U.S. patent application number 14/010325 was filed with the patent office on 2014-01-30 for method of reducing power consumption within a portable communication device.
This patent application is currently assigned to RapidBlue Solutions Oy. Invention is credited to Harri Hohteri, Gavin Weigh.
Application Number | 20140031092 14/010325 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 47843047 |
Filed Date | 2014-01-30 |
United States Patent
Application |
20140031092 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hohteri; Harri ; et
al. |
January 30, 2014 |
Method Of Reducing Power Consumption Within A Portable
Communication Device
Abstract
A method for reducing power consumption within a portable
communication device, where the device includes a plurality of
spatial sensing modules includes detecting a location of the
portable communication device to a desired level of accuracy;
determining that the location of the portable communication device
is indoors; using one or more of the spatial sensing modules to
sense a motion state or a spatially stationary state of the
portable communication device by detecting changes in the
surroundings of the portable communication. Detecting changes in
the surroundings of the portable communication device includes
using an inertial motion sensor to detect that the portable
communication device is stationary; and using a control module of
the device, for selectively switching ON or switching OFF one or
more of the plurality of spatial sensing modules in a hierarchical
manner, to reduce power consumption, in response to one or more of
sensing the motion state, the spatially stationary state of the
device or detecting change in surroundings of the portable
communication device.
Inventors: |
Hohteri; Harri; (Helsinki,
FI) ; Weigh; Gavin; (Helsinki, FI) |
Assignee: |
RapidBlue Solutions Oy
Helsinki
FI
|
Family ID: |
47843047 |
Appl. No.: |
14/010325 |
Filed: |
August 26, 2013 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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13372784 |
Feb 14, 2012 |
8521148 |
|
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14010325 |
|
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Current U.S.
Class: |
455/574 |
Current CPC
Class: |
Y02D 70/142 20180101;
Y02D 70/166 20180101; G01S 19/34 20130101; G06F 1/325 20130101;
Y02D 10/173 20180101; H04W 52/0254 20130101; Y02D 70/144 20180101;
G06F 1/3231 20130101; Y02D 10/00 20180101; Y02D 30/70 20200801;
H04W 52/0274 20130101; Y02D 70/164 20180101; Y02D 70/1262
20180101 |
Class at
Publication: |
455/574 |
International
Class: |
H04W 52/02 20060101
H04W052/02 |
Claims
1. A method of reducing power consumption within a portable
communication device, the device including a plurality of spatial
sensing modules, the method comprising: detect a location of the
portable communication device to a desired level of accuracy;
determine that the location of the portable communication device is
indoors; use one or more of the spatial sensing modules to sense a
motion state or a spatially stationary state of the portable
communication device by detecting changes in the surroundings of
the portable communication, wherein detecting changes in the
surroundings of the portable communication device comprises: using
an inertial motion sensor to detect that the portable communication
device is stationary; and using a control module of the device, for
selectively switching ON or switching OFF one or more of the
plurality of spatial sensing modules in a hierarchical manner, to
reduce power consumption, in response to one or more of sensing the
motion state, the spatially stationary state of the device or
detecting change in surroundings of the portable communication
device.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the desired level of accuracy is
one of a block level location, a street level location, an indoor
location or a micro-level location.
3. The method of claim 2, wherein signals between a cellular
transceiver and a cellular base station in communication with the
cellular transceiver are analysed to determine the block level
location of the portable communication device.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein a GPS module is used to determine
the street level location of the portable communication device.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein a short range sensing module is
used to determine the indoor location of the portable communication
device.
6. The method of claim 2, wherein a camera, microphone and inertial
motion sensor are used to determine the micro-level location of the
portable communication device.
7. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting a change in the
surroundings of the portable communication device further comprises
using a sound detector to detect a sound corresponding to placement
of the portable communication device in a stationary location.
8. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting a change in the
surroundings of the portable communication device further comprises
using a light detector to detect a change in lighting in the
surrounding of the portable communication device.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting changes in the
surroundings of the portable communication device comprises: using
a camera device to capture images of the surroundings of the
portable communication device, wherein a change in the images of
the surroundings is indicative of movement of the portable
communication device.
10. A non-transient computer programmable product recorded on a
machine-readable data storage media and being executable on
computing hardware, for implementing the method of claim 1.
11. A portable communication device provided with a battery and
operable to save energy stored within its battery, the device
comprising: a plurality of spatial sensing modules for sensing
motion or a spatially stationary state of the device, and to
continuously monitor the device's surrounding; and a control module
operatively connected to the plurality of spatial sensing modules,
the control module being configured to selectively switch ON or
switch OFF one or more of the spatial sensing modules in a
hierarchical manner, to reduce power consumption, in response to
sensing motion or a spatially stationary state of the device,
and/or in response to monitoring the device's surroundings, wherein
the spatial sensing module includes at least one inertial motion
sensor incorporated within the portable communication device for
sensing movement of the device.
12. The device of claim 11, wherein the inertial motion sensor
includes at least one of: a linear accelerometer, a rotation
sensor, an angular accelerometer, a sound detector, and a light
detector.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application is a continuation application of U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 13/372,784, filed on 14 Feb. 2012, now
U.S. Patent Publication No. US 2013-0210408 A1, the disclosure of
which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
FIELD
[0002] The present disclosure generally relates to portable
communication devices, and more specifically, to methods of
conserving power within portable communication devices. Further,
aspects of the disclosure are also directed to software products
recorded on machine-readable data storage media, and such software
products are executable upon computing hardware of portable
communication devices, to implement the methods of the
disclosure.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Portable communication devices, within the scope of the
disclosure, are construed as devices which are portable, and which
are capable of supporting wireless communication. Typical examples
of portable communication devices include, although are not limited
to, mobile telephones, cellular phones, wireless-enabled tablet
computers, iPhones.TM., iPods.TM., personal laptop computers,
personal digital assistants ("PDA's") and other such similar
devices [Superscript `TM` stands for registered trademarks].
[0004] Currently, portable communication devices, including
cellular phones, are equipped with advanced functionalities, for
example, their enhanced processing capabilities, wider screen area,
multiple interfacing sensors, and other similar advanced features
incorporated into such devices. Often, such devices, including
cellular phone, are provided with modules for determining an exact
position and location of the devices. For example, many mobile
devices have global positioning systems (GPS) to determine their
exact location. GPS systems have a GPS receiver, which is
synchronized with geostationary satellites, and the GPS receiver
continuously receives signals from the satellites, to determine the
exact location of the devices, and more specifically, their exact
latitudinal and longitudinal positions. Certain cell based location
determination systems are available in the art, which use the
cellular ids of the portable devices, to identify their location.
Further, there are systems which determine position of portable
communication devices, using triangulation technique, trilateration
and by using some signal strength methods too. Techniques are also
available to determine positions of portable communication devices
by analyzing signals received by the devices from certain
near-field wireless sources.
[0005] A major problem associated with the aforementioned
position/location determination systems, incorporated in portable
communication devices, is that such systems generally consume a lot
of power during determining location of the devices, and hence,
they drain a lot of energy from the battery of the devices.
Attempts have been made in the art to overcome this problem. For
example, many smart phones, including the `Juice Defender` for
Android.TM. platforms, are equipped with functionality to
selectively switch off or switch on, certain modules in the phones.
For example, when the smartphone is not in a dedicated cellular
cell of a wireless communication infrastructure, i.e., it is unable
to find a typically used base station, the Wireless local area
network (WLAN) of the phone can be set to switch-off in such
circumstances. The reason is that the probability of finding a Wi
Fi network is generally low, when the device is not in a typically
used based station.
[0006] However, the problem of high consumption of the energy
stored within portable communication devices, while determining
their locations, still persists, and the current attempts to reduce
power consumption within such devices have not been substantially
effective. Therefore, there exists a need to have a better method
for reducing the consumption of power within such devices.
SUMMARY
[0007] The present disclosure provides a method and a system for
substantially reducing the consumption of power within portable
communication devices, while identifying the location of such
devices through different location identifying modules installed
within the devices.
[0008] In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for
reducing power consumption within a portable communication device,
where the device includes a plurality of spatial sensing modules.
In one embodiment, the method includes detecting a location of the
portable communication device to a desired level of accuracy;
determining that the location of the portable communication device
is indoors; using one or more of the spatial sensing modules to
sense a motion state or a spatially stationary state of the
portable communication device by detecting changes in the
surroundings of the portable communication. Detecting changes in
the surroundings of the portable communication device includes
using an inertial motion sensor to detect that the portable
communication device is stationary; and using a control module of
the device, for selectively switching ON or switching OFF one or
more of the plurality of spatial sensing modules in a hierarchical
manner, to reduce power consumption, in response to one or more of
sensing the motion state, the spatially stationary state of the
device or detecting change in surroundings of the portable
communication device.
[0009] The method of the present disclosure substantially
alleviates the aforementioned problems of higher power consumption
within portable consumption devices, while determining the location
of such devices.
[0010] Additional aspects, advantages, features and objects of the
present disclosure would be made apparent from the drawings and the
detailed description of the illustrative embodiments construed in
conjunction with the appended claims that follow.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0011] The summary above, as well as the following detailed
description of illustrative embodiments, is better understood when
read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of
illustrating the present disclosure, exemplary constructions of the
disclosure are shown in the drawings. However, the invention is not
limited to specific methods and instrumentalities disclosed herein.
Moreover, those in the art will understand that the drawings are
not to scale. Wherever possible, like elements have been indicated
by identical numbers.
[0012] FIG. 1 illustrates different spatial sensing modules of a
portable communication device, in accordance with the present
disclosure.
[0013] FIG. 2 depicts the different spatial sensing modules,
rearranged at different hierarchical levels, the hierarchical
levels corresponding to the different levels of accuracy desired
while determining the location of the device, in accordance with
the present disclosure.
[0014] FIG. 3 illustrates the communication between the device of
FIG. 1, with different Bluetooth and WLAN stations coupled to the
spatial sensing modules of the device, for determining the location
of the device, when it is at an indoor location.
[0015] FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment, wherein the device of FIG.
1, in accordance with the present disclosure, is identified to be
lying at a spatially constant location, within an indoor
confinement.
[0016] FIG. 5 illustrates the different steps involved in the
method of reducing the power consumption within the portable
communication device of FIG. 1, in accordance with the present
disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS
[0017] The following detailed description illustrates aspects of
the disclosure and the ways it can be implemented. However, the
description does not define or limit the invention, such definition
or limitation being solely contained in the claims appended
thereto. Although the best mode of carrying out the invention has
been disclosed, those in the art would recognize that other
embodiments for carrying out or practicing the invention are also
possible.
[0018] Portable communication devices, including mobile devices,
cellular phones, iPads, iPhones, personal laptop computers,
personal digital assistants (PDA), are predominantly used in the
art, for communication and other purposes, and such devices are
often equipped with the feature of supporting wireless
communication, including the Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN),
through suitable applications/modules installed within the devices.
Further, most of these devices are provided with many accurate
position determination systems, for precisely identifying the exact
location of the devices. An example of such position determination
system is the Global positioning system (GPS), which is currently
available in most advanced cellular phones, including smart phones
and iPhones, for navigation and position determination. GPS is a
satellite based navigation system, which is capable of providing
spatial position and the time information under all weather
conditions, anywhere on the Earth. Specifically, the devices are
equipped with a GPS receiver, and the receiver is in continuous
communication with the GPS satellites revolving around the earth.
With an unobstructed line of sight with at least three of the GPS
satellites, the system is capable of precisely determining the
location of the device, in terms of its longitude, latitude,
altitude above the sea level etc. Specifically, the GPS receiver
continuously receives signals from at least three GPS satellites,
and calculates the times taken to receive the messages from the at
least three satellites, and uses these times to determine the
distance of the receiver to the at least three satellites. Further,
different algorithms and trilateration techniques are then used, to
determine the position of the device. Additionally, some portable
communication devices are provided with other spatial location
modules for determining their location on the Earth's surface. One
such spatial location module uses cell-based location technique,
identifies the cellular cell ID of the device, and uses
triangulation technique to identify location. Further, there are
other indoor location systems that these devices are equipped with,
Bluetooth or the Wi Fi networks etc.
[0019] A major problem associated with many of these spatial
location determination systems, including GPS, is that they consume
considerable power of the battery of the devices, during
determining their locations. Eventually, the batteries become
drained in a few hours. Users of such devices, including cellular
phone users, are often at a spatially constant location for many
hours. For example, a working professional normally spends about
7-8 hours at his office, thus being at a spatially constant
location during that time. During such moment, it is generally not
desired to use longer spatial range detection modules, for
determining the location of the device, as these modules, including
the GPS system, will consume a lot of stored battery energy.
Therefore, keeping such modules activated/energized during such
circumstances, is unnecessary from the perspective of saving the
energy stored within the device's battery.
[0020] The present disclosure provides a more effective and
efficient way of reducing the power consumption within a portable
communication device, by identifying that the device is in a
spatially stationary state for some period, i.e. at a spatially
constant location for some period, or is suddenly moved from that
location. Specifically, the portable communication device is
provided with multiple spatial sensing modules for sensing motion
or a spatially stationary state of the device. Some of these
spatial sensing modules continuously monitor the surroundings of
the device. One or more of these spatial sensing modules is
switched on or switched off, in a hierarchical manner, based on
certain conditions, as disclosed in details hereinafter.
[0021] FIG. 1 is an illustration of different components of a
portable communication device 100 (referred to as `device 100`
hereinafter, for simplicity and economy of expression), in
accordance with the present disclosure, the device 100 being
adapted to save energy stored within its battery. As
aforementioned, the device 100 can be any appropriate device known
in the art, and capable of supporting wireless communication. This
may include, though not be limited to, a mobile phone, a smart
phone such as an iPhone, Android phone, iPad from Apple, Inc., a
laptop, a Symbian phone etc. Furthermore, the device 100 is
optionally equipped with 2G or 3G technology, or WCDMA, TDMA, GSM,
LTE etc., for supporting wireless communication. As shown in FIG.
1, the device 100 has a display 101, configured to render text,
videos or images/pictures, to the user. Furthermore, the device 100
includes multiple spatial sensing modules 110, for detecting the
position of the device, and accurately determining its spatial
location. The spatial sensing modules 110 include a GPS 112, for
determining the exact location of the device on the Earth's
surface, in terms of its latitude, longitude and its altitude above
the sea level. As shown, the GPS 112 includes a GPS receiver 112
(a), which is coupled to at least three GPS satellites 112 (b), and
it continuously obtains signals from the GPS satellites 112 (b), to
determine the location of the device 100. Furthermore, the spatial
sensing modules 110 include an inertial motion sensor 114 for
determining the orientation, for sensing movement, and for sensing
the acceleration of the device 100. Specifically, the inertial
motion sensor 114 (hereinafter `sensor 114`) includes a linear
accelerometer 114 (a) for determining linear acceleration of the
device 100. Furthermore, the sensor 114 includes a rotation sensor
114 (b), for determining the orientation of the device 100, and for
sensing any sudden change in the orientation. For example, if the
device 100 has been kept stationary on a table, for a substantially
long period, and suddenly the user picks it up in his hands, or
slightly rotates it from its current position, the rotation sensor
114 (b) is able to detect the change in the orientation of the
device 100. An angular accelerometer 114 (c) measures angular
acceleration of the device 100 if it is suddenly rotated.
Furthermore, the sensor 114 includes a sound detector 114 (d) for
detecting any sudden sounds produced proximal to the device 100, or
the sound generated when the device 100 is suddenly moved or put
over a supporting surface. For example, if the user suddenly puts
the device 100 on a table, the sound detector 114 (d) is capable of
identifying the corresponding sound. A light detector 114 (e)
monitors the ambience of the device 100 and identifies changes in
illumination of the device 100's surroundings. For example, if the
device 100 is suddenly moved from an outdoor location on a sunny
afternoon, to a dark room, the light detector 114 (e) identifies
such a change.
[0022] The spatial sensing modules 110 also include a short range
sensing module 116 for short range communication and
indoor/proximity location. The short range sensing module 116
includes a Bluetooth module 116 (a), and Wireless Local Area
Network (WLAN) module 116 (b) for communication. Other typical
applications known in the art, for short range communication and
data exchange with other devices, can also be incorporated within
the short range sensing module 116, thus not limiting the scope of
the disclosure.
[0023] A microphone 120 is provided for receiving sounds on the
device 100. A camera 130 is configured to capture images and
videos, when turned on. A user interface 140 obtains appropriate
inputs from the user, for enabling operations on the device 100.
The user interface 140 can be any suitable means known in the art,
and is normally provided in portable communication devices, for
obtaining user inputs, including a touch screen with suitable keys
incorporated, or a keypad. Furthermore, the device 100 includes a
cellular communication transceiver 150, such as GSM 152 or WCDMA
154 for enabling communication according to cellular communication
standards, for example 3GPP. A central processing unit 160 executes
software applications typically stored in the memory 170 of the
device 100.
[0024] A battery 180 stores energy within it, to provide power for
the operations of the device 100. The battery 180 can be any
suitable means known in the art, and usable in communication
devices. For example, the battery 180 can be a Lithium ion battery
cell (LiOn), a rechargeable Zinc-air battery, a rechargeable
Aluminium-Carbon battery or a battery driven by power related
electronics. Furthermore, other chargeable battery, like the
Nickel-Metal hydride (NiMH), or a Nickel-Cadmium battery, can also
be used. Furthermore, the battery 180 has a connection point to an
external charger. The device 100 is provided with a housing and
suitable audio output, and input/output interfaces, and Universal
Serial Bus (USB) ports.
[0025] A control module 190 is coupled to the different spatial
sensing modules 110, and it is configured to selectively switch on
or switch off one or more of the spatial sensing modules 110, based
on a set of conditions that will described hereinafter, in details.
A control module 190 can consist of electrical components
configured to provide control signals to other modules. A control
module 190 is preferably implemented as an application stored in
memory 170 and executed in CPU 160. In an embodiment controlling of
other modules is done/managed by the CPU 160. In some embodiments
one or more modules can be physically implemented in a singe
integrated circuit (IC) and/or be integrated to CPU
architecture.
[0026] The mutually different spatial sensing modules 110 can be
used to determine the location of the device 100, based on the
different levels of accuracy desired. FIG. 2 shows a rearrangement
of the different spatial modules at different hierarchical levels,
and illustrates their usage, based on different levels of accuracy
desired, while determining the location of the device 100. At each
level, the different spatial sensing modules disposed, are utilized
for obtaining accuracy pertaining to that level.
[0027] Explaining FIG. 2 in conjunction with FIG. 1, the level 210
corresponds to a block level accuracy, when accuracy to within 1 km
to 10 km of radius range from the device 100 is desired. This level
of accuracy is achieved by analyzing signals between the cellular
transceiver 150 and the cellular base station with which the
cellular transceiver 150 communicates. For example, the cellular ID
of the device 100 can be mapped to a geographical location, either
locally, or the location can be converted into a real location by
sending the cellular ID to a server providing geo-location
services. Although only GSM 152 and the WCDMA 154 are shown in FIG.
2, the method can optionally also use any other appropriate
technology in conjunction with GSM/WCDMA (e.g., LTE, CDMA 2000,
TD-SCDMA etc).
[0028] The level 220 corresponds to a case when a street level
accuracy is desired. Typically, this is an accuracy within a range
of 10 meters to 50 meters. For street level accuracy, the
appropriate spatial sensing module 110 is the GPS 112 (shown in
FIG. 1). The GPS module 112 can accurately determine the spatial
location of the device 100 within this range.
[0029] The level 230 corresponds to the indoor location
identification. This pertains to the case when the device 100 is
identified to be at an indoor location, for example, within a house
or within an office premises. For indoor location identification,
the short range spatial sensing modules 116 as shown in FIG. 1 can
be used, including, for example, the Bluetooth 116 (a) or the WLAN
116 (b), for communication and data exchange. Usage of these short
range sensing modules 116, at the level 230, typically requires
communication and connection of the device 100 with suitable
Bluetooth and WLAN stations. These will be shown in further detail
in FIG. 3. Furthermore, the device 100 is equipped with appropriate
dedicated software applications for using the short range sensing
modules 116 at the level 230. The WLAN 116 (b) can also be used at
times, in outdoor locations, thus not limiting the scope of the
disclosure.
[0030] The level 240 corresponds to the micro-level identification.
At this level, the inertial motion sensors 114, the camera 130, the
microphone 120, etc., can be used. Specifically, the micro-level
identification at the level 240, refers to sensing certain
situations, for example, whether the device 100 is moving, or is at
a spatially constant location for a certain temporal period, is
lying on a table for a substantially long time, or for sensing a
sudden movement of the device 100 from a location, where it has
been detected to be lying for some temporal period. For this
purpose, the camera 130 is adapted to continuously capture the
images of the surroundings of the device 100, and store them in a
database. Based on the captured images, the camera 130 can identify
whether or not the device 100 has been moved from one location to
the other, based on any changes in the captured images of the
device's surroundings. For example, if the device 100, lying
initially on a desk or a table, is moved to some other location,
there may be a sudden change in the appearance of roof and the
ceilings, and this may be easily identified by the camera 130, for
example as a change in color or intensity of light, or both. The
sound detector 114 (d) continuously detects any sounds generated
proximal to the device 100. For example, if the user suddenly
places the device 100 on a table, the sound detector 114 (d)
detects the corresponding sound and provides signals to the control
module 190 (shown in FIG. 1). If the device 100 is suddenly moved
from a relatively darker location, for instance, within a room, to
an illuminated outdoor area, the light detector 114 (e) can detect
the sudden change in the surroundings and provide corresponding
signals to the control module 190. Furthermore, the linear and
angular accelerometers 114 (a) and 114 (c), respectively, and the
rotation sensor 114 (b), can collaborate, or work independently to
detect any change in the orientation of the device 100, or to sense
any sudden motion of the device 100, and provide the corresponding
signals control module 180.
[0031] FIG. 3 illustrates the case when the device 100 is
identified to be at an indoor location, and the method of
identifying the location of the device 100 using one or more of the
short range spatial sensing modules 116, for example, the Bluetooth
116 (a) or the WLAN 116 (b) of FIG. 1. As shown, the device 100 is
depicted lying within the confinements of an indoor environment
300. To enable the short range spatial sensing modules 116, the
device 100 is operatively connected to, and communicates with one
or more Bluetooth stations 302 (a), 302 (b), 302 (c) etc., and
simultaneously with multiple WLAN stations 304 (a), 304 (b) and 304
(c), as shown. Furthermore, the device 100 is connected to a server
306 through the Internet 308. For analyzing the indoor environment
300, radio signals emitted by the device 100 are used to identify
the indoor location. The device 100 is equipped with suitable
applications installed within it, and it requires connection with
at least three base stations, to analyze and identify the indoor
confinement 300. A suitable technique known in the art, for
example, triangulation, is used to determine the indoor location of
the device 100. The location is then transmitted to the server 306
via the Internet 308. Specifically, triangulation technique
includes calculating the time of flight (TOF) of the radio signals,
measuring the strength of the signals and calculating the parameter
`received signal strength indicator` (RSSI), etc. for the signals
transmitted to the Bluetooth or WLAN stations.
[0032] In FIG. 4, an embodiment of the disclosure is shown, wherein
the device 100 is lying over a desk 402, within an indoor location.
In such a situation, the micro-level identification modules, shown
in FIG. 2, are used to sense sudden motion and to monitor the
surrounding of the device 100 continuously. Explaining FIG. 4 in
conjunction with FIG. 1, selected spatial sensing modules 110,
including the camera 130, the microphone 120 and the inertial
motion sensors 114 are used continuously to detect any changes in
the surroundings of the device 100, and to sense any sudden motion
of the device 100. Eventually, the corresponding signals are
conveyed to the control module 190. As identified by the inertial
motion sensors 114, if the device 100 is identified to be lying
stationary over the desk 402, for a substantially long period, for
example several minutes, or even several hours, the corresponding
signals are conveyed to the control module 190. The control module
190 switches off one or more of the short range spatial sensing
modules, including the Bluetooth 116 (a) or the WLAN 116 (b), to
save power. Furthermore, the control module 190 also switches off
the device's GPS receiver 112 (a), in such a situation. Preferably,
the control module 190 generally always switches off the device's
GPS 112, if the device 100 is identified to be at an indoor
location, or at a spatially constant location, for some period, for
example several minutes, or several hours. This saves a lot of
energy stored within the device's battery, and since signals from
the GPS satellites are typically harder to receive indoors, it is
unnecessary to keep the GPS 112 switched on. Furthermore, if the
user picks up the device 100 from the desk 402, a micro-level
change in the location of the device 100, is detected by one or
more of the inertial motion sensors 114, the microphone 120 and the
camera 130. If it is detected that the device 100 is moved from the
indoor location to an outdoor location, the corresponding signals
are conveyed to the control module 190. The control module 190
switches back on, the GPS 112 and the GPS receiver 112 (a) of the
device 100, if this movement is sensed. Furthermore, the Bluetooth
116 (a) and the WLAN 116 (b) are switched on again, when the device
100 is identified to move to an outdoor area.
[0033] The FIG. 5 illustrates the different steps involved, in the
exemplary method 500, for reducing power consumption within the
device 100, in accordance with the present disclosure. Explaining
the method 500, in conjunction with FIG. 1, at a step 502, the
method 500 continuously identifies the location of the device 100
through the GPS 112. At this step 502, the GPS receiver 112 (a)
(shown in FIG. 1), continuously communicates with, and receives
signals from, at least three GPS satellites in the unobstructed
line of sight, and determines therefrom an exact location of the
device 100, in terms of its longitude, latitude and altitude, as
aforementioned. At a step 504, the method 500 continuously monitors
surroundings of the device 100, and identifies any changes in the
GPS coordinates of the device 100. The method 500 also senses an
existence of a stationary state or a sudden movement of the device
100, at this step 504. Effectively, any sudden change in the
position of the device 100 can be observed by change in its GPS
coordinates, as there is always a slight drift in the position of
the device 100, as shown by the GPS 112, when the device 100 moves.
Furthermore, the inertial motion sensors 114, including the linear
accelerometers and the angular accelerometers 114 (a) and 114 (c),
respectively, are used at the step 504, to sense that the device
100 is stationary (i.e., at a spatially constant location), or for
sensing the motion of the device 100, or a sudden change in its
position. At a step 506, the method 500 identifies whether or not
the device 100 is moving. If the device 100 is moving, the GPS 112
of the device 100 is kept switched on at a step 508. If the device
100 is not moving, then at a step 510, the method 500 identifies
whether or not the device 100 has been at a spatially constant
location for some temporal period. If the device 100 is not moving,
i.e., at the spatially constant location for the temporal period,
then at a step 512, the GPS 112 is switched off to save power
consumption within the device 100. Proceeding further, at a step
514, the method 500 continuously monitors the state of rest of the
device 100, and identifies whether or not the device 100 has
started moving again, from the spatially constant location
identified at step 510. If yes, i.e., the device 100 has started
moving again, then at a step 516, the previously turned off GPS 112
is switched back on again. Furthermore, at a step 510, if the
method identifies that the device 100 is at a spatially constant
location for some period, the method 500 further checks at a step
518, whether or not the device 100 is at an indoor location. For
this purpose, the inertial motion sensors 114 are used, to
continuously monitor the surroundings of the device 100, and to
sense motion of the device 100. The different inertial motion
sensors 114, continuously interact with the control module 190 at
this step 518. If the device 100 is identified to be at an indoor
location, then at a step 520, the shorter range spatial sensing
modules, including the Bluetooth 116 (a) and the WLAN 116 (a), are
switched off to save power. Furthermore, the GPS 112 of the device
100 is still kept switched off to save power consumption within the
device 100. In an embodiment, though not shown, the method 500,
proceeding further from the step 520, continuously monitors the
surroundings of the device 100, and checks whether or not the
device 100 is still continuing to be at the indoor location
identified at the step 518. This is again achieved by using the
inertial motion sensors 114, including the linear accelerometers
114 (a), the angular accelerometers 114 (c), and the rotation
sensors 114 (b), which are capable of sensing sudden motion of the
device 100. If yes, then the shorter range spatial sensing modules
and the GPS 112, are kept switched off. Otherwise, if any motion of
the device 100 is detected, and it is identified to move from the
indoor location identified at the step 518, to an outdoor area, the
previously turned off GPS 112 and the shorter range spatial sensing
modules, are switched on again.
[0034] The method in accordance with the present disclosure, as
illustrated in FIG. 5, is implementable on, and is compatible with,
any portable communication device that supports wireless
communication, and is in operable connection with near-field
wireless communication networks, or Bluetooth stations, WLAN
stations etc. Furthermore, the disclosure is not limited merely to
mobile devices, but works equally with other portable communication
devices, examples of which were set forth before, including iPads,
personal laptop computers etc.
[0035] Although the current invention has been described
comprehensively, in considerable detail to cover the possible
aspects and embodiments, those skilled in the art would recognize
that other versions of the invention are also possible.
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