Networked sensor systems and methods

• US 9,984,549 B2
• Filed: 12/14/2015
• Issued: 05/29/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 12/14/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Original Assignee: Intel Corporation
• Inventors: Poisner, David I., Krimon, Yuri
• Primary Examiner(s): MCCORMACK, THOMAS S
• Application Number:
  US14/968,319
• Publication Number:
  US 20170169695A1
• Time in Patent Office: 897 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/211 using inertial sensors, e.g. accelerometers or gyroscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/212 using sensors worn by the player, e.g. for measuring heart beat or leg activity
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/245 specially adapted to a particular type of game, e.g. steering wheels
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/285 Generating tactile feedback signals via the game input device, e.g. force feedback
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/42 by mapping the input signals into game commands, e.g. mapping the displacement of a stylus on a touch screen to the steering angle of a virtual vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/46 Computing the game score
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2358 Change logging, detection, and notification replication G06F16/27
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2477 Temporal data queries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/436 using biological or physiological data of a human being, e.g. blood pressure, facial expression, gestures
• CPC Class Codes: G08B 21/182 Level alarms, e.g. alarms responsive to variables exceeding a threshold

Abstract

Embodiments of a system and methods for using a sensing attached to footwear are generally described herein. A device may include an accelerometer to measure a force, a transceiver to: send information about the force to an external device, and receive a response from the external device, the response indicating whether the force exceeded a threshold and occurred within a specified timing window around a sensory output. The device may include feedback hardware to generate feedback when the response indicates that the force fell below the threshold or occurred outside the specified timing window.

Claims

1. A control device operated by a user, the control device comprising:

a transceiver to;

receive sensor data from a sensor monitoring an activity of the user; and

assign a timestamp to the sensor data;

a processor to;

identify a time that an audible or visual cue was presented to the user, the audible or visual cue being separate and distinct from the sensor data received by the transceiver;

identity an error range for sensor data comparison, the error range adapted based on an age of the user;

compare the timestamp of the sensor data to the time that the audible or visual cue was presented to the user, to determine whether the timestamp is within the error range; and

save, in response to determining that the timestamp falls within the error range, a successful movement indication to a database.

2. The control device of claim 1, wherein the sensor includes an accelerometer.

3. The control device of claim 2, wherein the sensor data includes a force measurement.

4. The control device of claim 3, wherein to save the successful movement indication includes the processor to first determine whether the force measurement exceeds a minimum force.

5. The control device of claim 1, further comprising a display that includes a user interface to display the successful movement indication.

6. The control device of claim 5, wherein the processor is to increment a count of points for a user in a game displayed on the user interface based on the successful movement indication.

7. The control device of claim 1, wherein the sensor is attached to footwear or embedded in footwear of a user.

8. The control device of claim 1, wherein e sensor is attached to an ankle bracelet.

9. The control device of claim 1, wherein the processor is to play a tone in response to saving the successful movement indication.

10. The control device of claim 1, wherein the audio output includes music, and wherein to determine whether the timestamp falls within the error range, the processor is to determine that the sensor data is synchronized with the music.

11. The control device of claim 1, wherein the visual output includes video and wherein to determine whether the timestamp falls within the error range, the processor is to determine that the sensor data is synchronized with the video.

12. The control device of claim 1, wherein the transceiver is to send, in response to determining that the timestamp falls outside the error range, a signal to the sensor indicating feedback to be performed at the sensor.

13. The control device of claim 12, wherein the feedback includes haptic feedback, light feedback, or audio feedback.

14. A device configured to move with footwear worn by a user, the device comprising:

an accelerometer to measure a force exerted by the user;

a transceiver to;

send information about the force to an external device; and

receive a response from the external device, the external device configured to;

identify a time that an audible or visual cue was presented to the user;

identity an error range for sensor data comparison, the error range adapted based on an age of the user;

compare a timestamp of when the force was measured by the accelerometer to the time that the audible or visual cue was presented to the user, to determine whether the timestamp is within the error range;

identify a force threshold;

compare the force measured by the accelerometer with the force threshold; and

transmit the response to the transceiver, the response indicating whether the force exceeded the force threshold and occurred within the error range; and

feedback hardware to generate feedback when the response indicates that the force fell below the force threshold or occurred outside the error range.

15. The device of claim 14, wherein when the response indicates that the force exceeded the force threshold and occurred within the error range, the transceiver is to receive an indication of points awarded to a user of the footwear in a game.

16. The device of claim 14, wherein when the response indicates that the force exceeded the force threshold and occurred within the error range, the feedback hardware is to play a tone, generate haptic feedback, or display light.

17. The device of claim 14, wherein before the transceiver sends information about the force, the transceiver is to send an initialization indication to the external device, the initialization indication sent in response to the accelerometer determining a lack of movement for a predetermined period of time.

18. At least one non-transitory machine readable medium including instructions that, when executed, cause the machine to perform operations, the operations comprising:

receiving sensor data from a plurality of sensors;

assigning a plurality of timestamps to the sensor data;

identifying a time that an audible or visual cue was presented to the user,the audible or visual cue being separate and distinct from the received sensor data;

identifying an error range for sensor data comparison, the error range adapted based on an age of the user;

comparing the plurality of timestamps of the sensor data to the time that the audible or visual cue was presented to the user, to determine whether the plurality of timestamps are within the error range; and

in response to determining that a frst timestamp of the plurality of timestamps falls within the error range, saving a first indication to a database.

19. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, wherein in response to determining a set of timestamps of the plurality of timestamps fall within the error range, playing a plurality of instrument lines of a song, wherein the plurality of instrument lines correspond to the set of timestamps.

20. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, wherein the sensor data includes force information from the plurality of sensors.

21. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 20, wherein in response to saving the first indication, increasing or decreasing a speed of a virtual vehicle on a user interface in response to an increase or decrease in force at a first sensor, the first sensor corresponding to the first timestamp.

22. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, further comprising determining that the plurality of timestamps are synchronized, and in response, playing music.

23. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, wherein the audible or visual cue includes an nth beat of a song.

24. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, further comprising displaying results of whether the plurality of timestamps fall within the window on a user interface.

25. The at least one non-transitory machine readable medium of claim 18, further comprising assigning points in a virtual game to users of the plurality of sensors according to temporal proximity of the plurality of timestamps to the audible or visual cue.