Abstract:
The present invention provides a display rotating and sliding module for a mobile phone. This module includes a sliding mechanism for moving the display to adjust its position and a rotatingal mechanism pivotably connected with the display to adjust the included angle.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     The present application is based on, and claims priority from, Taiwan Application Serial Number 94104547, filed Feb. 16, 2005, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.  
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     The present invention is related to a rotating and sliding module for a display, and more particularly to a rotating and sliding module for a liquid crystal display installed in a portable device.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     Many advantages exist of a liquid crystal display (LCD), such as high display quality, small volume, low weight, low voltage driving, low power consumption, and so on. Therefore, LCDs have been extensively used in various portable electrical devices, such as mobile phones, notebooks and so on.  
         [0004]     Typically, the LCD is embedded in a standing type mobile phone shield. Therefore, a user has to move the whole mobile phone to adjust the view angle. At this time, if the user wants to use the mobile phone for a call, he has to cooperate with the keyboard located in an unusual position, which is very inconvenient.  
         [0005]     In comparison, the LCD is embedded in a foldable cover for a mobile phone with a foldable cover. When using this type of mobile phone for a call, the cover is first opened to expose the LCD. A rotating mechanism is installed between the cover and the base of the mobile phone for adjusting the opening angle of the cover to change the LCD view angle. However, the LCD of this mobile phone is rotated around a fixed axis. The distance between the LCD and the base is fixed. Therefore, the LCD position has to be considered when using the keyboard. For example, the control key of a typical foldable mobile phone is always located in the position close to the LCD. Therefore, using the control key often obstructs the user from viewing the LCD.  
         [0006]     Therefore, it is the goal for a designer to create a mobile phone with an LCD that can be freely adjusted by a user for changing its view angle and location.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0007]     Therefore, the main purpose of the present invention is to provide a rotating and sliding module used in an operation interface for moving and rotating a display.  
         [0008]     The other purpose of the present invention is to provide a rotating and sliding module for adjusting the view angle and the distance of a display.  
         [0009]     According to the foregoing purposes, the present invention provides a rotating and sliding module that includes a sliding mechanism for adjusting the distance between the display and the user and a rotating mechanism for adjusting the view angle of the display.  
         [0010]     The present invention also provides a mobile phone with an adjustable display. This mobile phone includes a base, a display and a rotating and sliding module. The base and the display are connected together through the rotating and sliding module. The rotating and sliding module includes a sliding mechanism for adjusting the distance between the display and the user and a rotating mechanism for adjusting the view angle of the display. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0011]     The foregoing aspects and many of the attendant advantages of this invention will become more readily appreciated and better understood by referencing the following detailed description, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a mobile phone with a rotating and sliding module according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  illustrates a cross-sectional view from the A-A line in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0014]      FIGS. 3A  to  3 C illustrate schematic diagrams of the structure of the area where the rotating apparatus couples with the sliding apparatus;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  illustrates how the display is moved out of the hollow region by the sliding apparatus; and  
         [0016]      FIGS. 5A  to  5 D are the cross-sectional views from the line B-B in  FIG. 1 . 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0017]      FIG. 1  is a schematic diagram of a mobile phone with a rotating and sliding module according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. It is noticed that the rotating and sliding module of the present invention also may be used in various portable devices, such as a PDA, notebook and so on. In this figure, the mobile phone  100  includes a keyboard  116 , a display  110 , a rotating and sliding module that includes a rotating apparatus  112  and sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b . The rotating apparatus  112  may rotate the display  110  from 0 to 180 degrees as indicated by the arrow  122 . The sliding apparatus  114   a  and  114   b  may move the display  110  along the direction as indicated by the arrow  124 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 2  illustrates a cross-sectional view from the A-A line in  FIG. 1 . The display  110  connected to the rotating apparatus  112  is located in a hollow region  118  in the mobile phone  100 . The hollow region  118  includes a bottom  120  and two sidewalls connected with the bottom  120 . The two sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b  are respectively installed in the two sidewalls of the hollow region  118 . The two ends of the rotating apparatus  112  are embedded into the two sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b , respectively. The position of the rotating apparatus  112  contacting the sliding apparatus  114   a  or  114   b  is the coupling part  200 , which serves as the sliding face. The rotating apparatus  112  may move the display  110  along the sliding face.  
         [0019]      FIGS. 3A  to  3 C respectively illustrate the structure of the coupling part  200  according to embodiments of the present invention. Although these figures only illustrate the structure between the rotating apparatus  112  and sliding apparatus  114   a , the same structure design can be used to couple the rotating apparatus  112  and sliding apparatus  114   b . The cross-sectional view of the coupling part  200  is a “V” type in  FIG. 3A , a “concave and convex” type in  FIG. 3B , and a “W” type in  FIG. 3C .  
         [0020]     The display  110  is located in the hollow region  118  and remains close to the bottom  120 . When a user wants to adjust the viewing angle of the display, he can follow the direction indicated by the arrow  122  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) to open the display  110  to an angle within the range from 0 to 180 degrees through the rotating and sliding apparatus  112 . When the display  110  is rotated 180 degrees, the user may watch the information shown in the display  110  from the back of the mobile phone  100 . Additionally, the rotating apparatus  112  may move the display  110  along the sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b  while the display  110  is rotating.  FIG. 4  illustrates the display  110  when it is moved out of the hollow region  118  by the sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b . In other words, when the mobile phone  100  is used to serve as a game console, the user can follow the direction indicated by the arrow  124  to adjust the location of the display  110  to avoid obstructing the user view due to using the control key  400 .  
         [0021]      FIGS. 5A  to  5 D illustrate the cross-sectional views from the B-B line in  FIG. 1 . These figures illustrate various methods to adjust the viewing angle of the display  110  of the mobile phone  100 . However, other adjusting methods can be used in the preset invention.  
         [0022]     In  FIG. 5A , following the direction of the arrow  500 , the display  110  is rotated by the rotating apparatus  112  as shown in the  FIG. 4 . The included angle θ can be adjusted by the rotating apparatus  112  according to the user preference. Moreover, if the user thinks the display  110  too close, following the direction of the arrow  502  in  FIG. 5B , the display  110  is moved by the sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b  to change the distance from the user. Conversely, the display  110  can be moved first, following the direction of the arrow  502 , by the sliding apparatuses  114   a  and  114   b  to change its distance; then, the included angle θ can be changed by following the direction of the arrow  500  references to  FIGS. 5C and 5D .  
         [0023]     Accordingly, the rotating and sliding module of the present invention may completely adjust not only the location but also the viewing angle. This module includes a rotating apparatus to adjust the viewing angle and a sliding apparatus to adjust the location of the display. Therefore, the user may dynamically change its viewing angle and location according to his preference.  
         [0024]     As is understood by a person skilled in the art, the foregoing descriptions of the preferred embodiment of the present invention are an illustration of the present invention rather than a limitation thereof. Various modifications and similar arrangements are included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The scope of the claims should be accorded to the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar structures. While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated that various changes can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.