This application is related to pending application Ser. No. 10/788,078, filed Feb. 26, 2004.
1. Field
This device and method relate generally to handheld electronic devices and, more particularly, to an electronic device having an on board battery that shares charge with a second battery in a holster. The device and method described herein also relate to a method of sharing charge between a battery on a handheld electronic device and a second battery in a holster for holding the handheld electronic device.
2. Background
Numerous types of handheld electronic devices are known. Examples of such handheld electronic devices include, for instance, personal data assistants (PDAs), handheld computers, two-way pagers, cellular telephones, and the like. Such handheld electronic devices are generally intended to be portable and thus are small and battery powered. While some handheld electronic devices include a wireless communication capability, other handheld electronic devices are stand alone devices that do not communicate with other devices.
A battery of a handheld electronic device typically constitutes a significant portion of the weight of the handheld electronic device. While it is often desirable to reduce the weight and shrink the form factor of a handheld electronic device, it is nevertheless necessary to provide sufficient battery power and capacity to enable the handheld electronic device to function properly for an appropriate duration of time. Power consumption can be of particular importance in handheld electronic devices having a wireless capability that complies with GPRS/GSM operating guide lines, since a power amplifier of such a handheld electronic device can have a peak current requirement of up to about 2.5 amperes during transmission bursts.
It would be desirable to provide an improved handheld electronic device having a reduced weight and/or a smaller form factor than currently known devices without sacrificing battery power or battery life.
A further understanding of the device and method disclosed herein can be gained from the following description of the preferred embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
An improved electronic device 4 is indicated generally in
The handheld electronic device 8 includes a housing 16, a display 20, a processor 24, a keyboard 28, and a first battery 32. The processor 24 can be any of a wide variety of processors, such as, without limitation, a microprocessor (μP). The processor 24 is operable to receive inputs from the keyboard 28 and to provide processed output to the display 20. The first battery 32 provides power to the processor 24 and the display 20. The handheld electronic device 8 additionally includes a plurality of contacts 36 that are disposed on the housing 16 and are electrically connected with the battery 32.
The holder or holster 12 includes a housing 40 formed with a cavity 44, a first charging apparatus 48, a second battery 52 and a second charging apparatus 56 (shown in
The embodiments described herein address the limited battery life of handheld devices by supplementing the charge stored in the handheld battery 32 with charge stored in an additional battery 52 built into the holder or holster 12 through the built in charging contacts 36 of the handheld electronic device 8 and the built in mating charging contacts 60 of the holder 12. The embodiments described herein also do away with the problem of a user charging and carrying two separate batteries by effectively hiding the second battery 52 within an accessory, in this case the holster 12. New flexible battery technologies will allow the secondary battery to be built into plastic holsters or be woven into leather holsters.
Thus the embodiments described herein include a second battery 52 sealed within the holster or holder 12 to provide additional charge to the primary handheld battery 32 through the charge contacts 36 and 60 should the primary battery 32 fall below a preset charge level. Included as part of the device and method described herein is an algorithm which controls the charging and discharging of the secondary battery 52 without the use of charging port 64 on the holster 12. Thus, the object of this embodiment is to have a battery 52 in the holster 12 that will act to supplement the device battery 32, thereby increasing the apparent operating time of the device. Several factors are additionally contemplated to make the added capability of the device described herein more attractive to the user. In the first instance the holster battery 52 should be thin so as not to make the holster 12 bulky. Li-polymer cells satisfy this criterior. They can be made very thin, and yet have a very large area (for increased energy storage capacity), and they are quite flexible. Secondly, the modifications to the device should be minimal. Thirdly, the brunt of the cost of the modification should be borne by the holster side 12 so as not to saddle those users that don't want to bear the cost of this improvement. Fourthly, the holster battery 52 should meet all safety requirements.
In a first preferred embodiment the secondary battery 52 would be a fraction of the size of the primary battery 32, i.e. about 30%. This will, in most instances, permit a user to obtain an additional day or two of use before the handheld electronic device has to be recharged from an external source. It is known that longer battery life improves the user's experience. Unfortunately, improving the technology of the battery or providing a replaceable battery increases the device cost. On the other hand, providing a higher capacity battery would increase the weight and size factors. While optimize software decreases device consumption it is effective up to a certain point.
In a second embodiment the secondary battery 52 in the holster 12 is at least approximately ⅓ larger than the operational battery 32 in the electronic handheld device 8 so that a smaller operational battery 32 with a size and capacity of a about ⅓ of the current battery can be used. The operational battery 32 is installed on the handheld electronic device 8 to maintain it while the user is effectively working. The supplementary or secondary battery 52 is integrated in the holster 12 while the device 8 is in the holster 12 it would consume power from the supplementary battery 52 through power connectors 36 and 60 located in the bottom or back of the handheld electronic device 8. The operational battery 32 would be charged at the same time through these same contacts 36 and 60. For some applications, the average device is in its holster approximately 95% of the time so the capacity of the operational battery that is residing on the device does not need to be as high. On the other hand, the battery residing on the holster can be extended in capacity since its weight would not contribute to the handheld devices weight under this arrangement. If you take the battery out of a handheld electronic device such as the BlackBerry device and hold the device in your hand it feels surprisingly light. The BlackBerry device itself weighs 136 grams. The battery adds an additional 26 grams to the weight. Thus, in this embodiment the weight can be minimized while extending the battery life.
Under either arrangement the user would need to charge only the holster. The battery 32 residing on the handheld electronic device 8 would charge itself from the holsters battery 52. Moreover, the battery 32 on the handheld electronic device 8 does not need to be removable. When the battery 52 on the holster 12 is discharged and the user wants to get her/his device working right away then he/she just takes another holster—a procedure much easier then changing the battery (and the device wont even be restarted). In this way an effective removable battery is achieved in a more cost effective and user friendly way. At the same time the overall battery life of the device can be improved and the weight of the device can be decreased. Whether the larger of the two batteries 32 and 52 is incorporated in the holder 12 or handheld device 8 will depend on the nature of the handheld device and the relative times the device is situated in and out of the holder 12.
Alternatively, in accordance with another embodiment, if the handheld electronic device 8 is separately charged from an external source to substantially its full charge level and the secondary battery 52 on the holster 12 is below a certain level the primary battery 32 on the handheld electronic device 8 may be used to charge the holster battery 52 each time the handheld electronic device 8 is placed within its holster. Preferably, only a preselected amount of charge, for example 100 mAhr (about 10% of the capacity of a typical handheld battery is transferred from the handheld electronic device 8 to the holster battery 52 each time the handheld electronic device 8 is placed within the holster 12, to conserve power in the handheld electronic device 8. The handheld electronic device 8 may be separately charged from an external source, for example, when it is placed in a docking station.
In accordance with this embodiment, the charge algorithm for the electronic device 4 is as follows:
Most of the modification is made to the holster or holder 12 as illustrated in the logic flowchart shown in
The circuit diagram in
The X in the Table means that no output is provided since the switch SW3 under those circumstances is open circuited. Accordingly, the apparatus of this embodiment allows a holster to effectively “steal” small of amounts of charged over time from a fully charged handheld electronic device, and hold it in reserve until required by a user, at the very low end of the primary battery charge cycle, for an additional day or two of use. The device described herein also can reduce the weight of the handheld electronic device without compromising the battery capacity.
While specific embodiments have been described in detail it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various modifications and alternatives to those details could be developed in light of the overall teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly, the particular embodiments disclosed are meant to be illustrative only and not limiting as to the scope of the device and method described herein, which is to be given the full breath of the appended claims and any or all equivalence thereof.
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Number | Date | Country | |
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