Mobile Device Damage Sensors for Threshold-Based Repair Notifications
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mobile computing devices, such as smartphones and tablets, are increasingly fragile due to enhanced touchscreen responsiveness, leading to frequent damage, which can result in user dissatisfaction and increased repair costs, as manufacturers are often unaware of individual device issues.
Innovation Solution
Equipping computing devices with sensors to detect hazardous events, such as impacts or environmental damage, and sending notifications to a central server if the damage exceeds a threshold value, allowing for expedited repair processes and improved customer satisfaction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If manufacturers increase touchscreen responsiveness, then user experience is improved, but device fragility increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of hazardous events (drops, impacts, water exposure) before actual damage occurs. Sensors continuously monitor for conditions that could lead to damage, and the system proactively notifies users and manufacturers about potential risks, allowing preventive actions to be taken before the device is actually damaged.
Solution Approach 2:
The system establishes a feedback loop where sensor data about hazardous events is transmitted to both the user's device and the manufacturer's server. This feedback mechanism allows manufacturers to gain insights into real-world device conditions and usage patterns, enabling them to improve future device designs and provide targeted support to affected users.
2Ease of manufacture
If devices are used despite minor damage, then users avoid repair costs, but user satisfaction decreases and manufacturers lose quality data
Solution Approach 1:
The system establishes a feedback loop where sensor data about hazardous events is transmitted to both the user's device and the manufacturer's server. This feedback mechanism allows manufacturers to gain insights into real-world device conditions and usage patterns, enabling them to improve future device designs and provide targeted support to affected users.
Solution Approach 2:
The sensor system acts as an intermediary between the user's device and the manufacturer. It continuously monitors device conditions and automatically transmits damage data to the manufacturer's server, eliminating the need for users to manually report issues. This intermediary mechanism ensures continuous data flow to manufacturers while keeping users informed about their device's status.
3Device complexity
If manufacturers remain unaware of individual device issues, then production costs are reduced, but device reliability cannot be improved
Solution Approach 1:
The sensor system serves multiple functions: it detects hazardous events, determines damage thresholds, transmits data to manufacturers, and notifies users. This multi-functional approach consolidates what could be separate complex systems into a single integrated solution, achieving manufacturer awareness without proportionally increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The device autonomously performs damage detection, data transmission, and notification functions without requiring manual intervention from users or additional complex infrastructure from manufacturers. The system serves itself by automatically monitoring its own condition and communicating findings, reducing the complexity burden on both device and manufacturing systems.
Data Source
AI summary
In general, this disclosure is directed to techniques for utilizing sensors within a computing device to detect a hazardous event and notify a central server that the computing device is potentially damaged. One or more sensors of a computing device may detect the hazardous event to the computing device. Responsive to detecting the hazardous event, the sensors may measure a magnitude of a damage measurand associated with the hazardous event to the computing device. The computing device may determine that the magnitude of the damage measurand exceeds a threshold damage value for the computing device. Responsive to determining that the magnitude of the damage measurand exceeds the threshold damage value, the computing device may send, to a server device, a message indicating the computing device is potentially damaged.