Apparatus for informing a user of predetermined condition by...

Communications: electrical – Systems – Nonselective paging

Reexamination Certificate

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Details

C340S407100

Reexamination Certificate

active

06317032

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an apparatus for portable equipment such as a cellular phone, a beeper, or a portable electronic device having a timer function, in particular, an apparatus for informing a user of predetermined incoming information such as a call or a set time by vibrations.
2. Description of the Related Art
A cellular phone with a vibrator function is well known. The phone serves to inform its holder of an incoming call not only by tone but also by vibrations of the phone housing.
The cellular phone includes a motor (vibrator) attached in a housing and having an eccentric weight. The eccentric weight has a center of gravity deviated from a rotary shaft of the motor by a predetermined distance. Thus, the vibrator function is achieved as follows. First, the rotation of the motor in one direction in response to an incoming call rotates the eccentric weight in the circumferential direction of a predetermined radius about the rotary shaft. Therefore, the housing to which a stator of the motor is attached receives the reaction force generated by the movement of the eccentric weight to forceably vibrate itself. Then, the vibration can directly propagate to a user to inform him/her of the incoming call. The vibrator function is suitable when the user wants to perceive an incoming call without troubling adjacent people with the sound tone.
To enable the user of the cellular phone to sense the vibration of the housing of the cellular phone to perceive the incoming call, he/she has to always hold the cellular phone in such a manner that a part of his/her body is in contact with the housing. When the user leaves the cellular phone on a table or away from his/her body, and when the cellular phone vibrates the housing in response to an incoming call, the cellular phone may experience substantial movement due to the vibration from the original position on the table. As a result, the phone may sometimes drop from the table.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In order to overcome the above problems, a main object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for informing a user of the reception of predetermined information by means of the vibration, which can stay within only a predetermined area from the original position upon receiving an incoming call.
According to one aspect of the invention, the present invention features an apparatus for vibrating itself to inform a user of the reception of predetermined information. The apparatus comprises a housing, a motor attached to a housing, a shaft rotatably driven by the motor, and means for rotating the shaft to vibrate the housing, wherein the means for rotating rotates said shaft in forward and reverse directions alternately at predetermined intervals in response to the reception. Therefore, when the apparatus receives predetermined incoming information such as a call, the shaft then rotates in forward and reverse directions alternately at predetermined intervals to vibrate the housing, thereby informing a user of the reception of the predetermined information.
Even when the apparatus is left on a table without being directly held by the user, the housing is subjected to forces generated by rotating the shaft in forward and reverse directions alternately at predetermined intervals. Thus, the apparatus can stay on the table while vibrating around an original position on which the apparatus is positioned. As a result, the apparatus is protected from substantial movement from the original position.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5175459 (1992-12-01), Danial et al.
patent: 5436622 (1995-07-01), Gutman et al.
patent: 5619181 (1997-04-01), Murray
patent: 5668423 (1997-09-01), You et al.
patent: 5903071 (1999-05-01), Miyasaka et al.

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