POWER SUPPLY MANAGEMENT METHOD FOR ELECTRONIC DEVICE, AND ELECTRONIC DEVICE AND POWER SUPPLYING DEVICE

• US 20150137601A1
• Filed: 01/23/2015
• Published: 05/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Fujifilm Corporation (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: FUJITA, Koudai, ITOU, Ryousuke, HAYASHI, Junji, ASANO, Masanari, MISAWA, Takeshi
• Granted Patent: US 9,515,523 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 307/31
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/40 using two or more transmitting or receiving devices H02J50/50 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/80 involving the exchange of data, concerning supply or distribution of electric power, between transmitting devices and receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/00712 the cycle being controlled or terminated in response to electric parameters
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 5/79 for data transfer in combination with power transfer

Abstract

A power supply management method for electronic devices includes: an electric power transmission step of wirelessly transmitting electric power to each of electronic devices 50, 60 placed on a table 10 from a power supplying device 20 contained in the top plate of the table 10; a step of receiving electric power transmitted from the power supplying device 20 by each of the electronic devices 50, 60; and a step of activating the system of each of the electronic devices by the electronic devices 50, 60 when the electric power is received from the power supplying device 20 and an amount of the received electric power is equal to or larger than a threshold value for system activation.

Claims

1. A power supply management method for an electronic device which can wirelessly receive electric power from a power supplying device having a plurality of electric power transmission parts each wirelessly transmitting electric power, comprising:

an electric power transmission step of wirelessly transmitting electric power to the electronic device by the power supplying device;

a step of receiving electric power transmitted from the power supplying device by the electronic device;

a step of determining by the electronic device whether or not an amount of the electric power received from the power supplying device is equal to or larger than a threshold value necessary for activating a system of the electronic device;

a system activation step of activating by the electronic device the system when the amount of the received electric power is equal to or larger than the threshold value;

a non-operation state detection step of detecting, by the electronic device receiving electric power from the power supplying device, a non-operation state where no operation is performed with respect to the electronic device for a predetermined time period;

a trigger information transmission step of, after detecting the non-operation state, transmitting by the electronic device to the power supplying device trigger information as a trigger for performing a control of reducing an amount of electric power supplied to the electronic device; and

a transmission electric power amount control step of reducing by the power supplying device an amount of electric power transmitted to the electronic device according to the trigger information.

2. The power supply management method for the electronic device according to claim 1, wherein

in the system activation step, when the amount of received electric power is equal to or larger than the threshold value, the system is activated by the electronic device in a normal activation mode for fully activating the system using the electric power equal to or larger than the threshold value, and when the amount of received electric power is smaller than an amount of electric power necessary for the normal activation mode, the system is activated in an energy-saving activation mode for activating a part of the system using the electric power smaller than the threshold value.

3. The power supply management method for an electronic device according to claim 2, wherein

after activating the system in the energy-saving activation mode, when the amount of received electric power becomes equal to or larger than the amount of electric power necessary for the normal activation mode, remaining parts of the system having not been activated by the electronic device is activated.

4. The power supply management method for the electronic device according to claim 1, wherein

a plurality of the electronic devices include a master device which is used independently and a slave device which is used by being connected to the master device, and

in the electric power transmission step, when the power supplying device transmits electric power to the master device to be connected to the slave device, electric power is transmitted to the slave device from the power supplying device.

5. The power supply management method for the electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising:

a step of outputting confirmation information for confirming whether or not the system of the electronic device may be shut-down by the electronic device when the non-operation state is detected, wherein

in the trigger information transmission step, the trigger information is transmitted to the power supplying device when information permitting shutdown of the system is inputted according to the confirmation information, and

in the transmission electric power amount control step, transmission of electric power is stopped by the power supplying device to the electronic device according to the trigger information.

6. The power supply management method for the electronic device according to claim 1, further comprising

a step of shifting the electronic device to a standby state when the non-operation state is detected, wherein

in the trigger information transmission step, standby-shift information denoting that the electronic device is going to shift or shifted to the standby state is transmitted to the power supplying device as the trigger information, and

in the transmission electric power amount control step, after completion of shift of the electronic device to the standby state, an amount of electric power supplied by the power supplying device to the electronic device is reduced than an amount of electric power supplied before the shift to the standby state according to the standby shift information.

7. The power supply management method for the electronic device according to claim 1, wherein

the electronic device does not mount a battery charging electric power for activating the system and is operated by electric power transmitted from the power supplying device.

8. An electronic device, comprising:

an electric power receiving unit which wirelessly receives electric power from a power supplying device that includes a plurality of electric power transmission units each for wirelessly transmitting electric power;

a determination unit which determines whether or not an amount of the electric power received by the electric power receiving unit is equal to or larger than a threshold value necessary for activating a system of the electronic device;

an activation control unit which activates the system when the amount of received electric power is equal to or larger than the threshold value;

a wireless communication unit which wirelessly communicates with the power supplying device; and

a trigger information transmission control unit which, when no operation is performed with respect to the electronic device for a predetermined time period in a state of receiving electric power from the power supplying device, transmits from the wireless communication unit to the power supplying device trigger information as a trigger for performing by the power supplying device a control of reducing an amount of electric power supplied to the electronic device.

9. The electronic device according to claim 10, wherein

when the amount of received electric power is equal to or larger than the threshold value, the activation control unit activates the system in a normal activation mode for fully activating the system using the electric power equal to or larger than the threshold value, and

when the amount of received electric power is smaller than an amount of electric power necessary for the normal activation mode, the activation control unit activates the system in an energy-saving activation mode for activating a part of the system using the electric power smaller than the threshold value.

10. The electronic device according to claim 11, wherein

after activating the system in the energy-saving activation mode, when the amount of received electric power becomes equal to or larger than the amount of electric power necessary for the normal activation mode, the activation control unit activates remaining parts of the system having not been activated.

11. The electronic device according to claim 8, further comprising

a confirmation information output unit which, when no operation is performed with respect to the electronic device for the predetermined time period in the state of receiving electric power from the power supplying device, outputs confirmation information for confirming whether or not the system of the electronic device may be shut-down, wherein

the trigger information transmission control unit transmits the trigger information to the power supplying device when information permitting shutdown of the system is inputted according to the confirmation information.

12. The electronic device according to claim 8, further comprising

an electric power control unit which, when no operation is performed with respect to the electronic device for the predetermined time period in the state of receiving electric power from the power supplying device, shifts the electronic device to a standby state, wherein

the trigger information transmission control unit transmits as the trigger information, to the power supplying device, information denoting that the electronic device is going to shift or shifted to the standby state.

13. The electronic device according to claim 8, wherein

the electronic device does not mount a battery charging electric power for activating the system and is operated by electric power transmitted from the power supplying device.

14. A power supplying device comprising:

a plurality of electric power transmission units each for wirelessly transmitting electric power; and

an electric power transmission control unit which transmits electric power to electronic devices from the electric power transmission units, wherein

the electronic devices include a master device which is used independently and a slave device which is used by being connected to the master device, and

the electric power transmission control unit transmits electric power to the slave device only when electric power is transmitted to the master device to be connected to the slave device.

15. The power supplying device according to claim 14, further comprising:

a wireless communication unit which wirelessly communicates with the electronic device;

a trigger information receiving unit which receives, via the wireless communication unit, trigger information which is transmitted from the electronic device being supplied with electric power when no operation is performed with respect to the electronic device for a predetermined time period; and

an electric power supply amount control unit which performs a control of reducing an amount of electric power supplied to the electronic device according to the trigger information.

16. The power supplying device according to claim 14, wherein

the electric power supply amount control unit stops supply of electric power to the electronic device according to the trigger information.

17. The power supplying device according to claim 14, wherein

the trigger information receiving unit receives, as the trigger information, standby-shift information denoting that the electronic device is going to shift or shifted to a standby state, and

the electric power supply amount control unit, after completion of shift of the electronic device to the standby state, reduces an amount of electric power supplied to the electronic device than an amount of electric power supplied before the shift to the standby state according to the standby shift information.