Abstract:
The invention relates to a holder for a mobile telephone that has a fastening device for mounting the holder ( 10 ) in a motor vehicle. In order to be able to use the holder universally, the fastening device ( 12 ) is in the form of a three-point fastening having three fastening feet which are attached to the fastening device ( 12 ) at the corners of a notional triangle. To enable the fastening feet to pivot in any direction, the fastening device ( 12 ) has a multi-directional pivot bearing for each fastening foot.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a holder for a mobile telephone. “Mobile telephone” is to be understood to mean an apparatus having the approximate shape and size of a telephone receiver. 
     2. Prior Art 
     Such holders are known per se. They serve to hold a mobile telephone in a position in a motor vehicle that enables a driver to use the mobile telephone without having to hold the mobile phone in one hand. Holders are known that have, for example, a clamping device having adjustable gripping jaws that engage sides of the mobile telephone and are thus suitable for holding different types of mobile telephone. Holders are also known that are especially suited to a particular mobile telephone and can only be used for that mobile telephone. The known holders have a fastening device for mounting the holder, for example, on a dashboard or on a central console of the motor vehicle. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is an object of the present invention to develop a holder for a mobile telephone that can be used universally. 
     The holder according to the invention has a three-point fastening having three fastening feet that are attached to the fastening device at the corners of a notional triangle. The fastening feet can be pivoted in any direction, for example, by ball-and-socket articulations. The three-point fastening firstly has the advantage that it is a mechanically defined fastening. 
     Each fastening foot rests on a fastening surface, that is to say, for example, on the dashboard or on the central console of the motor vehicle. Owing to their ability to pivot in any direction when the holder is being fastened, the fastening feet adapt to the shape of the fastening surface, for example a convexly dr concavely curved fastening surface. This ensures a maximum fastening force of each fastening foot against a fastening surface and stress-free mounting of the holder in the motor vehicle. The holder according to the invention adapts to fastening surfaces virtually of any shape. A further advantage of the three-point fastening is that, owing to the fastening by three fastening feet, it is able to absorb large forces and, owing to the distance between the fastening feet, it is able to absorb high moments, such as occur as a result of loading of the holder by a lever arm to the fastening device. The fastening feet can be mounted in the motor vehicle, for example by being adhesively secured or by means of screws. 
     In order to be able to direct the mobile telephone towards the driver in such a manner that its keypads can be easily seen and used, a display can be read easily and a microphone and a loudspeaker of the mobile telephone are directed towards the driver, in an embodiment of the invention the holder has a pivot bearing, by means of which a holding portion that receives the mobile telephone can be pivoted relative to the fastening device of the holder. By means of the pivot bearing, the mobile telephone can be directed with respect to the driver to a good position for the driver to use the telephone, irrespective of the spatial position of the fastening surface in the motor vehicle on which the holder is mounted. 
     In order to fix the mobile telephone in its adjusted position, in a development, the holder according to the invention has an immobilizing device by means of which the pivot bearing can be fixed in any position. The immobilizing device prevents the holder from becoming displaced unintentionally. The adjusted position of the mobile telephone is reliably maintained even under the stresses that occur during the journey. 
     In a development of the invention, the holder has a safety device for the pivot bearing, which holds the pivot bearing and thus also the holder together, even when the immobilizing device has been released. This prevents the holder from coming apart into several pieces, for example after slackening and full unscrewing of a clamping screw of the immobilizing device. The safety device enables the position of the mobile telephone to be adjusted, by pivoting, after the immobilizing device has been released, and thus ensures that the mobile telephone continues to be held. 
     The pivot bearing preferably enables the mobile telephone to pivot in any direction in order to provide as many adjustment options as possible for the position of the mobile telephone. 
     In an embodiment of the invention, a dome-like articulation is provided as pivot bearing, that is to say an articulation having a hollow dome which is engaged from behind through an opening by a plate-like disk or the like, which is connected to the holding portion that receives the mobile telephone, the holding portion resting on the outside of the hollow dome so as to be displaceable along its surface. 
     In order to increase the range of angled adjustment of the mobile telephone beyond the pivot range of the pivot bearing, in an embodiment of the invention the holding portion that receives the mobile telephone is so constructed as to be able to be mounted on the pivot bearing in various angled positions. 
     In order to make the holder usable for different types of mobile telephone, an adapter is provided which can be connected to the mobile telephone, for example by being adhesively secured thereto. The adapter is releasably mounted on the mobile-telephone-receiving holding portion of the holder according to the invention. The adapter can also be arranged to be releasably connected to the mobile telephone. The adapter enables the mobile telephone to be removed rapidly from the holder according to the invention and to be mounted thereon rapidly and securely in position. The adapter can be used with a holder having three-point fastening and also with a holder having a different type of fastening. 
     The holder preferably has a locking device having a so-called push-push mechanism having, for example, a heart-shaped curve. The locking device locks the adapter on the mobile-telephone-receiving holding portion of the holder when the adapter is pressed against the holding portion and releases the adapter when the adapter is pressed against the holding portion again. The locking device has the advantage that the mobile telephone can be mounted on the holder by simply pressing it against the holding portion and can be removed by pressing against the mobile telephone again, additional manual operations for locking or releasing it being unnecessary. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The invention will be explained hereinafter in greater detail with reference to an embodiment shown in the drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a holder according to the invention, and 
     FIGS. 2 and 3 are perspective views showing the assembled holder of FIG. 1 in two positions. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The holder according to the invention for a mobile telephone (not shown), shown in the drawings and denoted as a whole by the reference numeral  10 , has a fastening device  12  for fastening the holder  10 , for example, to a dashboard or to a central console of a motor vehicle. The fastening device  12  comprises a base plate  14  that, in a plan view, is essentially in the shape of an equilateral triangle having rounded corners. Mounted on the underside of the base plate  14  in the region of its corners are three plate-like fastening feet  16 . The fastening feet  16  are mounted, articulated, on the base plate  14  by means of ball-and-socket articulations  18 ,  20  so as to be able to pivot in any direction. The ball-and-socket articulations  18 ,  20  have an articulation ball  18  that is integral with the fastening feet  16  and is received in a complementary articulation socket  20  that is integral with the base plate  14 . In order to be able to fasten the holder  10  in the motor vehicle, undersides of the fastening feet  16  are of self-adhesive construction, for example having a stuck-on foam rubber strip known per se that is coated with a self-adhesive film. 
     In order to be able to pivot a mobile telephone that is received by the holder  10  according to the invention in any direction, the holder  10  according to the invention has a dome-like articulation  22  as pivot bearing: the base plate  14  has projecting from the centre of its surface a hollow dome  24  which is provided with a central hole (not visible in the drawing). Inside the hollow dome  24  there is a plate-like disk  26 , the rim of which is curved to match the inner curvature of the hollow dome  24 . On the outside of the hollow dome  24  there is a carrier  28 , which is approximately in the shape of a funnel, the wide end of which has a concave spherical-shaped inner curvature that complements the outer curvature of the hollow dome  24 , by means of which inner curvature the carrier  28  rests on the hollow dome  24 . The carrier  28  has two resiliently formed snap-in fingers  30  having snap-in lugs  32  at their free ends. The snap-in fingers  30  engage through the central hole (not visible in the drawing) of the hollow dome  24  of the base plate  14 . The snap-in fingers  30  also engage through openings  34  in the plate-like disk  26 , the snap-in lugs  32  at the free ends of the snap-in fingers  30  engaging behind the plate-like disk  26 . The carrier  28  located on the outside of the hollow dome  24  is connected to the plate-like disk  26  located on the inside of the hollow dome  24  by means of its snap-in fingers  30  having the snap-in lugs  32 . The carrier  28  can be displaced on the hollow dome  24  in any direction, the plate-like disk  26  moving correspondingly with the carrier  28  on the inside of the hollow dome  24 . As a result of the displacement of the carrier  28  on the hollow dome  24 , the carrier  28  is pivoted with respect to the base plate  14 . The diameter of the central hole (not visible) of the hollow dome  24  allows displacement of the carrier  28  on the hollow dome  24  and thus pivoting of the carrier  28 . The plate-like disk  26  connected to the carrier  28  holds the carrier  28  against the hollow dome  24 . 
     A clamping screw  36 , which is screwed into a threaded hole  38  in the centre of the plate-like disk  26 , engages through the carrier  28 . The plate-like disk  26  and the clamping screw  36  form an immobilizing device of the holder i  0  according to the invention. By tightening the immobilizing screw  36 , the carrier  28  is fixed in its then present position on the hollow dome  24  of the base plate  14  and thus is fixed with respect to the base plate  14  at the angle of the carrier  28  that has just been set. The snap-in fingers  30 , which engage behind the plate-like disk  26  by their snap-in lugs  32 , together with the plate-like disk  26  form a safety device for the holder  10 . They hold the carrier  28  against the hollow dome  24  of the base plate  14  even when the clamping screw  36  has been fully unscrewed. 
     An elongate approximately plate-like holding portion  40  is positioned on the carrier  28 . The holding portion  40  has on its underside a square socket (obscured in the drawing) by means of which it is positioned on a square member  42  of the carrier  28 . The holding portion  40  is held on the carrier  28  by the clamping screw  36 , which also engages through the holding portion  40 . An elongate adapter  44  is releasably connected to the holding portion  40 . The adapter  44  has a lug seat  46  (FIGS. 2 and 3) at one end, with which it engages round a lug (not visible in the drawing) resting therein that is integral with the holding portion  40 . By means of the lug seat  46  engaging round the lug, one end of the adapter  44  is in engagement with the holding portion  40 . 
     At the other end of the adapter  44  and holding portion  40  is a locking device having a so-called push-push mechanism  48  for the releasable fastening of the adapter  44  to the holding portion  40 . The push-push mechanism  48  has inside it a heart-shaped curved control element (not visible in the drawing). Such push-push mechanisms  48  are known per se to the person skilled in the art and will therefore not be explained here. The push-push mechanism  48  is inserted securely in the holding portion  40 . The push-push mechanism  48  has two anchor bolts (not visible in the drawing) which project outwards from the push-push mechanism  48  at an angle from one another when the push-push mechanism  48  is in the released position and which are retracted into the push-push mechanism  48  and moved towards one another in a locking position. The anchor bolts engage behind a hammer head  50  of a locking peg that is integral with the adapter  44 . 
     To lock the adapter  44  to the holding portion  40 , the locking peg together with its hammer head  50  is pressed against the anchor bolts of the push-push mechanism  48  that are in their released position, the anchor bolts moving into the push-push mechanism  48 , engaging with the hammer head  50  and thereby locking the adapter  44  in the push-push mechanism  48  and thus to the holding portion  40 . To release it, the adapter  44  is pressed briefly against the push-push mechanism  48 , as a result of which its anchor bolts are released and move to their released position in which they project outwards from the push-push mechanism at an angle from one another and release the adapter  44 . The adapter  44  can be removed from the holding portion  40 . 
     The adapter  44  is connected to the mobile telephone (not shown), for example, by being adhesively secured thereto, as a result of which the mobile telephone can be mounted on the holder  10  and removed therefrom again in simple manner. For the adhesive securing, the adapter  44  can be provided with a self-adhesive film, for example by attaching a self-adhesive strip known per se. 
     In order to be able to mount the mobile telephone on the holder  10  also at angled positions that the limited pivot range of the dome-like articulation  22  does not per se allow, the holding portion  40  has two further square sockets  52 . These two square sockets  52  are located on the two long sides of the holding portion  40  and are offset in relation to one another in the longitudinal direction of the holding portion  40 . By means of those square sockets  52  the holding portion  40  can be positioned on the square member  42  of the carrier  28  in a position pivoted by 90° about its notional longitudinal axis. The position of the holding portion  40  in which its underside is positioned on the carrier  28  is shown in FIG. 1 in continuation of the carrier  28  and in FIG.  2 . One of the two angled positions, rotated by 90° relative thereto, in which the holding portion  40  can be mounted and attached to the carrier  28  is shown in FIG. 1 to the left of the holding portion  40  that is positioned with its underside on the carrier  28 , and also in FIG.  3 . There is always only one holding portion  40  on the carrier  28 . The double view of the holding portion  40  together with the adapter  44  and the push-push mechanism  48  shown in FIG. 1 serves merely to illustrate the two different angled positions, rotated by 90° relative to one another, in which the holding portion  40  can be mounted on the carrier  28 . 
     The holding portion  40  positioned with a long side on the carrier  28  is also fastened by the clamping screw  36 , which is inserted through a hole  54  in the centre of the square socket  52  and is screwed into the plate-like disk  26 , engaging through the carrier  28 . The diameter of a hole  56  in an opposite long side of the holding portion  40 , which hole  56  is in registration with the hole  54  in the square socket  52 , allows a head  58  of the clamping screw  36  to pass through so that the head  58  is located on the inside of the long side of the holding portion  40  positioned on the square member  42  of the carrier  28 , so that it is not necessary for the clamping screw  36  to be longer by the width of the holding portion  40 .