Media player with acceleration protection

Abstract

An improved media player and a method for operating a portable computing device (e.g., media player) are disclosed. According to one aspect, a portable computing device is able to protect its disk drive when being subjected to undesired levels of acceleration. The portable computing device protects its disk drive by monitoring for such accelerations and operating to avoid usage of the disk drive during periods of acceleration. Through such protection, the likelihood of damage to the disk drive or loss of data stored on the disk drive is able to be substantially reduced. According to another aspect, a user of a portable computing device can be alerted when the portable computing device is being subjected to undesirable levels of acceleration.

1 . A method for operating a portable media player having a processor, a user interface, an acceleration monitor and a disk drive arranged to store media data, said method comprising:
 receiving an indication of a user's expected usage behavior of the portable media player at the user interface;   determining an acceleration of the portable media player by the processor; and   automatically adjusting an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player when the acceleration is determined to be substantial by the processor, wherein the processor determines that the acceleration is substantial based in part on information provided by the acceleration monitor and the received indication of the user's expected usage behavior.   
     
     
         2 . The method as recited in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 adjusting an acceleration threshold value based upon the indication of the user's expected usage behavior.   
     
     
         3 . The method as recited in  claim 2 , wherein the determining that the acceleration is substantial by the processor comprises:
 comparing at least some of the information received from the acceleration monitor to the acceleration threshold; and   determining that the acceleration is substantial when the comparison indicates that the at least some information exceeds the acceleration threshold.   
     
     
         4 . The method as recited in  claim 1 , wherein the operation is a read/write operation from the disk drive. 
     
     
         5 . The method as recited in  claim 4 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to defer the read/write operation. 
     
     
         6 . The method as recited in  claim 5 , wherein the read/write operation is deferred until after the acceleration substantially ceases. 
     
     
         7 . The method as recited in  claim 4 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to stop or prevent the read/write operation. 
     
     
         8 . The method as recited in  claim 7 , wherein the adjusting of the operation operates to slow a rate at which the read/write operation is retried. 
     
     
         9 . A portable media player, comprising:
 a user interface arranged to receive an indication of a user's expected usage behavior of the portable media player;   an acceleration monitor;   a disk drive arranged to store media data;   a processor coupled to the acceleration monitor, the disk drive, and the user interface wherein the processor determines an acceleration of the portable media player and automatically adjusts an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player when the acceleration is determined to be substantial by the processor, wherein the processor determines that the acceleration is substantial based in part on information provided by the acceleration monitor and the received indication of the user's expected usage behavior.   
     
     
         10 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 9 , wherein the processor uses the indication of the user's expected usage behavior to adjust an acceleration threshold value. 
     
     
         11 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 10 , wherein the processor determines that the acceleration is substantial by comparing at least some of the information received from the acceleration monitor to the acceleration threshold, and determining that the acceleration is substantial when the comparison indicates that the at least some information exceeds the acceleration threshold. 
     
     
         12 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 9 , wherein the operation is a read/write operation from the disk drive. 
     
     
         13 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 12 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to defer the read/write operation. 
     
     
         14 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 13 , wherein the read/write operation is deferred until after the acceleration substantially ceases. 
     
     
         15 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 12 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to stop or prevent the read/write operation. 
     
     
         16 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 15 , wherein the adjusting of the operation operates to slow a rate at which the read/write operation is retried. 
     
     
         17 . A portable media player, comprising:
 a disk drive;   an acceleration monitor; and   a processor coupled to the disk drive and the acceleration monitor, wherein the processor adjusts an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player when the processor determines that the portable media player is undergoing substantial acceleration using information provided by the acceleration monitor, and wherein the processor provides a notification to the user of the portable media player that the portable media player is experiencing substantial acceleration.   
     
     
         18 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 17 , wherein the notification prompts the user to alter the user's usage behavior of the portable media player in such a way to cause the acceleration to substantially cease. 
     
     
         19 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 17 , wherein the operation of the disk drive of the portable media player is automatically adjusted to accommodate the usage behavior of the user of the portable media player. 
     
     
         20 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 19 , wherein the operation is a read/write operation from the disk drive. 
     
     
         21 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 20 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to defer the read/write operation. 
     
     
         22 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 21 , wherein the read/write operation is deferred until after the acceleration substantially ceases. 
     
     
         23 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 20 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to stop or prevent the read/write operation. 
     
     
         24 . The portable media player as recited in  claim 23 , wherein the adjusting of the operation operates to slow a rate at which the read/write operation is retried. 
     
     
         25 . A method for operating a portable media player having a disk drive, an acceleration monitor, and a processor coupled to the disk drive and the acceleration monitor, comprising:
 adjusting an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player by the processor when the processor determines that the portable media player is undergoing substantial acceleration using information provided by the acceleration monitor; and   providing a notification to the user by the processor that the portable media player is experiencing substantial acceleration.   
     
     
         26 . The method as recited in  claim 25 , wherein the notification prompts the user to alter the user's usage behavior of the portable media player in such a way to cause the acceleration to substantially cease. 
     
     
         27 . The method as recited in  claim 25 , wherein the operation of the disk drive of the portable media player is automatically adjusted to accommodate the usage behavior of the user of the portable media player. 
     
     
         28 . The method as recited in  claim 27 , wherein the operation is a read/write operation from the disk drive. 
     
     
         29 . The method as recited in  claim 28 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to defer the read/write operation. 
     
     
         30 . The method as recited in  claim 29 , wherein the read/write operation is deferred until after the acceleration substantially ceases. 
     
     
         31 . The method as recited in  claim 28 , wherein said adjusting of the operation operates to stop or prevent the read/write operation. 
     
     
         32 . The method as recited in  claim 31 , wherein the adjusting of the operation operates to slow a rate at which the read/write operation is retried. 
     
     
         33 . Computer program product executable by a processor included in a portable media player for operating the portable media player having a disk drive and an acceleration monitor each coupled to the processor, comprising:
 computer code for adjusting an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player by the processor when the processor determines that the portable media player is undergoing substantial acceleration using information provided by the acceleration monitor;   computer code for providing a notification to the user by the processor that the portable media player is experiencing substantial acceleration; and   computer readable medium for storing the computer code.   
     
     
         34 . Computer program product executable by a processor included in a portable media player for operating the portable media player having a disk drive and an acceleration monitor each coupled to the processor, comprising:
 computer code for receiving an indication of a user's expected usage behavior of the portable media player at the user interface;   computer code for determining an acceleration of the portable media player by the processor;   computer code for automatically adjusting an operation of the disk drive of the portable media player when the acceleration is determined to be substantial by the processor, wherein the processor determines that the acceleration is substantial based in part on information provided by the acceleration monitor and the received indication of the user's expected usage behavior; and   computer readable medium for storing the computer code.