Methods, systems, apparatuses, circuits and associated computer executable code for detecting motion, position and/or orientation of objects within a defined spatial region

• US 9,046,962 B2
• Filed: 01/09/2013
• Issued: 06/02/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 10/31/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jungo Connectivity Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Extreme Reality Ltd.
• Inventors: Givon, Dor
• Primary Examiner(s): Ghebretinsae, Temesgh
• Assistant Examiner(s): Ketema, Benyam
• Application Number:
  US13/737,345
• Publication Number:
  US 20130120319A1
• Time in Patent Office: 874 Days
• Field of Search: 345/175, 345/173, 345/419, 382/154
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0425 using a single imaging device like a video camera for tracking the absolute position of a single or a plurality of objects with respect to an imaged reference surface, e.g. video camera imaging a display or a projection screen, a table or a wall surface, on which a computer generated image is displayed or projected tracking a projected light spot to determine a position on a display surface G06F3/0386

Abstract

The present invention includes methods, systems, apparatuses, circuits and associated computer executable code for detecting motion, position and/or orientation of objects within a defined spatial region. According to some embodiments, a defined spatial region (hereinafter also referred to as the: “Active Space”) may be monitored, by any type of appropriate sensor or sensors, and position, orientation and movement of objects within the active space may be determined. Determined position, orientation and movement of objects within the active space may be translated to control signals or other forms of input for an associated computational device.

Claims

1. A human machine interface system comprising:

one or more image sensor arrays;

multiple optical paths directing light from an active space to said one or more image sensor arrays;

rendering circuitry adapted to render and display upon a first surface a graphic user interface comprised of rendered control elements;

user interface circuitry adapted to generate and transmit a user input signal to an associated computational platform, upon a control object contacting any of said control elements;

image processing circuitry functionally associated with said image sensor arrays and adapted to;

(1) receive image data generated by said image sensor arrays,

(2) recognize features of a given control object appearing in the image data and

(3) determine positions of the given control object within the active space based on image data collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths; and

graphic interface control circuitry including interfacing logic configured to modify the appearance of the control elements, based on signals received from said image processing circuitry indicating the positions of the given control object within the active space, while the given control object is not contacting the first surface, determined by said image processing circuitry based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths;

wherein the active space is a spatial region directly adjacent, contiguous and substantially parallel to said first surface.

2. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said image processing circuitry is further adapted to determine orientation of objects within the active space, based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths.

3. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said image processing circuitry is further adapted to determine movement of objects within the active space based on a series of images received from said image sensors.

4. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said image processing circuitry is further adapted to perform background removal upon the image data.

5. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said first surface is a touchscreen.

6. The human machine interface according to claim 5, wherein said multiple optical paths are achieved by reflectors positioned at boundaries of the touchscreen.

7. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said one or more image sensor arrays comprises a sole planer image sensor.

8. The human machine interface according to claim 1, wherein said computing platform is a mobile device.

9. The human machine interface according to claim 8, wherein said mobile device is a cellular phone.

10. The human machine interface according to claim 9, wherein said multiple optical paths are achieved by reflectors positioned at the boundary of a screen of said cellular phone.

11. The human machine interface according to claim 8, wherein said mobile device is a laptop computer.

12. The human machine interface according to claim 11, wherein said multiple optical paths are achieved by reflectors positioned at the boundary of a screen of said laptop computer.

13. A method for human machine interfacing, said method comprising:

positioning one or more image sensor arrays to capture image data of an active space via multiple optical paths;

determining, by processing circuitry, positions of objects within the active space, using image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths;

rendering and displaying upon a first surface a graphic user interface comprised of rendered control elements;

generating and transmitting a user input signal to an associated computational platform, upon a control object contacting any of said control elements;

receiving image data generated by said image sensor arrays by image processing circuitry functionally associated with said image sensor arrays;

recognizing, by the image processing circuitry, features of control objects appearing in the image data;

determining positions of control objects within the active space based on image data collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths;

modifying, by graphic interface control pressing circuitry, the appearance of the control elements, based on signals received from said image processing circuitry indicating positions of objects within the active space determined based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths; and

wherein the active space is a spatial region directly adjacent, contiguous and substantially parallel to said first surface.

14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising determining orientation of objects within the active space, based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths.

15. The method according to claim 13, further comprising determining movement of objects within the active space based on the determined positions of objects in a series of images.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein said first surface is a touchscreen.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein positioning one or more image sensor arrays to capture image data of an active space via multiple optical paths comprises positioning reflectors at boundaries of the touchscreen.

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein said one or more image sensor arrays comprises a sole planer image sensor.

19. A human machine interface system comprising:

one or more image sensor arrays;

multiple optical paths directing light from an active space to said one or more image sensor arrays, each optical path including an identifying optical element designed to identify image data travelling through the optical path and distinct from identifying optical elements of other optical paths;

rendering circuitry adapted to render and display upon a first surface a graphic user interface comprised of rendered control elements;

user interface circuitry adapted to generate and transmit a user input signal to an associated computational platform, upon a control object contacting any of said control elements;

image processing circuitry functionally associated with said image sensor arrays and adapted to;

(1) receive image data generated by said image sensor arrays,

(2) determine positions of the control objects within the active space based on the image data collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths wherein determining a position of a given control object includes identifying image data relating to the given control object from different optical paths by recognizing signatures of the identifying optical elements upon the image data relating to the given control object; and

graphic interface control circuitry including interfacing logic configured to modify the appearance of the control elements, based on signals received from said image processing circuitry indicating the positions of objects within the active space determined by said image processing circuitry based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths;

wherein the active space is a spatial region directly adjacent, contiguous and substantially parallel to said first surface.

20. A human machine interface system comprising:

one or more image sensor arrays;

multiple optical paths directing light from an active space to said one or more image sensor arrays;

rendering circuitry adapted to render and display upon a first surface a graphic user interface comprised of rendered control elements;

user interface circuitry adapted to generate and transmit a user input signal to an associated computational platform, upon a control object contacting any of said control elements;

image processing circuitry functionally associated with said image sensor arrays and adapted to;

(1) receive image data generated by said image sensor arrays, and

(2) determine positions of control objects within the active space based on image data collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths; and

graphic interface control circuitry including interfacing logic configured to modify the appearance of the control elements, based on signals received from said image processing circuitry indicating the positions of objects within the active space determined by said image processing circuitry based on image information collected by said one or more image sensor arrays via said multiple optical paths;

wherein the active space is a spatial region directly adjacent, contiguous and substantially parallel to said first surface.