JP2002261919A - Mobile communication terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Problem] To provide a non-voice communication function in addition to a minimum voice communication function when a battery power supply capacity is reduced, and to enable use of other functions. A portable communication terminal includes a battery monitoring circuit that monitors a decrease in power supply capability of a battery, and includes a CPU.
The control unit 8 controls the communication function when the battery monitoring circuit 2 detects a voltage drop of the battery 1. For example, when a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery is detected, the CPU 8 limits the talk time of voice communication to a certain time, stops voice communication except for the detection of incoming calls,
Control such as stopping all or a plurality of functions of the data transmission function, reception function, and transmission / reception function other than all or a certain volume or more of voice is performed. In addition, priorities are given to communications, and the voltage / power supply capability of the battery is detected for communications having a higher priority than a predetermined level, and when the communication functions are restricted, the restrictions on the communication functions are temporarily set. Try to solve.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a portable communication terminal, more specifically, a non-voice communication function in addition to a minimum voice communication function when the power supply capability of a battery is reduced. The present invention relates to a mobile communication terminal that can be used.

[0002]

[Prior art]

In recent years, portable communication terminals such as portable telephones and PHSs have functions such as a telephone directory, an address book, a schedule book and the like in addition to the original voice communication function, and furthermore, transmission and reception of e-mail.
Non-voice communication functions such as an Internet browsing function have been added. By the way, these additional functions have a problem that when the power supply voltage of the battery is reduced, the power supply is cut off at the same time as the voice communication function, and cannot be used.

To solve the above problems, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-244733, the power supply to the communication circuit is stopped when the power supply voltage of the battery drops, while the power supply to the logic circuit realizing other functions is stopped. To make that feature available. However, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No.
In the device disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 4733, since the power supply to the communication circuit is completely stopped when the power supply voltage of the battery drops, there is a problem that the voice communication function cannot be used at all when the power supply voltage is low.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and in addition to a minimum voice communication function when a battery's power supply capability is reduced, a non-voice communication function is ensured. It is an object of the present invention to provide a mobile communication terminal capable of using functions such as a telephone number book, an address book, and a schedule book.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, in a portable communication terminal operated by a battery, monitoring means for monitoring a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, and detection of a decrease in the voltage of the battery by the monitoring means. And control means for controlling the communication function when the communication function is restricted.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, when the monitoring means detects a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, the control means limits the talk time of voice communication to a predetermined time. It is characterized by the following.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the invention, when the monitoring means detects a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, the control means stops the voice communication excluding the incoming call detection. It is a characteristic.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect of the present invention, when the monitoring means detects a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, the control means sets the voice of all or a fixed data size or more. In addition, one or more of the data transmission function, reception function, transmission / reception function, and other functions are stopped.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in any one of the first to fourth aspects of the present invention, the control means assigns a priority to the communication, and sets the priority of the battery to a communication having a higher priority than a predetermined level. It is characterized in that the power supply capability is detected, and when the communication function is restricted, the restriction on the communication function is temporarily removed.

[0011]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram for explaining an embodiment of a portable communication terminal according to the present invention.
Is a battery for supplying power to the mobile communication terminal, 2 is a battery monitoring circuit as monitoring means for monitoring a change in power supply voltage and a decrease in power that can be supplied by the battery due to a usage time of the mobile communication terminal, and 3 is a base station. A communication circuit for performing voice and non-voice communication between the telephone, a telephone number, a display for displaying character / image data transmitted and received by non-voice communication, a radio wave condition and various settings, and a display circuit for displaying telephone numbers and non-voice communication An input device such as a keyboard for setting characters to be transmitted and a mobile communication terminal; 6, an audio input / output circuit for performing audio communication;
Reference numeral 7 denotes a memory for storing telephone numbers, character / image data transmitted / received by non-voice communication, and various settings, and reference numeral 8 denotes a CPU serving as control means for controlling the mobile communication terminal. Although the elements indicated by reference numerals 1 to 8 are arranged in the same housing, the battery 1 or the battery 1 and the battery monitoring circuit 2 are often configured to be replaceable.

FIG. 3 is an example of a flowchart of battery monitoring performed by the CPU 8 and the battery monitoring circuit 2 in FIG.
When the power of the portable communication terminal is turned on, first, the output voltage V of the battery 1 is compared with a preset threshold value Vth1 (step S11). When V> Vth1, a normal m is set in a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery.
ode (step S12)
Then, after waiting for a predetermined time (there is no waiting time) (step S13), the process returns to (step S11).

When V <Vth1, the output voltage V of the battery 1 is compared with another threshold value Vth2 satisfying Vth2 <Vth1 (step S14), and when V> Vth2, a low level is stored in a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery. but
is substituted for the value indicating that the current mode is the “mode” (step S15).
Warning of low battery mode (step S16), wait for a predetermined time (no waiting time is possible) (step S13), and again (step S11)
Return to

If V <Vth2 in step S14, the register (mode) indicating the battery state is stored in the register (mode).
The value indicating the ry end mode is substituted (step S17), the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 warns of the battery end mode (step S18), and the operation ends.

In the flowchart of FIG. 3, the output voltage V of the battery 1 and predetermined threshold values Vth1, Vth2
Is performed by the battery monitoring circuit 2, and the other processes are performed by the CPU 8. The register (mode) indicating the state of the battery may be provided in either the battery monitoring circuit 2 or the memory 7.

FIG. 4 is an example of a flowchart of voice communication and non-voice communication performed by the CPU 8 and the base station (not shown) and the communication circuit 3 in FIG. When a communication request is issued from the CPU 8 or the base station to the communication circuit 3, it is first determined whether or not the communication request is voice communication (step S21). If the communication request is voice communication, a voice communication process (step S22) is performed. If the communication request is not voice communication, it is determined whether the communication request is data reception (step S23), and if the communication request is data reception, data reception processing (step S2).
Perform 4), otherwise perform data transmission processing (step S25).

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of voice communication processing control. The flowchart of FIG.
This is to limit the time of voice communication in the uttery mode. When there is a request for voice communication processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S31), and if the mode is the normal mode, voice communication is performed (step S32), and the processing is terminated after the communication. On the other hand, in the low battery mode, a timer is set (step S33), voice communication is started (step S34), and it is compared whether the elapsed time of the timer is greater than a preset time Tth (step S3).
5) While the elapsed time of the timer is smaller than Tth, the voice communication of step S34 is continued, but when the elapsed time of the timer becomes larger than Tth, the display 4 or the voice input / output circuit 6 warns the end of the voice communication. (Step S36), the voice communication is forcibly terminated (Step S36).
37) End the process. In addition, buttery end
In the mode, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6
Indicates that communication is not possible (step S38), and terminates the process.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing another example of the voice communication processing control. The flowchart of FIG. 6 is low.
Voice communication is not performed except for storing that there is an incoming call request from the base station in the butterfly mode. When there is a request for voice communication processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S31), and if the mode is the normal mode, voice communication is performed (step S32), and the processing is terminated after the communication. On the other hand, in the case of the low battery mode, it is checked whether or not the communication request is an incoming request from the base station (step S33). If the incoming request is from the base station, the telephone number of the other party is stored in the memory 7 and the display 4 is displayed.
Alternatively, the voice input / output circuit 6 performs an incoming call storage process (step S34) indicating that there is an incoming call, and ends the process. If not, the display 4 or the voice input / output circuit 6 indicates that the call cannot be transmitted. (Step S35) The process ends. In the case of the battery end mode, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 indicates that communication is not possible (step S36), and the process ends.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of data transmission processing control. The flowchart of FIG. 7 is low.
In the butterfly mode, the data length to be transmitted is limited so that data having a size larger than a preset value is not transmitted. When there is a request for data transmission processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S41). If the mode is the normal mode, data transmission is performed (step S43), and the processing ends after transmission. On the other hand, in the low battery mode, the size of the data requested to be transmitted is checked (step S42), and when the data is smaller than the preset value Dths, the data is transmitted (step S4).
3) The process ends after transmission. If the data is larger than the preset value Dths, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 indicates that transmission is not possible (step S44), and the process ends. In addition, butte
In the RYEND mode, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 indicates that transmission is not possible (step S4).
4) and end the processing.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing another example of the data transmission processing control. In the flowchart of FIG.
Data transmission is not performed in the low battery mode. When there is a request for data transmission processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S51). If the mode is the normal mode, data transmission is performed (step S52), and the processing ends after transmission. On the other hand, low buttery mode, bu
In the case of the terry end mode, the fact that transmission is impossible is displayed on the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 (step S53), and the process is terminated.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of data reception processing control. The flowchart of FIG. 9 is low.
In the buttery mode, the data length to be received is limited so that data of a size larger than a preset value is not received. When there is a request for data reception processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S61). If the mode is the normal mode, data reception is performed (step S63), and the processing ends after reception. On the other hand, in the low battery mode, the size (data length) of the data requested to be received
Is checked (step S62). If the data is smaller than the preset value Dthr, the data is received (step S63), and the process is terminated after the reception. When the data is larger than the preset value Dthr or when the size of the data is unknown, the display 4 or the voice input / output circuit 6 indicates that the data cannot be received (step S64), and the process ends. In addition, buttery
In the end mode, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 indicates that reception is not possible (step S6).
4) and end the processing.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing another example of data reception processing control. In the flowchart of FIG. 10, data is not received in the low battery mode. When there is a request for data reception processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S71). If the mode is the normal mode, data is received (step S72), and the processing ends after reception. On the other hand, low buttery mode,
Display 4 when in battery end mode
Alternatively, the fact that reception is not possible is displayed by the voice input / output circuit 6 (step S73), and the process is terminated.

[0023] Next, priorities are assigned to communications, and a battery voltage drop is detected for communications having a higher priority, and when the communications function is restricted, the limitation of the communications function is temporarily removed. The communication processing control will be described as an example. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing another example of the voice communication processing control. In the flowchart of the voice communication processing control of FIG. 6, the priority is set from the input device 5 such as a keyboard.
Even in the low battery mode, a step of temporarily removing the restriction on the communication function for high-priority communication is added. When there is a request for voice communication processing, first, the value of a register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is checked (step S81). If the mode is the normal mode, voice communication is performed (step S85), and the processing ends after communication. While l
In the low battery mode, a flag indicating that the priority of the communication request is high is checked (step S82). If the flag is set, voice communication is performed (step S8).
5) The process ends after communication. If the flag is not set, it is checked whether the incoming request is from the base station (step S83). If the incoming request is from the base station, the telephone number of the other party is stored in the memory 7 and the display 4 or the voice The input / output circuit 6 performs an incoming call storage process (step S84) indicating that there is an incoming call, and ends the process. If not, the display 4 or the voice input / output circuit 6 indicates that outgoing call is not possible (step S84). S86) The process ends. In the case of the battery end mode, the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 indicates that communication is not possible (step S87), and the process ends.

The above-described voice communication processing control, data transmission processing control, and data reception processing control may be used alone or in combination, and the combination may be stored in the memory 7 and stored in a keyboard or the like. The change of the combination may be made possible by the input from the input device 5.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining another embodiment of the portable communication terminal of the present invention, and shows a configuration in which one battery in FIG. 1 is replaced with a main battery and a sub-battery. Things. In FIG. 2, 1a is a main battery that supplies power to the mobile communication terminal, 1b is a sub-battery that supplies power to the mobile communication terminal when the main battery cannot supply power, and 2 is a power supply voltage change or mobile communication. A battery monitoring circuit that monitors a decrease in power that can be supplied by a battery during use time of a terminal, a communication circuit 3 that performs voice and non-voice communication with a base station, and a transmission and reception that uses a telephone number and non-voice communication. A display for displaying characters and image data to be transmitted, a radio wave condition and various settings, 5 is a telephone number, an input device such as a keyboard for setting characters to be transmitted by non-voice communication and a mobile communication terminal, and 6 is a device for performing voice communication. , A memory for storing telephone numbers, character / image data to be transmitted / received by non-voice communication, and various settings, and a CP for controlling a mobile communication terminal. 9 is a switch for switching the battery to supply power to the mobile communication terminal. In FIG. 2, reference numerals 1 to 8 are arranged in the same housing, but the main battery 1a or the main battery 1a and the sub battery 1b or the main battery 1a and the battery monitoring circuit 2 or the main battery 1a and the sub battery 1b and the battery monitoring circuit 2 is often configured to be replaceable.

FIG. 12 is an example of a flowchart showing an example of the battery monitoring process performed by the CPU 8 and the battery monitoring circuit 2 in FIG. When the power is turned on in FIG. 11, it is assumed that the switch 9 always supplies power from the main battery 1a to the portable communication terminal. After the power is turned on, first, the output voltage Va of the main battery 1a is compared with a preset threshold value Vtha (step S91), and Va> V
At the time of th1, a register (mod) indicating the state of the battery
The value indicating the normal mode is substituted into e) (step S92), and a predetermined time is waited (even if there is no waiting time) (step S93), and again (step S9)
Return to 1). When Va <Vtha, the CPU 8 switches the battery for supplying power to the portable communication terminal from the main battery 1a to the sub-battery 1b by the switch 9 (step S94), and then compares the output voltage Vb of the sub-battery 1b with another threshold Vthb ( Step S95), and Vb> V
In the case of thb, a register (mod) indicating the state of the battery
The value indicating the low battery mode is substituted for e) (step S96), and the low battery mode is set in the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6.
warning (step S97), and waits for a predetermined time (there is no waiting time) (step S93), and returns to (step S91) again.

When Vb <Vthb in step S95, the register (mode) indicating the state of the battery is stored in the register (mode).
The value indicating the end end mode is substituted (step S98), and the display 4 or the audio input / output circuit 6 warns of the battery end mode (step S99). (Step S100) The operation ends.

In the flowchart of FIG. 12, the output voltages Va and Vb of the main battery 1a and the sub-battery 1b are compared with predetermined threshold values Vtha and Vthb by the battery monitoring circuit 2, and the other processing is performed by the CPU 8.
Done by The register (mode) indicating the state of the battery may be provided in either the battery monitoring circuit 2 or the memory 7.

The portable communication terminal of FIG. 2 is also limited to the communication function by the flow charts shown in FIGS. 4 to 11 similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 1 when the power supply capability of the main battery 1a is reduced. Is added.

[0030]

According to the portable communication terminal of the first aspect, the decrease in the power supply of the battery is monitored and the communication function is limited when the decrease in the voltage of the battery is detected. Phone number book while maintaining non-voice communication function by adding limited voice communication function,
A mobile communication terminal that can use functions such as an address book and a schedule book can be realized.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, a portable communication terminal having a more rational function is provided by limiting the talk time of voice communication to a certain time when detecting a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery. it can.

In the portable communication terminal according to the third aspect, the voice communication excluding the incoming call detection is stopped when the decrease in the power supply capability of the battery is detected, thereby providing a portable communication terminal having a more rational function.

According to the portable communication terminal of the present invention, when detecting a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, one or more of all or a non-voice data transmission function, reception function, or transmission / reception function of a certain size or more. By stopping, a more reasonable mobile communication terminal can be provided.

In the portable communication terminal according to the fifth aspect, priorities are assigned to the communications, and the power supply capability of the battery is detected for the communications having the higher priority, so that when the communication function is restricted, the communications are temporarily stopped. By solving the restriction of the communication function, a more excellent portable communication terminal having flexibility in the communication restriction processing can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a portable communication terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining another embodiment of the portable communication terminal of the present invention.

3 is an example of a flowchart of battery monitoring performed by a CPU and a battery monitoring circuit of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an example of a flowchart of voice communication and non-voice communication performed by a communication circuit between the CPU of FIG. 1 and a base station (not shown).

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example of voice communication processing control.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating another example of voice communication processing control.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of data transmission processing control.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating another example of data transmission processing control.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of data reception processing control.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating another example of data reception processing control.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating another example of voice communication processing control.

12 is an example of a flowchart illustrating an example of a battery monitoring process performed by the CPU and the battery monitoring circuit of FIG. 1;

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Battery, 1a ... Main battery, 1b ... Sub-battery, 2 ... Battery monitoring circuit, 3 ... Communication circuit, 4 ... Display, 5 ... Keyboard (input device), 6 ... Voice input / output circuit, 7 ... Memory, 8 ... CPU, 9 ... switch.

Claims (5)

[Claims] In a portable communication terminal operated by a battery, monitoring means for monitoring a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, and control for restricting a communication function when the monitoring means detects a decrease in the voltage of the battery. And a control means for performing the control. 2. The portable device according to claim 1, wherein when the monitoring unit detects a decrease in the power supply capacity of the battery, the control unit limits the talk time of the voice communication to a predetermined time. Communication terminal. 3. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1, wherein when the monitoring unit detects a decrease in the power supply capability of the battery, the control unit stops the voice communication except for detecting the incoming call. . 4. When the monitoring means detects a decrease in the power supply capacity of the battery, the control means sets all or a non-voice data transmission function, reception function, or transmission / reception function of a certain data size or more. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1, wherein one or more functions are stopped. 5. The control means assigns priorities to communications, detects the power supply capability of the battery for communications having a higher priority than a predetermined level, and temporarily determines when a communication function is restricted. The mobile communication terminal according to claim 1, wherein the restriction on the communication function is removed.