Input components of a device

• US 9,632,604 B2
• Filed: 03/27/2012
• Issued: 04/25/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/27/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Inventors: Suggs, Bradley Neal
• Primary Examiner(s): Wong, Titus
• Application Number:
  US13/431,949
• Publication Number:
  US 20130262719A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,855 Days
• Field of Search: 710 62
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0381 Multimodal input, i.e. interface arrangements enabling the user to issue commands by simultaneous use of input devices of different nature, e.g. voice plus gesture on digitizer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/0384 Wireless input, i.e. hardware and software details of wireless interface arrangements for pointing devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/038 Control and interface arrangements therefor, e.g. drivers or device-embedded control circuitry
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/306 User profiles
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 12/06 Authentication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/00 Services specially adapted for wireless communication networks; Facilities therefor

Abstract

Examples disclose a device including a communication component to couple the device to a first portable computing device and a second portable computing device through a communication channel and a controller to utilize the first portable computing device as a first input component of the device and utilize the second portable computing device as a second input component of the device through the communication channel.

Claims

1. A device comprising:

a communication component to couple the device to a first portable computing device and a second portable computing device through a communication channel; and

a controller to utilize the first portable computing device as a first input component of the device and utilize the second portable computing device as a second input component of the device through the communication channel;

wherein launching a keyboard application on the first portable computing device and a pointer application on the second portable computing device disables the first portable computing device and the second portable computing device from accessing additional functions and applications.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the first portable computing device is a tablet with a touch screen and the device uses the first portable computing device as a keyboard.

3. The device of claim 2 wherein the first portable computing device displays a virtual keyboard on the touch screen of the first portable computing device.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein the second portable computing device is at least one of a smart phone, a media player, and a personal digital assistant which the device utilizes as a pointing device.

5. The device of claim 4 wherein a touch screen of the second portable computing device is utilized as a touch pad for the device.

6. The device of claim 4 wherein a sensor of the second portable computing device detects a movement of the second portable computing device as an input for the device.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein the communication component includes at least one of a near field communication component, a BLUETOOTH®

component, an infrared component, and a wireless radio component.

8. The device of claim 1 further comprising an inductive component to authenticate the first portable computing device and the second portable computing device.

19. The device of claim 1 wherein an input application prompts a user to specify whether the first portable computing device is to operate in a keyboard input mode or a touch gesture input mode.

9. A method for managing a device comprising:

coupling a first portable computing device to the device and coupling a second portable computing device to the device through a communication channel;

utilizing the first portable computing device as a first input component of the device and utilizing the second portable computing device as a second input component of the device; and

receiving a first mode of input for the device from the first portable computing device and receiving a second mode of input for the device from the second portable computing device through the communication channel;

transmitting a keyboard application from the device to the first portable computing device in response to the first portable computing device coupling to the device, the keyboard application configured to render a virtual keyboard and detect the first mode of input from a user; and

transmitting a pointer application from the device to the second portable computing device in response to the second portable computing device coupling to the device, the pointer application configured to detect the second mode of input from a user.

10. The method for managing a device of claim 9 wherein coupling the first portable computing device to the device includes the device utilizing a first communication channel to receive the first mode of input.

11. The method for managing a device of claim 10 wherein the first communication channel uses a first communication protocol.

12. The method for managing a device of claim 10 wherein coupling the second portable computing device to the device includes utilizing a second communication channel separate from the first communication channel to receive the second mode of input.

13. The method for managing a device of claim 12 wherein the second communication channel uses a second communication protocol which is different from a first communication protocol used for the first communication channel.

14. The method for managing a device of claim 9 further comprising loading drivers of a first input component and a second input component.

20. The method for managing a device of claim 9 further comprising prompting a user to specify whether the first portable computing device and the second portable computing device are to operate in a keyboard input mode or a touch gesture input mode.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising instructions that if executed cause a controller to:

couple a first portable computing device to a device through a communication channel and utilize the first portable computing device as a first input component of the device;

couple a second portable computing device to the device through the communication channel and utilize the second portable computing device as a second input component of the device;

utilize a first communication protocol for the first portable computing device, the first communication protocol is different from a second communication protocol for the second portable computing device; and

receive a first mode of input for the device from the first portable computing device and receive a second mode of input for the device from the second portable computing device through the communication channel.

16. The computer readable medium of claim 15 wherein the controller authenticates the first portable computing device and authenticates the second portable computing device before utilizing, them as input components for the device.

17. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein authenticating the first portable computing device includes determining if the first portable computing device is within proximity of a charging plate of the device.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 16 wherein authenticating the second portable computing device includes determining if the second portable computing device is within proximity of a charging plate of the device.