Techniques for discerning between intended and unintended gestures on wearable touch-sensitive fabric

• US 9,552,097 B2
• Filed: 01/28/2015
• Issued: 01/24/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Qualcomm, Inc.
• Inventors: Forutanpour, Babak
• Primary Examiner(s): Sternbane, Larry
• Application Number:
  US14/607,986
• Publication Number:
  US 20160216825A1
• Time in Patent Office: 727 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04102 Flexible digitiser, i.e. constructional details for allowing the whole digitising part of a device to be flexed or rolled like a sheet of paper
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04186 Touch location disambiguation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0447 Position sensing using the local deformation of sensor cells
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

Techniques are described to discern between intentional and unintentional gestures. A device receives a first input from one or more sensors that are coupled to a flexible material to detect input from the user provided by manipulation of the flexible material. In addition, the device receives a second input from one or more environmental sensors that are coupled to the user to detect environmental conditions associated with the user. The device correlates the first input and the second input to determine whether the first input is an intentional input by the user.

Claims

1. A method for discerning between intended and unintended inputs on a flexible material, comprising:

receiving a first input signal from at least one pressure sensor, the at least one pressure sensor being coupled to the flexible material to detect input from a user provided by manipulation of the flexible material;

receiving a second input signal from at least one environmental sensor, the at least one environmental sensor being coupled to the user to detect environmental conditions associated with the user; and

correlating the first input signal and the second input signal to determine whether the first input signal contains an intentional input by the user, wherein correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises comparing a first plurality of values corresponding to the first input signal with a second plurality of values corresponding to the second input signal over a common time duration.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to the flexible material.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to a portion of traditional fabric worn by the user, the portion of traditional fabric being in contact with the flexible material.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one pressure sensor is disposed at at least one predetermined location on the flexible material.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises comparing at least one of:

a number of peaks in a predefined duration, magnitude of each peak, time of start and stop of each peak, and speed of change in the first and the second input signals.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the first input signal contains an unintentional input based on a correlation between the first and the second input signals being larger than a threshold.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining that the first input signal contains an intentional input; and

classifying the intentional input as one of a plurality of touch commands.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the second input signal comprises data from the at least one environmental sensor before a start time of a potential user input and after a completion time of the potential user input.

9. An apparatus for discerning between intended and unintended inputs on a flexible material, comprising:

means for receiving a first input signal from at least one pressure sensor, the at least one pressure sensor being coupled to the flexible material to detect input from a user provided by manipulation of the flexible material;

means for receiving a second input signal from at least one environmental sensor, the at least one environmental sensor being coupled to the user to detect environmental conditions associated with the user; and

means for correlating the first input signal and the second input signal to determine whether the first input signal contains an intentional input by the user, wherein correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises comparing a first plurality of values corresponding to the first input signal with a second plurality of values corresponding to the second input signal over a common time duration.

10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to the flexible material.

11. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to a portion of traditional fabric worn by the user, the portion of traditional fabric being in contact with the flexible material.

12. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the at least one pressure sensor is disposed at at least one predetermined location on the flexible material.

13. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the means for correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises means for comparing at least one of:

a number of peaks in a predefined duration, magnitude of each peak, time of start and stop of each peak, and speed of change in the first and the second input signals.

14. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising:

means for determining that the first input signal contains an unintentional input based on a correlation between the first and the second input signals being larger than a threshold.

15. The apparatus of claim 9, further comprising:

means for determining that the first input signal contains an intentional input; and

means for classifying the intentional input as one of a plurality of touch commands.

16. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the second input signal comprises data from the at least one environmental sensor before a start time of a potential user input and after a completion time of the potential user input.

17. An apparatus for discerning between intended and unintended inputs on a flexible material, comprising:

at least one processor configured to;

receive a first input signal from at least one pressure sensor, the at least one pressure sensor being coupled to the flexible material to detect input from a user provided by manipulation of the flexible material;

receive a second input signal from at least one environmental sensor, the at least one environmental sensor being coupled to the user to detect environmental conditions associated with the user; and

correlate the first input signal and the second input signal to determine whether the first input signal contains an intentional input by the user, wherein correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises comparing a first plurality of values corresponding to the first input signal with a second plurality of values corresponding to the second input signal over a common time duration.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to the flexible material.

19. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to a portion of traditional fabric worn by the user, the portion of traditional fabric being in contact with the flexible material.

20. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one pressure sensor is disposed at at least one predetermined location on the flexible material.

21. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to correlating the first input signal and the second input signal by comparing at least one of:

a number of peaks in a predefined duration, magnitude of each peak, time of start and stop of each peak, and speed of change in the first set of input signals and the second input signals.

22. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the first input signal contains an unintentional input based on a correlation between the first and the second input signals being larger than a threshold.

23. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

determine that the first input signal contains an intentional input and

classify the intentional input as one of a plurality of touch commands.

24. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the second input signal comprises data from the at least one environmental sensor before a start time of a potential user input and after a completion time of the potential user input.

25. A non-transitory processor-readable medium for discerning between intended and unintended inputs on a flexible material, comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause a processor to:

receive a first input signal from at least one pressure sensor, the at least one pressure sensor being coupled to the flexible material to detect input from a user provided by manipulation of the flexible material;

receive a second input signal from at least one environmental sensor, the at least one environmental sensor being coupled to the user to detect environmental conditions associated with the user; and

correlate the first input signal and the second input signal to determine whether the first input signal contains an intentional input by the user, wherein correlating the first input signal and the second input signal comprises comparing a first plurality of values corresponding to the first input signal with a second plurality of values corresponding to the second input signal over a common time duration.

26. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to the flexible material.

27. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the at least one environmental sensor is attached to a portion of traditional fabric worn by the user, the portion of traditional fabric being in contact with the flexible material.

28. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the processor-readable instructions are further configured to cause the processor to compare at least one of:

a number of peaks in a predefined duration, magnitude of each peak, time of start and stop of each peak, and speed of change in the first and the second input signals.

29. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the processor-readable instructions are further configured to cause the processor to determine that the first input signal contains an unintentional input based on a correlation between the first and the second input signals being larger than a threshold.

30. The non-transitory processor-readable medium of claim 25, wherein the second input signal comprises data from the at least one environmental sensor before a start time of a potential user input and after a completion time of the potential user input.