The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus that can be freely attached to and/or detached from an external apparatus and is suitable for enabling an apparatus to realize an arbitrary function, and to an external apparatus using the same. More specifically, the present invention relates to an electronic apparatus having a shape, for example, equivalent to a memory card apparatus or a similar semiconductor memory apparatus, such electronic apparatus executing an arbitrary operation upon being connected to a connecting portion of the external apparatus, and to the external apparatus using the electronic apparatus.
It is proposed that an electronic apparatus having a shape equivalent to a memory card apparatus or a similar semiconductor memory apparatus that can be freely attached to and/or removed from an external apparatus may execute an arbitrary operation upon being connected to a connecting portion of such memory apparatus of an external apparatus. In other words, it is possible to easily expand the utility or application of an external apparatus by making such electronic apparatus have, for example, a computer network connecting function or an external communication function.
However, when utilizing such electronic apparatus connected to an external apparatus, the amount of power consumed by the external apparatus inevitably increases, so that an internal battery thereof is consumed in a short term as a result of such increase in power consumption, consequently making it difficult to have a long-term utilization by applying the battery. Such increase in power consumption is particularly remarkable when the electronic apparatus has multiple functions. As a result, an electronic apparatus conventionally has only one function, therefore making operations inconvenient as the electronic apparatus has to be changed every time a new function is required.
In view of such problem, it is possible to conceive a case in which, while multiple functions are provided to an electronic apparatus, a means for controlling power supply from the outside is also provided so that controlling is done so as to supply power only to a required function. However, such methodology is difficult to realize as it increases the load of the external apparatus as complex procedures are required for controlling the external apparatus, such as requiring controlling of an individual power supply each time a function is selected from the external apparatus.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds