Power sharing in computing systems with a plurality of electronic devices
First Claim
1. A portable battery management system comprising:
- a plurality of electronic devices, each containing a battery and independently operable when powered by the battery;
a belt that supports the plurality of electronic devices;
a power bus, attached to the belt, that connectively engages ones of the plurality of electronic devices that are supported by the belt;
at least one of the plurality of electronic devices being designated to provide power from its battery to the power bus when the at least one of the plurality of electronic devices is supported by the belt; and
the power bus supplies power from the at least one of the plurality of electronic devices to the others of the plurality of electronic devices that are supported by the belt and are connectively engaged to the power bus.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A user-wearable docking system includes docking receptacles on a belt for receiving a plurality of electronic devices such as a hand-held personal data terminal, code reader, printer, etc. The plurality of electronic devices that are docked share power pursuant to one of several power management schemes. A power bus, disposed within a belt, connects all docks to supply power therebetween. Sharing battery power resources involves providing battery power for both device operation and for battery to battery recharging. In some embodiments, the power management system first selects one of the available replacement batteries or the batteries of any of the docked electronic devices as the source of power for recharging purposes or for providing power on the power bus, and coordinates periodic selection of other batteries as the source to balance power consumption of the system as a whole, prolonging operational life between stationary recharging of all of the battery powered devices as an interworking system as a whole.
210 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A portable battery management system comprising:
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a plurality of electronic devices, each containing a battery and independently operable when powered by the battery; a belt that supports the plurality of electronic devices; a power bus, attached to the belt, that connectively engages ones of the plurality of electronic devices that are supported by the belt; at least one of the plurality of electronic devices being designated to provide power from its battery to the power bus when the at least one of the plurality of electronic devices is supported by the belt; and the power bus supplies power from the at least one of the plurality of electronic devices to the others of the plurality of electronic devices that are supported by the belt and are connectively engaged to the power bus. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A roaming computing system comprising:
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a power bus; a plurality of docking adapters interconnected by the power bus; a plurality of electronic devices, each of the plurality of electronic devices having a battery to power its operation; each of the plurality of docking adapters capable of docking at least one of the plurality of electronic devices; each of the plurality of docking adapters connectively coupling the docked one of the plurality of electronic devices to the power bus; each of the plurality of electronic devices capable of receiving power from the power bus via the one of the plurality of docking adapters to which it is docked; and the battery of at least one of the plurality of electronic devices that is currently docked supplies power, over the power bus, to at least one of the others of the plurality of electronic devices currently docked. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification