Docking Sleeve With Electrical Adapter
Patent No. US11165458 (titled "Docking Sleeve With Electrical Adapter") was filed by National Products Inc on Dec 14, 2020.
What is this patent about?
’458 is related to the field of protective covers for portable electronic devices, such as smartphones and tablets. These covers, often called 'skins,' are designed to shield the device from damage. A common limitation of existing skins is their impact on the device's usability, particularly when connecting to docking stations or external adapters.
The underlying idea behind ’458 is to integrate an electrical adapter directly into a flexible protective cover. This adapter features a male plug that connects to the device's input/output socket and a contactor with external contacts for easy connection to a docking station or external adapter, all while the device remains protected within the cover.
The claims of ’458 focus on a removable cover with a panel and skirt forming a cavity for the electronic device. The key element is an adapter with a male plug that mates with the device's female socket and a contactor exposed through an opening in the cover's exterior. The contactor has electrical contacts arranged in rows and is recessed relative to the cover's surface, with a dam surrounding the exposed portion.
In practice, the electronic device is inserted into the flexible cover, automatically connecting the integrated male plug to the device's input/output socket. The recessed contactor, with its exposed electrical contacts, then allows for easy and reliable connection to a docking cradle or external adapter. The dam around the contactor provides additional protection and helps with alignment.
This design differentiates itself from prior solutions by eliminating the need to remove the protective cover for docking or connecting to external devices. The integrated adapter, with its recessed contactor and protective dam, provides a convenient and robust solution for maintaining both protection and connectivity. The arrangement of electrical contacts in rows on the contactor further enhances the reliability and ease of connection.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical landscape at the time
In the early 2010s when ’458 was filed, protective skins were commonly used to partially envelop portable electronic devices such as smartphones and tablets. At a time when such devices were typically implemented using standardized input/output sockets, hardware constraints made it non-trivial to provide efficient and reliable usage of such portable electronic devices with protective covers.
Novelty and Inventive Step
The examiner approved the claims because the prior art did not describe or suggest a contactor with a surface recessed relative to the cover's exterior, where the contacts are arranged in at least two rows. Also, the prior art fails to teach or suggest a contactor with a lateral surface recess and contacts arranged on that surface, where the male plug's longitudinal direction is perpendicular to the contactor's lateral surface.
Claims
This patent includes 22 claims, with claims 1 and 12 being independent. The independent claims are directed to a protective arrangement for an electronic device, including a removable cover and an adapter. The dependent claims generally specify further details and variations of the protective arrangement and related docking systems.
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Date
Description
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US11165458
- Application Number
- US17121416
- Filing Date
- Dec 14, 2020
- Status
- Granted
- Expiry Date
- Mar 21, 2034
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO, Google Patents