Device combination system including plurality of devices and method of detecting a state of a battery mounted on a power supply device supplying power to said plurality of devices

• US 7,521,894 B2
• Filed: 03/23/2005
• Issued: 04/21/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 03/29/2004
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Horii, Hirofumi, Watanabe, Mikio
• Primary Examiner(s): DIAO, M BAYE
• Application Number:
  US11/086,908
• Publication Number:
  US 20050212490A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,490 Days
• Field of Search: 320/116, 320/132, 320/149, 320/106, 320/135, 396/277, 396/303, 396/52, 429/23, 348/207, 348/222.1
• US Class Current: 320/132
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0048 Detection of remaining charge capacity or state of charge [SOC]

Abstract

In a device combination system of the present invention, END setting parameters are read from a main body. A power supply converter and END setting parameters are obtained from a camera head and a battery. An END setting value is set according to these END parameters. A CPU determines whether or not the battery being mounted is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level. With the above arrangement, there is provided a device combination system in which a battery check function provided in a power supply device works normally regardless of a type of a device mounted on the power supply device.

Claims

1. A device combination system, comprising:

a plurality of devices each including a circuit operated by being supplied with power,

wherein said system comprises such a structure that a battery is mounted on at least one power supply device and a plurality of devices including the power supply device, which are optionally selected from the plurality of devices, are combined with each other and operated by being supplied with power from the power supply device,

wherein the power supply device comprises;

a setting section to set an END setting value, which determines whether the battery mounted on the power supply device is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level, the END setting value being set according to parameters received in said setting section and transmitted from the combination of the plurality of devices;

a detecting section to detect the unusable state of the battery using the END setting value set by the setting section as a criterion of determination; and

a memory device which stores said parameters which are transmitted from said plurality of devices,

wherein said setting section comprises a central processing unit (CPU) which is connected to said memory device via a bus, the respective parameters of said plurality of devices being written to the memory device via said bus under control of said CPU.

2. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the parameters transmitted from said plurality of devices include parameters relating to a respective power consumption for said plurality of devices.

6. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of detachable devices.

7. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of physically detachable devices which are independently operable separate from one another.

8. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of replaceable and detachable devices.

9. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

at least one detachably mounted device.

10. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein the power supply device comprises:

at least one mount contact for detachably mounting and electrically connecting at least one of said plurality of devices to said power supply device.

20. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein said power supply device comprises a main body and said plurality of devices includes another device which is mounted on said main body.

21. A device combination system according to claim 20, wherein said main body comprises a memory device storing a battery check program comprising an END setting block corresponding to said setting section and an END determination block corresponding to said detecting section.

22. A device combination system according to claim 21, wherein said power supply device further comprises a power supply section which includes a power supply converter for supplying power from said battery to said main body, and a power supply management section which detects a voltage input to said power supply converter.

23. A device combination system according to claim 22, wherein said main body comprises said central processing unit (CPU), said CPU determining whether said battery is in the unusable state based on said input voltage detected by said power supply management section.

24. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein said parameters transmitted to said power supply device comprise parameters respectively relating to a power consumption of said plurality of devices.

25. A device combination system according to claim 1, wherein said power supply device comprises one of a camera and a mobile phone.

3. A device combination system comprising:

a plurality of devices each including a circuit operated by being supplied with power,

wherein said system comprises such a structure that a battery is mounted on at least one power supply device and a plurality of devices including the power supply device, which are optionally selected from the plurality of devices, are combined with each other and operated by being supplied with power from the power supply device, and

wherein the power supply device comprises;

a setting section to set a determination algorithm, which determines whether the battery mounted on the power supply device is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level, the determination algorithm being set according to parameters received in said setting section and transmitted from the combination of the plurality of devices;

a detecting section to detect the unusable state of the battery according to the determination algorithm set by the setting section; and

a memory device which stores said parameters which are transmitted from said plurality of devices,

wherein said setting section comprises a central processing unit (CPU) which is connected to said memory device via a bus, the respective parameters of said plurality of devices being written to the memory device via said bus under control of said CPU.

4. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the setting section sets the determination algorithm and sets timing of determination at which the unusable state of the battery is determined according to the combination of the plurality of devices, and

wherein the detecting section detects the unusable state of the battery at the timing of determination set by the setting section according to the determination algorithm set by the setting section.

5. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of devices have parameters relating to their respective power consumption, the combined devices transmit their respective parameters to the power supply device.

11. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of detachable devices.

12. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of physically detachable devices which are independently operable separate from one another.

13. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

a plurality of replaceable and detachable devices.

14. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of devices comprises:

at least one detachably mounted device.

15. A device combination system according to claim 3, wherein the power supply device comprises:

at least one mount contact for detachably mounting and electrically connecting at least one of said plurality of devices to said power supply device.

16. A device combination system comprising:

a plurality of replaceable and detachable devices, wherein at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices includes at least one power supply device, and wherein the plurality of replaceable and detachable devices are combined with each other and operated by being supplied with power from the power supply device,

wherein the power supply device comprises;

a setting section that sets an END setting value,

wherein the setting section determines whether a battery mounted on the power supply device is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level,

wherein the setting section receives parameters transmitted from said combination of plurality of devices and based on said parameters determines a power consumption parameter of each of the combination of the plurality of replaceable and detachable devices, and

wherein the setting section sets the END setting value based on at least the determined power consumption parameter of each of the combination of the plurality of replaceable and detachable devices,

a detecting section that detects the unusable state of the battery using the END setting value set by the setting section as a criterion of determination; and

a memory device which stores said parameters which are transmitted from said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices,

wherein said setting section comprises a central processing unit (CPU) which is connected to said memory device via a bus, the respective parameters of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices being written to the memory device via said bus under control of said CPU.

17. A device combination system according to claim 16, wherein the power supply device further comprises:

at least one mount contact for replaceably and detachably mounting and electrically connecting at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices to said power supply device.

18. A device combination system according to claim 17, wherein the setting section detects which of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices are mounted and electrically connected to said at least one mount contact.

19. A method of determining whether a battery which is mounted on a power supply device of a device combination system is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level, wherein the device combination system comprises a plurality of replaceable and detachable devices, wherein at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices includes at least one power supply device, and wherein the plurality of replaceable end detachable devices are combined with each other and operated by being supplied with power from the power supply device, the method comprising:

detecting at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices being mounted and electrically connected to at least one mount contact of said power supply device;

determining a power consumption parameter of each of the at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices that is detected based on parameters transmitted from said combined plurality of devices;

setting an END setting value based on at least the determined power consumption parameter of each of the at least one of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices; and

determining whether the battery mounted on the power supply device is in an unusable state that it is exhausted to a dead level using the END setting as a criterion of determination,

wherein said power supply device comprises;

a setting section for setting said END setting value;

a memory device which is connected to said CPU via a bus and stores said parameters which are transmitted from said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices, and

wherein said setting section comprises a central processing unit (CPU) which is connected to said memory device via a bus, the respective parameters of said plurality of replaceable and detachable devices being written to the memory device via said bus under control of said CPU.