ELECTRONIC DEVICE

• US 20170179734A1
• Filed: 12/15/2016
• Published: 06/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: SHIBA, Hidenori
• Granted Patent: US 10,644,524 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00034 Charger exchanging data with an electronic device, i.e. telephone, whose internal battery is under charge
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00045 Authentication, i.e. circuits for checking compatibility between one component, e.g. a battery or a battery charger, and another component, e.g. a power source
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0045 concerning the insertion or the connection of the batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/007 Regulation of charging or discharging current or voltage

Abstract

An electronic device includes a charge unit that charges a battery included in a battery device with power from a connected external device, an authentication unit that authenticates the battery device, a storage unit that stores a last authentication result by the authentication unit of the battery device, and a control unit that controls a charging method by the charge unit based on the authentication result stored in the storage unit and a type of the external device when a voltage level of the battery reaches a first voltage level.

Claims

1. An electronic device comprising:

a charge unit that charges a battery included in a battery device with power from a connected external device;

an authentication unit that authenticates the battery device;

a storage unit that stores a last authentication result by the authentication unit of the battery device; and

a control unit that controls a charging method by the charge unit based on the authentication result stored in the storage unit and a type of the external device when a voltage level of the battery reaches a first voltage level.

2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit causes the charge unit to start charging at a second current level higher than a first current level if the authentication result stored in the storage unit indicates authentication success, and the type of the external device is a first type.

3. The electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the control unit controls a charging method by the charge unit in accordance with a result of data communication with the external device if the authentication result stored in the storage unit indicates the authentication success, and the type of the external device is a second type different from the first type.

4. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the control unit stops charging the battery device by the charge unit if the authentication result stored in the storage unit indicates the authentication success, and the type of the external device is different from the first type and the second type.

5. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the control unit performs data communication with the external device in accordance with a fact that a voltage level of the battery reaches a second voltage level higher than the first voltage level if the type of the external device is the second type.

6. The electronic device according to claim 5, wherein the control unit causes the charge unit to charge the battery at a second current level higher than a first current level if it is determined, as a result of the data communication, that the external device copes with charging at the second current level.

7. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit performs an authentication process of the battery device in accordance with a fact that the voltage level of the battery reaches a third voltage level higher than the first voltage level, and controls the charging method by the charge unit based on an authentication result of the authentication process and the type of the external device if the last authentication result is not stored in the storage unit.

8. The electronic device according to claim 7, wherein the control unit causes the charge unit to start charging in the battery at a second current level higher than the first current level if the authentication process succeeds, and the type of the external device is a first type.

9. The electronic device according to claim 8, wherein the control unit controls a charging method by the charge unit in accordance with a result of data communication with the external device if the authentication process succeeds, and the type of the external device is a second type different from the first type.

10. The electronic device according to claim 9, wherein the control unit causes the charge unit to charge the battery at the second current level if it is determined that the external device copes with charging at the second current level by the data communication.

11. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein the control unit stops charging the battery by the charge unit if the authentication process fails or the type of the external device is neither the first type nor the second type.

12. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the control unit stops charging the battery by the charge unit regardless of the type of the external device if the authentication result indicates that an authentication process fails.

13. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the authentication result stored in the storage unit is deleted in accordance with removal of the battery device.

14. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the external device is an external device complying with a USB standard, and the first type is a DCP or CDP, and the second type is an SDP.

15. A method comprising;

controlling a charge unit that charges a battery included in a battery device with power from a connected external device to an electronic device;

authenticating the battery device;

storing a last authentication result by the authentication unit of the battery device in a memory; and

controlling a charging method by the charge unit based on the authentication result stored in the memory and a type of the external device when a voltage level of the battery reaches a first voltage level.