PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-8816868-B2
Application Number: US-201113154278-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Adaptive low-battery warnings for battery-powered electronic devices

Abstract:
The disclosed embodiments provide a system that facilitates the use of an electronic device. The electronic device may be a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a mobile phone, a wireless phone, a toy, a portable media player, a game controller, and/or a camera. During operation, the system monitors a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device. Next, the system calculates a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge. If the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold, the system generates the low-battery warning.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for facilitating the use of an electronic device, comprising:
 monitoring a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device; 
 calculating a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge by:
 calculating an average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 multiplying the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning; and 
 
 if the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold, generating the low-battery warning. 
 
     
     
       2. The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 if the state-of-charge of the battery has not reached the charge threshold, recalculating the charge threshold based on the monitored state-of-charge. 
 
     
     
       3. The method of  claim 1 , wherein monitoring the state-of-charge of the battery involves:
 periodically measuring a voltage of the battery; 
 determining the state-of-charge of the battery based on the measured voltage; and 
 recording the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage. 
 
     
     
       4. The method of  claim 1 , wherein calculating the average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge involves:
 calculating a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window. 
 
     
     
       5. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the trigger period corresponds to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted. 
     
     
       6. The method of  claim 1 , wherein generating the low-battery warning involves:
 displaying the low-battery warning to a user of the electronic device. 
 
     
     
       7. The method of  claim 1 , wherein the electronic device is at least one of a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a mobile phone, a wireless phone, a toy, a portable media player, a game controller, and a camera. 
     
     
       8. A system for facilitating the use of an electronic device, comprising:
 a monitoring apparatus configured to monitor a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device; 
 an analysis apparatus configured to calculate a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge by:
 calculating an average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 multiplying the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning; and 
 
 a notification apparatus configured to generate the low-battery warning if the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold. 
 
     
     
       9. The system of  claim 8 , wherein monitoring the state-of-charge of the battery involves:
 periodically measuring a voltage of the battery; 
 determining the state-of-charge of the battery based on the measured voltage; and 
 recording the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage. 
 
     
     
       10. The system of  claim 8 , wherein calculating the average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge involves:
 calculating a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window. 
 
     
     
       11. The system of  claim 8 , wherein the trigger period corresponds to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted. 
     
     
       12. The system of  claim 8 , wherein the analysis apparatus is associated with at least one of the electronic device and a different electronic device configured to communicate with the electronic device. 
     
     
       13. The system of  claim 8 , wherein the electronic device is at least one of a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a mobile phone, a wireless phone, a toy, a portable media player, a game controller, and a camera. 
     
     
       14. A computer-readable storage medium storing instructions that when executed by a computer cause the computer to perform a method for facilitating the use of an electronic device, the method comprising:
 monitoring a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device; 
 calculating a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge by:
 calculating an average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 multiplying the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning; and 
 
 if a state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold, generating the low-battery warning. 
 
     
     
       15. The computer-readable storage medium of  claim 14 , wherein monitoring the state-of-charge of the battery involves:
 periodically measuring a voltage of the battery; 
 determining the state-of-charge of the battery based on the measured voltage; and 
 recording the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage. 
 
     
     
       16. The computer-readable storage medium of  claim 14 , wherein calculating the average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge involves:
 calculating a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window. 
 
     
     
       17. The computer-readable storage medium of  claim 14 , wherein the trigger period corresponds to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted. 
     
     
       18. The computer-readable storage medium of  claim 14 , wherein generating the low-battery warning involves:
 displaying the low-battery warning to a user of the electronic device. 
 
     
     
       19. An electronic device, comprising:
 a monitoring apparatus configured to monitor a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device; and 
 an analysis apparatus configured to calculate a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge by calculating an average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge and multiplying the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning, wherein the low-battery warning is generated if the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold. 
 
     
     
       20. The electronic device of  claim 19 , wherein the analysis apparatus is further configured to recalculate the charge threshold based on the monitored state-of-charge if the state-of-charge of the battery has not reached the charge threshold. 
     
     
       21. The electronic device of  claim 19 , wherein calculating the average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge involves:
 calculating a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of the monitored state-of-charge; and 
 dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window. 
 
     
     
       22. The electronic device of  claim 19 , wherein the trigger period corresponds to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field 
     The present embodiments relate to battery-powered electronic devices. More specifically, the present embodiments relate to techniques for adaptively generating low-battery warnings based on charge-consumption patterns associated with batteries used to power the electronic devices. 
     2. Related Art 
     Batteries may be used to power a variety of electronic devices. For example, AA and/or AAA batteries may be used in devices such as cameras, toys, flashlights, peripheral devices, game controllers, and/or remote controls. On the other hand, lithium-ion and/or lithium-polymer batteries may be used to power mobile phones, portable media players, laptop computers, and/or tablet computers. 
     In addition, battery-powered electronic devices may include functionality to generate “low-battery warnings” that notify users of reduced states-of-charge in the batteries that may subsequently disrupt use of the electronic devices. For example, a mobile phone may generate a pop-up containing a low-battery warning after the state-of-charge of the battery in the mobile phone drops below 10%. The pop-up may thus allow a user of the mobile phone to plug in the mobile phone and/or reduce the power consumption of the mobile phone before the battery fully depletes and causes the mobile phone to power off. 
     However, the same types of electronic devices may consume battery power at different rates based on usage patterns associated with the electronic devices. For example, a wireless keyboard may be used by a first user for an average of two hours a day, while the same model of wireless keyboard may be used by a second user for an average of six hours a day. The second user may thus replace and/or recharge the batteries in his/her wireless keyboard about three times as frequently as the first user. 
     Different battery depletion rates may also cause low-battery warnings to be generated at different times prior to full battery depletion. In turn, such variance in the timing of low-battery warnings may adversely affect the use of battery-powered electronic devices. For example, a low-battery warning for a wireless keyboard may be displayed after the battery for the wireless keyboard falls below 10% capacity. As a result, an infrequent user of the wireless keyboard may find the low-battery warning to be a nuisance because the low-battery warning may be displayed for several weeks before the battery in the wireless keyboard is fully depleted. On the other hand, the low-battery warning may not provide enough notice to a frequent user of the wireless keyboard if the low-battery warning is shown to the user only a few days before the battery in the wireless keyboard runs out of power. 
     Hence, use of battery-powered electronic devices may be facilitated by mechanisms that generate low-battery warnings for the electronic devices in a consistent and/or timely manner. 
     SUMMARY 
     The disclosed embodiments provide a system that facilitates the use of an electronic device. The electronic device may be a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a mobile phone, a wireless phone, a toy, a portable media player, a game controller, and/or a camera. During operation, the system monitors a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device. To monitor the state-of-charge of the battery, the system periodically measures a voltage of the battery, determines the state-of-charge of the battery based on the measured voltage, and records the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage. 
     Next, the system calculates a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge. To calculate the charge threshold, the system calculates an average charge consumption associated with the battery using the monitored state-of-charge and multiplies the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning. The trigger period may correspond to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted. In addition, the system may calculate the average charge consumption by calculating a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of the monitored state-of-charge and dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window. 
     If the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold, the system generates the low-battery warning. For example, the system may generate the low-battery warning by displaying the low-battery warning to a user of the electronic device. On the other hand, if the state-of-charge of the battery has not reached the charge threshold, the system recalculates the charge threshold based on the monitored state-of-charge. By recalculating the charge threshold until the state-of-charge reaches the charge threshold, the system may facilitate the timely and/or consistent generation of the low-battery warning, independently of changes to the powering and/or use of the electronic device. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
         FIG. 1  shows an electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  shows a set of electronic devices in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  shows a system for facilitating use of an electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of facilitating use of an electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of monitoring the state-of-charge of a battery in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 6  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of calculating a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for a battery in accordance with an embodiment. 
         FIG. 7  shows a computer system in accordance with an embodiment. 
     
    
    
     In the figures, like reference numerals refer to the same figure elements. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following description is presented to enable any person skilled in the art to make and use the embodiments, and is provided in the context of a particular application and its requirements. Various modifications to the disclosed embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments and applications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments shown, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and features disclosed herein. 
     The data structures and code described in this detailed description are typically stored on a computer-readable storage medium, which may be any device or medium that can store code and/or data for use by a computer system. The computer-readable storage medium includes, but is not limited to, volatile memory, non-volatile memory, magnetic and optical storage devices such as disk drives, magnetic tape, CDs (compact discs), DVDs (digital versatile discs or digital video discs), or other media capable of storing code and/or data now known or later developed. 
     The methods and processes described in the detailed description section can be embodied as code and/or data, which can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium as described above. When a computer system reads and executes the code and/or data stored on the computer-readable storage medium, the computer system performs the methods and processes embodied as data structures and code and stored within the computer-readable storage medium. 
     Furthermore, methods and processes described herein can be included in hardware modules or apparatus. These modules or apparatus may include, but are not limited to, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) chip, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a dedicated or shared processor that executes a particular software module or a piece of code at a particular time, and/or other programmable-logic devices now known or later developed. When the hardware modules or apparatus are activated, they perform the methods and processes included within them. 
       FIG. 1  shows an electronic device  102  in accordance with an embodiment. Electronic device  102  may correspond to a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a wireless and/or mobile phone, a toy, a camera, a game controller, a portable media player, and/or other device that is powered by one or more batteries  104 - 106 . For example, electronic device  102  may be used with standard-sized batteries such as AAA batteries, AA batteries, C batteries, D batteries, and/or nine-volt batteries. On the other hand, batteries  104 - 106  may correspond to lithium-ion and/or lithium-polymer batteries that are designed to fit within the enclosure of electronic device  102 . 
     As electronic device  102  is used, chemical energy stored in batteries  104 - 106  may be converted into electrical energy that is used to operate one or more electrical components in electronic device  102 . For example, batteries  104 - 106  may power a processor, memory, storage, touchscreen, microphone, speaker, and/or radio transceiver in a mobile phone, allowing a user of the mobile phone to make and receive calls, send and receive emails, and/or browse the web on the mobile phone. Because the energy stored in batteries  104 - 106  is limited, batteries  104 - 106  may be recharged and/or replaced to enable continued use of electronic device  102 . Conversely, full depletion of batteries  104 - 106  during use of electronic device  102  may cause electronic device  102  to power off, and in turn, disrupt use of electronic device  102  by a user. 
     Electronic device  102  may also be configured for use with other electronic devices. As shown in  FIG. 2 , a set of electronic devices  202 - 206  may include functionality to communicate with one another. For example, electronic device  202  may correspond to a wireless keyboard, electronic device  204  may correspond to a wireless mouse, and electronic device  206  may be a laptop and/or desktop computer for which electronic devices  202 - 204  operate as input devices. As a result, a user may interact with the computer system represented by electronic device  206  by providing input to electronic devices  202 - 204  and receiving output from a display in electronic device  206 . 
     To facilitate use of electronic devices  202 - 206 , low-battery warnings may be generated to notify a user that limited battery life in one or more electronic devices  202 - 204  may disrupt operation of the electronic device(s) in the near future. For example, electronic devices  202 - 204  may provide battery “gas gauges” that convert voltage and/or current measurements from batteries used to power electronic devices  202 - 204  into state-of-charge values for the batteries. The state-of-charge values may be obtained by electronic device  206  and compared with a predefined threshold (e.g., 10%) for low-battery states in electronic devices  202 - 204 . Electronic device  206  may then display low-battery warnings for electronic devices  202 - 204  if the state-of-charge values have reached or dropped below the threshold. 
     However, batteries may be fully depleted at different rates based on the devices (e.g., electronic devices  202 - 206 ) powered by the batteries, the types of batteries used within the devices, and/or the usage patterns associated with the devices. First, the same types of batteries may be associated with different depletion rates for different electronic devices (e.g., electronic devices  202 - 206 ). For example, two AA batteries may power a first type of game controller for 36 hours and a second type of game controller for 55 hours. Next, different depletion rates may result from the use of different types of batteries to power the same electronic device. For example, a set of alkaline AA batteries may power a digital camera for 1-3 times as long as a set of nickel-cadmium (NiCd) AA batteries. Finally, the period of time over which an electronic device is powered by a battery may vary based on the amount of use associated with the electronic device. For example, frequent use of a wireless keyboard may fully deplete the batteries in the wireless keyboard after one month, while occasional use of the wireless keyboard may allow the same types of batteries to power the wireless keyboard for over two months. 
     Such differences in battery depletion rates may additionally cause low-battery warnings to be displayed at different times prior to full battery depletion. For example, low-battery warnings for a wireless mouse may be triggered after the state-of-charge of the battery in the wireless mouse drops below 10%. A user who infrequently uses the wireless mouse may be shown a low-battery warning for over a month before the battery is fully depleted, while a user who constantly uses the wireless mouse may be notified of a low battery only a few days before the battery runs out of power. As a result, low-battery warnings may irritate some users if the low-battery warnings are displayed for long periods of time before the batteries associated with the low-battery warnings run out of power. On the other hand, the same low-battery warnings may not provide enough notice for other users if the low-battery warnings are displayed only a few hours or a few days before the batteries are fully depleted. 
     Furthermore, low-battery warnings may be generated at different times prior to full battery depletion in different devices (e.g., electronic devices  202 - 206 ). For example, a user may receive a low-battery warning for a wireless mouse two weeks before the wireless mouse powers off and a low-battery warning for a wireless keyboard two days before the battery for the wireless keyboard runs out of power. Such device-based inconsistencies in the timing of low-battery warnings may cause confusion for users by preventing the users from using the same time scale to manage low-battery states in different devices. 
     In one or more embodiments, electronic devices  202 - 206  include functionality to generate low-battery warnings in a consistent and/or timely manner. For example, electronic devices  202 - 206  may be configured to generate low-battery warnings approximately two weeks before the batteries in electronic devices  202 - 206  are fully depleted, regardless of the types of devices used, the types of batteries used to power the devices, and/or the usage patterns associated with each device. 
     More specifically, monitoring apparatuses  212 - 214  in each battery-powered electronic device (e.g., electronic devices  202 - 204 ) may monitor the state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device. Each monitoring apparatus  212 - 214  may periodically (e.g., once a minute, once every five minutes, etc.) measure a voltage of the corresponding battery, determine the state-of-charge of the battery based on the measured voltage, and record the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage. 
     Next, an analysis apparatus  208  in electronic device  206  and/or electronic devices  202 - 204  may calculate a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge. The charge threshold may represent a state-of-charge of the battery at which a low-battery warning should be generated to provide a certain amount of notice to the user before the battery is fully depleted. In other words, the charge threshold may allow the low-battery warning to be generated at a pre-specified period before the battery is fully depleted. 
     If the state-of-charge reaches or falls below the charge threshold, a notification apparatus  210  in electronic device  206  and/or electronic devices  202 - 204  may generate a low-battery warning. For example, notification apparatus  210  may display the low-battery warning to the user through a graphical user interface (GUI) in electronic device  206  and/or electronic devices  202 - 204 . 
     On the other hand, if the state-of-charge has not reached the charge threshold, notification apparatus  210  may recalculate the charge threshold based on the monitored state-of-charge (e.g., from monitoring apparatuses  212 - 214 ). For example, notification apparatus  210  may recalculate the charge threshold after obtaining a new state-of-charge from monitoring apparatus  214  every five minutes to maintain an up-to-date charge threshold that reflects the usage patterns associated with electronic device  204 . Calculation and use of charge thresholds associated with low-battery warnings is discussed in further detail below with respect to  FIG. 3 . 
       FIG. 3  shows a system for facilitating use of an electronic device  302  in accordance with an embodiment. Electronic device  302  may correspond to a keyboard, a mouse, a trackpad, a remote control, a phone, a toy, a camera, a game controller, a portable media player, and/or other device that is powered by a battery  306 . In addition, electronic device  302  may be configured to communicate with a different electronic device. For example, electronic device  302  may function as a wireless input device (e.g., keyboard, mouse, trackpad, remote control, webcam, game controller) that obtains input from a user and transmits data associated with the input to another electronic device (e.g., laptop computer, desktop computer, game console, television) with which the user is interacting. 
     As mentioned above, the system of  FIG. 3  may be used to generate a low-battery warning  330  for a battery  306  that supplies power to electronic device  302 . First, a monitoring apparatus  308  in electronic device  302  may periodically measure a voltage  304  of battery  306  and determine a state-of-charge  314  of battery  306  based on the measured voltage  304 . For example, monitoring apparatus  308  may be implemented by a microcontroller unit (MCU) in electronic device  302  that converts measurements of voltage  304  into state-of-charge  314  values using one or more discharge curves for battery  306 . 
     Next, monitoring apparatus  308  may record state-of-charge  314  and a timestamp  316  associated with the measured voltage  304 . For example, monitoring apparatus  308  may maintain a log file containing a state-of-charge  314  calculated from a measurement of voltage  304  and a value for timestamp  316  representing the time at which the measurement was made. Alternatively, monitoring apparatus  308  may transmit voltage  304 , state-of-charge  314 , and/or timestamp  316  to another electronic device (e.g., computer system) for processing and/or recording of voltage  304 , state-of-charge  314 , and/or timestamp  316 . 
     An analysis apparatus  310  may then calculate a charge threshold  328  using the monitored state-of-charge  314  and timestamp  316 . In one or more embodiments, charge threshold  328  is used to generate low-battery warning  330  at a time that represents a pre-specified period before battery  306  is fully depleted. For example, charge threshold  328  may correspond to a value for state-of-charge  314  that represents a full depletion of battery  306  in ten days. 
     As a result, charge threshold  328  may vary based on the type of battery  306  used to power electronic device  302 , the type of electronic device  302  powered by battery  306 , and/or the usage patterns associated with electronic device  302 . For example, charge threshold  328  may be lower if battery  306  is associated with a higher capacity, electronic device  302  consumes less power, and/or electronic device  302  is infrequently used. Conversely, charge threshold  328  may be higher if battery  306  is associated with a lower capacity, electronic device  302  consumes more power, and/or electronic device  302  is frequently used. 
     To calculate charge threshold  328 , analysis apparatus  310  may first calculate a total charge consumption  320  associated with a monitoring window  318  of the monitored state-of-charge  314 . Monitoring window  318  may represent an adjustable, sliding window of time from which values for state-of-charge  314  and/or timestamp  316  are obtained to calculate charge threshold  328 . For example, monitoring window  318  may correspond to a ten-day window that ends at the most recent value of timestamp  316  obtained from monitoring apparatus  308  and begins ten days prior to the date represented by the most recent value of timestamp  316 . Total charge consumption  320  may thus be calculated by subtracting the most recent and/or lowest value for state-of-charge  314  within monitoring window  318  from the oldest and/or highest value for state-of-charge  314  within monitoring window  318 . Continuing with the previous example, total charge consumption  320  for a ten-day monitoring window  318  may be calculated by subtracting the newest value for state-of-charge  314  from a value for state-of-charge  314  that was obtained ten days prior to the newest value. 
     Next, analysis apparatus  310  may calculate an average charge consumption  324  by dividing total charge consumption  320  by a monitoring period  322  spanned by monitoring window  318 . For example, a daily average charge consumption  324  may be calculated by dividing total charge consumption  320  by the number of days spanned by monitoring window  318 . 
     Finally, analysis apparatus  310  may calculate charge threshold  328  based on average charge consumption  324  and a trigger period  326  associated with low-battery warning  330 . Trigger period  326  may represent the pre-specified period of time before battery  306  is fully depleted at which low-battery warning  330  is to be generated. As a result, charge threshold  328  may be obtained by multiplying average charge consumption  324  by trigger period  326 . For example, charge threshold  328  may be calculated by multiplying a daily average charge consumption  324  by the number of days in trigger period  326 . 
     Charge threshold  328  may then be used to generate low-battery warning  330  within a notification apparatus  312 . In particular, notification apparatus  312  may generate low-battery warning  330  if the current value of state-of-charge  314  reaches charge threshold  328 . For example, notification apparatus  312  may generate low-battery warning  330  by displaying a pop-up window containing low-battery warning  330  within a display associated with electronic device  302  and/or another electronic device. 
     On the other hand, if the current value of state-of-charge  314  has not reached charge threshold  328 , analysis apparatus  310  may recalculate charge threshold  328  based on monitored values of state-of-charge  314 . For example, analysis apparatus  310  may recalculate total charge consumption  320  using a new monitoring window  318  that includes the current value of state-of-charge  314 , obtain a new value for average charge consumption  324  from total charge consumption  320 , and multiply the new average charge consumption  324  by trigger period  326  to obtain a new value of charge threshold  328 . 
     Consequently, the system of  FIG. 3  may facilitate timeliness and/or consistency in the generation of low-battery warning  330 , regardless of the usage patterns and/or types of batteries associated with electronic device  302 . First, the depletion rate of battery  306  within electronic device  302  may be identified by continuous monitoring of state-of-charge  314 . Next, a sliding monitoring window  318  may ensure that total charge consumption  320  and average charge consumption  324  reflect the most recent usage patterns for electronic device  302 . The calculation of charge threshold  328  using trigger period  326  may additionally facilitate the generation of low-battery warning  330  at a time that is neither too early nor too late for a user of electronic device  302 . Finally, the continuous update of charge threshold  328  may ensure that changes to the powering and/or use of electronic device  302  do not affect the generation of low-battery warning  330  at the pre-specified period before battery  306  is fully depleted. 
     Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the system of  FIG. 3  may be implemented in a variety of ways. First, monitoring apparatus  308 , analysis apparatus  310 , and notification apparatus  312  may be implemented by electronic device  302 . For example, a mobile phone and/or tablet computer may include functionality to monitor state-of-charge  314 , calculate charge threshold  328 , and display low-battery warning  330  to a user. Alternatively, some or all of monitoring apparatus  308 , analysis apparatus  310 , and/or notification apparatus  312  may reside on a different electronic device that includes functionality to communicate with electronic device  302 . For example, a wireless keyboard may transmit values for voltage  304 , state-of-charge  314 , and/or timestamp  316  to a device driver in a computer system for which the wireless keyboard is an input device. The device driver may process the transmitted values to calculate charge threshold  328 , and an operating system in the computer system may display low-battery warning  330  in a pop-up window to the user once state-of-charge  314  reaches charge threshold  328 . 
       FIG. 4  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of facilitating use of an electronic device in accordance with an embodiment. In one or more embodiments, one or more of the steps may be omitted, repeated, and/or performed in a different order. Accordingly, the specific arrangement of steps shown in  FIG. 4  should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments. 
     Initially, a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device is monitored (operation  402 ). Monitoring of a battery&#39;s state-of-charge is discussed in further detail below with respect to  FIG. 5 . Next, a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery is calculated based on the monitored state-of-charge (operation  404 ). Calculation of a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning is discussed in further detail below with respect to  FIG. 6 . 
     The state-of-charge may reach the charge threshold (operation  406 ) as the battery is used to power the electronic device. For example, the state-of-charge may gradually drop as the battery supplies power to the electronic device and eventually reach the charge threshold if the battery is not recharged and/or replaced. If the charge threshold has not been reached, the charge threshold is recalculated based on the monitored state-of-charge (operation  404 ). In other words, the charge threshold may be continuously recalculated as long as the state-of-charge has not reached the charge threshold. 
     If the battery&#39;s state-of-charge has reached the charge threshold, a low-battery warning is generated (operation  408 ). For example, the low-battery warning may correspond to a visual and/or audio notification that alerts a user of the need to replace and/or recharge the battery before the battery fully depletes and disrupts use of the electronic device. 
       FIG. 5  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of monitoring the state-of-charge of a battery in accordance with an embodiment. In one or more embodiments, one or more of the steps may be omitted, repeated, and/or performed in a different order. Accordingly, the specific arrangement of steps shown in  FIG. 5  should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments. 
     To monitor the state-of-charge, a voltage of the battery is periodically measured (operation  502 ). Next, the state-of-charge of the battery is determined based on the measured voltage (operation  504 ). For example, the measured voltage may be converted into the state-of-charge using one or more discharge curves for the battery. Finally, the state-of-charge and a timestamp associated with the measured voltage are recorded (operation  506 ). For example, the measured voltage, state-of-charge, and/or timestamp may be stored in a log file for subsequent processing and/or retrieval. 
       FIG. 6  shows a flowchart illustrating the process of calculating a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for a battery in accordance with an embodiment. In one or more embodiments, one or more of the steps may be omitted, repeated, and/or performed in a different order. Accordingly, the specific arrangement of steps shown in  FIG. 6  should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments. 
     First, a total charge consumption associated with a monitoring window of a monitored state-of-charge of the battery is calculated (operation  602 ). The total charge consumption may be calculated by subtracting the newest and/or lowest value for the state-of-charge within the monitoring window from the oldest and/or highest value for the state-of-charge within the monitoring window. 
     Next, an average charge consumption associated with the battery is calculated by dividing the total charge consumption by a monitoring period spanned by the monitoring window (operation  604 ). For example, a daily average charge consumption may be obtained by dividing the total charge consumption by the number of days in the monitoring window. Alternatively, the average charge consumption for a different unit of time (e.g., one hour, 12 hours, one week) may be calculated by dividing the total charge consumption by the number of units of time in the monitoring window. 
     Finally, the charge threshold is calculated based on the monitored state-of-charge by multiplying the average charge consumption by a trigger period associated with the low-battery warning (operation  606 ). The trigger period may correspond to a pre-specified period of time before the battery is fully depleted. For example, the charge threshold may be calculated by multiplying a daily average charge consumption by the number of days in the trigger period. 
     In other words, the charge threshold may be calculated using the following equation: 
               T   ⁢           ⁢   %     =         n   ⁢           ⁢   %       D   window       ×     D   Trigger             
Within the equation, T % may represent the charge threshold, n % may represent the total charge consumption, D window  may represent the monitoring window, and D Trigger  may represent the trigger period.
 
       FIG. 7  shows a computer system  700  in accordance with an embodiment. Computer system  700  includes a processor  702 , memory  704 , storage  706 , and/or other components found in peripheral devices, portable electronic devices, and/or consumer electronic devices. Processor  702  may support parallel processing and/or multi-threaded operation with other processors in computer system  700 . Computer system  700  may also include input/output (I/O) devices such as a keyboard  708 , a mouse  710 , and a display  712 . 
     Computer system  700  may include functionality to execute various components of the present embodiments. In particular, computer system  700  may include an operating system (not shown) that coordinates the use of hardware and software resources on computer system  700 , as well as one or more applications that perform specialized tasks for the user. To perform tasks for the user, applications may obtain the use of hardware resources on computer system  700  from the operating system, as well as interact with the user through a hardware and/or software framework provided by the operating system. 
     In one or more embodiments, computer system  700  provides a system for facilitating use of an electronic device. The system may include a monitoring apparatus that monitors a state-of-charge of a battery used to power the electronic device. The system may also include an analysis apparatus that calculates a charge threshold associated with a low-battery warning for the battery based on the monitored state-of-charge. Finally, the system may include a notification apparatus that generates the low-battery warning if the state-of-charge of the battery reaches the charge threshold. 
     In addition, one or more components of computer system  700  may be remotely located and connected to the other components over a network. Portions of the present embodiments (e.g., monitoring apparatus, analysis apparatus, notification apparatus, etc.) may also be located on different nodes of a distributed system that implements the embodiments. For example, the present embodiments may be implemented using a cloud computing system that monitors and manages the use of batteries in remote electronic devices. 
     The foregoing descriptions of various embodiments have been presented only for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the forms disclosed. Accordingly, many modifications and variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. Additionally, the above disclosure is not intended to limit the present invention.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20110606
Publication Date: 20140826
Grant Date: 20140826
Priority Date: 20110606
Inventors: TAN LIQUAN
LOW WING KONG
LUONG ALDA Y.
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G01R31/367", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/28", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/3835", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R19/16542", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/3835", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/367", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/362", "inventive": false, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G01R31/3651", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/28", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 47261238