COMPUTER SYSTEM AND CONTROL METHOD THEREOF

• US 20080082918A1
• Filed: 06/19/2007
• Published: 04/03/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/29/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: HWANG, Sang-yeon
• Application Number:
  US11/764,974
• Publication Number:
  US 20080082918A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/700
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/30 Means for acting in the event of power-supply failure or interruption, e.g. power-supply fluctuations for resetting only G06F1/24

Abstract

A computer system including at least one device; a battery unit which possesses a predetermined battery capacity and supplies power to the device; a monitoring unit which monitors a battery remaining capacity of the battery unit; an alarm informing unit which generates an alarm related to the battery unit; and a controller which sets up an alarm level corresponding to the battery capacity of the battery unit, and controls the alarm informing unit to generate the alarm to inform that the battery unit is short of the battery remaining capacity if the battery remaining capacity of the battery unit monitored by the monitoring unit is smaller than the alarm level.

Claims

1. A computer system, comprising:

at least one device;

a battery unit having a predetermined battery capacity to supply power to the device;

a monitoring unit to monitor remaining power of the battery unit;

an alarm informing unit to generate an alarm related to the battery unit; and

a controller to set up an alarm level based on the battery capacity of the battery unit and to control the alarm informing unit to generate the alarm to inform a user that the remaining power of the battery unit is low if the remaining power of the battery unit monitored by the monitoring unit is lower than the alarm level.

2. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein the controller sets up the alarm level as a ratio of a predetermined remaining power to the battery capacity of the battery unit and compares the alarm level with a ratio of the monitored remaining power to the battery capacity.

3. The computer system according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined remaining power corresponds to a minimum power amount required for the computer system to move from a normal mode to a standby mode stably.

4. The computer system according to claim 1, further comprising:

a user input unit to receive a user input related to setting the alarm level;

wherein the controller sets up the alarm level according to the user input received through the user input unit.

5. The computer system according to claim 4, further comprising:

a display unit; and

a GUI generation unit to generate a graphical user interface displayed on the display unit,

wherein the controller controls the GUI generation unit to generate the graphical user interface to set the alarm level.

6. The computer system according to claim 5, wherein the graphical user interface comprises an item corresponding to at least one of the battery capacity of the battery unit, a predetermined remaining power, and the alarm level.

7. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein if the battery capacity of the battery unit changes, the controller sets up the alarm level corresponding to the changed battery capacity again.

8. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein:

the alarm informing unit comprises at least one of a message display unit and a sound output unit; and

the controller controls the message display unit and/or the sound output unit of the alarm informing unit to display an alarm message and/or to output an alarm sound.

18. The computer system according to claim 1, wherein the controller sets up a plurality of alarm levels, each corresponding to a different ratio of a predetermined remaining power to the battery capacity.

19. The computer system according to claim 2, wherein the predetermined remaining power is approximately 1 Wh.

9. A control method of a computer system comprising at least one device and a battery unit having a predetermined battery capacity and supplying power to the device, the method comprising:

setting up an alarm level based on the battery capacity of the battery unit;

monitoring a remaining power of the battery unit; and

generating an alarm to inform a user that the battery unit is low on power if the monitored remaining power of the battery unit is lower than the alarm level.

10. The control method according to claim 9, wherein:

the setting up of the alarm level comprises setting up the alarm level as a ratio of a predetermined remaining power to the battery capacity; and

the generating of the alarm comprises comparing the alarm level with a ratio of the monitored battery remaining capacity to the battery capacity.

11. The control method according to claim 10, wherein the predetermined remaining power corresponds to a minimum power amount required for the computer system to move from a normal mode to a standby mode stably.

12. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising:

receiving a user input related to a setting of the alarm level; and

setting up the alarm level according to the user input.

13. The control method according to claim 12, wherein the setting up the alarm level comprises displaying a graphical user interface to set the alarm level.

14. The control method according to claim 13, wherein the graphical user interface comprises an item corresponding to at least one of the battery capacity of the battery unit, a predetermined remaining power, and the alarm level.

15. The control method according to claim 9, further comprising setting up the alarm level corresponding to a changed battery capacity again if the battery capacity of the battery unit changes.

16. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the generating the alarm comprises displaying an alarm message and/or outputting an alarm sound.

17. The control method according to claim 9, wherein the setting of the alarm level comprises setting a plurality of alarm levels, each corresponding to a different ratio of a predetermined remaining power to the battery capacity.

20. A computer system comprising:

a battery monitoring unit to monitor the remaining power of a battery coupled to the computer system and to compare the remaining power with an alarm level varying based upon a ratio of a predetermined remaining power level to the capacity of the battery; and

an alarm generation unit to generate an alarm if the result of the battery monitoring unit'"'"'s comparison indicates that the percentage of remaining power is lower than the alarm level.

21. The computer system according to claim 20, wherein the predetermined remaining power level is determined by a user.

22. The computer system according to claim 20, further comprising a plurality of alarm levels, each alarm level corresponding to a ratio of a different predetermined remaining power level to the battery capacity.

23. A mobile device comprising:

a monitor to monitor a remaining power of a battery; and

an alarm generator to generate an alarm if a ratio of remaining power to the capacity of the battery, which varies based on the capacity, is lower than an alarm level.

24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the ratio is determined to maintain a predetermined remaining power to be substantially constant.