Method and device for activation of components

• US 8,335,938 B2
• Filed: 06/11/2010
• Issued: 12/18/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 06/11/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Bells, Matthew, Orr, Kevin Howard
• Primary Examiner(s): AUVE, GLENN ALLEN
• Application Number:
  US12/814,123
• Publication Number:
  US 20110307891A1
• Time in Patent Office: 921 Days
• Field of Search: 713/300, 713/320, 713/323, 713/324
• US Class Current: 713/320
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3215 Monitoring of peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3231 Monitoring the presence, absence or movement of users
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

A method and electronic device for activating components based on predicted device activity. The method and device include maintaining a set of device activity information storing data collected from components in the device. The device activity information may be maintained over a predetermined time period and may include times associated with the collected component data. The device activity information may include data regarding scheduled events. Device activity and the appropriate activation state of a component on the device may be predicted based on the current time, current data collected from components in the device and data in the device activity information.

Claims

1. A method of generating predicted activation states of components in an electronic device, comprising:

maintaining a set of device activity information in a memory, the set of device activity information including records of component data from a plurality of components in the electronic device at associated times, the component data including a device location;

determining a current time;

collecting current component data from the plurality of components, the current component data being associated with the current time, the current component data including a current device location;

detecting a break from an established pattern of device activity based on the current component data and the device activity information records, the break comprising a change between the current device location and the device location in the device activity information records;

predicting device activity based on the detected break from the established pattern of device activity; and

in response to the predicted device activity, generating a predicted activation state of at least one component in the electronic device.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising setting an activation state of the at least one component to the predicted activation state.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising generating a predicted attribute setting for an attribute of the at least one component and setting the attribute of the at least one component to the predicted attribute setting.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the component data and current component data include changes in state of the plurality of components.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein both the device location and the current device location comprise a global positioning system (GPS) location or a cellular communications network cell area.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein generating the predicted activation state of at least one component comprises generating a predicted activation state of a GPS subsystem as one of an enabled, idle, standby and disabled activation state.

7. The method of claim 6 wherein the current device location comprises a first cell area of a cellular communications network, the device location in the device activity information records associated with the current time comprises a second cell area of a cellular communications network and wherein the first cell area is different from the second cell area.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the set of device activity information is maintained over a predetermined time period.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the predetermined time period is a week, the associated times include days of the week and times of day, and the current time includes a current day of the week and a current time of day.

10. The method of claim 8 wherein a first set of device activity information is maintained for a first predetermined time period and a second set of device activity information is maintained for a second predetermined time period.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein the set of device activity information includes a scheduled time and a scheduled location of one or more events.

12. The method of claim 11 wherein the scheduled time and the scheduled location of the one or more events are obtained from a calendar module in the electronic device.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein the plurality of components comprises one or more of an ambient light sensor, a temperature sensor, a tilt sensor, an accelerometer, an altimeter, a capacitive touch sensor, a global positioning system (GPS) subsystem, a pedometer, a force sensor, a magnetometer, a gyroscope, a cellular communications subsystem, an internet protocol (IP) communications subsystem, a touchscreen display and a near field communications (NFC) subsystem.

14. The method of claim 1 wherein maintaining the set of device activity information further comprises collecting component data from the plurality of components on a periodic basis.

15. The method of claim 1 wherein maintaining the set of device activity information includes storing the set of device activity information in a memory of the electronic device.

16. The method of claim 1 wherein the set of device activity information comprises a table.

17. The method of claim 1 wherein the predicted activation state comprises one of an enabled, idle, stand-by and disabled activation state.

18. An electronic device comprising:

a controller for controlling operation of the electronic device;

a clock;

a memory connected to the controller, for storing a set of device activity information, the set of device activity information including records of component data from a plurality of components in an electronic device at associated times, the component data including a device location; and

the controller being configured to;

maintain the set of device activity information;

determine a current time from the clock;

collect current component data from the plurality of components, the current component data being associated with the current time, the current component data including a current device location;

detect a break from an established pattern of device activity based on the current component data and the device activity information records wherein the break comprises a change between the current device location and the device location in the device activity information records;

predict device activity based on the detected break from the established pattern of device activity; and

in response to the predicted device activity, generate a predicted activation state of at least one component in the electronic device.

19. The electronic device of claim 18 wherein the a plurality of components comprises one of more of an ambient light sensor, a temperature sensor, a tilt sensor, an accelerometer, an altimeter, a capacitive touch sensor, a global positioning system (GPS) subsystem, a pedometer, a force sensor, a magnetometer, a gyroscope, a cellular communications subsystem, an internet protocol (IP) communications subsystem, a touchscreen display and a near field communications (NFC) subsystem.

20. The electronic device of claim 18 wherein the electronic device is a mobile device.

21. The electronic device of claim 18 wherein the set of device activity information comprises a table.

22. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium in an electronic device having a plurality of components, the medium having stored thereon computer-readable and computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a controller, cause the electronic device to perform actions comprising:

maintaining a set of device activity information in a memory of the device, the set of device activity information including records of component data from a plurality of components in an electronic device at associated times, the component data including a device location;

determining a current time;

collecting current component data from the plurality of components, the current component data being associated with the current time, the current component data including a current device location;

detecting a break from an established pattern of device activity based on the current component data and the device activity information records, the break comprising a change between the current device location and the device location in the device activity information records;

predicting device activity based on the detected break from the established pattern of device activity; and

in response to the predicted device activity, generating a predicted activation state of at least one component in the electronic device.