Abstract:
A collapsible shoulder rest for a personal electronic device is incorporated into a protective case. The shoulder rest is secured within the back of the case and fan folds out away from the back. The shoulder rest is perpendicular to the width of the case.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present invention is a Continuation and claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/218,604, filed on Sep. 15, 2015, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to the field of mobile phone holding means and more specifically relates to a collapsible shoulder rest for portable electronic equipment. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Mobile and smart phone devices comprise a group of electronic equipment which are now considered a necessity in today&#39;s technologically driven society. People in all walks of life use these devices for conversing with other device users as well as for a variety of other forms of communication e.g., texts, pictures, e-mail, and accessing the internet. While utilizing such devices, maintaining a suitable hands-free conversation can be a strain on a user&#39;s head and neck. This strain is often the result of the user pinching the device between his or her neck and the shoulder in an effort free up one or both hands to manipulate the controls or a writing implement, amongst other numerous activities which require a free hand. 
     Furthermore, such a contortion of the user&#39;s body may cause accidental and undesirable dropping of the device and/or the temporary abandonment of the activity which required the use of a free hand(s). Additionally, propping the device between the neck and shoulder may also impede the ability of an ambulatory user to avoid a collision with other people or structural impediments since the user&#39;s vision may become misdirected due to the angle of the user&#39;s head. It is therefore also desirable to create a device that may keep a user of such a device&#39;s head in a direction which comports with the user&#39;s path of travel and line of sight. 
     Various attempts have been made to solve problems found in mobile phone holder art. Among these are found in: U.S. Pat. And U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 6,535,606 to James Cox, 2012/0046083 to Keven H. Klett, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,668,869 to Raphael Zinno. These prior art references are representative of shoulder rests for mobile phones. 
     None of the above referenced inventions and patents are collapsible and taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the invention as claimed. Thus, a need exists for a reliable and collapsible shoulder rest for a piece of portable electronic equipment to avoid the above-mentioned problems. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The device comprises a rest for a portable electronic device comprising a case which is configured to be removably secured to a rear face of a portable electronic device, a telescoping upper support frame which is secured subjacent to the top edge exterior face of the case, a main support hinge which is secured superjacent to a bottom edge exterior face of the case, at least one (1) pair of main support frames, each main support frame having a first end which is pivotally attached to the upper support frame and a second end which is pivotally attached to the main support hinge, a secondary support hinge which is affixed between an outermost pair of main support frames and is parallel to the main support hinge while being positioned between the upper support frame and the main support hinge, at least one (1) pair of secondary support frames, each secondary support frame having a first end pivotally attached to the upper support frame and a second end pivotally attached to the secondary support hinge and a flexible cover which is affixed to and spans the area between the upper support frame and the main support hinge. When in a deployed state, the rest comprises a fanned out structure which at least partially protrudes from the rear face of the case. When in a collapsed state, the rest folds flat against the rear face of the case. In an alternate embodiment the rest may comprise part of the physical case of the portable electronic device. Both embodiments may also be specifically limited to having five pairs of main support frames. 
     The secondary support hinge may be capable of longitudinal traverse relative to the outermost pair of main support frames. A portion of the cover which is coincidental with an area spanned by the secondary support hinge, both secondary support frames, and a common centerline which bisects the upper support frame comprises a slip resistant material. The main and secondary support frames may comprise a lightweight plastic. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The advantages and features of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following more detailed description and claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like elements are identified with like symbols, and in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a side elevation view of a mobile phone shoulder rest  10 , during a “deployed” condition, where the cover  50  is removed in order to illustrate the upper support frame  40 , the main support frame  20 , and the secondary support frame  30  fully expanded out from a back of a mobile phone case  15 , according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a rear elevation view illustrating the mobile phone shoulder rest  10  folded into the back of the mobile phone case  15 , according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of the mobile phone shoulder rest  10 , as seen along a line I-I taken in  FIG. 2 , according to an embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a pictorial view of the mobile phone shoulder rest  10 , shown in a utilized but retracted state, according to an embodiment of the present invention; and, 
         FIG. 5  is a pictorial view of the mobile phone shoulder rest  10 , shown in a utilized and deployed state, according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTIVE KEY 
     
         
         
           
               10  mobile telephone shoulder rest 
               15  case 
               20  main support frame 
               21  main support hinge 
               25  main support pivot 
               30  secondary support frame 
               31  secondary support hinge 
               35  secondary support pivot 
               40  upper support frame 
               50  cover 
               55  slip resistant material 
               100  mobile phone 
               105  user 
               110  ear 
               115  shoulder 
               120  cumbersome task 
               125  hands 
               130  offset angle “a” 
               135  user&#39;s body axis 
               140  user&#39;s head axis 
               145  frame arrangement 
               150  offset angle “b” 
           
         
       
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The present invention is directed to a mobile phone shoulder rest (herein described as the “rest”)  10 . In one (1) embodiment of the present invention, the rest  10  may comprise a framework  20 ,  30 ,  40  made of a lightweight plastic that allows for easy storage in the back of the mobile phone case  15  when not in use. 
     Referring now to the drawings, there is shown in  FIG. 1  a rest  10  during a “deployed” condition. An accordion style fanned out plastic structure  20 ,  30 ,  40 ,  50 ,  55  protrudes from the rear of the mobile phone case  15 , as shown. A telescoping upper support frame  40  extends outward from the case  15 . A plurality of main support frame pairs  20  each has a first end pivotally attached the upper support frame  40  with a main support pivot  25 . The second end of each of the main support frames  20  is attached to a main support hinge  20  spanning a distance between each of the pairs of main support frames  20  and attached the bottom of the case  15 . Certain embodiments may comprise five (5) pairs of main support frames  20  fastened together. A pair of secondary support frames  30  each has a first end pivotally attached to the upper support frame  20  with a secondary support pivot  35 . The second end of each of the secondary support frames  30  are pivotally attached to a secondary support hinge  31  spanning a distance between an outermost pair of main support frames  20  and parallel with the main support hinge  21 . In another embodiment, the secondary support hinge  31  may advance longitudinally along the outermost main support frame pair  20 . A flexible cover  50  is envisioned to cover the main support frame pairs  20  rear and side portions, as well as the upper support frame  40  and secondary support frame pair  30 . An upper portion of the cover  50 , coinciding with the area framed by the upper support frame  40  and the secondary support frames  30  is covered with a slip resistant material  55 . This may allow the rest  10  to be folded neatly into the back of the case  15  when pressure is applied. Once deployed in the fully open position, an individual can then place the rest  10  on his/her shoulder, which then aligns the mobile phone to the user&#39;s ear while the head is in a vertical position. Once the conversation is completed, the rest  10  is simply folded back into the case for future use. 
       FIG. 2  shows a back perspective view of the rest  10 . Once folded in the closed position, the slip resistant material  55  and double hinge design is easily viewable. This design allows for the rest  10  to be retro-fit to an existing case  15 , or bundled together with a case  15  in an alternate embodiment. The stored state illustrates that when the rest  10  is folded and secured into place, there is no significant increase in the width of the mobile phone. This design may be desirable for use with all forms and sizes of mobile phones. Furthermore, the light material used in the design of the rest  10  may not increase the weight of the mobile phone by a significant amount. When deployed, the slip resistant material  55  of the cover  50  may sit on a user&#39;s shoulder to prevent the mobile phone from sliding while in use. These features provide convenience for the user. The exact specifications, materials used, and method of use of the rest  10  may vary upon manufacturing. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 3 , a sectional view of the rest  10 , as seen along a line I-I, as seen in  FIG. 2 , according to an embodiment of the present invention is depicted. This figure clearly depicts a mobile phone  100  held inside the case  15  where it is held by friction fit. The cover  50  encloses the movable components of the mobile telephone shoulder rest  10 . The upper support frame is now in a capsized or retracted state with each individual main support pivot resting on each other. The main support frame  20  remains connected to the secondary support hinge  31  at the lower end and the main support pivot  25  at its opposite or distal end. The secondary support frame  30  remains connected to the secondary support hinge  31  at its lower end and the secondary support pivot  35  at the opposite or distal end. The secondary support frame  30  provides a structural base for the slip resistant material  55  provided as part of the cover  50 . It should be noted that the overall thickness of the mobile telephone shoulder rest  10  presents only a minimum amount of increase over the bare mobile telephone  100  and is not envisioned to be a burden when stored in a pocket, purse, or other location. 
     Referring next to  FIG. 4 , a pictorial view of the rest  10 , shown in a utilized but retracted state, according to an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed. A user  105  holds the mobile phone  100 , encased within the mobile telephone shoulder rest  10  between their ear  110  and their shoulder  115 . This arrangement is similar to that which would be experienced when using only a mobile phone  100  without the present invention. The user  105  is occupied with a cumbersome task  120 , requiring the use of both hands  125 . Such an arrangement produces an offset angle “a”  130  between the user&#39;s body axis  135  and the user&#39;s head axis  140 . While such an offset angle “a”  130  may be acceptable for a short period of time such as to write down an address or telephone number, long term positioning is viewed as likely to create sore neck muscles or even debilitating injury. 
     Referring finally to  FIG. 5 , a pictorial view of the rest  10 , shown in a utilized and deployed state, according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. In this FIG, the user  105  has deployed the frame arrangement  145  consisting of the main support frame  20 , the main support hinge  21 , the main support pivot  25 , the secondary support frame  30 , the secondary support hinge  31 , the secondary support pivot  35 , and the upper support frame  40  (all of which are depicted in  FIG. 1 ). The user  105  is still provided with placement of the mobile phone  100  between their ear  100  and their shoulder  115 . The slip resistant material  55  ensures that the mobile phone  100  remains in place while only held by friction fit. Once again the user  105  is occupied with a cumbersome task  120 , requiring the use of both hands  125 . Such an arrangement produces an offset angle “b”  150  between the user&#39;s body axis  135  and the user&#39;s head axis  140 . It should be noted that the offset angle “b”  150  is much less that the offset angle “a”  130  (as shown in  FIG. 4 ). Such a reduced angle is viewed as much less stressful over longer periods of time, thus allowing the user  105  to conduct entire telephone conservations, even lasting hours long, while performing cumbersome tasks  120 , without short term pain or long term afflictions. 
     The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the invention and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.