Hand-held portable electronic apparatus

• US 8,026,896 B2
• Filed: 09/28/2007
• Issued: 09/27/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/19/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Ricoh Company Limited
• Inventors: Kukita, Makoto
• Primary Examiner(s): Lao; Lun-Yi
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sheng; Tom V
• Application Number:
  US11/864,090
• Publication Number:
  US 20080024439A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,460 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/157, 345160-164, 345/167, 361/608, 361/683, 361/686, 361/679.21, 361/679.26, 361/679.3, 361/679.55, 361/679.56, 361/679.59, 361/679.1, 361/679.18, 463/37, 463/38
• US Class Current: 345/157
• 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 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1632 External expansion units, e.g. docking stations
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1635 Details related to the integration of battery packs and other power supplies such as fuel cells or integrated AC adapter
• 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 1/1677 for detecting open or closed state or particular intermediate positions assumed by movable parts of the enclosure, e.g. detection of display lid position with respect to main body in a laptop, detection of opening of the cover of battery compartment
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1679 for locking or maintaining the movable parts of the enclosure in a fixed position, e.g. latching mechanism at the edge of the display in a laptop or for the screen protective cover of a PDA G06F1/1681 takes precedence
• 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 1/26 Power supply means, e.g. regulation thereof for memories G11C
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0338 with detection of limited linear or angular displacement of an operating part of the device from a neutral position, e.g. isotonic or isometric joysticks
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/03549 Trackballs G06F3/03541 takes precedence

Abstract

A portable electronic apparatus including a main body having a display unit on a surface and a protruding holding unit. The holding unit includes a pointing device and switches that are operated by a same hand holding the holding unit. The pointing device includes one of a stick type pointing device and a trackball type pointing device that performs pointing operations including moving a cursor displayed on the display unit. The switches are for setting or canceling instructions given by the pointing device with click operations. The holding unit is also configured to be folded toward a side of the main body. When it is folded, an electric power supply is automatically turned off or put in a standby state and when the holding unit is unfolded to its original position, the electric power supply is a turned on or put in an operating state.

Claims

1. A portable electronic apparatus, comprising:

a body having a display unit on a surface thereof;

a holding unit protruding substantially perpendicular from the body and positioned below the surface of the body for holding the portable electronic apparatus and including a pointing device for navigating a menu displayed on the display unit and a finger operated switch configured to be operated by a finger on a same one hand holding the holding unit so that the portable electronic apparatus is able to be held and operated with only one hand positioned entirely below the surface of the body, the pointing device facing towards an underside of the body; and

a space between the pointing device and an underside of the body,

wherein the holding unit includes a grip configured to be grasped at least with a palm of said one hand such that when said one hand holds the holding unit, the palm of said one hand holding the holding unit is also substantially perpendicular to the body.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the holding unit comprises a battery section configured to contain a battery.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the pointing device is configured to be operated by a thumb of the one hand.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a hinge device configured to connect the holding unit and the body, the hinge device configured to vary a distance between an end of the holding unit and the body.

5. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:

a hinge device configured to change a relative orientation of the holding unit and the body so that a portion of the grip configured to contact a palm of the hand is oriented parallel to the surface of the body having the display.

6. An electronic apparatus, comprising:

a body including a surface and a display unit on the surface; and

a holding unit connected to the body and protruding substantially perpendicularly from the body, the holding unit including

a grip positioned entirely below the surface of the body and configured to be grasped with a palm of one hand arranged substantially perpendicularly to the body, so that the electronic apparatus is held only by the one hand from below the surface of the body, a pointing device configured to be operated by the one hand holding the grip and to control a menu displayed on the display unit, the pointing device facing towards an underside of the body, and

a switch configured to be operated by the one hand holding the grip and to control the menu displayed on the display unit,

the electronic apparatus further comprising a space between the pointing device and an underside of the body.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the holding unit comprises a battery section configured to contain a battery.

8. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the switch is configured to be operated by a finger of the one hand.

9. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the pointing device is configured to be operated by a thumb of the one hand.

10. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising:

a hinge device configured to connect the holding unit and the body, the hinge device configured to vary a distance between an end of the holding unit and the body.

11. The apparatus of claim 6, further comprising:

a hinge device configured to change a relative orientation of the holding unit and the body so that a portion of the grip configured to contact a palm of the one hand is oriented parallel to the surface of the body with the display.