Enhanced power saving method for hand-held communications system and a hand-held communications system therefor

In a multiple channel access auto-scan cordless phone system having multiple channels controlled by a central processing unit, a wireless communication device comprising a decoding device for confirmation of signals received by the phone system comprising:

• receiver means for receiving signals from the phone system;
• memory means for storing therein an identification for each of the multiple channels of the phone system;
• checker means for comparing a code carried by the signals with the identifications so that when the code matches with one of the identifications, an actuating signal is generated to wake up the central processing unit of the phone system to process the received signals;
• a synthesizer controller which provides each of the multiple channels with a given communication frequency;
• and
• power saving circuit means for, when the phone system is in a standby mode for which a number of successive time zones are defined, providing the phone system with a corresponding number of different and time-based scan rates and delay time periods associated with the time zones to allow the phone to intermittently scan for the signals from the surrounding air in accordance with a respective one of the scan rates and to sleep for a period of a respective one of the delay times associated with a particular one of the time zones.

In a power saving cordless communication system, comprising:

• receiver means for scanning an incoming signal comprising at least an identification portion and an audio portion during a standby period of the system at a scan rate and receiving the incoming signal as a received signal, said standby period being divided into a number of successive time zones, the receiver means moving from a current time zone to a next time zone with time during the standby period;
• decoding means for decoding and identifying the identification portion of the received signal;
• audio and control means for processing the audio portion of the received signal and sending out the processed audio portion together with the identification portion;
• and
• transmitter means for transmitting outgoing signals;
• the improvement comprising an improved decoding means including:
• identifying means for checking the identification portion of the received signal with an identification code associated with the system;
• and
• power saving means for providing said receiver means with a number of different scan rates respectively associated with the time zones of the standby period so as to allow said receiver means to scan incoming signals with a particular scan rate associated with the current time zone of said time zones which said receiver means is currently operating in.