Method and apparatus for controlling charging in electronic device

• US 9,941,724 B2
• Filed: 12/29/2015
• Issued: 04/10/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.
• Inventors: Ham, Myungjoo
• Primary Examiner(s): Rossoshek, Helen
• Application Number:
  US14/983,020
• Publication Number:
  US 20160172878A1
• Time in Patent Office: 833 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 10/42 Methods or arrangements for servicing or maintenance of secondary cells or secondary half-cells H01M10/60 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 6/5011 for several cells simultaneously or successively
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0047 with monitoring or indicating devices or circuits
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/10 Energy storage using batteries

Abstract

A method for controlling charging in an electronic device for managing the electronic device, to stably charge a battery is provided. The method includes setting alarm such that a wake up signal is generated after a time elapses when entry into a suspend mode is requested during charging a battery or in a charging stop state, entering the suspend mode, waking-up and determining a state of the battery wake up, and turning-on or -off the battery charging according to the determined state of the battery.

Claims

1. A method for controlling charging in an electronic device, the method comprising:

setting, by the electronic device, an alarm, and entering the electronic device into a suspend mode, when entry into the suspend mode is requested while at least one battery of the electronic device is electrically connected with a charger, wherein a controller of the electronic device generates a wake up signal after a time period set for the alarm elapses;

determining an occurrence reason of the wake up signal;

when the determined occurrence reason is a wake up reason by the set alarm, waking up at least partial structural components of the electronic device in response to the wake up signal, without waking up all of the structural components of the electronic device for controlling the charging;

determining a status of the at least one battery using the at least partial structural components of the electronic device; and

controlling the charging of the at least one battery based on the determined status of the at least one battery.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

resetting, by the at least partial structural components of the electronic device, the alarm; and

re-entering the at least partial structural components of the electronic device into the suspend mode.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising waking up all of the structural components of the electronic device when the determined wake up reason is a reason other than wake up by the set alarm.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein turning on or off the charging of the at least one battery comprises:

turning on the charging when the status of the at least one battery satisfies a charging condition set in the electronic device; and

turning off the charging when the status of the at least one battery does not satisfy the charging condition set in the electronic device.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising notifying a user when the charging status is turned from on to off or from off to on.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the status of the at least one battery comprises measuring a temperature of the at least one battery using a temperature sensor.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

determining whether another alarm different from the alarm is set before setting the alarm; and

storing the other alarm when the other alarm is set.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the setting of the alarm comprises:

comparing a time period set for the other alarm with the time period set for the alarm; and

when the time period set for the another alarm is less than the time period set for the alarm as a result of the comparison, resetting the alarm after the other alarm is completed; and

when the time period set for the alarm is less than the time period set for the other alarm as the result of the comparison, resetting the other alarm after the alarm is completed.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein controlling the charging of the at least one battery comprises at least one of:

controlling a charging speed of the at least one battery; and

turning on or off the charging of the at least one battery.

10. An apparatus for controlling charging in an electronic device, the apparatus comprising:

a charging controller configured to charge at least one battery of the electronic device;

an alarm unit which sets an alarm, wherein the alarm generates a wake up signal after a preset time for the alarm elapses; and

a controller which;

activates the alarm unit and controls such that the charging unit enters a suspend mode, when entry into the suspend mode is requested,

wakes up at least a portion of structural components of the electronic device, in response to the wake up signal, and

determines a status of the at least one battery using the at least one partial components of the electronic device,

controls the charging unit, according to the determined status of the at least one battery,

determines an occurrence reason of the wake up signal when the wake up signal is generated, and

when the determined occurrence reason is a wake up reason by the set alarm, wakes up the at least the portion of the structural components of the electronic device, without waking up all of the structural components of the electronic device for controlling the charging.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the controller resets the alarm and re-enters the suspend mode.

12. The apparatus of claim 10, the controller wakes up all of the structural components of the electronic device when the determined wake up reason is a reason other than a wake up reason by the set alarm.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the controller turns on the charging when the status of the at least one battery satisfies a charging condition set in the electronic device, and turns off the charging when the status of the at least one battery does not satisfy the charging condition set in the electronic device.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising a display unit which displays a message that notifies when the charging status is turned from on to off or from off to on.

15. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the controller determines whether another alarm different from the alarm is set before setting the alarm, and stores the other alarm and enters the suspend mode when the other alarm is set.

16. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the controller compares a preset time for the other alarm with a preset time for the alarm, and resets one of the alarm and the another alarm, when the preset time is greater as a result of the comparison.

17. The apparatus of claim 10, further comprising a temperature sensor which measures a temperature of the battery,

wherein the status of the at least one battery includes the temperature of the at least one battery.

18. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein controlling the charging unit comprises at least one of:

controlling a charging speed of the at least one battery; and

turning on or off the charging of the at least one battery.