摘要 |
A hub-less docking station for providing additional universal serial bus (USB). In one embodiment, a docking station includes a docking connector and a plurality of USB jacks. The docking connector is configured to allow a portable computer to be coupled to the docking station, while the USB jacks are configured for coupling to USB peripherals. The portable computer includes a USB controller for supporting a plurality of USB ports. Signal pins from the USB controller are coupled to the USB jacks through the docking connector. Power signals and current sense signals are multiplexed by a multiplexer in the portable computer, and are de-multiplexed by a de-multiplexer in the docking station. The de-multiplexed power and current sense signals are provided to the USB jacks. The docking station is thus able to provide a plurality of additional USB ports to the portable computer, when docked, without the use of a USB hub.
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