Patent ID: 8740641

Claim:
An apparatus for providing power to a portable electronic device (PED), the PED including an electrical energy storage element (EESE), including: a first housing, the first housing mechanically separatably from the PED, the first housing substantially including a first power interface module (PIM), the first PIM including at least two electrical contacts configured to be releasably and directly coupled with the PED, the PIM at least two electrical contacts configured to provide a power signal having a first and a second polarity; and a second housing, the second housing physically separate from the PED and coupled to the first housing via a substantially flat, flexible cable, the second housing including an external power source interface (EPSI), the (EPSI) including at least two separate electrical contacts configured to receive electrical signals having the first and the second polarity, and a converter module coupled to the EPSI, the converter module converting a signal from the EPSI having a first power level to a signal having a lower, second power level, the second housing having a width and a height, the height about a third less than the width; the substantially flat, flexible cable fixably coupling the first housing to the second housing and including at least one wire pair, the wire pair coupling the first housing first PIM at least two electrical contacts to the second housing converter module to provide the signal having the lower, second power level to the first PIM at least two electrical contacts, the substantially flat cable having a width about equal to the width of the second housing and a height less than a third of the first housing height and a length of at least 6 inches.