U.S. patent application number 15/371909 was filed with the patent office on 2017-12-07 for portable electronic device and operation method thereof.
The applicant listed for this patent is PIXART IMAGING INC.. Invention is credited to HAN-CHANG LIN, GUO-ZHEN WANG.
Application Number | 20170351908 15/371909 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 60482390 |
Filed Date | 2017-12-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20170351908 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
WANG; GUO-ZHEN ; et
al. |
December 7, 2017 |
PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND OPERATION METHOD THEREOF
Abstract
Disclosed are a portable electronic device and an operation
method thereof. The built-in image sensor of the portable
electronic device continually captures a first image, detects
whether there is a face image information in the first image, and
accordingly determines whether to turn on a camera of the portable
electronic device to capture a second image having a higher
resolution. After that, the recognition module of the portable
electronic device recognizes at least one facial feature in the
second image.
Inventors: |
WANG; GUO-ZHEN; (Hsin-Chu,
TW) ; LIN; HAN-CHANG; (Hsin-Chu, TW) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
PIXART IMAGING INC. |
HSIN-CHU |
|
TW |
|
|
Family ID: |
60482390 |
Appl. No.: |
15/371909 |
Filed: |
December 7, 2016 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N 5/23245 20130101;
H04N 5/232411 20180801; G06K 9/22 20130101; H04N 5/23219 20130101;
G06K 9/00255 20130101; H04N 5/23241 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06K 9/00 20060101
G06K009/00; G06T 5/00 20060101 G06T005/00; H04N 5/232 20060101
H04N005/232 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jun 1, 2016 |
TW |
105117190 |
Claims
1. A portable electronic device, operating in a suspend state and a
work state, comprising: a body; an image sensor, in the suspend
state continually capturing a first image outside the body and
detecting whether there is a face image information in the first
image, wherein the first image has a first resolution; a camera, in
the suspend state capturing a second image outside the body after
the face image information is detected from the first image,
wherein the second image has a second resolution and the second
resolution is higher than the first resolution; and a recognition
module, recognizing at least one facial feature in the second
image, wherein the portable electronic device enters the work state
when the recognition module recognizes the correct facial
feature.
2. The portable electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the
image sensor is switched to a power-saving mode after the portable
electronic device enters the work state.
3. The portable electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the
camera is turned off when the portable electronic device operates
in the suspend state and when there is no face image information
detected by the image sensor from the first image.
4. An operation method, applied to a portable electronic device,
wherein the portable electronic device operates in a suspend state
and a work state, and the portable electronic device comprises a
body, an image sensor, a camera and a recognition module, the
operation method comprising: in the suspend state, turning on the
image sensor to continually capture a first image outside the body
and to detect whether there is a face image information in the
first image, wherein first image has a first resolution; and
turning on the camera to capture a second image outside the body
after the face image information is detected from the first image,
and recognizing at least one facial feature in the second image by
the recognition module, wherein the second image has a second
resolution and the second resolution is higher than the first
resolution; wherein the portable electronic device enters the work
state when the recognition module recognizes the correct facial
feature.
5. The operation method according to claim 4, wherein the image
sensor is switched to a power-saving mode after the portable
electronic device enters the work state.
6. The operation method according to claim 4, wherein the camera is
turned off when the portable electronic device operates in the
suspend state and when there is no face image information detected
by the image sensor from the first image.
7. A portable electronic device, comprising: a body; and an image
sensor, continually capturing a first image outside the body and
detecting whether there is a first predetermined object or a second
predetermined object in the first image, wherein when receiving a
call, the portable electronic device determines to answer or
decline the call according to whether there is the first
predetermined object or the second predetermined object detected in
the first image.
8. The portable electronic device according to claim 7, wherein the
portable electronic device is switched to a power-saving mode when
the call is declined.
9. The portable electronic device according to claim 7, further
comprising: an on-hook controller, configured in the body,
controlling the portable electronic device to go on-hook after the
call is answered; wherein the on-hook controller is activated to
control the portable electronic device to go on-hook, after the
call is answered and when there is a third predetermined detected
by the image sensor in the first image.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The instant disclosure relates to a portable electronic
device and an operation method thereof; in particular, to a
portable electronic device and an operation method thereof that can
analyze low-resolution images and consumes less power.
2. Description of Related Art
[0002] Usually, when a portable electronic device captures an
image, a built-in baseband circuit of the portable electronic
device must turn on a camera to capture a high-resolution image.
However, this operation process consumes much power. To reduce the
power consumption of the portable electronic device and to make the
portable electronic device able to be used in more situations, an
improved portable electronic device that can analyze low-resolution
images and consumes less power is needed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The instant disclosure provides a portable electronic device
that can be operated in a suspend state and a work state. The
portable electronic device comprises a body, an image sensor, a
camera and a recognition module. In the suspend state, the image
sensor continually captures a first image outside the body and
detects whether there is a face image information in the first
image. In the suspend state, the camera captures a second image
outside the body after the face image information is detected from
the first image. The first image has a first resolution, and the
second image has a second resolution. The second resolution is
higher than the first resolution. The recognition module recognizes
at least one facial feature in the second image. The portable
electronic device enters the work state when the recognition module
recognizes the correct facial feature.
[0004] The instant disclosure further provides an operation method
that is applied to a portable electronic device. The portable
electronic device that can be operated in a suspend state and a
work state, and comprises a body, an image sensor, a camera and a
recognition module. The operation method comprises: in the suspend
state, turning on the image sensor to continually capture a first
image outside the body and to detect whether there is a face image
information in the first image, wherein first image has a first
resolution; and turning on the camera to capture a second image
outside the body after the face image information is detected from
the first image, and recognizing at least one facial feature in the
second image by the recognition module, wherein the second image
has a second resolution and the second resolution is higher than
the first resolution. The portable electronic device enters the
work state when the recognition module recognizes the correct
facial feature.
[0005] To sum up, in the portable electronic device and the
operation method provided by the instant disclosure, a built-in
image sensor can continually detect whether there is a face image
information in the first image. Accordingly, it can be determined
whether to turn on a camera to capture a second image having higher
resolution for recognizing at least one facial feature in the
second image. In this manner, in the instant disclosure, the
unlocking mechanism of the portable electronic device can be
implemented by two-stage face recognitions, which can effectively
reduce the power consumption of the portable electronic device.
[0006] For further understanding of the instant disclosure,
reference is made to the following detailed description
illustrating the embodiments of the instant disclosure. The
description is only for illustrating the instant disclosure, not
for limiting the scope of the claim.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] Embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not by way
of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which
like references indicate similar elements and in which:
[0008] FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic device
of one embodiment of the instant disclosure.
[0009] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing how the portable
electronic device shown in FIG. 1 operates.
[0010] FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of an operation method applied to
a portable electronic device of one embodiment of the instant
disclosure.
[0011] FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic device
of another embodiment of the instant disclosure.
[0012] FIG. 5A is a schematic diagram showing how a call is
answered by the portable electronic device shown in FIG. 1.
[0013] FIG. 5B is a schematic diagram showing how a call is
declined by the portable electronic device shown in FIG. 1.
[0014] FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of an operation method applied to
a portable electronic device of another embodiment of the instant
disclosure.
[0015] FIG. 7 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic device
of still another embodiment of the instant disclosure.
[0016] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing how the portable
electronic device shown in FIG. 7 operates.
[0017] FIG. 9 shows a flow chart of an operation method applied to
a portable electronic device of still another embodiment of the
instant disclosure.
[0018] FIG. 10 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic
device of still another embodiment of the instant disclosure.
[0019] FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing how the portable
electronic device shown in FIG. 10 operates.
[0020] FIG. 12 shows a flow chart of an operation method applied to
a portable electronic device of still another embodiment of the
instant disclosure.
[0021] FIG. 13 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic
device of still another embodiment of the instant disclosure.
[0022] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing how the portable
electronic device shown in FIG. 13 operates.
[0023] FIG. 15 shows a flow chart of an operation method applied to
a portable electronic device of still another embodiment of the
instant disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0024] The aforementioned illustrations and following detailed
descriptions are exemplary for the purpose of further explaining
the scope of the instant disclosure. Other objectives and
advantages related to the instant disclosure will be illustrated in
the subsequent descriptions and appended drawings. In addition, for
an easy instruction, similar reference numbers or symbols refer to
elements alike.
[0025] Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, FIG. 1 shows a block diagram
of a portable electronic device of one embodiment of the instant
disclosure, and FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing how the
portable electronic device shown in FIG. 1 operates. The portable
electronic device 1 mainly comprises an image sensor 11 and a
recognition module 13. The image sensor 11 and the recognition
module 13 can be implemented all by hardware or by a combination of
hardware and firmware or software, and it is not limited herein. In
addition, as shown in FIG. 1, the portable electronic device 1 can
also comprise a main system 15, a screen 17 and a camera 19, and
they are respectively connected to the main system 15.
[0026] The portable electronic device 1 can be a mobile
communication device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet
or the like, and it is not limited herein. Take the mobile
communication device as an example of the portable electronic
device 1 shown in FIG. 2. The portable electronic device 1 further
comprises a body 21. The image sensor 11, the screen 17 and the
camera 19 can be exposed on the same surface which is part of the
housing of the body 21. The recognition module 13 and the main
system 15 are configured inside the body 21. The positions where
the image sensor 11, the screen 17 and the camera 19 are configured
are not limited by FIG. 2. That is, the positions where the image
sensor 11, the screen 17 and the camera 19 are configured can be
designed based on need.
[0027] The portable electronic device 1 can be operated in a
suspend state and a work state. When the portable electronic device
1 enters the work state, the screen 17 of the portable electronic
device 1 is turned on and the main system 15 can execute a function
or a service required by a user according to their operation. In
addition, when the user has not operated the portable electronic
device 1 for a period of time, the portable electronic device 1 is
switched to the suspend state. Thus, the power supply to the main
system 15 is temporarily cut. The main system 15 enters a
power-saving mode and the screen 17 is also turned off to reduce
the power consumption of the portable electronic device 1, until
the portable electronic device 1 is again operated in the work
state.
[0028] Specifically speaking, the image sensor 11 is an always-on
image sensor, which has low power consumption and can analyze
low-resolution images. When the portable electronic device 1 is
operated in the suspend state, the image sensor 11 is turned on to
continually capture a first image outside the body 21 and to detect
whether there is a face image information in the first image. The
first image has a first resolution. For the convenience of
unlocking the screen 17 (that is, to switch the portable electronic
device 1 to the work state), the image sensor 11 and the screen 17
can be configured on the same surface, which is part of the housing
of the body 21, but it is not limited herein. In this manner, the
first image continually captured and detected by the image sensor
11 shows the scene in front of the screen 17. As shown in FIG. 2,
the user tends to unlock the screen 17 because he tends to operate
the portable electronic device 1 to execute certain function or
service (at this moment, the portable electronic device 1 is still
operated in the suspend state), and the image sensor 11 is turned
on to continually capture and detect the first image outside the
body 21. In addition, after a face image information is detected
from the first image, the image sensor 11 accordingly outputs an
actuation signal to the main system 15, such that the camera 19 and
the recognition module 13 are activated by the main system 15.
[0029] To prevent the image sensor 11 from wrongly detecting a face
image information from the first image, more image sensors 11 can
be used or conditions to determine whether the face image
information is correctly detected from the first image can be
added. For example, after the face image information in the first
image is detected by the image sensor 11, the image sensor 11 needs
to further determine whether the face image information has
appeared for over two seconds. Only when the image sensor 11
detects the face image information in the first image and the face
image information has appeared for over two seconds, will the image
sensor 11 output an actuation signal to the main system 15, such
that the camera 19 and the recognition module 13 are activated by
the main system 15. These conditions to determine whether the face
image information is correctly detected from the first image are
just examples but not for restricting the instant disclosure.
[0030] In the suspend state, after the face image information in
the first image is detected by the image sensor 11, the camera 19
captures a second image outside the body 21. The second image has a
second resolution, and the second resolution is higher than the
first resolution. The recognition module 13 is configured in the
body 21 to recognize at least one facial feature in the second
image. The recognition module 13 is connected to the main system
15. The recognition module 13 can be activated by the main system
15 to recognize at least one facial feature in the second image
through the camera 19. The camera 19 can be a VGA camera built in
the portable electronic device 1, which, compared with the image
sensor 11, can provide images having higher resolution (that is,
the second image). Still for the convenience of unlocking the
screen 17, the camera 19 is considered to be the front camera of
the portable electronic device 1, as shown in FIG. 2. Thus, the
second image captured by the camera 19 is the scene in front of the
screen 17. After the face image information is detected from the
first image, the portable electronic device 1 turns on the camera
19 to capture the second image, which shows the scene in front of
the screen 17. After that, the recognition module 13 recognizes at
least one facial feature in the second image.
[0031] After the recognition module 13 recognizes at least one
correct facial feature, the recognition module 13 determines that
the user has a legal identification to operate the portable
electronic device 1 for executing a function or a service, so the
main system 15 leaves the power-saving mode and the screen 17 is
unlocked. Thus, the portable electronic device 1 is switched from
the suspend state to the work state to execute a function or a
service. On the other hand, when the recognition module 13 has not
yet correctly recognized the facial feature, the portable
electronic device 1 will not be switched from the suspend state to
the work state and the screen 17 will not be turned on, which can
prevent the user that does not have a legal identification from
operating the portable electronic device 1 for executing a function
or a service. Details about the mechanism for recognizing facial
features are easily understood by those skilled in the art and thus
they will not be described herein.
[0032] One of the main achievements of the portable electronic
device 1 is that, the built-in image sensor 11 continually captures
and detects whether there is a face image information in the first
image, and then determines whether to turn on the camera 19 to
capture the second image having higher resolution. After that, the
recognition module 13 detects at least one facial feature in the
second image. In this manner, the unlocking mechanism of the
portable electronic device 1 can be implemented by a two-stage face
recognition, which can effectively reduce the power consumption of
the portable electronic device 1.
[0033] More specifically, the first-stage face recognition is to
use the image sensor 11 that is always on to determine whether
there is a face image information detected in the first image that
shows the scene in front of the screen 17, and to accordingly
determine whether to start the second-stage face recognition. In
the second-stage face recognition, the portable electronic device 1
turns on the camera 19 to capture images having higher resolution
and turns on the recognition module 13 to analyze high-resolution
images, to determine whether the user has a legal identification to
operate the portable electronic device 1 for executing a function
or a service.
[0034] When the portable electronic device 1 is switched from the
suspend state to the work state, the image sensor 11 is switched to
the power-saving mode. The image sensor 11 will be turned on to
continually capture and detect the first image outside the body 21
until the portable electronic device 1 has been switched from the
work state to the suspend state because it has not been operated
for a period of time. In addition, when the portable electronic
device 1 is operated in the suspend state and when the image sensor
11 has not yet detected the face image information from the first
image, the recognition module 13 does not need to be activated and
the camera 19 does not need to be turned on. The power consumption
of the portable electronic device 1 can be reduced because the
recognition module 13 and the camera 19 are both off. The
recognition module 13 will be activated and the camera 19 will be
turned on when the main system 15 receives an actuation signal from
the image sensor 11.
[0035] In order to further illustrate the operation method applied
to the portable electronic device 1, there is one embodiment
provided as below. Referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 3 shows a flow chart
of an operation method applied to a portable electronic device of
one embodiment of the instant disclosure. The method of this
embodiment is executable for a portable electronic device 1 as
shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, and thus please refer to FIG. 1 and
FIG. 2 for better understanding.
[0036] In step S301, after the portable electronic device 1 is
turned on but has been not operated for a period of time, the
portable electronic device 1 is switched from the work state to the
suspend state. In the suspend state, the image sensor 11 is turned
on to continually capture a first image outside the body 21. The
first image has a first resolution. In step S303, the image sensor
11 detects whether there is a face image information in the first
image.
[0037] After that, in step S305, if there is a face image
information detected from the first image, the camera 19 is turned
on to capture a second image outside the body 21. In addition, the
recognition module 13 is also activated to recognize at least one
facial feature in the second image. The second image has a second
resolution, and the second resolution is higher than the first
resolution. In the step S307, it is determined whether the correct
facial feature is recognized. Finally, in step S309, if the
recognition module 13 correctly recognizes the facial feature, the
portable electronic device 1 is switched from the suspend state to
the work state. At the same time, the image sensor 11 is switched
to the power-saving mode. On the other hand, if the portable
electronic device 1 is switched from the work state to the suspend
state, the recognition module 13 and the camera 19 are both turned
off to reduce the power consumption of the portable electronic
device 1.
[0038] Again referring to FIG. 3, if the recognition module 13 does
not recognize the correct facial feature, the portable electronic
device 1 will not be switched to the work state and the screen 17
will not be turned on, which can prevent a user that does not have
a legal identification from operating the portable electronic
device 1 for executing a function or a service. Thus, in step S311,
if the recognition module 13 does not recognize the correct facial
feature, the recognition module 13 and the camera 19 are both
turned off, and it returns to step S303.
[0039] In the portable electronic device and the operation method
provided in this embodiment, a built-in image sensor can
continually detect whether there is a face image information in the
first image. Accordingly, it can be determined whether to turn on a
camera to capture a second image having higher resolution for
recognizing at least one facial feature in the second image. In
this manner, the unlocking mechanism of the portable electronic
device can be implemented by a two-stage face recognition, which
can effectively reduce the power consumption of the portable
electronic device.
[0040] Referring to FIG. 4, FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B, FIG. 4 shows a
block diagram of a portable electronic device of another embodiment
of the instant disclosure, FIG. 5A is a schematic diagram showing
how a call is answered by the portable electronic device shown in
FIG. 1, and FIG. 5B is a schematic diagram showing how a call is
declined by the portable electronic device shown in FIG. 1. Like
reference numbers in FIGS. 4, 5A and 5B and FIGS. 1 and 2 refer to
like elements throughout.
[0041] In addition to an image sensor 41, a main system 15, a
screen 17 and a camera 19, the portable electronic device 4 shown
in FIG. 4 also comprises an off-hook controller 43 and a DND
controller (Do Not Disturb controller; DND controller) 45. The
off-hook controller 43 and the DND controller 45 can be implemented
all by hardware or by a combination of hardware and firmware or
software, and it is not limited herein. In addition, the off-hook
controller 43 and the DND controller 45 can be integrated in the
main system 15 or be configured separately. Take a mobile
communication device as an example of the portable electronic
device 4 shown in FIG. 5A or FIG. 5B. The portable electronic
device 4 also comprises a body 21. The image sensor 41, the screen
17 and the camera 19 can be exposed on the same surface which is
part of the housing of the body 21. The main system 15, the
off-hook controller 43 and the DND controller 45 are configured in
the body 21.
[0042] The image sensor 41 continually captures a first image
outside the body 21 and detects whether there is a first
predetermined object or a second predetermined object in the first
image. When the portable electronic device 4 receives a call, the
off-hook controller 43 can control the portable electronic device 4
to answer the call, or the DND controller 45 can control the
portable electronic device 4 to decline the call. The working
mechanism for answering or declining a call is easily understood by
the skilled in the art, and thus details about how the off-hook
controller 43 or the DND controller 45 controls the portable
electronic device 4 to answer or decline a call are not described
herein. Briefly speaking, by determining whether there is a first
predetermined object or a second predetermined object detected in
the first image, the off-hook controller 43 or the DND controller
45 in the portable electronic device 4 can determine whether to
answer or decline a call.
[0043] Usually, when a portable electronic device receives a call,
the contact information of the caller is shown on the screen, such
as the name, the identification number, the phone number or the
like. A user can determine to answer or to decline the call based
on this contact information shown on the screen. However, the user
always needs to push buttons or touch the screen to control the
portable electronic device to answer or to decline the call, which
may be not be convenient because sometimes the user may not be free
or may be too busy to push buttons or touch the screen of his
portable electronic device.
[0044] In this embodiment, when the portable electronic device 4
receives a call, the image sensor 41 is turned on to continually
capture a first image outside the body 21. When there is a first
predetermined object or a second predetermined object detected in
the first image, the portable electronic device 4 accordingly
determines to answer or decline the call. As shown in FIG. 5A, if
there is a first predetermined object detected in the first image,
such as the user's ear, the image sensor 41 outputs a first
actuation signal to the main system 15. As a result, the main
system 15 activates the off-hook controller 43 to control the
portable electronic device 4 to answer the call. On the other hand,
as shown in FIG. 5B, if there is a second predetermined object
detected in the first image, such as the user's palm, the image
sensor 41 outputs a second actuation signal to the main system 15.
As a result, the main system 15 activates the DND controller 45 to
control the portable electronic device 4 to decline the call. In
this manner, the portable electronic device 4 uses the image sensor
41 that can analyze lower-resolution images and has low power
consumption to recognize predetermined objects to further answer or
decline a call. In other words, the portable electronic device 4
can automatically determine to answer or to decline a call, so a
user does not need to do it manually.
[0045] To prevent the image sensor 41 from wrongly determining
whether there is a first predetermined object or a second
predetermined object in a first image, more image sensors 41 can be
used or the conditions to determine whether there is the first
predetermined object or the second predetermined object in a first
image can be added. For example, the image sensor 41 not only needs
to detect whether there is the first predetermined object or the
second predetermined object in a first image, but also needs to
detect changes in the distance between the first predetermined
object and the portable electronic device 4 and the distance
between the second predetermined object and the portable electronic
device 4. In this manner, only when the image sensor 41 detects the
first predetermined object, such as the user's ear, that is
approaching the portable electronic device 4, does the image sensor
41 output a first actuation signal to the main system 15. As a
result, the main system 15 activates the off-hook controller 43 to
control the portable electronic device 4 to answer the call. On the
other hand, only when the image sensor 41 detects the second
predetermined object, such as the user's palm, that is approaching
the portable electronic device 4, the image sensor 41 outputs a
second actuation signal to the main system 15. As a result, the
main system 15 activates the DND controller 45 to control the
portable electronic device 4 to decline the call. However, these
conditions to determine whether there is a first predetermined
object or a second predetermined object detected in a first image
are just examples and not for restricting the instant
disclosure.
[0046] When a call is declined, the image sensor 41 is switched to
a power-saving mode to reduce the power consumption of the portable
electronic device 4. The image sensor 41 will be turned on again
when the portable electronic device 4 receives the next call. Again
referring to FIG. 4, the portable electronic device 4 can further
comprise an on-hook controller 47 that is also configured in the
body 21. The on-hook controller 47 can be implemented all by
hardware or by a combination of hardware and firmware or software,
and it is not limited herein. In addition, the on-hook controller
47 and the DND controller 45 can be integrated or separately
configured.
[0047] After a call is answered, the on-hook controller 47 can
control the portable electronic device 4 to go on-hook.
Specifically speaking, after a call is answered, the image sensor
41 keeps capturing and detecting the first image outside the body
21. The image sensor 41 outputs a third actuation signal to the
main system 15 when there is a third predetermined object (not
shown) in the first image detected by the image sensor 41.
According to the third actuation signal, the main system 15
activates the on-hook controller 47 to control the portable
electronic device 4 to go on-hook.
[0048] In order to further illustrate the operation method applied
to the portable electronic device 4, another embodiment is provided
as below. Referring to FIG. 6, FIG. 6 shows a flow chart of an
operation method applied to a portable electronic device of another
embodiment of the instant disclosure. The method of this embodiment
is executable for a portable electronic device 4 as shown in FIGS.
4, 5A and 5B, and thus please refer to FIGS. 4, 5A and 5B for
better understanding.
[0049] In step S601, when the portable electronic device 4 receives
a call, the image sensor 41 is tuned on to continually capture and
detect a first image outside the body 21. In step S603, the image
sensor 41 determines whether there is a first predetermined object
or a second predetermined object detected in the first image. If it
is determined that a first predetermined object is detected in the
first image, in step S605, the portable electronic device 4
determines to answer the call (that is, the off-hook controller 43
controls the portable electronic device 4 to answer the call). In
addition, if it is determined that a second predetermined object is
detected in the first image, in step S607, the portable electronic
device 4 determines to decline the call (that is, the DND
controller 45 controls the portable electronic device 4 to decline
the call).
[0050] After the call is answered, the image sensor 41 keeps
capturing and detecting the first image outside the body 21. Thus,
in step S609, the image sensor 41 further determines whether there
is a third predetermined object in the first image. If the image
sensor 41 determines that there is the third predetermined object
in the first image, in step S611, the portable electronic device 4
determines to decline the call (that is, the on-hook controller 47
is activated to control the portable electronic device 4 to go
on-hook). It is worth mentioning that, the image sensor 41 can only
analyze low-resolution images and has low power consumption, so the
resolution of first images captured by the image sensor 41 must be
much lower than the resolution of second images captured by the
camera 19 which is built in the portable electronic device 4.
Moreover, when a call is declined, the image sensor 41 is switched
to a power-saving mode to reduce the power consumption of the
portable electronic device 4. The image sensor 41 will be turned on
again when the portable electronic device 4 receives the next
call.
[0051] Referring to FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, FIG. 7 shows a block diagram
of a portable electronic device of still another embodiment of the
instant disclosure, and FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram showing how
the portable electronic device shown in FIG. 7 operates. Like
reference numbers in FIGS. 7 and 8, and FIGS. 1-2, 4, 5A and 5B
refer to like elements throughout.
[0052] The portable electronic device 7 mainly comprises an image
sensor 71, a main system 15, a screen 17 and a camera 19. The image
sensor 71 and the main system 15 can be implemented all by hardware
or by a combination of hardware and firmware or software, and it is
not limited herein. In addition, the image sensor 71 can be
integrated into the main system 15 or be configured outside the
main system 15.
[0053] Take a mobile communication device as an example of the
portable electronic device 7 shown in FIG. 8. The portable
electronic device 7 also comprises a body 21. The image sensor 71,
the screen 17 and the camera 19 can be exposed on the same surface
which is part of the housing of the body 21. The main system 15 is
configured in the body 21. The position where the image sensor 71
is configured is not limited by FIG. 8. That is, the position where
the image sensor 71 is configured can be designed based on
need.
[0054] The image sensor 71 continually captures a first image
outside the body 21. In addition, the image sensor 71 detects at
least one motion of a user to generate a control signal according
to the detected motion. Compared with the image sensor 11 shown in
FIG. 1 and the image sensor 41 shown in FIG. 4, the image sensor 71
shown in FIG. 7 can do more complex motion recognition, by which
the image sensor 71 can recognize and analyze a gesture, a number
of fingers and/or a moving direction in the captured first image.
Accordingly, the image sensor 71 obtains at least one motion of the
user and generates a control signal relevant to the motion of the
user. It is worth mentioning that, the image sensor 71 can only
analyze low-resolution images and has low power consumption, so the
resolution of first images captured by the image sensor 71 must be
much lower than the resolution of second images captured by the
camera 19 which is built in the portable electronic device 7.
Moreover, the image sensor 71 can be an always-on image sensor, and
the conditions to turn on the image sensor 71 are not restricted.
In other words, a user can design the conditions that the portable
electronic device 7 needs to turn on the image sensor 71 based on
his need.
[0055] After the image sensor 71 is turned on, the main system 15
receives the control signal from the image sensor 71, and
correspondingly executes a function or a service. For example,
after the image sensor 71 recognizes and analyzes a gesture, a
number of fingers and/or a moving direction in the captured first
image, the image sensor 71 obtains a motion of the user, which is
"waving palm left and right". Thus, the image sensor 71 generates a
control signal relevant to the motion "waving palm left and right"
to the main system 15. Receiving the control signal, the main
system 15 learns the motion corresponding to this control signal is
"waving palm left and right" by checking a look-up table. Finally,
the main system 15 executes a function or a service which
corresponds to this motion "waving palm left and right", such as an
audio broadcasting service. The above example is only for
illustrating but not for restricting the instant disclosure
[0056] In order to further illustrate the operation method applied
to the portable electronic device 7, another embodiment is provided
as below. Referring to FIG. 9, FIG. 9 shows a flow chart of an
operation method applied to a portable electronic device of still
another embodiment of the instant disclosure. The method of this
embodiment is executable for a portable electronic device 7 as
shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, and thus please refer to FIGS. 7 and 8 for
better understanding.
[0057] In step S901, the image sensor 71 is turned on to
continually capture a first image outside the body 21. In addition,
the image sensor 71 detects at least one motion of a user according
to the captured first image, and generates a control signal
according to this detected motion of the user. In step S903, the
main system 15 receives the control signal from the image sensor
71, and correspondingly executes a function or a service according
to the control signal.
[0058] More specifically, in step S901, the image sensor 71 detects
at least one motion of the user according to a gesture, a number of
fingers and/or a moving direction in the captured first image.
[0059] Referring to FIG. 10 and FIG. 11, FIG. 10 shows a block
diagram of a portable electronic device of still another embodiment
of the instant disclosure, and FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram
showing how the portable electronic device shown in FIG. 10
operates. Like reference numbers in FIGS. 10 and 11, and FIGS.
1.about.9, refer to like elements throughout.
[0060] The portable electronic device 10 mainly comprises an image
sensor 101, a main system 15, a screen 17, a camera 19, a first
communication module 103 and a second communication module 105. The
image sensor 101, the main system 15, the first communication
module 103 and the second communication module 105 can be
implemented all by hardware or by a combination of hardware and
firmware or software, and it is not limited herein. In addition,
the image sensor 101, the main system 15, the first communication
module 103 and the second communication module 105 can be
integrated and configured separately.
[0061] Take a mobile communication device as an example of the
portable electronic device 10. The portable electronic device 10
further comprises a body 21. The image sensor 101, the screen 17
and the camera 19 can be exposed on the same surface which is part
of the housing of the body 21. The main system 15, the first
communication module 103 and the second communication module 105
are configured inside the body 21. The position where the image
sensor 101 is configured is not limited by FIG. 11. That is, the
position where the image sensor 101 is configured can be designed
based on need.
[0062] Specifically speaking, the image sensor 101 continually
captures a first image outside the body 21, and determines whether
the portable electronic device 10 is located indoors or outdoors
according to the captured first image. Moreover, the first
communication module 103 controls the portable electronic device 10
to connect to the Internet through a first network IT1, and the
second communication module 105 controls the portable electronic
device 10 to connect to the Internet through a second network IT2.
The first network IT1 can be the Wi-Fi network, and the second
network IT2 can be the 3G communication network or the 4G
communication network, but it is not limited herein. After the
image sensor 101 determines whether the portable electronic device
10 is located indoors or outdoors, it can be determined whether to
activate the first communication module 103 or the second
communication module 105 to make the portable electronic device
connect to the Internet through the first network IT1 or the second
network IT2.
[0063] The conditions to turn on the image sensor 101 are not
restricted. In other words, a user can design the conditions under
which the portable electronic device 10 needs to turn on the image
sensor 101 based on his need. For example, as shown in FIG. 11, the
image sensor 101 is turned on, and when the image sensor 101
determines that the portable electronic device is located indoors,
the first communication module 103 is activated to control the
portable electronic device 10 to connect to the Internet through
the first network IT1 (e.g., the Wi-Fi network). On the other hand,
when the image sensor 101 determines that the portable electronic
device is located outdoors, the second communication module 105 is
activated to control the portable electronic device 10 to connect
to the Internet through the second network IT2 (e.g., the 3G
communication network or the 4G communication network).
[0064] Thus, for the portable electronic device 10 provided in this
embodiment, the built-in image sensor 101 can detect and then
determine that the portable electronic device is located indoors or
outdoors. After that, it can be determined that the portable
electronic device 10 is supposed to connect to the Internet through
the first network IT1 or the second network IT2. In this
embodiment, the image sensor 101 has low power consumption and can
not only capture and analyze low-resolution images, but also can
recognize the scene or the environment to automatically and
appropriately choose a network to connect to the Internet. Thus, a
user does not need to manually operate the portable electronic
device 10 to choose a network to connect to the Internet and it is
very convenient.
[0065] More specifically, the image sensor 101 determines that the
portable electronic device 10 is located indoors or outdoors
according to a flicker frequency and/or an exposure time of the
captured first image. For example, because of the exposure to the
fluorescent light, the flicker frequency of the image captured
indoors is higher than the flicker frequency of the image captured
outdoors. Thus, the image sensor 101 can determine that the
portable electronic device 10 is located indoors if the flicker
frequency of the captured first image is higher than a threshold
frequency. On the other hand, because of the exposure to the
natural light, the exposure time of the image captured outdoors is
longer than the exposure time of the image captured indoors. Thus,
the image sensor 101 can determine that the portable electronic
device 10 is located outdoors if the exposure time of the captured
first image is longer than a threshold time. The above examples are
only for illustrating but not for restricting the instant
disclosure.
[0066] In order to further illustrate the operation method applied
to the portable electronic device 10, another embodiment is
provided as below. Referring to FIG. 12, FIG. 12 shows a flow chart
of an operation method applied to a portable electronic device of
still another embodiment of the instant disclosure. The method of
this embodiment is executable for a portable electronic device 10
as shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, and thus please refers to FIGS. 10 and
11 for better understanding.
[0067] In step S121, the image sensor 101 is turned on to
continually capture a first image outside the body 21. In step
S123, the image sensor 101 determines that the portable electronic
device 10 is located indoors or outdoors according to the first
image. After that, in step S125, the portable electronic device 10
connects to the Internet through the first network IT1 if the
portable electronic device 10 is located indoors. On the other
hand, in step S127, the portable electronic device 10 connects to
the Internet through the second network IT2 if the portable
electronic device 10 is located outdoors.
[0068] The flicker frequency of the image may vary with the
exposures of different fluorescent lamps. Moreover, the flicker
frequency can be also defined as the coding data for the data
transmission used in navigation or broadcasting, especially indoor
navigation or indoor broadcasting. Referring to FIG. 13 and FIG.
14, FIG. 13 shows a block diagram of a portable electronic device
of still another embodiment of the instant disclosure, and FIG. 14
is a schematic diagram showing how the portable electronic device
shown in FIG. 14 operates. Like reference numbers in FIGS. 13 and
14, and FIGS. 1-12 refer to like elements throughout.
[0069] The portable electronic device 130 mainly comprises an image
sensor 131, a main system 15, a screen 17, a camera 19 and a
navigation module 133. The image sensor 131, the main system 15 and
the navigation module 133 can be implemented all by hardware or by
a combination of hardware and firmware or software, and it is not
limited herein. In addition, the image sensor 131, the main system
15 and the navigation module 133 can be integrated or configured
separately.
[0070] Take a mobile communication device as an example of the
portable electronic device 130 shown in and FIG. 13 and FIG. 14.
The portable electronic device 130 further comprises a body 21. The
image sensor 131, the screen 17 and the camera 19 are exposed on
the same surface which is part of the housing of the body 21. The
main system 15 and the navigation module 133 are configured inside
the body 21. The position where the image sensor 131 is configured
is not limited by FIG. 13. That is, the position where the image
sensor 131 is configured can be designed based on need.
[0071] The image sensor 131 continually captures a first image
outside the body 21. In addition, the image sensor 131 detects the
flicker frequency of the first image and generates a navigation
signal according to the flicker frequency. The first image has a
first resolution. When the image sensor 131 is turned on, the
navigation module 133 receives the navigation signal from the image
sensor 131, and obtains a location information of the portable
electronic device 130 according to the navigation signal. The
conditions to turn on the image sensor 131 are not limited
herein.
[0072] As shown in FIG. 14, if the flicker frequency of an LED lamp
L1 and the flicker frequency of an LED lamp L2 are not equal, when
the portable electronic device 130 is exposed to the light emitted
by the LED lamp L1, the image sensor 131 detects the flicker
frequency of the LED lamp L1 and generates a navigation signal
according to the detected flicker frequency. After receiving the
navigation signal, the navigation module 133 can learn that the
flicker frequency corresponding to the navigation signal is the
flicker frequency of the LED lamp L1 by checking a look-up table.
In this manner, the navigation module 133 can determine that the
portable electronic device 130 is within the irradiation range of
the LED lamp L1 according to the location information of the
portable electronic device 130.
[0073] On the other hand, when the portable electronic device 130
is exposed to the light emitted by the LED lamp L2, the image
sensor 131 detects the flicker frequency of the LED lamp L2 and
generates a navigation signal according to the detected flicker
frequency. After receiving the navigation signal, the navigation
module 133 can learn that the flicker frequency corresponding to
the navigation signal is the flicker frequency of the LED lamp L2
by checking the look-up table. In this manner, the navigation
module 133 can determine that the portable electronic device 130 is
within the irradiation range of the LED lamp L2 according to the
location information of the portable electronic device 130. The
above examples are only for illustrating but not for restricting
the instant disclosure.
[0074] In order to further illustrate the operation method applied
to the portable electronic device 130, another embodiment is
provided as below. Referring to FIG. 15, FIG. 15 shows a flow chart
of an operation method applied to a portable electronic device of
still another embodiment of the instant disclosure. The method of
this embodiment is executable for a portable electronic device 130
as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, and thus please refers to FIGS. 13 and
14 for better understanding.
[0075] Is step S151, the image sensor 131 is turned on to
continually capture a first image outside the body 21. In addition,
the image sensor 131 detects the flicker frequency of the first
image, and generates a navigation signal according to the detected
flicker frequency. The first image has a first resolution. After
that, in step S153, the navigation module 133 receives the
navigation signal from the image sensor 131, and determines a
location information of the portable electronic device 130
according to the navigation signal.
[0076] It should be noted that, the adjective "always on" refers to
a function that the image sensor is always turned on and capturing
images when the portable electronic device is operated in specific
state (e.g., the suspend state). However, the image frames captured
by the image sensor can be consecutive or not consecutive. In other
words, there can be no time interval between the captured image
frames or there can be a time interval between the captured image
frames.
[0077] For the portable electronic device 130 provided by this
embodiment, the built-in image sensor 131 can detect the flicker
frequency according to the ambient light, wherein the flicker
frequency varies with the ambient light in different areas. After
that, the navigation module 133 can obtain a location information
of the portable electronic device 130 according to the detected
flicker frequency. Moreover, the flicker frequency can be also
defined as the coding data for the data transmission used in the
navigation or the broadcasting, and thus the image sensor 131 of
the portable electronic device 130 can be also used in indoor
navigation or indoor broadcasting.
[0078] The descriptions illustrated supra set forth simply the
preferred embodiments of the instant disclosure; however, the
characteristics of the instant disclosure are by no means
restricted thereto. All changes, alterations, or modifications
conveniently considered by those skilled in the art are deemed to
be encompassed within the scope of the instant disclosure
delineated by the following claims.
* * * * *