GB2271038A

GB2271038A - A telephone handset

Info

Publication number: GB2271038A
Application number: GB9319293A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Michael K Eldershaw
Original assignee: Mitel Corp
Current assignee: Microsemi Semiconductor ULC
Priority date: 1992-09-24
Filing date: 1993-09-17
Publication date: 1994-03-30
Also published as: ITMI932023A1; MX9305924A; DE4331669A1; GB9319293D0; CA2079062A1; IT1280635B1; ITMI932023A0

Abstract

A telephone handset comprises an elongate housing 1 with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a microphone and a receiver, an elastomeric mounting plate 20 snugly fitted within the elongate body, and a cover plate 15 for closing the elongate body to retain the microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in the respective recesses between the cover plate and said housing. The use of an elastomeric mounting plate simplifies assembly by eliminating mounting brackets, increases shock absorption and increases acoustic isolation. The mounting plate also includes a balance weight. <IMAGE>

Description

1 1 2271038 A TELEPHONE SET This invention relates to a telephone handset,

and a method of construction thereof.

A typical telephone set consists of a main body incorporating the telephone circuitry and a separate handset which may be connected to the main body of the telephone either by a cord or wireless communication. This invention is concerned with the construction of the handset.

Prior art handsets generally consist of a shallow elongate housing with a pair of opposed deep recesses for receiving respectively a receiver and microphone. Such a handset consists of a substantial number of parts with a consequential effect on the complexity of assembly. The handset usually consists of the main housing with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses for receiving the microphone and receiver. The microphone has to be held in place by a corresponding retaining bracket, and the same is true for the receiver. A balance weight

2 has to be fitted in the shallow recess between the microphone and receiver.

An object of the invention is to simplify the construction of the handset.

Accordingly the present invention provides a telephone handset comprising an elongate housing with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a microphone and a receiver, an elastomeric mounting plate snugly fitted within said elongate body, and a cover plate for closing said elongate body to retain said microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in said respective recesses between said cover plate and said housing.

Preferably a balance weight is moulded integrally with the elastomeric mounting plate.

By using the elastomeric mounting plate to resiliently retain the microphone and receiver in situ, the respective mounting brackets can be eliminated and the construction of the handset considerably simplified. The incorporation of the weight into the mounting plate further simplifies the construction of the handset.

The invention also provides a method of making a telephone handset comprising forming an elongate housing with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a microphone and a receiver, fitting an elastomeric mounting plate snugly within said elongate body, closing said elongate body with a cover plate to 3 resiliently retain said microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in said respective recesses between said cover plate and said housing.

The invention will now be described in more detail, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is an exploded view of a prior art handset; and

Figure 2 is an exploded view of a handset in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings, like parts bear like reference numerals.

Referring now to Figure 1, the telephone handset comprises a main elongate housing 1 with a central shallow recess la, a receiver recess lb, and a microphone recess lc at opposite ends thereof. A balance weight 2 is located in the shallow recess la between screw posts 3.

In receiver recess lb are located a rubber seal 4 and a receiver 5, retained in place by receiver mounting bracket 6, which is screwed by means of three screws 7 into corresponding holes 8 in the receiver recess lb.

A similar arrangement, consisting of rubber seal 9 and microphone mounting bracket 10, contains the microphone 11 in the microphone recess lc.

A telephone jack 12 and corresponding grommet 13 are located in a moulded recess 14 f ormed in the end of the housing 1. Once all parts have been assembled, cover plate 15 is applied to close the housing 1. The cover plate and 4 housing are either screwed, snapped, or ultrasonically welded together.

Referring to Figure 2, the elongate housing 1 and cover plate 15 have the same configuration as in Figure 1. However, the mounting plate 6 and 10 are eliminated. Instead, a mounting plate 20 made of elastomeric rubber with a balance weight 21 integrally moulded therein and having a shape complementary to the interior of the housing 1 is snugly inserteg therein. The mounting plate 20 has opposed apertures 22, 23 so that the material of the plate can be elastomerically stretched around the receiver 5 and microphone 11, which accordingly become resiliently retained in the respective apertures 22 and 23. Aperture 22 has a cylindrical protrusion 24 on the underside of the mounting plate 20 so as to completely capture and seal the receiver 5. In a preferred embodiment the elastomeric mounting plate 20 also has a recess at one end to receive the telephone jack 12 and rubber grommet 13.

Prior to final assembly, the telephone receiver 5.. microphone 11, grommet 13, and telephone jack 12 are all retained by the elastomeric mounting plate 20, which also incorporates the balance weight 2. The latter is provided for ergonomic reasons. The wires from the jack 12 can be connected to the receiver 5 and microphone 11.

On final assembly, the mounting plate complete with all the accessory components of the handset is inserted into the main housing 1 and the cover plates 15 are screwed in place. Alternatively, other attachment techniques can be used, for example snapping in place or ultrasonic welding.

The cover plate 15 slightly compresses the resilient mounting plate 20 so that the microphone and receiver are resiliently and clampingly retained in place in their respective recesses.

It will be seen that the use of the resilient mounting plate considerably reduces the number of components required to manufacture the handset and thereby substantially simplifies manufacture. The mounting brackets are entirely eliminated. Furthermore, the resilience of the mounting plate enhances the ruggedness of the final assembly by absorbing and distributing the energy of the internal components during abusive treatment.

The rubber mounting plate also acts as a barrier to enhance the acoustic separation between the microphone and receiver transducers, which is a further advantage of the described construction.

The microphone and receiver have been illustrated as being captured in apertures in the mounting plate 20. In an alternative arrangement, the microphone and receiver transducers are placed over the elastomeric rubber holder.

Claims

1. A telephone handset comprising an elongate housing with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a microphone and a receiver, an elastomeric mounting plate snugly fitted within said elongate body, and a cover plate for closing said elongate body to retain said microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in said respective recesses between said cover plate and said housing.

2. A telephone handset as claimed in Claim 1, wherein said mounting plate has a central weight integral therewith.

3. A telephone handset as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein said weight is integrally moulded with said mounting plate.

4. A telephone handset as claimed in any one of the preceding Claims, wherein said mounting plate has apertures at opposite ends thereof, and said mounting plate is resiliently stretched to capture said microphone and receiver in said respective apertures.

5. A telephone handset as claimed in any one of the 7 preceding Claims, wherein a telephone jack is mounted at one end of the mounting plate and protrudes through a corresponding recess in the end of the housing.

6. A method of making a telephone handset comprising forming an elongate housing with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a microphone and a receiver, fitting an elastomeric mounting plate snugly within said elongate body, closing said elongate body with a cover plate to resiliently retain said microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in said respective recesses between said cover plate and said housing.

7. A method as claimed in Claim 6, wherein a weight to balance said handset is integrally moulded into said mounting plate during manufacturer thereof.

8. A telephone handset substantially as described herein with reference to Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.

9. A method of making a telephone handset substantially as described herein with reference to Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.