Back cover for a mobile phone

Telephonic communications – Terminal – Housing or housing component

Reexamination Certificate

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Reexamination Certificate

active

06563927

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a cover for a mobile phone and in particular a back cover for a mobile phone.
Back covers are typically used in mobile phones to keep the battery cell in position. The cover may house the battery or the battery may be housed in the phone itself.
It is desirable for the cover to easily attach to a phone and to be securely fastened thereto. It is preferable for a user to be able to detach and attach the cover so that the battery can be replaced. Current back covers for mobile phones are carefully designed to fulfill these functions. For example in the NOKIA 6110 handset, the back cover contains a sprung latch mechanism. A spring loaded ‘bolt’ extends from each side of the cover. When the cover is attached to the phone the bolts are forced to retract opening a latch. The bolts extend when the cover is slid into its final position closing the latch. The bolts prevent the cover being removed from the phone. A button on the back of the cover is coupled to the bolts. When the button is depressed the bolts retract opening the latch and allowing the cover to be removed.
GB 2,224,5595 and GB 2,285,657 describe battery housings for removable attachment to a mobile phone body. Each housing has a latch including a catch on its interior and a pushable portion on its exterior. The catch engages a pocket in the body of the phone and holds the housing in place. Pushing the exterior portion causes a cantilevered torsion beam to rotate and the catch to be retracted from the pocket. This allows the removal of the housing. The latch mechanism is integrally connected to the housing via both ends of the torsion bar but is otherwise detached from the housing. The torsion bar has the pushable portion and the catch extending therefrom in opposite directions. The catch towards the centre of the housing and the pushable portion towards the edge of the housing. GB 2,285,657 additionally describes the use of an angled surface at the leading portion of the catch and a correspondingly angled surface adjacent the pocket in the phone body. When the cover is attached to the body by sliding movement the surfaces cooperate to force the catch “up and over” into the pocket.
It would be desirable to produce a simple cover which functions well. However, moving the sprung components from the cover into the phone is undesirable as it uses up room in the phone.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a cover, for attachment to a mobile phone, comprising: an elongate body having an outer surface exposed on attachment to said phone and inner surfaces comprising guiding surfaces; and lockable restraining means arranged to co-operate with corresponding restraining means of the phone on said movement of the cover with respect to the phone along said guiding surfaces, said lockable restraining means preventing substantial movement of the body with respect to the phone, during said co-operation, in said lengthwise direction, wherein said lockable restraining means comprises a resilient, outwardly flexible member defining a part of said body's outer surface, the member being arranged to resiliently flex and form a user releasable locking engagement with the corresponding restraining means of the phone on said movement of the cover with respect to the phone along said guiding surfaces and arranged to be pulled outwards by the user to release said locking engagement.
According to another aspect of the present invention there is provided a mobile phone, having a cover attached thereto, said cover comprising: an elongate body having an outer surface exposed on attachment to said phone and inner surfaces comprising first and second guiding surfaces; and lockable restraining means arranged to co-operate with corresponding restraining means of the phone on said movement of the cover with respect to the phone along said guiding surfaces, and thereby preventing substantial movement of the body with respect to the phone in said lengthwise direction, wherein said lockable restraining means of the cover or the corresponding restraining means of the phone comprises a resilient, outwardly flexible member arranged to resiliently flex and form a user releasable locking engagement between the lockable restraining means and the corresponding restraining means on the phone on said movement of the cover with respect to the phone along said guiding surfaces and arranged to be pulled outwards by the user.
The cover is lightweight and the locking mechanism is simple and small. The use of the cover therefore has weight and space advantages.
The member is preferably positioned at the edge of the body. The member may extend from the edge of the cover and form a cantilever. The member is preferably located in a symmetric position at the edge of the cover. The member is preferably integral with the cover.
The cover may be one-piece. Preferably the cover is formed from injection moulded plastics. Consequently the cover has no internal components such as springs or levers and is very easy to manufacture.
The resilient flexibility of the member preferably arises in part or in whole from the deformation of the cover. The cover is preferably held at its lateral edges to the phone while the member is pulled by the user. This outward force applied to the cover through the member causes the cover to bow about its lengthwise axis as its lateral edges are held.
The resilient flexibility of the member preferably arises in part or in whole from the flexibility of the cantilevered member about is point of attachment to the body.
Holes, cut-outs or apertures are not required in the back of the cover to provide for the flexibility of the member, which may improve the phone's water resistance.
The flexible member may have a face for abutment, substantially perpendicular to said lengthwise direction, forming a part of said inner surfaces. This face abuts with a corresponding face defined by the phone, which is also substantially perpendicular to the lengthwise direction. This face and the corresponding face prevent substantial movement of the body with respect to the phone and form part of the user releasable locking engagement.
The flexible member may have a camming surface, forming a part of said inner surfaces. The camming surface is arranged to co-operate with a corresponding camming surface of the phone such that on movement of the cover in a lengthwise direction to attach the cover to the phone, the guiding surfaces co-operate to force said member to flex.
The camming and abutting surfaces on the flexible member are preferably adjacent and preferably form surfaces on a protrusion from the underside of the flexible member. The phone then has a corresponding recess with the corresponding abutting surface forming part of the recess and the corresponding guiding surface positioned adjacent said recess. On movement of the cover in a lengthwise (upwards) direction, the projection and flexible member ride up and over the corresponding camming surface. The resilient member springs back to its non-flexed position placing the protrusion in the recess. Movement of the cover in a downward direction urges the abutting surface and corresponding abutting surface together. A locking arrangement is thus formed in which the projection forms a tenon and the recess forms a mortice.
The phone may be provided with a depression on its back surface adjacent the recess. A user may then unlock the lockable restraining means by placing a fingernail under the flexible member, flexing the member in an outwards direction and simultaneously urging the cover in the downwards direction. The member may extend from one edge of the body. Preferably the member extends from the top edge of the body; ‘top’ being defined by the direction of the upwards sliding movement of the cover with respect to the phone to form said user releasable locking engagement.
The lockable restraining means may comprise third and fourth restraining means positioned with lengthwise separation, said fourth

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