Wearable Apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed embodiments include a multi-function wearable apparatus comprising (a) a sensor module including a plurality of low power solid state kinematics sensors,(b) a microprocessor module comprising a low power microcontroller configured for device control, device status, and device communication; (c) a data storage module comprising a solid state local storage medium, said data storage module configured for sampling and storage of kinematics data; (d) a wireless communication module comprising a low power bidirectional transceiver wherein said wireless communication module is configured for communicating and synchronizing sampling time instances of said sensor module with signals from a second apparatus; and (e) a power module comprising a battery and an energy charging regulator. According to one embodiment, the wearable apparatus is a watch capable of quantifying human movement.

The invention claimed is: 
     
         1 . A wearable apparatus, comprising:
 (a) a sensor module comprising a kinematics sensor;   (b) a processor configured for device control and device status;   (c) a data storage module comprising a solid state local storage medium, said data storage module configured for sampling and storing said kinematics data at frequencies of 20 or more samples per second;   (d) a wireless communication module comprising a transceiver wherein said wireless communication module is configured for synchronizing sampling time instances of said kinematics sensor with signals from a second apparatus; and   (e) a power module comprising an energy charging regulator.   
     
     
         2 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said wearable apparatus is a wrist-worn device with a form factor of a watch or a wristband. 
     
     
         3 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus further comprises a display configured for providing information to a user including a time of day and a reminder. 
     
     
         4 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein said wearable apparatus is a watch. 
     
     
         5 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is configured for quantifying human movement based on data acquired by said kinematics sensor. 
     
     
         6 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein said watch is further configured to transmit said kinematic sensor's data to a second apparatus. 
     
     
         7 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein said kinematic sensor is an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         8 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is configured for wirelessly synchronizing the sample time instances of said kinematics sensor with a second apparatus including a kinematics sensor. 
     
     
         9 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch's device status includes an action reminder chosen from the group consisting of a gentle vibration, an auditory cue, and a visual cue. 
     
     
         10 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is configured for calculating the device location by accepting transmissions from one or more external devices, beacons, GPS, or combinations thereof. 
     
     
         11 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is charged by inductive power charging. 
     
     
         12 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is configured for harvesting energy from the local environment by using a kinetic generator or a solar panel. 
     
     
         13 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 4 , wherein said watch is configured for wirelessly communicating with a second device. 
     
     
         14 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus further comprises a GPS receiver. 
     
     
         15 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus further comprises a barometric altimeter. 
     
     
         16 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus is configured for quantifying human movement in continuous ambulatory settings. 
     
     
         17 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus is configured for activity monitoring and recognition. 
     
     
         18 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus is configured for sport activity optimization. 
     
     
         19 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus is configured for orientation tracking of human, robots, or unmanned vehicles. 
     
     
         20 . The wearable apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein said apparatus is configured for animation or virtual reality.