Method and apparatus for calculating amount of exercise performed

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017007162-A1
Application number	US-201615255212-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 2, 2016
Priority date	Oct 30, 2012
Publication date	Jan 12, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

A method of calculating an amount of exercise performed includes measuring noise based on a relative difference in displacement between a skin of a user and a sensor attached to the skin of the user, and determining a number of steps taken by the user based on the measured noise.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A method of calculating a number of steps of a user, the method comprising:
measuring, using a processor, noise, from a sensor attached to a skin of the user, based on a relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor, the sensor having an electrode; and determining, using the processor, a number of steps taken by the user based on the measured noise.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining of the number of steps taken by the user comprises:
converting the measured noise to a frequency domain; and determining the number of steps taken by the user based on the noise converted to the frequency domain.

3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the determining of the number of steps taken by user comprises:
determining the number of steps taken by the user based on a frequency of noise having a greatest value from the noise converted to the frequency domain and a number of steps corresponding to a single cycle of the noise.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the determining of the number of steps taken by the user comprises:
sampling the measured noise; extracting peaks of the noise from the sampled noise; and determining the number of steps taken by the user based on a number of the extracted peaks.

5 . The method of claim 4 , wherein the extracting of the peaks of the noise comprises excluding noise failing to satisfy a predetermined threshold from the sampled noise.

6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the measuring of the noise comprises measuring noise by detecting, from the sensor, a half cell potential (HCP) and measuring potential changes in the HCP that represent the noise generated by the relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the measuring of the noise comprises measuring noise by detecting, from the sensor, a change of impedance generated by the relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the measuring of the noise comprises detecting a biological signal of the user from the sensor and measuring the noise as changes in the signal caused by motion of the user.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the biological signal is a half cell potential (HCP) signal.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein, in the determining a number of steps, a step count determination is made without use of an acceleration sensor.

11 . A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a computer program which, when executed, configures a processor to perform the method of claim 1 .

12 . An apparatus for calculating a number of steps of a user, the apparatus comprising:
a noise measuring processor configured to measure noise from a sensor attached to a skin of the user based on a relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor, the sensor having an electrode; and a step count determining processor configured to determine a number of steps taken by the user based on the measured noise.

13 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the step count determining processor is further configured to:
convert the measured noise to a frequency domain; and determine the number of steps taken by the user based on the noise converted to the frequency domain.

14 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the step count determining processor determines the number of steps taken by the user without use of an acceleration sensor.

15 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the noise measuring processor is further configured to measure noise by detecting, from the sensor, a half cell potential (HCP) generated by the relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor.

16 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the noise measuring processor is further configured to measure noise by detecting, from the sensor, a change of impedance generated by the relative difference in displacement between the skin of the user and the sensor.

17 . A method of calculating a number of steps of a user, the method comprising:
measuring, using a processor, noise, from a sensor having an electrode, produced by movement of the user while performing exercise; and determining, using the processor, a number of steps taken by the user based on the measured noise.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the measuring comprises measuring the noise using a sensor attached to a skin of the user; and
the noise is represented by changes in a signal detected from the sensor that are caused by relative movement between the sensor and the skin resulting from the movement of the user while performing exercise.

19 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the determining of the number of steps comprises:
extracting information from the measured noise; and determining the number of steps taken by the user based on the extracted information.

20 . A non-transitory computer readable medium storing a computer program which, when executed, configures a processor to perform the method of claim 17 .

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Choi Chang Mok
• Ko Byung Hoon
• Lee Tak Hyung
• Shin Kun Soo

Classifications

• A61B5/7253

  characterised by using transforms · CPC title

• A61B5/1126 Primary

  using a particular sensing technique · CPC title

• A63B2220/17

  Counting, e.g. counting periodical movements, revolutions or cycles, or including further data processing to determine distances or speed · CPC title

• G01C22/006

  Pedometers · CPC title

• A61B5/221

  Ergometry, e.g. by using bicycle type apparatus · CPC title