Hewlett-packard Development Company, L.p.

Anton Nicholas Clarkson

Alexander N Govyadinov

Neel Banerjee

Steven H Walker

David A Champion

Trudy L Benjamin

Brett E Dahlgren

Jeffrey Todd Mabeck

Daniel Burger

Technology is described for extending battery life for a rechargeable battery. The method can include estimating a desired energy storage for the rechargeable battery in an electronic device during an operating time period. Expected active periods for the rechargeable battery can be determined. A defined charge voltage can be computed based on the desired energy storage and expected active periods of the rechargeable battery in the electronic device. In addition, the rechargeable battery can be charged to the defined charge voltage.

Extending battery life for a rechargeable battery

In one example, a drop detector includes a light source for illuminating drops passing through a drop zone, multiple light detectors near the light source for detecting light scattered off drops passing through the drop zone, and multiple lenses each configured to focus light from the drop zone on one of the light detectors. In one example, each light detector is arranged in the same plane with all of the other light detectors. In one example, the lenses are configured to focus light from two different spaces in the drop zone on different detectors or groups of detectors. In one example, the lenses are configured to focus light from a single space in the drop zone on multiple detectors.

Drop detector

Methods and apparatus are provided related to thermal protection of electrical batteries. A sensor senses the temperature of a battery and a corresponding digital signal is digitally derived. Date, time and temperature data are written to storage media. A time-rate-of-change of the battery's temperature is determined and used to establish operational periodicity. Stored digital data can be communicated to another entity, temperature or time-rate-of-change values used to trigger an alarm or system shut-down, and so on. Electronic circuitry toggles between an active mode and a power-conserving sleep mode in accordance with periodic operating schedule.

Temperature sensing of electric batteries

For each energy value of a number of energy values, the energy value is applied to cause a fluid-ejection nozzle to eject a fluid drop. After the energy value has been applied to the fluid-ejection nozzle, a velocity of the fluid drop is determined using a light-scattering drop detector of the fluid-ejection device. A turn-on-energy (TOE) for the fluid-ejection nozzle is determined based on at least the velocities of the fluid drops determined after applying the energy values to the fluid-ejection nozzle.

Using light-scattering drop detector to determine turn-on-energy for fluid-ejection nozzle

Embodiments of a sensor array are disclosed.

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Corvallis, OR, United States of America

Anton Nicholas Clarkson