PURPOSE: To prevent wasteful consumption of electric power by automatically charging the power supply of a portable terminal unit while it is in connection with a signal collecting/distributing device of a computer, and allowing the power supply to operate only when exchange of information is conducted with the computer.

CONSTITUTION: The information collecting/distributing system according to the present invention is composed of a host computer, a portable terminal unit, and a signal collecting/distributing device to control information exchange between the terminal unit and computer. The signal collecting/distributing device is equipped with a charging terminal, which is to connect the power supply of terminal unit to a power supplying part for charging the terminal unit. Thereby the power supply of the terminal unit is charged automatically by an operation command signal sensing part 4 while the terminal unit is connecting to the signal collecting/distributing device to make exchange of information with the computer. Also only when the terminal unit makes exchange of information with computer in conformity to the command from the computer, a processing part 3 will work to actuate the power supply of the terminal unit.