Communication card with three operational states
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A communication card with three operational states, comprising:
- a controller;
a flash storage unit, coupled with said controller, for storing data used by said controller;
a wireless modem, coupled with said controller, for transmitting and receiving data over a wireless network in response to instructions received from said controller;
a battery, coupled with said controller, with said flash storage unit and with said wireless modem, for supplying power to said controller, to said flash storage unit, and to said wireless modem; and
a connector, coupled with said controller, for connecting the communication card to a shell host and to a device host;
wherein the communication card (i) operates in a standalone mode when said connector is not connected to a host, (ii) functions as a master when said connector is connected to the shell host, providing display information to the shell host in the form of screen shots, and (iii) functions as a slave when said connector is connected to the device host, enabling the device host to operate the communication card.
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Abstract
A communication card with three operational states, including a controller, a battery, a flash storage unit, a wireless modem, and a connector for connecting the communication card to a shell host and to an electronic device host, wherein the communication card (i) operates in a standalone mode when the connector is not connected to a device, (ii) functions as a master when the connector is connected to the shell host, and (iii) functions as a slave when the connector is connected to the electronic device host. A method and a computer-readable storage medium are also described and claimed.
27 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A communication card with three operational states, comprising:
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a controller; a flash storage unit, coupled with said controller, for storing data used by said controller; a wireless modem, coupled with said controller, for transmitting and receiving data over a wireless network in response to instructions received from said controller; a battery, coupled with said controller, with said flash storage unit and with said wireless modem, for supplying power to said controller, to said flash storage unit, and to said wireless modem; and a connector, coupled with said controller, for connecting the communication card to a shell host and to a device host;
wherein the communication card (i) operates in a standalone mode when said connector is not connected to a host, (ii) functions as a master when said connector is connected to the shell host, providing display information to the shell host in the form of screen shots, and (iii) functions as a slave when said connector is connected to the device host, enabling the device host to operate the communication card. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A method for determining the operational state of a communication card, comprising:
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providing a communication card that has three operational states, namely, (i) the communication card in a standalone mode (State I), (ii) the communication card connected to a shell host (State II), and (iii) the communication card connected to a device host (State III); monitoring a first signal on the communication card; and if the first signal has a voltage level lower than a first designated threshold, then concluding that the communication card is in State I; otherwise, concluding that the communication card is connected to a host, and; monitoring a second signal on the communication card; and if the second signal has a voltage level lower than a second designated threshold, then concluding that the communication card is in State II and controlling the communication card to operate as a master for the shell host; otherwise, concluding that the communication card is in State III and controlling the communication card to onerate as a slave for the device host. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11)
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12. A computer readable storage medium storing program code for causing a computing device to determine the state of a communication card that has three operational states, namely, (i) the communication card in a standalone mode (State I), (ii) the communication card connected to a shell host (State II), and (iii) the communication card connected to a device host (State III), by:
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monitoring a first signal on the communication card; and if the first signal has a voltage level lower than a designated threshold, then concluding that the communication card is in State I; otherwise, concluding that the communication card is connected to a host, and; monitoring a second signal on the communication card; and if the second signal has a voltage level lower than the designated threshold, then concluding that the communication card is in State II and controlling the communication card to onerate as a master for the shell host; otherwise, concluding that the communication card is in State III and controlling the communication card to onerate as a slave for the device host.
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13. A communication card with three operational states, comprising:
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a card connector for connecting a communication card to a shell host and to a device host, comprising a plurality of pins, the pins comprising; a connector for incoming and outgoing audio signals; a connector for a power supply; and a universal serial bus (USB) connector; a communication bus, wherein (i) no signals are routed to the communication bus when the card operates in a standalone mode (State I), (ii) secure digital (SD) card signals are routed to the communication bus when the card is connected to the shell host (State II) using a set of functionalities assigned to said connector nins, with the card functioning as master, and (iii) SD card signals are routed to the communication bus when the card is connected to the device host (State III) using a different set of functionalities assigned to said connector pins, with the card functioning as slave; and circuitry for automatically detecting whether the card is operating in State I, State II or State III. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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Specification