Patent Document

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to battery compartments for electronic medical devices and more particularly to side loading battery compartments having a single round loading aperture for such devices. Because of the environments in which they are used, electronic medical devices must have housings that are sealed against the intrusion of fluids into the housing. Should fluid ingress into the housing, the electronics supported therein could be irreparably damaged. Often, these electronic devices are battery operated. 
     Battery compartments in such devices require a battery door to close and seal the battery compartment. Typically these compartments have one of two shapes; an elongated tubular shape, or a rectangular shape. Battery compartments having a tubular shape and a round loading aperture can easily be made liquid proof by sealing the loading aperture with a screw cap. Unfortunately, the long thin tubular shaped battery compartments are undesirable in many small electronic packages. Rectangular compartments are easier to incorporate into these devices because they typically match the shape of the housing. However, rectangular compartments are difficult to seal. Typically the rectangular door is snapped or screwed into place over the battery loading aperture, which makes it difficult to effectively seal the entire perimeter between the door and the loading aperture. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, the invention provides an electronic device including a housing having a plurality of sidewalls defining a generally rectangular cavity within the housing to support therein a predetermined number of generally cylindrical batteries. One of the sidewalls defines an aperture extending through the sidewall and opening into the cavity. A support member is mounted in the housing and includes a support portion extending into the cavity to support inserted batteries in a position transverse to at least one of the sidewalls until all of the predetermined number of batteries are inserted into the cavity. 
     According to another aspect, the invention provides an electronic device including a housing having a plurality of sidewalls defining a generally rectangular cavity within the housing to support therein a plurality of generally cylindrical batteries. One of the sidewalls defines a single generally round aperture extending through the sidewall. The aperture opens into the cavity, and a round sealing member dimensioned to fit within the aperture is inserted into the aperture to enclose and seal the cavity. 
     According to yet another aspect, the invention provides a support member for supporting batteries in a battery pack having a generally rectangular housing. The support member includes a base portion adapted to be slidably mounted in the housing for movement relative to the housing between first and second positions, a lip connected to the base portion for at least partially supporting batteries in the housing at least temporarily in a position transverse to a sidewall of the housing, a conducting member connected to the base portion, and a spring assembly connected to the support member to bias the support member toward the first position. 
     It is an advantage of the invention to provide a new and improved sealed battery compartment for an electronic device. 
     It is another advantage of the invention to provide an electronic device for supporting batteries in a sealed rectangular aperture. 
     A further advantage of the invention is to provide an electronic device for supporting batteries that has a round sealing member to enclose a battery loading aperture in the electronic device. 
     Still another advantage of the invention is to provide a support member for supporting batteries in a battery pack. 
     Other features and advantages of the invention are set forth in the attached drawings, detailed description and claims. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an electrical device embodying the invention. 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the electrical device in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a section view of the electrical device taken along line  3 — 3  in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the electrical device embodying the invention showing a battery being inserted therein. 
     FIG. 5 is a section view similar to FIG.  3  and showing a first battery inserted therein. 
     FIG. 6 is a section view similar to FIG.  3  and showing the first and a second batteries inserted therein. 
     FIG. 7 is a section view similar to FIG.  3  and showing three batteries inserted therein. 
     FIG. 8 is an electrical schematic of the electrical device showing the battery contacts. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Before any embodiments of the invention are explained, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of including, comprising, or having and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. 
     FIG. 1 illustrates an electrical device  20  embodying the invention. In the preferred embodiment, the device  20  is a self-contained, battery operated medical device such as a Holter monitor, or telemetry-based patient monitoring transmitter. However, the invention is applicable to any battery operated electrical device. The electrical device  20  includes a generally rectangular housing  28 . The housing  28  includes at least one sidewall  30  defining a cavity  31  (see FIG. 3) for holding first, second, and third batteries  72 ,  76 , and  80  (see FIG.  7 ), and for holding conducting members  33   a,    33   b,    33   c,    33   d,  and  33   f  (see FIG. 3) to electrically connect the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  in series, and transfer electrical power from the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  to an electrically powered machine or apparatus  82  (shown schematically in FIG.  8 ), also preferably enclosed within the housing  28 . Contact members  33   b  and  33   c  are preferably formed from a single piece of metal or other electrically conductive material so that they are electrically connected to each other. 
     Referring to FIG. 2, the sidewall  30  also defines a circular opening  32  extending through the sidewall  30  and communicating with the cavity  31 . The device  20  includes a sealing member  34  that fits within the circular opening  32  to close and seal the cavity  31 . 
     In the preferred embodiment, the sidewall  30  defining the opening  32  is threaded, and the sealing member  34  is threaded into the opening  32  along an insertion axis  40  to seal the housing  28 . The sealing member  34  includes a spring contact  33   e  and a contact member  35  connected to the spring contact  33   e  so that when the sealing member  34  is inserted in place in opening  32 , contact member  33   d  is electrically connected to spring contact  33   e.  In other embodiments, the sealing member  34  can be inserted into the opening  32  along the axis  40  and frictionally engages the housing  28  surrounding the opening  32  to seal the housing  28 . In such a construction, a second sealing member (not shown), such as, for example, an O-ring or a gasket, mounts to the sealing member  34  and frictionally engages the housing  28  in a position between the sealing member  34  and the housing  28  to seal the housing  28 , such that liquid cannot penetrate past the second sealing member and enter into the housing  28 . In another embodiment, the second sealing member is mountable to the housing  28  in a position between the housing  28  and the sealing member  34 , such that liquid cannot penetrate past the second sealing member and enter into the housing  28 . 
     Referring to FIG. 3, the electrical device  20  includes a base portion or support member  44  slidably supported by the housing  28 . As viewed in the orientation shown in FIG. 3, the support member  44  has a generally upright portion  48  and a generally horizontal lip or support portion  52  that extends into the cavity  31  defined by the housing  28 . The electrical device  20  also includes a track  60  that is mounted to the housing  28 . The support member  44  is slidably mounted to the track  60  and can slide between a first position and a second position. In the preferred construction, the track  60  is angled, so that the support member  44  moves to the left (as shown in FIG. 3) as the support member  44  slides down and so that the support member  44  moves to the right (as shown in FIG. 3) as the support member  44  slides up. The support member  44  is in the first position at the top of the track  60  (see FIG. 3) and in the second position at the bottom of the track  60  (see FIG.  7 ). The electrical device  20  optionally includes a biasing member  64  supported between the housing  28  and the support member  44 . The biasing member  64  biases the support member  44  toward the first position (as seen in FIG.  3 ). 
     The electrical device  20  also includes a battery stop  68  that is supported by the housing  28  and protrudes into the cavity  31 . The battery stop  68  limits the insertion of batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  into the cavity  31 . 
     Referring to FIG. 4, the electrical device  20  and the first battery  72  are illustrated. The first battery  72  inserts into the cavity  31  of the electrical device  20  through the opening  32  along the insertion axis  40 . The second and third batteries  76  and  80  are inserted likewise. After the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  are inserted into the cavity  31 , the sealing member  34  is threaded into the housing  28  to seal the housing  28 . 
     Referring to FIG. 5, the electrical device  20  is illustrated with the first battery  72  inserted through the opening  32  and into the cavity  31 . The first battery  72  rests on the support portion  52  transverse to the insertion axis  40  and biases the support member  44  slightly downward along the track  60 . 
     Referring to FIG. 6, the electrical device  20  is illustrated with the first and second batteries  72  and  76  inserted through the opening  32  and into the cavity  31 . The second battery  76  rests on top of the first battery  72  and biases the support member  44  downward along the track  60 , further than the first battery  72  alone. Both the first and second batteries  72  and  76  rest transversely to the insertion axis  40 . 
     As described above and illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6, the batteries  72  and  76  self-orient themselves as a result of gravity so that they rest upon the support portion  52  after insertion. If the electrical device  20  is in a different orientation with respect to the gravitational field, or is being used in a weightless environment such as outer space, the batteries  72  and  76  can be moved clear of the opening  32  and toward the support portion  52  by other means, such as, but not limited to shaking, accelerating, or jerking the electrical device  20 . 
     Referring to FIG. 7., the electrical device  20  is illustrated with the first, second, and third batteries  72 ,  76 , and  80  inserted through the opening  32  and into the cavity  31 . As the third battery  80  is inserted through the opening  32  and into the cavity  31 , the third battery  80  contacts the transversely aligned second battery  76 . The third battery  80  biases the first and second batteries  72  and  76  downward against the support member  44  and biasing member  64 . The biasing member  64  exerts a force on the support member  44  and is chosen such that the force exerted by the third battery  80  upon insertion into the cavity  31 , easily overcomes the force exerted by the biasing member  64  on the support member  44 . The force exerted by the biasing member  64  is also chosen to be light enough so that a pinch force exerted on the third battery  80  is easily overcome by gravity or a gentle tap when the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  are removed from the electrical device  20 . The pinch force is the force exerted by the biasing member  44  on the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  upon the insertion of the first, second, and third batteries  72 ,  76 , and  80  into the cavity  31 . The third battery  80  is pushed into the cavity  31  until contact is made with the battery stop  68 , at which point, the first, second, and third batteries  72 ,  76 , and  80  are aligned generally parallel to the insertion axis  40  and the support member  44  is at the bottom of the track  60  in the second position. The sealing member  34  is threaded into the housing  28  and seals the batteries  72 ,  76 ,  80  in the electrical device  20 . 
     The embodiments described above and illustrated in the figures are presented by way of example only and not intended as a limitation upon the concepts and principles of the present invention. As such, it will be appreciated by one having ordinary skill in the art that various changes in the elements and their configuration and arrangement are possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
     Various features of the invention are set forth in the following claims.

Technology Category: 5