JP2002281143A - Mobile telephone - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a mobile telephone which is more adaptable to user's needs in light emitting modes and makes better notification to the user of the arrival of a call, or the like. SOLUTION: A light-emitting device 8 is electrically connected to a control board 4 and is disposed in a lower part inside the mobile telephone 1. A cover 10 is set in an opening 9, formed at a place corresponding to the light-emitting device 8. The cover 10 is formed of a transparent or translucent resin material or the like, and light emitted from the light-emitting device 8 is radiated in a specified direction to the outside. The light emitting device 8 is controlled for its light emission by a control section of the control substrate 4. For example, light is emitted in a linkage with the arrival of a signal, etc., and light emission is stopped, in linkage with conversation finish signal, etc. Since the light from the light-emitting device 8 is radiated in a specified direction, the adaptability to various needs of the user in light emitting modes is increased. For example, the notification is enhanced for the user to find visually the arrival of a call more easily, while at the same time, sense of play or the like is produced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] The present invention relates to a portable telephone. More specifically, the present invention relates to improvement of a light emitting function of a mobile phone.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, portable telephones have become widespread. In such portable telephones, for example, in order to visually notify an incoming call or to facilitate operation in a dark place, light is emitted inside the portable telephone. Element is provided, and light emitted from the light emitting element is transmitted to the outside of the mobile phone through an information display portion for displaying incoming information, transmission information, and other various information, an operation button portion for inputting various information, and the like. There is something like that.

[0003]

By the way, the demands of diversifying users for mobile phones are various, and accordingly, the diversification of light emission modes is also required, and on the other hand, the notification of incoming calls is further improved. It is also needed to increase.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a portable telephone which diversifies the light emission mode and further improves the visual notification of incoming calls and the like.

[0005]

According to the present invention, there is provided a portable telephone according to the first aspect of the present invention, wherein the light emitting element is provided in the portable telephone, the light emission of which is controlled by a control unit, and the light emitted from the light emitting element. Transmission means for transmitting light in a specific direction;
It was comprised.

According to this configuration, light can be emitted in a specific direction outside the mobile phone, so that adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode can be enhanced. For example, since light can be applied to the user's cheeks and mouth during a call or the like, it is possible to satisfy the user's requirements regarding appearance, design, and the like, and to achieve effects such as playfulness. In addition, as a result of irradiating in a specific direction, visual recognition is enhanced, and accordingly, notification of an incoming call is enhanced.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the light transmitted through the transmitting means is configured to project a predetermined shape.

With this configuration, it is possible to further increase the adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the transmitting means is detachable from the portable telephone.

With this configuration, for example, the user himself / herself can select the light emission mode according to his / her own needs, so that the adaptability (degree of freedom) to the user's needs regarding the light emission mode can be further enhanced. Become.

[0011] In the invention according to claim 4, the transmitting means includes a member that easily transmits light and a member that does not easily transmit light, and the light is transmitted through the member that does not easily transmit light. Is configured to limit the transmission area.

With this configuration, for example, it is possible to relatively easily change only the specific direction and the shape projected by the transmitted light while keeping the outer shape of the transmitting means constant. Therefore, it is possible to increase the degree of freedom in changing the specific direction and the shape projected by the transmitted light while having a simple and inexpensive configuration.

[0013] The invention according to claim 5 is characterized in that the specific direction is a direction in which a cheek or mouth of a user (user) is irradiated during a call. According to such a configuration, by irradiating light to the user's cheeks, mouth, and the like during a call or the like, it is possible to satisfy the user's requirements regarding appearance, design, and the like, and to achieve playfulness and the like.

By the way, the specific direction can be configured to be changeable, so that the adaptability (degree of freedom) to the needs of the user regarding the light emission mode can be further enhanced.

Further, when the portable telephone includes a plurality of light-emitting elements, at least one light-emitting element can transmit light in a specific direction through the transmission means. According to this configuration, the light emitted from the at least one light emitting element is transmitted directly to the specific direction outside the mobile phone through the transmission unit, so that an incoming call is visually notified or an operation in a dark place is performed. Even if a mobile phone is provided with a plurality of light-emitting elements for ease of use, etc., the light emitted from these light-emitting elements and distinguished from the light leaking outside the mobile phone is Light can be transmitted and extended in a specific direction outside the telephone.

Further, it is preferable that the intensity of the light transmitted through the transmitting means is higher than the intensity of other light transmitted to the outside of the mobile phone.
The distinction can be further clarified. Further, the directivity of the light emitted from the at least one light emitting element can be made stronger than the directivity of the light emitted from the other light emitting elements, and the configuration further clarifies the distinction. It becomes possible.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a portable telephone 1 according to the present embodiment.
It is a front view showing the appearance of. As shown in FIG. 2, the casing 2 of the mobile phone 1 includes a front casing 2a and a back casing 2b.
The control board 4 functioning as a control unit is disposed while being fixed in the interior surrounded by a and the back casing 2b. The control board 4 includes a liquid crystal display device 5 as an information display unit for displaying incoming information, transmission information and other various information,
A button switch 6a interlocking with the operation button 6 for inputting various information, a light emitting element 7 (see FIG. 1), and the like are connected as in the related art.

The light-emitting element 7 is the same as the conventional one. For example, various light-emitting diodes such as red, green, blue, and yellow can be used to notify an incoming call and to provide visibility and operation in a dark place. In order to improve the properties and the like, for example, through a surface cover of the liquid crystal display device 5 or an operation button 6 or the like made of a transparent or translucent (including colored) resin-based material or the like, It is arranged so that light leaks outside.

In this embodiment, a light emitting element 8 is provided in addition to the light emitting element 7. The light emitting element 8
While being electrically connected to the control board 4, it is disposed inside the lower part of the mobile phone 1 surrounded by the front casing 2a and the rear casing 2b. However, such a light emitting element 8
May be located inside the mobile phone 1, and is not limited to the lower side.

On the other hand, the front casing 2a is provided with an opening 9 which is opened corresponding to the position where the light emitting element 8 is provided. A cover member 10 is fitted and held in the opening 9. As shown as an example in FIG. 5, the cover member 10 is configured to be detachable so that it can be inserted into and removed from a side surface (a left-right side surface or a lower side surface) of the mobile phone 1, or the outer surface of the cover member 10. By interposing a flexible member such as rubber between the inner surface of the opening 9 and the opening 9 by utilizing the flexibility of the cover member 10 and further providing an uneven engagement or the like. The mobile phone 1 may be configured to be detachably fitted to the unit 9 from the front side of the mobile phone 1.

The cover member 10 functions as a transmission means according to the present invention, and is made of a transparent or translucent (including colored) resin-based material or the like. Of the mobile phone can be transmitted directly to a specific direction outside the mobile phone. The cover member 10 can be provided with a pattern such as a rainbow color or a camouflage color.

By the way, the light emitting element 8 includes, for example,
Various light-emitting diodes such as red, green, blue, and yellow can be used. In the case where a single light-emitting element 8 is provided, a light-emitting element having a higher light emission intensity or light diffusion than the light-emitting element 7 is used. It is also possible to use one having a high directivity in which is suppressed. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, a plurality of light emitting elements 8 can be provided in parallel, and light emitted from the plurality of light emitting elements 8 can be transmitted from a single cover member 10 to the outside. . In this case, for example, it is possible to apply a predetermined color to the cover member 10 so as to correspond to each light emitting element 8,
It is also possible to make the emission colors of the respective colors different. Also, a separate and independent cover member 1 corresponding to each light emitting element 8 is provided.
It is also possible to adopt a configuration in which a plurality of 0s are provided. Note that FIG.
Although a plurality of units are provided in the horizontal direction, a plurality of units may be provided in the vertical direction.

The light emitting element 8 is controlled to emit light (energized) by a control unit of the control board 4. For example, the light emitting element 8 emits light in response to an incoming signal, or an operation start signal of the operation button 6 (power-on signal or on-hook signal). ) To start firing,
The power supply is stopped and the light emission is stopped in conjunction with a call end signal (on-hook signal) or the like. More specifically,
For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the user operates the operation button 6 to go off-hook (for example, when making a call, receiving a call, sending mail or other information, or sending mail or other information through an information office). When a start button for instructing the start of the operation is turned on, for example, when receiving the information of the user, an off-hook signal is input to the control unit as an energization start signal, and the control unit inputs the off-hook signal. Accordingly, predetermined processing for a call or the like is started in accordance with the button operation of the user, and energization of the light emitting element 8 is started.

The timing of starting the energization of the light-emitting element 8 can be set arbitrarily. The energization can be started when the communication connection with the communication partner is started, or the foldable portable device as shown in FIG. In the case of the telephone 1, the power supply is started when the folded state is released, or the cover 1 as shown in FIG.
In the case of the cover-equipped mobile phone 1 provided with the power supply 1, the power supply can be started when the cover 11 is opened.

Then, when an energization stop signal such as an on-hook signal or a power-off signal for notifying the end of a predetermined process such as a telephone call by a user is input to the control unit, the control unit responds to the energization stop signal to the light emitting element 8. The light emission of the light emitting element 8 is stopped immediately or after a predetermined time has elapsed.

However, since some users do not like the light emitting function, a light emitting function stop command can be given to the control unit of the control board 4 via the operation of the operation button 6 or a switch (not shown). Thus, it is also possible to provide a light emission stop function. Further, in the light emitting element 8, the operation amount of the light emitting element 8 is controlled by operating the operation button 6 or a volume switch (not shown) via the control unit, and the light emitting degree of the light emitting element 8 can be arbitrarily set. Can be configured to be adjustable.

As described above, the light-emitting element 8 emits light when the current supply to the light-emitting element 8 is started, but the light emitted from the light-emitting element 8 according to this embodiment is transmitted through the cover member 10 in a specific direction. Therefore, compared with the light emitted from the light emitting element 7 and transmitted to the outside, a strong light is irradiated in a specific direction. Such characteristics become more conspicuous by using a light emitting element 8 having a relatively high light emission intensity or directivity.

Therefore, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to enhance the adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, while the user is talking, the user's cheek,
It is possible to illuminate a specific part such as a lip, etc., thereby satisfying the user's requirements regarding appearance, design, and the like, and achieving a playfulness and the like. Further, since the light irradiation direction is specified (concentrated), the light intensity or the directivity is increased, and as a result, the visual recognition is enhanced, so that, for example, the notification of an incoming call can be promoted.

In the above embodiment, the light emitting element 8
It has been described that a light emitting element or a light emitting element having a relatively high directivity can be adopted as the light emitting element. However, for example, when it is necessary to maintain low power consumption or the like, the light emitting element 8 is the same as the light emitting element 7. On the other hand, the cover member 10 may have a lens structure having a high light-collecting property, or a member functioning as a reflecting mirror may be provided on the back surface of the light emitting element 8 or the like.

Further, the cover member 1 according to the present embodiment
For 0, various shapes can be adopted as the shape of the light transmitting portion.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 5, 6 and 8,
The shape of the light transmitting region 10a of the cover member 10 is not made by making the entire front side of the cover member 10 transparent or translucent, but by making only a part transparent or translucent (by combining different materials or Various shapes such as star shape, heart shape, flower shape, character shape, character shape such as initials and name (see FIG. 8), etc. (by coating with a material that does not easily transmit light) It can be. With this configuration, while the outer shape of the cover member 10 is kept constant, the cross-sectional shape of the light irradiated according to the shape of the light transmitting region and thus the projected shape can be made various shapes. In addition, it is possible to enhance the adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode while having a low-cost configuration. In this case, it is needless to say that an appropriate color can be given to the light transmitting region.

In particular, the detachable structure of the cover member 10,
That is, adoption of a configuration that can be exchanged according to the user's preference makes it possible to further enhance adaptability to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode. In this case, a plurality of kinds of cover members 10 (or a plurality of kinds of covering members) can be attached as a set when selling the mobile phone 1 or distributed to the market separately from the mobile phone 1.

For example, as shown in FIG. 9, a case 20 is provided so as to be pivotable (or by a spherical surface) with respect to the casing 2, and the light emitting element 8 is provided in the case 20. A transparent or translucent cover member 10 may be detachably attached to the front side of the case 20. Note that even in such a case, the cover member 1
The shape of the light-transmitting region of 0 is not formed by making the entire front side of the cover member 10 transparent or translucent, but by making only a part transparent or translucent (a combination of different materials or light is difficult to transmit). Needless to say, various shapes such as a star shape, a heart shape, a flower shape, a character shape, a character shape, etc. can be formed as required according to requirements.

In this way, the direction of irradiation of the light emitted from the light emitting element 8 can be adjusted, so that the adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emitting mode can be further improved.

[0036]

As described above, according to the present invention,
The adaptability (degree of freedom) to various needs of the user regarding the light emission mode can be increased. For example, it is possible to illuminate a specific part such as the user's cheek, mouth, etc., while the user is talking, to satisfy the user's demands for appearance, design, etc., and to produce playfulness etc. Can be. On the other hand, the visual recognition can be improved, so that, for example, the notification of the incoming call can be further improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of a mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a part of a cross section taken along line XX of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing an example of a cover member according to the embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram for explaining energization control of a light emitting element by a control unit according to the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the appearance of another example of a mobile phone (a foldable mobile phone).

FIG. 6 shows another example of a mobile phone (a mobile phone with a cover).
FIG.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a light transmission (irradiation) direction state of the mobile phone according to the embodiment during a call.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a shape of a light transmitting region of the cover member according to the embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of a mobile phone for explaining a mechanism for adjusting a light transmission (irradiation) direction.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 mobile phone 2 casing 2a front casing 2b back casing 4 control board (control unit) 5 liquid crystal display device 6 operation button 8 light emitting element 10 cover member (transmitting means)

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A light emitting device, which is provided in a mobile phone and whose light emission is controlled by a control unit, and a transmitting unit that transmits light emitted from the light emitting device in a specific direction. Mobile phone. 2. The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the light transmitted through the transmission unit projects a predetermined shape. 3. The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the transmitting unit is detachable from the mobile phone.
A mobile phone according to claim 1. 4. The light-transmitting means includes a member that easily transmits light and a member that does not easily transmit light, and a light-transmitting region is limited through the member that does not easily transmit light. The mobile phone according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the mobile phone is means. 5. The mobile phone according to claim 1, wherein the specific direction is a direction in which a cheek or a mouth of a user is irradiated during a call.