Abstract:
The present invention relates to a portable computer including a main body, a display rotatably connected to the main body, a latching portion provided in one of the main body and the display part, a latch member provided in the other one of the main body and the display and movable between a latching position, wherein the latch member is latched in the latching part and the display is prevented from opening, and a releasing position, where the latch member is released from the latching portion, a latch switch contacting the latch member if the latch member is at the releasing position, and a controller supplying electric power to a system of the computer if the latch switch generates a contact signal.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 2003-36594, filed Jun. 7, 2003, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a portable computer, and more particularly, to a portable computer wherein supply of electric power for the portable computer is controlled by moving a latch member provided in a main body or display part of the portable computer. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , portable computers generally include a main body  100  and a display part  200  opening/closing access to an upper surface of the main body  100 . 
     Within the main body are the portable computer components, such as a main board (not shown), CPU (not shown), and the like. In addition, typically, the upper surface of the main body  100  includes a key board  130 , a touch pad  120 , a main power switch  110  and the like. Along a front end portion of the upper surface, of the main body  100 , there is also typically provided a latching part  140 , to latch a latch member  230  of the display part  200  (to be described in more detail below). 
     The display part  200  typically includes an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)  210  for displaying an image, e.g., the desktop image for the portable computer&#39;s operating system. The free end of the display part  200  includes the latch member  230 , capable of being latched in and released from the latching part  140 , in a closed state of the display part  200 , thereby contacting display part  200  to the upper surface of the main body  100 . The latch member  230  typically further includes an operating knob  220  for moving the latch member  230  to/from a releasing position. 
     In the conventional portable computer, to supply electric power to the computer system, two operations are needed: a user must open the display part  200 , relative to the main body  100 , and then push a main power switch  110  provided on a surface of the main body  100 . However, it is more convenient, if a user can supply electric power to the computer system with only one operation. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is an aspect of the present invention to provide a portable computer in which supply of electric power is controlled based on a movement of a latch member provided in a main body or the display. 
     Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and, in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. 
     To accomplish the above and/or additional aspects and advantages, embodiments of the present invention provide a portable computer, including a main body, a display rotatably connected to the main body, a latching portion provided in one of the main body and the display, a latch member provided in the other one of the main body and the display, opposing the latching portion, and movable between a latching position, where the latch member is latched in the latching portion such that the display is prevented from opening, and a releasing position, where the latch member is released from the latching portion, a latch switch adjacent to the latch member, such that the latch switch contacts the latch member and generates a contact signal when the latch member is at the releasing position, and a controller supplying electric power to a system of the computer if the latch switch generates a contact signal. 
     To accomplish the above and/or additional aspects and advantages, embodiments of the present invention provide a method of powering a computer, with the computer having a main body rotatably connected to a display and a latch for latching the main body and the display together, including moving a latch member of the latch from a latching position to a releasing position, and initiating a powering of the computer when the latch member is at the releasing position. 
     To accomplish the above and/or additional aspects and advantages, embodiments of the present invention provide a method of powering a computer, with the computer having a main body rotatably connected to a display and a latch for latching the main body and the display together, including moving a latch member of the latch from a latching position to a releasing position, and initiating a shutdown of the computer when the latch member is at the releasing position. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and/or other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a conventional portable computer; 
         FIG. 2  is an enlarged sectional view of a latch part and a latching hole of the conventional portable computer of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is an exploded perspective view of a latch part and a latching hole of a portable computer, according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIGS. 4 through 7  are sectional views illustrating operations of a latch part and a latch power switch part, according to embodiments of the present invention; 
         FIG. 8  is a block diagram of a control part controlling supply of electric power for the portable computer, according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout. 
       FIG. 3  illustrates an exploded perspective view of latch part  1  and a latch power switch  3  of a portable computer, according to an embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the latch part  1  is provided in the middle of a free end part of a display part  200 . A latch power switch  3  is provided in the display part  200  in a position corresponding to the latch part  1 . 
     The latch part  1  can be oriented into a latch accommodating part  2 , formed in the middle of a free end of the display part  200 , with a latch cover  4  of the latch part  1  covering the latch accommodating part  2 . Latch member  12 , accommodated in the latching part  140 , can be externally operated, e.g., by an operation knob  11 , and moved between a latching position (the position A in  FIG. 4 ) and a releasing position (the position B in  FIG. 5 ). Within the latch part  1 , a spring  15  elastically pushes the latch member  12  in a direction of the latching position. 
     Within the latch accommodating part  2  there is a groove, of a predetermined length, along a longitudinal direction of the display part  200 . In addition, on one side of the latch accommodating part  2  there is provided a first spring connection loop  21 , to connect the latch accommodating part  2  of the display part  200  with one end of the spring  15  of the latch part  1 . 
       FIG. 3  further illustrates operation knob  11 , exposed to the outside of the latch cover  4 , and connected to the latch member  12 , to move the latch member  12  between the latching position (the position A in  FIG. 4 ) and the releasing position (the position B in  FIG. 4 ) within the latch accommodating part  2 . The latch member  12  includes a latching hook  13 , provided as a single body with the latch member  12 , to be latched in and released from the latching part  140  (illustrated in  FIGS. 4-7 ). On one side of the latch member  12 , there is provided a second spring connecting loop  16  connected with the other end of the spring  15 , as illustrated in  FIGS. 4-7 . On the other side of the latch member  12 , there is a pushing protrusion  14  for contacting with the latch switch  3 , which will be described in greater detail below. The pushing protrusion  14  can protrude from the latch moving member  12  for a predetermined length. 
     The latch cover  4  includes a guide hole  41 , of a sufficient length to guide an alternated movement of the latch member  12  and a hook through hole  42 , also of a sufficient length to permit the latching hook  13  to pass. The guide hole  41  and hook through hole  42  are long enough that the latching hook  13  can be moved between the latching position (the position A in  FIG. 4 ), positioned on one side of the longitudinal direction of the latch cover  4 , and the releasing position (the position B in  FIG. 5 ), positioned on the other side of the longitudinal direction of the latch cover  4 , when the display part  200  is opened and/or closed. 
     At a predetermined position, adjacent to the guide hole  41  a protruding part  43  is formed, with the protruding part  43  protruding in a transverse direction relative to a movement of the operation knob  11  so that a user can perceive that the latch member  12  is positioned at an intermediate position between the latching and releasing positions (the position C in  FIG. 7 ) 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the latch switch  3  is provided at one side of the latch accommodating part  2 , corresponding to the pushing protrusion  14  of the latch moving member  12 . Here, the latch switch  3  is provided in the latch accommodating part  2 , such that the pushing protrusion  14  does not contact the latch switch  3  if the latch member  12  is positioned at the intermediate position (position C in  FIG. 7 ) between the latching and releasing positions  7 )]. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 1 , a main power switch  110  can be provided on a surface of the main body  100 . Thus, a computer system can be turned on/off also with the main power switch  110 . Therefore, the portable computer according to an embodiment of the present invention can be considered as being provided with a plurality of power switches from which the computer system can be turned on/off. 
     As illustrated in  FIG. 8 , a control part  5  can be provided to control a power supplying part  6  to supply or cut off electric power of the computer system by receiving control signals generated from the main power switch  110  or from the latch switch  3 . 
     When the computer system is turned off, the control part  5  controls the power supplying part  6  to supply electric power to the computer system if a power on signal from the main power switch  110  or the latch switch  3  is transmitted to the control part  5 . When the computer system is turned on, the control part  5  controls the power supplying part  6  to cut off electric power of the computer system if a power off signal from the main power switch  110  or the latch switch  3  is transmitted to the control part  5 . 
       FIGS. 4 ,  5  and  7  illustrate the latch member  12  positioned at the latching position (position A), the releasing position (position B), and the intermediate position between the latching and releasing positions (position C), respectively. 
     To supply electric power to the computer system, with the display part  200  being open relative to the main body  100 , a user may press the main power switch  110  or move the latch member to the releasing position (the position B in  FIG. 5 ) by moving the operation knob  11 , so that the pushing protrusion  14  comes into contact with the latch switch  3 . While the latch member  12  is being moved in the intermediate position between the latching and releasing positions (the position C in  FIG. 7 ), the operating knob  11  only needs to be moved with the force with which the obstruction of the protruding part  43  is overcome. Here, the control part  5  controls the power supplying part  6  to supply electric power to the computer system by receiving one of the signals from the main power switch  110  or from the latch switch  3 . 
     To open the display part  200 , from a closed position, and supply electric power to the computer system, a user may move the operating knob  11  to the releasing position (the position B in  FIG. 5 ), and open the display part  200  relative to the main body  100 . Then, the pushing protrusion  14  contacts the latch switch  3 . While the latch member is being moved through the intermediate position, between the latching and releasing positions, the operating knob  11 , similarly, only needs to be moved with the force with which the obstruction of the protruding part  43  is overcome. The control part  5  thereafter controls the power supplying part  6  to supply electric power to the computer system by receiving the signal from the latch switch  3 , the latch member  12  is then released from the latching part  140 , and the display part  200  is thereby opened, as illustrated in  FIG. 6 . 
     To open the display part  200  without supplying electric power to the computer system, a user may move the operating knob  11  to the intermediate position, between the locking and releasing positions, and open the display part  200 . In this case, the protruding part  43  provided on the latch cover  4  obstructively contacts to the operating knob  11  of the latch member  12 , thereby preventing the latch member  12  from moving. The latch member  12  is thereby released from the latching part  140 , but the pushing protrusion  14  does not contact to the latch switch  3 . Therefore, the display part  200  can be opened without supplying electric power to the computer system. 
     To supply electric power to the computer system without opening the display part  200 , a user may move the operating knob  11  to the releasing position (position B in  FIG. 5 ) while closing the display part  200 , and thereafter release operating knob  11 . Here, the pushing protrusion  14  of the latch member  12  will contact the latch switch  3  and the latch member  12  moves to the latching position (position A in  FIG. 4 ), so that electric power is supplied to the computer system, while the display part  200  continues to be closed. 
     To cut off electric power of the computer system, the same process used for supplying electric power, as described above, can similarly be applied. 
     In the above embodiment, two of the latching hooks  13  of the latch member  1  are provided. Alternatively, only one latching hook  10  may be provided in the latch member  1 . 
     As describe above, embodiments of the present invention provide for control of supply of electric power for the computer system by moving the latch member. 
     Although a few embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined in the appended.