Abstract
A case assembly for an electronic device includes a case including a back wall and a peripheral wall projecting from a periphery of the back wall to define a case interior. The back wall includes an exterior surface and a plurality of slots formed through the back wall. A flexible member is positioned in the plurality of slots to form a plurality of expandable portions on the exterior surface of the back wall.
Claims
1. A case assembly for an electronic device comprising: a case including a back wall and a peripheral wall projecting from a periphery of the back wall to define a case interior, the back wall including an exterior surface and a plurality of slots formed through the back wall; and a flexible member positioned in the plurality of slots to form a plurality of expandable portions on the exterior surface of the back wall.
2. The case assembly of claim 1 wherein the flexible member is elongated and flat and includes at least one portion for preventing at least one end of the flexible member from being removed from the case.
3. The case assembly of claim 1 wherein the plurality of slots includes at least four slots and wherein the flexible member is threaded through the four slots to create an expandable mid-potion of the flexible member and an expandable lower portion of the flexible member.
4. The case assembly of claim 3 wherein the mid-portion is proximate a mid-portion of the case and wherein the lower portion is proximate a lower edge of the case.
5. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the flexible member includes a pair of opposite ends each secured within the interior of the case.
6. The case assembly of claim 5 wherein an upper portion of the flexible member translates within the interior of the case as the mid-portion of the flexible member is expanded.
7. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the mid-portion of the flexible member is received between the fins of a car vent.
8. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the mid-portion of the flexible member is secured to a tray table latch of an airplane seat back.
9. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the mid-portion of the flexible member is received within a gap.
10. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the mid-portion of the flexible member is secured around a neck of a bottle.
11. The case assembly of claim 4 wherein the case is configured to receive a smartphone.
12. The case assembly of claim 1 wherein the case is configured to receive a smartphone.
13. The case assembly of claim 12 further including a smart phone received in the case.
14. The case assembly of claim 13 wherein the flexible member is elongated and flat and includes at least one portion for preventing at least one end of the flexible member from being removed from the case.
15. The case assembly of claim 14 wherein the plurality of slots includes at least four slots and wherein the flexible member is threaded through the four slots to create an expandable mid-potion of the flexible member and an expandable lower portion of the flexible member.
16. A case assembly for an electronic device comprising: a case including a back wall and a peripheral wall projecting from a periphery of the back wall to define a case interior, the back wall including an exterior surface and a plurality of slots formed through the back wall; and at least one flexible member positioned in the plurality of slots to form a plurality of expandable portions on the exterior surface of the back wall.
17. The case assembly of claim 16 wherein the case is configured to receive a smartphone.
18. The case assembly of claim 16 further including a smart phone received in the case.
19. The case assembly of claim 16 wherein the plurality of slots includes at least four slots and wherein the at least one flexible member is threaded through the four slots.
20. The case assembly of claim 19 wherein the at least one flexible member is threaded through the at least four slots to create an expandable mid-potion of the at least one flexible member and an expandable lower portion of the at least one flexible member.
Description
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] FIG. 1A is a rear view of a protective case.
[0014] FIG. 1B is a front view of the case of FIG. 1A.
[0015] FIG. 1C is a side view of the case of FIG. 1A.
[0016] FIG. 2 illustrates front view of the flexible component.
[0017] FIG. 3A is a rear view of a case assembly including the protective case of FIG. 1A interlaced with flexible component of FIG. 2, with the flexible component in the retracted position.
[0018] FIG. 3B is a front (interior) view of the case assembly of FIG. 3A.
[0019] FIG. 3C is a side view of the case assembly of FIG. 3A.
[0020] FIG. 4A is a rear view of the case assembly of FIG. 3A with the flexible component in the middle deployed position.
[0021] FIG. 4B is a front view of the case assembly of FIG. 4A.
[0022] FIG. 4C is a side view of the case assembly of FIG. 4A.
[0023] FIG. 5A is a rear view of the case assembly of FIG. 4A with the flexible component in the bottom deployed position.
[0024] FIG. 5B is a front view of the case assembly of FIG. 5A.
[0025] FIG. 5C is a side view of the case assembly of FIG. 5A.
[0026] FIG. 6A is a side view of the case assembly in the middle position on a table top in a side kickstand position.
[0027] FIG. 6B is a side view of the case assembly in the middle position on a table top in an angled kickstand position.
[0028] FIG. 6C is a side view of the case assembly in the bottom deployed position on a table top in an upright kickstand position.
[0029] FIG. 7A is a front view of the case assembly of FIG. 4A installed in a car vent and with a device received in the case assembly.
[0030] FIG. 7B is a section view taken along line 7B-7B of FIG. 7A.
[0031] FIG. 8A illustrates the back of a typical airplane passenger seat.
[0032] FIG. 8B illustrates the case assembly of FIG. 4A secured to the airplane passenger seat, with a device received in the case assembly.
[0033] FIG. 8C is a section view taken along line 8C-8C of FIG. 8B.
[0034] FIGS. 9A-D illustrate alternate mounting locations of the case assembly to the airplane seat back.
[0035] FIG. 10A illustrates the case assembly mounted to a laptop computer.
[0036] FIG. 10B is a side view of the case assembly and computer of FIG. 10A, with a device received in the case assembly.
[0037] FIG. 11A illustrates a beverage bottle.
[0038] FIG. 11B shows the case assembly of FIG. 4A secured to the beverage bottle of FIG. 11A.
[0039] FIG. 11C is a section view taken along line 11C-11C of FIG. 11B.
[0040] FIG. 12 is a side view of the case assembly supported on top of a beverage can.
[0041] FIG. 13 shows the case assembly of FIG. 4A secured to a finger of a user's hand.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0042] FIGS. 1A-C illustrate a protective case 10 having a back wall 12 with a plurality of horizontal slots 11a, 11b, 11c, 11d formed therethrough. A peripheral wall 14 extends from the back wall 12 and defines a case interior. The back wall 12 may also include other openings, such as a camera opening 16. Other than the horizontal slots 11a-d, the protective case 10 may be similar to those that are well-known for protecting smart phones and may be molded or otherwise formed as a single piece of plastic, silicone, leather, wood, metal or other suitable material.
[0043] The slots 11a-d may be parallel to one another as shown, but could also be at small angles relative to one another. Slot 11a is substantially centered vertically on the back wall 12, but slightly upward of center. Slot 11b is below a vertical center of the back wall 12. Slot 11c is spaced below slot 11b. Slot 11d is spaced below slot 11c and proximate a bottom portion of the peripheral wall 14. The slots 11a-d could be positioned otherwise than as shown, but the illustrated positions are preferred.
[0044] FIG. 2 illustrates a flexible member 20. The flexible member 20 is generally flat (in the plane of the Figure) and includes a top tee portion 20a, an elongated connector portion 20b, an angled locking portion 20c of increasing width, a notch portion 20d and a bottom tee portion 20e. The flexible member 20 can be formed of any flexible material such as plastic.
[0045] FIGS. 3A-C illustrate a case assembly 22 including the protective case 10 of FIG. 1A and the flexible member 20 of FIG. 2. The flexible member 20 is interlaced through the horizontal slots 11a-d of the protective case 10. In FIGS. 3A-C, the flexible member 20 is shown in the retracted position. The top tee portion 20a is within the interior of the protective case 10 (i.e. adjacent the front surface). Referring to FIG. 3B, much of the connector portion 20b is also adjacent the front surface of the protective case 10, but is then threaded out (toward the exterior of the protective case 10) through horizontal slot 11a, then back in through horizontal slot 11b, then out through horizontal slot 11c. As shown in FIG. 3A, the locking portion 20c of the flexible member 20 is on the exterior of the protective case 10 between slot 11c and slot 11d. The bottom tee portion 20e is within the interior of the protective case 10, with the notch portion 20d positioned in the slot 11d. The side view of FIG. 3C shows the external exposed sections of the flexible component 20, namely, mid-portion 24 is between slot 11a and slot 11b, and lower portion 26 is between slot 11c and slot 11d. Mid-portion 24 and lower portion 26 have a slight rounded shape which is helpful for the user to be able to pull the mid-portion 24 and/or lower portion 26 into a deployed position, as will be explained below.
[0046] As an alternative, the slots 11a-d could be vertical instead of horizontal. The top two vertical slots would be parallel to one another and adjacent one another. The bottom two vertical slots would be parallel to one another and adjacent one another but below the top two slots. A first flexible member could be threaded through the top two slots and movable between a retracted position (mostly inside the case 10) and a deployed position (projecting outward of the case 10). A second flexible member could be threaded through the bottom two slots and movable between a retracted position (mostly inside the case 10) and a deployed position (projecting outward of the case 10).
[0047] FIGS. 4A-C shows the case assembly 22 with the flexible member 20 in its middle deployed position. Referring to FIG. 4C, the user has pulled the mid-portion 24 outward of the exterior of the case 10 such that the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 is expanded and protrudes outward from a rear mid-portion of the case 10. Referring to FIG. 4B, the top tee portion 20a has translated downward towards slot 11a. In the middle deployed position, the lower portion 26 remains in place.
[0048] FIGS. 5A-C illustrate the case assembly 22 with the flexible component 20 in its bottom deployed position. Referring to FIG. 5C, the lower portion 26 has been pulled outward of the exterior of the case 10 by the user such that the lower portion 26 of the flexible member 20 has expanded and protrudes outward from a rear lower portion of the case 10. Referring to FIG. 5B, the locking portion 20c, notch portion 20d and bottom tee portion 20d lock the bottom of the flexible member 20, allowing it to rotate about an axis parallel to the slot 11d but not translate. The top tee portion 20a of the flexible member 20 has translated down to slot 11a, but the top tee portion 20a limits the translation of the flexible member 20 and prevents unintentional removal through the slot 11a. Referring to FIG. 5C, the mid-portion 24 is in a retracted position and the lower portion 26 is in the bottom deployed position. The bottom deployed position forms an open tear drop shape; this is a result of the user pulling the lower portion 26 of the flexible member 20.
[0049] FIGS. 6A-C show three ways that the case assembly 22 can be propped on a flat surface such as a table top or desk top. In FIG. 6A, the case assembly 22 is in the middle deployed position, with the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 protruding rearward of the case 10. The case assembly 22 is angled horizontally on the surface, i.e. propped on a long edge of the case 10 that is parallel to the flexible member 20 and on the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20, such that the case 10 is angled backward toward the mid-portion 24. This can be considered a “side kickstand position.” The user can view a device in the case assembly 22 in this position.
[0050] In FIG. 6B, the case assembly 22 is in the middle deployed position, with the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 protruding rearward of the case 10. The case assembly 22 is angled vertically on the surface, i.e. propped on a short edge of the case 10 that is perpendicular to the flexible member 20 and on the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20, such that the case 10 is angled backward toward the mid-portion 24. This can be considered an “angled kickstand position.” The user can view a device in the case assembly 22 in this position.
[0051] In FIG. 6C, the case assembly 22 is in the bottom deployed position with the lower portion 26 of the flexible member 20 protruding rearward of the case 10. The case assembly is arranged vertically on the surface, i.e. propped on a short edge of the case and on the deployed lower portion 26 of the flexible member 20. This can be considered the “upright kickstand position.” The user can view a device in the case assembly 22 in this position.
[0052] FIGS. 7A-7B show the case assembly 22 mounted to a typical car vent 50 having a plurality of fins 52 (shown as horizontal fins, but would work similarly with vertical fins). The electronic device 60 (here, a smartphone) is also shown in the case assembly 22, but of course would be in the case assembly 22 in FIGS. 6A-D as well. Referring to FIG. 7B, the deployed mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 can be inserted between the fins 52, such as by first squeezing the mid-portion 24 together, inserting it, and letting the mid-portion 24 expand between the fins 52, thereby securing the case assembly 22 (and device 60) to the vent 50.
[0053] FIGS. 8A-C show the use of the case assembly 22 on a typical airplane seat back 70. An airplane seat back 70 may include a display 72 mounted above a tray table 74. The tray table 74 is pivotably mounted at its lower end and secured at its upper end by a rotatable latch 76. Referring to FIG. 8C, the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 can be looped under the latch 76 to secure the case assembly 22 and device 60 to the seat back 70 at the upper edge of the tray table 74. The user can watch a video on device 60 in this position.
[0054] FIGS. 9A-D show that the case assembly 22 can also be mounted to various gaps in the seat back 70, such as the gap at the upper edge of the tray table 74 (FIG. 9A) or any of the gaps around the periphery of the display 72 in the seat back 70 (FIGS. 9B-D). Different gaps can provide different orientations of the case assembly 22 and therefore of the device 60, as shown.
[0055] FIGS. 10A-B show the deployed mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 securing the case assembly 22 on an upper edge of an object, such as a display 82 of a computer 80 (such as a laptop computer). Referring to FIG. 10B, the deployed mid-portion 24 is positioned on the upper edge of the display 82. The case assembly 22 and device 60 are held at the upper edge of the display 82 by the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20, aided by the fact that the display 82 is tilted rearwardly at least slightly.
[0056] FIGS. 11A-C show the case assembly 22 secured to the neck 94 of a bottle 90 (such as a beverage bottle). The bottle 90 has a body portion 92 and a neck 94. The mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 can be looped around the neck 94 to retain the case assembly 22 at the top of the bottle 90. The top of the bottle 90 may be a more convenient height for the user to view the device 60.
[0057] As shown in FIG. 12, the case assembly 22 can also be propped on a can 96 (such as a beverage can 96). The case assembly 22 is in the side kickstand position of FIG. 6A. The device 60 is received in the case assembly, but not visible.
[0058] As shown in FIG. 13, the mid-portion 24 of the flexible member 20 can also be used to loop around the finger 102 of a user's hand 100. This can provide the user with a more secure grip on their device 60 (FIG. 11B) to reduce the likelihood of the user dropping the device 60. The device 60 is received in the case assembly, but not visible.
[0059] There are many other potential uses of the case assembly 22 and other ways that users can find to mount the case assembly 22 and device 60 in various positions to various objects for their convenient use and viewing of the device.
[0060] In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes and jurisprudence, exemplary configurations described above are considered to represent preferred embodiments of the invention. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.
