Patent Application
20060007047
The present invention generally relates to the field of retractable antennas, and more particularly to cams for aligning the extendable portion of a non-circular retractable antenna during retraction.
Electronic communication devices are widely used for business and personal activities and are continually increasing in popularity. Advances in electronics and wireless communication technology, as well as the development of communication infrastructure, have fueled this increase in popularity and have greatly expanded the capabilities of wireless communication. A wide variety of newer and ever more sophisticated electronic communication devices are continually being introduced by manufacturers, including such devices as wireless phones (e.g., cellular phones), two-way radios (e.g., “walkie-talkies”), pagers and text messaging devices, portable and handheld computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), satellite communication devices such as global positioning systems (GPSs), and satellite radios, as well as portable televisions, radios, and other entertainment devices.
Electronic communication devices typically have one or more antennas for signal reception and transmission. Several different types of antennas exist, including retractable antennas and fixed antennas. The use of a retractable antenna provides the user with a selectively longer or shorter antenna. A conventional retractable antenna for a wireless communication device is typically formed of a narrower extendable portion that includes a whip and cap, and a wider fixed portion (known as a body or stubby). In contrast, a fixed antenna has only a fixed part.
Consumers often prefer retractable antennas that can be extended when in use to increase reception and transmission efficiency, and retracted when not in use to protect the antenna from damage and reduce the overall size of the communication device so that the device can be easily stored.
The increase in the number of products on the market has lead to increasing competition between manufacturers, and emphasized the need for manufacturers to develop and implement product designs which differentiate their products from competing products in order to gain a competitive edge, attract new consumers, and to persuade existing consumers to upgrade to newer models. The design of the antenna of a wireless communication device is based on functional considerations, but also aesthetic considerations because the antenna typically makes a prominent contribution to the external appearance of the device.
Most retractable antennas are circular antennas that have a cylindrical whip topped by a cylindrical or circular cap so that the extendable portion appears circular in shape when viewed along its longitudinal axis. However, to differentiate its products functionally or aesthetically, a manufacturer can use a non-circular antenna that has a non-cylindrical whip and/or a cap with a radially non-symmetrical shape. Such non-circular retractable antennas may be desirable to consumers for a variety of reasons. For example, compared with circular antennas, a non-circular antenna may be more aesthetically interesting or pleasing, may be more easily handled during extension and retraction, may be less cumbersome when extended, and may be better integrated with the body of the device when retracted. Furthermore, from the manufacturer's perspective, a non-circular retractable antenna provides additional style options in the design of a new electronic communication device.
However, implementing a non-circular retractable antenna that is capable of extending and retracting in a smooth, quick, and efficient manner presents design challenges. For example, while a circular retractable antenna can be retracted at any angle of rotation, a non-circular retractable antenna typically must be aligned at some specific angle of rotation in order to fully retract. The extendable portion of a non-circular retractable antenna will not readily self-align to the proper angle of rotation, and any misalignment blocks the extendable portion from quickly and easily being fully retracted. If the antenna is not fully retracted due to misalignment, there is an increase in the likelihood of the antenna being becoming snagged on an external object, which can cause damage to the antenna or even loss of the device. Further, any difficulty in quickly and easily fully retracting the antenna can cause user frustration by making the communication device difficult to stow away.
Therefore a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.
Briefly, in accordance with one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a retractable antenna that includes a body having an orifice, a whip retractably coupled to the body, at least one follower disposed about the whip, and a cam disposed about the orifice. The cam is shaped such that the at least one follower interacts with the cam during retraction of the whip so as to rotate the whip as necessary to align the whip in a rotational position that allows full retraction of the antenna.
In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an electronic communication device that includes a device body, and at least one non-circular retractable antenna fixedly coupled to the device body. The non-circular retractable antenna includes an antenna body having an orifice, a whip retractably coupled to the antenna body, at least one follower disposed about the whip, and a cam disposed about the orifice. The cam is shaped such that the at least one follower interacts with the cam during retraction of the whip so as to rotate the whip as necessary to align the whip in a rotational position that allows full retraction of the antenna.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an alignment system for rotationally aligning an extendable portion of a non-circular retractable antenna during retraction. The alignment system includes at least one follower, and a cam that interacts with the at least one follower during retraction. The cam is shaped so as to cause the extendable portion of the antenna to rotate as necessary so as to be forced into a rotational position that allows full retraction of the antenna.
The present invention, according to one embodiment, overcomes problems with the prior art by providing a mechanism for the extendable portion of a non-circular retractable antenna to automatically self-align during retraction to the proper rotational orientation needed to fully retract. This enables the user to retract the extendable portion into the fully retracted position in a smooth, quick, and easy manner, and prevents the user from incorrectly retracting the extendable portion into a misaligned position.
More specifically, in this exemplary embodiment, the retractable antenna includes follower features disposed about the whip of the antenna, and a cam feature disposed about the body of the antenna. The interaction of the follower and cam features during retraction of the extendable portion causes the whip to be rotated along its axis as necessary to arrive at the angle of rotation (interchangeably referred to as “rotational position”, “orientation”, or “rotational orientation”) at which the shape of the extendable portion is aligned with the shape of the body. This enables the extendable portion to fully retract into the body. Thus, the mechanical actuation of the follower and cam interaction operates to translate linear motion into the proper rotational alignment.
The shape of the cap 108 and the shape of the cap receptacle 206 are complementary to each other (i.e., the shapes conform) so that the cap 108 and the cap receptacle 206 fit together. For the non-circular antenna of this embodiment with its non-circular cap, the cap 108 must be aligned with the cap receptacle 206 at some specific angle of rotation to achieve an aligned position in which they properly fit together so as to allow the antenna 100 to be fully retracted. In contrast, the circular antenna of
In other words, the cam 202 can be a shaped ledge that is closest to the cap receptacle 206 at two opposing internal points of the orifice 204, and is farthest away from the cap receptacle 206 on two other opposing internal points of the orifice 204. The pockets 500 are formed where the cam 202 is farthest away from the cap receptacle 206, and the apexes 502 are formed where the cam 202 is closest to the cap receptacle 206. In this embodiment, the pockets 500 and the apexes 502 are each rounded in shape, with the cam 202 sloping at a varying angle between a pocket 500 and an apex 502 (i.e., they substantially conform to the shape of a sinusoidal wave). In the view of the extendable portion shown in
With such a structure for the cam and followers, the shape of the cam 202 forces the followers 200 into the pockets 500 as the whip 104 is retracted. More specifically, the retraction of the extendable portion causes the followers 104 to move along the cam and rotate the whip 104 as necessary so as to arrive at an angle of rotation at which the followers 200 sit in the pockets 500. By matching this rotational position with a rotational position necessary for full retraction, the cap 108 is caused to rotationally align with the cap receptacle 206 for proper engagement, and thus full retraction of the extendable portion.
During retraction, if the cap 108 is misaligned with the cap receptacle 206, at some point the followers 200 on the whip 104 contact the cam 202 at a position other than the pockets 500 after the whip 104. For example, at the initial stage of the illustrated retraction (
The interaction of the followers 200 and the cam 202 during retraction translates the downward motion of the whip 104 into rotational motion, so as to cause the whip 104 to rotate until the followers 200 reach the lowest point on the cam 202 (i.e., the pockets 500). The rotational position of the whip 104 at which the followers 200 sit in the pockets 500 is designed to correspond to the rotational position at which the cap 108 is engaged within the cap receptacle 206. In other words, the interaction of the followers on the whip and the cam in the orifice in the body causes the followers to move toward and into the pockets, and this acts to align the non-circular cap 108 with the correspondingly-shaped cap receptacle 206. Thus, the extendable portion is automatically forced into an aligned position that allows the antenna to be fully retracted (i.e., the extendable portion to be fully retracted into the body).
In the retraction described above, the whip is initially in a misaligned rotational position, so the followers come into contact with the cam away from the pockets. In contrast, if the whip is initially in a perfectly aligned position (i.e., a position in which the cap aligns with the cap receptacle), the followers initially contact the cam in the pockets and the whip is not rotated. However, in either case the present invention obviates the need for the user to make a directed effort to insure the proper rotational alignment of the whip before or during retraction. In embodiments of the present invention, no matter what rotational position the whip is initially in, it is automatically self-aligned during retraction to a rotational position that allows fully retraction.
Accordingly, the present invention offers advantages over the prior art. For example, the present invention enables a non-circular retractable antenna to be easily retracted, so as to facilitate ease of use of the electronic communication device. Furthermore, the present invention facilitates full retraction of the whip so as to prevent the whip from not being fully retracted in some cases due to misalignment. This reduces the chance that the antenna will get snagged on an external object (such as clothing and purses), which can damage the antenna or the entire communication device. Moreover, the present invention enables antennas with designer shapes to be implemented without increasing the difficulty of operation or effective lifespan of the communication device. Thus, many additional design options are made practical for manufacturers, so as to allow differentiation of their products and catering to the changing tastes of consumers.
The embodiment of the present invention described above is merely an exemplary embodiment, and it will be appreciated by the skilled artisan that a wide variety of other designs could be implemented within the scope of the present invention. For example, any other design for the cam and followers could be utilized as long as their interaction causes the extendable portion to align to a proper rotational position for full retraction of the antenna. The cam and followers can have other shapes. While two followers are shown in the exemplary embodiment, any number of followers can be utilized. The cam can be disposed about the body at any location, and the followers can be disposed about the whip at any location. In one embodiment, the locations of the cam and followers are reversed (i.e., the followers are disposed about the body, and the cam is disposed about the whip).
Further, in the exemplary embodiment described above in which the cap is substantially rectangular, the cam forms two pockets and two apexes so that its interaction with the followers causes the whip to rotate into one of two rotational positions. However, in further embodiments the cam can form one or more pockets and one or more apexes. For example, for an embodiment in which the cap is shaped as a five-pointed star, the cam can be designed to form five pockets and five apexes so that its interaction with the follower causes the whip to rotate into one of five rotational positions. As another example, the cam can be designed to have only a single pocket that interacts with one or more followers disposed about the whip.
Additionally, the pockets and apexes of the cam can be formed in any shape, and the cam can slope at any angle between a pocket and an apex. For example, in further embodiments, the pockets can have flat bottoms, the apexes can have pointed tops, and/or the cam can slope at a constant angle between a pocket and an apex. Similarly, the whip, the cap, and the body of the antenna can have any shape, and either or both of the whip and the cap can have a non-circular shape. Likewise, in various embodiments, the cap receptacle (if provided) is formed by the fixed portion of the antenna, the body of the device, or a combination of the two. Further, the fixed portion of the antenna can be integral with the body of the device.
Although specific embodiments of the invention have been disclosed, those having ordinary skill in the art will understand that changes can be made to the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is not to be restricted, therefore, to the specific embodiments, and it is intended that the appended claims cover any and all such applications, modifications, and embodiments within the scope of the present invention.
