MOBILE DEVICE ACCESSORY

Abstract

An accessory is provided for a mobile device and has a molded plastic body defining a squat personal card storage compartment with a door that forms an outer major wall to the storage compartment. The door defines a depth to the storage compartment such that it can at least two personal cards in a stacked relationship relative to each other. The body assembly has a mounting base with an attachment surface for adhesive attachment to a surface of either a mobile device or a case for a mobile device. The attachment of the door to the body assembly at its attached edge is configured to limit the opening of the door as a result of the application of an opening force applied thereto to a maximum angle of between 5° and 30°.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a mobile device accessory that is adapted to be associated with a mobile device such as a cellular mobile device or smartphone in use and which is configured to retain one, two, or more personal cards of a generally standard size. The personal cards may be in the form of financial cards such as credit, charge or debit cards or may be cards more directed at identification such as identity cards or even business cards, or authorization or record cards including driver's licenses, membership cards and loyalty cards. The personal cards will typically have dimensions falling within the peripheral size of a mobile device.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

It is often desirable to have available particular cards when one is moving around with a mobile device. With this end in view a number of mobile device holders have been provided with pockets for accommodating one, two or more personal cards of the general type indicated above so that they are transported with the mobile device and are available as and when required.

Various different arrangements have been made and are presently available. In one arrangement a pocket is attached to the rear of a mobile device holder by a hinge so that personal cards can be stored in it and it can be used as a prop to support the mobile phone in an inclined upstanding position for viewing of a display screen, typically a touchscreen, for viewing video recordings or streamed content received.

In another arrangement a sliding door is provided to a compartment in the back of a mobile device holder that receives personal cards that are generally stored parallel to the flat body of that mobile device.

In yet another arrangement a hinged door closes off an end of an otherwise similar compartment that can receive one or more personal cards stored therein.

Flexible pockets, typically made of a resilient material such as a silicone or even a fabric, are also available that are adhesively secured to the rear of a mobile device or a case and some of these have closing flaps in an attempt to ensure that personal cards do not fall out of them.

In addition, there are a variety of different mobile device retaining wallets that provide additional storage facilities for other items as well as personal cards.

One drawback of many of these is that the personal cards are not adequately secure in the pocket or compartment that receives them as it often requires the user to effect closing of any closure that is available. It may be cumbersome to remove personal cards and devices which include elastic may become stretched out, increasing the risk of cards falling out.

The preceding discussion of the background to the invention is intended only to facilitate an understanding of the present invention. It should be appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgment or admission that any of the material referred to was part of the common general knowledge in the art as at the priority date of the application.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with this invention there is provided an accessory for a mobile device wherein the accessory has a molded plastic body assembly defining a squat personal card storage compartment having a length, width and depth within the accessory with a door that forms an outer major wall to the storage compartment, wherein the door defines a depth to the storage compartment such that it can accommodate at least one personal card or at least two personal cards in a stacked relationship relative to each other, wherein the body assembly has a mounting base with an attachment surface for adhesive attachment to a surface of either a mobile device or a case for a mobile device, wherein the mounting base is made either as an integral part of the body assembly or is made as a separate unit that is permanently attached to a body component, wherein the door is attached to the body assembly at one edge thereof to permit opening of the door about said edge, and wherein the attachment of the door to the body assembly at said edge is configured to limit the opening of the door as a result of the application of an opening force applied thereto to a maximum angle without permanently distorting any component of the accessory, the maximum angle being between about 5° and 30°.

Further features of the invention provide for the door to be provided with a cut-out in an edge thereof opposite that attached to the body to enable a finger or thumb to be engaged directly with an adjacent personal card located in the storage compartment when the door is to be opened; for the door to be biased towards a closed position; for the door and body to have formations adapted to co-operate with each other through a clipping action in the fully closed position of the door; for the body and door to be integral with each other and to be connected by means of an integral connecting narrow panel of plastic material designed to urge the door towards a closed position and to offer added resistance to movement of the door if it is attempted to move it past its designed maximum opening angle; and for the maximum opening angle of the door to be designed to be between about 5° and about 20° and preferably about 15° or 10°. The maximum angle of opening of the door may be selected to be sufficient to permit the width of one finger of a person's hand or a person's thumb to fit within the an opening edge of the door.

Still further features of the invention provide for the body to have at least one and preferably more attachment eyelets, conveniently one towards each of four corners thereof, the eyelets being spaced from a plane including the attachment surface to enable the attachment of a cord or the like to the body wherein the cord may have a bauble that may be used as a finger grip at a free end thereof; for an outer surface of the door to have a mirror attached thereto; for a sidewall of the storage compartment opposite the attachment of the door to the body to be formed by sidewall sections of the compartment integral with the door on each side of a central finger or thumb accommodating cut-out with a smooth surface of the compartment opposite the door having no wall so as to facilitate removal of a card by sliding it out of the compartment without interference; and for the attachment surface to carry a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive for attaching the mounting base to a mobile device or case therefor.

Yet further, the invention provides for the mounting base to be made as a separate unit that is permanently attached to a body component that includes the door that is attached at one edge thereof to a common limb of a three sided frame with each of the other two sides of the frame being formed as a robust parallel securing limb one of which extends from each end of the common limb and wherein the common limb forms a sidewall to the storage compartment; the robust parallel securing limb each form an end wall to the storage compartment; and a sidewall of the storage compartment opposite the attachment of the door to the body is formed by sidewall sections of the compartment integral with the door on each side of a central finger or thumb accommodating cut-out.

In its simplest form the accessory of this invention can be applied either to a mobile device or case for a mobile device and can simply be used to store one or more personal cards. It will be understood that the depth of the compartment will determine how many cards can be accommodated in the compartment and, depending on requirements, different depths of compartment can be provided in different accessories according to requirements of a target market. A rather shallow compartment could accommodate say two personal cards that may or may not have embossed information thereon and a somewhat deeper compartment could be designed to accommodate say four personal cards that carry embossed information thereon or up to seven personal cards that are not embossed. Of course any combination can be stored in the storage compartment as may be desired. Simply for the sake of perspective, a stack of four embossed cards could have a combined thickness of about 5 mm whereas a stack of four personal cards that are not embossed could only have a combined thickness of about 3 mm.

It should be noted that it is possible to use an accessory according to the invention with the door serving as a prop for supporting an associated mobile device in an upright inclined position by inserting a bauble that is attached to the body of the accessory by a cord a between the door when it is substantially fully open and the body. The bauble should have appropriate dimensions to enable it to be wedged between the door and the body for this purpose.

In a further embodiment, a layer of material that substantially blocks radio frequency signals can be provided against inner or outer surfaces of the door; and a second layer of material that substantially blocks radio frequency signals can be provided against the mounting base.

A more detailed description of the invention and embodiments thereof follow with reference to the accompanying drawings, it being noted that any embodiment described is only exemplary of the invention and not to be construed as being limiting in any way.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a three-dimensional view showing an accessory according to the invention attached to the rear face off a mobile device that is shown in ghosted lines along with a hand removing a personal card from the accessory;

FIG. 2 is an exploded three-dimensional view of an accessory according to the invention showing its component parts;

FIG. 3 is a three-dimensional view of the outside of the accessory illustrated in FIG. 2 in the assembled condition;

FIG. 4 is a three-dimensional view of the opposite attachment surface of the accessory illustrated in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is an elevation of the outside of the accessory illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 4;

FIG. 6 is an elevation of the attachment surface of the accessory illustrated in FIGS. 2 to 4;

FIG. 7 is an edge on view of the accessory showing the opening edge of the door thereof showing two personal cards therein;

FIG. 8 is an edge on side view of the accessory in the closed position;

FIG. 9 is a section taken along line IX to IX in FIG. 5 with the door closed;

FIG. 10 is a section taken along line X to X in FIG. 5 with a door in an open position and showing two personal cards therein;

FIG. 11 is a three-dimensional view from the side and rear of a mobile device in the form of a cellular telephone showing the accessory fitted and with the door propped open by a bauble;

FIG. 12 is a view similar to FIG. 3 but showing a somewhat deeper accessory suitable for accommodating a greater number of cards;

FIG. 13 is a view similar to FIG. 10 showing the increased width of the storage compartment;

FIG. 14 is a view similar to FIGS. 3 and 12 but showing the door in a slightly open position to reveal the cooperating formations for holding the door in its closed position; and

FIG. 15 is an exploded three-dimensional view of an accessory according to another embodiment which includes radio frequency blocking layers.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION WITH REFERENCE TO THE DRAWINGS

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings, an accessory, generally indicated by numeral (1) in FIG. 1, which may be for a mobile device in the form of a cellular telephone (2), has a generally flat rectangular molded plastic body assembly defining a squat personal card storage compartment (3) having a length, width and depth within the accessory. The length and width may be selected to accommodate personal cards (5) within the range of about 80 to 90 mm long, typically about 85 mm long, and about 50 to 60 mm wide, typically about 54 mm wide. Personal cards (5) may for example be credit, debit or identity cards. A door (4) forms an outer major wall to the storage compartment (3) and in so doing defines a depth to the storage compartment such that it can accommodate, in this embodiment, at least two personal cards (5) in a stacked relationship relative to each other as shown in FIGS. 7 and 10. In other embodiments, the depth can accommodate up to 7 or even more personal cards in a stacked relationship.

An opposite major surface of the compartment is formed by an inner surface of a mounting base (6) with an outer attachment surface (7) for adhesive attachment to a surface of either a mobile device (2) or a case for a mobile device. In this embodiment of the invention, the mounting base (6) is made as a separate unit that is permanently attached to a body component (8) that includes the door (4) that is attached at one edge thereof to a common limb (9) of a three-sided frame with each of the other two sides of the frame being formed as a robust parallel securing limb (10) one of which extends from each end of the common limb (9).

The door (4) is connected to the common limb (9) by way of a connecting rigidly flexible narrow panel (11) of plastic material that is integral with both the common limb (9) and the door (4). The narrow panel (11) is somewhat resilient and is designed to urge the door towards a closed position and to offer added resistance to movement of the door if there is an attempt to move it past its designed maximum opening angle. The door can therefore rotate to a limited extent about its edge that is attached to the common limb by way of the integral narrow panel (11).

As indicated above, the attachment of the door (4) to the body component (8) at said edge is configured to limit the opening of the door as a result of the application of an opening force applied to the door to a maximum angle of between about 5° and about 30° without distorting or irreversibly deforming any component of the accessory. In one embodiment, the maximum angle may be between about 5° and about 20° and preferably about 15° or about 10°. The angle is determined by the rigidity of the plastics material from which the body component (8) is made, and it is designed so as to open only sufficiently far to permit a one finger to fit inside an opening edge of the door, which angle was measured to be approximately 12° to 15°. The material of the body compartment (8) is therefore selected to be a rigid plastic material so that significant effort is needed to open the door (4) by more than about a finger-width at its opening edge. The minimum angle required to remove a single personal card may be as little as 1°, but at such narrow angles two hands are generally required, one to slightly open the door and the other to slide the card out.

The hinge of the door on the mobile device accessory should not be considered as a living hinge since it is not free moving like living hinges. It could more appropriately be considered to be an elastic bending panel (11) that resists bending elastically to provide self-closing of the door (4).

The door (4) is provided with a central cut-out (12) in the edge thereof for a finger or thumb opposite the edge attached to the common limb (9) to enable a finger and thumb to be engaged directly with an adjacent personal card (5) located in the storage compartment when a card (5) is to be removed as the door (4) is being opened.

Reverting to the structure of the accessory (1), the side of the storage compartment (3) opposite the attachment of the door to the common limb (9) of the body component (8) is formed by sidewall sections (13) of the compartment, most clearly shown in FIG. 10, that are integral with the door (4) on each side of the central finger or thumb accommodating cut-out (12). A smooth surface (14) of the compartment on the inside of the mounting base opposite the door has no wall and may be tapered so as to facilitate removal of a card by sliding it out of the compartment without interference. The sidewall section (13) helps to substantially prevent personal cards (5) from falling out without a user using a thumb to push down on the card, and simultaneously lifting the door (4) using an opposite portion of the same finger or with a different finger. Because the outer edges of the door have a smooth curved shape, there is no readily available feature to grip onto to open the door (4) other than within the central cut-out (12), where opening the door (4) requires a finger to be wedged against the topmost personal card (5). This performs an inherent safety function that reduces a risk of a card falling out through only opening the door and without engaging the card. If the cards themselves are used as a grip to open the door, then all the cards will remain within the compartment (3) where the sidewall sections (13) prevent them from falling out.

The door and the two robust parallel securing limbs (10) of the three-sided frame of the body component preferably have formations adapted to co-operate with each other through a clipping action in the fully closed position of the door to firmly hold it closed. Such formations (18) may be provided projecting from the ends of the sidewall sections (13) that co-operate with recesses (19) in the inner surfaces of the robust parallel securing limbs, and are most clearly shown in FIG. 11 and FIG. 14. The presence of the formations (18) also enables the body component (8) to be injection molded in a single piece injection molding tool without any undercuts, by initially including a narrow bridging portion between free edges of the door and the parallel securing limbs (10). This also keeps the parallel securing limbs (10) at the right spacing for the body component (8) to be attached to the mounting base (6). The formations (18) are formed when this bridging portion is snapped off, which may be by means of downwards pressure on the door (4) in the direction of the mounting base (6) or by means of opening the door. This construction is totally independent of the number of cards that the accessory is designed to accommodate.

A sidewall (15) of the storage compartment adjacent the rigidly flexible narrow panel (11) is formed by the inner surface of the common limb (9) (see FIG. 10) of the three-sided frame of the body component (8) and the inner surface of end walls (16) of the storage compartment are each formed by the inner surface of the robust parallel securing limb (10) at each end of the storage compartment.

The separate unit that defines the mounting base (6) can simply be a flat molded plastic product as illustrated in FIG. 2 having multiple upstanding integral studs (17) in rows along the ends thereof that are engaged in cooperating sockets in the solid plastic material of the robust parallel securing limbs (10). The studs can be bonded into the sockets in any suitable way to secure the parts together permanently. The construction can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 9. In a different embodiment, the accessory (1) could be made without a mounting base and simply have adhesive attached to an underside of the body component (8).

The robust parallel securing limbs (10) each have an attachment eyelet (21) at each end thereof with one being positioned towards each of four corners of the generally rectangular accessory. The eyelets are spaced away from a plane including the attachment surface to enable the attachment of a cord or the like passing through the eyelet by the provision of recesses (22) in the plastic material of which the body assembly is composed.

Thus a cord (23) that may have a bauble (24) at a free end thereof may be attached to an eyelet. The bauble may be used as a finger grip. In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the bauble and cord may be dimensioned such that the bauble can be wedged between the door and the body to hold the door open such that it can be used to prop the attached mobile device in an inclined upright position for viewing purposes of an associated touchscreen or other visible display.

The door also preferably has a mirror (25) attached to the outside thereof, conveniently in a recess molded into the outside surface of the door.

The attachment surface carries a layer (27) of pressure sensitive adhesive for attaching the mounting base to a mobile device or case therefor as and when required and the adhesive may be covered in the usual way by a removable cover sheet (28) (see FIG. 4).

FIGS. 12 to 14 illustrate a somewhat deeper storage compartment in a similar accessory that can be made to accommodate say 4 to 7 personal cards in a stacked configuration. FIG. 13 also illustrates the absence of a mirror in the outer surface of the door. FIG. 14 is similar to FIG. 12 but shows the door (4) slightly open to reveal the cooperating formations (18, 19) for holding the door in its closed position.

As regards material of manufacture of the molded plastics components, it is considered that ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) may be most appropriate depending on particular requirements. Other plastics that can be considered are polypropylene; HDPE (High Density Polyester); TPU (Thermoplastic Polyurethane); PC (Polycarbonate); and PE (Polyethylene). Certainly elastomeric materials may also be appropriate depending on their individual properties and therefore suitable rubbers are included

As regards the adhesive, it should preferably be an acrylic adhesive that can bond well to most materials such as low energy materials like Polypropylene. A suitable pressure sensitive adhesive that is currently favored is that sold by the 3M Company of the USA under their reference number 9482 A-25. That adhesive Is a firm acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesive system that features very high adhesion to a variety of surfaces, excellent shear holding power, high temperature resistance and an excellent UV resistance.

FIG. 15 shows a further embodiment of an accessory in exploded view which is similar to the accessory (1) of Figures which includes two intermediate layers (31, 32) of material which substantially block radio frequency signals. A first intermediate layer (31) may be sandwiched between the mirror (25) and the door and a second intermediate layer (32) may be sandwiched between the layer of pressure sensitive adhesive (27) and the mounting base (6). The intermediate layers (31, 32) may be thin films of conductive material such as aluminium or carbon fiber that may optionally have an additional supporting layer of plastic or other material and may have adhesive on one or both sides. Such conductive material is capable of blocking radio frequency identification (RFID) signals such that a card which is RFID enabled inside the compartment cannot accidentally or fraudulently be scanned by an RFID scanner.

The accessory provided by this invention may be made as a durable product that has a smooth design for easy card organization on a smart phone. It can be made to have a low profile and to provide very little obstruction on the outside of a mobile device or a mobile device case. Of course, the accessory is not limited in its use and may be attached to any smooth supporting surface of, for example, a laptop, tablet, or other personal item or even in a location such as on a wall or on a desk.

Throughout the specification and claims unless the contents requires otherwise the word ‘comprise’ or variations such as ‘comprises’ or ‘comprising’ will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers.

Claims

1. An accessory for a mobile device wherein the accessory has a molded plastic body assembly defining a squat personal card storage compartment having a length, width and depth within the accessory with a door that forms an outer major wall to the storage compartment, wherein the door defines a depth to the storage compartment such that it can accommodate at least one personal card or at least two personal cards in a stacked relationship relative to each other, wherein the body assembly has a mounting base with an attachment surface for adhesive attachment to a surface of either a mobile device or a case for a mobile device, wherein the mounting base is made either as an integral part of the body assembly or is made as a separate unit that is permanently attached to a body component, wherein the door is attached to the body assembly at one edge thereof to permit opening of the door about said edge, and wherein the attachment of the door to the body assembly at said edge is configured to limit the opening of the door as a result of the application of an opening force applied thereto to a maximum angle without permanently distorting any component of the accessory, the maximum angle being between 5° and 30°.

2. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the door is provided with a cut-out in an edge thereof opposite that attached to the body to enable a finger or thumb to be engaged directly with an adjacent personal card located in the storage compartment when the door is to be opened.

3. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the door is biased towards a closed position.

4. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the body assembly includes a body component and the body component and door are integral with each other and are connected by means of an integral connecting narrow panel of plastic material designed to urge the door towards a closed position and to offer added resistance to movement of the door if it is attempted to move it past its designed maximum opening angle.

5. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the maximum angle of opening of the door is designed to be between about 5° and about 20° °.

6. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the maximum angle of opening of the door is designed to be about 10°.

7. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the maximum angle of opening of the door is designed to be about 15°.

8. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the maximum angle of opening of the door is selected to permit the width of one finger of a person's hand to fit inside an opening edge of the door.

9. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the body has at least one attachment eyelet spaced from a plane including the attachment surface and a cord attached to the eyelet.

10. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 9 in which the cord has a bauble at a free end thereof.

11. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which an outer surface of the door has a mirror attached thereto.

12. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which a sidewall of the storage compartment opposite the attachment of the door to the body is formed by sidewall sections of the compartment integral with the door on each side of a central finger or thumb accommodating cut-out with a smooth surface of the compartment opposite the door having no wall so as to facilitate removal of a card by sliding it out of the compartment without interference.

13. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the attachment surface carries a layer of pressure sensitive adhesive for attaching the mounting base to a mobile device or case therefor.

14. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 4 in which the mounting base is made as a separate unit that is permanently attached to a body component that includes the door that is attached at one edge thereof to a common limb of a three sided frame with each of the other two sides of the frame being formed as a robust parallel securing limb one of which extends from each end of the common limb and wherein the common limb forms a sidewall to the storage compartment.

15. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 14 in which each robust parallel securing limb forms an end wall to the storage compartment.

16. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 14 in which a sidewall of the storage compartment opposite the attachment of the door to the body is formed by sidewall sections of the compartment integral with the door on each side of a central finger or thumb accommodating cut-out.

17. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which a layer of material which substantially blocks radio frequency signals is provided against an inner or outer surface of the door.

18. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which a layer of material which substantially blocks radio frequency signals is provided against the mounting base.

19. An accessory for a mobile device as claimed in claim 1 in which the door and body have formations adapted to co-operate with each other through a clipping action in a fully closed position of the door.