GB2349606A

GB2349606A - Expandable three portion keyboard for notebook computer

Info

Publication number: GB2349606A
Application number: GB9916311A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Hon Hung Leung; Po Yuen Chan
Original assignee: GSL Research Technology Ltd; GSL RES TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Current assignee: GSL Research Technology Ltd; GSL RES TECHNOLOGY Ltd
Priority date: 1999-07-12
Filing date: 1999-07-12
Publication date: 2000-11-08
Anticipated expiration: 2019-07-12
Also published as: CN1148768C; TW523131U; GB9916311D0; CN1280374A; GB2349606B; HK1030278A1

Abstract

The keyboard 5 comprises three portions; a central portion 8 and two outwardly movable slidable portions 7,9 arranged either side thereof. In the operable position (Fig.10), the three portions are arranged in line, positioned side by side to form the keyboard, such that the outermost edges 10,11 of the keyboard extend beyond the confines of a lower body portion 4. In the storage position (Fig.1), the central portion is retracted to a position within the lower body portion below the level of the two portions, which in turn slide together so that their outermost edges lie flush with the sides 12,13 of the lower body portion. The portions 7,9 are urged by a spring (17,Fig.5) into their operable positions and restrained in their storage positions by a catch and lug arrangement (18,19,Fig.5). The keyboard may be included in a notebook computer such that the keyboard moves by means of a gear train (28-30,40-43,Figs.20,21) from a storage position to an operable position upon opening of the computer upper body portion 2 about a hinge 6.

Description

Expandable Keyboard The present invention relates to an expandable keyboard, in particular for a portable electronic device, for example and without limitation to foldable devices such as an electronic dictionary, electronic diary and a computer.

It is well known to provide keyboards for such devices which are one piece and of fixed width. As technology advances, however, the size of the devices is becoming limited by the size of the keyboard. Although it is possible to make the keys or buttons of the keyboard and their separation smaller in order to reduce the overall dimensions, this makes typing and operation of the keyboard more difficult.

Thus, according to the present invention there is provided an expandable keyboard comprising a housing and a plurality of keyboard portions, the keyboard portions being movable between a storage position in which they are housed substantially within the housing and an operable position in which they are arranged as a keyboard which extends in at least one dimension beyond the confines of the housing.

An advantage of the present invention is that the size of the device may be made smaller without limiting the size of the keyboard, i. e. a small device can provide a bigger keyboard for easy typing.

In one preferred embodiment, the keyboard comprises three keyboard portions. This provides a good compromise between obtaining a. compact device and keeping the number of parts and connections small enough to ensure reliability, but arrangements comprising four or more keyboard portions are also envisaged. In such an arrangement having three keyboard portions, preferably two keyboard portions are movable outwardly into an operable position and a third keyboard portion is movable into an operable position between the two outwardly movable keyboard portions. The third keyboard portion may be housed below the two outwardly movable portions to provide a compact arrangement in the storage position. When arranged as a keyboard, the edges of adjacent keyboard portions preferably contact each other. The edges need not be straight and may instead be stepped or staggered to take account of the positions of the respective keys or buttons in an arrangement where the keys are off-set from each other. Preferably the inwardly facing edges of the outwardly movable keyboard portions have edge profiles which correspond, i. e., a projection on one edge of one portion corresponds with a hollow in the edge of the other portion, rather like a set of teeth, so that the edges may abut along substantially their entire length in the storage position, in order to minimise the width of the keyboard in the storage position. The outermost edges of the outwardly movable keyboard portions are preferably aligned with the edge of the housing in the storage position, but may extend just slightly beyond this or be retracted further if desired.

Preferably the outwardly movable keyboard portions are slidable, for example, in grooves or along tracks between their storage and operable positions. Springs, such as coil or leaf springs, may be used to urge the outwardly movable keyboard portions into their operable positions and catches may be provided to lock them in their storage position.

Although the keyboard may, for example, be used as a portable keyboard which plugs into an existing device, preferably the expandable keyboard is incorporated into a portable electronic device such as an electronic dictionary, an electronic diary or a computer. Devices of this kind typically comprise two halves, for example, a first and second body portion which are hinged together, usually along a rear edge. The first portion (typically the top portion or lid), may include a screen for displaying information, while the second portion (typically the lower or bottom portion) is provided with a keyboard. In one embodiment, therefore, the first and second body portions are closed together in the storage position to house the keyboard portions and unfolded in the operable position to reveal the keyboard.

Preferably actuating means are provided so that as the first and second body portions are unfolded, the keyboard portions are moved from their storage position to their operable position. The actuating means may also reverse the process, but it may be desirable to move the keyboard portions manually. In this way, the body portion housing a screen, say, may be folded down over the keyboard when the device is not in use but not intended to be moved. In one embodiment the actuating means may comprise a gear train driven by pivotal movement of the first and second body portions about the hinge.

A slider or slide plate, which may be part of the actuating means, may be provided having a cam surface or other deflection member to guide or urge a central (third) keyboard portion or portions into the operable position and would preferably include a portion for locking the keyboard portion in its operable position.

In another embodiment, the slider or slide plate may drive further gears which rotate deflection members having cam surfaces to lift a central (third) keyboard portion or portions into the operable position, the or some of the rotatable cam surfaces preferably including a portion for locking the keyboard portion in its operable position. Four such rotatable cam surfaces are preferably provided to operate on each corner of a substantially rectangular keyboard portion since this provides a stable arrangement. Other embodiments may have fewer or more cam surfaces as desired. The cam surfaces, whether provided on sliding or rotating elements, may have a profile to cause the central keyboard portion to be lifted steadily or at a rate which varies throughout the-lift The-slider may also be used to actuate catches retaining the outwardly movable keyboard portions in their storage position, enabling them to spring outwardly under the biasing action of a spring upon release of the catch or catches.

Certain preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in greater detail by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a first embodiment of a portable device in the storage position; Figure 2 illustrates the workings of the device shown in Figure 1 from underneath (with the floor of the device cut away for reasons of clarity), with the device in the storage position; Figure 3 shows the mechanism of the device viewed from the front in the storage position; Figure 4 shows the mechanism of the device in the storage position viewed from one side; Figure 5 shows the mechanism in greater detail from above and illustrates how catches for the outwardly movable keyboard portions engage a slide plate; Figure 6 shows the device in a semi-open position; Figure 7 shows the view of Figure 2 when the device is in the semi-open position; Figure 8 shows the view of Figure 3 when the device is in the semi-open position; Figure 9 shows the same view as Figure 4 when the device is in the semi-open position ; Figure 10 shows the device in the fully open or operable position; Figure 11 shows the view of Figure 2 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 12 shows the view of Figure 3 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 13 shows the view of Figure 4 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 14 shows-the device with its keyboard fully expanded, with the upper body portion housing a screen which is folded down over the keyboard; Figure 15 is a cross sectional elevation of the device in its storage position; Figure 16 is a cross sectional elevation from the side of the device in its semi-open position; Figure 17 is a cross sectional elevation from the side of the device in its fully open or operable position; Figure 18 is a cross sectional elevation from the side of the preferred actuating mechanism; Figure 19 shows the actuating mechanism of Figure 18 viewed from the front; Figure 20 is a perspective view from above showing a second embodiment of the device in the storage position with the upper body portion and the two outwardly moveable keyboard portions omitted for reasons of clarity ; Figure 21 is a plan view of the lower body portion of the second embodiment in the storage position showing the configuration of the slide plate and gear train; Figure 22 is a side elevation of the actuating mechanism illustrated in Figure 21; Figure 23 is a plan view of the actuating mechanism in the lower body portion showing the configuration of the slide plate and gears when the device is in a semiopen position.

Figure 24 is a side elevation of the actuating mechanism illustrated in Figure 23; Figure 25 is a plan view of the actuating mechanism in the lower body portion showing the configuration of the slide plate and gears when the device is in the half-open position; Figure 26 is a side elevation of the actuating mechanism illustrated in Figure 25; Figure 27 is a plan view of the actuating mechanism in the lower body position showing the configuration of the slide plate and gears when the device is in the fully open or operable position; Figure 28 is a side elevation of the actuating mechanism illustrated in Figure 27; Figure 29 illustrates the workings of the device shown in Figure 20 from underneath (with the floor of the device omitted), with the device in the storage position; Figure 30 shows the mechanism of the device in the storage position viewed from the front; Figure 31 shows the mechanism of the device in the storage position viewed from one side; Figure 32 shows the view of Figure 29 when the device is in the semi-open position; Figure 33 shows the view of Figure 30 when the device is in the semi-open position; Figure 34 shows the view of Figure 31 when the device is in the semi-open position; Figure 35 shows the view of Figure 29 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 36 shows the view of Figure 30 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 37 shows the view of Figure 31 when the device is in the fully open position; Figure 38 shows a cross-sectional elevation of the device from one side when the device is in the storage position; Figure 39 shows the view of Figure 38 when the device is in the semi-open position; and Figure 40 shows the view of Figure 38 when the device is in the fully open position.

A portable electronic device 1 is shown in Fig. 1.

This may comprise a computer, an electronic dictionary or diary, or some other electronic device, for example, an electronic communications device or a portable device for analysing data, having a keyboard to operate it.

The device comprises an upper body portion 2 having a screen 3 (see Fig. 10) for displaying information and a lower body portion 4 housing the keyboard 5. The upper and lower body portions 2,4 are hinged together along their rear edge by hinge 6. The device illustrated in Fig. 1 is in the storage configuration with the upper body portion 2 folded down over the lower body portion 4 to close the device.

As shown in Fig. 6, the upper body portion 2 may be lifted to reveal the screen 3 by rotating it about the hinge 6. Here the device is shown in the semi-open position, and in certain circumstances and so long as the keyboard portions are properly supported in their operable positions, the user may choose to operate the device 1 in this configuration, although more usually, the user would rotate the upper body portion 2 further to the fully open position as illustrated in Fig. 10.

The keyboard 5 illustrated comprises three keyboard portions 7,8,9; a central keyboard portion 8 and two outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 arranged either side. In the operable position, the three keyboard portions 7,8,9 are arranged in line, positioned side by side to form the keyboard 5, with the outermost edges 10,11 of the keyboard extending beyond the confines of the lower body portion 4.

In the storage position, the central keyboard portion 8 is retracted to a position within the lower body portion 4 below the level of the two outwardly movable keyboard portions 7, 9, and the two outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 are moved together so that their outermost edges 10,11 lie flush with the sides 12,13 of the lower body portion 4.

If a stand-by or temporarily closed position is required, then the upper body portion 2 of the device 1 may be simply folded down over the lower body portion 4 with the keyboard still in its fully expanded configuration, as shown in Fig. 14.

The-preferred mechanism which allows the keyboard to expand and collapse will now be described in greater detail with reference to Figs. 2 to 5 which illustrate the mechanism when the keyboard 5 is in its storage position, Figs. 7 to 9 which show the mechanism when the device 1 is in the semi-open position, and Figs. 11 to 13 which show the mechanism when the device 1 is in the fully open position. Also Figs. 15 to 17 show crosssectional views through the device during each of these three stages and Figs. 18 and 19 show the preferred gear train used in the mechanism.

As can be seen in Fig. 2, housed within the confines of the lower body portion 4 is provided the three keyboard portions 7,8,9 of the keyboard 5. The outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 are guided by guide members 14,15 as they slide between the storage and operable positions. The central keyboard portion 8 is located below the level of the two outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9, in a position between them and a slide plate 16.

Fig. 4 shows the actuating mechanism in greater detail. The two outwardly movable keyboard portions are each biased outwardly by means of a spring 17 but restrained in their storage position by means of a catch 18 and lug 19 arrangement, the lug 19 being formed on the slide plate 16. Upon opening of the electronic device 1 by lifting up the upper body portion 2, the slide plate 16 with the lug 19 is moved in the direction of arrow A (to be explained in more detail below), causing the catch to release and the outwardly movable keyboard portion 7,9 to spring out into its operable position under the bias action of the spring 17. Arms 20,21 are provided to amplify the movement and guide the outwardly movable keyboard portion 7,9. Rivets 22,23 connect the arms 20,21 to a base plate 24 of one of the outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9. A catch spring 25 (see Fig. 3) is provided to bias the catch 18.

The slide plate 16 and the gear train used--to move the slide plate 16 is shown in greater detail in Fig.

18. Lever 26 is mounted for rotation about the hinge axis and has an end which is secured by means of a screw 27 (see Figs. 15 to 17) within the upper body portion 2 of the device 1, so that as the upper body portion 2 is rotated about the hinge 6, the lever 26 is simultaneously rotated. The lever 26 is provided with a toothed gear 28 (see Fig. 18), which drives an intermediate toothed gear 29, which in turn drives a further toothed gear 30. This further toothed gear 30 acts as a pinion against a rack 31 of the slide plate 16 to reciprocate the slide plate-along the direction of arrow A as the upper body portion 2 of the device 1 is open and shut. Gear housing 32 (see Fig. 19) may be provided to house the toothed gears 28,29,30 and provide support.

The slide plate 16 and the central keyboard portion 8 are provided with deflection members 33,34 which act as cam surfaces and slide past one another as the slide plate 16 reciprocates along the direction of arrow A, deflecting the central keyboard portion 8 into its raised, operable position or allowing the central keyboard portion 8 to return to its lower, storage position (see Figs. 15 to 19). The deflection members 33,34 include plateau regions 35 which engage to lock the central keyboard portion 8 in its operable position.

A support plate 36 is provided for the slide plate 16 to slide upon.

As shown in Fig. 10, the innermost edges 37,38 of the outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9, and the abutting edges of the central keyboard portion 8 may have a stepped or staggered edge to take account of the position of the keys 39. In order for the keyboard portions 7,8,9 to abut neatly together, the left hand edge 30 of the central keyboard portion 8 must have the same profile as the left hand edge (i. e., the innermost edge 38) of the right hand outwardly movable keyboard portion 9, and similarly, the right hand edge 41 of the central keyboard portion 8 must have the same profile as the right hand edge (i. e., the innermost edge 37) of the left hand outwardly movable keyboard portion 7.

From its storage configuration, in which the keyboard portions 7,8,9 are housed substantially within the confines of the lower body portion 4, the device 1 is opened by rotating the upper body portion 2 about hinge 6. At, or preferably before the 90 position illustrated in Fig. 6, due to the movement of the slide plate 16 along arrow A, the catches 18 retaining the outwardly moveable keyboard portions 7,9 release their hold from the lugs 19, allowing the outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 to spring out to their operable positions. As the upper body portion 2 is rotated further and the slide plate 16 is moved further in the direction of arrow A, the central keyboard portion 8 is urged upwardly by the cooperating deflection members 33,34 into its operable position in the gap between the two outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 (the semiopen position). As the upper body portion 2 approaches the 180 position (the fully open or operable position), the central keyboard portion 8 becomes locked in position by the plateau regions 35 of the deflection members 33,34.

Once the user has finished using the device 1, the upper body portion 2 may be folded over the lower body portion 4 as shown in Fig. 14. However, if it is desired to make the device 1 more compact for storage purposes or to enable the device to be carried without the risk of damaging the keyboard portions, then the upper body portion 2 is folded down past the 90 position to unlock the central keyboard portion 8 and to allow it to fall to its lower, storage position, perhaps with the assistance of the user's hand if necessary, and into its fully closed position. Once the device 1 is closed, the outwardly movable keyboard portions 7,9 may be pushed back manually into the lower body portion 4 where the catches 18 can secure them once more in their storage position.

A second embodiment of the device 1 will now be described with reference to Figures 20 to 40.

Figure 20 shows the second embodiment in the storage position with the upper body portion 2 and the two outwardly moveable keyboard positions 7,9 omitted.

As with the first embodiment, a lever 26 is provided which moves with the upper body portion 2 as it is pivoted about the hinge 6. This movement drives a plurality of toothed gears 28,29,30 within the gear housing 32 causing the slide plate 16 to translate back and forth as the upper body portion 2 is open and shut.

As shown in Figure 21, the slide plate 16 is provided with four racks 40 to drive further gears 41, 42,43 located generally at the corners of the central keyboard portion 8. Rotation of these further gears 41,42,43 drives four rotatable deflection members or cam surfaces 44 which raise and lower the central keyboard portion 8 via pegs 45. The deflection members 44 include a plateau region 46 for locking the central keyboard portion 8 in its operable position.

The relative movements of the slide plate 16, the gears 41,42,43 and the rotatable deflection members 44 are illustrated in Figure 23 which shows the device in a semi-open position.

While the cam surfaces of the deflection members 44 are shown as a profiled edges of a cylinder, other embodiments are envisaged such as a guiding slot or rail provided on the side of a cylindrical member which may be hollow or solid as desired. Slideable reciprocating members may also be used instead of rotatable members.

In the most basic embodiment, only a single cam surface is required, but at least three and preferably four cam surfaces are used to provide greater stability to the central keyboard portion 8.

In this embodiment, the catches 18 which retain the outwardly moveable keyboard portions 7,9 locked in their storage positions, are fixed in position (rather than moving with the outwardly moveable keyboard portions 7,9 as with the first embodiment) and latch onto lugs 19 provided on the outwardly moveable keyboard portions 7,9. The catches 18 are released by an actuating member 47 on the slide plate 16. The actuating members 47 which are arranged one on either side of the slide plate 16, also serve to guide the slide plate 16 as it reciprocates along its transverse path by sliding against webs 48. Slots 49 or rails extending along the path of the slide plate 16 may also be used in cooperation with pegs or tracks to guide the slide plate 16.

A battery housing 50 may be provided in the lower body portion 4 to house batteries 51 or other form of portable power source.

Thus, there has been disclosed a number of expandable keyboards which are able to provide a small compact electronic device with a bigger keyboard for easier typing.

Claims

Claims : 1. An expandable keyboard comprising a housing and a plurality of keyboard portions, the keyboard portions being movable between a storage position in which they are housed substantially within the housing and an operable position in which they are arranged as a keyboard which extends in at least one dimension beyond the confines of the housing.
2. A keyboard as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the operable position the keyboard portions define a keyboard having a width which is greater than the width of the housing.
3. A keyboard as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the keyboard comprises three keyboard portions.
4. A keyboard as claimed in claim 3, wherein two keyboard portions are movable outwardly into an operable position and a third keyboard portion is movable into an operable position between the two outwardly movable keyboard portions.
5. A keyboard as claimed in claim 4, wherein the third keyboard portion is housed below the two outwardly moveable portions in the storage position.
6. A keyboard as claimed in any of claims 3 to 5 wherein the outwardly moveable keyboard portions are slidable between their storage and operable positions.
7. A keyboard as claimed in any of claims 3 to 6, wherein spring means are provided to urge the outwardly moveable keyboard portions into their operable positions and catches are provided to lock them in their storage positions.
8. A keyboard as claimed in any of claims 3 to 7, wherein a slide plate is provided to move the third keyboard portion into its operable position.
9. A keyboard as claimed in claim 8, wherein translation of the slide plate moves a cam surface to deflect the third keyboard portion into its operable position.
10. A keyboard as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cam surface is integral with the slide plate and takes the form of a ramp.
11. A keyboard as claimed in claim 9, wherein the cam surface is rotatable and takes the form of a spiral surface.
12. A keyboard as claimed in claim 10 or 11, wherein the cam surface includes a portion to lock the third keyboard portion in its operable position.
13. A keyboard as claimed in claim 10,11 or 12, wherein four cam surfaces are provided.
14. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein when the keyboard portions are arranged as a keyboard, the edges of adjacent keyboard portions contact each other.
15. A keyboard as claimed in claim 14, wherein the contacting edges of the keyboard portions are stepped.
16. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the housing comprises an upper body portion and a lower body portion which are hinged together along one edge.
17. A keyboard as claimed in claim 16, wherein the lower body portion is provided with the keyboard portions and the upper body portion-is provided with a screen for displaying information.
18. An expandable keyboard substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 19 or Figures 20 to 40 of the accompanying drawings.

18. A keyboard as claimed in claim 16 or 17, in which a gear train is provided to move the keyboard portions wherein the gear train is driven by pivotal movement of the first and second body portions about the hinge.

19. A portable electronic device having an expandable keyboard as claimed in any preceding claims.

20. An expandable keyboard substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Figures 1 to 19 or Figures 20 to 40 of the accompanying drawings.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows Claims: 1. An expandable keyboard comprising a housing and three or more keyboard portions, the keyboard portions being movable between a storage position in which they are housed substantially within the housing and an operable position in which they are arranged as a keyboard which extends in at least one dimension beyond the confines of the housing, wherein to expand the keyboard into the operable position, two of the keyboard portions are movable outwardly and a third keyboard portion is movable into a position between the two outwardly movable keyboard portions.

2. A keyboard as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the operable position the keyboard portions define a keyboard having a width which is greater than the width of the housing.

3. A keyboard as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the third keyboard portion is housed below the two outwardly moveable portions in the storage position.

4. A keyboard as claimed in any of claims 1,2 or 3, wherein the outwardly moveable keyboard portions are slidable between their storage and operable positions.

5. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein spring means are provided to urge the outwardly moveable keyboard portions into their operable positions and catches are provided to lock them in their storage positions.

6. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein a slide plate is provided to move the third keyboard portion into its operable position.

7. A keyboard as claimed in claim 6, wherein translation of the slide plate moves a cam surface to deflect the third keyboard portion into its operable position.

8. A keyboard as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cam surface is integral with the slide plate and takes the form of a ramp.

9. A keyboard as claimed in claim 7, wherein the cam surface is rotatable and takes the form of a spiral surface.

10. A keyboard as claimed in claim 8 or 9, wherein the cam surface includes a portion to lock the third keyboard portion in its operable position.

11. A keyboard as claimed in claim 8,9 or 10, wherein four cam surfaces are provided.

12. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein when the keyboard portions are arranged as a keyboard, the edges of adjacent keyboard portions contact each other.

13. A keyboard as claimed in claim 12, wherein the contacting edges of the keyboard portions are stepped.

14. A keyboard as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the housing comprises an upper body portion and a lower body portion which are hinged together along one edge.

15. A keyboard as claimed in claim 14, wherein the lower body portion is provided with the keyboard portions and the upper body portion is provided with a screen for displaying information. 16. A keyboard as claimed in claim 14 or 15, in which a gear train is provided to move the keyboard portions wherein the gear train is driven by pivotal movement of the first and second body portions about the hinge.

17. A portable electronic device having an expandable keyboard as claimed in any preceding claims.