Abstract:
An electronics case for a portable electronic device with an electroluminescent panel (“ELP”) for displaying light patterns in response to sound, vibration or other input signals. The case includes an integrated control circuit for receiving input signals from an input device and, in response, generating a set of ELP pattern signals that are transmitted to the ELP. The integrated control circuit also includes a power supply connected to the controller for supplying power to the integrated control circuit and the ELP. The ELP comprises a plurality of segments and it is affixed to the exterior surface of the case to attract attention to the light patterns as they are being displayed on the ELP.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION INFORMATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority benefit from U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/617,044, filed on Mar. 29, 2012. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    With the explosion of portable electronic devices (“PEDs”) such as mobile phones, smartphones, laptop computers, tablet computers, netbook computers, music players, electronic readers, gaming devices, GPS devices, cameras, and a host of types of PEDs over the past several years, the need to protect those devices has spawned an industry for designing and manufacturing cases of all types to protect and enhance the exterior chassis of the device and the fragile internal components in the event that the device is dropped, thrown, squashed, stepped on, submerged, exposed to heat or cold, or otherwise mishandled in any number of ways. 
         [0003]    Electronics cases for PEDs come in all sizes and shapes depending on the particular purpose for which they are intended. They are also manufactured using a variety of materials that are best suited for a particular purpose. In addition to protecting the PED, conventional electronics cases that are currently on the market may also be decorative, add storage or prolong battery life. 
         [0004]    Currently available cases offer a wide variety of decorative flourishes. For example, cases can be ordered with custom ornamental features that are selected or even designed by the consumer to his or her own tastes. As consumers develop greater reliance upon, and become more and more attached to their PEDs, they expect an even higher level of customization for their PEDs, including with respect to the cases. At present, cases are restricted to a static experience where a case with a particular design is purchased and it does not change. While a consumer may buy more than one case, each with different ornamental designs or functional features for different occasions, there are currently no cases that provide a unique interactive experience for the user manifested in the case and expressing his or her own personality depending on how they feel or the mood or message they want to convey at any given time. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0005]      FIG. 1  shows perspective front and back views of a prior art PED case for use with a smarthphone; 
           [0006]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a PED case in accordance with the present invention; 
           [0007]      FIGS. 3A-B  are perspective views of a PED case of the present invention showing individual components; 
           [0008]      FIG. 4  is a system block diagram of the PED case of the present invention; 
           [0009]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram of the circuit components and signal paths of the PED case of the present invention; and 
           [0010]      FIGS. 6A-B  are diagrams showing an electroluminescent panel of the PED case of the present invention in different illumination patterns. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0011]    The present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Throughout  FIGS. 1-6 , like elements of the invention are referred to by the same reference numerals for consistency purposes. 
         [0012]      FIG. 1  shows perspective front and back views of a prior art PED case  100  for use with a smarthphone, which in this view is an iphone® made by Apple. Case  100  is typically made of mold-injected plastic or rubber formed to the shape of a PED  105  with an ornamental design printed on it, which for case  100  as shown is a zebra pattern  110 . The mold may be flat or include raised and other textured portions for tactile feel and/or to add aesthetics that appeal to the user. Case  100  has different shaped cut out areas for the front side of PED  105  to view screen  115 , as well as other cutouts  120  along the sides for buttons and a cutout  125  on the back for a camera lens. Case  100  is typically formed so that PED  105  fits snugly within case  100  and does not easily fall out. It may require a twist or a bending motion at the edge of case  100  to “pop out” smartphone  105 . In that way, even if PED  105  is dropped or stepped on, PED  105  will not be accidentally extracted from case  100  during such an event, exposing it to a higher risk of damage. 
         [0013]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a PED case  200  in accordance with the present invention. PED case  200  is similar to prior art case  100  in its basic construct, but it is outfitted with an electroluminescent panel (“ELP”)  205  that is affixed to, embedded in or otherwise situated in or on a portion of the exterior surface of case  200 . It should be understood that ELP  205  may be any shape or size and there may be one or more ELPs  205  used for a particular case  200 . In the example shown in  FIG. 2 , ELP  205  is a rectangular shape covering most of the backside of case  200 . However, ELP  205  may instead be formed of one or more strip-shaped ELPs that are affixed to case  200  anywhere on the backside, along the sides, or across any portion up to the edge of case  200 . ELP  205  is an electroluminescent panel that is capable of displaying light patterns across its external surface. ELP  205  is flexible to fit to the shape of case  200  while being extremely durable and thin enough to avoid adding bulk or additional size to the dimensions of case  200  when affixed to it. The depth of ELP  205  is in the range of approximately 0.05 mm-2.0 mm. 
         [0014]    ELP  205  is made of indium tin oxide (“ITO”) films with layers of phosphor inks. ELP  205  includes separate circuits that are illuminated independently from one another and are represented by the matrix of rectangular sections shown in  FIGS. 2-4 . ELP  205  may also incorporate LED, OLED, fiber optics and other light technologies. The design and manufacture of ELPs of various types is well known in the art. In one typical configuration, a top sheet that is translucent or transparent and bottom sheet that is translucent, transparent or solid. The bottom sheet is made of a flexible conductive material. The top sheet and bottom sheet act as an anode and a cathode. Between the two sheets is sandwiched electroluminescent ink printed in any pattern that may be circuit dependent or independent. The ink patterns are linked to form one or more circuits. ELP  205  is affixed to the exterior surface of case  200  by adhesive such as glue, hook and loop fastener, adhesive tape or any other adherent that functions to hold ELP  205  to case  200 . It can also be fastened to the case using a lens as a lid. The lens will be placed over the ELP and act as a second form of protection. This application of a lens will allow the ability for the user to create their own unique image on a printer and place this under the lens for a custom look. 
         [0015]    In addition to ELP  205 , case  200  also includes a set of electronics that control and power ELP  205  shown in  FIG. 3A . ELP controller  210  is a microprocessor based control circuit, which may be, for example a HV816 manufactured by Supertex of Sunnyvale, California. A power supply  215  which is typically in the form of one or more rechargeable batteries provides power to controller  210  and to ELP  205  through a set of wires  220   a - c . The battery may be, for example a 3.7 volt lithium polymer battery with a capacity of 700-1,800 mah. Power supply  215  will be chargeable through a standard USB port (see  FIG. 4 ) on controller  210 . It should be understood that other battery types may be used to provide power, such as a button power cell referred to as CR2032 that are known in the art. Lithium ion rechargeable batteries may be used that use typical wired charging, or inductive or other wireless charging capabilities. These individual circuits of ELP  205  are connected by wire  220  and/or by conductive ink which may be in the form of printed circuitry to receive power from power supply  215  and control signals from controller  210 . 
         [0016]      FIG. 3B  is a perspective view of case  200  showing the recessed area into which a PED such as an iPhone fits. Embedded in the bottom of case  200  are the electronic components including ELP controller  210 , power supply  215  and charging circuit  305  for charging power supply  215 . Charging circuit  305  includes a port such as a mini-USB port  310  in the side of case  200  where a charger cord may be plugged in to charge power supply  215 . Charger circuit  305  is connected to power supply  215  by a cable  315 . Cable  220 B, which may be a ribbon cable is connected between ELP controller  210  and ELP  205  (not shown) on the back side of case  200 . Button covers  320  matching up with buttons on a PED, or in the alternative a cutout  120 , allow a user to access buttons on PED even while case  200  is in place. A cutout  120 M is adjacent to microphone  410  (see  FIG. 4 ) to allow sound or vibration to pass through case  200  and to microphone  410  on ELP controller circuit  210 . One or more switches  325  may be used to operate the various functions of ELP controller  210  including switching ELP  205  on and off and sequencing through different illumination pattern sequences. 
         [0017]    ELP controller circuit  210 , power supply  215 , charging circuit  305  and cables  220  as shown in  FIG. 3B  are thin enough to be embedded in the back side material that form case  200 . In this way, case  200  protects the components from the environment while still enabling ELP  205  to be controlled and powered on the surface of case  200 . ELP  205  may also be laminated or otherwise covered with a plastic lens to increase durability and prevent ELP  205  from getting dirty or otherwise being damaged. 
         [0018]      FIG. 4  is a system block diagram of system  400  for use with case  200 . Controller  210  has a number of inputs and outputs. The inputs include a DC power line  405  from power supply system  215 . A microphone  410  is used to pick up sounds and vibrations that may be used to formulate different light patterns on ELP  205 . A button panel  415  may be used by the user to input information, make selections or to perform other interactive operational functions on system  400 . A Bluetooth transceiver  420  is also included to permit reception of signals from a device such as the user&#39;s PED residing in case  200  or any other device with Bluetooth capabilities. Using Bluetooth communications, signals transmitted by PED  105  may be received by Bluetooth transceiver  420  and converted to signals to formulate light patterns on ELP  205 . Other inputs may include one or more hardwired inputs  425  that are hardwired to PED  105  or another device, a USB port  430 , IR sensor  435  and any other electronic inputs that may be desired by the system designer. For some cases, including for example, a laptop case, controller  210  will may be connected through the USB port to supply power. The USB port can power the unit and also provide an interface for manipulating operation of ELP  205 . This will allow for direct audio output signal, programming and power. 
         [0019]    Outputs from controller  210  include DC power line  220  and high voltage AC line  440  which may be used as an alternative source of power for ELP  205  on DC line  220 . A DC line out (not shown) may also be included to power one or more LEDs or other components. A set of ELP signal lines  445  is used to send signals from controller  210  to ELP  205  providing instructions to ELP  205  as to what light panels to illuminate at any given time. 
         [0020]      FIG. 5  is a block diagram of the circuit components and signal paths of system  400  of the present invention. Microphone  410  and/or a sensitivity button on button panel  415  receive input signals in the form of sound or vibration on microphone  410  or a user input on button panel  415 . Sound or vibration signals are amplified by amplifier  505  and inputs on button panel  415  are sensed by microcontroller  510 . Alternatively, or supplementally, an ELP pattern storage device  515  in the form of a memory may hold pre-programmed ELP illumination pattern sequences or ELP illumination pattern sequences programmed or customized by a user that are input to microcontroller  510 . For any of the signals from microphone  410 , button panel  415  or ELP storage  515 , the signals may be used to generate a sequence of illumination patterns on ELP  205 . The signals from any of these inputs are input to a voltage divider  520  which may be a comparator of the type manufactured by Fairchild Semiconductor of San Jose, California such as model number LM339 or LM339A. Voltage divider  520  receives the input signals and divides them into a set of segment enable signals ( 1 -N) corresponding to each of the segments ( 1 -N) on ELP  205 . Each individual segment enable signal is transmitted through an electroluminescent lamp (“EL”) driver  525 , also referred to as a power switch, to provide a power signal to the corresponding EL segment in ELP  205 . The set of segment enable signals being transmitted through to segments  1 -N of ELP  205  causes ELP  205  to display a timed pattern sequence. It should be understood that a microprocessor could be used instead of a comparator to receive the audio signals and convert them into different patterns for illumination on ELP  205 . 
         [0021]    Any individual sequence may be played one or more times in repetition, or combined with other live signals or pre-configured pattern signals to illuminate ELP  205 . In one embodiment of the invention, using microphone  410  as the input to receive sound signals in the form of a song played on PED  105  will cause ELP  205  to respond to the music and “play” the song as it is being received in a particular light pattern reflecting the voltage divisions performed by voltage divider  520 , which may be selected as desired by the system designer. Alternatively, any sounds produced will similarly trigger ELP  205  to respond with illumination patterns. 
         [0022]      FIG. 6A  is a diagram showing one sample layout of ELP  205  in the shape of a target with  5  concentric segments where each concentric segment is an individual circuit  605 A-E. Each circuit  605  is controlled separately by controller  210  and the five circuits may be illuminated in succession or in any other chosen pattern. A representative pattern may be to light up the individual circuits in the following timing pattern where T n  is the sequential timing of the illumination: T 1 : A alone; T 2 : A+B; T 3 : A+B+C; T 4 : A+B+C+D; T 5 : A+B+C+D+E. This pattern will create an image of the target extending out over the segments to be fully lit at time, T 5 . It should be understood that the target is a simple ELP print pattern that may be created by the designer, and ELPs of differing levels of complexity may be manufactured with different colors of ink and any number of individual circuits to make illuminated patterns more versatile, aesthetically pleasing and fun. In addition, the density of “pixels” can be varied with cost increasing as the pixel density and count increases. In addition, the greater the number of ELP circuits  605 , the greater the cost. 
         [0023]      FIG. 6B  is a diagram of a rectangular ELP  205  showing another sample layout for individual ELP circuits  605 A-E. As with the circular target shape of  FIG. 6A , each circuit  605  is controlled separately by controller  210  and the five circuits may be illuminated in succession or in any other chosen pattern. 
         [0024]    In addition to the printed ink patterns on ELP  205 , light emitting diodes (“LEDs”) may also be used in combination with the ELP circuits  605  to add to the illumination patterns. 
         [0025]    The foregoing invention has been described in accordance with the relevant legal standards, thus the description is exemplary rather than limiting in nature. Variations and modifications to the disclosed embodiment may become apparent to those skilled in the art and fall within the scope of the invention. Accordingly the scope of legal protection afforded this invention can only be determined with reference to the claims.