GB2339993A

GB2339993A - Mobile phone with user - replaceable parts.

Info

Publication number: GB2339993A
Application number: GB9816188A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Stephen Donald Telford; Michael Paul Cooke
Original assignee: NEC Technologies UK Ltd
Current assignee: NEC Technologies UK Ltd
Priority date: 1998-07-25
Filing date: 1998-07-25
Publication date: 2000-02-09
Anticipated expiration: 2018-07-25
Also published as: GB2339993B; GB9816188D0

Description

2339993 Mobile phone with user-replaceable parts This invention relates to

mobile phones and in particular it relates to mobile phones with removable parts such as escutcheons, panels or housings.

In the prior art there are many descriptions of phones with parts removable for replacement by parts configured differently for cosmetic or security reasons. Some background publications are GB 2 293 517 and GB 2 318 476 assigned to Motorola Inc. and US 5 768 370 to Nokia.

A replacement part must be attached firmly in place in order to withstand the shocks and vibrations to which mobile phones are normally subjected in common use. There is also a requirement that the replacement part be removable easily and quickly by the user of the phone. The prior art arrangements for attachment and removal of the replacement parts have not been completely successful in reconciling these two conflicting requirements.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improvement over the prior art for mobile phones with user-replaceable parts and in particular to provide an improvement in the means for attachment and release of the replaceable parts.

2 According to the invention there is provided a mobile phone having a userremovable part, said removable part being releasably attached to a housing of the phone by attachment means with said attachment means being released from attachment to the housing by the operation of a tool, said tool fabricated and shaped specifically for the purpose of releasing said attachment means from attachment to the housing.

The invention may be extended to accommodate the attachment of one removable part of the phone to another removable part of the phone and the attachment of one or other removable parts to the housing of the phone.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a mobile phone having first and second user-removable parts, said first removable part being releasably attached to said second removable part by attachment means with said attachment means being released from attachment to the second removable part by the operation of a tool, said tool fabricated and shaped specifically for the purpose of releasing said attachment means from attachment to the second removable part.

Tools fabricated and shaped specifically for the purpose of releasing the attachment means need not necessarily be limited to that function.

3 One example of the invention will now be described with reference to the figures in which like reference numerals identify identical elements and wherein:

figure I illustrates a phone with a removable panel, figure 2 is a crosssectional view along A A of figure 1, figure 3 is a cross-sectional view along B B of figure 1, figure 4 illustrates the use of a tool for release of an attachment clip, figure 5 shows a peg, figure 6 shows an attachment clip, figure 7 shows a replacement front panel with tool, figure 8 shows a tool for panel removal, With reference to figure 1, a mobile phone is shown generally at 1 and the mobile phone has a main housing 2. The main housing 2 is commonly formed ftom two main parts, an upper part and a lower part attached by screws or clips which are intended to be available for servicing purposes. The telephone user is not expected or encouraged to attempt to remove the screws or clips holding the two parts of the main housing together.

In this example the user-removable part of the phone is the panel 3. Panel 3 is releasably attached to housing 2 by means of pegs and a spring clip, infra. The purpose of replacing panel 3 with another panel may be purely for cosmetic reasons such as to obtain a particular colour or surface finish. Alternatively panel 3 may be exchanged to assist with identification of a particular phone or group of phones.

4 In the following description, to avoid prolixity, the removable panel and the replacement panel should be considered as identical items save for the attachment of a tool to the replacement panel.

The panel 3 is not a part of the housing 2 but fits into a recess of housing 2 and is attached to housing 2 by means of pegs 10 and clip 11. The thickness of panel 3 is small in relation to the panel's length and breadth. Apertures in panel 3 allow access by the user to the display 4 and to the keys of the keypad 7.- A replacement panel 12 formed as a plastic moulding is shown in figure 7. The spring clip attachment means 11 is integral with the replacement panel 12. In this example the tool 5 for use in operating the attachment means has been fabricated with and as an appendage to the replacement panel 12 moulding. The tool 5 remains attached to panel 3 via frangible sprue 6 which is also formed in the moulding process. The tool 5 may be supplied as a separate item as part of a replacement kit for the removable panel 3. An aperture for the display 4 is shown at 8 in figure 7 and apertures for the keys of the keypad 7 are shown at 9 in figure 7.

The attachment of tool 5 to replacement panel 12 via sprue 6 should be sufficiently strong to.withstand the packing and delivery processes but tool 5 should also be easily detachable from the panel by the user. On receipt of the replacement panel 12 the user detaches tool 5 from the replacement panel and inserts the tool 5 into clip 11 at the edge of panel 3 as shown in figure 4. When tool 5 is inserted fully into clip 11, tool 5 is rotated and the radial part 13 of tool 5 acts as a fulcrum point and provides stability. Rotation of tool 5 depresses and releases clip 11 and thereby allows panel 3 to be detached from the phone housing 2 and simply removed.

In order to attach the replacement panel 12 to housing 2, the pegs 10 of replacement panel 12 are placed in position in housing 2 and replacement panel 12 is then pushed toward housing 2. Once pegs 10 are located, finger pressure at the top of replacement panel 12 (in the region of clip 11) will force clip 11 to snap into position and bear against the underside of housing 2 as shown in figure 2. When clip 11 has snapped into position pegs 10 also bear against the underside of housing 2. Following the replacement of the panel, the tool 5 may be discarded, recycled or saved by the user.

Use of tool operated attachment means allows relatively strong spring clips to be employed and makes damage to the replacement panel during the replacement process far less likely than for prior art solutions. Faster and more convenient replacement is also made available to the user.

Provision of a single tool capable of operating all attachment means would usually be the most convenient arrangement but for some applications a plurality of tool shapes may be preferred. Replacement of a hinged keypad cover may for example require a more complicated tool than would normally be required for the replacement of a removable panel.

The tool referred to above may take the form of a key and the attachment means may be a locking mechanism. The key would then be inserted into the locking mechanism and turned by the user to release a removable part and to lock into place a replacement part.

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Claims

1. A mobile phone having a user-removable part, said removable part being releasably attached to a housing of the phone by attachment means with said attachment means being released from attachment to the housing by the operation of a tool, said tool fabricated and shaped specifically for the purpose of releasing said attachment means from attachment to the housing

2. A mobile phone having first and second user-removable parts, said first removable part being releasably attached to said second removable part by attachment means with said attachment means being released from attachment to the second removable part by the operation of a tool, said tool fabricated and shaped specifically for the purpose of releasing said attachment means.

3. A mobile phone as in claims 1 or 2 where the said attachment means is a spring clip.

4. A mobile phone as in claim 3 where the spring clip attachment means is integral with said removable part.

5. A replacement kit for a removable part of a mobile phone as in claims 1 to 4 said replacement kit including a tool for releasing an attachment means for said removable part.

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6. A mobile phone as in any previous claim where a tool for releasing said attachment means is produced as an appendage of a replacement part for a removable part.

7. A mobile phone as in claims 1, 2, 5 or 6 where said tool is a key.

8. A mobile phone as in claims 1, 2, 5 or 7 where said attachment means is a locking mechanism.