Usb for vehicle application

(54) Title: POWER AND DATA CONNECTIONS FOR A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, TO ALLOW THE TRANSFER OF ELECTRIC POWER FROM A POWER SUPPLY AND DATA BETWEEN ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, AND TO A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE OR ELECTRICAL DEVICES (30) Unionist Priority: 13/02/2007 us 11 / 674,311 (73) Owner (s): Casco Products Corporation, Ford Global Technologies, LLC (72) Inventor (s): Belanger, Thomas, D. Jr., Verellen, Susan (74) Attorney (s): Custódio de Almeida & Cia (57) Summary: connections for power and data FOR A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, TO ALLOW THE TRANSFER OF ELECTRIC POWER FROM A POWER SUPPLY ENERGY AND DATA BETWEEN ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, AND, FOR A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE ELECTRICAL DEVICES A connection for power and data for a vehicle and one or more electronic devices is provided. The connection for power and data comprises a data communication connector and a terminal. The data communication connector includes a box ground and is adapted to allow data communication to and from the vehicle. The terminal is supported by box grounding and operable to supply vehicle electrical power to electronic devices simultaneously with the data communication connector allowing data communication in and out of the vehicle.

(86) International Order: pct us2oosooi588 of 06/02/2008 (87) International Publication: wo 2008 / i00404de 21/08/2008

Ρ 0806489-0

CONNECTIONS FOR POWER AND DATA FOR A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, TO ALLOW THE TRANSFER OF ELECTRIC POWER FROM A POWER SUPPLY AND DATA BETWEEN ONE OR MORE ELECTRONIC DEVICES, AND FOR A VEHICLE AND ONE OR MORE DEVICES

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The embodiments of the present invention relate, in general, to the connection of power supply and data communication in vehicles.

2. Background Technique

Several vehicles produced today include a power point connection to power any number of electrical devices placed in a vehicle by a user. Such devices may include a cell phone, portable DVD player, personal laptops, compact disc players, etc. The power point connection comprises a power point plug and receptacle positioned on the vehicle's instrument panel or other interior part of the vehicle. The power point connection is coupled to a power supply in the vehicle. In the past, these power point connections were used to ignite lighters when car manufacturers placed such lighters in vehicles. Conventional power point connections are large and consume a large amount of surface area on the instrument panel or elsewhere inside the vehicle. For example, the power point connection can consume 30 mm to 40 mm of space on the instrument panel or other parts of the interior trim to allow for use by users. Conventional power point connections are limited to supplying power to charge and energize the electrical devices brought in the vehicle by the user.

With the advent of data communication protocols and the use of such communication with any number of electrical devices, car manufacturers today can be compelled to provide an architecture that supports a data communication protocol while continuing to power a wide range of energy needed to charge and operate electronic devices. Universal Serial Bus (USB) protocols have become prevalent in several electronic devices used by consumers. Such devices may include laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, MP3 players, mice, keyboards, cell phones, printers, fax machines, etc. While the use of USB has become predominant, the USB protocol is limited in the amount of energy that can be fed to any one or more electronic devices via a USB connector. Due to such limitations, the USB connector cannot be used to power and / or charge various electronic devices usually attached to a vehicle through the power point connection.

Consequently, it would be desirable to provide a combined power and data connection to support data communication between electronic devices attached to a vehicle and to meet higher power requirements in order to charge and power electronic devices. It would also be desirable to reduce the size of the power point connection to preserve space in the instrument panel and / or other parts of the finish that support the power point connections used in vehicles today.

SUMMARY

In a non-limiting embodiment, a connection for power and data is provided for a vehicle and one or more electronic devices. The connection for power and data comprises a data communication connector and a terminal. The data communication connector includes a box ground and is adapted to allow data communication to and from the vehicle. The terminal is supported by box grounding and operable to supply vehicle electrical energy to electronic devices simultaneously with the data communication connector allowing data communication in and out of the vehicle.

In another non-limiting embodiment, a connection for power and data is provided to allow the transfer of electrical energy from a power and data feed between one or more electronic devices. The connection for power and data comprises a data communication connector, a terminal and a circuit breaker. The data communication connector includes a box ground and is adapted to allow data communication to and from electrical devices. The terminal is supported by box grounding and is operable to supply electrical energy from the power supply to the electronic devices simultaneously with the data communication connector allowing data communication between the electronic devices. The circuit breaker is operable to disconnect electrical power from the terminal to electrical devices while continuing to let the data communication connector allow data communication between electrical devices.

In another non-limiting embodiment, a connection for power and data for a vehicle and one or more electrical devices is provided. The connection for power and data comprises a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector. The USB connector includes a box ground and is adapted to allow data communication to and from the vehicle and the box ground includes interior and exterior parts. The terminal is supported by the outer part of the box ground and is operable to supply electrical energy from the vehicle to the electronic devices simultaneously with the USB connector allowing data communication in and out of the vehicle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Figure 1 illustrates a data communication connector according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 illustrates a top view of the data communication connector;

Figure 3 illustrates a connection for power and data according to an embodiment of the present invention positioned on an instrument panel;

Figure 4 illustrates a socket according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 5 illustrates a connection for power and data according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 6 illustrates the connection for power and data with a circuit breaker positioned in the socket; and

Figure 7 illustrates the data connection connector with a circuit breaker.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE FORMAL PERFORMANCE (S)

With reference to Figure 1, a diagram of a data communication connector 100 is shown according to an embodiment of the present invention. The data communication connector 100 includes a terminal 102 and a housing ground 104. Housing ground 104 includes interior and exterior parts. Terminal 102 is supported by the outside of box ground 104 and is generally flexible. Baseline circuitry (not shown) is positioned inside the box ground 104 and is configured to supply baseline electrical power to electronic devices and transfer digital data to and from electronic devices. Terminal 102 and box ground 104 act together to provide an additional power level for one or more electronic devices coupled to the data communication connector 100 while allowing the baseline circuitry of the data communication connector to continue allowing data communication between electronic devices. In a non-limiting example, if a dedicated ground is required in addition to box ground 104, the dedicated ground can be added to the other side of the outside of box 104 ground opposite terminal 102.

A spacer 106 is positioned between terminal 102 and box ground 104 to isolate terminal 102 from box ground 104. Spacer 106 can be made of any non-conductive material. In a non-limiting example, spacer 106 may be made of plastic or rubber. The type of material used to build the spacer 106 can be varied to meet the design criteria for a particular implementation. The spacer 106 can be attached to the outside of the box ground 104 by adhesive or glue. In general, spacer 106 can be coupled to box ground 104 in several different ways. The particular attachment method used to couple the spacer 106 to the box ground 104 can be varied to meet the design criteria for a particular implementation. Spacer 106 includes a locking system 108 for coupling terminal 102 to spacer 106.

Figure 2 generally illustrates the top view of the data communication connector 100. The locking device 106 includes a retaining rib 110 and a channel 112. Channel 112 is positioned below the retaining rib 110. One end of terminal 102 is arranged in channel 112 of spacer 106. To couple terminal 102 to spacer 106, one end of terminal 102 can be positioned in channel 112 of spacer 106 and below the retaining rib 110. The particular position of the retaining rib 110 and the channel 112 in the spacer 106 can be varied to meet the design criteria of a particular implementation. In a non-limiting example, the locking arrangement 108 can be an adhesive that is applied to a part of the terminal in order to couple the terminal 102 to the spacer 106. In general, locking device 108 is configured to ensure that terminal 102 remains in a particular orientation while data communication connector 100 is being mated.

Referring to Figure 3, a diagram of a connection for power and data according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. The power and data connection includes socket 118 and the data communication connector 100. While Figure 3 generally illustrates the power and data connection positioned on the vehicle's instrument panel, the power and data connection can be positioned at any location on the vehicle. In a non-limiting example, the connection for power and data can be arranged in a central console (not shown) of the vehicle. In another non-limiting example, the connection for power and data can be positioned in the interior finish located on the front doors of the driver and passenger. The location of the connection for power and data in the vehicle can be varied to meet the design criteria for a particular implementation. The data communication connector 100 and socket 118 can include any number of indexing devices to ensure that data communication connector 100 is matched to socket 118 in the desired orientation. Such indexing arrangements can ensure that terminal 102 does not come into contact with ground terminal 124 when data communication connector 100 is matched to socket 118.

Referring to Figure 4, a diagram of the socket is shown

118 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As noted in connection with Figure 3, socket 118 can be positioned in any number of areas on the vehicle. Socket 118 includes a power supply terminal 122 and a grounding terminal 124. The power terminal 122 of socket 120 is configured to slidably engage terminal 102 and grounding terminal 124 of socket 120 is configured to slidably engage box ground 104. Grounding terminal 124 can be attached to any number of landings located throughout the vehicle. The power terminal 122 can be coupled to a positive high current source such as a battery supply.

The battery supply can be a 12 volt power supply. Power terminal 122 can pass 12V power to terminal 102. Terminal 102 allows data communication connector 100 to provide an increased power level when compared to the baseline energy provided by the connector's baseline circuitry. of data communication 100. In a non-limiting example, terminal 102 can be configured to supply up to 10A of current to any one or more electronic devices coupled to data communication connector 100. The baseline circuitry of data communication connector 100 can be limited to supply up to 3 A of current.

In a non-limiting example, data communication connector 100 can be implemented as a Universal Serial Bus (USB) connector. The USB connector usually includes a two-level pin interface and is configured to supply 2.5 baseline power

Watts. Terminal 102 is configured to add up to 120 Watts of power in addition to the 2.5 Watts of power powered by data communication connector 100. Power terminal 102 can have a current rating of up to 10 Amps.

Referring to Figure 5, a connection for power and data is shown according to an embodiment of the present invention. As noted in connection with Figure 4, ground terminal 124 slidably engages box ground 104 to establish ground and power terminal 122 slidily engages terminal 102. Ground terminal 124 includes a curved portion 130 . The curved part 130 is configured to flex towards the power terminal 122. As the user inserts the data communication connector 100 into socket 118, the curved part 130 is positioned along the ground terminal 124 such that contact is made between the curved part 130 and the box ground 104 before contact is made between terminal 102 and power terminal 122. Such a configuration isolates terminal 102 from grounding and eliminates the potential to shorten terminal 102 to ground. The curved portion 130 also reduces the occurrence of an electrostatic discharge (ESD) from occurring when any one or more of the electronic devices are coupled to the vehicle via the connection for power and data.

While the terminal 102 is coupled to the spacer 106 via the locking device 106, a part of the terminal 102 flexes out of the spacer 106 in such a way that the flexed part of the terminal 102 applies a force against the power terminal 122 to ensure contact with the power terminal 122 when the data communication connector 100 is matched to socket 118.

Referring to Figure 6, a diagram is shown illustrating the connection for power and data having a circuit breaker according to an embodiment of the present invention. A circuit breaker 150 is placed in series with the power terminal 122. The circuit breaker 150 disconnects the battery power supply from the power terminal 122 in the event that too much current is being consumed. The data communication connector 100 can continue to supply baseline power and allow data communication between one or more electronic devices and the vehicle when circuit breaker 150 disconnects battery power supply from power terminal 122.

With reference to Figure 7, a diagram is shown illustrating the connection for power and data having a circuit breaker according to another embodiment of the present invention. Circuit breaker 150 can be positioned over data communication connector 100 and placed in series with terminal 102. Circuit breaker 150 disconnects battery power supply from terminal 102 in the event that too much current is being consumed. The data communication connector 100 can continue to supply baseline power and allow data communication between one or more electronic devices and the vehicle when circuit breaker 150 disconnects battery power supply from terminal 102.

In a non-limiting example, circuit breaker 150 can be implemented as a restartable fuse based circuit breaker. In another non-limiting example, circuit breaker 150 can be implemented as a restartable positive thermal coefficient (PTC) circuit breaker. The PTC circuit breaker can be positioned around terminal 102 or power terminal 122 in such a way that PTC detects the amount of current that is passed between terminal 102 or power terminal 122 as electrical energy is being transmitted from the power source power to any one or more of the electronic devices. In the event that the PTC circuit breaker detects that too much current is being passed through terminal 102 or power terminal 122, the PTC circuit breaker includes a polymer matrix that expands as more heat is conducted due to the increased current consumption occurring between terminal 102 and the power terminal 122. The resistance of the PTC circuit breaker increases as the amount of heat detected increases. In response to such increased current consumption, the PTC circuit breaker achieves a high level of resistance and prevents further current consumption.

Although the best embodiment of the invention has been described in detail, those skilled in the art to which this invention belongs will recognize various designs and alternative embodiments for practicing the invention as defined by the following claims.