Apple inc. (20240107218). COMMUNICATION BETWEEN A CASE AND AN EARBUD WITH REDUCED POWER CONSUMPTION simplified abstract

From WikiPatents
Jump to navigation Jump to search

COMMUNICATION BETWEEN A CASE AND AN EARBUD WITH REDUCED POWER CONSUMPTION

Organization Name

apple inc.

Inventor(s)

James M. Hollabaugh of San Jose CA (US)

Antonio R. De Lima Fernandes of Panaji (IN)

Calvin M. Ryan of Berkeley CA (US)

Chandrahas Aralaguppe Chandramohan of San Jose CA (US)

Mitul Mahendrakumar Panchal of San Jose CA (US)

COMMUNICATION BETWEEN A CASE AND AN EARBUD WITH REDUCED POWER CONSUMPTION - A simplified explanation of the abstract

This abstract first appeared for US patent application 20240107218 titled 'COMMUNICATION BETWEEN A CASE AND AN EARBUD WITH REDUCED POWER CONSUMPTION

Simplified Explanation

The patent application describes a case that can communicate with earbuds to obtain information such as battery charge level without needing to communicate with the earbud's processor.

  • The case has interface circuits that allow it to directly access the power management unit of the earbud.
  • This enables the case to obtain information from the earbud even when the processor is powered down.
  • Examples of when the processor can be powered down include when the earbud is not in use or when the battery charge level is low.

Potential Applications

This technology could be used in wireless earbud cases to provide users with real-time information about the battery charge level of the earbuds without needing to open the case or turn on the earbuds.

Problems Solved

This technology solves the problem of needing to power on the earbuds in order to check the battery charge level, saving time and energy for the user.

Benefits

The main benefit of this technology is convenience, as users can quickly and easily check the battery charge level of their earbuds without any extra steps.

Potential Commercial Applications

A potential commercial application of this technology could be in the development of smart wireless earbud cases that provide users with advanced battery management features.

Possible Prior Art

One possible prior art could be the use of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology in wireless earbuds to communicate with the case and provide information such as battery charge level.

Unanswered Questions

How does this technology impact the overall battery life of the earbuds?

The article does not address how the constant communication between the case and the earbuds may affect the overall battery life of the earbuds.

Are there any security concerns with this direct communication between the case and the earbuds?

The article does not discuss any potential security risks that may arise from the direct communication between the case and the earbuds.


Original Abstract Submitted

a case can communicate with one or more earbuds to obtain information related to the earbuds, such as a battery charge level of the earbud. due to the interface circuits within the case and the earbuds, the case can obtain the information from a power management unit of the earbud without first communicating with a processor (serving as the central processing unit) of the earbud. as a result, the processor can be powered down, i.e., inactive, and the case can still communicate with the earbud. examples in which the processor can be powered down include when the earbud is in the case and not in use/service by a user, or when the earbud battery charge level is relatively low.