Apparatus and method for compensating for voltage drop in portable terminal

• US 8,766,644 B2
• Filed: 10/07/2009
• Issued: 07/01/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Lee, Jong-Su, Kim, Youn-Lea
• Primary Examiner(s): Valone, Thomas F
• Application Number:
  US12/575,130
• Publication Number:
  US 20100102836A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,728 Days
• Field of Search: 324/537
• US Class Current: 324/537
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/3646 for indicating electrical conditions or variables, e.g. visual or audible indicators
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 31/382 Arrangements for monitoring battery or accumulator variables, e.g. SoC

Abstract

An apparatus and method for determining a status of a power unit in a portable terminal are provided. The apparatus includes a power unit for supplying power to a internal circuit, a resistor located between the power unit and the internal circuit, and a voltage determination unit for determining an amount of a current consumption by the internal circuit by considering a difference between a first voltage between the power unit and the resistor and a second voltage between the resistor and the internal circuit, and for determining status information of the power unit by compensating for a voltage drop of the first voltage in accordance with the amount of the current consumption.

Claims

1. An apparatus for determining a status of a power unit in a portable terminal, the apparatus comprising:

an internal circuit;

a power unit configured to supply power to the internal circuit;

a variable resistor having a plurality of resistance values that are selected based on an amount of current consumption due to the portable terminal, the variable resistor located between the power unit and the internal circuit;

a first voltage measurement unit configured to measure a first voltage delivered to the variable resistor from the power unit;

a second voltage measurement unit configured to measure a second voltage from the variable resistor;

a voltage compensation unit configured to measure an amount of current consumption due to the variable resistor using a difference between the first voltage and the second voltage; and

a display unit configured to display a residual amount of a battery of the power unit according to a sum of the first voltage and a product of the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage and an R,

wherein the R denotes a ratio between a voltage drop according to the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage and the amount of current consumption due to the variable resistor.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the variable resistor comprises at least two resistors each of which has a different resistance value and one of the at least two resistors is selected and used in accordance with the amount of the current consumption by the internal circuit due to the portable terminal.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the plurality of resistance values comprises a range from 10 mΩ

to 20 mΩ

.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the residual power amount of the battery of the power unit is determined according to a voltage determined according to the following equation:

Voltage=[V₁+(V₁−

V₂)×

R]×

slope×

offset,

wherein Voltage denotes the residual amount of the battery of the power unit, V₁ denotes a digital value of the first voltage determined by the first voltage determination unit, V₂ denotes a digital value of the second voltage determined by the second voltage determination unit, R denotes a ratio between the voltage drop from the first voltage, and the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage, and the slope and the offset comprise variables for converting a digital value of a voltage into an analog value.

5. A method for determining a status of a power unit in a portable terminal, the method comprising:

determining a first voltage delivered to a variable resistor having a plurality of resistance values that are selected based on an amount of current consumption due to the portable terminal, and a second voltage from the variable resistor;

determining an amount of a current consumption due to the variable resistor using a difference between the first voltage and the second voltage;

determining a residual amount of a battery of the power unit according to a sum of the first voltage and a product of the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage and an R; and

displaying the residual amount of the battery,

wherein the variable resistor is located between the power unit and an internal circuit, and

wherein the R denotes a ratio between a voltage drop according to the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage and the amount of current consumption due to the variable resistor.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the variable resistor comprises at least two resistors each of which has a different resistance value and one of the at least two resistors is selected and used in accordance with the amount of the current consumption by the internal circuit.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the plurality of resistance values comprises a range from 10 mΩ

to 20 mΩ

.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein the residual amount of the battery of the power unit is determined according to a voltage determined according to the following equation:

Voltage=[V₁+(V₁−

V₂)×

R]×

slope×

offset,

wherein Voltage denotes the residual amount of the battery of the power unit, V₁ denotes a digital value of the first voltage determined by the first voltage determination unit, V₂ denotes a digital value of the second voltage determined by the second voltage determination unit, R denotes a ratio between the voltage drop from the first voltage, and the difference between the first voltage and the second voltage, and the slope and the offset comprise variables for converting a digital value of a voltage into an analog value.