ROUTER DEVICE

• US 20100199079A1
• Filed: 01/22/2010
• Published: 08/05/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Buffalo Incorporated (Melco Holdings Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Buffalo Incorporated (Melco Holdings Incorporated)
• Inventors: HIBI, Akihito, TAMURA, Yoshiteru
• Application Number:
  US12/692,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20100199079A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 713/2
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/12 Arrangements for remote connection or disconnection of substations or of equipment thereof
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/50 in wire-line communication networks, e.g. low power modes or reduced link rate

Abstract

The router device is able to use either battery power or a commercial power supply, and when using battery power detects battery voltage and indicates the level of battery voltage with an LED. When the router device is using battery power, writing of the firmware is disabled. Further, writing of settings information write is disabled when battery voltage goes below a second threshold value; and supply of power to the CPU is subsequently interrupted when battery voltage goes below a first threshold value. In this way the router device of the invention avoids problems occurring due to a drop in battery voltage when using battery power.

Claims

1. A router device comprising:

a battery connection portion adapted to connect to a battery and to receive supply of power from the connected battery to the router device;

a detecting portion adapted to detect output voltage of the battery;

an indicator portion adapted to indicate the level of detected output voltage; and

a power interrupt portion adapted to interrupt subsequent power supply from the battery when the detected output voltage has fallen below a first threshold value.

2. The router device according to claim 1 further comprising a settings information write-enable portion for enabling writing of settings information relating to the router device to a memory medium that has been provided to the router device, doing so only in instances where the detected output voltage is not smaller than a second threshold value.

3. The router device according to claim 1 further comprising an adapter connection portion adapted to connect to an AC adaptor and to receive supply of power from the connected AC adaptor.

4. The router device according to claim 3 further comprising

a firmware write-enable portion for enabling writing of firmware to a memory medium that has been provided to the router device, doing so only in instances where power is being supplied to the router device from the AC adaptor.

5. The router device according to claim 1:

wherein the power interrupt portion includes a CPU that, executing prescribed software, interrupts the power supply;

and further comprising a power interrupt circuit that, using hardware, interrupts power supply from the battery once the detected output voltage has fallen below a third threshold voltage smaller than the first threshold voltage.

6. The router device according to claim 1, wherein once the power interrupt portion has interrupted the power supply, a prescribed manual operation on the router device is required to restore the power supply.

7. The router device according to claim 1, wherein the indicator portion performs the indication using a light-emitting device adapted to emit light of color according to the level of the output voltage.

8. The router device according to claim 1 further comprising a calibration portion adapted to perform calibration of output voltage detected by the detection portion.

9. The router device according to claim 1 further comprising:

a storage portion in which normal firmware subject to updating and backup firmware not subject to updating are stored so as to be independently runnable at startup of the router device;

a decision portion adapted to decide at startup whether the normal firmware is runnable; and

a run portion that run the backup firmware instead of the normal firmware according to the decision of the decision portion.

10. A router device comprising:

a power supply portion using battery and adapted to supply the router device with power for operation;

a storage portion in which normal firmware subject to updating and backup firmware not subject to updating are stored so as to be independently runnable at startup of the router device;

an update portion adapted to perform updating of the normal firmware;

a decision portion adapted to decide at startup whether the normal firmware is runnable; and

a run portion that run the backup firmware instead of the normal firmware according to the decision of the decision portion.