JP2009015361A - Electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information processor to which an option device can be attached with a simple configuration. <P>SOLUTION: A USB (Universal Serial Bus) connector required for installing the option device such as a USB camera to a display unit having a display is mounted on a board mounted with a controller controlling the display built in the display unit. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus in which an optional device such as a camera unit or a fingerprint authentication unit can be mounted.

In recent years, notebook type computers in which a CCD camera unit, a wireless LAN unit, a fingerprint authentication unit, and the like are attached to the display unit have been developed. For example, Patent Literature 1 discloses a computer in which an option unit including a wireless LAN adapter can be attached to and detached from an upper portion of a display device (see Patent Literature 1).
JP 2001-51749 A (pages 4 to 5, FIGS. 11 and 12)

  Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-228561 discloses a content in which a fixed plate having a conductive portion for connecting an option unit is provided on the upper part of the LCD.

  However, in the case of the configuration of Patent Document 1, in addition to the configuration of the conventional display unit, a fixing plate having a conductive portion must be mounted on the display unit in order to attach the option unit, and the number of component mounting points is the same as that of the fixing plate. To increase.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an information processing apparatus to which an optional device can be attached with a simple configuration.

  In order to achieve the above object, an electronic apparatus according to claim 1 is an electronic apparatus including a display unit to which an optional device connected to a bus can be attached, and a main body to which the display unit is attached. A bus controller for controlling communication in the bus, and the display unit is connected to the display, a board on which the controller for controlling the display is mounted, the optional device and the bus controller, on the board. And a connecting portion to be mounted.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an information processing apparatus to which an optional device can be attached with a simple configuration.

  FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a state in which a display unit 3 of a notebook personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a computer) 1 is opened with respect to a main body 2.

  The computer 1 includes a main body 2 and a display unit 3. The main body 2 and the display unit 3 are housings containing electronic components.

  The display unit 3 is connected to the main body 2 via the first hinge 2a and the second hinge 2b. The display unit 3 is attached to the main body 2 so as to be rotatable between an open position and a closed position.

  The display unit 3 incorporates an LCD unit 4 having an LCD cell 4a (Liquid Crystal Display), and the LCD unit 4 is positioned substantially at the center of the display unit 3.

  The display unit 3 incorporates a camera 8 of a device that is handled as an optional unit. As an example of a method of using the camera 8, there is a method of using the camera 8 to capture a real-time image when it is desired to send a real-time image to a communication partner via a network. The camera 8 is an optional device that can be attached when the user desires to attach it to the computer 1.

  The main body 2 has a substantially box shape, and a keyboard 5 and a power button 6 for turning on / off the computer 1 are provided on the upper surface of the main body 2. The power button 6 is pushed down when the computer 1 starts to be used. Next, the configuration of the computer 1 will be described.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of the computer 1.

  First, the configuration of the main body 2 will be described.

  A CPU 10, a main memory 13, a graphics controller 15, and an I / O (Input / Output) hub 20 are connected to the host hub (first bridge circuit) 11.

  The host hub 11 is connected to the CPU 10 via an FSB (Front Side Bus) 12. The host hub 11 incorporates a memory controller that controls access to the main memory 13.

  The CPU 10 is a main processor that controls the operation of the computer 1. The CPU 10 executes an operating system (OS), application programs, and the like that are loaded from the HDD 21 that is an external storage device to the main memory 13 via the memory bus 14.

  The graphics controller 15 connected to the host hub 11 via an AGP (Accelerated Graphics Port) bus 16 outputs a digital display signal to the driver IC 18e. A video memory (VRAM) 17 is connected to the graphics controller 15, and the graphics controller 15 displays data drawn in the video memory 17 by the OS / application program on the LCD cell 4a.

  An I / O hub (second bridge circuit) 20 connected to the host hub 11 via a dedicated bus such as a hub interface controls each device on an LPC (low pin count) bus 26.

  The I / O hub 20 is an external storage device and is connected to, for example, an HDD 21 that supports the serial ATA standard and a serial ATA bus that supports the serial ATA standard.

  The HDD 21 stores an operating system (OS), application programs, data generated by using the application programs, and the like.

  A USB controller 20a is built in the I / O hub 20, and a USB (Universal Serial Bus) is connected to the USB controller 20a. This USB will be described in detail later.

  An embedded controller / keyboard controller IC (EC / KBC) 23 is connected to the LPC bus 22.

  The embedded controller / keyboard controller IC (EC / KBC) 23 is a one-chip microcomputer in which an embedded controller for performing power management and a keyboard controller for controlling the keyboard (KB) 5 are integrated.

  A keyboard 5, a power button 6, and a PSC (Power Supply Controller) 25 are connected to the EC / KBC 23.

  When the user operates the power button 6, the EC / KBC 23 detects that the power button 6 has been operated. When the EC / KBC 23 detects that the power button 6 is operated, the EC / KBC 23 notifies the PSC 25 to start supplying power to the system of the computer 1, for example. Under the control of the PSC 25, power supplied from the AC adapter or the secondary battery is supplied to each module in the computer 1.

  Next, the configuration of the display unit 3 will be described.

  As described with reference to FIG. 1, the display unit 3 is provided with the LCD unit 4.

  A driver IC 18e for performing control such as driving the LCD cell 4a is mounted on the LCD substrate 18. The driver IC 18e receives the signal processed by the graphic controller 15, and drives the LCD cell 4a to display an image on the LCD cell 4a.

  A USB connector 18 c to which a USB is connected is provided on the LCD substrate 18. The USB connector 18c is a connector provided for connecting the camera 8 attached to the display unit 3 and the USB controller 20a by USB.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a connection form between the camera 8 and the USB controller 20a.

  A connector 18a to which an LCD harness is connected and a connector 18b to which a USB harness is connected are mounted on the LCD board 18 on which the USB connector 18c described above is mounted.

  The camera 8 and the USB connector 18c are connected by a USB harness 24c. The USB connector 18c and the connector 18a are connected by a USB 24d.

  The I / O hub 20 incorporating the USB controller 20a described with reference to FIG. 2 is mounted on a substrate 30 incorporated in the main body 2. A connector 19a to which the LCD harness is connected and a connector 19b to which the USB harness is connected are mounted on the substrate 30. The USB controller 20a and the connector 19b are connected by a USB 24a.

  The USB harness 24b is connected to the connector 19b and the connector 18b via the first hinge 2a. Further, the LCD harness 26 is connected to the connector 19a and the connector 18a via the first hinge 2a.

  As described above, the USB connector 18c provided for connecting an optional device such as a camera having a USB interface on the LCD board 18 that is necessarily mounted on the display unit 3 and connected to the USB controller 20a is mounted in advance. With this configuration, there is no need to increase the number of parts on the board, such as mounting a separate board for attaching the optional device to the display unit.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a modification of the connection form between the USB connector mounted on the LCD substrate 18 and the USB controller 20a.

  3 differs from the contents described with reference to FIG. 3 in that (1) the USB harness 24b and the LCD harness 26 provided from the substrate 30 to the LCD substrate 18 via the first hinge 2a are integrally formed, and ( 2) As the USB harness 24b and the LCD harness 26 are integrally formed, a connector 18a to which the LCD harness is connected and a connector 18b to which the USB harness is connected are integrally provided on the LCD board 18 so that the LCD harness is connected. The connector 30a and the connector 19b to which the USB harness is connected are integrally formed on the substrate 30.

  A harness 27 is formed by integrally forming the USB harness 24b and the LCD harness 26 described with reference to FIG. The harness 27 is connected to a connector 19 c mounted on the substrate 30 and a connector 18 d mounted on the LCD substrate 18.

  The USB connector 18c to which the USB harness 24c is connected is connected to the connector 18d and the USB 24d.

  The USB controller 20a built in the I / O hub 20 mounted on the substrate 30 is connected to the connector 19c and the USB 24a.

  Thus, in order to connect the USB connector 18 c provided on the LCD board 18 and the USB controller 20 a built in the I / O hub 20 mounted on the board 30, the LCD harness extends from the board 30 to the LCD board 18. By using the harness 27 integrally formed with the USB harness, it is possible to cope with one harness without preparing the USB harness 24b and the LCD harness 26 described with reference to FIG.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a modification of the mounting form of the USB connector mounted on the LCD substrate 18.

  The difference from the contents described with reference to FIG. 3 is that a USB connector 18d is provided on the LCD board 18 separately from the USB connector 18c to which the USB is connected. The USB connector 18d is a connector provided for connecting the fingerprint authentication unit 9 attached to the display unit 3 and the USB controller 20a by USB.

  The fingerprint authentication unit 9 and the USB connector 18d are connected by a USB harness 24e. The USB connector 18d and the connector 18b are connected by a USB 24f.

  Thus, by providing a plurality of USB connectors for connecting optional devices on the LCD substrate 18, it is not necessary to separately mount a substrate for attaching the plurality of optional devices to the display unit.

  In the above description of the embodiment, the description has been made using USB. However, it is not necessary to limit to USB, and if the bus standard is other than USB, the connector provided on the LCD board is also a connector corresponding to the bus standard other than USB. Become.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. In addition, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of components disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, constituent elements over different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

The perspective view of the electronic device which concerns on this invention. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a computer 1. FIG. The figure explaining an example of the connection form of the camera 8 and the USB controller 20a. The figure explaining the modification of the connection form of the USB connector mounted on the LCD board | substrate 18, and the USB controller 20a. The figure explaining the modification of the mounting form of the USB connector mounted on the LCD board | substrate 18. FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 ... computer, 2 ... main body, 3 ... display unit,
4 ... LCD unit, 5 ... keyboard, 6 ... power button, 8 ... camera,

Claims (5)

In an electronic apparatus comprising a display unit to which an optional device connected to a bus can be attached, and a main body to which the display unit is attached,
The body is
Comprising a bus controller for controlling communication in the bus;
The display unit is
Display,
A board on which a controller for controlling the display is mounted;
A connection unit connected to the optional device and the bus controller and mounted on the substrate;
An electronic device comprising: The display unit further includes a first harness connecting portion mounted on the substrate and connected to the connecting portion,
The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the main body further includes a second harness connection portion connected to the bus controller. A hinge connecting the main body and the display unit;
A bus harness that connects the first harness connecting portion and the second harness connecting portion and is disposed via the hinge;
The electronic apparatus according to claim 2, further comprising: 4. The electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the bus harness is a bus harness formed integrally with a display harness provided from the main body to the display unit. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of connection portions connected to the option device and the bus controller and mounted on the substrate.

Images