JP2000028761A - Electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable electronic equipment to be used continuously without replacing a battery with a new one until an examination period of seven or ten years expires. SOLUTION: A life-judging means 12 compares the usage time of electronic equipment and battery usage capacity with life time and remaining battery capacity to judge whether the electronic equipment can operate until the life time expires or not. When the means 12 judges that the electronic equipment cannot be operated up to its life time, an operation mode-changing means 13 changes an operation mode so that the electronic equipment can be operated up to the life time, thus securely operating the electronic equipment up to the life time.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a battery-powered device, and more particularly to a battery-powered electronic device in which the device becomes abnormal when its battery is exhausted.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional electronic device of this kind is disclosed in
What was described in 87580 gazette was common. As shown in FIG. 5, the electronic device 1 is configured as a flow sensor, 2 is a control device, 3 is a battery, 4 is a power consumption calculation circuit, 5 is a display unit, and 6 is a shutoff valve drive circuit.

The control device 2 receives the signal from the flow rate sensor 1 to calculate the flow rate, constantly monitors the flow rate, and drives the shut-off valve drive circuit 6 to shut off the fluid when there is an abnormality. The power consumption associated with the driving is calculated by the power consumption calculation circuit 4 each time, and is integrated.
Then, the effective remaining amount is displayed on the display unit 5 based on the integrated value and the effective consumption amount of the battery 3. When the effective remaining amount becomes zero or less than a predetermined amount, an alarm is issued.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional electronic equipment, the effective remaining capacity of the battery is only reported to the outside. Therefore, for example, a line for transmitting equipment management information to a management center via a telephone line. If an alarm is issued by the expiration date of a device such as a terminal device that keeps using the battery for 7 to 10 years without changing the battery until the expiration date, the worker will be able to use the device even before the expiration date. Has to be exchanged.

[0005]

According to the present invention, a battery capacity storage means for storing a battery capacity of a battery which is a power supply of an electronic device, and a time for guaranteeing the operation of the electronic device, that is, a life time, are provided. Life time storage means, usage time storage means for storing the cumulative usage time of the electronic device, battery usage capacity storage means for storing the battery usage capacity of the electronic device, and the battery usage capacity storage means Battery remaining capacity calculating means for calculating the remaining battery capacity by subtracting the used battery capacity stored in the battery capacity from the battery capacity stored in the battery capacity storing means.

According to the invention, the life determining means compares the usage time and the battery usage capacity of the electronic device with the life time and the remaining battery capacity, and determines whether the electronic device can operate until the life time. If it is determined that the electronic device cannot operate until the life time, the operation mode changing unit changes the operation mode so that the electronic device can operate until the life time. Even if the communication frequency or the like increases more than expected and the power consumption increases, the operation can be reliably performed until the life time without stopping due to insufficient battery capacity before reaching the life time.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An electronic device according to a first aspect of the present invention includes a battery capacity storage means for storing a battery capacity of a battery which is a power supply of the electronic device, and a time for guaranteeing the operation of the electronic device, that is, a life time. Life time storage means for storing, usage time storage means for storing the cumulative usage time of the electronic device up to now, battery usage capacity storage means for storing the battery usage capacity of the electronic device up to now, and the battery usage capacity storage And a battery remaining capacity calculating means for calculating the remaining battery capacity by subtracting the used battery capacity stored in the means from the battery capacity stored in the battery capacity storing means. Then, the life determining means compares the usage time and the battery usage capacity of the electronic device with the life time and the remaining battery capacity, and determines whether the electronic device can operate until the life time. If it is determined that the operation is not possible until the time, the operation mode changing unit changes the operation mode to the power saving operation mode so that the electronic device can operate until the life time. It can be operated reliably until time.

An electronic apparatus according to a second aspect of the present invention includes mode-specific current value storage means for storing a current value for each operation mode, and transition number storage means for storing the number of transitions to each operation mode. The remaining battery level detection means multiplies the current value for each mode stored in the current value storage means for each mode by the number of transitions for each operation mode stored in the number of transitions storage means. As a result, since the battery usage capacity is calculated up to now, it is not necessary to directly measure the current consumption value, and the battery usage capacity can be accurately calculated even when the current consumption is as small as μA.

An electronic device according to a third aspect of the present invention has a timer. The number-of-transitions storage means stores the number of transitions in each operation mode at a certain time interval using the time counting means, and the operation mode change means changes the operation mode during a time period in which the number of transitions in the certain time interval is the least. Therefore, the influence on the communication operation and the like of the electronic device can be minimized.

An electronic device according to a fourth aspect of the present invention has a life determining means. Then, the life determining means calculates the maximum value of power consumption at certain time intervals from the number of transitions of each operation mode at certain time intervals stored in the number-of-transitions storage means, and based on this value, the remaining battery capacity and the life time. Since the life of the electronic device is determined from the life time stored in the storage means, that is, the worst case of the electronic device is assumed, erroneous determination of the life can be greatly reduced.

The electronic device according to claim 5 of the present invention has a life determining means operation. The life determining means calculates an average value of power consumption at constant time intervals from the number of transitions of each operation mode at constant time intervals stored in the number of transitions storing means, and based on this value, the remaining battery capacity and the life time. To determine the life of the electronic device from the life time stored in the storage means,
The remaining battery capacity can be used efficiently.

An electronic device according to a sixth aspect of the present invention has an operation mode changing means. And when it is determined by the life determining means that the electronic device can operate for the life time or more,
Since the operation mode is changed so that the operation time matches the life time, it is possible to improve the communication response and the like by using the battery capacity that is expected to be surplus, and to improve the service.

An electronic device according to a seventh aspect of the present invention has display means. And the number-of-transitions storage means, the current value storage means for each mode, the battery capacity storage means, the operation time storage means,
Since one or more of the contents of the judgment by the life judging means and the contents of the change by the operation mode changing means are displayed on the display means, it is easy to grasp the operation state of the device.

[0014]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 7 denotes a battery capacity storage means for storing a battery capacity, 8 denotes a life time storage means for storing a time for guaranteeing the operation of the electronic equipment, that is, a life time, and 9 denotes a cumulative use of the electronic equipment so far. A usage time storage means for storing time, a battery usage capacity storage means for storing the battery usage capacity of the electronic device up to now, and a battery usage capacity stored in the battery usage capacity storage means 11 are stored in the battery capacity storage means.
The remaining battery capacity calculating means 12 calculates the remaining battery capacity by subtracting the remaining battery capacity from the battery capacity stored in the electronic device, and compares the usage time and the battery usage capacity of the electronic device with the life time and the remaining battery capacity. The life determining means 13 determines whether the electronic device can operate until the time. If the life determining device 12 determines that the electronic device cannot operate until the life time, the electronic device can operate until the life time. This is an operation mode changing means for changing the operation mode.

Next, the operation and the operation will be described. The life determining means 12 calculates the cumulative use time t of the electronic equipment stored in the use time storage means 9 and the cumulative battery usage of the electronic equipment stored in the battery use capacity storage means 10. From the capacity battery x, the life time T that guarantees the operation of the electronic device stored in advance in the life time storage means 8 and the battery capacity X of the electronic device stored in advance in the capacity storage means 7, for example, per past unit time Of the battery used capacity x / t, and then (X−x) − {(T−t) × (x / t)} (where,
(X−x) is the remaining battery capacity, and (T−t) is the operation time of the electronic device from now on). A signal for requesting a change in the operation mode of the device is output. The operation mode change means 13 changes the operation mode of the electronic device by receiving this signal. For example, changes to the operation mode include restrictions on functions including software and hardware (restrictions on functions other than the minimum required) and changes in communication specifications within a range that guarantees communication (restrictions on the time period during which communication can be performed) In the case of a line terminal device or the like which performs intermittent wireless communication, the intermittent reception interval may be extended, and the number of carrier channels may be reduced.

In the above embodiment, the intermittent reception interval is extended and the number of the carry channels is reduced in order to operate the electronic device until the end of its life.
If (X−x) − {(T−t) × (x / t)}> 0,
In order to improve the communication response, the intermittent reception interval can be shortened, and the number of carry channels can be increased.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 2 shows a configuration diagram of an electronic apparatus according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention.

The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the current value storage means 14 stores the current value of each operation mode of the electronic device and the number of transitions to each operation mode is stored. The point is that the number-of-times storage means 15 is provided.

The components having the same reference numerals as in the first embodiment have the same structure, and the description is omitted. Next, the operation and the operation will be described. The remaining battery charge detecting means 11 converts the current value for each mode stored in the current value storing means 14 for each mode into the current value for each mode stored in the number-of-transitions storing means 15. The battery usage capacity so far is calculated by multiplying the number of transitions for each mode. For example, if the modes of the electronic device can be classified into a shipping mode, a standby mode, and a communication mode, the current value of each operation mode (measured in advance and stored in the storage device of the electronic device) × the operation mode It can be calculated by calculating the number of transitions｝.

It is conceivable to use a minimum value, a maximum value, an average value or the like as a current value for each operation mode.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electronic apparatus according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention. The third embodiment is different from the first embodiment (or 2) in that a timer is provided.

The components having the same reference numerals as in the first embodiment have the same structure, and the description is omitted. Next, the operation and operation will be described. The number-of-transitions storage means 15 stores the number of transitions of each operation mode at regular time intervals using the timer means 16, and the operation mode change means 13 indicates that the number of transitions at the constant time interval is the smallest. The operation mode is changed only during a small time period. For example, the number-of-transitions storage means 15 stores the number of transitions to each operation mode for each time as shown in Table 1 using the time-measuring means 16, and the time period from 0:00 to 6
Only change the operation mode during time.

[0025]

[Table 1]

In each of the above-described embodiments, as shown in Table 2, the life determining means 12 calculates the maximum value or the average value of the power consumption at fixed time intervals from the number of transitions of each operation mode at fixed time intervals. It is also possible to determine the life of the electronic device from the remaining battery capacity and the life stored in the life time storage means 8 based on this value.

[0027]

[Table 2]

As shown in FIG. 4, a display means 17 is provided for the first to third embodiments, and
5. One or more of the contents of the determination by the mode-specific current value storage means 14, the battery capacity storage means 7, the usage time storage means 9, the life determination means 12 and the operation mode change means 13 are displayed. 17 can also be displayed.

The display means 17 can be displayed not on the electronic device itself but on a remote device via a communication line such as a telephone line with the electronic device.

[0030]

As is apparent from the above description, the electronic device of the present invention has the following effects.

According to the electronic device of the first aspect, the life determining means compares the usage time and the battery usage capacity of the electronic device with the life time and the remaining battery capacity, and determines whether the electronic device can operate until the life time. If the electronic device is determined to be inoperable until the life time, the operation mode changing means changes the operation mode so that the electronic device can operate until the life time. Even if the communication frequency of the electronic device increases and the power consumption increases more than expected at the time of design, the operation of the electronic device can be surely performed until the life time without stopping due to insufficient battery capacity before reaching the life time.

Further, according to the electronic apparatus of the present invention, the remaining battery charge detecting means is stored in the number-of-transitions storing means in the mode-specific current value for each operation mode stored in the mode-specific current value storing means. The current battery capacity is calculated by multiplying the number of transitions for each operating mode, so there is no need to directly measure the current value, and even when the current consumption is as small as μA, it is accurate. The battery usage capacity can be calculated.

According to the electronic device of the third aspect, there is provided a time counting means, and the transition number storage means uses the time counting means to store the number of transitions of each operation mode at regular time intervals, Changes the operation mode during a time period in which the number of transitions at the fixed time interval is the smallest (for example, even if the communication response is delayed to extend the life of the electronic device, this change in the operation mode is Since it is performed when the frequency is the lowest), the influence on the communication operation and the like can be reduced.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic apparatus having a life determining means, wherein the life determining means determines the number of transitions of each operation mode at a predetermined time interval stored in the number-of-transitions storage means at a predetermined time interval. The maximum value of the power consumption is calculated, and based on this value, the life of the electronic device is determined from the remaining battery capacity and the life time stored in the life time storage means. That is, the worst case of the electronic device is assumed. Judgments can be made very small.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic apparatus having a life determining means, wherein the life determining means determines a predetermined time interval from the number of transitions in each operation mode at a constant time interval stored in the number-of-transitions storage means. The average value of the power consumption is calculated, and the life of the electronic device is determined from the remaining battery capacity and the life time stored in the life time storage means based on this value, so that the remaining battery capacity can be used efficiently. it can.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, the electronic apparatus further comprises an operation mode changing means, and when the life determining means determines that the operation can be performed for more than the life time, the operation time coincides with the life time. Since the operation mode is changed as described above, it is possible to improve the communication response and the like by using the battery capacity that will be excessive, thereby improving the service.

According to the electronic device of the present invention, there is provided a display means, wherein the number of transitions storage means, the current value storage means for each mode, the battery capacity storage means, the operation time storage means, the life determination means and Since one or more of the changes made by the operation mode changing means are displayed on the display means, it is easy to grasp the operation state of the device.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram of an electronic device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of an electronic device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a configuration diagram of an electronic device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a configuration diagram illustrating the same device.

FIG. 5 is a configuration diagram of a conventional electronic device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Flow rate sensor 2 Control device 3 Battery 4 Power consumption calculation circuit 5 Display part 6 Valve drive circuit 7 Battery capacity storage means 8 Life time storage means 9 Usage time storage means 10 Battery usage capacity storage means 11 Battery remaining capacity calculation means 12 Life determination Means 13 Operation mode change means 14 Current value storage means for each mode 15 Transition count storage means 16 Clocking means 17 Display means

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A battery capacity storage means for storing a battery capacity;
Life time storage means for storing time for guaranteeing operation, usage time storage means for storing cumulative usage time, battery usage capacity storage means for storing battery usage capacity, and battery stored in the battery usage capacity storage means The remaining battery capacity calculating means for calculating the remaining battery capacity by subtracting the used capacity from the battery capacity stored in the battery capacity storage means, comparing the used time and the used battery capacity with the life time and the remaining battery capacity, A life determining means for determining whether operation is possible up to the life time, and if the life determining means determines that the operation is not possible until the life time, the operation is possible until the life time. An electronic device comprising: an operation mode changing unit configured to change to a power saving operation mode. 2. The battery used capacity storage means includes mode-specific current value storage means for storing a current value for each operation mode of the electronic device, and transition number storage means for storing the number of transitions to each operation mode, The battery remaining capacity detecting means multiplies the mode-specific current value for each operation mode stored in the mode-specific current value storage means by the number of transitions for each operation mode stored in the number-of-transitions storage means. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the battery usage capacity is calculated. 3. The time counting means, wherein the number of transitions storage means uses the time counting means to store the number of transitions of each operation mode at regular time intervals, and the operation mode changing means makes the number of transitions at the constant time interval the most. 3. The electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the operation mode is changed during a short time period. 4. The life determining means calculates a maximum value of power consumption at a constant time interval from the number of transitions of each operation mode at a constant time interval stored in the number-of-transitions storing means, and based on this value, the remaining battery capacity. 4. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the life is determined from the life time stored in the life time storage means. 5. The life determining means calculates an average value of power consumption at a certain time interval from the number of transitions of each operation mode at a certain time interval stored in the number-of-transitions storing means, and based on this value, the remaining battery capacity. 4. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the life is determined from the life time stored in the life time storage means. 6. The operation mode changing means, when the life determining means determines that "operating time (operable time of electronic device)> life time", that is, when the electronic device is operable for longer than the life time. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the operation mode is changed so that a time matches the life time. 7. A display device, comprising: a number-of-transitions storage device; a current value storage device for each mode; a battery capacity storage device; an operation time storage device; The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein one or a plurality of the electronic devices are displayed on the display unit.