System and method for reducing the number of ports associated with a mobile device

• US 9,762,712 B2
• Filed: 04/21/2016
• Issued: 09/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/30/2015
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Essential Products, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Essential Products, Inc.
• Inventors: Evans, V, David John, Jiang, Xinrui, Rubin, Andrew E., Hershenson, Matthew, Miao, Xiaoyu
• Primary Examiner(s): Lapage, Michael P
• Application Number:
  US15/135,431
• Publication Number:
  US 20170126868A1
• Time in Patent Office: 509 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/0425 using optical fibers
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 1/4204 with determination of ambient light solar light G01J2001/4266
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/04 Systems determining the presence of a target
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 17/08 for measuring distance only indirect measurement G01S17/46; active triangulation systems G01S17/48
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/4818 using optical fibres
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/2589 Bidirectional transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/026 Details of the structure or mounting of specific components
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0264 for a camera module assembly
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/12 including a sensor for measuring a physical value, e.g. temperature or motion telephones including GPS signal receivers H04M2250/10

Abstract

The technology presented here reduces the number of ports associated with the mobile device by combining a plurality of ports into a single multipurpose port. In one embodiment, the multipurpose port includes multiple sensors that detect various properties associated with a light beam, and a light guide that transmits the light beam between the environment outside and the multiple sensors inside the mobile device. In another embodiment, a multipurpose camera includes one or more pixels, different from the rest of the multipurpose camera pixels, where the one or more pixels receive a unique control signal. The unique control signal, sent by a processor coupled to the multipurpose camera, includes an instruction to perform an action different from the rest of the pixels, e.g., to turn on when the rest of the pixels are off. The active pixels can detect coarse properties of the light while saving mobile device battery life.

Claims

1. A port associated with a mobile device, the port comprising:

an entry point is operable to receive a first light beam and operable to emit a second light beam;

an exit point disposed inside the mobile device;

a first pixel associated with a camera, the first pixel operable to turn on when the other pixels associated with the camera are turned off, the first pixel comprising;

a light sensor in a plurality of light sensors associated with the camera, the light sensor operable to record an image, the light sensor associated with the exit point of the port;

an ambient light sensor operable to detect a plurality of properties associated with the first light beam, the ambient light sensor associated with the exit point of the port; and

a proximity sensor operable to detect a distance to an object, the proximity sensor associated with the exit point of the port, the proximity sensor comprising an emitter operable to emit the second light beam, and a receiver operable to receive a third light beam, the third light beam comprising the second light beam reflected off the object;

a light guide operable to transmit the first light beam from the entry point of the port to the ambient light sensor, the light guide operable to transmit the first light beam from the entry point of the port to the receiver associated with the proximity sensor, and the light guide operable to transmit the second light beam from the emitter associated with the proximity sensor to the entry point of the port; and

a processor operable to send a unique control signal to the first pixel, the unique control signal comprising an identification associated with the first pixel, and an instruction to operate at least one of the light sensor, the ambient light sensor or the proximity sensor associated with the first pixel.

2. The port of claim 1, the light guide comprising an optical fiber cable, a light pipe, or a liquid light guide.

3. The port of claim 1, the light guide comprising:

a first light guide comprising a first tunnel operable to transmit the first light beam from the entry point of the port to the ambient light sensor;

a second light guide comprising a second tunnel operable to transmit the second light beam from the emitter associated with the proximity sensor to the entry point of the port, and further the second tunnel operable to transmit the second light beam reflected off the object to the receiver associated with the proximity sensor.

4. The port of claim 3, the first light guide comprising a short focal length optical lens.

5. The port of claim 3, the second light guide comprising a long focal length optical lens.

6. The port of claim 1, the plurality of properties associated with the first light beam comprising a color associated with the first light beam, an intensity associated with the first light beam, a change in the color associated with the first light beam, and a change in the intensity associated with the first light beam.

7. The port of claim 1, the plurality of properties associated with the first light beam comprising a time of flight associated with the first light beam.

8. A method comprising:

providing an entry point associated with a first pixel in a plurality of pixels, the first pixel comprising a plurality of sensors comprising a light sensor, an ambient light sensor and a proximity sensor, the first pixel operable to turn on when the other pixels in the plurality of pixels are turned off, when the first pixel is turned on the first pixel is operable to receive a first light beam and the entry point is operable to emit a second light beam;

providing a processor operable to send a unique control signal to the first pixel, the unique control signal comprising an identification associated with the first pixel, and any one of an instruction to turn on or an instruction to turn off at least one of the plurality of sensors;

providing a light guide operable to transmit a beam of light between the entry point and an exit point, the light guide comprising a material that internally reflects light, the entry point disposed on an outer surface associated with a mobile device, the exit point disposed inside the mobile device; and

configuring the plurality of sensors, coupled to the light guide, to detect a plurality of properties associated with the beam of light.

9. The method of claim 8, the plurality of sensors comprising at least two of a flash, a range finder, a fingerprint sensor, and a camera.

10. The method of claim 8, said providing the light guide comprising:

providing a first light guide comprising a first tunnel configured to transmit the first light beam from the entry point to a first sensor in the plurality of sensors; and

providing a second light guide comprising a second tunnel configured to transmit the second light beam from an emitter associated with a second sensor in the plurality of sensors to the entry point.

11. The method of claim 10, said providing the second light guide further comprising configuring the second tunnel to transmit a third light beam from the entry point to a receiver associated with the second sensor in the plurality of sensors.

12. The method of claim 8, the light guide comprising any one of a short focal length optical lens, and a long focal length optical lens.

13. The method of claim 8, said the providing the light guide comprising:

disposing the light guide at a pixel on a camera associated with the mobile device.

14. The method of claim 8, the plurality of properties associated with the beam of light comprising a time of flight associated with the beam of light.

15. The method of claim 8, said providing the light guide further comprising:

configuring the light guide to transmit sound, the light guide comprising a second material that internally reflects sound.

16. The method of claim 15, the plurality of sensors comprising any of a speaker and a microphone.