JPH10243442A - Portable telephone set - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a portable telephone set which has a basic function and onto which an option function is mounted easily externally as required. SOLUTION: An access port 18 is formed to a wall face 16 of a housing of the portable telephone set 2 on which a display device and a key pad are mounted. Part of a printed circuit board 54 is extended to the access port 18. The access port 18 is usually covered by a cover and the cover is removed when an interface connector 74 is inserted to the access port 18. Thus, an option function is added to the telephone set.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a portable telephone, also called a mobile phone, and more particularly to an electric interface thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Portable telephones (hereinafter, also simply referred to as portable telephones) have been remarkably spread, and the spread thereof has progressed very rapidly. Each year, mobile phone manufacturers make millions of products. As demand increases, competition intensifies and demands on manufacturers for lower prices (cost pressure) also intensify. Further, relatively speaking, as the miniaturization progresses, the ratio of the price of parts to the cost (cost) of the entire mobile phone often increases.

[0003] Further, some users are only interested in a small portion of the many functions that mobile phones have. For example, a user may want to mount a mobile phone in a car and insert it into a cradle to transmit signals via an on-board audio system and use an external antenna. Other users may also be interested in connecting their mobile phone to their laptop computer to send and receive facsimile documents and to connect to external networks. Still other users may use the cell phone simply as a basic audio phone and need an interconnect only for charging the internal batteries. These basic users account for a significant proportion of the purchasers of mobile phones. The basic user does not need a complicated interface as part of the telephone to provide the data transmission input / output equipment required for other uses. Note that small data input / output interface connectors are expensive and represent a significant portion of the overall cost of a mobile phone.

Here, an example of a conventional portable telephone will be described with reference to FIG. The conventional mobile phone 1 has a two-piece shell-like housing 3 composed of upper and lower halves 5 and 7.
Contains. Upper half 5 includes a front surface 9 having a video display 11 and a keypad including a number of keys 13. Housing 3 includes a bottom end 15 at which port 17 is formed. The multifunctional connector 19 includes a power supply connection pad 21 for operating the mobile phone from an external power supply or charging a built-in battery, and an input / output for data transmission between a circuit in the mobile phone 1 and an external device (equipment). It includes a contact 25 and a port 25 for physically mating with a mating component.

[0005] Typically, the interconnection points are formed by flat conductive pads, but they can be of various shapes and structures. In addition, it is preferable to use a coaxial connection for the external antenna to this multifunctional interface connector 19. In the example shown here, the mobile phone 1
Has a coaxial connector located on the bottom surface 27 opposite the front surface 9 and generally near the upper end 29.

[0006]

However, as described above, many users of portable telephones do not always use all of these multi-functions, and furthermore, parts such as data transmission interface connectors are quite expensive. The cost of the mobile phone increases.

Therefore, for many users who have sufficient basic functions, the cost is reduced without adding extra functions, and for users who need multiple functions or who want to add (upgrade) functions later. An object of the present invention is to provide a mobile phone which can be easily handled.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a portable telephone according to the present invention forms an access port for accessing a data transmission interface on a wall surface of a housing to which a keypad and a display are attached. The access port is provided with a detachable cover, and the cover is removed so that the interface connector can be connected to the internal data transmission interface.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the data transmission interface is a printed circuit board having one end extending to the access port. The interface connector inserted into the access port includes an electronic module such as an infrared transceiver.

[0010]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A preferred embodiment of the portable telephone according to the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, particularly FIGS. It should be noted, however, that such examples are merely illustrative of the present invention and do not limit the present invention.

First, a preferred embodiment of a portable telephone according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. This portable telephone 2 also has upper and lower halves 6, 8 similarly to the conventional telephone 1 described with reference to FIG.
And a shell-like housing 4 having The housing 4 includes a front surface 10 having a display 12 and a keypad 14. The bottom wall 16 has a cover 20
A port 18 and a basic connector 22. The basic connector 22 may include a power pad 24 for charging the battery pack 26 or operating the mobile phone 2 with an external power supply. The basic connector 22 is provided with an opening 28 for physical retention for mating with a corresponding connector.

Next, reference is made to FIG. A cover 20 is arranged in the port 18 of the upper half 6 of the shell-shaped housing 4. The cover 20 includes a plate-like portion 30 that extends partially across the opening of the port 18 and has a front (or outer) surface 32 that is substantially flush with the bottom surface 16 of the mobile phone 2. The back (or inner) surface 34 includes a block 36 that corresponds to the inner surface of the bottom wall 11 and extends outward. This block 36
Includes a retaining surface 38 configured to fit near the port 18 behind the bottom wall 16. The cover wall 30 opposite the block 36 includes a U-shaped latch member 40 having a first wall 42 that extends orthogonally to the plate 32 and into the shell housing 4. This first wall 4
A second wall 44 connected to the first wall 42 via a curved portion (bite) 46 is disposed to face the second wall 44, and a free end 48 of the second wall 44 has elasticity. This resilience allows the catch 50 having the latch surface 52 to engage above the wall 16 to allow the cover 20 to be retained within the port 18. A stop 53 extends upward from the inner surface of wall 16 to prevent cover 20 from going too far into port 18. Also, the cover 20 can be formed integrally with the molded part of the housing 4 and the cover 20 can be designed to be breakable to allow access to the port 18.

In this case, an electric component, which is a printed board 54, is disposed in the shell-shaped housing 4. The printed circuit board 54 includes a data transmission interface 56, and is formed from a bottom edge 58 of the printed circuit board 54 to an outer end (edge) 62 and both side ends 60.
Along this tongue, the PCB (printed circuit board) includes circuit traces 64 with conductive pads 66 to provide electrical interconnection with external devices (equipment).

Next, a description will be given with reference to FIG. In the figure,
FIG. 3 shows a view of the mobile phone 2 of FIG. 2 with the cover 20 removed. When the cover 20 is removed, the access port 18 is removed.
Is exposed from the bottom wall 16 to the data transmission interface 56.
Will be exposed. FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the access port 18 of the portable telephone 2 with the upper half 6 of the shell-shaped housing 4 removed. Here, the printed circuit board 54
Are mounted by a standoff 68 and a guide rail 70. The basic connector 22 is mounted on a printed circuit board 54 and the contacts 24 are connected to a circuit path 72 having through holes plated by well known, for example, surface mount (SMT) soldering techniques. In this case, base connector 22 may be permanently attached to printed circuit board 54 and contacts 24 may be soldered directly to circuit traces 72.

Next, a description will be given with reference to FIGS.
In FIG. 2, the mobile phone 2 is illustrated with the cover 20 removed and the interface connector 74 aligned to be inserted into the port 18. The interface connector 74 includes a housing 76 having a keyway 78 on an upper surface, and a corresponding keyway (not shown) may be formed on the opposite side. Each of these keyways has a tab 80
And the stop 53, the interface connector 74 is positioned in the port 18 in an appropriate direction. In addition, interface connector 74 includes resilient latch arms 82 having retaining stops 84 that cooperate with end wall 16 forming port 18.

The connector 74 also has an opening 88 for mechanically attaching it to a mating component (not shown).
Contains. Furthermore, the connector 74 has a number of contacts 86 arranged thereon, designed as contact pads on one side and including edge card interface contacts on the other side. These types of contact interfaces are well known and various are conceivable. At its simplest, the connector 74 may be simply mounted on the surface and connected to the data transmission interface 56 by a solder connection. The connector 74 may be inserted in the direction of arrow A so that the connector 74 fits the data transmission interface 56 of the printed circuit board 54.

Next, a description will be given with reference to FIG. In the figure,
The state where the interface connector 74 is held in the port 18 of the bottom wall 16 is shown. Here, the latch arm 82 is arranged such that the holding stop 84 contacts the bottom wall 16. Data transmission interface 56 of printed circuit board 54
Is received in a slot 90 at the rear end 96 of the connector housing 76. This slot 90 and side (side)
60 cooperates to position connector 74 so that contacts and pads are properly aligned.
Other directing members may be used. Contacts 86 extend through housing 76 and contact receiving passages 91
In contact with circuit pads 66 connected to circuit traces 64.

Next, a description will be given with reference to FIG. The portable telephone 2 according to the present invention is shown in a fully assembled state, with the optional interface connector 76 being received in the port 18. Here, some with a standard interconnect interface connection (eg, basic connector 22) are required, but the multifunctional connector 19 of FIG.
Is preferably optionally received in part 17. Preferably, all interface connectors are optionally receivable in a portion of the housing.

FIG. 10 shows another embodiment of the portable telephone according to the present invention. This portable telephone 2 has a shell-like housing 4, a data transmission interface 56 and an insertable interface connector 74 as in the first embodiment. The main difference of this embodiment from the first embodiment is that the interface connector 74 includes an electronic module 92, which is not part of the basic telephone. This electronic module 92 is an infrared electronic module, and has an infrared transceiver module 94 on the mating side and a corresponding electronic module 92. The contact of the electronic module 92 is performed by the data transmission interface 56.

Although the preferred embodiment of the portable telephone according to the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications can be made in accordance with the specific application.

[0021]

As will be understood from the above description, according to the portable telephone of the present invention, a removable cover is provided on the access port on the housing, and the interface connector can be incorporated as needed. An inexpensive portable telephone can be obtained for a user who has sufficient performance, and optional functions can be easily added (upgraded) as needed.

Another advantage of the portable telephone according to the present invention is that the interface connector is configured to be insertable into a printed circuit board and makes releasable contact with circuit pads on the printed circuit board.

As another effect of the portable telephone of the present invention,
The interface connector is cooperable with the shell-shaped housing and can be held at a predetermined position. Furthermore,
The advantage is that the upgrade can be easily performed by the service center technician or by the end user himself, depending on the electrical interface selected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional portable telephone.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 of a preferred embodiment of the portable telephone of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged partial perspective view showing the inside of the portable telephone of FIG. 2 with a part cut away.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary perspective view of the mobile phone of FIG. 3 with a cover removed;

FIG. 5 is an exploded enlarged partial perspective view of the portable telephone corresponding to FIG.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial perspective view of an attempt to connect an optional interface connector to the portable telephone of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view corresponding to FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged partial perspective view showing the internal configuration of the mobile phone shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 9 is an exemplary perspective view of the portable telephone of FIG. 2 with an interface connector attached thereto;

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view of another embodiment of the mobile phone of the present invention having an interface connector with an infrared electronic module.

[Description of sign]

 2 Mobile Phone 4 Housing 12 Display 14 Keypad 16 Wall 18 Access Port 20 Cover (Removable) 54 Printed Circuit Board 56 Data Transmission Interface 74 Interface Connector 92 Electronic Module

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Inventor Cornelis van Tilburg Netherlands Eshertgenbosch 5223

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A portable telephone having a housing to which a keypad and a display are attached, wherein an access port for accessing a data transmission interface in the housing is formed on a wall surface of the housing, and a removable cover is provided on the access port. A portable telephone, wherein the cover is removed and an interface connector connected to the data transmission interface of the access port can be inserted. 2. The portable device according to claim 1, wherein said data transmission interface is a printed circuit board mounted in said housing, and a part of said printed circuit board is arranged to be accessible to said access port. Type telephone. 3. The portable telephone according to claim 1, wherein said interface connector includes an electronic module such as an infrared transceiver.