PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-8442588-B2
Application Number: US-87797010-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Systems having cables with wireless communications capabilities

Abstract:
In a system that includes electronic equipment such as a computer or power adapter and that includes electronic devices such as cellular telephones, media players, and other devices, cables may be provided with wireless transceiver circuitry. Each cable may include a power path without including data lines. When a user desires to power a device, the cable may be used to connect the device to the electronic equipment. The power path in the cable may deliver power from the electronic equipment to the electronic device. Data may be conveyed between the electronic equipment and the electronic device wirelessly, using the wireless transceiver circuitry in the cable. The cable may have first and second connectors at respective ends of the cable. The wireless transceiver circuitry may be contained within the first connector or within the first and second connectors. The wireless transceiver circuitry may be identified using an identifier.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A cable having first and second ends, comprising:
 a first connector at the first end that includes power pins and data pins; 
 a second connector at the second end that includes at least power pins; 
 a cable segment that has a power path that connects the power pins of the first connector to the power pins of the second connector; and 
 a wireless transceiver. 
 
     
     
       2. The cable defined in  claim 1  wherein the wireless transceiver is located in the first connector and is electrically connected to the data pins. 
     
     
       3. The cable defined in  claim 1  further comprising an identifier circuit in the second connector. 
     
     
       4. The cable defined in  claim 3  wherein the identifier circuit comprises a resistor connected to a data pin in the second connector. 
     
     
       5. The cable defined in  claim 1  wherein the wireless transceiver is configured to modulate voltages on the power path. 
     
     
       6. The cable defined in  claim 5  wherein the wireless transceiver is configured to modulate voltages on the power path to produce a modulation pattern that identifies the wireless transceiver. 
     
     
       7. The cable defined in  claim 1  wherein the first connector comprises a Universal Serial Bus connector and wherein the second connector comprises a 30-pin connector. 
     
     
       8. The cable defined in  claim 1  wherein the wireless transceiver comprises a Bluetooth® transceiver. 
     
     
       9. The cable defined in  claim 1  wherein the wireless transceiver conveys data while power is conveyed over the power path and wherein the cable segment is free of data wires. 
     
     
       10. The cable defined in  claim 1  further comprising an additional wireless transceiver that wirelessly communicates with the wireless transceiver. 
     
     
       11. The cable defined in  claim 10  wherein the wireless transceiver is mounted in the first connector and wherein the additional wireless transceiver is mounted in the second connector. 
     
     
       12. A method for conveying data between electronic equipment and an associated electronic device using a cable that includes first and second connectors, comprising:
 attaching one end of the cable to the electronic equipment using the first connector; 
 attaching another end of the cable to the electronic device using the second connector; and 
 with transceiver circuitry in the cable, wirelessly transmitting the data. 
 
     
     
       13. The method defined in  claim 12  wherein the first connector comprises a pair of data pins and a pair of power pins, the method further comprising:
 at the transceiver circuitry, receiving the data from the electronic equipment through the pair of data pins and receiving power through the pair of power pins. 
 
     
     
       14. The method defined in  claim 13  wherein the cable includes a power path that is coupled between the first connector and the second connector and wherein the transceiver circuitry is contained within the first connector, the method further comprising:
 at the transceiver circuitry in the first connector, modulating voltages on the power path. 
 
     
     
       15. The method defined in  claim 13  wherein the cable includes a power path that is coupled between the first connector and the second connector and wherein the transceiver circuitry is contained within the first connector, the method further comprising:
 conveying power over the power path from the electronic equipment to the electronic device. 
 
     
     
       16. The method defined in  claim 15  wherein the data comprises media data and wherein wirelessly transmitting the data comprises wirelessly transmitting the media data to a wireless receiver in the electronic device while the power is being conveyed to the electronic device over the power path. 
     
     
       17. The method defined in  claim 16  wherein the wireless transceiver circuitry comprises a first wireless transceiver in the first connector and a second wireless transceiver in the second connector and wherein wirelessly transmitting the data comprises wirelessly transmitting the data from the first transceiver to the second transceiver. 
     
     
       18. A cable, comprising:
 a first connector having data pins and power pins; 
 a wireless transceiver connected to the data pins and the power pins; 
 a length of cable that is free of data lines and that contains power lines that are connected to the power pins in the first connector at a first end of the length of cable; and 
 a second connector that is connected to the power lines at a second end of the length of cable. 
 
     
     
       19. The cable defined in  claim 18  wherein the wireless transceiver is located in the first connector. 
     
     
       20. The cable defined in  claim 19  wherein the second connector comprises an identifier circuit that supplies an identifier that identifies the wireless transceiver. 
     
     
       21. The cable defined in  claim 20  wherein the wireless transceiver has an input that receives data from a computer via the data pins and wherein the wireless transmitter is configured to wirelessly transmit the data received from the computer to an electronic device. 
     
     
       22. The cable defined in  claim 21  wherein the first connector comprises a Universal Serial Bus connector. 
     
     
       23. The cable defined in  claim 21  wherein the second connector comprises a 30-pin connector. 
     
     
       24. The cable defined in  claim 18  further comprising an additional wireless transceiver that wirelessly communicates with the wireless transceiver. 
     
     
       25. The cable defined in  claim 24  wherein the wireless transceiver is mounted in the first connector and wherein the additional wireless transceiver is mounted in the second connector.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     This relates to systems in which electronic devices are provided with power and data from external equipment. 
     Electronic devices such as portable media players and cellular telephones can be attached to external equipment such as power adapters and host computers. For example, a user who desires to charge a battery in an electronic device of this type may attach the device to a power adapter using a cable. When connected in this way, the power adapter may supply power to the device. The power may be used to operate the device and charge its battery. When the user wants to load music files or other data into the device, the electronic device may be connected to host computer using a cable. Power and data can be conveyed to the device from the host computer via the cable. 
     A typical cable for connecting an electronic device to external equipment has a Universal Serial Bus (USB) plug on one end and a 30-pin connector on its other end. The 30-pin connector may be plugged into a mating 30-pin connector in the electronic device. The USB plug may be plugged into a mating USB jack in a power adapter or host computer. Cables of this type have a pair of power wires for conveying power and a pair of data wires for conveying data. The inclusion of these wires in conventional cables can impose undesirable constraints on the size and flexibility of the cable. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved systems for conveying data and power between electronic devices and external equipment. 
     SUMMARY 
     A cable may be provided for connecting electronic devices to electronic equipment such as computers and power adapters. The cable may have power lines for conveying power, but need not include data lines. Wireless transceiver circuitry may be used to convey data. 
     In a typical system environment, electronic equipment such as a host computer may include one or more data ports. The data ports may include, for example, Universal Serial Bus connectors. It may be desirable to use the cable to connect a device such as a cellular telephone, a media player, a tablet computer, or other electronic device to the electronic equipment. The cable may have a first connector such as a Universal Serial Bus connector that plugs into one of the data ports on a computer and a second connector such as a 30-pin connector that plugs into a mating connector in the electronic device. 
     The wireless transceiver circuitry in the cable may be located in the first connector. The first connector may include data pins and power pins. The power pins may be coupled to power circuits in the electronic equipment. The power lines in the cable may convey power from the power pins in the first connector to power pins in the second connector. The second connector may be connected to the electronic device, so that power from the power path may be used to power the electronic device and charge a battery in the electronic device. 
     Data may be conveyed between control circuitry in the electronic equipment and the wireless transceiver circuit through the data pins in the first connector. The data that is received by the transceiver in this way may be wirelessly transmitted to a wireless transceiver in the electronic device. Information may also be wirelessly transmitted from the electronic device to the transceiver in the first connector. 
     To ensure that the wireless communications link that an electronic device forms is associated with a desired wireless transceiver, an identifier may be associated with the wireless transceiver of each cable. The wireless transceiver may convey the identifier to the electronic device using a power line modulation scheme in which an identifying code is conveyed to the electronic device by modulating voltages on the power lines in the cable. If desired, the identifier may be embedded in an identifier circuit such as an identifier circuit located in the second connector of the cable. The identifier may be used to distinguish a given transceiver from other nearby transceivers, thereby helping to ensure that the wireless transceiver in an electronic device establishes wireless communications only with the given transceiver and not the nearby transceivers. 
     To ensure that data can be conveyed wirelessly even if an electronic device does not have built-in wireless transceiver circuitry, a cable may be provided with a pair of transceivers at opposing ends of the cable. The transceivers may communicate wirelessly with each other while power is being routed over the power lines in the cable. 
     Further features of the present invention, its nature and various advantages will be more apparent from the accompanying drawings and the following detailed description. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a schematic view of a system that includes an electronic device, external equipment, and a cable connected between the electronic device and external equipment in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 2  is a flow chart of illustrative steps involved in operating a system of the type shown in  FIG. 1  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram of a system that includes an electronic device, external equipment, and a cable with two wireless transceivers that is connected between the electronic device and external equipment in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
         FIG. 4  is a flow chart if illustrative steps involved in operating a system of the type shown in  FIG. 3  in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     This relates to systems in which electronic devices and external equipment are connected using cables. The cables need not include data lines. For example, the cables may contain a cable portion such as a flexible cylindrical plastic sheath that contains power path lines, but that is free of data lines. This cable arrangement may allow the cables to be compact and flexible. An illustrative system using this type of cable is shown in  FIG. 1 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , system  10  may include external equipment  12  and electronic device  26 . Cable  24  may be used to connect electronic device  26  to external equipment  12 . As indicated by electronic device  26 ′, cable  24 ′, and port  22 ′, system  10  may include multiple electronic devices each of which may be coupled to external equipment  12  by a respective cable. 
     In a typical arrangement, electronic device  26  may be a cellular telephone, tablet computer, or media player and external equipment  12  may be a host computer such as a laptop or desktop computer may be a power adapter. In general, however, external equipment  12  and electronic device  26  may be any suitable types of equipment such as desktop computers, computer monitors that contain computers or that are coupled to computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, cellular telephones, media players, other handheld and portable electronic devices, smaller devices such as wrist-watch devices, pendant devices, headphone and earpiece devices, other wearable and miniature devices, power converters, networking equipment such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) hub equipment, accessories such as computer accessories, or other electronic equipment. 
     Equipment  12  may contain control circuitry  14  and power circuits  16 . Device  26  may include control circuitry  58  and power circuits  60 . Control circuitry  14  and  58  may include storage and processing circuitry based on one or more integrated circuits. Control circuitry  14  and  58  may, for example, include storage such as hard disk drive storage, nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory configured to form a solid state drive), volatile memory (e.g., static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. Processing circuitry in control circuitry  14  and  58  may be used to control the operation of equipment  12  and device  26 . This processing circuitry may be based on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, application specific integrated circuits, etc. 
     Power circuits  16  may receive power from an alternating current (AC) source such as an AC wall outlet or may receive power from a direct current (DC) source such as a battery. Power circuits  16  may include power regulator circuitry for regulating the power that is delivered to equipment  12  and device  26 . Power circuits  16  may be coupled to control circuitry  14  by paths such as path  18 . Power may be delivered to device  26  by power circuits  16  using positive power line  20 P and ground power line  20 N in power path  20 . 
     Part of power path  20  may be located in equipment  12 , part of power path  20  may be located in cable  24 , and part of power path  20  may be located in device  26 . 
     For example, conductive paths such as wires and printed circuit board traces may be used to route power from power circuits  16  to pins in connector  22  of equipment  12  such as positive power terminal (pin)  30  and ground power terminal (pin)  36 . Connector  22  may be, for example, a USB jack. Cable  24  may include a connector such as plug  28  (e.g., a USB plug) that mates with connector  22 . Cable  24  may also have a connector such as connector  46  (e.g., a plug such as a 30-pin plug) that mates with connector  50  (e.g., a 30-pin jack) in device  26 . Connector  46  and connector  50  may be 30-pin connectors, USB connectors, or other suitable connectors. Connectors  28  and  46  may be coupled using cable segment  44 . Segment  44  may be formed from a cable that contains conductive lines, optional shielding, dielectric materials to insulate the conductive lines from each other, and optional strengthening fibers. These components may be surrounded by a dielectric coating such as a cylindrical plastic sheath. The length of segment  44  may be, for example, 1-10 inches, 5-20 inches, 4-30 inches, 6 inches or more, etc. Power path  20  may include conductive paths  20 P and  20 N that lie within connector  28 , conductive paths  20 P and  20 N that lie within cable segment  44 , and conductive paths  20 P and  20 N that lie within connector  46  and device  26 . Paths  20 P and  20 N may be implemented using wires (e.g., insulated wires), printed circuit board traces, or other conductive structures. 
     Electronic device  26  may include power circuits  60 . When device  26  is coupled to equipment  12  by cable  24 , power circuits  60  may receive DC power from equipment  12  over power lines  20 P and  20 N in power path  20 . Power circuits  60  may include battery  62 . When device  26  is connected to equipment  12 , battery  62  may be charged by DC power from equipment  12  (e.g., a power adapter or a host computer that is supplying power through a USB port or other port). When device  26  is disconnected from equipment  12 , battery  62  may be used by power circuits  60  to deliver power to the components of device  26  (e.g., control circuitry  58 , etc.). 
     When connector  28  is connected to connector  22  in equipment  12 , pins (contacts) in connector  22  form electrical connections with corresponding pins (contacts) in connector  28 . In the example of  FIG. 1 , connector  22  has four pins. Two of the pins are connected, respectively, to the positive power line  20 P and ground power line  20 N of power path  20 . These pins, which are sometimes referred to as power pins, mate with corresponding power pins in connector  28  (shown as terminals  30  and  36  in  FIG. 1 ). In connector  28 , paths  20 P and  20 N distribute power from the power pins to wireless transceiver circuitry  38 . The other two pins in connector  22  are sometimes referred to as data pins and mate with corresponding data pins in connector  28  (shown as terminals  32  and  34  in  FIG. 1 ). 
     In equipment  12 , the data pins of connector  22  may be coupled to control circuitry  14  by a data path such as a USB differential data path formed from data lines DP and DN. In connector  28 , the DP and DN lines may be connected to circuitry  38 . Circuitry  38  may include a USB transceiver for communicating with a corresponding USB transceiver in control circuitry  14  over data lines DP and DN. Circuitry  38  may also include wireless transceiver circuitry such as radio-frequency transmitter and receiver circuitry (e.g., Bluetooth® circuitry operating at 2.4 GHz or other suitable wireless communications circuitry). 
     During data transmission operations, control circuitry  14  can send data to transceiver  38  via the wired path formed form lines DP and DN. Transceiver circuitry  38  (e.g., the radio-frequency transmitter in circuitry  38 ) may wirelessly transmit radio-frequency signals that correspond to the received data to wireless transceiver circuitry  42  in device  26  over wireless communications path  40 . 
     During data reception operations, radio-frequency transceiver circuitry  38  (e.g., the radio-frequency receiver in circuitry  38 ) may receive data via path  40  that has been transmitted from device  26  using wireless transceiver circuitry  42 . 
     Circuitry  42  may contain a Bluetooth® transmitter and receiver that supports bidirectional communications with a corresponding Bluetooth® transmitter and receiver in transceiver circuitry  38  or other suitable wireless communications circuitry may be used in supporting wireless communications over wireless link  40 . Control circuitry  58  may be coupled to circuitry  42  by path  59 . Circuitry  58  may transmit information to circuitry  38  over path  40  using circuitry  42  and may receive information from circuitry  38  over path  40  using circuitry  42 . 
     Because wireless link  40  makes it possible to transmit and receive data between equipment  12  and device  26  without using data lines in cable  24  (i.e., without data lines in cable portion  44  of cable  24 ), it is not necessary to include data lines in cable  24 . As shown in  FIG. 1 , transceiver circuitry  38  may receive data from data pins  32  and  34  over corresponding data paths in connector  28 , but cable  44  need contain only power lines  20 P and  20 N. Data lines DN and DP can be omitted from cable  44  and connector  46 . Because data lines DN and DP do not extend along the length of cable  24 , cable  24  (i.e., cable portion  44  of cable  24 ) may be smaller and more flexible than would be possible if data lines DN and DP were included in cable portion  44 ). Paths  20 N and  20 P may be implemented using solid or stranded wire (e.g., copper wire) and may, if desired, be covered with a sheath (e.g., a cylindrical sheath formed from a dielectric such as plastic). Shielding layers and strands of strengthening fiber may be included in cable  44  if desired. 
     As shown in  FIG. 1 , cable  24  may have a connector such as connector  46  that mates with a corresponding connector such as connector  50  in device  26 . Connectors  46  and  50  may be, for example, 30-pin connectors. Positive power path  20 P and ground power path  20 N may be coupled to corresponding positive and ground power pins in connector  46 . The power pins of connectors  46  and  50  are shown as terminals  70  in  FIG. 1 . 
     In device  26 , paths such as path  52  may be used to distribute power to power circuits  60 . Power circuits  60  may use paths such as path  54  to distribute power from path  52  and/or battery  62  to path  56  and control circuitry  58 . 
     Using an arrangement of the type shown in  FIG. 1 , equipment  12  may provide power to device  26  using the wired power paths of cable  24 . Cable  24  need not include data paths and may therefore be formed using a compact and, if desired, flexible cable configuration. When equipment  12  is a power adapter, it may be desirable to use equipment  12  to convey information to device  26  such as information on the power capacity of the power adapter. Device  26  may use information on the power capacity of the power adapter to ensure that power circuits  60  do not draw too much power from equipment  12 . When equipment  12  is a host computer, it may be desirable to use equipment  12  to convey information to device  26  such as content (e.g., media data such as text files, image files, audio files and video files, text data, etc.), control data, information on the power capacity of equipment  12 , information on other capabilities of equipment  12 , and other information. During communications with equipment  12 , it may be desirable to convey information from device  26  to equipment  12  such as control data, handshaking data, information on the operating status of device  26 , information on the capabilities of device  26 , media data, user input, and other information. In the absence of data wires in cable portion  44  of cable  24 , wireless link  40  may be used to convey these various types of data between equipment  12  and device  26 . 
     In system environments in which multiple devices are present, it may be desirable to support a discovery mechanism that ensures that equipment  12  communicates with the correct device. In a typical operating scenario, a user of device  26  may desire to power device  26  using cable  24  and may desire to exchange data with equipment  12  (e.g., to wirelessly sync data between a host computer and device  26 ). The user may plug connector  46  into connector  50  of device  26  and may plug connector  28  into connector  22  of equipment  12 . Equipment  12  may then deliver power to device  26  over power path  20  in cable  24 . Wireless transceiver  38  may form a wireless link with wireless transceiver  42  so that data may be transferred from equipment  12  to device  26  and from device  26  to equipment  12 . 
     To ensure that link  40  is formed with the transceiver circuitry of device  26 , rather than the transceiver circuitry of device  26 ′, cable  24  may provide equipment  26  with identifying information. For example, transceiver  38  may modulate the positive power supply voltage on positive power line  20 P (e.g., by blocking and unblocking the positive power supply voltage to create data bits). The modulation pattern that is impressed upon the voltage on path  20  may be conveyed to device  26  over power path  20 . Control circuitry  58  may receive the modulated power signal via path  52 , path  54 , and path  56  (as an example). 
     Control circuitry  58  may recognize the modulation pattern that is conveyed over power path  20  and may extract an address or other identifier from the modulation pattern. This identifier may be used to uniquely identify the transceiver (e.g., transceiver  38  in cable  24 ) that is being used in communicating data. Because device  26  is informed of the identity of the transceiver that is involved in communications link  40 , device  26  can avoid inadvertently forming link  40  with the wrong transceiver (i.e., device  26  can avoid communicating with the transceiver in cable  24 ′ rather than the transceiver in the cable attached to device  26 ). The identifier that is transmitted to device  26  may be a Bluetooth® identifier and transceiver  42  can be used to form a link with transceiver  38  based on this Bluetooth® identifier (as an example). 
     If desired, the identifier may be conveyed to device  26  from an identifier circuit in cable  24  such as identifier circuit  48 . Circuit  48  may be, for example, a resistor with a resistance value that uniquely identifies a wireless address associated with transceiver circuitry  38 , a voltage divider circuit that uniquely identifies circuitry  38 , or other suitable identifying circuitry. As shown in  FIG. 1 , control circuitry  58  may obtain the identifier from identification circuitry  48  via data pins  68  (e.g., contacts in a 30-pin connector such as connectors  46  and  50 ) and paths  66 . 
     In situations in which device  26  does not receive an identifier (e.g., when device  26  does not receive a modulated power supply signal identifying circuit  38  and does not receive an encoded resistance value or other circuit parameter from identifier circuit  48  because circuit  48  is not present or because equipment  12  is a power adapter without wireless communications capabilities), device  26  can receive power from equipment  12 , can communicate with equipment  12  using data wires in the cable (if present), and can refrain from attempting to form a wireless communications link with equipment  12 . 
     Illustrative steps involved in using a system such as system  10  are shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     At step  72 , a user may connect device  26  to equipment  12  using cable  24 . Equipment  12  may be a power adapter or a host (e.g., a computer with USB data ports such as the port formed with connector  22  of  FIG. 1 ). 
     At step  74 , information on the identity of transceiver  38  may be conveyed to device  26 . For example, transceiver  38  may modulate the voltage on power path  20  (e.g., the positive voltage on path  20 P) to inform device  26  of the identity of transceiver  38 . If desired, cable  24  may be provided with an identifier circuit such as circuit  48  that informs device  26  of the identity of transceiver  38 . The identity of transceiver  38  may be represented using a code such as an address (e.g., wireless address information), a serial number, a batch number, or any other type of identifying information that helps uniquely (or at least somewhat uniquely) identify transceiver  38 . Each transceiver  38  that is manufactured need not be provided with a unique identifier, provided that a sufficient number of identifiers are used. With a sufficient number of identifiers (e.g., hundreds or thousands), the likelihood that a particular user and system  10  will include two identically identified transceivers will be minimal. 
     During the operations of step  74 , additional information such as information on the power capacity of equipment  12  may also be conveyed to device  26 . This information may be transmitted using power line modulation and/or identifier circuitry and may include information on the maximum power handling capabilities of equipment  12  and/or cable  24 . Power line signals may be produced by modulating the voltage on path  20  using transceiver  38 . If desired, control circuitry  14  can convey information to transceiver  38  and transceiver  38  can forward this information using power line modulation. Control circuitry  14  may also direct power circuits  16  to modulate the voltages on path  20  to convey information to device  26 . 
     After obtaining information that identifies transceiver  38 , electronic device  26  may use transceiver circuitry  42  in establishing wireless link  40  with transceiver  38  (step  76 ). The identifying information distinguishes transceiver  38  from other transceivers in system  10  and thereby ensures that link  40  will be formed between the proper pair of transceivers (i.e., between transceiver  38  and transceiver  42  in the example of  FIG. 1 ). 
     Establishing wireless link  40  between transceiver  38  and transceiver  42  allows data to be transferred between connector  28  and device  26  without the need to use data wires in cable segment  44  of cable  24 . Because cable  24  does not need to include data wires, its thickness can be minimized. During the operations of step  78 , data can be conveyed between control circuitry  14  of equipment  12  and control circuitry  58  of electronic device  26 . Data may be conveyed between control circuitry  14  and transceiver  38  using a wired data path formed form data lines DP and DN ( FIG. 1 ). Data may be conveyed wirelessly over link  40  between transceiver  38  in connector  28  and transceiver  42  in device  26 . The data that is conveyed may be media data, control data, or other information. Power can be conveyed using power path  20 . This allows device  26  to be powered and allows battery  62  in device  26  to be charged via cable  24  at the same time that data is being wirelessly conveyed over wireless link  40 . Information on the power capacity of equipment  12  and/or cable  24  may be used when powering device  26  (see, e.g., step  80 ). For example, device  26  can configure power circuits  60  so that power circuits  60  draw no more than a maximum allowable amount of power from cable  24  and equipment  12 . 
     Operations of the type set forth in  FIG. 2  may be used in system environments that contain multiple cables and multiple electronic devices, because of the identifier (ID) that is provided for each transceiver  38  (by power line modulation by transceiver  38  based on an ID value stored in the transceiver  38  or by an identity value stored in identifier circuit  48 ). In environments in which a device is connected to equipment  12  using a legacy cable (i.e., a cable whose connectors does not include a wireless transceiver), data may be conveyed between equipment  12  and that device using data paths in the legacy cable, while devices that are connected to equipment  12  with cables  24  can transmit and receive data wirelessly using the wireless capabilities of cables  24 . 
     If desired, a cable in system  10  may be provided with a pair of matched wireless transceivers. One transceiver may be associated with one end of the cable and the other transceiver may be associated with the other end of the cable. For example, a first wireless transceiver may be mounted in a first plug at a first end of the cable and a second wireless transceiver may be mounted in a second plug at a second (opposing) end of the cable. The cable may contain power wires (e.g., positive and ground wires), but need not contain any data wires. When it is desired to transmit data (e.g., media files, control information, etc.), the wireless transceivers at either end of the cable can communicate with each other. This type of arrangement makes it possible for devices without wireless capabilities to communicate with the host. 
     An example of this type of arrangement is shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , external equipment (host)  12  may contain control circuitry  14  that communicates over a wired data path (e.g., wires DD and DN) with wireless transceiver  38  in plug (connector)  28 . At the other end of cable  24 , electronic device  26  may be connected to plug (connector)  46  of cable  24 . Control circuitry  58  in device  26  may communicate with wireless transceiver  42 ′ in plug  46  using wired path  59 ′. Cable segment  44  may contain power lines  20 P and  20 N in power path  20  for routing power from external equipment  12  to electronic device  26 , but need not contain any data lines. 
     Transceivers  38  and  42 ′ may each be preprogrammed to recognize each other during wireless transmissions (i.e., transceivers  38  and  42 ′ may be set up as a matched pair by providing transceiver  38  with address information for transceiver  42 ′ and by providing transceiver  42 ′ with address information for transceiver  38 ). Using the address information, wireless transmissions from transceiver  38  may be transmitted to transceiver  42 ′ and received by transceiver  42 ′, whereas wireless transmissions from transceiver  42 ′ may be transmitted to transceiver  38  and received by transceiver  38 . Wireless link  40 ′ between transceivers  38  and  42 ′ may be used to convey data such as media files, status information, control commands, information on the capability of equipment  12  to deliver power, information identifying equipment  12  and equipment  26 , etc. At the same time, power can be conveyed over paths  20 P and  20 N. 
     Illustrative steps involved in operating the equipment of system  10  of  FIG. 3  are shown in  FIG. 4 . 
     At step  82 , a user may connect device  26  to equipment  12  using cable  24  of  FIG. 3 . Cable  24  may contain a pair of mated wireless transceivers, so that cable segment  44  need not include data wires. Equipment  12  may be a power adapter or a host (e.g., a computer with USB data ports such as the port formed with connector  22  of  FIG. 1 ). 
     At step  84 , control circuitry  14  of equipment  12  may form a connection with transceiver  38  over data path lines DD and DN and equipment  58  may form a connection with transceiver circuitry  42 ′ over data path  59 ′. Paths such as the path formed using lines DD and DN and the path formed by lines  59 ′ may, for example, use a serial communications link protocol such as a Universal Serial Bus protocol (as an example). Wireless transceivers  38  and  42 ′ may be preprogrammed (e.g., during manufacturing) with address information that allows transceivers  38  and  42 ′ to establish wireless link  40 ′ when powered by power path lines  20 P and  20 N. By using sufficiently unique addressing information for transceivers  38  and  42 ′ during manufacturing, the potential for forming link  40 ′ between any pair of transceivers other than transceivers  38  and  42 ′ may be minimized or eliminated. 
     At step  86 , following establishment of wireless link  40 ′, data can be transferred wirelessly between connector  28  and connector  46  of cable  24  in  FIG. 3  without the need to use data wires in cable segment  44  of cable  24 . Because cable  24  does not need to include data wires, its thickness can be minimized. The data that is conveyed may be media data, control data, information on the power capacity of equipment  12  or cable  24 , or other information. 
     Power can be conveyed using power path  20 . This allows device  26  to be powered and allows the battery in device  26  to be charged via cable  24  at the same time that data is being wirelessly conveyed over wireless link  40 ′. Information on the power capacity of equipment  12  and/or cable  24  may be used when powering device  26  (see, e.g., step  88 ). For example, device  26  can configure its power circuits (see, e.g., power circuits  60  of  FIG. 1 ) so that the power circuits draw no more than a maximum allowable amount of power from cable  24  and equipment  12 . 
     Operations of the type set forth in  FIG. 4  may be used in system environments that contain multiple cables and multiple electronic devices, because each pair of cable transceivers (i.e., transceiver  38  in connector  28  and transceiver  42 ′ in connector  46  at the opposite end of cable  24  and segment  44 ) may be matched by assigning known addresses to the transceivers during manufacturing. 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative of the principles of this invention and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20100908
Publication Date: 20130514
Grant Date: 20130514
Priority Date: 20100908
Inventors: SIMS NICHOLAS A.
TERLIZZI JEFFREY J.
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "G06F1/266", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F13/4068", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F13/4068", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "G06F1/266", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 45771078