Mobile communication terminal device

• US 20010034807A1
• Filed: 03/19/2001
• Published: 10/25/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 04/25/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fujitsu Toshiba Mobile Communications Limited (Fujitsu Limited)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha
• Inventors: Yamaguchi, Kentoku, Takaoka, Toshiaki
• Granted Patent: US 6,836,814 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 710/316
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 88/02 Terminal devices

Abstract

According to the present invention, a serial control signal interface and a serial data interface are provided in addition to a USB interface having a USB device controller, and a switching circuit for selectively connecting these interface to a system connector is provided on a mobile communication terminal device. Then, when an external device is connected to the system connector, it is determined whether or not the external device has an external interface having a USB host function on the basis of the interface identification voltage supplied from the external device, so that the switching circuit is changed over on the basis of the determination result to select an appropriate interface.

Claims

1. A mobile communication terminal device comprising:

an external connector having a predetermined terminal arrangement structure;

a first external interface sending and receiving a signal in accordance with a first protocol via said external connector between the mobile communication terminal device itself and an external device;

a second external interface sending and receiving a signal in accordance with a second protocol being different from the first protocol via said external connector between the mobile communication terminal device itself and an external device;

first determination means for determining a third external interface incorporated in the external device to be connected to the external connector; and

an interface selection means for selecting an external interface corresponding to the third external interface from the first and second external interfaces based on a determination result of the first determination means.

2. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 1

, wherein a part of terminals of the external connector is shared with the first external interface and the second external interface.

3. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 1

, wherein

the first determination means detects a voltage value output from a specific terminal via external connector when an external device is connected to the external connector to determine a third interface incorporated in the external devices.

4. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 1

, wherein

the first determination means detects an identification signal pattern output from a specific terminal via the external connector when an external device is connected to the external connector to determine a third interface incorporated in the external device.

5. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 1

, further comprising first display displaying a determination result by the first determination means.

6. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 1

, further comprising:

authentication means for conducting a authentication procedure between the mobile communication terminal device and an external device via an external interface selected from first and second external interfaces;

second determination means for determining a connection form between the mobile communication terminal device itself and the external device based on an authentication result of the authentication means;

connection control means for controlling a connection of the external device to the mobile communication terminal device itself based on a determination result of the second determination means.

7. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 6

, wherein said second determination means detects and a specification of an external device and determines whether or not the external device can be connected to the mobile communication terminal device itself.

8. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 3

, further comprising second display displaying the determination result by said second determination means.

9. A mobile communication terminal device comprising:

an external connector comprising a USB (Universal Serial Bus) terminal and an additional terminal;

a first external interface providing a USB slave function;

a second external interface which is different from the first external interface concerning a protocol;

first determination means for determining whether or not the an external device connected to the external connector comprises a third external interface providing a USB host function;

interface selection means for selecting the first external interface when it is determined that an external device provides a USB host function while selecting the second external interface when it is determined that the external device does not provide a USB host function based on a determination result of the first determination means.

10. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 9

, wherein

said first determination means comprises:

means for detecting a voltage value output from a specific terminal via the external connector when the external device is connected to the external connector; and

means for determining a kind of the third external interface incorporated in the external device based on the detection result by said voltage value detection means.

11. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 9

, wherein

the first determination means comprises;

means for detecting identification signal pattern output from a specific terminal via the external connector in the case where the external device are connected to the external connector; and

for determining type of the third external interface incorporated in the external device based on the detection result of said signal pattern detection means.

12. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 9

, wherein said first external interface transmits a signal between the external device and the mobile communication terminal device via the USB terminal of the external connector in the case where said first external interface is selected, while

the second external interface selectively uses a part of the USB terminal of the external connector and an additional terminal to transmit a signal between the external device and the mobile communication terminal device in the case where the second external interface is selected.

13. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 9

, further comprising;

authentication means for conducting authentication procedure between the external device and the mobile communication terminal device via the first external interface;

second determination means for determining a connection form between the terminal of the mobile communication terminal device itself and the external device based on the authentication result by the authentication means; and

connection control means for controlling the connection of the external device to the mobile communication terminal device itself on the basis of the determination result of the second determination means.

14. The mobile communication terminal device according to

claim 13

, wherein the authentication means determines whether or not the external device is a battery charger;

the second determination means, in the case where the authentication means determines that the external device is a battery charger, detects a standard value of the battery charger to determine whether or not the battery charger can be connected; and

the connection control means connects the battery charger and a power source circuit in the mobile communication terminal device in the case where the second determination means determines that the battery charger can be connected, while cut off the battery charger from the power source circuit in the case where the second determination means determines that the battery charger cannot be connected.