Source: https://patents.google.com/patent/US7492891B2/en
Timestamp: 2020-02-21 13:48:11
Document Index: 80463436

Matched Legal Cases: ['arts 2', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'arts 2', 'art 2', 'art 4', 'art 2']

US7492891B2 - Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element - Google Patents
Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element Download PDF
US7492891B2
US7492891B2 US11/083,065 US8306505A US7492891B2 US 7492891 B2 US7492891 B2 US 7492891B2 US 8306505 A US8306505 A US 8306505A US 7492891 B2 US7492891 B2 US 7492891B2
US11/083,065
US20060198513A1 (en
2005-03-03 Application filed by Nokia Oyj filed Critical Nokia Oyj
2005-03-03 Priority to US11/083,065 priority Critical patent/US7492891B2/en
2005-06-10 Assigned to NOKIA CORPORATION reassignment NOKIA CORPORATION ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: ELDON, JAMES
2006-09-07 Publication of US20060198513A1 publication Critical patent/US20060198513A1/en
2009-02-17 Publication of US7492891B2 publication Critical patent/US7492891B2/en
A mobile electronic device includes a first housing part, a second housing part, and a hinge element connecting the first housing part and the second housing part in a foldable manner; the first housing part, the second housing part and the hinge element together form a housing, wherein the first housing part and the second housing part can assume the following positions: a closed position, wherein the first housing part and the second housing part are closed and facing each other; an open position, wherein the first housing part and the second housing part are folded apart forming an angle of approximately 180° in relation to each other; a display element relocatably supported on the housing in the open position such that the display element can be located on either the first housing part, the second housing part or on the hinge element.
Other types or form factors of mobile phones have become widely used as well. Particularly in the new gaming consoles, gaming enabled mobile phones like the Nokia® N-Gage™, the landscape form factor is used. This provides the possibility to position the display in the center of the respective device, whereas the control elements, i.e. a keypad, a 4-way rocker key and the like can be positioned on the left and right sides of the housing. In this manner the user is enabled to hold the device in both hands and simultaneously operate for example the 4-way rocker key with the right hand and the other controls with the left hand.
This concept is also applicable to phones having a full keyboard, like in the Nokia cell phone 6810/6820, for giving the user the possibility to type emails, SMS or other messages more easily. While this form factor is well suited for gaming and writing messages it is not as comfortable for speech connections as other (portrait) mobile phones, as such landscape phones must be held in a position rotated 90° in relation to the gaming/writing position. Among other things this entails certain problems associated with the location/orientation of the standard phone keypad or at least the respective key labels, which may cause a certain discomfort for a user. Furthermore this form factor is not suitable for single-handed operation of the respective device, e.g. browsing through the phonebook or reading incoming messages, whereas conventional monoblock and foldable phones do not or at least not suitably enable a landscape usage mode.
According to an aspect of the present invention a mobile electronic device is provided, comprising a first housing part, a second housing part and a hinge element connecting the first and second housing parts in a foldable manner. The first and second housing parts and the hinge element form a housing, wherein the first and second housing parts can assume at least the two following positions: a closed position, wherein the first and second housing parts are closed and facing each other, and an open position, wherein the first and second housing parts are folded apart forming an angle of approximately 180° in relation to each other, or in other words are facing in the same direction. The mobile electronic device may further comprise a display element that is relocatably supported on the housing such that it can—in the open position—be located on either of the housing parts or on the hinge element.
In an exemplary embodiment the first and second housing parts can assume one further position, wherein the first and second housing parts are folded apart forming an angle of less than 180° in relation to each other. This enables to assume a configuration being similar to that of conventional foldable phones, where the housing parts are slightly inclined, e.g. in an angle of about 22°. Such arrangement is best suited for making voice calls, wherein microphone and speaker can be positioned near the mouth and ear of the user in an optimum manner. As the display element can be supported such that it is prohibited from being displaced in this configuration, because of the inclined surfaces, the mobile electronic device can be implemented as behaving like a conventional foldable phone.
In every circumstance the surfaces of the housing parts 2 and 4 must, in the landscape mode, be aligned such they are substantially parallel to each other (in other words assuming an angle of 180° in relation to each other), to allow the display element 8 to smoothly slide up and down or along. The housing parts will in most embodiments have a substantially cuboidal, i.e. flat and rectangular, form with even surfaces on which the keypad and the display element are arranged. However the only pre-requisite is that the display element can slide along smoothly, therefore it is not strictly required for the inner surfaces of the housing parts to be even.
The hinge element in a device according to the present invention is not necessarily restricted to an opening angle of 180°. It is also possible to provide for an angle of up to 360°, i.e. to enable the device to provide two different closed positions, wherein different faces of the housing parts are folded together or exposed, respectively.
FIG. 2 shows the mobile phone of FIG. 1 in an open position, i.e. in the portrait/foldable phone configuration. The housing parts 2 and 4 are arranged with an angle α between them of about 158°, i.e. in a conventional open configuration for a foldable phone. The hinge element 6 in a device as depicted here thus provides at least three different positions:
(a) a closed position (as depicted in FIG. 1), wherein both housing parts 2, 4 are arranged substantially parallel and above one another, in other words folded together, and the hinge element 6 being located on one side of the housing parts;
(b) an open landscape mode position (as will be seen from FIG. 3), wherein both housing parts 2, 4 are arranged substantially parallel, i.e. folded apart or open, with the hinge element 6 located between them, and wherein the display element 8 is located on/encapsulates the hinge element; and
(c) an open portrait mode position (as depicted in FIG. 2), wherein the housing parts 2, 4 are arranged such that their surfaces accommodate an angle α of e.g. 158°. This angle α will usually be somewhere in the range of 90° to 179°, or more specifically in the range of about 135° to 160°.
The three positions are primarily suited for the following purposes:
(a) closed position for storing and carrying the mobile phone;
(b) landscape mode for playing games, writing messages and the like, wherein the display element 8 is slid over the hinge element 6 to expose specific control elements on the housing part 2 and expose a sub-set of the control elements located on housing part 4 for being operated by a user, or also for taking pictures in landscape mode with a camera of the device;
(c) a portrait mode for taking/making calls, browsing through received messages, or taking photos with a camera of the mobile phone in portrait mode.
With the present invention the advantages of both foldable phones and landscape phones (or similar mobile electronic devices as well) can be combined in a single device. While the foldable housing provides for a small footprint and protection for the sensitive display surface when carrying the phone a mobile electronic device according to the present invention also provides the enhanced landscape position which is far better suited for typing messages and playing games. Also the conventional portrait mode is possible with such a phone, which is more comfortable for making calls or performing other single-handed operations, e.g. for just browsing through the phonebook or reading received messages.
In FIGS. 4 and 5 two embodiments of the present invention are shown in a side view. FIG. 4 illustrates a mobile phone as that of FIG. 1 with a hinge element 8 of the “wrap around” type, and wherein the display element 8 completely encloses the first housing part 2, i.e. is provided with a back wall. From the portrait position where the surfaces are oriented with an angle of e.g. α=158° the phone can be folded completely open as indicated by the dotted arrow. The display element 8 can then be slid sideways to cover/encapsulate the hinge element 6, and will arrive at the configuration depicted on the right side of the figure. In this embodiment, and as illustrated here, it is preferred that the hinge element 6 does not protrude above the surfaces of the housing elements 2 and 4, in order to enable the display element 8 to slide along smoothly. As the display element 8 fully encloses the housing in this embodiment it could otherwise have negative effects on the stability of the phone. If the hinge element 6 did protrude the display element 8 would have to be at least partly flexible to slide over the hinge element 6. This is of course undesirable, as the phone it its landscape position could suffer from a certain mechanical play.
an open position, wherein said first housing part and said second housing part are folded apart forming an angle of approximately 180° in relation to each other;
2. Mobile electronic device according to claim 1, wherein said first housing part and said second housing part can assume one further position, wherein said first housing part and said second housing part are folded apart forming an angle of less than 180° in relation to each other.
US11/083,065 2005-03-03 2005-03-03 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element Expired - Fee Related US7492891B2 (en)
US11/083,065 US7492891B2 (en) 2005-03-03 2005-03-03 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element
PCT/IB2006/000249 WO2006092682A1 (en) 2005-03-03 2006-02-08 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element
CN 200680005829 CN101129054A (en) 2005-03-03 2006-02-08 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element
EP20060710344 EP1854269A1 (en) 2005-03-03 2006-02-08 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element
US20060198513A1 US20060198513A1 (en) 2006-09-07
US7492891B2 true US7492891B2 (en) 2009-02-17
ID=36940860
US11/083,065 Expired - Fee Related US7492891B2 (en) 2005-03-03 2005-03-03 Mobile electronic device having relocatable display element
US (1) US7492891B2 (en)
EP (1) EP1854269A1 (en)
CN (1) CN101129054A (en)
WO (1) WO2006092682A1 (en)
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2005-03-03 US US11/083,065 patent/US7492891B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
2006-02-08 CN CN 200680005829 patent/CN101129054A/en not_active IP Right Cessation
2006-02-08 WO PCT/IB2006/000249 patent/WO2006092682A1/en active Application Filing
2006-02-08 EP EP20060710344 patent/EP1854269A1/en not_active Withdrawn
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EP1854269A1 (en) 2007-11-14
CN101129054A (en) 2008-02-20
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Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:ELDON, JAMES;REEL/FRAME:016319/0981