Patent Publication Number: US-2020288403-A1

Title: Smart power saving method for terminal, terminal, and device having memory function

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE 
     The present application is a continuation-application of International (PCT) Patent Application No. PCT/CN2018/119783, filed on Dec. 7, 2018, which claims foreign priority of Chinese Patent Application No. 201711307013.3, filed on Dec. 7, 2017, in the National Intellectual Property Administration of China, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present disclosure relates to the field of communications, in particular to a smart power saving method for a terminal, a terminal and a device with memory function. 
     BACKGROUND 
     With the development of wireless network, more and more device users use Wi-Fi to access the network. How to reduce Wi-Fi power consumption without affecting user experience has become a focus of power optimization for terminal devices. During Wi-Fi connection, the terminal will acquire an IP address from a router through DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol). Since the IP address has a lease duration, according to the DHCP specification, the terminal renews the lease of the IP address at regular intervals. Renewal time points include Renew and Rebind. The Renew process is generally half of the current lease duration, whereas the Rebind is at the end of the current lease duration. However, when the screen is off and the lease is short, the setting will cause application processor and Wi-Fi to be woken up frequently, thereby causing an increase in power consumption. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The technical scheme according to the present disclosure is to provide a smart power saving method for a terminal, including operations as followed. 
     acquiring an IP lease duration corresponding to an IP address of a Wi-Fi connection with a terminal: 
     determining whether the IP lease duration is not larger than a preset threshold; 
     determining whether a screen of the terminal is in a screen-off state or whether a CPU of the terminal is in a sleep state; 
     when the screen of the terminal is in the screen-off state or the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state, and the IP lease duration is not larger than the preset threshold, removing a first lease process. 
     Another technical scheme according to the present disclosure is to provide a terminal, including a processor and a memory electrically connected to the processor, wherein the method is executed when the processor is in operation, and the memory stores a result of the execution of the processor and a program data of the smart power saving method for the terminal. 
     Another technical scheme according to the present disclosure is to provide a device having a memory function, wherein the memory device stores the program data. The program data is executed to achieve the smart power saving method for the terminal. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       To further illustrate technical solutions of embodiments of the present disclosure, drawings needed for description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present disclosure. To any one of skill in the art, other drawings may be obtained without any creative work based on the following drawings. 
         FIG. 1  is a flow schematic view of a smart power saving method for a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, 
         FIG. 2  is a structural schematic view of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 3  is a structural schematic view of a device having a memory function according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Referring to the accompanying drawings, the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described. With consideration of clarity and brevity, the function and construction of public knowledge will not be described in detail. The terms described below may be qualified by the functions mentioned in the present disclosure, and may vary according to the intent or implementation of users and operators. Therefore, the terms should be qualified on the basis of the disclosure of the entire specification. 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 ,  FIG. 1  is a flow schematic view of a smart power saving method for a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the method including operations at blocks illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
     At block S 10 : an IP lease duration corresponding to an IP address of a Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is required. 
     Alternatively, the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is acquired, and the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address of the current Wi-Fi connection is acquired. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, the IP address is a dynamic address automatically allocated by a router. In the operation of block S 10 , the IP address and the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address are acquired from the router through a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol). 
     In an embodiment, when the terminal is connected to the IP address through Wi-Fi for the first time, the IP address of the current Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is recorded, and the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is acquired. 
     Alternatively, the IP lease duration refers to a dynamic IP address interval time automatically allocated to the terminal by the router connected with the terminal. The IP lease duration may vary according to a brand of the router and an initial lease duration, and the lease duration may be adjusted and configured according to user&#39;s needs. 
     At block S 20 : whether the IP lease duration is not larger than a preset threshold, is determined. 
     Alternatively, the IP lease duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  is compared with the preset threshold to determine whether the IP lease duration is not larger than the preset threshold. Units of the acquired IP lease duration and those of the preset threshold are hours or minutes. When the units of the acquired IP lease duration is inconsistent with those of the preset threshold, the time units may be converted automatically. Such that the time units of the IP lease duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  and those of the preset threshold may be consistent after a conversion, and may be compared with each other. 
     In an embodiment, the units of the IP lease duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  and those of the preset threshold are both hours. The IP lease duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  is directly compared with the preset threshold. 
     In another embodiment, the units of the IP lease duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  is inconsistent with those of the preset threshold. The units of the acquired duration and those of the preset threshold may be converted according to a mathematical conversion rule between the two units before the comparison. Such that the units of the acquired duration and those of the preset threshold are consistent after the conversion, and the IP duration acquired in the operation of block S 10  may be compared with the preset threshold. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, the units of the preset threshold may be configured to be consistent with those of the acquired IP lease duration, or the units of the preset threshold may be directly configured to be consistent with the initially configured time units of the acquired IP lease duration (consistent with the units of IP lease duration configured by a factory of the router). 
     Alternatively, a preset threshold range corresponding to the lease duration may be an any value in 6-10 hours, and may be specifically configured and adjusted according to user&#39;s needs. 
     In an embodiment, the preset threshold is configured to 6 hours according to empirical values, and the IP lease duration acquired in the operation of S 10  is compared with the preset threshold of 6 hours. 
     In another embodiment, the preset threshold is configured to 8 hours according to empirical values. 
     In another embodiment, the preset threshold is configured to 9 hours according to empirical values. 
     In another embodiment, the preset threshold is configured to a value of less than 6 hours or more than 10 hours according to user&#39;s needs. The preset threshold may be configured specifically according to the user&#39;s needs, and is not limited here. 
     At block S 30 : whether the terminal meets a preset condition, is determined. 
     Alternatively, in the operation of block S 30 , whether a state of the terminal meets the preset condition is determined. 
     Alternatively, the preset condition includes: a screen-off state or a CPU sleep state. The screen-off state means that a terminal screen is in a black-out state, the CPU sleep state means that the terminal screen is in the black-out state, and a program and a software in the terminal stops running. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, in the operation of block S 30 , whether the terminal meets the preset condition is determined That is, whether the terminal is in the screen-off state or the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state, is determined. In the operation of block S 30 , whether the screen of the terminal is in the screen-off state, or whether the screen of the terminal is in the screen-off state and the program and the software of the terminal are in a stopped state, is determined. 
     In another embodiment, the preset condition is configured that the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state, that is, the screen of the terminal is in the black-out state and the program or the software of the terminal is stopped. 
     In another embodiment, the preset condition is configured that the screen of the terminal is in the black-out state or the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state. When the screen of the terminal is in the black-out state, the terminal may be determined to meet the preset condition. When the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state, the terminal may also be determined to meet the preset condition. 
     Alternatively, in the operation of block S 30 , a procedure of the determination of whether the screen of the terminal is in the screen-off state specifically includes: receiving a preset command information from the CPU, and determining whether the terminal is in the screen-off state or whether the CPU enters the sleep state according to the received preset command information. 
     Alternatively, the preset command information from the CPU refers to a command configured by the system to notify a corresponding monitoring module or an application of the current state of the terminal, when the terminal screen is in the black-out state or when the terminal CPU enters the sleep state. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, when the systems configured by the terminals are different, the commands from the CPUs are different from system to system. When the systems are implemented in different ways, for example, when an LCD screen turns off/lights up, the way of notifying the systems, and the commands configured by the system to notify the module or the application of the current state of the CPU and the LCD screen are different. The specific commands are determined according to an initial configuration of the system. 
     At block S 40 : when the terminal meets the predetermined condition, and when the IP lease duration is not larger than the preset threshold, a first lease process is removed. 
     Alternatively, when a result of the determination in the operation of block S 30  is YES, and when the IP lease duration in the operation of block S 20  is not larger than the preset threshold, the first lease process is removed. 
     In an embodiment, when in the operation of block S 30  the terminal is determined to be in the screen-off state or the CPU of the terminal is determined to be in the sleep state, and the IP lease duration is determined not to be larger than the preset threshold, the first lease process is removed. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, after the operation of removing the first lease process, an operation further includes: renewing the IP address through the second lease process by an LAN (local area network) protocol. 
     In an embodiment, after the first lease process is removed, the IP address is renewed through the second lease process after the first lease process by the LAN protocol. According to the DHCP specification, the terminal must renew the lease of the IP address at regular intervals. During the renewal process, a Wi-Fi chip and an application processor (AP processor) may be woken up. Therefore, when the first lease process is removed, the IP address may be renewed through the second lease process, such that the Wi-Fi chip and the AP processor may be woken up only once in a lease period, effectively reducing a sum of a wake-up time of the Wi-Fi chip and the AP processor and that of the screen, reducing a power consumption and increasing an endurance time. 
     Alternatively, an operation of removing the first lease process specifically includes not waking up the Wi-Fi chip and the AP processor. At the same time when the Wi-Fi chip and AP processor are not woken up, the screen is not woken up. Such that the wake-up time of the Wi-Fi chip and AP processor and that of the terminal screen may be reduced, thereby effectively reducing the power consumption, saving an electricity, increasing the endurance time of the terminal, and thus providing a better user experience. The specific process of removing the Renew process may also include other forms of action commands, depending on the initial configuration. 
     The above method may effectively reduce the power consumption of the terminal by determining the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address acquired by the terminal and determining the current state of the terminal, that is, determining whether the terminal is in the screen-off state or the CPU sleep state. 
     Alternatively, when in the operation of S 30  the terminal is determined not to meet the preset condition, the lease renewal of the IP address may be performed through the first lease process. When the renewal of the IP address through the first lease process fails, the lease may wait to be renewed through the second lease process until the lease duration expires. 
     In an embodiment, when in the operation of block S 30  the screen of the terminal is determined not to be in the screen-off state and the CPU of the terminal is determined not to be in the sleep state, the lease renewal of the IP address is performed through the first lease process. When the lease renewal of the IP address through the first lease process fails, the lease may wait to be renewed through the second lease process until the lease duration expires. 
     In another embodiment, when the preset condition in the operation of block S 30  is initially configured that the CPU of the terminal is in the sleep state, under the configuration of the current preset condition, when the terminal is in the screen-off state but the CPU is not in the sleep state, the terminal is still determined not to meet the preset condition. At this time, the lease renewal of the IP address is first performed through the first lease process. When the renewal of the IP address through the first lease process fails, the IP address may wait to be renewed through the second lease process until the lease duration expires. 
     Alternatively, after the first lease process is removed, an operation further includes: renewing the IP address through the second lease process by the LAN protocol. Wherein the first lease process precedes the second lease process, and a time point of the first lease process is any time point in the lease duration, and the time point of the second lease process is the time point when the lease duration ends. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, the first lease process includes a Renew process and the second lease process includes a Rebind process. 
     Alternatively, in an embodiment, when in the operation of block S 30  the terminal is determined to meet the preset condition and the IP lease duration is determined not to be larger than the preset threshold, the Renew process is removed. That is, the Wi-Fi and the AP processor may not be woken up, and the lease may wait to be renewed through the Rebind process until the lease duration expires. 
     Alternatively, in another embodiment, when in the operation of block S 30  the terminal is determined not to meet the preset condition, the renewal of the IP address is performed by the Renewal process. When the IP address is successfully renewed through the renewal process, the smart power saving method for the terminal described in the operations of block S 10  to block S 40  is recycled again according to the preset configuration. When the terminal is connected to the same IP address, whether the operations of block S 10  and block S 20  are repeated multiple times is determined according to the preset configuration. When the IP address is not changed and the lease duration is not changed (or not changed for many times), an information stored in the previous lease renewal process may also be called, thus omitting the operations of block S 10  and block S 20  and further improving a real-time performance. 
     Alternatively, in another embodiment, when in the operation of block S 30  the terminal is determined not to meet the preset condition, the renewal of the IP address is first performed through the Renew process. In response to the Renew process failing to renew the IP address, the IP address may wait to be renewed through the Rebind process until the lease duration expires. 
     Alternatively, in other embodiments, when in the operation of block S 30  the terminal is determined to meet the preset condition, but when in the operation of block S 20  the lease duration is determined to be greater than the preset threshold, the lease renewal of the IP address may still be performed through the first lease process. When the lease renewal of the IP address through the first lease process fails, the lease may wait to be renewed through the second lease process until the lease duration expires. 
     Alternatively, in the operation of block S 10 , before the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is acquired, an operation further includes: connecting to a Wi-Fi network. 
     In an embodiment, the terminal connects to the Wi-Fi network before the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is acquired in the operation of block S 10 . When the terminal is already connected to the Wi-Fi network, the terminal may be reconnected to the Wi-Fi network again, or check a network connection state of the terminal before the IP lease duration corresponding to the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal is acquired in the operation of block S 10 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 ,  FIG. 2  is a structural schematic view of a terminal  10  according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. 
     Alternatively, the terminal  10  according to the present disclosure includes a processor  12  and a memory  14  electrically connected to the processor. The processor  12  executes the smart power saving method for the terminal during the operation, and the memory  14  stores a result of the operation executed by the processor  12  and a program data corresponding to the smart power saving method for the terminal. 
     In an embodiment, the terminal  10  may be a mobile phone, a notebook computer, a tablet computer with communication and networking function, other computers that may be connected to the Wi-Fi based on the DHCP, or a wearable device with communication and networking function, but is not limited thereto. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 ,  FIG. 3  is a structural schematic view of a device  20  having a memory function according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The memory device  20  stores the program data. When the program data stored in the memory device is executed, the smart power saving method for the terminal is performed. Specifically, the memory device  20  may be one of the following: a memory of a terminal device, a personal computer, a server, a network device, a flash drive and the like. 
     According to the above scheme, the IP address of the Wi-Fi connection with the terminal and the corresponding IP lease duration are acquired. The acquired IP lease duration is compared with the preset threshold, whether the acquired IP lease duration is not larger than the preset threshold is determined, and whether the terminal meets the preset condition is determined at the same time. When the acquired IP lease duration is not larger than the preset threshold and the terminal meets the preset condition, the renewal process of the first lease process is removed, and the IP address may wait to be renewed through the second lease process. The above scheme may effectively reduce the wake-up time of the Wi-Fi and the AP processor and that of the terminal screen, effectively reducing the power consumption of the terminal and increasing the endurance time. 
     The above description is for the purpose of illustrating implementations of the present disclosure, but not to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Any equivalent structural or process transformation performed based on the drawings and the specification of the present disclosure, applied directly and indirectly in other related art, should be within the scope of the present disclosure.