Fine-motion virtual-reality or augmented-reality control using radar

• US 11,256,335 B2
• Filed: 11/20/2019
• Issued: 02/22/2022
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Poupyrev, Ivan, Amihood, Patrick M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Matthews, Andre L
• Application Number:
  US16/689,519
• Publication Number:
  US 20200089314A1
• Time in Patent Office: 825 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/21 characterised by their sensors, purposes or types
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 13/24 Constructional details thereof, e.g. game controllers with detachable joystick handles
• CPC Class Codes: A63F 2300/8082 Virtual reality
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/56 for presence detection presence detection using near field arrangements G01V3/00, e.g. G01V3/08, G01V3/12; burglar, theft or intruder alarms with electrical actuation G08B13/22 - G08B13/26
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/66 Radar-tracking systems; Analogous systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/86 Combinations of radar systems with non-radar systems, e.g. sonar, direction finder
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/865 Combination of radar systems with lidar systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/867 Combination of radar systems with cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/88 Radar or analogous systems specially adapted for specific applications electromagnetic prospecting or detecting of objects, e.g. near-field detection, G01V3/00
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/888 through wall detection
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/90 using synthetic aperture techniques , e.g. synthetic aperture radar [SAR] techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/904 SAR modes
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/931 of land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/42 Determining position
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 2013/9322 using additional data, e.g. driver condition, road state or weather data
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/4004 of parts of a radar system
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/41 using analysis of echo signal for target characterisation; Target signature; Target cross-section
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/412 based on a comparison between measured values and known or stored values
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/415 Identification of targets based on measurements of movement associated with the target
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/245 : Query processing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/217 : Validation; Performance evaluation; Active pattern learning techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/25 : Fusion techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/253 : of extracted features
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/28 : Determining representative reference patterns, e.g. by averaging or distorting; Generating dictionaries
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 18/41 : Interactive pattern learning with a human teacher
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/32 : using biometric data, e.g. fingerprints, iris scans or voiceprints
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 21/6245 : Protecting personal data, e.g. for financial or medical purposes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0384 : Wireless input, i.e. hardware and software details of wireless interface arrangements for pointing devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2221/2105 : Dual mode as a secondary aspect
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 : Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/017 : Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 : with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 : Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 : for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 : Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: G06N 20/00 : Machine learning
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/75 : involving models
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 10/806 : of extracted features
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/64 : Three-dimensional objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/28 : Recognition of hand or arm movements, e.g. recognition of deaf sign language static hand signs G06V40/113
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 17/02 : using a radio link
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/93 : Remote control using other portable devices, e.g. mobile phone, PDA, laptop
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/883 : where the sensing device enters an active or inactive mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 : Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 16/28 : using beam steering
• 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

This document describes techniques for fine-motion virtual-reality or augmented-reality control using radar. These techniques enable small motions and displacements to be tracked, even in the millimeter or sub-millimeter scale, for user control actions even when those actions are small, fast, or obscured due to darkness or varying light. Further, these techniques enable fine resolution and real-time control, unlike conventional RF-tracking or optical-tracking techniques.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for fine-motion virtual-reality (VR) or augmented-reality (AR) control, the computer-implemented method comprising:

presenting a VR/AR object within a VR world or an AR viewport;

tracking a user interaction with the VR/AR object over time, a hand of a user that performs the user interaction being viewable by the user through the AR viewport or represented within the VR world, the tracking comprising;

transmitting, by a radar system, a radar field over time;

receiving, by the radar system, a radar signal representing a superposition of reflections of the radar field off two or more spatially separated points of the hand of the user over time;

determining, based on the received radar signal, relative velocities between the spatially separated points of the hand over time;

determining, based on the relative velocities, movement of the hand of the user over time; and

determining, based on the received radar signal, locations of the hand of the user over time,

the tracking based on the movement and the locations of the hand of the user over time; and

altering the VR/AR object in real time corresponding to the user interaction.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the VR/AR object comprises a number pad or virtual keyboard; and

the user interaction is a button press on the number pad or the virtual keyboard.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the method is performed by smart glasses or VR goggles.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the VR/AR object is a button, knob, or slider; and

the user interaction is a press of the button, a turn of the knob, or a movement of the slider.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the VR/AR object is a steering wheel; and

the user interaction is a turn of the steering wheel.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the user interaction is a selection corresponding to the VR/AR object.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the VR/AR object is superimposed on a real world object such that the user interaction corresponds to the real world object.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the radar signal is received through fabric.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8, wherein the method is performed by a computing device that is disposed in a pocket or bag of a user performing the user interaction.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a visual indication of the user interaction with the VR/AR object in real time corresponding to the user interaction.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 10, wherein the displaying the visual indication comprises altering an appearance of the VR/AR object.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the altering the appearance of the VR/AR object comprises changing a color of a portion of the VR/AR object.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein:

the radar signal further represents reflections of the radar field off another spatially separated point over time; and

the tracking is further based on the reflections of the radar field off the other spatially separated point.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 13, wherein the other spatially separated point is not on the hand of the user.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the spatially separated points are on respective fingers of the hand of the user.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the movement of the hand of the user over time comprises the first finger crossing the second finger.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein at least one of the two or more spatially separated points is visually obscured from a computing device that performs the method.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 16, wherein at least one of the two or more spatially separated points is visually obscured by another of the two or more spatially separated points.

19. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the tracking is on a millimeter or sub-millimeter scale.

20. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising passing a control input corresponding to the user interaction effective to control the VR world, the AR viewport, or an application or device external to the VR world or the AR viewport.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the VR/AR object comprises a virtual controller.

22. A computer-implemented method for fine-motion virtual-reality (VR) or augmented-reality (AR) control, the computer-implemented method comprising:

presenting a VR/AR object within a VR world or an AR viewport;

tracking a user interaction with the VR/AR object over time, a portion of a user that performs the user interaction being viewable by the user through the AR viewport or represented within the VR world, the tracking comprising;

transmitting, by a radar system, a radar field over time;

receiving, by the radar system, a radar signal representing a superposition of reflections of the radar field off two or more spatially separated points of the portion of the user over time;

distinguishing the reflections of the two or more spatially separated points by determining respective Doppler centroids within the radar signal for the two or more spatially separated points;

spatially resolving, based on the respective Doppler centroids, the two or more spatially separated points over time; and

determining, based on the spatially resolving, locations and movement of the portion of the user over time, the tracking based on the determined locations and movement of the portion of the user over time; and

altering the VR/AR object in real time corresponding to the user interaction.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein:

the VR/AR object comprises a number pad or virtual keyboard; and

the user interaction is a button press on the number pad or the virtual keyboard.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the method is performed by smart glasses or VR goggles.

25. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein:

the VR/AR object is a button, knob, or slider; and

the user interaction is a press of the button, a turn of the knob, or a movement of the slider.

26. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein:

the VR/AR object is a steering wheel; and

the user interaction is a turn of the steering wheel.

27. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the user interaction is a selection corresponding to the VR/AR object.

28. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the VR/AR object is superimposed on a real world object such that the user interaction corresponds to the real world object.

29. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the radar signal is received through fabric.

30. The computer-implemented method of claim 29, wherein the method is performed by a computing device that is disposed in a pocket or bag of a user performing the user interaction.

31. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, further comprising displaying a visual indication of the user interaction with the VR/AR object in real time corresponding to the user interaction.

32. The computer-implemented method of claim 31, wherein the displaying the visual indication comprises altering an appearance of the VR/AR object.

33. The computer-implemented method of claim 32, wherein the altering the appearance of the VR/AR object comprises changing a color of a portion of the VR/AR object.

34. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein:

the radar signal further represents reflections of the radar field off another spatially separated point over time; and

the tracking is further based on the reflections of the radar field off the other spatially separated point.

35. The computer-implemented method of claim 34, wherein the other spatially separated point is not on the portion of the user.

36. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the portion of the user is at least one hand of the user.

37. The computer-implemented method of claim 36, wherein the spatially separated points are on respective fingers of the hand of the user.

38. The computer-implemented method of claim 37, wherein the movement of the portion of the user over time comprises the first finger crossing the second finger.

39. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein at least one of the two or more spatially separated points is visually obscured from a computing device that performs the method.

40. The computer-implemented method of claim 39, wherein the at least one of the two or more spatially separated points is visually obscured by another of the two or more spatially separated points.

41. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, wherein the tracking is on a millimeter or sub-millimeter scale.

42. The computer-implemented method of claim 22, further comprising passing a control input corresponding to the user interaction effective to control the VR world, the AR viewport, or an application or device external to the VR world or the AR viewport.