USB-HUB device based on software control and control method thereof

Abstract

The invention discloses a USB-HUB device based on software control, and belongs to the field of USBs, the USB-HUB device comprises a USB on-off device and a control end, the USB on-off device is used for supporting at least one USB device, the control end is used for outputting a control instruction and controlling on-off of a USB output interface of the USB on-off device, and after the control end receives a user instruction, the USB output interface of the USB on-off device is connected with the control end. The user instruction is converted into the control instruction, the control instruction is sent to the USB on-off device, and the USB on-off device conducts on-off operation on at least one USB output interface of the USB on-off device according to the control instruction. According to the USB-HUB device based on software control disclosed by the invention, the specified USB-KEY can be selected and used through software control, and a plurality of USB devices are simultaneously inserted without being pulled and inserted, so that the operation convenience and the interface service life are facilitated.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of USB, and in particular to a USB-HUB device based on software control and a control method for the USB-HUB device. Background Art

[0002] For large group companies, they usually complete various business system operations for their branches and subsidiaries in a centralized manner. When completing these business system operations, multiple USB-KEYs from different companies are often required for identity identification. For example, when a large group pays the provident fund, it needs to insert the USB-KEYs of different subordinate companies one by one. During this process, the USB output interface needs to be frequently plugged in and out, which makes the USB output interface easy to be damaged. If the existing USB-HUB device is used, although multiple USB disks can be plugged in, various business systems cannot identify which USB disk is in use. Therefore, this method is not feasible and cannot allow the operator to select the USB disk he needs to connect with the business system.

[0003] Chinese patent document CN207282861U discloses a device including 10 one-to-seven USB HUBs; the one-to-seven USB HUBs include: a USB data cable and a USB HUB body; one end of the USB data cable is provided with a USB male interface, and the other end of the USB data cable is connected to the USB HUB body; the USB HUB body is provided with 7 USB female interfaces, and the 10 one-to-seven USB HUBs are connected in a 4-level cascade mode; the number of the first level is 1 one-to-seven USB HUB; the number of the second level, the third level and the fourth level are all 3 one-to-seven USB HUBs. Although this USB HUB can connect multiple USB devices at the same time, the service system cannot control the use status of the USB device. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to overcome the defects of the prior art, the technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to propose a USB-HUB device based on software control, which can realize the selection and use of a specified USB-KEY through software control, and multiple USB devices can be inserted at the same time without plugging and unplugging, which is beneficial to operational convenience and interface life.

[0005] To achieve this object, the present invention adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] The present invention provides a software-controlled USB-HUB device, comprising a USB switch and a control end, wherein the USB switch is used to support at least one USB device, and the control end is used to output a control instruction to control the switching of a USB output interface of the USB switch. After receiving a user instruction, the control end converts the user instruction into the control instruction, and sends the control instruction to the USB switch, and the USB switch performs switching operations on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch according to the control instruction.

[0007] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the USB switch includes a controller, a USB-HUB chip and a matrix switch, the controller is used to control the on and off of each sub-switches in the matrix switch, the USB-HUB chip is used to transmit control instructions and serve as a data transmission channel, the matrix switch is used to connect multiple USB output interfaces, the input end of the USB-HUB chip is connected to the control end network through the USB input interface, the output end of the USB-HUB chip is electrically connected to the controller and the matrix switch, the controller is electrically connected to the matrix switch, and the matrix switch is electrically connected to multiple USB output interfaces.

[0008] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the USB-HUB chip includes an on-off interface, a cascade interface and a control interface, the control interface is electrically connected to the input end of the controller, the USB-HUB chip transmits the control instruction to the controller, the output end of the controller is electrically connected to each sub-switches of the matrix switch to control the on-off of each sub-switches, the cascade interface is electrically connected to the USB cascade interface, and the on-off interface is electrically connected to the matrix switch.

[0009] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the USB-HUB chip is configured as a first type USB-HUB chip, the first type USB-HUB chip has one on-off interface, and the input ends of each sub-switch of the matrix switch are electrically connected to the on-off interface.

[0010] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the USB-HUB chip is configured as a second-type USB-HUB chip, and the second-type USB-HUB chip has multiple on-off interfaces, and the multiple on-off interfaces correspond one-to-one to multiple sub-switches of the matrix switch, and each sub-switch is electrically connected to one of the corresponding on-off interfaces.

[0011] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the control end includes an interactive interface, a decision unit and a transmission unit, the interactive interface is used to perform human-computer interaction with the user and receive the user instructions, the decision unit is used to convert the user instructions into control instructions, and the transmission unit is used to transmit the control instructions to the USB switch.

[0012] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the interactive interface includes a device list, an interface number, a device status and a change button, the device list is used to display all USB devices in a list format, the interface number is used to display the channel number corresponding to each USB device, the device status is used to display the current status of the USB device, and the change button is used for the user to change the working status of each USB device.

[0013] A further technical solution of the present invention is that the interactive interface is also provided with a mode button, and the decision unit includes a single-channel mode or a multi-channel mode. When the user clicks the single-channel mode, the decision unit outputs a control instruction applicable to the single-channel mode, and when the user clicks the multi-channel mode, the decision unit outputs a control instruction applicable to the multi-channel mode.

[0014] A further technical solution of the present invention is that when the decision unit selects the single-channel mode, the USB-HUB chip is configured as a first-type USB-HUB chip, the first-type USB-HUB chip has three outputs, one of which is a control interface, two of which are cascade interfaces, and three of which are on-off interfaces; or

[0015] When the decision unit selects the multi-channel mode, the USB-HUB chip is configured as a second-type USB-HUB chip, which has N+2 outputs, 1 of which is a control interface, 2 of which are cascade interfaces, and N of which are N on-off interfaces.

[0016] The present invention also provides a control method for a USB-HUB device, which is used for the above-mentioned USB-HUB device based on software control and is implemented according to the following steps:

[0017] S00: The control terminal receives a user instruction;

[0018] S10: The control terminal converts the user instruction into a control instruction;

[0019] S20: the control end sends the control instruction to the USB switch;

[0020] S30: The USB switch performs a switch operation on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch according to the control instruction.

[0021] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0022] The software-controlled USB-HUB device provided by the present invention is provided with a USB switch and a control end. The control end is a program for an operating system of a computer, which can allow a user to select the use status of each SUB device and can be connected with the business system of a group company. When the control end outputs a control instruction, the USB switch can perform a switch operation according to at least one USB output interface of the USB switch, so that the selection and use of the USB-KEY is controlled by the software. This can fundamentally solve the problem that multiple USB devices cannot be selected for use by the business system, can well adapt to the situation where a certain business system needs to connect multiple USB devices, and greatly improves the work efficiency and the service life of the interface. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 is a functional block diagram of the USB-HUB device based on software control provided in the first embodiment;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a functional block diagram of the USB switch based on software control provided in the second embodiment.

[0025] In the figure: 1. USB switch; 2. control end; 11. controller; 12. USB-HUB chip; 13. matrix switch; 21. interactive interface; 22. decision unit; 23. transmission unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The technical solution of the present invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and through specific implementation methods.

[0027] Embodiment 1

[0028] like Figure 1As shown, a software-controlled USB-HUB device provided in this embodiment includes a USB switch 1 and a control terminal 2. The control terminal 2 is connected to the USB switch 1 through a network. The control terminal 2 can send control instructions to the USB switch 1. The USB switch 1 is used to support at least one USB device. In actual use, it is usually a use case where two or more USB devices are in a plugged-in state. The control terminal 2 is used to output control instructions. The control terminal 2 is configured as a driver software or a sub-software of an application. When the control terminal 2 is configured as a driver software, it has an interactive interface 21. Human-computer interaction can be performed through the interactive interface 21, which is convenient for users to input user instructions. When the control terminal 2 is configured as a sub-software of an application, for example, the control terminal 2 is a sub-software of a business system of a group company, and it can be operated through the user interface of the application. The control terminal 2 controls the on and off of the USB output interface of the USB switch 1. After receiving the user instruction, the control terminal 2 converts the user instruction into a control instruction and sends the control instruction to the USB switch 1. The USB switch 1 performs on and off operations on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch 1 according to the control instruction. After the control end 2 outputs the control instruction, the USB switch 1 can perform the on-off operation according to at least one USB output interface of the USB switch 1, so that whether the USB-KEY is selected for use is controlled by the software without plugging in and out the USB disk. This can fundamentally solve the problem that multiple USB devices cannot be selected for use by the business system, and can be well adapted to the situation where a certain business system needs to connect to multiple USB devices, greatly improving work efficiency and interface service life.

[0029] The USB switch 1 includes a controller 11, a USB-HUB chip 12 and a matrix switch 13. The controller 11 is used to control the on and off of each sub-switch in the matrix switch 13. The USB-HUB chip 12 is used to transmit control instructions and serve as a data transmission channel. The matrix switch 13 is used to connect multiple USB output interfaces. The input end of the USB-HUB chip 12 is connected to the control end 2 through the USB input interface. The output end of the USB-HUB chip 12 is electrically connected to the controller 11 and the matrix switch 13. The controller 11 is electrically connected to the matrix switch 13. The matrix switch 13 is electrically connected to multiple USB output interfaces. After receiving the control instruction from the control end 2, the USB-HUB chip 12 forwards the control instruction to the controller 11. The controller 11 controls the on and off of each sub-switches of the matrix switch 13 according to the control instruction. The USB switch 1 provided in this embodiment adds a controller 11 on the basis of a simple USB-HUB chip 12. The on and off of each sub-switches of the matrix switch 13 are controlled by the controller 11. This method effectively ensures that each channel is independently controlled.

[0030] The USB-HUB chip 12 includes an on-off interface, a cascade interface, and a control interface. The control interface is electrically connected to the input end of the controller 11. The USB-HUB chip 12 transmits control instructions to the controller 11. The output end of the controller 11 is electrically connected to each sub-switch of the matrix switch 13 to control the on-off of each sub-switch. The cascade interface is electrically connected to the USB cascade interface, which is used for multi-level expansion of the USB switch 1, thereby providing more on-off interfaces. The on-off interface is electrically connected to the matrix switch 13. Further preferably, the USB-HUB chip 12 is configured as a first-class USB-HUB chip 12. The first-class USB-HUB chip 12 has one on-off interface. The input end of each sub-switch of the matrix switch 13 is electrically connected to one on-off interface. This situation is equivalent to the USB-HUB chip 12 providing only one on-off interface, that is, only one data transmission channel. Therefore, the controller 11 can only control one sub-switch to be turned on, and the rest should be turned off.

[0031] In order to facilitate the control end 2 to control the USB switch 1, the control end 2 further includes an interactive interface 21, a decision unit 22 and a transmission unit 23. The interactive interface 21 is used to perform human-computer interaction with the user and receive user instructions. The decision unit 22 is used to convert the user instructions into control instructions. The transmission unit 23 is used to transmit the control instructions to the USB switch 1. The USB switch 1 receives the user instructions through the interactive interface 21, and then transmits the user instructions to the decision unit 22. The decision unit 22 converts the user instructions into control instructions, and finally transmits them to the USB switch 1 through the transmission unit 23. Further preferably, in order to facilitate human-computer interaction on the interactive interface 21, the interactive interface 21 includes a device list, an interface number, a device status, and a change button. The device list is used to display all USB devices in a list format, the interface number is used to display the channel number corresponding to each USB device, and the interface number can facilitate users to quickly determine which interface corresponds to which USB device. The device status is used to display the current status of the USB device, usually "on" or "off", and the change button is used for users to change the working status of each USB device. The interactive interface 21 can intuitively display the current status of the USB device and facilitate users to input user commands, which greatly facilitates users to change the usage status of the "USB device".

[0032] The interactive interface 21 is also provided with a mode button, and the decision unit 22 includes a single-channel mode. When the user clicks the single-channel mode, the decision unit 22 outputs a control instruction suitable for the single-channel mode. At this time, the USB-HUB chip 12 is configured as a first-class USB-HUB chip 12. The first-class USB-HUB can be configured as an SL2.1A chip, which is a chip 2.0 expansion chip. The SL2.1A chip can be used as a 1-to-4 USB expansion module. The first-class USB-HUB chip 12 has 3 outputs, 1 for a control interface, 2 for a cascade interface, and 3 for a switch interface. 1 is used to receive a control signal and can be connected to the control end 2 network. 2 is used for the cascade interface and can connect multiple levels or multiple USB switches 1 in this embodiment. 3 is used to access the matrix switch 13 in the USB device. In this case, since only a single channel is turned on and other channels are turned off, the requirements for the USB-HUB chip 12 are relatively low, and the production cost of the USB switch 1 is relatively low. For example, when the control terminal 2 receives the following user instructions, "Only turn on channel 2" and "Only turn on channel 5", the USB switch 1 converts the user instructions into control instructions through the decision unit 22, and then transmits them to the USB switch 1 through the transmission unit 23. The USB switch 1 executes the above control instructions, for example, completing "turning on the K5 switch".

[0033]

[0034] Embodiment 2

[0035] like Figure 2 As shown, the present invention provides a software-controlled USB-HUB device, comprising a USB switch 1 and a control terminal 2, wherein the USB switch 1 is used to support at least one USB device, and the control terminal 2 is used to output a control instruction to control the switching of the USB output interface of the USB switch 1. After receiving a user instruction, the control terminal 2 converts the user instruction into the control instruction and sends the control instruction to the USB switch 1, and the USB switch 1 performs switching operations on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch 1 according to the control instruction. The difference between the first embodiment and the second embodiment is that:

[0036] The interactive interface 21 is also provided with a mode button, and the decision unit 22 includes a multi-channel mode. When the user clicks the multi-channel mode, the decision unit 22 outputs a control instruction suitable for the multi-channel mode. When the decision unit 22 selects the multi-channel mode, the USB-HUB chip 12 is configured as a second-class USB-HUB chip 12, and the second-class USB-HUB chip 12 can be configured as a VL813 chip. The second-class USB-HUB chip 12 has a multi-channel on-off interface, and the multi-channel on-off interface corresponds to a plurality of sub-switches of the matrix switch 13 one by one, and each sub-switch is electrically connected to one on-off interface. The USB switch 1 has N+2 outputs, 1 for a control interface, 2 for a cascade interface, and N for N on-off interfaces, wherein 1 for a control interface is used to receive a control signal, 2 for a cascade interface is used for a cascade interface, and N for N on-off interfaces are used to respectively access the N sub-switches of the matrix switch 13 in the USB device. The biggest difference between the method provided in this embodiment and the method provided in the first embodiment is that the conduction and disconnection of multiple paths can be controlled at the same time, and the connection and disconnection can be arbitrarily selected, that is, the situation where two USB disks work at the same time is satisfied. The requirements for the USB-HUB chip 12 are relatively high, and the production cost of the USB switch 1 is also relatively high. For details, please refer to the table below.

[0037]

[0038] Embodiment 3

[0039] As shown in the figure, a control method of a USB-HUB device provided in this embodiment is used for the above-mentioned USB-HUB device based on software control, and is implemented according to the following steps:

[0040] S00: The control terminal 2 receives a user instruction.

[0041] S10: The control terminal 2 converts the user instruction into a control instruction.

[0042] S20: The control terminal 2 sends the control instruction to the USB switch 1.

[0043] S30: The USB switch 1 performs a switch operation on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch 1 according to the control instruction. The USB switch 1 includes a controller 11, a USB-HUB chip 12 and a matrix switch 13. The control terminal 2 sends the control instruction to the USB-HUB chip 12, and the USB-HUB chip 12 sends an execution instruction to the controller 11 to control the matrix switch 13 to switch on and off.

[0044] The present invention is described by preferred embodiments, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that various changes or equivalent substitutions may be made to these features and embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. The present invention is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed herein, and other embodiments falling within the claims of this application are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A USB-HUB device based on software control, characterized in that: include: A USB switch, for supporting at least one USB device; A control terminal, used for outputting control instructions to control the on / off of the USB output interface of the USB switch; After receiving the user instruction, the control end converts the user instruction into the control instruction and sends the control instruction to the USB switch. The USB switch performs a switch operation on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch according to the control instruction.

2. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The USB switch includes a controller, a USB-HUB chip and a matrix switch; The controller is used to control the on and off of each sub-switch in the matrix switch; The USB-HUB chip is used to transmit control instructions and serve as a data transmission channel; The matrix switch is used to connect multiple USB output interfaces; The input end of the USB-HUB chip is connected to the control end network through a USB input interface, the output end of the USB-HUB chip is electrically connected to the controller and the matrix switch, the controller is electrically connected to the matrix switch, and the matrix switch is electrically connected to multiple USB output interfaces.

3. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 2, characterized in that: The USB-HUB chip includes a switch interface, a cascade interface and a control interface; The control interface is electrically connected to the input end of the controller, the USB-HUB chip transmits the control instruction to the controller, and the output end of the controller is electrically connected to each sub-switches of the matrix switch to control the on and off of each sub-switches; The cascade interface is electrically connected to the USB cascade interface; The on-off interface is electrically connected to the matrix switch.

4. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The USB-HUB chip is configured as a first-class USB-HUB chip; The first type of USB-HUB chip has one on / off interface; The input end of each sub-switch of the matrix switch is electrically connected to one of the on-off interfaces.

5. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 3, characterized in that: The USB-HUB chip is configured as a second type USB-HUB chip; The second type of USB-HUB chip has multiple on / off interfaces; The multiple on-off interfaces correspond one-to-one to the multiple sub-switches of the matrix switch, and each sub-switch is electrically connected to one on-off interface.

6. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The control end includes an interactive interface, a decision unit and a transmission unit; The interactive interface is used to perform human-computer interaction with the user and receive the user's instructions; The decision unit is used to convert the user instruction into a control instruction; The transmission unit is used to transmit the control instruction to the USB switch.

7. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The interactive interface includes a device list, interface number, device status, and a change button; The device list is used to display all USB devices in a list format; The interface number is used to display the channel number corresponding to each USB device; The device status is used to display the current status of the USB device; The change button is used by the user to change the working status of each USB device.

8. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 7, characterized in that: The interactive interface is also provided with a mode button; The decision unit includes a single-channel mode or a multi-channel mode. When the user clicks the single-channel mode, the decision unit outputs a control instruction applicable to the single-channel mode. When the user clicks the multi-channel mode, the decision unit outputs a control instruction applicable to the multi-channel mode.

9. The software-controlled USB-HUB device according to claim 8, characterized in that: When the decision unit selects the single-channel mode, the USB-HUB chip is configured as a first-class USB-HUB chip, which has three outputs, one of which is a control interface, two of which are cascade interfaces, and three of which are on-off interfaces; or When the decision unit selects the multi-channel mode, the USB-HUB chip is configured as a second-type USB-HUB chip, which has N+2 outputs, 1 of which is a control interface, 2 of which are cascade interfaces, and N of which are N on-off interfaces.

10. A method for controlling a USB-HUB device, used for the USB-HUB device based on software control according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that: Follow these steps to implement: S00: The control terminal receives a user instruction; S10: The control terminal converts the user instruction into a control instruction; S20: the control end sends the control instruction to the USB switch; S30: the USB switch performs a switching operation on at least one USB output interface of the USB switch according to the control instruction.

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