Wireless Input Technology Based on MEMS Inertial Measurement Unit - A Survey

Abstract

Rapid progress in Micro-Electromechanical System (MEMS) technique is making inertial sensors increasingly miniaturized, enabling it to be widely applied in people’s everyday life. Recent years, research and development of wireless input device based on MEMS inertial measurement unit (IMU) is receiving more and more attention. In this paper, a survey is made of the recent research on inertial pens based on MEMS-IMU. First, the advantage of IMU-based input is discussed, with comparison with other types of input systems. Then, based on the operation of an inertial pen, which can be roughly divided into four stages: motion sensing, error containment, feature extraction and recognition, various approaches employed to address the challenges facing each stage are introduced. Finally, while discussing the future prospect of the IMU-based input systems, it is suggested that the methods of autonomous and portable calibration of inertial sensor errors be further explored. The low-cost feature of an inertial pen makes it desirable that its calibration be carried out independently, rapidly, and portably. Meanwhile, some unique features of the operational environment of an inertial pen make it possible to simplify its error propagation model and expedite its calibration, making the technique more practically viable.