Waking a device in response to user gestures

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016018900-A1
Application number	US-201514796718-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 10, 2015
Priority date	Jul 18, 2014
Publication date	Jan 21, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A wearable computing device can detect device-raising gestures. For example, onboard motion sensors of the device can detect movement of the device in real time and infer information about the spatial orientation of the device. Based on analysis of signals from the motion sensors, the device can detect a raise gesture, which can be a motion pattern consistent with the user moving the device's display into his line of sight. In response to detecting a raise gesture, the device can activate its display and/or other components. Detection of a raise gesture can occur in stages, and activation of different components can occur at different stages.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method executed in a wearable device, the method comprising:
establishing a null state wherein an applications processor of the device is in a sleep state and a user interface component of the device is in an inactive state; executing, in a coprocessor of the device, a plurality of gesture detection algorithms including one or more raise-gesture detection algorithms to detect a raise gesture and a preheat detection algorithm to detect an initiation of the raise gesture; generating, by the preheat detection algorithm, a preheat event in the event that the initiation of the raise gesture is detected; generating, by at least one of the raise-gesture detection algorithms, a raise-gesture event in the event that the raise gesture is detected; transitioning the applications processor from the sleep state to a wake state in response to the preheat event; and transitioning the user interface component from the inactive state to an active state in response to the raise-gesture event.

2 . The method of claim 1 further comprising, in the event that the raise-gesture detection algorithm generates the raise-gesture event before the preheat detection algorithm generates the preheat event, transitioning the applications processor from the sleep state to a wake state in response to the raise-gesture event.

3 . The method of claim 1 further comprising:
disabling the preheat detection algorithm when the applications processor is in the wake state; and
reenabling the preheat detection algorithm in the event that the applications processor transitions from the wake state to the sleep state.

4 . The method of claim 1 further comprising:
disabling all of the one or more raise-gesture detection algorithms when the user interface component is in the active state; and
reenabling at least one of the raise-gesture detection algorithm in the event that the user interface component transitions from the active state to the inactive state.

5 . The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more raise-gesture detection algorithms include:
one or more natural raise-gesture detection algorithms; and
a deliberate raise-gesture detection algorithm.

6 . The method of claim 5 wherein the one or more natural raise-gesture detection algorithms include:
a first natural raise-gesture detection algorithm to detect a raise gesture in a low-dynamic environment; and
a second natural raise-gesture detection algorithm to detect a raise gesture in a high-dynamic environment.

7 . The method of claim 6 further comprising:
selecting one of the first or second natural raise-gesture detection algorithms to be executed, the selection being based at least in part on a current user activity.

8 . The method of claim 1 further comprising:
in response to the raise-gesture event, executing a loss-of-focus detection algorithm to detect a loss-of-focus event; and
in response to detecting the loss-of-focus event, transitioning the user interface component from the active state to the inactive state.

9 . The method of claim 1 further comprising, after detecting the raise-gesture event:
determining a dwell time of the device in a focus pose; and
modifying a presentation of information at the user interface component based at least in part on the dwell time.

10 . The method of claim 9 wherein modifying the presentation of information includes one or more of:
changing a presented information item from a first information item to a second information item;
presenting additional information about an initially presented information item; or
ceasing to present an initially presented information item.

11 . The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more raise-gesture detection algorithms includes an algorithm to:
determine, based on a set of motion-sensor data samples corresponding to a time interval, a starting pose corresponding to a beginning of the time interval;
determine, based at least in part on the starting pose, a set of criteria for identifying a possible raise gesture using the set of motion-sensor data samples;
determine a possible raise gesture based at least in part on whether the set of motion-sensor data samples satisfies the selected set of criteria; and
determine a detected raise gesture in the event that the possible raise gesture is followed by at least a minimum period of dwell time in a focus pose.

12 . The method of claim 1 wherein the one or more raise-gesture detection algorithms includes an algorithm to:
collect a set of motion-sensor data samples from a motion sensor of the device, the set of motion-sensor data samples corresponding to a time interval;
detect a first impulse peak and a second impulse peak in the motion-sensor data samples, the first and second impulse peaks each indicating movement in a direction corresponding to a rotation of a wrist of a user wearing the device, the first and second impulse peaks being separated in time by a period less than a timeout period; and
detect a raise gesture based at least in part on detecting the first and second impulse peaks.

13 . The method of claim 1 wherein the preheat detection algorithm includes an algorithm to:
operate a motion sensor of the device to collect data samples at a sampling rate;
detect a possible initiation of a raise gesture based at least in part on analyzing one or more of the data samples including a most recent data sample;
in the event that a possible initiation of a raise gesture is not detected, repeat the analyzing for a subsequent data sample; and
in the event that a possible initiation of a raise gesture is detected:
evaluate each of a sequence of subsequent data samples as either consistent or inconsistent with a raise gesture; and
detect a preheat event in the event that a first threshold number of subsequent data samples consistent with a raise gesture is reached before a second threshold number of subsequent data samples inconsistent with a raise gesture is reached.

14 . A device comprising:
a user interface component having an active state and an inactive state; an applications processor coupled to the user interface component, the applications processor having a sleep state and a wake state; a coprocessor coupled to the applications processor; and a motion sensor to detect motion of the device, the motion sensor coupled to the coprocessor, wherein the coprocessor is configured to:
process motion-sensor data received from the motion sensor using a plurality of processing algorithms to detect gesture-related events including preheat events and raise gestures; and
notify the applications processor of the preheat events and raise gestures, and
wherein the applications processor is configured to:
transition from the sleep state to the wake state in response to a notification of a preheat event; and
instruct the user interface component to transition from the inactive state to the active state in response to a notification of a raise gesture.

15 . The device of claim 14 wherein the device is a wrist-wearable device.

16 . The device of claim 14 wherein the applications processor is further configured to transition from the sleep state to the wake state in the event that a notification of a raise gesture is received while the applications processor is in the sleep state.

17 . The device of claim 14 wherein at least two of the plurality of processing algorithms are concurrently operable.

18 . The device of claim 14 wherein the motion sensor includes one or more of an accelerometer

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Tu Xiaoyuan
• Kandangath Anil K

Classifications

• G06F3/0346

  with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a three-dimensional [3D] space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors · CPC title

• G06F1/3265

  Power saving in display device · CPC title

• G06F1/3218

  of display devices · CPC title

• G06F1/163

  Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt · CPC title

• G06F3/017 Primary

  Gesture based interaction, e.g. based on a set of recognized hand gestures (interaction based on gestures traced on a digitiser G06F3/04883) · CPC title