Carrying case with peek functionality

• US 9,389,641 B2
• Filed: 05/10/2013
• Issued: 07/12/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Original Assignee: Blackberry Limited
• Inventors: Jayetileke, Samanthi Frances, Deciantis, Alan James
• Primary Examiner(s): THAKER, NIDHI VIVEK
• Application Number:
  US13/891,459
• Publication Number:
  US 20140332441A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,159 Days
• Field of Search: 36167955-67959, 206/320, 206/744, 206/467, 206/468
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 11/00 Receptacles for purposes not provided for in groups A45C1/00-A45C9/00 specially adapted for toiletry or cosmetic equipment A45D29/20, A45D44/18; travelling sewing kits A45F3/48
• CPC Class Codes: A45C 2011/002 for portable handheld communication devices, e.g. mobile phone, pager, beeper, PDA, smart phone
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1628 Carrying enclosures containing additional elements, e.g. case for a laptop and a printer
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 1/3888 Arrangements for carrying or protecting transceivers

Abstract

A carrying case with peek functionality is provided. The carrying case comprises: a device holding portion configured to receive a mobile device, the device holding portion comprising a gap for exposing an indicator of the mobile device; and a sliding portion configured to move between a closed position and an open position, the sliding portion obscuring the gap in the closed position and exposing at least a portion of the gap in the open position, the sliding portion being about planar.

Claims

1. A carrying case comprising:

a device-holding portion configured to receive a mobile device, the device-holding portion comprising a gap for exposing an indicator rendered at a given portion of a display of the mobile device when the mobile device is received in the device-holding portion; and

a sliding portion configured to move between a closed position and an open position, the sliding portion obscuring the gap in the closed position and exposing at least a portion of the gap in the open position, the sliding portion being about planar, a location of the sliding portion and the gap corresponding with the given portion of the display that includes the indicator when the mobile device is received in the device-holding portion, and, when the sliding portion is in the open position, the given portion of the display is exposed in the clap while a remainder of the display is obscured by the device-holding portion, the sliding portion being located to interact with a detector of the mobile device, the mobile device configured to;

in response to detecting that the sliding portion is in the open position using the detector, turn on the given portion of the display, while the remaining portion of the display remains off;

render the indicator at the given portion of the display; and

, in response to detecting that the sliding portion is in the closed position using the detector, turn off the given portion of the display.

2. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein, the device-holding portion comprises at least a front wall and the gap is located in the front wall.

3. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the gap comprises one or more of an aperture in a front wall of the device-holding portion, a cut-out of the front wall and an opening of the front wall.

4. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the device-holding portion comprises a longitudinal axis and the device-holding portion is configured to receive the mobile device along the longitudinal axis.

5. The carrying case of claim 4, wherein the sliding portion is configured to move between the closed position and the open position along the longitudinal axis.

6. The carrying case of claim 1, further comprising a biasing mechanism configured to bias the sliding portion to at least the closed position.

7. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion is biased towards the closed position.

8. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion is biased towards both the closed position and the open position such that when the sliding portion is displaced from either of the closed position and the open position, the sliding portion moves to one of the closed position and the open position depending on a position of the sliding portion relative to the device-holding portion.

9. The carrying case of claim 1, further comprising a biasing mechanism configured to bias the sliding portion to both the closed position and the open position such that the sliding portion moves to one of the closed position and the open position depending on a position of the sliding portion relative to the device-holding portion.

10. The carrying case of claim 1, further comprising a biasing mechanism configured to:

move the sliding portion to the closed position when the sliding portion is moved more than halfway from the open position towards the closed position; and

, move the sliding portion to the open position when the sliding portion is moved more than halfway from the closed position towards the open position.

11. The carrying case of claim 1, further comprising a biasing mechanism configured to bias the sliding portion to at least the closed position.

12. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion is configured to be frictionally retained at positions between the closed position and the open position.

13. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein a size of the sliding portion is about a same size as the gap.

14. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion covers a front wall of the device-holding portion in both the open position and the closed position, the front wall comprising the gap.

15. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion comprises side walls that slide along corresponding side walls of the device-holding portion.

16. The carrying case of claim 1, wherein the sliding portion is configured to be operated with one hand.

17. The carrying case of claim 1, further comprising one or more apertures in at least one of the device-holding portion and the sliding portion, the one or more apertures corresponding to one or more of a position of a speaker and a microphone of the mobile device, when the mobile device is received by the device-holding portion.

18. A system comprising:

a mobile device comprising a detector and a display; and

,

a carrying case comprising;

a device-holding portion configured to receive the mobile device, the device-holding portion comprising a gap for exposing an indicator rendered at a given portion of the display of the mobile device when the mobile device is received in the device-holding portion; and

a sliding portion configured to move between a closed position and an open position, the sliding portion obscuring the gap in the closed position and exposing at least a portion of the gap in the open position, the sliding portion being about planar, a location of the sliding portion and the gap corresponding with the given portion of the display that includes the indicator when the mobile device is received in the device-holding portion, and, when the sliding portion is in the open position, the given portion of the display is exposed in the gap while a remainder of the display is obscured by the device-holding portion, the sliding portion being located to interact with the detector of the mobile device,

the mobile device configured to;

in response to detecting that the sliding portion is in the open position using the detector, turn on the given portion of the display, while the remaining portion of the display remains off;

render the indicator at the given portion of the display; and

, in response to detecting that the sliding portion is in the closed position using the detector, turn off the given portion of the display.