SWIMMING INFORMATION PROCESSING SYSTEM, INFORMATION PROCESSING APPARATUS, SWIMMING INFORMATION PROCESSING METHOD, AND PROGRAM

Abstract

A system includes a wearable device that measures positional information and activity information of a swimmer, generates swimming information related to swimming of the swimmer based on the activity information, and transmits the swimming information and the positional information; and a tablet PC that receives the swimming information and the positional information from the wearable device, acquires map information corresponding to the positional information, and generates display information by using the swimming information, the positional information, and the map information.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE

The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2016-147091, filed Jul. 27, 2016, is expressly incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to a swimming information processing system, an information processing apparatus, a swimming information processing method, and a program.

2. Related Art

In recent years, popularity of outdoor water sports in a river, a sea, and a lake has been grown as sports are diversified and specialized. There are various competitions including swimming events as the water sports, and particularly, open water swimming (OWS) or a triathlon is also adopted for official Olympic games, and competition population is also increased. Competitions in which general participants participate are also organized in various places.

Meanwhile, as described in JP-A-2005-152496, a device that is worn on a body of a swimmer to measure the number of turns and the total swimming distance in swimming has been known as a device used in swimming. In the water sports such as the OWS or the triathlon, such a device has been used in the competition or the training field.

However, in a case where the device described in JP-A-2005-152496 is used in the outdoor water sports, information to be measured is not sufficient. For example, since the OWS is a sport that swimmers compete in consideration of the external influence under a nature environment in the outdoors, it is difficult to ascertain the situation of the swimmer while watching over the situation of the swimmer by using only the information acquired by measuring the swimmer.

SUMMARY

An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide a system capable of watching over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 1

A swimming information processing system according to this application example includes: a wearable device that includes a positional sensor which measures positional information of a swimmer, an activity sensor which measures activity information of the swimmer, a swimming information generation unit which generates swimming information related to swimming of the swimmer based on the activity information, and a transmission unit that transmits the swimming information and the positional information; and an information processing apparatus that includes a reception unit which receives the swimming information and the positional information from the wearable device, and a display information generation unit which acquires map information corresponding to the positional information and generates display information by using the positional information, the map information, and the swimming information.

According to this application example, the display information is generated based on the map information corresponding to the positional information of the swimmer and the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer. Since information of a nature environment is included in the map information, it is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with an external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment. Accordingly, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports by using the positional information, the swimming information, and the map information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 2

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the display information generation unit generates movement history information based on the positional information of the swimmer, and generates the display information acquired by superimposing the movement history information and the swimming information on the map information.

According to this application example, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who moves by using the display information.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 3

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the swimming information includes swimming style information of the swimmer, and the swimming information includes at least one of a stroke pitch, a stroke count, a stroke distance, a swimming time, and a swimming distance which correspond to the swimming style information.

According to this application example, the swimming information is information capable of performing detailed analysis on a swimming style of each swimming style information item of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 4

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the display information includes a plurality of objects corresponding to a plurality of swimming information items.

According to this application example, it is easy to identify the swimming information of the display information by using the object.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 5

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the display information generation unit generates the object according to at least any one of a predetermined elapsed time, a predetermined movement distance, a change of the positional information, and a change of the swimming information.

According to this application example, it is possible to generate the objects according to various events, and it is possible to add the generated objects to the display information.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 6

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the positional sensor includes at least one of a GNSS positioning sensor, a WiFi positioning sensor, and a 3G positioning sensor.

It is possible to measure the positional information under an outdoor environment by the sensor included in the positional sensor.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 7

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the activity sensor includes at least one of an accelerometer and a gyroscope.

It is possible to measure the activity information with an acceleration and an angular velocity of the swimmer by using the sensors included in the activity sensor.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 8

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the activity sensor includes a pressure sensor.

It is possible to measure the activity information related to an atmospheric pressure and a water pressure of the swimmer by using the sensor.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 9

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the wearable device includes a biometric sensor that measures biometric information of the swimmer, the transmission unit transmits the biometric information, the reception unit of the information processing apparatus receives the biometric information, and the display information generation unit generates the display information acquired by superimposing the movement history information and the biometric information on the map information.

It is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer by associating the biometric information of the swimmer who takes the outdoor water sports with the movement history information by using the map information and the swimming information including the biometric information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 10

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the biometric sensor is a pulse sensor, and the biometric information is pulse rate information.

It is possible to estimate a load state of the swimmer due to an exercise by using the pulse rate information.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 11

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the reception unit receives environment information corresponding to the positional information from the outside, and the display information generation unit generates the display information based on the positional information, the map information, the swimming information, and the environment information.

It is possible to consider the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment by using the environment information in detail.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 12

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the environment information includes at least one information item of a tide, topography, a water depth, and a water temperature.

It is possible to acquire the environment information that influences the swimming information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 13

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, in a case where tide velocity information which is a velocity of the tide is included in the environment information, the display information generation unit calculates propulsion velocity information which is a velocity corresponding to a propulsion power of the swimmer, and generates the display information including the movement history information and the propulsion velocity information based on the tidal velocity information and the positional information.

It is possible to ascertain the velocity according to the propulsion power of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 14

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the reception unit receives swimming information items and positional information items of a plurality of swimmers, and the display information generation unit generates the display information based on the positional information items, map information items, and the swimming information items of the plurality of swimmers.

It is possible to watch over the situations of the plurality of swimmers while comparing the situations of the swimmers in a competition in which the plurality of swimmers participates by using the display information.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 15

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the information processing apparatus includes a display unit that displays the display information.

It is possible to display the generated display information in the swimming information processing system.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 16

In the swimming information processing system according to the application example, the positional information includes a current position, and the positional information includes at least one of the current position, a movement velocity, and a movement distance.

The information related to the current position of the swimmer is acquired, and thus, it is possible to generate the display information related to the position of the swimmer based on the current position.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 17

An information processing apparatus according to this application example includes: a reception unit that receives positional information and swimming information of a swimmer who swims; and a display information generation unit that acquires map information corresponding to the positional information, acquires environment information related to the swimmer, and generates display information by using the map information, the environment information, and the swimming information.

According to this application example, the display information is generated by using the map information corresponding to the positional information of the swimmer, the environment information related to the swimmer, and the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer. Since the information of the nature environment is included in the map information and the environment information, it is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment. Accordingly, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who takes the outdoor water sports by using the swimming information of the swimmer, the environment information, and the map information.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 18

An information processing apparatus according to this application example includes: a reception unit that receives swimming information of a swimmer who swims; and a display information generation unit that acquires environment information related to the swimmer, and generates display information by using the environment information and the swimming information.

According to this application example, the display information is generated using the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer and the environment information related to the swimmer. Since the information of the nature environment is included in the environment information, it is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment. Accordingly, it is possible to recognize the situation that influences the swimmer who takes the outdoor water sports by using the environment information and the swimming information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 19

In the information processing apparatus according to Application Examples 17 and 18, the environment information includes at least one information item of a tide, topography, a water depth, and a water temperature.

It is possible to acquire the environment information that influences the swimming information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 20

A swimming information processing method according to this application example includes: acquiring positional information of a swimmer; acquiring activity information of the swimmer; generating swimming information related to the swimmer based on the activity information; acquiring map information corresponding to the positional information; and generating display information based on the positional information, the map information, and the swimming information.

According to this application example, the display information is generated based on the map information corresponding to the positional information of the swimmer and the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer. Since the information of the nature environment is included in the map information, it is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment. Accordingly, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports by using the positional information, the swimming information, and the map information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 21

A program according to this application example causes a computer to perform a swimming information processing method including: acquiring positional information of a swimmer; acquiring activity information of the swimmer; generating swimming information related to the swimmer based on the activity information; acquiring map information corresponding to the positional information; and generating display information based on the positional information, the map information, and the swimming information.

According to this application example, the display information is generated based on the map information corresponding to the positional information of the swimmer and the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer. Since the information of the nature environment is included in the map information, it is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment. Accordingly, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports by using the positional information, the swimming information, and the map information of the swimmer.

APPLICATION EXAMPLE 22

A wearable device according to this application example includes a timepiece that measures a time and outputs time information, a positional sensor that measures positional information of a swimmer, an activity sensor that measures activity information of the swimmer, a processing unit that generates swimming information related to swimming of the swimmer based on the activity information and generates transmission information acquired by associating the swimming information and the positional information with the time information, and a transmission unit that transmits the transmission information.

According to this application example, since the transmission information acquired by associating the swimming information and the positional information of the swimmer with the time information is transmitted, it is possible to acquire the movement situation and the positional information of the swimmer from the transmission information. It is possible to generate the display information based on the map information corresponding to the positional information of the swimmer and the swimming information related to the swimming of the swimmer by using the transmission information. It is possible to consider the swimming information of the swimmer in association with the external influence that influences the swimmer under the nature environment by using the map information. Accordingly, it is possible to watch over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports by using the positional information, the swimming information, and the map information of the swimmer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an outline of an OWS system.

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing a wearable device.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the wearable device.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of a tablet PC.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a positional information table.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a first swimming information table.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a second swimming information table.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a biometric information table.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 17 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 18 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 19 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of screen data.

FIG. 21 is a sequence diagram showing a process of the OWS system.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, since the units or the screens have sizes capable of being recognized, the scales or arrangement positions of the units or screens are different from the actual scales or arrangement positions thereof.

Embodiment 1

Outline of OWS System

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an outline of an OWS system.

Although OWS will be described as an example of water sports as a target in the present embodiment, the water sports are not limited to the OWS. For example, the water sports may be applied to sports of swimming outdoors, and the water sports may be triathlon, aquathlon, and long-distance swimming competition, or may be leisure sports such as snorkeling or swimming in the sea.

An OWS system 1 shown in FIG. 1 is equivalent to a swimming information processing system, and includes wearable devices 5, and a tablet PC 3 as an information processing apparatus. The wearable devices 5 are respectively worn on a swimmer UA, a swimmer UB, and a swimmer UC who swim in open-water such as the coast. A wearable device 5A is worn on the swimmer UA, a wearable device 5B is worn on the swimmer UB, and a wearable device 5C is worn on the swimmer UC. The wearable devices 5 (5A, 5B, and 5C) are wirelessly connected to the tablet PC (information processing apparatus) 3 through wireless communication 2, and transmit information items (time information T, positional information P, swimming information S, and biometric information B) of the swimmer UA to the swimmer UC which are measured in the wearable devices 5 to the tablet PC 3.

The tablet PC 3 is connected to the Internet through network communication 4. The Internet is connected to a website (server) 6 or a television station 7 equivalent to the outside through the network communication 4. The tablet PC 3 receives environment information En and map information M corresponding to the positional information P from the website 6.

The tablet PC 3 generates display information Disp by using the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, the biometric information B, the map information M, and the environment information En. The generated display information Disp is displayed on a display unit 60 (a screen D10 and a screen D50). The display information Disp is transmitted to the television station 7 via the Internet, and is displayed on TVs 8 (8A and 8B) of ordinary households as some (screens D10) of television display screens broadcast from the television station 7.

The TV 8 and the display unit 60 of the tablet PC 3 are equivalent to a display unit.

In so doing, if the display information Disp generated in the tablet PC 3 is displayed on the display unit 60 or the TV 8, a viewer who views the display information Disp can check a situation (swimming information S) in which the swimmer swims on a map (map information M). It is possible to ascertain the situation of the swimmer while watching over the situation of the swimmer including the information such as the time information T, the biometric information B, or the environment information En at a glance.

Hereinafter, the OWS system 1 capable of obtaining such an effect will be described in detail.

Wearable Device

FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory diagram showing the wearable device. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the wearable device.

In FIG. 2, a state in which the wearable device 5 is wound around a wrist WR of the swimmer by using a band BA is shown. The wearable device 5 is a wristwatch-type information device having a water pressure resistant structure, and includes a pulse sensor 21 that is provided so as to be exposed on a surface of the band BA facing the wrist WR, a display unit 25 that is provided so as to be exposed on a surface of the band BA opposite to the wrist WR, and a positional sensor 10, an activity sensor 16, a communication unit 29, a processing unit 30, and a power supply (not shown) which are provided so as to be built in the band BA. Next, functions thereof will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 3. Although it has been described in the present embodiment that the wearable device 5 is worn on the wrist, the present embodiment is not limited thereto. For example, the wearable device maybe worn on the ankle, head, ear, waist, or body of the swimmer.

The wearable device 5 includes the positional sensor 10, the activity sensor 16, a biometric information detection unit 20, a timepiece unit 23, the display unit 25, an operation unit 27, the communication unit 29, the processing unit 30, and a storage unit 40.

The positional sensor 10 includes a GNSS positioning sensor 11. Alternatively, a 3G positioning sensor 13 or a WiFi® positioning sensor 12 using radio waves (WiFi or cellular phone wireless) for communication may be provided as a positioning sensor. The positional information P of the wearable device 5 is measured by the positioning sensors, and is output to the processing unit 30.

The positional information P includes information items such as a latitude, a longitude, an altitude, a movement velocity, and a positioning time. The positioning time is a time when the latitude, the longitude, and the altitude are measured. The movement velocity is vector information including information items of a movement direction and a movement speed. The information items of the latitude and the longitude in the positioning time are equivalent to a current position. As the positional information P, at least the information items of the latitude and the longitude in the positioning time are necessary. The movement velocity and a movement distance to be described below may be calculated from the information items of the latitude and the longitude in the positioning time. In a case where the information of the altitude is measured by the positional sensor 10, the positional information P may include the information of the altitude. The movement distance may be calculated based on the positional information P between two points.

The GNSS positioning sensor 11 includes an antenna unit that receives satellite signals from a positioning Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) satellite, a front end unit, and a positioning information calculation unit (none of them are shown), and extracts positioning information superimposed on the RF signal and acquires the extracted positioning information if a radio frequency (RF) signal including the satellite signal transmitted from the positioning GNSS satellite is received. The GNSS positioning sensor performs a known position calculation process on the acquired positioning information, calculates the positional information P of the wearable device 5, and outputs the calculated positional information for every unit time (for example, one second) to the processing unit 30.

The GNSS positioning sensor 11 may calculate the positional information based on a reception frequency of a reception signal acquired from the GNSS satellite. In this method, the GNSS positioning sensor calculates a vector quantity having components in three directions perpendicular to each other, as position coordinates by performing a known position calculation operation based on code phases using at least four GNSS satellites. The vector quantity having components in three directions perpendicular to each other is calculated as a velocity vector by performing a known operation based on the reception frequencies (Doppler frequencies acquired from the reception frequencies) of four GNSS satellites. In so doing, the calculated positional coordinates (latitude, longitude, and altitude) and the velocity vector (movement velocity) together with the positioning time are output as the positional information P to the processing unit 30.

The WiFi positioning sensor 12 receives radio waves (beacon signals) transmitted from a plurality of WiFi access points. The position coordinates of the wearable device 5 are calculated by using radio wave intensity of the received radio waves and positional information of the WiFi access point which is previously stored in the storage unit 40. The movement velocity is calculated using a plurality of continuously acquired position coordinates and positioning times. The calculated positional information P is output to the processing unit 30.

The 3G positioning sensor 13 receives radio waves transmitted from a plurality of cellular phone base stations, and calculates the position coordinates of the wearable device 5 by using the radio wave intensity of the received radio waves and the positional information of the cellular phone base station which is previously stored in the storage unit 40. The movement velocity is calculated using a plurality of continuously acquired position coordinates and positioning times. The calculated positional information P is output to the processing unit 30.

The positional information items P output from these sensors are output to a positional information acquisition unit (processing unit 30). The positional sensor 10 may calculate the positional information P having higher accuracy by using the plurality of positional information items P output from the sensors. The positional sensor 10 may include at least one of the GNSS positioning sensor 11, the WiFi positioning sensor 12, and the 3G positioning sensor 13, or may not necessarily include all the positioning sensors. Other positioning sensors may be used as long as the positional information P of the wearable device 5 can be output.

The activity sensor 16 includes sensors such as an accelerometer 17, a gyroscope 18, and a barometric pressure sensor 19. Activity information is measured by these sensors, and is output to the processing unit 30 for every unit time (for example, 0.0625 seconds). The activity information is used for calculating the swimming information S by using a swimming information generation unit 37 (processing unit 30) to be described below. The barometric pressure sensor 19 is equivalent to a pressure sensor.

The accelerometer 17 is a sensor that detects acceleration signals in three axial directions perpendicular to each other. The accelerometer 17 measures acceleration changes of the axes for every sampling interval. As a preferred example, a sampling frequency is set to be equal to or greater than 16 Hz. The accelerometer 17 detects the movement of the swimmer in three axial directions, performs amplification, waveform shaping, and A/D conversion on the detected acceleration signals in an amplification circuit, a waveform shaping circuit, and an A/D conversion circuit (none of them are shown), and outputs the converted acceleration data as the activity information to the swimming information generation unit 37 (processing unit 30).

The acceleration signals may be output to the biometric information detection unit 20 to be described below, and in this case, the acceleration signals may be used in a suppression process of a body movement noise superimposed on a pulse wave signal when the biometric information B is detected in the biometric information detection unit 20. The acceleration signal may be output as operation information to the operation unit 27 under the control of the processing unit 30.

The gyroscope 18 is a sensor that detects an angular velocity with three axes perpendicular to each other as its central axis. The gyroscope 18 performs amplification, waveform shaping, and A/D conversion on gyro signals detected for every unit time in the amplification circuit, the waveform shaping circuit, and the A/D conversion circuit (none of them are shown), and the converted gyro data is output as the activity information to the swimming information generation unit 37 (processing unit 30). The processing unit 30 may calculate movement such as rotation or tilt of the wrist WR of the swimmer who wears the wearable device 5 by using the gyro data.

Although the accelerometer 17 and the gyroscope 18 use detection targets as axes of three axial directions, the detection targets thereof are not limited to three axes, and maybe one axis, two axes, or four or more axes. The processing unit 30 may use the acceleration signal or the gyro signals output from the accelerometer 17 and the gyroscope 18, as information generated by performing interpolation on the positional information P between the positional information items P output for every positioning time.

The barometric pressure sensor 19 is a sensor that detects a pressure including an atmospheric pressure and a water pressure for every unit time. The barometric pressure sensor 19 performs amplification, waveform shaping, and A/D conversion on pressure signals detected for every unit time in the amplification circuit, the waveform shaping circuit, and the A/D conversion circuit (none of them are shown), and outputs the converted pressure data as the activity information to the swimming information generation unit 37 (processing unit 30). The barometric pressure sensor 19 may determine whether a value of the pressure data is the atmospheric pressure or the water pressure, and may output the determined result (for example, the atmospheric pressure is a value of “0” and the water pressure is a value of “1”) as the activity information to the swimming information generation unit 37.

The activity sensor 16 may include any one of the accelerometer 17 and the gyroscope 18, and in this case, the activity sensor may output the activity information measured by any one sensor thereof to the processing unit 30.

The sensors included in the activity sensor 16 are not limited to the sensors such as the accelerometer 17, the gyroscope 18, and the barometric pressure sensor 19. For example, the activity sensor may include a geomagnetic sensor (azimuth sensor) that outputs an azimuth signal.

The biometric information detection unit 20 includes biosensors such as a pulse sensor 21 and a temperature sensor 22. The biometric information B of the swimmer who wears the wearable device 5 is detected by these biosensors, and is output to the processing unit 30. The biometric information detection unit 20 is equivalent to a biometric sensor.

The biometric information B includes information items such as a pulse rate, a body temperature, breathing, and detection time.

The pulse sensor 21 includes a photoelectric sensor or a calculation circuit, and is a sensor module that detects a pulse wave of a user such as the swimmer and calculates a pulse rate. The photoelectric sensor includes a light-emitting element and a light-receiving element. The photoelectric sensor irradiates the wrist WR with light from the light-emitting element, and receives reflection light reflected from a blood vessel by the light-receiving element. The pulse sensor 21 detects the pulse wave of the user by using a phenomenon in which light reflectance values are different when the blood vessel expands and when the blood vessel contracts. The calculation circuit analyzes signal intensity values of the frequencies by performing a frequency decomposition process on data of the detected pulse wave, specifies a frequency spectrum equivalent to the pulse wave from a frequency spectrum including noise other than the pulse wave, and calculates the pulse rate. A ratio of a signal (S) of the pulse wave to noise (N) other than the pulse wave is called an SN ratio, and is used for determining a degree of reliability of the calculated pulse rates. Since movement of the wrist WR due to a swimming action of the user is one cause of the noise other than the pulse wave, it is possible to specify the frequency spectrum equivalent to the pulse wave while referring to the acceleration signal or the gyro signals changed with the movement of the wrist WR.

The pulse sensor 21 outputs the calculated pulse rate as the biometric information B to the biometric information acquisition unit 35 (processing unit 30).

The pulse sensor 21 is not limited to the photoelectric sensor, and a pulse pressure gauge that detects a pulse pressure by using an ultrasonic sensor or a piezoelectric element which detects the contraction of the blood vessel with ultrasonic waves and measures the pulse rate may be employed.

The temperature sensor 22 is a known sensor that detects a temperature of a subcutaneous portion or a skin temperature of the wrist WR in a contact or non-contact manner. The temperature sensor 22 calculates a body temperature from the detected temperature signal, and outputs the body temperature as the biometric information B to the processing unit 30.

The timepiece unit 23 is a real-time clock, and generates sampling intervals used in the sensors included in the positional sensor 10, the activity sensor 16, and the biometric information detection unit 20 or unit times output to the processing unit 30. The unit time is used for generating the time information T for generating time series information 42 in the processing unit 30. The timepiece unit has a measurement function such as a timer function, a calendar function, a clock function, or a stopwatch function.

The display unit 25 is a display device capable of displaying characters or icons, and includes, for example, a display drive circuit and a flexible dot matrix type electrophoretic display (EPD) capable of being flexibly deformed. Various display information items are displayed in response to display signals output from the processing unit 30.

The display unit 25 is not limited to the EPD, and may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a segment type LCD, or an organic electroluminescent display.

The operation unit 27 is an operation button, a switch, or a touch panel that covers a display surface of the display unit 25 (none of them are shown), and outputs an operation signal corresponding to an operation of an operator including the swimmer to the processing unit 30. The operation unit 27 outputs an operation signal of the operation information collating with a predetermined pattern of the acceleration signal in a case where the acceleration signal corresponding to the operation information is input from the accelerometer 17. For example, the operation unit 27 may detect that tapping is continuously performed three times from the pattern of the acceleration signal output from the accelerometer 17. In a case where it is determined that the tapping operation is continuously performed three times, the operation unit 27 outputs an operation signal for realizing a function corresponding to a predetermined operation, for example, a function of displaying a stroke pitch during swimming, to the processing unit 30.

As a preferred example, the communication unit 29 is a wireless adapter with reduced power consumption. The communication unit controls a communication processing unit 39 (to be described below) to mutually establish communication with the tablet PC 3, and transmits data measured by the wearable device 5 or data stored in the storage unit 40.

The communication unit 29 may include a communication adapter having a common wireless communication method and communication protocol between the wearable device 5 and the tablet PC 3. The communication unit 29 includes a wired communication adapter, a short-range wireless adapter, or a communication adapter such as cellular communication or a wireless local area network (LAN), and may be connected with the tablet PC 3 or another information device or server so as to exchange data through a mobile communication network including a cellular communication network, a general Internet or intranet communication network, or a relaying access point.

Processing Unit and Storage Unit/Wearable Device

The processing unit 30 includes a processor such as a CPU or a digital signal processor (DSP), and is a control device and a calculation device (computer) that generally controls the units of the wearable device 5. The processing unit 30 includes the functional units such as the positional information acquisition unit 31, the biometric information acquisition unit 35, the swimming information generation unit 37, and the communication processing unit 39. All the functional units are not necessarily essential constituent elements. The processing unit may include other functional units.

The storage unit 40 includes a storage device such as a ROM, a flash ROM, a RAM, a FeRAM, or an SSD, and stores the time series information 42, a swimming pattern table 50, identification information 52, and a program 54. The time series information 42 is data associated with the time information T, and includes positional information data 43, biometric information data 45, and swimming information data 46.

Hereinafter, the data items stored in the storage unit 40 and the functional units of the processing unit 30 will be described.

Positional Information Acquisition Unit

The positional information acquisition unit 31 controls the positional sensor 10, and acquires the positional information P. The acquired positional information P is stored in the storage unit 40. The positional information P is stored as the time series information 42 in the positional information data 43. Specifically, the positional information acquisition unit 31 stores the information items of the latitude, the longitude, the altitude, and the movement velocity for every positioning time in the positional information data 43. For example, the stored positioning time is a time (date, hour, minute, and second) for every second.

Biometric Information Acquisition Unit

The biometric information acquisition unit 35 controls the biometric information detection unit 20 to acquire the biometric information B. The acquired biometric information B is stored in the storage unit 40. The biometric information B is stored as the time series information 42 in the biometric information data 45. Specifically, the biometric information acquisition unit 35 stores the information items of the pulse rate and the body temperature for every detection time in the biometric information data 45. For example, the stored detection time is a time (date, hour, minute, and second) for every one second to four seconds.

Swimming Information Generation Unit

The swimming information generation unit 37 controls the activity sensor 16 to acquire the activity information. The swimming information S is calculated from the acquired activity information while referring to the positional information data 43 or the information of the biometric information data 45 if necessary. The swimming information S is stored in the swimming information data 46 of the time series information 42. The swimming information S includes swimming style information, swimming state information, and a measurement time. The swimming style information and the swimming state information are respectively stored in swimming style data 47 and swimming state data 49 in association with the measurement time.

The swimming style information is information indicating a swimming style such as a crawling style, a breaststroke style, a backstroke style, or a butterfly style.

The swimming state information is information related to a state of the swimmer who swims in each swimming style, and is information of a stroke pitch, a stroke count, a stroke distance, a swimming time, a swimming distance, or a hand position.

The stroke pitch indicates strokes per unit time, and the strokes per second are calculated as a value including a decimal point.

The stroke count is the cumulative total of strokes.

The stroke distance is a distance at which the swimmer moves in one stroke, and is calculated in meters.

The swimming time is the cumulative total time of swimming from when the swimmer starts to swim.

The swimming distance is the cumulative total distance of swimming from when the swimmer starts to swim.

The hand position is information indicating whether the wrist WR around which the wearable device 5 is wound is positioned under the water or above the water in the measurement time.

Hereinafter, a process of causing the swimming information generation unit 37 to generate various information items of the swimming information S will be described.

The swimming information generation unit 37 determines the swimming style from tendency of the gyro data or the acceleration data included in the acquired activity information and generates the swimming style information while referring to the swimming pattern table 50. The acceleration data or the gyro data included in the activity information is data detected by the accelerometer 17 or the gyroscope 18 in three axial directions, and is data indicating the movement such as the rotation or the movement or tilt of the wrist WR of the swimmer. The swimming pattern table 50 is a table that previously stores patterns of acceleration data or the gyro data in the axial directions, characteristics, and features for each swimming style. The swimming information generation unit 37 compares the input patterns of the acceleration data or the gyro data, the characteristics, and the features with the swimming pattern table 50, determines the swimming style of the swimmer, and generates swimming style information. For example, such determination of the swimming style is described in the known literature (U.S. Pat. No. 8,652,010).

If the swimming style is determined from the activity information, the swimming information generation unit 37 calculates the stroke pitch, the strokes, and the stroke count from the activity information. Specifically, the swimming information generation unit 37 extracts data of the axis having a periodicity from the acceleration data or the gyro data, and calculates the strokes per unit time and the cumulative total of the strokes by a method of counting the number of peaks of period data or frequency analysis.

The swimming time or the swimming distance is calculated from the positional information P and the time information T elapsed after the swimming operation is started by using the acceleration data or the gyro data, and the positional information data 43. The stroke distance is calculated by using the swimming distance per unit time and the strokes at the swimming distance.

The swimming information generation unit 37 calculates the hand position from the pressure data included in the activity information. The swimming information generation unit outputs a value indicating that the hand position is above the water in a case where the pressure data indicates the atmospheric pressure, and outputs a value indicating that the hand position is under the water in a case where the pressure data indicates the water pressure.

Communication Processing Unit

The communication processing unit 39 generates a transmission packet, and controls the communication unit 29 such that the transmission packet is transmitted from the communication unit 29 to the tablet PC 3.

The communication processing unit 39 acquires data having a common time from the positional information data 43, the swimming information data 46, and the biometric information data 45 included in the time series information 42, and generates the transmission packet. This time is the positioning time in the positional information data 43, the measurement time in the swimming information data 46, and the detection time in the biometric information data 45. For example, the common time does not mean that these times are the same time, and the common time means a time within a predetermined time (for example, a time from −0.5 seconds to +0.5 seconds).

If it is assumed that the common time is the time information T, the information of the positional information data 43 in the time information I is the positional information P, the information of the swimming information data 46 in the time information T is the swimming information S, and the information of the biometric information data 45 in the time information T is the biometric information B, the communication processing unit 39 groups “the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, and the biometric information B” in sequence, and generates transmission information. The communication processing unit 39 synchronizes timings when output information items from the positional information acquisition unit 31, the swimming information generation unit 37, and the biometric information acquisition unit 35 are generated, generates the transmission information, and outputs the transmission packet that stores the transmission information to the communication unit 29.

The communication processing unit 39 is equivalent to a processing unit that associates the swimming information and the positional information with the time information and generates transmission information. The communication unit 29 controlled by the communication processing unit 39 is equivalent to a transmission unit.

The identification information 52 stores information for identifying a specific (own) wearable device 5 among the plurality of wearable devices 5. For example, the identification information 52 is a manufacturing number set to be specific to the wearable device 5, a number numbered so as to be specific before the wearable device 5 is used, and information specific to the swimmer which is acquired from the swimmer when the swimmer wears the wearable device 5. The identification information 52 is assigned to the transmission packet in a case where the plurality of wearable devices 5 is used. The tablet PC 3 associates the identification information 52 with information of the swimmer (swimmer management data 81 in FIG. 4), and may identify the swimmer corresponding to the received data if the transmission packet is received.

The program 54 is a program that records execution steps of realizing the functions of the functional units constituting the processing unit 30 by being read into and executed by the processing unit 30 (CPU or computer).

Tablet PC

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of the tablet PC.

The tablet PC 3 is a general tablet PC terminal, and includes the display unit 60, an operation unit 61, a timepiece unit 63, a communication unit 65, a processing unit 70, and a storage unit 80. The tablet PC 3 is merely an example of a general information processing apparatus, and may be another general PC or smartphone as the information processing apparatus.

As a preferred example, the display unit 60 employs a liquid crystal panel. A touch panel may be provided on a display surface. The display unit 60 displays display information (screen data) generated under the control of the processing unit 70.

The operation unit 61 is an input device such as a touch panel, a keyboard, or a mouse provided on the display surface of the display unit 60. The operation signal input by the operation unit 61 is output to the processing unit 70.

For example, the timepiece unit 63 is a real-time clock, and has a measurement function such as a calendar function, a clock function, or a stopwatch function.

The communication unit 65 includes a communication adapter such as a wireless adapter, mutually establishes communication with the wearable device 5, and receives various data items from the wearable device 5. The communication unit includes a communication adapter such as cellular communication or wireless LAN, a short-range wireless adapter, or a wired communication adapter, and may be connected with the wearable device 5 or another information device, or server so as to exchange data through a mobile communication network including a cellular communication network, a general Internet or intranet communication network, or a relaying access point.

The communication unit 65 transmits display information (screen data) generated under the control of the processing unit 70 to the television station 7 through the Internet. The television station 7 generates a video (screen D90 of FIG. 20) acquired by combining screen data with a partial area of a video acquired by capturing the swimmer, and broadcasts the generated video. The television station 7 provides a screen in a data format capable of being browsed through data broadcasting or screen data to the TVs 8 capable of browsing a web page through the Internet.

Processing Unit and Storage Unit/Tablet PC

The processing unit 70 is a control device (computer) that includes a processor such as a CPU and generally controls the units of the tablet PC 3. The processing unit 70 includes functional units such as a device information acquisition unit 71, a map information acquisition unit 72, an environment information acquisition unit 73, a second swimming information generation unit 74, and a display information generation unit 75. All the functional units are not necessarily essential constituent elements. The processing unit may include other functional units.

The storage unit 80 includes a storage device such as a ROM, a flash ROM, a RAM, a FeRAM, an SSD, or an HDD, and stores swimmer management data 81, map data 82, environment information data 83, a positional information table 85, a first swimming information table 87, a second swimming information table 89, a biometric information table 90, generation screen data 91, and a program 93.

In the swimmer management data 81 of the storage unit 80, data for managing information items of a plurality of swimmers is stored, and personal information of the swimmer is associated with identification information 52 of the wearable device 5. A plurality of tables of the positional information table 85, the first swimming information table 87, the second swimming information table 89, the biometric information table 90, and the generation screen data 91 is generated and stored for each swimmer or each identification information item 52.

The map information M acquired by the map information acquisition unit 72 (to be described below) is stored in the map data 82 of the storage unit 80. The map data 82 may be previously stored in the storage unit 80, and in this case, map data items of various regions or map data items having different scales are stored.

The program 93 of the storage unit 80 is a program that records execution steps of realizing the functions of the functional units of the processing unit 70 by being read into and executed by the processing unit 70 (CPU or computer).

Device Information Acquisition Unit

The device information acquisition unit 71 receives the transmission packet transmitted from the wearable device 5, and stores the received transmission packet in the storage unit 80. Specifically, the device information acquisition unit 71 controls the communication unit 65 to establish communication with the wearable device 5, and receives the transmission packet transmitted from the wearable device 5. The device information acquisition unit acquires transmission information from the received transmission packet. The transmission information includes “the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, and the biometric information B” which are collected from the swimmer in the wearable device 5 as stated above. The transmission packet is transmitted from the wearable device 5 whenever the transmission information is generated. For example, the device information acquisition unit 71 acquires “the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, and the biometric information B” corresponding to the movement of the swimmer for every one second. The device information acquisition unit 71 may acquire the transmission packet almost in real time even though a delay time for a communication process between the wearable device 5 and the tablet PC 3 is added.

The device information acquisition unit 71 stores “the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, and the biometric information B” in the positional information table 85, the first swimming information table 87, and the biometric information table 90 of the storage unit 80. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the positional information table, FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the first swimming information table, and FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of the biometric information table.

The positional information table 85 (FIG. 5) stores the positional information P corresponding to the time information T in each row, and a column a to a column g of the positional information table 85 are sequentially information items of ID (column a), time (column b), latitude (column c), longitude (column d), elevation (column e), movement speed (column f), and movement distance (column g).

The ID is an ID numbered in each row, and is in a one-to-one correspondence with the time (column b).

The time is a positioning time of the positional information P of the corresponding row.

As the latitude, the longitude, the elevation, and the movement speed, values acquired from the positional information P are stored. The movement distance is data calculated by accumulating the movement distance of the positional information P by the device information acquisition unit 71. Data of the swimming distance acquired from the swimming information S may be used as the movement distance.

In a case where the device information acquisition unit 71 acquires the positional information P including information of a movement direction, the information of the movement direction is stored in a new column of the positional information table 85. Even in a case where the movement direction is not included in the acquired positional information P, the device information acquisition unit 71 may calculate the movement direction from the positional information of two points (for example, two groups of continued latitudes and longitudes) having different times, and may set and store the calculated movement direction in a new column of the positional information table 85.

The first swimming information table 87 (FIG. 6) stores the swimming information S corresponding to the time information T in each row, and a column a to a column g of the first swimming information table 87 are sequentially information items of ID (column a), time (column b), swimming style (column c), stroke count (column d), stroke pitch (column e), stroke length (column f), and hand position (column g).

The ID is an ID numbered in each row, and is in a one-to-one correspondence with the time (column b).

The time is a measurement time of the swimming information S of the corresponding row.

As the swimming style, the stroke count, the stroke pitch, the stroke length, and the hand position, values acquired from the swimming information S are stored.

The biometric information table 90 (FIG. 8) stores the biometric information B corresponding to the time information T in each row, and a column a to a column d of the biometric information table 90 are sequentially information items of ID (column a), time (column b), pulse rate (column c), and body temperature (column d).

The ID is an ID numbered in each row, and is in a one-to-one correspondence with the time (column b).

The time is a detection time of the biometric information B of the corresponding row.

As the pulse rate and the body temperature, values acquired from the biometric information B are stored.

Map Information Acquisition Unit

The map information acquisition unit 72 acquires the map information M corresponding to the positional information P from the outside. Specifically, the map information acquisition unit 72 controls the communication unit 65 to establish communication with an external website 6, and downloads the map information M including map data of a region where the OWS as a target is performed. The map information M includes the positional information P or information of a nature environment related to a surrounding region. The website 6 includes general or public map information service sites. The map information acquisition unit 72 may download the map information M from a media such as DVD or CD or another information device. A provider of the map information M such as the website 6, the media, or another information device is equivalent to the outside. The communication unit 65 controlled by the map information acquisition unit 72 is equivalent to a reception unit.

The map information acquisition unit 72 acquires the map information M in various events before the swimmer competes, during the competition, or after the competition. During the competition, the map information acquisition unit requests that the website 6 should transmit more detailed map data, and acquires the more detailed map data from latest information of the latitude, the longitude, and the elevation of the positional information P (positional information table 85) of the swimmer. The acquired map data is sequentially stored as the map data 82 in the storage unit 80.

The map information acquisition unit 72 may acquire the map information M corresponding to the positional information P of the swimmer from the map data 82 previously stored in the storage unit 80. The map information acquisition unit 72 may select an acquisition source of the map information M, and may acquire the map information when necessary. For example, in a case where there is the map information M corresponding to the positional information P of the swimmer in the storage unit 80, the map information acquisition unit may preferentially acquire the map information from the storage unit 80.

Environment Information Acquisition Unit

The environment information acquisition unit 73 acquires the environment information En corresponding to the positional information P from the outside. Specifically, the environment information acquisition unit 73 controls the communication unit 65 to establish communication with the external website 6, and downloads the environment information En including environment data of a region where the OWS as a target is performed. The website 6 includes general or public environment information service sites in addition to the map information service sites. The environment information En includes information items such as tide, topography, water depth, water temperature, and weather. The environment information acquisition unit 73 acquires the environment information En changed according to the time information T. For example, there are some cases where the environment information En in a time earlier than the time information T is acquired or the environment information En to be predicted in a time later than the time information T is acquired. A provider of the environment information En such as the website 6, the media, or another information device is also equivalent to the outside, and the communication unit 65 controlled by the environment information acquisition unit 73 is also equivalent to a reception unit.

The information of the tide includes tide velocity information which is a velocity of the tide or an ocean current. The tide velocity information is a tide velocity vector, and includes information items of the speed and direction of the tide. The information of the tide also includes information items such as an ocean current or water flow in the river or the lake.

The information of the topography includes information items such as topography of a seabed, a lake bottom, or river bottom, or geology of coast. The information of the water depth includes information of water depth up to the seabed, the lake bottom, or the river bottom. The information of the water temperature is information of temperature of seawater or freshwater. The information of the weather includes information items such as wind speed, wind direction, weather condition, and humidity.

The environment information acquisition unit 73 stores the acquired environment information En as the environment information data 83 in the storage unit 80.

Second Swimming Information Generation Unit

The second swimming information generation unit 74 generates data of the second swimming information table 89 classified as the swimming information S by using the data items such as the positional information table 85, the first swimming information table 87, and the biometric information table 90 stored by the device information acquisition unit 71. The swimming information S includes information items of the first swimming information table 87 generated in the wearable device 5 and the second swimming information table 89 generated by the second swimming information generation unit 74 of the tablet PC 3.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the second swimming information table. The second swimming information table 89 stores the swimming information S corresponding to the time information T in each row, and a column a to a column e of the second swimming information table 89 are sequentially information items of ID (column a), time (column b), SWOLF 25 m (column c), pace 25 m (column d), and stroke count 25 m (column e).

The ID is an ID numbered in each row, and is in a one-to-one correspondence with the time (column b).

The time is a time when the swimming information S of the corresponding row is applied.

The SWOLF 25 m (column c) is a SWOLF score, and is a value acquired by adding the swimming time (seconds) at a certain distance (here, 25 m) at which the swimmer moves up to the positional information P for a time (column b) and the strokes at a certain distance.

The pace 25 m (column d) is a swimming time (seconds) per certain distance (here, 25 m) at which the swimmer moves up to the positional information P for a time (column b).

The stroke count 25 m (column e) is the strokes per certain distance (here, 25 m) at which the swimmer moves up to the positional information P for a time (column b).

If information items such as the SWOLF 25 m, the pace 25 m, and the stroke count 25 m are calculated, the second swimming information generation unit 74 stores the calculated information items in the second swimming information table 89.

Display Information Generation Unit

The display information generation unit 75 generates display information based on the positional information P, the map information M, and the swimming information S. The display information generation unit generates the display information also including the information of the biometric information B or the environment information En. Specifically, the display information generation unit generates screen data as the display information while referring to the data items stored in the positional information table 85, the first swimming information table 87, the second swimming information table 89, the biometric information table 90, the map data 82, and the environment information data 83. The generated screen data is stored as the generation screen data 91 in the storage unit 80.

FIGS. 9 to 20 are diagrams showing examples of the screen data. An example of the display information (screen data) will be described by using the screen D10 to the screen D90 shown in the drawings. SEA in the drawing indicates the ocean, Coast Line (CL) indicates a coastline, and LAND indicates land.

The display information generation unit 75 includes a locus generation unit 76 and a display screen generation unit 77.

Locus Generation Unit/Display Information Generation Unit

The locus generation unit 76 generates a locus information screen on which history (locus information) of the positional information P is drawn in (superimposed on) the map data 82. The locus information and the locus information screen are equivalent to movement history information. Drawing portions of loci L depicted on a screen D10, a screen D20, a screen D23, a screen D25, a screen D30, and a screen D40 are locus information items. A locus LA, a locus LB, and a locus LC depicted on the screen D50 and a locus Lrap1, a locus Lrap2, and a locus Lrap3 depicted on the screen D55 are also locus information items.

The locus generation unit 76 reads the map data 82 and the positional information P, and draws (superimposes) the locus information on the map. Specifically, the map including the positions of the latitude and the longitude of the positional information P is acquired from the map data 82, and the acquired map is developed in a map layer which is a storage area for editing a map image. The latitude and the longitude of the positional information P are read from the positional information table 85 based on the positioning time in a sequence of time, and are drawn in a locus layer which is a storage area for editing the locus image. Since the positional information P is drawn in the positions of the latitude and the longitude in each positioning time, the positional information is drawn as a locus line in the locus layer. The locus layer and the map layer are combined such that the locus layer is overwritten on the map layer by adjusting the map layer and the locus layer according to the scale on the map and associating the coordinates (latitude and longitude) of the positional information P on the map, and the locus information screen is generated.

The locus generation unit 76 has a function of drawing the locus line in the locus layer in various aspects. Specifically, the locus generation unit 76 may select an aspect such as a line type of the locus line, a shape of the locus line, and a strip of the locus line drawn in a strip shape, and may draw the locus line. The locus generation unit 76 may draw the locus line while switching strip patterns of the locus line according to the change of the swimming information S. The line type of the locus line, the shape of the locus line, and the stripe of the locus line drawn in the strip shape are respectively equivalent to objects included in the display information. A case where the locus generation unit 76 draws the locus line while switching the strip patterns of the locus line according to the change of the swimming information S is equivalent to a case where the object is generated according to the swimming information.

Examples of the locus line which are generated by the locus generation unit 76 and are drawn in various aspects will be described with reference to the drawings. In these examples, an aspect of the drawn locus line (locus information) will be primarily described, and the details of the illustrated drawings will be described below.

Line Type of Locus Line/Locus Generation Unit

All the loci L depicted on the screen D10 (FIG. 9), the screen D30 (FIG. 13), and the screen D40 (FIG. 14) are examples in which the loci have solid line types each having a narrow line width. The locus lines depicted on the screen D50 (FIG. 15) and the screen D55 (FIG. 16) are examples in which the locus lines have different line types. locus lines of a plurality of users (user UA, user UB, and a user UC) as a plurality of swimmers are drawn on the screen D50 in different line types such that the loci are able to be easily determined by respectively drawing the locus LA, the locus LB, and the locus LC in a solid line, a dashed-dotted line, and a dotted line. The loci are drawn on the screen D55 such that the locus Lrap1 is drawn in a solid line, the locus Lrap2 is drawn in a dotted line, and the locus Lrap3 is drawn in a dashed-dotted line for raps (rap1, rap2, and rap3).

Shape of Locus Line/Locus Generation Unit

The loci L of the screen D10 and the screen D30 are drawn in a straight line between the measurement data items, and the locus L of the screen D40 is drawn in a curve line. Measurement points are drawn in the positional information P in which the measured data items are present on the screen D10 and the screen D30 (not shown), and a straight line is connected for neighboring measurement points. For example, a turning point of the locus L present between an element E5 and an element E6 on the screen D10 is a measurement point. Although not shown, a mark (a point different from the mark of the element) may be drawn such that the measurement point is able to be viewed. The locus L passing through the measurement point is drawn in a smooth curve line on the screen D40.

Strip-Shaped Locus Line/Locus Generation Unit

An example in which the strip patterns of the strip-shaped locus line are drawn while being switched according to the change of the swimming information S will be described with reference to FIGS. 10, 11, and 12. The loci L depicted on the screen D20, the screen D23, and the screen D25 are examples in which the loci are drawn in strip shapes with wide line widths.

The locus L of the screen D20 (FIG. 10) has a strip shape, and the strip patterns are divided based on the change of the swimming style information included in the swimming information S. “Fly” of an element E20 (halftone dotted portion) represents a swimming style of butterfly, “Br” of an element E21 (shaded portion) represents a swimming style of breaststroke, “Bc” of an element E22 (white portion) represents a swimming style of backstroke, and “F” of an element E23 (black portion) represents a swimming style of crawling (free style).

A length of the strip of each element indicates that the swimming style is continued in the locus L.

The locus L of the screen D23 (FIG. 11) has a strip shape, and strip patterns are divided based on a change of the information of the pulse rate included in the biometric information B. The strip patterns represent that a white pattern (indication of “60”) is a pulse rate of less than 80 beats per minute (bpm) and a black pattern (indication of “200”) is a pulse rate of 200 bpm or more. An indication of “80” is a pulse rate which is equal to or greater than 80 and is less than 120, an indication of “120” is a pulse rate which is equal to or greater than 120 and is less than 160, an indication of “160” is a pulse rate which is equal to or greater than 160 and is less than 180, and an indication of “180” is a pulse rate which is equal to or greater than 180 and is less than 200 (a unit is bpm in all cases). The patterns are gradually deepened from coarse oblique lines to dense oblique lines.

A length of the strip of each element means that the pulse rate of the biometric information B in the locus L is within each range. For example, in an element E41 and an element E44, a range of the pulse rate is equal to or greater than 80 and is less than 120. In a range of an element E44 to an element E47, the pulse rate is gradually increased via the element E45 and the element E46. As stated above, the information of the pulse rate is drawn in the strip patterns, and thus, it is possible to easily identify a change in load condition of the swimmer who is swimming.

The locus L of the screen D25 (FIG. 12) has a strip shape, and the strip patterns are divided based on the change of the movement velocity included in the positional information P. The strip patterns represent that a white pattern (indication of “0.5”) is a movement velocity of less than 1.0 [m/second] and a black pattern (indication of “3.0”) is a movement velocity of 3.0 [m/second] or more. An indication of “1.0” is a movement velocity which is equal to or greater than 1.0 and is less than 1.5, an indication of “1.5” is a movement velocity which is equal to or greater than 1.5 and is less than 2.0, an indication of “2.0” is a movement velocity which is equal to or greater than 2.0 and is less than 2.5, an indication of “2.5” is a movement velocity which is equal to or greater than 2.5 and is less than 3.0 (a unit is m/second in all cases). The patterns are gradually deepened from coarse oblique lines to dense oblique lines.

A length of the strip of each element means that the movement velocity of the positional information P in the locus L is within each range. For example, the swimmer swims while gradually increasing a movement velocity from a velocity which is equal to or greater than 1.0 and is less than 1.5 in an element E52, and swims at a velocity which is equal to or greater than 2.5 and is less than 3.0 in an element E55 via an element E53 and an element E54.

Display Screen Generation Unit/Display Information Generation Unit

The display screen generation unit 77 generates screen data acquired by further adding (superimposing) the information items such as the positional information P, the swimming information S, the biometric information B, and the environment information En to the generated locus information screen. Specifically, marks, balloons, and figures for description constitute the screen data in order to describe these information items. The marks, the balloons, and the figures for description are also equivalent to the objects included in the display information. Hereinafter, the screen data generated by the display screen generation unit 77 and the objects constituting the screen data will be described with reference to FIGS. 9, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, and 19.

The screen D10 shown in FIG. 9 is an example in which marks corresponding to the swimming style information of the swimming information S and figures of arrows Dir acquired from the positional information P are drawn on the locus information screen.

On the screen D10, marks (an element E1 to an element E15) having circular shapes are drawn in the locus L. The marks are sequentially drawn in the locus L for every predetermined elapsed time (for example, one second) from the element E1 to the element E15. The patterns of the marks of the elements represent that the halftone dotted portion is “Fly”, the shaded portion is “Br”, the white portion is “Bc”, and the black portion is “F”.

Each arrow Dir on the screen D10 represents the movement velocity (including the movement speed and the movement direction). The movement velocity is acquired from the positional information P (positional information table 85). The direction of the drawn arrow Dir represents the movement direction, and the length of the arrow Dir represents the movement speed.

The screen D30 shown in FIG. 13 is an example in which the detailed description of each element is drawn by the balloon. A balloon (screen D30a) corresponding to the element E12 is drawn. The content of the swimming information S corresponding to the element E12 is drawn on the screen D30a. Specifically, the swimming information is drawn such that the swimming style is “crawling style”, the stroke pitch (STP) is “40 times/min”, the stroke length (STL) is “1.05 m/time”, and the stroke count (STC) is “2345 counts”.

The screen D40 shown in FIG. 14 is an example in which the analyzed information of a propulsion power and a propulsion direction of the swimmer who is swimming are drawn.

On the screen D40, an arrow TDV (Tide Vector) indicating the tide velocity, an arrow SFV (Swimming Force Vector) indicating a propulsion velocity of the swimmer, and an arrow LV (Locus Vector) indicating the movement velocity on the locus are drawn. In order to indicate the information in detail, the partially enlarged screen data is drawn.

The arrow TDV (dotted arrow) is information acquired from the environment information En (environment information data 83) downloaded from the website 6 by the environment information acquisition unit 73, and is drawn in a sea surface portion of the map. The direction of the arrow TDV represents the direction of the tide, and the length of the arrow TDV represents the speed of the tide. The arrow TDV is equivalent to the tide velocity information.

The arrow LV is the movement velocity of the swimmer acquired from the positional information P (positional information table 85), and is drawn in the locus L.

The arrow SFV (propulsion velocity) is calculated from the movement velocity and the tide velocity. Specifically, a difference between the movement velocity and the tide velocity is calculated through a vector operation, and the calculated difference is used as the propulsion velocity. The propulsion velocity represents the direction and strength of swimming exercise taken by the swimmer. That is, in a case where the tide occurs, the propulsion velocity is information acquired by excluding influence of the tide from an actually moved state. The direction of the arrow SFV represents a direction in which the swimmer propels, and the length of the arrow SFV represents the propulsion power (speed at which the swimmer propels). The arrow SFV is equivalent to the propulsion velocity information.

The screen D50 shown in FIG. 15 is an example in which information items related to the plurality of users are drawn on one screen.

On the screen D50, the locus LA of the user UA, the locus LB of the user UB, and the locus LC of the user UC are drawn. The display screen generation unit 77 acquires the information items related to the plurality of users managed by the swimmer management data 81 from the tables of the storage unit 80, and generates the screen data. Although the locus information items of the users are drawn on the screen D50, the display screen generation unit 77 may draw other information items such as the positional information P, the swimming information S, the biometric information B, and the environment information En for the plurality of users, in additional to the locus information.

A screen D60 shown in FIG. 17 is a screen for setting information items applied to the marks or the aspects (the type of the locus line) of the locus line drawn on the display screen.

The screen D60 includes a screen D62, a screen D63, and a screen D64 which are screens capable of selectively setting the information items, and a screen D61 on which the generated screen is drawn. The information items applied to the marks are set on the screen D62, and the information items applied to the types of the locus lines are set on the screen D63. The screen data generated based on the applied information items is displayed on the screen D61.

The screen D62, the screen D63, and the screen D64 are interlocked with the operation unit 61 (FIG. 4), and display contents are switched based on the operated operation signals.

The screen D62 is an area in which the information items applied to the marks drawn on the locus line or the map are selected. A screen D62a is a screen for selecting the kind of the information applied to the mark, and represents that the “swimming style” and the “water temperature” are selected as the applied information items and the “tide” is not selected. A screen D62b is a screen for describing the pattern of the mark corresponding to the swimming style since the “swimming style” is selected on the screen D62a.

Since the “swimming style” is selected, the marks having the patterns indicating the swimming styles of an element E62 and an element E63 are drawn on the locus line on the screen D61. An element E60 represents swimming start (start point), and an element E61 represents swimming end (goal point).

Since the “water temperature” is selected, a water temperature line WT (dashed-dotted line) is drawn, 21° C. is drawn on a side (LAND) close to the land with the water temperature line WT as its center, and 20° C. is drawn on an opposite side on the screen D61.

The screen D63 is an area in which the information applied to the type of the locus line is selected. A screen D63a is an area in which the kind of the information applied to the strip of the strip-shaped locus line is selected. “Pulse rate, SWOLF 25 m, pace 25 m, stroke count 25 m, velocity” are displayed so as to be selected on the screen D63a. A pattern for representing the information selected on the screen D63a and a range for each pattern are displayed on the screen D63b. Since the underlined pulse rate is selected on the screen D63a, the patterns representing the pulse rates between 60 to 200 bpm are described on the screen D63b. The strips of the locus lines are drawn and the patterns indicating the ranges of the pulse rates are drawn on the screen D61. For example, an element E65 indicates that the pulse rate is near 130 bpm.

The screen D64 is a setting button, and if the setting button is pressed, a screen D70 (FIG. 18) is displayed. The screen D70 shown in FIG. 18 is a setting screen for setting information (items) displayed as selections on the screen D62 (screen D62a) and the screen D63 (screen D63a). A screen D71 is a screen for designating the information to be displayed on any one of a screen D72 or a screen D73, and if the item selected by the operation unit 61 (dragged with a mouse) is moved (dropped) to the screen D72, the item is displayed on the screen D72. The item displayed on the screen D72 is displayed as an option on the screen D62a. The selected item is moved to the screen D73 by performing the same operation, and thus, the item displayed on the screen D73 is displayed as an option on the screen D63a. In so doing, the information to be displayed on the screen D71 may be designated on any one of the screen D72 (mark indication) and the screen d73 (locus indication). For example, the swimming information S such as SWOLF 25 or the biometric information B such as the pulse rate is designated on the screen D72, and thus, the swimming information S or the biometric information B may be displayed as the mark.

A screen D80 shown in FIG. 19 is a screen for displaying the competition or exercise results. A screen D81 is the same screen as the screen D61 displayed after the competition or the exercise is ended, a screen D82 is a screen for displaying a summary, and a screen D83 is a screen for displaying detailed information.

Swimming Information Processing Method

FIG. 21 is a sequence diagram showing a process of the OWS system. In the present sequence diagram, processes of causing the functional units of the wearable device 5 and the tablet PC 3 to generate the display information in cooperation with the website 6 and to provide the display information through the television station 7 or the display unit 60 are shown along a time flow (from top to bottom in FIG. 21). The reference numbers in this drawing will be the same as the reference numbers of the units shown in FIGS. 3 and 4. The program 54 of the wearable device 5 and the program 93 of the tablet PC 3 cause the processing units (computers) to perform the present sequence. The present sequence is equivalent to a swimming information processing method, and the program 54 and the program 93 are equivalent to a program. Hereinafter, the present sequence will be described. It is assumed that the wearable device 5 is worn on the wrist WR of the swimmer.

The wearable device 5 causes the positional sensor 10 and the positional information acquisition unit 31 to measure the positional information P of the wearable device 5 (swimmer). (positional information acquisition process)

The wearable device 5 causes the activity sensor 16 to measure the activity information of the swimmer. (activity information acquisition process)

The wearable device 5 causes the biometric information detection unit 20 and the biometric information acquisition unit 35 to measure the biometric information of the swimmer.

The wearable device 5 causes the swimming information generation unit 37 to generate the swimming information S related to the swimming of the swimmer based on the activity information of the swimmer. (swimming information generation process)

The wearable device 5 causes the communication processing unit 39 and the communication unit 29 to transmit the biometric information B, the swimming information S, the positional information P, and the time information T of the measured time to the tablet PC 3.

The tablet PC 3 causes the communication unit 65 and the device information acquisition unit 71 to receive the biometric information B, the swimming information S, the positional information P, and the time information T measured by the wearable device 5.

The tablet PC 3 causes the communication unit 65 and the map information acquisition unit 72 to transmit the positional information P to the website 6 and to receive the map information M related to the positional information P. (map information acquisition process)

The tablet PC 3 causes the communication unit 65 and the environment information acquisition unit 73 to transmit the time information T and the positional information P to the website 6 and receive the environment information En.

The tablet PC 3 causes the display information generation unit 75 to generate the display information Disp based on the positional information P, the map information M, and the swimming information S. The tablet PC may generate the display information Disp acquired by adding the information items such as the biometric information B or the environment information En. (display information generation process)

The tablet PC 3 transmits the display information Disp to the television station 7. The display information Disp is output to the display unit 60. The display information Disp is displayed on the TV 8 or the display unit 60 that receives broadcasts through the television station 7.

As stated above, in the OWS system 1 according to the present embodiment, it is possible to acquire the following effects.

The wearable device 5 worn on the swimmer acquires the positional information P of the swimmer, and transmits the acquired positional information to the tablet PC 3. The tablet PC 3 that acquires the positional information P receives the map information M related to the positional information P from the website 6. The tablet PC 3 draws (superimposes) the history (locus information) of the positional information P of the swimmer on the map information M, and generates the display information Disp. The information of the nature environment is included in the map information M. A viewer who views the display information Disp can check the locus information of the swimmer on the map information M. The viewer can consider external influence that influences the swimmer by the locus information drawn on the map information M.

Accordingly, it is possible to ascertain the situation of the swimmer while watching over the situation of the swimmer who takes outdoor water sports by using the positional information P (locus information), the swimming information S, and the map information M of the swimmer.

The information items such as the swimming information S, the biometric information B, and the environment information En may be included in the display information Disp. Accordingly, it is possible to perform multi-way analysis on the exercise of the swimmer.

The invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and the above-described embodiments may be variously changed or modified. Modification examples will be described below.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 1

Although it has been described in the above-described embodiment that the loci L are drawn in various line types or various strip patterns, the loci L on the locus information screen are not limited to such forms. Colors of the strips may be further changed in addition to various line types or various strip patterns. In a case where the loci are drawn in different patterns or colors, the loci may be drawn so as to be continuously changed by setting different patterns more finely or without setting boundary between the patterns or the colors.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 2

Although it has been described in the above-described embodiments and modification example that the display screen generation unit 77 draws the marks (objects) having circular shapes on the locus information screen, the shape of the mark is not limited to the circular shape. For example, although it has been described in the example of the screen D10 shown in FIG. 9 that the element E1 to the element E15 are drawn in the circular shapes, the shape of the mark may be changed for the swimming style. For example, a diamond shape may indicate “Fly”, a square shape may indicate “Br”, a triangular shape may indicate “Bc”, and a star shape may indicate “F”. The information items such as the swimming styles are expressed by changing the shapes of the marks and thus, it is easy to distinguish between the information items even in a case where the size of the display area of the display unit 60 or the TV 8 is relatively small.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 3

Although it has been described in the above-described embodiments and modification examples that the marks drawn on the locus L are drawn for every predetermined elapsed time as shown in the screen D10 of FIG. 9, the invention is not limited to such a configuration. The marks may be generated and drawn based on events such as a predetermined movement distance, a change of the positional information P, and a change of the swimming style information.

The predetermined movement distance indicates the movement distance of the swimmer, and for example, the marks maybe generated and drawn at every distance of 3 m. For example, the change of the positional information P is equivalent to a case where the movement speed is earlier or later than a predetermined speed in a case where the movement direction is changed. The change of the swimming style information is an event when the swimming style is switched. The element E62 and the element E63 of the screen D61 shown in FIG. 17 are examples in which the marks are drawn in timings when the swimming styles are switched.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 4

A drawing example in a case where the loci L overlap each other will be described with reference to FIG. 10.

The locus L in an old portion in a sequence of time is hidden in a portion in which the element E21 and the element E22 of FIG. 10 cross each other, and the locus L in a new portion in a sequence of time is revealed. Since a portion drawn in the portion in which the elements cross each other is clearly the locus L in the new portion in a sequence of time by drawing the marks in this manner, the viewer easily checks the elements.

In FIG. 10, since the element E21 and the element E22 have different patterns, it is easy to relatively distinguish between the elements, and there are some cases where it is difficult to distinguish between the elements in a case where the elements have the same pattern. In such a case, an image in which the new portion in a sequence of time in the crossing portion is drawn across the old portion in a sequence of time may be drawn. For example, a mark imaged as a bridge on both sides of the element E22 may be drawn in the crossing portion of the element E21 and the element E22.

Only the loci to be desired to be viewed may be displayed. On the screen D55 shown in FIG. 16, check boxes for selecting “rap1”, “rap2”, “rap3”, and “rest” are drawn in an upper left side of the screen. In this case, the loci of the raps which are not checked in the check boxes are not drawn. With such a configuration, it is possible to display only the loci to be desired to be viewed.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 5

This modification example will be described with reference to FIG. 20.

The screen D90 is an example in which the screen data items (the screen D10 to the screen D80) are displayed on the TV 8. As described in the above-described embodiments and modification examples, the tablet PC 3 transmits the display information Disp to the television station 7. The tablet PC 3 may add the screen data items such as the screen D10 to the screen D80, and may transmit the information items such as the information related to the swimmer, and the time information T, the swimming information S, the biometric information B, and the environment information En associated with the screen data items. For example, the television station 7 may broad the information changed according to a time of live video or the state of the swimmer and the state of the environment at the time of live video in detail.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 6

This modification example will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

Although it has been described in the above-described embodiments and modification examples that the display information Disp to which the information measured in the wearable device 5 worn on the swimmer is output to the display unit 60 or the TV 8 almost in real time, the display information Disp may be stored in the storage device. Specifically, the processing unit 70 of the tablet PC 3 stores the generated display information Disp in the storage unit 80. Such display information Disp may be used in a review of the swimmer or an instructor who teaches the swimmer after the swimmer ends the competition. The display information Disp may be transmitted to the website 6, and may be stored in the server of the website 6.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 7

Although it has been described in the above-described embodiments and modification examples that the display information generation unit 75 generates the display information based on the positional information P, the map information M, and the swimming information S and also generates the display information also including the information such as the biometric information B or the environment information En, the invention is not limited to such a configuration. For example, the display information generation unit 75 may generate the display information Disp by using the information acquired by combining the swimming information Sand the environment information En. In this case, the display information Disp including the environment information En corresponding to the measurement time included in the swimming information S expressed in a format of a list, character information, icons, or image information is generated.

MODIFICATION EXAMPLE 8

This modification example will be described with reference to FIG. 1.

Although it has been described in the OWS system 1 described in the above-described embodiments and modification examples that the tablet PC 3 generates the display information Disp by using various information items (the time information T, the positional information P, the swimming information S, the biometric information B, the map information M, and the environment information En) acquired from the wearable device 5, the invention is not limited to such a configuration. The wearable device 5 of the OWS system 1 may transmit the various information items to the server included in the website 6 through the network communication 4, and the server may generate the display information Disp. The server may include the units of the tablet PC 3 shown in FIG. 4. With such a configuration, the server may transmit the display information Disp to the tablet PC 3 or the television station 7 through the network communication 4.

Claims

1. A swimming information processing system comprising:

a wearable device including: a positional sensor which measures positional information of a swimmer; an activity sensor which measures activity information of the swimmer; a first processor configured to generate swimming information related to swimming of the swimmer based on the activity information; and a transmitter that transmits the swimming information and the positional information; and

an information processing apparatus including: a receiver which receives the swimming information and the positional information from the wearable device; and a second processor configured to: acquire map information corresponding to the positional information; and generate display information by using the positional information, the map information, and the swimming information.

2. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1, wherein the second processor is configured to: generate movement history information based on the positional information of the swimmer; and

generate the display information acquired by superimposing the movement history information and the swimming information on the map information.

3. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the swimming information includes swimming style information of the swimmer, and the swimming information includes at least one of: a stroke pitch, a stroke count, a stroke distance, a swimming time, and a swimming distance which correspond to the swimming style information.

4. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the display information includes a plurality of objects corresponding to a plurality of swimming information items.

5. The swimming information processing system according to claim 4,

wherein the second processor is configured to generate the object according to at least one of: a predetermined elapsed time, a predetermined movement distance, a change of the positional information, and a change of the swimming information.

6. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the positional sensor includes at least one of: a GNSS positioning sensor, a WiFi positioning sensor, and a 3G positioning sensor.

7. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the activity sensor includes at least one of: an accelerometer and a gyroscope.

8. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the activity sensor includes a pressure sensor.

9. The swimming information processing system according to claim 2,

wherein the wearable device includes a biometric sensor that measures biometric information of the swimmer,

the transmitter transmits the biometric information,

the receiver of the information processing apparatus receives the biometric information, and

the second processor is configured to generate the display information acquired by superimposing the movement history information and the biometric information on the map information.

10. The swimming information processing system according to claim 9,

wherein the biometric sensor is a pulse sensor, and the biometric information is pulse rate information.

11. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the receiver receives environment information corresponding to the positional information from outside, and the second processor is configured to generate the display information based on: the positional information, the map information, the swimming information, and the environment information.

12. The swimming information processing system according to claim 11,

wherein the environment information includes at least one information item of: a tide, topography, a water depth, and a water temperature.

13. The swimming information processing system according to claim 12,

wherein, in a case where tide velocity information which is a velocity of the tide is included in the environment information, the second processor is configured to: calculate propulsion velocity information which is a velocity corresponding to a propulsion power of the swimmer; and generate the display information including the movement history information and the propulsion velocity information based on the tide velocity information and the positional information.

14. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the receiver receives swimming information items and positional information items of a plurality of swimmers, and

the second processor is configured to generate the display information based on: the positional information items, the map information items, and the swimming information items of the plurality of swimmers.

15. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the information processing apparatus includes a display that displays the display information.

16. The swimming information processing system according to claim 1,

wherein the positional information includes a current position, and

the positional information includes at least one of: the current position, a movement velocity, and a movement distance.

17. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a receiver that receives positional information and swimming information of a swimmer who swims; and

a processor configured to: acquire map information corresponding to the positional information; acquire environment information related to the swimmer; and generate display information by using the map information, the environment information, and the swimming information.

18. An information processing apparatus comprising:

a receiver that receives swimming information of a swimmer who swims; and

a processor configured to: acquire environment information related to the swimmer; and generate display information by using the environment information and the swimming information.

19. The information processing apparatus according to claim 17,

wherein the environment information includes at least one information item of: a tide, topography, a water depth, and a water temperature.

20. A method of generating and displaying swimming information comprising:

acquiring positional information of a swimmer using a positional sensor;

acquiring activity information of the swimmer using an activity sensor;

generating swimming information related to the swimmer based on the activity information using a first processor;

acquiring map information corresponding to the positional information using a second processor;

generating, using the second processor, display information based on: the positional information, the map information, and the swimming information; and

displaying the display information using a display.

21. A swimming analyzing apparatus, comprising:

a receiver that receives swimming information of a swimmer, the swimming information having been generated by a device worn by the swimmer while swimming;

a processor configured to: acquire information about a water velocity at a swimming position corresponding to the swimming information; calculate a propulsion power of the swimmer based on the water velocity and the swimming information; and generate display information using the propulsion power; and

a display that displays the display information.