US 5,752,857 A · Smart card computer adaptor

Abstract

Apparatus is described for coupling the contact pads (116, FIG. 4) of a smart card (30) to a computer device (10) that has a slot (12) for receiving an IC card, which provides a small but reliable card receiver to be stored outside the computer device. The apparatus includes an adaptor (80) with a front end forming a plug (84) that is mateable to the receptacle (82) at the rear of a standard IC card (14) of the type that has a rear I/O (input/output) connector. The adaptor has a card receiver (94) with a slot (100) that receives a smart card and has terminals (114) that engage contact pads of the smart card, with the terminals connected to contacts (92) of the adaptor plug. The card receiver is wider than the IC card for reliably receiving the card. The IC card can be stored in the IC card slot of the computer device, while only a relatively small adaptor is stored outside the IC card slot.

Claims12

Dependent claims

Apparatus for use with an IC card that is insertable into an IC card slot of a computer device, where the IC card has a rear with a rear card connector having a group of card rear contacts, which enables the transfer of information between a smart card and the computer device, comprising:

an adaptor which has a front end forming an adaptor connector that has a group of adaptor contacts, with said adaptor connector being mateable to said rear card connector so said group of adaptor contacts engage said group of card rear contacts;
said adaptor including walls forming a smart card slot constructed to receive said smart card, and said adaptor having a plurality of terminals each positioned to engage one of said surface pads of a smart card in said smart card slot, with each of said plurality of terminals connected to one of said adaptor contacts;
of said group of IC card rear contacts and said group of adaptor contacts, one group comprises pin contacts and the other group comprises socket contacts, while said terminals of said adaptor are constructed to engage surface pads.

Apparatus for use with an IC card constructed in accordance with PCMCIA standards for insertion into an IC card slot of a computer device, where the IC card has a rear forming an I/O receptacle that includes a central latch hole and a laterally extending row of pin contacts, where the apparatus enables the transfer of information between a smart card and the computer device where the smart card has a multi-contact surface region with conductive surface pads arranged in accordance with ISO standards, comprising:

an adaptor which has a front end forming an IC card I/O plug that is mateable to said I/O receptacle, with said I/O plug including a latch that is insertable into said latch hole to latch thereto and also including a laterally-extending row of socket contacts that are mateable to said pin contacts, said adaptor having a dielectric housing front portion that surrounds said socket contact so said socket contacts open only in a forward direction to receive only pin contacts;
said adaptor has a rear portion that includes walls forming a smart card slot constructed to receive said smart card, and a plurality of card-engaging terminals each positioned to engage one of said surface pads of a smart card lying in said slot, with each of said plurality of terminals connected to one of said socket contacts.

A method for transferring data between a smart card which has a thickness of no more than two millimeter and that has opposite faces with a first of said faces having a plurality of contact pads, and a computer device that has walls forming an IC card-receiving slot of a thickness of at least three millimeters and a lateral width for closely receiving an IC card of a predetermined lateral IC card width where said IC card-receiving slot has an accessible rear slot end and also has a front slot end, and where said computer device has an IC card-mating device connector having contacts at the front of the IC card-receiving slot, and where the smart card and the IC-card-receiving slot have substantially the same lateral width, comprising:

installing an IC card with front and rear card connectors that each have card contacts, in said IC card-receiving slot, with said front card connector mated to said device connector;
installing an adaptor having front and rear end portions, with said front end portion having an adaptor front connector with adaptor front contacts and said rear end portion having a smart card slot and terminals lying partially therein and electrically connected to said adaptor contacts, so said adaptor front connector mates with said IC card rear card connector, wherein of said rear card contacts and said adaptor front contacts one is a pin and the other is a socket;
inserting said smart card into said smart card slot and allowing said adaptor contacts to engage said contact pads of said smart card by pressing in a direction perpendicular to front and rear directions against said contact pads;
passing currents from said smart card contact pads, through said terminals to said adaptor contacts, while said smart card lies completely outside said IC card slot, and passing said currents from said adaptor contacts to said card contacts of said rear card connector and to said contacts of said front card connector and to said device connector contacts.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Smart card computer adaptor

Life of this patent

Smart card computer adaptor

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims12