Terminal device and information processing method

Abstract

This invention provides a technology for more effectively controlling wireless power supply to wearable devices within a device. [Solution] A terminal device according to one embodiment includes a power supply unit that wirelessly supplies power to another device via a specific surface on the housing, a determination unit that determines whether a wearable device wirelessly connected to the device is in contact with the surface, and an activation unit that activates the wireless power supply in the power supply unit when it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to technologies of a terminal device and an information processing method.

Background Art

[0002] Technologies related to charging of wearable devices are known. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an invention that enables power feeding from another device while a smart ring is worn on a finger.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] The invention described in Patent Document 1 merely remained at the process of performing charging based on the electromagnetic action due to the contact between the power transmitting coil and the power receiving coil on the transmission side.

[0005] In contrast, the present invention provides a technology for more effectively controlling wireless power feeding to a wearable device in its own device.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] A terminal device according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a power feeding unit that performs wireless power feeding to another device via a specific surface on a housing, a determination unit that determines whether a wearable device wirelessly connected to the own device is in contact with the surface, and an activation unit that activates the wireless power feeding in the power feeding unit when it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface.

[0007] An information processing method according to another aspect of the present disclosure includes the steps of a computer having a power supply unit that wirelessly supplies power to another device via a specific surface on a housing, determining whether a wearable device wirelessly connected to the computer is in contact with the surface, and, if it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface, enabling the wireless power supply in the power supply unit. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, wireless power supply to wearable devices can be controlled more effectively within the device itself. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0009] [Figure 1] A diagram illustrating the system configuration of a device power supply system 1 according to one embodiment. [Figure 2] A diagram illustrating the functional configuration of the device power supply system 1. [Figure 3] A diagram illustrating the hardware configuration of terminal device 10. [Figure 4] An external view illustrating the casing of the terminal device 10. [Figure 5] A sequence chart illustrating a control method for wireless power transfer in device power supply system 1. [Figure 6] A diagram illustrating device database 1000. [Figure 7] A diagram illustrating user actions related to contact detection. [Figure 8] A diagram illustrating the 2000 combination model of judgment information. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0010] 1. Structure Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the system configuration of a device power supply system 1 according to one embodiment. In this example, the device power supply system 1 (or simply referred to as the system) is a system for controlling wireless power supply to a wearable device, including a ring-shaped device (hereinafter referred to as a "smart ring"), using a device such as a terminal device that the user normally uses (hereinafter simply referred to as a "terminal"). In this example, the smart ring is a device equipped with various information processing functions that can be worn on the user's finger. Wireless power supply refers to a charging method that supplies power by contact or non-contact without using physical wires such as power cables, and for example, methods defined based on standards for non-contact charging such as Qi® are known.

[0011] In this context, wearable devices are typically charged periodically in a charging station after being removed from the user's body, such as during sleep. However, considering healthcare applications including sleep tracking, functions intended for continuous sensing, and the inconvenience of removing (or reattaching) the device for charging, regularly removing a wearable device for charging is generally undesirable.

[0012] Conventional related technologies have employed methods to charge wearable devices while the user is wearing them, using smartphones or other devices that users carry with them daily. In this example, the smartphone has a function to wirelessly supply power pre-stored in its battery to other external devices. Therefore, users can easily charge their wearable devices simply by bringing them close to the smartphone. However, keeping the smartphone constantly on standby with wireless power supply enabled is undesirable from the standpoint of the smartphone's battery life, as it is impossible to know when contact (or non-contact) will occur between the devices involved in power supply. Therefore, the present invention aims to more effectively control wireless power supply to wearable devices within its own device. The outline of the system in the present invention is as follows.

[0013] The device power supply system 1 includes a terminal device 10 and a wearable device 20. In this example, each component of the system is connected to each other via wireless communication 9. In this example, wireless communication 9 is a transmission path or a network constructed from multiple transmission paths for connecting devices to each other (so-called pairing) based on a communication standard for short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth® or Wi-Fi®. Wireless communication 9 includes, for example, NFC (Near Field Communication).

[0014] Terminal device 10 is a device possessed and used by a user (i.e., a person wearing the smart ring 200 on their finger) who charges the wearable device 20 using the device power supply system 1. Terminal device 10 includes, for example, a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet. In this example, terminal device 10 makes a determination regarding contact between itself and the wearable device 20. Based on the result of the determination, terminal device 10 can control the wireless power supply to be turned on (or off). More detailed functions and operations will be described later.

[0015] The wearable device 20 is a device or apparatus that can be worn on the body of a user who possesses the terminal device 10. The wearable device 20 includes, for example, a smart ring. In this example, the wearable device 20 wirelessly connects with the terminal device 10 and provides various data. The wearable device 20 can receive wireless power from the terminal device 10 based on the functions of the device power supply system 1. Wireless power supply is controlled by the terminal device 10.

[0016] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the functional configuration of the device power supply system 1. In this embodiment, the terminal device 10 includes functional blocks (or components) such as a power supply unit 11, a determination unit 12, an activation unit 13, an acquisition unit 14, a detection unit 15, a reception unit 16, a storage unit 191, and a control unit 192. In this example, the storage unit 191 stores various data, programs, and software including, for example, a database. In this example, the control unit 192 performs various controls.

[0017] The power supply unit 11 performs wireless power supply to other devices via a specific surface on the housing (hereinafter referred to as the "specific surface"). In this example, the specific surface represents a physical surface provided on the exterior of the terminal device 10, and includes, for example, a range having a predetermined area among the surfaces on the opposite side of the display of a smartphone or the like (hereinafter referred to as the "back surface"). The specific surface has electromagnetic characteristics and can perform wireless power supply to the target device. In this example, the on / off of the wireless power supply to other devices is controlled by the terminal device 10.

[0018] The determination unit 12 determines whether the wearable device 20 wirelessly connected to the own device is in contact with the specific surface (hereinafter referred to as "contact determination"). In this example, the own device refers to the device to which the present invention is applied (that is, the terminal device 10 here). The terminal device 10 can be connected to the wearable device 20 using wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). Therefore, the terminal device 10 can cooperate with the wearable device 20 to perform contact determination between the devices. The function related to the contact determination will be described later.

[0019] When it is determined that the wearable device 20 is in contact with the specific surface, the activation unit 13 activates the wireless power supply in the power supply unit 11. In this example, activation refers to control to turn on (or activate) the wireless power supply from the power supply unit 11 to other devices. That is, in other words, unless the activation unit 13 executes activation, the function related to the wireless power supply can be turned off, so that the consumption of the battery of the terminal device 10 main body is reduced.

[0020] The acquisition unit 14 acquires, from the wearable device 20, operation information indicating the operation of the user wearing the wearable device 20. In this example, the operation information is information that can be measured based on various functions mounted on the wearable device 20, and includes information related to the movement of the wearable device 20 itself, such as speed, acceleration, angular velocity, or posture. That is, in the present invention, by regarding (that is, defining) the movement related to the wearable device 20 as the operation of the user, particularly the operation of the finger or hand, the operation performed by the user can be estimated. In this example, the determination unit 12 makes a contact determination based on the operation information. As a result, the terminal device 10 can activate wireless power supply according to the operation of the user.

[0021] The detection unit 15 detects the inertial movement of the own device. In this example, the inertial movement indicates the movement applied to the terminal device 10, and is detected based on, for example, a sensor that measures the above-described speed, acceleration, angular velocity, or posture, etc. The inertial movement is used as data for estimating the state of the own device. For example, the determination unit 12 makes a contact determination based on the inertial movement detected by the detection unit 15. Further, the determination unit 12 can make a contact determination based on a combination (hereinafter referred to as "combination") of the operation information and the inertial movement. Information regarding these combinations is defined in a database in advance. As a result, the terminal device 10 can perform more precise control regarding the activation of wireless power supply.

[0022] The reception unit 16 receives user operation input. In this example, operation input refers to the user's operation on various input means provided by the terminal device 10, and includes, for example, predetermined operations on an input screen, input sensor, button, or various physical UI (User Interface). Operation input is distinguished from the aforementioned inertial motion in that it is the user's operation via these functional means. The functions related to operation input are predetermined in a database or the like. In this example, the determination unit 12 makes a contact determination based on the operation input. The determination unit 12 also makes a contact determination based on a combination of motion information and operation input. This is used, for example, when performing power supply control according to the movements of a user wearing a smart ring and input operations to a smartphone. The activation of wireless power supply based on motion information, inertial motion, or operation input will be described later.

[0023] As another function, the acquisition unit 14 can acquire remaining battery information from the wearable device 20, indicating the remaining battery level of the wearable device 20. In this example, if the remaining battery level indicated by the remaining battery information exceeds a predetermined threshold (for example, a certain percentage of the maximum charge), the activation unit 13 will not activate wireless power supply by the power supply unit 11, even if it determines that the wearable device 20 is in contact with a surface. In other words, if the wearable device 20 still has sufficient battery power remaining, excessive power supply by the terminal device 10 can be prevented.

[0024] Next, an overview of the functional elements of the wearable device 20 (labeled "WD" in the figure) will be explained. The wearable device 20 has functional elements related to the device power supply system 1, such as a battery, a communication unit, a control unit, a memory unit, and sensors. In this example, the battery is a means of storing power to supply power to the wearable device 20. The battery itself is charged by a contactless charging method such as the aforementioned Qi®. Therefore, the wearable device 20 can receive wireless power from the power supply unit 11 of the terminal device 10 based on electromagnetic action.

[0025] The communication unit is a functional element for data communication with the terminal device 10, and includes, for example, equipment for connecting to the terminal device 10 via wireless communication 9. The storage unit stores various data related to the wearable device 20. The control unit performs various controls. The sensors are functional elements for performing measurements related to the wearable device 20, and include, for example, an IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), a gyro sensor, a LiDAR, or a biosensor. The wearable device 20 can output operational information, including data measured by the sensors, to the terminal device 10.

[0026] Figure 3 illustrates the hardware configuration of terminal device 10. Physically, terminal device 10 is configured as a computer including a processor 101, memory 102, storage 103, communication device 104, input device 105, display device 106, sensor device 107, and a bus connecting these. Each of these devices operates on power supplied from a battery (not shown). In the following description, the term "device" can be read as a circuit, device, unit, etc. The hardware configuration of terminal device 10 may include one or more of the devices shown in Figure 3, or it may be configured without some of the devices. Alternatively, multiple devices with different enclosures may be connected via communication to constitute terminal device 10.

[0027] Each function in the terminal device 10 is realized by loading predetermined software (programs) onto hardware such as the processor 101 and memory 102, which allows the processor 101 to perform calculations, control communication by the communication device 104, and control at least one of the reading and writing of data in the memory 102 and storage 103.

[0028] The processor 101 controls the entire computer, for example, by running the operating system. The processor 101 may consist of a central processing unit (CPU) that includes interfaces with peripheral devices, control units, arithmetic units, registers, etc. Alternatively, a baseband signal processing unit or a call processing unit may be implemented by the processor 101.

[0029] The processor 101 reads programs (program code), software modules, data, etc., from at least one of the storage 103 and the communication device 104 into the memory 102 and executes various processes accordingly. The program used is one that causes the computer to execute at least a part of the operations described later. The functional blocks of the terminal device 10 are stored in the memory 102 and may be implemented by control programs that run on the processor 101. Various processes may be executed by one processor 101, or they may be executed simultaneously or sequentially by two or more processors 101. The processor 101 may be implemented by one or more chips. The program may also be transmitted to the terminal device 10 via a telecommunications line.

[0030] Memory 102 is a computer-readable recording medium and may consist of at least one of the following: ROM (Read Only Memory), EPROM (Erasable Programmable ROM), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM), RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. Memory 102 may also be called a register, cache, main memory, etc. Memory 102 can store executable programs (program code), software modules, etc., for carrying out the method according to this embodiment.

[0031] The storage 103 is a computer-readable recording medium and may consist of at least one of the following: an optical disc such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disc ROM), a hard disk drive, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk (e.g., a compact disc, a digital multipurpose disc, a Blu-ray® disc), a smart card, flash memory (e.g., a card, a stick, a key drive), a floppy® disk, a magnetic strip, etc. The storage 103 may also be called an auxiliary storage device.

[0032] The communication device 104 is hardware (transceiver / receiver device) for communicating between computers via at least one of a wired network and a wireless network, and is also referred to as a network device, network controller, network card, communication module, etc.

[0033] Each device, such as the processor 101 and memory 102, is connected by a bus for communicating information. The bus may be configured using a single bus, or different buses may be used for each device.

[0034] The terminal device 10 may include hardware such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), a PLD (Programmable Logic Device), or an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), and some or all of the functional blocks may be implemented by this hardware. For example, the processor 101 may be implemented using at least one of these hardware components.

[0035] The input device 105 and the display device 106 are a physical input interface and a display screen such as a display, respectively. The sensor device 107 is a device or instrument for detecting motion given to the terminal device 10 and measuring it as various physical indicators, and includes, for example, an IMU, a gyro sensor, a vibration sensor, a LiDAR, a camera, or a microphone.

[0036] In this example, the program stored in storage 103 includes a program (hereinafter referred to as the "host device program") that causes the computer to function as a host device in the device power supply system 1. When the processor 101 is executing the server program, the processor 101, memory 102, storage 103, communication device 104, input device 105, display device 106, and sensor device 107 are examples of functional blocks for operating the terminal device 10. The processor 101 is an example of a determination unit 12, an activation unit 13, and a control unit 192. At least one of memory 102 and storage 103 is an example of a storage unit 191. The communication device 104 is an example of a power supply unit 11 and an acquisition unit 14. At least one of input device 105 and display device 106 is an example of a reception unit 16. The sensor device 107 is an example of a detection unit 15.

[0037] Although a detailed explanation is omitted, the wearable device 20 is a computer or device having a processor, memory, storage, communication device, input device, display device, sensor, and battery, specifically, for example, a smart ring. In this example, the program stored in the storage of the wearable device 20 includes a program for causing the computer to function as a target device in the device power supply system 1 (hereinafter referred to as the "target device program").

[0038] Figure 4 is an external view illustrating the casing of the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 has a casing 108, which is a physical exterior for housing each functional element. For example, Figure 4 depicts an example where the terminal device 10 is a smartphone and the casing 108 has a front and a back (i.e., rear) surface. In this example, the casing 108 is a structure that houses various components corresponding to the main body of the terminal device 10. For example, in a smartphone, the casing 108 is implemented as an exterior that constitutes the front surface on which the display (an example of a display device 106) is located and the back surface on the opposite side. On the back of the terminal device 10, a specific surface F1 on the casing 108 is a power supply surface that provides wireless power to the target device based on its electromagnetic properties. Inside this power supply surface, a power supply device for wireless power supply, such as an oscillator, a transmitting coil, and a control circuit, is installed. For example, power is supplied from the terminal device 10 to the wearable device 20 by physical contact between the specific surface F1 and the wearable device 20. The configuration of the device power supply system 1 has now been described. Next, we will explain the operation of the device power supply system 1.

[0039] 2.Operation Figure 5 is a sequence chart illustrating the control method for wireless power supply in the device power supply system 1. Here, it is assumed that the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20 (labeled "WD" in the figure) are wirelessly connected in advance using short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth®. In this example, the wireless power supply function to the wearable device 20 is controlled as a function of the software program (an example of a host device program) implemented in the terminal device 10. For example, when the user is holding the terminal device 10 in one hand (e.g., the dominant hand) and wearing the smart ring 200 on a finger of the same hand, the following process is initiated.

[0040] In step S101, the wearable device 20 detects the movements of the user wearing the wearable device 20. In this example, the wearable device 20 measures the movement of the wearable device 20 itself based on the velocity, acceleration, or angular velocity detected by sensors. In this case, the aforementioned movement is identified as the movement of the user's finger (or hand) wearing the smart ring 200. This process is executed based on a predetermined definition in a database or the like. Note that the process in step S101 may include not only the process of detecting a specific movement (for example, determining whether the measured velocity or acceleration meets a defined condition), but also the process of the wearable device 20 mechanically recording the measured data or transmitting it to the terminal device 10.

[0041] In step S102, the terminal device 10 acquires operation information from the wearable device 20. The terminal device 10 is connected to the wearable device 20 via wireless communication 9. Therefore, the terminal device 10 can periodically acquire data from the wearable device 20 using various communication methods. In this example, the operation information includes data common to both the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20 in their respective databases. This could be, for example, actual measured data (hereinafter referred to as "actual data") showing speed, acceleration, and angular velocity detected by sensors, or data relating to the user's actions identified from the actual data.

[0042] In step S103, the terminal device 10 detects inertial motion. In this example, the terminal device 10 can identify or specify the motion of the terminal device 10 itself based on the velocity, acceleration, angular velocity, or orientation measured by sensors mounted on the device. This may be replaced, for example, with a process to identify or specify the motion of the user's hand holding the terminal device 10.

[0043] In steps S101 to S103, it is assumed that the terminal device 10 estimates the user's movements based on motion information or inertial motion. For example, if the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20 are held together in one hand of the user, each device may perform specific movements in response to the user's hand movements. In other words, if the user's hand (or finger) movements can be identified based on the movements of the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20, it will be possible to control wireless power transfer more effectively. Here, we will describe a database for managing data related to the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20.

[0044] Figure 6 is an example of the device database 1000. The device database 1000 contains multiple records relating to the terminal device 10 and the wearable devices 20 wirelessly connected to the terminal device 10. Each record corresponds to information for each device paired with the terminal device 10. Each record includes a device ID, device information, judgment information, and judgment result. The device ID is identification information for uniquely identifying each wearable device 20. The device information is basic information about the wearable device 20, including, for example, the device name, address (e.g., physical address), wireless connection information, and remaining information (e.g., battery percentage). The judgment information is information used when performing contact judgment, including, for example, a timestamp, operation information, inertial motion, and operation input. In this example, the timestamp is time information indicating the date and time when the operation information, inertial motion, or operation input was recorded. The operation information, inertial motion, and operation input are information for the terminal device 10 to perform contact judgment, and predetermined data is recorded as a record corresponding to the timestamp. The determination result is a record for recording the result of a contact determination made by the terminal device 10 based on motion information, inertial motion, or operation input, and includes, for example, specific binary data indicating whether or not contact was determined.

[0045] As a prerequisite for wireless power transfer between devices, the transmitting coil on the terminal device 10 and the receiving coil on the wearable device 20 must be close enough (hereinafter referred to as "proximity") to exert an electromagnetic effect. Therefore, the device database 1000 may store information regarding the distance between devices (or between coils). Alternatively, the terminal device 10 may determine in advance whether the coils are within the range of the above-mentioned effect, that is, whether the wearable device 20 is in proximity, prior to subsequent processing. In this embodiment, it is assumed that this condition is met in subsequent processing when both the terminal device 10 and the wearable device 20 are held in one hand.

[0046] Returning to Figure 5, in step S104, the terminal device 10 performs contact detection. In this example, the contact detection process is performed based on the operation information, inertial motion, or operation input recorded in the device database 1000. Here, the processing of the terminal device 10 will be explained in comparison with the actual user's actions.

[0047] Figure 7 illustrates user actions related to contact detection. Figure 7 is an example of a schematic diagram showing the hand movements of a user holding the terminal device 10 and the smart ring 200 in the device power supply system 1. In this example, hand H1 represents the appearance of the user's hand, which is the owner of the terminal device 10. The terminal device 10 is held by hand H1, while the smart ring 200 is attached to a finger (e.g., index finger) of hand H1. In the initial state, the terminal device 10 and the smart ring 200 are maintained in a state of physical contact (or non-contact) via a specific surface F1 provided on the back of the terminal device 10. This represents, for example, a snapshot of a part of the actions a user routinely performs with the terminal device 10.

[0048] Here, when a user performs a specific operation on the terminal device 10 or views the display screen, the movement of hand H1 is considered to be in the direction of the arrow in Figure 7. The movement of hand H1 includes, for example, lifting, moving, or bringing the terminal device 10 in front of the face. In this example, the terminal device 10 acquires motion information from the smart ring 200 during the user's movement and also detects its own inertial motion. Based on the acquired motion information and inertial motion, the terminal device 10 determines that the terminal device 10 and the smart ring 200 are in contact with a specific surface F1. The contact determination by the terminal device 10 includes a process of identifying the user's movement based on determination information recorded in the device database 1000, taking into account the premise of physical contact between devices via the specific surface F1 (or regardless of whether there is contact or not). Subsequent processing is executed if the result of the contact determination by the terminal device 10 is positive (i.e., contact is determined).

[0049] Returning to Figure 5, in step S105, the terminal device 10 enables wireless power supply on the specific surface F1. In this example, the terminal device 10 normally keeps wireless power supply turned off to prevent battery drain. Here, if a positive result is obtained from contact detection based on user action, the terminal device 10 can turn on the wireless power supply function, which was originally turned off. Now, the combinations of detection information that enable wireless power supply in this embodiment will be described.

[0050] Figure 8 illustrates a combination model 2000 of judgment information. The combination model 2000 of judgment information includes a list of combinations of judgment information that enable wireless power supply in the terminal device 10. The list includes combinations of judgment information and user actions. The combinations of judgment information are classified as combinations of items: motion information, inertial motion, and operation input. Here, patterns of user actions identified in the terminal device 10 are defined depending on whether the motion information, inertial motion, or operation input indicates a "specific action". In this example, a "specific action" is continuous movement, acceleration, rotation, or stopping within a predetermined time range, and for example, whether each action occurred is determined based on actual data.

[0051] In Figure 8, the user's actions represent a positive result from contact detection. Therefore, if a specific action is detected based on a combination of detection information, the terminal device 10 can turn on wireless power supply and start charging the wearable device 20.

[0052] Referring again to Figure 7, if a specific action (e.g., continuous upward movement + stopping) is detected in the terminal device 10, and the same inertial motion is detected in the wearable device 20, this is presumed to be an indication that the user lifted, moved, or moved the terminal device 10 in front of their face using the hand wearing the smart ring 200. In this way, the user's actions can be estimated from the combination of action information and inertial motion.

[0053] In addition, for example, if the user turns on the wireless power supply function on the display screen of the terminal device 10 at the position of hand H1 after the action in Figure 7, the operation input (e.g., terminal operation) is accepted as judgment information. Alternatively, if the user double-tap the back of the terminal device 10 with a finger wearing a smart ring 200, this is detected as a combination of action information and operation input, or a combination of action information, inertial motion, and operation input. This can be applied, for example, to cases where the user charges the terminal device 10 by touching the smart ring 200 to it while the terminal device 10 is stored in a pocket or placed face down on a table. Furthermore, the combination of action information, inertial motion, and operation input can also be defined as a combination corresponding to an action by the user, such as shaking (i.e., vibrating) the terminal device 10 itself.

[0054] By applying such models, it is possible to estimate user behavior from various judgment information (or combinations thereof) and control wireless power transfer more effectively. While this explanation uses an example of a combinational model to describe how to estimate user behavior, user behavior can be identified in more detail based on actual measured data such as velocity, acceleration, or angular velocity.

[0055] As a result, the terminal device 10 can more effectively control wireless power supply based on contact detection. The following processing is performed when the terminal device 10 enables wireless power supply.

[0056] Returning to Figure 5, in step S106, the terminal device 10 begins wireless power supply to the wearable device 20. That is, charging begins when the wearable device 20 is sufficiently close to the specific surface F1 of the terminal device 10 and the terminal device 10 enables wireless power supply. The user can operate the terminal device 10 or view content displayed on the screen while the wearable device 20 is charging.

[0057] Here, the wearable device 20 may notify the user that wireless power supply has been enabled when power is supplied from the terminal device 10. In this example, the wearable device 20 can provide notification and feedback regarding wireless power supply to the user by lighting an LED or vibrating an LED implemented on the device. Alternatively, the terminal device 10 may perform this notification process instead of the wearable device 20.

[0058] Furthermore, even if the terminal device 10 determines, based on the contact detection result, that the wearable device 20 is in contact with a specific surface F1, it does not have to enable wireless power supply. In this example, if the remaining battery level, as indicated by the remaining charge information obtained from the wearable device 20, exceeds a predetermined threshold (for example, if the battery level is 90% or higher), the terminal device 10 can terminate the process without enabling wireless power supply. Alternatively, if the battery level of the terminal device 10 itself is below a predetermined threshold (for example, 20% or lower), the terminal device 10 does not have to enable wireless power supply.

[0059] Based on this control, it is possible to prevent excessive power supply to the wearable device 20 or depletion of the terminal device 10's battery. Whether or not to enable wireless power supply is predetermined in a database or similar.

[0060] Next, we will describe the case when the terminal device 10 turns off wireless power supply. Subsequent processing begins when the terminal device 10 detects event E1 as a power supply stop trigger. In this example, "event E" refers to a specific event or occurrence in the device power supply system 1, and "trigger" refers to a trigger that causes the entity related to the device power supply system 1 to perform a specific process.

[0061] Event E1 includes, for example, events such as the wearable device 20 being separated from the terminal device 10, the user's hand (or fingers) removing the wearable device 20, the battery of the wearable device 20 being fully charged, or the user intentionally stopping the charging. In this example, the terminal device 10 can detect a power supply stop trigger based on various data. The method for detecting a power supply stop trigger is predefined in a database or the like.

[0062] In step S107, the terminal device 10 deactivates wireless power supply to the wearable device 20. Note that event E1 also includes cases where wireless power supply is not activated, even if the wearable device 20 is determined to be in contact with the specific surface F1, such as when the battery level obtained from the wearable device 20 is sufficient. The wearable device 20 may notify the user that wireless power supply has been deactivated using an LED or indicator.

[0063] As a result, the terminal device 10 can more effectively control wireless power supply within its own device. In other words, the device power supply system 1 can accurately identify user actions, enabling more precise power supply control. This improves the problem of significant battery drain that occurs when smartphones and other devices are kept in standby mode with wireless power supply constantly enabled.

[0064] 3. Variant The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible. Several modifications are described below. Two or more of the items described below may be combined and applied.

[0065] (1) Device power supply system 1 The hardware and network configurations in the device power supply system 1 are not limited to those illustrated in the embodiments. The device power supply system 1 may have any hardware and network configurations as long as they can realize the required functions. For example, multiple physical devices may cooperate to function as the device power supply system 1. For example, at least some of the functions of the terminal device 10 may be implemented in the wearable device 20. For example, the wearable device 20 may have at least some of the functions of the terminal device 10 related to enabling wireless power supply.

[0066] (2) Terminal device 10 Some of the functions of the terminal device 10 may be implemented on other servers. These servers may be, for example, physical servers or virtual servers (including so-called cloud servers). Furthermore, the correspondence between functional elements and hardware is not limited to those illustrated in the embodiments. For example, at least some of the functions described as being implemented on the terminal device 10 in the embodiments may be implemented on other devices or systems, and conversely, at least some of the functions described as being implemented on other devices or systems may be implemented on the terminal device 10. In this example, at least some of the functional elements implemented by the terminal device 10 may be implemented on other devices or systems, for example, AI, applications, or other software. The terminal device 10 may use a machine learning model to identify user actions when enabling wireless power transfer. Furthermore, the above-described processing may be performed on the terminal device 10 using any display screen, input device, or various UIs.

[0067] (3) Wearable device 20 The wearable device 20 is not limited to those exemplified in the embodiments. The wearable device 20 may have any functional elements. The wearable device 20 may have a notification unit and a detection unit in the device power supply system 1. For example, as physical elements, the wearable device 20 may have an LED, an indicator, a thermosensor, or a healthcare sensor.

[0068] (4) Control method for wireless power transfer The sequence chart shown in Figure 5 is merely an example of operation, and the operation of the device power supply system 1 is not limited thereto. Some of the illustrated operations may be changed or omitted, the order may be changed, or new operations may be added. In step S102, the terminal device 10 may acquire operation information by any means. For example, the terminal device 10 may acquire operation information from the wearable device 20 via wireless communication 9, or it may measure the operation of the wearable device 20 using various sensors and acquire this as operation information. In step S103, the detection of inertial motion or acceptance of operation input is not limited to those described in the embodiment. For example, the terminal device 10 may acquire user operations performed on the input device of the wearable device 20 as operation input from the wearable device 20.

[0069] In step S104, the terminal device 10 may perform contact detection in any way. For example, a predetermined rule base based on a combination model of motion information, inertial motion, or operation input acquired by the terminal device 10, or a machine learning model trained using past data related to this rule base as training data, may be introduced. In step S105, the terminal device 10 may control the activation in any way according to the result of the contact detection. For example, either a process of turning the wireless power supply function from off to on or from on to off may be executed based on the result of the contact detection.

[0070] In event E1, the smart ring 200 worn on the user's finger may cause the battery to overheat due to power supply. In step S107, the terminal device 10 disables wireless power supply when the temperature of the wearable device 20 reaches a threshold and notifies the user. In this case, the wearable device 20 is equipped with a temperature sensor to measure the temperature of the device itself and provides this information to the terminal device 10 as appropriate. The conditions for suppressing wireless power supply in event E1 can be anything and are defined in advance in a database or similar.

[0071] (5) Database (data) The database (or the data itself) of the device power supply system 1 shown in Figure 6 is not limited to those illustrated in the embodiment. Any data may be registered in the database in this example. Any information may be attached to the determination information acquired by the terminal device 10 in the device database 1000. For example, tags, keywords, or labels for identifying various data related to the determination information may be attached. The terminal device 10 may acquire any data from the wearable device 20 and record it in the device database 1000.

[0072] (6) Others The various programs executed by processor 101 may be provided by downloading them over a network such as the Internet, or they may be provided recorded on a computer-readable non-temporary recording medium such as a DVD-ROM. Each processor may be, for example, a CPU, an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), or a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit).

[0073] The block diagrams used in the description of the above embodiments show functional units. These functional blocks (components) are realized by any combination of at least one of hardware and software. Furthermore, the method of realizing each functional block is not particularly limited. That is, each functional block may be realized using one device that is physically or logically coupled, or it may be realized using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are directly or indirectly connected (for example, using wired or wireless connections). A functional block may also be realized by combining the above one device or the above multiple devices with software.

[0074] Functions include, but are not limited to, judgment, decision, determination, calculation, calculation, processing, derivation, investigation, search, confirmation, reception, transmission, output, access, resolution, selection, selection, establishment, comparison, assumption, expectation, assumption, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating (mapping), and assigning. For example, a functional block (configuration part) that enables transmission is called a transmitting unit or transmitter. As mentioned above, the method of implementation is not particularly limited.

[0075] For example, the terminal device 10 in one embodiment of the present disclosure may function as a computer that performs the processing of the present disclosure.

[0076] Each aspect or embodiment described in this disclosure may be applied to at least one of the following systems: LTE (Long Term Evolution), LTE-A (LTE-Advanced), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4G (4th generation mobile communication system), 5G (5th generation mobile communication system), FRA (Future Radio Access), NR (new Radio), W-CDMA (registered trademark), GSM (registered trademark), CDMA2000, UMB (Ultra Mobile Broadband), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX (registered trademark)), IEEE 802.20, UWB (Ultra-WideBand), Bluetooth (registered trademark), and other appropriate systems, as well as next-generation systems extended based thereon. Furthermore, multiple systems may be applied in combination (for example, a combination of at least one of LTE and LTE-A with 5G).

[0077] The processing procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc., of each aspect or embodiment described in this disclosure may be reordered, provided they do not contradict each other. For example, the methods described in this disclosure present various step elements in an exemplary order and are not limited to the specific order presented.

[0078] Input and output information may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or managed using a management table. Input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or appended to. Output information may be deleted. Input information may be transmitted to other devices. Determination may be performed by a value represented by one bit (0 or 1), by a boolean value (true or false), or by a numerical comparison (e.g., comparison with a predetermined value).

[0079] Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure can be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the intent and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Therefore, the descriptions in the present disclosure are illustrative and not intended to be restrictive in any way.

[0080] Software should be broadly interpreted to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, functions, etc., whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or by any other name. Furthermore, software, instructions, information, etc., may be transmitted and received via a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using at least one of wired technologies (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, or digital subscriber line (DSL)) and wireless technologies (such as infrared or microwave), at least one of these wired and wireless technologies is included in the definition of a transmission medium.

[0081] The information, signals, etc., described herein may be represented using any of the following different technologies. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc., which may be referred to throughout the above description, may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof. Terms used herein and terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meaning.

[0082] Furthermore, the information, parameters, etc., described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a predetermined value, or corresponding other information.

[0083] In this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based solely on" unless otherwise specified. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based solely on" and "based at least on."

[0084] Any reference to elements using designations such as “First,” “Second,” etc., as used in this disclosure does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient way to distinguish between two or more elements. Accordingly, references to the First and Second elements do not imply that only two elements may be employed, or that the First element must precede the Second element in any way.

[0085] In the above-described configuration of each device, the term "part" may be replaced with "means," "circuit," "device," etc.

[0086] Where the terms “include,” “including,” and variations thereof are used in this disclosure, these terms are intended to be inclusive, as is the term “comprising.” Furthermore, the term “or” as used in this disclosure is not intended to mean exclusive OR.

[0087] In this disclosure, if articles are added by translation, such as a, an, and the in English, this disclosure may include the fact that the noun following these articles is plural.

[0088] In this disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "combine" may be interpreted similarly to "different." [Explanation of Symbols]

[0089] 1...Device power supply system, 10...Terminal device, 20...Wearable device, 200...Smart ring, 9...Wireless communication, 11...Power supply unit, 12...Determination unit, 13...Activation unit, 14...Acquisition unit, 15...Detection unit, 16...Reception unit, 191...Storage unit, 192...Control unit, 101...Processor, 102...Memory, 103...Storage, 104...Communication device, 105...Input device, 106...Display device, 107...Sensor device, 108...Housing, 1000...Device database, 2000...Combination model of judgment information, E...Event, F1...Specific surface, H1...Hand

Claims

1. A power supply unit that wirelessly supplies power to other devices via a specific surface on the housing, A determination unit that determines whether a wearable device wirelessly connected to the device is in contact with the aforementioned surface, If it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface, the activation unit activates the wireless power supply in the power supply unit. A terminal device having the following features.

2. The device has an acquisition unit that acquires operation information indicating the actions of the user wearing the wearable device from the wearable device, The determination unit makes the determination based on the operation information. The terminal device according to claim 1.

3. The device has a detection unit that detects the inertial motion of the device itself, The determination unit makes the determination based on the inertial motion detected by the detection unit. The terminal device according to claim 1.

4. An acquisition unit that acquires operation information indicating the actions of the user wearing the wearable device from the wearable device, A detection unit that detects the inertial motion of the aforementioned device and It has, The determination unit makes the determination based on the combination of the motion information and the inertial motion. The terminal device according to claim 1.

5. It has a reception unit that accepts user input, The determination unit makes the determination based on the operation input. The terminal device according to claim 1.

6. A reception unit that receives user input, An acquisition unit that acquires operation information indicating the actions of the user wearing the wearable device from the wearable device. It has, The determination unit makes the determination based on the combination of the operation information and the operation input. The terminal device according to claim 1.

7. The wearable device has an acquisition unit that acquires remaining battery information indicating the remaining battery level of the wearable device, If the remaining battery level indicated by the remaining battery information exceeds a predetermined threshold, the activation unit will not activate the wireless power supply in the power supply unit, even if it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface. The terminal device according to claim 1.

8. The wearable device is a smart ring. The terminal device according to claim 1.

9. A computer having a power supply unit that wirelessly supplies power to other devices via a specific surface on its casing, The steps include determining whether a wearable device wirelessly connected to the device is in contact with the aforementioned surface, If it is determined that the wearable device is in contact with the surface, the steps include enabling the wireless power supply in the power supply unit. An information processing method having

Images