Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6548755
-
Patent Number
6,548,755
-
Date Filed
Tuesday, August 21, 200122 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, April 15, 200321 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
- Dinkins; Anthony
- Patel; Dhiru R
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 174 50
- 174 53
- 174 59
- 174 60
- 174 135
- 439 31
- 439 29
- 363 142
- 363 143
- 361 823
- 361 825
- 220 402
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
A power supply adapter with a foldable plug is disclosed. The power supply adapter includes a first casing, a second casing, a rotatable cylinder, a projecting plug, and a lighter connector. A cavity is formed on the front end of the first casing. Two vertical plates are mounted on the second casing for supporting the rotatable cylinder. A lighter connector is connected to the front end of the projecting plug for insertion into a lighter socket. The projecting plug is formed on the front end of the rotatable cylinder and extends from a cavity space defined by the front end of the first casing and the second casing. By rotating the rotatable cylinder, the angle of the projecting plug is changed. A voltage converting circuit is arranged in the adapter for supplying a first and a second output voltage.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a power supply adapter, and more particularly relates to a power supply adapter with a foldable plug which has bendable structure and dual power outputs.
2. Description of the Prior Art
As shown by
FIG. 1
, the conventional mobile phone power supply adapter includes a cord
11
extending from one end of the adapter casing
1
. The other end of cord
11
is connected with a lighter plug
12
which may be inserted into a known cigarette lighter. A cord
13
extends from the other end of the adapter casing
1
and is connected with a power output plug
14
which may be inserted into a power input socket of a mobile phone. Currently, cigarette lighter becomes a standard accessory in cars and is also commonly available in airplanes.
In addition to the automobile lighter, power socket specially designed for mobile phones and notebooks is also equipped under the seats of airplane. As shown in
FIG. 2
, a cord
21
extends from one end of the power supply adapter casing
2
. Then the cord
21
is connected to a plug section
22
, which is inserted into a standard double-hole socket. The plug section
22
includes two metal prongs
221
,
222
and a buckle
223
on the front ring end thereof. A cord
23
extends from the other end of the power supply adapter casing
2
and is connected to a mobile phone plug
24
for insertion into a power input socket of a mobile phone (not shown). However, the front end of the plug section
22
is connected to a connector
25
before plugging in and using a cigarette lighter for power supply. The front end of connector
25
is a cigarette lighter socket
251
, while the rear end is a double-hole socket
252
. There is two contact holes
253
,
254
and an opening area
255
one the double-hole socket
252
. When the plug section
22
is connected into the double-hole socket
252
, the metal prongs
221
,
222
are precisely inserted into the contact holes
253
,
254
of the double-hole socket
252
, and the buckle
223
fastens the opening area
255
.
The power connecting device becomes extraordinarily long after the foregoing process is completed. Users may encounter unexpected difficulties. The power connecting device may be easily obstructed by the nearby objects.
Moreover, some users may use more than two electrical appliances (such as mobile phone and portable computer) at the same time and therefore, two different adapters are required. In other words, it is very inconvenient that users have to bring and use extra adapters constantly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Thus, an object of the present invention is to provide a power supply adapter with a foldable plug, which can be folded up to an appropriate angle according to application situation.
Another object of the invention is to provide an adapter with improved structure, which can effectively reduce the length of whole connection, and minimize the space requirement at use.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a power supply adapter with extended cable and connector for connecting and charging a mobile phone or another electrical appliances. The adapter is further formed with a battery receptacle thereon for charging a mobile phone battery.
The present invention will be apparent in its contents of technique after reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention in reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1
is a perspective view showing the conventional power supply adapter;
FIG. 2
is a perspective view showing another type of conventional power supply adapter;
FIG. 3
is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 4
is a perspective view showing the projecting plug when disconnected from the connector of the present invention;
FIG. 5
shows the connection of another type of plug of mobile phone to the present invention in
FIG. 4
;
FIG. 6
is the exploded view showing the power supply adapter with foldable plug of the present invention;
FIG. 7
is an exploded view showing the connector of the present invention;
FIG. 8
is a perspective view showing the projecting plug of the power supply adapter with foldable plug at bending to one side;
FIG. 9
is a perspective view of another embodiment of the present invention showing a multiple output terminals equipped for different voltage outputs;
FIG. 10
is a schematic circuit diagram of the power supply adapter of with foldable plug of
FIG. 9
; and
FIG. 11
is the exploded view of the output-voltage changeable plug of FIG.
9
.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
As shown in
FIGS. 3 through 6
, the power supply adapter
3
in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention comprises a first casing
3
a
, a second casing
3
b
, a rotatable cylinder
4
, a projecting plug
5
, and a lighter connector
6
. A cord
31
extends from one end of the power supply adapter
3
and is connected to a plug
32
which can be plugged into a power input socket of an electrical appliance, such as a mobile phone.
The front end of the first casing
3
a
is formed with a U-shaped cavity
30
, as shown in FIG.
6
. The second casing
3
b
is coupled with the first casing
3
a
forming an inner space therein to accommodate a circuit board (not shown).
A supporting structure is disposed in the second casing
3
b
corresponding to the cavity
30
of the front end of the first casing
3
a
. The supporting structure comprises two vertical plates
31
a
,
31
b
. Two curved portions
32
a
,
32
b
are formed on the top edges of the vertical plates
31
a
,
31
b
respectively for supporting the rotatable cylinder
4
. When the second casing
3
b
and the first casing
3
a
are fixed together, an operating space is formed by the cavity
30
for the rotatable cylinder
4
.
Two trunnions
41
extend from both sides of the rotatable cylinder
4
and are pivotally supported on the curved portions
32
a
,
32
b
of the vertical plates
31
a
,
31
b
of the second casing
3
b
. A plurality of concave portions
42
are formed on the surface of the rotatable cylinder
4
to provide the sense of positioning when user turns the rotatable cylinder
4
.
The projecting plug
5
is formed on the front end of the rotatable cylinder
4
and extends from the cavity space
30
defined by the front end of the first casing
3
a
and the second casing
3
b
. By rotating the rotatable cylinder
4
, the angle of the projecting plug
5
can be changed. Two prongs
51
a
,
51
b
are protruded out at the front end of the projecting plug
5
.
A lighter connector
6
can be connected to the front end of the projecting plug
5
. The structure of the lighter connector
6
is shown in FIG.
7
. The lighter connector
6
includes an upper casing
61
, a lower casing
62
, and a double-hole socket
63
. The upper casing
61
and the lower casing
62
are fixed to form a plug section and can be inserted into a standard lighter socket.
An inner space is formed between the upper casing
61
and the lower casing
62
. A pair of ribs
65
a
,
65
b
or similar structure are formed on the inner wall of the lower casing
62
, so that the double-hole socket
63
can be stably positioned in the inner space in the lighter connector
6
. Two circular contact holes
64
a
,
64
b
are formed at the rear end of the double-hole socket
63
for plugging of prongs
51
a
,
51
b
at the front end of the projecting plug
5
.
As disclosed by the foregoing description, the power supply adapter of the prevention invention can be bent to a desirable angle, as shown in
FIG. 8
, so as not to be obstructed by the nearby objects. The improved structure of present invention effectively reduces the length of the connection part, thereby minimizes the space needed for plug-in.
The plug
32
shown in
FIG. 3
only provides a single voltage output. However, in the second embodiment of the present invention, dual voltage outputs can be provided with dual output terminals as shown in FIG.
9
.
FIG. 10
is a schematic circuit diagram of the power supply adapter of FIG.
9
.
In this embodiment, a voltage converting circuit may be arranged in the adapter
3
for voltage conversion, which includes a first voltage converter
3
c
and a second voltage converter
3
d
for converting the input power source Vin. The first voltage converter
3
c
and the second voltage converter
3
d
are capable of respectively supplying output voltages with different voltage levels through the cord
31
.
One end of the cord
31
is connected to the adapter
3
, and the other end is connected to a branch connector
33
which comprises a first voltage output terminal
331
and a second voltage output terminal
332
. The first voltage output terminal
331
is connected to a first voltage converting circuit, and the second voltage output terminal
332
is connected to a second voltage converting circuit.
The first voltage converting circuit comprises a connector
71
, an extended cable
72
and an output plug
73
which can be plugged to a power socket of a mobile phone (not shown).
The second voltage converting circuit comprises an extended cable
81
, an output plug
82
which can be plugged to a socket terminal
91
of a voltage convertible plug
9
. The output terminal
92
of the voltage convertible plug
9
supplies a second voltage to an electrical appliance, such as a portable computer (not shown).
FIG. 11
shows that the voltage convertible plug
9
includes corresponding casings
90
a
,
90
b
, an input terminal
91
corresponding to the plug terminal of the output plug
82
, and an output terminal
92
for supplying a converted output voltage. A positive power source input terminal V+, a negative power source input terminal V−, and two feedback element connecting terminals C
1
, and C
2
are arranged in the input terminal
91
.
With reference to
FIGS. 9 and 11
, on the inner wall of the casing
90
a
of the voltage convertible plug
9
is formed with a window
93
corresponding to a lock
83
formed on the output plug
82
.
A feedback element
94
is connected across the feedback element connecting terminals C
1
and C
2
of the voltage convertible plug
9
. The feedback element
94
may be a resister, as shown in
FIG. 10
, serving as a feedback element for the first voltage converter
3
c
. The resistance of the resister determines the output voltage level of output terminal
92
of the voltage convertible plug
9
. When the other voltage convertible plug
9
containing a resister with different resistance is connected to the output plug
82
, the output voltage level presented on the output terminal
92
of the voltage convertible plug
9
is changed.
Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiments, it is apparent to those skilled in the art that a variety of modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention which is intended to be defined by the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. A power supply adapter comprising:a casing having a first casing and a second casing, defining an inner space therein, a cavity being formed on a front end of the first casing and a supporting structure being formed on the second casing; a cord extending from a rear end of the casing and being connected with a plug structure at a free end thereof; a rotatable cylinder pivotally supported on the front end of the casing of the adapter by the supporting structure; and a projecting plug, formed on the rotatable cylinder and outwardly extended from the cavity defined by the first casing.
- 2. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotatable cylinder is provided with two trunnions extending from both sides of the rotatable cylinder and pivotally supported by the supporting structure of the second casing.
- 3. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 1, the supporting structure of the second casing comprising two vertical plates mounted on the second casing, and two curved portions being formed on the top edges of the vertical plates respectively for supporting the rotatable cylinder.
- 4. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the rotatable cylinder is further formed with a plurality of concave portions thereon.
- 5. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 1, wherein the projecting plug is provided with two prongs extended on a front end thereof.
- 6. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 1, a lighter connector being further connected to a front end of the projecting plug.
- 7. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 6, wherein the lighter connector comprises:an upper casing; a lower casing coupled with the upper casing to form an inner space therebetween; a positioning structure formed in the inner space between the upper casing and the lower casing; and a double-hole socket disposed in the positioning device.
- 8. The power supply adapter, as claimed in claim 1, wherein the plug structure comprises:a first voltage output terminal for supplying a first voltage, further comprising: a connector coupled to the plug structure; an output plug adapted to be plugged to a power socket of a mobile phone; and an extended cable connected between the connector and the output plug; a second voltage output terminal for supplying a second voltage, further comprising: an output plug; an extended cable connected between the output plug and the second voltage output terminal; and a voltage convertible plug connected to the output plug for supplying the second voltage.
- 9. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 8, wherein the voltage convertible plug comprises:a casing; an input terminal mounted in the casing, adapted to be connected to the output plug of the second voltage output terminal, comprising a positive power source input terminal, a negative power source input terminal, and two feedback element connecting terminals; an output terminal for supplying a converted output voltage; and a feedback element disposed inside the casing connected across the feedback element connecting terminals for determination of an output voltage level of the second voltage output terminal.
- 10. The power supply adapter as claimed in claim 9, wherein the casing comprises:an upper casing, formed with a window corresponding to a lock formed on the output plug of the second voltage output terminal; and a lower casing coupled to the upper casing.
US Referenced Citations (8)