Joint motion sensing to make a determination of a positional change of an individual

• US 20110238366A1
• Filed: 06/01/2011
• Published: 09/29/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 10/11/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Robert E. Stewart
• Original Assignee: Robert E. Stewart
• Inventors: Stewart, Robert E.
• Granted Patent: US 9,700,238 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 702/150
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 13/02 Overalls , e.g. bodysuits or bib overalls sweating suits A61H36/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1112 Global tracking of patients, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1113 Local tracking of patients, e.g. in a hospital or private home
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1126 using a particular sensing technique
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/4528 Joints A61B5/4533, A61B5/4538 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6804 Garments; Clothes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/6807 Footwear
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 21/166 Mechanical, construction or arrangement details of inertial navigation systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 22/006 Pedometers
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/19 Sporting applications

Abstract

An apparatus in one example comprises one or more sensors that produce one or more signals based on one or more joint motions of an individual, and one or more processing components that employ one or more of the one or more signals to make a determination of a positional change of the individual.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

measuring one or more movements of one or more joints of an individual using multiple sensors,

wherein the multiple sensors are integrated into a suit wearable by the individual;

translating the one or more movements into a positional change of the individual; and

reconstructing the one or more movements to determine a path traversed by the individual.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

creating a map of an area using the path.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein measuring the one or more movements of the one or more joints of the individual comprises:

measuring a strain on a strain sensor induced on the strain sensor by movement of the joint adjacent to the strain sensor.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein translating the one or more movements into the positional change of the individual comprises:

analyzing characteristics of the strain induced on the strain sensor to determine a displacement and a direction of the positional change of the individual.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

adding the positional change of the individual to a known starting location of the individual to determine an updated position of the individual.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

obtaining position information from one or more supplementary navigation components; and

weighing and combining position information from the supplementary navigation components based on a relative reliability of the multiple sensors and the supplementary navigation components,

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the supplementary navigation components comprise one or more of a global positioning system (“

GPS”

) and an inertial navigation system (“

INS”

).

8. The method of claim 1,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a magnetic heading sensor that provides direction information and

wherein the magnetic heading sensor employs the Earth'"'"'s magnetic field to make a determination of a direction of the positional change of the individual.

9. The method of claim 1,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a barometric altitude sensor that provides altitude information and

wherein the barometric altitude sensor measures an atmospheric pressure to make a determination of an altitude change of the positional change of the individual.

10. The method of claim 1,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a rate sensor.

11. A method, comprising:

measuring one or more movements of one or more joints of an individual using multiple sensors on the individual;

translating the one or more movements into a positional change of the individual; and

reconstructing the one or more movements to determine a path traversed by the individual,

wherein results from measuring the one or more movements and/or translating the one or more movements is fed back to at least one of the multiple sensors on the individual.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

creating a map of an area using the path.

13. The method of claim 11, wherein measuring the one or more movements of the one or more joints of the individual comprises:

measuring a strain on a strain sensor induced on the strain sensor by movement of the joint adjacent to the strain sensor.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein translating the one or more movements into the positional change of the individual comprises:

analyzing characteristics of the strain induced on the strain sensor to determine a displacement and a direction of the positional change of the individual.

15. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

adding the positional change of the individual to a known starting location of the individual to determine an updated position of the individual.

16. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

obtaining position information from one or more supplementary navigation components; and

weighing and combining position information from the supplementary navigation components based on a relative reliability of the multiple sensors and the supplementary navigation components,

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the supplementary navigation components comprise one or more of a global positioning system (“

GPS”

) and an inertial navigation system (“

INS”

).

18. The method of claim 11,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a magnetic heading sensor that provides direction information and

wherein the magnetic heading sensor employs the Earth'"'"'s magnetic field to make a determination of a direction of the positional change of the individual.

19. The method of claim 11,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a barometric altitude sensor that provides altitude information and

wherein the barometric altitude sensor measures an atmospheric pressure to make a determination of an altitude change of the positional change of the individual.

20. The method of claim 11,

wherein at least one of the multiple sensors is a rate sensor.