(19) United States
`(12) Patent Application Publication (10) Pub. No.: US 2008/0132168 A1
`
` Segev et al. (43) Pub. Date: Jun. 5, 2008
`
`
`US 20080132168A1
`
`(54) PORTABLE COMMUNICATION DEVICE
`WITH DETACHABLE WIRELESS HEADSET
`
`(76)
`
`Inventors:
`
`Gil Segev, Tel Aviv (IL); Ziv Nevo,
`Shoresh (IL); Tal GOOI‘i, Gederam
`(IL); Anna Feldman, Be’er Sheva
`IL
`(
`)
`
`Correspondence Address:
`INTEL CORPORATION
`/
`INTELLEVATE LLC
`:00 BOX 52050
`’
`3
`NIIhINEAPOLIS MN 55402
`
`(21) Appl. No.:
`
`11/607,555
`
`(22)
`
`Filed:
`
`Nov. 30, 2006
`
`100
`
`\'
`
`Publication Classification
`
`(51)
`
`Int. Cl.
`(2006.01)
`H04B 7/00
`(200601)
`H04M 1/00
`(52) US. Cl. ..................................... 455/412; 455/575.2
`(57)
`ABSTRACT
`A portable communication device such a mobile phone is
`disclosed which may be configured to communicate using a
`wireless personal area network (WPAN) protocol and one or
`more wireless local area network (WLAN), wireless metro-
`politan area network (WMAN) or wireless wide area network
`(WWAN) protocols. The portable communication device
`includes a port to store and/or charge a separate WPAN device
`such as a wireless headset and in certain embodiments, the
`port may charge a battery of wireless headset so that both the
`portable communication device and wireless headset may be
`carried as an integrated single unit and/or charged using a
`single charging cord. Additional embodiments and variations
`are also disclosed.
`
`
`
`110
`
`1
`
`APPLE 1048
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`1
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`APPLE 1048
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`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Jun. 5, 2008 Sheet 1 0f 2
`
`US 2008/0132168 A1
`
`
`
`110
`
`2
`
`

`

`Patent Application Publication
`
`Jun. 5, 2008 Sheet 2 of 2
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`US 2008/0132168 A1
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`200
`
`\‘l
`
`WPAN/WLAN/
`WMANNVWAN
`Communication
`
`Interface
`
`21 5
`
`220
`
`HO
`
`_
`
`202
`
`21 0
`
`Display
`
`212
`
`230
`
` AC. Power
`
`Input
`
`205
`
`DC. Power Supply
`
`WPAN Com.
`Device
`
`(Removeable)
`
`240
`
`250
`
`3
`
`

`

`US 2008/0132168 A1
`
`Jun. 5, 2008
`
`PORTABLE COMMUNICATION DEVICE
`WITH DETACHABLE WIRELESS HEADSET
`
`BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
`
`such as cell
`[0001] Wireless communication devices
`phones have become very popular in recent years. At the time
`of this disclosure it is estimated that there are over 2.2 billion
`
`mobile subscriber connections worldwide. As the popularity
`of these devices has increased, a smaller form factor and
`increased media capabilities for mobile handsets has been the
`subject of unending pursuit.
`[0002] Additionally, the development of short range wire-
`less technologies such as BLUETOOTHTM or other protocols
`for wireless personal area networks (WPANs) have lead to the
`development of wireless headsets that can be used with fixed
`and portable communication devices.
`[0003] Currently, short range wireless headsets and longer
`range communication devices, although useable together, are
`independent and unrelated devices. This requires a user of
`both types of devices to carry each device separately and
`charge each device on its own terms using dedicated charging
`devices. Accordingly, it would be desirable to integrate a
`short range wireless device with a long range communication
`device to facilitate increased portability and/or reduce charg-
`ing requirements of two independent and unrelated systems.
`
`BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
`
`[0004] Aspects, features and advantages of embodiments
`of the present invention will become apparent from the fol-
`lowing description of the invention in reference to the
`appended drawing in which like numerals denote like ele-
`ments and in which:
`
`FIG. 1 is diagram of an example wireless device
`[0005]
`including both a short range wireless device and a long range
`wireless device according to various embodiments; and
`[0006]
`FIG. 2 is a block diagram ofa power supply arrange-
`ment for integrating long range and short range wireless
`communication devices according to one embodiment.
`
`DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
`
`[0007] While the following detailed description may
`describe example embodiments of the present invention in
`relation to wireless personal area networks (WPANs), the
`invention is not limited thereto and can be adapted using other
`types of wireless networks where similar advantages may be
`obtained. Such networks specifically include, if applicable,
`broadband wireless metropolitan area networks (WMANs),
`wireless local area networks (WLANs) and/or wireless wide
`area networks (WWANs) such a cellular networks and the
`like.
`
`[0008] The following inventive embodiments may be used
`in a variety of applications including transceivers or receivers
`of a radio system. Radio systems specifically included within
`the scope of the present invention include, but are not limited
`to, cellular radiotelephone systems, satellite systems, per-
`sonal communication systems (PCS), two-way radio systems
`and two-way pagers as well as computing devices including
`such radio systems such as personal computers (PCs) and
`related peripherals, personal digital assistants (PDAs), per-
`sonal computing accessories, hand-held communication
`devices and all existing and future arising systems which may
`be related in nature and to which the principles of the inven-
`tive embodiments could be suitably applied.
`
`[0009] Turning to FIG. 1, a wireless communication system
`100 according to various inventive embodiments may include
`any type ofprimary computing or communication device 110
`such as a cell phone; personal digital assistant, gaming
`device, laptop, ultra mobile personal computer, or even a
`desktop personal computer having a wireless network adap-
`tor. Primary communication device 110 may be capable of
`wirelessly communicating over tens, hundreds and perhaps
`thousands ofmeters (i.e., long-range communications) with a
`network access station such as a base station or access point.
`Primary communication device 110 may also be capable of
`wirelessly communicating with a secondary short range com-
`munication device 150 using short-range frequencies and/or
`protocols.
`[0010]
`For example, primary communication device 110
`may be configured to use one or more protocols specified in
`by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
`(IEEE) 802.1 la, b, g or 11 standards for wireless local area
`networks (WLANS) such as IEEE 802.11a-l999; IEEE 802.
`l lb-l999/Corl-2001; IEEE 802.11g-2003; and/orIEEE 802.
`lln (not yet published) or for wireless metropolitan area
`networks (WMANs) such as IEEE 802.16 standards for
`broadband wireless access such as IEEE 802.16-2004/Corl-
`
`2005 or IEEE 802.16-2005 Amendment although the inven-
`tive embodiments are not limited in this respect.
`[0011] Alternatively or in addition, primary communica-
`tion device 110 may use protocols for wireless wide area
`networks (WWANs) or cellular networks such a those com-
`patible with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP),
`code division multiple access (CDMA) networks, or any
`other single carrier or multi-carrier network protocols.
`[0012] Both primary communication device 110 and short
`range communication device 150 may be configured to com-
`municate with each other using short range wireless commu-
`nication protocols such as BLUETOOTHTM, or protocols for
`WPANs compatible with IEEE 802.15 standards such as ultra
`wide band (UWB) and/or millimeter Wave (mmW) protocols.
`[0013]
`In certain embodiments, short range device 150 may
`be a wireless headset for conveying voice and/or video infor-
`mation of a user to and from a network access station via
`
`communication device 110. As mentioned previously, com-
`munication devices and wireless headsets are separately well
`known in the art and thus more detailed description of their
`conventional operation is
`therefore omitted. However,
`according to inventive embodiments herein, primary commu-
`nication device 11 0 may be adapted to reduce the independent
`nature of short range device 150 by incorporating a charging
`and/or storing port 112.
`[0014]
`For example, in one embodiment, primary commu-
`nication device 112 may include a port 112 which is adapted
`to store the short range wireless device 150 when it is not in
`use. In this manner, a user may carry or store both primary
`device 110 and short range device 150 as a single unit.
`[0015]
`In other embodiments, instead of serving as a stor-
`age area, port 112 may serve as an electrical charging port to
`charge a battery in short range device 150 via the power
`resources of primary communication device 110. In yet fur-
`ther embodiments, port 112 may serve as both a storage area
`and a charging port for short range communication device
`150. Thus by way of example, a user may carry a cellular
`device that will include an integrated BLUETOOTHTM head-
`set. While carried in an integrated mode, the headset may be
`charged from the cellular device battery. Advantages obtained
`by the inventive embodiments over the separate systems of
`
`4
`
`

`

`US 2008/0132168 Al
`
`Jun. 5, 2008
`
`the conventional art include enhanced user mobility, mini-
`mized number of carry-on items for air travel, no need for
`separate charging of the wireless headset and manual syn-
`chronization between the headset and mobile device may no
`longer be required.
`[0016] Turning to FIG. 2, a general block diagram is shown
`for an example communication system 200 having a power
`distribution for various embodiments of system 100 ofFIG. 1.
`It should be recognized that system 200 of FIG. 2 is shown for
`purposes of understanding functional principles of the inven-
`tive embodiments and is not intended to show actual circuit-
`
`level or component-level architecture. System 200 may
`include a power bus 202 to supply power to various compo-
`nents of a communication platform such as a processor 205, a
`display device 210, memory 212, communication interface
`215, and/or various input output devices (I/O) 220.
`[0017] Bus 202 may be implemented as substrate power
`lines and/or connectors or part of a component communica-
`tion or power bus. Bus 202 may be coupled to a direct current
`DC. power supply 240 such as a lithium Ion (Li-Ion) or other
`type of battery and/or an alternating current (AC) power
`supply 230 which may include anA.C. to DC. transformer, to
`provide power to various components of system 200.
`[0018] According to certain embodiments of the present
`invention, DC. power supply 240 of system 200 may also be
`used to provide power to a short range communication device
`250 such as a BLUETOOTHTM enabled wireless headset or
`other removable WPAN communication device as discussed
`
`previously. Thus when WPAN device 250 is connected to
`system 200, DC. power supply 240 of system 200 thus pro-
`vides the power for charging the battery ofWPAN device 250.
`[0019] Communication interface 215 may be a network
`adaptor for a computer or may include various components to
`provide the OTA interfaces for WPAN communication with
`WPAN device 250 and one or more ofthe WLAN, WMAN or
`WWAN protocols for longer range communications as dis-
`cussed above. I/O 220 may include various on-board equip-
`ment such as a keyboard, cursor controller, microphone,
`speaker as well as any external ports such as a headset jack,
`universal serial bus (USB), infrared (IR) or other type of serial
`or parallel communication port. Memory 212 may be any
`type of volatile or non-volatile memory to store information
`to be used by processor 205.
`In certain embodiments,
`memory 212 may include a fixed or removable flash memory.
`[0020] Unless contrary to physical possibility, the inventors
`envision the methods described herein: (i) may be performed
`in any sequence and/or in any combination; and (ii) the com-
`ponents of respective embodiments may be combined in any
`manner.
`
`[0021] Although there have been described example
`embodiments of this novel invention, many variations and
`modifications are possible without departing from the scope
`of the invention. Accordingly the inventive embodiments are
`not limited by the specific disclosure above, but rather should
`be limited only by the scope of the appended claims and their
`legal equivalents.
`The invention claimed is:
`
`1. An apparatus for wireless communication, the apparatus
`comprising:
`a portable communication device configured to communi-
`cate using a wireless personal area network (WPAN)
`protocol and one or more wireless local area network
`(WLAN), wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN)
`or wireless wide area network (WWAN) protocols,
`
`wherein the portable communication device includes a
`port to charge a battery of a separate WPAN device.
`2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the portable commu-
`nication device comprises a mobile phone and wherein the
`separate WPAN device comprises a wireless headset.
`3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the apparatus com-
`prises both the portable communication device and the wire-
`less headset.
`
`4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the WPAN protocols
`comprise BLUETOOTHTM protocols.
`5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the portable commu-
`nication device includes a cavity to store the WPAN device at
`least partially within the portable communication device
`when the WPAN device is coupled to the port.
`6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the portable commu-
`nication device comprises a portable computer using WLAN
`protocols compatible with one or more of the Institute of
`Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.1 1 standards.
`7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus uses
`WMAN protocols compatible with the IEEE 802.16-2005
`standard.
`
`8. An apparatus for wireless communication comprising:
`a processor;
`
`a radio frequency (RF) communication interface in com-
`munication with the processor, the RF communication
`interface adapted to communicate wirelessly with both
`wireless personal area network (WPAN) devices and
`one or more wireless local area network (WLAN), wire-
`less metropolitan area network (WMAN) or wireless
`wide area network (WWAN) devices;
`a power supply to power the processor and RF communi-
`cation interface; and
`a charging port coupled to the power supply and configured
`to charge a separate wireless headset unit from the power
`supply.
`9. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the charging port is
`configured to store the separate wireless headset unit at least
`partially within the apparatus when the wireless headset unit
`is coupled to the charging port.
`10. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the RF communica-
`tion interface uses BLUETOOTHTM protocols to communi-
`cate with the separate wireless headset.
`11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the RF communica-
`tion interface uses ultra wideband (UWB) protocols to com-
`municate with the separate wireless headset.
`12. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the apparatus com-
`prises one of a mobile phone, a personal computer, or a
`personal digital assistant.
`13. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the power source
`comprises a battery.
`14. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein RF communication
`interface uses protocols compatible with one or more of the
`Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) 802.
`11 or 802.16 standards to respectively communicate with
`WLAN or WMAN devices.
`
`15. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the RF communica-
`tion interface uses global system for mobile communications
`(GSM) or code division multiple access (CDMA) protocols
`for communication with WWAN devices.
`
`5
`
`

`

`US 2008/0132168 A1
`
`Jun. 5, 2008
`
`18. The system of claim 16 wherein the wireless headset
`storage port is further configured as a charging port to charge
`a battery in the wireless headset from a battery in the portable
`communication deVice.
`
`16. A mobile communication system comprising:
`a portable communication deVice comprising a processor,
`a flash memory coupled with the processor and a wire-
`less headset storage port; and
`a wireless headset adapted to wirelessly communicate with
`the portable communication deVice using wireless per-
`sonal area network (WPAN) protocols, wherein the
`wireless headset storage port of the portable communi-
`cation deVice is configured to receive and store the wire-
`less headset when the wireless headset is not in use.
`
`17. The system of claim 16 wherein the WPAN protocols
`comprise BLUETOOTHTM protocols.
`
`19. The system of claim 16 wherein the portable commu-
`nication deVice comprises a mobile phone.
`20. The system of claim 16 wherein the portable commu-
`nication deVice comprises one of a lap top computer or ultra
`mobile personal computer.
`*
`>X<
`
`*
`
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`
`*
`
`6
`
`