Abstract:
A multifunctional connection cord having data and power interfaces for a personal computer and audio interface for an earphone is provided. A multifunctional connection cord of the present invention includes a stem; an audio plug mounted to protrude from one side of the stem for establishing audio signal lines with a multimedia device; a data/power connector mounted near the audio plug to protrude from the stem for establishing data lines and power charge lines with an external device; a USB connector electrically connected to the audio plug and the data/power connector through a cable by means of the stem; and a socket holder mounted on one side of the USB connector and having an audio socket for receiving an audio plug.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2007-0032124 filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Mar. 31, 2007, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to a connection cord for a multimedia device and, in particular, to a multifunctional connection cord providing audio, data, and power interfaces. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    With the advances of sound enhancement and communication technologies, various portable multimedia devices, such as an MP3 player, a portable multimedia player (PMP), a digital camera, and a mobile phone are being widely used. 
         [0006]    Typically, such a portable multimedia device is provided with a universal serial bus (USB) port or dock connection port for data and power connection to a personal computer (PC), and an audio jack for outputting audio signals to a headphone or earphone. 
         [0007]    However, a somewhat long trip with the portable multimedia device requires carrying the power and data cables as well as the earphone. In order to solve this inconvenience problem, an earphone integrated with a USB connection cord has been proposed by the same applicant. In this case, however, the user has no option to select an earphone having an audio connector other than the USB connector. 
         [0008]    In the meantime, as connection profiles become one of the key factors in selecting a portable multimedia device, a user would select an earphone that supports user preferable connection profiles. 
         [0009]    Therefore, there has been a need for a multifunctional means that provides data exchange, power charge, and audio output interfaces, simultaneously. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0010]    The present invention has been made in an effort to solve the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a multifunctional connection cord that is capable of providing audio, data, and power connection interfaces by means of a data/power connector and USB connector. 
         [0011]    In accordance with an aspect of the preset invention, a multifunction connection cord includes a stem; an audio plug mounted to protrude from one side of the stem for establishing audio signal lines with a multimedia device; a data/power connector mounted near the audio plug to protrude from the stem for establishing data lines and power charge lines with an external device; a USB connector electrically connected to the audio plug and the data/power connector through a cable by means of the stem; and a socket holder mounted on one side of the USB connector and having an audio socket for receiving an audio plug. 
         [0012]    Preferably, the audio plug includes three contact terminals that are electrically connected to corresponding contact terminals of the audio socket for establishing audio lines; and the data/power connector includes a positive power pin, a positive data pin, a negative data pin, and a negative power pin that are electrically connected to a corresponding positive power pin, positive data pin, negative data pin, and negative power pin of the USB connector. 
         [0013]    Preferably, the USB connector further includes a detachable cap for covering the USB plug. 
         [0014]    In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a multifunctional connector cord includes a stem; an audio plug mounted to protrude from one side of the stem for establishing audio signal lines with a multimedia device; a data/power connector mounted near the audio plug to protrude from the stem for establishing data lines and power charge lines with an external device; a USB connector electrically connected to the audio plug and the data/power connector through a cable by means of the stem; and a detachable socket holder having a USB socket formed at one end for electrically connecting a detachable socket to the USB connector and an audio socket formed at the other end for receiving an audio plug. 
         [0015]    Preferably, the USB socket includes three contact pins that are connected to corresponding terminals of the audio socket through respective wires. 
         [0016]    Preferably, the audio plug includes three contact terminals that are electrically connected to a negative power pin, a positive data pin, and a negative data pin of the USB connector through the cable; and the data/power connector includes a negative power pin, a positive data pin, a negative data pin, and a positive power pin that are electrically connected to the negative power pin and the positive data pin of the USB connector. 
         [0017]    In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a multifunctional connection cord includes a stem; an audio plug mounted to protrude from one side of the stem for establishing audio signal lines with a multimedia device; a USB connector electrically connected to the audio plug and the data/power connector through a cable by means of the stem; and a socket holder mounted on one side of the USB connector and having an audio socket for receiving an audio plug. 
         [0018]    Preferably, the audio plug includes four contact terminals of which a first, a second, and a third terminals are electrically connected to a negative power pin, a positive data pin, and a negative data pin of the USB connector for establishing audio lines, and a fourth terminal connected to the positive power pin for establishing data input/output lines with the multimedia device via the audio plug. 
         [0019]    Preferably, the USB connector further includes a detachable cap for covering the USB plug. 
         [0020]    In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, a multifunctional connection cord includes a stem; a data/power connector mounted to protrude from one side of the stem for establishing data lines and power charge lines with an external device via a dock; a USB connector electrically connected to the audio plug and the data/power connector through a cable by means of the stem; and a socket holder mounted on one side of the USB connector and having an audio socket for receiving an audio plug. 
         [0021]    Preferably, the data/power connector includes a negative power pin, a positive data pin, a negative data pin, and a positive power pin that are electrically connected to a negative power pin, a positive data pin, a negative data pin, and a positive power pin of the USB connector. 
         [0022]    Preferably, the USB connector further includes a detachable cap for covering the USB plug. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0023]    The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0024]      FIGS. 1A to 1D  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0025]      FIGS. 2A and 2B  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0026]      FIGS. 3A to 3C  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0027]      FIGS. 4A and 4B  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0028]      FIG. 5  is a drawing illustrating how to connect a multimedia device to an external device using the multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
           [0029]      FIG. 6  is a drawing illustrating how to connect an earphone to a multimedia device using a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and 
           [0030]      FIG. 7  is a drawing illustrating how to connect an earphone to a multimedia device using a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS 
       [0031]    Exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings in detail. The same reference numbers are used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. Detailed descriptions of well-known functions and structures incorporated herein may be omitted to avoid obscuring the subject matter of the present invention. 
         [0032]      FIGS. 1A to 1D  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0033]    Referring to  FIGS. 1A to 1D , the multifunctional connection cord is provided with a stem  6  and a USB connector  12  connected to the stem  6  through a cable  11 . The stem is provided with an audio plug  110  and a data/power connector  5  connected to the stem  6 . 
         [0034]    The audio plug  110  includes a first contact  1 , a second contact  2 , a third contact  3 , and a fourth contact  4 . 
         [0035]    The data/power connector  5  includes a positive power pin  7 , a positive data pin  8 , a negative data pin  9 , and a negative power pin  10 . 
         [0036]    The USB connector  12  is provided with a USB plug  13  including a positive power pin  14 , a positive data pin  15 , a negative data pin  16 , and a negative power pin  17 . The first to fourth contacts  1 ,  2 ,  3 , and  4  of the audio plug  110  are electrically connected to the positive power pin  14 , positive data pin  15 , negative data pin  16 , and negative power pin  17 , respectively, through the cable  11 . The positive power pin  7 , positive data pin  8 , negative data pin  9 , and negative power pin  10  of the data/power connector  5  are connected to the positive power pin  14 , positive data pin  15 , negative data pin  16 , and negative power pin  17 , respectively, through the cable  11 . 
         [0037]    The USB plug  13  is covered by a cap  18  which is detachable, and the USB connector  12  is provided with a socket holder  130 . 
         [0038]    In this embodiment, the socket holder  130  is formed on a rear surface of the USB plug  13  so as to not interfere with the operation of the USB plug  13 . 
         [0039]    The socket holder  130  is provided with an audio socket  22  in which a first contact  19 , a second conduct  20 , and a third contact  21 are formed. The first to third contacts  19 ,  20 , and  21  on a PCB (Printed Circuit Board)  23  are electrically connected to the corresponding contacts  1 ,  2 , and  3  of the audio plug  110 . In more detail, the first contact  1  of the audio plug  110  is of a left-hand channel for stereo signals, the second contact  2  of the audio plug is of a right-hand channel for stereo signals, the third contact  3  of the audio plug is of ground, and the fourth contact  4  of the audio plug is of a dummy load for the earphone socket of a multimedia device. The first to third contacts  1 ,  2 , and  3  of the audio plug  110  are connected to the corresponding first to third contacts  19 ,  20 , and  21  of the audio socket  22  via the cable  11 , respectively. Accordingly, the cable  11  is provided with at least 4 wires. 
         [0040]    Although the USB connector  12  is configured to integrate the socket holder  130  in this embodiment, the USB connector  12  can be implemented with a detachable socket holder  130 . 
         [0041]      FIGS. 2A and 2B  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0042]    In this embodiment, the configuration of the multifunctional connection cord in which the stem  6  having an audio plug  110  and a data/power connector  5  is connected to the USB connector  12  through a cable  11  is identical with the multifunctional connection cord of the embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 1A to 1D . Thus, the same reference numbers are used to refer to the same parts. 
         [0043]    The detachable socket holder  130  includes a body  24  having an audio socket  22  formed at one end and a USB socket  25  formed at the other end for receiving the USB plug  13 . 
         [0044]    The USB socket  25  is provided with a first contact pin  26  corresponding to the negative power pin  14  of the USB plug  13 , a second contact pin  27  corresponding to the positive data pin  15  of the USB plug  13 , and a third contact pin  28  corresponding to the negative data pin  16  of the USB plug  13 . The first to third contact pins  26 ,  27 , and  28  are also electrically connected to corresponding pins of the audio socket  22  through respective wires  29 ,  30 , and  31 . 
         [0045]    In this configuration, the audio lines are established between the audio plug  110  connected to a multimedia device and the audio socket  22  via a cable  11 , USB connector  12 , and USB socket  25 . A pair of data lines are established between the data/power connector  5  and the USB connector  12 . 
         [0046]      FIGS. 3A to 3C  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the stem is provided with the audio plug  110  but not the data/power connector. 
         [0047]    Unlike the embodiments illustrated in  FIGS. 1A to 1D  and  FIGS. 2A and 2B  in which the fourth contact  4  is configured as a dummy load, the first to fourth contacts  1  to  4  of the audio plug  110  are connected to the respective positive power pin  14 , positive data pin  15 , negative data pin  16 , and negative power pin  17  of the USB connector  12  so as to establish data input/output lines. The USB connector  12  is also provided with the socket holder  130  having the audio socket  22  such that the first to third contacts  1  to  3  are connected to the corresponding pins of the audio socket  22  to establish a pair of audio lines. The USB plug  13  is covered by the cap  18  when it is not in use. 
         [0048]      FIGS. 4A and 4B  are drawings illustrating a configuration of a multifunctional connection cord according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the stem  6  is provided with the data/power connector  5  but not the audio plug  110 . 
         [0049]    In this embodiment, the positive power pin  7 , positive data pin  8 , negative data pin  9 , and negative power pin  10  of the data/power connector are connected to the respective positive power pin  14 , positive data pin  15 , negative data pin  16  and negative power pin  17  of the USB connector  12  so as to establish the data input/output lines. In addition to the data and power pins  7  to  10 , the data/power connector  5  further includes a first audio pin  32  and a second audio pin  33  that are connected to corresponding pins of the audio socket  22  formed in the socket holder  130  so as to establish a pair of audio lines. 
         [0050]    With this configuration, the data input/output lines are established between the data/power connector  5  and the USB connector  12 , and the audio lines are established between the data/power connector  5  and the audio socket  22 . In order to protect the USB plug  13  from damage, a cap is provided for covering the USB plug  13 . 
         [0051]    How to use the multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is described with reference to  FIG. 5 . 
         [0052]      FIG. 5  is a drawing illustrating how to connect a multimedia device to an external device using the multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0053]    As shown in  FIG. 5 , the stem of the multifunctional connection cord is connected to a multimedia device  100  such as an MP3 player by means of at least one of the audio plug  110  and the data/power connector  5 , and the USB connector  12  of the multifunctional connection cord is connected to an external device  101  such as PC by inserting the USB plug  13  into a USB socket  102  of the external device  101 . The multimedia device  10  can exchange data with the external device  101  and can be charged by the external device  101  through the respective data and power lines established by the multifunctional connection cord. 
         [0054]      FIG. 6  is a drawing illustrating how to connect an earphone to a multimedia device using a multifunctional connection cord according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
         [0055]    In order to listen to audio sound that is output from the multimedia device  100 , an earphone can be connected to the multimedia device through the multifunctional connection cord. In this case, audio lines are established by inserting an audio plug  201  of an earphone  200  into the audio socket  22  provided in the socket holder  130  of the multifunctional connection cord. In order to protect the USB plug  13  from being damaged, it is preferred to cover the USB plug  13  with the cap  18 . 
         [0056]    In a case that the multimedia connection cord is implemented with a detachable socket holder  130 , the audio lines are established by inserting the audio plug  201  of the earphone  200  into the audio socket  22  of the detachable socket holder  130  and inserting the USB plug  13  into the USB socket  25  of the detachable socket holder  130 , as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0057]    Although exemplary embodiments of the present invention are described in detail hereinabove, it should be clearly understood that many variations and/or modifications of the basic inventive concepts herein taught which may appear to those skilled in the present art will still fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention, as defined in the appended claims. 
         [0058]    As described above, the multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an audio plug and data/power connector that are installed at one end of a cable for connection to a multimedia device, a USB connector that is installed at the other end of the cable for connection to a PC, and a socket holder having an audio socket piggybacked on the USB connector, whereby the multimedia connection cord allow charging the multimedia device and exchanging data with the PC as well as an audio connection to an earphone. 
         [0059]    In the multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention, the audio plug is electrically connected to the audio socket such that it is possible to output audio signals from the multimedia device to the earphone by inserting an audio plug of the earphone into the audio socket. The multimedia device can exchange data with the PC through the data lines established the data/power connector and the USB connector. 
         [0060]    Also, the USB connector of the multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a cap for covering a USB plug, thereby protecting the USB plug from being damaged when it is not in use. 
         [0061]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an audio plug and a data/power connector installed at one end of a cable so as to connect the multifunctional connection cord to a connection to a multimedia device, and a USB connector installed at the other end of the cable so as to connect the multimedia device to a PC through data and power lines established between the data/power connector and the USB connector. Also, the multifunctional connection cord is provided with a detachable socket holder having an audio socket connected to the USB connector for coupling an earphone to the multimedia device. 
         [0062]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention allows outputting the audio signals of the multimedia device to the earphone through audio lines established between the USB socket and the audio socket. 
         [0063]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention allows outputting the audio signal of the multimedia device through the audio plug, USB connector, and the audio socket of the detachable socket holder, and exchanging data with the PC and charging power from the PC through data and power lines established between the USB connector and the data/power connector. 
         [0064]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention can be connected to the multimedia device by means of the audio plug and the PC by means of the USB connector so as to allow the multimedia device to be charged by the PC and exchange data with the PC. Also, the audio socket of the socket holder allows connection of an earphone to the multimedia device. 
         [0065]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention allows outputting of the audio signals of the multimedia device to an earphone through the audio lines established between the audio plug and the USB connector, and allows selective charging of the multimedia device by the PC and exchange of data with the PC. 
         [0066]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a cap for covering the USB plug of the USB connector so as to protect the USB plug from being damaged when it is not in use. 
         [0067]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to be connected with a multimedia device by means of a data/power connector formed at one end of a cable, with a PC by means of the USB connector formed at the other end of the cable, and with an earphone by means of an audio socket formed on the USB connector, thereby charging the multimedia device through power lines established between the data/power connector and the USB connector, enabling exchange of data between the multimedia device and the PC through data lines established between the data/power connector and the USB connector, and output of audio signals to the earphone through audio lines established between the audio socket of the socket holder and the audio plug of the stem. 
         [0068]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention allows selective charging of the multimedia device, exchange of data between the multimedia device and the PC, and output of audio signals to the earphone with only the configuration of wires interconnecting the data/power connection and the USB connector. 
         [0069]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is provided with a cap for covering the USB plug when it is not in use, so as to protect the USB plug from being damaged. 
         [0070]    The multifunctional connection cord according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to establish data and power lines between a multimedia device and a PC and audio lines between the multimedia device and earphones having various types of audio plugs, thereby improving user convenience and audio output compatibility. 
         [0071]    Unlike the conventional connection mechanism in which a USB cable and an earphone should be changeably connected to the portable device for their respective purposes, particularly with a portable device having a single multifunctional connection port having USB pins and audio pins, the multifunctional connection cord enables connecting the earphone and another external device to the portable device through the respective USB and audio outlets branched out from a single inlet, resulting in improvement of user&#39;s convenience. 
         [0072]    The multifunctional connection cord of the present invention can be constantly connected to the connection port of a portable device as an aesthetic accessory, thereby preventing the high-price portable device from being damaged by repeated attachment/detachment of other devices while maintaining multipurpose connection functionalities. 
         [0073]    The multifunctional connection cord of the present invention is advantageous in terms of improving connection convenience and protection of a portable device without breaking the design concept of the portable device.