IP Library Granted Patent US 9,351,100
Granted Patent B2
US 9,351,100 · App. 14/513,672 · Granted May 24, 2016

Device for control of data transfer in local area network

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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 9,351,100
App. No.
14/513,672
Granted
May 24, 2016
Kind
B2
Abstract

The present invention concerns wearable electronic communication devices ( 100 ) for control of data transfer in a personal area network. The wearable device is adapted for Body Coupled Communication in close proximity to a person's body. The wearable device comprises an antenna adapted for Body Coupled Communication and a capacitance sensor indicating that the wearable device is in close proximity to the body of the person or even in contact with the body or not. The invention also concerns a portable electronic communication device comprising the inventive wearable device for cooperation with at least a second portable electronic communication device in a personal area network.

Claims (14)

1. A wearable electronic communication device for a portable electronic communication device, the wearable device is configured for Body Coupled Communication (BCC) and capacitance measurement in close proximity to a person's body and comprises:

a BCC antenna over which BCC is carried out and that functions as a capacitance sensor that makes a body capacitance measurement, wherein if the body capacitance measurement belongs to a predefined capacitance range, the body capacitance measurement indicates that the wearable device is in close proximity to or in contact with a body part of the person, and

processing circuitry in operational connection with the BCC antenna, the processing circuitry controlling the BCC and the body capacitance measurement, wherein

the antenna and the capacitance sensor are the same structural entity arranged as one common electrode for both the BCC and the body capacitance measurement of the wearable device, the processing circuitry comprising a first impedance used when the common electrode is used for body capacitance measurement and a second impedance used when the common electrode is used for BCC.

2. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry of the wearable device comprises first and second processing circuitry operationally coupled to the common electrode and respectively presenting the first and second impedances, the first processing circuitry is configured to perform/control the body capacitance measurement and to present a higher impedance than the impedance of the second processing circuitry configured to perform/control the BCC.

3. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 2 , wherein the second processing circuitry comprises a band-pass filter operationally arranged as an input of the second processing circuitry to filter out any interfering noise originating from signals of the common antenna and capacitance sensor as a result of the capacitance measurement.

4. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 2 , wherein the second processing circuitry comprises a high-pass filter operationally arranged as an input of the second processing circuitry to filter out any interfering noise originating from signals of the common antenna and capacitance sensor as a result of the capacitance measurement.

5. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 2 , wherein the first processing circuitry comprises a resistor operationally arranged as an input of the first processing circuitry to increase the impedance of the first processing circuitry.

6. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 2 , wherein the first processing circuitry comprises a low-pass filter operationally arranged as an input of this first processing circuitry to increase the impedance of the first processing circuitry.

7. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry comprises sub-circuitry operationally adapted to tune the impedance of the processing circuitry resulting from when the common antenna and capacitance sensor is in close proximity to or in contact with the body of the person or not to match both the receiving and transmitting impedances of the processing circuitry simultaneously.

8. A wearable electronic communication device according to claim 1 , wherein the processing circuitry comprises sub-circuitry operationally adapted to control/perform BCC via the common antenna and capacitance sensor when the common antenna and capacitance sensor is in close proximity to or in contact with the body of the person, the sub-circuitry comprising a transmitter and a receiver.

9. A portable electronic communication device configured as a wearable electronic communication device according to claim 1 and configured to carry out Body Coupled Communication (BCC) and short-range wireless RF communication when in close proximity to or in contact with a person's body, further comprising:

a controller configured to control autonomous and external and internal operation of the portable electronic communication device and the BCC wireless communication and the short-range wireless RF communication from and to the portable electronic communication device.

10. A portable electronic communication device according to claim 9 , wherein the portable electronic communication device is at least one of a headphone, headset, wristlet, necklace, ring, ankle band, visors or goggles.

Assignments (3)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 25, 2019
From: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
To: SONY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 048691/0134 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Apr 27, 2016
From: SONY CORPORATION
To: SONY MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS INC.
Reel/Frame 038542/0224 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Nov 11, 2014
From: TARNHED, KRISTIAN; ASTRAND, PER; AGARDH, KARE; BOLIN, THOMAS; RODZEVSKI, ALEKSANDAR; BENGTSSON, HENRIK
To: SONY CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 034142/0919 →