| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20090243542 | INTEGRATED POWER ADAPTER FOR A LAPTOP - A power pack arrangement for a laptop computer, wherein an AC/DC adapter is integrated with a battery pack to form one cohesive unit freely insertable into and removable from a laptop computer housing. | 10-01-2009 |
| 20090243552 | MANAGEMENT OF FAST BATTERY CHARGING IN MOBILE DEVICES - For laptops or other mobile devices, a battery charging arrangement wherein fast-charging and/or slow-charging is governed by something other than a fixed, immovable battery level threshold. Particularly, a variable threshold is broadly contemplated herein which may be governed by any of a very wide variety of conceivable factors, including (but by no means limited to) information relating to a user's schedule or calendar, especially as regards “free” time when a user is not using a computer. Accordingly, if there is a long uninterrupted period of computer “downtime” (i.e., when a user is not using the computer), the battery level threshold below which fast-charging takes place can be lower. By the same token, for short periods of computer downtime, this threshold can be higher. In this manner, fast-charging is reserved only for the most compelling, time-based circumstances. | 10-01-2009 |
| 20100079113 | BATTERY MANAGEMENT FOR OPTIMIZING BATTERY AND SERVICE LIFE - The provision of a mode in silver zinc batteries where a user can access extra capacity as an emergency reserve for times when extra capacity is needed. While this temporarily increases capacity, it does not detrimentally affect cycle life over the longer term, and it permits a silver zinc battery to essentially mimic the long term capacity and cycle life characteristics of a lithium ion battery while still affording inherent advantages associated with silver zinc batteries. In a variant embodiment, this ability to temporarily increase capacity is optimally employed at the end of a battery life cycle in a controlled “roll-off” that accords additional cycles of battery service life. In another variant embodiment, the general capability to control capacity is employed to gradually decrease the available capacity of a battery over the life of the battery, to thereby extend the battery service life. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20100081037 | BATTERY MANAGEMENT FOR OPTIMIZING BATTERY AND SERVICE LIFE - The provision of a mode in silver zinc batteries where a user can access extra capacity as an emergency reserve for times when extra capacity is needed. While this temporarily increases capacity, it does not detrimentally affect cycle life over the longer term, and it permits a silver zinc battery to essentially mimic the long term capacity and cycle life characteristics of a lithium ion battery while still affording inherent advantages associated with silver zinc batteries. In a variant embodiment, this ability to temporarily increase capacity is optimally employed at the end of a battery life cycle in a controlled “roll-off” that accords additional cycles of battery service life. In another variant embodiment, the general capability to control capacity is employed to gradually decrease the available capacity of a battery over the life of the battery, to thereby extend the battery service life. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20100083008 | BATTERY MANAGEMENT FOR OPTIMIZING BATTERY AND SERVICE LIFE - The provision of a mode in silver zinc batteries where a user can access extra capacity as an emergency reserve for times when extra capacity is needed. While this temporarily increases capacity, it does not detrimentally affect cycle life over the longer term, and it permits a silver zinc battery to essentially mimic the long term capacity and cycle life characteristics of a lithium ion battery while still affording inherent advantages associated with silver zinc batteries. In a variant embodiment, this ability to temporarily increase capacity is optimally employed at the end of a battery life cycle in a controlled “roll-off” that accords additional cycles of battery service life. In another variant embodiment, the general capability to control capacity is employed to gradually decrease the available capacity of a battery over the life of the battery, to thereby extend the battery service life. | 04-01-2010 |
| 20110292540 | Systems and Methods for Protecting Hard Disk Drives - A modified hard disk drive (HDD) state is provided. The modified HDD state corresponds to a state wherein the heads of a hard disk drive assembly are parked as a baseline setting, but permitted to float over the platters for completing requests on a limited basis. This prioritizes HHD protection in certain contexts. | 12-01-2011 |
| Patent application number | Description | Published |
|---|
| 20090094465 | BATTERY PACK FOR PORTABLE COMPUTER - A first battery assembly is in a first battery housing that is mechanically engageable with a portable computer, and a second battery assembly is in a second battery housing that is mechanically couplable to the first battery housing. A switch has a first configuration in which communication is established between the portable computer and the first battery assembly and a second configuration in which communication is established between the portable computer and the second battery assembly. | 04-09-2009 |
| 20090119785 | System and Method for Secure Usage of Peripheral Devices Using Shared Secrets - A system, method, and program product is provided that establishes a shared secret between a computer system and a peripheral device such as a removable nonvolatile storage device or a printer. After establishing the shared secret, the peripheral device is locked. After the peripheral device is locked, an unlock request is received and the shared secret is sent to the peripheral device. The peripheral device then attempts to verify the shared secret. If the shared secret is successfully verified, then the peripheral device is unlocked allowing use of the device by using an encryption key that is made available by the verified shared secret. On the other hand, if the shared secret is not verified, then the peripheral device remains locked and use of the device is prevented. | 05-07-2009 |
| 20090205044 | APPARATUS, SYSTEM, AND METHOD FOR SECURE HARD DRIVE SIGNED AUDIT - An apparatus, system, and method are disclosed for secure hard disk signed audit. The apparatus is provided with a plurality of modules configured to functionally execute the necessary steps of monitoring interactions with an audited system, detecting an interrupt event corresponding to an auditable interaction, and logging an audit record for the auditable interaction in response to the interrupt event, wherein the audit record is logged in an access-restricted portion of a portion-securable hard disk. These modules in the described embodiments include a gate module, a detection module, and a logging module. | 08-13-2009 |
| 20100327801 | PROXIMITY POWER PAD - A polygonal power pad includes an optional connector to connect to a power supply and a power network in the power pad. At least one power connector is coupled to the power network and is disposed on a periphery of the pad. The power connector is operable to receive and provide power to a provided adjacent pad. At least one power transfer coil embedded in the pad, is coupled to the power network to transfer power to a device proximate the pad | 12-30-2010 |
| 20110085679 | Intelligent Selective System Mute - An approach is provided that receives a sound request from a requesting process. A selective mute setting is identified that corresponds to user enablement actions. If the selective mute setting is disabled the sound request is played at an audio output in response. However, if the selective mute setting being enabled, then steps are performed to determine whether to play the sound request. These steps include determining whether the sound request corresponds to one or more user sound request actions. If it is determined that the sound request corresponds to at least one of the user sound request actions then the sound request is audibly played at the audio output. However, if the sound request does not correspond to at least one of the user sound request actions, then the audio request is suppressed and not played at the audio output. | 04-14-2011 |
