Abstract:
The disclosed technology generally relates to a power supply system, and more particularly to a power supply system having a magnetic connector. In one aspect, the system includes an electronic apparatus that includes a first terminal, a second terminal and a first magnet, wherein the electronic apparatus is configured to receive power through the first and second terminals. The system additionally includes a power supply device that includes a third terminal, a fourth terminal, and a second magnet, wherein the power supply device is configured to supply power through the third and fourth terminals. The power supply system is configured such that when the first magnet and the second magnet are coupled by magnetic attractive force, the first and second terminals of the electronic apparatus make electrical contact with the third and fourth terminals of the power supply device, respectively. The power supply device further includes a power supply blocking circuit configured to allow the power to be supplied from the power supply device to the electronic apparatus upon determining that the first magnet and the second magnet are coupled by the magnetic attractive force.

Description:
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO ANY PRIORITY APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1.57. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    1. Field 
         [0003]    The present disclosure generally relates to a power supply system, and more particularly to a power supply system having a magnetic connector. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    Generally, an electronic apparatus may be connected to a power supply device (a device supplying power to the electronic apparatus, such as an adapter, or the like) through a connector to receive the power supplied from the power supply device. 
         [0006]    Some connectors having magnets disposed at one side or both sides thereof may be more easily attached and detached more easily compared with general power connector. However, an incomplete or misaligned connection can cause malfunction or damage to an apparatus connected by such connectors. Thus, there is a need for compact magnetic connectors that are configured to prevent malfunction and damage that can result from incomplete or misaligned connections. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    The present disclosure generally relates to a power supply system, and more particularly to a power supply system having one or more magnetic connectors. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a power supply system in which a power supply device includes a power supply blocking circuit which allows the supply of power from the power supply device to an electronic device when a magnet of the electronic apparatus and a magnet of the power supply device are in sufficiently coupled. For example, the power supply blocking circuit may allow the supply of power from a V CC  terminal of the power supply device when the magnet of an electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device are in direct physical contact, or in contact through an electrical conducting material. 
         [0008]    As configured, the disclosed embodiments aim to solve the problems according to the related art as described above, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide a power supply system capable of supplying power upon detection of an accurate connection between magnetic connectors, e.g., when the magnetic connectors accurately contact each other without installing an additional contact terminal in addition to a V CC  terminal and a GND terminal required for directly transferring the power. 
         [0009]    According to some embodiments, a power supply system having a magnetic connector includes an electronic apparatus and a power supply device. The electronic apparatus includes a first terminal, which can be a V CC  terminal, and a second terminal, which can be a GND terminal, and a first magnet. The the power supply device includes a third terminal, which can be a V CC  terminal, and a fourth terminal, which can be a GND terminal, and a second magnet. The V CC  terminals and the GND terminals of the electronic apparatus contact the V CC  terminals and the GND terminals of the power supply device, respectively, by magnetic attractive force between the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device, and the power supply device further includes a power supply blocking circuit allowing the supply of power to the V CC  terminal of the power supply device only when the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device are in a contact state. 
         [0010]    The power supply system may decide whether or not the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device contact each other using a current flowing through the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device. 
         [0011]    The power supply blocking circuit may sense a voltage drop of the magnet of the electronic apparatus to decide whether or not the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device contact each other. 
         [0012]    A conductive material may be coated on a surface of the magnet of the electronic apparatus and/or the magnet of the power supply device to facilitate current flow. 
         [0013]    The magnet of the electronic apparatus and the GND terminal of the electronic apparatus may be connected to each other through a resistor. 
         [0014]    The power supply blocking circuit may allow the supply of the power to the V CC  terminal of the power supply device after the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device contact each other and a predetermined time elapses. 
         [0015]    The power supply blocking circuit may include a capacitor, and electric charges may be charged in the capacitor when a voltage of the magnet of the electronic apparatus drops by a current flowing through the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device to be in a predetermined range, and the power supply blocking circuit may allow the supply of the power to the V CC  terminal of the power supply device when a voltage of the capacitor becomes a predetermined value or more. 
         [0016]    A shield plate may be installed on a rear surface of the magnet of the electronic apparatus. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of a power supply system according to some embodiments. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  illustrates perspective views of magnetic connectors of an electronic apparatus and a power supply device according to some embodiments. 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of magnetic connectors of an electronic apparatus and a power supply device according to some other embodiments. 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a schematic block circuit diagram of a magnetic connector according to some embodiments. 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a circuit diagram of an example of a power supply blocking circuit according to some embodiments. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0022]    Some magnetic connectors include multiple terminals, such as a signal terminal S, in addition to a V CC  terminal and a GND terminal, as contact terminals of a power supply device, and the supply of the power starts after the GND terminal and the signal terminal S of the power supply device accurately contact a GND terminal of the electronic apparatus, thereby making it possible to prevent a malfunction due to an incomplete contact and a spark generated at the moment of contact. However, because of the multiple connections used, these magnetic connectors can be difficult to miniaturize and can be expensive to manufacture. In the present disclosure, power systems that aim to solve at least these problems are described. 
         [0023]    Hereinafter, a power supply system having a power supply blocking circuit according to embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings to be provided below are provided by way of example so that the idea of the present disclosure can be sufficiently transferred to those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure pertains. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the accompanying drawings to be provided below, but may be implemented in other forms. 
         [0024]      FIG. 1  is a plan view of a power supply system according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         [0025]    The power supply system according to the present disclosure includes an electronic apparatus  100  and a power supply device  200 . An example of the power supply device  200  supplying power to the electronic apparatus  100  includes an adapter or a convertor, e.g., an AC to DC convertor, or a DC to DC converter. Examples of the apparatus  100  include a computing and/or a communication device, e.g. a computer, a smart phone, a cellular phone, and a tablet personal computer, to name a few. The electronic apparatus  100  includes a connector  110  of the electronic apparatus, the power supply device  200  includes a connector  210  of the power supply device, and the connector  110  of the electronic apparatus and the connector  210  of the power supply device are configured to be coupled to each other, such that the power is supplied from the power supply device  200  to the electronic apparatus  100 . The connector  210  of the power supply device is connected to a body  220  of the power supply device by a cable  230 . The connector  110  of the electronic apparatus and the connector  210  of the power supply device have magnets embedded in one side or both sides thereof, such that they contact each other by the magnetic force (magnetic attractive force) of the magnets. As described herein, magnetic connector may refer to a combination of a connector on the power supply device side, such as the connector  210 , and a connector on the electronic apparatus side, such as the connector  110 . 
         [0026]    In the present disclosure, the magnetic connector may have various configurations, as described below.  FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a first example of an electronic apparatus and a power supply device, and  FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a second example of another magnetic connector of an electronic apparatus and a power supply device, according to embodiments. In the first example of  FIG. 2 , a contact terminal of the connector  110  of the electronic apparatus is formed in a circular shape so that connection between the contact terminals is possible even though two magnetic connectors rotate in any direction, and in the second example of  FIG. 3 , contact terminals are installed to be symmetrical to each other so that one of the two connecting magnetic connectors may rotate by 180 degrees relative to the other magnetic connector. 
         [0027]    The connector  110  of the electronic apparatus, installed in the electronic apparatus  100  includes a magnet  150 , one or more first terminals  151 , e.g., V CC  terminals, and one or more second terminals  152 , e.g., ground (GND) terminals. 
         [0028]    The connector  210  of the power supply device, installed in the power supply device  200  includes a magnet  250 , one or more third terminals  251 , e.g., V CC  terminals, and one or more fourth terminals  252 , e.g., GND terminals. 
         [0029]    While in the illustrated embodiment, the first terminals  151  and the third terminals  251  are Vcc terminals, and the second terminals  152  and the fourth terminals  252  are GND terminals, the embodiments are not so limited. The first terminals  151  and the third terminals  251  can be any suitable power terminals at a first voltage, and the second terminals  152  and the fourth terminals  252  can be any power terminals at a second voltage different from the first voltage. 
         [0030]    The V CC  terminals  151  and the GND terminals  152  of the electronic apparatus contact the V CC  terminals  251  and the GND terminals  252  of the power supply device, respectively, by magnetic attractive force between the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device. 
         [0031]    A shield plate  160  may be installed on a rear surface of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus. In  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the shield plate  160  is installed over the rear surface and a side surface of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus. The shield plate  160  is manufactured by processing a magnetic plate. The shield plate  160  changes a magnetic field directed toward an inner portion of the electronic apparatus toward the magnet  250  of the power supply device to enhance a magnetic field toward the magnet  250  of the power supply device and weaken a magnetic field toward the inner portion of the electronic apparatus  100 , thereby protecting an element in the electronic apparatus from magnetic force. 
         [0032]      FIG. 4  is a schematic block circuit diagram of a magnetic connector according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         [0033]    A power supply blocking circuit  260  is installed in the power supply device  200 . Although the power supply blocking circuit  260  is installed in the connector  210  of the power supply device in  FIG. 4 , the power supply blocking circuit  260  may also be installed in the body  220  of the power supply device or be installed in another portion of the power supply device  200 . 
         [0034]    The power supply blocking circuit  260  blocks the supply of the power to the V CC  terminal of the power supply device before the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device contact each other. When a current flows through the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device due to contact between the magnet of the electronic apparatus and the magnet of the power supply device, the power supply blocking circuit  260  allows the supply of the power to the V CC  terminal  251  of the power supply device. 
         [0035]    In some embodiments, a voltage drop by the current flowing through the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device is measured to determine whether to allow the supply of the power. When resistances of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device have certain values, the corresponding values of a voltage drop across the magnets  150  and  250  may be in a predetermined range that is particularly suitable for accurately deciding whether or not to allow the supply of the power. In these embodiments, the voltage drop corresponding to the resistances of the magnets  150  and  250  may alone be used to decide whether or not to allow the supply of the power. 
         [0036]    However, in some other embodiments, the resistances of the magnets  150   250  and may be outside the predetermined range that is particularly suitable for accurately deciding whether or not to allow the supply of the power. In these embodiments, additional features may be included. For example, when the resistances of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device are greater than the predetermined range, the resistances may be decreased by forming a conductive coating on a surface of one or both of the magnets  150  and  250 . For example, a conductive coating comprising a metal such as nickel may be formed. On the other hand, when the resistances of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device are lower than the predetermined range, a separate resistor may be added in series to increase the overall resistance across the magnets  150  and  250  and the separate resistor. In the illustrated embodiment, the separate resistor is included in the current path between the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the GND terminal  152  of the electronic apparatus to increase the overall resistance when the magnet  150  and the GND terminal  152  are electrically connected to each other. Thus, in the illustrated embodiment of  FIG. 4 , the overall resistance value of the resistor Rs, which represents the series sum of a resistance value of the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus, a resistance value of the magnet  250  of the power supply device, and a resistance value of an added resistor (the resistor added between the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the GND terminal  152  of the electronic apparatus, may be adjusted to be in the predetermined range by using one or more of the methods described above. 
         [0037]      FIG. 5  is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of a power supply blocking circuit according to embodiments of the present disclosure. 
         [0038]    The power supply blocking circuit includes comparators Comp  1  and Comp  2 , a reference voltage setting unit  261 , a switch Q 1 , and the like, and controls whether to supply the power to the V CC  terminal  251  of the power supply device through the switch Q 1 . 
         [0039]    When the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device do not contact each other, a voltage VD is a voltage divided by R 3  and R 4 . When the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device contact each other, a voltage divided by R 3  and a parallel resistance (=R 4 *Rs/R 4 +Rs) of R 4  and RS is applied. 
         [0040]    Therefore, when VH is adjusted to be smaller than the voltage divided by R 3  and R 4  and be larger than the voltage divided by R 3  and the parallel resistance of R 4  and Rs and VL is adjusted to be smaller than the voltage divided by R 3  and the parallel resistance of R 4  and Rs, VD becomes a voltage between VH and VL by the contact between the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device. Here, both of the output values of two comparators Comp  1  and Comp  2  become a high state, and charging starts in a capacitor C 1 . Then, when a voltage of the capacitor C 1  becomes a predetermined voltage or more, the switch Q 1  is opened, such that the supply of the power to the V CC  terminal  251  of the power supply device starts. 
         [0041]    Therefore, the power supply blocking circuit  260  according to the present disclosure allows the supply of the power only when the voltage VD changed due to the current flowing out through the magnet  250  of the power supply device after the magnet  150  of the electronic apparatus and the magnet  250  of the power supply device contact each other is in a predetermined range. 
         [0042]    In the power supply system having a magnetic connector according to the present disclosure, the power may be allowed to be supplied only when the magnetic connectors accurately contact each other without installing an additional contact terminal in addition to the V CC  terminal and the GND terminal required for directly transferring the power, such that structures of the magnetic connectors may be simplified and miniaturized. 
         [0043]    While certain embodiments have been described herein, these embodiments have been presented by way of example only, and are not intended to limit the scope of the disclosure. Indeed, the novel apparatus, methods, and systems described herein may be embodied in a variety of other forms; furthermore, various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form of the methods and systems described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. Any suitable combination of the elements and acts of the various embodiments described above can be combined to provide further embodiments. The accompanying claims and their equivalents are intended to cover such forms or modifications as would fall within the scope and spirit of the disclosure.