# US 9,750,977 B2 · Hybrid angular motion sensors > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 9,750,977 B2 - Document ID: US9750977B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/213,238 - Filed: 2016-07-18 - Published: 2016-11-10 - Granted: 2017-09-05 - Earliest claimed: 2014-09-23 - Assignees: Fitbit, Inc. - Applicants: Fitbit, Inc. - Inventors: Shelten Gee Jao Yuen; Jung Ook Hong - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9750977B2 ## CPC - A63B 24/0062: {Monitoring athletic performances, e.g. for determining the work of a user on an exercise apparatus, the completed jogging or cycling distance} - A61B 5/681: {Wristwatch-type devices} - A61L 2/00: Disinfection or sterilisation of materials or objects, in general; Accessories therefor - A61L 2/07: Steam - A61L 2/26: Accessories - A61L 9/00: Disinfection, sterilisation or deodorisation of air (body deodorants A61Q15/00; purifying air by respirators A62B, A62D9/00; separating dispersed particles from gases or vapours B01D45/00 - B01D51/00, B03C3/00; chemical or biological purification of waste gases B01D53/34; production of ozone C01B13/10; air-conditioning systems incorporating sterilisation F24F3/16, F24F8/20) - A63B 21/072: Dumb-bells, bar-bells or the like {, e.g. weight discs having an integral peripheral handle} - A63B 22/0605: {performing a circular movement, e.g. ergometers} - A63B 22/0664: {performing an elliptic movement} - A63B 60/46: Measurement devices associated with golf clubs, bats, rackets or the like for measuring physical parameters relating to sporting activity, e.g. baseball bats with impact indicators or bracelets for measuring the golf swing - B60B 33/00: Castors in general {; Anti-clogging castors} (castors for large containers B65D90/18) - G01C 19/5607: using vibrating tuning forks (double-ended tuning forks using planar vibrating masses suspended at opposite ends G01C19/5719) - G01C 21/166: {Mechanical, construction or arrangement details of inertial navigation systems} - G01P 3/44: for measuring angular speed (G01P3/56 takes precedence) - G01P 7/00: Measuring speed by integrating acceleration (measuring travelled distance by double integration of acceleration G01C21/16) - G01P 15/0888: {for indicating angular acceleration} - A63B 2220/12: Absolute positions, e.g. by using GPS - A63B 2220/17: Counting, e.g. counting periodical movements, revolutions or cycles, or including further data processing to determine distances or speed - A63B 2220/20: Distances or displacements - A63B 2220/30: Speed - A63B 2220/44: Angular acceleration - A63B 2220/70: Measuring or simulating ambient conditions, e.g. weather, terrain or surface conditions - A63B 2220/72: Temperature - A63B 2220/75: Humidity - A63B 2220/76: Wind conditions - A63B 2230/75: calorie expenditure - A63B 2244/20: Swimming - G01P 15/00: Measuring acceleration; Measuring deceleration; Measuring shock, i.e. sudden change of acceleration - Y10T 29/49828: Progressively advancing of work assembly station or assembled portion of work - A63B: APPARATUS FOR PHYSICAL TRAINING, GYMNASTICS, SWIMMING, CLIMBING, OR FENCING; BALL GAMES; TRAINING EQUIPMENT (apparatus for passive exercising, massage A61H) - A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D) - A61L: METHODS OR APPARATUS FOR STERILISING MATERIALS OR OBJECTS IN GENERAL; DISINFECTION, STERILISATION OR DEODORISATION OF AIR; CHEMICAL ASPECTS OF BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES; MATERIALS FOR BANDAGES, DRESSINGS, ABSORBENT PADS OR SURGICAL ARTICLES (preservation of bodies or disinfecting characterised by the agents employed A01N; preserving, e.g. sterilising, food or foodstuffs A23; preparations for medical, dental or toiletry purposes A61K) - B60B: VEHICLE WHEELS (making wheels or wheel parts by rolling B21H1/00, by forging, hammering or pressing B21K1/28); CASTORS; AXLES FOR WHEELS OR CASTORS; INCREASING WHEEL ADHESION - G01C: MEASURING DISTANCES, LEVELS OR BEARINGS; SURVEYING; NAVIGATION; GYROSCOPIC INSTRUMENTS; PHOTOGRAMMETRY OR VIDEOGRAMMETRY (measuring liquid level G01F; radio navigation, determining distance or velocity by use of propagation effects, e.g. Doppler effects, propagation time, of radio waves, analogous arrangements using other waves G01S) - G01P: MEASURING LINEAR OR ANGULAR SPEED, ACCELERATION, DECELERATION, OR SHOCK; INDICATING PRESENCE, ABSENCE, OR DIRECTION, OF MOVEMENT (measuring or recording blood flow A61B5/02, A61B8/06; monitoring speed or deceleration of electrically-propelled vehicles B60L3/00; vehicle lighting systems adapted to indicate speed B60Q1/54; determining position or course in navigation, measuring ground distance in geodesy or surveying G01C; combined measuring devices for measuring two or more variables of movement G01C23/00; measuring velocity of sound G01H; measuring velocity of light G01J7/00; measuring direction or velocity of solid objects by reception or emission of radiowaves or other waves and based on propagation effects, e.g. Doppler effect, propagation time, direction of propagation, G01S; measuring speed of nuclear radiation G01T; measuring acceleration of gravity G01V; {measuring or recording the speed of trains B61L23/00; speed indicators incorporated in motor vehicles B60K35/00; measuring frequency or phase G01R; traffic control G08G}) - Y10T: TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION ## Abstract A portable sensor device is provided. The portable sensor device may at least include a first angular rate sensor, a second angular rate sensor, and a gyroscope. The first angular rate sensor may include two or more accelerometers, whereas the second angular rate sensor may include an accelerometer and a magnetometer. In some instances, the portable sensor device may determine when to use the first angular rate sensor, when to use the second angular rate sensor, and when to use the gyroscope to obtain angular rate measurements indicative of angular motion of the portable sensor device. Further, the portable sensor device may determine one or more angular motion parameters describing angular motion of the portable sensor device using data from the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, the gyroscope, or combinations of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and/or the gyroscope. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A portable sensor device comprising: a first angular rate sensor including two or more accelerometers and first angular rate sensor control logic configured to provide angular rate measurements based on data from the two or more accelerometers, wherein at least two of the two or more accelerometers are positioned at spaced-apart locations along a common axis; a second angular rate sensor including an accelerometer, a magnetometer, and second angular rate sensor control logic configured to provide angular rate measurements based on data from the accelerometer and the magnetometer; a gyroscope including gyroscope control logic configured to provide angular rate measurements based on data from the gyroscope; one or more processors; and a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions which, when executed, cause the one or more processors to: (a) determine, based on at least information selected from the group consisting of: information derived from at least the first angular rate sensor, information derived from at least the second angular rate sensor, information indicating that a wearer of the portable sensor device is engaging in a particular activity, and information regarding battery charge level of the portable sensor device, when to use the first angular rate sensor, when to use the second angular rate sensor, and when to use the gyroscope to obtain angular rate measurements indicative of angular motion of the portable sensor device; (b) cause the second angular rate sensor to operate in a low-power state responsive to a determination in (a) that the second angular rate sensor is to not be used; (c) cause the second angular rate sensor to operate in a high-power state responsive to a determination in (a) that the second angular rate sensor is to be used, wherein the second angular rate sensor has a higher power consumption rate in the high-power state than in the low-power state; and d) determine one or more angular motion parameters describing angular motion of the portable sensor device using angular rate measurements from the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, the gyroscope, or a combination of two or more of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope as determined in (a). ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform (a) include instructions for causing the one or more processors to, at least in part, account for whether the one or more angular motion parameters indicate that the angular velocity of the portable sensor device is above a first angular motion rate threshold. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The portable sensor device of claim 2, wherein the first angular motion rate threshold is between 400 degrees per second and 600 degrees per second. ### Claim 4 (depends on 2) The portable sensor device of claim 2, wherein the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform (a) include instructions for causing the one or more processors to determine that at least two of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope are to be used concurrently under at least some circumstances and, in such circumstances, use the data from the at least two of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope in combination to provide the one or more angular motion parameters. ### Claim 5 (depends on 4) The portable sensor device of claim 4, wherein the data from the at least two of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope are combined using a Kalman filter to provide the one or more angular motion parameters. ### Claim 6 (depends on 4) The portable sensor device of claim 4, wherein the at least some circumstances include circumstances wherein the angular rate is above the first angular motion rate threshold and below a second angular motion rate threshold. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to: cause power used by the gyroscope to be reduced from a normal operating level to a reduced level during times when the one or more processors have determined that the gyroscope is not to be used; and cause the power used by the gyroscope to be increased to the normal operating level from the reduced level during times when the one or more processors have determined that the gyroscope is to be used. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The portable sensor device of claim 7, wherein the reduced level is a power level that causes a movable mass within the gyroscope to stop moving. ### Claim 9 (depends on 7) The portable sensor device of claim 7, wherein the gyroscope is off when in the reduced level. ### Claim 10 (depends on 7) The portable sensor device of claim 7, wherein the normal operating level is a power level that causes a movable mass within the gyroscope to move. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to use the one or more angular motion parameters as an input for determining one or more biometric performance metrics that are tracked by the portable sensor device and that are selected from the group consisting of: steps taken by a user of the portable sensor device, steps taken on an elliptical machine by the user of the portable sensor device, swimming strokes taken by the user of the portable sensor device, distance walked by the user of the portable sensor device, distance run by the user of the portable sensor device, bicycle pedal strokes taken by the user of the portable sensor device, resistance training reps taken by the user of the portable sensor device, stair steps climbed by the user of the portable sensor device, a calorie burn of the user of the portable sensor device, a heart rate measurement of the user of the portable sensor device, and combinations thereof. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The portable sensor device of claim 11, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to use the one or more angular motion parameters to determine a value of at least one of the one or more biometric performance metrics. ### Claim 13 (depends on 11) The portable sensor device of claim 11, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to use the one or more angular motion parameters to determine that the user of the portable sensor device is engaged in an activity associated with at least one of the one or more biometric performance metrics. ### Claim 14 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform (a) include instructions for causing the one or more processors to, at least in part, account for whether a predetermined activity of a user of the portable sensor device is detected by the portable sensor device. ### Claim 15 (depends on 14) The portable sensor device of claim 14, wherein the predetermined activity of the user is selected from the group consisting of: swimming, golf, a racket sport, yoga, tai-chi, pilates, elliptical machine use, free weights, cardio machines, and bicycling, and wherein the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform (a) include instructions for causing the one or more processors to determine that the gyroscope should be used when the predetermined activity is detected by the portable sensor device. ### Claim 16 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to (i) determine an activity being performed by a user wearing the portable sensor device and (ii) use at least one of the one or more angular motion parameters to characterize the activity. ### Claim 17 (depends on 16) The portable sensor device of claim 16, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to (iii) determine a second activity being performed by a user wearing the portable sensor device and (iv) use at least one of the one or more angular motion parameters to characterize the second activity. ### Claim 18 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the first angular rate sensor and the second angular rate sensor share at least one accelerometer of the portable sensor device. ### Claim 19 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the gyroscope is a microelectromechanical system (MEMS) tuning fork gyroscopic sensor. ### Claim 20 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to: use the gyroscope simultaneously with at least one of the first angular rate sensor and the second angular rate sensor during a calibration process, and calibrate the data from the at least one of the first angular rate sensor and the second angular rate sensor based on the data from the gyroscope. ### Claim 21 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to: (i) use the second angular rate sensor during a first time interval to collect data used to determine the one or more angular motion parameters during the first time interval, (ii) periodically use the gyroscope during the first time interval to collect data, wherein the gyroscope is placed in a reduced power level state when not used to collect data during the first time interval, (iii) determine that the one or more angular motion parameters determined from the data collected from the second angular rate sensor during the first time interval are inconsistent with the data collected from the gyroscope during the first time interval, (iv) use, responsive to the determination in (iii), the gyroscope during a second time interval following the first time interval to collect data used to determine the one or more angular motion parameters during the second time interval, (v) periodically use the second angular rate sensor during the second time interval to collect data, wherein the second angular rate sensor is placed in a reduced power level state when not used to collect data during the second time interval, (vi) determine that the data collected from the second angular rate sensor during the second time interval is consistent with the one or more angular motion parameters determined from the data collected from the gyroscope during the second time interval, (vii) use, responsive to the determination in (vi), the second angular rate sensor during a third time interval to collect data used to determine the one or more angular motion parameters during the third time interval, and (viii) periodically use the gyroscope during the third time interval to collect data, wherein the gyroscope is placed in a reduced power level state when not used to collect data during the third time interval. ### Claim 22 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein: the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to perform at least (a) and (e) for a plurality of data collection segments, the angular motion parameters determined for the first data collection segment of each pair of temporally adjacent data collection segments are determined using data from a first set of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, the gyroscope, or a combination of two or more of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope, the angular motion parameters determined for the second data collection segment of each pair of temporally adjacent data collection segments are determined using data from a second set of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, the gyroscope, or a combination of two or more of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope, and the first set is different from the second set. ### Claim 23 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the one or more angular motion parameters include data describing one or more items selected from the group consisting of: angular velocity, angular acceleration, and angular jerk. ### Claim 24 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the one or more processors to: (f) determine angular orientation of the portable sensor device based on data from the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, the gyroscope, or a combination of two or more of the first angular rate sensor, the second angular rate sensor, and the gyroscope. ### Claim 25 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions, when executed, cause the one or more processors to perform (e) by: (i) determining the one or more angular motion parameters, at least in part, using data from the first angular rate sensor when the first angular rate sensor is selected for use in (a) by the one or more processors; (ii) determining the one or more angular motion parameters, at least in part, using data from the second angular rate sensor when the second angular rate sensor is selected for use in (a) by the one or more processors; and (iii) determining the one or more angular motion parameters, at least in part, using data from the gyroscope when the gyroscope is selected for use in (a) by the one or more processors. ### Claim 26 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions for causing the one or more processors to perform (a) include instructions for causing the one or more processors to, at least in part, account for whether a battery charge level of a battery in the portable sensor device is above a first battery charge threshold. ### Claim 27 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the instructions further include instructions for causing the one or more processors to: cause power used by the first angular rate sensor to be reduced from a normal operating level to a reduced level during times when the one or more processors have determined that the first angular rate sensor is not to be used; and cause the power used by the first angular rate sensor to be increased to the normal operating level from the reduced level during times when the one or more processors have determined that the first angular rate sensor is to be used. ### Claim 28 (depends on 1) The portable sensor device of claim 1, wherein the accelerometers of the first and second angular rate sensors are tri-axial accelerometers and the magnetometer is a tri-axial magnetometer.