Radar-Based Mood Setting Control for Activity-Aware Rooms

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Solution Overview

Problem

Current home automation systems require manual activation of preprogrammed mood settings by users, failing to adapt to specific activities within a home or building, limiting dynamic mood adjustments based on ongoing activities.

Innovation Solution

A method using a radar sensor to track primary activities, determine the time and location, and correlate these to pre-programmed mood settings, automatically activating relevant devices through a home automation system, with optional secondary activity tracking and energy consumption analysis for enhanced accuracy.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If manual activation of mood settings is used, then user control over device settings is maintained, but user convenience deteriorates due to repeated manual activation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser convenienceVSAvoidautomatic mood setting
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSExtent of automation

Solution Approach 1:

The system automatically detects occupant activities through sensors and autonomously activates appropriate mood settings without requiring user intervention. The home automation system serves itself by monitoring activities and triggering pre-configured mood settings based on detected patterns.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors occupant activities through sensors and uses this feedback to dynamically adjust and activate mood settings. The feedback loop enables the system to learn from occupancy patterns and automatically respond with appropriate environmental configurations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

2Measurement precision

If generic presence detection is used, then system complexity is reduced, but activity recognition precision deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveactivity recognition accuracyVSAvoidsensor and processing system
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments activity recognition into multiple levels: primary activities detected by radar sensors, secondary activities detected by additional sensors, and contextual information from time and location data. This segmentation allows progressive refinement of activity recognition accuracy without requiring a single complex system.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The system uses multiple sensor types (radar, motion detectors, occupancy sensors) that serve multiple functions - detecting presence, determining location, and identifying activity patterns. This multi-functionality increases measurement precision while managing system complexity through versatile components.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Measurement precision

If single sensor type is used, then device complexity is minimized, but activity tracking accuracy deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveactivity tracking accuracyVSAvoidmulti-sensor system
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system merges data from multiple sensor types (radar sensors for primary activity, secondary sensors for additional context) to create a comprehensive view of occupant activities. By combining sensor inputs, the system achieves high tracking accuracy while managing complexity through integrated processing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

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

Enables automatic creation of mood settings tailored to specific activities, reducing user intervention and improving accuracy through multi-feature activity determination, while allowing occupant feedback and manual override.

Implementation Method 1

tracking a primary activity of at least one occupant in the room by means of a radar sensor

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectRadar: Radar

Data Source

PatentEP4224799A1Activity based mood settings
Publication Date: 2023.08.09 NIKO NV
  • EP4224799A1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4224799A1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4224799A1 patent drawing

AI summary

The present invention provides a method for automatically create a mood setting in a room of a house or building. The method comprises tracking a primary activity of at least one occupant in the room by means of a radar sensor, determining the time at which the tracked primary activity takes place, determining a location within the room where the primary activity of the at least one occupant was tracked, from the tracked primary activity and the time, determining the exact activity of the at least one occupant and correlating the exact activity to a pre-programmed or stored mood setting which may be stored in a storage medium of the home automation system. When the pre-programmed mood setting is determined, a signal is sent to activate the at least one electric or electronic device according to the correlated mood setting.