Wearable Code Fragment Distribution via Smartphone Intermediary

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Solution Overview

Problem

Wearable computing devices face power constraints due to their small size, limiting their computing power and requiring effective power-saving techniques to maintain functionality.

Innovation Solution

A system where a smartphone acts as an intermediary, receiving a client state indicator from a smartwatch, formulating a request for content data, and transmitting client-side code fragments to the smartwatch to perform specific behaviors, such as displaying data, thereby offloading computational tasks and conserving power.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If computational tasks are performed locally on the wearable device, then the device can execute applications independently, but the battery life is reduced due to high power consumption

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveapplication execution capabilityVSAvoidpower consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

A smartphone acts as an intermediary device between the wearable device and remote servers. The wearable device sends data to the smartphone, which then handles complex computational tasks and communicates with servers, allowing the wearable device to maintain application functionality while minimizing its own power consumption.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Solution Approach 2:

Computational tasks are extracted from the wearable device and offloaded to the smartphone or remote servers. The wearable device retains only essential functions for basic operation and data collection, while heavier processing is performed externally on more powerful devices with larger batteries.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

2Volume of moving object

If the wearable device is made smaller to improve wearability, then comfort and portability increase, but the battery capacity and processing power are limited

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevice sizeVSAvoidcomputing power

Core Design Contradiction:

Volume of moving objectVSPower

Solution Approach 1:

The system architecture transitions from a single-device model to a distributed multi-device model. Computing power is not increased within the wearable device itself but is accessed through additional spatial dimensions by connecting to external devices (smartphone) and remote infrastructure (servers), effectively bypassing the physical size constraints of the wearable device.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Solution Approach 2:

The wearable device is designed to be universally compatible with various smartphones and server configurations. By standardizing communication protocols and data formats, the device can leverage the computing resources of different external platforms without requiring increased local processing power.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Productivity

If more processing power is added to the wearable device, then application performance improves, but the device weight and size increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveapplication performanceVSAvoiddevice weight

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSWeight of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The smartphone serves as a mediator that handles heavy computational loads. The wearable device maintains lightweight hardware but achieves high application performance by leveraging the processing power of the paired smartphone through wireless communication, avoiding the need to increase its own weight.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

4Speed

If the wearable device performs complex computations locally, then real-time processing is achieved, but battery drain increases significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprocessing speedVSAvoidbattery drain

Core Design Contradiction:

SpeedVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The wearable device performs only essential local processing for immediate sensor data and basic functions, while delegating complex computations to the smartphone or servers. This partial local action maintains sufficient real-time responsiveness for critical operations while avoiding excessive battery drain from continuous heavy processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentUS10684836B1Systems and methods for distributing application templates to wearable client devices

Publication Date: 2020.06.16 FITBIT INC

AI summary

Described systems and methods allow executing complex software applications on a wearable electronic device such as a smartwatch, while reducing energy consumption. Instead of installing the complete code necessary to carry out all aspects of the respective application, some embodiments install a subset of program instructions on the wearable device, and dynamically fetch selected fragments of code from a remote server computer system onto the wearable device, as needed to carry out specific operations. Such code fetches may be triggered, for instance, by the user's pressing a button of the wearable device, or by a gesture of the user.