US20110017634A1

US20110017634A1 - Protective cover for electronic books and electronic media devices

Info

Publication number: US20110017634A1
Application number: US12/804,392
Authority: US
Inventors: Pactick J. Sweeney
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-07-21
Filing date: 2010-07-21
Publication date: 2011-01-27

Abstract

A protective cover for an electronic book device that is made up of a first shell that conforms to and covers a front face of the electronic book device and a second shell that conforms to and covers the back face of the electronic book device. The first and second shells overlap each other to form a seal in the vicinity of the overlapping portions and provide clear visibility of the screen and keypad of the electronic book device.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The invention is related to a protective cover for electronic books and other electronic media devices. The protective cover permits an electronic device user to use the device in places or under conditions that would otherwise be harmful to the device.
2. Brief Description of Related Art
With the advent of “electronic paper” technology that allows easy reading of electronic documents in varying light conditions with limited power, electronic book devices (EBDs) such as Amazon Kindle® (U.S. Pat. No. D586,803) and Sony's eBook® have hit the mainstream. The technology has quickly evolved to very thin, very portable EBDs that have long battery life and built in communication such as cellular. Many people are beginning to use these EBDs like they would ordinary books, magazines, or newspapers; tossing them in briefcases or beach bags like they would an ordinary paper periodical or book. Unfortunately, all of these EBDs contain very fragile state-of-the art technology. None of the current EBDs are waterproof, sand proof or shock resistant. Because of this, people are avoiding using them at areas where they would normally take reading material such as a beach, in the bathtub, by the poolside, or in a hot tub.
There are many protective covers for mobile phones, cameras and other electronic devices on the market. However, none are specifically for an EBD such as a Kindle®, because of the unique properties of an EBD.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,701,159 to Powell is directed to a protective cover designed specifically for a mobile telephone. It is not waterproof and does not completely cover the device to allow for use in harsh conditions such as those that might be encountered at a beach or poolside.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,082,535 to Mitchell is directed to a waterproof enclosure or “bag” to cover an electronic device such a mobile phone. However, it is a one-time use device and provides no shock resistance or ability to take the phone out of the bag or reuse of the bag. It is also designed specifically for a telephone.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,584,718 to Fuller is directed to a waterproof enclosure for protecting music devices. However, it does not take into account the need for undistorted and clear view of the screen, such as that associated with an EBD. The novelty of this invention is the ability to attach external speakers.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,236,588 to Gartrell is directed to an interlocking case that covers the electronic components that make up an electronic device. It would be primarily for enclosing a device such as a mobile phone. There is nothing that implies it is waterproof nor could it be utilized as a cover to an existing EBD.
There are no protective EBD covers available on the market that would operate with an electronic device such as a Amazon Kindle®, for example. What is needed is a protective cover that is easy to attach, seals the EBD, permits the user (reader) to see the screen clearly and maintain visual acuity while at the same time being flexible enough to permit operation of the keypad, joystick and other control components as well as permit cable or wire attachment. What is also needed is a protective cover that provides some shock and scratch protection to an EBD and particularly the screen. What is also needed is a protective cover that goes on and off easily while at the same time forming a waterproof seal. What is also needed is a protective cover that does not add significant size or shape to the EBD, maintaining the EBD's convenience and thin profile.
The present invention provides a protective cover that meets these and other objectives to protect expensive and fragile EBD type devices in an austere environment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A protective cover that completely encases an EBD and still allows complete functionality is provided. The invention permits a user to attach a protective cover around EBDs, such as Amazon's Kindle® or Sony's eBook®, to protect the device from outside elements and impact. When attached to the EBD the protective cover creates a waterproof, sand and dust proof, and shock resistant barrier that still allows use of the device with clear visibility and full functionality of key components, on-off switches and other tactile functions as well as cable attachment.
The invention comprises two clear, flexible and soft polymer shells with edges that can cup and conform to the outer edges of an EBD. A back shell and a front shell each make up one half of the protective cover. Each shell is placed on either a back or a front surface of an EBD and is capable of stretching over an outer perimeter edges of an EBD and is sized to overlap each other when both shells are in place to encase and seal the EBD within.
In operation, a first back shell, being slightly larger than the back surface area of an EBD is placed on the back of the EBD. The outer peripheral edges of the back shell are stretched over the sides of the EBD to cup the back surface and the side surfaces of the EBD within the back shell. Then a second front shell, that is slightly larger than the front of the EBD, is placed on the front of the EBD. The front shell's outer peripheral edges are stretched over the outer peripheral edges of the back shell and the sides of the EBD. In this manner, the outer peripheral edges of the front shell overlap the outer peripheral edges of the back shell forming an overlapping seal to seal the EBD from outside elements.
The protective cover has strategically placed additional synthetic material to create “bumpers” which add a higher degree of shock resistance, slip resistance and ease of handling.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is an upper perspective view of an EBD with a back shell of the protective cover covering a back surface, sides and a portion of the front surface of the EBD; and

FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of an EBD showing the back shell and front shell of the protective cover encasing the EBD.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The protective cover of the invention comprises two clear, flexible and soft polymer shells with edges that can cup and conform to the sides of an EBD and also adhere to each other. A back shell and a front shell each make up one half of the protective cover. Each shell is placed on either a back or a front surface of an EBD and is capable of stretching over the sides of an EBD. The shells are sized to overlap each other when both shells are in place to seal the EBD within.
As shown in FIG. 1, in operation, a first back shell 2, being slightly larger than the back surface area of an EBD 1 is placed on the back of the EBD. The outer peripheral edges 3 of the back shell are stretched over the sides of the EBD to cup the back and the sides of the EBD 1 within the back shell 2. The back shell 2 does not cover the keypad 4 and the screen 5 on the front of the device. In FIG. 2, a second shell or front shell 6, that is slightly larger than the front of the device, is placed on the front of the device covering the keypad 4 and screen 5. The front shell's outer peripheral edges 7 are stretched over the outer peripheral edges 3 of the back shell 2 and the sides of the device 1. In this manner, the outer peripheral edges 7 of the front shell 6 overlap the outer peripheral edges 3 of the back shell 2 forming an overlapping portion 9 that seals the EBD from outside elements.
In another embodiment, the back shell 2 contains additional synthetic material to create supports 8 or bumpers 10 which add a higher degree of shock resistance, slip resistance and ease of handling, as shown in FIG. 2.

Materials:

A soft, flexible yet clear polymeric material that allows clear and easy reading of the screen as well as feel and manipulation of the EBD and switches is required. The polymeric material is thin in dimension and preferably 0.2-3 mm thick. The front shell of the protective cover is a clear, visually non-distortive material that can be further buffed or polished to allow the screen of liquid paper or similar display technology to be easily and clearly read. The polymer must have elastic properties for stretching over the sides of the EBD and have shape memory after each use so that they can be reapplied over and over again. The polymer may be chosen or modified to contain ultra violet protection properties to increase the lifespan of the protective cover and the EBD.
Other thicknesses and varying thicknesses in a shell are also contemplated to be strategically placed to provide increased visibility or touch feeling, ease of operation of key pad, page turners, joystick and power switches. For example, the area of the front shell that covers the screen of the EBD may be thinner that the surrounding area of the first shell. In addition, indentations and raised portions may be present in the front or back shell to better accommodate the key pad or other raised surface of the EBD. Varying thicknesses are available as desired to provide additional strength where needed.

Shape

The shape of the front shell is molded to be essentially complementary to the shape of the front and side surfaces of the EBD and also may lap over the back peripheral surface of the device about ¼ to ½ inch thereby encasing the front, sides and a peripheral portion of the back surface of the device. The back shell is essentially the same shape as the front shell. By use of molding techniques the polymer can be raised, indented or bubbled to allow ease of EBD to key and command component manipulation. The overlapping outer peripheral edges enable users to peel open the outer peripheral edges to plug in external components like charging cords. Alternatively, the edges or shells can define cut out portions for plugging in external components.
By use of molding techniques the polymeric material can also be raised or reinforced to form bumpers 10 on the corners and supports 8 on the bottom to provide shock proofing and slip resistance to further protect the EBD. The first shell of the protective cover can also be molded with components or raised hubs or bubbles that allow a raised nub 11 or joystick type device, power switches, page turners to be fully functional.
The overlapping outer peripheral edges of the shells seals the EBD while providing all the functionality mentioned above.
The outer peripheral edges of the front and back shells may be of the size and shape to cover a portion of the surfaces of the back and front face of an EBD, respectively, or may be of a size and shape to simply overlap in the vicinity of the sides of the EBD. The former is preferred.

Esthetics:

The back shell of the protective cover can contain decorative indicia or can be a solid color or colors.

Sizes:

The protective cover is made is a variety of sizes to accommodate popular sizes of EBDs that are on the market.
Having generally described this invention, a further understanding can be obtained by reference to certain specific examples that are provided herein for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to be limiting unless otherwise specified.

Example 1

In one example, the back shell 2 is applied first and the overlapping edges shown are stretched over the sides and top periphery of the front of the device. The front shell is then applied in the same way to cover the front of the device. The outer peripheral edges of the back shell and front shell conform to the shape of the electronic book. The outer peripheral edges of the shells overlap each other and stick to each other by either friction; covalent bonding or both to form a temporary yet tightly coupled seal that keeps out water and other harmful material.

Example 2

In another example, the same method for covering an EBD is used as in Example 1 except the front shell is applied first and the back shell is applied second so that outer peripheral edges of the shells overlap each other and stick to each other by either friction; covalent bonding or both to form a temporary yet tightly coupled seal that keeps out water and other harmful material.
Having now fully described the invention, it will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many changes and modifications can be made thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as set for the herein.

Claims

1. A protective cover for an electronic book device or other electronic device, wherein said electronic device has a front face and a back face and four sides, said cover comprising:

a) a first front shell, said first front shell being complimentary in shape to said front face and four sides of said electronic book device;

b) a second back shell, said second back shell being complimentary in shape to said back face and four sides of said electronic book device, wherein said first front shell and said second back shell comprise a polymeric material that is flexible to permit the overlapping of said first front shell and said second back shell to form a seal around said electronic book device, said polymeric material being transparent in the vicinity of said front face of said electronic device.

2. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said first and second shells further overlap a portion of said back face and said front face, respectively, of said electronic book device.

3. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said polymeric material has memory.

4. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said polymeric material forms said seal by friction and/or covalent bonding.

5. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said back shell and/or said front shell further comprises raised or recessed hubs, bumpers, bubbles and/or supports to permit usage of power switches, keypad keys, page-turners, or joystick functionality.

6. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said polymeric material is 0.2-3 mm in thickness.

7. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said polymeric material has Ultra Violet protection.

8. The protective cover of claim 1 wherein the polymer material is buffed to allow a clear viewing of the screen.

9. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein said polymeric material of said shells is thinner in an area of said electronic book device's screen, keypad, page turner, joystick and/or power switch to promote ease of operation of keypad, page turners, joystick and power switches and/or promote screen viewing capability of the electronic book device.

10. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein one or more of said shells define openings for permitting attachment of cables or access to one or more portions of said electronic book device.