Lap counting

• US 6,009,138 A
• Filed: 08/15/1997
• Issued: 12/28/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 08/15/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: Lucent Technologies, Inc. (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Slusky, Ronald David
• Primary Examiner(s): RUBIN, MARGARET R
• Application Number:
  US08/911,689
• Time in Patent Office: 865 Days
• Field of Search: 377/5
• US Class Current: 377/5
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2024/0025 Tracking the path or location of one or more users, e.g. players of a game
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/12 Absolute positions, e.g. by using GPS
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 2220/13 Relative positions
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 24/0021 Tracking a path or terminating locations
• CPC Class Codes: A63B 71/0686 Timers, rhythm indicators or pacing apparatus using electric or electronic means

Abstract

A global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver is used in an electronic lap counter which maintains a lap count and which increments the lap count upon "observing" via the GPS receiver that the user, having gone away from an initial "start" location (e.g., an end of a pool or the start line of a closed loop running track), has returned to that location. A user-supplied indication, such as the pressing of a push button, serves as an indication to the lap counter that the lap counter'"'"'s then current location is to be used as the start location.

Claims

1. Apparatus comprising

means for storing in a storage device an indication of a start location of said apparatus, wherein said indication of said start location is representative of an approximate geographic location thereof, and

means for incrementing a count upon having made a determination that said apparatus thereafter departed from said start location and then returned thereto.

2. The invention of claim 1 wherein said incrementing means repetitively determines a current location of said apparatus, compares that location to said start location, and makes said determination if a distance between said start location and said current location becomes greater than a first threshold and thereafter becomes less than a second threshold.

3. The invention of claim 2 wherein said first and second thresholds are equal to one another.

4. The invention of claim 3 wherein said means for storing and said means for incrementing jointly include a global positioning satellite receiver.

5. The invention of claim 1 wherein said indication of said start location is representative of an approximate geographic latitude and an approximate geographic longitude thereof.

6. A method for updating a lap count maintained by a lap counter, said method comprising the steps of

responsive to an indication from a user, utilizing received satellite signals, to determine a start location of said lap counter,

determining subsequent locations of said lap counter utilizing further received satellite signals, and

incrementing said lap count if at least one of said determined subsequent locations is substantially different from said start location and at least a later one of said determined subsequent locations is substantially the same as said start location.

7. The invention of claim 6 wherein

the criterion that said at least one of said subsequent locations is substantially different from said start location is met if the distance between them exceeds a first threshold, and

wherein the criterion that said at least later one of said subsequent locations is substantially the same as said start location is met if the distance between them is less than a second threshold.

8. The invention of claim 7 wherein said first and second thresholds are the same.