Protective Case for Portable Electronic Device

Abstract

A protective case for a portable electronic device includes a hard bottom plate, having at least one hole and a flange around a periphery thereof; a soft frame, connected to the bottom plate and having at least one through hole; an inner peripheral edge of the frame being provided with an engaging groove, the flange being engaged in the engaging groove, the frame cooperating with the bottom plate to form an accommodation space for receiving the portable electronic device, a face of the bottom plate, opposite to the accommodation space, cooperating with the frame to form an accommodation trough; a glass substrate, corresponding in shape to the accommodation trough; and a plastic film, disposed between the bottom plate and the glass substrate, the glass substrate and the plastic film being bonded together and disposed in the accommodation trough. Thereby, the glass substrate may increase the scratch resistance of the back of the protective case and may be provided with a color, a pattern or a character to enhance the quality of the protective case.

Description

NOTICE OF COPYRIGHT

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to any reproduction by anyone of the patent disclosure, as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patent files or records, but otherwise reserves all copyright rights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a protective case for a 3C product, and more particularly to a protective case for a portable electronic device, such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer or a personal digital assistant for protecting the portable electronic device from being scraped.

Description of Related Arts

Portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, tablets, or personal digital processing devices (PDA), have become increasingly popular and are almost inseparable from our daily life. Therefore, people pay more attention to the protection requirements for such portable electronic devices. The aforesaid portable electronic devices, a mobile phone taken as an example, may be damaged inevitably during use. For example, the mobile phone may crack due to falling or be scraped. In order to prevent the mobile phone from being damaged, the mobile phone is covered with a protective case 10, as shown in FIG. 1, to protect the appearance of the mobile phone from being damaged. The protective case is formed of a soft elastomeric material by molding, such as thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU), polyurethane (PU), or silicone-containing materials. The protective case is to cover the periphery and the back of the mobile phone and the touch screen of the mobile phone is exposed, so that the user may operate the mobile phone without removing the protective case. The protective case is able to withstand the impact and protect the mobile phone.

However, due to the soft material of the protective case, when the mobile phone is placed on a table or a hard surface, it is easy to scrape the protective case. The back 11 of the protective case may have a lot of scratches 12. Although the scratches 12 don't affect the functionality of the protective case, the overall appearance is not pleasing to the eyes. Besides, the scratches 12 are easy to accumulate dirt and bacteria, so it is necessary to improve the existing protective case. Accordingly, the inventor of the present invention has devoted himself based on his many years of practical experiences to solve these problems.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

In view of the aforesaid shortcomings, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a protective case for a portable electronic device.

The main technology and the purpose of the present invention is that the back of the protective case is provided with a glass substrate. The glass substrate itself has a high hardness and scratch resistance to enhance wear resistance and scratch resistance of the protective case. Moreover, the surface of the glass substrate is smooth and translucent, thereby enhancing the quality of the protective case and improving the appearance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional protective case;

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a glass substrate provided with a pattern of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a plastic film provided with a pattern of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the present invention provided with a pattern.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, the present invention discloses a protective case 20 for a portable electronic device. The protective case 20 comprises a bottom plate 21, a frame 24, a glass substrate 30, and a plastic film 32.

The bottom plate 21 is a hard flat plate for covering the back of the portable electronic device. The bottom plate 21 has at least one hole 22 corresponding to at least one lens of the portable electronic device and a flange 23 around its periphery.

The frame 24 is a flexible frame and is connected to the bottom plate 21 for covering the periphery of the portable electronic device. The frame 24 has at least one through hole 25 corresponding to at least one interface port of the portable electronic device. The inner peripheral edge of the frame 24 is provided with an engaging groove 26. The flange 23 is engaged in the engaging groove 26. The frame 24 cooperates with the bottom plate 21 to form an accommodation space 27 for receiving the portable electronic device. A face of the bottom plate 21, opposite to the accommodation space 27, cooperates with the frame 24 to form an accommodation trough 28. Four corners of the frame 24 are each provided with a raised rib 241 adjacent to the accommodation trough 28.

The glass substrate 30 corresponds in shape to the accommodation trough 28. The glass substrate 30 has at least one first perforation 31 corresponding to the hole 21.

The plastic film 32 is disposed between the bottom plate 21 and the glass substrate 30. The plastic film 32 has at least one second perforation 33 corresponding to the hole 22. A first adhesive layer 34 is provided between the plastic film 32 and the glass substrate 30. A second adhesive layer 35 is provided between the plastic film 32 and the bottom plate 21. The glass substrate 30 and the plastic film 32 are bonded together and disposed in the accommodation trough 28. The glass substrate 30 may increase the scratch resistance of the back of the protective case 20, and may be provided with a color, a pattern or a character to enhance the quality of the protective case 20.

The assembly, function and details of the aforesaid embodiment are described below. As shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, the bottom plate 21 of the protective case 20 is made of a hard material which is less deformable, for example, polycarbonate (PC), poly ethylene terephthalate (PET), etc., but not limited thereto. The frame 24 of the protective case 20 is made of a soft elastic material, such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU), polyurethane (PU), thermoplastic elastomer (TPE), polypropylene (PP), etc., but not limited thereto, so that the protective case 20 provides a shockproof effect. For the camera lens, the logo, the microphone, or the port of the portable electronic device to be exposed, not covered by the protective case 20, the hole 22 of the bottom plate 21 corresponds in position to the camera lens, logo or specific pattern of the electronic device. The through hole 25 of the frame 24 may correspond in position to the position of the human-machine or transmission interface of the portable electronic device, such as a microphone, a port, a power switch, and a volume key. The glass substrate 30 may be made of tampered glass, but not limited thereto, to improve the hardness and scratch resistance effectively and to prolong the service life of the glass substrate 30. The plastic film 32 is a high tensile strength transparent film (for example, a PET film or a PC film), which can further enhance the strength of the glass substrate 30 and reduce the chance of cracking and prevent the glass substrate from being scattered when the glass substrate is broken. When the glass substrate is damaged by impact, the glass substrate may crack, but not being scattered, so as to enhance the safety and the purpose of protection.

To assemble the present invention, as shown in FIG. 2 to FIG. 4, the flange 23 of the bottom plate 21 is first engaged with the engaging groove 26 of the frame 24. Preferably, the bottom plate 21 is placed in a mold, and the frame 24 is formed to wrap the flange 23 of the bottom plate 21 by injection molding and further to form the accommodation space 27 and the accommodation trough 28. One side surface of the plastic film 32 is coated with the first adhesive layer 34 and bonded to the glass substrate 30. Preferably, the first adhesive layer 34 is a viscous, transparent OCA (optical clear adhesive), but not limited thereto, so that the plastic film 32 is firmly adhered to the glass substrate 30 and has a good light transmittance. The other side surface of the plastic film 32 is coated with the second adhesive layer 35 and bonded to the bottom plate 21 in the accommodation trough 28. Preferably, the second adhesive layer 35 is a silicone rubber which is releasable, but not limited thereto. Thus, the glass substrate 30 and the plastic film 32 can be repeatedly adhered to or separated from the bottom plate 21. The bottom plate 21 is made of a hard material and is not easily deformable and is excellent in flatness, so it can be attached to the glass substrate 30 and the plastic film 32 tightly. It is to be noted that the surface of the glass substrate 30 is not beyond the accommodation trough 28. That is, the height of the glass substrate 30 does not exceed the depth of the accommodation trough 28 after being attached, so that the edge of the glass substrate 30 can be protected from direct impact by the protective case 20. In other words, the raised ribs 241 at the four corners of the frame 24 first withstand the impact, which can achieve the effect of cushioning and avoid direct impact on the glass substrate 30 if the protective case 20 is accidentally dropped on the ground or accidentally collided.

It is to be noted that, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 7, one of the glass substrate 30 and the plastic film 32 may be provided with a color. An adhesive surface of the glass substrate 30 may be printed with a pattern, a line, a design, a character, and so on (as shown in FIG. 5), but not limited thereto. A surface of the plastic film 32 may be printed with a pattern, a line, a design, a character, and so on (as shown in FIG. 6), but not limited thereto. Thereby, the protective case 20 is more beautiful and its quality is improved. The user can change the pattern, the design or the character of the glass substrate 30 and the plastic film 32 as desired. (Because the second adhesive layer 35 is releasable, it can be repeatedly pasted and replaced.) The present invention is very practical.

Although particular embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A protective case for a portable electronic device, comprising:

a bottom plate, made of a hard material, the bottom plate having at least one hole and a flange around a periphery thereof;

a frame, made of a soft material and connected to the bottom plate, the frame having at least one through hole, an inner peripheral edge of the frame being provided with an engaging groove, the flange being engaged in the engaging groove, the frame cooperating with the bottom plate to form an accommodation space, a face of the bottom plate, opposite to the accommodation space, cooperating with the frame to form an accommodation trough;

a glass substrate, corresponding in shape to the accommodation trough; and

a plastic film, disposed between the bottom plate and the glass substrate, a first adhesive layer being provided between the plastic film and the glass substrate, a second adhesive layer being provided between the plastic film and the bottom plate, the glass substrate and the plastic film being bonded together and disposed in the accommodation trough.

2. The protective case as claimed in claim 1, wherein the glass substrate has at least one first perforation corresponding to the hole, and the plastic film has at least one second perforation corresponding to the hole.

3. The protective case as claimed in claim 2, wherein the glass substrate has a height not beyond a depth of the accommodation trough after being attached.

4. The protective case as claimed in claim 3, wherein four corners of the frame are each provided with a raised rib adjacent to the accommodation trough.

5. The protective case as claimed in claim 3, wherein the first adhesive layer is an optical clear adhesive (OCA), and the second adhesive layer is a silicone rubber.

6. The protective case as claimed in claim 1, wherein one of the glass substrate and the plastic film is provided with a color.

7. The protective case as claimed in claim 1, wherein a surface of the plastic film is printed with a pattern, a line, a design, or a character.

8. The protective case as claimed in claim 1, wherein an adhesive surface of the glass substrate is printed with a pattern, a line, a design, or a character.