Methods of providing body area network communications when a user touches a button of a wireless electronic device, and related wireless electronic devices and wearable wireless electronic devices

• US 9,667,353 B2
• Filed: 07/11/2014
• Issued: 05/30/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 07/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.), Sony Mobile Communications Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Bengtsson, Henrik, strand, Per, Begic, Stjepan, Rodzevski, Alexandar, Bolin, Thomas
• Primary Examiner(s): HUANG, WEN WU
• Application Number:
  US14/328,832
• Publication Number:
  US 20160013872A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,054 Days
• Field of Search: 455 411, 455 412, 455 413
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/35 communicating wirelessly
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 13/005 Transmission systems in which the medium consists of the human body
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 63/0853 using an additional device, e.g. smartcard, SIM or a different communication terminal cryptographic mechanisms or cryptographic arrangements for entity authentication involving additional secure or trusted devices H04L9/3234
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/068 using credential vaults, e.g. password manager applications or one time password [OTP] applications
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/50 Secure pairing of devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

Methods of providing communications between a wearable first wireless electronic device and a second wireless electronic device are provided. The methods include establishing a Body Area Network (BAN) link, through a human body of a user that is wearing the wearable first wireless electronic device, between the wearable first wireless electronic device and the second wireless electronic device, when the user touches a conductive button on the second wireless electronic device. Related wireless electronic devices and wearable wireless electronic devices are also provided.

Claims

1. A method of providing communications between a wearable first wireless electronic device and a second wireless electronic device, the method comprising:

establishing a Body Area Network (BAN) link, through a human body of a user that is wearing the wearable first wireless electronic device, between the wearable first wireless electronic device and the second wireless electronic device, in response to the user touching a conductive button on the second wireless electronic device;

automatically transmitting authentication information that unlocks a display screen of the second wireless electronic device, via the BAN link, from the wearable first wireless electronic device to the second wireless electronic device, in response to the user touching the conductive button on the second wireless electronic device; and

receiving, at the wearable first wireless electronic device, the authentication information from the second wireless electronic device via a short-range over-the-air radio link, before establishing the BAN link.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the authentication information from the second wireless electronic device via the short-range radio link comprises:

receiving the authentication information from the second wireless electronic device via a Bluetooth link between the wearable first wireless electronic device and the second wireless electronic device before establishing the BAN link.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving, at the wearable first wireless electronic device, a signal from the second wireless electronic device via the BAN link; and

initializing a BAN circuit of the wearable first wireless electronic device in response to receiving the signal via the BAN link.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

detecting removal of the wearable first wireless electronic device from the human body of the user; and

automatically deleting the authentication information from the wearable first wireless electronic device in response to detecting the removal of the wearable first wireless electronic device from the human body of the user.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein automatically transmitting the authentication information comprises:

automatically transmitting the authentication information via the BAN link through a transmission medium provided by the human body of the user wearing the wearable first wireless electronic device to the second wireless electronic device, using a frequency between about 10.0 Megahertz (MHz) and about 40.0 MHz,

wherein the second wireless electronic device comprises a mobile telephone,

wherein the wearable first wireless electronic device is worn on an arm of the user,

wherein the mobile telephone is held by a hand of the user, and

wherein automatically transmitting the authentication information comprises automatically transmitting the authentication information through the arm on which the wearable first wireless electronic device is worn by the user to the mobile telephone that is held by the hand of the user.

6. The method of claim 1,

wherein the conductive button comprises a button of the second wireless electronic device that turns on the display screen, and

wherein automatically transmitting comprises automatically transmitting the authentication information via the BAN link to the button of the second wireless electronic device that turns on the display screen, in response to the user touching the button of the second wireless electronic device that turns on the display screen.

7. The method of claim 1,

wherein the wearable first wireless electronic device comprises a smart watch or smart wristband,

wherein receiving the authentication information from the second wireless electronic device via the short-range radio link comprises:

receiving, at the smart watch or smart wristband, the authentication information from the second wireless electronic device via the short-range over-the-air radio link, before establishing the BAN link.

8. A wearable first wireless electronic device, comprising:

a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver circuit configured to provide communications with a mobile second wireless electronic device via a BAN link through a human body of a user that is wearing the wearable first wireless electronic device, in response to the user touching a conductive button on the mobile second wireless electronic device; and

a short-range radio transceiver circuit that is configured to receive authentication information from the mobile second wireless electronic device through a short-range over-the-air link before the wearable first wireless electronic device establishes the BAN link with the mobile second wireless electronic device.

9. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8, wherein the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to automatically transmit the authentication information, via the BAN link, from the wearable first wireless electronic device to the mobile second wireless electronic device to unlock a display screen of the mobile second wireless electronic device, in response to the user touching the conductive button on the mobile second wireless electronic device.

10. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 9,

wherein the conductive button comprises a button of the mobile second wireless electronic device that is configured to turn on the display screen, and

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit of the wearable first wireless electronic device is configured to provide communications with the mobile second wireless electronic device via the BAN link through the button of the mobile second wireless electronic device that is configured to turn on the display screen, in response to the user touching the button of the mobile second wireless electronic device that is configured to turn on the display screen.

11. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8, wherein the short-range radio transceiver circuit comprises a Bluetooth transceiver circuit configured to receive the authentication information from the mobile second wireless electronic device via a Bluetooth link between the wearable first wireless electronic device and the mobile second wireless electronic device before the wearable first wireless electronic device establishes the BAN link.

12. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8,

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to receive a signal from the mobile second wireless electronic device via the BAN link,

wherein the wearable first wireless electronic device further comprises a processor, and

wherein the processor is configured to wake the BAN transceiver circuit from a sleep mode in response to receiving the signal via the BAN link.

13. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8, further comprising:

a processor;

a memory; and

a sensor configured to detect removal of the wearable first wireless electronic device from the human body of the user,

wherein the processor is configured to automatically delete the authentication information from the memory in response to detection by the sensor of the removal of the wearable first wireless electronic device from the human body of the user.

14. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8, further comprising first and second electrodes that are spaced apart from each other,

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to provide the communications via the BAN link through the first and second electrodes, and

wherein the first and second electrodes are configured to provide the communications through the human body of the user by imposing an electric field on the human body of the user.

15. The wearable first wireless electronic device of claim 8,

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit comprises a BAN transmitter,

wherein the wearable first wireless electronic device further comprises a processor, and

wherein the processor is configured to wake the BAN transmitter from a sleep mode in response to a signal from the mobile second wireless electronic device.

16. A first wireless electronic device, comprising:

a Body Area Network (BAN) transceiver circuit configured to provide BAN communications with a wearable second wireless electronic device via a BAN link through a human body of a user that is wearing the wearable second wireless electronic device and through a conductive button that is configured to control a device function of the first wireless electronic device, in response to the user touching the conductive button on the first wireless electronic device;

a display screen; and

a processor that is configured to unlock the display screen of the first wireless electronic device using authentication information,

wherein the conductive button is configured to turn on the display screen, and

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to receive the authentication information from the wearable second wireless electronic device, via the BAN link, through the conductive button on the first wireless electronic device that is configured to turn on the display screen in response to the user touching the conductive button on the first wireless electronic device that is configured to turn on the display screen.

17. The device of claim 16, further comprising:

a Bluetooth transceiver configured to transmit the authentication information to the wearable second wireless electronic device via a Bluetooth link before the first wireless electronic device establishes the BAN link.

18. The device of claim 16, further comprising first and second electrodes that are spaced apart from each other,

wherein the conductive button on the first wireless electronic device comprises one of the first and second electrodes,

wherein the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to provide the BAN communications via the BAN link through the first and second electrodes, and

wherein the first and second electrodes are configured to provide the BAN communications through the human body of the user by imposing an electric field on the human body of the user.

19. The device of claim 16, further comprising:

a metal frame that defines an outer perimeter of the first wireless electronic device;

an insulating material that defines an insulating perimeter around the conductive button that is configured to turn on the display screen, wherein the insulating perimeter is in the metal frame and intervenes between the metal frame and the conductive button that is configured to turn on the display screen; and

an electrical connection between the BAN transceiver circuit and the conductive button that is configured to turn on the display screen.

20. The device of claim 16, wherein:

the conductive button comprises a conductive power button;

the first wireless electronic device comprises a mobile telephone comprising the conductive power button; and

the BAN transceiver circuit is configured to transmit a BAN communications signal to the wearable second wireless electronic device via the BAN link through the conductive power button of the mobile telephone.