Patent ID: 7454530

Claim:
A system to facilitate operation of a small form factor device that is removably attached at a connector, comprising: a selection system to route data between a bus and the connector, the selection system operating in a first mode and comprising a first interface that implements the first mode, to convert between a protocol supplied at the connector and a protocol of the bus if the device attached at the connector employs a different protocol from the protocol of the bus, wherein the protocol is a conventional protocol or a proprietary protocol, and the selection system operating in a second mode and further comprising a second interface that implements the second mode, to pass the protocol between the bus and the connector without protocol conversion if the device attached at the connector employs a protocol supported by the bus, wherein the second interface comprises an electrical converter that adapts to power requirements of the device attached at the connector based on type information, such that the electrical converter can implement electrical conversion for the connected device so that the connected device does not have to be designed to conform to one particular electrical power standard; a selector that connects the connector with the bus through a selected one of the first and second interfaces based on the type information; and the connector comprising a detector that initiates a protocol read from the device attached at the connector, protocol information is then sent to the selector which connects the connector through an appropriate interface based on identification of the device attached at the connector; and wherein if the removable device employs a protocol supported by the bus, the selector selects the interface such that the connection between the connector and the bus is a direct data connection for coupling the removable device with the bus, and if the removable device employs a protocol unsupported by the bus, the selector selects the interface such that the connector is coupled to the bus through the interface and the interface is programmed to implement appropriate protocol conversion from the unsupported protocol of the removable device to that of the bus.