Detection of accessory presence and orientation

• US 9,685,802 B1
• Filed: 04/29/2015
• Issued: 06/20/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Verily Life Sciences LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Lapetina, John, Mirov, Russell Norman
• Primary Examiner(s): TSO, EDWARD H
• Application Number:
  US14/699,467
• Time in Patent Office: 783 Days
• Field of Search: 320107, 320108, 320114, 320115, 307104
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/0047 Housings or packaging of magnetic sensors packaging of semiconductor devices H01L23/00; Holders
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/06 using galvano-magnetic devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0044 specially adapted for holding portable devices containing batteries H02J7/0045 takes precedence

Abstract

Wearable devices configured to detect a magnetic field related to the presence, proximity, relative location, relative orientation, configuration, identity, or other information about an eternal charger or other external device are provided. The wearable devices are configured to detect, using one or more magnetometers, magnetic fields produced by (e.g., by permanent magnets or electromagnets) and/or modified by (e.g., by a shim or other element of magnetic material configured to have a specified high permeability) the external charger. The wearable device can change an operational state, display some information, receive power from the external charger to charge a battery of the wearable device, or perform some other function in response to determining some information about the external charger based on the detected magnetic field.

Claims

1. A wearable device comprising:

a magnetometer;

at least one electrical contact on a surface of the wearable device, wherein the at least one electrical contact is configured to electrically connect to at least one corresponding electrical contact on an external system; and

a controller, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the magnetometer, and wherein the controller is configured to perform controller operations comprising;

detecting, using the magnetometer, a magnetic field when the wearable device is proximate to the external system; and

determining a location and an orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system based on the detected magnetic field.

2. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising a mount configured to mount the wearable device to a wrist location.

3. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein detecting a magnetic field using the magnetometer comprises detecting a magnitude and a direction of the magnetic field.

4. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the magnetometer comprises at least one magnetoimpedance sensor.

5. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearable device further comprises an output component, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the output component, and wherein the controller operations further comprise:

determining whether the wearable device is mounted to the external system based on the determined location and orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system;

determining whether the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is receiving power from the external system; and

responsive to determining that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system and that the wearable device is mounted to the external system, providing an indication, using the output component, that the external system is inactive.

6. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the wearable device further comprises an output component, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the output component, and wherein the controller operations further comprise:

determining whether the wearable device is proximate to the external system based on the determined location and orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system;

determining whether the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is receiving power from the external system; and

responsive to determining that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system and that the wearable device is proximate to the external system, providing an indication, using the output component, that the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system.

7. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein detecting a magnetic field using the magnetometer comprises detecting a magnitude and a direction of the magnetic field, and wherein the controller operations further comprise:

determining an identity of the external system based on the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field.

8. The wearable device of claim 7, wherein determining the identity of the external system based on the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field comprises:

comparing the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field with a set of specified directions and magnitudes corresponding to a set of external system identities; and

selecting an identity from the set of external system identities based on the comparison between the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field and the set of specified directions and magnitudes.

9. The wearable device of claim 7, wherein the controller operations further comprise:

changing an operational mode of the wearable device based on the determined identity of the external system.

10. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising a magnetic material, wherein the magnetic material is configured to receive a magnetic force from a magnet of the external system when the magnetic material of the wearable device is proximate the magnet of the external system, and wherein the magnetic force received by the magnetic material acts to align the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device with the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system such that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device can receive power from the external system.

11. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising a rechargeable battery, wherein the battery is configured to power the wearable device, and wherein the wearable device is configured to recharge the rechargeable battery using power received from the external system via the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device.

12. A wearable device comprising:

a magnetometer;

at least one electrical contact on a surface of the wearable device, wherein the at least one electrical contact is configured to electrically connect to at least one corresponding electrical contact on an external system;

an output component; and

a controller, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the magnetometer and the output component, and wherein the controller is configured to perform controller operations comprising;

detecting, using the magnetometer, a magnetic field when the wearable device is proximate to the external system;

determining an orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system based on the detected magnetic field;

determining a change in the orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system such that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device could receive power from the external system; and

providing, using the output component, an indication related to the determined change in the orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system.

13. A method comprising:

operating a wearable device, wherein the wearable device comprises;

a magnetometer;

at least one electrical contact on a surface of the wearable device, wherein the at least one electrical contact is configured to electrically connect to at least one corresponding electrical contact on an external system; and

a controller, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the magnetometer; and

wherein operating the wearable device comprises;

detecting, by the controller using the magnetometer, a magnetic field when the wearable device is proximate to the external system; and

determining, by the controller, a location and an orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system based on the detected magnetic field.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein detecting, by the controller using the magnetometer, a magnetic field comprises detecting a magnitude and a direction of the magnetic field.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the wearable device further comprises an output component, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the output component, and further comprising:

determining, by the controller, whether the wearable device is mounted to the external system based on the determined location and orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system;

determining, by the controller, whether the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is receiving power from the external system; and

responsive to determining that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system and that the wearable device is mounted to the external system, providing an indication, by the controller using the output component, that the external system is inactive.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein the wearable device further comprises an output component, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the output component, and further comprising:

determining, by the controller, whether the wearable device is proximate to the external system based on the determined location and orientation of the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device relative to the at least one corresponding electrical contact on the external system;

determining, by the controller, whether the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is receiving power from the external system; and

responsive to determining that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system and that the wearable device is proximate to the external system, providing an indication, by the controller using the output component, that the wearable device is not receiving power from the external system.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the wearable device further comprises an output component, wherein the controller is operably coupled to the output component, and further comprising:

determining, by the controller, an orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system based on the detected magnetic field;

determining, by the controller a change in the orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system such that the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device could receive power from the external system; and

providing, by the controller using the output component, an indication related to the determined change in the orientation of the wearable device relative to the external system.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein detecting, by the controller using the magnetometer, a magnetic field comprises detecting a magnitude and a direction of the magnetic field, and further comprising:

determining, by the controller, an identity of the external system based on the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein determining the identity of the external system based on the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field comprises:

comparing, by the controller, the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field with a set of specified directions and magnitudes corresponding to a set of external system identities; and

selecting, by the controller, an identity from the set of external system identities based on the comparison between the detected direction and magnitude of the magnetic field and the set of specified directions and magnitudes.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the wearable device further comprises a rechargeable battery, wherein the rechargeable battery is configured to power the wearable device, and further comprising:

recharging the rechargeable battery using power received from the external system via the at least one electrical contact on the wearable device.