Abstract:
The invention relates to a mobile terminal and hinge device thereof. The mobile terminal comprises: a first keypad disposed with a plurality of keys in the upper face of the main body at one side from a central portion so that the keys can be exposed; a second keypad disposed with a plurality of keys in the upper face of the main body at the other side from the central portion so that the keys can be exposed; and a planar area disposed in the central portion of the upper face of the main body to which the sub-body is rotatably connected, whereby one of the first and second keypads is opened and closed according to rotation of the sub-body. The mobile terminal introduces a novel concept including design by coupling the sub-body to the main body in a manner horizontally rotatable with respect to the upper face of the main body to open/close the keypad at least at one side of the main body. Furthermore, the keypads at both sides can be used together when the sub-body is rotated perpendicular to the main body, allowing more rapid input of information via both keypads and without any additional input device.

Description:
PRIORITY  
         [0001]    This application claims priority to an application entitled “Mobile Terminal and Hinge Device Thereof” filed in the Korean Intellectual Property Office on Jul. 23, 2002 and assigned Serial No. 2002-43417, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The present invention relates to a mobile terminal, and more particularly, to a mobile terminal having a sub-body rotatable horizontally with respect to a main body, and a hinge device of the mobile terminal.  
           [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0005]    As well known in the art, mobile terminals can be divided into bar, flip and folder type terminals according to their outward appearances.  
           [0006]    The bar type terminal has data input/output (I/O) means and transmitting/receiving modules in one body housing. In the bar type terminal, a keypad functioning as data input means is constantly exposed, which increases the potential for malfunction. Further, downsizing thereof is restricted since a predetermined distance is required between transmitting and receiving units.  
           [0007]    The flip type terminal comprises a body, a flip and hinge means for connecting the flip to the body. The body has data input/output means and transmitting/receiving modules, and the flip covers a keypad, which functions as the data input means, and prevents malfunction. However, downsizing is also restricted in the flip type terminal since a predetermined distance is required between transmitting and receiving units.  
           [0008]    The folder type terminal comprises a body, a folder and hinge means for rotatably connecting the folder to the body so that the folder is rotated to open the folder type terminal. The body has a keypad and a transmitting unit functioning as data input means, and the folder has a display unit and a receiving unit functioning as data output means. The folder closely contacts the body in the standby mode to prevent malfunction, and is unfolded in the conversation mode to ensure sufficient distance between transmitting and receiving units, thereby imparting an advantage of downsizing the folder type terminal.  
           [0009]    However, the conventional mobile terminals are restricted to the foregoing bar, flip and folder type terminals. Even recently introduced sliding type terminals fail to satisfy various desires of consumers about terminal designs. Moreover, input means of the mobile terminals are mostly restricted to keypads, which continue to fail to keep up with mobile communication services as they gradually diversify.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0010]    The present invention solves the foregoing problems and provides a mobile terminal and hinge device thereof which comprises a sub-body coupled to a main body in a manner horizontally rotatable with respect to an upper face thereof.  
           [0011]    It is another object of the invention to provide a mobile terminal which comprises a sub-body coupled to a central portion of an upper face of a main body and keypads disposed on both sides of the central portion of the upper face of the main body for functioning as input means so that one of the keypads is opened/closed by rotation of the sub-body.  
           [0012]    According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a mobile terminal comprising: a main body; a sub-body coupled to the main body in a slidingly rotatable manner relative to an upper face of the main body; a first keypad disposed with a plurality of keys in the upper face of the main body at one side of the central portion; a second keypad disposed with a plurality of keys in the upper face of the main body at the other side of the central portion; and a planar area disposed in the central portion of the upper face of the main body to which the sub-body is rotatably connected, whereby one of the first and second keypads is opened and closed according to rotation of the sub-body.  
           [0013]    According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a hinge device in a mobile terminal which includes a main body and a sub-body coupled to the main body in a slidingly rotatable manner relative to an upper face of the main body, the hinge device comprising: a first through-hole disposed in an upper housing of the main body; a second through-hole disposed in one side of a lower housing of the sub-body, the second through-hole communicating with the first through-hole in the upper housing of the main body; a first hinge base having a central hinge hole and coupled inside the main body for externally exposing the hinge hole through the first through-hole; a second hinge base rotatable with respect to the first hinge base and having a cylindrical hinge shaft extended from a central portion and opened at both ends, the second hinge base coupled inside the sub-body for projecting the end of the hinge shaft through the second through-hole; and a fastening groove disposed along a circumferential direction in an outer periphery on the end of the hinge shaft, wherein the fastening groove is arranged inside the main body through the hinge hole of the first hinge base and fastened with an E-ring for coupling the sub-body to the main body in a horizontally rotatable manner with respect to the upper face of the main body. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0014]    The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mobile terminal according to a preferred embodiment of the invention;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1 in which a sub-body is rotated;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a hinge device of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the second hinge base of the hinge device shown in FIG. 3;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a wave washer of the hinge device shown in FIG. 3;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the hinge device shown in FIG. 3;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a main body of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1 with the sub-body removed;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a sub-body of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 9 is a partially broken-away perspective view of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1; and  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the interior of a main body of the mobile terminal shown in FIG. 1. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0025]    The following detailed description presents the preferred embodiments of the invention in reference to the accompanying drawings, and omits well-known functions and constructions to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the invention.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mobile terminal  100  according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the mobile terminal  100  shown in FIG. 1 in which a sub-body  160  is rotated.  
         [0027]    As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the mobile terminal according to the preferred embodiment of the invention comprises a main body  110  and the sub-body  160 .  
         [0028]    The main body  110  has first and second keypads  113   a  and  113   b  on the upper face and a transmitting unit  115  which is internally equipped with a microphone in a position corresponding to the first keypad  113   a . The sub-body  160  is rotatably coupled to a central portion on the upper housing  111  of the main body  110 , i.e. to a planar area between the first and second keypads  113   a  and  113   b , for being rotated horizontally with respect to the upper face of the main body  110 . The sub-body  160  has a display unit  163  in an upper portion thereof, a receiving unit  167  next to one side of the display unit  163  and a third keypad  165  having function keys at the other side of the display unit  163 . The function keys may include conversation start/end buttons, menu buttons for evoking various functions, selection buttons and so on. In the meantime, if the third keypad  165  is not installed, a further expanded size of display unit  163  can be provided.  
         [0029]    In this embodiment, the first keypad  113   a  is constantly exposed regardless of rotation of the sub-body  160 . This helps the mobile terminal be used equivalent to a conventional bar or flip type terminal when the sub-body  160  is not rotated, as shown in FIG. 1.  
         [0030]    The second keypad  113   b  is opened/closed according to rotation of the sub-body  160 . That is to say, the second keypad  113   b  is closed when the sub-body  160  is rotated to a position parallel to the main body  110 . When the sub-body  160  is rotated to a position perpendicular to the main body  110 , the second keypad  113   b  is opened and thus is usable. Where the second keypad  113   b  is opened, a user can conveniently input various data and text messages using both of the first and second keypads  113   a  and  113   b  of the main body  110 .  
         [0031]    While the sub-body  160  is rotatable up to 90 degrees according to this embodiment, the sub-body  160  can be alternatively configured to rotate up to an angle exceeding 90 degrees. The first and second keypads  113   a  and  113   b  may be set to their own uses different with each other so that the mobile terminal  100  can be used for other various purposes according to the position of the sub-body  160 .  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a hinge device  300  of the mobile terminal  100  shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 3, the hinge device  300  of the mobile terminal of the invention comprises the first hinge base  310 , the second hinge base  320 , a wave washer  330 , a plurality of spring washers  393  and an E-ring  391 .  
         [0033]    The first hinge base  310  has a central hinge hole  311  and protrusions  313  and  315  located opposite each other on one side of the hinge hole  311 . The protrusion  313  functions as a friction protrusion for generating friction while the hinge device  300  is rotated, and the protrusion  315  functions as a stopper for restricting the rotation range of the second hinge base  320 .  
         [0034]    The second hinge base  320  has cylindrical hinge shaft  321  extended from a central portion. The second hinge base  320  also has a printed circuit holder  325  projected for a predetermined height from the other side thereof. The printed circuit holder  325  prevents play of a flexible printed circuit  399  (shown in FIG. 9) while the hinge device  300  is operated in the mobile terminal.  
         [0035]    Referring to FIG. 4, the hinge shaft  321  has a fastening groove  329  formed along a circumference of the outer periphery of the hinge shaft  321 . The fastening groove  329  projects through the hinge hole  311  of the first hinge base  310  and the projecting portion is fastened with the E-ring  391 . The hinge shaft  321  has slits  327  on both sides thereof and a guide holder  323  extended within the hinge shaft  321  at a predetermined distance from the inside wall.  
         [0036]    Referring to FIGS. 9 and 10, the flexible printed circuit  399  is wound at least once within the hinge shaft  321  between the inside wall of the hinge shaft  321  and the guide holder  323 .  
         [0037]    The plurality of spring washers  393  are coupled with the wave washer  330  on the outer periphery of the hinge shaft  321 . Therefore, the spring washers  393  and the wave washer  330  are placed between the first hinge base  310  and the second hinge base  320 .  
         [0038]    The spring washers  393  are bent to have elasticity, and are coupled to the hinge shaft  321  to exert an elastic force toward the end of the hinge shaft  321  in a longitudinal direction.  
         [0039]    The wave washer  330  has a curved bend  331  in one side, as shown in FIG. 5, to impart friction against the friction protrusion  313  of the first hinge base  310 . The wave washer  330  also has a guide groove  333  corresponding to the stopper protrusion  315  of the first hinge base  310  in a proper range of the outer periphery of the wave washer  330 . The range of moving the stopper protrusion  315  is restricted by the guide groove  333 , and the stopper protrusion  315  is configured to be rotatable in the range of 90 degrees according to this embodiment. Further, the wave washer  330  has protrusions  335  formed in the inner periphery and corresponding to the slits  327  in the hinge shaft  321  so that the wave washer  330  rotates together with the second hinge shaft  320 .  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of the hinge device  300 . In FIG. 6, it can be understood that the end of the hinge shaft  321  is extended through the hinge hole  311  of the first hinge base  310  and the E-ring  391  is fastened to the fastening groove  329  so as to couple the first hinge base  310  with the second hinge base  320 . On the outer periphery of the hinge shaft  321 , the plurality of spring washers  393  are coupled with the wave washer  330 .  
         [0041]    In the meantime, the first hinge base  310  has a printed circuit holder  317 , as the second hinge base  320  has the printed circuit holder  325 . The printed circuit holder  317  of the first hinge base  310  is also provided to prevent play of the flexible printed circuit when the second hinge base  320  is rotated.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the main body  110  of the mobile terminal  100  shown in FIG. 1 with the sub-body  160  removed. As shown in FIG. 7, the main body  110  has the first through-hole  121  in an upper central portion thereof and a semi-circular sliding groove  123  adjacent to the first through-hole  121 . Also as described above, the first and second keypads  113   a  and  113   b  are provided in the upper face of the main body  110  on both sides of the upper central portion.  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 8 is perspective view of the sub-body  160  of the mobile terminal  100  viewed from the side of a lower housing  161  of the sub-body  160 . The lower housing  161  of the sub-body  160  is provided in one side with a second through-hole  171  that communicates with the first through-hole  121  of the main body  110 . In the lower end of the lower housing  161  of the sub-body  160 , a sliding protrusion  173  is provided that corresponds to the sliding groove  123  in the upper face of the main body  110 . The sliding protrusion  173  can reciprocate within the sliding groove  123 , and the sliding groove  123  is so constructed that the sliding protrusion  173  can be rotated in the range of 180 degrees.  
         [0044]    In order to restrict the rotation range of the sub-body  160 , it can be so constructed to restrict the range of mutual rotation between a pair of grooves  125 , which are adjacent to the first through-hole  121 , and a pair of protrusions  175 , which are adjacent to the second through-hole  171 . That is, constructions of the sliding groove  123  and the sliding protrusion  173  and of the groove  125  adjacent to the first through hole  121  and the protrusions  175  adjacent to the second through hole  171  restrict the rotation range of the sub-body  160  to 90 degrees with respect to the main body  110 .  
         [0045]    While the sub-body  160  is rotatable in the range of 90 degrees in this embodiment, it is apparent that the sub-body  160  can be rotatable in the range of 180 or 270 degrees depending on the constructions of the sliding groove  123  and the sliding protrusion  173  and of the groove  125  and the protrusions  175 .  
         [0046]    [0046]FIG. 9 is a partially broken-away perspective view of the mobile terminal  100  shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the interior of the main body  110  of the mobile terminal  100  shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, the first hinge base  310  is installed on the first through-hole  121  in the upper housing  111  of the main body  110 , and the second hinge base  320  is installed on the second through-hole  171  in the lower housing  161  of the sub-body  160 . The first hinge base  310  is installed inside the main body  110 , and the second hinge base  320  is installed inside the sub-body  160 .  
         [0047]    The hinge hole  311  of the first hinge base  310  is exposed through the first through-hole  121 , and the hinge shaft  321  of the second hinge base  320  is arranged to protrude through the second through hole  171 . Upon coupling the main body  110  to the sub-body  160 , the end of the hinge shaft  321  projects through the second through-hole  171  and extends through the hinge hole  311  of the first hinge base  310  into the main body  110 . Therefore, the E-ring  391  can be fastened to the fastening groove  329  in the end of the hinge shaft  321 .  
         [0048]    The E-ring  391  acts to mutually fasten the first and second hinge bases  310  and  320  which are respectively installed inside the main and sub-bodies  110  and  160 , so that the sub-body  160  is coupled to the main body  110  in a manner horizontally rotatable with respect to the upper face of the main body  110 .  
         [0049]    Although not shown in the drawings, it is understood that the main body  110  and the sub-body  160  each have various electric circuits therein. That is, the main body  110  is equipped with a main board having circuitry for operation of the terminal, and the sub-body  160  is equipped with circuitry for operation of the display unit, a speaker device and the like. Therefore, the flexible printed circuit  399  is used for connecting the electric circuitry which are respectively installed in the main body  110  and the sub-body  160 .  
         [0050]    Referring to FIG. 10, the flexible printed circuit  399  extends from the main board (not shown) of the main body  110  and is fixed to the printed circuit holder  317  in the first hinge base  310 . The flexible printed circuit  399  further extends up to the hinge shaft  321  of the second hinge base  320  and then is bent into the hinge shaft  321 . The flexible printed circuit  399  is wound for at least one time within the hinge shaft  321 , in particular, to pass between the guide holder  323  in the hinge shaft  321  and the inside wall of the hinge shaft  321 . The flexible printed circuit  399  has this construction in order to ensure a sufficient length thereof so that tensile force owing to rotation of the sub-body  160  is not applied to the flexible printed circuit. Also the guide holder  323  is provided in order to prevent excessive play of the flexible printed circuit within the hinge shaft  321 .  
         [0051]    Referring to FIG. 9, after being wound within the hinge shaft  321 , the flexible printed circuit  399  is re-bent into the sub-body  160  to be connected with the electric circuitry (not shown) in the sub-body  160 . The flexible printed circuit  399  bent within the sub-body  160  is fixed to the printed circuit holder  325  of the second hinge base  320 .  
         [0052]    Even if the sub-body  160  is rotated, the play of the flexible printed circuit  399  is limited to the restricted range of the portion wound in the hinge shaft  321 .  
         [0053]    Resultantly, the hinge device of the mobile terminal of the invention also provides a manner for connection of the flexible printed circuit while maintaining rotatable coupling of the main body and the sub-body.  
         [0054]    As set forth above, the mobile terminal of the invention provides a novel design of mobile terminal by means of installing the keypads separately in both sides of the main body and coupling the sub-body in the central portion of the main body in a manner horizontally rotatable to the upper face of the main body for opening/closing one of the keypads in the sides of the main body. Furthermore, the keypads at both sides can be used together when the sub-body is rotated to 90 degrees in respect to the main body so that a user can rapidly input information by a larger quantity with the keypads of the mobile terminal without any additional input device.  
         [0055]    Although 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.