Abstract:
A housing assembly for a radiotelephone comprising, a first housing having an aperture; a second housing; attachment means forming part of a moulding for fixing to the first housing having an engaging element for inserting through the aperture of the first housing for attaching the first and second housings.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a housing assembly for a radiotelephone. 
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     A radiotelephone, typically, consists of at least two housings, a front and rear housing, for containing the electronic components necessary for the radiotelephone to operate. These housings are normally fixed together by means of screws which are inserted through apertures in the rear housing. These screws are screwed into sockets which are fixedly connected to the inside of the front housing. This approach ensures that the attaching means is not visible to the user during operation. This avoids the user having to see screw heads or other attachment means, such as rivets, which can distract from the distinctive appearance of the radiotelephone. 
     However, with the dramatic reduction in the size of recent generation radiotelephone it is becoming increasing more difficult to incorporate the required screw sockets to the inside of the front housing, hence increasing the complexity of the manufacturing process. Further, with the continuing need for manufactures to distinguish their products from those of their competitor, different materials for the radiotelephone housing are being considered. Not all these material type lend themselves to having fixing means incorporated into the housing design. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with an aspect of the present invention there is provided a housing assembly for a radiotelephone comprising a first housing having an aperture; a second housing; attachment means forming part of a moulding for fixing to the first housing having an engaging element for inserting through the aperture of the first housing for attaching the first and second housings. 
     Preferably the first housing is a front housing which is presented to a user during operation and wherein the second housing is a rear housing. 
     Preferably the engaging element is a screw boss. 
     Preferably the engaging element is a mechanical joint suitable for a push fit connection. 
     Where preferably the moulding is a graphics moulding. 
     Where preferably the moulding is a window moulding. 
     The window and graphics moulding can be used to conceal the functional aspects of the engaging element ensuring that no visible external fixings are seen by the user during operation of the radiotelephone. 
     Preferably the front housing is manufactured from pressed metal. 
     This invention is particularly suited for housings manufactured out of metal. Typically metal housings are formed from flat sheets where it is difficult to incorporate functionality for attaching the radiotelephone housings. Using an aperture on the front face through which attaching means are inserted simplifies the manufacture of the front housing and is particularly suited for attaching press metal housings. 
     Press metal housings can be made thinner than housings made from conventional housing materials resulting in a overall reduction in size and weight of the radiotelephone. 
     The use of a metal housing can have the advantage of increased electromagnetic shielding and/or electrostatic discharge protection. The additional protection provided by the metal housing can result in a reduced component count. 
     0.8mm thick Aluminum is the preferred metal for use in the manufacture of radiotelephone housings. 
     The use of metal housings will have an effect on the radiation patterns of the antenna which can enhance the emission characteristics of the radiotelephone. 
     Attaching housings according to the present invention allows the manufacture of the radio telephone to be completed in a single axis, simplifying the manufacturing process. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Examples of apparatus in accordance with the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: 
     FIG. 1 shows an exploded view of a radiotelephone of an embodiment of the invention. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1 shows a portable phone having a metal front housing  1 , a PCB assembly  2 , a rear housing  3 , a plurality of screws  4 , a graphics moulding  5  with integral screw bosses  6 , and a window moulding  8  with integral screw bosses  9 . 
     In the preferred embodiment the front housing  1  is manufactured from press metal having a thickness of  0 . 8 mm, however any suitable material can be used. The front housing  1  has an aperture  10  for the telephone&#39;s display (not shown), a plurality of through-openings  11  through which components inside the front and rear housings  1 ,  3  partially project (not shown), apertures  12  through which screw bosses  6  are inserted, and apertures  13  through which screw bosses  9  are inserted. 
     The PCB assembly  2  has a plurality of apertures  14 . 
     The rear housing  3  has a plurality of apertures  16 . 
     The radiotelephone is assembled in a single axis where the rear housing  3  and the front housing  1  are connected to one another using screws  4 . Where screw  4  are projected upward through apertures  16 . The PCB assembly  2  is designed to be integral with the upper surface of the rear housing  3 . When the PCB is correctly mounted on the rear housing the apertures  14  are coaxial with apertures  16  through which the screws  4  project. The PCB assembly  2  may, however, be attached to the housings  1 ,  3  by other suitable means which would be known to the person skilled in the art. 
     The screw bosses  6 ,  9  are inserted into the apertures  12  and  13  respectively. 
     To secure the rear housing  3  and front housing  1  the screws  4  are screwed into screw bosses  6 , which are fixedly connected to the graphics moulding  5 , and screw bosses  9 , which are fixedly connected to the window moulding  8 . In this embodiment the graphics moulding  5  and window moulding  8  conceal the functional aspects of the mouldings, in this embodiment the screw bosses, from the user. 
     The screw bosses can be replaced with other forms of engaging elements. For example, a mechanical joint suitable for a push fit connection with a corresponding element on the other housing. This corresponding element may either be moulded to the other housing or insertion through an aperture in the other housing. 
     This invention is equally applicable for fixing a rear metal housing to a front housing using a moulding with screw bosses for inserting through an aperture in the rear housing. 
     This invention can be used for fixing two metal housings together using two mouldings, one for each housing. 
     The present invention enables the front housing  1  and rear housing  3  to be secured together without having the complexity of designing into the front housing fixing means. This simplifies the housing manufacturing process and allows a greater variety of materials and designs to be used. 
     The present invention may include any novel feature or combination of features disclosed herein either explicitly or implicitly or any generalisation thereof irrespective of whether or not it relates to the present claimed invention or mitigates any or all of the problems addressed. In view of the foregoing description it will be evident to a person skilled in the art that various modifications may be made within the scope of the invention. For example, it will be appreciated that a bolt may be used in place of a screw.