Abstract:
Positioning a front panel of a telematics terminal includes receiving an electronic signal that indicates a change in a physical position of a display panel of the telematics terminal. The front panel, which is distinct from the display panel of the telematics terminal but located on a same side of the telematics terminal as the display panel, is moved from a first position to a second position based on the control signal. The second position is physically displaced from the first position.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field 
     This document relates to positioning a front panel of a telematics terminal. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     A telematics terminal is a device that is typically mounted on a car (mobile vehicle) and connected to a wireless communication network. Telematics terminals are able to perform a variety of functions, including: enabling a user to make calls from the terminal, providing users with map information, performing various multimedia functions, and providing users with navigation information via use of a GPS (Global Positioning System). Telematics terminals often include an audio/video system. 
       FIG. 1  shows a conventional telematics terminal  100  mounted on a car, and  FIG. 2  is a schematic block diagram showing a conventional telematics system. As shown in  FIG. 2 , a conventional telematics system includes a telematics terminal  100  that communicates with an information providing center  300  over a wireless communication network  200 . The information providing center  300  provides telematics service information to the telematics terminal  100 . The telematics service information may include call information, map information, traffic information and multimedia information. The telematics terminal  100  provides the received telematics service information to users. 
       FIGS. 3A and 3B  show a conventional telematics terminal  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 3A , the telematics terminal  100  includes a display panel  101  positioned inside a housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  and a front panel  102  installed at a lower side of the display panel  101 . The front panel  102  includes various buttons and ports. 
     As shown in  FIG. 3B , the display panel  101  of the telematics terminal  100  may be drawn out of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  in response to a user request. The display panel  101  includes a monitor  101 A for displaying information. When drawn out of the housing  100 H (i.e., when the display panel is deployed), the display panel monitor  101 -A is rotated by 90° in an upward direction relative to the telematics terminal. 
     The front panel  102  of the telematics terminal  100  is fixedly connected to the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal. Accordingly, as shown in  FIG. 3B , when the display panel  101  is deployed, the various buttons and ports installed in the front panel  102  are obstructed by the display panel  101 . 
     For example, when the display panel  101  of the telematics terminal  100  is deployed by a user, visibility of the sound volume control button, a USB port, or an SD card or the like installed in the front panel  102  of the telematics terminal  100  may be obstructed. Similarly, access to the various buttons and ports on the front panel may be obstructed. 
     SUMMARY 
     In one general aspect, positioning a front panel of a telematics terminal includes receiving an electronic signal that indicates a change in a physical position of a display panel of the telematics terminal. The front panel, which is distinct from the display panel of the telematics terminal but located on a same side of the telematics terminal as the display panel, is moved from a first position to a second position based on the control signal. The second position is physically displaced from the first position. 
     In another general aspect, a telematics terminal includes a housing, a display panel, and a front panel. The display panel includes a monitor configured to display image information. The display panel is configured to move from a first display panel position located inside of the housing to a second display panel position located outside of the housing. Additionally or alternatively, the display panel is configured to move from the second display panel position located outside of the housing to the first display panel position located inside of the housing. The front panel is positioned adjacent to the display panel and is configured to move in response to movement of the display panel. 
     In another general aspect, an apparatus for controlling a front panel of a telematics terminal includes a rack gear, a pinion gear, a driving unit, and a transfer unit extending from the rack gear. The pinion gear is configured to engage the rack gear, and the driving unit is configured to rotate the pinion gear based on a control signal that indicates movement, in a first direction, of a display panel of the telematics terminal. The transfer unit is configured to support the front panel and to move the front panel in the first direction in response to a rotatory force generated by the driving unit. 
     The foregoing features and aspects, and other features and aspects, will become more apparent from the following detailed description and drawings. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a general telematics terminal mounted on a car; 
         FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a conventional telematics system; 
         FIGS. 3A and 3B  show a conventional telematics terminal; 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a telematics terminal employing a front panel positioning apparatus; 
         FIG. 5  is a side view of a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned within the housing of the telematics terminal; 
         FIG. 6  is a side view of a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned outside of the housing of the telematics terminal; and 
         FIG. 7  is a side view of a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned outside of the housing of the telematics terminal. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A telematics terminal is configured to enable a user to easily view and access the various buttons and ports installed at the front panel of the telematics terminal, even when the display panel of the terminal is deployed (i.e., moved from an initial position within a housing of the terminal to a final position outside of the housing). The telematics terminal includes a positioning apparatus that is configured to move the front panel forward and away from the housing of the telematics terminal based on or in response to a signal indicating that the display panel has been deployed. The forward movement of the front panel decreases or eliminates the obstruction of the front panel that typically hinders use of the front panel by a user and that is caused by the deployed display panel. 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a telematics terminal employing a front panel positioning apparatus. The telematics terminal  100  is configured to be installed on a dash board  300  inside a car. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the telematics terminal  100  includes a display panel  101  having a monitor  101 -A (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD)) for displaying image information corresponding to an image signal. The image signal may be generated internally by the telematics terminal  100  or received from an external source. The telematics terminal  100  also includes a front panel  200  positioned at a lower side of the display panel  101 .  FIG. 4  shows the display panel  101  in its deployed position and the front panel  200  moved forward and away from housing  100 H. As shown in  FIG. 4 , when the front panel  200  is moved forward and away from the housing  100 H, access to the front panel  200  is less obstructed by the display panel  101 . 
     The front panel  200  includes a plurality of buttons  201  for controlling the telematics terminal  100  and a plurality of ports (not shown) for connected to one or more external devices. The front panel  200  may additionally include various function buttons (e.g., a sound volume control and music selection buttons, etc.). 
     When the display panel  101  is deployed, the front panel  200  is automatically moved forward and away from the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  based on a control signal of a remote controller (not shown). 
       FIG. 5  is a side view a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned within the housing of the telematics terminal. As shown in  FIG. 5 , the front panel positioning apparatus includes a rack gear  208  installed at a lower portion inside the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100 ; a driving unit  206  for rotating a pinion gear  207  configured to mesh with the rack gear  208  (i.e., the rack gear is configured to engage the pinion gear  207 ); and a transfer unit  205  extending from the rack gear  208 . The transfer unit  205  is configured to support the front panel  200  and enable movement of the front panel  200  out of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  in response to a rotatory force of the driving unit  206 . The front panel  200  and the transfer unit  205  are connected together by a hinge  204 . 
       FIG. 6  is a side view of a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned outside of the housing of the telematics terminal. The operation of the front panel positioning apparatus is described below with reference to  FIGS. 5 and 6 . 
     First, a controller (not shown) of the telematics terminal  100  generates a control signal for moving the display panel  101  out of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  according to a user request. The control signal is applied to a motor (not shown) to deploy the display panel  101  (i.e., move the display panel out of the housing  100 H). 
     Concurrently or sequentially, the driving unit  206  receives a control signal indicating deployment of the display panel  101 . The control signal received by the driving unit  206  may or may not be the same control signal applied to the motor (not shown) used to deploy the display panel  101 . Based on or in response to the control signal, the driving unit  206  rotates the pinion gear  207 . For example, when the motor (not shown) draws the display panel  101  out of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100 , the driving unit  206  may rotate the pinion gear  207  in a clockwise direction based on the control signal. 
     The pinion gear  207  is rotated in response to application of a rotatory force by the driving unit  206 . The rack gear in mesh with (i.e., engaging) the pinion gear  207  is moved out of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  in response to the rotatory force of the pinion gear  207 . As the rack gear  208  is moved, the transfer unit  205 , which extends from the rack gear  208 , moves the front panel  200  in a direction F ( FIG. 5 ) away from the housing  100 H. In some implementations, the transfer unit  205  may move along a guide rail (not shown). 
     Accordingly, the front panel  200  is moved away from the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  in response to the display panel  101  being moved out of the housing  100 H. This moving of the front panel  200  with the display panel  101  results in a decrease or an elimination of any obstruction of the front panel  200  by the deployed display panel  101 . A user, therefore, may easily check and use the plurality of buttons and ports on the front panel  200 . In some implementations, when the display panel  101  is deployed, the front panel  200  and the monitor  101 -A of the display panel  101  are positioned side by side and flush against each other such that their front surfaces are approximately on the same plane. 
     When the display panel  101  is moved back into the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100 , the driving unit  206  applies a rotary force to rotate the pinion gear  207  in a reverse direction (i.e., a counterclockwise direction). The pinion gear  207  moves the rack gear  208  back into the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal  100  in response to the reverse rotatory force of the driving unit  206 . As the rack gear  208  is moved back into the housing  100 H, the transfer unit  205  extending from the rack gear  208  moves the front panel  200  back towards the housing  100 H in a direction opposite of the direction F ( FIG. 6 ). In some implementations, the rack gear  208  is replaced by a power transfer unit such as, for example, a belt (not shown) and a pulley (not shown). 
     The front panel  200  of the telematics terminal  100  is coupled to transfer unit  205  by a hinge  204 . The front panel  200  may rotate about the hinge  204  such that it may be pulled or pivoted in a forward direction.  FIG. 7  shows a side view of a front portion of the telematics terminal when the display panel is positioned outside of the housing  100 H of the telematics terminal and the front panel has been pivoted about hinge  204 . The pivoting or pulling forward of the front panel  200  enables devices, such as, for example, an optical disk, to be inserted into or drawn out of the telematics terminal  100 . The user, for example, can pull the front panel  200  in the forward direction such that it pivots about hinge  204  to insert an optical disk into a slot (not shown) positioned behind the front panel  200  in the telematics terminal  100 . Similarly, the user may pull the front panel  200  in the forward direction such that it pivots about hinge  204  to remove an optical disk from the slot. 
     The front panel  200  includes a fixed protrusion  203  that protrudes from a back surface of the front panel  200 . This fixed protrusion  203  engages or fits within a recess  202 -A defined by a fixed member  200  connected to the transfer unit  205 . When the user pulls the front panel  200  in the forward (F) direction by means of the hinge  204 , the front panel  200  is prevented from rotating freely by the fixed member  202 . 
     The front panel  200  of the telematics terminal  100  may be selectively attached to and detached from the transfer unit  205  in order to expose, for example, the slot. To enable selective attachment and detachment of the front panel  200 , the front panel  200  may include a fixed protrusion located on its back surface that detachably engages a recess defined by transfer unit  205 . The recess defined by transfer unit  205  may be located on the surface of transfer unit  205  that contacts the surface of the front panel  200 . Additionally or alternatively, the transfer unit  205  may include a fixed protrusion that detachably engages a recess defined by the front panel  200  and located on the back surface of the front panel  200 . 
     The above-described apparatus and method for positioning a front panel based on or in response to movement of a display panel may be used not only in telematics terminals but also in other systems that suffer from similar panel obstruction problems caused by deployment of a second panel or monitor. For example, the same method and apparatus may be applied to various audio/video systems having a monitor that, when deployed, obstructs access to a control panel. 
     Other implementations are within the scope of the following claims