Portable Device Location Determination Using Accelerometer Statistical Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing portable electronic devices face challenges in accurately determining their location on a user's body and orientation relative to a reference frame without requiring specific orientations or locations, due to limitations in current sensor technologies like accelerometers and GPS dependency, which leads to inefficiencies and battery drain.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a sensor arrangement with accelerometers and magnetometers that uses mathematical transformations and statistical analysis, such as Principal Component Analysis, to identify features corresponding to specific device locations, allowing the device to determine its location and orientation relative to the user, even when not in a specific orientation or location.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If accelerometers and gyroscopes are used to estimate device location on user body, then location information can be obtained, but computational processing time and energy consumption increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and utilizes only the acceleration data from the sensor arrangement, separating it from other sensor inputs like gyroscope data. This selective extraction reduces the computational burden while maintaining the ability to determine device location through statistical analysis of acceleration patterns during user movement.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs statistical analysis methods that process acceleration data in a computationally efficient manner, essentially using simple mathematical operations rather than complex algorithms. This approach provides adequate location determination with minimal computational resources, analogous to using a simple, disposable solution rather than a complex, resource-intensive one.
2Measurement precision
If GPS is used for positioning, then location information can be obtained, but battery power consumption increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the GPS mechanical/electromagnetic positioning system with an inertial sensing approach using accelerometers. Instead of relying on external satellite infrastructure and complex signal processing, the system uses local acceleration measurements combined with statistical analysis to infer position, thereby eliminating GPS-related power consumption.
Solution Approach 2:
The device determines its own position using its built-in acceleration sensors and statistical analysis capabilities, without requiring external GPS infrastructure. The system processes its own sensor data locally through efficient statistical methods, making the positioning function self-sufficient and independent of power-hungry external systems.
3Ease of operation
If device orientation is not constrained, then user convenience is improved, but device location and orientation information becomes unavailable
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of requiring the device to be in a specific orientation to obtain orientation information, the patent inverts the approach by using acceleration patterns during natural user movement to infer both location and orientation. The system works with the device in any orientation, extracting useful information from the dynamics of movement rather than requiring static alignment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from static orientation measurement (requiring the device to be held in a specific position) to dynamic orientation determination through movement analysis. By analyzing acceleration patterns during user walking or carrying the device, the system can infer orientation information dynamically without constraining how the user holds or moves the device.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach enables accurate and efficient determination of device location and user orientation, reducing computational time and battery consumption, and does not rely on external infrastructure, providing improved performance and user convenience.
Implementation Method 1
The sensor arrangement may comprise an accelerometer arrangement and the information from the sensor arrangement may comprise acceleration information of the device
Implementation Method 2
the sensor arrangement may comprise a magnetometer arrangement, in which case the at least one component may, alternatively or additionally, comprise a component of magnetic information
Data Source
AI summary
A method of determining the location of a device on the body of a user carrying it, comprising determining a mathematical representation of a transformation between a device reference frame and an earth reference frame at the device; receiving information from a sensor arrangement of the device capable of measuring device movement while the user is walking, and transforming information from the sensor arrangement, using said mathematical representation, into the earth reference frame at the device; and performing statistical analysis on at least one component of the information from the sensor arrangement obtained in the transformation to identify one or more features corresponding to a specific location of the device. Also provided is a method of determining the orientation of a user's body relative to a reference frame, using a device carried by a user. The method comprising determining a location of a device on the body of a user carrying it, and selecting a method out of a plurality of methods for determining the orientation of the user relative to the reference frame based on the determined location of the device.