GB2615642A

GB2615642A - Device comprising a sensor and method performed by the same

Info

Publication number: GB2615642A
Application number: GB2219236.3A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Nadin Jonathan
Original assignee: Prevayl Innovations Ltd
Current assignee: Prevayl Innovations Ltd
Priority date: 2021-12-20
Filing date: 2022-12-20
Publication date: 2023-08-16
Also published as: GB202219236D0

Abstract

The device comprises a sensor 104 and an energy harvester 106 coupled to the sensor. The energy harvester converts energy from a source of energy (for example, kinetic energy) to electrical energy for powering the sensor. A controller 108 is communicatively coupled to the sensor and obtains sensor data from the sensor. A battery 110 is coupled to the controller and supplies power to the controller. The sensor is supplied with power by the energy harvester rather than the battery. The sensor may be an environmental sensor such as a carbon dioxide or volatile organic compound sensor. The energy harvester may comprise a coil and magnetised element, where movement of the coil or magnetised element relative to one another generates electrical energy.

Description

DEVICE COMPRISING A SENSOR AND METHOD PERFORMED BY THE SAME

[0001] The present invention is directed towards a device comprising a sensor and method performed by the same.

BACKGROUND

[0002] It is desirable for portable electronic devices to incorporate sensors for monitoring properties of the environment in the vicinity of the device. The sensors may include environmental sensors such as carbon dioxide or volatile organic compound sensors.

[0003] Environmental monitoring is becoming increasingly important as research shows the negative effects that pollutants and rising carbon dioxide concentrations have on health, wellbeing, and fitness.

[0004] Existing portable electronic devices with sensors typically provide a battery that powers the sensor The power demands of the sensors typically means that either a high capacity battery is required which increases the form factor of the device, or the device has a limited operational life and needs to be frequently recharged.

[0005] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide an improved device comprising a sensor.

SUMMARY

[0006] According to the present disclosure there is provided a device and method as set forth in the appended claims. Other features of the invention will be apparent from the dependent claims, and the description which follows.

[0007] According to a first aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a device. The device comprises a sensor. The device comprises an energy harvester operatively coupled to the sensor and operable to convert energy from a source of energy to electrical energy for powering the sensor. The device comprises a controller communicatively coupled to the sensor and operable to obtain sensor data from the sensor. The device also comprises a battery operatively coupled to the controller and operable to supply power to the controller.

[0008] Advantageously, the sensor is coupled to the energy harvester and supplied with power by the energy harvester. The requirement of powering the sensor is therefore offloaded from the battery to the energy harvester. This means that the sensor does not drain the battery and continued operation of the device is allowed. The device is not required to have increased battery capacity or be charged frequently in order to operate the sensor. The energy harvester may be, for example, a kinetic energy harvester. Movement of the device enables the sensor to be powered. This is particularly beneficial for portable devices as it allows for the sensor to be powered when the device is in motion such as when it is worn or carried by the user. Monitoring by the sensor is desirable when the device is in motion as it indicates that the user is moving between different environments.

[0009] The device may be a portable electronic device. The device may be a wearable device.

[0010] The sensor may be electrically disconnected from the battery.

[0011] The controller may be electrically disconnected from the energy harvester.

[0012] The sensor may comprise a non-volatile memory operable to store sensor data The controller may be operable to obtain sensor data from the non-volatile memory.

[0013] The energy harvester may convert kinetic energy into electrical energy.

[0014] The sensor may comprise an environmental sensor [0015] The environmental sensor may comprise an air quality sensor. The air quality sensor may comprise a carbon dioxide sensor The air quality sensor may comprise a volatile organic compound sensor. The environmental sensor may comprise a humidity sensor.

[0016] The environmental sensor may be a temperature sensor.

[0017] The environmental sensor may comprise an optical sensor which functions as an ambient light sensor.

[0018] The environmental sensor may comprise a pressure sensor. The pressure sensor may comprise a barometric pressure sensor.

[0019] The controller may be arranged to operate in a first power mode and a second power mode which consumes more power than the first power mode. The controller may be operable to obtain sensor data from the non-volatile memory when operating in the second power mode.

[0020] The device may comprise a wireless communicator. The controller may be operable to control the wireless communicator to transmit the sensor data. Advantageously, the device is able to perform monitoring and transmit the sensor data to an external device for analysis or display to a user [0021] The wireless communicator may be a first wireless communicator. The device may also comprise a second wireless communicator. The first wireless communicator and second wireless communicator may operate using different communication protocols. The second wireless communicator uses a communication protocol that has a shorter communication range than the communication protocol used by the first wireless communicator. The first wireless communicator may be a Bluetooth (RTM) communicator such as a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communicator. The second wireless communicator may be a near-field communicator such as near-field magnetic induction communicator. Advantageously, the first and second wireless communicators are useable to communicate with external devices. The second wireless communicator may be able to communicate with devices in close proximity with the device without requiring that a pairing process takes place. This enables information to be rapidly and seamless exchanged between the device and the external device.

[0022] The energy harvester may comprise a coil and a magnetized element. Movement of one of the coil and magnetized element relative to the other of the coil and the magnetized element generates electrical energy.

[0023] The device may be a charging unit for an electronics module. The device may comprise a power transfer interface for transferring power from the battery to the electronics module. The controller may be operable to control the power transfer interface to transfer power to the electronics module.

[0024] The power transfer interface may comprise a wireless power transmitter arranged to wirelessly transfer power to the electronics module. Advantageously, this means that a physical electrical interface does not need to be formed between the electronics module and the power transfer interface for power transfer to take place. This can simplify the construction of the electronics module and make it easier to waterproof the electronics module.

[0025] The power transfer interface may be arranged to form a conductive electrical connection with the power receiving interface of the electronics module. In addition to power transfer, the conductive electrical connection may beneficially be used for communication between the electronics module and the device such as for sending test signals from the device to the electronics module.

[0026] The device may comprise a power receiving interface arranged to receive power for charging the battery from an external power source. The power receiving interface is not required to be permanently coupled to the external power source. Instead, the power receiving interface need only be coupled to the external power source when the user desires to charge the battery of the device.

[0027] The power receiving interface may be arranged to couple the device to a wired external power source. The power receiving interface may, for example, comprise a USB interface for coupling to an external power source.

[0028] The power receiving interface may be arranged to couple the device to a wireless external power source. The power receiving interface may comprise a wireless power receiving antenna such as for receiving power inductively from a wireless external power source. The external power source may comprise a charging pad that the device is positioned on for charging.

[0029] The device may be a retainer arranged to receive and retain an electronics module.

[0030] The device may comprise a housing defining an internal cavity for receiving the electronics module.

[0031] The internal cavity may be keyed such that the electronics module may only be inserted into the cavity in a particular orientation.

[0032] The housing may define a single internal cavity for receiving the electronics module.

Advantageously, the device housing may define a single internal cavity for receiving an electronics module. Multiple internal cavities are not provided. In this way, the device is a dedicated device for charging a single electronics module at any one time. This helps make the device portable and easy to carry by a user. While the device is only able to receive and charge one electronics module at a time, it may, at different times, receive different electronics modules.

[0033] The single internal cavity may conform to the shape of the electronics module.

[0034] The internal cavity has a length of between 20 mm and 60 mm, a width of between 15 mm and mm, and a depth of between 5 mm and 15 mm.

[0035] Advantageously, the internal cavity is dimensioned to receive an electronics module for a wearable article. The electronics module has a small form factor to enable it to be coupled to a wearable article such as an article of clothing without causing discomfort to the wearer or negatively affecting the appearance of the wearable article.

[0036] The internal cavity may have a length of between 30 mm and 40 mm or between 35 mm and 38 MM.

[0037] The internal cavity may have a width of between 20 mm and 30 mm or between 24 and 26 mm.

In preferred examples, the internal cavity may have a width of 25 mm.

[0038] The internal cavity may have a depth of between 8 mm and 12 mm or between 9 mm and 11 mm. In preferred examples, the internal cavity may have a depth of between 9.7 mm and 10 mm.

[0039] In some examples, the device comprises a lid attached to the housing and and operable to move between a closed position where the lid conceals the internal cavity and an open position where the lid is displaced from the housing such that a user can access the internal cavity.

[0040] The device may comprise an output unit. The output unit may comprise one or more of a visual, audible and haptic feedback unit.

[0041] According to a second aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a device, the method comprises converting, by an energy harvester of the device, energy from a source of energy to electrical energy, powering a sensor of the device using the electrical energy converted by the energy harvester, and powering a controller of the device using power supplied by a battery of the device, where the controller is powered to obtain sensor data from the sensor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0042] To easily identify the discussion of any particular element or act, the most significant digit or digits in a reference number refer to the figure number in which that element is first introduced.

[0043] FIG 1 illustrates schematic diagram of an example device according to aspects of the present

disclosure.

[0044] FIG 2 illustrates an example energy harvester according to aspects of the present disclosure.

[0045] FIG. 3 illustrates an example device for an electronics module according to aspects of the

present disclosure.

[0046] FIG. 4 illustrates the device of FIG. 3 with the device lid in an open position.

[0047] FIG. 5 illustrates another example device for an electronics module according to aspects of the

present disclosure.

[0048] FIG. 6 illustrates an example method performed by a device in accordance with aspects of the

present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The following description with reference to the accompanying drawings is provided to assist in a comprehensive understanding of various embodiments of the disclosure as defined by the claims and their equivalents. It includes various specific details to assist in that understanding but these are to be regarded as merely exemplary. Accordingly, those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that various changes and modifications of the various embodiments described herein can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosure. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and constructions may be omitted for clarity and conciseness.

[0050] The terms and words used in the following description and claims are not limited to the bibliographical meanings but are merely used by the inventor to enable a clear and consistent understanding of the disclosure. Accordingly, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the following description of various embodiments of the disclosure is provided for illustration purpose only and not for the purpose of limiting the disclosure as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

[0051] It is to be understood that the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0052] FIGS 1 shows a device 102 according to aspects of the present disclosure [0053] The device 102 comprises a sensor 104 and an energy harvester 106 operatively coupled to the sensor 104. The energy harvester 106 converts energy from a source of energy to electrical energy for powering the sensor 104 [0054] The device 102 also comprises a controller 108 communicatively coupled to the sensor 104. The controller 108 obtains sensor data from the sensor 104.

[0055] The device 102 also comprises a battery 110 operatively coupled to the controller 108. The battery 110 supplies power to the controller 108.

[0056] In operation, when a source of energy is provided to the energy harvester 106, the energy harvester 106 generates electrical energy for supply to the sensor 104. The electrical energy may be supplied directly to the sensor 104 or may be stored in a power store such as a super capacitor which the sensor 104 draws power from. The electrical energy generated by the energy harvester 106 is used to operate the sensor 104 and causes the sensor 104 to record sensor data. The sensor 104 is not drawing power from the battery 110 and in some examples is electrically disconnected from the battery 110.

[0057] The controller 108 may also be electrically disconnected from the energy harvester 106 such that it does not draw power from the energy harvester 106.

[0058] The sensor 104 is able to operate independently of the controller 108. The controller 108 may be arranged to operate in different power modes which consume different amounts of power. The controller 108 may operate in a first power mode and a second power mode which consumes more power than the first power mode. The first power mode may be a sleep mode and the second power mode may be a normal mode. The sensor 104 is able to operate independently of the power mode of the controller 108 and can operate when the controller 108 is in the first power mode.

[0059] The sensor 104 in this example comprises a non-volatile memory 112. The sensors 104 stores sensor data in the non-volatile memory 112. The controller 108 obtains the sensor data from the nonvolatile memory. Providing the non-volatile memory 112 is beneficial as it means that sensor data is preserved even if sensor data is measured when the controller 108 is operating in a low power mode (the first power mode).

[0060] In operation, when a source of energy is provided to the energy harvester 106, the energy harvester 106 generates electrical energy for supply to the sensor 104. The electrical energy generated by the energy harvester 106 is used to operate the sensor 104 and causes the sensor 104 to record sensor data The sensor data is stored in the non-volatile memory 112 When a wake event occurs, the controller 108 transitions from the first power mode to the second power mode and obtains the sensor data from the non-volatile memory 112.

[0061] The wake event may be a time based event. The controller 108 may transition from the first power mode to the second power mode after a predetermined time period has elapsed. The controller 108 may therefore transition between the first and second power modes according to a predetermined duty-cycle. The wake event may also be any other type of wake event. The particular type of wake event will depend on the application of the device, but could include a user interaction with the device or the device entering a predetermined location.

[0062] The sensor 104 may be any form of sensor 104 and is typically preferred to be a low power sensor. In some examples, the sensor 104 is an environmental sensor arranged to monitor the environment in which the device 102 is located. This enables the device 102 to perform environmental monitoring without drawing power from the battery 110. The environmental sensor may be an air quality sensor such as a a carbon dioxide sensor or a volatile organic compound sensor. The environmental sensor may be a humidity sensor, an ambient light sensor, or a pressure sensor such as a barometric pressure sensor.

[0063] The energy harvester 106 may be any form of energy harvester 106 suitable for converting energy from a source of energy to electrical energy. The source of energy may be RF energy, acoustic energy or thermal energy. In preferred examples, the source of energy is kinetic energy. The energy harvester 106 may generate AC electrical energy. The device 102 may comprise additional components such as a rectifier to convert the AC electrical energy into DC electrical energy for powering the sensor 104.

[0064] FIG. 2 shows an example energy harvester 106 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure_ The energy harvester 106 is a kinetic energy harvester 106 that convers kinetic energy into electrical energy.

[0065] The energy harvester 106 comprises a guiding tube 202 which contains a magnetized ball bearing 204. A coil 206 surrounds the guiding tube 202. The guiding tube 202 forms a continuous loop which in this example has a substantially circular shape.

[0066] Movement of the device 102 causes the magnetized ball bearing 204 to move within the guiding tube 202. This causes a current to be induced in the coil 206. The terminal regions 208, 210 are coupled to a rectifier to convert the generated alternating current into a DC signal for powering the sensor 104.

[0067] The kinetic energy harvester 106 is not required to have the construction shown in FIG. 2, however, this construction beneficially has a small form factor which simplifies the integration of the energy harvester 106 into the device 102.

[0068] More generally, the kinetic energy harvester 106 may comprise a coil and a magnetized element. The energy harvester 106 may be constructed such that the coil moves relative to the magnetized element to induce the current in the coil or the magnetized element moves relative to the coil to induce the current in the coil.

[0069] FIG. 3 shows an example device 102 in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure. The device 102 is in the form of a retainer 302 arranged to receive and retain an electronics module 502 (FIG 5). The electronics module 502 may be a wearable module designed to be coupled directly to a wearer or coupled to a wearable article such as an item of clothing. The electronics module may be an earphone or pair of earphones [0070] The device 102 may be a charging unit arranged to supply power to the electronics module 502 but this is not required in all aspects of the present disclosure. In some instances, the device 102 does not transfer power to the electronics module 502 and may instead function to store the electronics module 502.

[0071] The retainer 302 comprises a housing 304 that defines an internal cavity 306 for receiving the electronics module 502. A lid 308 is pivotably attached to the housing 304. The lid 308 is moveable between a close position where the lid 308 conceals the electronics module 502 positioned in the internal cavity 306 and an open position where the lid 308 is displaced from the housing 304 such that a user can remove the electronics module 502 from the internal cavity 306.

[0072] The retainer 302 is not required to define an internal cavity 306 in all examples. The retainer 302 may otherwise couple to and retain the electronics module 502 without the electronics module 502 being positioned in the internal cavity 306. The retainer 302 may, for example, have one or more fasteners such as external fasteners that couple to and retain the electronics module 502. The fasteners may be projections that extend from a housing 304 of the retainer 302 and define a channel which the electronics module 502 slots into. The fasteners may enable the electronics module 502 to be magnetically coupled to the retainer 302. Hook and loop fasteners and other forms of fasteners may also be used.

[0073] The lid 308 protects the electronics module 502 positioned in the internal cavity 306 from dust, debris and damage. It will be appreciated that the lid 308 is not required in all aspects of the present disclosure. In some examples, the internal cavity 306 may be open. In other examples, a sleeve or other mechanism may be provided to allow for the removable covering of the internal cavity 306.

[0074] FIG 3 shows the lid 308 in the closed configuration [0075] FIG. 4 shows the lid 308 in the open configuration.

[0076] The lid 308 may be pivotably coupled to the housing 304 with a bi-stable hinge which forces the lid 308 to adopt either the closed or fully open position. The lid 308 may be unstable between at positions in between the closed and open positions such that the lid 308 tends to move to the open or closed position.

[0077] FIG. 5 shows an example retainer 302 and an electronics module 502 positioned in the retainer 302 according to aspects of the present disclosure. The electronics module 502 is disposed within the internal cavity 306 of the retainer 302 housing 304. The electronics module 502 and the retainer 302 may be considered as forming a system.

[0078] The retainer 302 comprises a housing 304, internal cavity 306, and lid 308 as described above.

The retainer 302 additionally comprises a battery 110, controller 108, sensor 104 and energy harvester 106 as described above. The retainer 302 additionally comprises a power transfer interface 504 which cooperates with the battery 110 to transfer power to an electronics module 502 positioned in the internal cavity 306. The retainer 302 therefore functions as a charging unit.

[0079] The sensor 104, energy harvester 106, power transfer interface 504, and controller 108 are disposed within the housing 304. In some examples, the power transfer interface 504 may be accessible for an exterior surface of the housing such as when the power transfer interface 504 is used to the wired charging of the electronics module 502.

[0080] The battery 110 may be a rechargeable battery such as a lithium ion battery. The battery 110 provides power to the circuitry associated with the retainer 302 and can also be coupled to the electronics module 502 via the power transfer interface 504 so as to supply power to the electronics module 502.

[0081] The power transfer interface 504 may comprise an electrical connector that electrically connects with the electronics module 502 to transfer power to the electronics module 502.

[0082] The power transfer interface 504 may comprise a wireless power transmitter, such as one or more wireless power transmitting coils, that can transmit inductive power to the electronics module 502. Beneficially, using a wireless power interface between the retainer 302 and the electronics module 502 can simplify the construction of the electronics module 502 and make it easier for the electronics module 502 to be waterproofed.

[0083] The controller 108 is communicatively coupled to the battery 110 and power transfer interface 504. The controller 108 controls the power transfer interface 504 to transfer power to the electronics module 502.

[0084] The retainer 302 may further comprises charging circuitry. The charging circuitry may provide additional battery management functionality through the use of a charge controller, battery monitor and regulator. These components may be provided through use of a dedicated power management integrated circuit (PMIC).

[0085] The retainer 302 may further comprises a power receiving interface. The power receiving interface 708 couples the retainer 302 to a wired or wireless external power source, such as an AC or DC power source of an inductive charging pad. The power receiving interface can be for example, a USB connector or other wired connector that can provide power to the retainer 302. Alternatively, or additionally, power receiving interface can include a wireless power receiver, such as one or more wireless power receiving coils, that can receive inductive power from the external power source [0086] The retainer 302 can charge electronics module 502 even when it is not coupled to an external power source by the power source interface. Provided the battery 110 of the retainer 302 has sufficient charge. The retainer 302 is therefore able to charge the electronics module 502 when the device is, for example, in a user's pocket or bag.

[0087] The retainer 302 may additionally comprise components such as one or more wireless communicators for communicating with external devices.

[0088] The sensor 104 in this example comprises an environmental sensor. The housing 304 has one or more apertures to bring the environmental sensor 104 into communication with the environment external to the retainer 302. The environmental sensor 104 is able to measure environmental properties in the vicinity of the retainer 302.

[0089] The controller 108 of the retainer 302 is communicatively coupled to the environmental sensor 104 and is able to receive environmental sensor data from the environmental sensor 104. The controller is also able to control a wireless communicator of the retainer 302 to transmit the environmental sensor data to an external device such as the electronics module 502 or a user electronic device.

[0090] The environmental sensor 104 may comprise an air quality sensor. This enables the retainer 302 to monitor air quality. This can help identify whether a user is in an environment with poor air quality levels and can prompt the user to make positive changes to improve their environment. Example air quality sensors include carbon dioxide (CO2) and volatile organic compound (VOC) sensors.

[0091] Example CO2 sensors measure CO2 concentration using non-dispersive infra-red (NDIR) sensing. NDIR sensing involves emitting IR light through a sample chamber, optical filter, and detector. The gas in the sample chamber absorbs specific wavelengths of the IR light. The optical filter eliminates all light except the wavelength(s) that the gas under measurement (CO2 in this example) can absorb. The detector measures the attenuation of the wavelengths under measurement. An example CO2 sensor utilising NDIR sensing is the SCD30 manufactured by Sensirion AG [0092] Other example CO2 sensors measure CO2 concentration using photoacoustic sensing. In photoacoustic sensing, narrowband light matching the absorption band of the gas under measurement (CO2 in this example) is emitted into the sensor chamber. The CO2 molecules absorb the emitted light results in an increased pressure in the sensor chamber due to the increased translation energy of the CO2 molecules. The pressure change is detectable by a microphone in the sensor chamber. The microphone signal provides a measure of the number of CO2 molecules in the sensor chamber which can be used to determine the CO2 concentration. An example CO2 sensor utilising photoacoustic sensing is the SCD40 manufactured by Sensirion AG.

[0093] Example VOC sensors include metal-oxide gas sensors which provide a thin film of metal-oxide particles between two electrodes. The thin film is heated to provide negatively charged oxygen species absorbed at the metal-oxide surface. The surface oxygen species react with ambient target gases causing electrons to be released into the metal-oxide film. This results in a change of resistivity that is measurable by the two electrodes. The change in resistivity is dependent on the ambient target gas concentration. An example VOC sensor is the SGP40 manufactured by Sensirion AG.

[0094] The environmental sensor 104 may comprise a humidity sensor. This can enable the device to perform humidity monitoring. Research indicates that controlling humidity levels indoors can help reduce virus transmission levels and improve the functioning of the human immune system. Ideally, indoor humidity levels should be between 40% and 60% Providing the humidity sensor in the retainer 302 can enable the user to be notified of sub-optimal humidity levels which can prompt the user to make positive changes to the indoor environment or potentially move to another indoor environment.

[0095] Example humidity sensors use capacitive measurements to determine a humidity level of the ambient environment. For example, the humidity sensor may comprise a capacitor with a dielectric which absorbs or releases water proportionally to the ambient humidity. Resistive humidity sensor are also available which measure the change in electrical impedance of a hygroscopic medium. Thermal humidity sensors are also available which involve comparing the temperature measured by two probes, one encased in dry nitrogen and the other exposed to the ambient environment.

[0096] The environmental sensor 104 may comprise a pressure sensor such as a barometric pressure sensor. The pressure sensor can perform environmental pressure monitoring to detect changes in pressure. The barometric pressure sensor may be a piezoresistive pressure sensor such as sensor model number LPS22HB from STMicroelectronics.

[0097] The environmental sensor 104 may comprise a temperature sensor.

[0098] The environmental sensor 104 may comprise any combination of the sensors described above.

[0099] FIG. 6 shows a flow diagram of method performed by a device 102 according to aspects of the

present disclosure

[0100] Step 602 comprises converting, by the energy harvester 106, energy from a source of energy to electrical energy.

[0101] Step 604 comprises powering the sensor 104 using the electrical energy converted by the energy harvester 106.

[0102] Step 606 comprises powering the controller 108 using power supplied by the battery 110, wherein the controller 108 is powered to obtain sensor data from the sensor 104.

[0103] At least some of the example embodiments described herein may be constructed, partially or wholly, using dedicated special-purpose hardware. Terms such as 'component', 'module' or 'unit' used herein may include, but are not limited to, a hardware device, such as circuitry in the form of discrete or integrated components, a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), which performs certain tasks or provides the associated functionality. In some embodiments, the described elements may be configured to reside on a tangible, persistent, addressable storage medium and may be configured to execute on one or more processors. These functional elements may in some embodiments include, by way of example, components, such as software components, object-oriented software components, class components and task components, processes, functions, attributes, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays, and variables.

[0104] Although the example embodiments have been described with reference to the components, modules and units discussed herein, such functional elements may be combined into fewer elements or separated into additional elements. Various combinations of optional features have been described herein, and it will be appreciated that described features may be combined in any suitable combination. In particular, the features of any one example embodiment may be combined with features of any other embodiment, as appropriate, except where such combinations are mutually exclusive. Throughout this specification, the term "comprising" or "comprises" means including the component(s) specified but not to the exclusion of the presence of others.

[0105] All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive.

[0106] Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings) may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

[0107] The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Claims

CLAIMS1 A device comprising: a sensor; an energy harvester operatively coupled to the sensor and operable to convert energy from a source of energy to electrical energy for powering the sensor; a controller communicatively coupled to the sensor and operable to obtain sensor data from the sensor; and a battery operatively coupled to the controller and operable to supply power to the controller.
2. The device of claim 1, wherein the sensor is electrically disconnected from the battery.
3. The device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the controller is electrically disconnected from the energy harvester.
4. The device of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the sensor comprises a non-volatile memory operable to store sensor data, and wherein the controller is operable to obtain sensor data from the non-volatile memory.
5. The device of claim 4, wherein the controller is arranged to operate in a first power mode and a second power mode which consumes more power than the first power mode, and wherein the controller is operable to obtain sensor data from the non-volatile memory when operating in the second power mode.
6. The device of any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the energy harvester converts kinetic energy into electrical energy.
7. The device of claim 6, wherein the energy harvester comprises a coil and a magnetized element, and wherein movement of one of the coil and magnetized element relative to the other of the coil and the magnetized element generates electrical energy.
8. The device of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the sensor comprises an environmental sensor.
9. The device of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the device is a charging unit for an electronics module, the device comprises a power transfer interface for transferring power from the battery to the electronics module.
10. The device of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the device is a retainer arranged to receive and retain an electronics module. the device comprises a housing defining an internal cavity for receiving the electronics module.
11. The device of claim 10, wherein the device comprises a housing defining an internal cavity for receiving the electronics module.
12. The device of claim 11, wherein the device comprises a lid attached to the housing and operable to move between a closed position where the lid conceals the internal cavity and an open position where the lid is displaced from the housing such that a user can access the internal cavity
13. A method performed by a device, the method comprising: converting, by an energy harvester of the device, energy from a source of energy to electrical energy, powering a sensor of the device using the electrical energy converted by the energy harvester; and powering a controller of the device using power supplied by a battery of the device, wherein the controller is powered to obtain sensor data from the sensor.