Electricity: battery or capacitor charging or discharging – Battery or cell discharging – Regulated discharging
Reexamination Certificate
1998-11-16
2001-04-10
Wong, Peter S. (Department: 2838)
Electricity: battery or capacitor charging or discharging
Battery or cell discharging
Regulated discharging
C320S134000, C320S132000, C324S432000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06215280
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a portable optical code reader with a device for controlling the charge state of the reader battery.
Portable optical code, in particular bar code, readers are known, which comprise a small hand-held outer casing (e.g. of elongated tubular shape, tapering at one end) housing an electronic circuit and a rechargeable, e.g. Ni—Cd, battery for supplying the electronic circuit. The reader also comprises a light source, e.g. a LED, for illuminating an optical code, e.g. a bar code BC; and a light sensor cooperating with the electronic circuit and for receiving the radiation diffused by the code. The light sensor receives the radiation diffused by successive adjacent portions of the code as the reader is moved manually with respect to the code, and so generates a signal modulated by the succession of different-coloured code elements (i.e. light and dark bars in the case of a bar code). The alternating signal is then processed by the electronic circuit to extract the alphanumeric information associated with the optical code. More specifically, known readers feature a display device (e.g. a liquid-crystal display), which cooperates with the electronic circuit to display the alphanumeric information read in the code.
Known readers also cooperate with a battery charger for charging the reader battery, which is normally done by connecting a portion (e.g. an end portion) of the reader fitted with supply electrodes to electrodes on the battery charger to generate recharge current from the battery charger to the rechargeable battery, which is normally recharged when the reader is not in use. As the reader is normally carried by a user moving about in an industrial environment, often some distance from the battery charger, a close check must be kept on the actual charge state of the reader battery to prevent the battery from running down completely while the reader is in use, and to recharge the battery as it gets low.
Since monitoring the actual state of the battery charge involves drawing current from the battery, the frequency with which the charge must be monitored may result in rapid discharge of the battery.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide an optical code, in particular a bar code, reader featuring a device whereby the actual charge state of the reader battery may be checked frequently without drawing substantially any current from the battery.
According to the present invention, there is provided a portable optical code reader, in particular for bar codes, comprising: at least one supply source; an electronic circuit; and optoelectronic lighting and receiving means cooperating with said circuit to illuminate said optical code and pick up the light diffused by the optical code; characterized by comprising control means cooperating with said electronic circuit to estimate the charge in said supply source and give an indication of the actual charge state of the source.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an optical code reader, which provides for indicating the charge level of the battery in different operating modes of the reader. Many readers, in fact, are known to operate in different modes (device on with code reading, device on with no code reading, device on with display off, etc.) which correspond to different amounts of current being drawn from the battery.
According to the present invention, there is provided a reader wherein the calculating means comprise first calculating means for calculating first charge units estimated as consumed in a detected low-consumption operating state of said reader, in which said circuit is supplied and said optoelectronic lighting and receiving means are at rest; said first charge units being calculated on the basis of estimated values of the current drawn during operation in the low-consumption state, and on the basis of measured values of operating time intervals in the low-consumption state. The calculating means also comprise second calculating means for calculating second charge units estimated as consumed in a detected high-consumption operating state of said reader, in which said circuit is supplied and said optoelectronic lighting and receiving means are active; said second charge units being calculated on the basis of estimated values of the current drawn during operation in said high-consumption state, and on the basis of measured values of operating time intervals in the high-consumption state.
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patent: 5065084 (1991-11-01), Yoshinori
patent: 5606242 (1997-02-01), Hull et al.
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patent: 602432 (1994-06-01), None
patent: 5-137274 (1993-06-01), None
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EPO Office Action issued 2/2000 for EPO Application No. 97 830 606.6.
Datalogic S.p.A.
Hall Priddy Myers & Vande Sande
Toatley , Jr. Gregory J.
Wong Peter S.
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