Patent Application
20190318283
Embodiments of the invention relate generally to data processing and event notification. More particularly, embodiments of the invention relate to processing and handling emergency events of users.
Healthy habits are a key to living and ageing well and include sufficient sleep, a nutritious diet, preventative care, exercise, hygiene, and social engagement. Typically, visitors are scheduled to visit the premises in which an individual resides. Such an arrangement sometimes cannot provide sufficient services to the individual. There has been a lack of efficient systems to keep track and help enforcing the healthy habits for individuals to age at home.
Embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements.
Various embodiments and aspects of the invention will be described with reference to details discussed below, and the accompanying drawings will illustrate the various embodiments. The following description and drawings are illustrative of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. Numerous specific details are described to provide a thorough understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to provide a concise discussion of embodiments of the present inventions.
Reference in the specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the invention. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment.
According to some embodiments, a system is provided to monitor the safety and wellbeing of individuals wishing to age in place and to provide an environment for the development and maintenance of habits for ageing well. Caregivers, family members, and others in the CareCircle are kept well informed and can provide assistance when required, as well as plan for in-person services and visits. Healthy habits are a key to extended living and ageing well and include sufficient sleep, a nutritious diet, preventative care, exercise, hygiene, and social engagement. The system provides an automated, monitored, measured, and managed environment to ensure that the individual is safe and secured, and to create and reinforce positive habits, and that loved ones and caregivers are comforted through being informed where they were not previously.
The system aggregates data regarding an individual activities, well-being and environment from a variety of sensors (e.g., Internet of Things or IoT-based sensors) worn by and/or within the residency of the individual. This data is placed in a data store and acted upon by various heuristics, workflows, and adaptive routines. It can also be presented in various reports and visual displays. Individuals interact with the system through a variety of networked devices such as mobile devices and wearable devices that have been optimized for variations in vision, hearing, motor-control, and cognition.
The system maintains a number of routines that can be user configurable by authorized personnel. The routines can include one or more of a morning routine, a night routine, a nutrition routine, a medication routine, a vital measurement routine, an appointment routine, a visitor reminder routine, and an assistance routine. Each of these routines can be configured in a form of workflows and each workflow includes one or more workflow stages that can be executed at different points in time, in series or in parallel. These routines, when executed, would help an individual throughout the day. In addition, a CareCircle routine, also referred to as a help or emergency routine, may also be configured, which can be triggered in response to a live assisted request from a user. The CareCircle routine is preconfigured and setup to be triggered from a number of soft or hard button end points within their environment. These routines are executed to perform different operations in conjunction with sensor data obtained from a variety of sensors disposed within a premise of an individual (e.g., their home or an assisted living facility). The sensor data can be utilized to track the user activities, interactions, and confirmation of the user actions, etc. As a result, the user can easily follow the healthy habits and live in a healthy environment.
According to one aspect of the invention, a first message is received at a first server from a primary device of a primary user located within a primary location over a network. In response to the first message, a primary user identifier (ID) is determined based on a first device ID extracted from the first message, where the first device ID identifies the primary device. Based on the primary user ID, a user database is queried to identify a group of one or more secondary users, where the secondary users may be related to or associated with the primary user. The user database is maintained by the first server and configured by an administrator associated with the primary user. A set of one or more secondary user IDs is obtained from the user database based on the query. The secondary user IDs are then transmitted to a second server over the network to request the second server to send an SMS message to each and establish a conference (e.g., audio or video conference) over the network amongst one or more secondary user devices of the one or more secondary users, optionally with the primary user device. As a result, the secondary users can discuss an event associated with the first message of a first user.
According to one embodiment, the first server periodically monitors and receives messages from a number of devices or sensors associated with a number of users located at various locations. Each message represents an event occurred at a respective one of the locations. The primary user is one of the users and the primary device is one of the devices monitored. In one embodiment, the first server periodically receives messages or signals from a number of devices disposed at various locations within the primary location of the primary user. Each message represents an event occurred at the primary location.
According to one embodiment, location information concerning the primary location is obtained from the user database based on the primary user ID. The location information is then transmitted to a third server to request a third user to be dispatched to visit the primary location. The third user may be an emergency medical service (EMS) person. The secondary users may be specified and stored in a user account associated with the primary user in the user database, which may be configured previously by an authorized person authorized by the primary user via a configuration interface. The first message may be initiated by the primary user via a CareCircle assist button of a CareCircle assist device (also referred to as a panic button of a panic device). The primary location may represent a home or an assisted living facility.
According to another aspect of the invention, a server maintains one or more workflows for managing daily routines of a user located at a premise. Each workflow includes one or more workflow stages. Each workflow stage is associated with a subroutine configured to be executed at a particular time of a day. Processing logic hosted by the server periodically examines each workflow stage of each workflow to execute the corresponding subroutine of the workflow stage. Specifically, for each of the workflows, processing logic determines a current time of the day and identifies a workflow stage corresponding to the time of the day. Processing logic retrieves a content item corresponding to the workflow stage. The content item is transmitted to one or more preconfigured user devices of the user to be presented and played thereon. A response is received from at least one of the preconfigured user devices representing a user response to the content item. The user response and time of the response are recorded in an event log that stores the user interaction history of the user. Subsequently, a machine-learning engine is invoked to perform an analysis on the user interaction history in the event log to determine a user behavior or user routine pattern of the user for each workflow. Timing as well as other parameters of one or more subroutines of the workflows may be modified based on the analysis.
In one embodiment, a routine can be a morning wakeup call to alert an user and the content item may include media content to play (e.g. weather, news, music, other) once determined the individual has woke up from sleep. Once the wakeup message has been sent to the user device, the system monitors one or more motion sensors disposed within the premise of the user (e.g., individual). In response to one or more signals received from the motion sensors, which indicates that the user has woke up and moved about, the system records the wakeup time. In addition, the routine may follow up with a query to the user regarding whether the user has a normal day of activities. Based on the feedback from the user, if there is something unusual detected, the routine may initiate another routine, for example, contacting another user to visit the primary user. The wakeup time can be stored in an event log of the user, which is part of the user daily routine history. In one embodiment, during the day, if there is no signal received from the motion sensors for a predetermined period of time, the system may transmit another reminder to the user device or devices to prompt the user to get up and move around as a part of an exercise subroutine.
According to another embodiment, a smart doorbell may be installed at a front door of the premise of the user and the smart doorbell may be monitored by the system remotely. When a visitor is approaching the front door of the premise of the user and presses the door bell, a signal is transmitted back to the monitoring system over a network. In addition, an image of the visitor may be captured by a camera of the doorbell. In response to the signal, the system may access a calendar system to examine calendar data or routines associated with the user to determine whether there should be visitor visiting the user at the point in time. If so, the system may further compare the image of the visitor received from the doorbell and the one stored in a contact store maintained internally to determine whether the visitor at the front door is the one expected. The system may transmit a message to the user device to notify the user whether there is someone expected to visit the user. The message may further include the identifying information of the visitor, including the name, organization, and/or the image of the visitor, as well as the reason or description of the visit. Such screening and validation provides a level of security from door to door scammers or individuals intended on doing harm.
According to a further embodiment, the system periodically accesses a calendar system to determine whether there is an appointment that has been scheduled at certain points in time of a particular day according to an appointment routine. If so, the system may transmit a reminder to the user device to prompt the user of the pending appointment. The system may further examine whether the user needs help to arrange transportation. If so, the system automatically contacts a predetermined facility (e.g., taxi or ride sharing companies) to arrange the transportation to the users premise for pickup and provide transportation to the appointment location.
According to a further aspect of the invention, a medication routine can be enforced using an efficient monitoring system. For each day, a preconfigured medication intake routine is executed, where the routine is specifically configured for a user residing at a premise. The routine includes a number of actions or subroutines to be performed or executed at different points in time of the day. The actions can be specific reminders to be sent to the user to prompt the user to take specific medication. Given the specific time of the day, the system examines the routine to determine whether a medicine pill or medication has been scheduled around a specific time. If so, the system transmits a first message to one or more user devices of the user to prompt the user to take the medication specifically configured for that time of the day.
The first message may include information identifying the medication to be taken, such as the name and/or a picture of the medicine. The medication or pill may be stored within a pill dispenser, particularly a smart pill dispenser. When the user removes the pill from the pill dispenser, a signal is transmitted back to the system over the network. The signal may be utilized as an indication that the user has correctly taken the scheduled medicine. Once the signal has been received from the pill dispenser, the system may record the time of receiving the signal as the time at which the user has taken the medicine.
According to one embodiment, the pill dispenser may include a number of pill slots and each slot may be used to store one or more pills for a specific time. Each slot may be associated with a sensor such as a pressure or light sensor to sense whether the corresponding pill or pills have been removed from the slot. When a pill has been removed from a particular pill slot, a signal is sent by a corresponding slot sensor to the monitoring system. The system can determine whether the appropriate pill for that particular time has been removed from the slot. That is, the signal is used to determine whether the user has taken the medication as scheduled. If the medication taken does not match the one as expected, the system may send a further message to the user device to ask the user to confirm to make sure that the user has taken the correct medicine.
According to another embodiment, as a part of medical or vital measurement procedures, the system may transmit a reminder to the user device to prompt the user to perform some vital measurements, such as blood pressure, heartrate, weight, or sugar level, etc. Some of these data, such as heartrate, step counts, sleep, blood pressure, may be automatically collected from the vital measurement devices worn by the user or put on in response to the reminder message. The date and the time of the measurements may be stored in an event log or data store for further analysis. Furthermore, certain motion sensors can also be utilized to sense and determine when the user goes to bed or the time the user falls asleep. The motion sensors can also be utilized to sense that the user has been idle for a period of time and that the user needs to move around or do some exercises. The system automatically receives the signals from variety of sensors and makes a proper decision to prompt the user to do something. Similarly, the system can communicate with the user to offer help on other tasks, such as turning on a TV or radio or turning to a specific channel of the TV or radio, or reminding the user to have meals at different times of the day.
According to one embodiment, each premise has been configured and equipped with a set of devices and/or sensors that are configured to help the corresponding primary user on a daily basis using a set of preconfigured daily routines. Each of the premises 102 includes one or more devices 111 (e.g., mobile devices), a number of sensors 112, and one or more CareCircle assist buttons 113 (also referred to as a panic button) disposed at a variety of location within the premise, for example, as shown in
In addition, sensors 112 can be utilized to monitor the actions of the primary user within premise 102. Some of the sensors 112 may be IoT sensors that can send signals to a remote destination such as routine management server 101. For example, some of sensors 112 may include smart IoT devices such as doorbell, thermostat, light, motion sensors, door contacts, etc. Some of sensors 112 may include vital status monitor or measurement devices for measuring blood pressure, heartrate, sugar level, etc. At least one or more of these devices or sensors 112 are communicatively coupled to routine management server 101, directly or indirectly via cloud service providers 104. CareCircle assist buttons 113 can be utilized by the primary user to initiate an event to request for help. When CareCircle assist button(s) 113 is pressed by the user, a signal will be transmitted to routine management system 101 over network 105, and a preconfigured CareCircle assist routine will be carried out.
In one embodiment, routine management server 101 includes a routine manager or routine executor 115 managing a number of routines 116 that have been specifically configured for the primary users residing in premises 102. The routines 116 may be configured by an authorized person or administrator via a configuration interface and stored in a persistent storage device. Note that routine management system 101 is a multi-tenancy system that is configured to manage a number of primary users residing in a number of different premises or facilities. Each of the primary users will have an individual account set up in routine management system 101. A user account may also store the routines configured to the corresponding primary user (e.g., individual or aging person), as well as the secondary users 103 associated with the primary user (e.g., care givers or family members of the individual or aging person).
The routines can be any kind of daily routines that are specifically tailored to a specific primary user. The goal of a routine is to help the primary user to follow or enforce a healthy habit and monitor the activities of the primary user. The activities of the primary user may be reported to the associated group of one or more secondary users represented by secondary user devices 103. The routines may include (not limited to) a morning routine, a night routine, a nutrition routine, a medication intake routine, an appointment routine, a visitor routine, and/or an assistance routine. For each primary user, there will be at least a good morning, good evening and CareCircle assist routine, to handle an on demand event triggered by CareCircle assist button 113 press by the primary user.
In one embodiment, for a given time of a day, routine manager 115 may determine which of routines 116 should be executed. For example, a calendar system or scheduler, such as, scheduler 208 of
In addition, according to one embodiment, routine manager 115 is communicatively coupled to each of sensors 112 over network 105, directly or indirectly via cloud service providers 104. Routine manager 115 periodically receives sensor data or sensor signals from sensors that sense the living environment of the primary users at premises 102. Based on the sensor data, routine manager 115 can determine the status or state of the associated a primary user and determine whether the primary user needs help or the primary user has performed actions confirming the actions as expected or specified in the corresponding routines. Further, dependent upon the specific configuration, a notification of an event detected or received by routine manager 115 may be sent to one or more secondary user devices 103 of one or more secondary users associate with the primary user. An authorized user can specify or register specific secondary users to receive notifications of specific events.
With the help from a variety of sensors or IoT devices, routine manager 115 can monitor a primary user on a specific routine precisely. In one embodiment, one of the daily routine is to monitor the primary user for medication intake according to a predetermined medication intake schedule. An authorized person such as a caregiver can configure a medication intake routine via a configuration interface (e.g., a Web portal) for a particular primary user, including specific time of the day and specific medicine to take for that specific time of the day, etc. The medication intake routine can then be stored as a part of routines 116, for example, in a persistent storage device of server 101 (e.g., hard disks or cloud storage devices).
In addition, at the primary user premise, a pill dispenser device is utilized to store the medication to be taken periodically. The pill dispenser may be an IoT compliant device that includes a sensor to sense whether the pill dispenser has been accessed as an indication whether primary user has remove the medication from the pill dispenser in response to the routine reminder sent by routine manager 115 during the execution of the medication routine. When something has been removed from the pill dispenser, a signal will be transmitted to routine manager 115 over the network. Such a signal and timing of receiving the signal can be logged as a part of daily event in data store 117 for the primary user. In addition, the pill dispenser may include a number of pill slots and each slot may be equipped with a separate sensor to sense whether a pill stored in the slot has been removed. When a pill has been removed from a specific slot, a specific signal will be sent to routine manager 115 indicating which of the slots has been opened as an indication of which pill has been taken by the primary user. Routine manager 115 can then confirm against the corresponding medication intake routine to determine whether the primary user has taken the correct medication.
All of the interaction between server 101 and each primary user will be logged in an event log or event history in data store 117. The data stored in data store 117 can be analyzed subsequently, for example, by invoking machine-learning engine 120 of data analytics system 106, which may be operated by the same entity associated with server 101 or by a third party entity. Alternatively, the functionalities of data analytics system 106 may be integrated with server 101 or a backend server of server 101.
According to one embodiment, for a particular primary user, machine-learning engine 120 or an analysis module performs an analysis on the event log associated with the primary user to determine and learn the user behavior and user preference of the primary user for each of the routines and a combination of one or more of the routines associated with the primary user. Based on the analysis, some routines can be modified to be more tailored to the primary user's need. For example, if the user preference suggests that the primary user tends to wake up and get out of the bed later than the wakeup time the morning routine configured (e.g., wakeup alarm suppressed by the user or the primary user does not move based on motion sensors), wakeup time of the morning routine can be automatically adjusted accordingly. In addition, the bed time of a night routine may also be modified to ensure the primary user has sufficient sleep time.
A CareCircle assist routine is a special routine that is specifically configured for an assist, help or emergency situation. When a primary user requires assisted help immediately, the primary user can initiate the execution of the CareCircle assist routine by pressing a preconfigured CareCircle assist button. A CareCircle assist button can be a “soft” panic button that appears on an application running on any of the electronic devices such as tablet, laptop, mobile phone, wearable, etc. A CareCircle assist button can be a “hard” button of a dedicated device such as a dedicated IoT device or a dedicated pager device, where the sole or main purpose of the device is to send an on demand and immediate signal to routine manager 115 over the network.
In response to the CareCircle signal, routine manager 115 executes a CareCircle assist routine corresponding to the primary user. In one embodiment, the CareCircle assist routine identifies a group of secondary users such as secondary users 103 that have been configured to receive a CareCircle alert. A conference (e.g., audio or video conference) will then be established amongst the secondary users and the primary user automatically to allow the users to discuss the situation over the conference. In addition, according to one embodiment, if there is a need during the conference, any of the secondary users can further initiate an emergency call to an emergency medical service (EMS) facility to dispatch medical personnel to the premise (e.g., user home or assisted living facility) of the primary user, and then rejoin the conference thereafter. Alternatively, if none of the secondary users is available, for example, to join the conference, an emergency call to the EMS service may be automatically initiated. Further, the emergency call to the EMS may be automatically initiated based on the medical history of the primary user (e.g., learned by the machine-learning engine).
In addition, according to one embodiment, server 101 further maintains a database to store user information, routine information, schedule information and event information. In this embodiment, a user database 210 is maintained to store any information associated with users, either primary users or secondary users. As described above, server 101 is a multi-tenancy system that provides routine management services to a variety of clients such as user's home or assisted living facilities, primary users, and/or secondary users. Each user may have a user account configured in user database 210 to store any user related information of that user, such as, for example, one or more routines registered in routine registry 221 for a primary user, one or more user groups 222 (e.g., secondary users) associated with the primary user, and a user profile of the primary user.
In one embodiment, user database 210 further maintains a secondary user registry 212 to store any information concerning secondary users, such as user profiles 224 of the secondary users. For example, a secondary user can register or specify which primary user or primary users the secondary user is associated with, what types of events of the associated primary user(s) the secondary would like to be notified, and the user devices of the secondary user that would receive the notification, etc. Note that primary user registry 211 and secondary user registry 212 may be integrated as a single user registry.
Data store 117 may also be implemented as an event database or interactive history database to store any event logs 230 recording interactions between server 101 and other entities such as primary users at user premises 102 and secondary users 103. Alternatively, an event log of a particular user (e.g., primary user, secondary user) may be maintained as a part of a data entry of user database 210 associated with that particular user. Other configurations may exist. The data stored in data store 117 can be analyzed by analysis module 206, for example, to generate a summary report of a particular primary user representing the activities over a period of time in response to a query from a secondary user (e.g., care giver or family member) via a Web portal interface.
According to one embodiment, routine executor 201 is configured to execute one or more routines for a number of primary users residing at variety of facilities, where the routines have been configured for the primary users and stored in a user account of each primary user. Routine executor 201 may include one or more specific routine processing modules 207 configured to process a specific type of routines, such as CareCircle routines, morning routines, medication intake routines, etc. The routines may also be scheduled by scheduler 208 in a calendar system for a specific time of a day, which may in turn notify routine executor 201 to execute an associated routine at the scheduled time and date. For example, an authorized person may access scheduler 208 via configuration module 204 to schedule one or more routines to be executed at particular points in time. Note that server 101 may provide routine management services for a large number of primary users of a large number of premises. Server 101 may be one of a number of server instances hosted in the cloud. The functionalities of server 101 may be hosted in a number of cloud servers such as in a software-as-a-service (SaaS) manner hosted in a platform-as-a-service (PaaS) configuration.
Referring back to
In one embodiment, event logger 205 is configured to record any events received from event monitor 202 and any or selected activities performed by routine executor 201 and/or notification module 203. The logged information can be stored in the corresponding event logs 230 and stored in data store 117. The logged data may include the types of events or actions, as well as timestamps of the events or actions. The event logs 230 may be analyzed by analysis module 205 subsequently, either online or offline. Alternatively, event logs 230 may be analyzed by a machine-learning engine hosted by a separate server or a third-party entity.
In one embodiment, device registry 118 is configured to store any devices or sensors registered for the primary users. In response to an event or signal received by event monitor 202, device registry 118 is utilized to determine which of the devices and where the device is located, as well as the corresponding primary users.
In one embodiment, configuration module 204 allows an authorized user, for example, via a configuration interface (e.g., Web portal, a mobile application programming interface or API) to configure or provision routines and stored in routine registry 221 for a primary user and user profile 223 of the primary user. Configuration module 204 further allows an authorized user to configure one or more secondary users 222 related to a primary user, as well as user profiles 224 of the secondary users. Configuration module 204 further allows an authorized user to schedule a routine to be executed at certain point in time by invoking scheduler 208. The scheduled event will be stored as a part of calendar event of a calendar system associated with scheduler 208. Each event is associated with a routine to be executed at the time of the event.
Routine registry 221 includes a variety of routines that can be configured and provisioned by an authorized user via configuration module 204 and scheduler 208. Note that routine registry 221 may be configured on a per primary user basis. That is, each primary user may be associated with a set of routines configured specifically for the corresponding primary user. In one embodiment, dependent upon the specific configuration of a primary user, routine registry 221 of a primary user can include one or more of CareCircle assist routine 311, morning routine processing module 312, night routine processing module 313, nutrition routine 314, vital routine 315, appointment routine 316, assist routine 317, visitor routine 318, or medication intake routine 319. Routines 311-319 may be configured via a configuration interface using configuration module 204, which may be configured in a form of scripting languages such as extensible markup language, XML or other. Details of these routines will be described further below. Different primary users may have different numbers of routines provisioned. Each type of routines associated with different primary users may also be different. At runtime, dependent upon the specific configuration of a specific primary user, some or all of routines 311-319 may be executed with the corresponding routine processing modules 301-309 respectively.
A secondary user ID can be anything that can uniquely identify a particular user, which can be an email address, a phone number, a chat ID, etc., or a combination thereof. Each of the secondary IDs 402 can be utilized to access a user profile of a corresponding secondary user (e.g., user profiles 224A-224C, collectively referred to as user profiles 224) stored in secondary user registry 212. In one embodiment, the user group table 222 of primary user registry 211 and secondary user registry 212 can be utilized to obtain a set of one or more secondary users for the notification purposes in response to certain events of certain routines or a CareCircle assist conference in response to a CareCircle signal.
For example, in response to a CareCircle assist signal received from a CareCircle button device of a primary user, a CareCircle assist routine executed by the CareCircle assist routine processing module 301 identifies a primary user ID of the primary user based on the CareCircle assist signal. In one embodiment, a CareCircle device ID can be determined based on the CareCircle assist signal. Based on the CareCircle device ID, a primary user ID of the primary user can be ascertained, for example, by looking up in device registry 118 as shown in
Referring now to
Referring back to
Note that in this example, the CareCircle members are configured for specific routines. Alternatively, the CareCircle members can also be configured for specific types of events. Each routine may include or trigger certain types of events and some of the events may be common to some routines. A routine may trigger or launch another routine in response to a preconfigured condition that has been satisfied during the initial routine. By mapping different groups of secondary users to different type of events, certain secondary users having certain special expertise can provide care services for similar events of different routines. Similarly, some secondary users can also provide care services for different primary users, for example, by mapping the corresponding secondary user IDs to different routines or events of different primary users.
As shown in
When routine 700 is loaded into a memory and executed by a processor, i.e., a corresponding routine processing module, the routine processing module periodically examines the conditions associated with the routine. When a condition of a workflow stage has been satisfied, one or more actions that have been configured for the workflow stage will be performed and carried out. For example, when the time of the day reaches point in time 702, the actions 712 configured for the workflow stage 702 will be performed. The actions may be configured and specified in XML. When time 703 comes, action(s) 713 will be performed, and the user interactions and any events occurred during the interactions will be recorded as a part of interaction history stored in the corresponding event log associated with the primary user. The event log can be analyzed subsequently, either dynamically or offline and some of the routines or timing and actions of a routine may be automatically modified based on the analysis.
Subsequently, when an event occurs or a signal is received via path 803, for example, from certain sensors or IoT devices from primary user premise 102, the routine processing module examines a set of rules at block 804 and responds accordingly according to the rules via path 805. The rules for responses may have been configured as routine metadata as a part of the routine. In addition, at block 806, the routine processing module examines a set of notification rules or settings associated with the routine, such as for example, user group settings as shown in
In one embodiment, the content item can simply be a greeting message or a wakeup alarm of a morning routine, or a reminder it's time to sleep via the night routine. It can be a message to follow up in response to a signal received from a sensor or an IoT device of the primary user. For example, in response to determining that the primary user has not moved for a period of time based on one or more motion sensors, processing logic sends a message to the primary user device to remind the primary user to move around. The processing logic may repeatedly send a reminder if the routine does not detect any further movement based on the motion. In one embodiment, if there is no movement after several reminder messages have been sent, processing logic may initiate a notification to CareGiver or initiate the CareCircle event, for example, by notifying the corresponding secondary users and/or contacting an EMS service provider to send someone to inspect the premise of the primary user.
In another embodiment, the content item can be a reminder of an appointment or a visitor of the primary user. For example, in response to a signal received from a smart doorbell, the routine may examine calendar data of the primary user to identify an appointment between the primary user and the visitor. The routine then sends a reminder to the primary user reminding the primary user of the appointment, including providing identity of the visitor to the primary user. In addition, the routine may verify the visitor by comparing an image of the visitor captured by a camera of the doorbell to the primary user with a previously stored image of the visitor. The image of the visitor may also be transmitted to the primary user.
Similarly, based on the calendar data associated with the primary user, the system can determine that there is an appointment that has been scheduled for a specific point in time of the day. The routine may send a reminder to the primary user to remind the primary user an upcoming appointment. The routine may further offer to help in arranging the transportation for the primary user to travel to the destination of the appointment.
According to another embodiment, the content item can be a reminder to remind the primary user to take medication at a configured time of the day according to a preconfigured medication intake routine. The medication intake routine works with a smart pill dispenser to monitor whether the primary user has opened the pill dispenser and which pill has been removed from the pill dispenser, to determine whether the primary user has taken proper medication.
Referring back to
The above process can be applied to a variety of routines, such as, for example, a morning routine, a night routine, a nutrition routine, a vital measurement routine, an appointment routine, a visitor reminder routine, or an assist routine. One of the routines is a CareCircle assist routine that is a special routine for handling CareCircle requests from the primary users. For example, a CareCircle assist routine can be initiated to a signal received from a CareCircle button device at the premise of a primary user. When the primary user needs assistance, the primary user may press the CareCircle button of a dedicated CareCircle assist device or a CareCircle assist button of a mobile application running at a mobile device of the primary user.
On path 1003, the CareCircle assist routine transmits a request to a communication cloud service provider 104 to request a conference to be established. The request may include the contact information of the secondary users associated with the primary user and the contact information of the primary user. The contact information may include a phone number, a computer address (e.g., IP address), and/or a chat ID, etc. Such contact information may be stored in the secondary user registry 212 and configured to be notified specifically for the panic situation. Based on the contact information of the primary user and the secondary users, the communication service provider 104 establishes a conference amongst the primary user and the secondary users via paths 1004A-1004B. In one embodiment, in addition to the primary user, for each of the secondary users in the list received via path 1003, communication service provider 104 sends an invite to the secondary user to invite the secondary user to join the conference. Each secondary user can simply press a button or speak to join the conference.
In one embodiment, if none of the registered secondary users accepts the invitation, communication service provider 104 may automatically initiate an emergency request to a predetermined EMS service provider to dispatch EMS personnel to the premise 102. At block 1005, the conference, either an audio or video conference, is conducted. During the conference, any of the secondary users can temporarily leave the conference, initiate an emergency call to an EMS service provider, and then rejoin the conference after an EMS service has been dispatched to the primary user's premise.
At block 1053, processing logic queries a user database based on the first device ID, where the user database is maintained by a routine management server that provides routine management services to a variety of primary users at variety of locations. At block 1054, processing logic obtains a set of one or more secondary user IDs that identify the secondary users stored in the user database. At block 1055, processing logic transmits the secondary user IDs to a second server over the network to request the second server to establish a conference over the network amongst the secondary users and/or the primary user based on the secondary user IDs, such that the secondary users and the primary user can discuss the CareCircle assist situation.
Note that the above processes as shown in
In response to a request to join the conference, at block 1153, processing logic authenticates the user based on a comparison of the number they are calling from. If the number is contained on a white list as a known user they are admitted to the teleconference without prompting for a security code, if they are not, they must enter the first security code and a second security code extracted from the request. At block 1154, in response to a successful identification or successfully authenticating the user, processing logic allows the user to join the conference. The processing logic may announce the name of the user joining the conference. If there are more users in the list, the above operations in blocks 1152-1154 are repeatedly performed. If all of the users in the list have been processed, at block 1156, processing logic determines whether any of the users in the list has accepted the invitation and successfully authenticated. If at least one of the users joins the conference successfully, the process ends. If none of the users has successfully joined the conference, at block 1157, processing logic identifies a preconfigured emergency service associated with the primary user. The preconfigured emergency service may be by default a government emergency dispatcher (e.g., 911 services) or a third party emergency service provider that provides around the clock services. At block 1158, the processing logic contacts the identified emergency service.
When a medication routine such as medication intake routine 319 is executed by medication routine processing module 309, the medication intake routine communicates with primary user device 111 over a network. Medication intake routine 319 can be configured to send a reminder at different points in time during the day to remind the primary user to take certain medication. When the time to take particular medication comes, processing module 309 sends a reminder message to primary user device 111 to remind the primary user it is time to take specific medication. The reminder message may include information of the specific medication that the primary user needs to take. The reminder message may further include the name and/or an image of the medication or medicine.
Once a reminder message has been sent, the processing module 309 monitors the responses from the primary user. The primary user may respond through its primary user device 111 by returning a message that the primary user has taken or will take the medication as a confirmation. If the primary user does not respond or confirm for a predetermined period of time, another reminder may be periodically sent. If after a number of reminder messages have been sent and no response or confirmation has been received, a notification may be sent to one or more of the secondary users associated with the primary user indicating that the primary user has not followed the medication routine properly. Alternatively, a CareCircle event may be triggered to enable someone locally or from an EMS service provider to visit the primary user.
In one embodiment, event monitor 202 may also be utilized to monitor whether the primary user has followed the instructions or reminders received from medication routine processing module 309 by monitoring operations of pill dispenser 1201.
In one embodiment, in response to a medication intake reminder, the primary user may open and take the instructed medication from pill dispenser 1201. As a result, a signal is transmitted from pill dispenser 1201 and received by event monitor 202 over a network. For example, a pressure sensor (not shown) disposed within pill dispenser 1201 can detect that a cover or door has been opened by the primary user and pill dispenser 1201 sends a signal to event monitor 202 in response to the detection of the pressure sensor. The signal can be utilized as a confirmation that the primary user has followed the instructions or reminders. Note that the signal may be routed to a pill dispenser provider in the cloud before being routed to the routine management system 101.
According to another embodiment, pill dispenser 1201 may include a number of pill slots 1211-1213. Each of pill slots 1211-1213 may store medication for a particular time of a day, a particular day of a week, or a particular week of a month, etc. Each of pill slots 1211-1213 may be associated with a sensor such as a pressure sensor to sense and detect whether a particular medicine pill has been removed from the corresponding pill slot. If something has been removed from a pill slot, a signal will be send to event monitor 202, where the signal includes information identifying the corresponding pill slot. As a result, when the primary user removes a pill from a particular slot, medication routine processing module 309 can determine whether the primary user has taken proper medication as instructed for the particular time or routine stage. If the signal indicates that the medication has been removed from an unexpected pill slot, there may be a chance that the primary user has removed the wrong medication. Processing module 309 may send a query to primary user device 111 to ask the primary user to confirm. In the event that the primary user has taken a correct medication, a notification may be transmitted to a secondary user or a CareCircle assist event may be triggered, dependent upon the specific notification configuration for the medication intake routine 309.
According to certain embodiments, the routine management system as described above is also referred to as a Routinify™ system designed to enable unmanned and unattended coaching, prompts and cues to develop habits in ageing individuals at home, as well as the ability of a CareCircle member to view and manage all data and activity of individuals.
The system utilizes IoT and medical devices on an individual's premise to aid in collecting information about the individual's habits, movement and health state. The IoT devices can be any of, but not limited too; motion sensor, open/close contacts, smart thermostat, smart light bulb, smart power switch, smart power/light dimmer, home audio and video control, programmable button for CareCircle, blood pressure, oximeter, scale, glucose, other IoT and/or medical devices. The system utilizes one or more local computing devices as the means to communicate via; sound, voice, visual coaching, prompts and cues to an individual in their premise. Local computing devices at the premise collect audible and touch input as needed from an individual. Local computing devices communicate all information to a cloud system where all information is stored, analyzed and reported from. The system is to be configured by a CareCircle member who oversees the individual and which habits are pertinent to the individual's development and wellbeing. The system has a scheduled alarm to wake an individual daily. Upon suppressing the alarm which forces an automated check-in, an individual (e.g., a primary user) is greeted and prompted to provide information on how they are feeling, this data is collected for later analysis and is visible to the CareCircle and if not feeling well the individual is prompted to contact someone if/as needed.
Throughout the day as configured by the CareCircle member, an individual has interactions with the local device (the system as a whole) for, but not limited to, a set of adaptive routines known as habits. These adaptive habits include; a good morning habit, nutrition habit, medication habit, appointment habit, visitor habit, good evening habit, assist habit, vitals habit. Each habit provides the necessary sound, voice, visual coaching, prompts and cues to an individual. Data is collected from the system for each habit invocation and all its feedback, or lack of, from an individual throughout the course of each day. All data is secure and is stored in an encrypted state using industry standards for privacy and security. All individual and CareCircle member credentials and personal information are stored in an encrypted state using industry standards for privacy and security. The system provides visual feedback to individuals on their overall state via a local computing device. The system provides CareCircle Assisted Communications via voice, video and SMS that can be invoked via local computing device soft button, local hard buttons placed about their premise or wearable device. The local computing devices maintain constant visibility of a soft (touch) CareCircle button on every screen of the devices application. The system provides curated calling outbound or inbound from family, friends, CareCircle members, medical professionals through a one touch invocation via the local computing devices using a variety of methods, such as traditional PSTN, VoIP or cellular communications. The system provides curated music across several genres and curated news across several formats for individuals. The system provides configurable “daily start” with; appointments, local weather forecast, news and selected music configured by a CareCircle member.
The system is configured by a CareCircle member via the member's portal. A CareCircle member can configure any number of habits required for an individual to include, but not limited to, good morning habit, nutrition habit, medication habit, appointment habit, visitor habit, good evening habit, assist habit, or vitals habit. Each habit is set up for a specific individual as needed for their care plan. Each CareCircle member can support 1-N individuals that they oversee. Each CareCircle member can support an individual of another CareCircle member. CareCircle members can customize an individual's “daily start” via there portal. The CareCircle members can receive notifications on any and all habits setup and performed by the system along with responses from individuals. Each CareCircle member can provide personal contact information to be reached in the event of any CareCircle assist requests from one or more individuals. Each CareCircle member can set the priority of contact and times of day to be contacted for notifications or CareCircle assist request of individuals. Each CareCircle member can view the results of all habits, notifications and activity of individuals over the course of a day, week, month or year. Each CareCircle member can sign in when visiting an individual at their premise to; identify who has been on premise, take photo of member, perform steps via checklist, provide video notes on activity and status of individual, capture date, time and duration of visit.
Note that a routine can be triggered and launched within another routine. For example, a morning routine can trigger a medication intake routine or a vital data measurement (e.g., blood pressure, heartrate, or weight measurement) routine at certain point in time of the day. An assist routine can be launched within a morning routine or evening routine, for example, to turn on TV or turn off lights, etc.
Data collected from an individual is stored by the system for use in one or more adaptive habits. Data collected from any of the IoT devices is stored by the system for use in one or more adaptive habits. Data collected from a medical device is stored by the system for use in one or more adaptive habits. The stored medical data can be viewed by the individual or CareCircle member via the local computing device or by a CareCircle member portal on a mobile, tablet or other computing devices.
Following table illustrate examples of certain activities of a typical day of a primary user according to certain embodiments.
Dependent upon the specific configuration, for some of the events, notifications may be transmitted to one or more secondary users who have subscribed the notification. An example of typical activities of a secondary user device of a secondary user is shown in the table below, which is synchronized in steps and time of day (TOD) with the primary user's activities shown in the table above.
All of the above events occurred during the day are recorded as a part of event log for the primary user, which may be analyzed using a machine learning engine to improve the related routines. As described above, examples of the routines can include, but they are not limited to, CareCircle assist routine 311, morning routine 312, night routine 313, nutrition routine 314, vital measurement routine 315, appointment routine 316, assist routine 317, visitor routine 318, and medication intake routine 319 of
According to one embodiment, in supporting a CareCircle assist routine, the system is built to provide help (e.g., panic help) and emergency communication to a group of individuals (e.g., secondary users, CareCircle members) to support an individual living at home (e.g., primary user) when assistance or other services are needed/required.
The system is built to support CareCircle assist requests via soft button on a mobile application and/or via hard button placed anywhere on a premise. The button pressed invokes system to process the setup of live CareCircle communications. The system identifies specific individuals (e.g., primary user) making a CareCircle assist request. The system collects list of CareCircle members (e.g., secondary users) for the specific individual. The CareCircle list size can be 1-N in size and is set in priority order of who to call first vs last. The system creates on demand, secure voice or video communications to connect all parties called. The system initiates a voice or video call to the individual and automatically connects. The system enables speaker and video on device without individual's intervention. The system announces each CareCircle member as they are added to communications.
Using the CareCircle list, the system sends an SMS (short messaging service) message to the first CareCircle member. The SMS message contains the individual name, time of event, a callback number, a security PIN number, etc. The system initiates voice or video call to first CareCircle member and will connect to CareCircle member if called number is answered. Once call is answered, the system will prompt to enter security pin obtained from SMS message, and once security pin is entered correctly (No pin is required if answering from device called), the called member is added to the group conference communications. If the call is not answered, the system will proceed to next CareCircle member in the list. If none of the CareCircle members are connected, a back stop service, available 7/24 can be contacted so the CareCircle assist request does not go unanswered.
At any time a CareCircle member who received the SMS message but either did not receive a call or could not answer is able to connect using the callback number and PIN provided in the SMS message. The pin is only required if call in from a different phone than the one registered with the system. At any time a designated CareCircle member in the group communications can break away from the group communications to contact the necessary emergency services, and once connected the CareCircle member can add themselves, as well as emergency services, to the group communications.
Each CareCircle member receives an automatically generated and on demand SMS message with information on how to manually connect to the group communications. Each CareCircle member is automatically called sequentially by the system once the CareCircle list is obtained. Each CareCircle member is automatically connected in a voice or video call to the system and each CareCircle member is authenticated via the PIN from the SMS message to add to voice or video communications.
Each CareCircle member is automatically connected to group communications allowing the member to converse with the individual and all other CareCircle members in live communications. The system automatically enables, if configured, call recording of the entire communications session. If a CareCircle member adds emergency services to the group communications, information about the individual can be sent to emergency services via an SMS, data link or other electronic communications method.
The system will announce to the member, each CareCircle member that has been joined in the communications and each CareCircle member being added to conference. Real-time SMS updates are sent to CareCircle members every x minutes during the communications setup to inform members of all currently in communications with the individual. A real-time dashboard within the CareCircle member's portal shows the state of each member called: calling, called and answered, called with no answer, called and authenticating, in group communications, dropped off/disconnected. The state of each CareCircle member is updated regardless of whether called in sequence or via blast CareCircle calling which is configurable.
Below is a table showing an example of activities or events occurred during a CareCircle assist routine, which may be triggered in response to an activation of a CareCircle button by a primary user.
Dependent upon the notification configuration, below table shows examples of activities or events of a secondary user occurred during the panic routine, which is synchronized in steps and TOD with respect to the above panic routine example.
The system can utilize machine learning on the events to identify the trend and need for modified use of actual “help” related communications vs “CareCircle” communications. Based on learning, for example, the system can determine if countdown time can be adjusted to reflect “extra time” or “less time” needed to determine whether to cancel or not. A user can select switch in configuration to “allow” to opt in or “not allow” to opt out adaptable change to take place. The user can also constrain to a min and max time to dynamically adjust either “extra” or “less” time in x seconds (default=5 seconds) increments.
For any other routines such as routines 312-319, an authorized person can configure and set up the routine via a configuration interface such as a Web portal associated with routine management system 101 and handled by configuration module 204.
An example of morning routine 312 is shown in the table below according one embodiment.
All of the events and activities are recorded and stored in an event log, which can be analyzed subsequently. The system utilizes machine learning to identify trend and need for modification. For example, based on silence vs snooze per day by the primary user, the system can identify an optimum time for an individual to wake up, in conjunction with the night routine, can dynamically change time over course of a period of time such as a few days to adjust to a better time set to improve sleep, etc. Based on the feeling of the primary user (e.g., feedback), the system can identify over time through CareGiver feedback and “not good” button press from the primary user that a call should be made instead of just a notification especially if the Individual has declined a call to someone (proactive contact). Further, the system can determine what is and is not listened to daily, identify frequency of information listened to over time, identify items manually selected to listen to separate from briefing, dynamically change the content based on briefing and manual listening analysis, and dynamically change the days and frequency content would be listened to. Such adjustments can be opted in or out dependent upon the user configuration.
According to one embodiment, night routine 313 can be configured using a night routine template similar to the morning routine template as shown in
The activities or events of the night routine can be recorded and stored as a part of an event log, which can be analyzed subsequent by a machine-learning engine. The system can identify an optimum time for an individual to go to bed, in conjunction with “Good Morning” Adaptive Routine, dynamically change time over course of a few days to adjust to a better time set to improve sleep, etc., and identify over time through CareGiver feedback and “not good” button press that a call should be made instead of just a notification especially if the Individual has declined a call to someone (proactive contact).
The table below illustrates an example of a medication intake routine according to one embodiment. A medication intake routine is designed to remind and keep track of a primary user to take proper medication during a period of time.
The activities and events during the medication intake routine will be recorded and stored as a part of event log associated with the primary user. A machine-learning engine may be invoked to perform an analysis on the event log. The system can identify when notified if Individual is providing feedback after having taken required medication and specified times. The system can also identify time from notification(s) to feedback from Individual, dynamically change time over course of a few days to adjust to a better time set to improve feedback, and dynamic change also must be in sync with other meds and timed spacing between doses.
The table illustrates an example of a vital measurement routine according to one embodiment. The vital measurement routine is configured to remind a primary user to measure certain types of vital status such as blood pressure, heartrate, weight, etc. The routine also records the measurement via the smart measurement devices.
According to one embodiment, a nutrition routine such as nutrition routine 314 can be configured using a template similar to the template of morning routine 312 as shown in
Table below illustrates an example of an appointment routine according to one embodiment. An appointment routine is designed to set up an appointment for a primary user, remind the primary user about an upcoming appointment, and may arrange transportation for the appointment. A similar routine can be configured to remind a primary user that someone is about to visit the primary user premise based on the calendar data of the primary user.
Table below illustrates an example of an assist routine. An assist routine is designed to help a primary user to perform certain actions, such as turning on/off TV, music, etc. A user interface for configuring an assist routine is shown in
According to one embodiment, routine management system 101 further includes a user interface to allow any of the secondary users to query about the status or activities of any of the associated primary users at any point in time. In response to the query, analysis module 206 accesses the event log, compiles an activity summary for the requested primary user, and generates a report as shown in
The interactions between a primary user and the routines are recorded and stored in an event log associated with the primary user. The system will utilize one or more selected third party Cloud Machine Learning (CML) engines for the purposes of enhancing the capabilities of each Adaptive Routine created specifically for automated, monitored, measured and managed environment to ensure that the Individual is safe and secure, to create and reinforce positive habits, and that loved ones and caregivers are comforted as they are well informed. In support of these positive habits, creating models to add learning insight and intelligence to Adaptive Routines in an individual environment is critical in developing Habits for Ageing Well. Each of the Adaptive Routines has a model that will be trained with specific data collected by the Routinify system by way of touch and voice driven interactive input between the system and individuals, sensors placed around the premise and the data they generate by individuals, wearable technologies to collect movement and activity data per individual, and medical devices to capture and store vitals per individual.
To utilize a model, model architecture will be designed and implemented onto the CML engine. The system must collect high-quality data from the Individuals environment and associated devices described above. This information will be stored in the system to drive model training and ongoing evaluation of changes in Individual data in real-time and batch modes. An API integration between the system and one of the selected CML engine partners in order to send collected high-quality data collected from Individuals and pass to the CML for evaluation against one or more models. Data can be passed via the API either in a real-time mode; as the data is collected it can be stored and forwarded to the CIVIL for evaluation, or in a batch package; for data to be evaluated but is not of a real-time nature or need.
Once the CML has evaluated the data, it will via the API send prediction information per model back to the system which can be used within the Adaptive Routines to enable a change in the behavior of an individual. If the data sent for analysis is of a real-time nature, the Adaptive Routine will act on the received prediction to make immediate changes, namely in the case of a medication, vital or nutrition Adaptive Routine. If the data sent for analysis is of a batch package nature, the Adaptive Routine will act on the received prediction to make near time or future changes, namely in the case of a good morning, good night, visitors and assist Adaptive Routine. Each model created is not a one and done creation. Each model, as additional data is sent, will continue to tune the predicted outcomes based on additional learnings from this data. Therefore the models are always learning and tuning predictive outcomes. As an individual changes or their environment changes, the models will adapt based on the continual data being fed from the system.
Note that some or all of the components as shown and described above may be implemented in software, hardware, or a combination thereof. For example, such components can be implemented as software installed and stored in a persistent storage device, which can be loaded and executed in a memory by a processor (not shown) to carry out the processes or operations described throughout this application. Alternatively, such components can be implemented as executable code programmed or embedded into dedicated hardware such as an integrated circuit (e.g., an application specific IC or ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a field programmable gate array (FPGA), which can be accessed via a corresponding driver and/or operating system from an application. Furthermore, such components can be implemented as specific hardware logic in a processor or processor core as part of an instruction set accessible by a software component via one or more specific instructions.
System 1500 can include many different components. These components can be implemented as integrated circuits (ICs), portions thereof, discrete electronic devices, or other modules adapted to a circuit board such as a motherboard or add-in card of the computer system, or as components otherwise incorporated within a chassis of the computer system.
Note also that system 1500 is intended to show a high level view of many components of the computer system. However, it is to be understood that additional components may be present in certain implementations and furthermore, different arrangement of the components shown may occur in other implementations. System 1500 may represent a desktop, a laptop, a tablet, a server, a mobile phone, a media player, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a Smartwatch, a personal communicator, a gaming device, a network router or hub, a wireless access point (AP) or repeater, a set-top box, or a combination thereof. Further, while only a single machine or system is illustrated, the term “machine” or “system” shall also be taken to include any collection of machines or systems that individually or jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.
In one embodiment, system 1500 includes processor 1501, memory 1503, and devices 1505-1508 via a bus or an interconnect 1510. Processor 1501 may represent a single processor or multiple processors with a single processor core or multiple processor cores included therein. Processor 1501 may represent one or more general-purpose processors such as a microprocessor, a central processing unit (CPU), or the like. More particularly, processor 1501 may be a complex instruction set computing (CISC) microprocessor, reduced instruction set computing (RISC) microprocessor, very long instruction word (VLIW) microprocessor, or processor implementing other instruction sets, or processors implementing a combination of instruction sets. Processor 1501 may also be one or more special-purpose processors such as an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a cellular or baseband processor, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a digital signal processor (DSP), a network processor, a graphics processor, a network processor, a communications processor, a cryptographic processor, a co-processor, an embedded processor, or any other type of logic capable of processing instructions.
Processor 1501, which may be a low power multi-core processor socket such as an ultra-low voltage processor, may act as a main processing unit and central hub for communication with the various components of the system. Such processor can be implemented as a system on chip (SoC). Processor 1501 is configured to execute instructions for performing the operations and steps discussed herein. System 1500 may further include a graphics interface that communicates with optional graphics subsystem 1504, which may include a display controller, a graphics processor, and/or a display device.
Processor 1501 may communicate with memory 1503, which in one embodiment can be implemented via multiple memory devices to provide for a given amount of system memory. Memory 1503 may include one or more volatile storage (or memory) devices such as random access memory (RAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), static RAM (SRAM), or other types of storage devices. Memory 1503 may store information including sequences of instructions that are executed by processor 1501, or any other device. For example, executable code and/or data of a variety of operating systems, device drivers, firmware (e.g., input output basic system or BIOS), and/or applications can be loaded in memory 1503 and executed by processor 1501. An operating system can be any kind of operating systems, such as, for example, Windows® operating system from Microsoft®, Mac OS®/iOS® from Apple, Android® from Google®, Linux®, Unix®, or other real-time or embedded operating systems such as VxWorks.
System 1500 may further include IO devices such as devices 1505-1508, including network interface device(s) 1505, optional input device(s) 1506, and other optional IO device(s) 1507. Network interface device 1505 may include a wireless transceiver and/or a network interface card (NIC). The wireless transceiver may be a WiFi transceiver, an infrared transceiver, a Bluetooth transceiver, a WiMax transceiver, a wireless cellular telephony transceiver, a satellite transceiver (e.g., a global positioning system (GPS) transceiver), or other radio frequency (RF) transceivers, or a combination thereof. The NIC may be an Ethernet card.
Input device(s) 1506 may include a mouse, a touch pad, a touch sensitive screen (which may be integrated with display device 1504), a pointer device such as a stylus, and/or a keyboard (e.g., physical keyboard or a virtual keyboard displayed as part of a touch sensitive screen). For example, input device 1506 may include a touch screen controller coupled to a touch screen. The touch screen and touch screen controller can, for example, detect contact and movement or break thereof using any of a plurality of touch sensitivity technologies, including but not limited to capacitive, resistive, infrared, and surface acoustic wave technologies, as well as other proximity sensor arrays or other elements for determining one or more points of contact with the touch screen.
IO devices 1507 may include an audio device. An audio device may include a speaker and/or a microphone to facilitate voice-enabled functions, such as voice recognition, voice replication, digital recording, and/or telephony functions. Other IO devices 1507 may further include universal serial bus (USB) port(s), parallel port(s), serial port(s), a printer, a network interface, a bus bridge (e.g., a PCI-PCI bridge), sensor(s) (e.g., a motion sensor such as an accelerometer, gyroscope, a magnetometer, a light sensor, compass, a proximity sensor, etc.), or a combination thereof. Devices 1507 may further include an imaging processing subsystem (e.g., a camera), which may include an optical sensor, such as a charged coupled device (CCD) or a complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) optical sensor, utilized to facilitate camera functions, such as recording photographs and video clips. Certain sensors may be coupled to interconnect 1510 via a sensor hub (not shown), while other devices such as a keyboard or thermal sensor may be controlled by an embedded controller (not shown), dependent upon the specific configuration or design of system 1500.
To provide for persistent storage of information such as data, applications, one or more operating systems and so forth, a mass storage (not shown) may also couple to processor 1501. In various embodiments, to enable a thinner and lighter system design as well as to improve system responsiveness, this mass storage may be implemented via a solid-state device (SSD). However, in other embodiments, the mass storage may primarily be implemented using a hard disk drive (HDD) with a smaller amount of SSD storage to act as a SSD cache to enable non-volatile storage of context state and other such information during power down events so that a fast power up can occur on re-initiation of system activities. Also, a flash device may be coupled to processor 1501, e.g., via a serial peripheral interface (SPI). This flash device may provide for non-volatile storage of system software, including a basic input/output software (BIOS) as well as other firmware of the system.
Storage device 1508 may include computer-accessible storage medium 1509 (also known as a machine-readable storage medium or a computer-readable medium) on which is stored one or more sets of instructions or software (e.g., module, unit, and/or logic 1528) embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. Processing module/unit/logic 1528 may represent any of the components described above, such as, for example, routine manager 115, as described above. Processing module/unit/logic 1528 may also reside, completely or at least partially, within memory 1503 and/or within processor 1501 during execution thereof by data processing system 1500, memory 1503 and processor 1501 also constituting machine-accessible storage media. Processing module/unit/logic 1528 may further be transmitted or received over a network via network interface device 1505.
Computer-readable storage medium 1509 may also be used to store the some software functionalities described above persistently. While computer-readable storage medium 1509 is shown in an exemplary embodiment to be a single medium, the term “computer-readable storage medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The terms “computer-readable storage medium” shall also be taken to include any medium that is capable of storing or encoding a set of instructions for execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies of the present invention. The term “computer-readable storage medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, solid-state memories, and optical and magnetic media, or any other non-transitory machine-readable medium.
Processing module/unit/logic 1528, components and other features described herein can be implemented as discrete hardware components or integrated in the functionality of hardware components such as ASICS, FPGAs, DSPs or similar devices. In addition, processing module/unit/logic 1528 can be implemented as firmware or functional circuitry within hardware devices. Further, processing module/unit/logic 1528 can be implemented in any combination hardware devices and software components.
Note that while system 1500 is illustrated with various components of a data processing system, it is not intended to represent any particular architecture or manner of interconnecting the components; as such details are not germane to embodiments of the present invention. It will also be appreciated that network computers, handheld computers, mobile phones, servers, and/or other data processing systems which have fewer components or perhaps more components may also be used with embodiments of the invention.
Some portions of the preceding detailed descriptions have been presented in terms of algorithms and symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These algorithmic descriptions and representations are the ways used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. An algorithm is here, and generally, conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of operations leading to a desired result. The operations are those requiring physical manipulations of physical quantities.
It should be borne in mind, however, that all of these and similar terms are to be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities. Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the above discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the description, discussions utilizing terms such as those set forth in the claims below, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.
The techniques shown in the figures can be implemented using code and data stored and executed on one or more electronic devices. Such electronic devices store and communicate (internally and/or with other electronic devices over a network) code and data using computer-readable media, such as non-transitory computer-readable storage media (e.g., magnetic disks; optical disks; random access memory; read only memory; flash memory devices; phase-change memory) and transitory computer-readable transmission media (e.g., electrical, optical, acoustical or other form of propagated signals—such as carrier waves, infrared signals, digital signals).
The processes or methods depicted in the preceding figures may be performed by processing logic that comprises hardware (e.g. circuitry, dedicated logic, etc.), firmware, software (e.g., embodied on a non-transitory computer readable medium), or a combination of both. Although the processes or methods are described above in terms of some sequential operations, it should be appreciated that some of the operations described may be performed in a different order. Moreover, some operations may be performed in parallel rather than sequentially.
In the foregoing specification, embodiments of the invention have been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof. It will be evident that various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 62/656,974, filed Apr. 12, 2018, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62656974 | Apr 2018 | US |
