Electronic device with thermal management system

• US 10,555,436 B1
• Filed: 09/02/2015
• Issued: 02/04/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/02/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Kalyanasundaram, Nagarajan, Cox, Keith, Ananny, John M., Kapoor, Gaurav, Heresztyn, Amaury J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Thomas C
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cai, Charles
• Application Number:
  US14/843,340
• Time in Patent Office: 1,616 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 13/04 involving the use of models or simulators
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/1917 using digital means
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 23/192 using a modification of the thermal impedance between a source and the load
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/206 comprising thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: H05K 7/20209 Thermal management, e.g. fan control

Abstract

An electronic device may have electrical components that produce heat during operation. An electronic device may also be heated by sunlight incident on the device. A thermal management model may take into account device structures such as housing materials in modeling the thermal behavior of the device. Temperature sensors in the device may be used to measure internal temperatures. The model may use temperature measurements and other data such as environmental data measured with sensors in predicting temperatures for one or more regions in a device. In response to prediction of a temperature greater than a predetermined threshold, the device may take remedial action to avoid overheating. Remedial action may include adjusting electrical components so that they produce less heat, activating a heat blocking component such as an electronic shutter, and reducing communications activity levels and other software activity levels.

Claims

1. A method for operating an electronic device, comprising:

with a sensor of the electronic device, gathering sensor data, wherein the sensor data is indicative of whether the electronic device is submerged in water;

with control circuitry in the electronic device, receiving information from external equipment over a wireless link while the electronic device is submerged in water;

with the control circuitry, implementing a thermal management model that uses the sensor data as an input and that produces a predicted device temperature based on the sensor data; and

with the control circuitry, managing heat production in the electronic device based on the predicted device temperature.

2. The method defined in claim 1 wherein the electronic device comprises a wristwatch.

3. The method defined in claim 2 wherein managing the heat production comprises adjusting an electrical component in the electronic device.

4. The method defined in claim 2 wherein managing the heat production comprises adjusting a wireless communications activity level.

5. The method defined in claim 4 wherein adjusting the wireless communications activity level comprises deferring a software download.

6. The method defined in claim 4 wherein adjusting the wireless communications activity level comprises deferring a data syncing operation.

7. The method defined in claim 6 wherein receiving the information from the external equipment comprises receiving the information from a cellular telephone.

8. The method defined in claim 7 wherein receiving the information from the cellular telephone comprises receiving information gathered using a sensor of the cellular telephone.

9. The method defined in claim 1 wherein receiving the information from the external equipment comprises receiving information gathered from an ambient light sensor of the external equipment.

10. A method of operating an electronic device to avoid overheating, comprising:

gathering data using at least one sensor that is indicative of whether the electronic device is in a face down or face up configuration, wherein the face down configuration and the face up configuration each has a different effect on heat received and dissipated through a face of the electronic device; and

managing heat production in the electronic device using control circuitry in the electronic device based at least partly on the gathered data.

11. The method defined in claim 10 wherein the electronic device has a display and a rear housing wall opposite the display, wherein the display faces upwards and the rear housing wall faces downwards when the electronic device is in the face up configuration, and wherein the display faces downwards and the rear housing wall faces upwards when the electronic device is in the face down configuration.

12. The method defined in claim 11 wherein the sensor comprises an accelerometer and wherein gathering the data comprises gathering accelerometer data indicative of whether the electronic device is in a face down or face up configuration.

13. The method defined in claim 11 wherein the sensor comprises a light-based proximity sensor and wherein gathering the data comprises gathering proximity sensor data with the light-based proximity sensor indicative of whether the electronic device is in the face up or face down configuration.

14. The method defined in claim 13 wherein the light-based proximity sensor is configured to receive sun light through a cover layer for the display.

15. The method defined in claim 14 wherein the control circuitry is configured to manage the heat production in the electronic device based on whether the electronic device is in the face up or face down configuration in addition to an amount of the sun light that is received by the light-based proximity sensor.

16. The method defined in claim 10 wherein the electronic device comprises a wristwatch and wherein managing the heat production comprises adjusting a wireless communications activity level for the electronic device.

17. An electronic device comprising:

a display;

a housing having a rear wall opposite the display and having a sidewall configured to receive a wrist strap;

a sensor, wherein the sensor is configured to gather sensor data indicative of whether the electronic device is in an off-wrist or on-wrist configuration, and wherein the sensor comprises a sensor selected from the group consisting of;

a temperature sensor incorporated into the rear wall, a temperature sensor incorporated into the wrist strap, a force sensor incorporated into the wrist strap, and a clasp sensor configured to determine whether the wrist strap is open; and

control circuitry coupled to the sensor and configured to manage heat production in the electronic device based at least partly on the gathered sensor data, wherein the sensor data identifies that the electronic device is in the on-wrist configuration when the temperature sensor detects an object at a temperature of a human body.

18. The electronic device defined in claim 17, wherein the electronic device comprises a wristwatch and wherein the control circuitry is configured to manage the heat production by adjusting an electrical component in the electronic device.

19. The electronic device defined in claim 17, wherein the electronic device comprises a wristwatch and wherein the control circuitry is configured to manage the heat production by adjusting a wireless communications activity level for the electronic device.

20. The electronic device defined in claim 17, wherein the sensor data identifies that the electronic device is in the off-wrist configuration when the clasp sensor determines that the wrist strap is open, and wherein the sensor data identifies that the electronic device is in the on-wrist configuration when the clasp sensor determines that the wrist strap is closed.