WO2004086216A1

WO2004086216A1 - A computer mouse

Info

Publication number: WO2004086216A1
Application number: PCT/SG2003/000064
Authority: WO
Inventors: William Tan
Original assignee: William Tan
Priority date: 2003-03-28
Filing date: 2003-03-28
Publication date: 2004-10-07
Also published as: AU2003217151A1

Abstract

A computer mouse which is collapsible in size is disclosed herein. In one embodiment, the mouse (100) comprises a rigid top cover (200) and a base (300). The cover (200) is pivotally coupled to the base (300) at one end using pins (214,216) located in pin holes (311,312) and arranged for movement selectively to a raised position in which the other end of the cover (200 )is supported by the base (300). To transform the mouse (100 )to a collapsed configuration, the cover (200) is lifted and the base (300) adjusted so that the cover (200 )extends beyond the base (300) which allows the underside of the cover (200 )to collapsed on the base (300) thus reducing the overall size of the mouse (100).

Description

A COMPUTER MOUSE

Background and Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a computer mouse that is collapsible to reduce its size and vice versa.

A computer mouse is a common pointing device for generating movement commands to control a cursor position displayed on a computer screen. Size and shape of a conventional computer mouse are important design considerations in order for the mouse to provide ergonomic support for the hand of a user. In use, when the user's hand manoeuvres the mouse, the palm of the user rests on the highest point of the mouse's body which is typically gently curved to correspond to the user's palm. The width of the mouse's body is usually no less than 50mm so that user's fingers can grasp the sides of the mouse in a relatively relaxed position. Therefore, for ergonomic reasons a computer mouse needs to be of a certain size and shape and consequently such a mouse can be bulky for travellers to store in their bags.

Some manufacturers have overcome such a problem by introducing miniature size mice that eliminate redundant spaces within the housing of the mouse, thereby allowing the mouse to be as compact as possible. However, such a miniature mouse is not as comfortable to operate as it no longer provides an

appropriate support for an average adult's hand since the user's hand may not rest comfortably on the mouse's body. To alleviate this, some manufacturers have provided a compromise by providing a collapsible mouse such as the embodiments described in US patent No. US 6,304,249. However, some of the disclosed embodiments are complicated to manufacture since they have a number of moving parts that are difficult to assemble. More likely than not, this will increase the manufacturing costs and thus the overall costs of a mouse. In addition, the embodiments described therein are only operable in an un- collapsed form and at least one embodiment does not achieve a reduction in the overall size of the mouse.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a computer mouse which alleviates the disadvantage of the prior art and/or to provide the public with a useful choice.

Summary of the Invention

In a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer mouse comprising a top cover having at least one button which is pressable and arranged to generate an input to a computer, and a base which houses a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a surface, the top cover being arranged for movement selectively to a raised position in which the cover is supported by the base, or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface. An advantage of the described embodiments of the invention is that the mouse can be transformed between the raised and lowered positions with greater ease to achieve a reduced size. By a reduced size this means that the mouse's thickness along a direction perpendicular to the surface of movement is reduced. The raised or lowered position of the cover is understood to mean the position of the cover when the mouse is in use.

Preferably, the top cover is pivotally connected to the base.

In one embodiment, the pivotal connection is provided by a lever with one end pivotally coupled to the cover and the other end pivotally coupled to a part of the base, and which facilitates movement of the mouse between the raised and lowered positions. Preferably, the mouser further comprises a pair of arms extending along each side of the base and which are arranged for movement with the base. The arms may have end portions which curved inwards and may be detachable.

In another embodiment, the pivotal connection is provided by two outwardly opposing pins located at two sides of the cover which locates in two corresponding pin holes formed on respective sides of the base. Preferably, the base comprises an extension member and a body member, the extension member arranged for movement in a length direction with the body member selectively to support the cover in the raised position or to a position such that

the cover is in the lowered position. Preferably, the mouse further comprises a pair of guide elements with each guide element having one end attached to the extension member and the other end arranged to be insertable into a corresponding channel formed in the body member. Preferably, the guide elements are in the form of thin flat plates.

The mouse may further comprise a pair of arms extending along each side of the extension member and which are arranged for movement with the extension member. The arms may include end portions which curved inwards for engaging respective sides of the body member to increase the width of the mouse when the extension member supports the cover in the raised position.

In a further embodiment, the cover may comprise two opposing lugs arranged to be located in two corresponding grooves formed in respective sides of the base, the lugs being arranged to slide along the grooves to move the cover between the raised and lowered positions.

In yet another embodiment, the cover may comprise two opposing protruding portions insertable in corresponding pairs of elongate slots formed in respective sides of the base, the cover being supported in the raised position when the elongate portions are inserted into a first said pair of elongate slots or supported in the lowered position when the elongate portions are inserted into a second

said pair of elongate slots. According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer mouse having a first configuration and a second configuration, the second configuration having a reduced size when compared with the second configuration, the mouse comprising: a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the computer mouse, a button which is pressable and arranged to generate an input to a computer, the button and tracking device being exposed in the first and second configurations, whereby the mouse is operable in both configurations.

The present invention also relates to the unassembled covers, bases, extension members and/or body members that forms the structure of the mouse's body.

Brief Description of the Drawings

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which,

Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a computer mouse arranged in a first configuration according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

Figure 2 illustrates a perspective view of the computer mouse of Figure 1 arranged in a collapsed state which is a second configuration of the mouse; Figure 3 illustrates an exploded view of the mouse of Figure 1 comprising a

cover and a base having a body member and an extension member; Figures 4 shows a pivoting motion between the cover and the base of the mouse depicted in Figure 1 ;

Figure 5 shows a bottom perspective view of the computer mouse of Figure 3 with the body member being adapted to receive the extension member; Figure 6 illustrates a top view of an assembled mouse of Figure 3 in the collapsed state;

Figure 7 illustrates an assembled computer mouse of Figure 3 with the extension member adjusted to expand the width of the mouse; Figures 8 to 13 illustrate a second embodiment of the computer mouse which has a different pivoting mechanism compared with the first embodiment;

Figures 14 to 16 illustrate a third embodiment of the computer mouse depicting a top cover of the mouse being supported in a different manner; and Figures 17 to 19 illustrate a fourth embodiment of the computer mouse depicting a top cover of the mouse being supported differently as compared with the third embodiment.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments

Figure 1 shows a computer mouse 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention. The mouse 100 has a rigid top cover 200 which has a substantially flat outer surface gently curved at one end. The cover 100 is pivotally connected at the other end to a base 300. In a raised position of the mouse 100, the base 300 supports the curved end of the cover 200 so that the

cover 200 is supported at an angle as shown in Figure 1. In this configuration shown, the palm of a user's hand can rest comfortably on the gently curved portion of the cover 200.

In a second configuration shown in Figure 2, the mouse 100 is transformed by adjusting the base 300 such that the cover 200 now extends beyond the base 300 and is in a lowered position. In this collapsed state, the mouse 100 has a reduced size or convex hull when compared with the first configuration shown in Figure 1. The second configuration may be useful when a small or restricted working space is available to the user. Alternatively, the user may choose to use this configuration when he will be using the mouse for a short period and thus the usual support of the hand is not needed.

Detailed mechanisms of the computer mouse 100 will now be described with reference to Figure 3 which illustrates an exploded view of the cover 200 and the base 300 which in this embodiment comprises a body member 310 and an extension member 320.

The cover 200 is where two buttons 202,204 and a navigation wheel 206 are located in a conventional manner. The two buttons 202,204 are of conventional design and are pressable to generate inputs to a computer. The navigation wheel 206 provides the user with the convenience of scrolling through the display on a computer screen or as a third button to generate inputs to the computer. The cover 200 also has a compartment 208 which houses a secondary PCB comprising tactile switches communicatively coupled to the

respective buttons 202,204. A rotary encoder (not shown) is also located within the compartment 208 and is communicatively coupled to the navigation wheel 206. The compartment 208 also has an opening 210 to receive an electrical cable 212 to communicatively connect the mouse 100 to a computer. The circuitry of the tactile switches and the rotary encoder are conventional and will not be elaborated here.

By locating the above components with the cover, this maintains the positions of the tactile switches relative to the buttons 202,204 and facilitates the operation of the buttons in both the un-collapsed state (first configuration) and the collapsed state (second configuration).

The cover 200 further includes two outwardly opposing pins 214,216 (216 not shown) located on each side of the compartment 208 as shown in Figure 3. These pins 214,216 are arranged to be located in respective pin holes 311 ,312 formed on the sides of the body member 310 so that the cover 200 is hinged at one end and rotatable about the pin holes 311 ,312. The body member 310 includes a cavity 313 adapted to receive the compartment 208 of the cover 200 to allow the coupling of the pins 212,216 within the pin holes 311 ,312.

The body member 310 houses a main PCB (not shown) which includes a tracking device and in this embodiment an optical sensor is used such as

Agilent Technologies' ADNS-2610. Other components such as a microcontroller, LEDs and optical lens are disposed on this PCB. These components

and its circuitry are also conventional and will not be elaborated here. The body member 310 has an opening 314 through which the optical sensor detects the movement of the mouse 100 (see Figure 5). Transmission of signals between the circuitry housed in the body member 310 and the circuitry in the compartment 208 of the cover 200 may be via a ribbon cable which is hidden from view in the figures illustrating the first embodiment.

The extension member 320 has two guide elements 321,322 that are insertable into channels 315,316 formed in the body member 310. The mating of these two parts is shown more clearly in Figure 5 which depicts a bottom perspective view of the base 300 with the body member 310 being adapted to receive the extension member 320. The two channels 315,316 running inwardly along the sides of the body member 310 in a length direction. Each channel 315,316 is shaped to receive a corresponding guide element 321,322 of the extension member 320 so that each guide element 321 ,322 is sliding fit therewith.

In this embodiment, the guide elements 321 ,322 are in the form of flat elongate plates with one end fixedly coupled to the extension member 320 and the other end free to be insertable at least partially into the channels 315,316. Preferably, the extension member 320 has a pair of arms 323,324 extending along the sides and which resiliently hugs the sides of the body member 310. In this embodiment, the arms 323,324 are curved inwards in a concave manner at the ends to correspond to the outline of the body member 310 as shown in Figure 6 so that the width of the mouse 100 is minimised in a collapsed state. When the extension member 320 is extended by sliding the guide elements 321,322 outwardly away from the channels 315,316, the ends of the arms 323,324 resiliently engages and slides along each side of the body member 310 so that the inwardly curved arms prop up at an angle to expand the width of the mouse 100. This provides a more comfortable grip for the user when manoeuvring the mouse 100. Preferably, the arms 323, 324 extend the width of the mouse 100 to 55mm.

To assemble the mouse 100, which can be assembled prior to sale, the guide elements 321 ,322 of the extension member 320 are inserted into the respective two channels 315,316 of the body member 310. The cover 200 is then pivotally coupled to the base member 300 by locating the two pins 214,216 within the pin holes 311 ,312 of the body member 310. To arrange the cover 200 in a raised position, the cover 200 is lifted as shown in Figure 4 and the position of the extension member 320 is adjusted so that the free end of the top cover 200 is supported at an angle by the extension member 320. This also causes the arms 323,324 to spread apart over the sides of the body member 200 so that the width of the mouse 100 is expanded.

Preferably, the mouse 100 includes a snap feature incorporated at the meeting surfaces of the top cover 200 and the extension member 320 to secure the cover 200 in place when the mouse 100 is in use. In this example, a snap-fit catch 325 is disposed on the extension member 320 and is arranged to locate

within a corresponding hole (not shown) formed in the free end of the cover 200 so that the snap-fit catch 325 releasably secures the cover 200 to the extension member 320. With the cover 200 supported at an angle, the curved portion of the cover props up to provide an appropriate height of approximately 36mm to support the user's palm comfortably. The base member 300 which houses the tracking device is then placed on a surface to move the mouse in a conventional manner. To reduce the dimension of the mouse 100 along a direction perpendicular to the surface of movement, the user simply lifts the cover 200 to release the catch 325 and the extension member 320 is inserted further into the body member 200 so that the cover 200 can be lowered to allow the underside of the cover 200 to rest on the extension member 320, as shown in Figure 2.

Figures 8 to 13 show a second embodiment of a computer mouse 500 and Figure 8 depicts the mouse 500 in a first configuration (i.e. the cover in a raised position) similar to the first embodiment. The cover 600 in this embodiment also has a compartment 602 to house the tactile switches but does not have opposing pins since a different pivoting mechanism is used to pivotally couple the cover 600 to the base 700, as shown more clearly in Figure 9. The tracking device and the rest of the circuitry are housed in the base 700 and thus a ribbon cable 800 is used to transmit signals such as positional information sensed by the tracking device to the computer. As the pivoting mechanism is different in this embodiment, the base 700 of the second embodiment does not require the ^' body member 310.

In this embodiment, a lever 604 is used to pivot the cover 600 to the base 700 and which is connected to a cylindrical roller 606, 608 at each end. Each cylindrical roller 606,608 sits in a recess formed in the base and in the cover, and is freely rotatable for movement with the lever 604. This enables a "rocking motion" so that the cover 600 moves forward or backwards in relation to the base 700 and the movement is limited by the lever 602 to facilitate the transformation of the mouse 500 between the un-collapsed and collapsed state similar to the first embodiment.

In the un-collapsed state or the first configuration shown in Figure 8, the cover 600 is adjusted by a pivoting action about the two fulcrums provided by the two rollers 606, 608 so that base 700 supports one end of the cover 600 at an angle to raised the curved portion of the cover 600. To transform the mouse 500 to the second configuration (i.e. in a collapsed state), the cover 600 is urged in an opposite direction relative to the base 700, as indicated by the opposing arrows X and Y (see Figure 9). This action adjust the positions of the cover 600 and the base 700 in a manner shown in Figure 10 so that the cover 600 can collapsed on the base 700 shown in Figure 11 which has a reduced size compared with the first configuration. Figure 12 shows a side view of the collapsed mouse of Figure 11 and depicts a reduced convex hull compared with the configuration shown in Figure 9.

In this embodiment, the base 700 is depicted with a detachable set of arms 702, 704 as shown in Figure 13. The arms 702, 704 are attached to the base 700 by a fastener such as a locking pin (not show) and biasing means 706 is used to resiliently spread the arms to give the mouse 500 a desired width. It should be

apparent that the detachable arms 702, 704 can similarly be provided for the first embodiment. Figure 14 illustrates a third embodiment of a computer mouse 100' having a top cover 200' and a body member 310' which forms part of a base 300' similar to the first embodiment depicted in Figure 3. The base 300' also comprises an extension member 320' similar to that shown in Figure 3 but is not shown in Figures 14 to 16.

The top cover 200' is similar in structure as the first embodiment depicted in Figure 3 except that the two opposing pins 214,216 are replaced by two opposing lugs 220, 222 (lug 222 is hidden from view) which locate in two curved grooves 340,342 formed in respective sides of the body member 310'. When assembled as shown in Figure 15, the lugs 220,222 of the top cover 200' slides in and along the grooves 340, 342 between the position shown in Figure 15 and Figure 16 to move the cover 200' between a raised and a lowered position respectively. It should be apparent that in the configuration shown in Figure 16, the extension member 320' (which is not shown) can be extended from the body member 310', similar to the first embodiment, to support the cover 200' to withstand the weight of a hand resting on the cover 200'.

A fourth embodiment is shown in Figures 17 to 19. Instead of the lugs shown in Figure 14, the cover 200" now comprises two elongate portions 224, 226 (portion 226 hidden from view) which protrude outwards at both sides of the cover 200". To receive the elongate portions 224, 226, pairs of elongate slots 344,348 and 346,350 are formed along the sides of the body member 310" with the elongate slots on the same side of the body member 310" forming an inverted "V-shaped". Each pair of elongate slots 344,348 and 346,350 are arranged to support the cover 200" at two positions. When the elongate portion 224, 226 is inserted into the first pair of slots 344, 348 as shown in Figure 18, the cover 200" is in a lowered position so that the overall height of the mouse is reduced to a minimum. It will be appreciated that the body member 310" is depicted as partly transparent in Figures 18 and 19 to show the slots 344, 346 but in actual implementation this may not be necessary so.

To transform the mouse, the cover 200" is detached from the body member 310" by lifting the cover 200" from the slots 344, 348 and then re-inserted into the second pair of slots 346, 350. In this way, the cover is raised or propped up as shown in Figure 19. Similar to the third embodiment, an extension member 320" is similarly extended to support the cover 200" in the position shown in Figure 19 so as to support the weight of a resting hand when the mouse is in use.

The described embodiments allow a full-size mouse 100,500, with all its ergonomic features, to transform into a smaller package suitable for storage in laptop bags or other carrying cases to minimise storage space. In both embodiments, the tracking device and the buttons are operable whether the mouse 100, 500 is configured in the "full-size" or "reduced-size" mode. The latter option allows a user to reduce the size of the mouse when operating in a space-constraint environment. The described embodiment should not be construed as limitative. For example, the top cover may be supported by the base in other manners in addition to that described in the embodiments and the transformation between configurations can be achieved in other ways. Instead of the optical sensor, alternatively, a track ball may be used and the opening 314 (see Figure 5) would be adapted to allow the track ball to protrude partially through in a conventional manner.

The described embodiments use a wired mouse as an example, but the invention is similarly applicable for a wireless computer mouse. In this case, the relevant circuitry will be included in the compartment 208 or the base 300, 600 and cable 212 is not required.

The arms in both embodiments are depicted as curving inwards. This may not be necessary so and the arms may be provided with end portions that curved outwards. In both embodiments, when in the collapsed configuration, the top cover is depicted as extending beyond the base. Again, this may not be necessary so. It is envisaged that the base may extend beyond the cover (for example, in the first embodiment by extending the extension member 320 further away from the body member 200) to allow the cover to be lowered into a cavity so that the overall height of the mouse can still be reduced.

The various parts of the mouse may also be detachable from each other. Having now fully described the invention, it should be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many modifications can be made hereto without departing from the scope as claimed.

Claims

1. A computer mouse comprising a top cover having at least one button which is pressable and arranged to generate an input to a computer, and a base which houses a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a surface, the top cover being arranged for movement selectively to a raised position in which the cover is supported by the base, or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface.

2. A computer mouse according to claim 1 , wherein the top cover is pivotally connected to the base.

3. A computer mouse according to claim 2, wherein the pivotal connection is provided by a lever with one end pivotally coupled to the top cover and the other end pivotally coupled to a part of the base, and which facilitates movement of the mouse between the raised and lowered positions.

4. A computer mouse according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a pair of arms extending along each side of the base and which are arranged for movement with the base.

5. A computer mouse according to claim 4, wherein the arms have end portions which curved inwards.

6. A computer mouse according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the arms are detachable.

7. A computer mouse according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the tracking device is operable in both positions.

8. A computer mouse according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one button is operable in both positions.

9. A computer mouse according to claim 2, wherein the pivotal connection is provided by two outwardly opposing pins located at two sides of the cover which locates in two corresponding pin holes formed on respective sides of the base.

10. A computer mouse according to claim 1 , 2 or 9, wherein the base

comprises an extension member and a body member, the extension

member being arranged for movement in a length direction with the body

member selectively to support the cover in the raised position or to a

position such that the cover is in the lowered position.

11. A computer mouse according to claim 10, further comprising a pair of guide elements, each guide element having one end attached to the extension member and the other end arranged to be insertable into a corresponding channel formed in the body member.

12. A computer mouse according to claim 11 , wherein the guide elements are in the form of thin flat plates.

13. A computer mouse according to any one of claims 10 to 12, further comprising a pair of arms extending along each side of the extension member and which are arranged for movement with the extension member.

14. A computer mouse according to claim 13, wherein the arms include end portions which curved inwards for engaging respective sides of the body member to increase the width of the mouse when the extension member supports the cover in the raised position.

15. A computer mouse according to any one of claims 9 to 14, wherein the

tracking device is operable in both positions.

16. A computer mouse according to any one of claims 9 to 15, wherein the at

least one button is operable in both positions.

17. A computer mouse according to claim 1 , wherein the cover comprises two opposing lugs arranged to be located in two corresponding grooves formed in respective sides of the base, the lugs being arranged to slide along the grooves to move the cover between the raised and lowered positions.

18. A computer mouse according to claim 1 , wherein the cover comprises two opposing protruding portions insertable in corresponding pairs of elongate slots formed in respective sides of the base, the cover being supported in the raised position when the elongate portions are inserted into a first said pair of elongate slots or supported in the lowered position when the elongate portions are inserted into a second said pair of elongate slots.

19. A computer mouse having a first configuration and a second

configuration, the second configuration having a reduced size when

compared with the first configuration, the mouse comprising:

a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement

of the computer mouse,

a button which is pressable and arranged to generate an input to a

computer, the button and tracking device being exposed in the first and

second configurations,

whereby the mouse is operable in both configurations.

20. A computer mouse top cover having at least one button which is pressable for generating an input to a computer and being adapted for movement selectively to a raised position in which the cover is supported by a base for a computer mouse; the base housing a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a surface; or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface.

21. A base for a computer mouse and which houses a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a surface, the base being adapted for movement selectively to support a computer mouse cover in a raised position; the mouse cover having at least one button which is pressable for generating an input to a computer; or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface.

22. An extension member adapted to be connectable to a body member to

form a base for a computer mouse, the base housing a tracking device

for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a

surface and being adapted for movement selectively to support a

computer mouse cover in a raised position; the mouse cover having at

least one button which is pressable for generating an input to a

computer; or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced

dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface.

23. A body member adapted to be connectable to an extension member to form a base for a computer mouse, the base housing a tracking device for generating movement signals based on movement of the mouse on a surface and being adapted for movement selectively to support a computer mouse cover in a raised position; the mouse cover having at least one button which is pressable for generating an input to a computer; or to a lowered position in which the mouse has a reduced dimension along a direction perpendicular to said surface.

24. In combination, a computer mouse cover as claimed in claim 20 and a base for a computer mouse as claimed in claim 21.

25. In combination, a computer mouse cover as claimed in claim 20, an extension member as claimed in claim 22 and a body member as claimed in claim 23.