Patent ID: 8862418

Claim:
A magnetic data processing method operable by a magnetic data processing device, the method comprising: sequentially receiving magnetic data output from a 3D magnetic sensor of the magnetic data processing device, the magnetic data representing magnetic components along a plurality of axes; storing, by the magnetic data processing device, a plurality of the magnetic data as a data set of statistical population; sequentially receiving acceleration data output from a 3D acceleration sensor of the magnetic data processing device, the acceleration data indicating acceleration comprising static acceleration in a direction parallel to gravitation force and dynamic acceleration unique to the movement of the 3D acceleration sensor; and the magnetic data processing device deriving a first vector from the data set of the statistical population, the first vector indicating a direction of a line perpendicular to an approximate plane representing a distribution of the data set of the statistical population; deriving a second vector by smoothing respective components of a plurality of the acceleration data sequentially received from the 3D acceleration sensor; and deriving a reliability index based on the first vector and the second vector for determining reliability of the data set of the statistical population.