Patent Publication Number: US-2005136709-A1

Title: Docking station connector with differential signaling capability

Description:
BACKGROUND  
      Many mobile and peripheral devices connect to desktop or other computing systems using a docking station. Docking stations typically have a connector that mates with a similar docking connector on the mobile or peripheral device. The docking station itself is often connected directly to a desktop computer, facilitating communications between the mobile or peripheral device and the desktop computer. Many mobile or peripheral devices however, support faster data rates, higher frequencies, or lower voltages than docking station connectors allow. The docking station connector may therefore impede mobile or peripheral device communication rate and/or integrity. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram of a system.  
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a docking station connector.  
       FIG. 3  is a block diagram of a docking station connector routing.  
       FIG. 4  is a flow diagram of a method according to some embodiments.  
       FIG. 5  is a block diagram of a docking station connector according to some embodiments.  
       FIG. 6  is a block diagram of a docking station connector routing according to some embodiments.  
       FIG. 7  is a block diagram of a system according to some embodiments. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
      Some embodiments described herein are associated with a “docking station”. As used herein, the term “docking station” generally refers to any device, port, cable, connector, cradle, and/or interface that permits one or more portable, peripheral, mobile, and/or any other types of network devices to communicate with one or more other network devices. In some embodiments, a docking station may refer to a laptop docking station such as the EasiDock® 1000EV offered by Mobility Electronics™, Inc., or a docking cradle for a personal digital assistant (PDA) such as a universal serial bus (USB)/serial desktop cradle for Compaq® iPAQ® 3800, 3900, 5400, and 5500 series PDA devices. In some embodiments a docking station may refer to a connector, cradle, and/or other interface for peripheral devices such as printers, facsimile machines, scanners, and/or cameras.  
      In some embodiments a docking station may include one or more “docking connectors”. As used herein, the term “docking connector” may generally refer to any portion, component, port, and/or other device located within, attached to, and/or otherwise associated with a docking station that allows the docking station to be connected to a network device. In some embodiments a docking connector may include one or more pins and/or other protruding electrical contacts (a male connector) or one or more pin and/or electrical contact receptors, indentations, and/or holes (a female connector). As used herein the terms “docking connector” or “connector” may generally and interchangeably refer to male, female, and/or a combination of male and female connector types. In some embodiments, a docking connector may refer to a connector on and/or otherwise associated with a network device that may be designed to mate with a corresponding connector on and/or associated with a docking station.  
      In addition, some embodiments are associated with a “network device”. As used herein, the phrase “network device” may refer to any device that can communicate via a network. Examples of network devices include a Personal Computer (PC), a workstation, a server, a printer, a scanner, a facsimile machine, a copier, a PDA, a storage device (e.g., a disk drive), a hub, a router, a switch, and a communication device (e.g., a modem, a wireless phone, etc.). Network devices may comprise one or more network components. As used herein, the term “network component” may refer to a network device, or a component, piece, portion, or combination of network devices. Examples of network components may include a Static Random Access Memory (SRAM) device or module, a network processor, and a network communication path, connection, port, or cable.  
      Referring first to  FIG. 1 , a block diagram of a system  100  for facilitating electronic communication between network devices is depicted for use in explanation, but not limitation, of described embodiments. Upon reading this disclosure, those skilled in the art will appreciate that different types, layouts, quantities, and configurations of systems may be used.  
      System  100  may comprise, for example, a network device  102  connected to a portable device  104  via a docking station  106  and docking connectors  108 . The network device  102  may be or include a desktop, server, workstation, and/or other known or available computing device. Either and/or both of the network device  102  and the portable device  104  may be any type of network devices available, known, and/or described herein. Examples of the portable device  104  may include PDA devices, laptop and mobile computers, wireless telephones, and digital cameras.  
      The docking station  106  may be or include any type and/or configuration of device that enables the network device  102  to communicate with the portable device  104 . Some docking stations  106  such as docking cradles for PDA devices may also provide physical support for a connecting device to facilitate mating of docking connectors  108 . The docking connectors  108  may be, for example, one or both of a male and female pin connector for mating the docking station  106  with the portable device  104 . In some configurations the docking connectors  108  may include components that are affixed separately to each of the docking station  106  and the portable device  104 .  
      For example, the portable device  104  may include a docking connector  108   a  which may be a male pin connector such as a nine, fifteen, or twenty-five pin connector known in the art. The docking station  106  may include a corresponding docking connector  108   b  which may be a female pin connector, so that the two devices  104 ,  106  may be mated by joining the connectors  108 . In such configurations the docking connectors  108  effectively comprise portions of both the portable device  104  and the docking station  106 . Alternatively, the docking connectors  108  may be considered to include only one connector and/or device such as the connector  108   a ,  108   b  located on and/or attached to either one of the connecting devices  104 ,  106 . In some embodiments, the docking connectors  108  may be or include a device that is separate and/or distinct from both the docking station  106  and the portable device  104 .  
      By way of example, system  100  may include a network device  102  which may be a desktop PC having one or more ports such as a USB port. The docking station  106  may be, for example, a docking cradle for a handheld computing device, and may be connected to the USB port of the desktop PC  102  via a USB cable. The portable device  104  may be a PDA or other handheld device having a docking connector  108   a  adapted to mate with a corresponding docking connector  108   b  attached to the docking station  106 . The PDA  104  may be placed in the docking cradle  106 , for example, causing a mating of the connectors  108  and permitting the PDA  104  to interface with the desktop PC  102 . Communications between the PDA  104  and the PC  102  may thus be transmitted through the docking connectors  108  (and the docking cradle  106 ) to allow the two devices  102 ,  104  to interact.  
       FIG. 2  shows an exemplary layout of the pins or other electrical contacts on a docking connector  108  that may be utilized, for example, in the system  100 . The docking connector  108  shown in  FIG. 2  is a typical fifteen-pin connector known in the art. Each electrical contact  110  may be or include a pin, pin receptacle, or any other electrical contact available, known, and/or described herein. The electrical contacts  110  of the docking connector  108  are arranged in a pattern that enhances the density and routing of the electrical connections. For example, the horizontal center-to-center spacing  112  between adjacent contacts  110  may be set at a value that permits the contacts  110  to be placed very close to each other (which will be at least in part dictated by the diameter or gauge of the contacts  110 , the geometry of the contacts  110 , and other considerations known to those skilled in the art). Similarly, the vertical center-to-center spacing  114  between vertically adjacent contacts and between rows of contacts may also be set or chosen to increase the number of contacts  110  that may be situated on a docking connector  108  with a given size and/or shape.  
      In  FIG. 3  an exemplary routing layout for a docking connector  108  is shown. For ease of depiction only two rows of evenly spaced and uniformly offset rows of electrical contacts  110  are shown. Each electrical contact  110  is shown connected to an electrical or other communications path or trace  116 . The electrical paths  116  may, for example, connect a printed circuit board (PCB) or other electronic device or component to the electrical contacts  110  of the docking connector  108 . In configurations where the electrical contacts  110  are evenly spaced and the rows of contacts uniformly offset from each other (as shown), the spacing  112   a  between electrical paths  116  may be equivalent to one half of the horizontal spacing  112  maintained between electrical contacts. An advantage of such a configuration is that the electrical paths  116  may be spaced for high density, allowing a large number of electrical paths  116  to be routed through the docking connector  108  or other electrical conduit such as a port or cable.  
      Turning now to  FIG. 4 , a flow diagram of a method  150  in accordance with some embodiments is shown. The method of  FIG. 4  may be associated with and/or performed by, for example, the system  700  (or one or more of the system components) described in conjunction with  FIG. 7  herein. The flow diagrams described herein do not necessarily imply a fixed order to the actions, and embodiments may be performed in any order that is practicable. Note that any of the methods described herein may be performed by hardware, software (including microcode), firmware, or any combination thereof. For example, a storage medium may store thereon instructions that when executed by a machine result in performance according to any of the embodiments described herein.  
      In some embodiments (such as shown in  FIG. 4 ), the method  150  may begin by receiving a differential signal at a docking connector, at  152 . For example, a portable network device such as a PDA or laptop computer may have the capability to communicate and/or transmit data using differential signals. Such a device may be connected to a docking station to interface with another device such as a PC, and may transmit data and/or other information via differential signals to and/or through the docking connector. The docking connector may reside within and/or be attached to either the device sending the differential signal or the device receiving the signal, and/or the docking connector may include portions, parts, and/or components of each device as described herein in conjunction with  FIG. 1 . In some embodiments, other signals instead of, in addition to, and/or in conjunction with the differential signal may be received by the docking connector. Other signals may include, for example, other higher speed, higher frequency, and/or lower voltage signals. In some embodiments, the docking connector may receive at least one differential signal as well as other non-differential signals.  
      According to some embodiments, at least one of the pins and/or other electrical contacts on the docking connector may be arranged to allow for the reception of the differential signal. For example, differential signals are often transmitted along paths of substantially equal impedance and length. The two paths are also typically separated by a small distance that is maintained uniformly throughout the lengths of the paths. Thus, according to some embodiments, the contacts for a differential signal pair may be placed at a determined distance from each other to promote the successful reception of a differential signal (which may include, for example, maintaining the integrity of the differential signal). The differential signal pair contacts may also, according to some embodiments, be spaced at one or more determined distances from other signal contacts to prevent interference with the reception and/or quality of the differential signal.  
      In some embodiments, the arrangement of the docking connector contacts may permit Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) Express such as that defined by the PCI Express Base Specification 1.0a, 1394 such as that defined by IEEE 1394B-2002 Standard for Higer Performance Serial-Bus Amendment 2 (2002), USB 2.0 such as that defined by the USB Revision 2.0 Specification (revised Dec. 21, 2000), and/or other signals to be transmitted through the docking connector. According to some embodiments, the layout, spacing, arrangement, and/or any other electrical contact parameter associated with the docking connector may be determined based on the specifications of the signal and/or signals desired for transmission through the docking connector. For example, one or more pins or other contacts of the docking connector may be arranged in accordance with the transmission requirements defined in one or more of the specifications for the signals listed above.  
      At  154 , the differential signal may be routed to a PCB and/or other device. For example, the docking connector may include electrical paths or traces leading from the connector contacts to a PCB inside of a PDA and/or other docked or docking device. In some embodiments, in order to maintain the integrity of the differential signal pair, the electrical paths may be routed to substantially maintain a determined separation and/or impedance, and/or may be routed so that each path is substantially the same length. Any number of factors including, but not limited to, spacing, gauging, routing, and/or shielding may be manipulated and/or determined, for example, to arrange at least one contact of a docking connector so that the docking connector may approximate an optimal transmission line for a differential signal. In some embodiments, a software simulation program and/or other design tool may be utilized to determine an appropriate arrangement of one or more pins of a docking connector to allow transmission of differential signals through the connector.  
       FIG. 5  shows an exemplary layout of the pins or other electrical contacts on a docking connector  200  that may be utilized, for example, in the system  700  or by various network devices and/or docking stations conducting and/or involved in conducting method  150 . The docking connector  200  may, according to some embodiments, contain one or more pairs of electrical contacts  202  arranged for reception and/or transmission of a differential signal. As shown in  FIG. 5 , an entire row of electrical contacts  110  may be arranged in differential contact pairs  202 . According to some embodiments, a single differential contact pair  202  may be arranged on the docking connector  200 . For example, a single additional pin receptacle may be added to a standard fifteen-pin female docking connector to create a differential contact pair  202 . In some embodiments, standard fifteen-pin male devices may still be able to connect to such a docking connector  200 , while the differential contact pair  202  may also permit differential signaling devices to utilize the same docking connector  200 .  
      According to some embodiments, any practicable number of differential contact pairs  202  may be arranged on the docking connector  200  and they may be arranged in any pattern and/or manner that may be desirable and/or useful (i.e., the contacts  110  do not necessarily need to be arranged in uniform and/or symmetrical order or in the manner shown in  FIG. 5 ). The arrangement of the contacts  110  may, according to some embodiments, be determined using a software program such as a simulation program for differential signal routing and/or design. For example, a simulation program may be used to determine a desirable differential contact pair spacing  212 . The pair spacing  212  may be any distance that is sufficient, given the amount of path insulation, the gauge of the contacts, and other pertinent information known to those skilled in the art, to isolate individual differential contact pairs  202  from each other. Other signal contacts  110  may similarly be maintained at an appropriate distance  214  from differential contact pairs  202 .  
      In some embodiments where multiple rows of contacts  110  are arranged on the docking connector  200 , the distance between various contact rows  218  may also be determined. In some embodiments the distance  218  may represent the separation between non-differential signal contact rows (as shown in  FIG. 5 ). In some configurations the separation distance  218  may be determined to enhance the density of non-differential contacts. In other embodiments the distance  218  may be determined based on other criteria and/or methodology. In some embodiments, the distance  218  may be similar or identical to the distance  214 . The distance  220  between the contacts  110  within a differential contact pair  202  may also be determined. The distance  220  may, according to some embodiments, be set and/or determined to be a relatively small distance to expose, for example, both paths leading from a differential contact pair  202  to a similar amount and/or type of interference (which assists in maintaining the integrity of the differential signal). In some embodiments the distance  220  may be substantially negligible, zero, and/or roughly equivalent to the gauge of the paths, traces, and/or wires. This may occur, for example, where the paths leading from the differential contact pair  202  are arranged as a twisted pair.  
      Turning now to  FIG. 6 , an exemplary routing layout for a docking connector  200  is shown. For ease of depiction only one row of differential contact pairs  202  is shown. Routing for other contacts  110  and/or other differential contact pairs  202  may, for example, be arranged on different layers and/or be routed in different directions than the routings shown, to maintain the any appropriate spacing  212 ,  214 ,  218 ,  222 ,  224 . Each electrical contact  110  is shown connected to an electrical or other communications path or trace  116 , which may, according to some embodiments, be similar to the paths  116  described in conjunction with  FIG. 3  herein.  
      The paths  116  within a differential contact pair  202  may be maintained, in some embodiments, at a uniform spacing  222 . The paths  116  of adjacent differential contact pairs  202  may similarly be maintained at a uniform spacing  224 . In some embodiments, the spacing  222 ,  224  may be similar or identical to the center-to-center spacing  220 ,  212  determined for the arrangement of the electrical contacts  110 . In other embodiments, the spacing  222 ,  224  may differ from the spacing  220 ,  212  determined and/or utilized in the arrangement of the electrical contacts  110 . The length of the paths  116 , as described herein, may, in some embodiments, be substantially the same.  
      Configurations relating to certain embodiments (such as that shown in  FIG. 6 ) may, for example, be advantageous in that the docking connector  200  may approximate an optimal path for a differential signal, reducing the potential for interference with higher speed, higher frequency, and/or lower voltage transmissions. According to some embodiments, the docking connector  200  may permit docking devices to communicate at rates and integrities not previously possible for docked devices.  
      In some embodiments, the spacing  224  between paths  116  may be larger than the spacing  112   a  described with reference to  FIG. 3  herein. For example, differential signals may require larger distances between themselves and contacts and/or traces carrying other signals, to maintain the integrity of the differential signal pair. In some embodiments, no signal may be routed closer to a differential signal pair than is desirable and/or practicable in order to maintain the integrity of the differential signal. The spacing  224  may be, for example, a minimum distance that may need to be maintained between a pair of differential signals and any other transmitted signal.  
       FIG. 7  is a block diagram of a system  700  according to some embodiments. The system  700  may include, for example, a portable device  710 , a communications path  720 , a processor  730 , a memory  740 , and a docking connector  750 . The portable device  710  may be any type of network device including, for example, a PDA or a laptop computer. The portable device  710  may have a communications path  720  for sending and/or receiving various communications. In some embodiments, the communications path  720  may be for sending and/or receiving differential and/or other higher speed, higher frequency, and/or lower voltage signals in accordance with the method  150  described herein. The communication path  720  may be any type and/or combination of wired, wireless, intermittent and/or continuous communication paths, connections, wires, traces, devices, and/or ports known and/or available. The communications path  720  may, in some embodiments, also be connected to a docking connector  750 . The docking connector  750  may, for example, be a docking connector  200  such as that described in conjunction with  FIG. 5  herein.  
      The processor  730  may be any type of processor including, but not limited to, an Intel® PXA263 processor or a Mobile Intel® Pentium® 4 Processor coupled with an Intel® 852GME chipset. The memory  740  may be any type and/or configuration of data storage device known, available, and/or described herein. Also according to some embodiments, the processor  730  may create and/or process differential signals. The processor  730  may also send differential and/or other signals to other devices via communications path  720  and through the docking connector  750 .  
      The several embodiments described herein are solely for the purpose of illustration. Persons skilled in the art will recognize from this description that other embodiments may be practiced with modifications and alterations limited only by the claims.