Method for mapping NFC magnetic field strength and location on a mobile device - Patents.com

Abstract

To provide a method and system for mapping or visualizing the magnetic fields and their associated field strengths of an object, such as a mobile computing device, where an example source of the magnetic fields may be a near-field communication (NFC) reader configured in the object.SOLUTION: A computer vision system or device may track a visual marker arranged near or on a magnetic field strength detector in order to associate, match, or map the magnetic field strength measurement readings of the detector at different positions or locations on the object. The computer vision system may generate and display a heat map of the object based on at least the magnetic field strength measurements and their relative positions.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] Related Applications This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 16 / 725,600, entitled "Method for Mapping NFC Magnetic Field Strength and Location on a Mobile Device," filed December 23, 2019, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety. [Background technology]

[0002] Near Field Communication (NFC) is a communication protocol that allows two electronic components, one of which is a portable device such as a smartphone, to establish communication by bringing them into close proximity with each other. However, NFC readers or coils are typically placed in different locations on different mobile devices, which results in different NFC performance characteristics. Therefore, there is a need to identify and visualize the most active areas of an NFC reader on an NFC-enabled mobile device or other type of contactless reader. Summary of the Invention

[0003] Various embodiments are directed to methods and systems for mapping or visualizing the magnetic fields of objects, such as mobile computing devices, and their associated magnetic field strengths. An example of a source of the magnetic field may be a Near Field Communication (NFC) reader configured on the object. A computer vision system or device may track visual markers placed near or on a magnetic field strength detector to correlate, match, or map the magnetic field strength measurements of the detector at different positions or locations on the object. The computer vision system may generate and display a heat map of the object based on at least the magnetic field strength measurements and their relative positions. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0004] [Figure 1]1 illustrates an exemplary magnetic field strength mapping system according to one or more embodiments. [Diagram 2] 1 illustrates an exemplary magnetic field strength detector according to one or more embodiments. [Diagram 3] 1 illustrates an example heatmap in accordance with one or more embodiments. [Figure 4] 1 illustrates another example of a magnetic field strength mapping system according to one or more embodiments. [Diagram 5] 1 illustrates an example flow diagram according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 6] 1 illustrates another example of a flow diagram according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 7] 1 illustrates an exemplary computing architecture for a computing device according to one or more embodiments. [Figure 8] 1 illustrates an exemplary communications architecture according to one or more embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0005] Various embodiments are generally directed to methods and systems for measuring magnetic field strength at various locations on a mobile computing device and visualizing or visually displaying the measured magnetic field strength on a heat map. The term "heat map" may be understood to broadly mean a graphical representation of data, such as measured strength, for example, in the form of a map or diagram in which different data values ​​may be represented by different colors.

[0006] In one embodiment, the magnetic field strength detection device or detector may include at least a magnetometer. The magnetic field strength detector may use the magnetometer to detect magnetic field strength, e.g., NFC magnetic field strength, at various locations on a mobile computing device, such as a smartphone, laptop, tablet computer, etc. In an example, one or more visual markers may be placed on or adjacent to the detector, e.g., near or on the magnetometer, and tracked by a computer vision system while measurements are being taken. The NFC magnetic field strength readings may be provided to a vision system that may be used to create a heat map of the magnetic or NFC magnetic field strength measured at various locations on the mobile computing device. As described further below, the heat map may be drawn or displayed on a digital image of the mobile computing device.

[0007] In other embodiments, the magnetic field strength detector may include one or more different types of sensors, such as Hall effect sensors, coils, etc. The one or more sensors may be used to output different voltage values ​​at various locations on the computing device based on different levels of NFC or magnetic vibration detected by the one or more sensors. In an example, the voltage values ​​may be used to determine the respective magnetic field or NFC magnetic field strength measurements at the measured locations. A computer vision system may be used to track one or more visual markers associated with the detector and create a heat map of the magnetic field strength.

[0008] According to an embodiment, the magnetic field strength detector may be a wand-like device or may otherwise have a wand shape. For example, the tip of the wand-like device may be formed by a magnetometer, a sensor, etc., which may be coupled or connected to a processing circuit that may be housed in a handle portion of the wand-like device. In an example, one or more visual markers trackable by a computer vision system may be placed on the tip of the wand-like device. Furthermore, the magnetic field strength detector may wiredly or wirelessly communicate the measured magnetic field strength values ​​to a computer vision system to visualize the measurements.

[0009] One example of a conventional solution uses a magnetic field observation film to show the stationary or slowly changing magnetic field of a magnetic source. However, the observation film does not have the necessary sensitivity to accurately map the magnetic field strength emanating from various parts of an electronic object. The embodiments and examples described herein overcome the problems present in the conventional solutions by generating an accurate visualization, e.g., a heat map, of an object showing at least the location, source, and intensity of the magnetic field emanating from the object, such as the magnetic field from an NFC reader configured in a smartphone. Thus, the location and most active areas of the magnetic field source on or within a particular object can be quickly and accurately identified.

[0010] Reference is now made to the drawings, where like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding thereof. However, it may be apparent that novel embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to facilitate the description. The intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives within the scope of the claims.

[0011] 1 illustrates an exemplary magnetic field strength mapping system 100 according to an embodiment. As shown, the mapping system 100 may include at least a magnetic field strength detector 101, a computer vision device 111, and a mobile device 120. The magnetic field strength detector 101 may be used to detect various magnetic field strengths at different positions on the mobile device 120, which may be visualized by the computer vision device 111 by tracking one or more visual markers on the magnetic field strength detector 101.

[0012] For example, the magnetic field strength detector 101 may include at least one or more magnetometers 102, a processing circuit 104, a memory 106, and one or more visual markers 108. It may be understood that a magnetometer may be any device, sensor, or hardware component that measures a magnetic field (e.g., magnetic flux density, magnetic field direction, magnetic field strength, and / or relative change in magnetic field at a particular location, etc.). The processing circuit 104 may be any processing mechanism, e.g., hardware (central processing unit, processor, ASIC, field programmable gate array, etc.), software, etc., that, together with the memory 106, may facilitate and perform processing of the magnetic field measurements made by the one or more magnetometers 102. In examples, one or more visual markers 106 may be placed anywhere on the detector 101 such that the computer vision device 111 can "watch" and track the markers 106 to associate a particular magnetic field measurement with a particular measured position on the mobile device 120. As described further below, in some examples, the visual markers may be placed on the magnetometers themselves. Additionally, although not shown, it can be understood that the magnetic field strength detector 101 may further include an interface component to enable the detector 101 to communicate at least the measurement values ​​with the computer vision device 111.

[0013] As further shown in FIG. 1, the computer vision device 112 may include at least one or more cameras 112, processing circuitry 114, memory 116, and a display 118. Additionally, it may be understood that the computer vision device may also include an interface component for communicating with or receiving magnetic field measurements or measurements from the detector 101. In an example, the one or more cameras 112 may be a digital, analog, visible light camera, or any suitable image capture device for acquiring image data, which may be in the form of a multi-image or video sequence or in the form of multi-dimensional image data if multiple cameras are implemented. The camera 112 may track one or more visual markers 108 at each particular position and determine whether there is a corresponding magnetic field strength measurement associated with that position. As described further below, using the processing circuitry 114 and executable programs stored in memory 116, the computer vision device 111 may visualize, map, or "draw" a heat map of various magnetic field strength measurements onto an image of the mobile device 120 (which may also be captured by the camera 112) based at least in part on the tracking of the visual markers and associated measurements.

[0014] The mobile device 120 may be any type of mobile computing device, such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, a wearable computer, a laptop, etc. As shown, an example of a magnetic field source may be the NFC reader 122 (and other associated NFC components, e.g., an NFC reader coil). For example, a visualization (e.g., a heat map) of the magnetic field strength measurements of the mobile device 120 by the detector 101 and the computer vision device 111 may reveal that the strongest magnetic field measurements are detected toward the top of the mobile device 120 (where the NFC reader 122 is located). Thus, advantageously, the heat map of the field strength measurements may visually indicate to the user that the "sweet spot" of the NFC reader is in the top center portion of the mobile device 120.

[0015] It may be understood that the magnetic field strength mapping system 100 and components therein shown in Figure 1 are simplified for ease of explanation and are non-limiting examples. Thus, there may be more (or fewer) components than are shown in the magnetic field strength detector 101, computer vision device 111, and mobile device 120 of Figure 1. Furthermore, it may be understood that the computer vision device 111 and components therein may be part of a computer vision system that may include other computer vision devices and components connected via a network.

[0016] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary magnetic field intensity detector 200 according to an embodiment. As described above, the magnetic field intensity detector 200 may include at least a magnetometer 202 and a processing circuit and memory 204, which may be coupled by one or more wires 206. At least the processing circuit and memory 204 may be disposed within a housing 208. As shown, the magnetic field intensity detector 200 may have a generally wand shape, the magnetometer 202 may form the tip of the wand, and the housing 208 may form the handle. In an example, the wire 206 may be rigidly configured (e.g., the wire itself may be rigid, the wires may be twisted together to form a rigid structure, the wires may be encased in a rigid housing) such that the wire configuration is sufficient to hold or accommodate the weight of the magnetometer 202. At least in that regard, the wire 206 may form the general structure of the elongated body of the wand.

[0017] As further shown in FIG. 2, a visual marker 210 may be placed on the magnetometer 202. The visual marker may be any type of visual aid to indicate a position, location, place, etc., so long as the marker is trackable by a computer vision system or one or more cameras of the device. While the visual marker 210 placed on the magnetometer 202 is a black circular dot, it may be understood that it may be any shape, color, colored shape, colored dot, visual pattern, etc. For example, it may be a star, triangle, or rectangle. In some examples, the visual marker may be a machine-readable code that may be detected by a computer vision system to render information to at least a user, for example, in an augmented reality.

[0018] According to an embodiment, a user may wave, hover, or scan the detector 200, e.g., the tip of the magnetometer 202, on the exterior surface of the mobile device. At a first position relative to the mobile device, the magnetometer 202 may measure a first magnetic field strength. Similarly, the magnetometer 202 may measure a second magnetic field strength at a second position relative to the mobile device, a third magnetic field strength at a third position, and a fourth magnetic field strength at a fourth position. A computer vision device, such as the computer vision device 111 of FIG. 1, may track the visual marker 210 and receive the first magnetic field strength measurement from the detector 200 (not necessarily in any particular order) when the first magnetic field strength is measured at the first position. When the second magnetic field strength is measured at the second position, the visual marker 210 is tracked and the measurement is received by the computer vision device. The same is true for the third position, the fourth position, and so on.

[0019] In some examples, the magnetic field strength detector 200 may be configured to determine the source of the magnetic field based on the signal frequency emanating from the source and, upon determining the source, provide such information to the computer vision device. For example, if the detected signal frequency is between 13 and 14 MHz, the detector 200 may determine that the signal is NFC. If the signal frequency is between 1850 and 1990 MHz, the source of such a signal may be cellular.

[0020] The computer vision device may then generate a heat map of the mobile device based on the magnetic field strength measurements (e.g., the first magnetic field strength measurement, the second magnetic field strength measurement, the third measurement, the fourth measurement). As described below, the heat map visually indicates the magnetic field strength at each measured location on the mobile device and may further indicate, by color or otherwise, the degree of magnetic field strength, the location relative to other measurements, the type of signal emitted from the mobile device, the source of the measured magnetic field, etc.

[0021] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary heat map 300 of various magnetic fields and their respective strengths detected on a mobile device, such as a smartphone, according to an embodiment. As shown, the heat map 300 may be overlaid on one or more digital images of the smartphone, such as a front image 304 and a back image 306 of the smartphone. From the front of the smartphone, the heat map 300 may show the presence of a magnetic field 308 in the upper left portion. The line representing the innermost ring of the magnetic field 308 may be colored (e.g., red) or drawn thicker than the other lines to indicate that the magnetic field is strongest in that region, as shown. As the magnetic field 308 extends outward from the innermost portion, the strength of the magnetic field may weaken, as indicated by the thin lines representing the middle and outermost rings (or may be colored orange and yellow, respectively). Also shown is a generally large magnetic field 310, which may be very weak, as indicated by the dashed line (or indicated by a color representing a very weak magnetic field strength, such as blue).

[0022] From the back of the smartphone, the magnetic fields 308 and 310 may be shown, represented, or displayed the same as the front, but inverted. While FIG. 3 shows both the front and back images 304 and 306 of the smartphone, it can be understood that in some examples, the heatmap 300 may show only the front or only the back, or the side most relevant to the user. For example, if the detection of the source of the magnetic field 308 is stronger on the front than on the back, then only the front may be displayed for the user in the heatmap 300. Additionally, in some examples, the heatmap 300 may also display the source of the displayed magnetic field based on relevant information provided by the detector, e.g., NFC source, cellular source, etc.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 3, the heat map 300 indicates to the user that the source of the strongest magnetic field is likely to be in the upper left portion (from the front) of the smartphone. In some embodiments, the user may configure the heat map 300 to selectively display and color code the sources of the magnetic field. For example, the rings and lines depicting the magnetic field may be a particular color or shade (e.g., red), while magnetic fields corresponding to different sources may be represented by different colors or shades (e.g., purple). Additionally, it may be appreciated that various graphics or images may be further overlaid or displayed on the heat map 300. For example, the word "NFC" or an image of an NFC chip may be displayed in the center of the ring depicting the magnetic field 308.

[0024] FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative example of a magnetic field strength mapping system 400 according to an embodiment. As shown, the components and setup of the mapping system 400 are similar to the magnetic field strength mapping system 100 of FIG. 1. The magnetic field strength detector 401 includes at least one or more sensors 402, a processing circuit 404, a memory 406, and one or more visual markers 408. Additionally, the computer vision device 411 may include one or more cameras 412, a processing circuit 414, a memory 416, and a display 418. However, in FIG. 4, the one or more sensors 402 used to detect the magnetic field strength may be different or configured differently than the magnetometers used in the system of FIG. 1.

[0025] In one example, the sensor 402 may be a Hall effect sensor. It may be understood that a Hall effect sensor may be a device used to measure the magnitude of a magnetic field by providing an output voltage that may be directly proportional to the strength of the magnetic field passing through the sensor. In another example, the sensor 402 may be a coil that may be configured similarly to a Hall effect sensor. Thus, one or more sensors of the magnetic field strength detector 402 may provide voltage values ​​at various measurement positions or locations on the mobile device. The voltage values ​​may be used to determine the respective magnetic field strength measurements at those positions or locations. In some examples, an analog-to-digital converter may be used in combination with the coil sensor to measure the voltage level of the analog magnetic or NFC vibration.

[0026] Similar to computer vision device 111 of FIG. 1, computer vision device 411 may track one or more visual markers 408 and receive various magnetic field strength measurements to generate at least a heat map, as described above.

[0027] 5 illustrates an example flow diagram 500 according to one or more embodiments. For example, the flow diagram 500 describes a mapping process corresponding to the magnetic field strength mapping system of FIG 1. It can be understood that features associated with the illustrated blocks may be implemented or performed by processing circuitry included in a magnetic field strength detector and computer vision device such as that illustrated in FIG 1.

[0028] At block 502, a magnetic field strength detector (e.g., specifically, a magnetometer of the detector) may be used to measure the magnetic field strength at a first position and a second position relative to the object. For example, the object may be a smartphone, a laptop, a tablet computing device, a wearable computing device, or a mobile computing device. As noted above, it may be understood that the magnetic field strength at a third position, a fourth position, a fifth position, etc. may also be measured.

[0029] At block 504, the first and second magnetic field strength measurements may be provided to at least one computing device. In an example, the computing device may be a computer vision device. At block 506, one or more images of the object may be captured by at least one camera of the computer vision device. As noted above, the image of the object may be used such that, for example, a heat map may be overlaid thereon.

[0030] At block 508, the computer vision device may track a visual marker, which may be placed on the magnetic field strength detector, as or as magnetic field strength measurements are being made at the first and second locations of the object. At block 510, the first and second magnetic field strength measurements may be received by the computer vision device. Thus, in some examples, blocks 504, 508, and 510 may be performed simultaneously or near simultaneously in real time, as the processes described therein may be related.

[0031] At block 512, a magnetic heat map of the object may be generated by a computer vision device or system based at least in part on the received first and second magnetic field strength measurements. As described above, the heat map may visually indicate the first and second magnetic field strengths (and other measured magnetic field strengths) on the image of the object captured at block 506. In an example, the heat map data may be overlaid on the object image. In an example, the source of the magnetic field and their associated magnetic field strengths may be an NFC reader coil integrated into the object.

[0032] It can be understood that the blocks illustrated in Figure 5 are not limited to any particular order, and one or more blocks can be performed or executed concurrently or near-concurrently.

[0033] Figure 6 illustrates an example flow diagram 600 according to one or more embodiments. For example, the flow diagram 600 describes a mapping process corresponding to the magnetic field strength mapping system of Figure 4, and in particular, a process performed by a magnetic field strength detector. It can be understood that features associated with the illustrated blocks may be implemented or performed by processing circuitry included in a magnetic field strength detector such as that illustrated in Figure 4.

[0034] At block 602, the processing circuitry of the magnetic field strength detector may receive from the sensor a first voltage value at a first position relative to the object (e.g., a smartphone, laptop, etc.). As noted above, the sensor may be a Hall effect sensor or a coil sensor configured to output a voltage value directly proportional to the magnitude of the magnetic field detected by the sensor. Similarly, at block 604, a second voltage value at a second position relative to the object may be received. Additional voltage values ​​at a third position, a fourth position, a fifth position, etc. may also be received by the detector.

[0035] At block 606, a first magnetic field strength measurement at the first position may be determined by the processing circuitry based on the first voltage value. Thus, for example, if the voltage value at the first position is relatively greater than other voltage values, the magnitude of the magnetic field may be determined to be stronger or greater at the first position as compared to other locations. Further, at block 608, a second magnetic field strength measurement at the second position may be determined based on the second voltage value.

[0036] At block 610, the first and second magnetic field strength measurements may be provided to at least one computing device, e.g., a computer vision device, to generate a magnetic heat map of the object. The computer vision device may track visual markers disposed on the magnetic field strength detector, as described above, and match the received magnetic field strength measurements to locations where the visual markers are tracked and identified. Based at least on this process, a heat map may be generated and displayed on a display device, where, for example, various strengths of the magnetic field may be color coded, differently shaded, shaped, etc.

[0037] It can be understood that the blocks illustrated in Figure 6 are not limited to any particular order, and one or more blocks can be performed or executed concurrently or near-concurrently.

[0038] 7 illustrates an embodiment of an exemplary computing architecture 700 of a computing device, such as, for example, a desktop computer, a laptop, a tablet computer, a mobile computer, a smartphone, etc., suitable for implementing various embodiments described above. In an embodiment, the computing architecture 700 can be implemented as part of or include a system, which is described further below. In an example, one or more computing devices and their processing circuitry can be configured to at least perform, execute, support, or provide one or more aspects and related functions of a magnetic field strength mapping system, such as a computer vision device. It can be understood that one or more components of the computing architecture 700 can also be implemented or configured into the magnetic field detector described above.

[0039] The terms "system" and "component" as used in this application are intended to refer to any computer-related entity, either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution, examples of which are provided by the exemplary computing architecture 700. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, a hard disk drive, multiple storage drives (of optical and / or magnetic storage media), an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and / or a computer. As an example, both an application running on a server and the server may be a component. One or more components may reside within a process and / or thread of execution, and a component may be localized on one computer and / or distributed among two or more computers. Furthermore, components may be communicatively coupled to one another by various types of communication media to coordinate operations. Coordination may include unidirectional or bidirectional exchange of information. For example, components may communicate information in the form of signals communicated over the communication media. Information may be embodied as signals assigned to various signal lines. In such an assignment, each message is a signal. However, further embodiments may use data messages as an alternative. Such data messages may be transmitted over a variety of connections, examples of which include parallel interfaces, serial interfaces, and bus interfaces.

[0040] Computing architecture 700 may include various common computing elements, such as one or more processors, multi-core processors, co-processors, memory units, chipsets, controllers, peripherals, interfaces, oscillators, timing devices, video cards, audio cards, multimedia input / output (I / O) components, power supplies, etc. However, embodiments are not limited to implementation by computing architecture 700.

[0041] 7, computing architecture 700 includes a processor 704, a system memory 706, and a system bus 708. Processor 704 can be any of a variety of commercially available processors, processing circuits, central processing units (CPUs), special purpose processors, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc.

[0042] The system bus 708 provides an interface for system components including, but not limited to, the system memory 706 to the processor 704. The system bus 708 may be any of several types of bus structures that may further interconnect to a memory bus (with or without a memory controller), a peripheral bus, and a local bus using any of a variety of commercially available bus architectures. Interface adapters may connect to the system bus 708 through a slot architecture. Examples of slot architectures include, but are not limited to, Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP), CardBus, (Enhanced) Industry Standard Architecture ((E)ISA), MicroChannel Architecture (MCA), NuBus, Peripheral Component Interconnect (Enhanced) (PCI(X)), PCI Express, Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA), and the like.

[0043] Computing architecture 700 may include or be embodied in a variety of articles of manufacture. The articles of manufacture may include a computer-readable storage medium for storing logic. Examples of computer-readable storage media may include any tangible medium capable of storing electronic data, including volatile or non-volatile memory, removable or non-removable memory, erasable or non-erasable memory, writable or re-writable memory, and the like. Examples of logic may include executable computer program instructions implemented using any suitable type of code, such as source code, compiled code, interpreted code, executable code, static code, dynamic code, object-oriented code, visual code, and the like. Embodiments may also be implemented at least in part as instructions contained in or on a non-transitory computer-readable medium, which may be read and executed by one or more processors to enable performance of the operations described herein.

[0044] The system memory 706 may include various types of computer readable storage media in the form of one or more high speed memory units such as read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), double data rate DRAM (DDRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), static RAM (SRAM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, polymer memory such as ferroelectric polymer memory, ovonic memory, phase change or ferroelectric memory, silicon oxide nitride oxide silicon (SONOS) memory, magnetic or optical cards, arrays of devices such as redundant array of independent disks (RAID) drives, solid state memory devices (e.g., USB memory, solid state drive (SSD)), and other types of storage media suitable for storing information. In the illustrated embodiment shown in FIG. 7, the system memory 706 may include non-volatile memory 710 and / or volatile memory 712. The non-volatile memory 710 may store a basic input / output system (BIOS).

[0045] The computer 702 may include various types of computer-readable storage media in the form of one or more low-speed memory units, including an internal (or external) hard disk drive (HDD) 714, a magnetic floppy disk drive (FDD) 716 that reads from or writes to a removable magnetic disk 718, and an optical disk drive 720 that reads from or writes to a removable optical disk 722 (e.g., a CD-ROM or DVD). The HDD 714, FDD 716, and optical disk drive 720 may be connected to the system bus 708 by a HDD interface 724, a FDD interface 726, and an optical drive interface 728, respectively. The HDD interface 724 for an external drive implementation may include at least one or both of Universal Serial Bus (USB) and IEEE 1394 interface technologies.

[0046] The drives and associated computer-readable media provide volatile and / or nonvolatile storage of data, data structures, computer-executable instructions, etc. For example, a number of program modules may be stored on the drives and memory units 710, 712, including an operating system 730, one or more application programs 732, other program modules 734, and program data 736. In one embodiment, the one or more application programs 732, other program modules 734, and program data 736 may include, for example, various applications and / or components of the system 800.

[0047] A user may enter commands and information into the computer 702 through one or more wired / wireless input devices, for example, a keyboard 738 and a pointing device such as a mouse 740. Other input devices may include a microphone, infrared (IR) remote control, radio frequency (RF) remote control, game pad, stylus pen, card reader, dongle, fingerprint reader, grab, graphic tablet, joystick, keyboard, retina reader, touch screen (e.g., capacitive, resistive, etc.), track ball, track pad, sensor, stylus, etc. These and other input devices are often connected to the processor 704 through an input device interface 742 coupled to the system bus 708, but may be connected by other interfaces, such as a parallel port, an IEEE 1394 serial port, a game port, a USB port, an IR interface, etc.

[0048] A monitor 744 or other type of display device is also connected to the system bus 708 via an interface, such as a video adapter 746. The monitor 744 can be internal or external to the computer 702. In addition to the monitor 744, computers typically include other peripheral output devices, such as speakers, printers, etc.

[0049] The computer 702 may operate in a networked environment using logical connections via wired and / or wireless communications to one or more remote computers, such as a remote computer 748. The remote computer 748 may be a workstation, a server computer, a router, a personal computer, a portable computer, a microprocessor-based entertainment device, a peer device, or other common network node, and typically includes many or all of the elements described relative to the computer 702, although for purposes of brevity, only a memory / storage device 750 is shown. The logical connections shown include wired / wireless connections to a local area network (LAN) 752 and / or larger networks, e.g., a wide area network (WAN) 754. Such LAN and WAN networking environments are commonplace in offices and businesses, facilitating enterprise-wide computer networks, such as an intranet. All of these may connect to a global communications network, e.g., the Internet.

[0050] When used in a LAN networking environment, the computer 702 is connected to the LAN 752 through a wired and / or wireless communication network interface or adapter 756. The adapter 756 may facilitate wired and / or wireless communication to the LAN 752, which may include a wireless access point disposed thereon for communicating with the wireless functionality of the adapter 756.

[0051] When used in a WAN networking environment, the computer 702 may include a modem 758 or have other means for establishing communications over the WAN 754, such as connected to a communications server on the WAN 754 or via the Internet. The modem 758 may be internal or external, a wired and / or wireless device, and connects to the system bus 708 via the input device interface 742. In a networked environment, program modules depicted relative to the computer 702, or portions thereof, may be stored in the remote memory / storage device 750. It will be appreciated that the network connections shown are exemplary and other means of establishing a communications link between the computers may be used.

[0052] The computer 702 is operable to communicate with wired and wireless devices or entities using the IEEE 802 family of standards, such as wireless devices operatively arranged for wireless communication (e.g., IEEE 802.11 wireless modulation technology). This includes at least Wi-Fi (or Wireless Fidelity), WiMax, Bluetooth wireless technologies, and the like. Thus, communication can be a predefined structure, as with traditional networks, or simply ad-hoc communication between at least two devices. A Wi-Fi network provides secure, reliable, and high-speed wireless connectivity using radio technologies called IEEE 802.118 (a, b, g, n, etc.). A Wi-Fi network can be used to connect computers to each other, to the Internet, and to wired networks (using IEEE 802.3 related media and functions).

[0053] The various elements of the devices described above with reference to Figures 1 through 6 may include various hardware elements, software elements, or a combination of both. Examples of hardware elements may include devices, logic devices, components, processors, microprocessors, circuits, processors, circuit elements (e.g., transistors, resistors, capacitors, inductors, etc.), integrated circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), digital signal processors (DSPs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), memory units, logic gates, registers, semiconductor devices, chips, microchips, chipsets, etc. Examples of software elements may include software components, programs, applications, computer programs, application programs, system programs, software development programs, machine programs, operating system software, middleware, firmware, software modules, routines, subroutines, functions, methods, procedures, software interfaces, application program interfaces (APIs), instruction sets, computing code, computer code, code segments, computer code segments, words, values, symbols, or any combination thereof. However, the decision whether an embodiment is implemented using hardware and / or software elements may vary as necessary for a given embodiment depending on any number of factors, such as desired computational speeds, power levels, thermal tolerances, processing cycle budgets, input data rates, output data rates, memory resources, data bus speeds, and other design or performance constraints.

[0054] 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example communications architecture 800 suitable for implementing various embodiments. For example, one or more computing devices may communicate with each other via a communications framework such as a network. At least a first computing device connected to the network may be a computer vision device. At least a second computing device connected to the network may be a different computer vision device. In an example, the first and second computing devices may be part of a larger computer vision system or network.

[0055] Communications architecture 800 includes various common communications elements such as transmitters, receivers, transceivers, radios, network interfaces, baseband processors, antennas, amplifiers, filters, power supplies, etc. However, embodiments are not limited to implementation with communications architecture 800.

[0056] 8, the communications architecture 800 includes one or more client(s) 802 and servers 804. The one or more client(s) 802 and servers 804 are operatively connected to one or more respective client data store(s) 806 and server data store(s) 807 that may be employed to store information local to the respective client(s) 802 and server(s) 804, such as cookie(s) and / or associated contextual information.

[0057] The clients 802 and the servers 804 may communicate information with each other using a communications framework 810. The communications framework 810 may implement any well-known communications technology and protocol. The communications framework 810 may be implemented as a packet-switched network (e.g., a public network such as the Internet, a private network such as a corporate intranet, etc.), a circuit-switched network (e.g., the public switched telephone network), or a combination of packet-switched and circuit-switched networks (with appropriate gateways and translators).

[0058] The communications framework 810 may implement various network interfaces configured to accept, communicate, and connect to communications networks. A network interface may be considered a specialized form of input / output (I / O) interface. A network interface may employ connection protocols including, but not limited to, direct connection, Ethernet (e.g., thick, thin, twisted pair 10 / 100 / 1000 base-T, etc.), token ring, wireless network interface, cellular network interface, IEEE 802.7a-x network interface, IEEE 802.16 network interface, IEEE 802.20 network interface, etc. Additionally, multiple network interfaces may be used to interface with various communications network types. For example, multiple network interfaces may be used to enable communications over broadcast, multicast, and unicast networks. If processing requirements call for greater speed and capacity, a distributed network controller architecture may similarly be used to pool, load balance, and otherwise increase the communications bandwidth required by the clients 802 and servers 804. The communications network may be any one and combination of wired and / or wireless networks, including, but not limited to, direct interconnects, secure custom connections, private networks (e.g., enterprise intranets), public networks (e.g., the Internet), personal area networks (PANs), local area networks (LANs), metropolitan area networks (MANs), operational missions as nodes on the Internet (OMNIs), wide area networks (WANs), radio networks, cellular networks, and other communications networks.

[0059] The components and functions of the devices described above may be implemented using any combination of discrete circuits, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), logic gates, and / or single chip architectures. Furthermore, the functions of the devices may be implemented using microcontrollers, programmable logic arrays, and / or microprocessors, or any combination of the foregoing where appropriate. It should be noted that hardware, firmware, and / or software elements may be referred to herein collectively or individually as "logic" or "circuitry."

[0060] At least one computer-readable storage medium may contain instructions that, when executed, cause the system to perform any of the computer-implemented methods described herein.

[0061] Some embodiments may be described using the phrase "in one embodiment" or "embodiments" along with their derivatives. These terms mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. The appearance of the phrase "in one embodiment" in various places in this specification does not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment. Moreover, unless otherwise noted, it is recognized that the above features can be used together in any combination. Thus, any features discussed separately can be used in combination with each other, unless it is noted that the features are not compatible with each other.

[0062]

[0023] With general reference to the notation and nomenclature used herein, the detailed descriptions herein may be presented in terms of program procedures executed on a computer or network of computers. These procedural descriptions and representations are used by those skilled in the art to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art.

[0063] A procedure is herein and generally conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of operations leading to a desired result. These operations are those requiring physical manipulation of physical quantities. Usually, though not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical, magnetic, or optical signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It is sometimes convenient, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like. It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities.

[0064] Further, the manipulations performed are often referred to in terms, such as adding or comparing, which are commonly associated with mental operations performed by a human operator. No such capability of a human operator is necessary, or desirable in most cases, in any of the operations described herein that form part of one or more embodiments. Rather, the operations are machine operations.

[0065] Some embodiments may be described using the terms "coupled" and "connected," along with derivatives thereof. These terms are not necessarily intended as synonyms for each other. For example, some embodiments may be described using the terms "connected" and / or "coupled" to indicate that two or more elements are in direct physical or electrical contact with each other. However, the term "coupled" may also mean that two or more elements are not in direct contact with each other, but still cooperate or interact with each other.

[0066] Various embodiments also relate to apparatus or systems for performing these operations. This apparatus may be specially constructed for the required purposes and selectively activated or reconfigured by a computer program stored in a computer. The procedures presented herein are not inherently related to any particular computer or other apparatus. The required structure for a variety of these machines will be apparent from the description given.

[0067] It is emphasized that the Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Moreover, in the foregoing detailed description, it will be seen that various features are grouped together in a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This method of disclosure should not be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, the inventive subject matter lies in fewer than all features of a single disclosed embodiment. Accordingly, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the detailed description, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment. In the appended claims, the terms "including" and "wherein" are used as the plain English equivalents of the respective terms "comprising" and "wherein." Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," "third," etc. are used merely as labels and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their subject matter.

[0068] What has been described above includes examples of the disclosed architecture. Of course, it is not possible to describe every conceivable combination of components and / or methodologies, but one of ordinary skill in the art may recognize that many more combinations and permutations are possible. Accordingly, the novel architecture is intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications, and variations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. 1. A method comprising: determining, via one or more processors, a first position of the visual marker relative to the object; receiving a first magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to a first magnetic field strength at the first position; determining, via the one or more processors, a second position of the visual marker relative to the object; and receiving a second magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to a second magnetic field strength at the second position; generating a heat map of the object based at least in part on the received first and second magnetic field strength measurements; the heat map visually illustrating the first and second magnetic field strengths on a digital image of the object; The method of claim 1, wherein the heat map includes a plurality of rings, and each of the first and second magnetic field strengths is represented by a thickness of a corresponding ring.

2. acquiring, via a camera, the digital image of the object; the heat map is overlaid on the digital image of the object. The method of claim 1.

3. displaying the digital image together with the heat map; the heat map indicating a source of at least one of the first magnetic field strength measurement and the second magnetic field strength measurement. The method of claim 1.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the source is one of a Near Field Communication (NFC) source, a cellular source, and a Wi-Fi source.

5. indicating at least two different sources for the first magnetic field strength measurement and the second magnetic field strength measurement; each of the at least two different sources being indicated by a different color; The method according to claim 3.

6. The method of claim 3 , wherein the source of the first magnetic field strength and the second magnetic field strength is an NFC reader coil.

7. the source is one of a plurality of sources; the signal frequencies of the multiple sources are different; The method according to claim 3.

8. the heat map indicating the location of the magnetic field strength relative to the object in the digital image. The method of claim 1.

9. A processor; and a memory for storing instructions, When executed by the processor, the instructions cause the computing device to: determining a plurality of magnetic field strengths for the object, each of the plurality of magnetic field strengths corresponding to one of a plurality of magnetic field strength measurements; generating a heat map of the plurality of magnetic field strengths for the object, the heat map visually illustrating the plurality of magnetic field strengths, the heat map including a plurality of rings, each of the plurality of magnetic field strengths being represented by a thickness of a corresponding ring; overlaying the heat map onto a digital image of the object; A computing device configured to execute the following:

10. The computing device of claim 9 , wherein the instructions cause the computing device to capture the digital image of the object via a camera.

11. The instructions cause the computing device to display the digital image together with the heat map; the plurality of magnetic field strengths includes a first magnetic field strength and a second magnetic field strength; The heat map indicates a source of at least one of a first magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to the first magnetic field strength at a first position and a second magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to the second magnetic field strength at a second position.

10. The computing device of claim 9.

12. The computing device of claim 11, wherein the source is one of a Near Field Communication (NFC) source, a cellular source, and a Wi-Fi source.

13. The instructions cause the computing device to indicate at least two different sources for the first magnetic field strength measurement and the second magnetic field strength measurement; each of the at least two different sources being indicated by a different color; The computing device of claim 11.

14. The instructions cause the computing device to display the digital image along with the heat map.

10. The computing device of claim 9.

15. the heat map indicating sources of the first and second magnetic field strength measurements; The source is an NFC reader coil. The computing device of claim 11.

16. A processor; Memory for storing instructions 1. A computing device comprising: When executed by the processor, the instructions cause the computing device to: determining, via the processor, a first position of a visual marker relative to the object; receiving a first magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to a first magnetic field strength at the first position; determining, via the processor, a second position of the visual marker relative to the object; receiving a second magnetic field strength measurement corresponding to a second magnetic field strength at the second position; generating a heat map of the object based at least in part on the received first and second magnetic field strength measurements; the heat map visually illustrating the first and second magnetic field strengths on a digital image of the object; the heat map includes a plurality of rings, each of the first and second magnetic field strengths being represented by a thickness of a corresponding ring; Computing device.

17. The instructions cause the computing device to capture, via a camera, the digital image of the object; the heat map is overlaid on the digital image of the object.

17. The computing device of claim 16.

18. The instructions cause the computing device to display the digital image together with the heat map; the heat map indicating a source of at least one of the first magnetic field strength measurement and the second magnetic field strength measurement.

17. The computing device of claim 16.

19. the source is one of a near field communication (NFC) source, a cellular source, and a Wi-Fi source; 20. The computing device of claim 18.

20. The instructions cause the computing device to indicate at least two different sources for the first magnetic field strength measurement and the second magnetic field strength measurement; each of the at least two different sources being indicated by a different color; 20. The computing device of claim 18.

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