Patent Publication Number: US-2016241067-A1

Title: Cellphone device charging cord with integral light source

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION 
     This invention relates to the field of electricity: battery or capacitor charging or discharging. Specifically, this invention relates to the charging of handheld devices. 
     BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
     Often, engineers, lawyers, patent examiners, and others work late into the night. When they come home, they face a dilemma: how to plug in their handheld device charger-cord without turning on the bedroom light and waking their partner. 
     The ambient light from most modern handheld devices like Android® or i-Phone® mobile phones are either liquid crystal displays (“LCD”), organic light emitting diode (“OLED”), or light emitting diode (“LED”). With all of the currently available technologies, the screen view is 180° or less. Since the connector is at more than 180° from the screen, this means that the luminosity from the screen is of little help in lighting the charging connector of the handheld device, even in a dark room. Furthermore, no handheld devices currently exist with a lighted charging connector, or other facility to help connect the handheld device to the charging cord in low ambient light. 
     What consumers need is a facility that lights the connector of the handheld device in a darkened room. One way to do this would be with a charging cord that has a light at the tip of the connector that plugs into the handheld device. Ideally, the light should be an LED, so that very little light escapes to brighten the room, while the light, nonetheless, adequately illuminates the charging terminal of the handheld device. However, any type of light source in the tip of the connector plug would be an improvement over the current prior art. The light should only be on when the end of the charging cord is held, with the intention of inserting it into the handheld device charging terminal. The light should be of sufficient luminosity to illuminate the charging terminal of the handheld device in a dark room. 
     An alternative solution would be to mount an LED near the charging connector of a handheld device; or use an internal LED with a light pipe to illuminate the connector of the handheld device. 
     A survey of the current prior art shows several attempts to marry a light and a charging cord, but none of them solve the problem of connecting a charging cord to a handheld device in a dark room. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,639,382 by named inventor Fan, granted on Oct. 28, 2003, is entitled, “Mobile phone charger with automatic light” (“Fan  382 ”). Fan 382 discloses a mobile phone charger that has an automatic light built into a housing which also encompasses the wall plug. The lamp is activated in low light through the use of a photo-resistor. All the claims in this patent envision the light being attached to the wall plug casing. Clearly, this patent places the light at the “wrong” end. The end of the power charging cord for a handheld device that needs light in the dark is the end that plugs into the handheld device charging terminal. 
     Another attempt at marrying a charging cord to a light is U.S. Pat. No. 6,827,462 by named inventors Wangenheim, et. al., granted on Dec. 7, 2004, and entitled, “Charger with night light for portable electrical devices” (“Wangenheim 462”). Wangenheim 462 discloses an electronic device charger with a night light built into a housing connected to the charger. In one embodiment, the light is an electroluminescent cell in an integral housing. In another embodiment, the light is any lamp contained in a housing with one end connected to a traditional electric plug and the other end being an adaptor for an electronic device. Wangenheim 462 shows the invention as an integral housing, mid-wire on the cord between the wall plug and the adaptor. The specification does not identify plugging the charging cord into the cellphone in the dark as the problem that the invention attempts to overcome, and, again, the light is not in the appropriate place to illuminate the charging terminal of the handheld device. 
     Another variation on the theme of marrying a light to a charging cord for a handheld device is U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/840,339, with publication number 2005/0093511 A1, filed on May 6, 2004 by named inventor Wu, and entitled, “Charger capable of providing illumination light” (“Wu 339”). Wu 339 discloses a charger which has a light built into a housing that also contains a connector to connect a portable electronic device such as a cellphone. The housing has a switch, printed circuit board, light, and connector for the portable electronic device. This application has multiple embodiments, including one in which a battery is in the housing to allow charging when no other power sources are available, and one in which the cellphone can be used as the power source to power the light. The light in this application is envisioned as being akin to a flashlight. The application does not address or suggest that the light is intended to help the user find the mobile phone charging terminal in the dark. Wu 339 discloses a relatively large housing on the handheld-device-end of the charging cord. The solution is clumsy, needlessly multi-faceted, and impractical for many consumers, due to the direction of the light and the size of the housing. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention improves upon conventional handheld device charging cords by adding an integral LED or other light source built into the end of the charging cord that inserts in the handheld device&#39;s charging terminal. The LED is partially enclosed by a sheath fabricated from plastic, thermoplastic elastomer, rubber, elastomer, or other flexible material. The light is offset from the end of the connector, so that the end of the connector can still fit in the charging terminal, even when the handheld device is contained in a cellphone case. 
     The LED or other light source is powered by the same power source that charges the handheld device, and is electrically in parallel with the charging port. The LED or other light source use the same power-pin and ground pin in the handheld device charging cord that delivers power to the handheld device&#39;s battery. The LED or other light source is in series with an appropriately sized and power-rated resistor, so that the LED or other light source is properly powered, without being over-powered. The LED is in series with a micro-button switch or other push-button-type switch. The micro-button switch or other push-button-type switch can either sit underneath the sheathing, on top of the LED or other light source; or it can protrude through a cut-out in the sheathing. 
     In this way, when the user grabs the charging cord by the end containing the charging connector for the handheld device, the user can easily depress the micro-switch or other push-button-type switch to turn-on the LED or other light source. The user can tactily find the switch in a darkened room, turn on the light, and illuminate the charging terminal of the handheld device, without disturbing anyone else sleeping in the same room. 
     The invention is broadly applicable to any type of mobile charging cord, including, but not limited to, USB, mini-USB, micro-USB, Motorola, HTC, i-Phone 4, and i-Phone 5. The invention can be integrated into a USB charger, a wall-charger, or even a car-charger. 
     An alternative embodiment of the invention is to insert the LED or other light source into the handheld device, adjacent to the charging port. Most handheld devices have gyroscopes and light sensors. Using these two devices, it would be easy to supply a LED or light source, which only illuminates in low light settings when the handheld device is inverted, putting the charging terminal on top. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective drawing which shows the invention implemented with an i-Phone 4® USB charging cord, or equivalent. 
         FIG. 2  is a close-up perspective drawing of an i-Phone 4® charging connector or equivalent, with the invention integrated into the connector. 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective drawing which shows the invention implemented with a typical Motorola® USB charging cord, or equivalent. 
         FIG. 4  is a close-up perspective drawing of a typical Motorola® charging connector or equivalent, with the invention integrated into the connector. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective drawing which shows the invention implemented with an i-Phone 5® USB charging cord or equivalent. 
         FIG. 6  is a close-up perspective drawing of an i-Phone 5® charging connector or equivalent, with the invention integrated into the connector. 
         FIG. 7  is an exploded drawing of a typical Motorola® USB handheld device charging connector or equivalent, with the invention integrated into the connector. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective drawing which shows the invention implemented with a typical Motorola® wall-charging cord or equivalent. 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective drawing which shows a handheld device with a LED in close proximity to a charging port. 
         FIG. 10  is a perspective drawing which shows a handheld device with a light pipe about the periphery of the charging port. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     The following descriptions are not meant to limit the invention, but rather to illustrate its general principles of operation. Examples are illustrated with the accompanying drawings. A variety of drawings are offered, showing the present invention incorporated into a variety of charging cords. 
     A traditional handheld charging cord has two ends. One goes into the power source, the other end, called a connector, goes into the handheld device to be charged. The end that goes into the power source can be a traditional wall plug or wall charger, a car charger, or a USB port. 
       FIG. 1  shows a traditional i-Phone® 4 charging cord, comprised of a USB port  3 , a wire encapsulated in a flexible insulating sheath  1 , a connector for connecting to the charging port of the iPhone® 4  9 . The connector for connecting to the charging port  9  is molded into a plastic block  10 . The plastic block  10  is held in place by a sheath  8 . An LED  7 , mounted to the plastic block  10 , is partially enclosed in the sheath  8 . A micro-button switch  6  sits atop the LED  7  and protrudes through the sheath  8 . To create structural stability, the sheath  8  has a piece  5  that extends down the wire  1  slightly. The LED  7  draws power from the USB ports power pin, is in parallel connection with the charging power delivered to the handheld device; and is in series with a resistor (not shown) that regulates current through the LED. 
       FIG. 2  shows a close-up of the end of the i-Phone® 4 charging cord that connects to the handheld device. All of the elements can be seen in greater detail: the connector for connecting to the charging port  9 , the plastic block  10 , the LED  7 , the micro-button switch  6 , the sheath  8  and the sheath extension  5 . 
       FIG. 3  shows a typical Motorola® USB charging cord, comprised of a USB port  23 , a wire encapsulated in a flexible insulating sheath  21 , a connector for connecting to the charging port of the Motorola® handheld device  19 . The connector for connecting to the charging port  19  is molded into a plastic block  20 . The plastic block  20  is covered by a sheath  18 . An LED  17 , mounted to the plastic block  20 , is partially enclosed in the sheath  18 . A micro-button switch  16  sits atop the LED  17  and protrudes through the sheath  18 . To create structural stability, the sheath  18  has a piece  15  that extends down the wire  21  slightly. The LED  17  draws power from the USB ports  23  power pin, is in parallel connection with the charging power delivered to the handheld device; and is in series with a resistor (not shown) that regulates current through the LED  17 . 
       FIG. 4  shows a close-up of the end of the Motorola® charging cord that connects to the handheld device. All of the elements can be seen in greater detail: the connector for connecting to the charging port  19 , the plastic block  20 , the LED  17 , the micro-button switch  16 , the sheath  18  and the sheath extension  15 . 
       FIG. 5  shows an i-Phone® 5 charging cord, comprised of a USB port  33 ,  34 , a wire encapsulated in a flexible insulating sheath  31 , a connector for connecting to the charging port of the i-Phone® 5  39 . The connector for connecting to the charging port  39  is molded into a plastic block  40 . The plastic block  40  is covered by a sheath  38 . To create structural stability, the sheath  38  has an extension piece  35  that extends down the wire  31  slightly. 
       FIG. 6  shows a close-up of the end of the i-Phone® 5 charging cord that connects to the handheld device. This end of the charging cord is comprised of the connector for connecting to the charging port  39 , the plastic block  40 , the LED  37 , the micro-button switch  36 , the sheath  38  and the sheath extension  35 . Also visible in the close-up is the plastic block  34  of the USB connector. 
       FIG. 7  shows an exploded view of the typical Motorola® connector, which is representative for generic handheld device connectors. This connector, which attaches to the charging port of the handheld device, is comprised of the connector for connecting to the charging port  19 , the plastic block  20 , the LED  17 , the micro-button switch  16 , the sheath  18  and the sheath extension  15 . Also visible is the wire  21 . 
       FIG. 8  shows a typical Motorola® charging cord with a wall plug, comprised of the connector for connecting to the charging port  19 , the plastic block  20 , the LED  17 , the micro-button switch  16 , the sheath  18  and the sheath extension  15 . Also visible is the wire  21 .  FIG. 8  shows an embodiment with a wall plug  53 . Although the invention is concerned with the design elements adjoining to the connector for the handheld device charging port  19 , it can include either a wall plug  53 , a USB plug (not shown in  FIG. 8 ), or any other connector which can be attached to a power supply (not shown in  FIG. 8 ). 
       FIG. 9  shows a typical handheld device  101 . From the perspective of  FIG. 9 , one can see cellphone has an all-purpose button  104  and a charging port  102 . Adjacent to the charging port  102  is a LED. The LED  102  could be lit in a number of ways. First, the LED  102  could be lit when the user presses the all-purpose button  104 , or any other functional button on the handheld device  101 . Additionally, the LED  102  could be controlled by software, so that it lights when a built-in gyroscope senses that the charging port  102  is facing, more or less, in the upward direction. Additionally, if the handheld device  101  has a built-in camera with an auto-flash, the handheld device  101  would have a light sensor. The internal software of the handheld device  101  could be designed so that the light sensor has to indicate that the handheld device  101  is in a dark room in order for the LED to illuminate  103 . Additionally, the internal software of the handheld device  101  could be designed so that the gyroscope and the light sensor both have to indicate that the handheld device  101  is being held so that the charging port  102  is facing up in a dark room, in order for the LED to illuminate  103 . Lastly, the handheld device could require that optional software, often called, “apps,” be loaded in order to enable the LED  103 . Such an app would allow the user to define the conditions required to light the LED  103 , such as the handheld device  101  being inverted so that the charging port  102  is more or less facing up, a button  104  were to be depressed; a light sensor were to indicate a low light condition; or other user-defined conditions which would cause the LED  103  to light. 
       FIG. 10  shows the a light pipe  204  replacing the LED  103  from  FIG. 9 .