Multi-purpose telephone strain relief

• US 5,394,467 A
• Filed: 03/26/1993
• Issued: 02/28/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 03/26/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: AT&T Mobility II LLC (AT&T, Inc.), Sharp Laboratories of America Incorporated (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Claircom Communications Group Incorporated
• Inventors: Greer, Dana J., Kepley, Walter R. III, Shields, Richard A. Jr.
• Primary Examiner(s): Dwyer, James L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Chiang, Jack
• Application Number:
  US08/040,178
• Time in Patent Office: 704 Days
• Field of Search: 379/433, 379/425, 379/437, 379/438, 379/428, 381/91
• US Class Current: 379/438
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/03 Constructional features of telephone transmitters or receivers, e.g. telephone hand-sets
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/15 Protecting or guiding telephone cords

Abstract

A one-piece, molded subassembly with a near-field acoustic chamber and a far-field acoustic chamber on either side of a centrally disposed microphone. A slightly-flared passage through the subassembly couples the far-field acoustic chamber to an exterior port in order to provide noise cancellation. A cord passage in the subassembly is directed in three mutually orthogonal directions so that a strain on the cord is not transmitted beyond the subassembly where it initially enters the handset.

Claims

1. A multi-purpose, one-piece block subassembly for a telephone handset, comprising in combination:

a one-piece block housing with a near-field audio input port at one end of said housing, an interior opening in said housing coupling said near-field audio input port to a near-field acoustic chamber in said housing;

a far-field audio input port at another end of said housing, an interior passage in said housing coupling said far-field audio input port to a far-field acoustic chamber in said housing;

a microphone chamber in said housing disposed between said near-field acoustic chamber and said far-field acoustic chamber; and

a passage in said housing for a handset telephone cord, said passage having an inlet adjacent said far-field audio input port and following a path wherein portions of the passage thereof lie in three mutually orthogonal directions through said housing, to an exit from said housing so that said housing absorbs a strain on said handset telephone cord and thereby reduces the transmission of said strain beyond said subassembly.

2. A multi-purpose, one-piece block subassembly for a telephone handset as in claim 1, further including an integrally formed hook switch housing.

3. A multi-purpose, one-piece block subassembly for a telephone handset as in claim 1, wherein said subassembly fits in a notch at one end of a telephone handset housing.

4. A multi-purpose, one-piece block subassembly for a telephone handset as in claim 2, wherein said subassembly fits in a notch at one end of a telephone handset housing.