DISPLAYING BATTERY LIFE RESULTING FROM SETTING CHANGES
Background
[0001] Battery-powered computing devices, such as mobile devices, have become
very popular. Due to their being powered by a battery, these devices operate for a limited
amount of time before needing the battery to be recharged. Accordingly, reducing power
usage in these devices can be beneficial because it prolongs battery life. Changing settings
for resources of computing devices can reduce a device's power usage, but it can be
difficult for users to know exactly what result they will get in terms of power usage in
their device from changing settings for a particular resource. This can make it difficult for
users to make informed choices for resource settings that would result in increased battery
life in their devices.
Summary
[0002] This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified
form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not
intended to identify key features or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is
it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
[0003] In accordance with one or more aspects, a scale of possible resource settings
for a resource of a computing device is displayed, the scale indicating a current resource
setting for the resource. An indication of a remaining battery life currently available based
on the current resource setting for the resource is displayed, and a user input to change the
resource to a new resource setting is received. In response to the user input, the scale is
displayed indicating the new resource setting for the resource rather than the current
resource setting for the resource. Also in response to the user input, the remaining battery
life currently available based on the new resource setting is identified, and an indication of
the remaining battery life currently available based on the new resource setting is
displayed.
[0004] In accordance with one or more aspects, an indication of a remaining battery
life currently available based on a current screen brightness setting for a screen of a
computing device is displayed. A user input to change the screen to a new screen
brightness setting is received, and in response to the user input, the remaining battery life
currently available based on the new screen brightness setting is identified. Also in
response to the user input, the screen is changed to the new screen brightness setting and,
concurrently with the change of the screen to the new screen brightness setting, an
indication of the remaining battery life currently available based on the new screen
brightness setting is displayed.
Brief Description of the Drawings
[0005] The same numbers are used throughout the drawings to reference like features.
[0006] Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example computing device
implementing the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with
one or more embodiments.
[0007] Figs. 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A, and 4B illustrate example user interfaces displaying
information regarding remaining battery life in accordance with one or more
embodiments.
[0008] Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example process for a device displaying
battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with one or more embodiments.
[0009] Fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating another example process for a device
displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with one or more
embodiments.
[0010] Fig. 7 illustrates an example computing device that can be configured to
implement the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with
one or more embodiments.
Detailed Description
[0011] Displaying battery life resulting from setting changes is discussed herein.
Various resources in a computing device have configurable settings that can affect their
power consumption. A user interface allows the user to change the setting on such a
resource, resulting in a change in the power consumed by that resource. The user interface
displays an indication of remaining battery life based on the current setting of the resource,
and after the setting is changed displays a new indication of the remaining battery life
based on the new setting. This change can be made in real-time, giving the user immediate
feedback regarding the change in terms of remaining battery life due to the change in
resource setting.
[0012] Additionally, the resource can be a screen and the different settings can
correspond to different screen intensities or brightness levels. In such situations, after the
setting is changed to a new setting, the screen intensity or brightness is changed to the new
setting while displaying the new indication of remaining battery life based on the new
setting. This change in screen intensity or brightness can be made in real-time, giving the
user immediate feedback as to the change in remaining battery life due to the change in
resource setting, as well as immediate feedback as to the screen intensity or brightness
associated with that particular setting and corresponding remaining battery life.
[0013] Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example computing device 100
implementing the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with
one or more embodiments. Computing device 100 can be a variety of different types of
devices powered by one or more batteries. Computing device 100 is typically a mobile
type of device that can operate on battery power, such as a netbook or laptop computer, a
notepad or tablet computer, a mobile station, an entertainment appliance, a cellular or
other wireless phone, a game console, an audio and/or video playback device, and so forth.
However, computing device 100 can be other types of devices, such as a desktop
computer, a set-top box communicatively coupled to a display device, a television, a plugin
game console, an automotive computer, and so forth.
[0014] Computing device 100 includes a resource setting control module 102, a
resource setting display module 104, an input module 106, a user interface (UI) module
108, and a screen 110. Each of modules 102, 104, 106, and 108 can be implemented in
software, firmware, hardware, or combinations thereof. When implemented in software or
firmware, a module includes one or more instructions that are executed by one or more
processors or controllers of computing device 100.
[0015] Screen 110 is a display component of computing device 100. Screen 110 can
be implemented in a variety of different manners, such as using liquid crystal display
(LCD) technology, plasma screen technology, image projection technology, and so forth.
Alternatively, rather than including screen 110, computing device 100 can generate one or
more signals that are output to other display devices which include screen 110.
[0016] Input module 106 receives user inputs from a user of computing device 100.
User inputs can be provided by a user in a variety of different manners, such as by
pressing one or more keys of a keypad or keyboard of device 100, by pressing a particular
portion of a touchpad or touchscreen of device 100, by making a particular motion or
gesture on a touchpad or touchscreen of device 100, and so forth. The user input can also
be provided in other manners, such as via audible inputs, particular motions (e.g., moving
fingers, hands, or other parts of the body in a particular manner) captured by an image
capture component of device 100, other physical feedback input to the device (e.g.,
tapping any portion of device 100 or another action that can be recognized by a motion
detection component of device 100, such as shaking device 100, rotating device 100, etc.),
and so forth.
[0017] UI module 108 generates, manages, and/or outputs a user interface for display
on screen 110. The user interface can also optionally be output to, in addition to or instead
of screen 110, one or more other screens. This user interface displays various information
on screen 110, and user inputs in response to the displayed information can be received by
input module 106 as discussed above. UI module 108 can display, for example, controls
with which the user of computing device 100 can interact (providing an input via input
module 106), remaining battery life information provided by resource setting display
module 104 as discussed in more detail below, and so forth. Although UI module 108 is
discussed herein as displaying information, it should be noted that information can be
presented in other manners (e.g., audio presentation).
[0018] Computing device 100 can include and/or be coupled to one or more resources
having different resource settings. For example, screen 110 can be a resource of
computing device, and can be implemented as part of computing device 100 or
alternatively be coupled to computing device 100. Each resource typically consumes
different amounts of power at different resource settings for that resource. These resource
settings typically range from a highest or maximum setting to a lowest or minimum
setting, and the user can select the resource setting that he or she desires.
[0019] Depending on the particular resource and the manner in which resource settings
for the resource are expressed, higher resource settings can result in greater power
consumption than lower settings, or alternatively lower resource settings can result in
greater power consumption than higher settings. For example, assume a resource is a
screen and the resource settings correspond to a refresh rate for the screen. If the resource
settings are expressed in terms of refresh rate, then a higher setting results in a higher
refresh rate than a lower setting, and can also result in greater power consumption than the
lower setting. Alternatively, the refresh rate can be expressed in terms of time between
screen refreshes, in which case a lower setting results in a higher refresh rate (less time
between screen refreshes) and can also result in greater power consumption than a higher
setting.
[0020] A variety of different resources that support different settings can be resources
of computing device 100. For example, a resource can be a screen, a processor, a wireless
transmitter, a speaker, and so forth. Additionally, a resource can have different types of
resource settings. For example, a screen can have resource settings for brightness levels
(or intensities) for the screen, refresh rates for the screen, and so forth. It should be noted
that these are examples of resources, and that other resources that support different
settings can also be resources of computing device 100.
[0021] A screen can have different resource settings that correspond to different
brightness levels (or intensities) for the screen. A resource setting resulting in a more
intense or brighter screen than another resource setting also typically results in (but need
not result in) greater power consumption than the other setting. The particular brightness
settings that a screen has can vary by screen, being based at least in part on the particular
characteristics and capabilities of each particular screen and hardware components
controlling that particular screen.
[0022] A screen can also have other types of resource settings, such as different
resource settings that correspond to a refresh rate for the screen. A resource setting
resulting in a higher refresh rate than another resource setting also typically results in (but
need not result in) greater power consumption than the other setting. The particular
refresh rates that a screen has can vary by screen, being based at least in part on the
particular characteristics and capabilities of each particular screen and hardware
components controlling that particular screen.
[0023] A processor has different resource settings that correspond to different
performance levels for the processor. Different processor performance levels can be
obtained in a variety of different manners, such as changing the speed (e.g., clock
frequency) of the processor, changing the number of processor cores or processors that are
used by the device, and so forth. A resource setting resulting in greater processing power
(e.g., the ability to execute a larger number of instructions per second) for the device than
another resource setting also typically results in (but need not result in) greater power
consumption than the other resource setting. The particular performance level settings that
a processor has can vary by processor, being based at least in part on the particular
characteristics and capabilities of each particular processor.
[0024] A wireless transmitter has different resource settings that correspond to
different transmission power strengths for the device. A resource setting resulting in a
greater transmission power strength and thus greater wireless range for the device than
another resource setting also typically results in (but need not result in) greater power
consumption than the other resource setting. The particular transmission power strength
settings that a wireless transmitter has can vary by wireless transmitter, being based at
least in part on the particular characteristics and capabilities of each particular wireless
transmitter.
[0025] In one or more embodiments, resource setting display module 104 displays, via
UI module 108, an indication of a scale of possible resource settings for a resource as well
as a current resource setting for the resource. For example, the scale can include a line or
other geometric figure that ranges from a higher setting value (e.g., a maximum setting
value) for the resource at one end to a lower setting value (e.g., a minimum setting value)
for the resource at the other end, and the current resource setting being indicated on the
scale somewhere at or between the two ends. Which end of the scale corresponds to a
higher power consumption can vary by implementation.
[0026] Additionally, resource setting display module 104 displays an indication of a
remaining battery life of computing device 100 if the resource continues to operate at its
current resource setting (continues to operate at the status quo). This indication can be
displayed in different manners, such as in terms of hours and/or minutes of remaining
battery life, an indication of how many more movies computing device 100 can play back
at its current resource setting, an indication of how many more songs computing device
100 can play back at its current resource setting, and so forth.
[0027] Resource setting control module 102 manages configuring the resources of
computing device 100 with the appropriate settings. Resources can have an initial or
default setting, which can be changed by a user. In response to a user input, received via
input module 106, to change the setting of a particular resource, resource setting control
module 102 communicates a request or command to the resource to change the setting of
that resource to the setting indicated by the user input. This request or command can be
communicated to the resource itself, or to a component or module associated with or
controlling the resource.
[0028] Additionally, in response to the user input to change the setting of a particular
resource, resource setting display module 104 identifies a remaining battery life of
computing device 100 that is currently available if the resource continues to operate at the
new resource setting. Resource setting display module 104 displays an indication of the
new resource setting (rather than the previous resource setting), and also displays the
remaining battery life of computing device 100 that is currently available if the resource
continues to operate at the new resource setting. Resource setting display module 104
provides the user with real-time feedback regarding the result (in terms of remaining
battery life) of changing the resource setting of a particular resource. The real-time
feedback refers to the feedback being displayed a short time (e.g., less than a second) after
the user input is received, so that the user perceives very little (if any) time lag between
the user input and the change in remaining battery life resulting from that user input. For
example, the user gets an immediate feedback indicating how many hours and/or minutes
of remaining battery life is available at the new resource setting.
[0029] It should be noted that the discussions herein regarding a remaining battery life
can refer to an estimate of remaining battery life or the actual remaining battery life. The
estimate of remaining battery life can be identified in different manners as discussed in
more detail below. Although the actual remaining battery life can be determined, the
displaying battery life resulting from setting changes need not use the actual remaining
battery life. Rather, identifying an estimate of the remaining battery life in response to
resource setting changes still provides feedback to the user (e.g., a number of hours and/or
minutes) of the remaining battery life at different resource settings, and thus an indication
of how much additional battery life the user can gain by selecting particular resource
settings.
[0030] It should also be noted that resource setting control module 102 can provide, in
response to a user input, real-time change to the setting for the resource. The real-time
change refers to the change being made a short time (e.g., less than a second) after the user
input is received, so that the user perceives very little (if any) time lag between the user
input and the change to the resource. For example, if the resource is a screen and the
different settings correspond to different screen brightness levels, then resource setting
control module 102 provides real-time changes to the screen brightness setting, allowing
the user to readily see what the result is (in terms of screen brightness that the user is
perceiving) of changing the screen brightness setting. The screen brightness setting is
changed quickly (e.g., less than a second) after the user input is received so that the user
perceives very little (if any) time lag between the user input and the change in screen
brightness.
[0031] However, it should be noted that resource setting control module 102 need not
provide real-time change to the resource in response to a user input. Rather, the change to
the resource can be performed some amount of time after the user input is made, or after
the user has chosen to accept the new resource setting (e.g., by selecting a displayed
"accept" button or option, by not changing the new resource setting for at least a threshold
amount of time after entering the new resource setting, and so forth). Resource setting
display module 104, however, still provides the user with real-time feedback regarding the
result (in terms of remaining battery life) of changing the resource setting of a particular
resource. For example, if the resource is a processor, then resource setting display module
104 provides the user with real-time feedback regarding the result (in terms of remaining
battery life) of changing the processor setting, even though resource setting control
module 102 may provide the new resource setting to the processor only after the user has
chosen to accept the new resource setting.
[0032] Additionally, in situations in which the resource is a screen and the different
settings correspond to different screen brightness levels, in response to a new setting being
received the screen brightness is changed to the new setting concurrently with displaying
the new indication of remaining battery life based on the new setting. Changing the screen
brightness setting and displaying the new indication of remaining battery life concurrently
refers to both the change in screen brightness setting and the new indication of remaining
battery life being displayed at approximately the same time (e.g., within one second of
each other), so that there is very little (if any) difference perceived by the user between the
time when the screen brightness level is changed and the indication of the remaining
battery life is displayed. This allows, for example, the user to readily see what the result is
(in terms of both screen brightness that the user is perceiving and the remaining battery
life) of changing the screen brightness setting.
[0033] In Fig. 1, resource setting control module 102 and resource setting display
module 104 are implemented as part of computing device 100. The resource for which
settings are changed can be included as part of computing device 100, such as a screen or
processor that is included as part of computing device 100. Alternatively, the resource for
which settings are changed can be separate from computing device 100, such as a screen
that is part of a display device separate from computing device 100. In situations where
the resource is in a device separate from computing device 100, the battery for which
remaining battery life is displayed is the battery that powers the device that includes the
resource.
[0034] Figs. 2A and 2B illustrate example user interfaces displaying information
regarding remaining battery life in accordance with one or more embodiments. Figs. 2A
and 2B illustrate information for a resource that is a screen of a computing device. Fig.
2A illustrates a window 202 including a scale 204 for screen brightness ranging from a
lower brightness level end to a higher brightness level end. The lower brightness level end
of scale 204 is illustrated by an icon 206 that is a closed circle, while the higher brightness
level end of scale 204 is illustrated by an icon 208 that is an open circle surrounded by
lines protruding outward from the circle.
[0035] A current resource setting for the screen brightness is indicated on scale 204 by
icon 210, which is illustrated as a block. The user can change the location of icon 210 on
scale 204 by providing, via input module 106 of Fig. 1, a variety of different user inputs.
The user changing the location of icon 210 on scale 204 is a user input to change the
screen brightness setting.
[0036] Window 202 also includes an indication 212 of remaining battery life currently
available based on the current resource setting (the current screen brightness setting) for
the screen (which can be an estimate of remaining battery life as discussed above). As
illustrated in Fig. 2A, at the current screen brightness setting the remaining battery life
available for the device is 2 hours and 15 minutes. Indication 212 also includes an
identification of an amount of the overall capacity of the battery that currently remains,
which is 95% in the example of Fig. 2A.
[0037] Fig. 2B illustrates a window 220 similar to window 202 of Fig. 2A. However,
in window 220 the location of icon 210 has been moved closer to the lower brightness
level end of scale 204. The screen brightness setting illustrated in window 220 is less
bright than the screen brightness setting illustrated in window 202, and thus power
consumption for the screen brightness setting illustrated in window 220 is less than the
power consumption for the screen brightness setting illustrated in window 202.
Accordingly, window 220 includes an indication 222 of remaining battery life (which can
be an estimate of remaining battery life as discussed above) currently available based on
the current resource setting (the current screen brightness setting) for the screen that is
greater than the remaining battery life illustrated in window 202. As illustrated in Fig. 2B,
at the current screen brightness setting the remaining battery life available for the device is
3 hours and 00 minutes, and the overall capacity of the battery remains 95%.
[0038] Additionally, as the screen is less bright for the screen brightness setting
illustrated in Fig. 2B than for the screen brightness setting illustrated in Fig. 2A, and the
windows 202 and 220 are displayed on that screen, window 220 is displayed as less bright
than window 202. Window 220 is illustrated with cross-hatching to represent window 220
being less bright than window 202.
[0039] Thus, as can be seen in Figs. 2A and 2B, if the user changes the resource
setting (the screen brightness setting), the user is provided with real-time feedback as to
the change in remaining battery life resulting from the change in resource setting. For
example, if the user changes the screen brightness setting from the setting in window 202
to the setting in window 220, the user is given real-time feedback that the change in screen
brightness setting results in an additional 45 minutes of remaining battery life.
Furthermore, the screen brightness is also changed in real-time, allowing the user to see
exactly the screen brightness he or she will have for the changed screen brightness setting.
Thus, the user can change the screen brightness setting and readily see the result of the
change both in terms of screen brightness and the remaining battery life.
[0040] Figs. 3A and 3B illustrate additional example user interfaces displaying
information regarding remaining battery life in accordance with one or more
embodiments. Figs. 3A and 3B illustrate information for a resource that is a screen of a
computing device. Fig. 3A illustrates a window 300 including an indication 302 of
remaining battery life currently available based on the current resource setting (the current
screen brightness setting) for the screen at the time window 300 is displayed (which can be
an estimate of remaining battery life as discussed above). Fig. 3B illustrates a window
310 including an indication 312 of remaining battery life (which can be an estimate of
remaining battery life as discussed above) currently available based on the current
resource setting (the current screen brightness setting) for the screen at the time window
310 is displayed. The current screen brightness setting in Fig. 3A is higher than the
current screen brightness setting in Fig. 3B, thus the remaining battery life currently
available based on the current screen brightness setting for the screen is greater in
indication 312 than in indication 302. Additionally, analogous to Fig. 2B discussed above,
window 310 is illustrated with cross-hatching to represent that window 310 is less bright
than window 300 due to the lower screen brightness setting in Fig. 3B than in Fig. 3A.
[0041] Figs. 3A and 3B illustrate windows 300 and 310 that are similar to windows
202 and 220, respectively, of Figs. 2A and 2B. Windows 300 and 302 provide real-time
feedback as to the change in remaining battery life resulting from the change in resource
setting, and also provide real-time feedback in terms of screen brightness, allowing the
user to see exactly the screen brightness and remaining battery life he or she will have
resulting from changing the screen brightness setting. However, windows 300 and 310 do
not include a scale indicating a range of resource settings (e.g., a scale 204 of Figs. 2A and
2B).
[0042] Figs. 4A and 4B illustrate additional example user interfaces displaying
information regarding remaining battery life in accordance with one or more
embodiments. Figs. 4A and 4B illustrate information for a resource that is a processor of a
computing device. Fig. 4A illustrates a window 402 including a scale 404 for processor
performance ranging from slower performance to faster performance. The slower
performance end of scale 404 is illustrated by a word ("slower") 406, while the faster
performance end of scale 404 is illustrated by a word ("faster") 408.
[0043] A current resource setting for the processor performance is indicated on scale
404 by icon 410, which is illustrated as a block. The user can change the location of icon
410 on scale 404 by providing, via input module 106 of Fig. 1, a variety of different user
inputs. The user changing the location of icon 410 on scale 404 is a user input to change
the processor performance setting.
[0044] Window 402 also includes an indication 412 of remaining battery life currently
available based on the current resource setting (the current processor performance setting)
for the processor (which can be an estimate of remaining battery life as discussed above).
As illustrated in Fig. 4A, at the current processor performance setting the remaining
battery life available for the device is 4 hours and 50 minutes.
[0045] Fig. 4B illustrates a window 420 similar to window 402 of Fig. 4A. However,
in window 420 the location of icon 410 has been moved closer to the faster performance
end of scale 404. The processor performance setting illustrated in window 420 is a faster
processor performance setting than the processor performance setting illustrated in
window 402, and thus power consumption for the processor performance setting
illustrated in window 420 is greater than the power consumption for the processor
performance setting illustrated in window 402. Accordingly, window 420 includes an
indication 422 of remaining battery life (which can be an estimate of remaining battery life
as discussed above) currently available based on the current resource setting (the current
processor performance setting) for the processor that is less than the remaining battery life
illustrated in window 402. As illustrated in Fig. 4B, at the current processor performance
setting the remaining battery life available for the device is 4 hours and 15 minutes.
[0046] Thus, as can be seen in Figs. 4A and 4B, if the user changes the resource
setting (the processor performance setting), the user is provided with real-time feedback as
to the change in remaining battery life resulting from the change in resource setting. For
example, if the user changes the processor performance setting from the setting in window
402 to the setting in window 420, the user is given real-time feedback that the change in
processor performance setting results in 35 fewer minutes of remaining battery life.
[0047] It should be noted that the examples illustrated in Figs. 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4A,
and 4B are examples, and that various modifications to the user interfaces displayed in
accordance with the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes discussed herein
can be made. For example, the user interfaces can include images or animations that
change as the resource setting is changed, such as a battery getting larger (to indicate
greater battery life) or smaller (to indicate less battery life), a radio antenna surrounded by
a circle that gets bigger (to indicate a larger transmitter range) or smaller (to indicate a
smaller transmitter range), and so forth. Such images animations can be included in
addition to, or alternatively in place of, the hours and/or minutes of remaining battery life.
By way of another example, the user interfaces can include scales and icons for multiple
different resources concurrently, allowing the user to change resource settings for different
resources and see the remaining battery life resulting from the various changes. In
situations in which scales and icons for multiple different resources are displayed
concurrently, a single remaining battery life indication is displayed. A user input to
change a setting of any one or more of the multiple different resources results in a change
in the single remaining battery life indication being displayed.
[0048] Returning to Fig. 1, in one or more embodiments resource setting display
module 104 identifies the remaining battery life for a particular resource setting. As
discussed above, this remaining battery life can be an estimation of the remaining battery
life and is typically close to (but need not be exactly) the actual remaining battery life.
This identification can be made in a variety of different manners. Different techniques for
making this identification are discussed herein, however, it is to be appreciated that these
are examples and other techniques can alternatively be used. Resource setting display
module 104 can obtain (e.g., from the battery or batteries of computing device 100) an
indication of an amount of charge remaining in the battery (or batteries). This information
can be obtained by module 104 at virtually any time, allowing module 104 to determine an
amount of charge remaining in the battery (or batteries) at virtually any time.
[0049] In one or more embodiments, the battery or batteries (or another component or
module of the computing device) also provides an indication of a rate at which power is
being drawn from the battery (or batteries). Module 104 can obtain (from the battery (or
batteries) or other component or module) an indication of how much power is being drawn
from the battery (or batteries) when the resource is at a particular resource setting, and
readily identify an estimate of the remaining battery life based on that particular resource
setting. For example, if the battery (or batteries) indicates an amount of charge remaining
of 200 watts and that at the current resource setting the computing device is using 50 watt
hours, then setting display module 104 can readily identify that the estimated remaining
battery life is approximately 4 hours ( 200 ÷ 50 = 4 ) .
[0050] In one or more other embodiments, a component or module of computing
device 100 (e.g., module 104) runs a series of tests on computing device 100 to determine
the power consumption of particular resources at different resource settings. This
component or module sets the resource to a particular setting, determines how much
power is being drawn from the battery or batteries given that particular setting, and records
the amount of power being drawn from the battery or batteries at that particular setting.
This determination and recording can be repeated for multiple different settings. In one or
more embodiments, the determination and recording are repeated for each of the different
possible resource settings. Alternatively, the determination and recording can be repeated
for two or more different resource settings and the amount of power being drawn from the
battery or batteries at other resource settings can be determined based on the recorded
amounts of power (e.g., using interpolation and/or extrapolation). The recorded amounts
of power being drawn from the battery or batteries at the particular settings can be
maintained and subsequently used to identify an estimate of the remaining battery life
given a particular resource setting. Given the amount of charge remaining in the battery or
batteries (e.g., as provided by the battery or batteries) and the recorded amounts of power
being drawn from the battery at different resource settings, module 104 can readily
identify an estimate of the remaining battery life for computing device 100 given the
remaining watt hours reported from the battery and an arbitrary setting for the resource.
[0051] In one or more other embodiments, resource setting display module 104 is
configured with, or obtains from another component or module (of computing device 100
or alternatively another device), an indication of an estimated amount of power being
drawn from the battery or batteries at particular resource settings. These indications can
be identified, for example, by analyzing the amount of power being drawn from the
battery or batteries of similar computing devices (e.g., devices having similar (or the
same) types of screens and/or screen sizes, devices having similar (or the same) types of
wireless transmitters, devices having similar (or the same) types of processors, and so
forth). These indications can be identified in other manners as well, such as based on
estimations from the developer or designer of resource setting display module 104 or from
other sources. Regardless of the manner in which the indications of estimated amounts of
power being drawn at particular resource settings are generated, given the amount of
charge remaining in the battery or batteries (as provided by the battery or batteries) and the
indications of estimated amounts of power being drawn from the battery or batteries at
particular resource settings, module 104 can readily identify an estimate of the remaining
battery life when the resource is at a particular setting.
[0052] Alternatively, the identification of the remaining battery life for a particular
resource setting can be made in other manners. For example, resource setting display
module 104 can be configured with, or obtain from another module or device, a number of
minutes of change in remaining battery life resulting from changing a resource setting one
setting value or between two particular setting values. Resource setting display module
104 can then add or subtract that number of minutes in response to a change in the
resource setting. E.g., the number of minutes of change in remaining battery life can be 5
minutes, so resource setting display module 104 can identify the remaining battery life by
adding 5 minutes to the previous remaining battery life (e.g., if the resource setting is
changed to a higher setting value).
[0053] Fig. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example process 500 for a device displaying
battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with one or more embodiments.
Process 500 is carried out by a device, such as device 100 of Fig. 1, and can be
implemented in software, firmware, hardware, or combinations thereof. Process 500 is
shown as a set of acts and is not limited to the order shown for performing the operations
of the various acts. Process 500 is an example process for displaying battery life resulting
from setting changes; additional discussions of displaying battery life resulting from
setting changes are included herein with reference to different figures.
[0054] In process 500, a scale of possible settings for a resource, as well as a current
resource setting for that resource, is displayed (act 502). This scale can be displayed in a
variety of different manners as discussed above.
[0055] An indication of a remaining battery life currently available while the resource
is at the current resource setting is displayed (act 504). This indication can be, for
example, an indication of a number of hours and/or minutes of battery life remaining when
the resource is at the current resource setting.
[0056] A user input to change the resource to a new setting is received (act 506). This
user input can be received in a variety of different manners as discussed above.
[0057] In response to the user input to change the resource to a new setting, the scale
indicating the possible settings for the resource as well as the new setting for that resource
is displayed (act 508).
[0058] Additionally, in response to the user input to change the resource to a new
setting a remaining battery life currently available while the resource is at the new
resource setting is identified (act 510). This identification can be made in a variety of
different manners, and can be an estimate of the remaining battery life, as discussed above.
[0059] Also in response to the user input to change the resource to a new setting, an
indication of the remaining battery life currently available while the resource is at the new
resource setting is displayed (act 512). This indication can be, for example, an indication
of a number of hours and/or minutes of battery life remaining when the resource is at the
new resource setting.
[0060] Fig. 6 is a flowchart illustrating another example process 600 for a device
displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with one or more
embodiments. Process 600 is carried out by a device, such as device 100 of Fig. 1, and
can be implemented in software, firmware, hardware, or combinations thereof. Process
600 is shown as a set of acts and is not limited to the order shown for performing the
operations of the various acts. Process 600 is an example process for displaying battery
life resulting from setting changes; additional discussions of displaying battery life
resulting from setting changes are included herein with reference to different figures.
[0061] In process 600, an indication of a remaining battery life currently available
while a screen is at a current screen brightness setting is displayed (act 602). This
indication can be, for example, an indication of a number of hours and/or minutes of
battery life remaining when the screen is at the current screen brightness setting.
[0062] A user input to change the screen to a new screen brightness setting is received
(act 604). This user input can be received in a variety of different manners as discussed
above.
[0063] In response to the user input to change the screen to a new screen brightness
setting, a remaining battery life currently available while the screen is at the new screen
brightness setting is identified (act 606). This identification can be made in a variety of
different manners, and can be an estimate of the remaining battery life, as discussed above.
[0064] Also in response to the user input to change the resource to a new setting, the
screen is changed to display at the new screen brightness setting (act 608). This typically
results in the screen being displayed brighter or darker than when the screen was being
displayed at the previous screen brightness setting (e.g., in act 602).
[0065] Additionally, an indication of the remaining battery life currently available
while the screen is at the new screen brightness setting is displayed (act 610). This
indication can be, for example, an indication of a number of hours and/or minutes of
battery life remaining when the resource is at the new screen brightness setting. The
indication in act 610 is displayed concurrently with the change of the screen brightness in
act 608, providing the user with an indication of the amount of battery life remaining, as
well as the screen brightness, for the new screen brightness setting.
[0066] Fig. 7 illustrates an example computing device 700 that can be configured to
implement the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes in accordance with
one or more embodiments. Computing device 700 can be, for example, computing device
100 of Fig. 1.
[0067] Computing device 700 includes one or more processors or processing units
702, one or more computer readable media 704 which can include one or more memory
and/or storage components 706, one or more input/output (I/O) devices 708, and a bus 710
that allows the various components and devices to communicate with one another.
Computer readable media 704 and/or one or more I/O devices 708 can be included as part
of, or alternatively may be coupled to, computing device 700. Bus 710 represents one or
more of several types of bus structures, including a memory bus or memory controller, a
peripheral bus, an accelerated graphics port, a processor or local bus, and so forth using a
variety of different bus architectures. Bus 710 can include wired and/or wireless buses.
Computing device 700 is powered, at least in part, by one or more batteries.
[0068] Memory/storage component 706 represents one or more computer storage
media. Component 706 can include volatile media (such as random access memory
(RAM)) and/or nonvolatile media (such as read only memory (ROM), Flash memory,
optical disks, magnetic disks, and so forth). Component 706 can include fixed media (e.g.,
RAM, ROM, a fixed hard drive, etc.) as well as removable media (e.g., a Flash memory
drive, a removable hard drive, an optical disk, and so forth).
[0069] The techniques discussed herein can be implemented in software, with
instructions being executed by one or more processing units 702. The software can be
implemented as an application or part of an operating system or other application. It is to
be appreciated that different instructions can be stored in different components of
computing device 700, such as in a processing unit 702, in various cache memories of a
processing unit 702, in other cache memories of device 700 (not shown), on other
computer readable media, and so forth. Additionally, it is to be appreciated that the
location where instructions are stored in computing device 700 can change over time.
[0070] One or more input/output devices 708 allow a user to enter commands and
information to computing device 700, and also allows information to be presented or
communicated to the user and/or other components or devices. Examples of input devices
include a keyboard, a cursor control device (e.g., a mouse), a microphone, a scanner, and
so forth. Examples of output devices include a screen or other display device (e.g., a
monitor or projector), speakers, a printer, a network card, a wireless transmitter, and so
forth.
[0071] Various techniques may be described herein in the general context of software
or program modules. Generally, software includes routines, programs, objects,
components, data structures, and so forth that perform particular tasks or implement
particular abstract data types. An implementation of these modules and techniques may be
stored on or transmitted across some form of computer readable media. Computer readable
media can be any available medium or media that can be accessed by a computing device.
By way of example, and not limitation, computer readable media may comprise "computer
storage media" and "communications media."
[0072] "Computer storage media" include volatile and non-volatile, removable and
non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of
information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or
other data. Computer storage media include, but are not limited to, RAM, ROM,
EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disks
(DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage
or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium which can be used to store the
desired information and which can be accessed by a computer.
[0073] "Communication media" typically embody computer readable instructions, data
structures, program modules, or other data in a modulated data signal, such as carrier wave
or other transport mechanism. Communication media also include any information
delivery media. The term "modulated data signal" means a signal that has one or more of
its characteristics set or changed in such a manner as to encode information in the signal.
By way of example, and not limitation, communication media include wired media such as
a wired network or direct-wired connection, and wireless media such as acoustic, RF,
infrared, and other wireless media. Combinations of any of the above are also included
within the scope of computer readable media.
[0074] Generally, any of the functions or techniques described herein can be
implemented using software, firmware, hardware (e.g., fixed logic circuitry), manual
processing, or a combination of these implementations. The terms "module" and
"component" as used herein generally represent software, firmware, hardware, or
combinations thereof. In the case of a software implementation, the module or component
represents program code that performs specified tasks when executed on a processor (e.g.,
CPU or CPUs). The program code can be stored in one or more computer readable
memory devices, further description of which may be found with reference to Fig. 7. The
features of the displaying battery life resulting from setting changes techniques described
herein are platform-independent, meaning that the techniques can be implemented on a
variety of commercial computing platforms having a variety of processors.
[0075] Although the subject matter has been described in language specific to
structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the subject matter
defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts
described above. Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed as
example forms of implementing the claims.
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A method implemented in a computing device, the method comprising:
displaying a scale of possible resource settings for a resource of the computing
device, the scale indicating a current resource setting for the resource;
displaying an indication of a remaining battery life currently available based on the
current resource setting for the resource;
receiving a user input to change the resource to a new resource setting;
displaying, in response to the user input, the scale indicating the new resource
setting for the resource rather than the current resource setting for the resource;
identifying, in response to the user input, the remaining battery life currently
available based on the new resource setting; and
displaying, in response to the user input, an indication of the remaining battery life
currently available based on the new resource setting.
2. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the resource comprises a screen of the
computing device, and the possible resource settings comprise screen brightness settings.
3. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the new resource setting comprises a new
screen brightness setting, the method further comprising displaying the indication of the
remaining battery life currently available based on the new screen brightness setting
concurrently with changing, in response to the user input, the screen to the new screen
brightness setting.
4. A method as recited in claim 2, wherein the screen is included in a display device
separate from the computing device.
5. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the resource comprises a processor of the
computing device, and the possible resource settings comprise processor performance
settings.
6. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the resource comprises a wireless
transmitter of the computing device, and the possible resource settings comprise
transmission power strengths.
7. A method as recited in claim 1, wherein the indication of the remaining battery life
is displayed in one or both of hours and minutes.
8. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising changing, in response to the
user input, the resource to operate at the new resource setting.
9. A method as recited in claim 1, the displaying the indication of the remaining
battery life currently available based on the new resource setting comprising displaying
the indication of the remaining battery life currently available based on the new resource
setting in real-time in response to the user input.
10. A method as recited in claim 9, further comprising changing, in real-time in
response to the user input, the resource to operate at the new resource setting.
11. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:
displaying, concurrently with displaying the scale of possible resource settings for
the resource of the computing device, an additional scale of possible resource settings for
an additional resource of the computing device, the additional scale indicating a current
resource setting for the additional resource;
receiving a user input to change the additional resource to a new resource setting;
displaying, in response to the user input to change the additional resource to the
new resource setting, the additional scale indicating the new resource setting for the
additional resource rather than the current resource setting for the additional resource;
identifying, in response to the user input to change the additional resource to the
new resource setting, the remaining battery life currently available based on the new
resource setting of the additional resource; and
displaying, in response to the user input to change the additional resource to the
new resource setting, an indication of the remaining battery life currently available based
on the new resource setting of the additional resource.
12. A method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:
receiving, after displaying the scale indicating the new resource setting and
displaying the indication of the remaining battery life currently available based on the new
resource setting, an additional user input to change the resource to an additional new
resource setting;
displaying, in response to the additional user input, the scale indicating the
additional new resource setting for the resource rather than the new resource setting for the
resource;
identifying, in response to the additional user input, the remaining battery life
currently available based on the additional new resource setting; and
displaying, in response to the additional user input, an indication of the remaining
battery life currently available based on the additional new resource setting.
13. A computing device comprising:
a processor; and
one or more computer readable media having stored thereon multiple instructions
that, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to:
display, based on a current screen brightness setting for a screen of the
computing device, an indication of a remaining battery life currently available
based on the current screen brightness setting;
receive a user input to change the screen to a new screen brightness setting;
identify, in response to the user input, the remaining battery life currently
available based on the new screen brightness setting;
change, in response to the user input, the screen to the new screen
brightness setting; and
display, concurrently with the change of the screen to the new screen
brightness setting, an indication of the remaining battery life currently available
based on the new screen brightness setting.
14. A computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein the indication of the remaining
battery life is displayed in one or both of hours and minutes.
15. A computing device as recited in claim 13, wherein to change the screen to the
new screen brightness setting is to change the screen to the new screen brightness setting
in real-time in response to the user input, and wherein to display the indication of the
remaining battery life currently available based on the new screen brightness setting is to
display the indication of the remaining battery life currently available based on the new
screen brightness setting in real-time in response to the user input.