Title: Method and apparatus for controlling a supply of power in an electronic apparatus using a combination of plurality of detachable units
Abstract: In an electronic apparatus for realizing a desired function by combining a plurality of units, a judging part judges whether a combination of the plurality of units is to realize the desired function and a power supply control part controls a supply of power from a power source to at least one of the units of the combination used to realize the desired function based on a judgement result of the judging part.
Patent Number: 6,996,731 Issued on 02/07/2006 to Obitsu
| Inventors:
|
Obitsu; Toshiro (Inagi, JP)
|
| Assignee:
|
Fujitsu Limited (Kawasaki, JP)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
535984 |
| Filed:
|
March 27, 2000 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
| May 12, 1999[JP] | 11-131373 |
| Mar 17, 2000[JP] | 2000-77015 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
713/324; 713/300; 713/320; 713/322; 713/323 |
| Current Intern'l Class: |
G06F 1/26 (20060101); G06F 1/32 (20060101) |
| Field of Search: |
713/320,323,324,330,340
710/8,10
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
| 4507679 | Mar., 1985 | Bendell.
| |
| 4747041 | May., 1988 | Engel et al.
| |
| 5452256 | Sep., 1995 | Ichikawa.
| |
| 5475271 | Dec., 1995 | Shibasaki et al.
| |
| 5483656 | Jan., 1996 | Oprescu et al.
| |
| 5613159 | Mar., 1997 | Colnot.
| |
| 5721937 | Feb., 1998 | Kurihara et al.
| |
| 5781798 | Jul., 1998 | Beatty et al.
| |
| 5881300 | Mar., 1999 | Chen.
| |
| 5935228 | Aug., 1999 | Shinomura.
| |
| 6029211 | Feb., 2000 | Nakashima.
| |
| 6085982 | Jul., 2000 | Nakashima.
| |
| 6145046 | Nov., 2000 | Jones.
| |
| 6381662 | Apr., 2002 | Harari et al.
| |
| 6522640 | Feb., 2003 | Liebenow.
| |
| 6678065 | Jan., 2004 | Hikawa.
| |
| 2002/0013162 | Jan., 2002 | Whitney.
| |
| Foreign Patent Documents |
| 5-66858 | Mar., 1993 | JP.
| |
| 5-66864 | Mar., 1993 | JP.
| |
| 5-66867 | Mar., 1993 | JP.
| |
| 5-30930 | Apr., 1993 | JP.
| |
| 6-266480 | Sep., 1994 | JP.
| |
Other References
Moghe, S.; Stone, J.; Stratmoen, S.; Consolazio, S.; Rausch. K.; Geske, S.; Patel,
M.; "Mobitex PC card wireless modem", Microwave Symposium Digest, 1997., IEEE MTT-S
International , vol.: 3 , Jun. 8-13, 1997, Page(s): 1391-1394 vol. 3.
|
Primary Examiner: Browne; Lynne H.
Assistant Examiner: Trujillo; James K.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Staas & Halsey LLP
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. An electronic apparatus, comprising:
a judging part judging whether a combination of a plurality of units is to realize
a desired function, each unit in said combination of a plurality of units being
detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a different type
unit; and
a power supply control part controlling a supply of power from a power source
to at least one of said units of said combination used to realize said desired
function based on a judgment result of the judging part based on an aspect of simultaneous
operation of each unit in said combination of the plurality of units,
wherein the judging part comprises:
an identification information obtaining part obtaining identification information
for identifying from said plurality of units; and
an information judging part judging whether said desired function is realized
based on the identification information obtained from said plurality of units,
wherein said combination of said plurality of units is determined from the identification information.
2. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said plurality of
units includes at least one device unit reading information and at least one PC
card decoding the information read by the device unit, said judging part identifying
a type of said device unit and a type of said PC card, and said power supply control
part stopping the supply of power to the PC card when said judging part judges
that said device unit does not use said PC card.
3. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein said power supply
control part supplies the power to said PC card when said judging part judges that
said PC card is used with the desired device unit, or when said judging part judges
that said PC card is used with the desired device unit and the desired device unit
is connected to said electronic apparatus, and said power supply control part stops
the supply of power to said PC card when said PC card is used with the desired
device unit but the desired device unit is not connected to said electronic apparatus.
4. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said power source
is a battery unit.
5. An electronic apparatus connectable to a plurality of units including at least
one PC card slot and one driver unit, comprising:
a judging part judging whether a combination of at least two of said plurality
of units is a predetermined combination, each unit in said combination of a plurality
of units being detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a
different type unit; and
a power source control part stopping a supply of power to at least one unit in
the combination when said judging part judges that the combination is the predetermined
combination based on an aspect of simultaneous operation of each unit in said combination
of the plurality of units.
6. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said judging part
comprises a table storing predetermined combinations of two of said plurality,
of units, and said judging part judges whether the combination is one of the predetermined
combinations based on the table.
7. The electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein said judging part
judges whether or not a combination of said plurality of units is the predetermined
combination when the electronic apparatus is turned on or when said plurality of
units are connected to the electronic apparatus.
8. A power control apparatus for an electronic apparatus, comprising:
a judging part judging whether a combination of a plurality of units is to realize
said desired function, each unit in said combination of a plurality of units being
detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a different type
unit; and
a power supply control part controlling a supply of power from a power source
to said units of said combination used to realize said desired function based on
a judgment result of said judging part, wherein said judgment is based on an aspect
of simultaneous operation of each unit in said combination of the plurality of units,
wherein the judging part comprises:
an identification information obtaining part obtaining identification information
for identifying from said plurality of units; and
an information judging part judging whether said desired function is realized
based on the identification information obtained from said plurality of units,
wherein said combination of said plurality of units is determined from the identification information.
9. A power control apparatus for an electronic apparatus connectable to a plurality
of units including at least one PC card slot and one driver unit, comprising:
a judging part judging whether or not a combination of at least two of said plurality
of units is a predetermined combination, each unit in said combination of a plurality
of units being detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a
different type unit; and
a power control part stopping a supply of power to at least one unit of the predetermined
combination when it is judged that the combination is the predetermined combination
based on an aspect of simultaneous operation of each unit in said combination of
the plurality of units,
wherein the judging part comprises:
an identification information obtaining part obtaining identification information
for identifying from said plurality of units; and
an information judging part judging whether said desired function is realized
based on the identification information obtained from said plurality of units,
wherein said combination of said plurality of units is determined from the identification information.
10. The power control apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said judging part
comprises a table storing predetermined combinations of at least two of said plurality
of units, and said judging part judges whether the combination of at least two
of said plurality of units is one of the predetermined combinations based on the table.
11. The power control apparatus as claimed in claim 9, wherein said judging part
judges whether or not said combination of at least two of said plurality of units
is the predetermined combination when said electronic apparatus is turned on or
when connected to said plurality of units.
12. A method for controlling a supply of power in an electronic apparatus, comprising:
judging whether a combination of a plurality of units is to realize a desired
function and practicing a judgment result, each unit in said combination of a plurality
of units being detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a
different type unit; and
controlling a supply of power from a power source to at least one of said units
of said combination used to realize said desired function based on the judgment
result, wherein said judgment is based on an aspect of simultaneous operation of
each unit in said combination of the plurality of units,
wherein said judging comprises:
obtaining identification information for identifying from said plurality of units, and
judging whether said desired function is realized based on the identification
information obtained from said plurality of units,
wherein said combination of said plurality of units is determined from the identification information.
13. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said plurality of units includes
at least one device unit reading information and at least one PC card decoding
the information read by the device unit, said judging identifies a type of said
device unit and a type of said PC card, and said controlling a supply of power
stops the supply of power to the PC card when said judging part judges that said
device unit does not use said PC card.
14. The method as claimed in claim 12, wherein said controlling a supply of power comprises:
supplying the power to said PC card when said judging judges that said PC card
is used with a desired device unit, or when said judging judges that said PC card
is used with the desired device unit and the desired device unit is connected to
said electronic apparatus, and
stopping the supply of power to said PC card when said PC card is used with the
desired device unit but the desired device unit is not connected to said electronic apparatus.
15. A method for controlling a supply of power in an electronic apparatus connectable
to a plurality of units including at least one PC card slot and one driver unit,
each unit in said combination of a plurality of units being detachable from said
electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a different type unit, comprising:
judging whether a combination of at least two units of said plurality of units
is a predetermined combination based on an aspect of simultaneous operation of
each unit in said combination of plurality of units; and
stopping a supply of power to at least one of said of at least two units in the
combination when said judging part judges that the combination is the predetermined combination.
16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said judging judges whether or
not said combination of at least two units is the
predetermined combination when said electronic apparatus is turned on or when
said two units are connected to said electronic apparatus.
17. An electronic judging apparatus for judging whether a combination of a plurality
of units is to realize a desired function each unit in said combination of a plurality
of units being detachable from said electronic apparatus and exchangeable to a
different type unit, comprising:
an identification information obtaining part obtaining identification information
from each of the units; and
an information judging part judging whether the desired function is realized
based on the identification information obtained,
wherein the combination of the plurality of units is determined from the identification information.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to electronic apparatuses, power control
apparatuses and methods for controlling a supply of power, and more particularly
to an electronic apparatus, a power control apparatus and a method for controlling
a supply of power in that desired functions can be realized by using a connector
device corresponding to a function device connected to an detachable function device.
Recently, a laptop personal computer using a battery is provided. In such
a laptop personal computer, just the most essential functions are provided in its
base unit to minimize the base units. Accordingly, a PC card slot is provided in
the base unit to extend their functions. A desired function is realized by mounting
a PC card, which has a needed extended function, to the PC card slot.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional portable or laptop personal computer will be described by referring
to FIG. 1.
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a construction of the conventional laptop
personal computer.
The conventional laptop personal computer
1 includes an information processing
system
2, a battery unit
3, a power source circuit
4, a PC
card slot
5 and a drive bay
6.
The information processing system
2 includes a CPU
7, bridge circuits
8 and
9, a graphic controller VGA
10, an audio controller
11, a PC card controller
12, a hard disk drive
13 and a floppy
disk drive
14.
The CPU
7 processes information in accordance with programs. The bridge
circuit
8 is provided between the CPU
7 and each part and controls
a connection between the CPU
7 and each part.
The bridge circuit
9 is provided between the drive bay
6 and a
bus
22 and controls a connection between the drive bay
6 and the
bus
22. The graphic controller VGA
10 controls for displaying processed data.
The audio controller
11 processes audio data. The PC card controller
12
is provided between the PC card slot
5 and the bus
22 and controls
a connection between the PC card slot
5 and the bus
22.
The battery unit
3 generates power. Voltage generated by the battery unit
3 is supplied to the power source circuit
4. The power source circuit
4 supplies power to a drive unit mounted to the drive bay
6 and a
PC card inserted into the PC card slot
5.
A drive unit, such as a CD-ROM drive unit, a DVD-ROM drive unit, a hard disk
drive
unit or a magneto-optical disc drive unit, is mounted to the drive bay
6.
A PC card, such as a modem card, an IC memory card, a SCSI card or a DVD decoding
card, is inserted into the PC card slot
5.
A case of mounting the DVD-ROM drive unit to the drive bay
6 will now
be described.
As shown in FIG. 1, the DVD-ROM drive unit
15 is mounted to the drive
bay
6 in order to read data from a DVD-ROM disk
16. However, the CPU
7 can not process signals read by the DVD-ROM disk unit
15 because
the data from the DVD-ROM drive unit
15 is encoded. Accordingly, in a system
shown in FIG. 1, a DVD decoding card
17 is inserted into the PC card slot
5 to decode the data read by the DVD-ROM disk unit
15. The signals
are converted to data that can be processed by the CPU
7 so as to be displayed.
The DVD decoding card
17 includes a decoder
18 and a processing
circuit
19. The decoder
18 decodes data read by the DVD-ROM drive
unit
15. The processing circuit
19 controls the data to decode at
the decoder
18.
The DVD decoding card
17 is capable of connecting to an exclusive cable
20 for a television. Images and audio are output to a television receiver
21 via the exclusive cable
20.
In the conventional laptop personal computer shown in FIG. 1, when the PC card
is inserted into the PC card slot
5, the power source circuit
4 always
supplies power to the PC card slot
5, regardless of use or not use. For
example, when the DVD decoding card
17 is inserted into the PC card slot
5, power is always supplied to the DVD decoding card
17 even if the
DVD-ROM drive unit
15 is not connected to the drive bay
6. As a result,
the battery unit
3 consumes extra power. In a state in which the DVD decoding
card
17 is not used to decode data from the DVD-ROM disk
16, the
power supplied to the DVD decoding card
17 is completely wasted.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is a general object of the present invention to provide an electronic apparatus,
a power control apparatus and a method for controlling a supply of power, in which
the above-mentioned problems are eliminated.
A more specific object of the present invention is to provide an electronic apparatus,
a power control apparatus and a method for controlling supply of power, which can
reduce unwanted power consumption.
The above objects of the present invention are achieved by an electronic apparatus
for realizing a desired function by combining a plurality of units, including:
a judging part judging whether a combination of the plurality of units is to realize
the desired function; and a power supply control part controlling a supply of power
from a power source to at least one of the units of the combination used to realize
the desired function based on a judgement result of the judging part.
According to the present invention, it is judged whether the combination
of the plurality of units is that for realizing the desired function and the supply
of power to at lease one of the units that are used to realize the desired function
is controlled. Therefore, when the combination is not to realize the desired function,
at least one unit that is used to realize the desired function is not supplied
power. Accordingly, unwanted power consumption can be reduced.
On the other hand, other units that are used to realize another function are
supplied
power. Thus, the another function can be realized.
The above objects of the present invention are achieved by an electronic apparatus
connectable to a plurality of units, including: a judging part judging whether
a combination of at least two of the plurality of units is a predetermined combination;
and a power source control part stopping a supply of power to at least one unit
in the combination when the judging part judges that the combination is the predetermined combination.
According to the present invention, in accordance with the combination
of the two units of the plurality of units is the predetermined combination, it
is possible to stop supplying power to at least one unit that is not required.
Therefore, unwanted power consumption can be reduced.
On the other hand, other units that are used to realize another function are
supplied
power. Thus, the another function can be realized.
Moreover, the above objects of the present invention are achieved by a
power control apparatus for an electronic apparatus which realizes a desired function
by combining a plurality of units, including: a judging part judging whether a
combination of the plurality of units is to realize the desired function; and a
power supply control part controlling a supply of power from a power source to
the units of the combination used to realize the desired function based on a judgement
result of the judging part.
According to the present invention, it is judged whether the combination
of the plurality of units is to realize the desired function and the supply of
power to some units that are used to realize the desired function is controlled.
Therefore, when the combination is not to realize the desired function, the units
that are used to realize the desired function are not supplied power so that extra
power consumption can be prevented.
On the other hand, other units that are used to realize another function are
supplied
power. Thus, the another function can be realized.
Furthermore, the above objects of the present invention are achieved
by a method for controlling a supply of power in an electronic apparatus that realizes
a desired function by combining a plurality of units, including the steps of: (a)
judging whether a combination of the plurality of units is to realize the desired
function; and (b) controlling the supply of power from a power source to at least
one of the units of the combination used to realize the desired function based
on a judgement result in step (a).
According to the present invention, it is judged whether the combination
of the plurality of units is to realize the desired function and the supply of
power to some units that are used to realize the desired function is controlled.
Therefore, when the combination is not to realize the desired function, the units
that are used to realize the desired function are not supplied power so that extra
power consumption can be prevented.
On the other hand, other units that are used to realize another function are
supplied
power. Thus, the another function can be realized.
Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become
more apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction
with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a construction of the conventional laptop
personal computer;
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an electronic apparatus according to a first
embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a construction of a laptop personal computer
according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a mechanism of the DVD-ROM drive unit
according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 5A through FIG. 5D are diagrams showing identifying circuits for the drive
units according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 6 is a flow chart for explaining a power control according to the first
embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the power control according to a second
embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 8 is a flow chart for explaining the power control according to a third
embodiment of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an electronic apparatus according to a first
embodiment of the present invention.
In the first embodiment, a laptop personal computer as the electronic apparatus
will be described.
The laptop personal computer
100 includes a base unit
101 and a
display part
102. The base unit
101 includes a keyboard
103
and a pointing device
104. The keyboard
103 includes a plurality
of keys to input codes such as characters. The pointing device
104 includes
a flat pointing device to move a pointer on a display and operate a desired button.
In addition, the base unit
101 provides an opening
107 to insert
a floppy disk
106 to a floppy disk drive
105 and a multi bay
108
to connect to a detachable drive unit at the front of the base unit
101.
The floppy disk drive
105 writes information on the floppy disk
106
and reads the information therefrom.
Any one of a CD-ROM drive unit
109, a DVD-ROM drive unit
110, a
hard disk drive unit
111 and a magneto-optical disc drive unit
112
is mounted to the multi bay
108.
A CD-ROM disk
113 is inserted into the CD-ROM drive unit
109. The
CD-ROM drive unit
109 operates CD-ROM disk
113 to read information
recorded thereon.
A DVD-ROM disk
114 is inserted into the DVD-ROM drive unit
110.
The
DVD-ROM drive unit
110 reads information recorded on the DVD-ROM disk
114.
A hard disk is accommodated to the hard disk drive unit
111. The hard
disk
drive unit
111 operates the hard disk to write information on and to read
the information from the hard disk.
A magneto-optical disc cartridge
115 which accommodates a magneto-optical
disc is inserted into the magneto-optical disc drive unit
112. The magneto-optical
disc drive unit
112 writes information to the magneto-optical disc accommodated
in the magneto-optical disc cartridge
115 and reads the information recorded
on the magneto-optical disc.
Also, a PC card slot
116 is provided at the left side of the base unit
101. A PC card, which is in conformity to the PCMCIA (Personal Computer
Memory Card International Association) standard, is inserted into the PC card slot
116. A modem card
117, an IC memory card
118, a SCSI card
119 or a DVD decoding card
120 may be used as the PC card. In the
PCMCIA standard, the PC card is 85.6 mm in length, 54 mm in width and 3.3 mm in
thickness of a type 1 PC card, 5.0 mm in thickness of a type 2 PC card or 10.5
mm in thickness of a type 3 PC card.
In the modem card
117, an edge of one short side is connected to a terminal
121 of the PC card slot
116 provided inside of the base unit
101
and an edge of another short side is connected to one terminal of a communication
cable
122. Also, another terminal of the communication cable
122
is connected to a telephone line. The modem card
117 is used to connect
the base unit
101 to the telephone line.
In the IC memory card
118, an edge of one short side is connected to the
terminal
121 of the PC card slot
116 provided inside of the base
unit
101. The IC memory card
118 is used as an additional memory.
Information recorded to the IC memory card
118 can not be erased when the
PC card
118 is ejected from the base unit
101.
In the SCSI card
119, an edge of one short side is connected to the terminal
121 of the PC card slot
116 provided inside of the base unit
101
and an edge of another short side is connected to one terminal of a SCSI cable
123. Also, another terminal of the SCSI cable
123 is connected to
peripheral equipment having a SCSI interface. The SCSI card
119 is used
for an interface between the base unit
101 and peripheral equipment having
a SCSI interface.
In the DVD decoding card
120, an edge of one short side is connected to
the terminal
121 of the PC card slot
116 provided inside of the base
unit
101. The DVD decoding card
120 decodes information, which is
read from the DVD-ROM disk
114 inserted into the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
connected to the multi bay
108, into information that can be decoded by
the CPU
7 in the base unit
101.
Also, in the DVD decoding card
120, an edge of another short side can
be connected to a cable
124 connecting a television. The DVD decoding card
120 converts image information, which is read from the DVD-ROM disk
114
loaded into the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 mounted in the multi bay
108,
to television signals and outputs converted image information to the cable
124
connecting to the television. One end of the cable
124 is connected to an
end of another short side of the DVD decoding card
120. Another end of cable
124 has four pin jacks, namely, a stereo sound output pin jacks
125
and
126, an image output pin jack
127 and a S-image sound output
pin jack
128. The stereo sound output pin jacks
125 and
126
of another end of the cable
124 are connected to stereo sound input terminals
of a television receiver
129. The image output pin jack
127 is connected
to an image input terminal of the television receiver
129. The S-image sound
output pin jack
128 is connected to a S-image input terminal of the television
receiver
129.
The display part
102 is pivotable in a B
1 or B
2 direction
about an A axis provided at an end of a backside of the base unit
101. When
the display part
102 is pivoted to the B
1 direction from an opened
position, a display panel
130 faces the base unit
101 covers the
keyboard
103 and the pointing device
104 at a closed position. At
the closed position, the form of the laptop personal computer
100 is about
a flat board.
Also, when the display part
102 is pivoted to the B
2 direction
from the closed position, the display panel
130 and the keyboard
103
and the pointing device
104 are opened to operate. The display panel
130
of the display part
102 includes a LCD (Liquid Crystal Device) and displays
information processed by the base unit
101.
FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a construction of a laptop personal computer
according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 3, parts that
are the same as those shown in FIG. 2 are given the same reference numbers, and
the description thereof is omitted.
A battery unit
201, a power source circuit
202, an information
processing
unit
203 and a power control switch
204 are internally mounted in
the base unit
101.
The battery unit
201 is a power source to operate the laptop personal
computer. The power source circuit
202 supplies voltage generated by the
battery unit
201 to the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 inserted in the multi
bay
108. The power source circuit
202 also supplies the voltage to
the DVD decoding card
120 inserted into the PC card slot
116 through
the power control switch
204.
The information processing unit
203 includes a CPU
211, a chip
set
212, a memory
213, a video graphics controller
214, an
audio card
215, a PC card controller
216, a bridge circuit
217
and hard disk drive
218.
The CPU
211 processes instructions in accordance with programs. The CPU
211 is connected to the chip set
212. Also, the chip set
212
is connected to the video graphics controller
214, the memory
213
and a bus
218. The chip set
212 controls a connection between the
CPU
211 and each part.
The bridge circuit
217 connects the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 connected
to the multi bay
108 to the bus
218. The bridge circuit
217
is also connected to the power control switch
204 and controls 'ON' or 'OFF'
of the power control switch
204.
The DVD decoding card
120 will now be described.
The DVD decoding card
120 includes a decoder
301, a processing
circuit
302 and an identification storage part
303. The decoder
301
decodes information read from the DVD-ROM drive unit
110. The processing
circuit
302 supplies the information read from the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
to the decoder
301 and then outputs data decoded by the decoder
301
to the PC card controller
216. The identification storage part
303
stores a PC card identification and retrieves the PC card identification based
on a command from the PC card controller
216. When power is turned ON, the
processing unit
203 reads an ID information from the PC card connecting
to the PC card slot
116 identifies the PC card to select a driver that is used.
The DVD-ROM drive unit
110 inserted in the multi bay
108 will be described.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a mechanism of the DVD-ROM drive unit
according to the first embodiment of the present invention.
The DVD-ROM drive unit
110 includes a turntable
401, a spindle
motor
402, a laser emission part
403, an optical head
404,
a detection part
405, a VCM
406, a signal demodulating part
407,
a control circuit
408, an interface
409 and an identifying circuit
410. The DVD-ROM disk
114 in FIG. 3 is mounted on the turntable
401.
The spindle motor
402 is engaged with the turntable
401 and rotates
the turntable
401.
The spindle motor
402 rotates the turntable
401 and then rotate
the DVD-ROM disk
114 mounted on the turntable
401 is rotated. The
optical head
404 is located to face the DVD-ROM disk
114. A laser
beam emitted from the laser emission part
403 focuses on the DVD-ROM disk
114. The laser beam emitted from the optical head
404 to the DVD-ROM
disk
114 is reflected and supplied to the detection part
405. The
VCM
406 moves the optical head
404 in a radius direction and controls
the optical head
404. By the controlled optical head
404, the laser
beam follows a track that records data on the DVD-ROM disk
114. Signals
detected by the detection part
405 are supplied to the signal demodulating
part
407.
The signal demodulating part
407 demodulates detected signals. Signals
demodulated by the signal demodulating part
407 are supplied to the DVD
decoding card
120 in FIG. 3 through the information processing unit
203
in FIG. 3 through the interface
409.
The signal demodulated by the signal demodulating part
407 is supplied
to the control circuit
408. The control circuit
408 controls the
spindle motor
402, the laser emission part
403 and the VCM
406
in accordance with the signals supplied from the signal demodulating part
407.
Also, the control circuit
408 is connected to the information processing
unit
203 through the interface
409 and controls each part in accordance
with commands from the information processing unit
203.
The identifying circuit
410 receives power from the power source circuit
202 and sends a signal for identifying the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
to the information processing unit
203 through the interface
409.
The identifying circuit
410 is provided to not only the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 but also other drive units, that is, the CD-ROM drive unit
109,
the hard disk drive unit
110 or the magneto-optical disc drive unit
112.
In the information processing unit
203, a drive unit connected in the multi
bay
108 is identified based on information result of the identifying circuit
410. Accordingly, the information processing unit
203 executes processes
corresponding to the drive unit connected in the multi bay
108.
The identifying circuit
410 will now be described.
FIG. 5A is a diagram showing an identifying circuit for the CD-ROM drive unit
109 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5B
is a diagram showing an identifying circuit for the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5C is a diagram
showing an identifying circuit for the hard disk drive unit
111 according
to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5D is a diagram showing
an identifying circuit for the magneto-optical disc drive unit
112 according
to the first embodiment of the present invention.
When the CD-ROM drive unit
109 is connected to the multi bay
108,
the identifying circuit for the CD-ROM drive unit
109 receives power from
the power source circuit
202 shown in FIG. 5A. The power supplied from the
power source circuit
202 is supplied to an identification signal output
terminal T
1 of four identification signal output terminals T
1, T
2,
T
3 and T
4 through a resistor R
1. In this case of the CD-ROM
drive unit
109, the other identification signal output terminals T
2,
T
3 and T
4 are grounded.
Hence, an identification signal formed by outputs of the four identification
signal output terminal T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 shows "1000".
When the identification signal "1000" is supplied to the information processing
unit
203 from the drive unit mounted in the multi bay
108, the information
processing unit
203 recognizes that the CD-ROM drive unit
109 is
connected to the multi bay
108. Thus, the information processing unit
203
executes processes corresponding to the CD-ROM drive unit
109.
When the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 is connected to the multi bay
108,
the identifying circuit
410 for the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 receives
power from the power source circuit
202 shown in FIG. 5B. The power supplied
from the power source circuit
202 is supplied to the identification signal
output terminals T
1 and T
2 of the four identification signal output
terminals T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 through resistors R
1
and R
2. In this case of the DVD-ROM drive unit
110, the other identification
signal output terminals T
3 and T
4 are grounded.
Hence, the identification signal formed by outputs of the four identification
signal output terminals T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 shows "1100".
When the identification signal "1100" is supplied to the information processing
unit
203 from the drive unit connected in the multi bay
108, the
information processing unit
203 recognizes that the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
is connected to the multi bay
108. Thus, the information processing unit
203 executes processes corresponding to the DVD-ROM drive unit
110.
When the hard disk drive unit
111 is connected to the multi bay
108,
the identifying circuit
410 for the hard disk drive unit
111 receives
power from the power source circuit
202 as shown in FIG. 5C. The power supplied
from the power source circuit
202 is supplied to the identification signal
output terminals T
1, T
2 and T
3 of the four identification
signal output terminals T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 through resistors
R
1, R
2 and R
3. In this case of the hard disk drive unit
111,
the identification signal output terminal T
4 is grounded.
Hence, the identification signal formed by outputs of the four identification
signal output terminals T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 shows "1110".
When the identification signal "1110" is supplied to the information processing
unit
203 from the hard disk drive unit
111 connected in the multi
bay
108, the information processing unit
203 recognizes that the
hard disk drive unit
111 is connected to the multi bay
108. Thus,
the information processing unit
203 executes processes corresponding to
the hard disk drive unit
111.
When the magneto-optical disc drive unit
112 is connected to the multi
bay
108, the identifying circuit
410 for the magneto-optical disc
drive unit
112 receives power from the power source circuit
202 as
shown in FIG. 5D. The power supplied from the power source circuit
202 is
supplied to all four identification signal output terminals T
1, T
2,
T
3 and T
4 through resistors R
1, R
2, R
3 and R
4.
Hence, the identification signal formed by outputs of the four identification
signal output terminals T
1, T
2, T
3 and T
4 shows "1111".
When the identification signal "1111" is supplied to the information processing
unit
203 from the drive unit connected in the multi bay
108, the
information processing unit
203 recognizes that the magneto-optical disc
drive unit
112 is connected to the multi bay
108. Thus, the information
processing unit
203 executes processes corresponding to the magneto-optical
disc drive unit
112.
The power control switch
204 will now be described.
FIG. 6 is a flow chart for explaining a power control process according to the
first embodiment of the present invention.
When power of the base unit
101 is turned on (step S
1), the CPU
211 turns on the power switch
204 through the bridge circuit
217
and judges which PC card is inserted in the PC card slot
116 (step S
2).
In the step S
2, the CPU
211 sends a request command to request
ID
information through the PC card controller
216. In accordance with the request
command sent from the CPU
211, the PC card, that is, the DVD decoding card
120 shown in FIG. 3, retrieves the ID information that is stored in the
identification storage part
303 and that indicates the DVD decoding card.
Then, the PC card sends the ID information back to the CPU
211 through the
PC card controller
216. Thus, the CPU
211 can recognize which PC
card is inserted into the PC card slot
116 based on the ID information retrieved
from the identification storage part
303 of the PC card.
Subsequently, after the CPU
211 obtains the ID information,
the CPU
211 judges whether the PC card loaded into the PC card slot
116
is a DVD decoding card or not in step S
3. In step S
4, as a result
of step S
3, when the PC card loaded into the PC card slot
116 is
not the DVD decoding card
120, that is, when the PC card is the modem card
117, the IC memory card
118 or the SCSI card
119, the power
control switch
204 remains being ON to supply power to the PC card because
the PC card may be used.
On the contrary, when the PC card inserted into the PC card slot
116 is
the DVD decoding card
120, the CPU
211 judges which device is inserted
into the multi bay
108 in step S
5.
As described by referring to FIG. 5A through FIG. 5D, in the step S
5,
when
the device unit is turned on, the CPU
211 judges based on the identification
signal from the identifying circuit
410. When the identification signal
shows "1000", the device unit is the CD-ROM drive unit
109. When the identification
signal shows "1100", the device unit is the DVD-ROM drive unit
110. When
the identification signal shows "1110", the device unit is the hard disk drive
unit
111. When the identification signal shows "1111", the device unit is
the magneto-optical disc drive unit
112.
Moreover, the CPU
211 judges whether the DVD-ROM drive unit
110
is connected to the multi bay
108 or not in step S
6.
In step S
6, when it is judged that the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 is
connected to the multi bay
108, the power control switch
204 remains
being ON and power is being supplied to the DVD decoding card
120 because
it is needed to operate the DVD decoding card
120 inserted into the PC card
slot
116 when the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 is operated.
On the other hand, in step S
6, when it is judged that a drive unit other
than the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 is connected to the multi bay
108,
the power control switch
204 is turned off a supply of power to the DVD
decoding card
120 is stopped in step S
7 because it is not required
to operate the DVD decoding card
120 inserted into the PC card slot
116
while the drive unit connected to the multi bay
108 is operated.
As described above, according to the first embodiment, a type of the PC card
inserted
into the PC card slot
116 and a type of the drive unit connected to the
multi bay
108 are judged and the power control switch
204 is controlled
to be ON or OFF. Therefore, even if the DVD decoding card
120 is inserted
into the PC card slot
116, the power is not supplied to the DVD decoding
card
120 while the DVD-ROM drive unit
110 is not connected to the
multi bay
108. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent from supplying extra
power. Thus, unwanted power consumption can be reduced.
In this embodiment, the supply of power to the DVD decoding card
120 is
controlled, but the present invention is not limited to this case. The power control
according to the present invention can be applied to any case in which the process
is performed by the PC card inserted into the PC card slot
116 and the drive
unit connected to the multi bay
108. Also, the supply of power to a drive
unit may be controlled when a drive unit always requires a PC card in a process.
In the first embodiment, the supply of power is controlled when the base unit
101 is turned on. But alternatively, the supply of power may be controlled
when a drive unit is connected again to the multi bay or when the PC card is inserted
again into the PC card slot.
A power control, in a case in which a supply of power to the PC card is controlled
when the drive unit is connected again to the multi bay or when the PC card is
connected again to the PC card slot, will now be described.
A construction of the power control in a second embodiment is the same as that
of the power control in the first embodiment and the description thereof will be
omitted. However, the power control process in the second embodiment is different
from that in the first embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the power control according to the second
embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 7, those steps that are the same as
the steps of FIG. 6 are designated by the same reference numerals, and the description
thereof is omitted.
In the second embodiment, step S
11 is processed instead of step S
1
shown in FIG. 6.
In step S
11, it is judged whether a drive unit
110 is connected
to the multi bay
108 or whether a PC card is inserted into the PC card slot
116. The step S
2 is processed when the drive unit
110 is connected
or when the PC card is inserted.
In the first and the second embodiments, the supply of power to the PC card is
stopped in the case of the combination of the DVD decoding card and another drive
unit. But alternatively, the supply of power may be stopped in accordance with
a combination of more than two of a plurality of cards and a plurality of drive units.
A power control in a case of combinations of more than two of a plurality of
cards
and a plurality of drive units will now be described.
A construction of the power control in a third embodiment is the same as that
of
the power control in the first embodiment and the description thereof will be omitted.
FIG. 8 is a flow chart for explaining the power control according to the third
embodiment of the present invention.
The power control in the third embodiment includes step S
21 of identifying
types of PC cards inserted into the PC card slot
116, step S
22 of
identifying types of drive units connected to the multi bay
108, step S
23
of judging whether or not a combination of types of PC cards identified in step
S
21 and types of drive units identified in step S
22 is in a table
and step S
24 for stopping the supply of power to the PC cards.
In step S
21, as the same as step S
2 in the first embodiment, identification
information is read from the PC cards inserted into the PC card slot
116
and the PC card types are judged.
In step S
22, as the same as step S
5 in the first embodiment, the
types of the drive units connected to the multi bay
108 are judged.
In step S
23, with reference to the table provided beforehand in the information
processing unit
203, it is judged whether or not a combination of the PC
card types identified in step S
21 and the drive unit types identified in
step S
22 is in the table.
When the combination of the PC card types identified in step S
21 and
the drive unit types identified in step S
22 is one of combinations in the
table, step S
24 is processed to stop the supply of power to the PC cards.
On the other hand, in step S
23, when the combination of the PC card types
identified in step S
21 and the drive unit types identified in step S
22
is not in the table, the process is terminated.
In the first and the second embodiments, the supply of power is controlled in
accordance with a combination of two units. But alternatively, the supply of power
to at least one unit may be stopped in accordance with a combination of three units.
In the third embodiment, the types of drive units connected to the multi bay
is
judged and the supply of power to the PC cards is controlled. But alternatively,
by using another I/O interface, the types of the drive units connected to the another
I/O interface may be judged and control the supply of power to the PC cards is controlled.
Moreover, the power control according to the present invention is not limited
to the PC cards but may apply to the drive units.
The present invention is not limited to the specifically disclosed embodiments,
variations and modifications, and other variations and modifications may be made
without departing from the scope of the present invention.
The present application is based on Japanese Priority Application No. 11-131373
filed May 12, 1999, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
*
