System and Method for Information Handling System Battery With Integrated Communication Ports
Space along the perimeter of a portable information handling system is made available for I/O connections with external devices by integrating I/O ports into a battery housing having some length extending along the perimeter. The I/O ports interface with the information handling system with wires running through the battery housing from the I/O ports to a location aligned with connectors of the information handling system, such as in a chassis bay sized to accept the battery housing. In one embodiment, the battery housing has a first portion for containing battery cells and a second portion that couples to the first portion, the second portion having selected I/O ports for selective configuration of the information handling system with desired I/O ports.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of information handling system communications, and more particularly to a system and method for information handling system battery with integrated communication ports.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handling system users tend to prefer systems with as much processing power as possible in as small of a footprint as possible for a given price point. In addition, end users tend to prefer systems that provide mobility, such as portable systems that typically have an integrated display and a battery power source. As a result, information handling system manufacturers have generally sought to design portable information handling systems having as much functionality as possible in as small of a portable chassis as possible. One difficulty that commonly arises in the design of such portable information handling systems is including a battery having a charge sufficient enough so that the information handling system can operate independent of an external power source for an adequate period of time. One solution to this difficulty is to use components that consume reduced amounts of power; however, components that offer greater functionality, such as CPUs with more rapid clock speeds, also tend to consume greater amounts of power. Another solution is to use a battery that carries a greater charge; however, batteries with greater charge capacity tend to have a larger size. Including a battery with a larger size in a portable information handling system chassis tends to reduce the footprint available for components and, thus, tends to reduce the functionality of the information handling system.
In an effort to increase the room available for a battery within an information handling system, the battery is sometimes built into a housing that couples to an internal port of the information handling system at one end and extends out the rear of the information past the rear wall of the chassis. For example, an information handling system user can insert a six cell battery into a rear battery port that aligns with the rear wall of the chassis or can insert a nine cell battery into a rear battery port to obtain extra battery life with the rear wall of the battery extending past the rear wall of the chassis to provide room for the extra battery cells. In addition to providing more room for additional battery cells, a rear battery design is more conducive to slimming the industrial design of the front edge of the information handling system. Unfortunately, perimeter space for portable information handling systems is typically in short supply. A variety of I/O ports are typically disposed along the perimeter of a portable information handling system chassis, and a variety of internal and peripheral devices also typically use perimeter space, such as optical drives, hard disk drives, fan exhaust, etc. . . . Generally, the front perimeter of a portable information handling system does not adapt well to support I/O ports for aesthetic and practical reasons, so using valuable perimeter space at the rear of a portable information handling system to accept a battery tends to limit the functionality supported by the information handling system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONTherefore a need has arisen for a system and method which integrates I/O ports into a battery housing for use at the rear of a portable information handling system.
In accordance with the present invention, a system and method are provided which substantially reduce the disadvantages and problems associated with previous methods and systems for supporting communications with a portable information handling system. I/O ports are integrated in a battery housing to support communication between external devices and an information handling system with a communication interface established through the battery housing.
More specifically, an information handling system chassis has a bay sized to accept a battery. The battery has a battery housing that contains battery cells and connects to a power connector of the information handling system located in the bay so that the cells provide power to the information handling system. The battery housing integrates I/O ports along an exterior perimeter so that the I/O ports are exposed along the chassis perimeter when the battery is inserted in the chassis bay. Signals are communicated between the I/O ports and the information handling system with wires that run along the battery housing to I/O port connectors disposed in the chassis bay. As the battery is inserted into the chassis bay, the battery connectors and I/O port connectors between the battery housing and information handling system align and couple with each other. In one embodiment, the battery inserts into a chassis bay located at the rear of an information handling system so that I/O ports exposed along the outer periphery of the battery housing are disposed proximate the rear perimeter of the chassis for convenient access by an end user.
The present invention provides a number of important technical advantages. One example of an important technical advantage is that I/O ports are provided at the rear of a portable information handling system having a rear mounted battery. The use of a rear-mounted battery having integrated I/O ports provides more design freedom in the use of perimeter space to support desired functionality. End users can order ports integrated with a battery as a build-to-order option so that the cost of the information handling system is only selectively increased based on end-user preferences. By integrating lesser-used or duplicative ports in the battery housing, the cost for many end users will not increase for an information handling system having desired functionality, while the availability of extra battery life will provide increased satisfaction to many end users. The expense of the additional I/O ports will remain minimal by routing wire line at the battery housing between the I/O ports and supporting connections within the information handling system where the battery is inserted.
The present invention may be better understood, and its numerous objects, features and advantages made apparent to those skilled in the art by referencing the accompanying drawings. The use of the same reference number throughout the several figures designates a like or similar element.
Providing I/O ports integrated in a battery housing increases the effective perimeter space of an information handling system for improved functionality in a reduced footprint. For purposes of this disclosure, an information handling system may include any instrumentality or aggregate of instrumentalities operable to compute, classify, process, transmit, receive, retrieve, originate, switch, store, display, manifest, detect, record, reproduce, handle, or utilize any form of information, intelligence, or data for business, scientific, control, or other purposes. For example, an information handling system may be a personal computer, a network storage device, or any other suitable device and may vary in size, shape, performance, functionality, and price. The information handling system may include random access memory (RAM), one or more processing resources such as a central processing unit (CPU) or hardware or software control logic, ROM, and/or other types of nonvolatile memory. Additional components of the information handling system may include one or more disk drives, one or more network ports for communicating with external devices as well as various input and output (I/O) devices, such as a keyboard, a mouse, and a video display. The information handling system may also include one or more buses operable to transmit communications between the various hardware components.
Referring now to
Information handling system 10 increases the amount of the perimeter of chassis 26 that can accept I/O ports by integrating I/O ports 12 in battery housing 14. Battery 30 is sized to fit in chassis bay 28 so that battery connectors 42 align between battery 30 and chassis bay 28 to provide power from battery 30 to information handling system 10. In addition to aligning battery connectors 42, battery 30 fits in chassis bay 28 to align I/O port connectors 44 between battery 30 and chassis bay 28 so that I/O signals are communicated from I/O ports 12 integrated in battery housing 14 to processing components of information handling system 10. I/O ports 12 integrated in battery housing 14 may include any of the ports listed above or other more specialized ports. In one embodiment, a manufacturer builds information handling system 10 to an end user order that defines the types of I/O ports 12 that are integrated in battery housing 14. For example, specialized I/O ports and I/O ports that are not commonly sought by end users are made available to end users at additional cost by including the I/O ports in a battery housing 14.
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Although the present invention has been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made hereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims
1-9. (canceled)
10. A method for communicating with an information handling system, the method comprising:
- receiving communication signals at a port, the port integrated at a battery housing outer surface, the battery housing outer surface exposed at the exterior of the information handling system;
- transmitting the communication signals from the port along the battery housing to a location at the battery housing outer surface, the location exposed at the interior surface of the information handling system; and
- transmitting the communication signals from the location at the battery housing outer surface to a location at the interior surface of the information handling system for use by the information handling system.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein the port comprises an HDMI port.
12. The method of claim 10 wherein the port comprises a component video port.
13. The method of claim 10 wherein the port comprises an S-video port.
14. The method of claim 10 wherein transmitting the communication signals further comprises:
- transmitting the communication signals through one or more wires to a port at the location at the battery housing outer surface; and
- transmitting the communication signals from the port at the location at the battery housing outer surface to a port at the location at the interior surface of the information handling system.
15. The method of claim 10 wherein transmitting the communication signals further comprises:
- transmitting the communication signals from the port to a hub located in the battery housing; and
- transmitting the communication signals from the hub to the location at the battery housing outer surface exposed at the interior surface of the information handling system.
16. The method of claim 10 wherein the battery housing comprises first and second portions, the first portion having the port, the second portion having the battery, the method comprising:
- separating the first portion from the second portion, the first portion having a first configuration of one or more ports; and
- attaching a replacement first portion to the second portion, the replacement first portion having a second configuration of one or more ports.
17.-20. (canceled)
21. A method for communicating information at an information handling system, the method comprising:
- interfacing a device with the information handling system at a port disposed in a battery housing of the information handling system; and
- communicating signals between the device and the information handling system with one or more wires interfacing the port with the information handling system, the one or more wires routed through the battery housing to the information handling system.
22. The method of claim 21 wherein the port comprises a USB port.
23. The method of claim 22 further comprising:
- interfacing plural devices with the information handling system at plural ports disposed in the battery housing of the information handling system; and
- communicating signals from each port with one or more wires to a hub disposed in the battery housing, the hub communicating the signals from the battery housing to the information handling system.
24. The method of claim 21 further comprising processing the signals at the battery housing for communication to the information handling system.
25. The method of claim 21 wherein the port comprises an HDMI port.
26. The method of claim 21 wherein the port comprises a display device port.
27. The method of claim 21 wherein the port comprises a networking port.
28. The method of claim 21 wherein communicating further comprises communicating signals from the information handling system to the device.
29. The method of claim 21 wherein communicating further comprises communicating signals from the device to the information handling system.
30. The method of claim 21 wherein communicating further comprises communicating the signals through a hub disposed in the battery housing.
31. The method of claim 30 wherein the hub comprises a PCI Express controller.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 23, 2009
Publication Date: Feb 18, 2010
Inventors: Philip Seibert (Round Rock, TX), Johnny Fraga (Round Rock, TX)
Application Number: 12/604,681
International Classification: G06F 13/00 (20060101);