External power source voltage drop compensation for portable devices

• US 8,618,769 B2
• Filed: 12/12/2012
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Johnson, Timothy M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Tso, Edward
• Application Number:
  US13/712,098
• Publication Number:
  US 20130099745A1
• Time in Patent Office: 384 Days
• Field of Search: 320/107, 320/112, 320/114, 320/127, 320/128, 320/137
• US Class Current: 320/107
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/266 Arrangements to supply power to external peripherals either directly from the computer or under computer control, e.g. supply of power through the communication port, computer controlled power-strips
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/305 in the event of power-supply fluctuations
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00 Circuit arrangements for charging or depolarising batteries or for supplying loads from batteries
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0068 Battery or charger load switching, e.g. concurrent charging and load supply H02J7/0013 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0071 with a programmable schedule
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00714 in response to battery charging or discharging current
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/007182 in response to battery voltage
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/04 Regulation of charging current or voltage

Abstract

A portable electronic device has a connector with a first pin and a second pin, and a battery charging circuit having an input coupled to receive current through the second pin to charge a battery of the device. The portable device also has a controller to determine whether the connector is coupled to an external power source (EPS) having a power converter circuit that can provide the current. The controller on that basis drives the first pin to stimulate the power converter circuit to raise voltage on the second pin. Other embodiments are also described and claimed.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device comprising:

a connector having a first pin and a second pin;

a battery charging circuit having an input coupled to receive current through the second pin to charge a battery; and

a controller to determine whether the connector is coupled to an external power source (EPS) that can provide an amount of current, and on that basis drive the first pin to stimulate the EPS to raise voltage on the second pin to thereby compensate for I*R voltage drop in a cable that connects the connector to the EPS.

2. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the controller is to raise a current limit of the battery charging circuit, after starting to drive the first pin to stimulate the EPS.

3. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the connector is a computer peripheral serial bus connector.

4. The portable device of claim 3 wherein the controller is to determine whether the connector is coupled to the EPS by checking for sufficient voltage on the second pin and by attempting to enumerate a bus on the connector.

5. The portable device of claim 3 wherein the controller is to determine whether the connector is coupled to the EPS by checking for sufficient voltage on the second pin and by attempting and then failing to enumerate a bus on the connector.

6. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the controller is to determine whether the connector is coupled to the EPS by decoding an indication on the first pin that indicates a current limit of the EPS.

7. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the controller is to drive the first pin by raising dc voltage of the first pin as an inverse function of dc voltage at the input of the battery charging circuit.

8. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the controller is to drive the first pin by signaling a predetermined code on the first pin.

9. The portable device of claim 8, wherein the code indicates that the battery charging circuit is drawing a higher current level.

10. The portable device of claim 1 wherein the controller is to measure dc voltage at the input of the battery charging circuit, and to drive the first pin by signaling a code that represents the measured dc voltage.

11. The portable electronic device of claim 1 further comprising:

the connector having a third pin and a fourth pin;

a first switch to connect the first pin and the second pin, when activated; and

a second switch to connect the third pin and the fourth pin, when activated;

the battery charging circuit to return current through the fourth pin,

the controller to activate the first and second switches to enable the EPS to compensate for the voltage drop on the second pin.

12. The portable device of claim 11 wherein the controller has a port coupled to one of the first and third pins, for determining output power capability of the EPS.

13. The portable device of claim 2 wherein the controller is to drive the first pin by raising dc voltage of the first pin as an inverse function of dc voltage at the input of the battery charging circuit.

14. The portable device of claim 4 wherein the controller is to drive the first pin by raising dc voltage of the first pin as an inverse function of dc voltage at the input of the battery charging circuit.

15. The portable device of claim 6 wherein the controller is to drive the first pin by raising dc voltage of the first pin as an inverse function of dc voltage at the input of the battery charging circuit.

16. A method in a portable electronic device comprising:

detecting that the device is coupled to an external power source (EPS) that can provide an amount of current through a connector pin of a connector;

charging a battery using current drawn through said connector pin from the EPS; and

stimulating the EPS, by driving another pin of the connector, to raise voltage on said connector pin to thereby compensate for I*R voltage drop in a cable that connects the connector to the EPS.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising raising a current limit for changing the battery, after stimulating the EPS to raise voltage on said connector pin.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein stimulating the EPS by driving said another pin comprises raising dc voltage of said another pin as an inverse function of the dc voltage at an input to a battery charger circuit.

19. The method of claim 16 wherein stimulating the EPS comprise driving the another pin in lock step with the dc voltage at an input of a battery charger circuit.

20. The method of claim 16 further comprising the following operation in the EPS:

responding to the driving of said another pin by changing a feedback input signal of a dc voltage regulator in the EPS to thereby raise an output dc voltage in the regulator.

21. The method of claim 16 wherein stimulating the EPS comprises signaling a predetermined code on said another pin.

22. The method of claim 21 further comprising the following operation in the EPS:

changing a feedback input signal of a dc voltage regulator in the EPS to thereby raise an output dc voltage of the regulator, in response to decoding the predetermined code.

23. The method of claim 16 further comprising sensing a voltage at an input node of a battery charging circuit, and wherein the voltage on said connector pin is raised in inverse relation to the sensed voltage.

24. The method of claim 17 further comprising sensing a voltage at an input node of a battery charging circuit, and wherein the voltage on said connector pin is raised in inverse relation to the sensed voltage.

25. The method of claim 20 further comprising sensing a voltage at an input node of a battery charging circuit, and wherein the voltage on said connector pin is raised in inverse relation to the sensed voltage.