Electrical computers and digital processing systems: support – Computer power control – By external command
Reexamination Certificate
1994-12-02
2001-07-31
Myers, Paul R. (Department: 2181)
Electrical computers and digital processing systems: support
Computer power control
By external command
Reexamination Certificate
active
06269449
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates generally to devices that are capable of operating in a reduced power consumption mode and, more particularly, for providing such devices with a noncontact sensor for use in causing the device to transition from the reduced power consumption mode to full power mode.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Over the years, many attempts have been made to reduce the power consumption of battery powered electronic devices, thereby yielding longer battery operation. For obvious reasons, many of these attempts have focused on reducing the amount of power consumed by such devices while the device is on, but not in use. Hence, a reduction in power consumption has been achieved by slowing or stopping certain components of the device after the device or devices have been inactive for a predetermined period of time, which may or may not be set by the user. Clearly, therefore, it is critical to maintaining proper device performance accurately to determine when to slow or power down the device without disrupting the user's work, until further operation is needed.
For example, in the field of portable personal computers, when a computer's disk drive has not been accessed for a predetermined amount of time, for example, two minutes, the drive is powered down or caused to operate in a reduced power consumption mode, often referred to as “standby mode,” such that the drive consumes less power, thereby reducing the overall power consumption of the computer. Thereafter, when a drive access is attempted, full power is reapplied to the drive and the drive spins up and is ready to be accessed.
Another example of a device capable of operation in a reduced power consumption mode is a device known as a radio mouse. Typically, after expiration of a predetermined amount of time in which the mouse has not been used, a microcontroller included in the mouse causes the mouse to operate in a reduced power consumption mode. This may be accomplished, for example, by writing the contents of a volatile memory device within the microcontroller, which is accessed by the microcontroller during operation of the mouse, to a nonvolatile memory device, which is slower than the microcontroller's volatile memory device. Power is then removed from the volatile memory device and is removed from or reduced to other components of the mouse. When the user is again ready to use the mouse, the user must move the mouse or click a mouse button provided thereon, at which point a signal is sent to wake up the mouse.
Although the above-described methods accomplish their primary goal, that is, to reduce in the amount of power consumed by the device, they suffer certain deficiencies, the most obvious of which is the time delay experienced by the user in waiting for the device to return to full power mode so that it can be used for its intended purpose. Referring to the disk drive example, the user must wait for power to be reapplied to the drive and the drive to spin up before access can be made thereto. With regard to the radio mouse, because the wake up signal is not sent until the user actually attempts to use the mouse to input data, the user may experience a delay of up to several seconds in inputting the data while the necessary operations for awakening the mouse are performed.
Hence, although it is possible for a user to wait for a device to return to full power state when he or she is again ready to use the device, it is not particularly desirable to require him or her to do so. On the other hand, there are inherent limits on the speed with which a device can be transitioned from a reduced power consumption to a full power mode.
Therefore, what is needed is a means for causing a device operating in a reduced power consumption mode to return to a full power mode immediately before the user is ready to use the device, such that the device has already returned to the full power mode by the time the user attempts to operate the device.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The foregoing problems are solved and a technical advance is achieved by a method and apparatus for transitioning an electronic device operable in a reduced power consumption mode from the reduced power consumption mode to a full power mode immediately before a user attempts to operate the device. In a departure from the art, a hand held intelligent data entry unit (IDEU) is provided with a noncontact sensor for detecting the presence of a user's hand within an actuation region of the IDEU during operation of the IDEU in the reduced power consumption mode and for sending a signal responsive to such detection for causing the IDEU to operate in full power mode.
In a preferred embodiment, the IDEU of the present invention comprises a microcontroller connected to one or more input devices, a nonvolatile memory device, a power supply comprising one or more batteries and a noncontact sensor, such as a capacitive sensor. In accordance with a feature of the present invention, the IDEU is operable in a full power, or active mode, in which all of the IDEU components are operating at normal levels, and in a reduced power consumption mode, in which the IDEU consumes significantly less power than it does during operation in the active mode. Accordingly, the microcontroller further includes a timeout timer, which, in the preferred embodiment, is a count-down timer that is initially set to expire after a predetermined amount of time, for example, 5 minutes, has elapsed and is reset responsive to input received by the microcontroller from one of the input devices. Upon the expiration of the predetermined amount of time without receipt of input from the devices, the timeout timer generates a “timeout” signal, causing the microcontroller to perform the operations necessary to place the IDEU in the reduced power consumption mode.
The capacitive sensor is arranged to detect the presence of a user's hand within a predefined “actuation region” of the IDEU and generate a “wake up” signal to the microcontroller responsive to the detection. The actuation region is ideally defined based on the amount of time required to wake up the computer, such that the IDEU can be caused to be ready to accept data via the input devices
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as soon as the user picks up the IDEU.
A technical advantage achieved with the present invention is that it prevents the user from experiencing time delays typically associated with transitioning a device from a low power consumption mode to a full power mode.
A further technical advantage achieved with the present invention is that it can be used in connection with any number of different types of portable hand held electronic devices, such as intelligent remotes, radio mouses and the like.
REFERENCES:
patent: 5083266 (1992-01-01), Watanabe
patent: 5167024 (1992-11-01), Smith et al.
patent: 5230074 (1993-07-01), Canova, Jr. et al.
patent: 5319250 (1994-06-01), Windsor
patent: 5380983 (1995-01-01), Cavada et al.
patent: 5396443 (1995-03-01), Mese et al.
patent: 5396635 (1995-03-01), Fung
Dell USA L.P.
Haynes and Boone L.L.P.
Myers Paul R.
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