US 8,184,983 B1Granted

Wireless directional identification and subsequent communication between wearable electronic devices

AssigneeGoogle Inc.

InventorsHarvey Ho, Babak Amirparviz, Luis Ricardo Prada Gomez, Thad Eugene Starner

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Abstract

Disclosed are methods, devices, and systems for exchanging information between a first wearable electronic device and one of a second wearable electronic device and an account at a remote computing device associated with a user of the second wearable electronic device. The first wearable electronic device intermittently emits directed electromagnetic radiation comprising a beacon signal, and receives, via a receiver coupled to the first wearable electronic device, a signal from the second wearable electronic device identifying one of the second wearable electronic device and the account at the remote computing device. An input may then be detected at the first wearable electronic device, and in response to receiving the signal and detecting the input, the first wearable device may transmit additional data to one of the second wearable electronic device and the remote computing device associated with the second user.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A method for exchanging information, the method comprising:

intermittently emitting, via a transmitter coupled to a first wearable electronic device, directed electromagnetic radiation comprising a beacon signal, wherein the beacon signal comprises an indicator of at least one communication mode of the first wearable electronic device;
receiving a beacon response from at least one additional wearable electronic device, wherein the beacon response comprises an indicator of at least one communication mode of the at least one additional wearable electronic device;
selecting a second wearable electronic device with which to communicate by aiming the directed electromagnetic radiation at the second wearable electronic device so as to include the second wearable electronic device within a limited beam width of the directed electromagnetic radiation;
receiving, via a receiver coupled to the first wearable electronic device, a signal from the second wearable electronic device identifying one of the second wearable electronic device and an account at a remote computing device associated with a user of the second wearable device;
detecting, via an input interface coupled to the first wearable electronic device, a predefined input associated with an instruction to transmit additional data to one of the identified second wearable electronic device and the account at the remote computing device associated with the user;
and
responsive to receiving the signal and detecting the predefined input, transmitting the additional data from the first wearable electronic device to one of the second wearable electronic device and the account at the remote computing device associated with the user, wherein transmitting the additional data from the first wearable electronic device to the second wearable electronic device comprises selecting a communication mode from at least one communication mode of the first wearable electronic device and at least one communication mode of the second wearable electronic device.

4 more elements

A wearable electronic device comprising:

a processor;
an input interface;
a transmitter coupled to the processor and configured to emit directed electromagnetic radiation;
and
a receiver;
wherein the processor is configured to:
select a second wearable electronic device with which to communicate with by causing the transmitter to intermittently emit directed electromagnetic radiation comprising a beacon signal, the directed electromagnetic radiation configured to transmit the beacon signal to one or more receiving devices disposed within a limited beam width of the directed electromagnetic radiation, wherein the beacon signal comprises an indicator of at least one communication mode of the first wearable electronic device;
receive, via the receiver, a beacon response from the second wearable electronic device, wherein the beacon response comprises an indicator of at least one communication mode of the second wearable electronic device, and a signal from a second wearable electronic device identifying one of the second wearable electronic device and an account at a remote computing device associated with a user of the second wearable device;
detect a predefined input via the input interface associated with an instruction to transmit additional data to one of the identified second wearable electronic device and the account at the remote computing device associated with the user;
and
responsive to receiving the signal and detecting the predefined input, cause the transmitter to transmit the additional data to one of the second wearable electronic device and the account at the remote computing device associated with the user, wherein cause the transmitter to transmit the additional data to one of the second wearable electronic device further comprises the selection of a communication mode from the at least one communication mode of the first wearable electronic device and the at least one communication mode of the second wearable electronic device.

8 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.