Free-fall detection device and free-fall protection system for a portable electronic apparatus
DCFirst Claim
1. A free-fall detection device for a portable apparatus comprising:
- an acceleration sensor generating first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of a sensed acceleration along a respective detection axis; and
a free-fall detection module coupled to said acceleration sensor, wherein said free-fall detection module is configured to carry out a comparison between each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals and a respective acceleration threshold, and to generate a free-fall detection signal according to the result of all three comparisons, wherein said free-fall detection signal has a first logic value indicative of a free-fall condition in the event that said first, second and third acceleration signals are all simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold.
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Abstract
In an integrated free-fall detection device for a portable apparatus an acceleration sensor generates acceleration signals correlated to the components of the acceleration of the portable apparatus along three detection axes. A dedicated purely hardware circuit connected to the acceleration sensor generates a free-fall detection signal in a continuous way and in real-time. The free-fall detection signal has a first logic value in the event that the acceleration signals are simultaneously lower than a respective acceleration threshold, and is sent to a processor unit of the portable apparatus as an interrupt signal to activate appropriate actions of protection for the portable apparatus. Preferably, the acceleration sensor and the dedicated purely hardware circuit are integrated in a single chip and the acceleration sensor is made as a MEMS.
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Citations
27 Claims
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1. A free-fall detection device for a portable apparatus comprising:
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an acceleration sensor generating first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of a sensed acceleration along a respective detection axis; and a free-fall detection module coupled to said acceleration sensor, wherein said free-fall detection module is configured to carry out a comparison between each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals and a respective acceleration threshold, and to generate a free-fall detection signal according to the result of all three comparisons, wherein said free-fall detection signal has a first logic value indicative of a free-fall condition in the event that said first, second and third acceleration signals are all simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A free-fall protection system for a portable apparatus, comprising:
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(a) a free-fall detection device configured to issue a warning signal upon detecting a free-fall condition of said portable apparatus, including; (i) an acceleration sensor generating first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of a sensed acceleration along a respective detection axis; and (ii) a free-fall detection module coupled to said acceleration sensor, to carry out a comparison between each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals and a respective acceleration threshold, and to generate a free-fall detection signal according to the result of all three comparisons for generating a free-fall detection signal, wherein said free-fall detection signal has a first logic value indicative of a free-fall condition in the event that said first, second and third acceleration signals are all simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold; and (b) a protection device connected to said free-fall detection device and configured to activate protection actions for said portable apparatus upon receiving said warning signal. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A portable apparatus, comprising:
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(a) a free-fall detection device configured to issue a warning signal upon detecting a free-fall condition of said portable apparatus, comprising; (i) an acceleration sensor generating first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of a sensed acceleration along a respective detection axis; and (ii) a free-fall detection module coupled to said acceleration sensor, to carry out a comparison between each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals and a respective acceleration threshold, and to generate a free-fall detection signal according to the result of all three comparisons for generating a free-fall detection signal, wherein said free-fall detection signal has a first logic value indicative of a free-fall condition in the event that said first, second and third acceleration signals are all simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold; and (b) a protection device connected to said free-fall detection device and configured to activate protection actions for said portable apparatus upon receiving said warning signal. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22)
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23. A data storage device comprising:
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(I) a data storage medium; (II) a read/write head associated with said data storage medium; and (Ill) a free-fall protection system comprising; (a) a free-fall detection device configured to issue a warning signal upon detecting a free-fall condition of said data-storage device, comprising; (i) an acceleration sensor generating first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of a sensed acceleration along a respective detection axis; and (ii) a free-fall detection module coupled to said acceleration sensor to carry out a comparison between each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals and a respective acceleration threshold and to generate a free-fall detection signal, wherein said free-fall detection signal has a first logic value indicative of a free-fall condition in the event that said first, second and third acceleration signals are all simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold; and (b) a protection device connected to said free-fall detection device and configured to activate protection actions for said data storage device upon receiving said warning signal. - View Dependent Claims (24)
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25. A method for protecting a portable electronic apparatus from a free-fall event comprising:
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detecting a free-fall condition of said portable electronic apparatus based on an acceleration of said portable electronic apparatus;
wherein said detecting a free-fall condition comprises;acquiring first, second, and third acceleration signals correlated to a respective component of said acceleration along a respective detection axis; comparing each one of said first, second, and third acceleration signals with a respective acceleration threshold; detecting said free-fall condition according to the result of all three comparisons; activating protection actions for said portable apparatus upon detection of said free-fall condition; and generating a free-fall detection signal, wherein said free-fall condition is detected in the event that all three said acceleration signals are simultaneously lower than the respective acceleration threshold. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27)
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Specification