Abstract:
A mobile communicator consisting of a wrist strap and an actual combined mobile communicator connected to the strap which includes at least two separate mobile communicator parts. The parts of the mobile communicator are mechanically connected by joints so that they can be folded inwardly against one another in repose position and can be opened profitably sequentially and in parallel when in a usage position. The mobile communicator parts are arranged to be opened outwardly for use in essentially a vertical direction compared with the plane of the wrist strap.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a foldable mobile wrist communicator according to the preamble of the patent claim  1 . Mobile communicator here means also wireless telephones on the whole. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     The patent publication U.S. Pat. No. 5,274,613 presents a watch and a radio telephone mounting on a wrist strap. In the prior art solution a watch and a mobile radio communicator are located in a foldable unit, which can be attached to or disconnected from a wrist strap. The foldable unit is opened out so that the topmost part of the foldable unit pivots out to the left and the middle part to the right as seen from the left hand while the bottom part remains in its initial position. That is to say the foldable unit pivots out tangent to the wrist strap i.e. perpendicular to the arm line. When unfolded the unit functions as a radio telephone which has a microphone on one end and an earphone on the other end of the opened unit. 
     However, the prior art solution has its disadvantages. Whole electronics has been planned to be inserted in one wrist strappable unit. In this way the unit becomes large and heavy, which makes the usage of the unit on the wrist strap quite inconvenient. Especially the power unit solutions of the mobile communicators still today are of the size and weight class, which are very difficult to fit together with the unit in question. One notable disadvantage is also that because the current supply is fixed when the current supply runs low, the watch and the mobile communicator are out of order till the current supply has been charged again. 
     The radio mobile communicator of the prior art opens out to a very inconvenient position when it is used on the wrist. When the longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the arm talking to the phone and other usage of the radio telephone is difficult because irrespective of whether the opened out mobile communicator is located inside or outside of the wrist the user must always hold his hand in an unnatural position as he speaks to the phone. In addition, when the watch and the radio telephone are combined it is impossible to use and carry them separately only one at a time. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The purpose of the present invention is to create a new mobile communicator by which the above mentioned problems can at least to a great extent be removed. In order to facilitate this the mobile communicator constructed in accordance with the principles of present invention is characterized by the preamble of the patent claim  1 . Advantageous embodiments of the invention have been presented in other patent claims. 
     The present invention has an advantage that the mobile communicator folds out for use parallel to the arm. The unfolded mobile communicator can be used supported by the palm without removing it from the wrist strap. A solution like this improves operation comfortability and increases operation security of the mobile communicator. 
     One preferred mobile communicator constructed in accordance with the principles of present invention includes another device such as a watch or a television, which has been placed on the same wrist strap. Both devices can be separate units so it is possible to use them separately only one unit at a time, if required. In addition, two separate units arranged to the different sides of the wrist strap make a more balanced and convenient assembly to be worn on the wrist and used than a large combined unit on a wrist strap. 
     In one preferred mobile communicator constructed in accordance with the principles of present invention the problem of a heavy current supply has been solved using an annular current supply, which can also function as a wrist strap. In this way the weight is distributed especially evenly and both the mobile communicator and the other device can use the same current supply. In addition, when the current supply is exhausted it can be replaced by a charged one and the charged current supply can be used immediately without waiting for the first battery to be charged. 
     A mobile communicator in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention comprises a wrist strap and an actual mobile communicator connected to it, which has at least two mobile communicator parts, which have been mechanically united by joints so that they can be folded in against one another for a position of repose and can be opened outwardly for a position of use, characterized in that the parts of the mobile communicator are arranged to be opened for use in essentially vertical direction compared with the wrist strap plane. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     In the following preferred embodiment configurations of the invention are described in more detail using the accompanying drawings, in which 
     FIG. 1 shows a mobile communicator according to the invention in repose position, 
     FIG. 2 shows the same mobile communicator in usage position, 
     FIG. 3 shows another mobile communicator according to the invention seen from the side, and 
     FIG. 4 shows a preferred way of using the mobile communicator according to the invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     A mobile communicator according to the invention consists of an actual mobile communicator  1 , which has three parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  connected to each other by hinges  12 ,  13 , and a wrist strap  40 . The mobile communicator  1  is attached by one part, the third part  30 , to the wrist strap  40 . The parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  of the mobile communicator  1  are superimposed on one another by hinges  12 ,  13  or corresponding joints in repose position as can be seen in FIG.  1 . The parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  of the mobile communicator  1  are arranged to be pivoted out for use in the substantially perpendicular direction B-B with respect to the plane A—A of the wrist strap  40  as illustrated in FIG.  2 . 
     The parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  of the mobile communicator  1  are designed in this exemplary embodiment as essentially same sized rectangular parts with the electronics required by the mobile communicator built in. In one preferred embodiment configuration the largest part of the electronics such as the transmitter-receiver has been placed in the third part  30 . In this way the first part  10  and the second part  20  can preferably be lightened and the load on hinges  12 ,  13  is diminished. Equally the need for transmission between parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  and the number of wires required are reduced. The microphone  31  and the earphone  11  of the mobile communicator are placed far away from each other e.g. so that the microphone  31  is mounted in the third part  30  and the earphone  11  in the first part  10 . In this way enough space is created between the microphone  31  and the earphone  11  although the width of the folded mobile communicator  1  is rather small. In this case the display  21  of the mobile communicator  1  is located in another part  20 . The keyboard  32  of the mobile communicator  1  can be placed e.g. in the third part  30 . Electronics can also be placed in the wrist strap as well as in the parts mentioned. 
     Some user interface means, such as the display  21  and the keyboard  32 , can be arranged to the mobile communicator  1  so that they are removeable and they can be turned by 180 degrees to a new position. This can be achieved by using e.g. rapid connectors. The possibility to turn the display  21  and the keyboard  32  is important in a case where the mobile communicator  1  is used on the other wrist. The display  21  and the keyboard  32  are thus arranged to be read and used from the direction perpendicular to the opening direction by turning the display  21  and the keyboard  32 . 
     Another mobile communicator according to the invention is illustrated in FIG.  3 . In principle, this mobile communicator is shown from the side with respect to the plane A—A. (cf. FIGS.  1  and  2 ). The mobile communicator consists of, in addition to the actual mobile communicator  1 , a separate device  50 , such as a watch. The mobile communicator  1  is shown folded in repose position in FIG.  3 . The device  50  is attached to the opposite side of the wrist strap compared with the mobile communicator  1 . 
     The current supply of the mobile communicator  1  and a possible other device  50  include a battery  44 , which has its location in connection with the wrist strap  40 . The battery  44  can be configured by placing one or several batteries into the wrist strap  40  or alternatively an annular battery can make up the wrist strap  40  itself. In both cases the weight of the mobile communicator  1  is distributed evenly around the wrist. 
     The wrist strap  40  or the battery  44 , which generally belongs to the current supply, can also in an exemplary embodiment be accomplished by smaller battery cells connected serially by joints by which the parts of the wrist strap can easily be brought into an annular form suitable for wrist. The battery of the current supply can also be accomplished by amorphous or liquid material residing in the strap. 
     The wrist strap  40  can be opened and closed using the joint  43  in order to slip it on and/or out of one&#39;s wrist. In a preferred embodiment configuration also a solar cell  45  belongs to the current supply of the actual mobile communicator  1  and/or the watch  50  of the mobile communicator  1 . The solar cell  45  is preferably attached onto the wrist strap  40  as illustrated in FIG.  3 . 
     It is also possible to place parts which are used to control the current supply in connection to the wrist strap  40  and the battery  44  located in the strap, such parts like short-circuit or excess voltage protector or other parts which are substantial for controlling the charging or discharging of the battery or for other control. It is also possible to place other parts such as the antenna  42  in the wrist strap. 
     A preferred embodiment of the mobile communicator according to the invention is illustrated in FIG.  4 . In this figure the first part  10  and the second part  20  of the actual mobile communicator  1  are opened out on the hinges  12 , 13  so that the parts are sequential and parallel to the same direction B—B. Because the opening direction of the mobile communicator is vertical to the plane A—A of the wrist strap  40 , it means that the mobile communicator is placed in the direction of the palm and specifically on the palm so that a disconnection from the wrist strap  40  is not required for usage. 
     In one preferred embodiment of the mobile communicator  1  according to the invention the diplay  21  is a touch-screen display. In the mobile communicator  1  presented in FIG. 4 all the parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  can be touch-screen displays. The touch-screen can be of such type that data is input by writing with e.g. a pen-like device to the screen. The screen functions can be configured so that it is possible to recognize the user&#39;s hand-writing 
     In another preferred embodiment of the invention the mobile communicator  1  is configured so that it is possible to couple hands-free equipment into it. Usually the hands-free equipment comprise at least the microphone and the earphone which are coupled to the mobile communicator with leads. The hands-free equipment is especially advantageous in an embodiment described above where all the parts  10 ,  20 ,  30  are displays  21 . This way it is possible to handle call operations and data operations at the same time. 
     In a preferred embodiment modification the camera  41  has been connected to the mobile communicator according to the invention. The camera  41  can be connected to the third part  30  of the mobile communicator or to the wrist strap  40  as illustrated in FIG.  4 . If the camera  41  is arranged to be in connection with the mobile communicator, the display  21  must be arranged so that i t c an also be used to show pictures which have enough resolution for visual communication being, possible with the mobile communicator. 
     Although the invention is described above by some embodiments it is not limited to them only but can be modified within the scope and the spirit of the invention and the patent claims below.