allows a voltage polarity of the transmitting electrodes to be changed according to the data to be transmitted.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein:

the data to be transmitted is one of video and/or audio data and an electronic key, and

the portable device is one of a sound player, an MP3 player, a cellular phone, a portable media player, a navigation device, and an access requesting device.