TWI865248B - Electronic system and operating method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

An electronic system and an operating method thereof are provided. The electronic system includes a first power supply controller and a docking device. The docking device is coupled to the first power supply controller. The docking device includes a plurality of connection ports. The plurality of connection ports are configured to connect an external device. The first power supply controller adjusts an output power value of the docking device for supplying power to the first power supply controller, according to a number of activated power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports. Accordingly, the electronic system is able to be efficiently charged.

Description

Electronic system and method of operating the same

The present invention relates to an electronic system, and more particularly to an electronic system using an expansion device and an operating method thereof.

Generally speaking, a computer device can be connected to one or more external devices through an expansion device to expand the functionality of the computer device. The computer device can also be charged through the expansion device. The expansion device can use the Universal Serial Bus Type-C (hereinafter referred to as USB Type-C) as the transmission interface for Power Delivery (PD).

However, in the application of programmable power supply (PPS), the output power of the power delivery profile (PD Profile) supported by the current expansion device cannot meet the power supply power required by the computer device. When the expansion device supplies power to the computer device based on this power delivery profile, even if the expansion device can perform the power supply operation, the power of the computer device will decrease, thereby causing the computer device to be unable to be effectively charged.

The embodiment of the present invention provides an electronic system that can adjust the power supply of an expansion device so as to be charged efficiently.

The electronic system of the embodiment of the present invention includes a first power supply controller and an expansion device. The expansion device is coupled to the first power supply controller. The expansion device includes a plurality of connection ports. The plurality of connection ports are used to connect external electronic devices. The first power supply controller adjusts the output power value of the expansion device supplying power to the first power supply controller according to the number of power supply functions of the connection ports that are enabled.

The embodiment of the present invention further provides an operating method of an electronic system. The operating method includes the following steps. Power is supplied to a first power supply controller through an expansion device. The multiple connection ports of the expansion device are used to connect external electronic devices. The output power value of the expansion device supplying power to the first power supply controller is adjusted by the first power supply controller according to the number of power supply functions of the multiple connection ports that are enabled.

Based on the above, the electronic system and its operation method of the embodiment of the present invention can meet the power supply power required by the electronic system by adjusting the output power value of the expansion device during power supply according to the number of multiple connection ports with the power supply function enabled. In this way, during the charging process, the power of the electronic system will not decrease and can be effectively charged.

In order to make the above features and advantages of the present invention more clearly understood, embodiments are specifically cited below and described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. When the same element symbols appear in different drawings, they will be regarded as the same or similar elements. These embodiments are only part of the present invention and do not disclose all possible implementations of the present invention. More precisely, these embodiments are only examples within the scope of the patent application of the present invention.

FIG1 is a block diagram of an electronic system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG1 , the electronic system 100 can apply the transmission standard of USB Type-C. The electronic system 100 can support the specification of Programmable Power Supply (PPS) to dynamically adjust the voltage and current of the power supply.

In this embodiment, the electronic system 100 may include a first power supply controller 110 and an expansion device 120. The first power supply controller 110 is coupled to the expansion device 120. The first power supply controller 110 may be externally connected to and use one or more external electronic devices 200 through the expansion device 120. The first power supply controller 110 may also be externally connected to and use an external power source (not shown) through the expansion device 120 to charge the electronic system 100.

In this embodiment, the external electronic device 200 may be, for example, a power supply, a display, an external hard disk, and various communication interface devices.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 110 may be, for example, a power delivery (PD) controller. The first power supply controller 110 may include a signal converter, a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable general-purpose or special-purpose microprocessors (Microprocessors), digital signal processors (Digital Signal Processors, DSPs), programmable controllers, application specific integrated circuits (Application Specific Integrated Circuits, ASICs), programmable logic devices (Programmable Logic Devices, PLDs) or other similar devices or combinations of these devices, which can load and execute computer program related firmware or software to achieve functions such as calculation, control, and execution.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 110 may be integrated into an electronic device (not shown). The electronic device may be, for example, a mobile phone, a computer device, a tablet computer, a laptop computer, a desktop computer, or other electronic devices.

In this embodiment, the expansion device 120 may include a plurality of connection ports P1-PN, where N is a positive integer greater than 2. The connection ports P1-PN may include connection ports using USB Type-C and USB Type-A, a display port (DisplayPort, DP), and a connection port using a high definition multimedia interface (High Definition Multimedia Interface, HDMI).

FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an operation method of an electronic system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 , the electronic device 100 can execute steps S210 to S220. The order of these steps S210 to S220 is only for example and is not limited thereto. In this embodiment, steps S210 to S220 can be applied to the following exemplary situations.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 110 uses the external electronic device 200 through the expansion device 120 and is charged through the expansion device 120. Specifically, the first connection port P1 of the expansion device 120 is connected to the external electronic device 200. The second connection port P2 of the expansion device 120 is connected to the first power supply controller 110 through the corresponding connection port (not shown) in the electronic device. The Nth connection port PN of the expansion device 120 is connected to an external power source (not shown).

In step S210, the expansion device 120 supplies power to the first power supply controller 110. In this exemplary case, the second connection port P2 of the expansion device 120 can be used as a downstream facing port (DFP). The corresponding connection port in the electronic device can be used as an upstream facing port (UFP) and connected to the first power supply controller 110. At this time, the expansion device 120 defaults to enable the power supply function and data transmission function of the multiple connection ports P1~PN respectively.

In step S220 , the first power supply controller 110 adjusts the output power value of the expansion device 120 supplying power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the number of enabled power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports P1 -PN.

In other words, the power supply functions of some of the connection ports P1-PN can be disabled. When the number of the enabled power supply functions is changed, the margin of the power supply of the expansion device 120 is adjusted accordingly, thereby adjusting the output power setting of the expansion device 120. At this time, the expansion device 120 can supply power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the adjusted output power setting (e.g., the adjusted output power value).

It is worth mentioning that in the application of PPS, the first power supply controller 110 can flexibly adjust (for example, increase) the output power value of the expansion device 120 when supplying power based on the number of power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN that are enabled. In this way, the electronic system 100 can avoid the situation where the power is reduced during the charging process, and can be charged effectively.

FIG3 is a block diagram of an electronic system according to another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG3 , the electronic system 300 may include a first power supply controller 310 and an expansion device 320. The expansion device 320 may include a plurality of connection ports P1-PN. The first power supply controller 310 and the expansion device 320 may refer to the relevant description of the electronic system 100 and be deduced by analogy.

In the embodiment of FIG. 3 , the electronic system 300 may further include a computer device 301, a charging control circuit 311, a battery pack 312, and an information prompter 313. The charging control circuit 311, the battery pack 312, and the information prompter 313 may be disposed in the computer device 301.

In this embodiment, the charging control circuit 311 is coupled to the first power supply controller 310, the battery pack 312, and the information indicator 313. The charging control circuit 311 may be, for example, a circuit integrating a charger integrated circuit (Charger Integrated Circuit, Charger IC) 311a and an embedded controller (Embedded controller, EC) 311b.

In this embodiment, the battery pack 312 may be, for example, at least one rechargeable battery for storing electric energy and releasing the stored electric energy multiple times.

In the present embodiment, the information prompter 313 may be, for example, a device including a display device 314, a buzzer, a warning light, or a combination thereof for issuing prompt information. In the present embodiment, the display device 314 may be, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light-emitting diode (LED), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), or the like that provides a display function and/or a touch function. In some embodiments, the display device 314 may be, for example, a display that uses a cold cathode fluorescent lamp (CCFL) or a light-emitting diode (LED) as a backlight module.

In the embodiment of FIG. 3 , the expansion device 320 may include a second power supply controller 321 and a switch device 322. The second power supply controller 321 may be coupled to the first power supply controller 310 via one of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN (e.g., the second connection port P2). The second power supply controller 321 is also coupled to the switch device 322. In this embodiment, the second power supply controller 321 may be, for example, a PD controller. The second power supply controller 321 may refer to the relevant description of the first power supply controller 110 and be analogous thereto.

In this embodiment, the switch device 322 may include one or more physical switches. These switches are respectively coupled to the plurality of connection ports P1 -PN to turn on or off the power supply function of these connection ports P1 -PN.

FIG4 is a flow chart of the operation method of the electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG3 of the present invention. Referring to FIG3 and FIG4, the electronic system 300 can execute steps S410, S421-S431, and S422-S432. The order of these steps S410-S432 is only for example description and is not limited thereto.

In step S410, the expansion device 320 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310. In this exemplary case, the expansion device 320 is connected to a power adapter (Adapter) and a corresponding upstream port (not shown) in the computer device 301 through a downstream port (e.g., the second connection port P2 using USB Type-C) to further connect to the first power supply controller 310. At this time, the expansion device 120 defaults to enable the power supply function and data transmission function of the plurality of connection ports P1~PN, respectively.

In this embodiment, the expansion device 320 is further connected to the external electronic device 200 through the first connection port P1 to use the external electronic device 200. The Nth connection port PN of the expansion device 320 is connected to an external power source (not shown).

5A is a schematic diagram of the operation of the electronic system according to the embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG3. The setting of the power supply function of the expansion device 320 can be, for example, shown in the preset power consumption table shown in FIG5A.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5A , the output power of the expansion device 320 may be recorded in the field FOUT1. In the field FOUT1, the expansion device 320 may include a plurality of power transmission profiles (PD Profiles) represented by "PDO1" to "PDO5". In this embodiment, each power transmission profile may include output power settings such as output voltage value, output current value, and output power value of the expansion device 320 when supplying power.

For example, in the field FOUT1, the expansion device 320 can supply power to the first power supply controller 310 with the power transmission profile indicated by "PDO5". That is, in the power supply operation, the maximum output voltage value of the expansion device 320 is about 20 volts (V). The maximum output current value of the expansion device 320 is about 3 amperes (A). The maximum output power value of the expansion device 320 is about 60W.

In addition, the power consumption required by the plurality of ports P1-PN may be recorded in the field FP1. Taking the field FP12 as an example, the power consumption of the third port P3 may be represented by "USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A Port 3", where the third port P3 may be a port using USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type A. When the power supply function of the third port P3 is enabled, the third port P3 consumes approximately 4.5 watts (W) of power.

Returning to the embodiment of FIG. 4 , the electronic system 300 can selectively operate in the first mode or the second mode to adjust the output power value of the expansion device 320 when supplying power according to the number of enabled power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN.

Specifically, in the first mode, when the power supply function of at least one of the plurality of ports P1 to PN (e.g., the first port P1, the third port P3, and/or the fourth port P4) is disabled, the number of enabled power supply functions of the ports P1 to PN changes. Alternatively, in the second mode, when the external electronic device 200 is removed from one of the plurality of ports P1 to PN (e.g., the first port P1), the number of enabled power supply functions of the ports P1 to PN changes.

5B is a schematic diagram of the operation of the electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG3 of the present invention. When the number of enabled power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN changes, the setting of the power supply function of the expansion device 320 can be shown in the power consumption table shown in FIG5B, for example.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5B , taking the deactivation of the power supply function of the fourth port P4 as an example, the power consumption required by the multiple ports P1 to PN can be recorded in the field FP2. Compared with the embodiment of FIG. 5A , in the field FP21 , the power consumption of the fourth port P4 is adjusted from the default power consumption (i.e., about 2.5W) to about 0W. Therefore, the port using USB Type-C (i.e., the second port P2 represented by "USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type C Port 1") can exclude the default power consumption of the fourth port P4. Therefore, in the field FP22 , the power consumption of the second port P2 can be adjusted from the default power consumption (i.e., about 7.5W) to about 4.5W.

It should be noted that, since the power consumption of the downstream port (i.e., the second port P2) that uses USB Type-C for power supply is reduced, in the field FOUT2, the expansion device 320 can supply power to the first power supply controller 310 with the second power transmission profile represented by "PDO6". That is, in the power supply operation, the maximum output voltage value of the expansion device 320 is approximately 20 volts (V). The maximum output current value of the expansion device 320 is adjusted to approximately 3.25 amperes (A). The maximum output power value of the expansion device 320 can be increased from the preset maximum output power value (i.e., approximately 60W) to approximately 65W.

In this embodiment, the output power value of the second power transmission profile (ie, approximately 65 W) is greater than the output power value of the first power transmission profile (ie, approximately 60 W). The second power transmission profile may be, for example, a power transmission profile of a vendor defined message (VDM).

In this embodiment, based on the number of enabled power supply functions of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN, the expansion device 320 switches the preset first power transmission profile (e.g., the power transmission profile represented by "PDO5") to the second power transmission profile (e.g., the power transmission profile represented by "PDO6"). The expansion device 320 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310 with the increased output power value according to the second power transmission profile.

Specifically, in step S421, the electronic system 300 operates in the first mode to implement the above functions based on the switching operation of the switch device 322. In step S431, the electronic system 300 disables the second mode. For details on the operation of the electronic system 300 in the first mode, please refer to the embodiment of FIG. 6 below.

In step S422, the electronic system 300 operates in the second mode to implement the above functions based on the detection operation of the battery pack 312 by the charging control circuit 311. In step S432, the electronic system 300 disables the first mode. For details on the operation of the electronic system 300 in the second mode, please refer to the embodiment of FIG. 7 below.

FIG6 is a flow chart of the operation method of the electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG3 of the present invention, which illustrates the operation details of the electronic system 300 in the first mode. Referring to FIG3 and FIG6, the electronic system 300 can execute steps S610-S650, which illustrates the operation details of the electronic system 300 executing steps S421 and S431.

In step S610, the second power supply controller 321 determines whether the switch device 322 is switched.

When the determination result in step S610 is negative, it means that the switch device 322 has not been switched by the user and remains in the closed state. At this time, the setting of the expansion device 320 includes the default power consumption meter as shown in FIG. 5A .

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 310 performs protocol communication of power supply operation with the second power supply controller 321 of the expansion device 320 through a set of configuration channel (CC) pins corresponding to the upstream port and the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2). In other words, the first power supply controller 310 confirms through the protocol communication that the expansion device 320 can use the preset power transmission profile. This power transmission profile can be, for example, the first power transmission profile (i.e., "PDO5") with the maximum output power value (i.e., about 60W) in FIG. 5A.

Then, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S620. In step S620, the second power supply controller 321 of the expansion device 320 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the first power transmission profile.

On the other hand, when the determination result in step S610 is yes, it means that the switch device 322 is switched by the user and is turned on. At this time, the second power supply controller 321 disables the power supply function of at least one of the multiple connection ports P1~PN corresponding to the switch device 322 (for example, the fourth connection port P4). In this way, the setting of the expansion device 320 includes the power consumption meter shown in FIG. 5B. The electronic system 300 proceeds to step S630.

It should be noted that when the switch device 322 is switched, since the second power supply controller 321 locks the power supply function of the fourth port P4, the fourth port P4 cannot transmit power, but can transmit data to support the data transmission function.

In this embodiment, based on application requirements, the second power supply controller 321 preferentially disables the port using USB Type A (ie, the fourth port P4 corresponding to the field FP21 in FIG. 5B ). In some embodiments, the second power supply controller 321 may preferentially disable one or more ports P1-PN using other transmission specifications.

In step S630, the first power supply controller 310 performs a power supply operation protocol communication with the second power supply controller 321 through the CC pins corresponding to the upstream port and the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) according to the judgment result indicated as "yes" in step S610, so that the second power supply controller 321 determines whether the output power of the current multiple connection ports P1~PN conforms to the second power transmission profile. In other words, the first power supply controller 310 confirms whether the expansion device 320 can use the power transmission profile of the VDM (i.e., the second power transmission profile) through the protocol communication.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 310 further disables the detection operation of the charging control circuit 311 on the battery pack 312 through the CC pin according to the determination result indicated as "yes" in step S610. In this way, when the first mode is enabled, the first power supply controller 310 disables the second mode.

When the determination result in step S630 is yes, it means that the output power of the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN meets the second power transmission profile. In other words, the output voltage value, output current value, and output power value that the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN can support match the corresponding setting values in the second power transmission profile. At this time, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S650.

In step S650, the second power supply controller 321 switches the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile according to the determination result indicated as "yes" in step S630. In this way, the second power supply controller 321 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the second power transmission profile.

On the other hand, when the determination result in step S630 is negative, it means that the output power of the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN does not conform to the second power transmission profile. In other words, at least one of the output voltage value, output current value, and output power value that the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN can support does not match the corresponding setting value in the second power transmission profile. At this time, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S640.

In step S640, the second power supply controller 321 reduces the maximum output current value of the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) according to the determination result indicated as "no" in step S630. For example, the second power supply controller 321 reduces the maximum output current value of the second connection port P2 from the preset 1.5A to 0.9A. At this time, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S650 to switch the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile through the second power supply controller 321.

It should be noted that, since the maximum output current value of the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) is reduced, the power consumption of the downstream port using USB Type-C for power supply is correspondingly reduced. In this way, the expansion device 320 can supply power to the first power supply controller 310 with the second power transmission profile.

FIG7 is a flow chart of the operation method of the electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG3 of the present invention, which illustrates the operation details of the electronic system 300 in the second mode. Referring to FIG3 and FIG7, the electronic system 300 can execute steps S711 to S750, which illustrates the operation details of the electronic system 300 executing steps S422 and S432.

In step S711, the expansion device 320 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310. The implementation details of step S711 can refer to the relevant description of step S410 and be deduced by analogy.

In step S712, the charging control circuit 311 determines whether the power of the battery pack 312 decreases within a preset period to output a communication signal to the expansion device 320 through the first power supply controller 310. Then, the expansion device 320 determines whether the output power of the plurality of connection ports P1-PN meets the first power transmission profile according to the communication signal to proceed to step S720, or whether it meets the second power transmission profile to proceed to steps S730-S750.

That is, the charger integrated circuit 311a detects the power level of the battery pack 312 through an inter-integrated circuit (I2C). The charger integrated circuit 311a determines whether the detected power level decreases within a preset period (e.g., 15 minutes), and determines whether the battery pack 312 cannot be effectively charged.

When the determination result in step S712 is negative, it means that the power of the battery pack 312 has not decreased within the preset period. At this time, the battery pack 312 is effectively charged. The setting of the expansion device 320 includes a preset power consumption meter as shown in FIG. 5A.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 310 transmits communication signals through the CC pins corresponding to the upstream port and the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) to perform protocol communication of power supply operation with the second power supply controller 321. In other words, the first power supply controller 310 confirms through protocol communication that the expansion device 320 can use the preset power transmission profile (i.e., the first power transmission profile "PDO5" in FIG. 5A).

Then, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S720. In step S720, the second power supply controller 321 of the expansion device 320 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the first power transmission profile.

On the other hand, when the determination result in step S712 is yes, it indicates that the power of the battery pack 312 has decreased within the preset period. At this time, the charger integrated circuit 311a transmits the determination result indicating "yes" in step S712 to the embedded controller 311b. The embedded controller 311b then transmits the determination result to the first power supply controller 310. The electronic system 300 proceeds to step S730.

In step S730, the first power supply controller 310 transmits a communication signal through the CC pins corresponding to the upstream port and the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) according to the judgment result indicated as "yes" in step S712, so as to perform protocol communication of the power supply operation with the second power supply controller 321. In this way, the second power supply controller 321 determines whether the output power of the current plurality of connection ports P1~PN meets the second power transmission profile according to the communication signal. In other words, the second power supply controller 321 confirms whether the expansion device 320 can use the power transmission profile of the VDM (i.e., the second power transmission profile) according to the communication signal.

In this embodiment, the first power supply controller 310 further disables the switch device 322 via the CC pin according to the determination result indicated as “yes” in step S712. Thus, when the second mode is enabled, the first power supply controller 310 disables the first mode.

When the determination result in step S730 is yes, it means that the output power of the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN meets the second power transmission profile. In other words, the output voltage value, output current value and output power value supported by the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN match the corresponding setting values in the second power transmission profile.

Continuing with the above description, the second power supply controller 321 transmits a communication signal through the CC pins corresponding to the upstream port and the downstream port (i.e., the second connection port P2) according to the judgment result indicated as "yes" in step S730, so as to perform the protocol communication of the power supply operation again with the first power supply controller 310. In other words, the first power supply controller 310 confirms that the expansion device 320 will use the second power transmission profile through the second protocol communication. The electronic system 300 proceeds to step S750.

In step S750, the second power supply controller 321 switches the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile according to the determination result indicated as "yes" in step S730. In this way, the second power supply controller 321 supplies power to the first power supply controller 310 according to the second power transmission profile.

On the other hand, when the determination result in step S730 is negative, it indicates that the output power of the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN does not conform to the second power transmission profile. In other words, at least one of the output voltage value, output current value, and output power value that the current plurality of connection ports P1-PN can support does not match the corresponding setting value in the second power transmission profile. At this time, the electronic system 300 proceeds to step S740.

In step S740, the second power supply controller 321 controls the information prompter 313 to send a prompt message according to the judgment result indicated as "no" in step S730, and until the external electronic device 200 is removed from the multiple connection ports P1~PN, the electronic system 300 continues with step S750 to switch the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile through the second power supply controller 321.

In this embodiment, the prompt information may include, for example, billboard information displayed by the display device 314. In this embodiment, the second power supply controller 321 may prompt the user through the billboard information to indicate that the current electronic system 300 cannot be effectively charged. In addition, the second power supply controller 321 also indicates to the user through the billboard information that one or more external electronic devices 200 need to be manually unplugged.

It should be noted that since part of the external electronic device 200 is removed, the loads in the plurality of ports P1 to PN are reduced, thereby reducing the power consumption of the downstream port (i.e., the second port P2) that uses USB Type-C for power supply. In this way, the expansion device 320 can supply power to the first power supply controller 310 with the second power transmission profile.

In summary, the electronic system and the operating method of the embodiment of the present invention can flexibly adjust (e.g., increase) the output power value of the expansion device when supplying power by adjusting the output power value of the expansion device when supplying power according to the number of multiple connection ports with the power supply function enabled through the first power supply controller. In this way, the electronic system can be charged effectively. In some embodiments, the second power supply controller can disable the power supply function of some connection ports based on the switching of the switch device, and the second power supply controller can supply power to the first power supply controller according to the switched second power transmission profile. In some embodiments, the charging control circuit outputs a sign information based on the power detection result to indicate that the external electronic device needs to be unplugged, and the second power supply controller can supply power to the first power supply controller according to the switched second power transmission profile.

Although the present invention has been disclosed as above by the embodiments, they are not intended to limit the present invention. Any person with ordinary knowledge in the relevant technical field can make some changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be defined by the scope of the attached patent application.

100, 300: Electronic system

110, 310: first power supply controller

120, 320: Expansion device

200: External electronic devices

301:Computer Devices

311: Charging control circuit

311a: Charger integrated circuit

311b: Embedded Controller

312:Battery Pack

313: Information Prompt

314: Display device

321: Second power supply controller

322: Switching device

FP1, FP12, FOUT1, FP2, FP21, FP2, FOUT2: Field

P1~PN:Port

S210~S220, S410~S432, S610~S650, S711~S740: Steps

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flow chart of an operation method of an electronic system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an electronic system according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flow chart of an operation method of an electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG. 3 of the present invention. FIG. 5A to FIG. 5B are operation schematic diagrams of an electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG. 3 of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a flow chart of an operation method of an electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG. 3 of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flow chart of an operation method of an electronic system according to the embodiment of FIG. 3 of the present invention.

100:Electronic system

110: First power supply controller

120: Expansion device

200: External electronic devices

P1~PN: Connection port

Claims (9)

An electronic system includes: a first power supply controller; and an expansion device coupled to the first power supply controller, including a plurality of connection ports, wherein the connection ports are used to connect an external electronic device, wherein the first power supply controller adjusts the output power value of the expansion device for supplying power to the first power supply controller according to the number of enabled power supply functions of the connection ports, wherein when the power supply function of at least one of the connection ports is disabled, or when the external electronic device is removed from one of the connection ports, the expansion device switches a first power transmission profile to a second power transmission profile, and supplies power to the first power supply controller according to the second power transmission profile. An electronic system as described in claim 1, wherein the output power value of the second power transmission profile is greater than the output power value of the first power transmission profile. An electronic system as described in claim 1, wherein the expansion device comprises: a switch device; and a second power supply controller coupled to the switch device and the first power supply controller, wherein when the switch device is switched, the second power supply controller disables the power supply function of at least one of the connection ports. An electronic system as described in claim 3, wherein when the switch device is switched, the second power supply controller determines that the output power of the connection ports meets the second power transmission profile to switch the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile. An electronic system as described in claim 3, wherein when the switch device is switched, the second power supply controller determines that the output power of the ports does not meet the second power transmission profile to reduce a maximum output current value of the downstream port among the ports, and switches the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile. The electronic system as described in claim 1 further comprises: a battery pack; and a charging control circuit coupled to the battery pack and the first power supply controller, wherein the charging control circuit determines whether the power of the battery pack decreases within a preset period to output a communication signal to the expansion device through the first power supply controller, so that the expansion device determines whether the output power of the connection ports meets the first power transmission profile or the second power transmission profile according to the communication signal. The electronic system as described in claim 6, wherein the expansion device includes: a second power supply controller coupled to the first power supply controller, wherein the second power supply controller determines that the output power of the connection ports meets the second power transmission profile according to the communication signal to switch the first power transmission profile to the second power transmission profile. The electronic system as described in claim 7 further includes: an information prompter coupled to the charging control circuit, wherein the information prompter includes a display device, and the prompt information includes billboard information, wherein the second power supply controller determines that the output power of the connection ports does not meet the second power transmission profile according to the communication signal to control the information prompter to send the prompt information. An operating method of an electronic system includes: supplying power to a first power supply controller through an expansion device, wherein a plurality of connection ports of the expansion device are used to connect an external electronic device; adjusting the output power value of the expansion device supplying power to the first power supply controller according to the number of enabled power supply functions of the connection ports through the first power supply controller; and switching a first power transmission profile to a second power transmission profile through the expansion device when the power supply function of at least one of the connection ports is disabled or when the external electronic device is removed from one of the connection ports, and supplying power to the first power supply controller according to the second power transmission profile.

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