Google Inc.

Amazon Technologies, Inc.

Verily Life Sciences LLC

Other

Chia-Jean Wang

Eden Rephaeli

Babak Amirparviz

Jianchun Dong

Blake Hannaford

Xuan Zhong

Jung Sik Yang

Bozhao Tan

Thad Eugene Starner

Hayes Solos Raffle

Anurag Gupta

Eliot Kim

Joseph John Hebenstreit

Joëlle K Barral

Benjamin K Yaffe

Geng Ye

Han Zhang

Matthieu Daniel Jean Liger

Avi Bar-Zeev

James Robert Lim

Adrian Wong

Liang-Yu (Tom) Chi

Yong Zhao

Casey J Feinstein

Babak Parviz

Matthieu Liger

Babak Amir Parviz

Daniel Kelly

Oliver Huy Doan

Ryan Michael Fleming

A head-mounted wearable device provides many functions to a user. The functions may be provided based in part on whether the device is being worn (donned) or not worn (doffed). Force sensing resistors in the device provide output indicative of forces associated with wearing the device. A time series of values indicative of the magnitude of a force may be determined. An increase or decrease in force values measured at different times may indicate that the device has been donned or doffed, respectively. If a subsequent force value does not differ substantially from a previous force value, this may indicate that the device has remained donned or doffed.

Sensors for determining don/doff status of a wearable device

Described are systems and methods for facilitating communication between a user and other users, services, and so forth. A wearable device, such as a pair of glasses, may be worn and used in conjunction with another user device, such as a smartphone, to support communications between the user and others. Inputs such as motion of the head, orientation of the head, verbal input, and so forth may be used to initiate particular functions on the wearable device, the user device, or with a service. For example, a user may turn their head to the left and speak to send a message to a particular person. A display light in the field of view of the user may illuminate to a particular color that has been previously associated with the particular person. This provides visual feedback to the user about the recipient of the message.

System to facilitate communication

A head-mounted wearable device utilizes electronics placed in one or more of a left temple or a right temple. The temples are joined to a front frame using hinges. The hinges provide passageways, slots, or other openings to permit passage of a flexible printed circuit (FPC) within an open core of the hinge. The FPC allows communication between the left temple and the right temple. During motion of the hinge, the FPC may twist such that the ends within the hinge are rotated relative to one another while remaining substantially parallel to one another. The overall length of the FPC passing through the hinge remains substantially unchanged between the hinge being open or closed. The FPC remains protected within the hinge and is minimally displaced, preventing the introduction of a crease in the FPC at a hinge line.

Head-mounted computer device with hinge

A user interface for a head-mounted wearable device provides many functions to a user. Information about whether the device is being worn (donned) or not worn (doffed) may be acquired in several ways. Force sensing resistors in the device may provide output indicative of the pressure associated with wearing the device. Output from a bone conduction (BC) microphone may be analyzed to determine if the device is in use. Piezoelectric BC speakers typically used to present audio output to a wearer provide changes in voltage corresponding to a change in pressure associated with wearing the device. A BC speaker may emit a signal that is detected by the BC microphone, with changes in the signal strength being used to determine if the device is donned or doffed.

Wearable device don/doff sensor

A head-mounted wearable device incorporates a channel inset into a front frame. A flexible printed circuit (FPC) is arranged within the channel and allows communication between a left side of the front frame to a right side. Using the FPC, electronics in a left temple attached to the front frame are connected to the electronics in a right temple attached to the front frame. A retention piece is used to maintain the FPC within the channel, provide protection from an external environment, and so forth. The retention piece may comprise an overmold of silicone plastic.

Head-mounted wearable device with integrated circuitry

A head-mounted wearable device incorporates a transducer into a nosepiece. Vibrations from the user's speech are transferred through the bridge of the nose and are detected by the transducer to produce an audio signal. In one implementation, a nose plate with a pair of attached nosepieces is mounted to a transducer, such as an accelerometer. The nose plate may be affixed to a front frame of the head-mounted wearable device using a motion limiter mechanism.

Wearable device with bone conduction microphone

A robotic surgical system includes a surgical instrument configured to cut biological tissues and an imaging system configured to image the biological tissues. Based on one or more images of the biological tissue generated by the imager, the robotic surgical system operates the surgical instrument to cut the biological tissue according to a desired dissection of the tissue. The robotic surgical system operates the surgical instrument to partially or wholly automatically perform one or more cuts into the biological tissue to achieve the desired dissection.

Controlled dissection of biological tissue

Described are techniques for improving the functionality of a computing device by regulating the temperature of an energy storage device used to power the computing device. A housing that encloses the energy storage device may include a first portion having a thermal conductivity that exceeds that of a second portion. The first portion may be configured to contact or be positioned proximate to a user's body or other heat-producing object during use. Heat from the user's body or other object may be conducted through the first portion of the housing toward the energy storage device. The less-conductive second portion of the housing may reduce the rate at which heat from the energy storage device is transmitted into the ambient environment. As a result, the temperature of the energy storage device may increase, improving the performance thereof.

System for thermal management of a battery

A head-mounted wearable device incorporates a transducer that operates as a bone conduction (BC) microphone. Vibrations from a user's speech are transferred through the head of the user to the BC microphone. An air conduction (AC) microphone detects sound transferred via air. Signals from the BC microphone and the AC microphone are compared to determine if a common signal is present in both. For example, both signals may have a cross-correlation that exceeds a threshold value. Based on the comparison, voice activity data is generated that indicates the user wearing the device is speaking.

Voice activity detection using air conduction and bone conduction microphones

In an embodiment, an apparatus and method are described for ablating tissue in response to determining a fluorescence condition. An excitation light source may produce excitation light at a excitation wavelength of a fluorophore. A beam scanner may direct the excitation light towards a tissue location. A fluorophore may produce emission light in response to absorbing the excitation light. A camera may capture an image of the tissue location. In response to the image indicating emission light at the tissue location, an ablation light source may produce ablation light. The beam scanner may direct the ablation light towards the tissue location. Additionally or alternatively, a topography map may be generated and certain aspects of the apparatus and/or the method may be adjusted based on the topography map.

System and method for fluorescence-based laser ablation

A surgical imaging system includes a light source configured to illuminate a portion of a surgical environment and a light sensor configured to receive light from the illuminated portion in response to the illumination. The surgical imaging system determines spectrographic content of the received light and uses the determined spectrographic content to identify the illuminated portion of the surgical environment; for example, to determine that the portion contains a surgical instrument, a foreign body, a suture, a particular type of tissue, a blood vessel, and/or a fluorescent marker. This identification of the illuminated portion of the surgical environment could be used to implement a surgical intervention. For example, a surgical laser could be operated, based on such generated identification information, to ablate cancerous tissue in the surgical environment that is marked with a fluorophore while avoiding ablating any sutures or surgical instruments disposed in the surgical environment.

Sensing and avoiding surgical equipment

Methods and systems involving a potting process for selectively coating a target surface of a component. An example method may include: (1) dispensing a masking agent into a cavity, wherein the cavity is within a holder; (2) immersing a portion of a component that has a plurality of surfaces into the masking agent, such that at least one portion of a target surface from the plurality of surfaces is not immersed; (3) curing the masking agent such that the masking agent hardens on the portion of the plurality of surfaces of the component immersed in the masking agent; (4) coating the target surface with a coating agent; and (5) separating the masking agent from the portion of the plurality of surfaces of the component immersed in the masking agent.

Selective coating of a component using a potting process

A smart surgical glove is provided that includes sensors configured to detect one or more properties of a target tissue and indicators configured to indicate the detected one or more properties of the target tissue. In some embodiments, the indicators are configured to provide a sensation to a wearer of the smart surgical glove that is related to the detected one or more properties of the target tissue. In some embodiments, the indicators are configured to transmit a signal to another device, for example, a head-mounted display worn by the wearer of the smart surgical glove. In some embodiments, the smart surgical glove is configure to illuminate a fluorescent imaging agent in the target tissue and to detect one or more properties of the target tissue related to the presence of the imaging agent. Additionally included are methods of using such smart surgical gloves.

Growing community of inventors

Palo Alto, CA, United States of America

Chia-Jean Wang