System status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port
Contents
1. adjacent the at least one connecting port junction 8 The connecting port device with embedded light indi cators as claimed in the claim 7 wherein the light indicators are light emitting diodes 9 The connecting port device with embedded light indi cators as claimed in the claim 7 wherein the connecting port is a USB connecting port 10 The connecting port device with embedded light indicators as claimed in the claim 9 wherein the USB connecting port includes two USB connecting port junctions and wherein the light indicators are embedded in a space between the USB port connectors 11 The connecting port device with embedded light indicators as claimed in the claim 7 wherein the connecting port is a printer connecting port 12 The connecting port device with embedded light indicators as claimed in the claim 11 wherein the printer port includes at least one printer connecting port junction and wherein the light indicators are embedded in a space between the at least one printer connecting port and the I O shield 13 The connecting port device with embedded light indicators according to claim 7 wherein the computer further comprises an error message processor for outputting an error message data corresponding to the warning signal NECK2. error indicates system turn on One long and two short Errors on the EGA card Two short There are errors and is indicated on the monitor One long and three short Errors on the keyboard controller TABLE III Boot up Warnings for the BIOS of AMI Beep Meaning 1 Defects on the memory regain chipset 2 Errors found while checking the first 64K of memory 3 Defects on the first 64K of memory and are unreadable 4 Clock on the motherboard is out of order 5 CPU breakdown 6 keyboard controller breakdown disabled to enter the protected mode 7 Errors on the abnormal interrupt of CPU 8 Errors on the read write memory display region 9 Errors on the checking value of ROM 10 Errors on the read write of CMOS shutoff register 11 Errors on the cache From the tables above we find that the boot up warnings set by different PC vendors make use of long and short beep combinations to indicate problems that arise during the booting up process to users However since the specifica tions set by each vendor are not the same and most users would not remember the meanings of the different warning signals there is no point in having guick self maintenance for understanding the meanings of different boot warnings in the internal process of computers SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly the present invention is to provide a system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port suitable for use for a BIOS program when the BIOS program detects that e
3. on If it cannot run the BIOS program normally while in the process of booting up the computer generally the hardware can withstand certain problems the problems should first be removed before continuing further operations thereby ensuring that the computer is running in the optimal mode However in order not to infringe to the copyrights of the BIOS originally made by IBM the BIOS programs designed by different vendors may process them with the same function but different program codes using the error mes sage data in the above described POST program procedure as an example the boot up warnings of the BIOS programs of three different vendors IBM AWARD AMI are defined differently and listed in the tables below TABLE I Boot up Warnings for the BIOS of IBM Beep Meaning None Power supply and CPU breakdown Continuous Memory breakdown Short System self test normal condition 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 2 TABLE I continued Boot up Warnings for the BIOS of IBM Beep Meaning Two short Error found during self test and it is displayed on the monitor Power supply and motherboard breakdown Errors on the motherboard Errors on the display Errors on the EGA card Continuous short One long and one short One long and two short One long and three short Three long Errors on the keyboard controller TABLE II Boot up Warnings for the BIOS of AWARD Beep Meaning One short Not an
4. D light indicators 16a 16d embedded in the space 208 FIG 3A illustrates a conventional printer connecting port wherein the printer connecting port 30 includes a printer connecting port I O shield 35 and a junction 31 of the printer connecting port FIG 3B illustrates a printer connecting port 300 in a preferred embodiment featuring system status light indica tors embedded in a connecting port according to the present invention Since there is only a narrow space 308 between the junction 301 of printer connecting port 300 and the I O shield 305 therefore the preferred embodiment featuring the system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port stays as near as possible to the I O shield 305 of the printer connecting port 300 in the present inven tion Consequently the system status can be clearly indi cated by identifying a plurality of the LED indicators 16a 16d and meanwhile the electromagnetic radiation pro tection is not affected In summary of the above it can be seen that the system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port in the present invention the conventional beep settings by various vendors can be modified into light signals Thus users can quickly locate the problems without having to guess at the meaning of the beeps or to perform checks on the peripheral devices one by one The present invention has been disclosed using an exem plary preferred embodiment However it is to be under
5. a United States Patent US006657548B2 10 Patent No US 6 657 548 B2 Dai 45 Date of Patent Dec 2 2003 54 SYSTEM STATUS LIGHT INDICATOR 6 501 897 B1 12 2002 German et al 385 134 DEVICE EMBEDDED IN A CONNECTING 6 503 105 B1 1 2003 Johnsen 439 668 PORT 75 Inventor Ming Hou Dai Taoyuan TW 73 Assignee Asustek Computer Inc Taipei TW Notice Subject to any disclaimer the term of this patent is extended or adjusted under 35 U S C 154 b by 252 days 21 Appl No 09 852 005 22 Filed May 10 2001 65 Prior Publication Data US 2002 0032885 A1 Mar 14 2002 30 Foreign Application Priority Data May 11 2000 TW occcoonccncnncconnanonnnincnnanonacono 89207905 U GN E O AA G08B 5 22 GO9F 9 33 52 U S Cl 340 815 45 439 490 361 788 58 Field of Search 340 815 45 815 4 340 815 42 815 52 693 5 815 49 439 488 490 917 361 601 686 788 56 References Cited U S PATENT DOCUMENTS 5 685 741 A 11 1997 Dewey et al 439 668 11 11 HH von maa 4 L p 12 cited by examiner Primary Examiner Toan N Pham 74 Attorney Agent or Firm Rabin amp Berdo P C 57 ABSTRACT A system status light indicator device embedded in a con necting port is made up of an error message processor and a plurality of light emitting diodes LED
6. age corresponding to the light indicators recorded in the user s manual to guide the user to locate precisely where the problem is The above described error message data uses the light indicators 16a 16d to indicate the causes of breakdown and enables the user to easily understand what the computer problem is so that maintenance and further handling can be facilitated FIG 2A illustrates a conventional USB connecting port 20 in consideration of Electro magnetic interference EMI the computer motherboards used nowadays are all featuring the I O shield 25 in the input and output connecting ports The consideration of the present invention of a system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port lies in not modifying the existing I O shield 25 and in not influ encing the efficiency of the original connecting port while providing many LED signals that indicate system status The USB connecting port 20 includes one USB connecting port I O shield 25 and the two junctions 21a and 21b of the USB connecting port FIG 2B illustrates the USB connecting port 200 in a preferred embodiment featuring the system status light indi cator device embedded in a connecting port according to the present invention Since most of the I O shield 205 within the USB connecting port 200 is not located in the space 208 between the two junctions 201a and 201b of the USB connecting port The system status can be indicated through the use of many LE
7. ates to a system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port More particularly the present invention relates to a system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port which can clearly indicate to users the causes of breakdowns via the warning light indicators during the booting up process 2 Description of Related Art When we turn on the power of a personal computer the central processing unit CPU inside the PC may start executing a series of commands the commands can be approximately divided into three categories according to the functions 1 System Configuration Analysis SCA analyzes the CPU type the size of memory the number and types of floppy and hard disks yes or no to install the floating processor as an important reference for the other actions 2 The Power On Self Test POST program tests the status of hardware such as the memory chipsets CMOS stored data keyboard and disk drives once an error is found it will report the problems 3 The address allocation of the operating system like the MS DOS Windows 95 98 and loads it up via what is called the Bootstrap Loader short program passes the control of the computer to the operating system and officially ends the boot up action The program organized by the above commands is called the Basic Input Output System BIOS program therefore the BIOS can be said as first program executed after the personal computer is turned
8. causes of breakdown which includes the error message processor 12 and the system status light indicators 16a 16d The system status light indicators 16a 16d are embedded into the newly designed USB port 200 and printer port 300 The existing status displaying system is not modified and an I O shield does not require special defini tion Now let us continue describing the running procedures of the system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port from the present invention Firstly when the computer is turned on the computer will proceed with the BIOS program itself The BIOS program will use the POST program to check the hardware status of the peripheral devices such as the memory chipset CMOS stored data keyboard and hard drive Once there are such errors as no display on the monitor shortage of electricity in the CMOS battery hard disk install failure and keyboard error or no keyboard present the BIOS drive program will send out the 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65 4 warning signal 11 via the controllable output port such as a portion for input and startup 10 as shown in FIG 1 and retrieve the error message data 15 which corresponds to the warning signal and is stored inside the error message pro cessor 12 followed by outputting the error message data 15 to the system status light indicators 16a 16d embedded in the port connectors 200 or 300 The user refers to the error mess
9. rrors have occurred on the peripheral devices of the computer it will send out a set of the warning signals The system status light indicator embedded in a connect ing port comprises of an error message processor and a plurality of light emitting diodes LED Firstly the BIOS program starts checking the peripheral devices of the computer and as soon as the BIOS program detects errors it will send out a set of warning signals to the error message processor and retrieves the error message data previously stored in the error message processor that correspond to the warning signals Thus based on the light indications of the US 6 657 548 B2 3 system boot up warning status the user can consult the user s manual in which the light indications corresponding to the error signals are stated and can know precisely where the problem lies The above described error message indi cates the causes of the breakdowns via the error message signal Since the causes of breakdowns have been recorded in the error message processor when the BIOS program detects the peripheral device errors the cause of breakdown can be found by consulting the light indications corresponding to the error signals recorded in the user s manual Thus the user knows exactly what the problem lies and without having to guess what a beep signifies or having to inspect each device one by one The direct use of a newly designed universal serial bus USB connecting por
10. stood that the scope and the sprit of the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments on the contrary it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements the scope of the claims therefore should be accorded the US 6 657 548 B2 5 broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifi cations and similar arrangements What is claimed is 1 A system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port suitable for use on a computer of a com puter system which includes a plurality of peripheral devices the computer having a BIOS program that is used for checking the peripheral devices and sending out a warning signal if an error is found in one of the peripheral devices the system status light indicator device comprising an error message processor that receives the warning signal sent out from the BIOS program the error message processor retrieving and outputting an error message data which corresponds to the warning signal and has previously been stored in the error message processor and a plurality of light indicators embedded in the connecting port and electrically connected to the error message processor to visually signal the error message data received from the error message processor 2 The system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port as claimed in the claim 1 wherein the light indicators are a plurality of light emitting diodes LED 3 The system s
11. suitable for use with a Basic Input Output System BIOS program When the BIOS examines a plurality of the peripheral devices on the computer as soon as an error is found the warning signals can be sent to the error message processor and then the corresponding error message data is retrieved Next it outputs the error message data to the system status indicator devices embedded in a connecting port Thus the operators can know exactly where the problems are located via the indicated boot up warning signals sent out that indicate system status and the messages corresponding to the light indicators recorded in the user s manual The above described error message data uses the light indicators to display the various causes of breakdown 13 Claims 3 Drawing Sheets 15 15 l a 16b l6c 16d Er 200 300 U S Patent Dec 2 2003 Sheet 1 of 3 US 6 657 548 B2 16a 16b l c l d 200 300 U S Patent Dec 2 2003 Sheet 2 of 3 US 6 657 548 B2 FIG 2A 16b 16d 208 FIG 2B U S Patent Dec 2 2003 Sheet 3 of 3 US 6 657 548 B2 35 FIG 3A FIG 3B US 6 657 548 B2 1 SYSTEM STATUS LIGHT INDICATOR DEVICE EMBEDDED IN A CONNECTING PORT CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the priority benefit of Taiwan application serial no 89207905 filed on May 11 2000 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1 Field of the Invention The present invention rel
12. t and a printer connecting port provides many embedded LED lights that display the system status and which do not require defini tions of special input output shields It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification The drawings illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principles of the inven tion In the drawings FIG 1 is a structural illustration of a system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port according to the present invention FIG 2A illustrates a conventional universal serial bus FIG 2B shows a serial bus connecting port featuring the system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port FIG 3A illustrates a conventional printer connecting port and FIG 3B illustrates the printer connecting port featuring the system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG 1 is a structural view of a system status light indicator embedded in a connecting port In FIG 1 it can be seen that the present invention features a system structure indicating the
13. tatus light indicator device embedded in a connecting port as claimed in the claim 1 wherein the connecting port is a universal serial bus USB port 4 The system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port as claimed in claim 3 wherein the USB port includes two USB connecting port junctions and between the two junctions 5 The system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port as claimed in the claim 1 wherein the connecting port is a printer connecting port 6 The system status light indicator device embedded in a connecting port as claimed in the claim 5 wherein the printer connecting port includes a printer connecting port junction an I O shield and a space between the printer connecting port junction and the I O shield the light indi cators being disposed in the space 10 15 20 25 30 35 6 7 A connecting port device with embedded light indicators suitable for use on a computer system which includes at least one peripheral device the computer having a BIOS program that is used for checking the at least one peripheral device and producing a warning signal if an error is found in the at least one peripheral device the connecting port device comprising a connecting port which includes at least one connecting port junction and an I O shield encompassing the outer area of the at least one connecting port junction and a plurality of light indicators embedded into a space
Download Pdf Manuals
Related Search