International Business Machines Corporation

Shinobu Miyachi

Takayuki Katoh

Hidenori Kinoshita

Yasuhiro Kobayashi

Mitsuru Ogawa

Takashi Yomo

A method for docking/undocking a portable computer to/from an expansion unit is disclosed. The portable computer includes a main battery, and the expansion unit includes a second battery. In response to an eject event, the condition of the second battery is determined. If the second battery is in a discharging condition, a power supply route is switched from the second battery of the expansion unit to the main battery of the portable computer. If the second battery is in a charging condition, the charging condition is suspended. At this point, a hot undocking of the portable computer from the expansion unit can be performed.

Method for docking/undocking a portable computer to/from an expansion unit

Described is an improved method for undocking a structure having an optional number of tiers from a multilayer-dock structure constituted by docking a plurality of expansion units respectively having an intrinsic resource to a portable PC. To undock only a portable PC from a triple-layer-dock structure constituted by docking a first expansion unit and a second expansion unit to the portable PC, the first expansion unit is made to generate an undock event. The IDE device of the first expansion unit and the PCI device of the second expansion unit are separated from the control by an operating system by taking the undock event as an opportunity and the interfaces of the devices and are electrically separated. The operability is improved because it is possible to unitedly obtain an object to be undocked through both vision and operation.

Growing community of inventors

Sagamihara, Japan

Shinobu Miyachi