Arrow and arc generation for display

Abstract

An apparatus of a first wireless communication device configured to generate, for transmission to a second wireless communication device, a request to initiate a ranging operation, process, based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device, a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device and select at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on a display device of the first wireless communication device based on one or more predetermined conditions, wherein both the first object and the second object indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device.

Description

Arrow and Arc Generation for DisplayInventors: Vignesh Babu Moorthy and Benjamin A WernerPriori ty / Incorporation By Reference

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 63 / 613, 525 filed on December 21, 2023 entitled "Arrow and Arc Generation for People Finding, " the entirety of which is incorporated by reference herein.Background

[0002] There are various mechanisms that allow wireless communication devices to locate one another. Some mechanisms may use these features to dynamically generate directions that enable a user of one device to locate another device. For example, a first wireless communication device may determine a location of a second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device. The first wireless communication device may then display an arrow and / or any other appropriate type of object to direct the user of the first wireless communication device towards the precise location of the second wireless communication device.Summa ry

[0003] Some example embodiments are related to an apparatus of a first wireless communication device having processing circuitry configured to generate, for transmission to a second wireless communication device, a request to initiate a ranging operation, process, based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device, a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device and select at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on a display deviceof the first wireless communication device based on one or more predetermined conditions , wherein both the first obj ect and the second obj ect indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device .

[0004] Other example embodiments are related to a method performed by a first wireless communication device, the method including generating, for transmission to a second wireless communication device , a request to initiate a ranging operation, processing, based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device , a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device and selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on a display device of the first wireless communication device based on one or more predetermined conditions , wherein both the first obj ect and the second obj ect indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device .Brief Description of the Drawings

[0005] Fig . 1 shows an example arrangement according to various example embodiments .

[0006] Fig . 2 shows an example wireless communication device according to various example embodiments .

[0007] Fig . 3 shows a method for performing a find location operation between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device according to various example embodiments .

[0008] Fig . 4 shows an example architecture for a finder and findee according to various example embodiments .

[0009] Fig . 5 shows examples of a user interface element for directing the finder to the findee according to various example embodiments .

[0010] Fig . 6 shows examples of a user interface element for directing the finder to the findee according to various example embodiments .

[0011] Fig . 7 shows a method for user interface element generation according to various example embodiments .

[0012] Fig . 8 shows an example of multiple user interface elements for directing the finder to the findee according to various example embodiments .Detailed Description

[0013] The example embodiments may be further understood with reference to the following description and the related appended drawings , wherein like elements are provided with the same reference numerals . The example embodiments relate to generating directions that enable a user of a wireless communication devices to locate another wireless communication device and / or user thereof .

[0014] The example embodiments are described with regard to wireless communication devices . As will be described in greater detail below, the wireless communication devices may represent any electronic component configured with the hardware , software , and / or firmware to establish a short-range wireless connectionto another wireless communication device and communicate with a network .

[0015] Some example embodiments include the use of short- range communication connections . The short-range communication connection may be a Bluetooth connection, e . g . , Bluetooth Classic, Bluetooth Low-Energy (BLE ) , etc . However, this is only an example and the principles described herein for the example embodiments may be applied to other types of short-range communication connections . Therefore , any reference to terms such as , "Bluetooth, " "Bluetooth connection, " " short-range communication protocol , " "short-range connection, " or "short- range communication link" are provided for illustrative purposes and not intended to limit the example embodiments to any particular type of wireless communication protocol .

[0016] Some example embodiments include the use of ultra- wideband (UWB ) communication connections between wireless communication devices . Other example embodiments include the use of cellular network connections or another wireless network connection such as a wireless local area network (WLAN) or a wide area network (WAN) .

[0017] The example embodiments are also described with reference to a finder and a findee . In this context , the " findee" may generally refer to the wireless communication device and / or user thereof that is sharing their location with others . The " finder" may generally refer to the wireless communication device and / or user thereof that receives location information from another user . To provide a non-limiting example , a finder may receive information from the findee thatis used to determine the location of the findee relative to the finder .

[0018] The finder may dynamically output directions that enables a user to navigate towards the precise location of the findee. The finder may generate directions towards the findee based on information collected from any of a variety of different sources. To provide some non-limiting examples, the finder may use information collected by cameras and sensors, global positioning system (GPS) location information, information received directly from the finder, information received indirectly from the finder via a network, UWB ranging and / or information derived based on communication with the findee .

[0019] The directions may include one or more objects or elements displayed via a user interface (UI) . For example, an arrow and / or any other appropriate type of object may be used to convey a location of the findee relative to the finder (e.g., direction, distance, etc.) . The objects may dynamically update based on the location of the finder and / or findee which allows the finder to navigate their physical environment and locate the findee .

[0020] The example embodiments are described regarding the physical environment (e.g., one or more environmental conditions) of the finder and / or findee. A physical environment of a wireless communication device (e.g., finder) may affect its ability to generate precise and / or accurate directions for finding another wireless communication device (e.g., findee) . Further, the physical environment of the wireless communication device being searched for (e.g., findee) may affect the ability of the wireless communication device that is searching (e.g.,finder) . For example, a camera or sensor of the finder may not be able to collect adequate information about a crowded environment beyond a certain distance which may lead to inadequate directions when the finder and findee are outside of a certain range. Inaccurate, imprecise, and / or inadequate directions may create confusion and a poor user experience.

[0021] It has been identified that, for any of a variety of different reasons, an issue may occur that prevents the finder from displaying an accurate arrow (or any arrow at all) . For instance, factors such as, indoor environments, GPS inaccuracies, crowded environments, distance between finder and findee, a lack of stationary objects, multi-path environments and occluding the view of the camera may lead to inaccurate or inadequate directions. Inaccurate and inadequate directions have a negative impact on the user experience associated with using the finder and findee functionality.

[0022] In some examples, instead of or in addition to the arrow, an arc may be displayed via the user interface.Throughout this description, the term "arc" will refer to an object or element that is displayed via the UI and may be configured to convey a general direction of the findee. This is in contrast to an arrow which may be configured to indicate a more specific direction of the findee relative to the finder. In some embodiments, the arc may be configured to indicate a direction and distance of the findee relative to the finder. Specific examples of an arrow UI and an arc UI are provided below in Figs. 5-6. However, reference to the term "arrow" and "arc" is merely provided for illustrative purposes. The example embodiments may utilize any appropriate type of object elementfor display on a UI to indicate a direction of the findee relative to the finder .

[0023] To limit the occurrence of inaccurate and inadequate directions , the finder may use a combination of arrows and arcs to provide directions towards the findee . For example , the finder may encounter conditions that cause the arrow to move erratically . This may confuse the user and have a negative impact on the user experience . In another example, the finder may encounter conditions that would make accurate arrow generation unlikely . In some scenarios , this may cause the finder to stop displaying the arrow . However, the lack of an arrow during the find operation may confuse and frustrate the user . Accordingly, instead of displaying an inaccurate arrow or no arrow at all , the UI may display an arc or any other appropriate type of obj ect or element .

[0024] The example embodiments introduce techniques for generating an obj ect or element ( e . g . , arrow, arc, combination thereof , etc . ) for display on the UI to convey the location of the findee relative to the finder . This may include determining when to display an arrow, when to display an arc and when to display both an arrow and an arc . The above examples are provided for illustrative purposes and are not intended to limit the example embodiments in any way . Speci fic example embodiments are described in detail below . The example embodiments introduced herein may be used independently from one another, in conj unction with other currently implemented people f inding / device finding mechanisms , in conj unction with future implementations of people f inding / device finding mechanisms or independently from other people f inding / device finding mechanisms .

[0025] Fig. 1 shows an example arrangement 100 according to various example embodiments. The example arrangement 100 includes a first wireless communication device 110 and a second wireless communication device 120. Examples of these wireless communication devices 110 and 120 will be described in greater detail below with regard to Fig. 2. In the example of Fig. 1, the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 may not currently have a direct connection to each other.

[0026] The user of the first wireless communication device 110 may wish to locate the user of the second wireless communication device 120. As will be described in greater detail below, the users of the first and second wireless communication devices 110 and 120 may form a relationship that allows the first and second wireless communication devices 110 and 120 to find each other. In the example of the user of the first wireless communication device 110 wishing to locate the user of the second wireless communication device 120, the second wireless communication device 120 and / or user thereof may be considered to be the "findee," (e.g., sharing their location with others) and the first wireless communication device 110 and / or user thereof may be considered to be the "finder," e.g., receiving location information from another user.

[0027] In non-limiting examples, the wireless communication device 110 (e.g., finder) may move towards the wireless communication device 120 (e.g., findee) ; in other scenarios the wireless communication device 110 and the wireless communication device 120 may both be moving. In some examples, the wireless communication device 110 may be above or below the wirelesscommunication device 120. For instance, in a building with multiple levels or floors, in an outdoor environment at a different elevation or in a venue with multi-level / stadium seating. One of skill in the art will appreciate that numerous combinations of wireless communication devices 110 and 120 may be used in the example finding scenarios (phone / phone watch / phone, phone / tablet, phone / headset, etc.) .

[0028] Fig. 2 shows an example wireless communication device 200 according to various example embodiments. The wireless communication device 200 of Fig. 2 may represent the wireless communication device 110 or 120 described with regard to Fig. 1. The wireless communication device 200 may be any type of electronic component that is configured to wirelessly connect to another wireless communication device. A wireless connection may be a short-range communication connection. Non-limiting examples include mobile phones, smartphones, tablet computers, desktop computers, wearables (e.g., head mounted display (HMD) , AR glasses, etc.) , Internet of Things (loT) devices, etc.

[0029] The wireless communication device 200 may include a processor 205, a memory arrangement 210, a display device 215, an input / output (I / O) device 220, a transceiver 225, and other components 230. The other components 230 may include, for example, an audio input device, an audio output device, a data acquisition device, cameras, sensors for visual inertial odometry (VIO) , inertial measurement units (IMUs) , light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors, barometers, ports to electrically connect to other electronic devices, sensors to detect conditions of the device, etc.

[0030] The processor 205 may be configured to execute a plurality of engines for the wireless communication device 200.For example , the engines may perform operations related to locating another wireless communication device such as , but not limited to, deriving location and motion data for the finder, deriving location and motion data for the findee , deriving information about the physical environment of the finder and / or findee , generating directions that enable the user of the wireless communication device 200 to locate another device . Examples of these operations will be described in greater detail below .

[0031] The above referenced engines being an application ( e . g . , a program) executed by the processor 205 is only an example . The functionality associated with the engines may also be represented as a separate incorporated component of the wireless communication device 200 or may be a modular component coupled to the wireless communication device 200 , e . g . , an integrated circuit with or without firmware . For example, the integrated circuit may include input circuitry to receive signals and processing circuitry to process the signals and other information . The engines may also be embodied as one application or separate applications . In addition, in some wireless communication devices , the functionality described for the processor 205 is split among two or more processors such as a baseband processor and an applications processor . The example embodiments may be implemented in any of these or other configurations of a wireless communication device .

[0032] The memory arrangement 210 may be a hardware component configured to store data related to operations performed by the wireless communication device 200 . The display device 215 may be a hardware component configured to show data to a user, e . g . , display user interfaces (UIs ) , directional arrows , textmessages, etc. The I / O device 220 may be a hardware component that enables the user to enter inputs (e.g., to locate another person, to allow find location services to be used, etc.) . The display device 215 and the I / O device 220 may be separate components or integrated together such as a touchscreen.

[0033] The transceiver 225 may be a hardware component configured to establish a wireless connection with one or more networks or with one or more other wireless communication devices. The transceiver 225 may be configured to use more than one radio access technology (e.g., cellular, wireless local area network (WLAN) , etc.) . Accordingly, the transceiver 225 may operate on a variety of different frequencies or channels (e.g., set of consecutive frequencies) to communicate with the networks and / or other wireless communication devices. The transceiver 225 may also be configured to use a short-range communication protocol, e.g., Bluetooth. The transceiver 225 may also be configured to receive GPS signals from one or more satellites. The transceiver 225 may include separate transceiver circuitry for each of a respective type of wireless connection, radio access technology, and / or range of frequencies of operation. The transceiver 225 may comprise transceiver circuitry configured for operating using Bluetooth communication. The transceiver 225 includes circuitry configured to transmit and / or receive signals (e.g., control signals, data signals) . Such signals may be encoded with information implementing any one of the methods described herein. The processor 205 may be operably coupled to the transceiver 225 and configured to receive from and / or transmit signals to the transceiver 225. The processor 205 may be configured to encode, decode and / or process signals for implementing any one of the methods described herein.

[0034] Fig . 3 shows a method 300 for performing a find location operation between the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 according to various example embodiments . In this example , the first wireless communication device 110 may be the finder and the second wireless communication device 120 may be the findee . The method 300 provides a general overview of the types of operations that may be performed by the finder and the findee during a find location procedure . Example embodiments for determining whether an arrow, arc and / or combination thereof is to be displayed is provided below after the method 300 .

[0035] In 310 , the first wireless communication device 110 initiates a find location operation to locate the second wireless communication device 120 . As will be described in greater detail below, the find location operation may be used by the first wireless communication device 110 to generate directions that enable the user of the first wireless communication device 110 to navigate to the precise location of the second wireless communication device 120 . The directions may consist of displaying an arrow, arc or combination thereof on the UI of an application running on the first wireless communication device 110 that indicates the direction and / or distance of the second wireless communication device 120 . The display may automatically update based on the location of the first wireless communication device 110 relative to the second wireless communication device 120 .

[0036] Prior to the first wireless communication device 110 initiating the find location operation for finding the second wireless communication device 120 , the devices 110- 120 and / or the users thereof may have communicated their intentions to forma friendship relationship . Throughout this description, a friendship relationship refers to a configuration where one wireless communication device is permitted to find another wireless communication device using the find operation . For example , the first wireless communication device 110 may be permitted to locate the second wireless communication device 120 . The second wireless communication device 120 may be permitted to locate the first wireless communication device 110 . The friendship relationship between the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 may encompass a state of i ) only the first wireless communication device 110 is permitted to operate as a finder and only the second wireless communication device 110 is permitted to operate as a findee, ii ) only the second wireless communication device 120 is permitted to operate as a finder and only the first wireless communication device 110 is permitted to operate as a findee or iii ) there is a reciprocal relationship where both the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 are permitted to operate as a finder and findee . However, reference to the term " friendship relationship" is merely provided for illustrative purposes . Di f ferent entities may refer to this concept by a di f ferent name .

[0037] To provide a general non-limiting example , the wireless communication devices may have a find location application and the users may enter their intention to form a friendship via a UI of the application . Subseguently, the wireless communication device 120 and the first wireless communication device 110 may share one or more keys that are used to enable communication between the devices during a find operation . The one or more keys may be exchanged between thefirst wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 directly using short-range communication or indirectly using a network connection .

[0038] In some embodiments , a key associated with the friendship relationship may be a one-to-one key, e . g . , the key is unigue to the finder / findee friendship and only the friendship pair will know this friendship key and no other device can resolve the finder or findee using the specific friendship key . The users sharing their location may revoke that permission at any time, either offline ( e . g . , by disabling a specific friendship key) or online ( e . g . , by indicating to the finder that the friendship key is no longer active ) . However, reference to a key mechanism is merely provided for illustrative purposes . The example embodiments may utilize any appropriate type of mechanism to manage the settings with regard to the finder and findee relationship between two or more devices .

[0039] In 315, the first wireless communication device 110 transmits to the second wireless communication device 120 , one or more signals including a request to initiate a ranging operation . The request may include data related to finding the second wireless communication device 120 . For example , the request may include data that is encrypted using a key known to the finder and findee . In some examples , the request may be a Bluetooth advertisement .

[0040] After transmitting the request , the first wireless communication device 110 may receive one or more signals from the second wireless communication device 120 that comprises a response indicating that the first wireless communication device 110 is to locate the second wireless communication device 120 .The first wireless communication device 110 (e.g., processor) may decode a request based on one or more signals transmitted by the second wireless communication device 120 over a cellular or WiFi network.

[0041] In some examples, after transmitting a Bluetooth advertisement comprising the request, the first wireless communication device 110 may perform scanning operations to determine if the second wireless communication device 120 has responded to the Bluetooth advertisements. Like the advertisement operation, the operations may be performed continuously until the findee is located or the user of the finder discontinues attempting to locate the findee.

[0042] Prior to 310 or 315, on the findee side, the second wireless communication device 120 may scan for Bluetooth advertisements from other wireless communication devices that are attempting to find the second wireless communication device 120. The scanning operation may be any scanning operation supported by the Bluetooth protocol being executed by the findee. The findee may be triggered to perform the scanning operations for any of a variety of different reasons (e.g., in accordance with a schedule, triggered by a predetermined condition, in response to user input, etc.) . In addition, the scanning operations may be performed when the findee is offline, e.g., has no connection to a wireless network and / or in a power saving mode. The scanning operation may be continuous until the user of the findee turns off this capability or until the findee has identified a finder (e.g., first wireless communication device 110) . These scanning examples are only provided for illustrative purposes and any appropriate type of scanning operation may be used.

[0043] In 320 , the first wireless communication device 110 receives a Bluetooth advertisement from the second wireless communication device 120 . In this example , it may be assumed that the second wireless communication device 120 received a Bluetooth advertisement transmitted by the first wireless communication device 110 in 315 . The second wireless communication device 120 may determine, based on the advertisement and the state of their friendship relationship, that the first wireless communication device 110 is permitted to locate the second wireless communication device 120 using the find operation . The second wireless communication device 120 may then transmit one or more Bluetooth advertisements to the first wireless communication device 110 where at least one Bluetooth advertisement is received in 320 . Therefore , the Bluetooth advertisement in 320 may indicate that the second wireless communication device 120 received a Bluetooth advertisement from the first wireless communication device 110 for the find operation .

[0044] The exchange of Bluetooth signals in 315-320 may allow the finder and the findee to discovery each other' s presence and confirm that the finder it permitted to locate the findee . After this exchange , a more precise location operation may be performed . For example, UWB ranging operation may be used to determine a more precise location of the findee .

[0045] In 325, the first wireless communication device 110 determines a direction of the second wireless communication device 120 relative to the first wireless communication device 110 . For example, as mentioned above , the first wireless communication device 110 may perform a UWB ranging operation to determine the direction of the second wireless communicationdevice 120 . Alternatively, or in addition to the UWB ranging operation, the first wireless communication device 110 may use other information collected by other components of the first wireless communication device 110 or the second wireless communication device 120 to determine the direction of the second wireless communication device 120 . In some examples , this information may include GPS location information for the first wireless communication device 110 and / or the second wireless communication device 120 .

[0046] In 330 , the first wireless communication device 110 may output directions that enable a user of the first wireless communication device 110 to navigate to the second wireless communication device 120 . In some embodiments , the directions may be an arrow displayed on the UI of an application running on the first wireless communication device 110 . In some embodiments , the direction may be an arc displayed on the UE of the application running on the first wireless communication device 110 . The output may further include , but is not limited to , haptic feedback, audio-based directions and text-based directions . The directions may dynamically update based on the motion of the finder and / or the findee . Therefore, the operations performed in 325-330 may be performed continuously until the findee is located or the user of the finder discontinues attempting to locate the findee .

[0047] In some example embodiments of Fig . 3 , the ranging operations ( e . g . , UWB ranging) may be triggered by a discovery mechanism using Bluetooth including using Bluetooth advertisements . In other example embodiments , a discovery mechanism may be deployed over the Internet . The Internet-based discovery mechanism may be referred to herein as an InternetDiscovery Service (IDS) . In these example embodiments, a request may be sent from the finder device to the target device (or findee device) and, if the finder device receives a response from the target device, UWB ranging is triggered at the target device .

[0048] In still further example embodiments, a discovery mechanism may be deployed over a cellular connection. In these example embodiments, a request may be sent from the finder device to the target device (or findee device) using the cellular connection and, if the finder device receives a response from the target device, UWB ranging is triggered at the target device. Furthermore, other types of network connections may also be used to send / receive discovery messages to trigger the ranging operations.

[0049] In some example embodiments, the different types of discovery mechanisms (e.g., Bluetooth, IDS, cellular, etc.) may be used in combination. For example, two or more discovery mechanisms may be initiated in parallel and, if either of them is successful, the UWB ranging is triggered.

[0050] Fig. 4 shows an example architecture 400 for a finder 410 and findee 450 according to various example embodiments. The example architecture will be described with regard to the wireless communication device 200 of Fig. 2.

[0051] The architecture 400 provides a general example of the type of components that may interact with one another to enable a finder to locate a findee. The architecture 400 includes a finder 410 and the findee 450. Both the finder 410 and thefindee 450 may be represent the wireless communication device 200 described above with regard to Fig. 2.

[0052] The finder 410 may include a finder engine 412, a motion engine 414, LiDAR 416, camera 418, inertial measurement unit (IMU) 420, global positioning system (GPS) 422, UWB 424, Bluetooth 426, WIFI 428, cellular 430, and IDS 432. The finder engine 412 may run on a processor and manage operations related to interacting with the user (e.g., receiving and responding to user input via a UI, etc.) . In addition, the finder engine 412 may manage operations related to outputting directions to the user, e.g., directional arrow pointing towards the findee 450, haptic feedback directing the user to the findee 450, text-based feedback directing the user to the findee 450, etc.

[0053] The motion engine 414 may run on a processor and perform various operations related to deriving location information for the finder 410 and / or the findee 450. The motion engine 414 may receive input from, at least, the LiDAR 416, the camera 418, the IMU 420, the GPS 422, UWB 424, Bluetooth 426, WIFI 428, cellular 430, and IDS 432.

[0054] The motion engine 414 may perform operations such as, but not limited to, performing position estimates of the finder 410 and / or findee 450, performing a ranging estimate between the finder 410 and findee 450, performing time of flight measurements on signals exchanged with the findee 450, executing motion models, performing 3D mapping, object tracking and identifying a type of physical environment. In some examples, the motion engine 414 may use synthetic aperture techniques to derive information about the physical environment and location of the finder 410 and / or findee 450. In some examples, the motion engine 414 may use machine learning techniques to deriveinformation about the physical environment and location of the finder 410 and / or findee 450.

[0055] WIFI 428 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to communicate with an access point of a wireless local area network (WLAN) . Information received from the WLAN or any other appropriate type of wireless network (e.g., cellular) may be used to determine a direction of the findee 450. However, the finder 410 does not require a network connection and may locate the findee 450 while offline. In some embodiments, information derived from a WLAN environment such as, but not limited to, WLAN or WIFI access point names (APNs) may also be used to determine a direction of the findee 450. Other information exchanged over the link 429 may include a request / response used to trigger the ranging operations.

[0056] Cellular 430 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to communicate with a cellular network. Information received from the cellular network may be used to determine a direction of the findee 450. However, the finder 410 does not require a cellular network connection and may locate the findee 450 while offline. In some embodiments, information derived from a cellular environment such as, but not limited to, cell identifications (IDs) , may also be used to determine a direction of the findee 450. Other information exchanged over the link 431 may include a request / response used to trigger the ranging operations.

[0057] Bluetooth 426 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to perform short-range communication with the findee 450. This may include exchanging advertisements withthe findee 450 over link 427 as described above with regard to the method 300.

[0058] UWB 424 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to perform a ranging operation with the findee 450. This may include exchanging ranging data with the findee 450 over link 425. In some scenarios, the ranging operation may provide a more precise location of the findee 450.

[0059] GPS 422 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to receive positioning information collected by satellites. The positioning information may correspond to the finder 410 and / or findee 450 and may be used to determine a direction of the findee 450. The information collected by the WIFI 428, cellular 430, IDS 432, Bluetooth 426, UWB 424 and GPS 422 may be provided to the motion engine 414.

[0060] LiDAR 416 may represent one or more LiDAR sensors comprising hardware, software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the physical surroundings and environment of the finder 410. Camera 418 may represent one or more cameras comprising hardware, software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the physical surroundings and environment of the finder 410. Data collected using LiDAR 416 and / or camera 418 may be used for operations such as, but not limited to, three-dimensional mapping of a physical environment, tracking physical objects, deriving motion information of the finder 410 and deriving location information of the finder 410.

[0061] IMU 420 may represent one or more IMU sensors comprising hardware, software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the motion of the finder 410. The IMU420 may collect data such as, but not limited to, acceleration measurements of the finder 410 and angular velocity measurements of the finder 410.

[0062] The findee 450 may include a findee engine 452, a motion engine 454, LiDAR 456, camera 458, IMU 460, GPS 462, UWB 464, Bluetooth 466, WIFI 468, cellular 470, and IDS 472. The findee engine 452 may run on a processor and manage operations related to interacting with the user (e.g., receiving and responding to user input via a UI, etc.) . In some embodiments, there may be a reciprocal relationship between wireless communication devices and each device may simultaneously be a finder and a findee for one another.

[0063] The motion engine 454 may run on a processor and perform various operations related to deriving location information for the finder 410 and / or the findee 450. The motion engine 454 may receive input from, at least, the LiDAR 456, the camera 458, the IMU 460, the GPS 462, UWB 464, Bluetooth 466, WIFI 468, cellular 470, and IDS 472.

[0064] The motion engine 454 may perform operations such as, but not limited to, performing position estimates of the finder 410 and / or findee 450, performing a ranging estimate between the finder 410 and findee 450, performing time of flight measurements on signals exchanged with the finder 410, executing motion models, performing 3D mapping, object tracking and identifying a type of physical environment. In some examples, the motion engine 414 may use synthetic aperture techniques to derive information about the physical environment and location of the finder 410 and / or findee 450. In some examples, the motion engine 414 may use machine learning techniques to deriveinformation about the physical environment and location of the finder 410 and / or findee 450.

[0065] WIFI 468 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to communicate with an access point of a WLAN. The findee 450 may also be capable of communicating on other types of wireless networks (e.g., cellular, etc.) . However, a network connection is not required and the findee 450 may be located while offline.

[0066] Bluetooth 466 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to perform short-range communication with the finder 410. This may include exchanging advertisements with the finder 410 over link 427 as described above with regard to the method 300.

[0067] UWB 464 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to perform a ranging operation with the finder 410. This may include exchanging ranging data with the finder 410 over link 425. In some scenarios, the ranging operation may provide a more precise location of the finder 410.

[0068] GPS 462 may represent hardware, software and / or firmware configured to receive positioning information collected by satellites. The positioning information may correspond to the finder 410 and / or findee 450. The information collected by the WIFI 468, cellular 470, IDS 472, Bluetooth 466, UWB 464 and GPS 462 may be provided to the motion engine 454. In addition, information collected by the WIFI 468, cellular 470, IDS 472, Bluetooth 466, UWB 464 and GPS 462 may be provided to the motion engine 454 may be provided to the finder 410 over the Bluetooth link 427, the UWB link 425 or in any other appropriate manner.

[0069] LiDAR 456 may represent one or more LiDAR sensors comprising hardware , software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the physical surroundings and environment of the findee 450 . Camera 458 may represent one or more camera comprising hardware , software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the physical surroundings and environment of the findee 450 . Data collected using LiDAR 456 and / or camera 458 may be used for operations such as , but not limited to, three-dimensional mapping of a physical environment , tracking physical obj ects , deriving motion information of the findee 450 and deriving location information of the findee 450 .

[0070] IMU 460 may represent one or more IMU sensors comprising hardware , software and / or firmware configured to collect information about the motion of the finder 410 . The IMU 460 may collect data such as , but not limited to , acceleration measurements of the finder 410 and angular velocity measurements of the finder 410 . The information collected by the LiDAR 456, the camera 458 and the IMU 460 may be provided to the motion engine 454 . In addition, the information collected by the LiDAR 456 , camera 458 and the IMU 460 may be provided finder 410 over the Bluetooth link 427 , the UWB link 425 or in any other appropriate manner .

[0071] Examples of an arrow directing the finder to the findee according to various example embodiments is shown in Fig . 5 . Example 505 shows a display device 215 of the communication device 200 at a first time . The communication device 200 is operating as a finder and its display device 215 shows a graphic of an arrow 510 . The arrow 510 is configured to point in the direction of the findee relative to the location of the finder .This allows the user to walk towards the findee (or move towards the findee in any other manner ) . In this example , the arrow 510 is a 2D graphic . However, in an actual operating scenario the arrow may be a three-dimensional obj ect and / or enhanced with additional graphics that provide further direction information that enables the user to navigate to the findee .

[0072] Example 520 shows a display device 215 of the communication device 200 at a second time that is subsequent to the first time . In between the first time of example 505 and the second time of example 520 , at least one of the finder or the findee has moved . As a result , the arrow 510 has moved so that it is still pointing in the direction of the findee relative to the location of the finder . The examples shown in Fig . 5 are provided as a general example of the type of information that may be provided to the user to enable the user to navigate towards the findee . While the example embodiments are described with regard to arrow generation, the example techniques introduced herein may also be used to generate any appropriate type of output ( e . g . , haptic feedback, static graphics , dynamic graphics , audio alerts , text alerts , lights , etc . ) that is configured to enable a finder to locate a findee in a physical environment .

[0073] Examples of an arc directing the finder to the findee according to various example embodiments is shown in Fig . 6 . Example 605 shows a display device 215 of the communication device 200 at a first time . At this time , the communication device 200 is operating as a finder and its display device 215 shows a graphic of an arc 610 . The arc 610 is configured to indicate the general direction of the findee relative to the location of the finder . This allows the user to walk towards thefindee ( or move towards the findee in any other manner ) . In this example , the arc 610 is a 2D graphic . However, in an actual operating scenario the arrow may be a three-dimensional obj ect and / or enhanced with additional graphics that provide further direction information that enables the user to navigate to the findee .

[0074] The arc 610 may occupy a portion of a find location area 615 and the find location area 615 may represent the physical surroundings of the finder . The direction of the arc 610 within the graphic of the find location area 615 may indicate the direction of the findee . In some examples , the si ze of the arc 610 may be used to indicate a distance between the finder and the findee . For instance , the larger the area occupied by arc 610 within the find location area 615 may represent a longer distance between the finder and the findee . In some examples , the UI may include a graphic of the findee 620 . The graphic of the findee 620 may further indicate the direction and / or distance of the findee relative to the finder .

[0075] Example 650 shows a display device 215 of the communication device 200 at a second time that is subsequent to the first time . In between the first time of example 605 and the second time of example 650 , at least one of the finder or the findee has moved . As a result , the arc 610 has moved so that it is still pointing in the direction of the findee relative to the location of the finder . As mentioned above , the size of the arc 610 may indicate a distance between the finder and the findee . In this example, it may be assumed that the finder and the findee have moved close to one another . As a result , the arc 610 has narrowed and takes up a smaller portion of the find location area 615 .

[0076] The examples shown in Fig. 6 are provided as a general example of the type of information that may be provided using an arc to enable the user to navigate towards the findee. While the example embodiments are described with regard to arc generation, the example technigues introduced herein may also be used to generate any appropriate type of output (e.g., haptic feedback, static graphics, dynamic graphics, audio alerts, text alerts, lights, etc.) that is configured to enable a finder to locate a findee in a physical environment.

[0077] Fig. 7 shows a method 700 for arrow and arc generation according to various example embodiments. In this example, the method 700 may occur during the method 300 and is described from the perspective of the wireless communication device 110 operating as a finder and the wireless communication device 120 operating as the findee.

[0078] In 710, the first wireless communication device 110 determines characteristics of a physical environment within which the first wireless communication device 110, the second wireless communication device 120, or both, are located.

[0079] In this example, the characteristics of the physical environment may include a location type of the physical environment (e.g., indoor, outdoor etc.) . However, this example is not intended to limit the example embodiments to any particular type of physical environment. In other examples, the type of physical environment may include indoor, outdoor and a combination of indoor and outdoor features. In further examples, the type of physical environment may be more specific, e.g., beach, park, open-field, restaurant, mall, office building, landmark, etc. In some examples, determining the type ofphysical environment may include determining one or more conditions of the physical environment (e.g., threshold of a condition) . In some examples, the type of physical environment may indicate one or more conditions within the physical environment. A condition may include, for example, a density condition indicating a density of objects in the environment (e.g., people, trees, vehicles, buildings, etc.) Other conditions may include a weather condition, a lighting condition, etc. Other types of conditions may be considered.

[0080] In some examples, determining the characteristics of the physical environment may include determining a number of people and / or objects located within a particular range or distance of the finder, the findee or both the finder and findee. In some embodiments, the first wireless communication device 110 may use computer vision and / or machine learning technigues to model its physical environment. The model may be a dynamic, real-time model that contains one or more particles. Each particle corresponding to a person or object in the physical environment and comprising one or more states including, but not limited to, two-dimensional coordinates in a two-dimensional coordinate system, three-dimensional coordinates in a three-dimensional system, velocity and direction of travel. The model may enable the first wireless communication device 110 to determine the type of physical environment and one or more conditions (e.g., crowd density) . In some examples, the second wireless communication device 120 may use computer vision and / or machine learning technigues to model its physical environment and may transmit information related to its physical environment to the first wireless communication device 110.

[0081] In some examples, to determine a type of physical environment, the first wireless communication device 110 may generate information corresponding to one or more environmental conditions. An environmental condition may be indicated by a characteristic or parameter of a physical environment of the first wireless communication device 110, a second wireless communication device 120 (or both) such as, but not limited to, indoor features, outdoor features, single level, multi-level (e.g., multiple floors, multiple platforms, stadium seating, etc.) , crowd density, a number of people, types of objects, a number of objects, a weather condition, etc.

[0082] In 720, the first wireless communication device 110 determines conditions associated with the wireless channels between the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120. For example, the conditions may include UWB measurements, UWB fading, a channel profile, UWB range yield, antenna diversity, time of flight (TOF) errors and multi-path assessment.

[0083] In 730, the first wireless communication device 110 selects one or more objects (e.g., arrow, arc, combination thereof, etc.) for UI display. The selection may be based on any of a variety of predetermined conditions. In one example, the selection may be based on a number of UWB f ading / channel profiles available. If the number of UWB f ading / channel profiles is greater than a threshold value (e.g., 1, 2, 4, etc.) , the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display and if the number of UWB / f ading channel profiles is less than a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display. In some embodiments, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display if thenumber of UWB f ading / channel profiles is less than a threshold value, and the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display i f the number of UWB / fading channel profiles is greater than a threshold value .

[0084] In another example , the selection may be based on a UWB range yield . I f the UWB range yield is above a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display and if the UWB range yield is less than a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display . In some embodiments , i f the UWB range yield is less than a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display and i f the UWB range yield is above a threshold value , the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display .

[0085] In another example , the selection may be based on a multi-path / range, received signal strength indicator (RSS I ) and a truth solution .

[0086] In another example , the selection may be based on a TOF error and / or antenna diversity percentage . I f the TOF error and / or antenna diversity percentage is above a threshold value , the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display . I f the TOF error and / or antenna diversity percentage is below a threshold value , the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display . In some embodiments , i f the TOF error and / or antenna diversity percentage is less than a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display . I f the TOF error and / or antenna diversity percentage is above a threshold value , the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display .

[0087] In another example, the selection may be based on the availability of information collected by sensors of the first wireless communication device 110 and / or the second wireless communication device 120. In addition to the availability of information, the selection may further consider a yield percentage associated with the information collected by sensors of the first wireless communication device 110 and / or the second wireless communication device 120. If the sensor availability and yield percentage is above a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display. If the sensor availability and yield percentage is below a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display. In some embodiments, if the sensor availability and yield percentage is less than a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arc UI display. If the sensor availability and yield percentage is above a threshold value, the wireless communication device 110 may select an arrow UI display.

[0088] In 740, the first wireless communication device 110 displays the selected object within the UI . The method 700 is a continuous process that allows for changing the displayed object (e.g., arc, arrow, etc.) based on changes to the physical environment within which the first wireless communication device 110 and / or the second wireless communication device 120 are located. The method 700 may also account for changes in the wireless channels between the first wireless communication device 110 and the second wireless communication device 120 by changing the displayed object (e.g., arc, arrow, etc.) to avoid instances of inaccurate or unavailable directions.

[0089] As mentioned above, the first wireless communication device 110 may display only an arrow, only an arc or both an arrow and an arc simultaneously. An example of a display that includes an arc and an arrow is shown in Fig. 8. In this example, the display device 215 of the wireless communication device 200 displays an arrow 810 integrated with an arc 815 and its corresponding find location area 820 to point towards the findee 825.

[0090] According to some aspects, when the first wireless communication device 110 is within a first range of the second wireless communication device 120, an arc may be displayed. For example, at larger ranges (e.g., 40 feet (ft) , 50 ft, 100 ft, etc.) an arc may be displayed. When the first wireless communication device 110 is within a second range of the second wireless communication device 120, an arrow may be displayed. For example, at shorter ranges (e.g., 5ft, 10 ft, 30 ft, 50 ft, 60 ft, etc.) an arrow may be displayed. At distances where there is an overlap between the first range and the second range, both the arc and the arrow may be displayed to the user simultaneously .Examples

[0091] In a first example, a method, comprising generating, for transmission to a second wireless communication device, a request to initiate a ranging operation, processing, based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device, a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device and selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on a display device of the first wireless communication device based on one or morepredetermined conditions, wherein both the first object and the second object indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device.

[0092] In a second example, the method of the first example, wherein the first object is an arrow and the second object is an arc .

[0093] In a third example, the method of the first example, further comprising determining a distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device, wherein selecting at least one of the first object and the second object is based on the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device.

[0094] In a fourth example, the method of the third example, wherein when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a first range, selecting the first object, and when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a second range, selecting the second object.

[0095] In a fifth example, the method of the third example, wherein when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a third range selecting both the first object and the second object.

[0096] In a sixth example, the method of the fifth example, wherein the third range overlaps the first range and the second range .

[0097] In a seventh example, the method of the first example, wherein selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on at least one ultra-wide band (UWB) measurement.

[0098] In an eighth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to UWB fading.

[0099] In a ninth example, the method of the seventh example, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to a UWB range yield.

[0100] In a tenth example, the method of the first example, wherein selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on time of flight error (TOF) .

[0101] In an eleventh example, the method of the tenth example, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to TOF error.

[0102] In a twelfth example, the method of the first example, wherein selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on the display device of the firstwireless communication device is further based on antenna diversity .

[0103] In a thirteenth example, the method of the twel fth example , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to antenna diversity .

[0104] In a fourteenth example, the method of the first example , wherein selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on data collected from one or more sensors of the first wireless communication device .

[0105] In a fi fteenth example, the method of the fourteenth example , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data availability .

[0106] In a sixteenth example, the method of the fourteenth example , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data yield percentage .

[0107] In a seventeenth example , the method of the first example , wherein selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on data collected from one or more sensors of the second wireless communication device .

[0108] In an eighteenth example, the method of the seventeenth example, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data availability.

[0109] In a nineteenth example, the method of the seventeenth example, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data yield percentage .

[0110] In a twentieth example, a processor configured to perform any of the methods of the first through nineteenth example .

[0111] In a twenty first example, a wireless communication device configured to perform any of the methods of the first through nineteenth example.

[0112] Those skilled in the art will understand that the above-described example embodiments may be implemented in any suitable software or hardware configuration or combination thereof. An example hardware platform for implementing the example embodiments may include, for example, an Intel x86 based platform with compatible operating system, a Windows OS, a Mac platform and MAC OS, a mobile device having an operating system such as iOS, Android, etc. The example embodiments described above may be embodied as a program containing lines of code stored on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium that, when compiled, may be executed on a processor or microprocessor .

[0113] Although this application described various embodiments each having different features in various combinations , those skilled in the art will understand that any of the features of one embodiment may be combined with the features of the other embodiments in any manner not speci fically disclaimed or which is not functionally or logically inconsistent with the operation of the device or the stated functions of the disclosed embodiments .

[0114] It is well understood that the use of personally identi fiable information should follow privacy policies and practices that are generally recogni zed as meeting or exceeding industry or governmental requirements for maintaining the privacy of users . In particular, personally identi fiable information data should be managed and handled so as to minimi ze risks of unintentional or unauthori zed access or use , and the nature of authori zed use should be clearly indicated to users .

[0115] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modi fications may be made in the present disclosure , without departing from the spirit or the scope of the disclosure . Thus , it is intended that the present disclosure cover modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalent .

Claims

What is Claimed :1 . An apparatus of a first wireless communication device comprising processing circuitry configured to : generate , for transmission to a second wireless communication device , a request to initiate a ranging operation; process , based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device , a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device ; and select at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on a display device of the first wireless communication device based on one or more predetermined conditions , wherein both the first obj ect and the second obj ect indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device .2 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first obj ect is an arrow and the second obj ect is an arc .3 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to : determine a distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device , wherein selecting at least one of the first obj ect and the second obj ect is based on the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device .4 . The apparatus of claim 3 , wherein when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a first range, selecting thefirst object, and when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a second range, selecting the second object.

5. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein when the distance between the first wireless communication device and the second wireless communication device is within a third range selecting both the first object and the second object.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the third range overlaps the first range and the second range.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on at least one ultra-wide band (UWB) measurement.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to UWB fading.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to a UWB range yield.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein selecting at least one of a first object and a second object to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on time of flight error (TOF) .11 . The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to TOF error .12 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on antenna diversity .13 . The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to antenna diversity .14 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on data collected from one or more sensors of the first wireless communication device .15 . The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data availability .16 . The apparatus of claim 14 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data yield percentage .17 . The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on the display device of the first wireless communication device is further based on data collected from one or more sensors of the second wireless communication device .18 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data availability .19 . The apparatus of claim 17 , wherein the one or more predetermined conditions includes a threshold value corresponding to sensor data yield percentage .20 . A method performed by a first wireless communication device , the method comprising : generating, for transmission to a second wireless communication device , a request to initiate a ranging operation; processing, based on signaling received from the second wireless communication device , a response indicating that the first wireless communication device is to locate the second wireless communication device ; and selecting at least one of a first obj ect and a second obj ect to be displayed on a display device of the first wireless communication device based on one or more predetermined conditions , wherein both the first obj ect and the second obj ect indicate a direction of the second wireless communication device relative to the first wireless communication device .

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