Multiple processor communication circuit cards and communication devices that employ such cards

• US 7,711,391 B2
• Filed: 07/29/2005
• Issued: 05/04/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/29/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Varia Holdings LLC
• Original Assignee: Varia Holdings LLC
• Inventors: Zatloukal, Peter, Engstrom, G. Eric, Nash, Paul R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Duc
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen; Hai V
• Application Number:
  US11/193,287
• Publication Number:
  US 20070026894A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,740 Days
• Field of Search: 455/558, 455/407, 711/122
• US Class Current: 455/558
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0727 the arrangement being a circuit facilitating integration of the record carrier with a hand-held device such as a smart phone of PDA
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3816 Mechanical arrangements for accommodating identification devices, e.g. cards or chips; with connectors for programming identification devices

Abstract

Multiprocessor circuit cards and communication devices that employ such cards are described herein. In some instances, the multiprocessor circuit cards may be subscriber identity module (SIM) cards and the communication devices may be wireless mobile telephones that are compliant with a communication standard such as ISO/IEC, 3GPP, GSM consortium or other standards.

Claims

1. A circuit card, comprising:

a substrate;

an interface disposed on the substrate having a plurality of input/output (I/O) terminals;

a first processor disposed on the substrate and adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a communication standard;

a second processor disposed on the substrate and adapted to implement additional functions beyond said communication functions specified by the communication standard; and

a switch disposed on the substrate and coupled to the interface, the first processor, and the second processor, and configured to selectively route a group of signals between the I/O terminals and the first and second processors, the group of signals comprising a plurality of signals received through a selected combination of the I/O terminals, wherein said switch is further configured to recognize a signal pattern depicted by said selected combination of the I/O terminals through which the group of signals was received, the combination being undefined by the communication standard, and to determine said routing of the group of signals to either the first processor or the second processor based at least in part on said signal pattern.

2. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein the first processor is adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a standard selected from the group consisting of International Organization for Standardization and the International ElectroTechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) standard, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, and GSM Consortium standard, and the second processor is adapted to implement the additional functions beyond the standard of the first processor.

3. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein the switch is further adapted to route the group of signals to the first processor if the signals are received exclusively through the I/O terminals used by the communication standard, and route the group of signals to the second processor if one or more of the signals are received through a group of I/O terminals that includes at least I/O terminals unused by the communication standard.

4. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein said switch is adapted to route the group of signals to the second processor if the signals received through the I/O terminals include the signal pattern denoted by the subset of the receiving I/O terminals.

5. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein said switch is adapted to determine said routing based at least in part on whether the signals are received through the selected combination of I/O terminals after receipt of a first signal pattern, but before receipt of a second signal pattern, the switch being further adapted to recognize the first and second signal patterns.

6. The circuit card of claim 5, wherein said switch is adapted to route the group of signals to the second processor if the signals are received through the selected combination of I/O terminals after receipt of the first signal pattern but before receipt of the second signal pattern.

7. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein the circuit card further comprises a non-volatile memory coupled to the second processor, having data and/or instructions designed to personalize, customize, and/or enhance functions of a communication device receiving the circuit card.

8. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein the substrate is adapted with a form factor in accordance with the communication standard.

9. The circuit card of claim 1, wherein the circuit card is adapted to receive at least a first signal for implementation of the communication function and at least a second signal for the additional functions through at least one I/O terminal used by the communication protocol and through at least one I/O terminal unused by the communication protocol, respectively, at the same moment of time.

10. A method, comprising:

receiving a group of signals through selected ones of a plurality of input/output (I/O) terminals of a circuit card;

determining, by a switch coupled to the circuit card and to the plurality of I/O terminals, whether to route the group of signals to a first processor of the circuit card adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a communication standard or to a second processor of the circuit card adapted to implement additional functions beyond said communication functions specified by the communication standard, said determining based at least in part on whether the group of signals is received through a selected combination of the I/O terminals, the selected combination depicting a signal pattern of the group of signals and the selected combination being undefined by the communication standard, wherein the switch is further adapted to recognize the signal pattern depicted by the combination; and

selectively routing the group of signals by the switch to either the first or the second processor based at least in part on the signal pattern depicted by the selected combination.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said routing comprises routing the signals either to a first processor adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a standard selected from the group consisting of International Organization for Standardization and the International ElectroTechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) standard, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, and GSM Consortium standard, or to a second processor adapted to implement the additional functions beyond the standard of the first processor.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said routing comprises routing the group of signals to the first processor if the signals are received exclusively through the I/O terminals used by the communication standard, and routing the group of signals to the second processor if one or more of the signals are received through a group of I/O terminals that includes at least I/O terminals unused by the communication standard.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein said switch routes the group of signals to the second processor if the signals are received through a subset of I/O terminals that denote a signal pattern unused by the communication standard, wherein said subset includes at least one I/O terminal used by the communication standard.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein said switch determining said routing based at least in part on whether the signals are received through the I/O terminals after receipt of a first signal pattern, but before receipt of a second signal pattern, the switch being further adapted to recognize the first and second signal pattern.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein said switch routing the received signals to the second processor if the signals are received after receipt of the first signal pattern but before receipt of the second signal pattern.

16. A communication device, comprising:

a slot adapted to receive a circuit card, the slot including a plurality of contacts; and

circuitry coupled to the plurality of contacts and adapted to direct or receive a group of signals, or to both direct and receive a group of signals, to and from selected ones of the plurality of contacts, said group of signals comprising a plurality of signals;

wherein the plurality of contacts adapted to correspondingly couple with a plurality of input/output (I/O) terminals of the received circuit card;

wherein the circuitry selectively communicates with a first processor of the received circuit card adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a communication standard, and selectively communicates with a second processor of the received circuit card adapted to implement additional functions beyond the communication functions specified by the communication standard, by directing or receiving the group of signals through the contacts corresponding to a selected combination of I/O terminals, the selected combination being undefined by the communication standard, wherein the circuitry is configured to recognize a signal pattern depicted by said selected combination, and wherein the circuitry is configured to selectively communicate with either the first processor or the second processor based at least in part on said signal pattern.

17. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is further adapted to determine whether the received circuit card comprises the second processor in addition to the first processor.

18. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is adapted to direct or receive signals, or both, to and from the first processor of the received circuit card to implement communication functions in accordance with a standard selected from the group consisting of International Organization for Standardization and the International ElectroTechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) standard, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, and GSM Consortium standard, and to direct or receive signals, or both, to and from the second processor of the received circuit card to implement functions beyond the communication functions specified by the standard of the first processor.

19. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is further adapted to direct signals to the second processor of the received circuit card, by directing signals to selected ones of the contacts, including directing signals to a subset of the contacts corresponding to said I/O terminals depicting the signal pattern, the signal pattern denoting to the received circuit card to route the signals to the second processor of the received circuit card.

20. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is further adapted to determine whether signals received from the received circuit card is received from the second processor of the received circuit card by determining whether the received signals includes signals received through a subset of the contacts corresponding to the I/O terminals depicting the signal pattern.

21. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is further adapted to direct signals to the second processor of the received circuit card, by first directing signals to selected one(s) of the contacts to depict a first signal pattern, and terminate said directing of signals to the second processor of the received circuit card by directing signals to selected one(s) of the contacts to depict a second signal pattern.

22. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said circuitry is further adapted to determine whether signals received from the received circuit card are received from the second processor of the received circuit card, by determining whether the received signals denotes a first or a second signal pattern, the first signal pattern denoting signals following the first signal pattern are from the second processor of the received circuit card, and the second signal pattern denoting end of signals from the second processor of the received circuit card.

23. The communication device of claim 16, wherein said additional functions comprise personalization, customization, and/or enhanced functions of the communication device.

24. The communication device of claim 16, wherein the communication device comprises a wireless mobile phone.

25. The communication device of claim 16, wherein the circuitry is adapted to direct or receive at least a first signal for implementation of the communication function and at least a second signal for the additional functions through at least one I/O terminal used by the communication protocol and through at least one I/O terminal unused by the communication protocol, respectively, at the same moment of time.

26. A method, comprising:

receiving a circuit card in a slot of a communication device, the slot including a plurality of contacts; and

directing or receiving signals, or both, to and from selected ones of the plurality of contacts, by a circuitry coupled to the plurality of contacts;

wherein the plurality of contacts is adapted to correspondingly couple with a plurality of input/output (I/O) terminals of the received circuit card;

wherein the directing or receiving includes selectively communicating with a first processor of the received circuit card adapted to implement communication functions in accordance with a communication standard, and with a second processor of the received circuit card adapted to implement additional functions beyond the communication functions specified by the communication standard, by directing or receiving signals through the contacts corresponding to a selected combination of the I/O terminals receiving the signals, said I/O terminals receiving the signals being a subset of the I/O terminals of the circuit card, based on signal patterns depicted by said selected combination, the I/O terminals being dedicated terminals used by the communication standard and selected combination being undefined by the communication standard, and wherein the selectively communicating with the second processor is based at least in part on said signal patterns.

27. The method of claim 26, wherein said circuitry further determining whether the received circuit card comprises the second processor in addition to the first processor.

28. The method of claim 26, wherein said circuitry directing or receiving signals, or both, to and from the first processor of the received circuit card to implement communication functions in accordance with a standard selected from the group consisting of International Organization for Standardization and the International ElectroTechnical Commission (ISO/IEC) standard, 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, and GSM Consortium standard, and to directing or receiving signals, or both, to and from the second processor of the received circuit card to implement functions beyond the communication functions specified by the standard of the first processor.

29. The method of claim 26, wherein said circuitry directing signals to the second processor of the received circuit card, by directing signals to selected ones of the contacts, including directing signals to a subset of the contacts depicting the signal pattern, the signal pattern denoting to the received circuit card to route the signals to the second processor of the received circuit card.

30. The method of claim 26, wherein said circuitry determining whether signals received from the received circuit card is received from the second processor of the received circuit card by determining whether the received signals includes signals received through a subset of the contacts depicting the signal pattern.

31. The method of claim 26, wherein said circuitry directing signals to the second processor of the received circuit card, by first directing signals to selected one(s) of the contacts to depict a first signal pattern, and terminate said directing of signals to the second processor of the received circuit card by directing signals to selected one(s) of the contacts to depict a second signal pattern.

32. The communication device of claim 26, wherein said circuitry determining whether signals received from the received circuit card are received from the second processor of the received circuit card, by determining whether the received signals denotes a first or a second signal pattern, the first signal pattern denoting signals following the first signal pattern are from the second processor of the received circuit card, and the second signal pattern denoting end of signals from the second processor of the received circuit card.