ELECTRONIC APPARTUS AND CONTROL METHOD THEREFOR

• US 20100033424A1
• Filed: 07/07/2008
• Published: 02/11/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/09/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Sony Corporation (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Kabasawa, Hidetoshi, Yamamoto, Kazuyuki, Hachisu, Kenji, Masuda, Takashi
• Granted Patent: US 8,902,155 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/156
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 17/28 Electromagnetic compasses with north seeking magnetic elements and having electric pick-offs G01C17/26
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3259 Power saving in cursor control device, e.g. mouse, joystick, trackball
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3296 by lowering the supply or operating voltage
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0346 with detection of the device orientation or free movement in a 3D space, e.g. 3D mice, 6-DOF [six degrees of freedom] pointers using gyroscopes, accelerometers or tilt-sensors
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0383 Signal control means within the pointing device
• CPC Class Codes: G08C 2201/10 Power supply of remote control devices
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/10 including a GPS signal receiver
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 2209/883 where the sensing device enters an active or inactive mode
• CPC Class Codes: H04Q 9/00 Arrangements in telecontrol or telemetry systems for selectively calling a substation from a main station, in which substation desired apparatus is selected for applying a control signal thereto or for obtaining measured values therefrom
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0254 detecting a user operation or a tactile contact or a motion of the device
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/028 switching on or off only a part of the equipment circuit blocks
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 in wireless communication networks

Abstract

An electronic apparatus and a control method are provided that are capable of reducing power consumption. The electronic apparatus having a normal mode in which first electric power is consumed and a power-saving mode in which second electric power lower than the first electric power is consumed includes a first sensor and a second sensor whose power consumption is lower than that of the first sensor. In the power-saving mode, supply of power to the first sensor is restricted, the second sensor is set to the power-saving mode, a trigger for restoring the power-saving mode to the normal mode is detected by using the second sensor set to the power-saving mode, and the power-saving mode is restored to the normal mode based on the detected trigger.

Claims

1-25. -25. (canceled)

26. An electronic apparatus including a normal mode in which first electric power is consumed and a power-saving mode in which second electric power lower than the first electric power is consumed, the electronic apparatus comprising:

a first sensor;

a second sensor whose power consumption is lower than that of the first sensor;

means for restricting, in the power-saving mode, supply of power to the first sensor and setting the second sensor to the power-saving mode;

means for detecting a trigger for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to the normal mode by using the second sensor set to the power-saving mode; and

means for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to the normal mode based on the detected trigger.

27. The electronic apparatus according to claim 26,

wherein the electronic apparatus is a pointing device for 3-dimensional operations or a remote controller for 3-dimensional operations,

wherein the first sensor is a gyro sensor, and

wherein the second sensor is an acceleration sensor.

28. The electronic apparatus according to claim 26,

wherein the electronic apparatus is a cellular phone or a portable terminal apparatus,

wherein the first sensor is a geomagnetic orientation sensor, and

wherein the second sensor is an acceleration sensor.

29. An electronic apparatus equipped with a plurality of sensors each including a power-saving condition, the electronic apparatus comprising:

means for performing control so that, in a power-saving mode of the electronic apparatus, a sensor whose power consumption in the power-saving condition is low out of the plurality of sensors is set to the power-saving condition, and supply of power to the remaining sensors is restricted;

means for detecting a trigger for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to a normal mode by using the sensor set to the power-saving condition in the power-saving mode of the electronic apparatus; and

means for causing the electronic apparatus to be restored from the power-saving mode to the normal mode based on the detected trigger.

30. The electronic apparatus according to claim 29,

wherein the electronic apparatus is a pointing device for 3-dimensional operations or a remote controller for 3-dimensional operations which is equipped with at least an acceleration sensor, and

wherein the sensor set to the power-saving condition in the power-saving mode is the acceleration sensor.

31. A method of controlling an electronic apparatus equipped with a plurality of sensors each including a power-saving condition, the method comprising:

performing control so that, in a power-saving mode of the electronic apparatus, a sensor whose power consumption in the power-saving condition is low out of the plurality of sensors is set to the power-saving condition, and supply of power to the remaining sensors is restricted;

detecting a trigger for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to a normal mode by using the sensor set to the power-saving condition in the power-saving mode; and

causing the electronic apparatus to be restored from the power-saving mode to the normal mode based on the detected trigger.

32. An electronic apparatus including a normal mode in which first electric power is consumed and a power-saving mode in which second electric power lower than the first electric power is consumed, comprising:

a first sensor including a first power-saving condition;

a second sensor including a second power-saving condition where power consumption is lower than that of the first sensor in the first power-saving condition;

means for restricting, in the power-saving mode, supply of power to the first sensor and setting the second sensor to the second power-saving condition;

means for detecting a trigger for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to the normal mode by using the second sensor set to the second power-saving condition; and

means for causing the power-saving mode to be restored to the normal mode based on the detected trigger.

33. An electronic apparatus, comprising:

a casing;

a detection section that includes a first sensor and a second sensor whose power consumption is lower than that of the first sensor, and detects a movement of the casing by using the first sensor and the second sensor;

a power supply section to supply power to the first sensor and the second sensor; and

a control means including a normal mode in which the power is supplied to the first sensor and the second sensor, a first power-saving mode in which the supply of the power to the first sensor is cut off and the power is supplied to the second sensor, and a second power-saving mode in which the supply of the power to the first sensor and the second sensor is cut off, for making transitions from the normal mode to the first power-saving mode and the second power-saving mode based on an output of the detection section.

34. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein the control means further includes a third power-saving mode in which the supply of the power from the power supply section to the control means is cut off.

35. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein the control means makes a transition from the normal mode to the first power-saving mode when judging, based on the output of the detection section, that the casing has not been operated over a first time period.

36. The electronic apparatus according to claim 35,

wherein the control means makes a transition from the first power-saving mode to the second power-saving mode when judging, based on the output of the detection section, that the casing has not been operated over a second time period longer than the first time period.

37. The electronic apparatus according to claim 34,

wherein the control means

makes a transition from the normal mode to the first power-saving mode when judging, based on the output of the detection section, that the casing has not been operated over a first time period,

makes a transition from the first power-saving mode to the second power-saving mode when judging that the casing has not been operated over a second time period longer than the first time period, and

makes a transition from the second power-saving mode to the third power-saving mode when judging that the casing has not been operated over a third time period longer than the second time period.

38. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33, further comprising

a restoration means including a first restoration mode for causing, based on an output of the second sensor, the control means to be restored from the first power-saving mode to the normal mode.

39. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein, in the first-power-saving mode, the second sensor is in a power-saving condition.

40. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein the control means includes a microprocessor unit (MPU), and

wherein, in the second power-saving mode, the microprocessor unit is in a power-saving condition.

41. The electronic apparatus according to claim 38, further comprising

a first input operation section to which an input operation is made by a user,

wherein the restoration means further includes a second restoration mode for causing, based on the input operation to the first input operation section, the control means to be restored from the second power-saving mode to the normal mode.

42. The electronic apparatus according to claim 34, further comprising:

a second input operation section cable of being operated by a user; and

a restoration means including a third restoration mode for causing, based on an input operation to the second input operation section, the control means to be restored from the third power-saving mode to the normal mode.

43. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein the electronic apparatus is a pointing device for 3-dimensional operations or a remote controller for 3-dimensional operations,

wherein the first sensor is a gyro sensor, and

wherein the second sensor is an acceleration sensor.

44. The electronic apparatus according to claim 33,

wherein the electronic apparatus is a cellular phone or a portable terminal apparatus,

wherein the first sensor is a geomagnetic orientation sensor, and

wherein the second sensor is an acceleration sensor.

45. A method of controlling an electronic apparatus including a first sensor and a second sensor whose power consumption is lower than that of the first sensor, the method comprising:

causing, when the electronic apparatus has not been operated over a first time period, the electronic apparatus to make a transition from a normal mode in which power is supplied to the first sensor and the second sensor to a first power-saving mode in which the supply of the power to the first sensor is cut off;

causing, when the electronic apparatus has not been operated over a second time period longer than the first time period, the electronic apparatus to make a transition to a second power-saving mode in which the supply of the power to the first sensor and the second sensor is cut off; and

restoring, when an input operation to the electronic apparatus is detected while the second power-saving mode is being executed, the electronic apparatus from the second power-saving mode to a normal mode in which the power is supplied to the first sensor and the second sensor.