POWER SUPPLY

• US 20070292138A1
• Filed: 06/14/2006
• Published: 12/20/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Verizon Patent and Licensing Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Original Assignee: MCI Incorporated (Verizon Communications Inc.)
• Inventors: Smith, Neal D., Echols, Billy G.
• Granted Patent: US 8,014,678 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 398/116
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/801 using optical interconnects, e.g. light coupled isolators, circuit board interconnections

Abstract

A device includes a power module to produce a switched voltage and to convert the switched voltage into a waveform adapted to wirelessly pass through a structure. The device may include a data module to receive a wireless signal through the structure, where the wireless signal includes information, and to send the information toward a destination.

Claims

1. A device, comprising:

a power module to;

produce a switched voltage, and

convert the switched voltage into a waveform adapted to wirelessly pass through a structure; and

a data module to;

receive a wireless signal through the structure, where the wireless signal includes information, and

send the information toward a destination.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the power module includes a coil.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the data module sends a data signal through the structure.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein the waveform causes an alternating voltage to be produced after passing through the structure.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the wireless signal is an optical signal, and wherein the data module comprises:

an optical coupler to receive the optical signal.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the optical coupler comprises:

an optical filter.

7. The device of claim 5, wherein the data module further converts the optical signal into an electrical signal.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein the structure comprises glass, plastic, wood, composite, brick, stucco, or metal.

9. A system, comprising:

an inboard module, comprising;

a power module to;

cause a waveform to pass thorough a barrier, and

a data module to;

receive an information signal that wirelessly passes through the barrier; and

an outboard module that is physically unattached to the inboard module, comprising;

an outboard power module to;

receive the waveform via the barrier, and

produce an output voltage based on energy in the received waveform, and

an outboard data module to;

receive the output voltage,

receive information via an antenna,

generate the information signal based on the information, and

cause the information signal to be wirelessly sent through the barrier to the data module.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein the data module sends a wireless data signal through the barrier to the outboard data module.

11. The system of claim 9, wherein the waveform is an electromagnetic waveform.

12. The system of claim 9, wherein the information signal is an optical signal.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the data module further comprises:

an optical filter to remove out-of-band wavelengths from the information signal.

14. The system of claim 12, wherein the data module further comprises:

a conversion component to convert the optical signal into an electrical signal, and

an interface to make the information available to a downstream device.

15. The system of claim 9, wherein the outboard power module comprises:

a rectifier to transform the received waveform into the output voltage.

16. The system of claim 9, wherein the inboard module or the outboard module is supported on the barrier by an attachment device.

17. The system of claim 16, wherein the attachment device comprises a vacuum-based, magnetic-based, or adhesive-based device.

18. The system of claim 16, wherein the attachment device is configured to:

pass the information signal from a first side of the barrier to a second side of the barrier or to pass the waveform from the second side to the first side.

19. The system of claim 9, wherein the barrier comprises glass, wood, metal, brick, stucco, composite, or plastic.

20. A method, comprising:

sending an energy signal from a first module supported on a first side of a barrier to a second module supported on a second side of the barrier, where the first module and the second module are physically unconnected;

sending data from the first module to the second module;

powering a transmitter in the second module using the energy signal; and

transmitting the data via the transmitter.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

receiving incoming data from the second module using the first module.

22. The method of claim 20, further comprising:

filtering the data prior to the sending the data to the second module.

23. A communication device, comprising:

an outdoor module supported on a first side of a structure, the outdoor module comprising;

a power module to;

receive an intermediate waveform through the structure from a power source supported on a second side of the structure, where the power source and the outdoor module are physically unattached, and

convert the intermediate waveform into a supply voltage, and

a data module to;

receive the supply voltage to power a receiver,

receive an incoming wireless signal via the receiver, and

transmit information in the incoming signal to a transceiver supported on the second side, where the data module and the transceiver are physically unattached.