Telephonic communications – Terminal accessory or auxiliary equipment – Support or stand
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-10
2001-11-27
Chiang, Jack (Department: 2645)
Telephonic communications
Terminal accessory or auxiliary equipment
Support or stand
C242S400000, C379S446000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06324285
ABSTRACT:
In a first aspect, this invention relates to a cradle for a handset, such as a telephone handset or remote control for electronic apparatus, and is particularly applicable to cradles for mounting in the armrests of chairs.
In the following “chair” includes all seating apparatus incorporating an arm (whether extending from a back of the chair, the seat of the chair, or both) and, for example, includes but is not limited to: seats in all modes of mass transport including aircraft, buses, rail and passenger vessels; seats in facilities for audience participation, such as theatres, arenas, lecture theatres and libraries; and seats for personal business or domestic use such as workstation chairs, and settees.
It is known to provide a cradle in the armrest of a chair, such as a seat in an aircraft, for housing a handset comprising, for example, a telephone and/or a remote controller for in-flight entertainment apparatus. Such handsets can also include call functions for the in-flight staff. A typical example is the model RU-AA6501-01 of Matsushita Electrical Industrial Company Limited of Osaka, Japan.
Conventionally such handsets sit and are cradled in a recess in an arm mounted cradle and are removable from the recess by lifting. The handset is electrically powered and connected via a cable which is housed in and may be drawn from a cable reel. The cable reel is conventionally of the ratchet type so that when the handset is lifted from the cradle the cable may be extended to a desired extent and locks in that position. To return the cable to the reel the cable is tugged to release the ratchet and then released so allowing a spring mechanism in the reel to draw the cable back into the reel.
FIG. 1
illustrates schematically the conventional arrangement of handset, cradle and reel.
FIG. 2
shows a typical arrangement with the cable reel mounted to the rear of a chair arm and
FIG. 3
shows a further typical arrangement with the cable reel mounted under the seat. The cable passes through a reinforced but flexible conduit extending from the cradle to the reel.
This conventional arrangement causes some problems.
1. In both locations of the cable reel, separate mounting of the cradle and the reel, and the need to ensure free passage for the cable between the cradle and the reel, leads to time consuming installation and servicing particularly as the cable can quickly become damaged if installation or servicing is defective.
2. Because the cable reel is remote from the cradle, cable reels have been of the above mentioned ratchet type. Many people do not understand how the ratchet mechanism works and as a consequence the handset is frequently not properly stowed leading to damage to the cable. Such incorrect stowing can contravene air safety regulations.
3. In the under seat location of
FIG. 3
there is the additional installation problem of needing to carefully route the cable in its conduit to prevent damage by the seat mechanism. The long and sometimes convoluted pathways involved can lead to high friction between the cable and its housing conduit which slows down the cable reel and again can lead to high service costs.
4. The arm mounted location of
FIG. 2
, while desirable, is difficult to engineer. Generally the seat arm is too narrow and also contains other items of “furniture” such as ash trays, audio jacks, seat adjustment controls. Further, this location generally contains arm hinging mechanisms to allow the seat arm to swing up into the seat back.
Telephones with attached cord winding devices have been previously proposed (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,242 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,241,593). However these telephones were not amenable to fitting in the arms of chairs; do not restrain the handset in the cradle; and leave wire looping in free space where it can be inadvertently caught.
It has also been proposed to provide a remote control holder for wired remote controls for domestic television apparatus and the like (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,377). The holder proposed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,377 had a shelf on which the remote controller rested and a cable reel to retract the cable when the remote was not in use. The holder of U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,377 was not amenable to fitting in the arms of chairs and did not restrain the handset in the cradle and no suggestion to do either is made in U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,377. The purpose behind U.S. Pat. No. 4,735,377 was to prevent wires looping around in the domestic environment.
shown for example in U.S. Pat. No. 5,410,597 or U.S. Pat. No. 5,155,766 it is known to provide a combined cord reel and telephone handset cradle assembly for mounting in an aircraft passenger seat back or bulkhead. However such known assemblies are too bulky for incorporation in a standard passenger seat arm.
The applicants have realised that in the chair arm context incorporating the cable reel into the cradle leads to many advantages:
1. There is no need for a protective conduit around the cable and so frictional forces do not limit the take-up of cable.
2. Installation of the cradle is simplified since only electrical (and/or optical) connections need to be made and there is no need to carefully position a mechanical pathway for the cable.
3. Since the cable reel is now adjacent the cradle it becomes feasible, if desired, to use an alternative ratchet mechanism such as a pressbutton release ratchet (see for example GB-A-2210020) which is simpler for the user to understand.
4. The combined unit is far more robust than separate cradle and reel and is less prone to damage by either the user or service personnel.
The applicants have further realised that for robust use it is advantageous to provide a manually releasable catch to secure the handset into its cradle. (In the aircraft environment there is a requirement that the cradle withstand a 16 g crash landing without releasing the handset).
Accordingly the present invention provides a cradle for housing a handset capable of connection to apparatus, the cradle including a body comprising:
a) recess adapted to releasably receive the handset in a cradled rest position;
b) a cable reel housed in the body and carrying a retractably extendible cable , the cable being connectable by a first end to the handset, such that in use removal of the handset from its cradled rest position extends the cable from the cable reel, the cable reel being biased for retraction of the cable and comprising a releasable lock to secure the cable at a required length and
c) a catch to releasably secure the handset in its cradled rest position,
characterised in that the body is adapted to be secured at least partially recessed within a chair arm with the width of the body containable in a surface of the arm no greater than 7.5 cm wide.
It should be noted that the term “cable” in this specification includes the use of optical fibres either additionally or in place of electrical conductors and, for infrared or other wireless transmission systems, include the use of a tether provided to prevent removal of the handset.
In a further aspect, the invention concerns a winding mechanism and a spool braking and release arrangement therefor, such as may be incorporated in a handset cradle having pushbutton operated cable retraction, as discussed above.
GB 2210020 shows a telephone cord windup apparatus for domestic use including a push-button operated cord retraction mechanism. Pressure must be maintained on a push-button in order to release a ratchet brake, permitting retraction of the cord under spring action.
EP 0319497 shows a push-button or pedal operated cable reel for a vacuum cleaner. Depressing the pedal releases a friction brake permitting the cable to rewind. The pedal remains latched in the depressed state until the torque provided by a rewind spring exceeds a predetermined value. Such a rewind mechanism is not suitable for telephone handsets in which the cord is restrained by the user during rewinding and therefore likely to be under relatively high tension.
The present invention further provides a winding mechanism comprising a spool rotatable in one dir
Bassil Robert
Dowsett Alan Clifford
James Neil
Aerotech IFE Limited
Chiang Jack
Kilpatrick & Stockton LLP
Putt Nora J.
Russell Dean W.
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