Apparatus and method for sensing of three-dimensional environmental information
AssigneeInternational Business Machines Corporation
InventorsGary W. Behm, Richard E. Von Mering
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus for providing information about a three-dimensional environment to a user includes; a handle, at least one sensor operatively coupled to the handle, a tactile pad disposed on the handle, a plurality of tactile buttons arrayed on the tactile pad, a plurality of actuators, wherein each actuator is operatively coupled to one of the plurality of tactile buttons to control a height thereof in relation to the tactile pad, and a processor which receives signals from the at least one sensor and controls positioning of the plurality of actuators to represent a physical environment sensed by the at least one sensor.
Claims10
1-10. (canceled)
A method of operating an apparatus that describes to a user a layout of a three-dimensional environment, the method comprising:
- transmitting a set of sensing signals from respective ones of a pair of transmitters to the environment from a transmitting position of the user;
- receiving a set of modified sensing signals from elements within the environment;
- and
- operating a plurality of actuators, which are operatively coupled to a plurality of tactile buttons, in accordance with the modified sensing signals to thereby control respective positions of the tactile buttons in real-time and to describe at least two spatial dimensions of the elements including a depth thereof, which extends towards/away from the transmitting position, and a width thereof, which is perpendicular to the depth thereof.
(canceled)
A method of operating an apparatus that describes to a user a layout of a surrounding three-dimensional (3D) environment, the method comprising:
- upon receipt of an initializing instruction from the user, transmitting a set of sensing signals from respective transmitters disposed along the apparatus to the environment from a transmitting position of the user;
- receiving a set of modified sensing signals from elements within the environment until receipt of an ending instruction from the user;
- repeating the sensing operation based on receipt of subsequent initializing and ending instructions from the user;
- processing the set of modified sensing signals from each of the sensing operations to thereby generate a map of the elements in the three-dimensional environment;
- and
- operating a plurality of actuators, which are operatively coupled to a plurality of tactile buttons, in accordance with the map to thereby control respective positions of the tactile buttons in real-time and to describe a depth of the elements, which extends towards/away from the transmitting position, and a width of the elements, which is perpendicular to the depth thereof.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.