Near field communication system, and method of operating same

• US 9,143,203 B2
• Filed: 09/04/2014
• Issued: 09/22/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 03/05/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fitbit, Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Fitbit, Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Park, James
• Primary Examiner(s): KING, CURTIS J
• Application Number:
  US14/477,628
• Publication Number:
  US 20140375428A1
• Time in Patent Office: 383 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0716 at least one of the integrated circuit chips comprising a sensor or an interface to a sensor
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10237 the reader and the record carrier being capable of selectively switching between reader and record carrier appearance, e.g. in near field communication [NFC] devices where the NFC device may function as an RFID reader or as an RFID tag
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10396 the interrogation device being wearable, e.g. as a glove, bracelet, or ring wearable aerials in general H01Q1/27
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/77 for interrogation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/535 Tracking the activity of the user network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 69/18 Multiprotocol handlers, e.g. single devices capable of handling multiple protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/70 Services for machine-to-machine communication [M2M] or machine type communication [MTC]
• 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

The present inventions, in one aspect, are directed to a system comprising a portable sensor device including a housing having a physical size/shape that is adapted to couple to a user'"'"'s body, an identification tag including identification data which is associated with the sensor device and an identification tag transmitter to responsively and wirelessly transmit the identification data according to a first communication protocol. The system further includes a portable electronic device including an identification tag receiver to wirelessly receive the identification data of the identification tag according to the first communication protocol, transceiver circuitry to wirelessly and responsively communicate with the sensor device according to a second communication protocol, and processing circuitry to instruct the transceiver circuitry, after receiving the identification data, to wirelessly request, from the sensor device the sensor data and/or data which is representative of the sensor data.

Claims

1. Non-transitory computer-readable storage media storing instructions executable by one or more processors in a portable electronic device to cause operations to be performed by the portable electronic device, the operations including:

acquiring, by the portable electronic device, sensor data from a sensor device according to a first wireless communication protocol, the sensor data including activity data related to motion of a user with whom the sensor device is physically coupled;

transmitting, by the portable electronic device, the acquired sensor data, or metrics derived therefrom, to an external system according a second wireless communication protocol;

receiving, by the portable electronic device, electronic identification data from an identification tag according to a third wireless communication protocol, the identification data identifying the sensor device;

responsive to the receipt of the identification data, automatically requesting, by the portable electronic device, the transmitted sensor data, or metrics derived therefrom, from the external system according to the second wireless communication protocol;

receiving, by the portable electronic device, the requested sensor data or metrics from the external system according to the second wireless communication protocol; and

outputting the requested sensor data or metrics received from the external system for display on a display of the portable electronic device.

2. The media of claim 1, wherein the identification tag is within the sensor device.

3. The media of claim 1, wherein the operations further include deriving the metrics transmitted to the external system.

4. The media of claim 1, wherein the operations further include outputting the sensor data acquired from the sensor device, or the metrics derived therefrom, for display on the display.

5. The media of claim 1, wherein the operations further include transmitting configuration data to the sensor device according to the first wireless communication protocol.

6. The media of claim 5, wherein the operations further include acquiring the configuration data for the sensor device from the identification tag according to the third wireless communication protocol.

7. The media of claim 5, wherein the operations further include acquiring the configuration data for the sensor device from the external system according to the second wireless communication protocol.

8. The media of claim 1, wherein the sensor device includes a plurality of sensors for sensing the sensor data including:

one or more motion sensors for sensing the motion; and

one or more altitude sensors for sensing an altitude.

9. The media of claim 1, wherein the identification tag is within a proxy device physically separate from the sensor device and from the portable electronic device.

10. The media of claim 9, wherein the proxy device is located on or within an object of exercise equipment associated with the particular activity or exercise.

11. The media of claim 1, wherein the identification tag is a radio-frequency identification tag (RFID) or a near field communication (NFC) tag.

12. The media of claim 1, wherein the first wireless communication protocol is a Bluetooth communication protocol.

13. A processor-implemented method comprising:

acquiring, by a portable electronic device, sensor data from a sensor device according to a first wireless communication protocol, the sensor data including activity data related to motion of a user with whom the sensor device is physically coupled;

transmitting, by the portable electronic device, the acquired sensor data, or metrics derived therefrom, to an external system according a second wireless communication protocol;

receiving, by the portable electronic device, electronic identification data from an identification tag according to a third wireless communication protocol, the identification data identifying the sensor device;

responsive to the receipt of the identification data, automatically requesting by the portable electronic device, the transmitted sensor data or metrics derived therefrom from the external system according to the second wireless communication protocol;

receiving, by the portable electronic device, the requested sensor data or metrics from the external system according to the second wireless communication protocol; and

outputting, by the portable electronic device, the requested sensor data or metrics received from the external system for display on a display of the portable electronic device.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the portable electronic device further includes:

one or more processors; and

transceiver circuitry for acquiring the sensor data from the sensor device, transmitting the sensor data to the external system, receiving the identification data from the identification tag, and requesting and receiving the sensor data from the external system.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the identification tag is within the sensor device.

16. The method of claim 13, further including deriving the metrics transmitted to the external system.

17. The method of claim 13, further including outputting the sensor data acquired from the sensor device, or metrics derived therefrom, for display on the display.

18. The method of claim 13, wherein the sensor device includes a plurality of sensors for sensing the sensor data including:

one or more motion sensors for sensing the motion; and

one or more altitude sensors for sensing an altitude.

19. The method of claim 13, wherein the identification tag is within a proxy device physically separate from the sensor device and from the portable electronic device.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the proxy device is located on or within an object of exercise equipment associated with the particular activity or exercise.

21. The method of claim 13, wherein the identification tag is a radio-frequency identification tag (RFID) or a near field communication (NFC) tag.

22. The method of claim 13, wherein the first wireless communication protocol is a Bluetooth communication protocol.