GPS power conservation using environmental data
First Claim
1. A biometric monitoring device to be worn on a person, the biometric monitoring device comprising:
- a global positioning system (GPS) receiver;
a set of one or more non-GPS sensors to generate motion data for the person including motion data indicative that the person is walking, running, or jogging; and
a controller, communicatively coupled to the GPS receiver and the set of non-GPS sensors, including at least one processor and a non-transitory computer readable medium, the controller having computer-executable instructions stored on the non-transitory computer readable medium which, when executed, cause the at least one processor to;
determine a step count from the motion data generated by the set of non-GPS sensors, wherein the step count comprises the number of steps taken by the person, andset a frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains positional fixes, wherein the frequency of obtaining positional fixes comprises a time interval between which the GPS receiver obtains positional fixes of the biometric monitoring device, the controller being to set the frequency at one of a plurality of levels,wherein the level at which the frequency is set is based on;
the step count within a window of time, orthe motion data used to derive the step count within the window of time, wherein the plurality of levels includes a first level and a second level, and wherein the second level has a lower frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains the positional fixes than the first level, the second level indicating a greater time interval between positional fixes than the first level.
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Abstract
Biometric monitoring devices, including various technologies that may be implemented in such devices, are discussed herein. Additionally, techniques, systems, and apparatuses are discussed herein for providing power-conserving techniques and systems for efficiently utilizing a GPS receiver are described. The positional fix frequency of the GPS receiver may, according to some implementations, be modified or adjusted between various levels according to data from one or more non-GPS sensors. Such non-GPS sensors may include, for example, ambient light intensity or spectrum sensors, accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, heart rate sensors, galvanic skin response sensors, infrared sensors, etc.
176 Citations
30 Claims
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1. A biometric monitoring device to be worn on a person, the biometric monitoring device comprising:
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a global positioning system (GPS) receiver; a set of one or more non-GPS sensors to generate motion data for the person including motion data indicative that the person is walking, running, or jogging; and a controller, communicatively coupled to the GPS receiver and the set of non-GPS sensors, including at least one processor and a non-transitory computer readable medium, the controller having computer-executable instructions stored on the non-transitory computer readable medium which, when executed, cause the at least one processor to; determine a step count from the motion data generated by the set of non-GPS sensors, wherein the step count comprises the number of steps taken by the person, and set a frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains positional fixes, wherein the frequency of obtaining positional fixes comprises a time interval between which the GPS receiver obtains positional fixes of the biometric monitoring device, the controller being to set the frequency at one of a plurality of levels, wherein the level at which the frequency is set is based on; the step count within a window of time, or the motion data used to derive the step count within the window of time, wherein the plurality of levels includes a first level and a second level, and wherein the second level has a lower frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains the positional fixes than the first level, the second level indicating a greater time interval between positional fixes than the first level. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A method in a biometric monitoring device to be worn on a person, the method comprising:
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determining, using a controller of the biometric monitoring device, a step count from motion data for the person including motion data indicative that the person is walking, running, or jogging, the motion data being generated by a set of non-global positioning system (GPS) sensors in the biometric monitoring device, wherein the step count comprises the number of steps taken by the person; and setting, using the controller, a frequency with which a GPS receiver in the biometric monitoring device obtains positional fixes, wherein the frequency of obtaining positional fixes comprises a time interval between which the GPS receiver obtains a positional fix of the biometric monitoring device the controller being configured to set the frequency at one of a plurality of levels, wherein the level at which the frequency is set is based on; the step count within a window of time, or the motion data used to derive the step count within the window of time, wherein the plurality of levels includes a first level and a second level, and wherein the second level has a lower frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains the positional fixes than the first level, the second level indicating a greater time interval between positional fixes than the first level. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A non-transitory, machine-readable storage medium, having stored therein computer-executable instructions which, when executed by at least one processor in a biometric monitoring device to be worn on a person, cause the biometric monitoring device to perform operations comprising:
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determining a step count from motion data for the person including motion data indicative that the person is walking, running, or jogging, the motion data being generated by a set of non-global positioning system (GPS) sensors in the biometric monitoring device, wherein the step count comprises the number of steps taken by the person; and setting a frequency with which a GPS receiver in the biometric monitoring device obtains positional fixes, wherein the frequency of obtaining positional fixes comprises a time interval between which the GPS receiver obtains a positional fix of the biometric monitoring device, the processor being to set the frequency at one of a plurality of levels, wherein the level at which the frequency is set is based on; the step count within a window of time, or the motion data used to derive the step count within the window of time, wherein the plurality of levels includes a first level and a second level, and wherein the second level has a lower frequency with which the GPS receiver obtains the positional fixes than the first level, the second level indicating a greater time interval between positional fixes than the first level. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification