REMOVABLE MOUNTING POST ASSEMBLY FOR A CARRYING CASE
An assembly for a detachable post or lug for mounting a belt clip typically used with a cell phone case or case for a portable electronic device. The assembly includes a retainer mounted on the case, the receiver designed to accept and secure a removeable post onto which the belt clip is mounted. In a first embodiment the retainer includes a recess and tabs which secure the post in place when a base of the post is secured in the recess. In an alternate embodiment, the retainer includes a plurality of shafts which include a recess, the shafts engaging tabs in receivers on the base of the mounting post.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional application No. 60/641,204 filed on Jan. 3, 2005.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThis invention relates to carrying cases for portable electronic devices. More particularly, the invention relates to cases including a detachable mounting post. Further, the invention relates to a case for a clamshell type cellular phone. The invention also relates to methods for producing the case using a co-molding process.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONCell phones, pagers, PDA's, MP3 players, and other portable electronic devices have become increasingly popular. Users of the devices like to keep the devices readily accessible on their person. Due to their portable nature, the devices are also subject to being dropped and otherwise roughly handled, which can result in damage to the electronics inside, or to the plastic housing of the device. To address the above concerns, cases have been developed to both carry and protect the portable electronic devices. These cases often include a clip or other retaining structure to allow the case to be removably attached to the user's clothing, such as a belt.
The clips or retainers commonly used are removeably attached to the case by fastening to a plastic post, which itself is attached to the case. The plastic post can be an integral part of the case, being formed of the same material as the case. In other prior art embodiments, the post is a separate piece, sewn into or otherwise permanently attached to the case. While this provides a secure attachment post for the clip, the post becomes a cumbersome and unwanted protrusion when the clip is removed. The case disclosed herein is provided with a detachable post, thereby providing a case unburdened with unnecessary protrusions. The case disclosed herein also provides an attachment point for other accessories such as a light, velcro, keychain or magnets.
The portable electronic cases of the prior art are generally constructed of leather, nylon, or other material provided in sheets. The material is cut to predetermine sizes to form panels, which are then sewn or otherwise attached to form a pocket for holding the portable electronic device. With this type of construction, if one desires parts of a panel to have different physical properties, such as elasticity, texture, color or clarity, different pieces of material must be physically joined to one another to create a panel having the desired characteristics. Typically, the materials are joined by stitching, heat weld, or adhesive. The seems created at the joints add unwanted bulk and add to the cost of construction. It is therefore desirable to produce a case that includes different physical properties, but does not require pieces to be mechanically joined. To that end, the case disclosed herein is constructed of a co-molded material.
For cases designed for clamshell devices, such as cellular phones, the prior art teaches cases having two detachable pocket sections. Each pocket section fits over a section of the clamshell phone and are then connected by a snap, zipper, or velcro. Because of the nature of the case materials, if the pocket sections were not detachable, there would be no way to place the case on the phone, as leather and nylon do not stretch sufficiently to allow one pocket to be placed on the phone and then have the other pocket placed on the phone. By use of the co-molded material described herein, sufficient elasticity may be incorporated into the case to allow the case to be constructed as a single unit. In other words, the two pockets do not have to be separable. Further, the elasticity of the material allows the case to give and fit the contours of the phone in a superior fashions when compared to the prior art.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe disclosure describes an improved portable electronics case and a method of constructing the same. The cell phone case is formed of a co-molded material produced by pouring a first liquid plastic into a mold, and then pouring a second liquid plastic into the mold, the second plastic having physical characteristics different from the first. Once set, the material is removed from the mold and sewn to form pockets for the electronic device.
If the case is to be used for a clamshell type cellular phone, two pockets are formed, the pockets sharing a common or continuous panel Further, the disclosure describes a unitary case for clamshell phones, allowing for both donning and removal of the case onto the phone as a unit.
Further, the disclosure describes a case including a removable post or attachment point for a clip. The retainer used to hold the removable post, may be used to house other devices, such as a light, keychain, velcro, magnets, or other useful items.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Shown herein as the preferred embodiment is a case for a clamshell cellular phone. One skilled in the art will recognize the construction, materials, and methods can be applied to other cases for portable electronic devices, and need not be limited to the clamshell design shown in the figures. With reference to the figures, the case 10 includes a first pocket 15 and a second pocket 20 for receiving a portion of the cell phone 11. The case 10 includes a backbone panel 25. The backbone panel 25 forms part of both the first pocket 15 and the second pocket 20. The first pocket 15 includes a face sheet 30, made of a clear material allowing a user to see the display 31 of the cell phone 11, when the cell phone 11 is inserted into the first pocket 15. The face sheet 30 is attached to the backbone panel 25 about part of its perimeter to form the first pocket 15. In an alternate embodiment, intermediate side panels 35 and 36 (as used on the second pocket 20) are used to attach the backbone panel 25 to the face sheet 30. The various components forming the first pocket 15 are attached to one another using heat welding, adhesive, stitching 21, or any other construction method to join two materials known in the art. One skilled in the art will recognize that the pockets of the case 10 can be formed of any number of panels, so as to suit the shape of the phone 11 or other portable device.
As shown in
The backbone panel 25 can include a window 45 to allow a user to see the outside display of the cell phone 11. The window 45 is formed of a clear material. The window 45 is joined to the backbone panel 25 by heat welding, adhesive, or stitching 21, or any other construction know in the art. With a judicious selection of materials, the window 35 may be co-molded into the backbone panel 25 during the manufacture of the backbone panel 25, as described herein for other structures.
The second pocket 20 is formed in a similar fashion, by attaching the backbone panel 25 to a front panel 37 about portions of its perimeter. As shown in the drawings, the second pocket 20 includes side panels 35 and 36. One skilled in the art will recognize that many different configurations, panels, and places to attach the pieces together may be used to produce the first pocket 15 and second pocket 20.
The first pocket 15 and second pocket 20 are to be joined by a continuous piece of material; that is the first 15 and second 20 pocket are not attached by velcro, snaps, buttons, zippers, or any other structure which allows easy detachment and reattachment from and to one another. With the single or continuous panel forming part of both pockets, a backbone panel 25 is formed linking the two pockets.
In use, the case 10 is placed onto the phone 11 by inserting part of the opened phone into one or the other of the first pocket 15 or the second pocket 20. Since the face sheet 30 is typically longer than the front panel 37, thereby creating a first pocket 15 that is deeper than the pocket formed by the front panel 37, when donning, it is preferable to insert the phone 11 into the first pocket 15 before inserting the phone into the second pocket 20, as shown in
Although the backbone panel 25 forms part of both the first 15 and second 20 pockets, and is one continuous piece, it need not be a uniform or homogenous piece. In other words, the backbone panel 25 may be formed of a plurality of pieces or materials attached to each other by stitching, heat welding, adhesive, or other permanent attachment. For instance, the center portion 45 can be formed of an elastic material, while the portions forming the pockets 15, 20 can be of a less elastic material.
In the preferred embodiment, the backbone panel 25 is formed by co-molding. Other parts of the case may also be formed by this process. Co-molding allows the part or panel being manufactured to easily incorporate different properties, colors, textures, shapes or other characteristics, while allowing for efficient construction. To construct the backbone panel 25 or other part, a mold 100 is constructed. As shown in
As shown in
For instance, the first substance 120 is placed in the mold 110 only in the area for piping 111, as shown in
In the instance of the first substance 120 being EPE, the liquid EPE is placed in the desired area of the mold 100 at room temperature. The EPE is then spread out and forced into the desired areas, such as piping 111 or textured areas, where air voids are likely. The mold 110 containing the EPE is then heated, and then cooled to room temperature.
The second material 140 is then poured. The second material 140 may have different properties than the first material 120. For instance, the second material 140 may be of a different color or texture. In some embodiments, the area of the mold 100 into which the second material 140 is poured may have a surface treatment or texture 101 to produce a surface texture on the finished product.
In a similar fashion, other pours may be made of either the same material, or different ones, until the panel having the desired characteristics is complete.
Shown in
With reference to the mold shown in
Once the desired materials are poured and cured, the co-molded panel is removed from the mold and sewn or otherwise attached to other panels to produce the case.
In other embodiments, the co-molding process allows other structures to be placed or integrated into the panel. For instance, once the first substance 120 is poured, additional materials can be placed into the mold, to create a panel having areas with different characteristics. The materials may be the same substance, or include a second substance 122 for co-molding, or may include other materials or structures, such as scrims, reinforcements, or windows, judiciously placed within the mold to create areas having particular structural characteristics.
For instance, a scrim 130 or other woven or non-woven reinforcement may be placed in areas where there will be stitching during the assembly of the case. Such scrims are placed where the panel will be stitched to lesson the likelihood of the stitching pulling through the case material. Similarly, a scrim can be placed in the area of the aperture for the clip post, thereby reinforcing that area. In other embodiments, the window 35 is placed in the mold prior to the second material pour, thereby eliminating the need to stitch the window 47 in place, as the window will be co-molded between the first material and the second material, and thereby retained. In another example shown in
In other embodiments, and as a direct result of co-molding process, portions of a panel can be thicker or thinner than other sections. For instance, areas where the finished product will include stitching can easily be made thicker to prevent pull through. Other areas, such as the textured area of the mold in
In additional to the layers shown in the figures, a final lining material such as rayon, may be applied either by spraying or laminating, onto the last poured layer. The lining material allows the cellular phone, or other portable device, to easily slide into and out of the case.
The case 10, no matter how produced, can include a detachable clip 200. With reference to
Indeed, the detachable clip 200 and post 210 can be incorporated into many different cases, not just the clamshell case 10 depicted in the Figures. This arrangement of clip and post is well known in the prior art. The post 210 includes a base 212 and an outwardly extending lug 214. The detachable clip 200 attaches to the lug 214, allowing the user to securely attach the case to his clothing.
The post 210 is removably attached to the case 10. The case 10 includes an aperture 216 sized to allow the lug 214 to fit through yet is not large enough to allow the base 212 to pass. The post 210 is positioned so that the lug 214 extends outwardly away from the case 10, and the base 212 remains in the case 10, the base 212 being too large to fit through the aperture 216. The base 212 is retained in position by a retainer 220, the retainer 220 limiting movement and securing the base 212 when engaged. When disengaged, the retainer 220 allows the post 210 to be removed from the case 10.
In the preferred embodiment, the base 212 is a generally thin, flat member, having a perimeter including two parallel straight portions 222 and two curved portions 230.
The retainer 220 is slightly thicker than the base 212, and includes a recess 225 to receive the base 212. The recess 225 may go entirely through the retainer 220 as an aperture. The perimeter of the recess 225 is generally concentric with the perimeter of the base 212. The retainer 220 includes tabs 226 which extend over the base 212, to keep the base 212 from moving in a direction perpendicular to the base 212. In the preferred embodiment, the tabs 226 are located to extend over the curved portions 223 of the base 212. The retainer 220 is attached to the inside of the case 10 so that it is located about the aperture 216. The retainer 220 is attached to the case by any means known in the art, including stitching, heat weld, and adhesive. The retainer 220 could also be co-molded into the case 10, or formed as part of the case.
In use, the post 210 is attached to the case 10 by inserting the lug 214 into the aperture 216 from the inside of the case. The retainer 220 is convexly flexed to allow the curved portion 223 of the base 212 to be inserted under a tab 226. Once positioned, the retainer 220 is unflexed and the opposite curved portion 223 is allowed to snap under the remaining tab 226, thereby securing the base 212 between the case 10 material and the tabs 226.
To remove the post, the retainer 220 is again convexly flexed to snap base 212 over the tab 226, allowing the base to be disengaged from the retainer 220 and the lug 214 to be pushed through the aperture 216, thereby removing the post 210 from the case 10. In such a fashion, the post 210 may be selectively attached to the case, or removed, as desired by the user.
One skilled in the art will recognize other structures could be used to connect a post to a retaining structure on the case. An example of such an embodiment includes a retainer 240 and base 250 that include mating structures that allow the base 250 to be separated and reconnected to the retainer 240.
In the embodiment shown in
The retainer 240 includes an aperture 280 sized to allow the lug 270 to pass through. As shown in
The base 250 can also include separation recesses 320 and 321 at its perimeter. The separation recesses are areas exposed to the perimeter that are of reduced thickness. When the base 250 and retainer 240 are mated, the separation recesses allow space between the two structures to allow a fingernail or other object to lever the two structures apart.
The retainer 240 includes a plurality of receivers 290, 291 for receiving and engaging the shafts 260 and 261. In the embodiment shown in
In an alternate embodiment shown in
As shown in
One skilled in the art will recognize that other types of constructions may be utilized in attaching the post to the case. One such constructive is a bayonet mount, as shown in
In use, the post 500 is inserted into aperture 520 base end 540 first, such that projections 525a-d are inserted into notches 522a-d. Adjacent notches 525a-d are flanges 535a-d. The flanges are generally arcuate in shape and form part of the aperture 520 perimeter, thus restraining the post 500 from side to side movement. The flanges 535a-d are of a thickness less than the thickness of the base 510, so as to accommodate the projections 525a-d when the post 500. The base 510 also includes stops 545a-b on the flanges 535a-b so that rotation of the post is stopped, preventing over rotation of the post 500.
The embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative of the invention and are not meant to limit the scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A case for a portable device, the case having a removable post, the case including:
- at least one panel of material forming the case, the panel having an aperture, and
- a retainer attached to a first side of the panel, the retainer removably securing a post having a lug extending through the aperture.
2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the post includes a base, and the retainer includes a recess for receiving the base and tabs extending over the base for securing the base in the recess.
3. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the post and retainer are disengaged by flexing the retainer to allow base to pass over the tabs.
4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein the base perimeter includes curved portions and the tabs are located to extend over the curved portions.
5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the post includes a base, a lug, and at least one shaft and the retainer includes at least one receiver, the receiver securing the shaft on the post when the post is attached to the retainer.
6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the at least one shaft includes a recessed portion and the at least one receiver includes a tab to engage the recessed portion of the shaft.
7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the post includes two shafts, the shafts located on either side of the lug and extending from the base in the same direction as the lug, the retainer including two receivers, each receiver including an engaging member, each engaging member attached to the retainer by a resilient member.
8. An assembly for retaining a mounting post to an article, the assembly including:
- a post having a base and a lug; and
- a retainer to retain the base in position, the retainer having an aperture to accept the lug, and having a tab to removably engage and retain the post.
9. The assembly of claim 8, wherein the article is a case having panels defining a pocket, the retainer being attached to a panel and located within the pocket.
10. The assembly of claim 8, wherein the post includes a pair of shafts, the shafts each having a recessed area to engage tabs on the retainer when the retainer and the post are secured together.
11. The assembly of claim 9, wherein the post includes a pair of shafts extending from the same side of the base of the post as the lug, the shafts each including a recess to engage tabs on the retainer to secure the post and retainer together, the base including an area of reduced thickness at the perimeter.
12. A case for carrying a portable electronic device, case having a retainer for securing accessories to the case, the case including panels assembled to form a pocket and an aperture on a panel, a retainer mounted inside the pocket on a panel, the retainer including an aperture aligned with the aperture in the panel, the retainer including tabs to retain accessories.
13. The device of claim 12, wherein the accessory is a post having a base and a lug, the lug size to fit through the aperture, the base including at least one shaft extending from the base, the shaft including a recess, the recess engaging the tabs when the lug is inserted into the aperture in the retainer.
14. The device of claim 13, wherein the base has an area of reduced thickness along its perimeter.
15. The device of claim 13, wherein the lug and aperture in the retainer are non-circular.
16. The device of claim 12, including:
- a plurality of panels of material assembled to form a first pocket and a second pocket, the first pocket for receiving the first section of the phone, the second pocket for receiving the second section of the phone,
- the first pocket and second pocket including a continuous panel of material connecting the two pockets.
17. The case of claim 16, wherein the continuous panel is made from an elastic material.
18. The case of claim 16, wherein the continuous panel is made from a material form the group including silicone, thermoplastic, thermosets, PVC, and EPE.
19. The case of claim 1, wherein the continuous panel includes an aperture and further includes a removable post, the post including a base and lug, the lug occupying the aperture in the retainer when the post and retainer are second together, the post including a shaft with a recess to engages a tab on the retainer when the post and retainer are second together.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 3, 2006
Publication Date: Aug 10, 2006
Inventors: Michel Arney (Wellesley, MA), Patrick Bodkin (Chicago, IL), Alexandre Hennen (Cambridge, MA), Tom Remm (Milford, OH), Jason Gilreath (Cincinnati, OH)
Application Number: 11/275,443
International Classification: A45F 3/00 (20060101);