Classifications

• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
  • H04M—TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION
  • H04M1/00—Substation equipment, e.g. for use by subscribers
  • H04M1/02—Constructional features of telephone sets
  • H04M1/0202—Portable telephone sets, e.g. cordless phones, mobile phones or bar type handsets
  • H04M1/0279—Improving the user comfort or ergonomics
  • H04M1/0283—Improving the user comfort or ergonomics for providing a decorative aspect, e.g. customization of casings, exchangeable faceplate

Definitions

• This invention relates to the cover part of a hand-held telephone or other corresponding device often carried in the pocket and to a sticker or similar intended to be fastened on the outer surface of these devices.
• the cover part and the battery which is removably mounted in the hand-held tele- phone are generally made of plastic with a smooth surface, and due to the slippery surface the hand-held telephone will easily slip out from the pocket, for instance when bowing or moving the coat.
• the hand-held telephone can also easily slip from the hand, particularly if the hand is greasy or oily.
• the hand-held telephone In a car the hand-held telephone is often kept on the car's seat, from where it will easily slide and fall on the floor when the car is turning, accelerating or breaking. In a rough treatment like this the hand-held telephone will easily break, and particularly if it falls into water it will usually be impossible to repair it.
• the object of the present invention is to eliminate the above mentioned disadvantages and to provide a cover part of a hand-held telephone or other corresponding device often carried in the pocket, whereby the cover part thanks to its surface material will not slip from the user's hand, fall from the pocket, the seat or a similar place where the telephone is kept.
• An object of the invention is further to provide a sticker intended to be fastened on the cover part of a hand-held telephone or other corresponding device often carried in the pocket, so that the sticker eliminates the above mentioned disadvantages.
• a typical cover part according to the invention in a hand-held telephone or other corresponding device often carried in the pocket is characterised in that at least a part of the area of the outer surface of the cover part with a smooth surface is provided with a friction surface. Then the friction coefficient of the friction surface is higher than the friction coefficient of the smooth surfaces of the cover part's surface.
• a sticker can be fastened on the smooth surface area of the cover part, i.e. the sticker is a small or large tag or plate provided with an adhesive surface on one side.
• the sticker comprises a base material, and on the upper side of this base material there is fastened with a binding agent particles which at least partly have sharp edges, such as particles made of aluminium oxide, quartz sand, glass sand, metal oxide, carbide or a similar material.
• the average diameter of the particles is generally ⁇ 1 mm, typically between 0.1 and 1.0 mm, most typically between 0.3 and 0.5 mm.
• the hardness of the particles is preferably > 9.
• the particles can be made from a natural mineral substance by crushing and by sifting a suitable fraction of particles from the crushed material. Thus the particles typically have an irregular shape. However, the particles can also be manufactured industrially, whereby the particles can have a regular shape.
• the base material or backing material is typically paper, textile, another fibre based web material, or fabric, plastic, or an advantageously slightly elastic material.
• the thickness of the base material is typically about 0.3 to 1.5 mm, advantageously about 1 mm.
• the solution according to the invention utilises as the sticker such a sticker which has a release film on the adhesive side, and where the opposite side is formed as the above mentioned friction surface.
• the invention is particularly well suited to be used in connection with a hand-held telephone or its removable battery.
• the invention can also be used with other devices often carried in the pocket, such as pocket computers, calculators, electronic dictionaries, cameras or pagers.
• the cover part is designed to be curved, or when the cover part comprises at least one convex and mainly smooth surface, such as a junction between the front wall or the back wall and the side wall, it will be advantageous to provide the apex of this convex surface with a friction surface.
• the cover part is designed to be curved, or when the cover part comprises at least one convex and mainly smooth surface, such as a junction between the front wall or the back wall and the side wall, it will be advantageous to provide the apex of this convex surface with a friction surface.
• one or advantageously both of the opposite, elongated narrow side surfaces of the narrow box-like cover part can be provided with a friction surface over a substantial part of the side surface.
• Figure 1 shows schematically an elevated view of a hand-held telephone as seen from the back side
• Figure 2 shows as an example a magnified partial view of a sticker according to the invention
• Figure 3 shows schematically another hand-held telephone provided with friction surfaces according to the invention, as seen from the front side
• figure 4 shows in a similar view as that in figure 3 a third hand-held telephone which is provided with friction surfaces according to the invention
• Figure 5 shows in a similar view as that in figure 3 a fourth hand-held telephone which is provided with friction surfaces according to the invention
• Figure 6 shows a cover of an electronic device which according to the invention is provided with friction surfaces
• Figure 7 shows a cover which according to the invention is provided with friction surfaces.
• the cover part of the hand-held telephone is generally marked with the reference numeral 10, and its back surface with the reference numeral 12 as well as the side surfaces with the reference numeral 14.
• the battery removably mounted at the back of the hand-held telephone is marked by the reference numeral 16.
• friction surfaces 18 and 20 are fastened to the smooth areas on both narrow and long vertical sides 14 of the hand-held telephone and on the back side 12 of the hand-held telephone, so that the friction surfaces also extend over the surface 22 of the battery 16 projecting slightly outwards from the back wall.
• the friction surfaces 18, 20 can be made of a sticker 24, which is shown in a mag- nified cross-section in figure 2.
• the sticker comprises a web-like or plate-like base material 26, on the upper side of which there is fastened with the aid of a binding agent layer 28 particles 30, which at least partly have sharp edges, and on the lower side of which there is an adhesive surface covered by a release film 32.
• the sharp- pointed particles are partly submerged into the binding agent layer, so that at least a part of their sharp edges, i.e. the edges having an angle ⁇ 90°, will project from the binding agent layer.
• Any material known per se and suitable for this purpose is used as the binding agent.
• the binding agent layer may be a homogenous layer of one binding agent, or it may be formed by two different material layers, such as a bottom adhesive and a surface adhesive.
• a friction surface added to the side surfaces 14 will decisively improve in keeping the hand-held telephone in the hand.
• a friction surface fastened or formed in the back surface 12 and the outer surface of the battery 16 will decisively improve the way the hand-held telephone is kept in its place, for instance on the dashboard and on the seat in a car as well as in the breast pocket of a suit or shirt.
• the friction surfaces should have an extent and location which provide the above men- tioned effect.
• the friction surface 20 added to the side surfaces 14 extends advantageously also partly over the back surface 12, as shown in figure 1. This solution will particularly well prevent the hand-held telephone from falling from the shirt pocket when a person bows.
• Figure 3 shows another cover part 10 of a hand-held telephone where two stickers 36 according to the invention are fastened on the upper smooth surface part 34' of the cover's front plate 34 so that the stickers form the friction surfaces on the front side of the cover part. Further three round stickers 38 according to the invention with the size of a small coin are fastened on the long side 14.
• the size and the form of the stickers used in each particular case depend on the form of the hand-held telephone and on the unoccupied space available for this purpose. Stickers with a diameter of about 10 to 20 mm will fit in most places.
• the total area of the friction surfaces fastened on the cover part is important, advantageous it covers 30 to 60 %, typically about 50 % of the area of the large continuous smooth surface parts of the cover part.
• the stickers fastened to the side surfaces of the cover part in figure 3 assist in keeping the telephone in the hand.
• Figure 4 shows the same cover part 10 of a hand-held telephone as above.
• the stickers 40 are fastened on the cover parts of the telephone on convex or curved surfaces 42, i.e. at the junctions of the front surface 34 and the long side surfaces 14, and the back surface and the long side surfaces 14.
• the stickers fastened in this way will assist in keeping the telephone firmly in the pocket as well as in the hand.
• FIG. 5 shows also the same cover part of the telephone as above in the figures 3 and 4.
• the stickers 44 are strips with a width of about 5 mm which are fastened on the upper part of the cover's front 34 and on the long side surface 14.
• a narrow strip 46 is arranged to extend from the long side surface over the curved surface 42 to the upper surface 48 of the cover.
• Figure 6 shows the cover 50 of an electronic device, such as a pocket calculator or dictionary, whereby two relatively large stickers 54 with a diameter > 20 mm are fastened on the upper lid 52 of the cover.
• similar stickers can be fastened on the lower part of the cover, as well as on the sides and convex surfaces of the edges of the cover.
• Figure 7 shows the cover 56 of an electronic device, or even an eyeglass case, whereby triangular stickers 58 are fastened according to the invention at two corners of the cover's upper surface. Further stickers can be fastened at other corners, on the bottom or on the sides of the cover.
• the shape of the stickers is not necessarily round, a long strip or a triangle, but the desired shape can be freely chosen. It is also possible to choose a desired colour for the stickers by choosing a binding agent with a suitable colour or particles with a suitable colour, or by staining the sticker.
• the sticker can be decorated in a desired way, and it may be used as an advertising space. For instance the initials, a number combination, or a logo can be added to it.
• the friction surface on the cover part can be obtained already in the manufacturing phase of the cover part, whereby particles with sharp edges can be arranged for instance in the mould of the cover part.
• the friction surface can also be made by tooling, whereby a regular or irregular pyramidal pattern can be made in the surface of the cover, whereby the tops of the pyramids project from the surface.

Landscapes

• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Signal Processing (AREA)
• Telephone Set Structure (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=8550793

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (3)

Cited By (1)

Citations (5)

• 1998
  • 1998-06-15 FI FI980303U patent/FI3655U1/fi active
• 1999
  • 1999-06-15 WO PCT/FI1999/000523 patent/WO1999066694A1/fi active Application Filing
  • 1999-06-15 AU AU47851/99A patent/AU4785199A/en not_active Abandoned

Patent Citations (5)

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