Apparatus and method of interruptible analog input

• US 20050159126A1
• Filed: 01/18/2005
• Published: 07/21/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 01/16/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: VIA Technologies Incorporated (VIA Technologies)
• Original Assignee: VIA Technologies Incorporated (VIA Technologies)
• Inventors: Wang, Chun-Hsiung
• Application Number:
  US11/035,740
• Publication Number:
  US 20050159126A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/226.400
• CPC Class Codes: H03M 11/24 using analogue means , e.g. by coding the states of multiple switches into a single multi-level analogue signal or by indicating the type of a device using the voltage level at a specific tap of a resistive divider

Abstract

The apparatus of interruptible analog input of the present invention includes: a plurality of resistors; a electronic signal detecting circuit used to detect the terminal electronic signal generated by the plurality of resistors and then generate a real-time signal when the terminal electronic signal changes; a analog-to-digital converter used to convert the terminal electronic signal into a digital format whenever the terminal electronic signal changes. The method of interruptible analog input of the present invention includes: detecting whether the terminal electronic signal of a plurality of resistors changes, if not, then executing the current proceeding process, else, determining whether interrupting the current proceeding process or not; if determining to interrupt, converting the changed terminal electronic signal into a digital format; finding the pressed key of a keyboard corresponding to the digital format via a lookup table and then executing the corresponding function of the pressed key.

Claims

1. A apparatus of interruptible analog input, comprising:

a plurality of resistors connected together to a reference voltage, each of said resistors having an associated voltage drop;

a detecting circuit connected to a node between said reference voltage and said plurality of resistors for detecting an electronic signal at said node; and

a analog-to-digital converter connected to said node between said reference voltage and said plurality of resistors, for converting the electronic-signal of said node into a corresponding digital code;

wherein said analog-to-digital converter performs the conversion whenever the electronic signal of said node changes.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a pull-up resistor inserted between said node and said reference voltage, for stabilizing said apparatus.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in series, or parallel, or partly in series and partly in parallel.

4. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said detecting circuit acts as a voltage detecting circuit for detecting the variation voltage at said node, in case said plurality of resistors are connected in series.

5. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said detecting circuit acts as a current detecting circuit for detecting the current variation through said node, in case said plurality of resistors are connected in parallel.

6. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said detecting circuit acts as a combined voltage-current detecting circuit for detecting voltage and current variation of said node, in case said plurality of resistors are partly connected in series and partly connected in parallel.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of resistors have same resistor value, or have different resistor value, or partly have same resistor value and partly have different resistor value.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein value of said electronic signal at said node is equal to sum of value of associated electronic signal generated by said resistors.

9. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of switches each corresponding to one of said plurality of resistors.

10. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in series, and each of said switches is correspondingly opening connected between a node of one of said resistor and a ground, so that the node of the resistor is shorted to the ground while the associated switch is pressed.

11. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in parallel, each of said plurality of switches is correspondingly shorting connected between two of the adjacent resistors, so that the adjacent resistors are disconnected (by way of an open circuit) while the associated switch is pressed.

12. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are partly connected in series and partly connected in parallel, and each of a portion of said switches corresponding to the resistors connected in series is correspondingly opening connected between a node of one of the resistors and a ground, so that the node of the resistor is shorted to the ground while the associated switch is pressed, and each of the other portion of said switches corresponding to the resistors connected in parallel is correspondingly shorting connected between two of the adjacent resistors, so that the adjacent resistors are disconnected while the associated switch is pressed.

13. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in series, and each of said switches is correspondingly connected across two nodes of two of the adjacent resistors by way of open circuit, so that the two nodes are shorted while the associated switch is pressed.

14. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in parallel, and each of said switches is correspondingly connected across one of said resistors by way of short circuit, so that two nodes of the resistor are disconnected while the associated switch is pressed.

15. The apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said plurality of resistors are partly connected in series and partly connected in parallel, and each of a portion of said switches corresponding to the resistors connected in series is correspondingly connected across two nodes of two of the adjacent resistors by way of open circuit, so that the two nodes are shorted while the associated switch is pressed, and each of the other portion of said switches corresponding to the resistors connected in parallel is correspondingly connected across one of the resistors by way of short circuit, so that two nodes of the resistor are disconnected while the associated switch is pressed.

16. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said apparatus is further adapted to a keyboard, such that number of said resistors is equal to number of keys of said keyboard.

17. A method of interruptible analog input, comprising:

detecting an electronic signal at a node among a plurality of resistors, which are connected together to a reference voltage;

converting the electronic signal of said node into a digital format; and

finding out a corresponding function according to said digital format via a lookup table;

wherein the conversion is performed whenever the electronic signal of said node changes according to an input, and thereafter a system is notified.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein said plurality of resistors are connected in series, or in parallel, or partly in series and partly in parallel.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein said electronic signal is a voltage signal, in case said plurality of resistors are connected in series.

20. The method according to claim 18, wherein said electronic signal is a current signal, in case said plurality of resistors are connected in parallel.

21. The method according to claim 18, wherein said electronic signal is a combined voltage-current signal, in case said plurality of resistors are partly connected in series and partly connected in parallel.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein said plurality of resistors have same resistor value, or have different resistor value, or partly have same resistor value and partly have different resistor value.

23. The method according to claim 17, further comprising interrupting the proceeding process whenever the electronic signal of said node changes.

24. The method according to claim 17, further comprising continuing the proceeding process when the electronic signal of said node changes.

25. The method according to claim 17, further comprising finding out the corresponding function according to said digital format via a lookup table and executing said corresponding function.

26. The method according to claim 17, wherein said method is further adapted to a keyboard, such that number of said resistors is equal to number of keys of said keyboard.