Abstract:
Pen receptacles for storing and easy ejecting of pens without the pens overshooting the receptacles are described. In one embodiment, the pen has a tapered surface which interacts with a pair of gripping arms to modulate the deceleration of an ejecting pen. In a second embodiment using a relatively straight pen, a constriction is added to a chamber of a receptacle to affirmatively decelerate an ejecting pen. In both the embodiments, the pens decelerate to rest with a portion of each pen inside the receptacles. Exposed portions of the pens allow a user to comfortably grip the pens to draw them out of the receptacles.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates to a pen receptacle for receiving an input pen such as, for example, a stylus for use in inputting information into a personal computer or the like.  
         BACKGROUND  
         [0002]    With increasing demand for personal computers (PC&#39;s) which are portable, stylus or pen-based data entry means has become more popular and essential, An example of such a PC is the increasingly popular computerized personal organizer. This organizer performs such personal information management functions as keeping calendars, address books, to-do lists, and other similar functions. While conventional computer systems can provide these functions, personal organizers, which are relatively inexpensive, small, lightweight and portable, can provide these functions.  
           [0003]    As these organizers are usually made small, the accompanying keyboards are also miniaturized and therefore not convenient for entering data. In such cases, styluses or pens are preferred to the keyboards as data entry means. These pens are also used very much like a computer mouse to launch and select menus in software applications running on the organizers. Thus the pen has become an essential part of the personal organizer. And it is preferable to securely accommodate the pen in a receptacle in the housing of the personal organizer.  
           [0004]    The pen is usually an elongated member suitable for hand holding in a writing position. An annular groove on the pen allows a locking mechanism in the receptacle to lock the pen in a chamber in the receptacle. This pen can be used with different receptacles as will be described below.  
           [0005]    One example of a prior art receptacle commonly found in personal organizers has an elongated chamber to house the pen. When the pen is inserted into the chamber, an annular constriction in the chamber engages the groove on the pen to retain the pen in the chamber. An exposed end of the pen having a ridged surface allows a user to drag the pen with a thumb or a finger to draw it out of the chamber. This receptacle has a few disadvantages. The constriction and pen groove engagement does not usually retain the pen securely in the receptacle and thus makes the pen prone to be accidentally dislodged during transportation. If however the constriction and pen groove engagement does securely retain the pen, it then becomes cumbersome for a user to draw the pen out of the chamber by dragging on the exposed end of the pen using a finger.  
           [0006]    [0006]FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show a second prior art receptacle  2 . This receptacle  2  overcomes the disadvantages of the first receptacle described above. This receptacle  2  has a locking mechanism  4  which has a hook member  6  biased to protrude into a chamber of the receptacle  2 . The hook member  6  engages a groove  8  on a pen  10  when the pen  10  is inserted into the chamber. The engagement of the hook member  6  with the groove  8  securely retains the pen  10  in the chamber. The insertion of the pen  10  also loads a spring  12 , which is positioned to expel the pen  10  out of the chamber. A user presses a button  14  integral with the locking mechanism  4  to release the lock on the pen to free the pen. When unlocked, the loaded spring expels the freed pen out of the chamber. This releasing action of the receptacle will require that the user has a good sense of coordination to catch the ejecting pen to prevent it from dropping and getting damaged.  
           [0007]    [0007]FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show yet another receptacle  20  as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,434,373. This receptacle  20  prevents an ejecting pen  22  from accidental falling out of the receptacle  20 . This receptacle  20  has a retaining member  24  for latching the pen  22  inside a chamber  23  of the receptacle when the pen  22  is inserted into the chamber. The receptacle also has a locking member  26  for locking the retaining member  24  at a predetermined locked position, where the pen  22  is retained inside the chamber  23 . In the locked position, a spring  28  is tensioned to expel the pen  22  out of the chamber  23 . To release the pen  22 , a user pushes an exposed part of the pen  22  further into the chamber  23  to release the lock on the retaining member  24 . The tension in the spring  28  causes the stretched spring  28  to collapse to pull the retaining member  24  and latched pen  22  outwards of the receptacle. An arm on the locking member  26  obstructs the retaining member to bring the retaining member  24  to a halt in the receptacle. During the ejecting movement, the retaining member  24  continues to latch onto the pen  22 . Thus the pen  22  does not overshoot the receptacle  20  completely but comes to an abrupt stop to leave a portion of the pen  20  exposed. This exposed end allows a user to draw the pen completely out of the receptacle. This receptacle  20  has its disadvantages. When inserted into the receptacle  20 , the end of the pen  22  is usually preferred to be substantially flush with an exterior  30  of the receptacle. This exterior  30  of the receptacle  20  is usually a part of a peripheral wall of a housing of a personal organizer. The finger releasing means will require that a recess  32  be built into the peripheral wall to accommodate a user&#39;s finger to allow a user to easily push the pen further into the receptacle to release the pen. This recess  32  when built into a housing usually renders the housing less aesthetically appealing. This loss of appeal puts the personal organizer using the receptacle  20  at a commercial disadvantage. There is another factor which causes a product using such a receptacle to be less appealing. When removing the pen, the finger is expected to restrict the movement of the pen  22  and guide it to a stop. However if the finger is removed immediately after the lock on the retaining member  24  is released, the ejecting movement of the retaining member  24  and pen will not be cushioned. The arm of the locking member  26  will put a jarring stop to the movement of the retaining member  24  and the pen  22 . This snapping action of the pen  22  and retaining member  24  pair again degrades the commercial appeal of the personal organizer.  
           [0008]    There is therefore a need for a quick release pen receptacle which encompasses the functions of the receptacles  2  and  20  described above. This receptacle is also required to modulate the ejecting movement of the pen such that the ejecting pen is brought to a gradual rest.  
         SUMMARY  
         [0009]    In accordance with the preferred embodiments of the invention, pen receptacles are provided with gripping arms, constrictions or the like to affirmatively decelerate an ejecting pen. The pens used with these receptacles do not shoot out of the receptacles when expelled, but come to a rest with portions of the pens resting inside the receptacles. The other exposed portions of these pens allow a user to comfortably grip the pens to draw them out completely of the receptacles. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0010]    The invention will be better understood with reference to the drawings, in which:  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 1 is a top view of a prior art pen and receptacle showing the pen inserted into the receptacle in a locked position and with a spring loaded and ready to expel the pen when the pen is released from the locked position.  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 2 is a side view taken in the direction of an arrow A in FIG. 1 showing a locking mechanism which locks the pen in the receptacle of FIG. 1.  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 3 is a sectional view of another prior art pen and receptacle showing the pen retained by a retaining member and the retaining member locked in a locked position in the receptacle with a spring tensioned and ready to eject the pen out when the locked retaining member is released.  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 4 is a similar view to FIG. 3 showing the pen and retaining member released from the locked position and brought to rest within the receptacle.  
         [0015]    [0015]FIGS. 5A, 5B and  5 C are perspective views of a clamp-shell casing which uses a pen receptacle, according to the present invention, to receive and release a pen. FIG. 5A shows the pen locked in the receptacle. FIG. 5B shows the final resting position of the pen after being ejected. FIG. 5C shows the pen completely drawn out of the receptacle.  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 6 is an exploded view of a receptacle according to the present invention which can be used in the casing in FIGS. 5A, 5B and  5 C.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIGS. 7A, 7B and  7 C are different perspective views of the pen and receptacle in FIG. 6. The figures show the pen inserted into the receptacle.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIGS. 8A is a top view of an ejecting pen which is unlatched by a retaining member. FIG. 8B is a top view of an ejecting pen brought to a rest by a pair of gripping arms.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 9A is a sectional top view of a second embodiment of a pen and receptacle according to the present invention which can be used in the casing of FIGS. 5A, 5B and  5 C. FIG. 9B is a sectional side view of the pen and receptacle taken in a direction given by an arrow Y in FIG. 9A. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0020]    First Embodiment  
         [0021]    [0021]FIGS. 5A, 5B and  5 C show a typical injection molded plastic clamp-shell casing assembly of a computerized personal organizer which uses a receptacle according to the invention. The casing assembly  100  has a lower casing  102  and an upper casing  104  which can be tilted over the lower casing  102 . Typically the lower casing  102  contains a keyboard (not shown) and a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) (not shown), and the upper casing  104  contains a dual-function display assembly  106 . The display assembly is connected to the PCBA through cables (not shown) running from the upper casing  104  to the PCBA in the lower casing  102  through a hinge assembly  107 . A pen  108  is accommodated in a pen receptacle  109  in the lower casing  102 .  
         [0022]    The dual-function display assembly  106  provides a viewing screen  112  on the upper casing  104 . This display assembly  106  serves as both an input device and an output device. When operating as an input device, the display assembly  106  senses the position of a pen tip  114  on the viewing screen and provides this positional information to the computer&#39;s central processing unit (CPU) on the PCBA. When operating as an output device, the display assembly presents computer-generated images on the screen  112 .  
         [0023]    The dual-function display  106  of the computerized personal organizer permits a user to operate the organizer as a computerized notepad. For example, graphical images can be input into the pen-based organizer by merely moving the pen tip  114  across the surface of the screen  112 . As the CPU senses the position and movement of the pen  108 , it generates a corresponding image on the screen  112  to create the illusion that the pen  108  is drawing the image directly upon the screen  112 , i.e. that the pen is “inking” an image on the screen  112 . With suitable recognition software, the “ink” can be identified as text and numeric information. As a further example of a use of the pen  108 , the CPU generates application specific icons on known positions of the screen  112 . A user selects an appropriate application by touching an area of the display assembly directly above the icon with the pen tip  114 . The CPU senses the position of the pen tip  114  on the screen  112  and launches an appropriate application as identified by the icon.  
         [0024]    The pen  108 , according to one aspect of the invention, is an elongated member. This pen  108  is generally wider along a portion of the pen and tapers towards both ends of the pen. On one end of the pen is push-fitted a pen tip  114  which is used as a writing tip. A user presses this pen tip  114  on the display assembly  106  to enter data into the computerized personal organizer or to select an icon on the display assembly  106  to launch an appropriate application. A groove  116  on the pen allows the pen to be securely locked inside the receptacle  109 . FIG. 5A shows the pen  108  securely stored in the receptacle  109 . A user stores the pen  108  away in the casing  100  by simply inserting the pen  108 , pen tip  114  first, into the receptacle  109  until the pen  108  is fully inserted and securely stored in the receptacle  109 . FIG. 5B shows the pen in a resting position after being expelled from the receptacle. To release the pen  108 , the user presses a button  120  on the keyboard. The pen  108  ejects outwards of the receptacle  109  and decelerates to a gradual rest with a portion of the pen  108  protruding out of the receptacle  109 . A tapered section of the pen  108  allows the deceleration of the pen to be modulated such that the pen does not come to a jarring stop. The protruding section of the pen  108  allows the user to easily draw the pen  108  out of the receptacle. FIG. 5C shows the pen  108  completely drawn out of the receptacle  109 .  
         [0025]    The casing  100  and pen  108  are of plastic, preferably a combination of polycarbonate and ABS. The pen tip is of a wear resistant plastic such as Delrin (Delrin, a trademarked plastic product from Dupont, Wilmington, Del., USA.). The retaining member  130  is of PBT.  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 6 is an exploded view of a receptacle  109 . The receptacle  109  comprises two halves. A first half  131  (not completely shown) is molded as a part of an underside of a top surface of the lower casing  102 . The second half is a separate retaining member  130 . When the two halves  130  and  131  are brought together, they define a chamber  132  to accommodate the pen  108 . The receptacle  109  is assembled by first placing the retaining member with slots  134  directly over matching L-section guide rails  135  which depend from the first half  131  of the receptacle  109 . The retaining member  130  is then slided along the surface of the lower casing  102  in a direction given by an arrow B. The L-section guide rails  135  retain the retaining member  130  in position and allows the retaining member  103  to slide along the surface of the first half  131  of the receptacle  109  . A spring  136  keeps the two halves from separating. One end of the spring  136  is attached to a spring housing (not shown) fixed on the first half  131  of the receptacle  109 . The other end of the spring  136  wraps onto a spring shaft  138  on the retaining member  130 . The spring  136  is compressed when assembled between the two halves  130  and  131  of the receptacle  109 . This compression of the spring  136  pushes the retaining member  130  such that the slots  134  on the retaining member  130  does not coincide with the L-sections  135  on the first half  131 .  
         [0027]    On one end of the retaining member  130  is a pen tip locator  140 . The locator  140  orientates the pen  108  when inserted into the receptacle  109  such that the axis of the pen  108  is substantially parallel with the axis of the chamber  132  to allow the pen to be easily ejected out of the chamber  132 . The locator  140  also acts as a support for the pen  108  to prevent the pen  108  from rocking when stored in the chamber  132 .  
         [0028]    A resilient latching arm  144  extends from the retaining member  130 . The latching arm  144  has a hook member  142  which is biased by the resilience of the latching arm  144  to protrude a recess  146  on the retaining member  130  into the chamber  132 .  
         [0029]    [0029]FIGS. 7A, 7B and  7 C show different perspectives of the pen  108  inserted into the receptacle  109 . The operation of inserting the pen  108  into the receptacle is now described. In a pen-released position, the spring  136  pushes the retaining member  130  against a peripheral sidewall (not shown) of the lower casing  102 . The user inserts the pen  108 , pen tip  114  first, into the chamber  132  of the receptacle  109 . The pen  108  slides along the chamber surfaces as it is being inserted. A first tapered surface  150  on the pen  108  pushes the hook member  142  outwards of the chamber as the pen  108  is pushed past the hook member  142 . When the groove  116  of the pen  108  is adjacent to the hook member  142 , the resilient latching arm  144  causes the hook member  142  to latch onto the groove  116  to retain the pen  108  in the chamber  132 . In this position of the pen  108  in the chamber  132 , the pen tip  114  also protrudes a through hole  148  in the locator  140 . As the pen  108  is pushed further into the chamber  132 , the pen  108  drags the retaining member  130  along the chamber  132 . The spring  136  is increasingly compressed as the pen  108  is pushed further inwards. As the pen  108  and retaining member  130  slide further inwards, a locking protrusion  152  on the retaining member  130  comes into contact with a locking arm  153 , which is biased into the path of the locking protrusion  152 . Tapered surfaces  154  and  156  on both the locking protrusion  152  and the locking arm  153  allow the inwardly moving retaining member  130  to push the locking arm  153  against its biasing (not shown) to allow the retaining member  130  to slide past the locking arm  153 . When the locking protrusion  152  slides past the locking arm  153 , the locking arm  153  is biased back into a locked position of the locking arm  153  to stop the retaining member  130  from ejecting out of the chamber  132 . FIG. 7B shows the retaining member  130  thrusted against the locking arm  153  by a force in the spring  136 . Also in this position, a back end of the pen  158  is substantially flush with the outer peripheral sidewall (not shown) of the lower casing  102 .  
         [0030]    The pen release operation is now described with the aid of FIGS. 7C, 8A and  8 B. FIGS. 8A and 8B show different positions of the pen when being ejected. Integrally molded with the locking arm  153  is a pen-release button  159 , preferably of ABS plastic. Two pivoting arms  160  (FIG. 2) extend axially outwards of the button  159 . These pivoting arms  160  are push fitted to rest on appropriate slots (not shown) molded into a top surface of the lower casing  102 . The release structure consisting of the locking arm  153  and the button  159  rotates about an axis X (FIGS. 6 and 7B). The bias (not shown) on the locking arm  153  pushes the release structure to the locked position so that the pen-release button  159  appears substantially planar with other buttons on the keyboard (not shown).  
         [0031]    To release the pen, the user pushes the button  159  to overcome the force exerted by the locking arm bias. This action causes the locking arm  153  to move away from the locking protrusion  152  of the retaining member  130 . In this pen-released position of the locking arm  153 , nothing stops the retaining member  130  from ejecting out of the receptacle  109 . The spring  136  thus pushes the retaining member  130  outwards. A rib  160  (FIG. 7C) depending from the first half  131  of the receptacle  109  stands in the path of the outwardly moving retaining arm  144  of the retaining member  130 . When the retaining arm  144  comes into contact with the rib  160 , tapered surfaces  162  and  164  on the rib  160  and the retaining arm  153  slide over each other to cause the hook member  142  to release the latch on the groove  116  of the pen  108 . This unlatched position of the pen and hook member  142  is best illustrated in FIG. 8A. The collision of the hook member  142  against the rib  160  also decelerates the retaining member  130  to cause it to come to a complete rest inside the receptacle  109 . The momentum in the outwardly moving unlatched pen  108  carries it further outwards. This outward movement of the pen  108  is restricted by two substantially resilient gripping arms  164  (FIG. 6) located on opposing sides of the retaining member  130 . The gripping arms  164  form effectively a constriction of the chamber  132 . The distance between the two arms D (FIG. 6) should be larger than the diameter of the narrow end  158  of the pen  108  and smaller than the diameter of a thicker portion  164  of the pen  108 . In the outward movement of the pen  108 , a portion of the tapered surface  166  will come into contact with the gripping arms  164 . The gripping arms  164  exert a gripping force to produce friction on the tapered surface  166 . This friction causes the pen  108  to affirmatively decelerate to a halt with a portion of the pen inside the receptacle  109  and an exposed portion of the pen outside the receptacle  109  as shown in FIG. 8B. The exposed portion allows a user to grip the pen  108  to draw it completely out of the receptacle  109 .  
         [0032]    In this embodiment, the hook member  142  is described as an integral part of the retaining member  130 . This should not be construed as a limitation. For example, the hook member may be a part depending from the first half  131  of the receptacle  109  which engages the groove  116  of the pen  108  when the retaining member  130  is locked in the receptacle  109 .  
         [0033]    Second Embodiment  
         [0034]    A second preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in a second receptacle  200  in FIGS. 9A and 9B. A means for restricting pen movement in this receptacle  200  clearly distinguishes it from the prior art receptacle  2  shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. A constriction  202  is added to a surface  204  of a chamber  206  to restrict movement of a pen  208  in the receptacle  200 . The constriction  202  may take the simple form of an annular ridge or bumps. However to increase usability, these constrictions may be made of a flexible material or spring-loaded bumps may be used.  
         [0035]    The pen  208 , according to one aspect of the invention, has an elongated body. The pen is thicker along a portion of the pen  209  which tapers off towards a pen tip  210  and a rear end  211 . A tapered surface  213  of the pen between this thicker portion  209  and the rear end  211  is used to modulate the deceleration of an ejecting pen. An annular groove  212  on the pen  208  allows the pen  208  to be securely locked inside the receptacle  200  by a locking mechanism  214 . The locking mechanism  214  comprises a pen-release button  216  integrally molded to a locking arm  218 . A hook member  220  on the locking arm  218  engages the groove  212  on the pen  208  to lock the pen  208  in the receptacle  200 .  
         [0036]    To insert the pen  208  into the receptacle  200 , a user inserts the pen  208 , pen tip  210  first, into the chamber  206  of the receptacle  200 . The user applies enough force initially to overcome the impeding force exerted by the constriction  202  on the pen  208 . As soon as the thicker portion  209  of the pen  208  clears the constriction  202 , there is no obstruction to the further insertion of the pen  208  until the pen  208  comes into contact with the hook member  220  of the locking mechanism  214 . The user again applies a force to push the pen  208  further into the chamber  206 . This action causes the pen  208  to push the locking arm  218  outward of the chamber  206  against a force exerted by a locking spring  228 . As the pen  208  comes into contact with a spring  222  inside the receptacle  200 , the user applies a stronger force to the pen  208  to push the pen  208  further into the receptacle  200 . As the rear end  211  of the pen  208  becomes flush with a mouth  226  of the receptacle  200 , the locking spring  228  pushes the locking arm  218  back into the chamber  206  to catch the groove  212  of the pen to lock the pen  208  in the receptacle  200 . The insertion of the pen  208  in the chamber  206  compresses the spring  222  to store energy in the spring  222 . This energy in the loaded spring  222  when released will cause the pen to be expelled.  
         [0037]    To release the pen, the user pushes the release button  216  to move the hook member  220  out of the pen groove  212 . The energy stored in the spring  222  forces the pen outwards relatively easily until a portion of the tapered surface  213  comes into contact with the constriction  202 . This contact of the tapered surface  213  with the constriction  202  produces friction which begins to restrict the outward movement of the pen  208 . The expulsion force of the spring  222  overcomes the initial frictional force applied on the tapered surface  213  by the constriction  202 . This allows the pen  208  to eject out of the receptacle for a further distance of the pen before the frictional force prevails. The pen  208  then loses momentum to decelerate to a resting position with part of the pen  208  partly held in the receptacle. To draw the pen completely out of the receptacle  200 , the user pulls an exposed portion of the pen with a force which overcomes the force exerted by the constriction  202  on the pen  208 . This pulling action forces the thick portion  213  of the pen  208  past the constriction  202  to allow the pen  208  to be drawn completely out of the receptacle  200 .  
         [0038]    The pen is of the same material as that used with the first embodiment. The receptacle is preferably of PBT.  
         [0039]    This receptacle  200  can also be used with a pen which is substantially cylindrical in shape where there is no tapered surface along the rear end. In such a case, the deceleration of the pen is achieved by a substantially constant frictional force exerted on a pen surface by the constriction. Nevertheless, the pen will not come to a jarring stop but will affirmatively decelerate to a rest.