Patent Publication Number: US-10785357-B2

Title: Swivel case for phone

Description:
RELATED APPLICATION DATA 
     This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/953,352 filed Apr. 13, 2018, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,396,841, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/484,951 filed on Apr. 13, 2017, and which are hereby incorporated by reference. 
    
    
     A phone case facilitates the comfortable and secure holding of a phone by a user while allowing the phone to be selectively swiveled, e.g. through about 90° or 180°, relative to the user&#39;s hand. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Some phones, particularly cell phones, are sold with smooth outer cases which are susceptible to slipping out of a user&#39;s hand. It is common for purchasers of modern cell phones to purchase phone cases to protect their phone. In use, it is sometimes desirable for a user to rotate the phone relative to the user&#39;s hand, for example, when the user desires to view or take a photo or video, or play a game. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The disclosed embodiments provide a phone case designed to secure a phone to a user&#39;s hand while permitting the user to readily rotate the phone relative to his hand without requiring the user to release the phone from his hand. The illustrated devices comprise a case body with walls or clips for securing a phone to the case body. The case body also comprises at least one, and preferably a plurality of slots. At least a portion of each slot is arcuate. A strap, preferably an elastic strap, extends from a strap connector on the inside of the case body proximate the phone (the “phone side”), outwardly through one of the slots, across a portion of the outside of the case body (the “user side”), inwardly through another slot, and to the same or another strap connector on the inside of the case body. In this manner the strap is secured to the inside of the case body and extends across a portion of the outside of the case body. The size of the strap and the spacing of the slots are designed to permit a user to slide one or more fingers between the strap and the outside of the case body, and to permit selective additional stretching when desired. During rotation of the phone (and case body) relative to a user&#39;s hand, the strap slides within the slots in the case body. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a top, perspective view of a phone case of one embodiment. 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom, perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  is a top view of the phone case of  FIG. 1  showing the strap in a lateral orientation. 
         FIG. 4  is a top view of the phone case of  FIG. 1  showing the strap in a longitudinal orientation. 
         FIG. 5  is a partially exploded, top perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  is a bottom perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  is a bottom perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1  with a hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 8  is a bottom perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1  with a hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 9  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 1  with a hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 10  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 1  with a hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 11  is a top perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 12  is a bottom, side perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 13  is a side perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 14  is a bottom, end perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 15  is a side view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 16  is a top view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 17  is a bottom view of the case body shown in  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 18  is a bottom view of a case body of a second embodiment. 
         FIG. 19  is a top view of the case body shown in  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 20  is a side view of the case body shown in  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 21  is a bottom, end perspective view of the case body shown in  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 22  is a top view of the phone case of  FIG. 18  showing the strap in a longitudinal orientation. 
         FIG. 23  is a top view of the phone case of  FIG. 18  showing the strap in a lateral orientation. 
         FIG. 24  is a bottom view of the phone case of  FIG. 18  showing the strap in a lateral orientation. 
         FIG. 25  is a bottom, end perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 18 . 
         FIG. 26  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 18  with a hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 27  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 18  with a hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 28  is a bottom perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 18  with a hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 29  is a bottom perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 18  with a hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 30  is a bottom perspective view of a phone case of a third embodiment. 
         FIG. 31  is a top view of a phone case of a fourth embodiment showing the strap in a longitudinal orientation. 
         FIG. 32  is a top view of the phone case of  FIG. 31  showing the strap in a lateral orientation. 
         FIG. 33  is a bottom view of the phone case of  FIG. 31  showing the strap in a lateral orientation. 
         FIG. 34  is a bottom, end perspective view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 31 . 
         FIG. 35  is a side view of the case body shown in  FIG. 31 .  FIG. 35A  is a close-up, side view of the raised, finger portion of the top surface of the case body shown in  FIG. 31 . 
         FIG. 36  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 31  with a left hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 37  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 31  with a right hand shown extending laterally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 38  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 31  with a left hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 39  is a top view of the phone case shown in  FIG. 31  with a right hand shown extending longitudinally relative to the case body. 
         FIG. 40  is a bottom, perspective view of the phone case of a fifth embodiment. 
         FIG. 41  is a top view of a sixth embodiment. 
         FIG. 42  is a top view of a seventh embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       FIGS. 1-17  illustrate a phone case of a first embodiment. The illustrated phone case comprises a case body  10  and a strap  70 . The case body  10  comprises an inner side  15  adapted to selectively and securely attach to a phone (not shown) and an outer side  20  which generally faces the fingers on the hand holding the phone case while talking on the phone. 
     The inner side  15  comprises an attachment button  80  which extends outwardly from the surface of inner side  15 . As best shown in  FIGS. 12 and 14 , the illustrated attachment button  80  comprises a stein and a flange for securely and releasably attaching a strap to the inner side by passing the button  80  through holes in the strap. The surface of the outer side  20  of case body  10  can be substantially flat, but is preferably formed with a shallow cone shape proximate the portion where the strap is attached. 
     The case bodies are provided with walls or clips for releasably securing a phone to the case body. The illustrated case bodies are provided with resilient side walls which allow a phone to be selectively snap fit into the case body. Case body  10  comprises sidewalls  60 ,  65  which extend the length of the case body and extend inwardly to wrap partially around the ends of a phone. Other configurations can be used. The case body is also preferably formed with suitable access holes, such as camera hole  12  and switch hole  13 , to allow a user access to all buttons and switches on the phone and so not to interfere with other functional components such as cameras and microphones on the phone. 
     The case body also comprises at least one, and preferably a plurality of slots which receive portions of at least one strap while permitting the strap to slide relative to the case body when desired. At least a portion of each slot is arcuate. In this illustrated embodiment, a strap  70 , preferably an elastic strap, extends from a strap connector  80  on the inside  15  of the case body  10  proximate the phone (the “phone side”), outwardly through one of the slots  40 , across a portion of the outside  20  of the case body  10  (the “user side”), inwardly through another slot  30 , and to the same or another strap connector  80  on the inside of the case body. In this manner the strap  70  is secured to the inside of the case body and extends across a portion of the outside of the case body. 
     The length, and preferably the elasticity, of the strap  70  and the spacing of the slots  30 ,  40  are designed to permit a user to slide one or more fingers between the strap  70  and the portion of the outside  20  of the case body  10  between slots  30  and  40 , and to allow further selective stretching of the strap by the user. During rotation of the phone case (and phone) relative to a user&#39;s hand, the strap  70  slides circumferentially within the slots  30 ,  40  in the case body  10 . 
     The stretchable nature of preferred straps provides an advantage during use. It has been found that if the strap is properly sized and suitably elastic, when a user has his fingers in a relaxed configuration, the strap exerts a force directed toward the center of an imaginary circle on which the arcuate slots lie. This inwardly directed force is sufficient to prevent the phone case (and phone) from rotating relative to the user&#39;s hand when the user is talking. However, when the user wishes to rotate the phone case (and phone) relative to his hand, the frictional force exerted by the strap on the slots can easily be reduced by the user by simply spreading the fingers which are under the strap. This facilitates easy rotation of the case body relative to the strap. The fingers can be spread beyond the perimeter of the slots. It has also been found that if the fingers are spread to a degree which gets close to the perimeter of the slots, the degree to which the strap contacts the surface of the phone body defining the inner portion of the slot is reduced and this results in less frictional force between the strap and the case body thereby facilitating easy circumferential movement of the strap relative to the case body, i.e. the rotation of the phone case (and phone) relative to the user&#39;s hand. 
     The illustrated strap  70  comprises at least two holes (not shown) proximate each end, and preferably a greater number of holes spaced along the longitudinal axis of the strap to allow adjustment to the amount of the strap in use for different size fingers and other user preferences. 
     The strap  70  slides in the two arcuate slots  30 ,  40  in the case body  10 . While various size and shape slots can be utilized, the illustrated arcuate shape of slots  30 ,  40  allows the strap to swivel more than 90 degrees relative to case body  10 , thereby allowing the phone user to hold his phone upright and then turn his phone on its side while still wearing the strap, i.e. the illustrated phone case rotates more than 90 degrees relative to the user&#39;s fingers. The strap is also able to easily rotate around the button on the inner side of the case body. 
     As best shown in  FIGS. 5, 11, 13 and 15 , the portion of the outer surface of case body  10  between slots  30 ,  40  is preferably raised relative to the rest of the outer side of case body  10 . In this illustrated embodiment, the raised portion  90  is generally in the form of a shallow cone. This conical shape between the arcuate slots allows a user&#39;s fingers to rest comfortably while the apex of the cone acts as a pivot point for the phone rotation. The raised portion can alternatively be frustoconical or can have a rounded apex.  FIG. 35A  illustrates a raised portion  290  with slightly curved sides. Other shapes of raised surfaces can also be utilized. The portion of the outer surface  20  of case body  10  between slots  30 ,  40  is not necessarily raised and can be generally in the same plane as other portions of the outer surface  20  of case body  10 . 
     The case body  10  in  FIGS. 1-17  is provided with two connection flanges  50 ,  55  which connect the generally circular structure inside the imaginary circumference defined by slots  30 ,  40  with the rest of the case body. The connection flanges  50 ,  55  provide support and some rigidity to the portion of the case body  10  between the slots  30 ,  40 , while also serving as stops to the circumferential movement of the portions of strap  70  moving within the slots  30 ,  40 . The stopping action of the connection flanges  50 ,  55  helps to prevent the strap  70  from getting twisted or tangled on itself during use. 
       FIGS. 18-29  illustrate a second embodiment where similar elements are labelled with a number which is  100  greater than the corresponding element shown in  FIGS. 1-17 . The embodiment shown in  FIGS. 18-29  is generally similar to the earlier embodiment with the exception of the shape of the slots  130 ,  140  which each have a central arcuate portion and two generally linear, terminal portions. 
       FIG. 30  is a bottom perspective view of a phone case of a third embodiment comprising only a single slot  230 . This illustrated embodiment comprises a single connection flange  250  which connects the portions of the case body otherwise separated by slot  230  and also serves as a stop to strap  270  as strap  270  is moved circumferentially within slot  230 . A single slot allows a greater range of angular rotation of strap  270  relative to the case body but a single connection flange  250  does not provide as much support or rigidity as two connection flanges. 
       FIGS. 31-39  illustrate a fourth embodiment comprising two, generally overlapping and generally U-shaped slots  330  and  340 . In this embodiment, slot  330  comprises a curved lower end portion and two, generally linear portions which extend upwardly in the case body. Slot  340  comprises a downwardly curving upper portion which is positioned spaced and opposite the curved lower portion of slot  330 . Slot  340  also has two, generally linear portions which extend downwardly in the case body. Since slot  340  is larger than slot  330 , the downwardly extending generally linear portion of slot  340  are positioned outwardly of, i.e. closer to the lateral sides of the case body than, the generally, linear portions of slot  330 . For purposes of this embodiment, the terms up and down are used for purposes of reference and correspond to the orientation of the case body as the case body is oriented in  FIG. 31 . In this embodiment, strap  370  is provided with slits and is secured to an attachment anchor  380  in a manner similar to that described above with respect to the first embodiment. The shape and positioning of slots  330  and  340  permit the case body to be rotated through at least 135°, and preferably 180°, without changing the hand which is holding the phone.  FIGS. 36-39  also illustrate that the phone can be maintained in the same orientation with either the right or the left hand of the user and rotated through at least 180°. For example, from  FIG. 38  it will be appreciated that the case body  310  can be rotated clockwise relative to the strap  370 . During this rotation, the strap  370  slides circumferentially in each of slots  330  and  340  so that the strap  370  ends up positioned in the opposite, generally linear portions of the respective slots. 
       FIG. 40  illustrates a fifth embodiment comprising a strap  470  in the form of a continuous loop. The illustrated strap  470  is slightly overlapping and secured to itself with an adhesive and/or stitching (not shown). This embodiment does not comprise an attachment button or attachment anchor for strap  470  as does the other illustrated embodiments. In other respects, the embodiment shown in  FIG. 40  is similar to the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-17 . 
       FIG. 41  shows an alternate embodiment wherein two slots are continuously arcuate. 
       FIG. 42  shows a still further embodiment comprising two slots wherein each of the slots comprises five linear segments linked to form a continuous, generally U-shaped slot. 
     The various embodiments are useful to people who like to take selfies since when a user&#39;s arm is extended to take a photo, the strap holds the phone in place and the user is less likely to drop their phone because they are not balancing the phone on their fingers. Additionally, since many phone games require players to have their phone horizontal during play it is beneficial to have the strap because a player can relax his fingers which are inserted between the strap and the case body. This advantageously reduces fatigue on the player&#39;s hand. Additionally, when the strap is properly sized and tensioned, the user will not lose control of or drop his phone even when his hand (to which the phone case is connected via the strap) is relaxed.