Active Protection System for Portable Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Portable devices are vulnerable to damage from impacts and excessive acceleration forces during handling and operation, with existing solutions failing to provide effective protection across various environments.
Innovation Solution
An active protection system that uses a sensor to detect acceleration states, processes signals through adaptive filtering and threshold application, and configures the device into a protective mode upon imminent impact detection, utilizing user or host inputs to adapt to different operational environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Speed
If a simple acceleration threshold is used to detect impact, then the detection speed is fast, but false alarms occur in various operational environments
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary configuration by storing multiple threshold sets corresponding to different operational environments before actual impact detection occurs. When operation begins, the appropriate threshold set is pre-selected based on the current environment, enabling both fast detection and accurate false alarm reduction without real-time computation delays
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adapts the acceleration threshold based on the operational environment. Instead of using a fixed threshold, the system selects from multiple pre-configured threshold sets that correspond to different operational conditions (e.g., portable mode, fixed mode, different orientations), allowing the detection criteria to change dynamically with the device's operational state
2Reliability
If multiple threshold sets are configured for different environments, then the protection accuracy improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A single configuration control module handles multiple functions: it stores multiple threshold sets, identifies the current operational environment, selects the appropriate threshold set, and manages the transition between different operational modes. This multi-functional design avoids the need for separate complex systems for each function, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining high protection accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the threshold parameter based on operational environment rather than changing the entire detection system. By storing multiple threshold sets and selectively applying them, the system achieves high adaptation to different environments without increasing structural complexity. The configuration control module manages these parameter changes automatically based on simple environmental cues
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively reduces the likelihood of damage from impacts by detecting free fall and other acceleration conditions, avoiding false alarms and providing robust protection across diverse operational scenarios.
Implementation Method 1
a sensor which outputs an acceleration signal in relation to an acceleration state of the device
Data Source
AI summary
Method and apparatus for actively protecting a device from damage due to an impact or other acceleration condition. An active protection system is provided with a sensor which outputs an acceleration signal in relation to an acceleration state of the device. A circuit processes the acceleration signal in relation to a configuration control input indicative of an operational environment in which the device is operated, and a protection mechanism configures the device in relation to the processed acceleration signal. A configuration control module preferably supplies the configuration control input as a user selectable or host input. Preferably, protection mechanism places the device in a protective state to protect against damage due to an imminent impact, such as from a free fall condition. The processing preferably comprises adaptive filtering of the acceleration signal and the application of one or more thresholds to detect said imminent impact.