Abstract:
A handheld mount assembly for portable electronic device includes a pistol style grip and suction cup assembly. The mount assembly functions as a gripping device for handheld use, a hands free stand, and a recharging station. The mount can be secured anywhere on the back of the electronic device, making the angle adjustable for stand use, and also allowing the user to position the device differently to accommodate his/her own needs. The mount can power/charge the portable wireless device as well as wirelessly connect to it and integrate its operational controls to those three tactile controls of the mount assembly.

Description:
CLAIM FOR DOMESTIC PRIORITY 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation-in-part , incorporates in its entirety, and claims the benefit of pending U.S. Utility patent application Ser. No. 14/261,201 filed Apr. 24, 2014. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Numerous ways of mounting tablet/pad computers and smart phone devices such as: the Samsung Galaxy® product line, Iphones®, Ipads®, Ipods®, Kindles®, similar e-book readers, and similar portable electronic/multi-media devices are well know. However, several limitations exist for known mounts. Often it is impossible to alter the orientation of the device (that is go from portrait to landscape or landscape to portrait) for ease of viewing, are cumbersome, and the attachment point of the mount is fixed typically in the center of the portable multi-media device. Additionally, mounts that are designed as “handheld” will not double as a “hands free” stand. 
         [0003]    Additionally, with the prior art existing mounts, both of the user&#39;s hands are employed. One hand has to hold the mount and the other hand must be free to operate the controls of the portable electronic/multi-media device. This limits the use to those who do not have disabilities in either arm. This dual arm operation of the portable electronic/multi-media devices if performed too aggressively, may accidentally jar it from the mount with disastrous results. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    The handheld mount assembly of the present invention is an ergonomic convenience aid for easily holding, standing, positioning, and handling portable electronic devices, as well as any light household items with flat smooth mounting surfaces. The assembly includes rechargeable batteries and can charge/power the electronic devices it is designed to hold. Further, it operationally, wirelessly connects to the portable electronic/multi-media device and transfers the operational control functions of the portable electronic/multi-media device down to an ergonomic set of tactile controls incorporated into the the handheld mount assembly so that one hand operation of the portable electronic/multi-media device is possible. 
         [0005]    The mount assembly also doubles as a stand for hands free use, and provides different angles by simply rotating the electronic device it is attached to. The handheld mount assembly can also be easily positioned in different places on an object to support even more creative sustained use; for example, offsetting the mount&#39;s connection point to balance part of the device on the user&#39;s arm while drawing or writing with a stylus. A pistol style grip on the handheld mount assembly allows for longer and more comfortable use while lying in bed, reading, or watching movies. It reduces the strain on hands and wrists by allowing the use of larger muscle groups. The handheld mount assembly design also supports a more stable application for lap viewing or reading—the user does not even need to hold the mount assembly, as the mount assembly acts as a counter balance contacting the user&#39;s leg or stomach, while the user holds the multi-media device (or even laptop) to which the mount is attached. The handheld mount assembly of the present invention also allows for simplified transport of multi-media devices from one room to another and will function as a hands free stand on soft and hard surfaces, and since the handheld mount assembly of the present invention can be secured at any point on the back of the multi-media device the angle at which the devices rests (or stands) on a surface is adjustable. 
         [0006]    Finally, the assembly includes a recessed ¼″ thread both on its top and bottom surfaces to accommodate a standardized mounting bolt such as can be found on camers, tripods, video recorders, electronic survey equipment and a plethora of other portable electronic/multi-media devices. Basically, users can attach anything with a ¼″ bolt above or below the device—for example, a pivotal suction cup mount. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  is an exploded perspective view of handheld mount assembly of the present invention illustrating an optional bottom suction mount, a wall charger attachment and a portable electronic device; 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the handheld mount assembly of  FIG. 1  connected to a wall charger and a portable electronic device for charging; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  is an exploded rear perspective view of the handheld mount assembly with the optional bottom suction mount; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  is a representative view of the internal components of the handheld mount assembly; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  is a top view of the handheld mount assembly; 
           [0012]      FIG. 6  is a right-side view of the handheld mount assembly; 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  is a rear view of the handheld mount assembly; 
           [0014]      FIG. 8  is a front view the handheld mount assembly; 
           [0015]      FIG. 9  is a left-side view of the handheld mount assembly; and 
           [0016]      FIG. 10  is a bottom view of the handheld mount assembly. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0017]    Looking at  FIG. 1  we can best begin the description of the physical structure of the device. It can be seen that the handheld mount assembly  10  includes a pistol grip assembly  12  that accommodates a user&#39;s hand in a fist configuration. Grip assembly  12  accommodates both left and right-hand gripping with ergonomically correct finger grooves  14 , ( FIGS. 3, 6, 7 and 9 ) a rear upper extension  16  for supporting the web of the hand, and a flat base  18 . Visible in  FIG. 10  is its lower connection orifice  28 , which is a recessed ¼″ by 20 coarse thread and designed to accommodate a standard tripod mount as is well known in the art. Similarly, an upper connection orifice  29  can be seen in  FIGS. 1, 3 and 5 . The upper connection orifice  29  is also a ¼-20 thread which is standardized in the related portable multi-media electronic devices is utilized on a plethora of devices. 
         [0018]    Grip assembly  12  is mechanically conjoined to lock section  15 . Should a user need or want to access the interior electrical components of grip assembly  12 , he or she would simply undo the mechanical connection between the lock section  25  and the grip section  12  (which in the preferred embodiment would be threaded connectors) and then segregate the grip section  12  into is two outer shell components. Electrical terminal  38  is visible in  FIGS. 3 and 7  and provides for secure connection to a electrical charging source  65  as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . Although direct electrical charging of the battery is used in the preferred embodiment, it is known that inductive (wireless) charging would be an equivalent method of charging as is well known in the art. 
         [0019]    Internally, grip assembly  12  includes at least one battery  31  housed therein, as is illustrated in  FIG. 4 . The battery  31  will have sufficient power to power the device&#39;s microprocessor  50  as well as any attached or any peripheral add-ons such as a phone, computer tablet or the like. In this way, the battery can serve as a reserve power for other devices. Second electrical terminal  39  is visible in  FIGS. 1 and 4 , and allows an electronic device to be connected to mount  10  via an appropriate electronic connector as illustrated in  FIGS. 1-2 . (Preferably this is be a USB port style connector.) Since the grip assembly  12  is assembled in two shell components, replacement of the battery  31  or access to the other internal components can be accessed by segregation of the two portions as disclosed above. It is also known that in an alternate embodiment there may be a direct access hatch to the battery incorporated into the grip assembly  12 . 
         [0020]    Looking at  FIGS. 6, 7, 8 and 9  it can be seen that above and extending therefrom rear upper extension  16  is the lock section  15  which comprises domed base  22 , lever  24 , flexible polymer suction cup disk  20 , ratchet locking mechanism  80  and pivot pin  19 . Lock section  15  is capable of securing to any planar, smooth surface such as the back of multimedia devices as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 and 2 , or in an alternate use, could be secured to the back of dinner plate or server&#39;s tray to provide an alternate and more ergonomic method of caring serving plates and trays, or even hard surface construction material such as laminate, plastic, and glass, to aid in installation. The vacuum grip provided by the lock section  15  is well know in the industry, but generally, the flexible polymer suction cup disc  20  is positioned on the back of the device that is to be secured/mounted. Lever  24  has an arm that serves as a fulcrum about a pivot pin  19  as is connected at its distal end to the bottom face of the center of disk  20 . The lever  24  pivots about pivot pin  19 , such that when it is vertically raised the end of the arm connected to the bottom face of disk  20  is drawn downward so as to cause the upper face of disk  20  to form a concave depression, forming the vacuum seal discussed above. 
         [0021]    A ratchet locking mechanism is mechanically situated between lever  24  and domed base  22  and utilizes ratchet-lock teeth to lockingly engage at various different degrees of concave deflection of the disk  20 . On lever  24  is at least one release button  21  ( FIGS. 8 and 9 ) that mechanically disengages lever  24  from its associated teeth. The ratchet lock device allows the vertical position of the lever  24  to be secured corresponding to different degrees of concavity achieved on the upper face of flexible disk  26 . In this manner the strength the vacuum may be adjusted for vary weights, creating an adjustable vacuum grip (stronger or lighter suction grip) depending on need. Additionally, the flexible polymer of the present invention does not require the surface (back of the multi-media device, for example) to be initially moistened. A small tab  27  of disk  20  ( FIG. 9 ) extends beyond domed base  22  allowing the user to break the vacuum seal. Lock section  15  is mechanically affixed to grip assembly  12  at their respective mating physical interfaces. 
         [0022]    Turning to  FIGS. 1-3 , the handheld mount assembly  10  can be seen coupled at its lower connection orifice  29  to pivotal suction cup mount  52 . Suction cup mount  52  is substantially similar in design and function to that of lock section  15  but additionally has a first pivotal connection member  60  extending pivotally therefrom. The first pivotal connection member  60  has a mounting plate  56  with a ¼-20 threaded connecter extending therefrom. It is pivotally connected to the suction cup mount  52  from its lower face with a pivot pin  68  connecting these two components. This will allow pivotal motion of the suction cup  66  with respect to grip assembly  12 , when suction cup mount  52  is threadingly engaged to lower connection orifice  28 . The suction cup mount  52  is just an example of any number of pivotal or stationary mounts that could be attached to mount assembly  10 . For example, mounting plate  56  could be configured to house a ball head making mount assembly  10  pivotal about the ball head. 
         [0023]    The internals of the preferred embodiment of the handheld mount assembly for portable electronic devices  10  is best explained looking at  FIG. 4 . Internally housed within the pistol grip assembly  12  is a battery  31  connectable to a charging power source  65  ( FIG. 1 ) through electrical terminal  38 . There is a microprocessor  65  with a wireless Bluetooth™ transceiver  67  (or an equivalent wireless transmission/reception source). The wireless transceiver is operably connected to the battery  31 , an on/off switch  47 , and three tactile controls (a tactile roller ball unit  69 , a first depressible tactile button  71  and a second depressible tactile button  72 ). The on/off switch  47  and the three tactile controls extend from the surface of the pistol grip assembly  12 . The battery  31  is also operably connected to the second electrical terminal  39  as discussed herein. Although it is well known in the art that the number and style of tactile controls may vary. This is especially true with the advent of many of the new style “smart” buttons, that can alternate between multiple functions based on the number of depression utilized and the timing thereof the depressions. 
         [0024]    The microprocessor  65 , when powered from the battery  31  initiates a protocol for wireless electronic pairing signal with nearby electronic devices. (The device coupled to the disk  20  being the intended recipient.) The coupled device will display the standard device pairing protocol on its display panel prompting the user to complete the required manual pairing steps. (Often this is the inputting of pairing codes or acknowledgement of permission to pair the devices.) Once this is completed the handheld mount assembly  10  and the device are in wireless communication. The microprocessor  65  has a specific algorithmic program that has been imbedded in its memory that transfers the tactile control of the coupled device to the handheld mount assembly  10 . Directional curser movement on the coupled device is now controlled by the tactile roller ball unit  69 . As the roller ball is moved, the curser on the coupled device is similarly moved. Similarly, the selection button of the coupled device relegates is operation to that of the first depressible tactile button  71 . Similarly the keypad alpha-numeric selection feature of the coupled device relegates its operation to that of the roller ball and the second depressible tactile button  72 . In this manner, with but three tactile controls on the handheld mount assembly  10 , all selection features of the coupled devices may be accomplished. Such type of three button operational control transfer is well known in the field and is commonly used in Apple™ and other computerized devices. 
         [0025]    The electronic pairing and takeover of the operational control of the coupled device may be accomplished by the algorithmic program on the microprocessor (for select coupled units) or by a downloadable application that is loaded onto the coupled device&#39;s memory and operating system. Generally, this will be by the direct wi-fi download of an application from the internet/cloud to the device that is specifically tailored for the coupling of that device to the handheld mount assembly  10 . 
         [0026]    To use the lock section  15  of the handheld mount assembly for portable electronic devices  10  is pressed against the planar, flat surface of the back (non-viewing side) of a portable multi-media device, and the lever  24  actuated, tightening the flexible polymer disk  20  and securing mount  10  via a vacuum grip. Once secured, the user is free to hold or carry his multi-media device via the mount assembly  10 . 
         [0027]    In operation, the handheld mount assembly for portable electronic devices  10  is mechanically coupled to the device of choice by the lock section&#39;s suction cup disk  20 . The mount assembly  10  is then switched on by the on/off switch  47 . The software programs on the microprocessor  65  send forth a wireless pairing signal to the connected device. After the protocol electronic pairing “handshake” has been completed between the coupled device and the mount assembly  10 , the microprocessor assumes control of the operational control in the coupled device either by direct integration with of the coupled device&#39;s control system or by indirect integration through an device specific application that has been downloaded into the coupled device. Now all operation of the coupled device may be accomplished through the three tactile controls  69 ,  71  and  72  located on the grip assembly  12  of the mount  10 . 
         [0028]    Although specific embodiments have been illustrated and described herein, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that a wide variety of alternate and/or equivalent implementations calculated to achieve the same purposes may be substituted for the specific embodiments shown and described without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, it is intended that this invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalents thereof.