Sensing device for detecting a wearing position

• US 9,119,568 B2
• Filed: 05/17/2010
• Issued: 09/01/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 05/20/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Lifeline Systems Company (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Yin, Bin, Doornbos, Richard Marcel Pierre
• Primary Examiner(s): Desta, Elias
• Application Number:
  US13/320,818
• Publication Number:
  US 20120072168A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,933 Days
• Field of Search: 702/32, 702/39, 702/67, 702/75, 702/105, 702/116, 702/160, 702/161, 73489-492, 735/10, 738/654
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/0219 Inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt switches
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/061 Determining position of a probe within the body employing means separate from the probe, e.g. sensing internal probe position employing impedance electrodes on the surface of the body A61B1/00158 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1117 Fall detection
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1118 Determining activity level
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7264 Classification of physiological signals or data, e.g. using neural networks, statistical classifiers, expert systems or fuzzy systems neural networks per se G06N3/00; expert systems per se G06N5/00

Abstract

The invention relates to sensing device for detecting the wearing position of the device with respect to a user. The device comprises a motion sensor for detecting a motion signal, a height sensor for detecting a height signal and a computing unit. The computing unit receives the motion signal and the height signal, and based thereon determines the wearing position of the sensing device with respect to the user. In embodiments, parameters related to movement of the user are extracted from the signals, and the wearing position is detected from these parameters by means of a classification algorithm.

Claims

1. A sensing device configured to detect a wearing position, the sensing device comprising:

a motion sensor configured to detect a motion signal;

a height sensor configured to detect a height signal based on air pressure; and

a computing unit;

wherein the motion sensor and the height sensor are communicatively connected to the computing unit, and where the computing unit, in response to receiving the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure, determines the wearing position of the sensing device with respect to a user based on both the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure.

2. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the detecting area of the motion sensor and the detecting area of the height sensor are located less than five centimeters from each other.

3. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the motion sensor is a tri-axial accelerometer.

4. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the height sensor is an altimeter configured to detect the height signal based on a difference in air pressure.

5. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the computing unit is further adapted to recognize a preselected type of a motion in the motion signal or in the height signal based on air pressure, and to detect that of the preselected type of motion has occurred in the motion signal and in the height signal based on air pressure.

6. The sensing device of claim 5, wherein the computing unit is further adapted to, subsequent to detecting the preselected type of motion, determine the wearing position from one or more parameters extracted from the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure measured during the occurrence of the motion of the preselected type.

7. The sensing device of claim 6, wherein the computing unit is adapted to execute a classification algorithm, and where the classification algorithm is adapted to detect the wearing position, based on the one or more parameters extracted from the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure measured during the occurrence of the motion of the preselected type.

8. The sensing device of claim 7, wherein the classification algorithm is adapted to access a database of predefined signal features, the predefined signal features being associated with related wearing positions, and wherein the classification algorithm is further adapted to perform a comparison between the predefined signal features and one or more parameters extracted from the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure, so as to determine the wearing position of the sensing device.

9. The sensing device of claim 7, wherein the computing unit is further adapted to access an initial wearing position from a set of possible wearing positions, detecting the wearing position, and compare the detected wearing position to the initial wearing position, if the detected wearing position matches the initial wearing position, the detected wearing position is maintained, otherwise a new initial wearing position from the set of possible wearing positions is accessed and a new wearing position is detected, and the new initial wearing position and the new detected wearing positions are compared.

12. The sensing device of claim 1, wherein the height sensor configured to detect a height signal based on air pressure uses air pressure variation when the air pressure moves vertically to obtain information about altitude change.

10. A method for detecting a wearing position of a sensing device, the method comprising:

detecting, by a motion sensor of a sensing device, a motion signal;

detecting, by a height sensor of the sensing device, a height signal based on air pressure; and

calculating, by a computing unit of the sensing device, based on both the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure, a wearing position of the sensing device with respect to a user.

13. The method of claim 10 further comprising:

recognizing, by the computing unit, a preselected type of a motion in the motion signal or in the height signal based on air pressure;

detecting, by the computing unit, that the preselected type of motion has occurred in the motion signal and in the height signal based on air pressure; and

determining, by the computing unit, the wearing position from one or more parameters extracted from the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure measured during the occurrence of the preselected type of motion.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the detecting the height signal based on air pressure comprises obtaining air pressure variation when the air pressure moves vertically to obtain information about altitude change.

11. A non-transitory computer readable medium with instructions stored therein which upon execution instruct at least one processor to:

detect a motion signal from a sensing device;

detect a height signal based on air pressure from the sensing device; and

calculate a wearing position of the sensing device with respect to a user based on both the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure.

15. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the sensing device comprises a motion sensor configured to detect the motion signal.

16. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the sensing device comprises a height sensor configured to detect the height signal.

17. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the sensing device comprises a computing unit configured to calculate the wearing position.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the processor configured to calculate the wearing position comprises:

recognizing a preselected type of a motion in the motion signal or in the height signal based on air pressure;

detecting that the preselected type of motion has occurred in the motion signal and in the height signal based on air pressure; and

determining the wearing position from one or more parameters extracted from the motion signal and the height signal based on air pressure measured during the occurrence of the preselected type of motion.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the processor configured to detect the height signal based on air pressure comprises obtaining air pressure variation when the air pressure moves vertically to obtain information about altitude change.