WO2023052752A1

WO2023052752A1 - System comprising article and electronics module

Info

Publication number: WO2023052752A1
Application number: PCT/GB2022/052442
Authority: WO
Inventors: Michael John Lynch
Original assignee: Prevayl Innovations Limited
Priority date: 2021-09-29
Filing date: 2022-09-27
Publication date: 2023-04-06
Also published as: GB202113910D0; GB2611308A

Abstract

An article (100) comprising an antenna (101). An electronics module (200) comprises a housing, one or more electrical contacts (201), an RF-to-DC converter (203) and an energy storage device (205). The electrical contacts (201) electrically couple to the antenna (101) and receive wireless energy via the antenna (101) when positioned on the article (100). The RF-to-DC converter (203) is disposed within the housing and converts RF energy received via the contacts (201) to a DC output. The energy storage device (205) is disposed within the housing and is supplied with the DC output such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device (205) is increased.

Description

SYSTEM COMPRISING ARTICLE AND ELECTRONICS MODULE

The present invention is directed towards a system, garment hanger, electronics module and wearable assembly.

Background

Wearable articles can be designed to interface with a user of the article, and to determine information such as the user's heart rate, rate of respiration, activity level, and body positioning. Such properties can be measured with a sensor assembly that includes a sensor for signal transduction and/or microprocessors for analysis. The articles include electrically conductive pathways to allow for signal transmission between an electronics module for processing and communication and sensing components of the article. The wearable articles may be garments. Such garments are commonly referred to as ‘smart clothing’ and may also be referred to as ‘biosensing garments’ if they measure biosignals.

Electronics modules are small electronic devices that may either be integrally formed with or removably coupled to the wearable article. Electronics modules can comprise internal sensors for performing the measurement functions or may communicatively couple with sensing components such as electrodes incorporated into the wearable article.

Existing electronics modules typically comprise an internal rechargeable lithium polymer battery, that is recharged via a USB interface, or a non-rechargeable coin cell battery. Both approaches are inconvenient for the user as the user needs to either connect the electronics module to a power source for charging or remove and replace the expired battery. This is a particular problem when many electronics modules are desired to be charged at the same time such as in industrial, team sports, or healthcare settings.

The use of wireless charging to charge electronics modules is desirable as it avoids the need to use a physical wired interface such as a USB interface. Inductive charging is one known form of wireless charging. Inductive charging can be implemented by providing a wireless receiver coil in the electronics module. When the electronics module is positioned on a charging pad that includes a wireless transmitter coil, power can be transferred to the electronics module for charging

While inductive charging avoids the need for a wired interface, it still requires that the electronics module is positioned in close proximity to the charging pad. Moreover, if many electronics modules are desired to be charged at the same time, then a corresponding number of charging pads need to be provided. This can be inconvenient for the user particularly in industrial, healthcare or team sports settings where are large number of electronics modules may be desired to be charged simultaneously.

Long-range wireless power transfer mechanisms also exist. These mechanisms involve broadcasting radio frequency (RF) energy. A device that receives the RF energy can convert the RF energy into direct current DC) power using an RF-to-DC converter. An example long-range wireless power transfer system is Powercast (RTM) provided by Powercast Corporation headquartered in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, United States of America. Long-range wireless power transfer mechanisms require relatively large antennas. For example, the Powercast (RTM) system operates at a frequency of 915Mhz. This requires a dipole antenna with an approximate length of 16 cm as determined according to the equation:

Length (in metres) = 143/frequency (in MHz).

Such large antennas are not able to be incorporated into existing electronics modules which generally have a far smaller form factor. Small form factors are required for the electronics module to be comfortable and unobtrusive when worn. An electronics module (excluding additional components such as straps) typically has dimensions of less than 100mm x 100 mm x 50 mm.

It is an object of the disclosure to provide an electronics module with a smaller form factor that can be charged using long-range wireless power transfer mechanisms.

Summary

According to the present disclosure there is provided a system, garment hanger, electronics module and wearable assembly as set forth in the appended claims. Other features of the invention will be apparent from the dependent claims, and the description which follows.

According to a first aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a system. The system comprises an article comprising an antenna. The system comprises an electronics module. The electronics module comprises a housing. The electronics module comprises one or more electrical contacts. The one or more electrical contacts are configured to electrically couple to the antenna and receive wireless energy (in the form of RF energy) via the antenna when positioned on the article. The electronics module comprises an RF-to-DC converter disposed within the housing. The RF-to-DC converter is configured to convert RF energy received, from the antenna, via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output. The electronics module comprises an energy storage device disposed within the housing. The energy storage device is configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device is increased.

Advantageously, the electronics module is able to receive wireless energy without requiring an antenna to be disposed within the housing of the electronics module. Instead, a separate antenna of the article is used to receive wireless energy. This arrangement means that the form factor of the electronics module is not required to be increased in order to accommodate the antenna.

The antenna is a wireless power receiving antenna and has a length determined by the frequency of the transmitted wireless energy. The antenna may have a length of between 10 cm and 35 cm. The antenna may have a length of between 10 cm and 20 cm. Other lengths of antenna are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The electronics module may be arranged to be removably coupled to the article.

The article may comprise an attachment mechanism arranged to removably couple with the electronics module. The attachment mechanism may be in the form of a mechanical interface such as a clip, a plug and socket arrangement, etc. The mechanical interface may be configured to maintain the electronics module in a particular orientation with respect to the article when the electronics module is coupled to the article. This may be beneficial in ensuring that the electronics module is securely held in place with respect to the article and/or that the electronic coupling of the electronics module and the article can be optimized. The mechanical coupling may be maintained using friction or a positively engaging mechanism, for example.

The article may comprise a pocket sized to receive and temporarily retain the electronics module so as to couple the one or more electrical contacts to the antenna. The attachment mechanism may comprise the pocket.

The article may comprise a recess sized to receive and temporarily retain the electronics module so as to couple the one or more electrical contacts to the antenna. The attachment mechanism may comprise the recess.

The antenna may comprise a dipole, loop or folded dipole. Other antenna structures are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The article may be a garment hanger comprising a hanging structure; a body connected to the hanging structure. The body may comprise a central region and left and right shoulder support portions extending from the central region. The antenna may be provided on the body.

The hanging structure may comprise a hook.

The antenna may comprise a central region and left and right arms extending from the central region, wherein the left arm extends along the left shoulder support portion of the body, and wherein the right arm extends along the right shoulder support portion of the body.

The left and right shoulder support portions of the hanger may slope downwardly from the central region. The left and right arms of the antenna may slope downwardly from the central region.

The electronics module may be arranged to be positioned on the body of the garment hanger.

The electronics module may be arranged to be positioned on the central region of the body.

The central region of the body may comprise a recess sized to receive the electronics module.

The article may be a wearable article such as a garment.

The antenna may comprise a central region and left and right arms extending from the central region.

The left and right arms may slope downwardly from the central region. The central region may comprise a first connection terminal coupled to the first arm and a second connection terminal coupled to the second arm.

The left and right arms may form electrodes for monitoring biosignals from a skin surface of the wearer.

The electronics module may be configured to switch between receiving wireless power from the antenna and receiving biosignals from the antenna.

The wearable article may further comprise a sensing component. The sensing component may comprise one or more electrodes arranged to monitor biosignals from a skin surface of the wearer.

The one or more electrical contacts may be arranged to couple with the antenna. The electronics module may comprise a further one or more electrical contacts arranged to couple with the sensing component.

The electronics module may be configured to simultaneously receive wireless power from the antenna and biosignals from the one or more electrodes.

The antenna may comprise conductive yarn.

The system may further comprise a wireless transmitter configured to transmit wireless energy to the antenna. The wireless transmitter may be spatially separated from the article and the electronics module when coupled to the article.

In addition to the energy storage device, the electronics module may comprise a non-rechargeable battery such as a coin cell battery. The wireless energy received via the electrical contacts supplements that of the non-rechargeable battery such that the electronics module can operate for longerwithout requiring the non- rechargeable battery to be replaced.

According to a second aspect of the disclosure, there is provided an electronics module arranged to be coupled to an article. The electronics module comprises a housing; one or more electrical contacts, the one or more electrical contacts are configured to electrically couple to an antenna of the article and receive wireless energy (in the form of RF energy) via the antenna when positioned on the article; an RF-to-DC converter disposed within the housing, the RF-to-DC converter being configured to convert RF energy received, from the antenna, via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output; and an energy storage device disposed within the housing, the energy storage device is configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device is increased.

The electronics module may comprise a sensor such as an optical sensor. The sensor may be disposed in the housing. The sensor may be arranged to perform measurements while the electrical contacts receive wireless energy via the antenna.

The sensor may be arranged to operate in a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may consume more power than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher sampling rate than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher duty cycle than the second measurement mode. The sensor may comprise an optical sensor assembly comprising a light emitter and a light detector. The light emitter may emit light having a higher brightness in the first measurement mode as compared to the second measurement mode. In the second measurement mode the sensor may be disabled from performing measurements.

The sensor may be arranged to operate in the first measurement mode when the electrical contacts receive wireless energy via the antenna. The sensor may be arranged to operate in the second measurement mode when the electrical contacts do not receive wireless energy via the antenna. Advantageously, the sensor is able to operate in the higher power mode when the electronics module is being charged. This prevents excessive power drain of the electronics module while providing more accurate measurements using the sensor.

According to a third aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a garment hanger comprising: a hanging structure; a body connected to the hanging structure, the body comprising a central region and left and right shoulder support portions extending from the central region; and a dipole antenna comprising a central region and left and right arms extending from the central region, wherein the left arm extends along the left shoulder support portion of the body, and wherein the right arm extends along the right shoulder support portion of the body.

The hanging structure may comprise a hook.

The garment hanger may comprise an attachment mechanism arranged to releasably retain an electronics module.

The attachment mechanism may be in the form of a mechanical interface such as a clip, a plug and socket arrangement, etc. The mechanical interface may be configured to maintain the electronics module in a particular orientation with respect to the hanger when the electronics module is coupled to the hanger. This may be beneficial in ensuring that the electronics module is securely held in place with respect to the hanger and/or that the electronic coupling of the electronics module and the hanger can be optimized. The mechanical coupling may be maintained using friction or a positively engaging mechanism, for example.

The attachment mechanism may be arranged to hold one or more contacts of the electronics module in electrical contact with the antenna.

The attachment mechanism may be located on the central region of the body.

The attachment mechanism may comprise a recess sized to receive the electronics module. At least part of the central region of the antenna may be exposed to allow one or more electrical contacts of a removable electronics module to electrically couple with the antenna so as to receive wireless energy via the antenna.

The garment hanger may comprise an RF-to-DC converter, the RF-to-DC converter being configured to convert RF energy received via the antenna to a DC output.

The garment hanger may comprise an interface configured to use the DC output to supply energy to a removable electronics module.

The interface may comprise a wireless transmitter arranged to transmit wireless energy to the electronics module.

The wireless transmitter may comprise an inductive transmitter coil.

The interface may comprise one or more electrical contacts arranged to form a conductive connection with the removable electronics module.

According to a fourth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a system comprising: a garment hanger according to the third aspect of the disclosure; and an electronics module comprising an energy storage device, wherein the garment hanger is arranged to receive wireless energy via the antenna and use the wireless energy to supply energy to the energy storage device for increasing an energy storage level of the energy storage device.

The electronics module may comprise one or more electrical contacts, the one or more electrical contacts are configured to electrically couple to the antenna of the garment hanger and receive wireless energy via the antenna when positioned on the garment hanger.

The electronics module may comprise an RF-to-DC converter, the RF-to-DC converter being configured to convert RF energy received via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output for supply to the energy storage device.

The electronics module may comprise a wireless receiver antenna arranged to receive wireless energy transmitted by the garment hanger.

According to a fifth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided an electronics module for a wearable article, the electronics module comprising: one or more electrical contacts configured to form an electrical coupling with a conductive element of the wearable article; an RF-to-DC converter configured to convert RF energy received via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output; an energy storage device configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device is increased; an AC-to-DC converter configured to convert AC signals received via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output; and a processor configured to process a DC output received from the AC-to-DC converter. The processor and one or both of the RF-to-DC and AC-to-DC converters may be provided as part of the same controller structure.

The electronics module may further comprise a switching unit configured to route signals received from the one or more electrical contacts to either the RF-to-DC converter or the AC-to-DC converter according to a control signal received from the processor.

The switching unit may alternate between routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter and routing signals to the AC-to-DC converter.

The processor may be configured to adjust a duty cycle of the control signal to adjust the rate at which the switching unit alternates between routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter and routing signals to the AC-to-DC converter.

The processor may be configured to determine an operating context of the electronics module from contextual data received from one or more sensors and generate the control signal according to the determined operating context.

The operating context may comprise the activity level of the wearer of the electronics module.

The determined activity level may be classified into discrete levels of activity and the processor may be configured to generate the control signal according to the determined discrete activity level.

The electronics module may comprise a motion sensor. The controller may be configured to determine the activity level in response to data received from the motion sensor.

The operating context may comprise the location of the electronics module.

The electronics module may comprise a location sensor. The processor may be configured to determine the location of the electronics module in response to data received from the location sensor.

The operating context may comprise the heartrate of the wearer of the electronics module.

The electronics module may be configured to receive heartrate data from the conductive element of the wearable article via the AC-to-DC converter. The processor may be configured to determine the heartrate of the wearer of the electronics module in response to the received heartrate data.

The AC-to-DC converter and the RF-to-DC converter may be arranged to simultaneously receive signals from the one or more electrical contacts.

The electronics module may further comprise a signal decoupler positioned along an electrical path between the one or more electrical contacts and the RF-to-DC converter. The electronics module may further comprise a signal decoupler positioned along an electrical path between the one or more electrical contacts and the AC-to-DC converter.

The electronics module may comprise a sensor such as an optical sensor. The sensor may be disposed in the housing. The sensor may be arranged to perform measurements while the electrical contacts receive wireless energy via the antenna. The sensor may be arranged to perform measurements while the electrical contacts receive AC signals. The sensor may be arranged to operate in a first measurement mode while the electrical contacts receive wireless energy and may be arranged to operate in a second measurement mode while the electrical contacts receive AC signals.

The first measurement mode may have a higher power consumption than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher sampling rate than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher duty cycle than the second measurement mode. The sensor may comprise an optical sensor assembly comprising a light emitter and a light detector. The light emitter may emit light having a higher brightness in the first measurement mode as compared to the second measurement mode. In the second measurement mode the sensor may be disabled from performing measurements.

The electronics module may further comprise a switching unit configured to route signals received from the one or more electrical contacts to either the RF-to-DC converter or the AC-to-DC converter according to a control signal received from the processor. The processor may be arranged to control the sensor to operate in the first measurement mode when the switching unit routes signals received from the electrical contacts to the RF-to-DC converter. The processor may be arranged to control the sensor to operate in the second measurement mode when the switching unit routes signals received from the electrical contacts to the AC- to-DC converter. When the sensor operates in the first measurement mode, the processor may be arranged to control the switching unit to route signals received from the electrical contacts to the RF-to-DC converter. When the sensor operates in the second measurement mode, the processor may be arranged to control the switching unit to route signals received from the electrical contacts to the AC-to-DC converter.

According to a sixth aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a wearable assembly comprising: an electronics module according to the fifth aspect of the disclosure; and a wearable article comprising a conductive element, wherein the conductive element comprises a sensing unit, the sensing unit comprising an electrode, a connection terminal and a conductive pathway coupling the electrode to the connection terminal.

The wearable articles according to aspects of the disclosure may comprise one or more sensing components. The one or more sensing components may be arranged to measure one or more biosignals of a user wearing the wearable article. Here, “biosignal” may refer to any signal in a living being that can be measured and monitored. The term “biosignal” is not limited to electrical signals and can refer to other forms of non-electrical biosignals. The sensing components may be used for measuring one or a combination of bioelectrical, bioimpedance, biochemical, biomechanical, bioacoustics, biooptical or biothermal signals of the user. The bioelectrical measurements include electrocardiograms (ECG), electrogastrograms (EGG), electroencephalograms (EEG), and electromyography (EMG). The bioimpedance measurements include plethysmography (e.g., for respiration), body composition (e.g., hydration, fat, etc.), and electroimpedance tomography (EIT). The biomagnetic measurements include mag netoneurog rams (MNG), magnetoencephalography (MEG), mag n etog astrogram (MGG), magnetocardiogram (MCG). The biochemical measurements include glucose/lactose measurements which may be performed using chemical analysis of the user’s sweat. The biomechanical measurements include blood pressure. The bioacoustics measurements include phonocardiograms (PCG). The biooptical measurements include orthopantomogram (OPG). The biothermal measurements include skin temperature and core body temperature measurements. The sensing units may comprise a radar unit. The wearable article may sense a combination of external signals and biosignals of the user.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Examples of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figures 1 to 5 show different views of an example system comprising an article and an electronics module according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of an example system according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figures 7 and 8 show internal and external views of an example wearable article according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figures 9 to 11 show top, bottom and side views of an example sensing component according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figures 12 to 14 show top, bottom and side views of an example wearable article according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figure 15 shows an example system comprising an article and an electronics module according to aspects of the present disclosure;

Figure 16 shows a schematic diagram of an example electronics module according to aspects of the present disclosure; and

Figure 17 shows a schematic diagram of another example system according to aspects of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of various embodiments of the disclosure as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the various embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings, but, are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of various embodiments of the disclosure is provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

It is to be understood that the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

“Wearable article” as referred to throughout the present disclosure may refer to any form of article which may be worn by a user such as a smart watch, necklace, bracelet, or glasses. The wearable article may be a textile article. The wearable article may be a garment. The garment may refer to an item of clothing or apparel. The garment may be a top. The top may be a shirt, t-shirt, blouse, sweater, jacket/coat, or vest. The garment may be a dress, brassiere, shorts, pants, arm or leg sleeve, vest, jacket/coat, glove, armband, chest-band underwear, headband, hat/cap (e.g. a hard hat), collar, wristband, stocking, sock, or shoe, athletic clothing, personal protecting equipment, swimwear, wetsuit or drysuit

The garment may be a tight-fitting garment. Beneficially, a tight-fitting garment helps ensure that the sensor devices of the garment are held in contact with or in the proximity of a skin surface of the user. The garment may be a compression garment. The garment may be an athletic garment such as an elastomeric athletic garment.

The wearable article may be constructed from a woven or a non-woven material. The wearable article may be constructed from natural fibres, synthetic fibres, or a natural fibre blended with one or more other materials which can be natural or synthetic. The yarn may be cotton. The cotton may be blended with polyester and/or viscose and/or polyamide according to the particular application. Silk may also be used as the natural fibre. Cellulose, wool, hemp, and jute are also natural fibres that may be used in the wearable article. Polyester, polycotton, nylon and viscose are synthetic fibres that may be used in the wearable article.

The following description refers to particular examples of the present disclosure where the wearable article is a garment. It will be appreciated that the present disclosure is not limited to garments and other forms of wearable article are within the scope of the present disclosure as outlined above.

Referring to Figure 1 , there is shown a system 1 according to aspects of the present disclosure. The system 1 comprises an article 100 and an electronics module 200 positioned on the article 100. The electronics module 200 may be integrally formed with the article 100 or may be removably coupled to the article 100.

The article 100 comprises an antenna 101. The antenna 101 is suitable for receiving wireless energy over a long-range wireless power transfer mechanism. The antenna 101 may be arranged to receive wireless energy over a frequency range suitable for wireless power transfer. In general, the frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 8000 MHz.

The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 6500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 5500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 4500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 3500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 2500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 1500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 300 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 200 MHz. The frequency range may be between 10 MHz and 100 MHz.

The frequency range may be between 100 MHz and 7500 Mhz. The frequency range may be between 200 MHz and 7500 Mhz. The frequency range may be between 300 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 1500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 2500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 3500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 4500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 5500 MHz and 7500 MHz. The frequency range may be between 6500 MHz and 7500 MHz.

Example frequency ranges include between 400 MHz and 500 MHz, between 430 MHz and 440 MHz, between 800 MHz and 1200 MHz, between 850 MHz and 1150 MHz, between 850 MHz and 1150 MHz, between 1700 MHz and 2000 MHz, between 2400MHz and 2500 MHz, and between 5925MHz and 7125 MHz.. In some examples, antenna 101 is arranged to receive wireless energy at a frequency of 915 MHz as used by the Powercast (RTM) system. In some examples, antenna 101 is arranged to receive wireless energy at a frequency of 868 MHz.

The antenna 101 has a length suitable to receive wireless energy at the desired frequency. For a dipole antenna, the length is determined according to the equation:

Length (in metres) = 143/frequency (in MHz).

The electronics module 200 comprises an interface 201 arranged to couple with the antenna 101 of the article 100 so as to receive wireless energy from the antenna 101. The interface 201 comprises one or more electrical contacts 201 . The one or more electrical contacts 201 are electrically coupled to the antenna 101 and are configured to receive wireless energy via the antenna 101.

The electronics module 100 comprises a radio frequency to direct current (RF-to-DC) converter 203. The RF-to-DC converter 203 is disposed within a housing of the electronics module and is configured to convert RF energy received from the antenna 101 via the interface 201 to a DC output.

The electronics module comprises an energy storage device 205 disposed within the housing. The energy storage device 205 is configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter 205 such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device 205 is increased.

The energy storage device 205 may comprise a rechargeable battery or a capacitor (e.g. a super capacitor) amongst other forms of electrical energy storage devices.

The electronics module 200 may also include one or more matching circuits. These circuits may be utilised to tune the antenna impedance to achieve targeted performance characteristics. The system 1 enables the electronics module 200 to charge its energy storage device 205 using a long- range (far-field) wireless power transfer mechanism. The electronics module 200 receives the wireless energy via an antenna 101 of the article 100. The antenna 101 is not part of the electronics module 200 and is not disposed within the electronics module 200 housing. In this way, the form factor of the electronics module 200 is not required to be increased to accommodate the antenna 101 forwireless charging. Instead, the antenna 101 is provided as part of the article 100. The article 100 may be a wearable article such as a watch band, or garment. The article 100 may be an article associated with garments and other forms of wearable articles such as a garment hangerthat the electronics module 200 may be temporarily coupled.

The electronics module 200 may have a length of less than 100 mm, a width of less than 100 mm, and a depth of less than 50 mm. The electronics module 200 is thus unsuitable to incorporate an antenna 101 having a length of approximately 155 mm as required to receive wireless energy at a frequency of 915 MHz. This frequency range isjust an example The antenna 101 is preferably in the form of a dipole antenna 101 although other antenna constructions are available to the skilled person.

The electronics module 200 may have a length of less than 70 mm, a width of less than 70 mm and a depth of less than 30 mm. The length may be less than 50mm. The width may be less than 50mm. The depth may be less than 20mm. An example electronics module 200 Some examples has a length 38mm, a width of 25 mm, and a depth of 9.6 mm. The article 100 is larger than the electronics module 200 and provides more space for an antenna 101 suitable to receive wireless power.

Although not required in all examples, the article 100 further comprises a magnetic material 103. The electronics module 200 also comprises a magnetic material 207. Magnetic materials 103, 207 used to form a releasable magnetic coupling between the article 100 and the electronics module 200. This provides an attachment mechanism for mechanically coupling the electronics module 200 to the article 100.

Referring to Figures 2 to 5, there is shown an example system 1 comprising article 100a and electronics module 200 positioned on the article 100a.

The article 100a is a garment hanger. Garment hanger 100a comprises a hook portion 105 and a body 107 connected to the hook portion 105. The body 107 comprises a central region 109 a left shoulder support portion 111 extending from the central region 109 and a right shoulder support portion 113 extending from the central region 109. The left and right shoulder support portions 111 , 113 slope downwardly from the central region 109 to form an approximate inverted V shape.

The electronics module 200 is positioned on the body 107 of the garment hanger 100a. The electronics module 200 is removably coupled to the garment hanger 100’. The central region 109 of the body 109 comprises a recess 115 sized to receive the electronics module 200. Once positioned in the recess 115 the electronics module 200 is retained by an attachment mechanism which may comprise the recess 115 and optionally other components. The attachment mechanism may include the magnetic materials 103, 207 described above in relation to Figure 1 or may comprise a different form of attachment mechanism such as the use of studs, hook-and-loop fasteners or clips. In some examples, the recess 115 is tight enough to hold the electronics module 200 in place without the need for a separate attachment mechanism. That is, the recess 115 alone provides the attachment mechanism. Figures 3 and 4 shows the garment hanger 100a in isolation after the electronics module 200 has been removed. Conductive elements 117 are located in the recess 115 provided in the body 107 of the hanger 100a. The conductive elements 117 are conductively connected to the antenna 101 which is disposed within the body 107 of the hanger 100a (Figure 4).

The antenna 101 is a dipole antenna that has an inverted V shape which is also known as an inverted T shape. The antenna 101 comprises a central region 119, a left arm 121 extending from the central region 119 and a right arm 123 extending from the central region 119. The central region 119 is located within the central region 109 of the body 107 of the hanger 100a and is conductively coupled to the conductive elements 117. The conductive elements 117 may, in some examples, form an integral part of the central region 119 of the antenna 103.

The left arm 121 extends along the left shoulder support portion 111 of the body 107. The right arm 123 extends along the right shoulder support portion 113 of the body 107. The left and right arms 121 , 123 follow the downward slope of the left and right shoulder support portions 111 , 113.

Figure 5 shows the electronics module 200 in isolation. The electronics module 200 comprises a housing 209. The RF-to-DC converter 203 and energy storage device 205 are disposed within the housing 209. A plurality (two in this example) of electrical contacts 211 of the interface 201 are located on the external surface of the housing 209.

When the electronics module 200 is positioned in the recess 115, the contacts 211 of the electronics module 200 are brought into contact with the conductive elements 117 of the antenna 101. In this way, the RF-to-DC converter 203 is electrically coupled to the antenna 101 and is able to receive wireless energy from the antenna 101 for supply to the energy storage device 205.

The housing 209 is formed of a rigid material in this example. The housing 209 may comprise a (rigid) polymeric material. The polymeric material may be a rigid plastic material. The rigid plastic material may be ABS or polycarbonate plastic but is not limited to these examples. The rigid plastic material may be glass reinforced. The rigid housing 209 may be injection moulded. The rigid housing 209 may be constructed using a twin-shot injection moulding approach.

The two contacts 211 are in the form of contact pads 211 that are provided on an outer surface of the housing 209. The contact pads 211 are formed from a flexible, conductive, material, but this is not required in all examples. The contact pads 2111 are spaced apart from one another on the bottom surface of the housing 209. “Rigid” will be understood as referring to a material which is stiffer and less able to bend than the contact pads 211 formed of flexible material. The rigid housing 209 may still have some degree of flexibility but is less flexible than the flexible material of the contact pads 211. The contact pads 211 comprise conductive material, and thus act as conductive contact pads 211 for the electronics module 200.

The use of flexible conductors 211 is generally preferred as compared to rigid, metallic, conductors 211 as this means that hard pieces of conductive metallic material such as poppers or studs are not required to electrically connect the electronics module 200 to the article 100, 100a. This not only improves the look and feel of the wearable article but also reduces manufacturing costs as it means that hardware features such as additional eyelets and studs do not need to be incorporated into the wearable article to provide the required connectivity. An additional problem with rigid metallic conductors is that their hard, abrasive, surfaces may rub against conductive elements such as conductive thread of the garment and cause the conductive thread to fray. Rigid contact pads such as those made from a rigid metallic material are also within the scope of the present disclosure. The present disclosure is not limited to contact pads and other forms of electrical contacts such as studs, prongs or pins are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The contact pads 211 are formed of two separate pieces of conductive elastomeric material 211 that form first and second flexible contacts 211. The conductive elastomeric material used in this example is a conductive silicone rubber material, but other forms of conductive elastomeric material may be used. Beneficially, elastomeric material such as conductive silicone rubber can have an attractive visual appearance and may easily be moulded or extruded to have branded or other visual elements.

The elastomeric material is made conductive by distributing a conductive material into the elastomeric material. Conductive particles such as carbon black and silica are commonly used to form conductive elastomeric materials, but the present disclosure is not limited to these examples. The contact pads 211 may also comprise a 2D electrically conductive material such as graphene or a mixture or composite of an elastomeric material and a 2D electrically conductive material.

The contact pads 211 define an external surface that is textured to provide additional grip when positioned on the article 100, 100a. The texture may be, for example, a ribbed or knurled texture. The elastomeric material 211 shown in the Figures has a ribbed texture. The contact pads 211 may be flat and are not required to have a textured surface.

Figure 6 shows another example system 1 comprising a plurality (three in this example) of garment hangers 100a that are handing on a rail 3 in a wardrobe 2. Each of the garment hangers 100a has an electronics module 200 removably positioned thereon. Two of the garment hangers 100a also have garments 400 hanging from them.

A wireless transmitter 300 is provided in the wardrobe 2 and is arranged to transmit wireless energy. The wireless energy is received by the antennas 101 disposed within the hangers 100a and is used to supply energy to the electronics modules 200. In this way, the electronics modules 200 are able to charge while hanging within the wardrobe 2.

In some examples, electronics module 200 is permanently or removably coupled to a wearable article 400. The electronics module 200 may form a communicative coupling with sensing components of the wearable article 400 so as to perform sensing operations. The wearable article 400 could, for example, be a watch or a garment.

Figures 7 and 8 show an example garment 400 according to aspects of the present disclosure. The garment 400 is in the form of a top, and in particular a tank top also known as a vest or singlet. Figure 7 shows the garment 400 as worn. The external surface 402 faces away from the user. Figure 8 shows the garment 400 turned inside out. In Figure 7, the internal surface 404 faces away from the user. The combination of Figures 7 and 8 enable the internal and external components of the garment 400 to be viewed.

The garment 400 comprises a textile body 401 . The textile body 401 may be made of any fabric material as desired by the garment designer. The textile body 401 may be formed from a number of fabric panels that are attached together by seams. The textile body 401 may be integrally formed such as by being integrally knit.

The garment 400 comprises an electronics module holder 403 arranged to receive the electronics module 200. The electronics module holder 403 in this example is in the form of a pocket 403 with an opening that is accessible from the external surface 402 of the garment 400.

The garment 400 comprises a plurality (two in this example) of sensing components 500. The sensing components 500 are permanently attached to or integrally formed with the garment 400.

The sensing components 500 each comprise an electrode 507 that is located on the internal surface 404 of the garment 400. The electrodes 507 are arranged to contact the skin surface of the wearer when the garment 400 is worn so as to measure signals from the skin surface. The signals are generally bioelectrical signals. Bioelectrical signals include biopotential signals such as electrocardiogram signals and bioimpedance signals such as plethysmography signals.

When the electronics module 200 is positioned within the electronics module holder 403, the electronics module 200 is brought into communication with the sensing components 500 so that the electronics module 200 is able to receive signals from the electrodes 507. This enables the removable electronics module 200 to perform measurements of the wearer from electrodes 507 incorporated into the garment 400.

Figures 9 to 11 , show an example sensing component 500 according to aspects of the present disclosure.

The sensing component 500 comprises a fabric layer 501 which may be the same as or different to the textile body 401 in Figures 7 and 8. In some examples, the sensing component 500 is formed integrally with the rest of the garment 400 such that the electrode 507 and other components are provided directly on the textile body 401 . In other examples, the sensing component 500 is a separate component which is then integrated into the garment 400 such as by attaching the fabric layer 501 to the textile body 401 .

The sensing component 500 comprises conductive regions 503, 505, 507.

The conductive regions 503, 505, 507 comprise a connection region 503 that is arranged to form an electrical connection with a corresponding contact 211 of the electronics module 200 when coupled to the garment 400.

The conductive regions 503, 505, 507 comprise an electrode 507 for measuring biosignals from a skin surface of a wearer of the garment. The electrode 507 is electrically connected to the connection regions 503 by a conductive pathway 505. This enables information to be exchanged between the electrode 507 and the electronics module 200 when the electronics module 200 is electrically connected to the connection region 503. The connection region 503 and electrode 507 are provided on opposing surfaces of the fabric layer 501 . The electrode 507 is provided on a surface of the fabric layer 501 that faces the skin surface when worn. The connection region 503 and the electrode 507 can also be provided on the same surface of the fabric layer 501 .

The present disclosure is not limited to wearable articles that incorporate electrodes. Otherforms of sensing unit such as temperature sensors, hydration sensors, chemical sensors, motion sensors, and light sensors may be incorporated into the wearable article. The sensing units may be biosensors for use in measuring a biosignal. Electrocardiography (ECG) and electromyography (EMG) signals are examples of biosignals that may be measured by the sensing units.

The conductive regions 503, 505, 507 are formed from conductive yarn in this example which is knitted, woven or embroidered with the fabric layer 501 . In some examples, the conductive regions 503, 505, 507 are formed from a single length of conductive yarn which is integrally knit with the fabric layer 501 such as by using weft knitting on a flat bed knitting machine.

Referring to Figures 12 to 14, there is shown an example article 100b in the form of a garment 400 according to aspects of the present disclosure. The garment 400 may be the garment 400 of Figures 7 and 8. The garment 400 comprises a plurality (two in this example) of sensing components 500. The sensing components 500 are the same as the sensing components 500 described above in reference to Figures 9 to 11. Like reference numerals are used to indicate like components. The sensing components 500 may comprise a separate fabric layer 501 or may be directly provided on the textile body 401 of the garment 400.

The connection regions 503 of the two sensing components 500 are spaced apart from one another and are not electrically connected to one another. The connection regions 503 are separated by the non- conductive textile body 401 , 501. The pair of connection regions 503 are arranged to form electrical connections with a corresponding pair of contacts 211 of the electronics module 200 when coupled to the garment 400. The spacing of the connection regions 503 correspond to the spacing between the pair of contacts 211 of the electronics module 200.

Referring to Figure 15, there is shown a wearable assembly comprising the garment 100b, 400 of Figures 7 to 8 and the electronics module 200 of Figure 5. The electronics module 200 is positioned on the garment 100b, 400 and releasably held to the garment 400 by the electronics module holder 403 (Figure 7) of the garment 400. The holder 403 retains the electronics module 200 in a generally fixed position. When the electronics module 200 is positioned on the garment 100b, 400, the contacts 211 of the electronics module 200 are placed into conductive connection with the connection regions 503 of the garment 400. This enables to the electronics module 200 to receive measurement signals from the electrodes 507 via the conductive pathways 505 and connection regions 503.

Referring to Figure 16, there is shown an example electronics module 200 in accordance with the present disclosure. The electronics module 200 comprises an interface 201. The interface comprises one or more electrical contacts 211 that are configured to form an electrical coupling with a conductive element 503 (Figure 15) of a wearable article 400 (Figure 15).

The electronics module 200 comprises an RF-to-DC converter 203 configured to convert RF energy received from the antenna of the article via the one or more electrical contacts 211 to a DC output.

The electronics module 200 comprises an energy storage device 205 configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter 203 such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device 205 is increased.

The electronics module 200 comprises an AC-to-DC converter 217 configured to convert AC signals received via the one or more electrical contacts 211 to a DC output.

The electronics module 200 comprises a processor 213. The processor 213 is configured to process a DC output received from the AC-to-DC converter. The processor 213 is a component of a controller 213 such as a microcontroller 213. The controller 213 has an integral communicator such as a Bluetooth ® antenna 235. The controller 213 has an internal memory and is also communicatively connected to an external memory 241 of the electronics module 200 which in this example is a NAND Flash memory. The memory 241 has a storage capacity of at least 1GB and preferably at least 2 GB. The electronics module 200 comprises a motion sensor 237, a temperature sensor 239, and a light emitting diode 233 for conveying status information. The electronics module 200 also comprises conventional electronics components including an electrostatic discharge protection circuit 225, a power-on-reset generator 227, a crystal 229, and a PROG header 231.

The electronics module 200 comprises a switching unit 215 configured to route signals received from the one or more electrical contacts 211 to either the RF-to-DC converter 203 or the AC-to-DC converter 217 according to a control signal received from the controller 213.

In an example operation, the processor 213 generates and sends a control signal to the switching unit 215 to cause the switching unit 215 to switch between routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter 217.

In some examples, the processor 213 is configured to adjust a duty cycle of the control signal to adjust the rate at which the switching unit 215 alternates between routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203 and routing signals to the AC-to-DC converter 217. The control signal may be a pulsed signal such as a square wave signal. The present disclosure is not limited to this arrangement and other forms of control signal are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The electronics module 200 comprises housing 209. Components of the electronics module 209 such as the switching unit 215, RF-to-DC converter 203, energy storage device 205, processor 213, AC-to-DC converter 217 are provided within housing 209. Electrical contacts 211 are located on an external surface of the housing 209 as shown in Figures 5 and 15. Energy storage device 205 in this example comprises a charge controller 219 and a rechargeable lithium polymer batter 221 . A USB C input 223 is also provided to allow for the battery 221 to be charged using a wired connection as well if desired. The USB C input 223 is optional. In this example it is provided so as to enable another route for charging if wireless power transfer is not available.

The electronics module 200 is arranged to communicatively couple to a user electronic device over a wireless network. The electronics module 200 is arranged to wirelessly communicate data to the user electronic device. Various protocols enable wireless communication between the electronics module 200 and the user electronic device. Example communication protocols include Bluetooth ®, Bluetooth ® Low Energy, and a magnetic induction-based communication protocol such as near-field communication (NFC). The electronics module 200 in this example comprises a Bluetooth communicator 235 and an NFC communicator 237 to facilitate communication over Bluetooth and NFC communication protocols.

The electronics module 200 is not limited to these communication protocols. Generally, the communicator 235, 247 provides wireless communication capabilities for the wearable article and enables the wearable article to communicate via one or more wireless communication protocols such as used for communication over: a wireless wide area network (WWAN), a wireless metroarea network (WMAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), a wireless personal area network (WPAN), Bluetooth ® Low Energy, Bluetooth ® Mesh, Bluetooth ® 5, Thread, Zigbee, IEEE 802.15.4, Ant, Ant+ a near field communication (NFC), a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), a cellular communication network, or any other electromagnetic RF communication protocol. The cellular communication network may be a fourth generation (4G) LTE, LTE Advanced (LTE-A), LTE Cat-M1 , LTE Cat-M2, NB-loT, fifth generation (5G), sixth generation (6G), and/or any other present or future developed cellular wireless network. A plurality of communicators may be provided for communicating over a combination of different communication protocols.

In an example use case of the electronics module 200 as described above, the switching unit 215 is configured to, by default, route signals received via the contacts 211 to the AC-to-DC converter 217.

The electronics module 200 in this example is able to be removably coupled to an article 100 such as a garment hanger 100a (Figure 2) or a garment 100b, 400 (Figure 15).

The electronics module 200 is positioned in the garment pocket 403 (Figure 7) and the garment 100b, 400 is worn. Since the garment 100b, 400 is being worn, the electrodes 507 (Figure 15) are placed in contact with the skin surface of the wearer and biosignals are received via the contacts 211 .

The receiving of signals via the contacts 211 may cause an interrupt signal to be sent to the processor 213 to wake the processor 213 from a sleep state. The processor 213 may then detect from the received biosignals that the electronics module 200 is coupled to the garment 100b, 400 and that the garment 100b, 400 is being worn. This may involve the processor determining that the received biosignals are characteristic of the garment 100b, 400 being worn, e.g. they have properties of ECG signals. Other metrics such as from the temperature sensor 239 or motion sensor 237 may be used additionally or separately to indicate that the electronics module 200 is coupled to a garment 100b, 400 that is being worn. Since the processor 213 determines that electronics module 200 is coupled to the garment 100b, 400 and the garment 100b, 400 is being worn, the processor 213 does not cause the switching unit 215 to route signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203. This may mean that the processor 213 does not send any switching signals to the switching unit 215 or the processor 213 alters the duty cycle of the control signal either to a duty cycle of 100% or 0%.

At the end of a training session, the user may remove their electronics module 200 form the garment pocket 403 and couple the electronics module 200 to the garment hanger 100a (Figure 2) for storage. Garment hanger 100a is hung within a wardrobe 2 which includes a wireless transmitter 300 (Figure 6).

The processor 213 determines from signals received via AC-to-DC converter 217 that the electronics module 200 is no longer coupled to a garment 100b, 400. As the processor 213 determines that the electronics module 200 is no longer being worn, the processor 213 generates control signal to cause switching unit 215 to route signals to RF-to-DC converter 203. RF energy received via antenna 101 of garment hanger 100a causes the energy storage level of the energy storage device 205 to be increased.

The processor 213 may detect that energy storage device 205 is being charged based on, for example, information received from charge controller 219.

Since the processor 213 determines that electronics module 200 is being charged, the processor 213 does not cause the switching unit 215 to route signals to the AC-to-DC converter 217. This may mean that the processor 213 does not send any switching signals to the switching unit 215 or alters the duty cycle of the control signal eitherto a duty cycle of 100% or 0%.

If the electronics module 200 is removed from garment 100b, 400 and not positioned on hanger 100a, the processor 213 may cause the switching unit to switch between receiving signals via RF-to-DC converter 203 and AC-to-DC converter 217. If, after a predetermined time, no meaningful signals are received via AC-to-DC converter or RF-to-DC converter, the processor 213 controls electronics module 200 to transition to a sleep mode.

In this example, a single set of contacts 211 of the electronics module 200 are used to receive biosignals and receive wireless energy via an external antenna 101. The processor 213 uses contextual information to determine whether the received signals are biosignals or wireless energy and controls the switching unit 215 to route the received signals to the appropriate converter 203, 217.

In other examples, the processor 213 may switch between the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter 217 while the electronics module 200 is coupled to the garment 100b, 400. This enables the energy storage device 205 to be charged while the garment 100b, 400 is being worn. In this example, the sensing components 500, which are lengths of conductive material, act as an antenna 101 for the garment 100b, 400. In this example, the electronics module may be permanently coupled to the garment 100b, 400 and is not required to be couplable to other articles such as garment hanger 100a.

In one use case, the processor 213 causes the switching unit 215 to switch between routing to the RF-to- DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC 217 at a preset rate. For example, the control signal may cause the switching unit 215 to route signals to the RF-to-DC converter for one second for every ten seconds signals are routed to the AC-to-DC converter. Of course, other switching rates are within the scope of the present disclosure.

In other uses cases, the processor 213 uses contextual information to control the switching performed by the switching unit 215. In particular, the processor 213 determines an operating context of the electronics module from contextual data received from one or more sensors and generates the control signal according to the determined operating context.

The operating context may comprise the activity level of the wearer of the electronics module 200. A higher activity level indicates that the user is performing an exercise and thus desires frequent biosignal monitoring. The processor 213 adjusts the control signal such that the signals are routed to the AC-to-DC converter 217 for a greater extent than the RF-to-DC converter.

The determined activity level can be classified into discrete levels of activity (e.g. walking, running, cycling) and the processor is configured to generate the control signal according to the determined discrete activity level. The activity level may be determined by the motion sensor 237. The motion sensor 237 typically comprises an accelerometer.

The operating context may comprise the location of the electronics module 200. Certain locations may indicate that the user is performing an exercise and thus desires frequency biosignal monitoring. For example, the location information may indicate that the user is located at a gym. Other locations may indicate that the user is at rest and priority should be given to wireless charging. This may be when the location information indicates that the user is at home. The electronics module may comprise a location sensor for determining the location information. The location sensor may be a GNSS receiver for example.

The operating context may comprise the heartrate of the wearer of the garment 100b, 400. A raised heartrate is associated with the user performing exercise whereas a low heartrate indicates that the user is at rest and does not require frequency monitoring. The heartrate of the user may be determined from biosignals received via the AC-to-DC converter 217.

In an example operation, the user may go to a gym and being exercising on a treadmill. The treadmill has a built-in wireless power transmitter. Various contextual information such as activity level, location information and heartrate information may indicate to the processor 213 that the user is exercising and desires frequent biosignal monitoring. The processor 213 may therefore generate a control signal which causes the switching unit 215 to spend between 85% and 95% of the time routing signals to the AC-to-DC converter 217. Other forms of fitness equipment may comprise the wireless power transmitter. The wireless power transmitter may be incorporated in a mirror.

In another example operation, the user may be riding on an electric scooter or other vehicle with a built-in wireless power transmitter. The processor 213 may determine from contextual information such as location data or other information received from a user electronic device in communication with the electronics module 200 that the user is riding a scooter. The processor 213 determines that in this context the user does not require frequent biosignal monitoring. The processor 213 may therefore generate a control signal which causes the switching unit 215 to spend between 50% and 75% of the time routing signals to the RF- to-DC converter 203.

The processor 213 may also use location information to identify that the user is approaching the end of theirscooter ride. For example, the location data may indicate that the user is close to their end destination. This may cause the processor 213 to increase the rate at which signals are routed to the RF-to-DC converter 203 so as to cause the energy storage device 205 to be charged as much as possible before the scooter ride ends. The processor 213 may therefore generate a control signal which causes the switching unit 215 to spend between 90% and 95% of the time routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203.

In the above example, the electronics module 200 has a switching unit 215 routing the signals received from the contacts 201 , 211 to the RF-to-DC converter 203 or the AC-to-DC converter 217. This is not required in all examples. Instead, the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter 217 may be configured to simultaneously receive signals from the contacts 201 , 211.

In these examples, signal decouplers may be positioned along the communication path between the contacts 201 , 211 and the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter217. The signal decouplers may act to ensure that only signals having a certain frequency range are received by the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter 217.

A first signal decoupler along the communication path between the contacts 201 , 211 and the RF-to-DC converter 203 may ensure that signals of a first frequency range reach the RF-to-DC converter 203. A second signal decoupler along the communication path between the contacts 201 , 211 and the AC-to-DC converter 217 may ensure that signals of a second frequency range reach the AC-to-DC converter 217. Additional elements such as isolation elements (e.g. shunt capacitors) and antenna matching circuitry may also be provided.

The signal decouplers can comprise any appropriate components for filtering out/allowing specific frequencies to be propagated from the contacts 201 , 211. Example components include resistors, inductors, capacitors and ferrite beads.

In the above examples, the electronics module 200 has a single set of contacts 211 for receiving wireless energy and biosignals. This is not required in all examples all though it is preferred as it reduces the form factor of the electronics module 200. In other examples, the electronics module 200 has a separate set of contacts for receiving wireless energy. The switching unit 215 is not required in this example. The garment 100b, 400 may have an additional antenna in addition to the sensing components 500. The antenna may be constructed from conductive yarn in a similar way to the garment electrodes 507.

In some examples, the electronics module 200 comprises a sensor. The sensor may comprise an optical sensor. The optical sensor may measure light in one or more of the infrared, visible, and ultraviolet spectrums. The optical sensor may be a pulse oximeter. The optical sensor may be arranged to measure the oxygen saturation of the wearer. Oxygen saturation is the fraction of oxygen-saturated haemoglobin relative to total haemoglobin (unsaturated + saturated) in the blood. The optical sensor may be arranged to measure the capillary perfusion of the wearer. A pulse oximeter may be useable to measure the capillary perfusion using a double-wavelength method. The capillary perfusion can be derived from a variation in the detected signal strength. The optical sensor may be arranged to measure the temperature of the wearer.

The sensor is not required to comprise an optical sensor in all examples. The sensor is generally arranged to monitor a property of the environment external to the electronics module. The property may be a property of the user wearing the garment. The sensor may comprise one or more of an altitude sensor, pressure sensor, temperature sensor, optical sensor, humidity sensor, presence sensor, and air quality sensor. The presence sensor may for detecting a touch input from a user. The presence sensor may comprise one or more of a capacitive sensor, inductive sensor, and ultrasonic sensor.

The sensor may comprise an infrared temperature sensor arranged to measure the skin surface temperature of a user wearing the wearable article. The temperature sensor may be an ambient temperature sensor.

The sensor operates in a first measurement mode and a second measurement mode. The first measurement mode consumes more power than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher sampling rate than the second measurement mode. The first measurement mode may have a higher duty cycle than the second measurement mode. The sensor may comprise an optical sensor assembly comprising a light emitter and a light detector. The light emitter may emit light having a higher brightness in the first measurement mode as compared to the second measurement mode. In the second measurement mode the sensor may be disabled from performing measurements.

In some examples, the sensor transitions between the first measurement mode and the second measurement mode depending on whether the switching unit 215 is routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203 or the AC-to-DC converter 217. When signals are routed to the RF-to-DC converter 203, the sensor operates in the first measurement mode. Since the electronics module 200 is able to be charged via the received RF energy, the sensor is able to operate in the higher power mode without causing excessive battery drain. This extends the operating life of the electronics module 200. When signals are routed to the AC-to-DC converter 203, the sensor operates in the second measurement mode. Since the electronics module 200 is not being charged, the sensor operates in a lower power mode to conserve battery life.

In some examples, the switching unit 215 switches between routing signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203 and the AC-to-DC converter 217 depending on whether the sensor is operating in the first measurement mode or the second measurement mode. When the sensor is operating in the first measurement mode, the switching unit 215 routes signals to the RF-to-DC converter 203. This allows for the electronics module 200 to be charged and compensates for the increased power consumption caused by the sensor. When the sensor is operating in the second measurement mode, the switching unit 215 routes signals to the AC- to-DC converter 217. This allows for the electronics module 200 to receive measurement signals via the electrical contacts while the sensor is operating in a lower power state.

In some examples, the sensor transitions between the first measurement mode and the second measurement mode depending on the type of article the electronics module 200 is coupled to. If the electronics module 200 is coupled to a wearable article such as a garment and the electronics module 200 determines that it is receiving biosignals from the wearable article, the processor 213 controls the sensor to operate in the first measurement mode. If the electronics module 200 is coupled to a wearable article such as a garment and the electronics module 200 determines that it is receiving RF energy from the wearable article, the processor 213 controls the sensor to operate in the second measurement mode. The electronics module 200 may use contextual information to determine whether it is receiving RF energy or biosignals from the article.

Referring to Figure 17, there is shown another example system 1 ’. The system 1 ’ comprising an article 100’ and an electronics module 200’ positioned on the article 100’. The electronics module 200’ may be integrally formed with the article 100’ or may be removably coupled to the article 100’.

The article 100’ comprises an antenna 101 ’. The antenna 101 ’ is suitable for receiving wireless energy over a long-range wireless power transfer mechanism. The antenna 101 ’ may be arranged to receive wireless energy over a frequency range suitable for wireless power transmission. In some examples, antenna 101 is arranged to receive wireless energy at a frequency of 915 MHz as used by the Powercast (RTM) system. The antenna 101 ’ has a length suitable to receive wireless energy at the desired frequency. For a dipole antenna, the length is determined according to the equation:

Length (in metres) = 143/frequency (in MHz).

The article 100’ further comprises an RF-to-DC converter 103’ and an interface 105’.

The electronics module 200 comprises an interface 201 ’ and an energy storage device 203’.

In this example, the article 100’ converts the wireless energy into a DC output and supplies the energy to the electronics module 200’ via the interfaces 105’, 201 ’. The interfaces may include a wired interface or a wireless (e.g. inductive) interface. That is, the interface 105’ may include a wireless transmitter and the interface 201 ’ may include a wireless receiver.

Although not required in all examples, the article 100’ further comprises a magnetic material 107’. The electronics module 200’ also comprises a magnetic material 205’. Magnetic materials 107’, 205’ used to form a releasable magnetic coupling between the article 100’ and the electronics module 200’.

In the present disclosure, the electronics module may also be referred to as an electronics device or unit. These terms may be used interchangeably.

At least some of the example embodiments described herein may be constructed, partially or wholly, using dedicated special-purpose hardware. Terms such as ‘component’, ‘module’ or ‘unit’ used herein may include, but are not limited to, a hardware device, such as circuitry in the form of discrete or integrated components, a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), which performs certain tasks or provides the associated functionality. In some embodiments, the described elements may be configured to reside on a tangible, persistent, addressable storage medium and may be configured to execute on one or more processors. These functional elements may in some embodiments include, by way of example, components, such as software components, object-oriented software components, class components and task components, processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and variables. Although the example embodiments have been described with reference to the components, modules and units discussed herein, such functional elements may be combined into fewer elements or separated into additional elements. Various combinations of optional features have been described herein, and it will be appreciated that described features may be combined in any suitable combination. In particular, the features of any one example embodiment may be combined with features of any other embodiment, as appropriate, except where such combinations are mutually exclusive. Throughout this specification, the term “comprising” or “comprises” means including the component(s) specified but not to the exclusion of the presence of others.

All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive.

Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent, or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Claims

25 CLAIMS

1. A system comprising: an article comprising an antenna; and an electronics module comprising: a housing; one or more electrical contacts, the one or more electrical contacts are configured to electrically couple to the antenna and receive wireless energy via the antenna when positioned on the article; an RF-to-DC converter disposed within the housing, the RF-to-DC converter being configured to convert RF energy received via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output; and an energy storage device disposed within the housing, the energy storage device is configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device is increased.

2. A system as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the electronics module is arranged to be removably coupled to the article.

3. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the article comprises a pocket sized to receive and temporarily retain the electronics module so as to couple the one or more electrical contacts to the antenna.

4. A system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the article comprises a recess sized to receive and temporarily retain the electronics module so as to couple the one or more electrical contacts to the antenna.

5. A system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the antenna comprises a dipole, loop or folded dipole.

6. A system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the article is a garment hanger comprising a hanging structure; a body connected to the hanging structure, the body comprising a central region and left and right shoulder support portions extending from the central region, and wherein the antenna is provided on the body.

7. A system as claimed in claim 6, wherein the hanging structure comprises a hook.

8. A system as claimed in claim 6 or 7, wherein the antenna comprises a central region and left and right arms extending from the central region, wherein the left arm extends along the left shoulder support portion of the body, and wherein the right arm extends along the right shoulder support portion of the body.

9. A system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the left and right shoulder support portions of the hanger slope downwardly from the central region, and wherein the left and right arms of the antenna slope downwardly from the central region.

10. A system as claimed in any of claims 6 to 9, wherein the electronics module is arranged to be positioned on the body of the garment hanger.

11. A system as claimed in claim 10, wherein the electronics module is arranged to be positioned on the central region of the body.

12. A system as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the central region of the body comprises a recess sized to receive the electronics module.

13. A system as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the article is a wearable article.

14. A system as claimed in claim 13, wherein the antenna comprises a central region and left and right arms extending from the central region.

15. A system as claimed in claim 14, wherein the left and right arms slope downwardly from the central region.

16. A system as claimed in claim 14 or 15, wherein the central region comprises a first connection terminal coupled to the first arm and a second connection terminal coupled to the second arm.

17. A system as claimed in any of claims 13 to 16, wherein the left and right arms form electrodes for monitoring biosignals from a skin surface of the wearer.

18. A system as claimed in claim 17, wherein the electronics module is configured to switch between receiving wireless power from the antenna and receiving biosignals from the antenna.

19. A system as claimed in any of claims 12 to 18, wherein the wearable article further comprises a sensing component, the sensing component comprise one or more electrodes arranged to monitor biosignals from a skin surface of the wearer.

20. A system as claimed in claim 19, wherein the one or more electrical contacts are arranged to couple with the antenna, and wherein the electronics module comprises a further one or more electrical contacts arranged to couple with the sensing component.

21. A system as claimed in claim 20, wherein the electronics module is configured to simultaneously receive wireless power from the antenna and biosignals from the one or more electrodes.

22. A system as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the antenna comprises conductive yarn. A system as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising a wireless transmitter configured to transmit wireless energy to the antenna. An electronics module arranged to be coupled to an article, the electronics module comprising: a housing; one or more electrical contacts, the one or more electrical contacts are configured to electrically couple to an antenna of the article and receive wireless energy via the antenna when positioned on the article; an RF-to-DC converter disposed within the housing, the RF-to-DC converter being configured to convert RF energy received via the one or more electrical contacts to a DC output; and an energy storage device disposed within the housing, the energy storage device is configured to be supplied with the DC output from the RF-to-DC converter such that an energy storage level of the energy storage device is increased.