Electricity: battery or capacitor charging or discharging – Cell or battery charger structure
Reexamination Certificate
2002-04-30
2004-10-19
Tibbits, Pia (Department: 2838)
Electricity: battery or capacitor charging or discharging
Cell or battery charger structure
C348S372000, C396S301000, C396S539000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06806681
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to battery holders and more particularly to increased capacity battery holders.
2. Background Art
Devices requiring portable power sources typically have compartments for housing batteries, battery packs, or battery holders, the battery packs or battery holders having batteries therein. Energy supplied to the devices, and, thus, the time durations that the devices may perform, without battery replacement and/or battery recharging, is typically limited to the batteries that are capable of being incorporated into the compartments within the devices and the energy densities of the batteries.
Designers and users of the devices usually prefer the devices to be available for long time durations, with minimal recharging and minimal resultant down times. However, the users in many cases do not have any options, but to replace or to recharge the batteries, the battery holders, or the battery packs, during critical periods, as a result of insufficient battery capacity for the tasks at hand. This results in undesirable and unnecessary down times, the batteries, battery holders, or the battery packs limiting use of the devices to the energy stored in the batteries within the battery compartments, and operating the devices only for time durations allowed by the energy densities of the batteries and the volume restrictions of the compartments within the devices.
Removable batteries, battery packs, and battery holders may be carried or stored while not installed in the devices from time to time, giving rise to the possibility that the batteries may be inadvertently shorted or the intended polarity of one or more cells reversed, thus, damaging the devices, and/or the batteries, and/or creating other safety implications in which exposed cell contacts may be shorted or polarity reversed in potentially dangerous environments.
An increased capacity battery holder, which allows a device to be used for a longer time duration than can be achieved from solely internally contained batteries, without recharging, replacement of the batteries, or connection to an external power source, is necessary. The battery holder should be capable of providing additional energy to the device, beyond internal space and volume limitations of the device. The battery holder may have additional battery holding capacity external to the device, but any additional battery holding capacity should be self contained within the battery holder. The battery holder should be safe and easy to use, and provide maximum energy output, with minimal damage to the batteries, during use, installation, transportation, and storage. The battery holder should be lightweight, transportable, durable, sturdy, long lasting, easy to use and handle, a portion of the battery holder being matingly removably attachable thereto the device, and optionally removably lockable to the device. The battery holder should also be simple, effective, quickly and easily accessible, of simple construction, easy to install and remove therefrom the device, require no assembly or minimal assembly, act as an additional means for holding and/or handling the device, and should be capable of forming an integral assembly with the device one with the other. The battery holder should have means for preventing inadvertent shorting and/or reversing polarity of the batteries, and optionally recharging means for recharging the batteries.
Different battery holders, associated accessories, connection devices, and safety devices have heretofore been known. However, none of the battery holders, accessories, connection devices, and safety devices alone or in combination adequately satisfies these aforementioned needs.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,169,857 (Kaneko) discloses a camera system including a camera, and an accessory to be secured to the camera, by means of a screw to an upper surface of the accessory and a threaded hole formed on a bottom surface of the camera. A portion of the accessory inserts thereinto the camera, and another portion of the accessory has a battery therein. At least first and second circuits are respectively provided in the camera and the accessory. First and second connectors, each of which are electrically connected to the first circuit, are provided on the bottom surface of the camera. The first and second connectors are arranged at opposite portions, with respect to the threaded holes on the bottom surface of the camera. Third and fourth connectors to be respectively connected to the first and second connectors are provided on the upper surface of the accessory. Each of the third and fourth connectors, which are electrically connected to the second circuit, are arranged at portions corresponding to the first and second connectors.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,325,143 (Kawano) discloses an adapter for a camera, having a mounting device for detachably mounting the adapter to the bottom of a camera, a release switch, a release signal transmitting device for releasing a shutter of the camera, in accordance with the operation of the release switch, and a battery.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,041,514 (Johnson) discloses a camera having a recess in an exterior surface thereof and a battery assembly having mounting structure adapted to be slidably received by the recess, for attaching the battery assembly to the camera to provide a source of energy for operating various components of the camera.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,654,870 (Havener) discloses a battery compartment for use with an electrical device having a circuit, which is powered by one or more batteries. The electrical device has a housing for substantially housing the circuit and a surface with an aperture therethrough. Each battery has first and second terminals. The battery compartment includes a slidable drawer for insertion through the housing aperture and receipt of the battery, a plurality of connectors for electrical connection to the battery's terminals, and a plurality of conductors to eclectically connect the connectors to the device's circuit. The drawer is movable between an open position exposing at least a portion of interior of the drawer, and a closed position. Electrical connection of the batteries to the circuit is maintained, whether the door is in the open or closed position.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,105 (Kawamura) discloses a video camera having a built-in secondary battery, a terminal used for connection with an external power source, and a main switch for controlling the supply of electric power to a circuit provided for a control system, and a signal processing system. The video camera is arranged, such that the circuit is connected to the built-in secondary battery or to the external power source, when the main switch is closed, and the built-in secondary battery can be connected to the external power source when the main switch is open.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,784,105 (4,409,645 Sloan) discloses a combination flashlight and auxiliary power pack, which accommodates spent instant photography film cartridges, and which includes a substantially flat battery. A battery and electrical carrier subassembly are accommodated within a housing, which serves as a covering shell, and does not have any of components of the device depending therefrom.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,225,777 (Garcia et al) discloses a latching mechanism for a removable cell battery pack. The latching mechanism includes a first member having a first catch, lateral catches, and a second member having a notch and lateral catches. In a first position, the first catch of the first member engages the notch of the second member. In a second position, the lateral catches of the first member engage the lateral catches of the second member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,146,682 (Nakao) discloses a battery case holding mechanism, comprising an engaging means for engaging a battery case, which is detachably inserted into a concave formed in a body of an electric apparatus, and is biased so as to be detached from the concave, and disengagement preventing means, which is actuated when the engaging means oper
Cheiky Michael
Nimocks Robert B.
Jacobs Marvin E.
Tibbits Pia
Zinc Matrix Power, Inc.
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