Patent Publication Number: US-2007111086-A1

Title: Battery cover latching assembly for portable electronic device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
      This application is related to another patent application entitled “BATTERY COVER LATCHING ASSEMBLY FOR PORTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE”, filed Feb. 03, 2006 with application Ser. No. 11/347,497, and with the same assignee as the instant application. This disclosure of the above identified application is incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
      The present invention generally relates to battery cover latching assemblies and, more particularly, to a battery cover latching assembly for use in a portable electronic device.  
     DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART  
      Batteries are widely used in portable electronic devices, such as personal digital assistants (PDAs), mobile phones, and the like. Conventional batteries are attachably received in housings of the electronic device, and battery covers are designed to connect with the housings to package the batteries. The batteries have to be replaced by opening the battery covers when the batteries are, e.g., damaged, dead, and/or otherwise in need of recharging or replacement.  
      A clasping structure or latching structure is used to engage a conventional battery cover with a housing of a portable electronic device. For example, the Alcatel OT310 mobile phone has a latching assembly for a battery cover. The latching assembly includes two hooks at one end of the battery cover and a locking pin protruding from the other end of the battery cover. Two grooves are defined in one end portion of a backside of a housing of the mobile phone, and a locking hole is defined in the other end portion of the backside of the housing. In assembly, the hooks are firstly inserted into the grooves in the backside of the housing. Then, the battery cover is pressed downwards onto the housing until the locking pin on the battery cover is inserted into the locking hole in the backside of the housing. The battery cover is thus assembled to the housing of the mobile phone. The latching assembly is simple in structure, and the engagement between the battery cover and the housing of the mobile phone is firm too. However, during disassembly, great effort is needed to remove the battery cover, thereby requiring a relatively substantial force to be exerted thereon. Therefore, the battery cover can be susceptible to damage. As a result, it can be difficult for a user to replace a battery in the conventional housing of the mobile phone.  
      Therefore, a new battery cover latching assembly is desired in order to overcome the above-described shortcomings.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      In one embodiment thereof, a portable electronic device has a battery cover, a battery cover latching assembly, and a housing. The battery cover and the housing are connected via the battery cover latching assembly. The battery cover has a receiving hole. The housing has a positioning member. The battery cover latching assembly includes a latching member and a resilient member. The latching member is provided with a locking portion. The resilient member has a first end and a second end. The first end is mounted with the latching member. The second end is mounted with the battery cover. The latching member is movably installed in the receiving hole of the battery cover. The locking portion is engaged with the positioning member thereby mounting the battery cover to the housing. When the latching member is forced to move relative to the battery cover, the resilient member is twisted thereby creating a force to enable the latching member to move in a substantially opposing direction.  
      Other advantages and novel features of the embodiments will become more apparent from the following detailed description thereof, when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
      Many aspects of the battery cover latching assembly can be better understood with reference to the following drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present battery cover latching assembly and its potential applications. Moreover, in the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.  
       FIG. 1  is an exploded, isometric view of a portable electronic device with a battery cover and a housing connected via a battery cover latching assembly, in accordance with a preferred embodiment;  
       FIG. 2  is an enlarged, isometric view of the battery cover shown in  FIG. 1 , and viewed from another aspect;  
       FIG. 3  is an enlarged, exploded view of the battery cover latching assembly shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 4  is an enlarged, assembled view of the battery cover latching assembly shown in  FIG. 3 , and viewed from another aspect;  
       FIG. 5  is an enlarged, assembled view of the battery cover latching assembly and the battery cover shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 6  is an enlarged, assembled view of the portable electronic device shown in  FIG. 1 ;  
       FIG. 7  is a cut-away view of the portable electronic device along line VII-VII shown in  FIG. 6 ;  
       FIG. 8  is an enlarged, isometric view of a portion in round VIII shown in  FIG. 7 , according to a first position; and  
       FIG. 9  is an enlarged, isometric view of a portion in round VIII shown in  FIG. 7 , according to a second position. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS  
      The present battery cover latching assembly is suitable for portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, PDAs, and the like.  
      Referring now to the drawings in detail,  FIG. 1  shows a battery cover latching assembly  200  for use in a mobile phone  80 . The mobile phone  80  is taken here as an exemplary application, for the purposes of describing details of the battery cover latching assembly  200  of a preferred embodiment of the present assembly. The mobile phone  80  includes a housing  300  and a battery cover  100 , connected via the battery cover latching assembly  200 . The battery cover latching assembly  200  includes a latching member  201  and a resilient member  202 . The battery cover  100  defines a receiving hole  114  therein. The battery cover latching assembly  200  is mounted in the receiving hole  114  of the battery cover  100  and releasably locks the battery cover  100 , thereby interconnecting the housing  300  and the battery cover  100 .  
      Also referring to  FIG. 2 , the battery cover  100  includes a rectangular body  110 , a top end wall  121 , a bottom end wall  122 , and two sidewalls  120 . The top end wall  121  is opposite to the bottom end wall  122 . The top end wall  121 , the bottom end wall  122 , and the sidewalls  120  all extend from a periphery of the body and towards a same direction. The body  110  has an inner surface  111 . Each sidewall  120  is provided with a pair of side hooks  112 . The top end of each hook  112  is bent towards the opposite sidewall  120 . The top end wall  121  defines the receiving hole  114  in a central portion. Two protrusions  115  extend from the top end wall  121 , towards the inner surface  111 , and adjacent to the receiving hole  114 . Each protrusion  115  defines a mounting hole  116  therethrough. The two mounting holes  116  are coaxially arranged. A positioning flake  117  extends from a distal end of one protrusion  115  towards the other protrusion  115 . The positioning flake  117  defines a positioning hole (not shown) therein. Two end hooks  113  extend from the inner surface  111  each respectively adjacent to one of the two sidewalls  120  and both adjacent to the bottom end wall  122 . A top end of each end hook  113  is bent towards the bottom end wall  122 .  
      Further referring to  FIG. 1 , the housing  300  has a substantially rectangular body, two opposing sidewalls  310 , a top end portion  312 , and a bottom end portion  313 . The sidewalls  310 , the top end portion  312 , and the bottom end portion  313  all extend from a periphery of the body towards a same direction thereby forming a battery cavity  340  for receiving a battery (not shown). The bottom end portion  313  defines a cutout  314  in a central end portion. A positioning protrusion  316  extends from a top surface of the bottom end portion  313  and towards the cutout  314 . Each sidewall  310  has two frames  342  mounted thereon. Each frame  342  is configured for engaging with one corresponding side hook  112  of the battery cover  100 . Two end hook holes  344  are respectively defined in two corners of the top end portion  312 . Each end hook  113  of the battery cover  100  is configured for being received in one corresponding end hook hole  344 .  
      Also referring to  FIGS. 3-5 , the battery cover latching assembly  200  is configured to be received in the receiving hole  114  of the battery cover  100 . The battery cover latching assembly  200  includes a latching member  201  and a resilient member  202 .  
      The latching member  201  includes a body  2010 , an operation portion  2013 , a locking portion  2019 , a first mounting foot  2014 , and a second mounting foot  2015 . The body  2010  is a deformed polygonal pole. The operation portion  2013  extends from one side of the body  2010 . The locking portion  2019  extends from another side of the body  2010 . The locking portion  2019  is configured for engaging with the positioning protrusion  316  of the housing  300 . The mounting foot  2014  and the second mounting foot  2015  respectively extend from two opposite ends of the body  2010 . A first mounting pole  2016  extends from a distal end of the first mounting foot  2014 , in a same direction as the body extends, and away from the body  2010 . The second mounting foot  2015  defines a hole  2017  in one side thereby forming an inner sidewall  2011 . A second mounting pole  2018  extends from the inner sidewall  2011  and away from the body  2010 . The first mounting pole  2016  and the second mounting pole  2018  are coaxially arranged. The first mounting pole  2016  and the second mounting pole  2018  are configured to be received in the mounting holes  115  of the battery cover  100 . The inner sidewall  2011  defines a positioning hole (not shown) therein.  
      The resilient member  202  is substantially cylindrical in shape, and has a first end  2021  and a second end  2022 . The first end  2021  extends in an axial direction and is configured for being received in the positioning hole of the latching member  201 . The second end  2022  extends in a radial direction and is configured for being received in the positioning hole of the battery cover  100 .  
      In assembly, the resilient member  202  surrounds the second mounting pole  2018  of the latching member  201  and the first end  2021  of the resilient member  202  is received in the positioning hole of the latching member  201 . The mounting poles  2016 ,  2018  are respectively pushed into the mounting holes  115  of the battery cover  100 . The mounting poles  2016 ,  2018  are rotatable in the mounting holes  115 . The second end  2022  of the resilient member  202  is received in the positioning hole of the positioning flake  117  of the battery cover  100 . The body  2010  and the mounting feet  2014 ,  2015  are received in the receiving hole  114  of the battery cover  100 . The locking portion  2019  is located away from the inner surface  111  and towards the bottom end wall  122 . The operation portion  2013  is exposed out of the receiving hole  114 . Thus, the battery cover latching assembly  200  is assembled in the battery cover  100  and is rotatable about an axis of the mounting poles  2016 ,  2018 , as shown in  FIG. 5 .  
      When the battery cover  100  is assembled to the housing  300 , the end hooks  113  of the battery cover  100  are received in the end hook holes  344  of the housing  300 . The side hooks  112  of the battery cover  100  are engaged with the frames  342  of the housing  300 . The opposite end of the battery cover  100  is pressed down onto the housing  300 . When the locking portion  2019  touches the positioning portion  316 , the battery cover  100  is held down and the locking portion  2019  and then the latching member  201  are rotated about the axis of the mounting poles  2016 ,  2018 . In this process the resilient member  202  is twisted. When the locking portion  2019  travels over the positioning portion  316 , the latching member  201  moves in a substantially opposing direction due to the force of the resilient member  202 . Now the locking portion  2019  and the positioning portion  316  are located in a first position and the locking portion  2019  resists the positioning portion  316 . Thus, the battery cover  100  is assembled with the housing  300 , as represented in  FIGS. 6-8 .  
      When the battery cover  100  is to be detached from the housing  300 , the operation portion  2013  of the latching member  201  is manually moved towards the battery cover  100 . The locking portion  2019  of the latching member  201  correspondingly moves out of engagement with the positioning portion  316 . Now the locking portion  2019  and the positioning portion  316  are located in a second position, as represented in  FIG. 9 . In this process the resilient member  202  is twisted. The battery cover  100  is pulled away from the housing  300  manually. By releasing the operation portion  2013 , the latching member  201  moves in an opposing direction due to the force of the resilient member  202 .  
      It is to be understood, however, that even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present embodiments have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structures and functions of the embodiments, the disclosure is illustrative only, and changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.