JP2016140639A - Shoe with altitude measurement function - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a shoe with an altitude measurement function capable of accurately measuring an altitude of walking or jogging without receiving influence of an environment such as an atmospheric pressure variation due to weather at the time of jogging or walking.SOLUTION: A shoe with an altitude measurement function includes a pair of air pressure sensors 21, 22 arranged in a pair of shoe bodies, respectively and is capable of measuring an altitude based on an altitude value obtained by calculating a difference of measurement values by the air pressure sensors.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a shoe with an altitude measuring function having a function of measuring how much height has been climbed by walking or running.

When walking or jogging, the use of a pedometer or the like to measure the number of steps, distance walked, time, etc., and recording daily results, health promotion and health management are actively performed.
Recently, watch-type devices and shoes equipped with various sensors that detect and quantify physical or physiological changes during exercise as well as distance and time have been developed. It is now possible to confirm and analyze with simple methods. In addition, with the spread of portable digital communication devices such as smartphones and wearable terminals, data record management becomes easier, and daily results can be seen at a glance at any time.

  For example, Patent Document 1 describes a shoe equipped with a module device capable of measuring walking or running speed and distance, GPS information, pulse rate, heart rate, and the like and transmitting the data.

  One of the sensors is equipped with an altimeter, which is used to measure the altitude of the current location as the popularity of climbing and trekking increases.

  For example, the electronic device described in Patent Document 2 measures the atmospheric pressure with a built-in atmospheric pressure sensor and converts it to an altitude, thereby detecting a change in altitude and determining whether the current walk is up, flat, or down. be able to. In addition, the walking up distance, flat distance, and down distance can be recorded, and the user can experience the course.

  However, in the method of converting the measurement value obtained by the atmospheric pressure sensor to a high level as in Patent Document 2, the measurement is greatly influenced by changes in atmospheric pressure due to weather such as high pressure and low pressure, and it is not possible to know the approximate altitude. Although it is possible, it cannot measure altitude more accurately.

Also, Patent Document 3 describes a walking shoe that can prevent a tripping by a step, attach an acceleration sensor to the shoe body, detect the lifting amount of the foot, and notify the user when the amount is lower than a reference value. ing.
However, in the invention described in Patent Document 3, the altitude at which the user walks cannot be accurately measured.

JP 2012-115709 A JP 2012-168818 A Japanese Patent No. 5115673

  An object of the present invention is to provide a shoe having a function capable of accurately measuring the altitude when walking or running without being affected by the environment during running or walking.

The shoe with altitude measuring function of the present invention is
(1) It has a pair of atmospheric pressure sensors provided in each of a pair of shoe bodies, and is capable of measuring an altitude from an altitude value obtained by calculating a difference between measurement values by these atmospheric pressure sensors,
(2) A pair of atmospheric pressure sensors provided in each of the pair of shoe bodies, a pair of landing detection sensors provided in each of the shoe bodies, and the pair of atmospheric pressure sensors when the landing is detected by these landing detection sensors It is characterized in that altitude measurement is possible from the altitude value obtained by calculating the difference between measurement values.
By configuring in this way, in the shoes of (1) of the present invention, it is possible to cancel the influence of the weather, etc., and to realize accurate altitude measurement, and in the shoes of (2), the influence of the weather etc. is canceled. In addition, accurate altitude measurement for each step can be realized.

The shoes of the above (1) and (2) of the present invention are characterized by comprising (3) a data communication unit that transmits a measured value by an atmospheric pressure sensor and / or an altitude value obtained by calculation.
By configuring in this way, in the shoe of (3) of the present invention, the accurate altitude value that offsets the measurement value by the atmospheric pressure sensor and / or the influence of the weather, etc., is received from the external device that has received the data from the communication unit. Further processing can be performed at the terminal or the like.
Moreover, the shoe of said (1)-(3) of this invention is characterized by the operation part which converts the measured value by the said atmospheric | air pressure sensor highly (4) attached to shoes, or (5) It is an external terminal.
The shoes of the above (1) to (5) according to the present invention are characterized in that (6) the calculation unit can add up the difference between the measured values by the pair of atmospheric pressure sensors.
By adopting such a configuration, in addition to canceling out the influence of the weather and the like, it is possible to accurately measure how much altitude has been walked or run.

According to the shoes having the altitude measuring function of the present invention, not only accurate altitude measurement that is not affected by the weather etc. can be made, but also the following effects can be obtained.
An accurate altitude measurement for each step, an accurate measurement of how much altitude has been walked and run, and these accurate altitude values can be further processed by an external terminal or the like.

1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a shoe with an altitude measuring function according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an altitude measuring device mounted on a shoe with an altitude measuring function according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the altitude measurement apparatus of FIG. It is a schematic block diagram of the shoes with an altitude measurement function by the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the altitude measurement apparatus mounted in the shoes with an altitude measurement function by the 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows operation | movement of the altitude measurement apparatus of FIG.

  Hereinafter, a configuration of a shoe with an altitude measurement function according to a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In FIG. 1, a shoe body 1 is one of a pair (one pair) of shoe bodies (for a right foot or for a left foot), and a pressure sensor 2 is provided on a heel portion, in this example, a heel portion of a bottom member. . The portion where the atmospheric pressure sensor 2 is provided communicates with the outside air so that a change in the atmospheric pressure can be detected. The microprocessor 3, the communication module 4, the display unit 5, and the battery (not shown) as the calculation unit are places where the function of the shoe main body 1 is not impaired, such as the heel part. In this example, the microprocessor 3 is in the immediate vicinity of the pressure sensor 2. The communication module 4 is provided on the upper member above the microprocessor 3 in a portion extending between the bottom member and the upper member, and the display unit 5 is provided on the toe portion of the upper member that is easy for the wearer to see. Yes.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an altitude detection device provided in the shoe body 1. A pair of shoe bodies (one is shown in FIG. 1 and the other is configured in the same manner) are provided with atmospheric pressure sensors 21 and 22, and the atmospheric pressure values measured by the atmospheric pressure sensors 21 and 22 are obtained. Microprocessors 31 and 32 for inputting and converting to altitude values are connected.

A semiconductor pressure sensor can be used as the atmospheric pressure sensors 21 and 22 in order to accurately detect atmospheric pressure changes. This utilizes the effect of changing electrical resistance when a pressure is applied (piezoresistive effect), and includes a piezoelectric element (piezoelement), a detection unit for detecting changes in the electrical resistance of the piezoelectric element, and detected electrical resistance. It is a sensor provided with the conversion part which converts into a pressure value signal from a value. If the atmospheric pressure sensors 21 and 22 output the atmospheric pressure value of the digital signal, the microprocessors 31 and 32 are directly connected. If the atmospheric pressure sensors 21 and 22 output the atmospheric pressure value of the analog signal, they are connected via an AD converter. Connected to the microprocessors 31 and 32.
In addition, the semiconductor pressure sensor communicates with the outside air, and in order to be used for the shoes of the present invention, it is necessary to prevent intrusion of rainwater, dust, dust and the like. For example, the atmospheric pressure sensor is preferably covered with a moisture permeable waterproof material.

  The outputs of the microprocessors 31 and 32 are respectively sent to the communication modules 41 and 42, and between the two microprocessors 31 and 32 and between the external terminals 7 by wireless communication such as WiFi or Blue Tooth (registered trademark). The data can be sent and received. The display units 51 and 52 are connected to the microprocessors 31 and 32, respectively.

  Next, the operation of the altitude detection device in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In step 201, the microprocessor 31 receives the output value P1 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 21, and in step 202, based on the atmospheric pressure sensor output value P1, obtains an altitude value H1 corresponding thereto. In step 211, the processor 32 receives the output value P2 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 22, and in step 212, based on the atmospheric pressure sensor output value P2, obtains an altitude value H2 corresponding thereto. The conversion from the atmospheric pressure value to the altitude value can be performed based on the atmospheric pressure-altitude correspondence table stored in the memory, but can also be performed using a predetermined relational expression.

  In step 203, the processor 31 outputs the altitude value H1 to the communication module 41, the communication module 41 wirelessly transmits the altitude value H1, and in step 213, the communication module 42 receives the altitude value H1. In step 214, the microprocessor 32 calculates an altitude difference (H1-H2) between the altitude value H1 and the altitude value H2.

  By the way, the output value P1 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 21 at a certain point in time may deviate from the atmospheric pressure value corresponding to the altitude in the case of the standard atmosphere due to the weather. Also, the output value P1 differs between outdoors and indoors. For example, when a typhoon is approaching and the measurement location is at a low pressure, the atmospheric pressure is measured at a lower altitude than in the standard atmosphere. That is, the converted altitude value H1 is higher than the altitude value Hs1 in the case of the standard atmosphere. If the error due to the weather is He, H1 = Hs1 + He.

  On the other hand, the output value P2 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 22 is also affected by the same weather or the like, and the converted altitude value H2 is higher than the altitude value Hs2 in the case of the standard atmosphere. Due to the feature that the two atmospheric pressure sensors are attached to a pair of shoe bodies, the error He due to the weather is the same, and H2 = Hs2 + He. The altitude difference (H1−H2) is Hs1 + He−Hs2−He = Hs1−Hs2, and the error He is canceled out. Thus, an accurate altitude difference can be obtained by calculating the altitude difference (H1-H2).

  In general, each time the altitude is raised from the ground, the atmospheric pressure decreases by about 12 Pa. In the atmospheric pressure measurement generally performed, an atmospheric pressure sensor having a resolution (minimum atmospheric pressure difference that can be detected) of about 3 Pa is used, thereby detecting an altitude difference of about 30 cm. However, in the present embodiment, in order to measure the difference in altitude between a pair of shoes, that is, how much has been climbed every time one step is taken, a difference of about 0.5 to 20 cm can be detected, that is, from about 2 Pa. It is preferable to use a high-resolution barometric sensor. In addition, since a barometric sensor having a resolution of 0.3 Pa and capable of measuring an altitude difference of about 3 cm is put into practical use and commercially available, such a sensor may be used. Here, the resolution when a commercially available barometric sensor is used is the resolution of one sensor, and when taking the difference between a pair of sensors as in the present invention, even 0.3 Pa is 0.05 Pa (0.5 cm). ) Difference can be measured sufficiently.

  In step 215, the microprocessor 32 compares the altitude difference (H1-H2) with the reference value. In step 216, the microprocessor 32 supplies a display output to the display unit 52 according to the comparison result. This comparison result can be transmitted from the communication module 42 to the communication module 41, and the display output can also be supplied to the display unit 51. As the display units 51 and 52, a device that informs the user of information as appropriate, such as light display and sound display, can be used. For example, if a range from 1 cm to 5 cm is used as the reference value and the altitude difference (H1-H2) is within this range for a certain period of time, it is determined that the foot is not sufficiently raised and is walking like a pedestrian And it can warn that it is the walk which may stumble at a level | step difference. Moreover, it is also possible to use the range of 0.5 cm to 20 cm as a reference value for rehabilitation of the walking function.

As described above, when the shoes of the present invention are used, it is possible to assist walking and running of elderly people and care recipients in particular, such as use for preventing tripping and rehabilitation.
In step 217, the altitude difference (H1-H2) may be transmitted from the communication module 41 or 42 to the external terminal 7 and used when performing a mountain climbing simulation or a game using the shoes of the present invention. it can.

  In the above example, the altitude value H1 is received by the communication module 42, and the altitude difference (H1-H2) is calculated by the microprocessor 32. However, the altitude value H2 is received by the communication module 41, and the altitude difference ( H1-H2) may be calculated by the microprocessor 31.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. The shoe according to the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 differs from the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1 in that a landing detection sensor 8 is provided for each pair of shoes. The landing detection sensor 8 is, for example, a pressure sensor using a piezo element, a contact sensor, or the like, and can detect the impact or pressure fluctuation of the landing reliably and instantaneously at a place where walking is allowed. For example, from the base of the toes It can be provided, for example, between the insole and the bottom member, up to the stepped portion.

  Next, the configuration of the altitude measuring device mounted on the shoe in the second embodiment shown in FIG. 4 will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 5, pressure sensors 21 and 22 are provided for each pair of shoe bodies, and microprocessors 31 and 32 for inputting the pressure values measured by the pressure sensors 21 and 22 and converting them into altitude values are connected. ing. Further, landing detection sensors 81 and 82 are provided for each pair of shoe main bodies, and the sensor output determines whether the shoe main body is in a landing state ON or the shoe main body is in a separated state OFF. The landing detection sensors 81 and 82 are connected to the microprocessors 31 and 32. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG.

  Next, the operation of the altitude measuring apparatus in the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In step 501, the microprocessor 31 receives the output value P1 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 21. In step 502, the microprocessor 31 obtains an altitude value H1 corresponding to the output value P1 based on the atmospheric pressure sensor output value P1. In step 511, the microprocessor 32 receives the output value P2 of the atmospheric pressure sensor 22, and in step 512, based on the atmospheric pressure sensor output value P2, obtains an altitude value H2 corresponding thereto.

  In step 503, the microprocessor 31 inputs the first landing detection sensor output value L1, and in step 504, the presence or absence (ON, OFF) of the right foot shoe is determined from the landing detection sensor output value L1. Similarly, in step 513, the microprocessor 32 inputs the second landing detection sensor output value L2, and in step 514, the presence or absence (ON, OFF) of landing on the left foot shoe is determined from the landing detection sensor output value L2. To do.

  In step 505, the microprocessor 31 calculates the altitude value HL1 at the time of landing of the shoe for the right foot from the altitude value H1 obtained in step 502 and the landing presence / absence determination result (ON, OFF) obtained in step 504. On the other hand, in step 515, the microprocessor 32 calculates the altitude value HL2 when the left foot shoe lands from the altitude value H2 obtained in step 512 and the landing presence / absence determination result (ON, OFF) obtained in step 514. To do. These landing altitude values HL1 and HL2 are altitude values H1 and H2 when the shoes land, that is, when the landing presence / absence determination result is switched from OFF to ON.

In step 506, the processor 31 outputs the landing height value HL1 to the communication module 41, the communication module 41 wirelessly transmits the landing height value HL1, and in step 516, the communication module 42 receives the landing height value HL1. .
In step 517, the microprocessor 32 calculates a landing height difference (HL1-HL2) between the landing height value HL1 of the right foot shoe and the landing height value HL2 of the left foot shoe. By calculating the landing height difference (HL1-HL2), an accurate landing height difference can be obtained in this embodiment by the same principle as in the first embodiment.

  In step 518, the landing height difference (HL 1 -HL 2) is output to the communication module 42. This difference in landing height (HL1-HL2) is received by the external terminal 7. In step 519, the landing height difference (HL1-HL2) is integrated, and in step 520, the integrated value is output to the communication module 42. The integrated value of the landing height difference (HL1-HL2) is received by the external terminal 7. By summing the landing height difference (HL1-HL2), the wearer of the shoe can calculate the difference in height that he or she walked or ran, and walked or ran on the flat surface, uphill or downhill. It is also possible to determine whether or not walking or running history.

In step 507, the microprocessor 31 outputs the landing determination result ON1 to the communication module 41. In step 521, the microprocessor 31 receives the landing determination result ON1. In step 522, the microprocessor 32 accumulates the number of steps from the landing determination results ON1 and ON2. In step 523, the step count integrated value is output to the communication module 42. This step count integrated value is received by the external terminal 7.
In step 530, the microprocessor 32 compares the landing height difference (HL1−HL2) with the reference value, and outputs the comparison result to the display unit 52 in step 531.

In the above example, the landing altitude value HL1 is received by the communication module 42, and the landing altitude difference (HL1-HL2) is calculated by the microprocessor 32. However, the landing altitude value HL2 is received by the communication module 41, The landing height difference (HL1-HL2) may be calculated by the microprocessor 31. Further, other data can be exchanged via the communication modules 41 and 42, and the same display as the display unit 52 can be performed on the display unit 51.
The external terminal 7 is various portable electronic device terminals such as a smartphone and a wearable terminal, for example, and processes the acquired data and provides it to the user. As application software in the external terminal 7, it is possible to prepare a mountain climbing simulation and other games so that the user can know how much he has climbed and can experience virtual mountain climbing, and can use the acquired data. In addition, if the shoes of the present invention are used, the walking and running of elderly people and care recipients can be particularly assisted, such as use for preventing tripping and rehabilitation.

  In the first and second embodiments, the method of transmitting the altitude value calculated by the microprocessor attached to the shoes to the external terminal has been described. However, in the present invention, the calculation unit may be an external terminal. That is, it is also possible to transmit the measurement value measured by the atmospheric pressure sensor to an external terminal and perform data calculation at the external terminal.

  Moreover, the shoes of the present invention may be attached with a sensor other than the atmospheric pressure sensor and the landing detection sensor as necessary. For example, GPS, an acceleration sensor, an optical sensor, a magnetic sensor, etc. are mentioned.

In the above example, data is transmitted by the communication module. However, it is also possible to extract data using a recording medium by providing a slot such as a USB or SD card.
A barometric sensor or the like can be modularized by MEMS technology integrated on a substrate together with other electronic circuits.

Further, the present invention includes a mode in which the altitude detection device is detachably attached to the shoe. For example, it can be attached to a part that does not obstruct walking or running, such as the front, sand guard, or heel part, or it can be attached to a shoe ornament or strap type that can be attached to a shoelace hole, etc. Various correspondences are possible.
In addition, since this invention can measure an altitude if a pair of atmospheric | air pressure sensor can be attached below from a knee, it can also be attached and used for boots etc. besides sports shoes.

The shoes with altitude measuring function of the present invention can be used not only as general shoes but also by walking and running while wearing them, and can accurately measure altitude without being affected by the weather. Can do and
Accurate measurement of altitude for each step, accurate measurement of how much altitude has been walked / run, and further processing of these accurate altitude values, as well as health management in daily life Management of momentum can be carried out easily.
Furthermore, it can also be used as various simulation shoes or game shoes by using it to assist walking and running of elderly people and those who need care, climbing simulation, games, etc. The applicability in the shoe industry is great.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shoe body 2, 21, 22 Barometric pressure sensor 3, 31, 32 Microprocessor 4, 41, 42 Communication module 7 External terminal 8, 81, 82 Landing detection sensor

Claims (6)

A shoe having a pair of atmospheric pressure sensors provided on each pair of shoe bodies,
Shoes with altitude measurement function that can measure altitude from altitude values obtained by calculating the difference between the measured values by these barometric sensors. A pair of pressure sensors provided on each pair of shoe bodies;
A pair of landing detection sensors provided on each shoe body;
A shoe with an altitude measurement function that enables altitude measurement from an altitude value obtained by calculating a difference between measurement values obtained by the pair of atmospheric pressure sensors when landing is detected by these landing detection sensors.   The shoe with an altitude measuring function according to claim 1, further comprising a data communication unit that transmits a measured value by the barometric sensor and / or an altitude value obtained by the calculation.   The shoe with an altitude measuring function according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a computing unit that converts a measured value obtained by the atmospheric pressure sensor to a high altitude is attached to the shoe.   The shoe with altitude measuring function according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the calculation unit that converts the measurement value obtained by the atmospheric pressure sensor to an altitude is an external terminal.   The shoe with an altitude measurement function according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the calculation unit integrates a difference between measurement values obtained by the pair of atmospheric pressure sensors.

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