Technologies for ultrasound-based hinge angle estimation
AssigneeIntel Corporation
InventorSean J. W. Lawrence
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Techniques for ultrasound-based hinge estimation are disclosed. In the illustrative embodiment, a speaker in a base portion of a computing device generates an ultrasonic sound pulse. The pulse is sensed by a microphone in a lid portion of the computing device. The time-of-flight of the sound pulse from the speaker to the microphone is used to determine the distance between the speaker and the microphone. The angle of the lid portion relative to the microphone portion can then be determined based on the position of the speaker, the position of the microphone, and the distance between the speaker and the microphone.
Claims25
A computing device for determining an angle of a lid relative to a base of the computing device, the computing device comprising:
- speaker controller circuitry to generate, by one or more speakers in a first housing of the computing device, one or more ultrasonic sounds;
- microphone controller circuitry to sense, by one or more microphones in a second housing of the computing device, the one or more ultrasonic sounds, wherein the second housing is connected to the first housing by a hinge and is able to rotate relative to the first housing;
- and
- lid angle determiner circuitry to determine an angle of the second housing relative to the first housing based on a time between generation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more speakers and sensation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more microphones.
A method for determining an angle of a lid relative to a base of a computing device, the method comprising:
- generating, by one or more speakers in a first housing of the computing device, one or more ultrasonic sounds;
- sensing, by one or more microphones in a second housing of the computing device, the one or more ultrasonic sounds, wherein the second housing is connected to the first housing by a hinge and is able to rotate relative to the first housing;
- and
- determining, by the computing device, an angle of the second housing relative to the first housing based on a time between generation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more speakers and sensation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more microphones.
One or more non-transitory computer-readable media comprising a plurality of instructions stored thereon that, when executed, causes a computing device to:
- generate, by one or more speakers in a first housing of the computing device, one or more ultrasonic sounds;
- sense, by one or more microphones in a second housing of the computing device, the one or more ultrasonic sounds, wherein the second housing is connected to the first housing by a hinge and is able to rotate relative to the first housing;
- and
- determine an angle of the second housing relative to the first housing based on a time between generation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more speakers and sensation of the one or more ultrasonic sounds by the one or more microphones.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.