Patent Publication Number: US-11639878-B2

Title: Waist measuring belt

Description:
CLAIM OF PRIORITY 
     This Application is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 17/081,822, filed Oct. 27, 2020, entitled “Waist Measuring Belt,” which is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 16/433,052, filed Jun. 6, 2019, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,845,260, entitled “Waist Measuring Belt,” which is a continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 14/556,522, filed Dec. 1, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,359,327, entitled “Waist Measuring Belt,” the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to wearable electronics, and, more particularly, to a belt system for automatically taking waist measurements, as well as associated systems for tracking waist measurements and generated waist measurement alerts over time. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Personal health and fitness is important from many different perspectives. This includes economic, interpersonal, lifespan, and other such perspectives. Waist size, in certain circumstances, may function as an indicator for fitness, and waist size is particularly associated with a number of negative health outcomes when a waist size becomes excessively large. Devices, systems, and methods for automatic waist measurements and tracking of waist measurements over time are disclosed herein. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Various ones of the appended drawings merely illustrate example embodiments of the present disclosure and cannot be considered as limiting its scope. 
         FIG.  1 A  illustrates a waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  1 B  illustrates an example embodiment of a system including a waist measuring belt. 
         FIG.  1 C  illustrates additional aspects of a waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  2    illustrates a method of waist measurement using a waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  3    illustrates another waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  4    illustrates a belt buckle frame for a waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  5    is a flow diagram illustrating aspects of waist measurement using a waist measuring belt, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  6 A  depicts an example mobile device and mobile operating system interface, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  6 B  depicts an example mobile device and mobile operating system interface, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  7    is a block diagram illustrating an example of a software architecture that may be installed on a machine, according to some example embodiments. 
         FIG.  8    illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of a computer system within which a set of instructions may be executed for causing the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, according to an example embodiment. 
         FIG.  9    illustrates a diagrammatic representation of a network which may be used with an implementation of a system for waist measurement using a waist measuring belt, according to certain example embodiments. 
     
    
    
     The headings provided herein are merely for convenience and do not necessarily affect the scope or meaning of the terms used. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The description that follows includes systems, methods, techniques, instruction sequences, and computing machine program products that embody illustrative embodiments of the disclosure. In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide an understanding of various embodiments of the inventive subject matter. It will be evident, however, to those skilled in the art, that embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be practiced without these specific details. In general, well-known instruction instances, protocols, structures, and techniques are not necessarily shown in detail. 
     This description relates to devices, systems, and methods for waist measurement using a waist measuring belt. In particular, a waist measuring belt is described which enables capability for measuring a perimeter of a belt based on a position of attachment between a belt strap and a belt buckle frame, and measuring a tension in the belt strap. The waist measuring belt also includes communication input and output components which enable wireless communications with other devices. The waist measuring belt may either store waist measurements locally or communicate the measurements to a mobile device or another computing device that may record a history of waist measurements. Additional system aspects may then analyze the waist measurements that occur over time and present this information to a user via an interface of a user device. 
     A “waist” as referred to herein may be used broadly to apply to any part of a person which may be fitted with a belt strap. In certain example embodiments, a waist will be any perimeter around a person&#39;s abdomen between the rib cage and the hips that may be encircled by a belt strap. In other example embodiments, the waist may be a perimeter including portions of a person&#39;s body outside the person&#39;s abdomen. In various embodiments, such a perimeter may be at the person&#39;s skin or slightly away from the person&#39;s skin as separated by clothing or structures in the belt or the person&#39;s shape that separate the belt strap from the user&#39;s skin. 
     “Tension” as referred to herein refers to a pulling force exerted by each end of an elongated object that may make up a belt strap. This belt or belt strap may include a string, cable, chain, leather strap, or any other such object that may make up a belt strap. Such a belt includes a belt buckle or belt buckle frame that may be used to connect two ends of such a belt strap, and may thus propagate the pulling force through a perimeter loop of a belt. 
       FIGS.  1 A,  1 B, and  1 C  illustrate aspects of a belt  100  for waist measurement according to some example embodiments.  FIG.  1 A  illustrates the belt  100  in an open position. Belt  100  includes a belt buckle frame  110  and a belt strap  120 . Such a belt buckle frame may be part of a belt buckle with an ornamental or protective from which may be permanently or modularly attacked to the belt buckle frame. In other embodiments, such a belt buckle frame may simply be a belt buckle. Belt strap  120  includes a first end  121  and a second end  123 . Belt strap  120  also includes a plurality of attachment areas  122 ,  124 , and  126 . 
       FIG.  1 B  illustrates an example embodiment of a system  101  including the belt  100 . System  101  includes not only belt  100  including elements  120 - 124  discussed above, but also mobile device  180 , network  104 , and server computer  106 . In system  101 , the belt  100  is in position around a user&#39;s waist, and may be taking waist measurements which include position measurements and tension measurements as detailed further below. Wireless input and output systems of belt  100  may provide communication with mobile device  180  via communication path  102  to enable waist measurement communications to be sent from belt  100  to mobile device  180 . In other embodiments, belt  100  may communicate directly with network  104  via access points or other such wireless interfaces. Network  104  enables communication between mobile device  180  and server computer  106  via communication path  103 , the network  104 , and communication path  105 . This may include any wired or wireless communication means and any network devices such as access points, routers, intermediate server systems, or any other such network communication device. As detailed further below, mobile device  180  and server computer  106  may, in different embodiments, either together or individually, process waist measurement communications from belt  100  to create estimated waist measurements from tension and position measurements taken together by belt  100 . These estimated waist measurements may then be aggregated and presented to the user either via mobile device  180  or via any other device of the user that is in communication with either mobile device  180  or server computer  106  via network  104 . 
       FIG.  1 C  illustrates additional aspects of the belt  100  according to some example embodiments. As illustrated by  FIG.  1 C , belt buckle frame  110  of belt  100  includes a first belt attachment  112 , a second belt attachment  114 , a position measuring module  150 , a tension measuring module  160 , a memory device  175 , and a wireless communication module  170 . 
     The first end  121  of belt strap  120  is attached to the first belt attachment  112 . The connection between the first end  121  of belt strap  120  and the first belt attachment  112  may be any fixed or adjustable connection. The second end  123  of belt strap  120  is attached to the second belt attachment  114  using attachment area  126 . In various embodiments, the attachment of the first end  121  to the first belt attachment  112  and the attachment of the second end  123  to the second belt attachment  114  may both be adjustable, or only one of these connections may be adjustable. In  FIG.  1 C , only the attachment from a second end  123  to the second belt attachment  114  using attachment area  126  is shown as adjustable. 
     Position measuring module  150  is used to determine the attachment position of the second end  123  to the second belt attachment  114 . Position measuring module  150  may use a number of different means to determine which attachment area of the attachment areas, including attachment area  126 , attachment area  124 , or attachment area  122 , is attached to the second belt attachment  114 . In one embodiment, position measuring module  150  may include a contact sensor in certain embodiments that senses patterns within the plurality of attachment areas  122  through  126 . Such patterns may be variations in color, texture, or engraved patterns in a surface of at least a portion of an attachment area. For the illustrated attachment position at attachment area  126 , position measuring module  150  may determine a position in belt strap  120  where the attachment between the second belt attachment  114  and the second end  123  occurs based both on the detected pattern from attachment area  126  and previously received belt information. The belt information describes the position of attachment area  126  within the belt strap  120 . Given the position of attachment area  126  within the belt strap  120 , a perimeter distance around the loop of the belt  100  and a user&#39;s waist may be determined. 
     In alternate embodiments, rather than a plurality of attachment areas  122 ,  124 , and  126 , an attachment position between second end  123  and second belt attachment  114  may occur at any portion along the belt strap  120 . In such embodiments, different position measuring mechanisms may be used to determine the attachment position. For example, the position measuring mechanism may include a plurality of magnets with an arranged pattern that differentiates the magnetic field along the length of the second end  123 . In such embodiments, position measuring module  150  may include a sensor to detect the variation in the magnetic field, and may determine the attachment position between the second end  123  and second belt attachment  114  based on the detected magnetic field. 
     In further embodiments, various circuits may be used to detect the attachment position. For example, various positions along second end  123  and different attachment areas along second end  123  may have differing resistance values associated with them. The circuit in position measuring module  150  may detect a particular resistance value at a certain attachment area and use this resistance value to determine a position where the second end  123  is attached the second belt attachment  114 . 
     In still further embodiments, a pattern such as a color pattern may be unique in various attachment areas along a second end  123  of the belt strap  120 . Position measuring module  150  may include a sensor to detect the patterns and to determine a position of attachment based on the pattern at the detected attachment area. 
     In various different embodiments where the position of attachment is detected, information associating a particular position with a perimeter distance may be stored in memory device  175 . For example, in the embodiment of belt  100  shown by  FIG.  1 C , memory device  175  may store a distance from first belt attachment  112  to second belt attachment  114 . The memory device  175  also stores a distance from the first belt attachment  112  along belt strap  120  to each of the plurality of attachment areas  122 ,  124 , and  126 . When the attachment area  126  is detected as a position of attachment between the second end  123  of belt strap  120  and the second belt attachment  114 , the detected position may be used with the belt information in memory device  175  to determine a perimeter distance around belt  100 . 
     Belt buckle frame  110  also includes tension measuring module  160 . Tension measuring module  160  may include a number of different means for detecting tension in belt strap  120 . For example, in one embodiment, tension measuring module  160  may include a spring with an attached electronic circuit that measures a tensile force exerted on both ends of the spring. The spring may be coupled between the first belt attachment  112  and the first end  121  of belt strap  120  such that the tensile force exerted on one end by belt strap  120  and on the other end by belt buckle frame  110  is transmitted through the spring. The tensile force measured by the circuit attached to the spring will thus be equal to the tension in belt strap  120 . In alternate embodiments, a tension measuring module  160  may be disposed in the belt strap  120  rather than belt buckle frame  110 . 
     In various embodiments, a tension measuring module may be any system or device for tension measurement. For example, a strain gauge may be used for tension measurements. In another example embodiment, such a tension measuring module  160  may include a first rigid frame with a first belt strap opening and the second belt strap opening. The first belt strap opening and the second belt strap opening each surround a separate section of the belt strap  120 . A displacement point attachment may be coupled to the belt strap  120  at a point midway between the first belt strap opening and the second belt strap opening. The displacement point attachment may then be coupled to the rigid enclosure by a measurement element. During a tension measurement, the measurement element may apply a force perpendicular in any direction to the line of the belt strap  120 . The distance of the displacement of the displacement point created by the application of the force perpendicular to the belt strap  120  may be used to calculate a tension in the belt strap  120 . Alternatively, the force applied perpendicular to the line of the belt strap  120  may be generated such that a particular displacement distance perpendicular to the line of the belt strap  120  may be generated. The amount of force used may be used to calculate a tension in the belt strap  120 . 
     Tension measurements and position measurements are taken as pairs such that each tension measurement will have an associated position measurement. Because, in certain embodiments, belt  100  and belt strap  120  may not perfectly encircle the user&#39;s waist with a given attachment position at an attachment area such as attachment area  126 , the tension in belt strap  120  may not vary as a user&#39;s waist size changes. Tension measurement and the corresponding position measurement together may thus be used to generate a more accurate estimate of a user&#39;s waist size. In one embodiment, a particular belt may have an associated table that provides an estimated waist size for a corresponding pair of position measurements and tension measurements. If tension and/or position measurements do not exactly match the numbers in the table, values may be rounded up or down, or an interpolation may be used to further estimate a waist size based on the position and tension measurements. In other embodiments, rather than using a table to generate an estimated size, a formula may be used that estimates the waist size as a function of the position measurement that provides a circumference of the belt plus a tension adjustments to that:
 
[estimated waist size]= f 1(position measurement)+ g 1(tension measurement)
 
     Different belts may use different functions based on the qualities of the belt so that any number of different functions f1, f2, fn, and so on may be used with the position measurement and any number of different functions or weighting values g1, g2, gn, and so on may be used with tension measurements. 
     Tension measurement and a position measurement together may comprise a single waist measurement. Waist measurements may then be communicated to a separate remote device via wireless communication module  170 . In various embodiments, a plurality of waist measurements may be stored in memory device  175  and then communicated via wireless communication module  170  as a set. In other embodiments, each individual pair of tension and position measurements may be communicated via wireless communication module  170  in a stream as the measurements are taken. In such embodiments, memory device  175  may merely be a temporary memory of either tension measuring module  160 , position measuring module  150 , or both. In embodiments where waist measurements are stored or aggregated at the belt  100 , memory device  175  may be a separate nonvolatile memory device. 
       FIG.  2    illustrates a method  200  of waist measurement using a waist measuring belt according to some example embodiments. While method  200  may be used with a variety of different implementations of a waist measuring belt, method  200  is described below in the context of the particular example embodiment of belt  100 . 
     Method  200  begins at operation  210  with measuring, using a tension measuring module  160 , a first tension in a belt strap  120 , wherein the belt strap  120 , a belt buckle frame  110 , and the tension measuring module  160  are all coupled as part of a belt  100 . Additionally, the first tension is measured during a first time period. In various embodiments, the tension measuring module  160  may include electronic circuits for tension measurement, spring elements, or microelectronic machine elements, as well as memory storage or cache and associated electronic processing and/or filtering circuitry. 
     Operation  220  involves measuring, using a position measuring module  150  coupled to the belt  100 , a first position where the belt strap  120  connects to the belt buckle frame  110 . This measurement occurs during the first time period, and the first time period is such that the measurement of the first tension is reasonably associated with the measurement of the first position. This enables later waist size estimates to use both the first tension measurement and the first position measurement with the assumption that the perimeter enclosed by the belt  100  at the time of the first tension measurement may be determined from the first position measurement. In various embodiments, the position measuring module  150  may include measuring circuitry as well as mechanical measuring elements. Position measuring module  150  may also include memory storage or cache and associated electronic processing and/or filtering circuitry. In certain embodiments, position measuring module  150  may share memory, processing, or filtering elements with tension measuring module  160  or any other module that is integrated with belt  100 . 
     Operation  230  involves measuring, using the tension measuring module  160 , a second tension in the belt strap  120  during a second time period that is different from the first time period. Similar to the first time period, the second time period need only be reasonably allocated such that a second position may be reasonably associated with the second tension. Additionally, the second time period is different from the first time period to the extent that the waist measurements generated using the position measurements and the tension measurements are used to estimate a waist size over time. In certain embodiments, waist measurements comprising a tension measurement and an associated position measurement may be taken at predetermined intervals. Such an interval may be once a minute or once an hour. This data may be aggregated for later use in estimating a waist size using a table or function as described above, or may be used immediately to estimate a waist size for each position/tension pair, with the estimated waist sizes stored, or both. 
     In addition to measurement of waist size, such waist measurements may, in certain embodiments, be used to measure additional details associated with a user. For example, in certain embodiments, a sufficiently sensitive tension measuring module  160  may detect a user&#39;s heartbeat under appropriate conditions. In an implementation configured to detect a user&#39;s heart rate, the tension measuring module  160  may perform multiple measurements per second. All of this information may be stored, or in certain embodiments, filtering circuitry may be used to determine when noise in the measurements overwhelms the target information from the sensor. Such noise may be from user movement, background vibration from a vehicle, or other such sources. Such filtering circuitry may be used to remove data with undesired noise, and retain only information without such background noise, where the target information is available from the waist measurements. In still further embodiments, a separate heart rate measurement module separate from the tension measuring module  160  may be present and used to gather heart rate information. In such embodiments, this information may be aggregated with waist measurements for communication purposes. 
     Operation  240  involves measuring, using the position measuring module  150 , a second position where the belt strap  120  connects to the belt buckle frame  110  during the second time period. In certain embodiments, the second position may be determined to be equal to the first position by determining that an attachment position has not changed since the first time period. 
     Operation  250  involves communicating, using a wireless communication module  170  coupled to the belt buckle frame  110 , the first tension, the second tension, the first position, and the second position to a first device such as mobile device  180 . As mentioned above, the tension and position measurements may be stored locally in memory and aggregated to be sent as a set to a remote device such as mobile device  180 . In other embodiments, operation  250  may occur as each measurement is taken, such that pairs of tension and position measurements are streamed from belt  100  as the measurements occur. 
       FIG.  3    illustrates another belt  300  for waist measurement according to some example embodiments. Belt  300  includes belt buckle frame  310  and belt strap  320 . Belt strap  320  has a first end  321  and a second end  323  as well as an attachment area  322 . In belt  300 , attachment area  322  of belt strap  320  attaches to belt buckle frame  310  at second belt attachment  214 . In contrast to belt  100 , belt  300  includes a belt strap  320  with a single attachment area  322 . Belt  300 , however, includes a belt strap coil  370  which is stored within belt buckle frame  310 . 
     In belt  300 , belt strap coil  370  may be used both to measure a position and to measure a tension within belt strap  320 . Belt strap coil  370  may include a spring or other tension source to exert a continuous force on the first end  321  of belt strap  320 . If the second end  323  of belt strap  320  is not attached to second belt attachment  214  or another fixed position, then the force exerted by belt strap coil  370  on the first end  321  will result in belt strap  320  being retracted into belt buckle frame  310  as part of belt strap coil  370 . If the second end  323  is connected to second belt attachment  314  via attachment area  322 , then the user&#39;s waist and the second belt attachment  314  along with belt strap coil  370  will keep belt strap  320  in place. As the user&#39;s waist size changes, belt strap coil  370  will wind and unwind to compensate for changes in the user&#39;s waist size. Additionally, tension in belt strap  320  may be measured by the amount of force placed on belt strap coil  370 . Belt strap coil  370  may have a tension force window. Inside the window, the coil will not move. Outside the window, the belt strap coil  370  will rotate. Tension values within the window may be measured as part of a tension measuring module. Tension values above this rotation window will cause the belt strap  320  to extend from belt buckle frame  310  and belt strap coil  370  to unwind. Tension values below this rotation window will cause the belt strap  320  to retract and be gathered into belt strap coil  370 . In the embodiment of belt  300 , belt strap coil  370  acts as a first belt attachment as well as at least a portion of a tension measuring module and a position measuring module. In certain embodiments, a tension measurement may be taken once as an initial calibration, with a sensor to detect changes in tension rather than re-measuring tension for each position measurement. In such an embodiment, a tension/position pair may be generated using a previous tension measurement without a new tension measurement for each tension/position data pair that is used for a waist size estimate. 
     One or more processors  394  may be used with belt strap coil  370  and additional measurement circuits or other elements to create measurement data. A position may be determined from a rotation position of belt strap coil  370 . Tension may be determined from a tension measurement associated with a rotational force on belt strap coil  370 . The position and tension measurements derived from belt strap coil  370  may generate measurements which are stored in memory  392 . Wireless input/output (I/O)  396  may then be used to communicate these waist measurements to remote devices such as a mobile device  180  or a server computer  106 . 
     In various embodiments, belt  300  may be structured to be attached to other belt elements. For example, belt strap  320  may be a thin string or chain which may be attached to a larger, more traditional belt strap. Similarly, belt buckle frame  310  may be a small encapsulated structure which contains the memory  392 , one or more processors  394 , wireless I/O  396 , and belt strap coil  370  as well as any other associated position measuring module and tension measuring module elements. A larger belt buckle front may be attached to belt buckle frame  310  to match the traditional belt strap. Belt  300  may thus be a modular belt with elements illustrated by  FIG.  3   . The belt strap  320  and belt buckle frame  310  of such an embodiment are functional elements that are covered by other interchangeable coverings. Alternatively, belt  300  may be designed to be worn inside of a user&#39;s clothes with a separate belt over the clothes which is not integrated with belt  300 . In such an embodiment, belt strap  320  may comprise a thin line of string, a thin chain, or other material that may be compactly structured when wound as part of belt strap coil  370 . In such an embodiment, belt buckle frame  310  may include an outer covering with flat top and bottom surfaces. The flat bottom surface may be structured to lie flat against a user&#39;s skin, with the flat top surface designed to protect the internal elements of belt buckle frame  310  from a user&#39;s clothing or other external contact. 
       FIG.  4    illustrates a belt buckle frame  410  for a waist measuring belt according to some example embodiments. The belt buckle frame  410  is not shown with a particular associated belt strap. As described above, certain embodiments may modularly be associated with multiple different elements such as multiple different belt straps. Belt buckle frame  410  does include a first belt attachment  412  and a second belt attachment  414 . At least one of the belt attachments  412  and  414  will include an adjustable interface for attaching to a belt strap. Belt buckle frame  410  additionally includes one or more processors  492 , one or more sensors  498 , wireless input/output (I/O)  496 , an antenna  499  coupled to the wireless I/O  496 , and memory  494 . Memory  494  includes processor readable instructions that when used with one or more processors  492  may be used as at least part of a position measuring module  450 , a tension measuring module  460 , and one or more operating modules  455 . These modules may operate with processors  492  and sensors  498  to gather position and tension measurements and to communicate measured position and tension values to other devices via wireless I/O  496  and antenna  499 . 
     Additionally, because there is no particular belt strap associated with belt buckle frame  410 , memory  494  may also receive and store belt strap information that may be used by position measuring module  450  and tension measuring module  460 . For example, when a particular belt strap is attached to the belt buckle frame  410  via first belt attachment  412  and second belt attachment  414 , belt strap information associated with this particular belt strap may be communicated to memory  494  via wireless I/O  496 . This may include length information, information associated with various attachment areas of the belt strap, and flexibility information which may be used to determine how a particular tension measurement may be used to estimate a user&#39;s waist size. For example, this belt strap information may include a flexibility value. The flexibility value may identify that a high tension value on a flexible belt may significantly alter a waist size estimate from an expected perimeter that is only based on an attachment position of the belt strap to the second belt attachment  414  and the first belt attachment  412 . The belt strap information may additionally include any other information associated with aspects of the belt strap that will impact a determination of a belt perimeter when a belt is attached in a particular configuration, and information that will relate a measured tension in the belt strap with an estimated user waist size. 
     As different belt straps are attached to the belt buckle frame  410 , new belt strap information associated with the newly attached belt strap may be communicated to memory  494  via wireless I/O  496 . This new information may then be used for waist measurements taken while the new belt strap is attached to the belt buckle frame  410 . As waist measurements are taken and stored in memory  494 , the waist measurements may be communicated to other devices along with belt strap information. This belt strap information may be used by the other devices to estimate the user&#39;s waist size using not only the position and tension measurements but also the belt strap information that may be used to interpret these measurements. This may enable a remote device such as mobile device  180  or server computer  106  to generate standardized estimated waist sizes even when measurements are taken using different belt straps, belts, belt buckle frames, or other elements of multiple different implementations of a waist measuring belt described herein. 
       FIG.  5    is a flow diagram illustrating aspects of a method  500  of waist measurement using a waist measuring belt according to some example embodiments. While the method  500  may be used with a variety of different embodiments of a waist measuring belt, including both embodiments described herein as well as other embodiments not specifically described herein that operate in accordance with the described innovations, the method  500  will be described with respect to system  101  for illustrative purposes. 
     Method  500  illustrates operations by server computer  106 , mobile device  180 , and belt  100 . Method  500  additionally illustrates communications between these elements. Method  500  begins with operation  502 , in which any mobile device  180  or belt  100  associated with the user may be registered with server computer  106 . In various embodiments, this may involve multiple mobile devices  180  and multiple belts  100  being registered with server computer  106 . Such a registration may be accomplished a number of different ways. In certain embodiments, a separate computing device of a user may be used to contact server computer  106  via a network such as network  904 . The user may provide identifying details for mobile device  180  and belts  100  to server computer  106 . The user may additionally generate a login and password or other security information that enables mobile device  180  to communicate with server computer  106  securely and a store information such as the user&#39;s measurements and estimated waist size at server computer  106  or a storage device associated with server computer  106 . In embodiments with modular belts, multiple belt straps may be associated with different belt buckle frames, and calibration information for position and force measurements made with each combination of belt strap and belt buckle frame may be associated with the user&#39;s account by server computer  106 . 
     After the user registers with server computer  106 , in operation  504  server computer  106  provides an application and belt information to mobile device  180 . In operation  506 , the mobile device  180  receives the application and belt information from server computer  106 . The application may include instructions readable by a processor of mobile device  180  in order to retrieve measurement information from belt  100 , estimate a user&#39;s waist size using measurements from belt  100 , communicate with server computer  106  to receive additional information associated with the user&#39;s waist measurements such as anonymized waist measurements for other similar users, and any other operation enabled by a system in conjunction with belt  100 . 
     In operation  508 , belt  100  synchronizes with mobile device  180  to enable belts  100  to communicate position and tension measurements from belt  100  to mobile device  180 . This synchronizing operation of operation  508  may include handshaking operations as part of any communication protocol described below. 
     Operation  510  involves calibration for measurements taken by belt  100 . In certain embodiments, this calibration may simply involve identification of a belt buckle frame  110  and belt strap  120  which are part of belt  100 . This may enable mobile device  180  to identify belt information received from server computer  106 . Mobile device  180  may then use this belt information to interpret measurement values received from belt  100 . In other embodiments, particular measurements may be taken as part of operation  510 . For example, a user may be asked to perform a specific measurement of both tension and position to verify the correctness of belt information received from server computer  106 . Such a calibration process may involve independent measurements of belt length from a belt tip to the attachment area using an independent measurement device such as a ruler. This may also involve hanging a weight from one end of a belt and communicating the resulting tension measurement from a tension measuring module  160  of belt  100  to mobile device  180 . This may also involve any other similar calibration measurement related to position and tension measurements that may be taken by belt  100 . In certain embodiments, a belt buckle that is attached to the belt buckle frame or the belt buckle frame itself may act as this weight. 
     When such calibration measurements are performed, resulting data may be communicated to server computer  106  in operation  511 . In operation  511 , server computer  106  may receive calibration measurements from mobile device  180 , and may use this information to update belt information stored at server computer  106 . For example, server computer  106  may include a database of calibration measurements taken by users in association with particular belt types. Each belt type may have an associated history of calibration measurements taken by a large number of users. This crowdsourced calibration measurement information may be used to update and generate belt information over time. This updated belt information may then be communicated to system users during registration, or other update communications from server computer  106  to mobile device  180  and any other device in the system. 
     Following a calibration process, in operation  512 , belt  100  may measure tension, position, and time to generate waist measurements. These tension and position measurements along with information about the time at which the measurements were taken may be stored in a memory of belt  100  in operation  514 . 
     In certain embodiments, a belt  100  may include a set of thresholds. The thresholds may be provided by the user during the calibration or registration process. In other embodiments, a threshold may be a default system value which may be adjusted by a user. In operation  515 , waist measurements stored in operation  514  may be checked against one or more threshold values. Such a threshold may be set by a user as an assistance for weight loss. If a threshold is exceeded, an alert may be generated to alert the user that the threshold has been exceeded. The alert may involve a vibration or sound generated by belt  100 , and the alert may also include a communication sent to another device such as mobile device  180  via a wireless communication interface of belt  100 . 
     In operation  516 , waist measurements stored at belt  100  may be communicated to mobile device  180 . In operation  518 , the process of measuring, storing measurement values, checking for measurements that exceed threshold values, and communicating waist measurements may be repeated. This repetition may be periodic or based on some trigger. In certain embodiments, the various elements may be repeated at different frequencies than are various other elements. For example, in certain embodiments, waist measurements may be communicated daily even though waist measurement values may be generated multiple times per second, minute, or hour. 
     In operation  520 , mobile device  180  receives waist measurements from belt  100 . In operation  522 , mobile device  180  uses tension and position measurements received from belt  100  to generate an estimated waist size. As described above, this may be done using a table of information that is stored locally at a belt or that is stored remotely at a mobile device or server computer. This waist estimate may include weighted calculations using belt information, calibration information, position information, tension information, user profile information, and any other such information which may be used to estimate a user&#39;s waist size using any method including the table or formula methods mentioned above. For example, in one embodiment, a belt perimeter is calculated using belt information and a position measurement from belt  100 . A tension measurement may then be used with additional belt information about the flexibility of a belt strap  120  that is part of belt  100 , in order to estimate a user&#39;s waist size based on a base waist size which is equal to the belt perimeter plus an adjustment value generated from the tension and the belt information. Additional details of various processes for estimating waist size from waist measurements are described below with respect to  FIG.  6 B . 
     In operation  523 , threshold values stored in mobile device  180  may be checked against estimated waist sizes generated at operation  522 . If a threshold is exceeded, mobile device  180  may generate an alert. This may involve communication to a user account such as an email, phone, or other such account. In certain embodiments, this may involve a wireless communication to belt  100  which initiates a vibration or sound at a transceiver of belt  100 . In certain embodiments, operation  515  and operation  523  may work together to generate alerts to a user. 
     In operation  520 , waist measurements from belt  100  may be communicated not only to mobile device  180 , but also to server computer  106 . A determination of whether information will be communicated to mobile device  180 , server computer  106 , or both may be set by a structure of system  101 , a user selection as part of a registration process, or some other system input. For embodiments where waist measurements are gathered by server computer  106 , the server computer  106  may estimate waist size from the waist measurements in operation  530  just as described with regard to operation  522 . 
     In operation  532 , a database record of waist measurements is updated using the waist measurement values and waist size estimates from operations  520  and  530 . In certain embodiments, this information may then additionally be used to generate multiple user metrics in operation  534 . Such metrics may use measurements and estimates not only from a user of belt  100 , but also from users of other belts. This may include multiple belts worn by a single user, a single belt style worn by multiple users, multiple different belts worn by multiple different users, or any other such combination of waist measurement values, estimated waist sizes, or any other such system information. The multiple user metrics of operation  534  may enable a registered user to compare the user&#39;s waist measurements with the measurements of other users. Information from multiple different users may be stripped of identifying information and provided as statistical information. As part of this process, in operation  534  information from the user of belt  100  may be aggregated with information of other users into statistical values which make up system metrics. 
     In operation  524 , waist measurement values, estimated waist size values, and any metrics from server computer  106  may be received by mobile device  180  and used to update a local record. This local record may then be used in operation  526  to generate a measurement history display. An example measurement history display is illustrated by  FIG.  6 B . 
       FIGS.  6 A and  6 B  depict an example mobile device and mobile operating system interface, according to some example embodiments.  FIG.  6 A  illustrates an example mobile device  600  that may be executing a mobile operating system (e.g., iOS™, Android™, Windows® Phone, or other mobile operating systems), according to example embodiments. In certain embodiments, mobile device  180  may be implemented as mobile device  600 . In one embodiment, the mobile device  600  may include a touch screen that may receive tactile information from a user  602 . For instance, the user  602  may physically touch  604  the mobile device  600 , and in response to the touch  604 , the mobile device  600  may determine tactile information such as touch location, touch force, gesture motion, and so forth. In various example embodiments, the mobile device  600  may display home screen  606  (e.g., Springboard on iOS™) that the user  602  of the mobile device  600  may use to launch applications and otherwise manage the mobile device  600 . In various example embodiments, the home screen  606  may provide status information such as battery life, connectivity, or other hardware status. The home screen  606  may also include a plurality of icons that may be activated to launch applications, for example, by touching  604  the area occupied by the icon. Similarly, other user interface elements may be activated by touching  604  an area occupied by a particular user interface element. In this manner, the user  602  may interact with the applications. 
     Many varieties of applications (also referred to as “apps”) may be executing on the mobile device  600 . The applications may include native applications (e.g., applications programmed in Objective-C running on iOS™ or applications programmed in Java running on Android™), mobile web applications (e.g., HTML5), or hybrid applications (e.g., a native shell application that launches an HTML5 session). In a specific example, the mobile device  600  may include a messaging app  620 , audio recording app  622 , a camera app  624 , a book reader app  626 , a media app  628 , a fitness app  630 , a file management app  632 , a location app  634 , a browser app  636 , a settings app  638 , a contacts app  640 , a telephone call app  642 , other apps (e.g., gaming apps, social networking apps, biometric monitoring apps), a third party app  644 , and so forth. 
     A fitness app  630  may, in certain embodiments, be an application downloaded to a mobile device  180  from a server computer  106  as part of operations  504  and  506  described above. Fitness app  630  may manage calibration and measurement communication between a mobile device  600  and a belt or belt buckle frame such as belt  100 , belt  300 , or belt buckle frame  410 . Fitness app  630  may receive tension and position measurements from a waist measuring belt, use this information along with belt information to generate estimated waist sizes, and standardize estimated waist sizes generated from different configurations of waist measuring belts with different belt straps or belt buckle frames. 
       FIG.  6 B  illustrates a display of waist measurements and estimated waist sizes that may be equivalent to the display generated in operation  526 . This includes time scale  652 , measurement scale(s)  654 , position values  660 , tension values  670 , and estimated waist values  680 . In certain embodiments, time scale  652  may, for example, illustrate measurements taken over the course of a single day. This may track a user&#39;s waist size during consumption of a large meal, for example. In other embodiments time scale  652  may track multiple days, months, or years. Measurement scales  654  may include values for tracking position, force, and estimated waist size, or may include only a scale for estimated waist size. Position values  660  may be direct values received from belt  100 , or may be perimeter values calculated from attachment positions detected by belt  100  using a position measuring module  150 . Tension values  670  may similarly be direct values, or may be values processed using calibration parameters. In certain embodiments, an output display as shown by  FIG.  6 B  may include data from multiple belts which are standardized using belt information or calibration parameters to standardize the values across measurements from different belt devices. Estimated waist size values  680  are values calculated using the position values  660  and tension values  670 . For example, when tension values are high, an estimated waist size value differs from the position value by a larger amount than when a tension value is low, as illustrated by the tension arrows of tension values  670  reflecting a larger tension magnitude. If a tension value is low or nonexistent, the associated position value may be ignored or averaged into other estimated waist size measurements, since a low tension may be associated with a belt perimeter that does not match a user&#39;s waist at all. 
       FIG.  7    is a block diagram  700  illustrating an architecture of software  702  which may be installed on any one or more of the devices described herein, including mobile devices  180  and  600  which may operate a fitness application  630 .  FIG.  7    is merely a non-limiting example of a software architecture and it will be appreciated that many other architectures may be implemented to facilitate the functionality described herein. The software  702  may be executing on hardware such as machine  800  of  FIG.  8    that includes processors  810 , memory  830 , and I/O components  850 . In the example architecture of  FIG.  7   , the software  702  may be conceptualized as a stack of layers where each layer may provide particular functionality. For example, the software  702  may include layers such as an operating system  704 , libraries  706 , frameworks  708 , and applications  710 . Operationally, the applications  710  may invoke application programming interface (API) calls  712  through the software stack and receive messages  714  in response to the API calls  712 . 
     The operating system  704  may manage hardware resources and provide common services. The operating system  704  may include, for example, a kernel  720 , services  722 , and drivers  724 . The kernel  720  may act as an abstraction layer between the hardware and the other software layers. For example, the kernel  720  may be responsible for memory management, processor management (e.g., scheduling), component management, networking, security settings, and so on. The services  722  may provide other common services for the other software layers. The drivers  724  may be responsible for controlling or interfacing with the underlying hardware. For instance, the drivers  724  may include display drivers, camera drivers, Bluetooth® drivers, flash memory drivers, serial communication drivers (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB) drivers), Wi-Fi® drivers, audio drivers, power management drivers, and so forth. 
     The libraries  706  may provide a low-level common infrastructure that may be utilized by the applications  710 . The libraries  706  may include system libraries  730  (e.g., C standard library) that may provide functions such as memory allocation functions, string manipulation functions, mathematic functions, and the like. In addition, the libraries  706  may include API libraries  732  such as media libraries (e.g., libraries  706  to support presentation and manipulation of various media format such as MPEG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG), graphics libraries (e.g., an OpenGL framework that may be used to render 2D and 3D in graphic content on a display), database libraries (e.g., SQLite that may provide various relational database functions), web libraries (e.g., WebKit that may provide web browsing functionality), and the like. The libraries  706  may also include a wide variety of other libraries  734  to provide many other APIs to the applications  710 . 
     The frameworks  708  may provide a high-level common infrastructure that may be utilized by the applications  710 . For example, the frameworks  708  may provide various graphic user interface (GUI) functions, high-level resource management, high-level location services, and so forth. The frameworks  708  may provide a broad spectrum of other APIs that may be utilized by the applications  710 , some of which may be specific to a particular operating system or platform. 
     The applications  710  include a home application  750 , a contacts application  752 , a browser application  754 , a book reader application  756 , a location application  758 , a media application  760 , a messaging application  762 , a game application  764 , and a broad assortment of other applications  710  such as third party application  766 . In a specific example, the third party application  766  (e.g., an application developed using the Android™ or iOS™ software development kit (SDK) by an entity other than the vendor of the particular platform) may be mobile software running on a mobile operating system  704  such as iOS™, Android™, Windows® Phone, or other mobile operating systems. In this example, the third party application  766  may invoke the API calls  712  provided by the operating system  704  to facilitate functionality described herein. In various embodiments, these applications may interact with a fitness application  630  in various ways. For example, a messaging application  762  may be used for alerts or any communications with a waist measuring belt. A game application  764  may receive estimated waist values or other waist measurements as inputs to a game over time that may present a user with achievements based on waist measurements in conjunction with exercise inputs, heart rate inputs, or other such inputs. 
       FIG.  8    is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine  800 , according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from a machine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein, including operation of a fitness application  630  that communicates with a waist measuring belt. Specifically,  FIG.  8    shows a diagrammatic representation of the machine  800  in the example form of a computer system, within which instructions  816  (e.g., software, a program, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code) for causing the machine  800  to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein may be executed. In alternative embodiments, the machine  800  operates as a standalone device or may be coupled (e.g., networked) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the machine  800  may operate in the capacity of a server machine or a client machine in a server-client network environment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment. The machine  800  may comprise, but not be limited to, a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a set-top box (STB), a personal digital assistant (PDA), an entertainment media system, a cellular telephone, a smartphone, a mobile device  600 , a wearable device (e.g., a smart watch), a smart home device (e.g., a smart appliance), other smart devices, a web appliance, a network router, a network switch, a network bridge, or any machine capable of executing the instructions  816 , sequentially or otherwise, that specify actions to be taken by machine  800 . Further, while only a single machine  800  is illustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include a collection of machines  800  that individually or jointly execute the instructions  816  to perform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein. 
     The machine  800  may include processors  810 , memory  830 , and I/O components  850 , which may be configured to communicate with each other via a bus  802 . In an example embodiment, the processors  810  (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU), a reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processor, a complex instruction set computing (CISC) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC), another processor, or any suitable combination thereof) may include, for example, a processor  812  and a processor  814  that may execute the instructions  816 . The term “processor” is intended to include multi-core processor that may comprise two or more independent processors (also referred to as “cores”) that may execute the instructions  816  contemporaneously. Although  FIG.  8    shows multiple processors  810 , the machine  800  may include a single processor  810  with a single core, a single processor  810  with multiple cores (e.g., a multi-core process), multiple processors  810  with a single core, multiple processors  810  with multiples cores, or any combination thereof. 
     The memory  830  may include a main memory  832 , a static memory  834 , and a storage unit  836  accessible to the processors  810  via the bus  802 . The storage unit  836  may include a machine-readable medium  838  on which are stored the instructions  816  embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described herein. The instructions  816  may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory  832 , within the static memory  834 , within at least one of the processors  810  (e.g., within the processor&#39;s cache memory), or any suitable combination thereof, during execution thereof by the machine  800 . Accordingly, the main memory  832 , static memory  834 , and the processors  810  may be considered machine-readable media  838 . 
     As used herein, the term “memory” refers to a machine-readable medium  838  able to store data temporarily or permanently and may be taken to include, but not be limited to, random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), buffer memory, flash memory, and cache memory. While the machine-readable medium  838  is shown in an example embodiment to be a single medium, the term “machine-readable medium” should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a centralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers) able to store instructions  816 . The term “machine-readable medium” shall also be taken to include any medium, or combination of multiple media, that is capable of storing instructions (e.g., instructions  816 ) for execution by a machine (e.g., machine  800 ), such that the instructions  816 , when executed by one or more processors of the machine  800  (e.g., processors  810 ), cause the machine  800  to perform any one or more of the methodologies described herein. Accordingly, a “machine-readable medium” refers to a single storage apparatus or device, as well as “cloud-based” storage systems or storage networks that include multiple storage apparatus or devices. The term “machine-readable medium” shall accordingly be taken to include, but not be limited to, one or more data repositories in the form of a solid-state memory (e.g., flash memory), an optical medium, a magnetic medium, other non-volatile memory (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM)), or any suitable combination thereof. The term “machine-readable medium” specifically excludes non-statutory signals per se. Any such memory may be included as part of memory device  175 , memory  392 , memory  494 , or any other memory of a belt  100 , mobile device  180 , server computer  106 , or other computing device which communicates with a waist measuring belt as described herein. 
     The I/O components  850  may include a wide variety of components to receive input, provide output, produce output, transmit information, exchange information, capture measurements, and so on. It will be appreciated that the I/O components  850  may include many other components that are not shown in  FIG.  8   . The I/O components  850  are grouped according to functionality merely for simplifying the following discussion, and the grouping is in no way limiting. In various example embodiments, the I/O components  850  may include output components  852  and input components  854 . The output components  852  may include visual components (e.g., a display such as a plasma display panel (PDP), a light emitting diode (LED) display, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a projector, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)), acoustic components (e.g., speakers), haptic components (e.g., a vibratory motor), other signal generators, and so forth. The input components  854  may include alphanumeric input components (e.g., a keyboard, a touch screen configured to receive alphanumeric input, a photo-optical keyboard, or other alphanumeric input components), point based input components (e.g., a mouse, a touchpad, a trackball, a joystick, a motion sensor, or other pointing instruments), tactile input components (e.g., a physical button, a touch screen that provides location and force of touches or touch gestures, or other tactile input components), audio input components (e.g., a microphone), and the like. 
     In further example embodiments, the I/O components  850  may include biometric components  856 , motion components  858 , environmental components  860 , or position components  862  among a wide array of other components. For example, the biometric components  856  may include components to detect expressions (e.g., hand expressions, facial expressions, vocal expressions, body gestures, or eye tracking), measure biosignals (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature, perspiration, or brain waves), identify a person (e.g., voice identification, retinal identification, facial identification, fingerprint identification, or electroencephalogram based identification), and the like. The motion components  858  may include acceleration sensor components (e.g., accelerometer), gravitation sensor components, rotation sensor components (e.g., gyroscope), and so forth. The environmental components  860  may include, for example, illumination sensor components (e.g., photometer), temperature sensor components (e.g., one or more thermometers that detect ambient temperature), humidity sensor components, pressure sensor components (e.g., barometer), acoustic sensor components (e.g., one or more microphones that detect background noise), proximity sensor components (e.g., infrared sensors that detect nearby objects), gas sensors (e.g., gas detection sensors to detect concentrations of hazardous gases for safety or to measure pollutants in the atmosphere), or other components that may provide indications, measurements, or signals corresponding to a surrounding physical environment. The position components  862  may include location sensor components (e.g., a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver component), altitude sensor components (e.g., altimeters or barometers that detect air pressure from which altitude may be derived), orientation sensor components (e.g., magnetometers), and the like. 
     Communication may be implemented using a wide variety of technologies. The I/O components  850  may include communication components  864  operable to couple the machine  800  to a network  880  or devices  870  via coupling  882  and coupling  872  respectively. For example, the communication components  864  may include a network interface component or other suitable device to interface with the network  880 . In further examples, communication components  864  may include wired communication components, wireless communication components, cellular communication components, near field communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth® components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and other communication components  864  to provide communication via other modalities. The devices  870  may be another machine  800  or any of a wide variety of peripheral devices (e.g., a peripheral device coupled via a Universal Serial Bus (USB)). 
     Moreover, the communication components  864  may detect identifiers or include components operable to detect identifiers. For example, the communication components  864  may include radio frequency identification (RFID) tag reader components, NFC smart tag detection components, optical reader components (e.g., an optical sensor to detect one-dimensional bar codes such as Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code, multi-dimensional bar codes such as Quick Response (QR) codes, Aztec code, Data Matrix, Dataglyph, MaxiCode, PDF417, Ultra Code, UCC RSS-2D bar codes, and other optical codes), or acoustic detection components (e.g., microphones to identify tagged audio signals). In addition, a variety of information may be derived via the communication components  864 , such as location via Internet Protocol (IP) geo-location, location via Wi-Fi® signal triangulation, location via detecting an NFC beacon signal that may indicate a particular location, and so forth. 
     The instructions  816  may be transmitted or received over the network  880  using a transmission medium via a network interface device (e.g., a network interface component included in the communication components  864 ) and utilizing any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols (e.g., hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP)). Similarly, the instructions  816  may be transmitted or received using a transmission medium via the coupling  872  (e.g., a peer-to-peer coupling) to devices  870 . The term “transmission medium” shall be taken to include any intangible medium that is capable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions  816  for execution by the machine  800 , and includes digital or analog communications signals or other intangible media to facilitate communication of such software. 
     Furthermore, the machine-readable medium  838  is non-transitory (in other words, not having any transitory signals) in that it does not embody a propagating signal. However, labeling the machine-readable medium  838  “non-transitory” should not be construed to mean that the medium is incapable of movement; the medium should be considered as being transportable from one physical location to another. Additionally, since the machine-readable medium  838  is tangible, the medium may be considered to be a machine-readable device. 
       FIG.  9    is a block diagram illustrating a network architecture of a system  900  for communications between waist measuring belts, mobile devices, server computers, or any other such computing devices such as belt  100 , mobile device  180 , and server computer  106 . The system  900  includes a first device  910   a , second device  910   b , and a networked system  902 , which may communicate with each other through a network  904 . The first device  910   a  and the second device  910   b  represent client devices and are also referred to as electronic devices. The first device  910   a  may be executing an application session  919   a  which may include personal application data  912   a  such as any form of waist measurement information or estimated waist size values. The second device  910   b  may be executing an application session  919   b  which may include personal application data  912   b . The application session  919   a  running on the first device  910   a  may be transferred to the second device  910   b  and represented as the application session  919   b , and vice versa, according to one embodiment. 
     Devices and network components operating as part of network  904  and networked system  902  may include any access point hardware, networking hardware, or communication device described herein which may be used to relay information between devices  910  and networked system  902 , either of which may comprise a belt  100 , mobile device  180 , or server computer  106 . 
     The networked system  902  includes a publication system(s)  942  and a server computer  950 . The publication system(s)  942  and the server computer  950  access data stored in database  926   a , which store user data, application data, and device security data. The data pertaining to the user account (also referred to as user data  927   a ) may be stored as one or more records in the database  926   a . The data pertaining to the user account may include data identifying the user (e.g., the user&#39;s first and last names, phone number, billing and shipping address(es), and Social Security Number (SSN), whether the user is a frequent buyer, whether the user is also a vendor or a seller, etc.), transaction data (e.g., the name of a purchased product, a product identifier, the date of transaction, the price, the condition of the product, etc.), user demographic data (e.g., age, gender, financial information, family status, employment status, etc.), purchase history data, return history data, product review data, etc. The user data  927   a  may also include the user&#39;s login information such as user name and password. 
     In various example embodiments, one or more portions of the network  880  may be an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, a virtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wireless LAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), a metropolitan area network (MAN), the Internet, a portion of the Internet, a portion of the public switched telephone network (PSTN), a plain old telephone service (POTS) network, a cellular telephone network, a wireless network, a Wi-Fi® network, another type of network, or a combination of two or more such networks. For example, the network  880  or a portion of the network  880  may include a wireless or cellular network and the coupling  882  may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) connection, a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) connection, or another type of cellular or wireless coupling. In this example, the coupling  882  may implement any of a variety of types of data transfer technology, such as Single Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (1×RTT), Evolution-Data Optimized (EVDO) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) technology, Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) technology, third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) including 3G, fourth generation wireless (4G) networks, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE) standard, others defined by various standard-setting organizations, other long range protocols, or other data transfer technology. 
     Certain embodiments are described herein as including logic or a number of components, modules, or mechanisms. Modules may constitute either software modules (e.g., code embodied on a machine-readable medium or in a transmission signal) or hardware modules. A “hardware module” is a tangible unit capable of performing certain operations and may be configured or arranged in a certain physical manner. In various example embodiments, one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone computer system, a client computer system, or a server computer system) or one or more hardware modules of a computer system (e.g., a processor or a group of processors) may be configured by software (e.g., an application or application portion) as a hardware module that operates to perform certain operations as described herein. 
     In some embodiments, a hardware module may be implemented mechanically, electronically, or any suitable combination thereof. For example, a hardware module may include dedicated circuitry or logic that is permanently configured to perform certain operations. For example, a hardware module may be a special-purpose processor, such as a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC). A hardware module may also include programmable logic or circuitry that is temporarily configured by software to perform certain operations. For example, a hardware module may include software encompassed within a general-purpose processor or other programmable processor. It will be appreciated that the decision to implement a hardware module mechanically, in dedicated and permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarily configured circuitry (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by cost and time considerations. 
     Accordingly, the phrase “hardware module” should be understood to encompass a tangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed, permanently configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily configured (e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner or to perform certain operations described herein. As used herein, “hardware-implemented module” refers to a hardware module. Considering embodiments in which hardware modules are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed), each of the hardware modules need not be configured or instantiated at any one instance in time. For example, where a hardware module comprises a general-purpose processor configured by software to become a special-purpose processor, the general-purpose processor may be configured as respectively different special-purpose processors (e.g., comprising different hardware modules) at different times. Software may accordingly configure a particular processor or processors, for example, to constitute a particular hardware module at one instance of time and to constitute a different hardware module at a different instance of time. 
     Hardware modules can provide information to, and receive information from, other hardware modules. Accordingly, the described hardware modules may be regarded as being communicatively coupled. Where multiple hardware modules exist contemporaneously, communications may be achieved through signal transmission (e.g., over appropriate circuits and buses) between or among two or more of the hardware modules. In embodiments in which multiple hardware modules are configured or instantiated at different times, communications between such hardware modules may be achieved, for example, through the storage and retrieval of information in memory structures to which the multiple hardware modules have access. For example, one hardware module may perform an operation and store the output of that operation in a memory device to which it is communicatively coupled. A further hardware module may then, at a later time, access the memory device to retrieve and process the stored output. Hardware modules may also initiate communications with input or output devices, and can operate on a resource (e.g., a collection of information). 
     The various operations of example methods described herein may be performed, at least partially, by one or more processors that are temporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured to perform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanently configured, such processors may constitute processor-implemented modules that operate to perform one or more operations or functions described herein. As used herein, “processor-implemented module” refers to a hardware module implemented using one or more processors. 
     Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partially processor-implemented, with a particular processor or processors being an example of hardware. For example, at least some of the operations of a method may be performed by one or more processors or processor-implemented modules. Moreover, the one or more processors may also operate to support performance of the relevant operations in a “cloud computing” environment or as a “software as a service” (SaaS). For example, at least some of the operations may be performed by a group of computers (as examples of machines including processors), with these operations being accessible via a network  904  (e.g., the Internet) and via one or more appropriate interfaces (e.g., an application program interface (API)). 
     The performance of certain of the operations may be distributed among the processors, not only residing within a single machine, but deployed across a number of machines. In some example embodiments, the processors or processor-implemented modules may be located in a single geographic location (e.g., within a home environment, an office environment, or a server farm). In other example embodiments, the processors or processor-implemented modules may be distributed across a number of geographic locations. 
     Throughout this specification, plural instances may implement components, operations, or structures described as a single instance. Although individual operations of one or more methods are illustrated and described as separate operations, one or more of the individual operations may be performed concurrently, and nothing requires that the operations be performed in the order illustrated. Structures and functionality presented as separate components in example configurations may be implemented as a combined structure or component. Similarly, structures and functionality presented as a single component may be implemented as separate components. These and other variations, modifications, additions, and improvements fall within the scope of the subject matter herein. 
     Although an overview of the inventive subject matter has been described with reference to specific example embodiments, various modifications and changes may be made to these embodiments without departing from the broader scope of embodiments of the present disclosure. Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred to herein, individually or collectively, by the term “invention” merely for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of this application to any single disclosure or inventive concept if more than one is, in fact, disclosed. 
     The embodiments illustrated herein are described in sufficient detail to enable those skilled in the art to practice the teachings disclosed. Other embodiments may be used and derived therefrom, such that structural and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from the scope of this disclosure. The Detailed Description, therefore, is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of various embodiments is defined only by the appended claims, along with the full range of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. 
     As used herein, the term “or” may be construed in either an inclusive or exclusive sense. Moreover, plural instances may be provided for resources, operations, or structures described herein as a single instance. Additionally, boundaries between various resources, operations, modules, engines, and data stores are somewhat arbitrary, and particular operations are illustrated in a context of specific illustrative configurations. Other allocations of functionality are envisioned and may fall within a scope of various embodiments of the present disclosure. In general, structures and functionality presented as separate resources in the example configurations may be implemented as a combined structure or resource. Similarly, structures and functionality presented as a single resource may be implemented as separate resources. These and other variations, modifications, additions, and improvements fall within a scope of embodiments of the present disclosure as represented by the appended claims. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.