Portable electronic device with contacting and noncontacting interfaces

• US 6,375,082 B1
• Filed: 03/08/1999
• Issued: 04/23/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/24/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Fukuda, Aki, Mukuge, Masatsugu, Kobayashi, Tsutomu, Nakano, Hiroo
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G.
• Assistant Examiner(s): FUREMAN, JARED
• Application Number:
  US09/263,955
• Time in Patent Office: 1,142 Days
• Field of Search: 235/492, 235/379, 235/381, 235/382, 235/383, 235/385, 235/439, 235/441, 235/451, 902/25, 902/26, 710/102
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07 with integrated circuit chips
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0723 the record carrier comprising an arrangement for non-contact communication, e.g. wireless communication circuits on transponder cards, non-contact smart cards or RFIDs
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/077 Constructional details, e.g. mounting of circuits in the carrier
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/07769 the further communication means being a galvanic interface, e.g. hybrid or mixed smart cards having a contact and a non-contact interface
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0008 General problems related to the reading of electronic memory record carriers, independent of its reading method, e.g. power transfer

Abstract

A portable electronic device has contacting and noncontacting interfaces and an inhibiting section. The contacting interface including a plurality of contact terminals for exchanging driving power and data. The noncontacting interface for generating driving power and demodulating received data from a signal received via an antenna. The inhibiting section for inhibiting an operation of the other one of the contacting and noncontacting interfaces while the portable electronic device is driven via one of the contacting and noncontacting interfaces.

Claims

1. A portable electronic device which has contacting and noncontacting interfaces and a control circuit connected to said contacting and noncontacting interfaces, and is driven by said contacting or noncontacting interface, comprising:

detecting means for detecting whether said portable electronic device is driven by via said contacting or noncontacting interface;

switching means for switching commands executable by said portable electronic device on the basis of the detection result from said detecting means; and

a table storing lists of commands executable when said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is driven by said contacting interface and commands executable when said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is driven by said noncontacting interface,

wherein said switching means determines on the basis of the detection result from said detection means whether a command received from an external apparatus can be executed by looking up said table.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein said switching means permits execution of data rewrite and erase commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said contacting interface, and inhibits execution of the data rewrite and erase commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said noncontacting interface.

3. A device according to claim 1, wherein said switching means permits execution of data erase commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said contacting interface, and inhibits execution of the data erase commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said noncontacting interface.

4. A device according to claim 1, wherein said switching means permits execution of data rewrite commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said contacting interface, and inhibits execution of the data rewrite commands if said detecting means detects that said portable electronic device is activated by said noncontacting interface.