Power Supply Circuit for Selectively Supplying Power to a Vehicle Accessory
First Claim
1. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
- a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit comprising a microprocessor for monitoring a voltage level of the battery and for selectively activating said switch to supply power from the battery to the accessory in response to a sequence or combination of events.
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Accused Products
Abstract
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a power supply circuit is provided for selectively supplying power to a vehicle accessory. The power supply circuit may be comprised of a switch coupled to a power line from the vehicle battery and to a power input of the accessory, and a control circuit coupled to the switch. The control circuit may monitor the battery voltage and selectively supply power from the battery to the accessory in response to the battery voltage. The control circuit may supply power from the battery to the accessory when the battery voltage changes at least a predetermined amount over a time period. The control circuit may comprise a microprocessor that adaptively learns signatures in the battery voltage occurring when the engine is running in order to provide power from the battery to the accessory as if the power were supplied from the ignition.
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Citations
38 Claims
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1. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit comprising a microprocessor for monitoring a voltage level of the battery and for selectively activating said switch to supply power from the battery to the accessory in response to a sequence or combination of events. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit monitors a voltage level of the battery and selectively supplies power from the battery to the accessory in response to the voltage level of the battery, wherein said control circuit supplies power from the battery to the accessory when the voltage level of the battery increases at least a predetermined amount. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit monitors a voltage level of the battery and selectively supplies power from the battery to the accessory in response to the voltage level of the battery, wherein said control circuit supplies power from the battery to the accessory when the voltage level of the battery decreases from a nominal voltage level by a first predetermined amount to a lower voltage level and subsequently increases a second predetermined amount to a higher voltage within a predetermined time period. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
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26. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit monitors a voltage level of the battery, computes an average of the battery voltage level, and selectively supplies power from the battery to the accessory in response to the averaged voltage level of the battery. - View Dependent Claims (27, 28)
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29. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery of the vehicle and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit monitors a voltage level of the battery and selectively supplies power from the battery to the accessory in response to the voltage level of the battery, wherein said control circuit disrupts a supply of power from the battery to the accessory when the voltage level of the battery decreases from a first voltage level by at least a predetermined amount to a lower voltage level.
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30. A power supply circuit for selectively supplying power to an accessory in a vehicle, said power supply circuit comprising:
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a switch coupled to a power line from a battery and to a power input of the accessory; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch, said control circuit monitors a voltage level of the battery and selectively supplies and disrupts power from the battery to the accessory in response to at least two of the following inputs in addition to a time duration of detected events;
a voltage level of the battery;
a vibration sensor output signal;
a light level within the vehicle;
noise on the power line from the battery;
a door open signal;
a timer signal;
a signal read from the vehicle accessory; and
a dome light on signal. - View Dependent Claims (31, 32, 33, 34, 35)
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36. An accessory for mounting in a vehicle comprising:
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a power source;
an electrical component;
a switch coupled between said electrical component and said power source; and
a control circuit coupled to said switch and selectively supplies and disrupts power from said power source to said electrical component in response to at least one of the following inputs;
a motion sensor output signal;
a vibration sensor output signal;
a light level within the vehicle; and
a dome light ON signal. - View Dependent Claims (37, 38)
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Specification