Low-power wireless content communication between devices

• US 9,743,219 B2
• Filed: 02/19/2015
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/29/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Weiss, Aaron Arthur
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Hai V
• Application Number:
  US14/626,713
• Publication Number:
  US 20160192115A1
• Time in Patent Office: 915 Days
• Field of Search: 455 412
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/385 Transceivers carried on the body, e.g. in helmets
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 2001/3861 carried in a hand or on fingers
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 84/18 Self-organising networks, e.g. ad-hoc networks or sensor networks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Low-power wireless content communication techniques between devices are described. In one or more implementations, a method is described of controlling transfer of content to a wearable device from one or more computing devices over a lower power wireless communication connection. The method includes initiating a transfer of content to the wearable device over the lower power wireless communication connection to support playback of the content at the wearable device, in which the low power wireless communication connection does not support streaming of the content in an amount sufficient to support real time playback of the content at the wearable device. The transfer is managed of a plurality of portions of the content to the wearable device over the lower power wireless communication connection in which individual ones of the plurality of portions are transferred from the one or more computing device responsive to availability of the lower power wireless communication connection with the one or more computing devices. The plurality of portions of the content are caused to be stored locally at the wearable device.

Claims

1. A method of controlling transfer of content to a wearable device from one or more computing devices over a low power wireless communication connection, the method comprising:

initiating a transfer of content to the wearable device over the low power wireless communication connection to support playback of the content at the wearable device, in which the low power wireless communication connection does not have sufficient bandwidth to support streaming of the content in an amount sufficient to support real time playback of the content at the wearable device;

managing the transfer of a plurality of portions of the content to the wearable device over the low power wireless communication connection in which individual ones of the plurality of portions are transferred from the one or more computing devices responsive to availability of the low power wireless communication connection with the one or more computing devices; and

causing the plurality of portions of the content to be stored locally at the wearable device.

2. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the low power wireless communication connection complies with a Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol, a Wi-Fi Low Energy Protocol, or a 2.4 GHz wireless protocol.

3. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the initiating of the transfer is performed at the wearable device or at the one or more computing devices.

4. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the managing is performed at least in part by the wearable device by requesting the transfer of individual ones of the plurality of portions from the one or more computing devices that have been identified by the wearable device as part of the request.

5. A method as described in claim 4, wherein a first said portion of the content is obtained from a first said computing device and a second said portion of the content is obtained from a second said computing device.

6. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the managing is performed at least in part through use of a service backend that controls which of the plurality of portions are transferred by which of the one or more computing devices.

7. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the service backend is not directly accessible by the wearable device over a network connection and the service backend is directly accessible by the one or more computing devices.

8. A method as described in claim 6, wherein the one or more computing devices obtain at least one of the portions of the content from the service backend.

9. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the managing is performed at least in part through the one or more computing devices to control which of the plurality of portions are transferred to the wearable device.

10. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the wearable device is configured to be worn as a broach, necklace, ring, or on a wrist.

11. A method as described in claim 1, wherein the content is audio or video.

12. A wearable device comprising:

a housing configured to be worn by a user;

an output device to output content, the output device secured to the housing;

a low power wireless communication device disposed within the housing and configured to form a low power wireless communication connection with one or more computing devices that does not support streaming of the content in an amount sufficient to support real time playback of the content by the output device; and

one or more modules disposed within the housing and configured to;

manage transfer of a plurality of portions of the content to the wearable device over the low power wireless communication connection in which individual ones of the plurality of portions are transferred from the one or more computing devices; and

cease said transfer responsive to determining the wearable device is outside a range of the one or more computing devices.

13. A wearable device as described in claim 12, wherein the transfer is managed at least in part by the wearable device by requesting the transfer of individual ones of the plurality of portions from the computing device that have been identified by the wearable device as part of the request.

14. A wearable device as described in claim 12, wherein the housing is configured to be worn as a broach, necklace, ring, or on a wrist.

15. A wearable device as described in claim 12, wherein the content is audio or video.

16. A wearable device as described in claim 12, wherein the low power wireless communication connection complies with a Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol, a Wi-Fi Low Energy Protocol, or a 2.4 GHz wireless protocol.

17. A system comprising:

a wearable device having a low power wireless communication device configured to form a low power wireless communication connection that does not support streaming of audio in an amount sufficient to support real time playback of the audio by an output device of the wearable device; and

a computing device communicatively coupled to the wearable device using the low power wireless connection and having the audio stored thereon,

in which at least one of the wearable device or the computing device are configured to control transfer of a plurality of portions of the audio to the wearable device over the low power wireless communication connection responsive to availability of the low power wireless communication connection determined by detecting a user login through the computing device.

18. A system as described in claim 17, wherein the wearable device is configured to be worn as a broach, necklace, ring, or on a wrist.

19. A system as described in claim 17, wherein the low power wireless communication connection complies with a Bluetooth Low Energy Protocol, a Wi-Fi Low Energy Protocol, or a 2.4 GHz wireless protocol.

20. A system as described in claim 17, wherein the control is performed at least in part by the wearable device by requesting the transfer of individual ones of the plurality of portions from the computing device that have been identified by the wearable device as part of the request.