JP3119565B2 - Wireless communication device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a radio communication apparatus, and more particularly to a radio communication apparatus in which a main power supply for supplying power to the apparatus main body by power control is reduced.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A radio communication apparatus receives a radio wave emitted from a base station, acquires a control channel transmitted on the radio wave, and enters a standby state in which a call from the base station can always be received. enter.

[0003] This standby state must be a state in which the radio communication apparatus can receive radio waves from the base station as necessary and sufficiently.

[0004] On the other hand, a moving radio communication apparatus does not always receive radio waves from a base station stably. For example, if you move to an area beyond the reach of radio waves from the base station, or move to a place where radio waves are blocked, such as underground, you cannot receive radio waves from the base station and leave the standby state. I do. This is called "out of range."

As described above, when the wireless communication device leaves the standby state, the wireless communication device performs a so-called channel scan for switching the reception frequency and acquiring another control channel.

[0006] Therefore, a radio communication device outside the area of the base station repeats the channel scan until it moves into the area where radio waves can be received.

Conventionally, when a wireless communication apparatus is out of the service area and a channel scan is repeated for a certain period of time, the channel scan is stopped and the power of only the receiving unit is turned off for a certain period of time.

When the power-off state continues for a predetermined time, the power supply to the receiving unit is turned on again to restart the channel scan. When the wireless communication apparatus is out of the service area thereafter, the power supply of the receiving unit is turned off. On / off control was repeated.

[0009]

In this conventional wireless communication apparatus, while the power supply to only the receiving section is cut off as much as possible while the wireless communication apparatus is out of the service area, the power supply to the entire apparatus is always turned on. Had become.

Therefore, even if the wireless communication device is out of the service area, each circuit except the receiving unit in the device consumes current. If the out-of-service state persists, the consumption of the battery of the power supply is promoted. There is a problem that the usable time of the wireless communication device is reduced.

An object of the present invention is to temporarily turn off the power supply of the apparatus main body without any operation by the user when the state where the wireless communication apparatus is out of the service area is maintained, thereby enabling the main power supply which is the power supply to the apparatus main body to be turned off. An object of the present invention is to provide a wireless communication device that reduces battery consumption.

[0012]

According to the present invention, detecting means for detecting that it is impossible to receive a radio wave from a base station, and this detecting means detects that the radio wave cannot be received. Measuring means for starting measurement at the same time, and the device main body
Required power from a backup power supply separate from the power supply to the
Is supplied, and when the measured value of the measuring means exceeds a preset value, the apparatus power control means for cutting off the power supply to the apparatus body, and the apparatus power control means
To start measurement when power supply to the main unit is cut off
Means, and the time measured by the timing means is set in advance.
When the time exceeds the set time, the device power control means
Wireless communication device is obtained which is characterized that you restart the power supply to the apparatus main body.

[0013]

[0014] Further, the measuring means may instruct the apparatus power control means to instruct the apparatus power control means to cut off the power supply to the apparatus body when the number of repetitions of disconnection / connection of the power supply to the receiving unit exceeds a preset number. Means, or at the time when the measurement time from the first interruption of the power supply to the receiving unit exceeds a preset time, instructs the apparatus power control means to cut off the power supply to the apparatus main body. It may be a timing means.

[0015]

[0016]

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a power control section in one embodiment of the wireless communication apparatus of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, this embodiment has a receiving unit 1 for receiving radio waves from a base station through an antenna,
A control unit 2 for controlling the power supply to each circuit in response to a reception signal 11 from the control unit, a reception unit power supply unit 3 for supplying power to the reception unit 1 by a control signal 13 from the control unit 2, The power is supplied from a backup power supply 6 different from the main power supply (main battery) 8 for supplying power to the main body, and the power supply to the apparatus main body is turned on and off by operating a control signal 12 from the control unit 2 or operating the power switch 5. Power supply control section 4 for controlling the power supply, and apparatus power supply section 7 for supplying power from the main power supply 8 to the apparatus main body in accordance with the control signal 14 from the apparatus power supply control section 4
And

Even when the apparatus main body is in the power-off state, if the backup power supply 6 has a voltage enough to drive the apparatus power control section 4, only the apparatus power control section 4 is turned on. ing.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing the ON / OFF state of the power supply of the receiving unit and the ON / OFF state of the power supply of the apparatus in FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation procedure of the present embodiment.

The control unit 2 determines whether or not the own radio communication device is out of the service area based on the reception signal 11 from the reception unit 1 (step S1).

Here, if it is out of the service area (YES in S1), the number of times N1 to repeat the channel scan operation (S4) and the receiver power-off operation (S8) is set (S2), and the timer for the channel scan operation time T1 is set. Perform (S3).

Then, a channel scan operation is performed (S
4) If a control channel can be acquired by receiving a radio wave from the base station (YES in S5), the channel scanning operation time T1 is reset (S17) and the apparatus enters a standby state (S18).

Further, the radio wave from the base station cannot be received, and therefore, the control channel cannot be obtained (S5).
(NO in S6) When the channel scan operation time T1 has elapsed (YES in S6). After setting the timer of the receiving unit power-off continuation time T2 (S7), the receiving unit power-off operation is performed (S8).

Then, if the receiving unit power-off continuation time T2 elapses in this state (YES in S9), the power of the receiving unit 1 is turned on (S10), and the value of the number N1 is decremented by one (S10).
11).

This operation is repeated N1 times, and when N1 = 0 (YES in S12), the power OFF duration T
3 is set as a timer (S13), and the control unit 2
Instructs the apparatus power supply control unit 4 to turn off the apparatus main body power and notifies the set apparatus main body power off duration T3.

When the device power supply control unit 4 receives the instruction and sends a control signal 14 to the device power supply unit 7, the device power supply unit 7 immediately turns off the power supply to the device body (S14).
In this state, when the apparatus main body power-off continuation time T3 elapses, the power supply to the apparatus main body is turned on again (S1).
6).

The power-off duration T3
If the user operates the power switch 5 before elapses,
Power supply to the apparatus main body can be forcibly turned on.

In the above description, the counting means performs S3
The power supply to the apparatus main body is turned off by repeating the procedure from step S11 to S11 N1 times, but the power supply to the apparatus main body is turned off after a lapse of a predetermined time by using a time measuring means as a measuring means. May be.

[0031]

As described above, the present invention provides a detecting means for detecting that it is impossible to receive a radio wave from a base station, and a measurement when the detecting means detects that a radio wave cannot be received. The wireless communication device is out of the service area by providing the measuring device for starting the wireless communication device and the device power control device for cutting off the power supply to the device main body when the measured value of the measuring device exceeds a preset value. Since the power of the apparatus main body is temporarily turned off without the user's operation when is continued, there is an effect that the consumption of the main power supply battery which is the power supply to the apparatus main body can be reduced.

The apparatus further comprises a second timer for starting the measurement when the power supply to the apparatus is cut off by the power supply control means. When the time measured by the second clock exceeds a predetermined time. By restarting the power supply to the device main body, the power supply to the device main body is turned on again when a time when the reception state of the radio wave changes and the signal becomes receivable elapses. There is an effect that the wireless communication device can be placed in a standby state after the time of.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a power control part in a wireless communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a timing chart showing the ON / OFF state of the power supply of the receiving unit and the ON / OFF state of the power supply of the apparatus in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating an operation procedure of the embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 receiving unit 2 control unit 3 receiving unit power supply unit 4 device power control unit 5 power switch 6 backup power supply 7 device power supply unit 8 main power supply 11 reception signal 12, 13, 14 control signal N1 number of times T1 channel scan operation time T2 reception Unit power off duration T3 Equipment main unit power off duration

Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-7-107550 (JP, A) JP-A-62-295520 (JP, A) JP-A-7-20964 (JP, A) JP-A-3-94839 (JP) , U) Japanese Utility Model 58-166157 (JP, U)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] A detecting means for detecting that it is impossible to receive a radio wave from a base station; a measuring means for starting measurement when the detecting means detects that the radio wave cannot be received; Required power is supplied from a backup power supply different from the power supply to the apparatus main body, and apparatus power control means for cutting off the power supply to the apparatus main body when the measured value by the measuring means exceeds a preset value. To the receiver
The number of repetitions of disconnection and connection of power supply of
When the number of times is exceeded, the device
Timing means for issuing a power supply cutoff instruction to the body and starting measurement, and when the time measured by the time means exceeds a preset time, the device power control means supplies power to the device main body. A wireless communication device for restarting.