External connection box and external connection device with external connection box

Abstract

The invention provides an external box and an external device with the external box, and the external box is suitable for installing a display card and a mainboard, and is suitable for being connected to a computer device for operation. The external connection box comprises a shell and a circuit board. Wherein the circuit board is arranged at the bottom of the shell and comprises an external connector, a first connector and a second connector; the external connector is arranged on one edge of the circuit board and is suitable for being connected to a computer device. The first connector is arranged on the upper surface of the circuit board and electrically connected to the external connector, and the first connector is suitable for installing a display card. The second connector is arranged on the upper surface and electrically connected with the first connector, and the second connector is suitable for installing a mainboard.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an external enclosure, and more particularly to an external enclosure for configuring a graphics card and an external device having such an external enclosure. Background Technology

[0002] Laptops, limited by their internal space, often cannot accommodate high-performance graphics cards to meet user needs. To address this issue, external graphics card devices have emerged on the market. These devices allow users to connect a dedicated graphics card to their laptops to improve display performance.

[0003] Currently available graphics card external devices take up a considerable amount of space, but can only be used with laptops or computer hosts that have specific connection ports, which greatly limits their applications. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide an external box and an external device having the external box, so as to solve at least one of the above-mentioned problems.

[0005] This invention provides an external enclosure suitable for mounting a graphics card and a motherboard, and for connecting to a computer device for operation. The enclosure includes a housing and a circuit board. The circuit board is located at the bottom of the housing and includes an external connector, a first connector, and a second connector. The external connector is located at one edge of the circuit board and is suitable for connecting to the computer device. The first connector is located on an upper surface of the circuit board and is electrically connected to the external connector; the first connector is suitable for mounting the graphics card. The second connector is located on the circuit board and is electrically connected to the first connector; the second connector is suitable for mounting the motherboard.

[0006] This invention also provides an external device suitable for connection to a computer for operation. This external device includes a graphics card, a motherboard, and an external enclosure. The external enclosure includes a housing and a circuit board. The circuit board is located at the bottom of the housing and includes an external connector, a first connector, and a second connector. The external connector is located at one edge of the circuit board and is suitable for connection to a computer device. The first connector is located on an upper surface of the circuit board and is electrically connected to the external connector; the first connector is suitable for mounting the graphics card. The second connector is located on the circuit board and is electrically connected to the first connector; the second connector is suitable for mounting the motherboard.

[0007] The external enclosure provided by this invention integrates the graphics card and motherboard into a single external device. Users can use this external device as an external graphics card or a standalone computer system according to their actual needs, effectively solving the shortcomings of traditional graphics card external devices, which occupy a lot of space and can only be used with laptops or computer hosts with specific connection ports. Attached Figure Description

[0008] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an external box provided according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0009] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A top view of the circuit board in the diagram;

[0010] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A functional block diagram of the circuit board;

[0011] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an external box provided according to another embodiment of the present invention; and

[0012] Figure 5 yes Figure 4 A top view of the circuit board. Detailed Implementation

[0013] The specific embodiments of the present invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The advantages and features of the present invention will become clearer from the following description and claims. It should be noted that the drawings are all in a very simplified form and use non-precise proportions, and are only used to facilitate and clarify the illustration of the embodiments of the present invention.

[0014] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an external enclosure 100 provided according to an embodiment of the present invention. The enclosure 100 is adapted to connect to a computer device (not shown) and operate in conjunction with the computer device. This computer device may, for example, be a laptop computer or a mainframe computer.

[0015] As shown in the figure, the external box 100 of the present invention can install a graphics card 200 and a motherboard 300 to form an external device 10. The graphics card 200 and the motherboard 300 in the figure are shown as dashed lines.

[0016] However, the present invention is not limited thereto. Depending on the actual usage requirements, the external box 100 may also contain only one graphics card 200 or only one motherboard 300.

[0017] The external enclosure 100 of this invention can be used as an external device 10 with commercially available graphics cards 200. These graphics cards 200 all have a graphics card connector (not shown), such as a PCI-E connector, suitable for connecting to a commercially available motherboard. This graphics card connector is typically a gold-finger connector.

[0018] Furthermore, the external enclosure 100 of this invention can also be used with commercially available motherboards 300, such as Information Technology Extended (ITX) motherboards or mini-ITX motherboards, as an external device 10. These motherboards 300 all have a motherboard connector (not shown), such as a PCI-E connector, suitable for installing other expansion cards or connecting other expansion boards.

[0019] Please refer to the above as well. Figure 2 , Figure 2 yes Figure 1 The diagram shows a top view of the circuit board 140, with the graphics card 200 and motherboard 300 mounted on the circuit board 140 drawn in dashed lines. As shown in the figure, the external enclosure 100 of the present invention includes a housing 120 and a circuit board 140. The circuit board 140 is located at the bottom of the housing 120 and includes an external connector 142, a first connector 144, and a second connector 146.

[0020] An external connector 142 is located at one edge of the circuit board 140 and is adapted to connect to a computer device (not shown). In one embodiment, the external connector 142 may be a Thunderbolt connector. However, the invention is not limited thereto.

[0021] The first connector 144 is disposed on an upper surface of the circuit board 140 and is electrically connected to the external connector 142 via the circuit board 140. The graphics card 200 is adapted to be connected to the first connector 144 by a plug-in method. As shown in the figure, in this embodiment, the first connector 144 is a slot, and the corresponding connector on the graphics card 200 is a gold finger connector. However, the present invention is not limited to this. In another embodiment, the first connector 144 is a PCI-E connector.

[0022] The second connector 146 is disposed on the upper surface of the circuit board 140 and is electrically connected to the first connector 144 through the circuit board 140. The main board 300 is adapted to be connected to the second connector 146 by a plug-in method. As shown in the figure, in this embodiment, the second connector 146 is a slot, and the corresponding connector on the main board 300 is a gold finger connector. However, the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0023] In another embodiment, a power module (not shown) may be disposed within the external enclosure 100. This power module is electrically coupled to a power connector 148 on the circuit board 140 to provide the electrical power required for system operation.

[0024] Please refer to the above as well. Figure 3 , Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A functional block diagram of circuit board 140.

[0025] As shown in the figure, in order to effectively utilize the functions of the graphics card 200 and the motherboard 300, a multiplexer 150 is provided on the circuit board 140 of this embodiment. This multiplexer 150 is electrically connected to the external connector 142, the first connector 144 and the second connector 146, and is adapted to selectively connect the first connector 144 to the external connector 142 or the second connector 146.

[0026] In one embodiment, the transmission interface of the first connector 144 is the same as that of the second connector 146, both being PCI-E connectors. The transmission interface of the first connector 144 differs from that of the external connector 142, but it supports the external connector 142. For example, if the first connector 144 is a PCI-E connector, the external connector 142 could be a Thunderbolt connector.

[0027] As shown in the figure, when both the first connector 144 and the second connector 146 use PCI-E connectors and the external connector 142 uses a Thunderbolt connector, the first connector 144 can be distinguished into a first electrical contact group 144a and a second electrical contact group 144b (two contacts are shown in the figure for illustration). Similarly, the second connector 146 can also be distinguished into a third electrical contact group 146a and a fourth electrical contact group 146b (two contacts are shown in the figure for illustration). The second electrical contact group 144b is electrically connected to the fourth electrical contact group 146b. The multiplexer 150 is adapted to selectively connect the first electrical contact group 144a to the external connector 142 or the third electrical contact group 146a.

[0028] Furthermore, if both the first connector 144 and the second connector 146 are PCI-E x16 connectors, and the external connector 142 uses a Thunderbolt connector that supports the PCI-E x4 transmission specification, then the transmission contacts in the first connector 144 corresponding to channels 4 to 15 (all transmission channels are channels 0 to 15) can be configured as the second electrical contact group 144b, and the other contacts can be configured as the first electrical contact group 144a. Similarly, the transmission contacts in the second connector 146 corresponding to channels 4 to 15 (all transmission channels are channels 0 to 15) can be configured as the fourth electrical contact group 146b, and the other contacts can be configured as the third electrical contact group 146a.

[0029] Thus, when a user needs to connect the external device 10 to a laptop or computer host equipped with a Thunderbolt connector, the multiplexer 150 electrically connects the first electrical contact group 144a to the external connector 142. At this time, the graphics card 200 operates using the PCI-E x4 transmission standard.

[0030] On the other hand, when the user needs to use the external device 10 as an independent computer system, the multiplexer 150 will electrically connect the first electrical contact group 144a to the third electrical contact group 146a, so that the graphics card 200 and the motherboard 300 in the external box 100 are connected in PCI-E x16 transmission specification.

[0031] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of an external box 400 provided according to another embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] As shown in the figure, the external enclosure 400 of the present invention can be equipped with a graphics card 200 and a motherboard 320 to form an external device 40.

[0033] Please refer to the above as well. Figure 5 , Figure 5 yes Figure 4 The diagram shows a top view of the circuit board 440, with the graphics card 200 and motherboard 320 mounted on the circuit board 440 drawn in dashed lines. Compared to the embodiments in the first and second figures, where the first connector 144 and the second connector 146 on the circuit board 140 are both slots, in this embodiment, the first connector 444 remains a slot; however, the second connector 446 is a gold finger connector to accommodate the motherboard 320, which uses slot 322 as a connector.

[0034] In addition, to accommodate the placement of connector 322 on the motherboard 320 and ensure that the motherboard 320 can be smoothly installed within the external enclosure 400 of this invention, the circuit board 440 of the external enclosure 400 in this embodiment has an opening 445 at a position corresponding to the second connector 446. This opening 445 is elongated and surrounds the second connector 446. The second connector 446 extends from one side of this opening 445 toward the interior of the opening.

[0035] Thus, if the motherboard 320 needs to be installed in an external box, this opening 445 can be used to accommodate the edge of the motherboard 320, so that the motherboard connector 322 can be plugged into the second connector 446.

[0036] In another embodiment, as shown in the figure, an auxiliary power connector 449, such as a PCI-E connector system CEM5, may be additionally provided on the circuit board 440 to provide power to the motherboard 320 or the graphics card 200.

[0037] Other components of the external box 400 in this embodiment, such as the housing 420, the external connector 442, and the power connector 460, are similar to the corresponding components in the embodiments shown in the first and second figures, and will not be described in detail here.

[0038] In summary, the external enclosures 100 and 400 provided by this invention can integrate the graphics card 200 and the motherboard 300 and 320 into a single external device 10 and 40. Users can use these external devices 10 and 40 as external graphics cards or independent computer systems according to their actual needs, effectively solving the shortcomings of traditional graphics card external devices, which occupy a lot of space and can only be used with laptops or computer hosts with specific connection ports.

[0039] Although the present invention has been disclosed above with reference to embodiments, it is not intended to limit the present invention. Those skilled in the art can make some modifications and refinements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention shall be determined by the claims.

Claims

1. An external enclosure suitable for mounting a graphics card and motherboard, and suitable for connecting to a computer device for operation, characterized in that, The external box includes: Casing; and A circuit board, disposed at the bottom of the housing, and comprising: An external connector is located at the edge of the circuit board and is adapted to be connected to the computer device; A first connector is disposed on the upper surface of the circuit board and electrically connected to the external connector. The first connector is adapted to install the graphics card. as well as A second connector is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the first connector, and the second connector is adapted to mount the motherboard.

2. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The second connector is a slot.

3. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The second connector is a gold finger connector.

4. The external box according to claim 3, characterized in that, in, The circuit board has an opening that surrounds the second connector to accommodate the motherboard.

5. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The second connector is a slot.

6. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The first connector is a PCI-E connector.

7. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The second connector is a PCI-E connector.

8. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The external connector is a lightning connector.

9. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The transmission interface of the first connector is the same as that of the second connector.

10. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, in, The first connector has a different transmission interface than the external connector, but it supports the external connector.

11. The external box according to claim 1, characterized in that, It also includes a multiplexer disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the external connector, the first connector and the second connector, adapted to selectively electrically connect the first connector to the external connector or the second connector.

12. The external box according to claim 11, characterized in that, The first connector includes a first electrical contact group and a second electrical contact group, the second connector includes a third electrical contact group and a fourth electrical contact group, wherein the second electrical contact group is electrically connected to the fourth electrical contact group, and the multiplexer is adapted to selectively electrically connect the first electrical contact group to the external connector or the third electrical contact group.

13. An external device suitable for connection to a computer device for operation, characterized in that, The external device includes: Graphics card; Motherboard; and External box, including: Casing; and A circuit board, disposed at the bottom of the housing, and comprising: An external connector is located at the edge of the circuit board and is adapted to be connected to the computer device; A first connector is disposed on the upper surface of the circuit board and electrically connected to the external connector. The first connector is adapted to install the graphics card. as well as A second connector is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the first connector, and the second connector is adapted to mount the motherboard.

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