Power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6833794
  • Patent Number
    6,833,794
  • Date Filed
    Tuesday, March 11, 2003
    21 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, December 21, 2004
    19 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Hofsass; Jeffery
    • Previl; Daniel
    Agents
    • Rosenberg, Klein & Lee
Abstract
A power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function has a shell body, a circuit unit and a connection component. The circuit unit is disposed in the shell body to receive signals emitted by an emission component. The circuit unit has an alarm component and a contact switch. The connection component is connected to a portable electronic device. The connection component is also connected to the shell body in a detachable way. The portable electronic device can be clamped onto a user's waistband. When the portable electronic device is separated from the circuit unit by a certain distance, the circuit unit immediately emits light or sounds and alarm, thereby preventing the portable electronic device from being lost or stolen by thieves. When the portable electronic device is connected to the clamping device, the contact switch is touched to turn off the electric unit, hence avoiding waste of electric power.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The present invention relates to a power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function and, more particularly, to a clamping device, which can be clamped on a user's waistband to facilitate carrying of a portable electronic device, can effectively prevent the portable electronic device from being lost, and can also turn off a circuit unit to avoid waste of electric power when not in use.




2. Background of the Invention




Along with the continual progress of information technology, portable electronic devices like mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and electronic communications products have become articles frequently used in everyday lives of most people. Generally, a portable electronic device can be clamped onto a user's waistband by means of a sheath to facilitate carrying. However, this method of carrying a portable electronic device easily gives rise to a situation where the portable electronic device is lost or stolen by thieves.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




The primary object of the present invention is to provide a power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function, whereby a portable electronic device can be clamped onto a user's waistband. When the portable electronic device separated from a circuit unit of the clamping device by a certain distance, the circuit unit is immediately driven to sound an alarm or display a warning light, hence effectively preventing the portable electronic device from being lost or stolen by thieves. Moreover, when the portable electronic device is connected to the clamping device, it touches a contact switch to turn off the circuit unit, hence avoiding waste of electric power.




To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function, which can be connected to a portable electronic device. The clamping device comprises a shell body, a circuit unit, and a connection component. The shell body has a clamping sheet disposed on the outer wall thereof. The circuit unit is disposed in the shell body, and can receive signals emitted by an emission component. The circuit unit has an alarm component and a contact switch. The connection component is connected to the portable electronic device. The connection component is also connected to the shell body in detachable way. The emission component is disposed on the portable electronic device or the connection component. When the connection component is connected to the shell body, it touches the contact switch to turn off the circuit unit.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




The various objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the appended drawing, in which:





FIG. 1

is an exploded perspective view of a first embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 2

is a perspective assembly view of the first embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 3

is another perspective assembly view of the first embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 4

is a side view of the first embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 5

is a perspective assembly view showing a separate state of the connection component of the first embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 6

is a diagram showing the the first embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 7

is another diagram showing the first embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 8

is yet another diagram showing the first embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 9

is still yet another diagram showing the first embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 10

is a perspective assembly view of a second embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 11

is a perspective assembly view of a third embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 12

is a perspective assembly view of a fourth embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 13

is a perspective view showing a fifth embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 14

is a diagram showing a sixth embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 15

is a top view showing the fifth embodiment of the present invention in use;





FIG. 16

is a perspective assembly view of a seventh embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 17

is a perspective assembly view of an eighth embodiment of the present invention;





FIG. 18

is a perspective assembly view of a ninth embodiment of the present invention; and





FIG. 19

is a perspective view showing a tenth embodiment of the present invention in use.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS




As shown in

FIGS. 1

to


5


, the present invention provides a power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function. The clamping device comprises a shell body


10


, a circuit unit


20


, and a connection component


30


. The shell body


10


is composed of a first half shell


11


and a second half shell


12


, which are assembled together by means of fastening, locking with screws, or supersonic welding. In this embodiment, the first half shell


11


and the second half shell


12


are assembled together by means of fastening. In particular, corresponding fastening holes


13


and fastening hooks


14


are disposed on the first half shell


11


and the second half shell


12


. Through mutual fastening of the fastening holes


13


and the fastening hooks


14


, the first half shell


11


and the second half shell


12


are assembled together.




The shell body


10


has a receiving space


15


therein for receiving components like the circuit unit


20


and a battery


40


. A battery cover


16


corresponding to the battery


40


is fastened on the rear of the shell body


10


. The battery cover


16


can be detached to facilitate replacement of the battery


40


. A clamping sheet


17


is disposed on the outer wall of the rear of the shell body


10


, and can be used to clamp the clamping device of the present invention onto a user's waistband. A fastening groove


18


is disposed in the front side of the shell body


10


. The fastening groove


18


is a U-shaped groove body having an open upper end. A baffle


19


is extended from the front side of the fastening groove


18


.




The circuit unit


20


is composed of a circuit board


21


and several electronic components


22


. The circuit unit


20


is disposed in the receiving space


15


. The electronic components


22


have the function of a reception component, and can be used to receive signals emitted by an emission component


90


(shown in

FIGS. 6 and 9

) preset on a portable electronic device. The emission component


90


can be fixed on the outside of a portable electronic device like a mobile phone


50


by adhering with glue (FIG.


6


), or can be fixedly built in a portable electronic device such as a mobile phone


50


(FIG.


9


).




The circuit board


21


has an alarm component (e.g., a light-emitting component


23


or a sounding component


24


) and a switch


25


. The light-emitting component


23


is a device like a light-emitting diode (LED). The sounding component


24


is a device like a buzzer. The switch


25


can be used to switch or turn off the circuit unit


20


according to necessity in manual way. The circuit board


21


is also electrically connected to a contact switch


28


, which is exposed by the shell body


10


and sticks into the fastening groove


18


. A light-permeable hole


101


corresponding to the light-emitting component


23


and a switch hole


102


corresponding to the switch


25


are disposed on the shell body


10


to allow proper exposure of the light-emitting component


23


and the switch


25


.




The circuit board


21


is connected to two conducting sheets


27


with conducting wires


26


. The two conducting sheets


27


are properly fastened in the receiving space


15


of the shell body


10


, and can respectively contact two poles of the battery


40


. The battery


40


and the circuit unit


20


can thus be properly connected so that the electricity of the battery


40


can be transferred to the circuit unit


20


.




The connection component


30


has a connection portion


31


and a fastening portion


32


. One face of the connection portion


31


can be connected to a portable electronic device like the mobile phone


50


(FIG.


6


), a personal digital assistant


60


(FIG.


7


), or another electronic communications product


70


(

FIG. 8

) by adhering with glue so that the connection component


30


can be fixed on the portable electronic device. The fastening portion


32


extends from the other face of the connection portion


31


. The fastening portion


32


is a T-shaped post body, and is fastened with the fastening groove


18


of the shell body


10


in detachable way. The baffle


19


on the front side of the fastening groove


18


is used to prevent the fastening portion


32


from moving forwards out of the fastening grove


18


. Thereby, the connection portion


30


can connect the portable electronic device onto the shell body


10


. When the portable electronic device is fastened with the fastening groove


18


of the shell body


10


with the fastening portion


32


of the connection component


30


, the connection component


30


touches the contact switch


28


to turn off the circuit unit


20


. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function of the present invention is thus formed.




The emission component


90


preset on a portable electronic device like the mobile phone


50


(FIGS.


6


and


9


), the personal digital assistant (PDA)


60


(FIG.


7


), or the electronic communications product


70


(

FIG. 8

) can emit signals, which are received by the circuit unit


20


of the clamping device. However, when the portable electronic device is separated from the circuit unit


20


of the clamping device by a certain distance, the circuit unit


20


can no longer receive signals emitted by the emission component


90


on the portable electronic device. The alarm component, such as the light-emitting component


23


or the sounding component


24


, immediately emits light or sound, thereby effectively preventing the portable electronic device from being lost or stolen by thieves.




When the portable electronic device is connected to the fastening groove


18


of the shell body


10


of the clamping device by the fastening portion


32


of the connection component


30


, the connection component


30


touches the contact switch


28


to turn off the circuit unit


20


, hence avoiding unnecessary waste of electric power.




As shown in

FIG. 10

, it is also feasible that the fastening groove


18


and the baffle


19


of the present invention protrude from of the front side of the shell body


10


.




Additionally, as shown in

FIG. 11

, a wire-winding unit


80


can also be disposed in the shell body


10


so that a signal cable


81


can be selectively wound into the shell body


10


or pulled out of the shell body


10


. The length of the signal cable


81


can be momentarily adjusted according to necessity so that entanglement of cable due to an excessive length of external cable or inconvenience of use due to a too-short length of external cable will not arise. Moreover, the two ends of the signal cable


81


can connect to a plug


82


and an earphone


83


or a hand-free headset, respectively. The plug


82


can be plugged into the portable electronic device so that the earphone


83


can be used to hear sound given out by the portable electronic device, or the hand-free headset can be used to transmit or receive voice.




Also, as shown in

FIG. 12

, it is also feasible that the emission component


90


is installed in the connection component


30


.




Moreover, as shown in

FIGS. 13

,


15


and


14


, the clamping device can be disposed outside (

FIGS. 13 and 15

) or inside a sheath body


100


(FIG.


14


). The sheath body


100


is a device used to receive the mobile phone


50


.




Furthermore, as shown in

FIGS. 16

,


17


and


18


, the shape and structure of the clamping device of the present invention can be varied. With reference to

FIG. 19

, a hanging strip


103


can also be connected to the shell body


10


of the present invention for convenient hanging. The shape and structure of the connection component


30


can also be varied.




Although the present invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be understood that the invention is not limited to the details thereof. Various substitutions and modifications have been suggested in the foregoing description, and other will occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, all such substitutions and modifications are intended to be embraced within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.



Claims
  • 1. A power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function and used to connect a portable electronic device, said clamping device comprising:a shell body with a clamping sheet disposed on an outer wall thereof; a circuit unit disposed in said shell body and capable of receiving signals emitted by an emission component, said circuit unit having an alarm component and a contact switch; and a connection component connected to said portable electronic device, said connection component being also connected to said shell body in detachable way, said emission component being disposed on said portable electronic device, said connection component touching said contact switch to turn off said circuit unit when connected to said shell body.
  • 2. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shell body has a receiving space therein, and said circuit unit is disposed in said receiving space.
  • 3. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 2, wherein a battery is received in said receiving space of said shell body, said battery is connected to said circuit unit, and a battery cover corresponding to said battery is fastened on one side of said shell body.
  • 4. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said shell body is formed by assembling a first half shell and a second half shell together.
  • 5. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein a fastening groove is disposed in a front side of said shell body, a baffle is extended from a front side of said fastening groove, said connection component has a fastening portion fastened with said fastening groove on the front side of said shell body in detachable way, and said contact switch is inserted into said fastening groove.
  • 6. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein a wire-winding unit is disposed in said shell body, a signal cable is elastically wound in said wire-winding unit, and two ends of said signal cable are connected to a plug and an earphone, respectively.
  • 7. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein a wire-winding unit is disposed in said shell body, a signal cable is elastically wound in said wire-winding unit, and two ends of said signal cable are connected to a plug and a hand-free headset, respectively.
  • 8. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said alarm component of said circuit unit is a light-emitting component, and a light-permeable hole corresponding to said light-emitting component is disposed on said shell body.
  • 9. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said alarm component of said circuit unit is a sound-emitting component.
  • 10. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said circuit unit has a switch, and a switch hole corresponding to said switch is disposed on said shell body.
  • 11. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, wherein said connection component has a connection portion, and said connection portion is connected to said portable electronic device.
  • 12. The power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function as claimed in claim 1, being disposed in a sheath body.
  • 13. A power-saving clamping device having a loss-guard function and used to connect a portable electronic device, said clamping device comprising:a shell body with a clamping sheet disposed on an outer wall of said shell body; a circuit unit disposed in said shell body and capable of receiving signals emitted by an emission component, said circuit unit having an alarm component and a contact switch; and a connection component connected to said portable electronic device or connected to said portable electronic device in detachable way, said emission component being disposed on said connection component, and said connection component touching said contact switch to turn off said circuit unit when connected to said shell body.
US Referenced Citations (4)
Number Name Date Kind
5610979 Yu Mar 1997 A
5787168 Lien Jul 1998 A
5918189 Kivela Jun 1999 A
6341218 Poplawsky et al. Jan 2002 B1