IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,567,157
Granted Patent B1
US 12,567,157 · App. 18/369,343 · Granted Mar 3, 2026

Context-based mode transitions for object tracking

Inventors: Ioana Negoita (San Jose, CA); Brian W. Temple (Santa Clara, CA); Lee Sparks (Lake Forest, CA)
Assignee: APPLE INC.
G06T7/20G06T7/70G06T2207/30196
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,567,157
App. No.
18/369,343
Granted
Mar 3, 2026
Kind
B1
Abstract

In some implementation, a method includes: while operating according to a first mode, obtaining audio data associated with a physical environment and motion sensor data; determining whether at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies a mode transition criterion; in response to determining that at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion, transitioning the computing system from the first mode to a second mode; and while operating according to the second mode: obtaining image frames of the physical environment based on an image frame ingestion rate; determining a current location for an enrolled object by performing a set of image processing functions on the image frames; and updating a record for the enrolled object to include the current location.

Claims (67)

1 . A method comprising:

at a computing system including non-transitory memory and one or more processors, wherein the computing system is communicatively coupled to one or more microphones, one or more image sensors, and one or more motion sensors via a communication interface:

while operating the computing system according to a first mode, obtaining audio data corresponding to ambient sound in a physical environment via the one or more microphones and motion sensor data corresponding to motion of the one or more motion sensors via the one or more motion sensors;

determining whether at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies a mode transition criterion;

in response to determining that at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion, transitioning the computing system from the first mode to a second mode; and

while operating the computing system according to the second mode:

obtaining one or more image frames of the physical environment based on an image frame ingestion rate via the one or more image sensors;

determining a current location for an enrolled object by performing a set of one or more image processing functions on the one or more image frames; and

updating a record for the enrolled object to include the current location.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more motion sensors correspond to at least one of an inertial measurement unit (IMU), an accelerometer, a gyroscope, and a magnetometer.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more microphones and the one or more motion sensors are active in the first mode, and wherein the one or more image sensors are inactive in the first mode.

4 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more image sensors are active in the second mode, and wherein the one or more microphones and the one or more motion sensors are inactive in the second mode.

5 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

selecting the image frame ingestion rate based on a confidence value associated with the satisfaction of the mode transition criterion, wherein the selected image frame ingestion rate corresponds to one of a first image frame ingestion rate or a second image frame ingestion rate greater than the first image frame ingestion rate.

6 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

selecting the set of one or more image processing functions based on a confidence value associated with the satisfaction of the mode transition criterion, wherein the set of one or more image processing functions corresponds to one of a first set of one or more image processing functions or a second set of one or more image processing functions greater than the first set of one or more image processing functions.

7 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

in response to determining that the audio data and the motion sensor data do not satisfy the mode transition criterion, maintaining operation of the computing system in the first mode.

8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the audio data satisfies the mode transition criterion when the audio data matches an audio signature associated with the enrolled object within a variance threshold.

9 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the motion sensor data includes at least one of head pose information and body pose information associated with a user of the computing system, and the method further comprising determining a current field-of-view (FOV) relative to the physical environment based on at least one of the head pose information and the body pose information, wherein the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion when the motion sensor data indicates that the enrolled object is within the FOV based on a most recent location for the enrolled object.

10 . The method of claim 9 , further comprising:

obtaining the most recent location for the enrolled object from an enrolled object datastore, wherein the enrolled object datastore includes a plurality of records for each of a plurality of enrolled objects.

11 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more motion sensors are integrated with a wearable device, and wherein the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion when the motion sensor data indicates that the user is interacting with the enrolled object based on motion sensor data from the wearable device.

12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the one or more motion sensors are integrated with a wearable device, and wherein the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion when the motion sensor data indicates that the enrolled object is moving based on motion sensor data from the wearable device.

13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the computing system is further communicatively coupled to one or more biosensors, and the method further comprising obtaining biosensor data associated with a user of the computing system via the one or more biosensors, wherein the biosensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion when the biosensor data indicates that the user is interacting with the enrolled object.

14 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

detecting a change from a first motion state to a second motion state relative to a user of the computing system;

in response to detecting the change from the first motion state to the second motion state, determining whether the change from the first motion state to the second motion state satisfies a mode transition criterion; and

in response to determining that the change from the first motion state to the second motion state satisfies the mode transition criterion, transitioning the computing system from the first mode to the second mode.

15 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

detecting a change from a first application to a second application;

in response to detecting the change from the first application to the second application, determining whether the change from the first application to the second application satisfies a mode transition criterion; and

in response to determining that the change from the change from the first application to the second application satisfies the mode transition criterion, transitioning the computing system from the first mode to the second mode.

16 . The method of claim 1 , wherein updating the record for the enrolled object to include the current location includes updating the record stored within the enrolled object datastore, wherein the enrolled object datastore includes a plurality of records for a plurality of enrolled objects including the enrolled object.

17 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising:

detecting a query requesting a current location for a particular enrolled object; and

in response to detecting the query:

determining the current location for the particular enrolled object based on the enrolled object datastore; and

causing presentation of a representation of the current location for the enrolled object via a display device.

18 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising:

determining whether a particular enrolled object satisfies an activity criterion based on the enrolled object datastore; and

in accordance with a determination that the particular enrolled object does not satisfy the activity criterion, causing presentation of an alert notification associated with the particular enrolled object via a display device.

19 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising:

determining whether a current location for a particular enrolled object satisfies a location criterion based on the enrolled object datastore; and

in accordance with a determination that the current location for the particular enrolled object does not satisfy the location criterion, causing presentation of an alert notification associated with the particular enrolled object via a display device.

20 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising:

in response to updating the record for the enrolled object to include the current location, causing presentation of a movement notification including a representation of the current location for the enrolled object via a display device.

21 . A device comprising:

one or more processors;

a non-transitory memory;

an interface for communicating with one or more microphones, one or more image sensors, and one or more motion sensors; and

one or more programs stored in the non-transitory memory, which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the device to:

while operating the computing system according to a first mode, obtain audio data corresponding to ambient sound in a physical environment via the one or more microphones and motion sensor data corresponding to motion of the one or more motion sensors via the one or more motion sensors;

determine whether at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies a mode transition criterion;

in response to determining that at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion, transition the computing system from the first mode to a second mode; and

while operating the computing system according to the second mode:

obtain one or more image frames of the physical environment based on an image frame ingestion rate via the one or more image sensors;

determine a current location for an enrolled object by performing a set of one or more image processing functions on the one or more image frames; and

update a record for the enrolled object to include the current location.

22 . A non-transitory memory storing one or more programs, which, when executed by one or more processors of a device with an interface for communicating with one or more microphones, one or more image sensors, and one or more motion sensors, cause the device to:

while operating the computing system according to a first mode, obtain audio data corresponding to ambient sound in a physical environment via the one or more microphones and motion sensor data corresponding to motion of the one or more motion sensors via the one or more motion sensors;

determine whether at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies a mode transition criterion;

in response to determining that at least one of the audio data and the motion sensor data satisfies the mode transition criterion, transition the computing system from the first mode to a second mode; and

while operating the computing system according to the second mode:

obtain one or more image frames of the physical environment based on an image frame ingestion rate via the one or more image sensors;

determine a current location for an enrolled object by performing a set of one or more image processing functions on the one or more image frames; and

update a record for the enrolled object to include the current location.

Assignments (2)
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Dec 16, 2025
From: NEGOITA, IOANA; SPARKS, LEE; TEMPLE, BRIAN W.
To: APPLE INC.
Reel/Frame 073235/0481 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Sep 18, 2023
From: NEGOITA, IOANA; SPARKS, LEE; TEMPLE, BRIAN W.
To: APPLE INC.
Reel/Frame 064937/0686 →
Continuity (1)
Provisional Application 63408734 · Sep 21, 2022
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