Foldable portable information terminal

• US 7,499,737 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2002
• Issued: 03/03/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Lenovo Innovations Ltd Hong Kong (Lenovo Group Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Nagai, Michio, Mizuta, Masatomo, Fujii, Mika, Shimamura, Masaki, Kohayakawa, Kiyoshi, Sendouda, Mitsuru, Ohtsuta, Kazuo
• Primary Examiner(s): Harper; Vincent P.
• Assistant Examiner(s): NGUYEN, KHAI MINH
• Application Number:
  US10/259,509
• Publication Number:
  US 20030064758A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,346 Days
• Field of Search: 455/550.1, 455/556, 455/557, 455/566, 455/575, 455/90, 455/575.1, 455/575.2, 455/575.3, 455/575.4, 455/90.1, 455/556.1, 455/575.7, 455/575.8, 163/67, 163/34
• US Class Current: 455/575.3
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0212 with a two degrees of freedom mechanism, i.e. folding around a first axis and rotating around a second axis perpendicular to the first
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/0241 using relative motion of the body parts to change the operational status of the telephone set, e.g. switching on/off, answering incoming call

Abstract

A foldable portable information terminal includes an upper unit having a display unit on its one side, a lower unit having operation keys on its one side, and a movable connecting mechanism connecting the upper unit and the lower unit allowing the upper unit to be opened, closed, and freely rotated with respect to a longitudinal direction of the lower unit. The displaying mode of the display unit whose direction varies depending on a position of the upper unit is changed depending on a positional relationship of the upper unit and the lower unit.

Claims

1. A foldable portable information terminal comprising:

a first unit;

a second unit comprising a surface having an operation section; and

a movable connecting mechanism connecting the first unit and the second unit at one end thereof, wherein the movable connecting mechanism comprises a biaxial hinge comprising;

a first rotation axis which is securely and rotatably provided on said surface and substantially orthogonal to said surface, and allows the first unit to be rotated with respect to the second unit; and

a second rotation axis which is orthogonal to the first rotation axis and intersects an end portion of the first rotation axis that is distant from said second unit to axially and rotatably support the first unit.

2. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1,

wherein the first rotation axis is formed in vicinity of one end of said second unit, the first rotation axis protruding approximately vertically from the operation surface, and

wherein the second rotation axis is provided in a vicinity of a front end of the first rotation axis.

3. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the movable connecting mechanism is fixedly disposed at a position that is deviated from center of one end of the operation surface of the second unit.

4. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 3, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof,

wherein a part of the operation section on the second unit is exposed in a state that the first unit and the second unit are closed with the display section facing out, and

wherein a predetermined function is allocated to a key included in the part of the operation section.

5. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first stopping mechanism for stopping the first unit and the second unit at a predetermined rotation position; and

a second stopping mechanism for stopping the first unit and the second unit in a predetermined open and close state.

6. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 5, further comprising:

a rotation energizing mechanism for energizing the first unit and the second unit from the vicinity of the predetermined rotation position to a stop state position; and

an open and close energizing mechanism for energizing the first unit and the second unit from the vicinity of the predetermined open and close state position to a stop state position.

7. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, further comprising:

a first restricting means for restricting a range of rotation of the first unit with respect to the second unit within a predetermined rotation angle range; and

a second restricting means for restricting the first unit and the second unit within a predetermined open and close angle range.

8. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 7, wherein a rotation range of the first unit is restricted within a rotation angle range from −

180°

to +180°

.

9. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof, and a secondary display section on the other side thereof.

10. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, further comprising:

a position detector for determining an open and closed state and a rotation positional relationship of the first unit and the second unit.

11. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 10, wherein the position detector comprises:

a plurality of magnetic field generators which are provided at predetermined positions within one of the first and second units;

a plurality of magnetic field detectors which are provided at predetermined positions within the other of the first and second units, corresponding to the magnetic field generators; and

a position determining section for determining a position of the first unit based on detection signals of the magnetic field detectors,

wherein said detection signals vary depending on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit.

12. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 10, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof, said terminal further comprising:

a display controller controlling the display section of an approximately rectangular shape such that a displaying mode of the display section is changed depending on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit.

13. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 12, wherein the display controller changes a direction of displayed contents on the display section such that the direction of the displayed contents matches a longitudinal direction of the second unit independently of a longitudinal direction of the display section which is one of a parallel direction and an orthogonal direction with respect to the longitudinal direction of the second unit.

14. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 12, wherein the display controller changes a direction of displayed contents on the display section such that the direction of the displayed contents matches a position of the second unit in a state that the first unit and the second unit are closed with the display section facing out.

15. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 10, further comprising:

an alert device for generating an alert for at least a call arrival by using at least one of sound, vibration, light, and the display section; and

an alert controller controlling the alert device such that, when the position detector detects that the first unit and the second unit are shifted to a normal conversation position in a state that the alert device is alerting for the call arrival, the alert controller stops an alerting by the alert device.

16. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 10, further comprising:

a call arrival and termination controller which controls the foldable portable information terminal to be off-hook when the position detector detects that the first unit and the second unit are shifted to a normal conversation position at an occurrence of an incoming call, and on-hook when the position detector detects that the first unit and the second unit are shifted from the normal conversation position to another position after the call has been terminated.

17. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof, and

wherein the first unit has a second operation section which faces out when the first unit and the second unit are closed with the display section facing out such that the second operation section can be used to perform a menu operation, an image operation, and a call arrival operation while visually confirming displayed contents on the display section.

18. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 17, wherein the second operation section comprises a touch panel provided on the display surface of the display section.

19. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 18, further comprising:

a touch panel function controller for changing a touch panel function enabled area of the touch panel on the display surface depending on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit.

20. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 17, wherein the second operation section comprises at least one operation button provided on a side surface of the first unit.

21. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein a directional operation performed by using the operation section is changed depending on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit.

22. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 21, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof, and

wherein a direction instructed by a direction indication key of the operation section is changed depending on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit, which comprises one of an open state, a rotated state, and a closed state with the display section facing out.

23. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof, and

wherein the display section stops at least one of displaying and backlighting in a state that the first unit and the second unit are closed with the display section facing in.

24. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein said first rotation axis fixedly intersects said surface of said second unit.

25. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein said movable connecting mechanism allows said first and second units to rotate in substantially parallel planes about said first rotational axis.

26. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the first unit comprises a display section on a side thereof.

27. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein the second rotation axis comprises a bracket formed on end portions thereof and fixed to the first unit.

28. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 27, wherein the bracket comprises a wing portion which is fixed to the first unit, and

wherein the wing portion is positioned inside the first unit and deviates from an extension of the second rotation axis.

29. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 28, wherein said end portion of said first rotation axis, said second rotation axis, and said bracket are disposed in said first unit.

30. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein a center portion of said second rotation axis is connected to said end portion of said first rotation axis.

31. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 1, wherein said second rotation axis is inserted through said end portion of said first rotation axis and rotatably fixed to said first rotation axis.

32. A foldable portable information terminal comprising:

a first unit;

a second unit comprising a surface having an operation section;

a movable connecting mechanism connecting the first unit and the second unit at one end thereof; and

a position detector for determining a positional relationship of the first unit and the second unit,

wherein the movable connecting mechanism comprises;

a first rotation axis which is securely and rotatably provided on said surface and substantially orthogonal to said surface, and allows the first unit to be rotated with respect to the second unit; and

a second rotation axis which is orthogonal to the first rotation axis and intersects an end portion of said first rotation axis that is distant from said second unit to axially and rotatably support the first unit.

33. The foldable portable information terminal according to claim 32, wherein the first unit comprises a display section,

wherein a displaying mode of the display section depends on a positional relationship between the first unit and the second unit, and

wherein a direction of displayed contents on the display section matches a longitudinal direction of the second unit independently of a longitudinal direction of the display section.

34. An information terminal comprising:

a first unit;

a second unit connected to said first unit and comprising an operation section; and

a movable connecting mechanism connecting the first unit and the second unit,

wherein the movable connecting mechanism comprises a biaxial hinge comprising;

a first rotation axis which is securely and rotatably provided on a surface of said second unit and substantially orthogonal to said surface; and

a second rotation axis which is orthogonal to the first rotation axis and intersects an end portion of the first rotation axis that is distant from said second unit to axially and rotatably support the first unit.

35. The information terminal according to claim 34, wherein the first unit comprises a display section.