WO2017023511A1

WO2017023511A1 - Wearable device

Info

Publication number: WO2017023511A1
Application number: PCT/US2016/042383
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ho-Kai CHAN
Original assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing, Llc
Priority date: 2015-08-06
Filing date: 2016-07-15
Publication date: 2017-02-09
Also published as: CN106708250A

Abstract

In implementations of the subject matter described herein, a wearable electronic device comprises two different displays. One display is configured to display information with relatively low priority, while the other display is configured to display important information having higher priority. In addition to the main battery that powers the wearable device, the device further has a dedicated power supply for the display that is used to display important information. In this way, even if the main power source runs out, the important information can still be displayed to the user.

Description

WEARABLE DEVICE

BACKGROUND

[0001] In recent years, wearable devices that have various intelligent functions have been increasingly popular. Wearable devices are miniature electronic devices that are worn by the bearers. Most wearable devices are capable of providing digital information to the users. In addition, some wearable devices can record and display personal information and/or physiological conditions of the users in real time. Examples of such wearable devices include, but are not limited to, bracelets, watches, glasses, helms, and the like. Generally speaking, wearable devices are powered by rechargeable batteries equipped thereon. At present, if the batteries run out, the wearable device will become completely useless until being recharged.

SUMMARY

[0002] In accordance with implementations of the subject matter described herein, a wearable device is provided. The wearable device comprises two different displays. One display is configured to display information with relatively low priority, while the other display is configured to display important information having higher priority. In addition to the main battery that powers the wearable device, the device further has a dedicated power supply for the display that is used to display important information. In this way, even if the main power source runs out, the important information can still be displayed to the user.

[0003] 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.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a wearable device in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein;

[0005] FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of connections between power sources and displays of a wearable device in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein; [0006] FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of connections between power sources and displays of a wearable device in accordance with another implementation of the subject matter described herein;

[0007] FIG. 4 illustrates a block diagram of a wearable device in accordance with another implementation of the subject matter described herein;

[0008] FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a wearable device in accordance with yet another implementation of the subject matter described herein;

[0009] FIG. 6 illustrates a perspective view of an arrangement of two displays of a wearable device in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein;

[0010] FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of an arrangement of two displays of a wearable device in accordance with another implementation of the subject matter described herein; and

[0011] FIG. 8 illustrates a flowchart of a method for a wearable device in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] The subject matter described herein will now be discussed with reference to several example implementations. It should be understood these implementations are discussed only for the purpose of enabling those skilled persons in the art to better understand and thus implement the subject matter described herein, rather than suggesting any limitations on the scope of the subject matter.

[0013] As used herein, the term "includes" and its variants are to be read as open terms that mean "includes, but is not limited to." The term "or" is to be read as "and/or" unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The term "based on" is to be read as "based at least in part on." The term "one implementation" and "an implementation" are to be read as "at least one implementation." The term "another implementation" is to be read as "at least one other implementation." The terms "first," "second," and the like may refer to different or same objects. Other definitions, explicit and implicit, may be included below.

[0014] A wearable electronic device generally involves sensing, computing and/or communication functions so as to present information to a user. For example, a user may interact with a smart wearable device, such as a bracelet, watch, glasses, or helm to check the time, check e-mail or meeting reminders, interact with applications, browse the web, compose text or audio messages, and so on. Conventionally, the wearable device is powered by one battery and is equipped with a single display screen that displays all information and receives inputs from the user. When the battery runs out, the wearable device becomes completely useless and cannot provide any information or track activities of a wearer.

[0015] FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of a wearable device 100 in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein. The structure and functionality of the wearable device 100 are described only for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitations as to the scope of the subject matter described herein. The subject matter described herein can be embodied with different structure and/or functionality.

[0016] As shown, the wearable device 100 includes at least one processing unit (or processor) 110, at least one memory 120, and at least one communication connection 130. An interconnection mechanism (not shown) such as a bus, controller, or network interconnects the components of the wearable device 100. The processing unit 110 executes computer-executable instructions and may be a real or a virtual processor. In a multi-processing system, multiple processing units execute computer-executable instructions to increase processing power. The memory 120 may be volatile memory (e.g., registers, cache, RAM), non-volatile memory (e.g., ROM, EEPROM, flash memory), or some combination thereof. The communication connection(s) 130 enables communication over a communication medium to another computing entity. The communication medium conveys information such as data or computer-executable instructions or requests in a modulated data signal. A modulated data signal is 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 or wireless techniques implemented with an electrical, optical, RF, infrared, acoustic, or other carrier.

[0017] The wearable device 100 further includes an input/output system 140 and a power supply system 150. In accordance with implementations of the subject matter described herein, the input/output system 140 of the wearable device 100 may include two separate displays, namely, a first display 141 and a second display 142. The first and second displays may or may not be the same type, which will be discussed later. The input/output system 140 may also include other sensors such as track pads or touch-sensor-based buttons, vibrators, audio components such as microphones and speakers, status-indicator lights, mechanical dials, and other equipment for gathering input from a user or other external source and/or generating output for a user or for external equipment.

[0018] The power supply system 150 supplies power to other components of the wearable device 100 to enable the operations thereof. In accordance with implementations of the subject matter described herein, the power supply system 150 at least includes two separate power sources, namely, a first power source 151 and a second power source 152. In some implementations, the first and/or second power sources may be rechargeable batteries. Examples of rechargeable batteries include, but are not limited to, a lithium-ion battery, a lithium polymer battery, a nickel-hydrogen battery, or a nickel-cadmium battery. Alternatively, or in addition, the first and/or second power sources may be removable batteries. Examples of removable batteries include, but are not limited to, a button battery, a lithium primary battery, a zinc-manganese dioxide dry cell, or the like. It is possible to use any other types of batteries either currently known or to be developed in the future. In the context of this disclosure, the terms "power source" and "battery" can be used interchangeably.

[0019] As shown, the power supply system 150 powers displays 141 and 142. FIG. 2 shows a block diagram of connections between the power sources 151 and 152 and the displays 141 and 142 in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein. In the implementation shown in FIG. 2, the first power source 151 powers the first display 141 and the second power source 152 powers the second display 142. That is, different displays 141 and 142 of the wearable device 100 are powered by separate power sources 151 and 152, respectively. For the sake of discussion, it is supposed that the first power supply 151 is the main power supply of the wearable device 100.

[0020] Various applications may execute on the wearable device 100. Examples of the applications include, but are not limited to, social media applications, messaging applications such as electronic mail (E-mail) applications, multimedia messaging service (MMS) application, or instant messaging (IM) application, healthcare applications, web browsers or applications, and the like. In operation, these applications may generate various kinds of information to be displayed to the user. The wearable device 100 may also include sensors and/or meters (not shown) that are capable of tracking a user's speed, distance and time while exercising, or collecting physiological conditions such as heartbeats, body temperature, blood pressure, and sleep time duration. The tracked or collected information may also be presented to the user. Some of the information to be displayed may be stored in the memory 120 as required and then provided to the respective displays. Some other information may be received from external devices or networks via the communication connection 130.

[0021] In accordance with implementations of the subject matter described herein, the first and second displays 141 and 142 are arranged to display different kinds of information. For example, general information with less importance may be displayed on the first display 141, while relatively important information may be displayed on the second display 142. That is, the second display 142 is used to display essential or important information and is powered by the dedicated power source 152. As such, even if the main power source 151 runs out, the important information displayed on the second display 142 is still available to the user.

[0022] The information to be displayed may be classified according to the importance or priority thereof. The priority of information may be determined according to a variety of factors. For example, in one implementation, the power consumption when displaying information may be used to determine the priority. Information that will cost lower power energy to be displayed may be assigned with higher priority and thus be displayed on the second display 142. Examples of such information include, but are not limited to, time information, numerical values, or the like. For instance, in order to display the time, two or three indicators indicating the hour, minute, and/or second of the current time are enough, which will not cause much power consumption. Some information may be presented as a numerical value, such as a counter of walking steps. This kind of information may also consume low-level power energy and can be assigned with a relatively high priority.

[0023] In some implementations, the priority may be determined based on the importance of the information. In one implementation, real-time information such as healthcare information is considered to be important for the user and thus can be assigned with higher priority. Examples of the healthcare information include, but are not limited to, a counter of walking steps, the distance walked, physiological conditions such as heartbeats, body temperature, blood pressure or sleep time duration, and the like.

[0024] Alternatively, or in addition, the importance of information may be determined according to user preference. For example, in order to avoid missing an important event or schedule, a user may specify that the reminder for that event or schedule is important. As a result, the information associated with the reminder specified by the user may be assigned with high priority and displayed on the second display 142. Examples of the reminder information include, but are not limited to, meeting reminders such as meeting time, meeting rooms and/or meeting topics, e-mail reminders, and the like.

[0025] As described above, the types of the first and second displays 141 and 142 may or may not be the same. In some implementations, the second display 142 is more power efficient than the first display 141. In this way, the information on the second display 142 can be displayed for a longer time period. For example, the second display 142 may be selected from any types of power efficient display such as a light emitting diode (LED) display, an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, an E-ink display, and the like. The first display 141 may include, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD) display. In some other implementations, the first and the second displays 141 and 142 may be the same type. For example, the first and second displays 141 and 142 may be both power efficient displays.

[0026] In order to display the information on the display 142 for a longer time, in some implementations, the second power source 152 has a longer battery life than the first power source 151. The battery life indicates how long the powered device or component can work on a single charge of a rechargeable battery or before the depletion of a non-rechargeable power source. As such, the second power source 152 may outlast the first power source 151. Even if the first display 141 is powered down when the first power source 151 runs out, the information displayed on the second display 142 might still be available.

[0027] FIG. 3 shows a block diagram of connections between the power sources 151 and 152 and the displays 141 and 142 in accordance with another implementation of the subject matter described herein. As shown, the power supply system 150 further includes a first power controller 153 and a second power controller 154. It is to be understood that although the power controllers 153 and 154 are shown as two separate components, these two controllers can be implemented by a single physical device.

[0028] In this implementation, the first power source 151, under the control of the first controller 153, is able to supply power to both the first and the second displays 141 and 142. The second power source 152, controlled by the second power controller 154, is dedicated to supplying power to the second display 142. That is, the second display 142, which displays important information, can be powered by both the first and second power sources 151 and 152. In this way, the information displayed on the second display 142 will not disappear unless the first and second power sources 151 and 152 both run out. [0029] In some implementations, the first power source 151 is controlled by the first power controller 153 to supply power to the second display 142 if the remaining battery life of the second power source 152 is lower than a first predetermined threshold. For example, if the second controller 154 determines that the charge level of the second power source 152 is lower than the first threshold, the second controller 154 may communicate the determined charge level to the first controller 153. In response, the first controller 153 will control the first power source 151 to supply power to the second display 142. In one example, the first controller 153 may stop the power supply for the first display 141 so as to ensure that all the remaining power energy of the wearable device 100 is used for the important information. The first threshold may be preset when manufacturing the wearable device 100 and/or specified by the user. The first threshold can be set to any reasonable value. Specifically, if the threshold is set to 0%, the first power source 151 will power the second display 142 only if the dedicated second power source 152 runs out.

[0030] In other implementations, the first power controller 153 may control the first power source 151 to power the second display 142 if the first power source 151 is fully charged or the remaining battery life of the first power source 151 is higher than a second predetermined threshold. That is, if the charge level of the first power source 151 is determined to be higher than the second threshold, the first controller 153 controls the first power source 151 to supply power to both the first and second displays 141 and 142. The second threshold may be set to any reasonable value, such as 80%, 90%, 95%, or the like. In this way, the power energy of the second power source 152 may be saved if there is adequate energy in the first power source 151 to support both the first and second displays 141 and 142.

[0031] In some implementations, if the charge level of the first power source 151 is determined to run low (below a third threshold), the first power controller 153 may communicate with the second power controller 154 to connect the second power source 152 to the second display 142. The third threshold may be set to any reasonable values, such as 5%), 10%), 15%, or the like. By powering the second display 142 by the first and second power sources 151 and 152 in such an alternate way, the display time of the important information on the second display 142 can be further lengthened.

[0032] It is to be understood that the processing unit(s) 110 may process the information to be displayed. In some implementations, when the first power source 151 runs out, the second power source 152 may start supplying power to other components than the second display 142, such as the processing unit 110, memory 120, or communication connection 130. However, no information will be further provided to the first display 141. That is, in this event, the processing unit(s) 110 ceases processing of the low-priority information. In this way, the normal operations of the wearable device 100 may be maintained while ensuring display of the important information on the second display 142.

[0033] In some other implementations, the first and second displays 141 and 142 have respective processing units 110, memories 120, communication connections 130, and/or other components. In other words, the wearable device 100 may include two portions, each of which can work independently to display respective information. In one implementation, the first power source 151 supplies power to all components in the wearable device 100 that are related to the display of low-priority information on the first display 141. On the other hand, the second power source 152 supplies power to the components included in the wearable device 100 that are related to the display of the high-priority information on the second display 142. The first and second power sources 151 and 152 may cooperate in a variety of ways to ensure long time display of the high-priority information on the second display 142.

[0034] In the above implementations, the second power source 152 is dedicated to the power supply for the second display 142. In some other implementations, the second power source 152 may instead be used to supply power to the processing unit 110 which processes the important information such as the information that should be collected in a real-time mode but is not necessarily to be displayed in real time. For such information, what really matters is to avoid interruption of the collection rather than display of the information. Examples of the real-time information include, but are not limited to, a counter of walking steps, the distance walked, physiological conditions such as heartbeats, body temperature, blood pressure, sleep time duration, and the like.

[0035] FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of a wearable device 400 in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein. As shown, in this implementation, the wearable device 400 includes one or more sensors 160 for collecting information in a real-time mode. The collected information will be processed by the processing unit(s) 110. The first power source 151 powers both the first and second displays 141 and 142. The second power source 152 at least supplies power to the processing unit(s) 110 and possibly other components required to collect and process the real-time information. In the example shown in FIG. 4, the second power source 152 further supplies power to the memory 120 and the sensor 160. For the sake of discussion, the processing unit 110, the memory 120 and the sensor 160 are collectively referred to as information collection subsystem 401.

[0036] In this way, even if the first power source 151 runs out and the displays 141 and 142 are thus powered down, the second power source 152 enables the collection and processing of the real-time information to continue. For example, in one implementation, the processed information may be stored in the memory 120 in the case that the first power source 151 runs out. When the power supply of the first power source 151 recovers later, the stored information can be displayed.

[0037] In the implementation shown in FIG. 4, the wearable device 400 includes two separate displays 141 and 142. It is to be understood that in alternative implementations, the wearable device 400 may include a single display. Alternatively, or in addition, in some implementations, the first power source 151 may supply power to both the input/output system 140 and the information collection subsystem 401. FIG. 5 shows a block diagram of such a wearable device 500. In this example, the power supply system 150 includes a first power controller 153 and a second power controller 154 to control the power supply of the first and second power sources 151 and 152, respectively. If the remaining battery life of the first power source 151 is high and/or the remaining battery life of the second power source 152 is low, the first controller 153 may control the first power source 151 to supply power to both the input/output system 140 and the information collection subsystem 401. When the remaining battery life of the first power source 151 runs low, the second power source 152 may be controlled to power the information collection subsystem 401. Details of the alternate power supply have been discussed above with reference to FIG. 3 and will not be repeated here.

[0038] In order to save energy for the wearable device 100, 400, or 500, in some implementations, the operating modes of the first display 141 and the second display 142 may be controlled independently. The controlling of the operation modes may be performed by the processing unit(s) 110 of the wearable device 100, 400, or 500. The operating mode includes a power saving mode and a wakeup mode, for example. In the power saving mode, a display is locked and no information is presented on this display, which can save electrical energy for the wearable device 100, 400, or 500. In the wakeup mode, a display works normally to display corresponding information.

[0039] In one implementation, a power saving mode of a display may include a screen lock mode, a sleep mode, and/or a hibernation mode. In a screen lock mode of a display, only the display is locked, and other components of the wearable device are still working in the background. In a sleep mode, the display is locked, the processing unit is still working, and supplying power to other components of the wearable device except the processing unit is stopped to save power. In a hibernation mode, the display is locked and supplying power to all other components of the wearable device including the processing unit is powered down to save power.

[0040] In some implementations, the first display 141 or the second display 142 of the wearable device 100, 400, or 500 may be switched to a power saving mode from a wakeup mode in response to a predefined user input received from the user. The predefined user input may include, but is not limited to, detection of a predetermined gesture such as a predetermined number of continuous taps on the display, and/or a voice command from a user. The user input event predefined to control the operating modes of the first and second displays 141 and 142 may be the same or may be different. In one implementation, different user inputs may trigger the switching among different power saving modes. In one example where the first display 141 is a touch screen display, if a single-tap gesture is detected, this display 141 may be switched to the screen lock mode. If a double-tap gesture is detected, the display 141 may be switched to the sleep mode or the hibernation mode. The wearable device 100, 400, or 500 may also include two mechanical buttons (not shown) for switching the respective displays 141 and 142 into the power saving mode. In one implementation, if no user input is received from the user for a predetermined period of time, the first or second display 141 or 142 may be switched into a power saving mode from a wakeup mode so as to save power.

[0041] The first display 141 or the second display 142 may also be switched to a wakeup mode from a power saving mode based on a predefined user input received from the user, so that information can be presented on the display for the user. The predefined user input may include, but is not limited to, detection of a predetermined gesture such as a predetermined number of continuous taps (for example, 3 taps) on the display, and/or a voice command from a user. Alternatively, or in addition, the user is allowed to operate a mechanical control like a button on the wearable device 100, 400, or 500 to switch the first display 141 or the second display 142 into the wakeup mode.

[0042] In some implementations, if a wearable device includes two displays, the two displays of the wearable device may be arranged relative to each other in many manners. FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of an arrangement of two displays of a wearable device 600 in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein. As shown in FIG. 6, the wearable device 600 is designed as a smart watch, which includes a circular display 610 and an annular display 620 surrounded the circular display 610. The circular display 610 and the annular display 620 have respective power sources (not shown) to provide energy for displaying of information on the displays.

[0043] The circular display 610 is configured to display general information with relatively low priority, for example, information generated by applications such as social media applications, messaging applications, and the like. The annular display 620 is configured to display a set of information with higher priority than information displayed on the circular display 610. By way of example, the annular display 620, as shown, includes an hour indicator 621 and a minute indicator 622 configured to indicate current time. The annular display 620 also includes an area 623 to display a walking step counter of a wearer and an area 624 to display reminder information such as meeting reminders. In one example, an indicator light may be included in the area 624 to remind a user of an upcoming meeting. In another example, the meeting time, meeting room, and/or meeting topic may be presented in the area 624. Other information that is regarded as important information may also be displayed in other areas of the annular display 620.

[0044] Although the two displays of the wearable device 600 in FIG. 6 are shown to have a visual boundary 650 in appearance, in some other examples, the wearable device 600 may also be manufactured to one display screen in appearance. The display screen may then be designed to have two separate display areas which are powered by two separate power sources, respectively.

[0045] The wearable device 600 may have additional components or features. In the example shown in FIG. 6, the wearable device 600 includes a mechanical dial 630 to adjust time displayed on the annular display 620 and a strap 640 configured to be worn on a wrist of a user. A button (not shown) may also be mounted on the mechanical dial 630 to switch the display 610 or 620 into a power saving mode. For example, if the user presses the button once, the circular display 610 may enter the screen lock mode. If the user presses the button for a time period longer than a pressing time limit, the circular display 610 may enter a sleep mode or a hibernation mode. As another example, if the user presses the button two times in a short period of time, both the circular and annular displays 610 and 620 may be switched to the screen lock mode. If another pressure force is detected on the button after a certain period of time, the display 610 or both the displays 610 and 620 may wakeup. In some other examples, two buttons may be mounted on the wearable device 600 to control the operating modes of the displays 610 and 620, respectively.

[0046] FIG. 7 illustrates a perspective view of an arrangement of two displays of a wearable device 700 in accordance with another implementation of the subject matter described herein. As shown in FIG. 7, the wearable device 700 is designed as a smart watch, which includes two circular displays 710 and 720. The displays 710 and 720 are coupled with each other via a hinge or other connection component 750 and the display 720 is on top of the display 710. The display 720 can be flipped up so that a user can interact with the display 710.

[0047] The display 710 is configured to display general information with relatively low priority, for example, information generated by applications such as social media applications, messaging applications, and the like. The display 720 is configured to display a set of information with a higher priority than information displayed on the circular display 710. By way of example, the display 720, as shown, includes an hour indicator 721 and a minute indicator 722 configured to indicate current time. The display 720 also includes an area 723 to display a walking step counter of a wearer and an area 724 to display reminder information such as meeting reminders. In one example, an indicator light may be included in the area 724 to remind a user of an upcoming meeting. In another example, the meeting time, meeting room, and/or meeting topic may be presented in the area 724. Other information that is regarded as important information may also be displayed in other areas of the display 720.

[0048] Similar to the wearable device 600, the wearable device 700 may also include a mechanical dial 730 to adjust time on the display 720 and a strap 740 configured to be worn on a wrist of a user. A button (not shown) may also be mounted on the mechanical dial 730 to switch the display 710 and/or 720 into a power saving mode.

[0049] The example arrangements of two displays of the wearable devices 600 and 700 are described only for the purpose of illustration without suggesting any limitations as to the scope of the subject matter described herein. Each of the displays may have other shapes such as rectangle, square, hexagon, oval, and the like, and may be arranged with the other display in other manners. Different structures of wearable device other than a smart watch can also realize the purpose and concept of the subject matter described herein.

[0050] FIG. 8 shows a flowchart of a method for a wearable device in accordance with one implementation of the subject matter described herein. In step 810, priority of information to be displayed on a wearable device is determined. In step 820, in response to determining the priority of the information being low in step 810, the information is displayed on a first display of the wearable device, the first display being powered by a first battery. In step 830, in response to determining the priority of the information being high in step 810, the information is displayed on a second display of the wearable device, the second display being powered at least by a second battery.

[0051] In some implementations, the priority of the information is determined based on at least one of power consumption of displaying the information or importance of the information. In one example, information that will cost lower power consumption may be determined as having higher priority. In another example, real-time information, such as healthcare information that should be collected and displayed in real-time may be configured with higher priority. In some implementations, priority of time information, healthcare information, or reminder information may be determined to be high.

[0052] In some implementations, the second battery has a longer battery life than the first battery. As a result, even if the first display is powered down due to charge depletion of the first battery, the second display can still have power supply from the second battery and thus the information having higher priority can still be presented on the second display to the user.

[0053] In some implementations, the first battery is further configured to supply power to the second display at least in the case that the second battery runs out. In such implementations, in addition to obtaining power supply from the second battery, the second display is further powered by the first battery, which may further increase the display time of the important information on the second display.

[0054] In some implementations, operation modes of the first and second displays are independently controlled. The operating mode of the first display or the second display includes a power saving mode and a wakeup mode. In the power saving mode, a display is locked and no information is presented in this display, which can save electrical energy for the wearable device. In the wakeup mode, a display works normally to display corresponding information. In one implementation, the power saving mode may include a screen lock mode, a sleep mode, and/or a hibernation mode. Switching the first display and/or the second display into the power saving mode can further save power for the batteries. In one implementation, a display may be switched into a power saving mode from a wakeup mode if a predefined user input event occurs. [0055] In some implementations, the second display is more power efficient than the first display so as to increase time for displaying of the important information on the second display. For example, the second display may be selected from any types of power efficient display such as a light emitting diode (LED) display, an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display, an E-ink display, and the like.

[0056] The functionally described herein can be performed, at least in part, by one or more hardware logic components. For example, and without limitation, illustrative types of hardware logic components that can be used include Field-Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), Application-specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Application-specific Standard Products (ASSPs), System-on-a-chip systems (SOCs), Complex Programmable Logic Devices (CPLDs), and the like.

[0057] Program code for carrying out methods of the subject matter described herein may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes may be provided to a processor or controller of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that the program codes, when executed by the processor or controller, cause the functions/operations specified in the flowcharts and/or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may execute entirely on a machine, partly on the machine, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the machine and partly on a remote machine or entirely on the remote machine or server.

[0058] In the context of this disclosure, a machine readable medium may be any tangible medium that may contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. The machine readable medium may be a machine readable signal medium or a machine readable storage medium. A machine readable medium may include but not limited to an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of the machine readable storage medium would include an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0059] Further, while operations are depicted in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring that such operations be performed in the particular order shown or in sequential order, or that all illustrated operations be performed, to achieve desirable results. In certain circumstances, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Likewise, while several specific implementation details are contained in the above discussions, these should not be construed as limitations on the scope of the subject matter described herein, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular implementations. Certain features that are described in the context of separate implementations may also be implemented in combination in a single implementation. Conversely, various features that are described in the context of a single implementation may also be implemented in multiple implementations separately or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0060] 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

1. A wearable device comprising:

a first display configured to display first information;

a second display configured to display second information, the second information having a higher priority than the first information;

a first power source configured to at least supply power to the first display; and a second power source configured to supply power to the second display.

2. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the priority is determined based on at least one of:

power consumption of displaying the first and second information; or

importance of the first and second information.

3. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the second information includes at least one of the following: time, a reminder, or healthcare information.

4. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the second power source has a longer battery life than the first power source.

5. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the first power source is further configured to supply power to the second display at least in the case that the second power source runs out.

6. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising:

a processing unit configured to process the first and second information to be displayed, the processing unit being configured to cease processing the first information in response to the first power source running out.

7. The wearable device of claim 1, further comprising:

a processing unit configured to independently control operating modes of the first and second displays.

8. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein the second display is more power efficient than the first display.

9. The wearable device of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first and second displays includes:

a light emitting diode (LED) display; a liquid crystal display (LCD) display;

an organic light emitting diode (OLED) display; or

an E-ink display.

10. A method comprising:

determining priority of information to be displayed on a wearable device;

in response to determining the priority of the information being low, displaying the information on a first display of the wearable device, the first display being powered by a first battery; and

in response to determining the priority of the information being high, displaying the information on a second display of the wearable device, the second display being powered at least by a second battery.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein determining the priority of the information comprises:

determining the priority of the information based on at least one of the following: power consumption of displaying the information, or importance of the information.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein the second battery has a longer battery life than the first battery.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the first battery is further configured to supply power to the second display at least in the case that the second battery runs out.

14. A wearable device comprising:

a processing unit configured to process information collected by the wearable device in a real-time mode;

a display configured to display the processed information;

a first battery configured to at least supply power to the display; and

a second battery configured to supply power to the processing unit.

15. The wearable device of claim 14, further comprising:

a sensor configured to collect the information in the real-time mode, the sensor being powered at least by the second battery.