JP2010022070A - Mobile terminal device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile terminal device that prevents overcharging by a photovoltaic panel and physical deterioration of a photovoltaic panel surface. <P>SOLUTION: A first housing 1 and a second housing 2 are coupled together through a hinge portion 3. The hinge portion 3 has a first rotary shaft and a second rotary shaft which are orthogonal to each other, and couples both the housings 1 and 2 so that they can be stacked along the thickness and turned over. The photovoltaic panel 14 is disposed on one of the top and reverse surfaces of the second housing 2. The second housing 2 has the photovoltaic panel 14 superposed suitably selectively face-up or face-down. The photovoltaic panel 1 is superposed face-down when a battery 10 is overcharged and face-up to additionally charge the battery 10. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable terminal device such as a cellular phone provided with a photovoltaic panel and a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant).

  Since mobile terminal devices such as mobile phones and PDAs are generally assumed to be carried outside, it is desired to use the built-in battery for a long time. However, since there is a limit to the increase in battery capacity, in this type of terminal device, it is expected to develop a charging technique that does not require an external power source as well as reducing the power consumption inside the device.

  Conventionally, as a portable terminal device to respond to this, a photovoltaic panel (solar panel) is attached to the outer surface of one of a pair of housings that can be folded open and closed, and a sufficient amount of light such as sunlight is provided. In an environment that can be secured, a battery that can charge an internal battery through a photovoltaic panel has been devised (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2004-140521 A

  However, since this conventional portable terminal device is provided with a photovoltaic panel on the outer surface of the casing that can be folded and opened, the battery can be charged in a light environment when the casing is folded. It will always be continued. In this case, since charging by the photovoltaic panel is continued regardless of the remaining capacity of the battery, power generation is performed even when the battery is fully charged, which may lead to deterioration of the battery.

  Further, in the above-described conventional portable terminal device, the photovoltaic panel is always exposed to the outside of the casing, so that the photovoltaic panel is easily damaged or damaged by contact with a hard member, and thus the photovoltaic panel is physically damaged. If such deterioration occurs, there is a concern that the power generation efficiency decreases.

  Therefore, the present invention is intended to provide a portable terminal device that can prevent overcharging by the photovoltaic panel and physical degradation of the photovoltaic panel.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problem, the invention according to claim 1 of the present application includes a pair of casings, a first rotating shaft and a second rotating shaft orthogonal to each other, and the pair of casings. The pair of casings can be overlapped in the thickness direction by rotating the pair of casings around the first rotation axis, and the pair of casings around the second rotation axis. A hinge portion that allows the front and back of the one casing to be reversed by one rotation of the body; a photovoltaic member disposed on one surface of the one casing; and the other front and back of the one casing Accompanying the power generation of the photovoltaic power generation member, a display unit disposed on the surface of the display unit, an operation unit disposed on an upper surface of the other housing facing the one housing in a state of overlapping the pair of housings Power supply means for supplying power to a battery or electronic component provided in one of the pair of housings. They were constructed.

  In this case, the pair of casings are pivotable so as to be opened and closed about the first rotation axis and can be stacked in the thickness direction, and one casing on which the photovoltaic member is disposed has the second rotation axis. It is pivoted so that it can be turned upside down. For this reason, when one housing | casing which has a photovoltaic member and a display part is piled up in the thickness direction on the other housing | casing which has an operation part, a photovoltaic member is turned to the surface by the reversal rotation of one housing | casing ( It can be appropriately selected whether it is exposed) or turned to the back (facing one housing).

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the portable terminal device according to the first aspect, in the state where the pair of housings are overlapped, the one surface of the front or back surface of the one housing or the other surface of the front and back surfaces A contact suppression member that suppresses contact with the upper surface of the other housing is provided.

  In this case, it is possible to suitably suppress the contact between one surface or the other surface of one housing or the other surface and the upper surface of the other housing.

  Invention of Claim 3 is a portable terminal device of Claim 2, The said contact suppression member is arrange | positioned in the position which remove | deviated from the said photovoltaic member in the overlapping state of a pair of said housing | casing. It is characterized by that.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the portable terminal device according to the second or third aspect, the contact suppression member is disposed on an upper surface of the other casing.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the mobile terminal device according to the fourth aspect, the contact suppression member is located in the overlapped state of the other casing with respect to the hinge portion than the photovoltaic member. Are arranged at positions opposite to each other.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the portable terminal device according to the fourth or fifth aspect, the contact suppression member is disposed at a plurality of positions across the axis of the second rotation shaft in the overlapped state. It is characterized by that.

  A seventh aspect of the present invention is the portable terminal device according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the battery is disposed in the other casing where the photovoltaic member is not disposed. To do.

  In this case, the heat generated by the photovoltaic power generation member and the radiant heat from sunlight are hardly transmitted to the battery part.

  According to the present invention, when one casing is overlapped with the other casing, the photovoltaic member of the first casing can be appropriately directed to both the front side and the rear side. By directing the photovoltaic member toward the other casing when not required, it is possible to prevent physical deterioration such as overcharging by the photovoltaic member and damage to the photovoltaic member.

1 is a plan view of a mobile phone in an open state according to an embodiment of the present invention. The top view of the mobile telephone which shows the same embodiment and folded the photovoltaic panel upwards. The top view of the mobile telephone which shows the same embodiment and folded the display part facing up. The side view of the mobile phone which shows the same embodiment and folded the photovoltaic panel facing up. The schematic circuit block diagram of the mobile telephone of the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic configuration diagram of a portion related to power management centering on a controller of the embodiment. The diagram for demonstrating the battery voltage of the embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of control of the embodiment. The flowchart which shows the flow of control of the embodiment.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  1 to 4 are external views of a mobile phone as an example of a mobile terminal device according to the present invention. This mobile phone includes a first casing 1, a second casing 2, and a hinge section 3 that connects the two casings 1 and 2 in such a manner that they can be overlapped in the thickness direction. . The hinge portion 3 is rotatable in the overlapping direction around the first rotation shaft 4 with respect to the first rotation shaft 4 provided at the end of the first housing 1 and the first housing 1. And a second rotating shaft 6 for connecting the second housing 2 to the intermediate connecting body 5 so as to be rotatable in the front-back direction. The first rotating shaft 4 and the second rotating shaft 6 are orthogonal to each other, and the first housing 1 and the second housing 2 can be opened and closed by rotating in the overlapping direction around the first rotating shaft 4. The second casing 2 can be rotated with respect to the first casing 1 in the reverse direction.

  A plurality of operation keys 7 that can be pressed such as a call key, an end key, and a numeric key are provided on the upper surface 1a of the first housing 1 (the overlapping surface with the second housing 2). . In addition, a charging port 9 for connecting a charging connection connector 8a of the charger 8 is provided on the end surface opposite to the hinge portion 3 of the first casing 1, and charging is performed inside the first casing 1. The battery 10 that can be used repeatedly is incorporated. A display unit 12 such as a liquid crystal display is provided on one surface (second surface) 11 of the front and back surfaces of the second housing 2, and the other surface (first surface) of the front and back surfaces of the second housing 2. ) 13 is provided with a substantially rectangular photovoltaic panel 14 (photovoltaic member) that generates power upon receiving light.

  2 to 4 show a state in which the first casing 1 and the second casing 2 are rotated around the first rotation shaft 4 and overlapped with each other. 4, the other surface of the second housing 2 is directed outward by a reversing operation centered on the second rotation shaft 6, and the one in FIG. One surface of the housing 2 is directed outward.

The first casing 1 and the second casing 2 have MR sensors (open / close detection means, front / back detection means) 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d (power generation state detection means) configured by pairs of magnets and magnetoresistive elements. ), And the MR sensor 15a, 15b, 15c, 15d can detect the open / closed state of the casings 1, 2. Specifically, magnetoresistive elements 15a and 15b are disposed on the left and right positions of the upper surface 1a of the first casing 1, and the second surface 11 of the second casing 2 is positioned on the left side of the display unit. The first magnet 15c is disposed on the left surface of the first surface 13 of the first surface 13 toward the photovoltaic panel 14, and the magnets 15c and 15d and the magnetoresistive elements 15a and 15b are disposed. Is detected to detect the open / closed state of the two casings 1 and 2 and the front / back state of the second casing 2. In addition, a pair of projections 30 projecting upward are provided on the upper surface of the first housing 1 on the side opposite to the hinge portion 3. When the projection 30 is in a closed state in which the second casing 2 is overlapped with the first casing 1, the projection 30 is separated from the display unit 12 and the photovoltaic panel 14 on the surfaces 11 and 13 of the second casing. It comes into contact with the disengaged position. Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, the protrusion 30 is connected to the hinge portion 3 more than the display portion 12 or the photovoltaic panel 14 in a state where the display portion 12 or the photovoltaic panel 14 is turned down (overlapping state). It is arranged at a position closer to the opposite side.
The protrusion 30 prevents the photovoltaic panel 14 from interfering with the first casing 1 side when the second casing 2 is closed with the display unit 12 or the photovoltaic panel 14 turned down. In this embodiment, it is formed integrally with the first housing 1. The protrusion 30 constitutes an abutting suppression member, and may be formed of a soft material having a buffering action.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the protrusion 30 is connected to the axis of the second rotation shaft 6 that rotatably connects the second housing 2 in the front-back direction (see FIGS. 1 to 4). 3, two are arranged in the case width direction (left and right direction in FIG. 1) of the first case 1 across the vertical axis passing through the second rotation shaft 6, and the display unit 12 or the photovoltaic power generation In a state where the panel 14 is turned down (overlapping state), the second housing 2 is placed on the protrusion 30 arranged in the housing width direction across the axis of the second rotating shaft 6 on the upper surface of the first housing 1. It will abut.

  FIG. 5 shows a schematic configuration of this mobile phone. A controller 16 for controlling various functions and the like is provided inside the first housing. As shown in FIG. 1, the controller 16 has a key input circuit for processing a key operation signal of the operation key 7. 17, a display circuit 18 that processes a display signal of the display unit 12, a sound processing circuit 21 that processes a sound signal such as a speaker 19 (informing means) and a microphone 20, and a communication circuit for communication through an antenna 22. 23 and a camera control circuit 24 for controlling the built-in camera. The controller 16 is connected to a memory 25 in which programs and various values are stored, and is connected to a power supply control circuit 26 (power supply means) that controls power in the apparatus. A signal corresponding to the open / closed state of the housings 1 and 2 and the front / back state of the second housing 2 in the closed state is input.

  FIG. 6 shows a schematic configuration diagram centering on the controller 16 of the portion related to the power management of the cellular phone. As shown in the figure, the calculation unit 31 in the controller 16 receives the state signals of the casings 1 and 2 from the MR sensor 15 and the voltage signals Vb and Vs from the battery 10 and the photovoltaic panel 14, respectively. These input signals Vb and Vs are appropriately compared with various threshold values Vb1, Vb2, Vb3, and Vs1 stored in the memory 25 to determine whether the battery 10 needs to be charged using the photovoltaic panel 14 or the like. to decide. Then, the control unit 32 receives the output of the calculation unit 31 that is a determination result of whether or not charging is necessary, and outputs a warning corresponding to the output from the speaker 19. Therefore, in this embodiment, the calculation unit 31 of the controller 16 constitutes a main part of the charging necessity determination unit, and the control unit 32 and the speaker 19 of the controller 16 constitute a main part of the notification unit.

In the case of this embodiment, the following warnings (1) to (3) are set for the speaker 19.
(1) A warning that prompts the photovoltaic panel 14 to stop charging when the battery 10 is in an overcharged state.
(2) A warning prompting rapid charging by the charger 8 when the remaining capacity of the battery 10 is greatly reduced.
(3) A warning prompting supplementary charging by the photovoltaic panel 14 when the remaining capacity of the battery 10 is reduced to a certain level or more.

  The determination to perform the above warning (1) is made based on whether or not the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 is equal to or higher than a full charge determination threshold value (first set value) Vb1 indicating a level close to a fully charged state, Further, whether or not the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power ("generating" means that the photovoltaic panel 14 is in a chargeable power generation state) is determined by the photovoltaic panel 14. The determination is made based on whether or not the voltage signal Vs is equal to or greater than the photovoltaic power generation determination threshold Vs1. Therefore, in this embodiment, the power supply control circuit 26 that outputs the voltage signal Vs from the photovoltaic panel 14 and the calculation unit 31 of the controller 16 constitute a power generation state detection unit.

  In addition, the determination to perform the warning of (2) above is a rapid indication that the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 shows a level at which the remaining capacity is greatly reduced regardless of whether the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power. Judgment is made based on whether the charge determination threshold value Vb3 (third set value) is not reached.

  In addition, the determination to perform the above warning (3) is based on whether or not the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power and the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 indicates a level at which the remaining capacity is reduced to some extent. Judgment is made by a composite judgment as to whether or not the charge judgment threshold value Vb2 (second set value) is not reached. The warning (3) is issued when the photovoltaic panel 14 is not generating power and the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 is less than the auxiliary charge determination threshold value Vb2.

  The full charge determination threshold value Vb1, the rapid charge determination threshold value Vb3, and the auxiliary charge determination threshold value Vb2 are in a relationship of Vb3 <Vb2 <Vb1, as shown in FIG. 7, and the voltage region between Vb3 and Vb1 is almost equal to the battery 10. It matches the usable area of.

  Hereinafter, the flow of warning processing by the controller 16 will be described in accordance with the flowcharts of FIGS. 8 and 9, divided into warning processing for stopping charging of the photovoltaic panel 14 and warning processing for promoting charging by the photovoltaic panel 14, respectively.

<Charging stop warning process>
In FIG. 8, in step S101, it is determined whether or not the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 is equal to or greater than the full charge determination threshold Vb1, and the process proceeds to the next step S102 only when the voltage signal Vb is equal to or greater than the full charge determination threshold Vb1. .

  In step S102, it is determined whether or not the voltage signal Vs of the photovoltaic panel 14 is greater than or equal to the photovoltaic determination threshold value Vs1, that is, whether or not the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power. If the power generation is in progress, the process proceeds to step 104. In step S103, when the battery is charged by the external power source using the charger 8, the charging by the charger 8 is completed, and when the charging by the external power source is not performed, the processing is ended as it is. In step S104, since power generation by the photovoltaic panel 14 is currently continued in a fully charged state, a warning sound is emitted from the speaker 19 to prompt the user to stop the power generation.

<Charging promotion warning process>
In FIG. 9, in step S <b> 201, based on a signal from the MR sensor 15, it is determined whether or not the casings 1 and 2 are not overlapped in the thickness direction and are in an open state (open state). When in the state, the process proceeds to step S202, and when the casings 1 and 2 are overlapped in the thickness direction and closed (closed state), the process proceeds to step S204.

In step S202, it is determined whether or not the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 is less than the quick charge determination threshold value Vb3. If the voltage signal Vb is greater than or equal to the threshold value Vb3, the process returns to step S201, and if not, the process proceeds to the next step S203. Proceed with In step S <b> 203, a warning sound is emitted from the speaker 19 in order to prompt charging by an external power source using the charger 8. Note that the warning sound in step S203 is set to be different from the warning sound in step S104, and is set to a high volume, for example.
On the other hand, in step S204, it is determined whether or not the photovoltaic panel 14 is in the power generation stop state (the photovoltaic panel 14 is in the face down state) by comparing the voltage signal Vs of the photovoltaic panel 14 and the photovoltaic determination threshold value Vs1. If so, the process proceeds to step S202. If power generation is stopped, the process proceeds to step S205.

  In step S205, it is determined whether or not the voltage signal Vb of the battery 10 is less than the auxiliary charge determination threshold value Vb2. If the voltage signal Vb is not less than the threshold value Vb2, the process returns to step S201, and if not, the process proceeds to the next step S206. Proceed with In step S206, a warning for prompting power generation by the photovoltaic panel 14, that is, a warning for directing the photovoltaic panel 14 to the front side is given through the speaker 19. Note that the warning sound in step S206 is also set to be different from other warning sounds.

  As described above, this mobile phone connects the first housing 1 and the second housing 2 so as to be openable and closable, and the second housing 2 can be turned upside down with respect to the first housing 1. Since the photovoltaic panel 14 is arranged on one side (first surface) 13 of the front and back surfaces of the second housing 2, when the charging is not required, the photovoltaic panel 14 side surface (first The two housings 1 and 2 can be overlapped and closed with the front surface 13) of 1 facing down and facing the first housing 1. Therefore, by turning the photovoltaic panel 14 in the closed state, it is possible to prevent the battery 10 from being overcharged by continuing the power generation by the photovoltaic panel 14, and the photovoltaic panel 14 surface. Since this is not exposed, damage or damage due to contact with surrounding members can be prevented at the same time.

  Further, in this mobile phone, when charging is continued with the power generation of the photovoltaic panel 14 in the fully charged state, the user can be notified of this by a warning sound of the speaker 19 which is a warning means. The charging by the photovoltaic panel 14 can be quickly stopped by making the photovoltaic panel 14 face the first casing 1 or the like. When a warning is issued, light is not allowed to enter the photovoltaic panel 14 by covering the optical panel 14 or the like without the surface 13 on the photovoltaic panel 14 side facing the first housing 1. Thus, the charging can be stopped.

  Further, in the mobile phone of this embodiment, the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power by using different charging determination thresholds Vb3 and Vb2 depending on whether the photovoltaic panel 14 is generating power or not. In this case, rapid charging is promoted with a lower threshold voltage Vb3 than when no power generation is performed, and supplementary charging is promoted with a higher threshold voltage Vb2 when power generation is not performed. It is possible to prompt charging at an appropriate timing without increasing the warning frequency more than necessary.

  In the case of this embodiment, since the photovoltaic panel 14 is disposed in the second casing 2, the battery 10 is disposed on the first casing 1 side. The radiant heat due to is difficult to be transmitted to the battery 10, and therefore, the deterioration of the battery 10 due to heat can be more effectively prevented.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to said embodiment, A various design change is possible in the range which does not deviate from the summary. For example, in the above embodiment, a mobile phone has been described as an example of the mobile terminal device, but the mobile terminal device according to the present invention may be a PDA or the like. Further, the warning means is not limited to the warning means by sound using a speaker, but may be warning means by light using a light emitter, warning means by display display, vibration or the like.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the power generation state is detected based on the voltage signal Vs of the photovoltaic panel 14, but the overlapping state of the first casing 1 and the second casing 2 is as follows. Alternatively, the front / back inversion state of the second casing 2 may be detected, and the presence / absence (state) of power generation by the photovoltaic panel 14 may be estimated from these detection results. Specifically, the first casing 1 and the second casing 2 are in an overlapped state (closed state), and the surface of the second casing 2 on the photovoltaic panel 14 side (first surface). ) 13 is in a state of being opposed to the first casing 1 (a state where the photovoltaic panel 14 is not exposed), the photovoltaic panel 14 is in a non-generating state, and other states (photovoltaic generation) When the panel 14 is exposed), it can be estimated that the power generation state is present. In this case, the state detection of both housings 1 and 2 can be performed by, for example, the MR sensors 15a, 15b, 15c, and 15d.

  Further, the hinge portion connecting the first housing and the second housing may have a form other than the above as long as it has two axes orthogonal to each other. For example, the first rotating shaft supported by the first casing is provided so as to be orthogonal to the upper surface of the first casing, and the first casing and the second casing are kept substantially parallel, It is also possible to open and close both housings by rotating both housings around the first rotation axis.

1 ... 1st housing | casing (casing)
2 ... Second housing (housing)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 3 ... Hinge part 4 ... 1st rotating shaft 6 ... 2nd rotating shaft 10 ... Battery 11 ... One side 13 ... The other side 14 ... Photovoltaic panel (photovoltaic member)
15a, 15b, 15c, 15d ... MR sensor (power generation state detection means)
16 ... Controller (charging necessity judgment means, power generation state detection means)
19 ... Speaker 26 ... Power supply control circuit (power supply means, power generation state detection means)
30 ... Protrusion (contact suppression member)
Vb1: Full charge judgment threshold (first set value)
Vb2 ... Supplementary charge determination threshold (second set value)
Vb3 ... Rapid charge determination threshold (third set value)

Claims (7)

A pair of housings;
The pair of housings having a first rotating shaft and a second rotating shaft that are orthogonal to each other are coupled to each other, and the pair of housings are rotated by turning the pair of housings around the first rotating shaft. A hinge portion that enables superimposition in the thickness direction of the pair of casings, and allows the one casing to be reversed by turning one of the pair of casings around the second rotation axis.
A photovoltaic member disposed on the front and back surfaces of the one housing;
A display unit disposed on the other side of the front and back of the one housing;
An operation unit disposed on an upper surface of the other casing facing the one casing in a state where the pair of casings are overlapped;
And a power supply means for supplying power accompanying the power generation of the photovoltaic member to a battery or an electronic component provided in one of the pair of casings. A contact suppressing member that suppresses contact between the one surface of the front and back surfaces of the one housing or the other surface of the front and back surfaces and the upper surface of the other housing in the overlapped state of the pair of housings. The mobile terminal device according to claim 1. The portable terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the contact suppression member is disposed at a position away from the photovoltaic member in a state where the pair of casings are overlapped. The portable terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the contact suppression member is disposed on an upper surface of the other casing. The said abutting suppression member is arrange | positioned among the said other housing | casings in the position on the opposite side to the said hinge part rather than the said photovoltaic member in the said overlapping state. Mobile terminal device. 6. The mobile terminal device according to claim 4, wherein the contact suppression member is disposed at a plurality of positions sandwiching an axis of the second rotation shaft in the overlapped state. The portable terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the battery is disposed in the other casing on which the photovoltaic member is not disposed.