Your Knowledge Partner
Wearable Devices & Augmented Reality
March19th 2014
Knowledge Sharing Webinar
Dolcera Knowledge Services
Presented by: Dolcera
About Dolcera
Dolcera is a Knowledge Services company based out of Silicon Valley, USA and Hyderabad,
India
Dolcera’s clients include dozens of Fortune 500 companies across US, Europe and Asia in the
last 10 years
Current team strength of about 110 employees with experts in engineering, electronics,
computer science, physics etc.
Dolcera’s Offerings include
• Value added research services and tools in IP, Technology and Market Research
• World-class Web 2.0 technology platform used by world’s largest companies
Agenda
• Introduction
•
Definition & Evolution of wearable devices
•
Concept of wearable from super heroes
• Market Trends
• Wearable Devices IP Trends
•
Top Players and Patents
•
Patent Taxonomy
•
Technology Distribution
• Augmented Reality IP Trends
• Product Focus
Definition and Evolution
Source: Vandrico.com DB
• The simplest definition would be: a device that can compute, and is
worn on the human body; making wrist watches the oldest known
wearable device
• General understanding of wearable tech today, however emphasizes
a general purpose computer to be involved, not just computation of
time
Concept of “Wearables” from Super Heroes
Johny Sokko
Batman
fights calls
crimehis
with
‘Giant
his
utility
Robot’
belt,
in times
where
he
distress,
stores
Ben fights
aliensofwith
some
using
a
ofwearable
his toys,
including
watch. The
“Omnitrix”
that binds
explosives
robot
fightsand
gargoyles
a breathing
& other
DNA codes!!
device.
monsters!
The Booming Market
Market Predictions
Juniper Research:
$19billion by 2018
IHS:
$30billion by 2018
Technavio:
171 million
devices annually
by 2016
ABI Research:
485 million
devices annually
by 2018
Applications:
Social and infotainment will lead, followed quickly by health& wellness and
medical devices:
Committed Tech Giants
Device Types
Wearable Device Example: Smart Glass
US20130044042
US20130069850
US20130196757
R&D
since
1997!
US8212859
JP 2013-88725
US8550621
IP Study: Methodology
Class codes and keywords were obtained from
relevant patents, databases & thesauri. Key concepts
like wearable computing, HMD etc. and their
synonyms were identified
A comprehensive search was formulated using the
appropriate keywords and their complimentary classcodes – 20634 Patents
Retrieved patents filtered by expert reading to obtain
relevant documents – 9034 Patents.
Relevant patents analyzed to identify trends
Search Scope
Search Concepts
Concepts related to Wearable
Devices
Concepts related to Sensors
Concepts related to Body Parts
*Synonyms of all concepts also searched
Classes Used
US, IPC/CPC, DWI, JP Classes: Data Processing, Equipment control, games,
location monitoring, Graphic processing, Communication for portable device
etc.
Other Information
Database: Thomson Innovation
Search Scope: 01/01/1991-09/23/2013
IP Activity: Trend
Priority Year
Publication Year
1400
Another
Growth
Spurt
Number of Famlies
1200
1000
800
600
Starting
point
400
200
0
1991
1993
1995
1997
1999
2001
2003
Year
2005
2007
2009
2011
2013
Top Companies for wearable devices
Top 20 Assignees
140
120
119
110 108
103
100
80
60
40
20
0
69
58
56
52
49
48
46
44
39
37
31
31
29
28
27
25
Google Reveals Android Wear
• Google announced developer preview of ‘Android Wear’
• A version of android optimized for small, powerful devices, worn on the
body such as smartwatches
• To be used in LG G and Moto 360 smartwatches
• Features:
•
•
•
•
Useful information when you need it most
Intelligent answers to spoken questions (Google Now)
Tools to help reach fitness goals
Key to a multiscreen world
• Android Wear is powered by Linux and Open Source
Google Patents in Wearable Space
Top Application Areas for Google Patents
Tracking camera,
5%
Heart rate, 4%
Tracking device,
7%
Motion detection,
7%
Display devices,
37%
Eye tracking, 8%
Location, 13%
Imaging device,
19%
Device Versus Patents
Number of Devices
5
4
3
2
1
0
4
4
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
*Source: Vandrico
Number of Published Documents
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
110
49
48
7
4
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
15
300
297
276
200
100
0
Publication Number and Assignee
255
252
249
US2002006927
8A1
HISMAP POINT
DE LLC
272
US6573883B1
HEWLETTPACKARD
COMPANY
273
US2002004415
2A1
TANGIS
CORPORATION
308
US6100806A
SILICON
VALLEY BANK
400
US5844824A
EAST RIVER
CAPITAL
545
US6050940A
NASA
600
US5731757A
3M ATTENTI
722
US6198394B1
RAYTHEON
800
US5752976A
MEDTRONIC
INC.
US2003022990
0A1
CONVERGENT
MEDIA
Number of Citations
Highly Cited Patents
Some of the highly cited patents
User
Interface
700
Medical
Device
500
Defense
Monitoring
Number of Documents
Application Areas
6000 5408
5000
4000
4686
3191
3000
2000
1000
1045
719 645 470 426
377 327
0
Application Area
Source: Vandrico.com DB
1400
1349
1200
1000
800
530
600
400
200
0
Location
Number of Documents
438
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
412
1600
Fitness
165
Heart monitoring Blood pressure
monitoring
1410
Medical
1400
1200
1023
1000
941
800
600
400
200
0
Motion detection Tracking device
258
Heart rate
tracking
Number of Documents
Tracking/Monitoring
1600
Imaging Device
Number of Documents
Number of Documents
Top Application Areas
Patient
Monitoring
Patient
Movement
Lifestyle
3000
2589
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
186
144
Augmented
reality
Smart device
0
Display devices
Medical Applications
1600
1410
1400
1200
1023
1000
941
800
600
400
362
344
211
200
129
113
54
0
54
45
Sensors by Sensing Technology
1000
924
Number of Documents
900
800
700
600
500
446
400
332
300
200
100
152
141
121
86
86
82
45
0
Sensors by sensing technology
29
12
Sensors by Application
Number of Documents
1600
1397
1400
1200
1000
836
800
642 618
600
400
200
538
381 381 368
308
224 199
188 174 172 167
130 129 112 108
91
0
Sensors by Application
80
72
64
63
61
46
45
38
18
13
Device Form Factor
2500
Number of Documents
2247
2000
1500
1000
1341
916
781
500
385
208
167
154
144
0
Form Factor
132
130
117
107
101
90
A Closer Look At -
AUGMENTED REALITY
Augmented Reality: Definition
The basic idea of augmented reality is to superimpose
graphics, audio and other sensory enhancements over a
real-world environment in real time.
IP Study: Methodology
Class codes and keywords were obtained from
relevant patents, databases & thesauri. Key concepts
like AR, HMD etc. and their synonyms were identified
A comprehensive search was formulated using the
appropriate keywords and their complimentary classcodes – 1640 Patents
Retrieved patents filtered by expert reading to obtain
relevant documents – 650 Patents.
Relevant patents categorized and analyzed to
identify trends
Search Scope
Search Concepts
Headmounted dis
play
devices
Head
mounted ste
reo display Augmented
Gesture
(e.g. virtual
Reality
recognition
reality goggl
es)
Wearable
Devices
Interactive
System
Image
Processin
g
Tracking
System
User
interface
*Synonyms of all
concepts also
searched
Classes Used
US, IPC/CPC Classes: Head up displays, image processing, virtual reality,
computer graphics processing etc
Other Information
Database: Thomson Innovation
Search Scope: 01/01/1991-09/23/2013
IP Activity: Trend
Exponenti
al Increase
since 2010
Top Companies
Canon MREAL
Project
Top Cited Patents
Top Forward Cited Patents
Multi
Touch
600
531
Citation Count
500
Image
Processing
400
GUI
300
205
200
100
154
150
90
88
0
Patent and Assignee
68
67
65
65
Technology Distribution: Top Level
Top Level Technology Distribution
700
Number of INPADOC Families
600
579
Biggest
Area by
far
500
400
300
260
259
200
115
100
103
34
0
Image Processing
Data
Manipulation
Input
Communication Tracking System
Method/System Technology
Technology Area
Optics
Technology Distribution: Image Processing
350
300
Distribution for Image Processing
325
285
272
Number of INPADOC Families
250
200
166
151
150
129
112
100
66
40
50
0
Technology Area
39
28
Technology Distribution: Input Related
Distribution for Input Technology
120
112
GUI is big, like
smartphones
Number of INPADOC Families
100
80
78
69
66
60
40
20
9
0
Technology Area
6
2
Technology Distribution: Communication Method
90
Number of INPADOC Families
80
Distribution for Communication Methods
78
Most popular
method
70
60
50
40
28
30
21
20
Non Existent
10
10
3
0
Infra-Red
GPS
Laser
Technology Area
WiFi
NFC
Notable Products: Infotainment
Product
Google Glass
Pebble
Device Type
Function/Features
Smart Glass
Operating System: Android
Power: Lithium Polymer battery
Memory: 1GB RAM
Display: Prism projector, 640×360
Controller input: Touchpad, MyGlass Weight: 50g
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11b/g,Bluetooth, micro USB
Operating System: Pebble OS
Display: 144 × 168 pixel LCD
Smart Watch
Connectivity: Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR, Bluetooth 4.0
Low Energy
Oculus Rift
Head tracking: 6 degrees of freedom (DOF)
Resolution: 1280x800 (640x800 per eye)
Gaming HUD Inputs: DVI/HDMI and USB
Platforms: PC and mobile
Weight: ~0.22 kilograms
Nissan 3E
Driving Glass
Not Released
Image
Notable Products: Health & Wellness
Product
Device Type
Function/Features
Bracelet
Operating System: Compatible with iOS 5.0+
Power: 2 Lithium Polymer Batteries (3.7V)
Display: 20 color red/green, 100 white LED
Weight: 27g-35g
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Jawbone UP24
Bracelet
Operating System: iOS
Power: 32mAh Lithium-ion polymer battery
Weight: 19-22g
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Nike Hyperdunk+
Smart Shoes
Nike Fuel
AiQ Bioman
Operating System: iOS
Connectivity: Bluetooth
Bluetooth connectivity
Operating System: PC/Mobile
Smart Clothing
Machine washable
Textile electrodes
Image
Impact on Society
• The potential to transform our lives completely: The
Human Cloud
• Everything we wear can make us a part of the “internet of things”
• Entire life can be captured, stored, analyzed
• Surveys suggest that users experience improvement in career, fitness,
personal finances and even personal relationships!
• The privacy and ethics debate
• For every supporter of the tech, there is another voice raising security
and privacy concerns
• It is possible that as a society, we just accept being watched the entire
time; but how does this change social interactions?
• What’s next? Implantable body/brain devices and human machines?
Conclusion
• Mostly small players have their products out in the
market indicating:
• Small company can aggregate wearable technology easily
• Opportunities for licensing as well as for mergers and acquisitions exist
• Bargaining power seems to be with software companies
like Samsung, Google, Apple since it will be difficult to
standardize the hardware or form factor
• “One size fits all” model will not work for wearable
devices
• Form factor could be another differentiating factor for players
• The number and type of form factors indicate that the ecosystem is too
vast to be controlled
Conclusion
• Availability of interface interaction options like voice and
body movement monitoring for information manipulation
would be the game changer
• Apps needing small or no display interface would drive the wearables
market initially, display interface alternatives like voice commands,
holographic displays, text-to-speech output etc. could be preferred way
of interaction in future
• More open strategy seen for wearable devices as
compared to mobile ecosystem
• Traditionally Apple has tried to create a closed ecosystem of its own
• However, in wearables market, lot of companies have products that are
compatible with iOS
Conclusion
• Very few players are trying to differentiate themselves
from other players based on hardware
• Qualcomm had launched Qualcomm TOQ with Mirasol display
• The industry may eventually adopt a new business
model rather than a model similar to the mobile
ecosystem
• Business opportunities available due to wearable devices like Real time
big data management, security of personal data, test equipment for
wearable devices etc. would be important factors in determining the
market leader
• Wearable technology has endless possibilities, but highly
volatile and the future is hard to predict due to its
disruptive nature
Conclusion
• Almost all global high tech players have made big bets in
this area, while several non high tech players are poised
to make an entry; expect competition from unlikely
players
• Internet of things may be a big driver of overall growth
• Technology trends are quite clear from an IP
perspective:
• Eye wear and wrist wear combined has less patents than body wear
• A majority of patents focus on components that go into a wearable
device, application focus is very limited
• GUI is a heavily researched area and rightly so
• Image processing is by far the biggest area in augmented reality
Conclusion
• Almost all global high tech players have made big bets in this area,
while several non high tech players are poised to make an entry;
expect competition from unlikely players
• Wearable technology has endless possibilities, but highly volatile
and the future is hard to predict due to its disruptive nature
• Internet of things may be a big driver of overall growth
• Technology trends are quite clear from an IP perspective:
•
•
•
•
Eye wear and wrist wear combined has less patents than body wear
A majority of patents focus on components that go into a wearable device,
application focus is very limited
GUI is a heavily researched area and rightly so
Image processing is by far the biggest area in augmented reality
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www.dolcera.com