Patent ID: 7690253

Claim:
A fall detecting method comprising the steps of: measuring acceleration applied to an acceleration sensor at each successive time by the acceleration sensor, and comparing the measured acceleration with a certain threshold to judge whether the measured acceleration is a fall acceleration corresponding to fall or a non-fall acceleration not corresponding to fall, (A) when the acceleration measured at each time is the fall acceleration, setting a period, for which the acceleration measured at each time has been successively the fall acceleration, to an output continuation time, comparing the output continuation time with a second predetermined time, returning to the steps of measuring the acceleration and comparing the measured acceleration with the threshold to judge, until the output continuation time reaches the second predetermined time, and judging fall, when the output continuation time reaches the second predetermined time, and (B) when the acceleration measured at each time is the non-fall acceleration, setting a period, for which the measured acceleration has successively been the fall acceleration since the measured acceleration was the non-fall acceleration just before the measured acceleration becomes the non-fall acceleration, to a preliminary continuation time, and comparing the preliminary continuation time with a third predetermined time, (a) when the preliminary continuation time does not reach the third predetermined time, judging that the fall stops, and (b) when the preliminary continuation time reaches the third predetermined time, setting a period, for which the acceleration measured at each time has successively been the non-fall acceleration, to an output interruption time, and comparing the output interruption time with a first predetermined time, (b-1) when the output interruption time does not reach the first predetermined time, to correct the output continuation time just before with the output interruption time, and to return to the steps of measuring the acceleration and comparing the measured acceleration with the threshold to judge, and (b-2) when the output interruption time reaches the first predetermined time, to judge that the fall stops.