The present invention contains subject matter related to Japanese Patent Application No. 2004-377888 filed in the Japanese Patent Office on Dec. 27, 2004, the entire contents of which being incorporated herein by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile terminal apparatus, and more particularly to a structure of a mobile terminal apparatus having an upper housing and a lower housing that are connected to each other such that the upper and lower housings are relatively displaceable away from and toward each other to open and close or fold the mobile terminal apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Typically, a mobile terminal apparatus (hereinafter simply referred to as “terminal”) of fold type or clamshell type, such as mobile phone terminal of the type, includes an upper housing, a lower housing, and a hinge portion that connects the upper and lower housings such that the upper and lower housings are turnable about the hinge portion away from and toward each other so that the terminal is openable and closable or foldable. The upper housing has a display screen on an inner major surface thereof, and the lower housing has on an inner major surface thereof an operating portion including various input keys. Fold-type terminals are widely used these days because of their advantages that the screen and key area of the terminals are wide when used, and the terminals are compact when closed to be carried.
When closed or folded, an operating portion of such a fold-type terminal is opposed to a display screen in the form of a transparent plate. A thickness of the terminal becomes inevitably larger when the terminal is folded than when the terminal is not folded, since the upper housing is superposed on the lower housing in the folded state of the terminal. To minimize the thickness of the terminal as folded, it is desirable to minimize a clearance between the upper and lower housings as superposed on each other, in addition to reduce a thickness of each of the upper and lower housings. However, contact of any of the input keys with the display screen leads to contamination or damage of the display screen. When an input key excessively protrudes from the inner major surface, that input key may be unintentionally pressed upon deformation of one or both of the upper and lower housings, thereby causing a false operation of the terminal.
In a common remote controller for a television set or an audio system, input keys or manual operation buttons are disposed in a surface of the remote controller to protrude there from to facilitate operation or pressing thereof by a user.
However, in the fold-type terminal, the keytops of the input keys are substantially flush with the surface in which the input keys are disposed, for the above-described reason. The shape of the keytop of each of the input keys is substantially flat, so as not to form a clearance around each input key. As described above, it is difficult to form the keytop in a rounded shape.
Usually, to alleviate an impact imposed on the upper and lower housings upon folding of the terminal with a clearance left between the upper and lower housings, a shock-absorbing member such as that of rubber is disposed at an end portion of the inner surface of one or both of the upper and lower housings. Increasing a height of the shock-absorbing member allows the input keys to further protrude from the surface in which the input keys are disposed. However, the clearance between the upper and lower housings while the terminal is folded or closed increases with an increase in the amount of the protrusion, or the height, of the input keys, thereby increasing the thickness of the terminal as folded, while making the terminal prone to introduce dust and dirt into the clearance.
JP-A-11-112627 discloses a mechanism in a fold-type mobile terminal having an upper housing and a lower housing, which mechanism is configured such that an operating portion thereof is retracted into the lower housing when the upper and lower housings are turned toward each other, that is, the terminal is folded or closed, and the operating portion comes out of the lower housing when the upper and lower housings are turned away from each other, that is, the terminal is opened.
According to the terminal disclosed in the above-mentioned publication, the usability of the operating portion is enhanced by the mechanism, in exchange for increases in the complexity of the mechanism and the cost of the terminal. Further, although a clearance formed between the upper and lower housings when the terminal is folded can be made relatively small, a space for allowing movement of input keys a direction of a thickness of the lower housing is necessary in the lower housing, and thus it is inevitable that the thickness of the lower housing is relatively large.
The present invention has been developed in view of the above-described situations. According to one embodiment of the invention, there is provided a mobile terminal apparatus which has an upper housing and a lower housing that are connected to be turnable away from and toward each other so that the apparatus is openable/closable, and is configured to have a reduced thickness when closed, and exhibit an enhanced usability of input keys disposed in one of the upper and lower housings, i.e., an enhanced easiness in manipulating the input keys, without any input key contacting a surface of the other of the upper and lower housings that is opposed to the input keys.
That is, another embodiment of this invention is directed to a mobile terminal apparatus that includes: an upper housing in which a display portion having a display screen is disposed; a lower housing having an inner major surface in which an operating portion including a plurality of kinds of input keys is disposed; and a connecting portion which connects the upper housing with the lower housing such that the upper housing and the lower housing are turnable away from and toward each other to open and close the apparatus. The inner major surface of the lower housing is recessed at an area where input keys of a first group that corresponds to a particular one of the kinds is disposed, so as to increase a level difference between a keytop of each of the input keys of the first group and the inner major surface.
By this arrangement, the actual height of the input keys need not be changed in order to increase a level difference between the keytop of the individual input keys and the inner major surface of the lower housing. Thus, it is not necessary to change the absolute height of the input keys itself, thereby preventing an increase in the thickness of the terminal apparatus in the closed or folded state.
It is preferable that the keytop of each of the input keys of the first group is convex outward.
By this arrangement, convexity is provided to the input keys so that the user feels the convexity when manipulating the input keys. This facilitates distinguishing among the individual input keys by a finger. The present feature is particularly effective where the input keys are arranged close to one another.
According to another embodiment of the invention, the mobile terminal apparatus is adapted such that the inner major surface of the lower housing in which the operating portion is disposed is sectioned into a first area in which the input keys of the first group are disposed, and a second area constituted by an area other than the first area in the inner major surface, and input keys of a second group that corresponds to another of the kinds are disposed in the second area and the level of the inner major surface of the lower housing is higher at the second area than at the first area.
By this arrangement, each of a large number of input keys is disposed in either of the first and second areas that are visually and sensuously distinguishable, depending on the usage of the input key, thereby enhancing the easiness in manipulating the operating portion.
In the above-described arrangement, a keytop of each of the input keys of the second group is preferably substantially flush with a part of the inner major surface around the input keys of the second group. Preferably, each of the input keys of the second group has a keytop that is substantially flat.
Preferably, the inner major surface is configured such that two lateral end portions thereof on opposite sides of the first area are located at the same level as the second area.
According to this arrangement, the two lateral end portions reinforce the mechanical strength of the lower housing as well as prevent the input keys from contacting the display portion.
The mobile terminal apparatus may further include a shock-absorbing member disposed at an end portion in a surface of at least one of the lower housing and the upper housing, which surface is to be opposed to the other housing when the apparatus is closed. The end portion is remote from the connecting portion.
The shock-absorbing member functions to absorb an impact of contact between the upper and lower housings upon closing of the terminal apparatus, and to ensure a clearance between the upper and lower housings when the terminal apparatus is closed.
Embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail based on the following figures, wherein:
Hereinafter, there will be described in detail a fold-type mobile terminal apparatus according to a presently preferred embodiment of the invention, by referring to the accompanying drawings.
As shown in
Referring to
In the vicinity of the connecting portion 14, there are disposed a center jog 33 as a kind of jog dial, and a left arrow key 34 and a right arrow key 35 on opposite lateral sides of the center jog 33.
At a first area in the inner major surface of the lower housing 20, which is located substantially at a center of the inner major surface, there is disposed alphanumeric keys or tenkey 41 which is included in input keys of a first group. At the entirety of the first area, the inner major surface of the lower housing 20 is slightly recessed from the other area in the inner major surface. That is, the inner major surface of the lower housing 20 has at the first area a portion lowered by about a few tenths of a millimeter to 1 or 2 millimeters. In this embodiment, the depth of the recess or the amount by which the inner major surface is lowered at the first area is substantially 0.3 mm. Each of the input keys disposed in the first area has a keytop surface that is curved to be convex outward, as will fully described later by referring to
As input keys of a second group, a mail key 36, a web key 37, a start key 38, an on/off key 39, and a clear key 40 are disposed in a second area on the upper side of the first area in the inner major surface of the lower housing 20. The mail key 36 is manipulated when an electronic mail function is to be activated, the web key 37 is manipulated when a web browser function is to be activated, the start key 38 is manipulated when a telephone call or a communication is to be started, the on/off key 39 is manipulated when the terminal is to be powered on/off, and the clear key 40 is manipulated when an operation is to be cancelled or in like situations. Unlike at the first area, the inner major surface of the lower housing 20 is configured in the same manner as in the past at the second area. That is, a keytop of each of the input keys of the second group is substantially flush with a portion of the inner major surface of the lower housing 20 at the other area, i.e., the area other than the first and second areas. According to the present embodiment, the keytop of each input key of the second group is substantially flat. If the keytop is convex outward, a peripheral portion of the keytop is located at a lower level than the inner major surface to form a gap between a surface of the keytop and the inner major surface, in which gap dust and dirt will accumulate. According to the embodiment, however, such accumulation of dust and dirt is prevented. Nevertheless, the invention does not exclude an arrangement where the keytop of each input key in the second area is rounded or convex outward.
In the inner major surface, both lateral end portions 45, 46 at the sides of the first area are located at the same level as a portion 53 of the inner major surface of the second area. This configuration reinforces a mechanical strength of the lower housing 20, which is decreased by presence of a recess 44 or the lowered portion substantially at the center of the lower housing 20. Further, when at least one of the upper housing and the lower housing is deformed by an external pressure, and a degree of the deformation is more than that the upper housing is brought into contact with the lower housing 20 only at the shock-absorbing members 24, the lateral end portion or portions 45, 46 is brought into contact with a corresponding lateral end portion or portions in the upper housing 10, thereby preventing contact of any input key with the transparent plate of the display screen.
There will be described reasons for sectioning the inner major surface of the lower housing 20 into the first area and the second area, and lowering the inner major surface only at the first area.
The input keys of the first group disposed in the first area are a so-called “tenkey”, and associated with input of telephone number, text of mail message or note, and others. In particular, when a text is inputted, a finger of the user moves in every direction across the first area. On the other hand, the input keys in the second area are associated with selection and control of various functions of the terminal, and less frequently used than the tenkey. In this way, the intended purpose or function is different between the input keys of the first group and those of the second group, and thus visually and sensuously differentiating the first group from the second group facilitates distinguishing between the two areas when the terminal is used.
An antenna of this mobile phone terminal is incorporated inside the terminal, and for this and other reasons, the upper and lower housings is made of resin. Hence, when a large external force is imposed on the terminal in the folded state, the housings made of resin may deform so that a central portion of the upper housing and that of the lower housing, which are remote from the connecting portion 14 and the shock-absorbing members 24, are made close to each other in some situations. However, even in the event of contact of the keytop of any input key with the display screen of the display 32 due to this deformation, the contact is made substantially at a point since the input key is convex outward. This makes the display screen less suffering from damage or contamination, and accordingly less susceptible to defacement. Thus, the convex shape of the keytop enhances the usability as well as prevents the defacement of the display screen.
On the other hand, there is no possibility that the upper and lower housings 10, 20 contact each other at the second area that is relatively near the connecting portion, when the terminal receives an external force. Hence, the keytop of each input key of the second group may be substantially flat, as seen in the past. The input keys of the second group are used less frequently than the tenkey (i.e., the input keys of the first group), and thus the lack of convexity at the input keys of the second group does not much affect the usability adversely.
The following effects are obtained by the present embodiment:
Although there has been described one embodiment of the invention, the invention may be embodied with various changes and modifications other than those mentioned above. For instance, the details of the mobile phone terminal shown in
Although in the above-described embodiment the connecting portion takes the form of a hinge arrangement, the connecting portion may be otherwise. For instance, the invention is applicable to a type of mobile terminal apparatus where an upper housing is linearly or rotationally slidable relatively to a lower housing, or another type of mobile terminal apparatus where a connecting portion connects an upper housing with the lower housing such that the upper housing can rotatable relatively to the lower housing around two axes.
It should be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications, combinations, sub-combinations and alterations may occur depending on design requirements and other factors insofar as they are within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.
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Number | Date | Country |
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11-112627 | Apr 1999 | JP |
Number | Date | Country | |
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