Portable GPS positioning apparatus

• US 6,204,807 B1
• Filed: 08/28/1998
• Issued: 03/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/1997
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hanger Solutions, LLC (IP Investments Group LLC)
• Original Assignee: Seiko Instruments Incorporated (Seiko Group)
• Inventors: Sakumoto, Kazumi, Tsubata, Keisuke, Odagiri, Hiroshi
• Primary Examiner(s): Tarcza, Thomas H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): PHAN, DAO LINDA
• Application Number:
  US09/141,785
• Time in Patent Office: 935 Days
• Field of Search: 342/357, 342/352, 701/213, 701/214
• US Class Current: 342/357.57
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/34 Power consumption
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/41 Differential correction, e.g. DGPS [differential GPS]
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 19/49 whereby the further system is an inertial position system, e.g. loosely-coupled

Abstract

A portable GPS receiver receives a signal from a GPS satellite by a GPS receiving means to measure a position and a speed of the own receiver. A traveling pitch detector detects a traveling pitch of a human body. A timer determines an operating period to intermittently operate reception from the GPS satellite. A stride calculator calculates, on the operating period, a traveling stride from received positioning data between two points and a pitch detected by the traveling pitch detector during obtaining the positioning data. A speed/distance calculator calculates, on the operating period, a traveling speed and a traveling distance from the stride determined by the stride calculator and the pitch detected by the traveling pitch detector.

Claims

1. A portable GPS positioning apparatus for receiving a signal from a GPS satellite and measuring at least one of a position and a speed of the portable GPS positioning apparatus, the portable GPS positioning apparatus comprising:

GPS receiving means for receiving a signal from a GPS satellite;

movement pitch detecting means for detecting the pitch of a repetitive movement of a portion of a human body corresponding to ambulatory motion of the human body;

timer means for determining an operating period at which to intermittently receive a signal from a GPS satellite to obtain positioning data used for determining the position of the GPS positioning apparatus;

stride calculating means for calculating, at a respective operating period, a stride of the human body during said ambulatory motion in accordance with positioning data corresponding to two positions and a movement pitch detected by the movement pitch detecting means during receipt of the positioning data; and

speed/distance calculating means for calculating, at a respective operating period, a speed and a distance of the ambulatory motion based on the stride determined by the stride calculating means and the pitch detected by the movement pitch detecting means.

2. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 1;

further comprising means for controlling the GPS receiving means to continuously receive a GPS signal from a start of a measurement of the speed and the distance of the ambulatory motion of the human body to the determination of the stride of the human body by the stride calculating means.

3. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 1;

further comprising means for determining, after effecting GPS positioning, whether a difference in an advancing direction of the human body during the ambulatory motion between successive measurements is within a predetermined distance, and for controlling the GPS receiver to continuously receive positioning data during a time period when the human body has advanced by more than the predetermined distance and a change in moving direction of the human body has been detected.

4. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 1;

further comprising moving direction detecting means for detecting a moving direction of the human body, and means for controlling the GPS receiving means based on an output signal of the moving direction detecting means.

5. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 1;

wherein the GPS signal includes a correction signal for each GPS satellite transmitted by a receiving reference station; and

further comprising DGPS receiving means for correcting a GPS signal received from each GPS satellite, and means for selecting the receiving reference base station from GPS positioning data.

6. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 5;

wherein the means for selecting includes means for selecting a receiving base station that has the best signal receiving sensitivity among a plurality of receiving base station to effect DGPS positioning.

7. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 5 or 6;

further comprising means for controlling the DGPS receiving means to continuously receive a DGPS signal from a start of a measurement of speed and distance of the ambulatory motion of the human body to the determination of the stride of the human body by the stride calculating means.

8. A portable GPS receiver according to claim 5 or 6;

further comprising means for determining, after effecting GPS positioning, whether a difference in an advancing direction of the human body during the ambulatory motion between successive measurements is within a predetermined distance, and for controlling the DGPS receiving means to continuously receive positioning data during a time period when the human body has advanced by more than the predetermined distance and a change in moving direction of the human body has been detected.

9. A portable GPS positioning apparatus according to claim 5 or 6;

further comprising moving direction detecting means for detecting a moving direction of the human body, and means for controlling the GPS receiving means based on an output signal of the moving direction detecting means.