Inductively Powered Sleeve For Mobile Electronic Device

• US 20100013431A1
• Filed: 07/16/2008
• Published: 01/21/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/16/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: ConvenientPower HK Limited
• Original Assignee: ConvenientPower HK Limited
• Inventors: Liu, Xun
• Granted Patent: US 7,855,529 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 320/108
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1633 Protecting arrangement for the entire housing of the computer
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/36 Electric or magnetic shields or screens movable for varying inductance H01F21/10
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/361 made of combinations of electrically conductive material and ferromagnetic material
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 27/40 Structural association with built-in electric component, e.g. fuse
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 38/14 Inductive couplings for wireless supply or distribution of electric power using inductive coupling H02J50/10
• CPC Class Codes: H01F 5/003 Printed circuit coils
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/005 Mechanical details of housing or structure aiming to accommodate the power transfer means, e.g. mechanical integration of coils, antennas or transducers into emitting or receiving devices
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/10 using inductive coupling
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 50/70 involving the reduction of electric, magnetic or electromagnetic leakage fields
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/0044 specially adapted for holding portable devices containing batteries H02J7/0045 takes precedence

Abstract

There is disclosed a sleeve for holding a portable electronic device such as an MP3 player, mobile telephone, PDA and the like. The sleeve is provided with an integrally formed secondary winding that enables the sleeve to pick up magnetic flux from an inductive charging platform and associated circuitry for generating a DC charging voltage that can be used to charge a battery in the device while the device is received within the sleeve. The sleeve is formed with a connector designed to fit a power/data connection socket in the device, and may also be provided with a connection port enabling the device to be connected to a computer while it is received within the sleeve.

Claims

1. A sleeve for receiving a mobile electronic device, said sleeve including a winding for receiving magnetic flux from an inductive charging system, an energy processing circuit for generating a DC output voltage from said magnetic flux, and electrical connection means for connecting said circuit to a said device received within said sleeve whereby said device may be charged by placing said sleeve with the device therein on a surface of said inductive charging system.

2. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sleeve comprises at least one planar surface and said winding is a planar winding integrally formed with said surface.

3. A sleeve as claimed in claim 2 wherein electromagnetic shielding is provided between said winding and a side of said surface facing a device when received in said sleeve.

4. A sleeve as claimed in claim 2 wherein said planar winding is formed on a printed circuit board.

5. A sleeve as claimed in claim 4 wherein the energy processing circuit is formed on the same printed circuit board as said planar winding.

6. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said energy processing circuit and said electrical connection means are formed on one printed circuit board.

7. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said connection means is a combined power and data connector adapted to be received within a combined power and data socket formed in said device.

8. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sleeve is provided with an attachment clip and wherein said winding is provided as part of said clip.

9. A sleeve as claimed in claim 8 wherein said clip further comprises electromagnetic shielding on a side of said clip that in use will face a device received within said sleeve.

10. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said energy processing circuit includes a diode provided at the output of said circuit to prevent reverse current flow.

11. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein said sleeve is provided with a port for connecting a device received therein to an external power source.

12. A sleeve as claimed in claim 11 wherein said external power source comprises a computer or a power adaptor.

13. A sleeve as claimed in claim 11 further comprising means for disabling either said energy processing circuit or said external power source when both are provided.

14. A sleeve as claimed in claim 13 further comprising means for disabling the inductive charging system when said energy processing circuit is disabled.

15. A sleeve as claimed in claim 13 wherein said energy processing circuit is provided with means for clamping data pins of said device at predetermined voltages and said clamping means is disabled when said external power source is provided.

16. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein the electrical connection means is configured to provide the DC output voltage from the energy processing circuit directly to a mobile electronic device to charge a battery within the mobile electronic device to implement the charging of the mobile electronic device.

17. A sleeve as claimed in claim 16 wherein the energy processing circuit is configured to generate the DC output voltage directly from said magnetic flux received by the winding from the inductive charging system.

18. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein the sleeve is configured to charge the mobile electronic device using only a single inductive power transfer of energy provided by the inductive charging system.

19. A sleeve as claimed in claim 1 wherein the sleeve comprises a single housing which includes the winding, the energy processing circuit and the electrical connection means.