Patent · US Expired

Portable electronic device and control method for the portable electronic device

US6343051B1 · kind B1 · utility

10Cited by
8References
20Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateDec 13, 1999
Grant dateJan 29, 2002
Priority date
Expiry dateDec 13, 2019

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC G)Physics
  • CPC primaryG04C10/00
  • WIPO fieldMeasurement
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A reliable power supply control function in a portable electronic device which includes a limiter circuit, or includes the limiter circuit and a voltage step-up circuit, to reduce power consumption. It is detected whether or not a voltage generated by a power generator 40 or a voltage accumulated in a power supply device 48, 80 exceeds a preset limiter-ON voltage. When the voltage generated by the power generator 40 or the voltage accumulated in the power supply device 48, 80 has become not lower than the preset limiter-ON voltage, a voltage of electrical energy supplied to the power supply device is limited to a predetermined reference voltage set in advance. When it is determined based on a detection result of a status-of-power-generation detecting section 91 that power is not generated by the power generator 40, detecting operation of a limiter-ON-voltage detecting circuit 91A is prohibited. Power consumption required for operating the limiter-ON-voltage detecting circuit can be thus reduced.

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.