Modular system having expandable form factor

• US 8,711,552 B2
• Filed: 07/19/2011
• Issued: 04/29/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Compal Electronics Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Compal Electronics Incorporated
• Inventors: Medica, John, Tsai, Leonard, Chen, Shikuan
• Primary Examiner(s): DUONG, HUNG V
• Application Number:
  US13/186,397
• Publication Number:
  US 20120087078A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,015 Days
• Field of Search: 705/10, 705/14.1, 705/319, 705/7.29, 705/59, 705/14.66, 705/400, 361/679.01, 361/679.55, 361/679.21, 361/679.4, 361/679.08, 361/679.47, 361/679.58, 361/679.48, 361/679.45, 361/679.32, 361/679.53, 361/679.27, 361/679.09, 361/679.28, 361/679.11, 361/679.56, 455/41.1, 455/456.3, 455/435.1, 455/414.2, 455/566, 455/575.3, 455/556.1, 455/575.4, 455/569.1, 455/575.1, 345/473, 345/169, 345/419, 345/173, 439/220, 439/489, 439/345, 439/326
• US Class Current: 361/679.02
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: H02J 7/342 The other DC source being a battery actively interacting with the first one, i.e. battery to battery charging with circuits for polarity protection H02J7/0034

Abstract

A modular system of devices, in which a (master) device can be combined with one or more of other (slave) devices to transform to functional electronic devices having expanded functionalities and features in different form factors and/or platforms. The master device is docked to the slave device via a data/electrical interface, to transform the master device to the larger form factor of the slave device, with the master device maintaining control of the slave device, substantially based on the operating system installed in the master device, with access to the data, application programs, functionalities and features embodied in the master device. An intermediate removable physical interface adaptor (or docking adaptor) is provided to facilitate docking compatibility of the master device to the slave device. An enhanced charging and power management scheme is provided to optimize power management for the master device and the slave device.

Claims

1. A modular system of devices, comprising:

a first electronic device that is independently functional with its own set of features, comprising a first housing in a first form factor, supporting;

a first human input/output interface;

a control system comprising a system processor and an operating system, controlling operation of the first human input/output interface;

a first power source providing power to operate the first electronic device;

an electrical interface providing data access external of the housing; and

a second electronic device comprising a second housing in a second form factor, supporting;

a second human input/output interface;

a second power source providing power to operate the second electronic device;

a docking interface communicating with the electrical interface of the first electronic device,

wherein the first electronic device is removably dockable to the second electronic device, and wherein operation of the second electronic device is controlled at least in part by the system processor of the first electronic device via the electrical interface and docking interface when the first electronic device is docked to the second electronic device.

2. The modular system as in claim 1, wherein the control system further comprises a memory in the first electronic device storing the operating system, application programs and data, which are relied by the second electronic device for operations.

3. The modular system as in claim 2, wherein the operation of the second electronic device is also controlled by the operating system of the first electronic device.

4. The modular system as in claim 3, wherein the operating system in the first electronic device provides more functionality than any limited device specific operation routine provided in the second electronic device.

5. The modular system as in claim 3, wherein the system processor in the first electronic device provides a higher processing power that any processor provided in the second electronic device.

6. The modular system as in claim 3, wherein the system processor comprises a central processor unit (CPU), which provides higher processing power than any processor provided in the second electronic device, including any CPU provided in the second electronic device.

7. The modular system as in claim 1, further comprising an intermediate, portable, removable physical interface adaptor that facilitates docking of the first electronic device to the second electronic device and provides data and power connection between the electrical interface and a docking bay provided in the second housing of the second electronic device.

8. The modular system as in claim 7, wherein the portable physical interface adaptor conforms to the first form factor of the first electronic device and conforms to the docking bay provided in the second housing, such that the first electronic device can be docked into the second housing of the second electronic device.

9. The modular system as in claim 8, wherein the physical interface adaptor comprises a first structure that conforms to at least a part of the first housing, and a second structure that conforms to the docking bay in the second housing, such that said at least a part of the first housing can fit into the first structure and the second structure can fit into the docking bay in the second housing, so that the first electronic device can be docked to the housing of the second electronic device.

10. The modular system as in claim 9, wherein the first electronic device is substantially contained in the second electronic device upon docking.

11. The modular system as in claim 7, wherein the physical interface adaptor supports an electrical adaptor having a first end connectable to the electrical interface on the first electronic device, and a second end connectable to the docking interface on the second electronic device.

12. The modular system as in claim 11, wherein the physical interface adaptor further comprises an adaptor bar removably coupled to the frame, wherein the adaptor bar supports the electrical adaptor.

13. The modular system as in claim 8, wherein the physical interface adaptor is configured as a cartridge.

14. The modular system as in claim 9, wherein the first structure is a frame supporting the first electronic device.

15. The modular system as in claim 14, wherein the second structure is a cartridge receiving the frame.

16. The modular system as in claim 1, wherein the electrical interface comprises a combination of HDMI and USB.

17. The modular system as in claim 1, wherein a third electronic device having a third form factor different from the first form factor may be dockable to the second electronic device using another portable physical interface adaptor associated with the third electronic device, which conforms to the third form factor and conforms to the docking bay.

18. The modular system as in claim 1, wherein the first power source comprises a first battery, and the second power source comprises a second battery, wherein when the first electronic device is docked to the second electronic device and both first and second electronic devices are being charged by an external power source, charging priority is dynamically allocated between the first and second electronic devices, based on battery charge levels in the respective first and second electronic devices.

19. The modular system as in claim 18, wherein charging priority is dynamically allocated in accordance with current battery charge level X of the first battery and current battery charge level Y of the second battery in reference to a battery charge level threshold P %, wherein:

if X<

P %, Y<

P %, first charging X to P % and then charging Y to P %, or

if X≧

P % Y<

P %, divide charging current into trickle charging X and fast charging Y to P %, or

if X<

P %, Y≧

P %, divide charging current into fast charging X to P % and trickle charging Y, or

if X≧

P %, Y≧

P %, trickle charging X and Y.

20. The modular system as in claim 18, wherein charging priority is dynamically allocated further based on power usage by the respective first and second electronic devices.

21. The modular system as in claim 1, wherein the control system of the first electronic device is configured to determine docking status, and wherein upon confirming docking of the first electronic device to the second electronic device, the first electronic device automatically switches control of the operation of the second electronic device.

22. The modular system as in claim 21, wherein the second human input/output interface of the second electronic device includes a display, and wherein the control system switches to controlling the display based on its associated display characteristics upon confirmation of docking of the first electronic device to the second electronic device.

23. A docking adaptor to facilitate docking a first electronic device having a first housing having a first form factor, to a docking bay in a second housing of a second electronic device having a second form factor, comprising:

a first structure that conforms to at least a part of the first housing;

a second structure that conforms to the docking cavity in the second housing, such that said at least a part of the first housing can fit into the first structure and the second structure can fit into the docking bay in the second housing, so that the first electronic device can be docked into the housing of the second electronic device; and

an adaptor interface having a first end connectable to an electrical interface on the first electronic device, and a second end connectable to a docking interface at the docking bay in the second electronic device.

24. A first electronic device comprising:

a housing having a form factor, supporting;

a human input/output interface;

a power source providing power to operate the first electronic device;

a docking interface structured to communicate with an electrical interface of a second electronic device having a larger form factor than the form factor of the housing,

wherein the first electronic device is removably dockable to the second electronic device, and wherein operation of the second electronic device is controlled at least in part by a system processor of the first device via the docking interface when the first electronic device is docked to the second electronic device.