U.S. patent application number 13/717347 was filed with the patent office on 2013-05-02 for smartconnect flash card adapter.
This patent application is currently assigned to MCM PORTFOLIO LLC. The applicant listed for this patent is Larry Lawson Jones, Sreenath Mambakkam, Arockiyaswamy Venkidu. Invention is credited to Larry Lawson Jones, Sreenath Mambakkam, Arockiyaswamy Venkidu.
Application Number | 20130107472 13/717347 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37448880 |
Filed Date | 2013-05-02 |
United States Patent
Application |
20130107472 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Mambakkam; Sreenath ; et
al. |
May 2, 2013 |
SMARTCONNECT FLASH CARD ADAPTER
Abstract
A multi-memory media adapter to read a plurality of different
types of memory media cards via contact pins. A controller maps
signals to the contact pins depending upon the type of memory media
card.
Inventors: |
Mambakkam; Sreenath; (San
Jose, CA) ; Venkidu; Arockiyaswamy; (Menlo Park,
CA) ; Jones; Larry Lawson; (Palo Alto, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Mambakkam; Sreenath
Venkidu; Arockiyaswamy
Jones; Larry Lawson |
San Jose
Menlo Park
Palo Alto |
CA
CA
CA |
US
US
US |
|
|
Assignee: |
MCM PORTFOLIO LLC
Cupertino
CA
|
Family ID: |
37448880 |
Appl. No.: |
13/717347 |
Filed: |
December 17, 2012 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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13225330 |
Sep 2, 2011 |
8337252 |
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13717347 |
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12759550 |
Apr 13, 2010 |
8011964 |
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13225330 |
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12189725 |
Aug 11, 2008 |
7719847 |
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12759550 |
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11858086 |
Sep 19, 2007 |
7522424 |
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12189725 |
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11492556 |
Jul 24, 2006 |
7295443 |
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11858086 |
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10887635 |
Jul 8, 2004 |
7095618 |
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11492556 |
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10064966 |
Sep 4, 2002 |
6859369 |
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10887635 |
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10167925 |
Jun 11, 2002 |
7222205 |
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10064966 |
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09610904 |
Jul 6, 2000 |
6438638 |
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10167925 |
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10039685 |
Oct 29, 2001 |
6832281 |
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10064966 |
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10002567 |
Nov 1, 2001 |
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10039685 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
361/737 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H01R 27/00 20130101;
H01R 29/00 20130101; Y10S 439/945 20130101; Y10S 439/946 20130101;
H01R 27/02 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
361/737 |
International
Class: |
H01R 27/00 20060101
H01R027/00 |
Claims
1. Apparatus comprising: a housing having a surface; a set of
contact pins mounted on said surface and adapted to interface with
the electrical contacts of a plurality of different types of memory
media cards; a controller to control reading from memory media
cards that interface with the set of contact pins; said controller
to map signals to at least one of the contact pins of said set
depending upon the type of memory card connected to said at least
one contact pin.
2. Apparatus according to claim 1 further including a set of signal
lines electrically connected to the controller for communicating
signals to one or more of said set of contact pins.
3. Apparatus comprising: a housing having a port and a surface
interfacing with said port; a set of contact pins adapted to
interface with the electrical contacts of a plurality of different
types of memory media cards, wherein said electrical contacts face
said surface when inserted into said port; a controller to control
reading from the memory media cards connected the set of contact
pins, the controller adapted to map signals to at least one of the
contact pins of said set of contact pins depending upon the type of
memory card connected to said at least one contact pin.
4. Apparatus comprising: a housing having a port and an interfacing
surface; a plurality of sets contact pins spatially arranged on
said interfacing surface for interfacing with the electrical
contacts of a plurality of different types of memory media cards,
wherein said electrical contacts face said interfacing surface when
inserted into said port; one set of signal lines connected to the
plurality of sets of contact pins; a controller to control reading
from the memory media cards, the controller adapted to map signals
on at least one of the signal lines of said one set of signal lines
depending upon the type of memory card connected to a set of said
sets of contact pins.
5. Apparatus comprising: a housing having a surface; a plurality
contact pins mounted on said surface and adapted to interface with
the electrical contacts of a plurality of different types of memory
media cards; a controller to control reading from memory media
cards that interface with the set of contact pins; said controller
to map signals to at least one of the contact pins of said
plurality of contact pins depending upon the type of memory card
connected to said plurality of contact pins.
6. Apparatus according to claim 5 further including a set of signal
lines electrically connected to the controller for communicating
signals to at least some of said plurality of contact pins.
7. Apparatus comprising: a plurality of sets contact pins spatially
arranged to contact the electrical contacts of a plurality of
different types of memory media cards; one set of signal lines
connected to the plurality of sets of contact pins; a controller to
control reading from the memory media cards, the controller adapted
to map signals on at least one of the signal lines of said one set
of signal lines depending upon the type of memory card connected to
a set of said sets of contact pins.
8. Apparatus comprising: a set of contact pins adapted to interface
with the electrical contacts of a plurality of different types of
memory media cards; a controller to control reading from memory
media cards that interface with the set of contact pins; said
controller to map signals to at least one of the contact pins of
said set depending upon the type of memory card connected to said
at least one contact pin.
9. Apparatus according to claim 8 further including a set of signal
lines electrically connected to the controller for communicating
signals to one or more of said set of contact pins.
Description
[0001] Under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.120, this application is a
continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/225,330, filed Sep. 2,
2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,337,252, which is a continuation of U.S.
application Ser. No. 12/759,550, filed Apr. 13, 2010, now U.S. Pat.
No. 8,011,964, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.
12/189,725, filed Aug. 11, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,719,847, which
is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/858,086,
filed Sep. 19, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,522,424, which is a
continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11/492,556, filed Jul.
24, 2006, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,295,443, which is a continuation of
U.S. application Ser. No. 10/887,635 filed Jul. 8, 2004, now U.S.
Pat. No. 7,095,618, which is a continuation-in-part application of
U.S. application Ser. No. 10/064,966, which was filed on Sep. 4,
2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,859,369, which is a continued-in-part
continuation-in-part application of U.S. application Ser. No.
10/167,925, which was filed on Jun. 11, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No.
7,222,205, which is a continuation application of U.S. application
Ser. No. 09/610,904 which was filed Jul. 6, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No.
6,438,638, and is titled "Flashtoaster for reading several types of
flash memory cards with or without a PC." U.S. application Ser. No.
10/064,966 is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser.
No. 10/039,685 which was filed Oct. 29, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No.
6,832,281 and is titled, "Flashtoaster for reading several types of
flash memory cards with or without a PC" and a continuation-in-part
of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/002,567 which was filed Nov. 1,
2001 and is titled, "Active Adapter Chip for Use in a Flash Card
Reader." The priority of the above-referenced applications is
hereby claimed, and the entireties of the above-referenced
applications are incorporated herein by this reference, and all of
the above-referenced applications are assigned to the assignee of
the present invention.
FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates generally to flash media
adapters, and more specifically to an improved configuration of the
same.
BACKGROUND
[0003] In U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/002,567, entitled
"Active Adapter Chip for Use in a Flash Card Reader", filed Nov. 1,
2001, and assigned to the assignee of the present application, a
universal active adapter chip is disclosed that can be used to
construct a flash media system or various active flash media
adapters using the CompactFlash card or PCMCIA (PC Card) form
factor. A standard reader that reads CompactFlash cards or PC cards
can then read any of the other flash-memory cards that plug into
the CompactFlash or PC Card adapter. The adapters come with a
conversion chip that makes each of the flash media work just like a
CompactFlash or PC Card media, as applicable.
[0004] FIG. 1 shows a multi-standard card reader system 142. In the
field of multi-standard adapters, multi-memory media adapter 140
may be an active adapter or, alternatively, may be a passive
adapter. Reader 142 can adapt on the host side to either
CompactFlash card 149, PCMCIA card 153, or IDE card 151. On the
media side, the reader can adapt to a MultiMediaCard 141, or a
Secure Digital card 143, which have the same form factor but
slightly different pin-out; a SmartMedia card 145, which has a
different pin-out; or a Memory Stick 147. In general, the reader
142 can adapt to any generic flash media 146 that has a similar or
smaller form factor.
[0005] It is possible to place the connector such that all the
media sit in one opening. FIG. 2 is a cutaway side view of a PCMCIA
adapter card 200 of the type that is available as a standard
commercial product today. FIG. 2 illustrates several drawbacks in
the typical configuration of a PCMCIA adapter. Adapter 200 includes
two PCBs, namely PCB 210 and PCB 220. The two PCBs are separated by
a mounting frame (typically plastic), not shown. The mounting frame
acts as a spacer between PCB 210 and PCB 220, which holds the two
PCBs together at a specified distance and functions in other
capacities as described below. The space between the two PCBs
creates the opening (port) 211 into which the flash media cards are
inserted. PCB 230 is straddle-mounted between PCB 210 and PCB 220.
PCB 230 contains the active components including controller chip
231 that perform handshaking and data transfer. PCB 230 is
connected to a PCMCIA connector 240. PCB 230 is mounted between PCB
210 and PCB 220 with interconnects 212. PCB 210 has two sets of
floating contact pins, contact pin set 214 includes nine contact
pins and contact pin set 215 includes ten contact pins, which
provide interfaces for MMC/SD and MemoryStick flash media
respectively. PCB 220 has two sets of floating contact pins 224 and
225, each including 11 pins, which together provide the interface
for SmartMedia flash media.
[0006] The mounting frame that holds PCB 210 and 220 together is
configured such that each type of flash media is inserted in a
particular location within the connector. In FIG. 2, opening 211 is
a simplified view. Typically, the opening is stepped with different
widths and heights in different locations that index the flash
media cards into specific locations upon insertion. This allows
each flash medium to be properly aligned with the corresponding
contact pin set(s). Additionally, stops are typically provided to
stop the insertion at the correct depth, again, to guarantee
connection to the right contact pin set.
[0007] This typical approach has several serious drawbacks.
Manufacturing
[0008] The straddle-mount configured flash media adapter is very
expensive to manufacture for several reasons. Often such devices
require manual labor for manufacturing and testing, or the use of
very expensive soldering robots, instead of standard production
techniques. A further problem is the additive effect of
manufacturing tolerances, such as primary connector (i.e., PCMCIA)
to PCB, to straddle mount connector to secondary PCB to contacts on
PCB, resulting in as many as two, three, or in some cases even four
tolerances adding up, which makes requirements for tolerances
either absurdly expensive, or causes a big yield problem in
manufacturing. Additionally, PCB 230 must be thin enough so that it
can be mounted between PCB 210 and PCB 220 in the space allocated
for the insertion of the various flash media. That is, PCB 230,
together with the interconnects 212 that mount it between PCB 210
and PCB 220 must be no larger than opening 211. The manufacture of
thin PCBs to accommodate this design point adds to the expense and
complexity of manufacturing the flash media adapter.
Contact Pins
[0009] The floating contact pins are subject to damage and
deterioration. The various flash media cards have different
thickness, and even the same flash media may have different
thickness if produced by different manufacturers. The flash media
cards exert pressure upon the floating contact pins, which
eventually causes their resiliency to be reduced. When
subsequently, a thinner flash media card is inserted into the flash
media adapter, the corresponding contact pins may not make
connection with the flash media card. Additionally if a flash media
card is inserted incorrectly (e.g., upside down), removal of the
flash media card may damage the contact pins.
Interface
[0010] Some devices don't have the 68-pin PCMCIA interface. For
example, some recent notebook computer models only have the
electrically equivalent 50-pin CF interface. Typical adapter cards
such as PCMCIA adapter card 200 are incompatible with a 50-pin CF
interface.
SUMMARY
[0011] An embodiment of the present invention provides a
multi-memory media adaptor comprised of a first planar element
having an upper surface and a lower surface and a second planar
element having an upper surface and a lower surface. The two planar
elements are formed from a single piece of molded plastic and
disposed so as to form a port capable of receiving a memory media
card. The adapter has at least one set of contact pins protruding
from the lower surface of the first planar element or the upper
surface of the second planar element such that the at least one set
of contact pins are disposed within the port. The at least one set
of contact pins are capable of contacting the contacts of a memory
media card inserted into the port.
[0012] Other features and advantages of embodiments of the present
invention will be apparent from the accompanying drawings, and from
the detailed description, that follows below.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The invention may be best understood by referring to the
following description and accompanying drawings that are used to
illustrate embodiments of the invention. In the drawings:
[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates a multi-standard card reader system;
[0015] FIG. 2 is a cutaway side view of a PCMCIA adapter card of
the type that is available as a standard commercial product
today;
[0016] FIG. 3 is a cutaway side view of an integrated standard
connector adapter card according to one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0017] FIG. 4 is a table of pin mappings for the SmartMedia,
MMC/SD, and Memory Stick to a 21-pin connector in accordance with
one embodiment of the present invention;
[0018] FIG. 5 is a table of pin mappings for the xD, standard
MMC/SD, standard Memory Stick, SmartMedia, miniSD, RSMMC, and MS
Duo to an 18-pin connector in accordance with one embodiment of the
present invention;
[0019] FIG. 6 illustrates an integrated standard connector adapter
card, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in
front view, top view, and bottom view;
[0020] FIG. 7 illustrates an integrated standard connector adapter
card, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in
front view and top view; and
[0021] FIG. 7A illustrates an alternative embodiment of an adapter
700A in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0022] An embodiment of the present invention provides a
multi-memory media adapter card configured to reduce or eliminate
some of the drawbacks of typical adapter card configuration. In
accordance with various embodiments of the present invention, the
top and bottom PCBs of prior art configurations are replaced by
molded plastic elements that provide greater structural integrity.
The straddle-mounted controller board is replaced with a PCB
adjacent to the bottom element and having a surface mounted
standard connector that may be a PCMCIA or a CompactFlash
connector. The contact pins are formed so as to better maintain
their resiliency and avoid damage upon removal of the memory media
card. In one embodiment, a light pipe is locked in place between
the top and bottom elements of the adapter card so as to conduct
light from a signal lamp on the PCB through the port.
[0023] It is an intended advantage of one embodiment of the present
invention to reduce the manufacturing cost and complexity of an
adapter card. It is another intended advantage of one embodiment of
the present invention to provide an adapter card with greater
structural integrity. It is another intended advantage of one
embodiment of the present invention to provide an adapter card with
contact pins that retain their resiliency to a greater degree than
floating contact pins. It is another intended advantage of one
embodiment of the present invention to provide an adapter card with
contact pins that are less likely to be damaged upon removal of a
memory media card. It is another intended advantage of one
embodiment of the present invention to provide an adapter card with
a surface mounted standard connector including PCMCIA and
CompactFlash connectors.
[0024] In the following description, numerous specific details are
set forth. However, it is understood that embodiments of the
invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other
instances, well-known circuits, structures and techniques have not
been shown in detail in order not to obscure the understanding of
this description.
[0025] Reference throughout the specification to "one embodiment"
or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or
characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is
included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus,
the appearance of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an
embodiment" in various places throughout the specification are not
necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the
particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined
in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
[0026] Similarly, it should be appreciated that in the foregoing
description of exemplary embodiments of the invention, various
features of the invention are sometimes grouped together in a
single embodiment, figure, or description thereof for the purpose
of streamlining the disclosure and aiding in the understanding of
one or more of the various inventive aspects. This method of
disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted as reflecting an
intention that the claimed invention requires more features than
are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as the following
claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than all features of
a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the claims following
the Detailed Description are hereby expressly incorporated into
this Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a
separate embodiment of this invention.
[0027] FIG. 3 is a cutaway side view of an integrated standard
connector adapter card according to one embodiment of the present
invention. Adapter card 300, shown in FIG. 3, includes a top planar
element 310 and a bottom planar element 320, both of which may be
PCBs. Alternatively, the top planar element 310 and the bottom
planar element 320 may be formed from molded plastic. A spacer, not
shown, holds the two planar elements apart, forming port 311 into
which memory media cards are inserted. In order to meet the low
height requirements (thickness of PCMCIA or CF cards), the ports
are registered on one opening, and contacts are distributed on both
sides. Additionally, the port 311 may be formed with card stops to
prevent improper insertion of memory media cards.
[0028] For one embodiment, both planar elements and the spacer
between them are created from molded plastic. For such an
embodiment, the molded plastic provides greater resistance to
pressure applied to the outer surfaces of adapter card 300. This
helps to prevent planar element 310 and planar element 320 from
contacting each other and possibly damaging internal
components.
[0029] Adapter 300 also includes a number of sets of contact pins,
shown collectively as contact pin set 315, protruding from the
lower surface of planar element 310 and from the upper surface of
planar element 320. The contact pins electrically couple to
corresponding contacts on a memory media card inserted into port
311. For an embodiment in which the planar elements 310 and 320 are
formed from molded plastic, contact pin sets 315 may be formed from
injected contacts with protruding pins. This provides a more robust
contact pin than the floating contact pins of the prior art,
thereby lessening the likelihood that the resiliency of the contact
pin will be reduced to the point that the pin no longer contacts
the inserted memory media card. Alternatively, or additionally, the
contact pins may be angled or shaped such that damage due to the
abrupt removal of an improperly (or properly) inserted card is
reduced or eliminated. For example the terminal end of the contact
pin may be angled or curved toward the planar surface from which
the contact pin protrudes, or may be spherically shaped.
[0030] Adapter 300 includes planar element 330 that has standard
connector 340 mounted thereon. Planar element 330 is adjacent to
bottom planar element 320. Standard connector 340, which may be for
example, a compact flash, PCMCIA, USB, or serial ATA connector is
surface-mounted to planar element 330. Interconnects 312 that
electrically connect the standard connector 340 to contact pins 315
are also located on planar element 330. The adapter connects the
proper pin from the contact pins to planar element 330. Simple
wiring such as individual wires, flat cables, printed-circuit board
(PCB), or wiring traces can be used. In accordance with an
embodiment of the present invention, the need for a
straddle-mounted PCB, and its associated manufacturing costs and
complexity, is eliminated. Moreover, by eliminating the layers of a
straddle-mount configuration, registration accuracy is improved.
For one embodiment, a single PCB may comprise bottom planar element
320 and planar element 330.
[0031] For one embodiment, a multi-memory media adapter having only
21 pins is used to accommodate various commercially available flash
memory media. FIG. 4 is a table of pin mappings for the SmartMedia,
MMC/SD, and Memory Stick to a 21-pin connector in accordance with
one embodiment of the present invention.
[0032] Pin 18 is a ground pin for each connector. Pin 19 is a power
pin for SmartMedia, while pin 20 is a power pin for MMC/SD, and
Memory Stick.
[0033] The SmartMedia interface has a parallel data bus of 8 bits.
These are mapped to pins 1 8. While no separate address bus is
provided, address and data are multiplexed. Control signals for
latch enables, write enable and protect, output enable, and ready
handshake are among the control signals.
[0034] For the Memory Stick and MMC/SD flash-memory-card
interfaces, parallel data or address busses are not present.
Instead, serial data transfers occur through serial data pin DIO,
which is mapped to pin 7 for the Memory Stick, and pin 10 (D0) for
the MMC/SD flash-memory-card interfaces. Data is clocked in
synchronization to clock MCLK and CLK, for Memory Stick and MMC/SD,
respectively, on pin 21. A BS, for Memory Stick, occupies pin 6,
and a command signal CMD, for MMC/SD, occupies pin 4. The Memory
Stick interfaces require only 4 pins plus power and ground, while
MMC/SD requires 8 pins plus power and ground.
[0035] Thus, it is possible to accommodate SmartMedia, MMC/SD, and
Memory Stick with a 21-pin connector (i.e., instead of 41 pins) by
multiplexing the available pins. For one embodiment, the controller
chip (e.g., controller chip 231) differentiates the pin
configuration for each flash memory media type. The controller may
include a shifter connected to the data and clock signals from the
MMC/SD and Memory Stick flash-memory cards. The shifter may clock
one bit (serial) or word (parallel) of data each clock pulse. A
cyclical redundancy check (CRC) can be performed on the data to
detect errors.
[0036] For an alternative embodiment, a multi-memory media adapter,
having only 18 pins, is used to accommodate various commercially
available flash memory media including media that have recently
become commercially available. Such recent additions include a
miniSD card (i.e., an MMC/SD card with a smaller form factor), an
MS Duo (i.e., a Memory Stick card with a smaller form factor), a
Reduced Size MultiMedia Card (RSMMC), and an xD card (a
controller-less Flash media, similar in function to
SmartMedia).
[0037] FIG. 5 is a table of pin mappings for the xD, standard
MMC/SD, standard Memory Stick, SmartMedia, miniSD, RSMMC, MMC/SD,
and MS Duo to an 18-pin connector in accordance with one embodiment
of the present invention.
[0038] For such an embodiment, pin 1 is a ground pin and pin 18 is
a power pin for each connector. The data lines for the SmartMedia
and xD interface cards have a parallel data bus of 8 bits denoted
as D0-D7 that occupy pins 10-17. These data bus lines are
multiplexed to serve as card-detect lines for the remaining media
types.
[0039] As described in application Ser. No. 09/610,904 (now U.S.
Pat. No. 6,438,638), the signal lines to the controller are
normally pulled high. When a card is inserted, the card pulls its
connected pins low. Detection of card type is determined by
detection of which of the mapped card detect lines is pulled low as
illustrated in FIG. 5, or by the (binary) state of data or other
card pins mapped to a common set of controller pins as described in
the aforesaid parent application. See, e.g., FIGS. 4A-E of Ser. No.
09/610,904, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,438,638. While no separate address
bus is provided, address and data are multiplexed.
[0040] The data lines of the miniSD and RSMMC and the Memory Stick
(and MS Duo) flash-memory-card interfaces are denoted as SDD0-SDD3
and MSD0-MSD3, respectively, and occupy pins 4-7.
[0041] Thus, it is possible to accommodate xD, standard MMC/SD,
standard Memory Stick, SmartMedia, miniSD, RSMMC, MMC/SD, and MS
Duo with an 18-pin connector by multiplexing the available pins.
Again, the controller chip may differentiate the pin configuration
for each flash memory media type.
[0042] FIG. 6 illustrates an integrated standard connector adapter
card according to one embodiment of the present invention in front
view, top view, and bottom view. Adapter card 600, shown in FIG. 6,
includes two housings, namely housing 610 and housing 620. For one
embodiment of the invention, the pins are in a single row. As shown
from the top view of adapter card 600, a top-front set of pins 611
in housing 610 can be used to interface to an xD card, a top-rear
set of pins 612 in housing 610 can be used to interface to a
SmartMedia card. A top-front set of pins 621 in housing 620 can be
used to interface an RSMMC card. As shown in the bottom view of
adapter card 600, a bottom-front set of pins 613 in housing 610 can
be used to interface to an SD/MMC MMC/SD card, a bottom-rear set of
pins 614 in housing 610 can be used to interface to a standard size
Memory Stick card. A bottom-front set of pins 622 in housing 620
can be used to interface a miniSD card. A bottom-rear set of pins
623 in housing 620 can be used to interface a Memory Stick MS
Duo.
[0043] FIG. 7 illustrates an integrated standard connector adapter
card, according to one embodiment of the present invention, in
front view and top view. Adapter card 700, shown in FIG. 7,
includes three housings, namely section 710 (Memory Stick), section
720 (SM/xD), and section 730 (MMC/SD). This arrangement allows pins
to be laid out in a planar fashion, thus effecting saving in layout
and allowing for assignment of one drive for each section. The
spacing is designed so that only one media can be inserted at a
time. For one embodiment, the Memory Stick could be on the top
portion of section 710 (with MS Duo on the bottom portion), while
SmartMedia is on the top portion of section 720 with xD on the
bottom portion of section 720. According to one such embodiment,
the MMC (including the recently designed 8-bit MMC) could be on the
top-rear portion of the MMC/SD section 730, while the SD could be
on the bottom-rear portion of the MMC/SD section 730. RSMMC could
be on the top-front portion of the MMC/SD section 730 and miniSD
could be on the bottom-front portion of the MMC/SD section 730.
[0044] FIG. 7A illustrates an alternative embodiment of an adapter
700A in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. As shown
in FIG. 7A, adapter 700 includes sections 710, 720, and 730 with
sections 710 and 730 positioned vertically, but section 720 stacked
horizontally upon section 730. In such an embodiment, external pins
711, 721, and 731 may be positioned as shown to avoid intersection
or congestion of the external connections.
[0045] As described above in reference to FIG. 3, an adapter in
accordance with one embodiment of the invention includes a planar
element that may have a controller chip attached to a standard
connector (e.g., PCMCIA, USB, WiFi, Firewire, IDE, CF, or serial
ATA connector) mounted thereon.
[0046] In accordance with an alternative embodiment of the
invention, the controller chip is integrated into the housing of
the adapter. For example, the adapter may be formed of a single
piece of molded plastic, with the controller chip and an associated
memory device (e.g., ROM) embedded into the molded plastic. For
such an embodiment, the continuous molded plastic that forms the
adapter also forms the device package for the controller die.
General Matters
[0047] Embodiments of the present invention provide an improved
configuration for a multi-memory media adapter card. For one
embodiment, the adapter may comprise an injected plastic part,
forming the mechanical port, as well as holding any and all
contacts in its structure, thus eliminating the multiple tolerances
of conventional configurations (i.e., two PCBs sandwiching a
mechanical frame). For one embodiment, two half shells with
integrated contacts are snapped together, allowing for a simple,
but accurate mounting by means of guides for snapping them
together. In particular, the total assembly of the port may be
composed of two parts, a top and bottom, each with contacts and
plastic, each containing part or the entire port opening, hence
reducing the number of added tolerances to a maximum of one or two.
By reducing the number of sub-assemblies from three or more to two
or less, an easier, more precise manufacturing can be done, with
only slightly higher tooling cost. However, due to the fact that it
is a high-volume, commodity-type device, the higher tooling costs
would be more than offset by the lower part cost, the better yield,
etc. Further, by embedding the contacts in a plastic injection,
such problems as metal fatigue, travel, etc., can be controlled
much better, improving dramatically the life-cycle time for the
port side connectors. For one embodiment of the invention, the
controller and associated memory device are integrated into the
adapter, rendering the adapter a complete card reader.
[0048] For one embodiment, a light pipe may be locked in place
between the two half shells to conduct light from a signal lamp
(e.g., LED) on the PCB to the user side of the opening, similar to
networking lights sometimes integrated into networking
connectors.
[0049] For one embodiment, the straddle-mount configuration is
replaced with a surface mounted standard connector. This reduces
the manufacturing costs and complexities associated with the
straddle-mount configuration.
[0050] For one embodiment of the invention, the controller and
associated memory device are integrated into the adapter rendering
the adapter a complete card reader.
[0051] Embodiments of the present invention have been described in
reference to flash media such as xD, standard MMC/SD, standard
Memory Stick, SmartMedia, miniSD, RSMMC, and MMC/SD, and MS Duo. In
general, embodiments of the invention are applicable to any generic
flash media.
[0052] While the invention has been described in terms of several
embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the
invention is not limited to the embodiments described, but can be
practiced with modification and alteration within the spirit and
scope of the appended claims. The description is thus to be
regarded as illustrative instead of limiting.
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