Abstract:
Disclosed is a portable terminal having replaceable accessory modules. An accessory module can be rigidly mounted using a frame of the portable terminal, and can be easily replaced with another module according to a user&#39;s selection to satisfy various consumer demands. The portable terminal includes a body, accessory modules which are selectively mounted to the body, for providing additional functions to the portable terminal, and a movable frame which is mounted to and slides along the body of the portable terminal to keep the selected accessory module fixed to the body of the portable terminal by enclosing the selected accessory module to be mounted to the body of the portable terminal, for preventing the selected accessory module from being separated from the body of the portable terminal.

Description:
PRIORITY  
       [0001]     This application claims priority to an application entitled “Mobile Phone with Replaceable Module” filed with the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Mar. 16, 2005 and assigned Serial No. 2005-21803, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates to a portable terminal, and more particularly to a portable terminal having a variety of replaceable accessory modules each having a specific function, such as a camera module and a Bluetooth communication module, which a user can selectively replace with another in consideration of its use.  
         [0004]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0005]     In general, “a portable terminal” means an electronic device which a user can carry with him/her while communicating with another user. In consideration of portability, the design of such a portable terminal has tended to consider not only compactness, slimness and lightness, but also toward providing multimedia capabilities to allow the user to pursue a wider variety of functions. In particular, future portable terminals will not only be used for many functions while still being compact and light, but will also be modified to be suitable for functioning in a multimedia environment and for providing Internet access and functions. Additionally, such portable terminals may be used by men and women, young and old, anywhere in the world.  
         [0006]     Conventional portable terminals may be classified into various types according to their appearance, such as bar-type portable terminals, flip-type portable terminals, and folder-type portable terminals. The bar-type portable terminal has a single housing shaped like a bar. The flip-type portable terminal has a flip panel which is pivotably mounted to a bar-shaped housing by a hinge unit. The folder-type portable terminal has a folder coupled to a single bar-shaped housing by a hinge unit in such a manner that the folder can be rotated in order to be folded towards or unfolded from the housing.  
         [0007]     Further, portable terminals may be classified as neck wearable type terminals and wrist wearable type terminals, according to the position at or the way in which a user wears the terminal. The neck wearable type terminal is one which a user wears around the neck using a lanyard or necklace, while the wrist wearable type terminal is one which a user wears around the wrist.  
         [0008]     Additionally, portable terminals may be classified as rotation-type (or swing-type terminals and sliding-type terminals according to the ways of opening and closing the terminals. In the rotation-type portable terminal, two housings are coupled to each other in a manner that one housing rotates to be opened or closed relative to the other while facing each other. In the sliding-type portable terminal, two housings are coupled to each other in a manner that one housing slides to be opened or closed relative to the other. The various classifications of portable terminals are easily understood by those skilled in the art.  
         [0009]     In addition, various portable terminals have been developed to satisfy gradually increasing consumer demands. For example, a portable terminal including camera lens to perform a photography function, a portable terminal having stereo speakers to listen to stereo music, a portable terminal having a TV receiver, and a portable terminal having a game function have been manufactured.  
         [0010]     Since the conventional portable terminals as above mentioned have a specific structure to accommodate their respective use, there is a problem in that it is impossible, or at least, inconvenient to use them for purposes other than their main use. Where the portable terminal having the specific function of playing music is used to play a game, for example, the game is played by using the common keys provided on the dial pad. Thus, it causes game play to be difficult, resulting in a reduction in the user&#39;s enjoyment. Therefore, there is a disadvantage in that the conventional portable terminal is typically replaced with a portable terminal having a reinforced game function to smoothly play games.  
         [0011]     There currently is a portable terminal to which a user can directly mount a camera module having a camera lens to the earphone outlet to take a picture of a subject. However, there are problems in that any external impact may cause the camera module to be easily separated from the portable terminal. Also, it is inconvenient to use the camera module due to the weak connection between the camera module and the portable terminal.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0012]     Accordingly, the present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems occurring in the prior art, and an object of the present invention is to provide a portable terminal having replaceable modules to permit an accessory module to be rigidly mounted using a frame of the portable terminal.  
         [0013]     Another object of the present invention is to provide a portable terminal having replaceable modules which can be easily mounted to the portable terminal and easily replaced with another module according to a user&#39;s selection.  
         [0014]     Still another object of the present invention is to provide a portable terminal having replaceable modules so as to satisfy various consumer demands.  
         [0015]     In order to accomplish these objects, there is provided a portable terminal having replaceable accessory modules, which includes a body; accessory modules which are selectively mounted to the body for providing additional function to the portable terminal; and a movable frame which is mounted to and slides along the body of the portable terminal to keep the selected accessory module fixed to the body of the portable terminal and which is provided for enclosing the selected accessory module to be mounted to the body of the portable terminal for preventing the selected accessory module from being separated from the body of the portable terminal. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0016]     The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0017]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view showing a portable terminal according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0018]      FIG. 2  is a front view showing a movable frame of the portable terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0019]      FIG. 3  is a front view showing a module of the portable terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0020]      FIG. 4  is a front view showing another module of the portable terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention; and  
         [0021]      FIGS. 5A  to  5 D are views showing a process of mounting the module to the portable terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0022]     Hereinafter, a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein is omitted to avoid making the subject matter of the present invention unclear.  
         [0023]     As shown in FIGS.  1  to  4 , the portable terminal according to the present invention includes a body  100 , accessory modules  300  which are selectively mounted to the body  100  in order to provide additional functions to the portable terminal, and a movable frame  200  which is mounted to and slides along the body  100  of the portable terminal to keep the selected accessory module  300  fixed to the body  100  of the portable terminal and which is provided for enclosing the selected accessory module  300  when it is mounted to the body  100  of the portable terminal, for preventing the mounted accessory module  300  from being separated from the body  100  of the portable terminal. Furthermore, the portable terminal may include a first holding device which is provided on the body  100  of the portable terminal and the movable frame  200  to keep the selected accessory module  300  fixed to the body  100  of the portable terminal. In addition, the portable terminal may include a second holding device which is provided on the body  100  of the portable terminal and the accessory module  300  to keep the accessory module  300  connected to the body  100  of the portable terminal. While the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1  as being applied to a bar-type portable terminal, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be applied to a flip-type portable terminal, a folder-type portable terminal, a slider-type portable terminal, a swing-type portable terminal and the like.  
         [0024]     Referring to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the movable frame  200  includes a pair of guide frames  210  and  210 ′ and a pressing frame  220 . A space  400  is provided between the body  100  of the portable terminal and the movable frame  200 . The pair of guide frames  210  and  210 ′ have a distance corresponding to the width of the accessory module  300  positioned between them, of which a lower end is received in the body  100  of the portable terminal to be coupled to a guide rail (not shown). The guide rail assists the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ to slide straight so that the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ protrudes and retracts with respect to an upper surface  100   a  of the body  100  of the portable terminal. On the other hand, the pressing frame  220  is integrated with the pair of the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ to connect upper ends of the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ to each other and moves the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ together. As the pressing frame  220  moves the guide frames  210  and  210 ′ together, the accessory module  300  may be fixed to or released from the body  100  of the portable terminal. That is, the accessory module  300  can be coupled to or separated from the body  100  of the portable terminal when the movable frame  200  completely protrudes with respect to the upper surface  100   a  of the body  100  of the portable terminal, while the accessory module  300  is fixed to the body  100  when the movable frame  200  is retracted to press against that the accessory module  300  which is mounted to the body  100 . When the movable frame  200  is completely retracted after the accessory module  300  is removed, the movable frame  200  is partially received in the body  100  of the portable terminal to prevent a connection terminal  120  from being filled with debris such as dust.  
         [0025]     The first holding device includes a plurality of projections  230  and  230 ′, and a plurality of grooves  330  and  330 ′ corresponding to the projections  230  and  230 ′. The projections  230  and  230 ′ extend inwardly from an inner surface  220   a  of the movable frame  200 , while the grooves  330  and  330 ′ are formed on an outer surface  300   a  of the accessory module  300  to correspond to the projections  230  and  230 ′. The projections  230  and  230 ′ engaged with the grooves  330  and  330 ′ when the accessory module  300  is fixed to the body  100  by means of the movable frame  200 . Therefore, the first holding device can effectively deal with load applied in front and rear directions to the accessory module  300  which is mounted to the body  100  of the portable terminal, resulting in keeping the accessory module  300  fixed to the body  100  of the portable terminal. Preferably, the projections  230  and  230 ′ are formed at both ends of the inner surface of the pressing frame  220  and the grooves  330  and  330 ′ are formed at both ends of the upper surface of the accessory module  300 .  
         [0026]     The second holding device includes a seat groove  110  and a projection  310 . The seat groove  110  is formed at a desired depth on the upper surface  100   a  of the body  100  of the portable terminal, while the projection  310  is formed on a bottom surface of the accessory module  300  to correspond to the seat groove  110 . The projection  310  is inserted in and associated with the seat groove  110  when the accessory module  300  is mounted to the body  100  of the portable terminal. Thus, the second holding device can keep the accessory module  300  rigidly fixed to the body  100  of the portable terminal.  
         [0027]     The body  100  and the accessory module  300  are respectively provided with the connection terminal  120  and a connector  320  to transmit and receive data and signals to/from each other. The connection terminal  120  is provided inside the seat groove  110  and the connector  320  is formed on a bottom of the projection  310 . The connector  320  is coupled to the connection terminal  120  at the same time as the projection  310  is inserted into the seat groove  110 . As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the accessory module  300  can include a module such as a speaker module  300 - 1 , a camera module  300 - 2  and a Bluetooth communication module to perform additional functions other than the basic functions provided to the portable terminal. The speaker module  300 - 1  contains speaker(s) giving sound. The camera module  300 - 2  has a camera lens to take pictures. The Bluetooth communication module facilitates communication with a computer, a terminal and other appliances placed within a short distance using radio frequencies to enable real time communication.  FIG. 3  shows the speaker module  300 - 1  and  FIG. 4  shows the camera module  300 - 2 . The accessory modules  300 - 1  and  300 - 2  include the projection  310  which is inserted in the seat groove  110  formed in the body  100  and the connector  320  which is coupled to the connection terminal  120  in the seat groove  110 .  
         [0028]      FIGS. 5A  to  5 D are views showing a process of mounting the camera module  300 - 2  used as the accessory module  300  to the body  100  of the portable terminal.  
         [0029]     Referring to  FIGS. 5A  to  5 D, the user pulls straight up on the movable frame  200  disposed on the upper side  100   a  of the body  100  of the portable terminal so as to extend the movable frame  200  outward when mounting the camera module  300 - 2  to the body  100 . Preferably, the movable frame  200  slides along the longitudinal direction of the body  100 .  
         [0030]     When the user extends the movable frame  200 , the space  400  between the upper side  100   a  of the body  100  and the inner surface  200   a  of the movable frame  200  becomes wider. The camera module  300 - 2  is mounted through the widened space  400  to the body  100 . After the camera module  300 - 2  is placed in the space  400 , that is, the camera module  300 - 2  is mounted to the body as the projection  310  of the camera module  300 - 2  is inserted into the seat groove  110  formed in the body  100  of the portable terminal. At that time, the connector  320  of the camera module  300 - 2  is coupled to the connection terminal  120  of the body  100  of the portable terminal.  
         [0031]     As the user pushes the movable frame  200  toward the camera module  300 - 2 , the process of mounting the camera module  300 - 2  is completed. As a result, the movable frame  200  rigidly fixing the camera module  300 - 2  to the body  100  envelopes the outer surface of the camera module  300 - 2 .  
         [0032]     Since the user can selectively mount accessory modules having additional functions to the body of the portable terminal, as described above, the user facilitates realization of a specialized portable terminal. The portable terminal of the present invention can satisfy the consumer demands. In addition, since it improves the unity of the body and the accessory module, it not only helps the user to use the portable terminal intuitively but also protects the accessory module from separation and damage.  
         [0033]     While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. For example, the movable frame may be pivotable with respect to the body of the terminal, so that it pivots from the position shown in  FIG. 5D  to allow connection/disconnection of the accessory module.