WO2012168500A1

WO2012168500A1 - Two-phase dynamic data interpretation system for gym and fitness apparatuses

Info

Publication number: WO2012168500A1
Application number: PCT/ES2011/070420
Authority: WO
Inventors: Francisco HERRERO COGORRO
Original assignee: Fitness Data Record, S.L.
Priority date: 2011-06-10
Filing date: 2011-06-10
Publication date: 2012-12-13

Abstract

The invention relates to a two-phase dynamic interpretation system for data associated with physical exercise performed by a user (301) on a physical exercise apparatus (300), which includes: a device (100) connected to at least one sensor of a mechanical component of said apparatus (300), the sensor providing a series of pulses in response to the physical exercise; and a server (200) in communication with said device (100), the device (100) including a communication module (10) and a microcontroller (40) configured to receive the series of pulses and send said pulses along with information regarding the duration of the exercise to the communication module (10). The communication module (10) is configured to send to the server (200) a packet with the series of pulses, said information regarding the duration of the exercise and at least one identifier for said apparatus (300), the server (200) being configured to receive said packet and convert the packet by means of processing into a series of data processed with respect to the exercise performed by the user (301) on the apparatus (300), said processing using variables established for said apparatus (300) and previously stored in a database associated with the server (200).

Description

Enunciated

Dynamic two-phase data interpretation system for gym and fitness equipment.

Field of the Invention

The invention belongs to the sector of fitness equipment and other gym equipment related to sports activities. More specifically to the electronic devices and systems responsible for processing the data related to the exercises performed on these devices (time, Kcal, distance, speed, pulsations, weight, etc.).

Background of the invention

In the current fitness equipment and gymnastics devices, the firmware responsible for interpreting the data of the work done on such equipment or devices through a display or other type of interface is recorded at the factory and does not allow its modification for practical purposes. Once put on the market.

Many series come with a high margin of error that do not reflect the reality of the work done on such devices. This is something known among sports professionals who are accustomed to working with strict exercise charts aimed at high performance athletes and professionals.

A clear example is observed when walking for 15 minutes on two treadmills from different manufacturers. The final result in Kcal and distance almost never coincides, even though the same work has been done on both teams.

This margin of error is increased the longer the activities carried out on the machines. In an elite athlete who trains more than four hours a day, six days a week, these margins of error could lower his performance or endanger the athlete's health by taking his activities beyond his means.

This defect is also a big problem in specific weight loss programs linked to daily calorie consumption.

Many professionals, such as football or endocrine team coaches and clinics specializing in weight loss, finally choose to ignore the information shown by the devices of the machines, focusing work activities only on time. Currently there is no possibility to rectify these margins of errors through the firmware of the machine that processes and interprets this data, especially in series that have already been put on the market. Description of the invention

The invention relates to a system and a dynamic two-phase data interpretation procedure for gymnastic and fitness apparatus according to claims 1 and 9, respectively. Preferred embodiments of the system and procedure are defined in the dependent claims.

Unlike traditional gymnastics devices in which data interpretation is carried out in a single device located on the same machine, the present invention proposes a dynamic data interpretation system that works in two different phases and systems.

A first aspect of the present invention relates to a dynamic interpretation system in two phases of data relating to physical exercise performed by a user in a physical exercise machine, comprising:

a device connected to at least one sensor of a mechanical component of said physical exercise machine, the at least one sensor providing a series of pulses in response to a physical exercise; Y

- a preferably remote server, in communication with said device; the device comprising a microcontroller and a communication module, in which the microcontroller is configured to receive the series of pulses of said at least one sensor and to send them together with information related to the duration of said physical exercise to the communication module; - the communication module being configured to send a packet with the series of pulses to the server, said information relating to the duration of said physical exercise and at least one identifier of said physical exercise machine; Y,

the server being configured to receive said packet and convert it by means of a processing into a series of processed data related to said physical exercise performed by the user in said physical exercise machine, using in said processing some variables established for said previously stored physical exercise machine in a database associated with said server.

That is, according to the system of the present invention, in a first phase the device captures and sends the data of the activity performed by the user on a physical exercise machine to the server. In a second phase, once the data is received on the server, they are processed and interpreted with respect to the variables established by that physical exercise machine.

Through this separation and processing of data in two phases, the problems posed by existing systems are avoided. Thus, any margin of error detected in the physical exercise machine can be corrected through the server.

Preferably said series of processed data relating to physical exercise are sent to the physical exercise machine.

The physical exercise machine preferably comprises means of visual representation - display or similar type - or auditory so that the user of said machine can receive - transparently for him - said processed data with more real information about the exercise he is performing.

The device is preferably an integral part of the physical exercise machine, but it can also be located outside said machine but connected to it.

The mechanical component of the physical exercise machine is preferably a component that describes turns or performs complete cycles during the operation of said machine.

The device may further comprise connection means with a pulse sensor (cardiac pulsations) of the user of the physical exercise machine.

Sending the captured data from the communication module to the server is preferably carried out periodically, although it can also be done on express request or randomly.

According to a second aspect of the invention, this refers to a dynamic interpretation procedure in two phases of data relating to a physical exercise performed by a user in a physical exercise machine, comprising:

capturing a series of pulses generated by at least one sensor of a mechanical component of said physical exercise machine in response to a physical exercise performed on said physical exercise machine; sending said series of pulses in a package together with information related to the duration of said physical exercise and at least one identifier of said physical exercise machine to a server;

process said package on the server and convert it into a series of processed data related to said physical exercise performed by the user in said physical exercise machine, using in said processing some variables established for said physical exercise machine previously stored in a database associated with that server.

Preferably, the server sends said series of processed data related to the physical exercise back to the physical exercise machine. And also preferably, said series of processed data relating to physical exercise are presented in the physical exercise machine perceptibly to the user, by means of a display, through a loudspeaker or by some kind of touch sensor.

Brief description of the drawings

To complement the description that is being made and in order to help a better understanding of the characteristics of the invention, according to a preferred example of practical implementation thereof, a set of drawings is attached as an integral part of said description. In an illustrative and non-limiting manner, the following has been represented:

Figure 1 shows a block diagram of the device that is installed in the apparatus or fitness machine.

Figure 2 schematically shows the first phase corresponding to the process of data collection of a physical exercise performed by a person and sent to the remote server.

Figure 3 schematically shows the second part corresponding to the interpretation of the data and subsequent sending of said processed data to the physical exercise machine.

Preferred Embodiment of the Invention

According to the preferred embodiment of the invention, the system of the invention performs a dynamic interpretation of data, working in two phases; a first phase consisting of data collection related to a physical exercise performed by a user 301 on each machine 300, and a second phase of analysis and processing said data on a remote server 200, said analysis and data processing being valid for whatever the fitness machine or apparatus from which said data has been sent.

The system, which as indicated operates in two phases, is composed of a specific device 100 installed in each gym machine or apparatus and a data management application installed in a remote server 200.

As will be explained later in detail, thanks to this "separation" this system can be remotely adjusted through the network and uses a single management application for all series and fitness machines regardless of their characteristics, model or maker.

In this way, a manufacturer of fitness equipment that detects a high margin of error in their equipment can adjust all the necessary parameters through that single application installed on the server, which can be accessed through a web browser through a specific URL .

Figure 1 shows the block diagram of the electronic card developed in SMD technology for the device 100 that is installed in the gymnastic apparatus - in the case shown in Figure 2 the device 100 is integrated into a treadmill 301 - This device 100 may be powered by a mains connection, for which it comprises the corresponding power input 20, and includes a communication module 10 that can be connected in network 202 via Ethernet or WiFi cable to a "router" 201 or conventional router. For this, the device is equipped with the corresponding WiFi antenna 1 1 and Ethernet connection 12.

In the example shown, the device 100 forms an integral part of the treadmill 301, but can be located both inside and outside the gymnastic apparatus.

But in any case this device 100 is connected to the fitness machine by means of cables to sensors (not shown) located in the different mechanical components of the gymnastic apparatus. For this, the device 100 has an input 30 for the connection of the sensors.

These sensors are located in any mechanical element of the gymnastics apparatus that describes turns or complete cycles during its operation. At each turn or complete cycle, the sensor produces or allows the passage of an electrical signal that translates into pulses. A certain activity (exercise) on a device Gymnastics with this technology includes hundreds and even thousands of pulses recorded during the duration of the exercise.

To process this information received from the sensors, the device 100 includes a microcontroller 40 (eg, Silicon Labs C8051 F410, 50 next-generation MIPS); This information is stored in a non-volatile memory 41 (eg, E2PROM) for immediate or subsequent sending to the remote server 200 depending on the connection speed.

The information during the exercises is stored in the form of compact packets of information that contain the variables related to the start and end time of the activity, as well as the total number of cycles performed or pulses detected. For this, the device has a calendar clock (RTC) to print the data related to the times in the information packets described.

The first phase ends in communication module 10 (e.g., Landtronix Matchport). The microcontroller 40 sends the collected information to the communication module 10 so that it, in turn, by means of an Ethernet or WiFi connection sends it to the remote server 200 through the network 202.

As indicated above, the treadmill 300 incorporates a display in view of the user 301 directly connected to the device via cable (see in figure 1 the connector 50 for the display). Through the microcontroller 40, this display is responsible for teaching the user the information related to their exercises once the data already interpreted by the server has been received back.

That is, in this first phase the device captures and sends to the server 200 the data of the activity performed by the user 301 on the treadmill 300.

Once the data has been received on server 200, in a second phase (see

Figure 3), the data management application installed on the server 200 is responsible for interpreting the data received with respect to the variables established by the manufacturer in a server database.

This second phase of data processing is performed on the server, in which an application or computer tool is installed, which in this case is done in PHP language with MYSQL databases. This computer application is controlled through an HTML interface and allows, among other functions, to define the variables necessary to interpret the data received from the communication module.

Once the interpretation of this data is finished, the results are sent from back through the network 202 back to the device 100 of the treadmill 300.

The user 301 of the treadmill 300, through a display or other type of interface, can view the data related to their exercises without perceiving that these were processed outside the machine remotely.

The versatility of the system of the invention allows, among others, to change the data interpretation variables as many times as desired, by any person, from anywhere and on any machine, whether series and even one in particular.

The communication module 10 incorporates functions such as periodic and automatic ping sending or life signal from the component to the server, light-type interiaces to indicate its status, reset buttons of the module, etc.

The device 100 installed in the fitness machine includes a USB port 60 for connection to a PC in the parameterization of all the components that comprise it, as well as network parameters necessary for the network connection and address sending data to the server.

Thus, in figure 1 an administrator 203 in charge of server database maintenance can also be observed as well as parameterize the different variables used by the computer application hosted on the server 200 when interpreting the data received by the device 100.

To better understand the data processing that is performed on the server, the following illustrative example is included:

An exercise of only 10 seconds is performed on an exercise bike equipped with this system. During this time a total of 20 pedaling is performed, therefore, and to simplify the process, the sensor that is located right in the crown of the pedals detects 20 pulses.

In this way, the microcontroller generates an information package that includes the start and end time of the activity and with a total number of 20 pulses. Almost immediately, the communication module sends this data packet to the server.

The server after checking who sends the data, through the address

MAC, identifies the machine model. In this way, it takes into account the specific variables for that machine, stored in the databases and previously introduced by the manufacturer. With these variables the following calculations are made: Activity time It is calculated taking into account the difference between the start and end time of the activity. That is, 10 seconds.

Distance traveled

It is calculated taking into account the number of pulses received multiplied by the variables corresponding to the fitness machine, for example. 1.5 m / pulse. That is, 1.5 x 20 pulses received, equal to 30 meters.

Speed

Distance split by time. That is, in this example, 3 m / s.

Kcal consumed

It is calculated taking into account again the number of pulses received multiplied by the corresponding variable of the machine, for example. 3 kcal / pulse That is, 3 x 20 pulses received equal to 60 Kcal.

All the exposed variables are defined by each manufacturer of each machine and can be modified through the interface of the application or computer tool hosted on the server.

In this way, after detecting a margin of error that does not correspond to the reality of a specific machine model and series, it is enough to modify the variables until reaching the precision desired by the manufacturer.

Once the data has been interpreted on the server, the exercise information that the user of the machine can display through the display is sent back to the issuing fitness machine. In this case the user sees: 10 seconds of activity, 3 m / s, 30 meters traveled, 60 Kcal consumed.

This data corresponds to a segment of 10 seconds of activity on the machine. The device installed in the fitness machine can be configured remotely to close information packages of greater, equal or lesser time. In this way an activity of 60 seconds can be segmented into packages of 10 seconds. In other words, the user can see their display information refreshed 6 times in a minute.

This way of working of the system of the present invention allows, among other things, to perform additional calculations such as an average speed during and at the end of the activity.

It is important to mention that the machine device has unlimited capacity for additional inputs or sensors. This allows other types of telemetry to be taken into account, such as heart beat. These would be processed equally way, that is, dynamically through variables hosted in the server databases.

In view of this description and set of figures, the person skilled in the art will be able to understand that the embodiments of the invention that have been described can be combined in multiple ways within the scope of the invention.

Claims

one . Dynamic interpretation system in two phases of data related to a physical exercise performed by a user (301) in a physical exercise machine (300), comprising:

a device (100) connected to at least one sensor of a mechanical component of said physical exercise machine (300), the at least one sensor providing a series of pulses in response to a physical exercise; Y

a server (200), in communication with said device (100);

- the device (100) comprising a microcontroller (40) and a communication module (10), in which the microcontroller (40) is configured to receive the pulse series of said at least one sensor and to send them together with relative information in time of said physical exercise to the communication module (10);

- the communication module (10) being configured to send to the server

(200) a package with the series of pulses, said information relating to the duration of said physical exercise and at least one identifier of said physical exercise machine (300); Y,

the server (200) being configured to receive said package and convert it by means of a processing into a series of processed data related to said physical exercise performed by the user (301) in said physical exercise machine (300), using said variables in said processing established for said physical exercise machine (300) previously stored in a database associated with said server (200).

2. System according to claim 1, wherein said series of processed data related to physical exercise are also sent to the physical exercise machine (300).

3. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said device (100) forms an integral part of said physical exercise machine (300).

4. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said mechanical component of the physical exercise machine (300) is a component that describes turns or performs complete cycles during operation of said machine.

5. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the device (100) further comprises connection means with a user pulse sensor (301) of the physical exercise machine (300).

6. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said variables established for the physical exercise machine are modifiable by connection with said server (200).

7. System according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sending from the communication module (10) to the server (200) is periodic.

System according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the communication module (10) and the server (200) are connected via WiFi or Ethernet connection.

9. Dynamic interpretation procedure in two phases of data relating to a physical exercise performed by a user (301) in a physical exercise machine (300), comprising:

capturing a series of pulses generated by at least one sensor of a mechanical component of said physical exercise machine (300) in response to a physical exercise performed on said physical exercise machine (300);

sending said series of pulses in a package together with information related to the duration of said physical exercise and at least one identifier of said physical exercise machine (300) to a server (200);

process said package on the server (200) and convert them into a series of processed data relating to said physical exercise performed by the user (301) in said physical exercise machine (300), using in said processing some variables established for said physical exercise machine (300) previously stored in a database associated with said server (200).

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the server also sends said series of processed data relating to physical exercise to the physical exercise machine (300).

eleven . Method according to claim 10, in which said series of processed data related to physical exercise are also presented in the physical exercise machine (300) in a manner perceptible to the user (301).

12. The method according to claim 1, wherein processed data relating to physical exercise are represented on a display.

13. The method according to claim 1, wherein processed data relating to physical exercise are presented through a loudspeaker.