Sensor device, method

Abstract

The present invention discloses a sensor device capable of adjusting a clock signal according to communication between a main control and an auxiliary device through a specific bus, including a first oscillator circuit and a processing circuit. The first oscillator circuit is used to generate a first clock signal, and the processing circuit is used to adjust the clock frequency of the first clock signal according to the communication between the main control and the auxiliary device. For a software algorithm executed on the main control, it is not necessary to synchronize the data of the two devices or only a very short time is required to synchronize the data of the two devices. Moreover, for the user, the data of multiple sensors have been synchronized or aligned on the time axis, so it becomes easier to design a software algorithm executed on the main control.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of 201810178923.4. The filing date of the parent application is March 5, 2018, the application number is 201810178923.4, and the invention-creation name is Sensor Device, Method and Multi-Sensor Device. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to a multi-sensor system, and particularly to a multi-sensor system / device capable of adjusting one or more clock signals according to the communication between a main control and an auxiliary device and outputting integrated multiple data packets. Background Art

[0003] Generally speaking, in a traditional multi-sensor system, an external real-time clock circuit is adopted to provide an accurate clock reference source for multiple sensors to synchronize the multiple sensors. However, this will inevitably cause each sensor device to need to implement additional signal ports or pins to receive the signal of the accurate clock reference source. In other traditional multi-sensor systems, the synchronization of multiple sensor devices is performed by the main control. Currently, the main control needs to execute more complex software algorithms to synchronize the data of multiple sensor devices. Such traditional multi-sensors are unacceptable to users. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Therefore, one of the purposes of the present application is to provide a sensor device, method, and multi-sensor system / device capable of adjusting one or more clock signals according to the communication between the main control and the auxiliary device and outputting integrated multiple data packets to solve the above problems.

[0005] According to an embodiment of the present application, a sensor device capable of adjusting at least one clock signal of the sensor device according to the communication between the main control and the auxiliary device through a specific bus is disclosed. The sensor device includes a first oscillator circuit and a processing circuit. The first oscillator circuit is used to generate a first clock signal, and the processing circuit is used to adjust the clock frequency of the first clock signal according to the communication between the main control and the auxiliary device.

[0006] According to an embodiment of the present application, when the sensor device and the auxiliary device are both electrically connected to the main control through a specific bus, the sensor device capable of outputting the data of the sensor device and the data of the auxiliary device to the main control is disclosed, wherein the data of the sensor device is aligned with the data of the auxiliary device. The sensor device includes a receiving port and a processing circuit. The receiving port is used to receive the data of the auxiliary device according to a data request signal transmitted from the main control and transmitted on the specific bus. The data request signal is used to request the data of the auxiliary device. The processing circuit is coupled to the receiving port and is used to output the data of the sensor device and the data of the auxiliary device according to the data request signal.

[0007] According to an embodiment of the present application, a method for applying to a sensor device and capable of adjusting at least one clock signal of the sensor device according to communication between a main control device and an auxiliary device through a specific bus is disclosed. The method includes: using a first oscillator circuit to generate a first clock signal; and adjusting a clock frequency of the first clock signal according to the communication between the main control device and the auxiliary device.

[0008] According to an embodiment of the present application, a method for applying to a sensor device and capable of outputting data of the sensor device and data of the auxiliary device to a main control device when both the sensor device and the auxiliary device are electrically connected to the main control device through a specific bus is disclosed. The data of the sensor device is aligned with the data of the auxiliary device. The method includes: according to a data request signal sent from the main control device and transmitted on the specific bus, using a receiving port of the sensor device to receive the data of the auxiliary device, where the data request signal is used to request the data of the auxiliary device; and outputting the data of the sensor device and the data of the auxiliary device according to the data request signal.

[0009] According to an embodiment of the present application, a multi-sensor system / device is disclosed. The system / device includes a processor, at least one first sensor and at least one second sensor, and a shared channel between the processor, the first sensor and the second sensor. The first sensor is used to receive an auxiliary data packet through the shared channel and generate an integrated data packet. The auxiliary data packet includes data from the second sensor. The integrated data packet includes data from the first sensor and data from the second sensor. The processor is used to obtain the integrated data packet to obtain the data from the first sensor and the data from the second sensor.

[0010] According to an embodiment of the present application, a sensor device for receiving data from a shared channel is disclosed. The shared channel is connected to the sensor device, a main control device and an auxiliary device. The sensor device includes a receiving port and a data generation module. The receiving port is used to receive a plurality of auxiliary data packets during a given time period. Each auxiliary data packet includes data from the auxiliary device. The data generation module is used to generate at least one sensing data packet based on the number of the plurality of auxiliary data packets received during the given time period. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / device according to the first embodiment of the present application;

[0012] Figure 2It is a timing schematic diagram in which a master control sends a data request signal through an I2C bus to access data of an auxiliary device;

[0013] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / device according to the second embodiment of the present application;

[0014] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / device according to the third embodiment of the present application.

[0015] Among them, the reference numerals are explained as follows:

[0016] 100, 300, 400 Sensor devices

[0017] 101, 301, 401 Multi-sensor systems / devices

[0018] 105 Master control

[0019] 105A Real-time clock circuit

[0020] 105B Memory

[0021] 110 Auxiliary device

[0022] 115A, 115B Oscillator circuits

[0023] 120 Processing circuit

[0024] 125 Receiving port Detailed implementation manners

[0025] In an embodiment of the present application, when a specific sensor device is connected to a shared channel, it listens to and / or monitors one or more communications regularly transmitted through the shared channel to adjust or calibrate one or more clock signals of the specific sensor device. The shared channel is, for example, a shared bus interface. The one or more communications regularly transmitted can be communications regularly sent by a master control, an auxiliary device, or a second sensor device. The one or more communications regularly transmitted can be used as one or more precise clock reference signals for the specific sensor device, so that the specific sensor device can adjust or fine-tune one or more of its clock signals and / or adjust one or more signals sensed by the specific sensor device itself. For example, the specific sensor device can adjust the timing of one or more signals it senses based on the above one or more precise clock reference signals.

[0026] Specifically, even when at least two clock signals may have different clock frequencies corresponding to different frequency shifts or variations, the specific sensor device can still precisely calibrate the at least two clock signals based on the same one or more communications transmitted or sent periodically.

[0027] In addition, embodiments of the present application can listen to, monitor, and collect / access one or more communications transmitted and passing through the shared channel, such as data of an auxiliary device transmitted through the shared channel, synchronize the data of the specific sensor device with the data of the auxiliary device, such as aligning the data generated by a photoplethysmography sensor device during a fixed time period with the data of an accelerometer sensor device during the same given time period. The photoplethysmography sensor device can generate and provide integrated multiple data / data packets (simultaneously having the data of the photoplethysmography sensor device and the data of the accelerometer sensor device) to the main controller or to another external circuit to calculate the user's heart rate and / or other biometric features. For the main controller (such as a microcontroller, a sensor hub, another external circuit, or one or more software algorithms), since the data of the photoplethysmography sensor device and the data of the accelerometer sensor device have been aligned and can be generated / provided by the photoplethysmography sensor device, it becomes more convenient to calculate the biometric features. Any variant designs of the above embodiments fall within the scope of the present application, and the content of the embodiments is described in the subsequent paragraphs.

[0028] Figure 1 FIG. is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / device 101 according to a first embodiment of the present application. The multi-sensor system / device 101 includes a processor or main controller 105, at least one first sensor device 100, at least one auxiliary device 110 (such as a second sensor device), and a shared channel (connected between the main controller 105, the sensor device 100, and the auxiliary device 110). The sensor device 100 is, for example, a photoplethysmography sensor device (but not limited) and can adjust at least one clock signal of the sensor device 100 according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 and / or the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 100 through a specific shared channel or bus (such as an I2C bus (inter-integrated circuit bus) or an SPI bus (serial peripheral interface bus)); it should be noted that the type of the bus is not a limitation of the present application.

[0029] The main controller 105 is, for example, a microcontroller (but not limited thereto), and includes a real-time clock circuit 105A and one or more memory circuits 105B. The specific bus refers to a shared channel, and the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 via the specific bus may include a data request signal sent from the main controller 105 to the auxiliary device 110, information / data / data packets sent back by the auxiliary device 110, and / or any signals transmitted between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 via the specific bus. For example, the communication may refer to a data request signal regularly sent from the main controller 105 to the auxiliary device 110 to request data of the auxiliary device 110. Additionally, the communication may also refer to information / data or data packets regularly sent back by the auxiliary device 110 to the main controller 105 during a given time period.

[0030] In addition, the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 100 via the specific bus may also include a data request signal sent from the main controller 105 to the sensor device 100. For example, the communication may refer to a data request signal regularly sent from the main controller 105 to the sensor device 100 to request data of the sensor device 100.

[0031] In an example where a photoplethysmography sensor device is used to implement the sensor device 100, the auxiliary device 110 is, for example, an accelerometer sensor device (but not limited thereto). The photoplethysmography sensor device 100 may be arranged to adjust or calibrate one or more clock signals, such as the frequency of the clock signal CLK1 of the oscillator circuit 115A, based on the communication between the main controller 105 and the accelerometer sensor device 110 (such as the data information and identification ID regularly transmitted from the accelerometer sensor device 110 to the main controller 105). For example, for calibrating its clock signal CLK1, the photoplethysmography sensor device 100 is arranged to listen to or monitor the communication transmitted on the specific bus. If the identification ID and the data information regularly transmitted from the accelerometer sensor device 110 are detected during a given time period, the sensor device 100 is arranged to calibrate or fine-tune its clock signal CLK1 based on the above detection results to adjust the rising edge or falling edge of its clock signal CLK1, and the regularly transmitted identification ID and data information are used as an accurate reference source for clock calibration / adjustment.

[0032] In addition, in other examples of calibrating its clock signal CLK1, the photoplethysmography sensor device 100 may be arranged to listen for or monitor a data request signal that is periodically sent from the main controller 105 to the accelerometer sensor device 110. If a periodically transmitted data request signal is detected during a given time period, the sensor device 100 is arranged to calibrate or fine-tune the clock signal CLK1 based on the above detection result to adjust the rising edge or falling edge of the clock signal CLK1. The periodically transmitted data request signal serves as an accurate reference source for clock calibration / adjustment.

[0033] In practice, the sensor device 100 includes an oscillator circuit 115A and a processing circuit 120. The oscillator circuit 115A is used to generate a first clock signal CLK1, and the first clock signal CLK1 has a clock frequency of, for example, 32 KHz (but not limited). The processing circuit 120 is used to control the oscillator circuit 115A to calibrate the clock frequency of the first clock signal CLK1 according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110. In this embodiment, the shared channel or bus is, for example, an I2C bus including a serial data line (SDA) and a serial clock line (SCL). Each of the photoplethysmography sensor device 100, the accelerometer sensor device 110, and the main controller 105 is connected to the serial data line SDA and the serial clock line SCL of the I2C bus. The main controller 105 is arranged to access or request the data of the sensor device 100 and the data of the auxiliary device 110 respectively through the shared I2C bus during different given time periods. Specifically, the sensor device 100 is arranged to monitor or listen to the communication on the shared I2C bus and count the number of cycles of the clock signal CLK1 during a given time period, and the given time period is determined based on the communication periodically transmitted on the shared I2C bus.

[0034] Figure 2 It is a timing diagram of an embodiment in which the main controller 105 issues a data request signal to access the data of the auxiliary device 110 through the I2C bus, as Figure 2As shown, in this embodiment, the main controller 105 regularly accesses the auxiliary device 110 (such as an accelerometer sensor device) via a shared I2C bus to read or obtain the data of the auxiliary device 110. The main controller 105 is arranged to read or obtain the data of the auxiliary device 110 during a given time period (such as a fixed and precise number of cycles). This fixed and precise number of cycles can be determined by the real-time clock circuit 105A and is not easily affected or changed by environmental factors such as temperature, voltage, or pressure. In response to the data request of the main controller 105, the accelerometer sensor device 110 is arranged to regularly transmit the identity ID and data / packet information to the main controller 105 via the shared I2C bus. Therefore, the sensor device 100 can be arranged to monitor or supervise the state of the shared I2C bus and adjust the clock signal CLK1 of the oscillator circuit 115A based on the identity ID and data / packet information regularly transmitted during a given time period.

[0035] In Figure 2 the example, the main controller 105 is arranged to regularly access or obtain the data of the auxiliary device 110 via the I2C bus every second, which is not a limitation of this application. As Figure 2 shown by the serial data line SDA, the auxiliary device 110 is arranged to transmit the identity information containing the slave ID and read address, as well as the data information containing N data bytes of the auxiliary device 110, to the main controller 105, and then the auxiliary device 110 is arranged to be idle until the next second arrives. N is, for example, equal to 25. That is, the auxiliary device 110 is arranged to transmit 25 data bytes to the main controller 105 via the serial data line SDA each time. In this way, if two consecutive groups of identity ID and data information are detected, the processing circuit 120 of the sensor device 100 can determine that 1 second has passed. Similarly, if eleven consecutive groups of identity ID and data information are detected, the processing circuit 120 of the sensor device 100 can determine that 10 seconds have passed.

[0036] The processing circuit 120 is arranged to control the oscillator circuit 115A at a predetermined time interval to adjust or calibrate the clock signal CLK1. For example, the predetermined time interval can be 10 seconds (but not limited to this). That is, the sensor device 100 adjusts its clock signal CLK1 every 10 seconds. The processing circuit 120 is arranged to determine whether the predetermined time interval (such as 10 seconds) has elapsed by judging whether 11 consecutive groups of identity identification ID and data information of the auxiliary device 110 have been monitored or detected. The processing circuit 120 starts counting the clock cycles of the clock signal CLK1 immediately after detecting the first group of identity identification ID and data information of the auxiliary device 110, and finishes counting immediately after detecting the 11th group of identity identification ID and data information of the auxiliary device 110.

[0037] Ideally, if the clock frequency of the clock signal CLK1 is accurate and equal to 32 KHz, the number of clock cycles finally counted should be equal to 320K cycles. The processing circuit 120 compares the actually counted number of clock cycles with the ideal number of clock cycles (i.e., 320K) to determine whether the clock frequency has slowed down or speeded up. If it is detected that the actually counted number of clock cycles is equal to 315K, which is less than 320K, the processing circuit 120 will judge that the clock frequency has slowed down and then control the oscillator circuit 115A to adjust or fine-tune to increase the clock frequency of the clock signal CLK1. On the contrary, if it is detected that the actually counted number of clock cycles is equal to 330K, which is greater than 320K, the processing circuit 120 will judge that the clock frequency has speeded up and then control the oscillator circuit 115A to adjust or fine-tune to reduce the clock frequency of the clock signal CLK1. In this way, by repeatedly comparing the number of cycles and adjusting the frequency, the clock frequency can be calibrated to an accurate value. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the processing circuit 120 controls or adjusts the hardware parameters of the oscillator circuit 115A to adjust the clock signal CLK1. However, this is not a limitation of this application.

[0038] In the above embodiments, the processing circuit 120 monitors or listens for the transmission of data information and identification ID reported from the auxiliary device 110, and adjusts the clock signal CLK1. In other embodiments, the processing circuit 120 can be arranged to listen for or monitor the data request signals regularly sent by the main controller 105, and adjust the clock signal CLK1. The data request signal can be a signal requesting data from the auxiliary device 110, or can be a signal requesting data from the sensor device 100. That is, the sensor device 100 can be arranged to monitor the signals regularly transmitted from the main controller 105 to the sensor device 100 to calibrate its clock signal CLK1. The above operations are similar to the operations of monitoring or listening for the data information and identification ID reported from the auxiliary device 110, and will not be elaborated here.

[0039] In addition, the operations of monitoring or listening for the data information and identification ID reported from the auxiliary device 110 can be applied to calibrate or adjust multiple oscillator circuits within a sensor device. Figure 3 FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / device 301 according to a second embodiment of the present application. The multi-sensor system / device 301 includes a processor or main controller 105, at least one first sensor device 300, at least one auxiliary device 110 (such as a second sensor device), and a shared channel located between the main controller 105, the first sensor device 300, and the auxiliary device 105. The sensor device 300 is, for example, a photoplethysmography sensor device (but not limited), and can adjust multiple clock signals of the sensor device 300 according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 and / or the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 300 through a specific bus. The specific bus is, for example, an internal integrated circuit bus (I2C bus) or a serial peripheral interface bus (SPI bus), but this is not a limitation of the present application. In this embodiment, the sensor device 300, the auxiliary device 110, and the main controller 105 are all connected to the I2C bus, and the auxiliary device 110 is, for example, an acceleration sensor device. The photoplethysmography sensor device 300 can be arranged to adjust or calibrate its multiple clock signals, such as the two clock frequencies of two oscillator circuits 115A and 115B, based on the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device (acceleration sensor device) 110 (such as a data request signal regularly transmitted from the main controller 105 to the auxiliary device 110 to request data from the auxiliary device 110).

[0040] In practice, the sensor device 300 includes a first oscillator circuit 115A, a second oscillator circuit 115B, and a processing circuit 120. The first oscillator circuit 115A is used to generate a first clock signal CLK1, and the second oscillator circuit 115B is used to generate a second clock signal CLK2. The second clock signal CLK2 has a second clock frequency different from the first clock frequency of the first clock signal CLK1. For example, the clock signal CLK1 has a clock frequency of 32 KHz (but not limited), and the clock signal CLK2 has a clock frequency of 16 MHz (but not limited). The processing circuit 120 is used to control the oscillator circuits 115A and 115B respectively according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 or according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 300, so as to adjust the clock frequencies of the clock signals CLK1 and CLK2.

[0041] For example, in the normal mode of the sensor device 300, the oscillator circuit 115B with a clock frequency of 16 MHz is enabled or started to periodically sample the photoplethysmogram signal sensed by the sensor device 300 to generate photoplethysmogram data. In the sleep mode or power-saving mode, the oscillator with a higher clock frequency, that is, the oscillator circuit 115B, will be disabled to save power, and the oscillator with a lower clock frequency, that is, the oscillator circuit 115A with a clock frequency of 32 KHz, will be used as a timer to enable the sensor device 300 to periodically determine whether to leave the sleep mode or the power-saving mode. Since different oscillator circuits with different clock frequencies may have different variations or frequency shifts even in the face of the same temperature change, the sensor device 300 is arranged to adjust or calibrate the clock signals CLK1 and CLK2 respectively according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 or according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 300. In this way, the sensor device 300 can obtain accurate clock signals with different frequencies of 16 MHz and 32 KHz. For example, due to the same environmental factors, the first clock signal CLK1 may slow down while the second clock signal CLK2 may speed up. The sensor device 300 can adjust or calibrate the clock signals CLK1 and CLK2 to accurate clock signals based on the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 or according to the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 300.

[0042] In addition, in other embodiments, the sensor device 300 adjusts or calibrates the clock signal CLK1 with a lower clock frequency by listening or monitoring the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 or the communication between the main controller 105 and the sensor device 300. Then, the sensor device 300 adjusts or calibrates the clock signal CLK2 with a higher clock frequency based on the adjusted or calibrated clock signal CLK1.

[0043] Compared with the prior art which uses a real-time clock circuit located inside or outside the main controller to adjust or calibrate one or more clock signals in the sensor device, the sensor devices 100 / 300 according to the embodiments of the present application do not need to refer to the clock cycle of the real-time clock circuit 105A of the main controller 105 or the clock cycle of another external real-time clock circuit. Therefore, for the sensor device, it is not necessary to implement an additional signal port or pin to externally connect to the signal of the real-time clock circuit 105A of the main controller 105 or the signal of another external real-time clock circuit, which can reduce the chip area of the sensor devices 100 / 300.

[0044] In addition, Figure 1 and Figure 3 the system of

[0045] is a multi-sensor system including at least two or more sensor devices. The sensor devices are, for example, the sensor devices 100 / 300 and the auxiliary device 110. The sensor devices 100 / 300 can be synchronized with the auxiliary device 110 by listening to or monitoring the communication between the main controller 105 and the auxiliary device 110 and / or the information / data / traffic regularly transmitted from the auxiliary device 110 to the main controller 105. This can greatly save the calibration test time of the clock signal. At the same time, for the sensor devices 100 / 300, it is not necessary to additionally implement a memory circuit for use in calibrating the clock signal. In addition, the sensor devices 100 / 300 can be arranged to automatically synchronize with the auxiliary device 110. And for the software algorithm executed on the main controller 105, since the software algorithm does not need to be responsible for synchronizing the data of the two devices or only needs very little time to complete the synchronization of the data of the two devices, it will be easier to process the data from the sensor devices 100 / 300 and the data from the auxiliary device 110.

[0046] Please refer to Figure 1, the sensor device 100 further includes a receiving port 125, which is used to receive a plurality of data packets during a given time period. For example, the receiving port 125 is arranged to receive auxiliary data packets (such as data packets from the auxiliary device 110) regularly transmitted by the auxiliary device 110 and passing through the shared channel during this given time period. Each auxiliary data packet includes data from the auxiliary device 110. Similarly, the sensor device 300 also includes a receiving port 125. The processing circuit 120 is arranged to listen, monitor, and collect / access communications, information, traffic, data, and / or data packets regularly transmitted from the auxiliary device 110 to the main control 105 and passing through the shared channel during the given time period. In this case, the processing circuit 120 is used as a data generation module to generate at least one sensed data packet based on the number of a plurality of auxiliary data packets received during the given time period. The data generation module (i.e., the processing circuit 120) is arranged to adjust the first clock signal CLK1 according to the number of a plurality of auxiliary data packets received during the given time period, and then generate the at least one sensed data packet by referring to the adjusted first clock signal CLK1. And, this method can also be applied to the calibration of the second clock signal CLK2. For the sake of brevity, it will not be described here. Then, the processing circuit 120 is arranged to align a plurality of auxiliary data packets of the collected auxiliary device 110 (such as at least one sensed data packet of an accelerometer sensor device) to integrate a plurality of data / data packets and generate the integrated plurality of data / data packets. The processing circuit 120 then outputs / provides the integrated plurality of data / data packets (a plurality of data / data packets with multiple sensor devices) to the main control 105. That is, the sensor device 100, which is used as a photoplethysmography sensor device, can generate and provide the integrated plurality of data / data packets (both including data of the photoplethysmography sensor device and data of the accelerometer sensor device) to the main control 105 or to another external circuit to calculate the user's heart rate and / or other biometric features. Since both the data of the photoplethysmography sensor device and the data of the accelerometer sensor device have been synchronized or aligned on the time axis by the processing circuit 120 of the sensor device 100, it is more convenient for the main control 105, such as a microcontroller, a sensor hub, another external circuit, or one or more software algorithms, to calculate biometric features. Each time when N data bytes of the accelerometer sensor device are collected, the sensor device 100 can be arranged to report both the data of the photoplethysmography sensor device and the data of the accelerometer sensor device to the main control 105. N can be designed to be 20 or 25, for example.

[0047] In addition, the number of multiple data units (e.g., multiple data bytes) generated by a photoplethysmography sensor device may be different from the number of multiple data units (e.g., multiple data bytes) generated by an accelerometer sensor device. For example, the photoplethysmography sensor device may generate 10 data units per second, while the accelerometer sensor device may generate 20 or 25 data units per second. The photoplethysmography sensor device may be arranged to accumulate multiple data units and / or generate interpolated multiple data units to generate / provide a sufficient number of data units so that the data of both the photoplethysmography sensor device and the accelerometer sensor can be integrated before reporting the data of both devices to the main control 105. For example, if N data units (or bytes) of the accelerometer sensor device are collected, the photoplethysmography sensor device may be arranged to accumulate multiple data units and / or generate integrated multiple data units to generate / provide N integrated data units (or bytes). Data accumulation and / or data interpolation can be regarded as a synchronization operation for the sensor device 100 / 300 and the accelerometer sensor device.

[0048] Furthermore, it should be noted that in the above example, the clock signal CLK1 can be used as the clock reference signal for generating multiple sensed data packets of the photoplethysmography sensor device 100, and the processing circuit 120 is arranged to adjust the clock frequency of the clock reference signal to generate the multiple sensed data packets. In addition, such a technical concept can also be applied to Figure 3 In the embodiment of, either the clock signal CLK1 or the clock signal CLK2 can be used as a clock reference signal for generating multiple sensed data packets of the photoplethysmography sensor device 300 in different modes, and the processing circuit 120 is arranged to adjust the clock frequency of the clock reference signal to generate the multiple sensed data packets.

[0049] Please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4FIG. 0 is a schematic diagram of a multi-sensor system / apparatus 401 according to a third embodiment of the present application. The multi-sensor system / apparatus 401 includes a processor or main controller 105, at least one first sensor device 100, at least one auxiliary device 105, and a shared channel connected between the main controller 105, the sensor device 100, and the auxiliary device 105. The auxiliary device 105 is, for example, a second sensor device. In this embodiment, the shared channel is implemented using a Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) bus. A signal / signaling CS0 included in the SPI bus represents a chip select port corresponding to the sensor device 400, and when the signal CS0 is set or asserted, it can be regarded as a data request signal sent from the main controller 105 to the sensor device 400 to request a plurality of sensed data / data packets. A signal CS1 included in the SPI bus represents a chip select port corresponding to the auxiliary device 110. When the signal CS1 is set or asserted, it can be regarded as a data request signal sent from the main controller 105 to the auxiliary device 110 to request a plurality of auxiliary data / data packets. When the main controller 105 is arranged to communicate with the auxiliary device 110 to obtain data, the chip select signal CS1 is set or asserted. Conversely, when the main controller 105 is arranged to communicate with the sensor device 400 to obtain data, the chip select signal CS0 is set or asserted. If the main controller 105 is not arranged to communicate with the sensor device 400 and the auxiliary device 110, then both the chip select signals CS0 and CS1 are cleared or de-asserted.

[0050] The processing circuit 120 of the sensor device 400 is arranged to listen to or monitor the chip select signal CS1 to detect whether the chip select signal CS1 is set or valid, so as to determine whether the main controller 105 is communicating with the auxiliary device 110. In practice, the sensor device 400 will additionally implement an extra signal port, and this extra signal port is connected to and receives the chip select signal CS1. In this way, when the setting or validity of the chip select signal CS1 is detected, the processing circuit 120 can determine that the main controller 105 is obtaining a plurality of data / data packets of the auxiliary device 110. In this way, the plurality of data / data packets currently being transmitted through the shared serial peripheral interface bus are generated and output by the auxiliary device 110. The processing circuit 120 is arranged to use the receiving port 125 to collect the plurality of data / data packets currently being transmitted through the shared serial peripheral interface bus and align the currently transmitted plurality of auxiliary data / data packets with the plurality of photoplethysmography data / data packets currently generated by the sensor device 400. In this way, the processing circuit 120 can integrate the plurality of photoplethysmography data / data packets sensed during a given time period and the plurality of accelerometer data / data packets sensed during the same given time period, and generate and output a plurality of integrated data / data packets. That is to say, the processing circuit 120 can perform data alignment and synchronization operations on two different types of sensors.

[0051] The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention can have various changes and modifications. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A sensor device capable of adjusting a clock signal according to communication between a master control device and an auxiliary device via a specific bus, comprising: A first oscillator circuit for generating a first clock signal; and a processing circuit for adjusting the clock frequency of the first clock signal according to the communication between the master device and the auxiliary device; The communication includes a plurality of data packets and an identity identifier ID periodically transmitted from the auxiliary device to the master device through the specific bus; When detecting a plurality of data packets and an identity identifier ID periodically transmitted during a given time period, adjusting or fine-tuning the first clock signal based on the detection result; or, The processing circuit is further configured to monitor a data request signal periodically sent from the master device to the auxiliary device, and when detecting the data request signal periodically transmitted during a given time period, adjusting or fine-tuning the first clock signal based on the detection result.

2. The sensor device according to claim 1, wherein The sensor device is a photoplethysmography sensor device, and the auxiliary device is an acceleration sensor device.

3. The sensor device according to claim 1, wherein further Comprising: A second oscillator circuit for generating a second clock signal, the clock frequency of the second clock signal being different from the clock frequency of the first clock signal; wherein the processing circuit is arranged to adjust the clock frequency of the second clock signal according to the communication between the master device and the auxiliary device.

4. The sensor device according to claim 1, wherein The communication includes a data request signal periodically transmitted from the master device through the specific bus to request data from the auxiliary device.

5. The sensor device according to claim 1, wherein further Comprising: A receiving port for receiving data of the auxiliary device during a given time period; wherein the processing circuit is arranged to align the data generated by the sensor device during the given time period and the data of the auxiliary device during the given time period.

6. A method applied to a sensor device and capable of adjusting the clock signal of the sensor device according to communication between a master control device and an auxiliary device via a specific bus, comprising: Using a first oscillator circuit to generate a first clock signal; and Adjusting the clock frequency of the first clock signal according to the communication between the master device and the auxiliary device; The communication includes a plurality of data packets and an identity identifier ID periodically transmitted from the auxiliary device to the master device through the specific bus; When detecting a plurality of data packets and an identity identifier ID periodically transmitted during a given time period, adjusting or fine-tuning the first clock signal based on the detection result.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein The sensor device is a photoplethysmography sensor device, and the auxiliary device is an acceleration sensor device.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein further Comprising: Using a second oscillator circuit to generate a second clock signal, the clock frequency of the second clock signal being different from the clock frequency of the first clock signal; and Adjusting the clock frequency of the second clock signal according to the communication between the master device and the auxiliary device.

9. The method according to claim 6, wherein further Comprising: Using the receiving port of the sensor device to receive data of the auxiliary device during a given time period; and Aligning the data generated by the sensor device during the given time period and the data of the auxiliary device during the given time period.

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