Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION  
       [0001]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0002]     The present invention relates to a recharging method, and more specifically, to a method for alerting users to recharge batteries of mobile devices.  
         [0003]     2. Description of the Prior Art  
         [0004]     Mobile devices usually use rechargeable batteries as their power source. When the battery used in a mobile device is exhausted, it needs to be recharged immediately or the mobile device will no longer operate. In order to prevent the battery from becoming completely exhausted, mobile devices often remind the users when their battery capacity is low. However, users are not always able to recharge the battery right away. For example, users may sometimes find themselves traveling on the road and performing important activities on their mobile devices when the low battery alert suddenly comes up. In this case, the users are aware of the problem, but can still do nothing about it. Some users bring one or several backup batteries to solve the problem, but this takes a lot of effort to make sure the backup batteries are always charged.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0005]     It is therefore an objective of the claimed invention to provide a method for alerting users to recharge a battery of a mobile device in order to solve the above-mentioned problems.  
         [0006]     According to the claimed invention, an alerting method for recharging a battery of a mobile device is proposed. The method includes collecting measured data with the mobile device, comparing the measured data with a statistic model of recharging patterns of the mobile device, determining if it is currently a suitable time for charging the battery of the mobile device according to a predetermined relation in the statistic model, and alerting a user of the mobile device to recharge the battery if it is currently a suitable time for charging the battery of the mobile device.  
         [0007]     It is another objective of the claimed invention to provide a battery recharging apparatus for a mobile device. The battery recharging apparatus includes a data collecting device for collecting measured data, a memory for storing a statistic model of recharging patterns of the mobile device, and a logic circuit for comparing the measured data with the statistical model and for determining if it is currently a suitable time for charging a battery of the mobile device according to a predetermined relation in the statistic model. If it is currently a suitable time for charging the battery of the mobile device, an alert module alerts a user of the mobile device to recharge the battery.  
         [0008]     It is an advantage of the claimed invention that the user is alerted when it is a suitable time for charging the battery. The present invention alerts the user when there is a convenient opportunity for the user to charge the battery. Therefore, the battery does not have to be nearly exhausted of energy before an alert will be given, and the user has a convenient opportunity to charge the battery before the battery is fully exhausted.  
         [0009]     These and other objectives of the present invention will no doubt become obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art after reading the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment that is illustrated in the various figures and drawings.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0010]      FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a mobile device according to the present invention.  
         [0011]      FIG. 2  to  FIG. 7  are block diagrams of mobile devices with data collecting devices according to various embodiments of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0012]     The present invention collects a variety of kinds of data related to the battery of a mobile device, and compares this data to the recharging patterns of the user of the mobile device. Data is collected periodically, and over time a statistical model is trained based on the user&#39;s habits. If the user frequently charges the battery of the mobile device in the same place, at the same time, or prefers to switch to spare batteries, these events will be recorded in the statistical model.  
         [0013]     Every time new information comes in, the information is first used to decide a hypothesis of whether it is a good time for the user to recharge the battery based on the statistical model. The new information itself is then combined into the model. After the user uses the mobile device for some time, the mobile device learns the user&#39;s recharging preferences and can issue a recharging alert if the user forgets to recharge the battery.  
         [0014]     Please refer to  FIG. 1 .  FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10  according to the present invention. The mobile device  10  contains a memory  14 , which stores a statistical model  15 , a recharging alert hypothesis subsystem (RAHS)  16 , and system software  18 . The RAHS  16  analyzes data measured by the mobile device  10 , compares the data with records contained in the statistical model  15 , and generates an alert with an alert module  20  if the RAHS  16  determines that it is currently a suitable time for recharging a battery  13  of the mobile device  10 . The mobile device  10  also contains a controller  12  for controlling operation of system hardware  22  of the mobile device  10  and for executing the system software  18 . The disclosure below describes several data collecting devices of the mobile device  10  which utilize different kinds of data for determining if it is a suitable time for recharging the battery  13  of the mobile device  10 .  
         [0015]     For convenience, a mobile phone will serve as an example of the mobile device  10  for use with the present invention. Please note that the present invention may also be used in a variety of other mobile devices besides mobile phones so long as the mobile devices contain one or more of the data collecting devices explained below.  
         [0016]     Please refer to  FIG. 2 .  FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 A with a data collecting device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. An analog-digital converter (ADC)  32  converts an analog value (such as the voltage of the battery  13 ) representing the remaining capacity of the battery  13  into a digital value. The ADC  32  then provides this digital value to a main battery capacity subsystem (MBCS)  30 . The MBCS  30  compares the digital value to values stored in a lookup table, and determines the estimated remaining capacity of the battery  13 . The remaining capacity of the battery  13  is used in determining if it is a suitable time for recharging the battery  13 . For example, the battery  13  would ordinarily not be recharged when the capacity is still full.  
         [0017]     Please refer to  FIG. 3 .  FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 B with a data collecting device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. The mobile device  10 B contains a location service subsystem LSS  46  for determining the location of the mobile device  10 B. The LSS  46  receives location data from a location service circuit  44 . The location service circuit  44  calculates the location of the mobile device  10 B based off of measurements from the nearest base stations. Alternatively, the public line mobile network (PLMN) may provide the location data to the mobile device  10 B directly. In either situation, the location data is received through communication hardware  40  of the mobile device  10 B, and provided to the location service circuit  44  through communication software  42 . Instead of receiving location data from the PLMN or by calculating using base station signals, a global positioning system (GPS) circuit  48  may also be used to provide the location of the mobile device  10 . A dotted line connecting the GPS circuit  48  and the LSS  46  indicates that the GPS circuit  48  is optional. The location information is a good indication of recharging availability because a user usually only recharges the battery  13  in a few different places like the home or the office.  
         [0018]     Please refer to  FIG. 4 .  FIG. 4  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 C with a data collecting device according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Most mobile phones, and many mobile devices have a real time clock (RTC) circuit  50  built into the hardware. The RTC circuit  50  runs continuously, and is synchronized with the local time when the mobile device  10 C receives radio signals from a base station. The communication hardware  40  receives the time data from the base station, and passes this time data on to the RTC circuit  50  using the communication software  42 . The RTC circuit  50  provides the time information to a time service subsystem (TSS)  52 . A user&#39;s recharging activity is often very closely correlated with a particular time of day. A user may have a preferred time of the day to recharge the battery  13 , such as during the night, and knowing this information helps to decide the best time to alert the user.  
         [0019]     Please refer to  FIG. 5 .  FIG. 5  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 D with a data collecting device according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. The mobile device  10 D makes use of battery chargers  66  and  68  that transmit radio signals periodically to identify themselves. The battery charger  66  may be a wall mounted charger that is plugged into a wall outlet  67 . The battery charger  68  may be a car charger that is plugged into a cigarette lighter of a car  69 . The radio signal strength of each of the battery chargers  66  and  68  is preferably set such that the radio signals will only be received by the mobile device  10 D when the mobile device  10 D is within a short distance, such as 50 m, of the battery chargers  66  and  68 . When the mobile device  10 D receives the radio signals from one or more of the battery chargers  66  and  68 , the mobile device  10 D knows that a charger is nearby. The mobile device  10 D will then analyze information contained in the radio signal to determine if the charger is compatible with the battery  13  of the mobile device  10 D.  
         [0020]     The mobile device  10 D contains a radio frequency (RF) receiver  64  for receiving the radio signals from the battery chargers  66  and  68 . The RF receiver  64  send the radio signals to detection hardware  62 , which analyzes the information stored in the radio signals. Finally, the detection hardware  62  provides information about the battery chargers  66  and  68  to a charger detection subsystem (CDS)  60 .  
         [0021]     When a charger is charging the battery  13 , it will inform the mobile device  10 D. In some mobile device designs, the charger is directly connected to the mobile device  10 D for recharging the battery  13 . For this kind of design, the mobile device  10 D controls the recharging process and already knows when the recharging begins and ends. In other designs, the charger only connects to the battery  13 . In that case, the charger needs to transmit a radio signal to inform the mobile device  10 D of the recharging status.  
         [0022]     Please refer to  FIG. 6 .  FIG. 6  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 E with a data collecting device according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a spare battery  72  will broadcast radio signals. The RF receiver  64  of the mobile device  10 E receives these radio signals, and provides the signals to the detection hardware  62 . The detection hardware  62  analyzes information contained in the radio signals to determine if the spare battery  72  is compatible with the mobile device  10 E. The detection hardware  62  provides this information to a spare battery detection subsystem (SBDS)  70 .  
         [0023]     If one or more spare batteries  72  are in close proximity to the mobile device  10 E, the spare batteries  72  will identify themselves and their remaining capacity. Since batteries, unlike chargers, are limited in energy, they will transmit radio signals at lower signal strength and for a much longer period. If the spare battery  72  is already out of energy, it will not have the power to transmit radio signals. This is not a problem because the mobile device  10 E does not distinguish between an exhausted spare battery and no spare battery at all.  
         [0024]     Please refer to  FIG. 7 .  FIG. 7  is a block diagram of a mobile device  10 F with a data collecting device according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. The RAHS  16  collects data from the MBCS  30 , the LSS  46 , the TSS  52 , the CDS  60 , and the SBDS  70 , compares this data with records contained in the statistical model  15 , and generates an alert with the alert module  20  if the RAHS  16  determines that it is currently a suitable time for recharging a battery  13  of the mobile device  10 . Using the statistical model  15 , one of two hypotheses is chosen when new information comes in. The two hypotheses are, H 0  and H 1 , where H 0  represents that it is currently not a good time for the user to recharge the battery and H 1  represents that it is currently a good time for the user to recharge the battery.  
         [0025]     The rule used to choose between these two hypotheses is called Neyman-Pearson decision rule. To use this rule the user needs to select a maximum value α for a false positive probability P f . P f  is the probability that H 1  is chosen when H 0  should be chosen, which for this invention means the likelihood that the user is alerted to recharge when it is actually not a good time for recharging. By decreasing α, the user can elect to be bothered less by the mobile device  10 E at the expense of missing more recharging opportunities, and vice versa.  
         [0026]     The algorithm performed by the RAHS  16  can be described in the following steps:  
         [0027]     1. At time t, the RAHS  16  reads data vector x t  containing collected data from the MBCS  30 , the LSS  46 , the TSS  52 , the CDS  60 , and the SBDS  70 .  
         [0028]     2. At time t, the RAHS  16  reads h t , which is an observed outcome, from the CDS  60  about whether there is recharging taking place.  
         [0029]     3. Collected data x 0 , x 1 , . . . , x t-1  and observed outcomes h 0 , h 1 , h t-1  are combined to establish two conditional probabilities, P(X|H 0 ) and P(X|H 1 ).  
         [0030]     4. A decision rule outcome D γ  is determined to be H 1  when {P(x t |H 1 )/P(x t |H 0 )}&gt;γ and determined to be H 0  when {P(x t H 1 )/P(x t |H 0 )}&lt;γ. The threshold γ is chosen such that P f =P(D γ =H 1 |H 0 )&lt;α and P(D γ =H 0 |H 1 )&lt;=P(D=H 0 |H 1 ) are always true for x 0 , x 1 , . . . , x t-1  and h 0 , h 1 , . . . , h t-1 .  
         [0031]     5. The RAHS  16  initiates the recharging alert if D γ =H 1 , and does nothing if D γ =H 0 .  
         [0032]     The above algorithm for determining when to alert the user of opportunities to charge the battery  13  is given as an example only. It will be appreciated that numerous other algorithms can also be used that take into account collected data received from one or more of the MBCS  30 , LSS  46 , TSS  52 , CDS  60 , and SBDS  70  subsystems.  
         [0033]     In summary, the present invention alerts the user of the mobile device when it is a suitable time for charging the battery in response to data collected. The decision to alert the user is based on the current battery level, the location of the mobile device, the current time, and the location of nearby charging devices or spare batteries. By consulting the user&#39;s past recharging behavior when making alerting decisions, the mobile device can intelligently inform the users of optimum and convenient times to recharge the battery of the mobile device.  
         [0034]     Those skilled in the art will readily observe that numerous modifications and alterations of the device may be made while retaining the teachings of the invention. Accordingly, the above disclosure should be construed as limited only by the metes and bounds of the appended claims.

Technology Category: 5