PDA watch

• US 6,882,285 B2
• Filed: 12/15/2000
• Issued: 04/19/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Speich, Mark Christian, Dunsmore, Rodney Charles, Harrington, Steven Lee
• Primary Examiner(s): TWEEL JR, JOHN ALEXANDER
• Application Number:
  US09/737,344
• Publication Number:
  US 20030038729A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,586 Days
• Field of Search: 340/815.53, 340/815.42, 340/825.44, 341/34, 341/35, 345/156, 345/158, 345/175
• US Class Current: 340/815.53
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/163 Wearable computers, e.g. on a belt
• 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: G06F 3/0362 with detection of 1D translations or rotations of an operating part of the device, e.g. scroll wheels, sliders, knobs, rollers or belts

Abstract

A personal data assistant (“PDA”) watch uses a “character wheel,” or a “data dial,” to enter information, or characters, into the PDA watch. Such a dial makes the entering of data much quicker by taking advantage of the flexibility of the human wrist. A dial containing the character set disbursed around its circumference can be turned to indicate which character the user wishes to enter. The selection of a particular symbol/character can then be made by depressing the dial or some other input button.

Claims

1. A PDA watch comprising:

a chassis;

data processing hardware mounted within the chassis and operable for running a software program;

a display device coupled to the data processing hardware for displaying output information from the software program, the display device mounted in the chassis so that the display device is viewable by a user of the PDA watch; and

an input dial mounted on the chassis, and operable for inputting alphanumeric characters into the software program, wherein the input dial is circular shaped with depictions of the alphanumeric characters lining a circumference of the input dial, wherein an alphanumeric character is inputted into the software program when the depiction of the alphanumeric character is positioned near an input marker and then an input switch is activated, wherein the input dial comprises an outer sheath having an inner circumference greater than an outer circumference of the chassis, wherein the outer sheath fits over the chassis and is spring loaded to re-position the outer sheath relative to the chassis subsequent to a manual depressing of the out sheath, wherein the manual depressing of the outer sheath physically activates the input switch.

2. The PDA watch as recited in claim 1, wherein the chassis comprises first and second electrical brushes spaced a distance X apart, the first and second electrical brushes positioned on the outer circumference of the chassis to engage a first series of electrical contacts linearly positioned around the inner circumference of the outer sheath, the first series of electrical contacts spaced a distance G apart and each having a length T.

3. The PDA watch as recited in claim 2, wherein X is less than both of G and T.

4. The PDA watch as recited in claim 2, further comprising a third electrical brush positioned near the first and second electrical brushes on the outer circumference of the chassis to engage a second series of electrical contacts linearly positioned around the inner circumference of the outer sheath in parallel with the first series of electrical contacts.

5. The PDA watch as recited in claim 4, wherein the second series of electrical contacts are positioned approximately ninety degrees apart.