Qualcomm Incorporated

Other

Richard R Ragland

David C Stillinger

John P Oeth

Kip A Leggett

John Cunningham

Charles Pedersen

Mark Benton

Systems and methods for tracking a head position of a user include obtaining digital images of the user's head, processing the images to locate anatomical structures beneath the visible surface, and using those determined locations as inputs to a computing device. In an embodiment, images of a user's face are processed to identify the irises of the eyes, identify pixels along a boundary between each iris and the surrounding sclera, determine an ellipse defined by the identified iris-sclera boundary pixels, determine a distance-to-pixel ratio based on a pixel length of a long axis of such an ellipse compared to a known or presumed diameter of the iris, locating the iris in a three-axis coordinate system, determining an optical axis vector of the eye in the three-axis coordinate system, and calculating a center of the eyeball based on the optical axis vector and a known or presumed eyeball radius.

Image-based head position tracking method and system

Dual transducer cargo sensor device

Universal mount cargo status sensor device

A concave reflector is shaped to receive energy emanating from a signal source positioned at the reflector's vertex and to reflect all received energy in a uniform output direction. The reflector additionally introduces a designated constant phase shift into all reflected energy relative to unreflected energy from the signal source, regardless of where the received energy impinges upon the reflector. When the source signal is periodic, this reflector design minimizes near field interference between the reflected signals, since they all have the same phase shift relative to the unreflected source signal. Furthermore, if the reflector is designed to implement zero phase shift, reflected and non-reflected signals tend to combine additively in the far field, focusing most of the transmitted energy toward the center of the transmission pattern. In addition to this reflector apparatus, other features include a process of manufacturing a signal reflector, a product formed by this manufacturing process, and beam shaping process incorporating these principles.

Concave reflector with phase shifted and selectively focused output energy

A method and apparatus for determining whether cargo is present in a freight car. The freight car has a proximal (&ldquo;rear&rdquo;) end with a loading door and opposing, distal (&ldquo;front&rdquo;) end. One or more transmitters and receivers are mounted inside the freight car at the front end, toward the car's ceiling. The transmitters/receivers are operated by a controller, which also functions to analyze data from the transmitters/receivers and transmit related reports to a remote monitoring site. During a prescribed time period, a transmitter generates an ultrasonic signal pattern with a coverage area of prescribed radius that terminates before reaching the loading door. During the time period of transmission, or slightly later to account for signal reflection time, the controller operates the receiver to detect reflected signals originating from the transmitter. Then, the controller transmits a report of whether cargo is present in the freight car, based on whether any reflected signals were received.

Cargo sensing system and method

The tracker determines a vision vector for an eye of an operator. The device generally comprises: a video camera oriented so as to observe an eye of an operator for obtaining an image of the eye; camera interface electronics and image processor for digitizing the image of the operator's eye and for analyzing the digitized image for determining therefrom a plurality of points determinative of the iridal ellipse, the points being on the boundary between the eye's sclera and iris as represented by different light intensities; and a processor for utilizing said information and an estimate of the diameter of the iris in formulating an estimated optical axis vector for the eye. If the position and orientation of the camera is known relative to the operator's eye, then the pupillary ellipse can be used instead of the iridal ellipse. The tracker of the invention can be used as a mouse emulator attached to a mouse port of a personal computer system.

Growing community of inventors

San Diego, CA, United States of America

Richard R Ragland