FR3102665A1 - Device for determining motion data - Google Patents

Abstract

Device for determining movement data. The device (1) for determining movement data is kept in contact with a part of the body of an operator by a support (6), the device (1) comprising a housing (2) in which at least a plurality are arranged. of motion sensors (3), a recording unit (4) of motion data and a wireless data transmission element (5) to a user system (15), the device (1) being removable from the support (6). The device can be positioned on different parts of the body in order to adapt to the constraints of a particular physical activity. Figure for the abstract: Fig. 1

Description

Movement data determination device

The present invention relates to a motion data determination device and a motion data determination system. The present invention also relates to an assembly for determining and processing motion data.

STATE OF THE ART

The use of connected objects is increasingly widespread in everyday life. These connected objects are usually worn on the wrist, on a watch. They allow, in addition to the display of the time, to monitor his heart rate, his number of hours of sleep, to time a time…

However, these common connected objects are generally not designed to monitor a particular physical activity by being attached to a part of the body other than the wrist.

In addition, there are sensors that can measure the sports performance of a player. This type of sensor is used in professional sports circles. For example, football players can be equipped with it during training. The sensors are generally fixed on a bra worn by the player in order to assess his position on the field, or on a leg or ankle strap to detect certain technical movements such as a pass, a shot, a jump, etc.

However, like connected watches, this type of sensor is configured to work on a particular part of the body. A sensor designed to measure leg movements cannot measure arm movements. A sports person who wishes to measure his performance in different sports must use different sensors, which is expensive.

None of these aforementioned solutions is fully satisfactory.

The object of the present invention is to remedy these drawbacks. It relates to a device for determining motion data.

According to the invention, said device is intended to be kept in contact with a part of the body of an operator by a support, said device comprising a casing in which is arranged a plurality of motion sensors configured to measure relative data values said movement data, said device also comprising a movement data recording unit configured to record at least said movement data and a wireless data transmission element configured to transmit said recorded movement data to a system user, said device being configured to be removable relative to the support.

Thus, thanks to the invention, an operator can use the removable device to measure his sports performance during different physical activities. Indeed, the device can be positioned on different parts of the body in order to adapt to the constraints of a particular physical activity. In addition, the device, which already includes basic functionality, also makes it possible to measure the particular technical movements of a part of the body.

Advantageously, the plurality of sensors comprises, at least:
- a gyrometer;
- a magnetometer; And
- an accelerometer.

Furthermore, the device comprises a groove made close to an upper face.

In addition, advantageously, said groove is configured to receive a projecting element so as to hold said device in said support, said projecting element being shaped like said groove, said projecting element being arranged on an internal face of said support.

In a particular embodiment, the transmission of the movement data by the transmission element is carried out by at least two wireless communication protocols.

The present invention also relates to a system for determining movement data, which is provided with at least one device for determining movement data such as that described above and with a plurality of supports intended to be arranged on different parts. of the body, said device being able to be fixed on the plurality of supports.

Advantageously, the system comprises a plurality of motion data determination devices.

The present invention also relates to an assembly for determining and processing motion data which is provided with a system for determining motion data as described above and with a motion data processing unit, said unit motion data processor being configured to process motion data transmitted by the motion data determination system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF FIGURES

The appended figures will make it clear how the invention can be implemented. In these figures, identical references designate similar elements.

Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a motion data determining device.

Figure 2 is a schematic representation of an operator provided with a motion data determination system.

FIG. 3 represents a device for determining movement data held in a support according to a particular embodiment.

FIG. 4 represents a device for determining movement data separated from a support according to a particular embodiment.

FIG. 5 represents a device for determining motion data held in a support according to another particular embodiment.

FIG. 6 represents a device for determining movement data separated from a support according to another particular embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The device 1 for determining movement data (hereinafter "device 1") making it possible to illustrate the invention and represented schematically in FIG. 1, is a device 1 making it possible in particular to determine data relating to the movements performed by an O operator during a physical activity as well as the position of the O operator.

To determine these movement data, the device 1 is kept in contact with a part of the body of the operator O by a support 6, as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The device 1 is also removable with respect to the support 6. The support 6 is, by way of example, part of a watch strap, a pocket attached to the back of the operator O, etc.

In the context of the invention, "movement" means the displacement of the part of the body in contact with which the device 1 is held. "Movement" also means the change of orientation of this part of the body. In the context of the invention, "movement data" means data relating to movements as defined above as well as position data.

The part of the body against which the device 1 is held depends on the physical activity of the operator O and the movement data which are sought to be acquired. As an example, Operator O's body part may be the wrist if Operator O plays golf or handball. Operator O's body part can also be the ankle or thigh if Operator O plays soccer, as shown in Figure 2. It can also be the back, chest, etc.

As shown in Figure 1, the device 1 has a substantially elongated shape along a longitudinal axis X-X. The device 1 is arranged in a longitudinal plane formed by the longitudinal axis X-X and a transverse axis Y-Y, the longitudinal axis X-X and the transverse axis Y-Y being orthogonal to each other. In the remainder of the description, a vertical axis Z-Z is also defined which is orthogonal to the longitudinal plane.

The adjectives "upper" and "lower" are defined with respect to the longitudinal direction Z-Z, so that the device 1 comprises a lower face which is in contact with a part of the body of the operator O and an upper face which is a side opposite to the bottom side. Device 1 has a flared shape along the vertical Z-Z axis so that the bottom face size is smaller than the top face size. To allow the acquisition of movement and position data without disturbing the operator O during any physical activity, the dimensions and the mass of the device 1 are adapted to the constraints of a large number of practicable physical activities. Preferably, the thickness of the device 1 along the vertical axis Z-Z is approximately equal to twenty-five millimeters and the mass of the device 1 is approximately equal to thirty grams.

Furthermore, as shown in Figure 1, the device 1 comprises a housing 2 which is rigid. Preferably, the case 2 is sealed. The housing 2 comprises a plurality of motion sensors 3 arranged inside it. Preferably, the plurality of movement sensors 3 can measure movement data values of the part of the body of the operator O against which the device 1 is held at a frequency comprised between 50 Hertz and 200 Hertz. In Figure 1, the elements shown in dotted lines correspond to elements included in the housing 2.

The plurality of motion sensors 3 may in particular include an accelerometer. "Accelerometer" includes both a tri-axis accelerometer and three single-axis accelerometers. The accelerometer measures acceleration values of the part of the body of the operator O on which the device 1 is held. Its acceleration values are associated with the acceleration along each of the longitudinal X-X (hereafter "X-X axis"), transverse Y-Y (hereafter "Y-Y axis") and vertical (hereafter "Z-Z axis") axes. In a particular embodiment, the accelerometer measures acceleration values along axes associated with combinations of axes X-X, Y-Y and Z-Z. The accelerometer makes it possible, for example, to measure the accelerations and decelerations of an operator O playing football.

Furthermore, the plurality of movement sensors can comprise at least one gyrometer which measures rotation values of the part of the body of the operator O on which the device 1 is held around at least one of the axes X-X, Y-Y and Z-Z. By way of example, if the device 1 is kept in contact with the calf of an operator O who is playing football, the gyrometer can measure a value of the rotation around the axes X-X, Y-Y and Z-Z when the foot of the operator O hits a ball.

The plurality of movement sensors 3 can also comprise a magnetometer which is capable of measuring, in real time, values of the magnetic field along each of the axes X-X, Y-Y and Z-Z. The magnetometer makes it possible to measure values of the orientation of the device 1. If the rotation values measured by the gyrometer are coupled to the orientation values measured by the magnetometer, the device 1 makes it possible to determine all the yaw movements of the part of the body of the operator O against which the device 1 is held in contact.

In a preferred embodiment, the device 1 also comprises a unit 4 for recording movement data. The recording unit 4 is arranged entirely in the housing 2. This recording unit 4 makes it possible to record the movement data associated with the values of acceleration, rotation and orientation which are measured by the plurality of sensors 3 of movement. Preferably, the recording unit 4 is capable of recording a quantity of data equivalent to three hours of activity by the operator O, i.e. 30 megabits if the measurement frequency of the plurality of sensors 3 is of the order of 100 Hertz.

The data generated by basic functionalities of the device 1, such as a clock, sleep monitoring, a stopwatch, a positioning by satellite type GPS ("Global Positioning Satellite" in English) are also recorded in the unit of recording 4.

In a preferred embodiment, the device 1 also comprises a detection element 13 arranged on the underside so that the detection element 13 is in contact with a part of the body of the operator O. In the embodiment preferred, the detection element 13 is capable, in particular, of detecting the heartbeat of the operator O.

In a particular embodiment, the device 1 comprises a motion data preprocessing unit 16, as represented schematically in FIG. 1. This preprocessing unit 16 acquires the motion data measured by the plurality of motion sensors 3 and basic functionalities and generates preprocessed motion data which is recorded by the recording unit 4. Preferably, the volume of this preprocessed data is less than the volume of the motion data, which makes it possible to record the equivalent of more three hours of activity by operator O.

Furthermore, the device 1 comprises a groove 11. This groove 11 is preferably annular. The annular groove 11 is made in a plane parallel to the longitudinal plane of the upper face of the device 1, as shown in Figure 4.

According to a preferred embodiment, the support 6 has the general shape of a ring around the vertical axis Z-Z and comprising an internal face 7. This internal face 7 is provided with a projecting element 12 which is shaped like the groove 11 of the device 1. The projecting element 7 is able to engage in the groove 11 so as to hold the device 1 together in the support 6. The projecting element 7 is preferably annular. As shown in Figure 4, the annular projecting element 7 is arranged in a plane formed by the longitudinal axis X-X and the transverse axis Y-Y in an upper part of the internal face 7. The projecting element 12 is also capable of be disengaged from the groove 11 of the device 1 so as to no longer hold the device 1 in the support 6.

Furthermore, in a particular embodiment, the recording unit 4 comprises an internal part, which is arranged inside the casing 2 and an external part which is arranged outside the casing 2.

In this particular embodiment, the dimensions and the shape of the external part conform to the dimensions and the shape of a housing (not shown) of the support 6. This conformation allows the engagement of the external part in the housing of the support so that the device 1 is held in the support 6. Furthermore, the external part is also capable of being disengaged from the housing of the support 6. If the external part is not engaged in the housing of the support 6, the device 1 is not held in the support 6. The external part therefore allows the device 1 to be removable with respect to the support 6.

As shown in Figure 1, the device 1 comprises a power source 8 arranged in the housing 2 and which ensures the operating autonomy of the device 1. This power source 8 can be, for example, a battery. Thus, the size of the battery participates in reducing the size of the device 1. The capacity of the power source 8 must be less than 300 milliampere-hours. It is preferably less than 200 milliampere-hours.

In a preferred embodiment, the device 1 further comprises a data transmission element 5 . This transmission element 5 transmits the movement data as well as other types of data recorded in the recording unit 4 to a user system 15. The user system 15 can be, for example, a telephone, a tablet, etc.

In a preferred embodiment, the transmission of movement data by the transmission element 5 is carried out by two wireless communication protocols. These protocols are of the Bluetooth type. A first protocol is associated with low power consumption and low data rate. A second protocol is associated with higher power consumption and higher data throughput.

The first protocol is a communication protocol of the Bluetooth low consumption type or otherwise called BLE ("Bluetooth Low Energy" in English) consuming little energy but with a data rate of the order of 0.1 megabits per second. The second protocol is a Bluetooth type communication protocol with enhanced data transfer or otherwise called BT EDR (Bluetooth Enhanced Data Rate) which allows a throughput of the order of 3 megabits per second. The combination of two different wireless communication protocols allows both use of the device 1 for several days and rapid transfer of movement data to the user system 15.

Furthermore, in a preferred embodiment, the device 1 comprises display means 9 on the flat upper face opposite the lower face in contact with the part of the operator's body O. By way of example, these means display 9 are a screen allowing access to certain data. Preferably, the data displayed on the display means 9 are displayed in real time. The operator O can, for example, display the time, his heart rate, his number of hours of sleep, etc. In this preferred embodiment, the width and the length of the display means 9 can be respectively approximately equal to twenty millimeters and thirty millimeters.

In addition, the device 1 comprises an activation element 10. This activation element 10 is configured to perform various functions when the operator O touches it. By way of example, the activation element 10 can control the display of data on the display means 9. It can also, for example, control the stopping or the starting of a recording of movement data or of data from basic functionality. The activation element 10 can be a button, a touch zone, etc. This activation element 10 can also be a plurality of buttons 10B, as shown in Figures 5 and 6.

Device 1, as described above, can be used in numerous applications.

In a preferred application, the device 1 is fixed on a support 6, among a plurality of supports 6 included in a system for determining movement data S. Such a determination system S determines movement data as a function of the part of the body against which the device 1 is held by the support 6. The device 1 being removable with respect to a support 6, it can be moved to another support 6, for example, a support 6 arranged against the ankle of an operator O, as represented in FIG. 2. It can also make it possible to determine movement data when it is fixed on a support 6 in the back of the O operator.

In a particular embodiment, the determination system S comprises several devices 1. Each device 1 is arranged on a support 6 and each support 6 is fixed to a part of the body of the operator O. The number of device 1 is less or equal to support number 6 of system S.

The determination system S is also included in a movement data determination and processing assembly so that the movement data transmitted by the transmission element 5 of each of the devices 1 of the movement data determination system S are processed by a processing unit 14 included in the determination and processing assembly. This processing unit 14 is included in the user system 15. By way of example, this motion data processing unit 14 is a central processing unit.

A particular application of the device 1 for determining movement data is described below.

To determine data specific to a physical activity, for example, the positioning of a football player during a match, the device or devices 1 can be arranged on different supports 6 which each keep them in contact with a specific part. of the player's body (operator O). The player can thus be provided with a leg guard on which are fixed a support 6 and a device 1 and with a pocket fixed on the back in which another device 1 can be arranged. The plurality of sensors 3 then measures values of acceleration, rotation and orientation on each part of the body on which a device 1 is maintained. These values are recorded in the recording unit 4. In a particular embodiment, these movement data are processed by the pre-processing unit. The operator O has access, via the display means 9, to this movement data. They are then transmitted to the processing unit 14 of the user system 15. The transmission is carried out by the BLE and BT EDR protocols. These movement data are then processed by the processing unit 14.

The devices 1 can be used again, once arranged on a support 6 fixed to one or more parts of the body different from the operator O.

The movement data determination system S, as described above, has the following advantages:
- it integrates, in addition to the basic functionalities of connected watches, motion sensor functions; And
- the devices 1 being removable, it is possible to use them on different parts of the body.

Claims (7)

Device for determining movement data, intended to be kept in contact with a part of the body of an operator O by a support (6), said device (1) comprising a casing (2) in which a plurality of sensors are arranged device (3) configured to measure data values relating to movements, said movement data, said device (1) also comprising a movement data recording unit (4) configured to record at least said movement data and a wireless data transmission element (5) configured to transmit said recorded movement data to a user system (15), said device (1) being configured to be removable relative to the support (6),
said device (1) being characterized in that it comprises a groove (11) made close to an upper face. Device according to claim 1,
characterized in that the plurality of sensors (3) comprises, at least:
- a gyrometer;
- a magnetometer; And
- an accelerometer. Device according to any one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that said groove (11) is configured to receive a projecting element (12) so as to hold said device (1) in said support (6), said projecting element (12) being shaped like said groove (11), said projecting element (12) being arranged on an internal face (7) of said support (6). Device according to any one of the preceding claims,
characterized in that the transmission of the movement data by the transmission element (5) is carried out by at least two wireless communication protocols. Motion data determination system,
characterized in that it comprises at least one device (1) for determining movement data such as that specified in claims 1 to 4, and a plurality of supports (6) intended to be arranged on different parts of the body, said device (1) being adapted to be fixed on the plurality of support (6). 6. System according to claim 5,
characterized in that it comprises a plurality of devices (1) for determining movement data. 7. Set of motion data determination and processing,
characterized in that it comprises a motion data determination system (S), such as that specified in claims 5 and 6, and a motion data processing unit (14), said processing unit (14) movement data being configured to process the movement data transmitted by the movement data determination system (S).