CLAMSHELL HANDHELD ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICE WITH PIVOTALLY COUPLED INTERCONNECTOR

• US 20090186662A1
• Filed: 11/21/2008
• Published: 07/23/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Malikie Innovations Limited (Key Patent Innovations Limited)
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Griffin, Jason, Rak, Roman
• Application Number:
  US12/275,665
• Publication Number:
  US 20090186662A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 455/566
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1647 including at least an additional display G06F1/1692 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1656 Details related to functional adaptations of the enclosure, e.g. to provide protection against EMI, shock, water, or to host detachable peripherals like a mouse or removable expansions units like PCMCIA cards, or to provide access to internal components for maintenance or to removable storage supports like CDs or DVDs, or to mechanically mount accessories mounting of accessories to a computer display G06F1/1607; display hoods G06F1/1603; cooling arrangements for portable computers G06F1/203
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1686 the I/O peripheral being an integrated camera
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/169 the I/O peripheral being an integrated pointing device, e.g. trackball in the palm rest area, mini-joystick integrated between keyboard keys, touch pads or touch stripes G06F1/1643 takes precedence; constructional details of pointing devices G06F3/033
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0218 The hinge comprising input and/or output user interface means
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/022 The hinge comprising two parallel pivoting axes

Abstract

A clamshell handheld wireless communication device having a hinging interconnector between the two housings, one in which the display screen is located and the other upon which the keyboard is located. The hinging interconnector may be so configured to resiliently transition from an operating configuration in which the display screen housing and keyboard housing are oblique to one another, to a more fully open configuration while remaining biased to the operating configuration.

Claims

1. A clamshell handheld electronic communication device comprising:

a first housing and a second housing pivotally coupled one with the other by a double-hinged interconnector that is pivotally connected at a first side to said first housing and is pivotally connected at a second side to said second housing and wherein one of said first and second housings has a keyboard face and the other of said housings has a display screen face; and

said interconnector has a navigational tool mounted thereon and resiliently biases said communication device toward closed and operating configurations and away from a fully open configuration in which said keyboard face and said display screen face are oriented substantially parallel to one another.

2. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said keyboard face is oriented at an obtuse angle to said display screen face in the operating configuration.

3. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 2, wherein said interconnector biases said keyboard face and said display screen face toward the obtuse angle of orientation when said keyboard face and said display screen face are within a thirty degree departure therefrom.

4. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 3, wherein said obtuse angle measures approximately 165 degrees between said keyboard face and said display screen face.

5. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 4, wherein an angle between said keyboard face and said display screen face in said fully open configuration measures approximately 180 degrees.

6. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 3, wherein said interconnector further comprises a spring assembly that is relaxed in the operating configuration.

7. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 6, wherein said spring assembly of said interconnector is either tensioned or compressed when said keyboard face and said display screen face are within the thirty degree departure.

8. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 6, wherein said spring assembly of said interconnector is either tensioned or compressed when said keyboard face and said display screen face are within a fifteen degree departure.

9. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 8, wherein said obtuse angle measures approximately 150 degrees between said keyboard face and said display screen face.

10. The clamshell handheld electronic communication angle as recited in claim 1, wherein said first housing has a substantially square profile.

11. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein said second housing has a substantially square profile.

12. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein a length of said first housing is less than a width of the first housing.

13. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein a length of said second housing is less than a width of the second housing.

14. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the navigational tool is a trackball.

15. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the spring assembly comprises at least one coil spring.

16. The clamshell handheld electronic communication device as recited in claim 1, wherein the spring assembly comprises at least one cantilever spring.