Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
~ 2 ~
This invention relates to a telephone handset, and a
method of construction thereof.
'
A typical telephone set consists of a main body
incorporating the telephone circuitry and a separate handset
which may be connected to the main body of the telephone
either by a cord or wireless communication. This invention
is concerned with the construction of the handset.
Prior art handsets generally consist of a shallow
elongate housing with a pair of opposed deep recesses for
receiving respectively a receiver and microphone. Such a
handset consists of a substantial number of parts with a
consequential effect on the complexity of assembly. The
handset usually consists of the main housing with a shallow
central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses for
receiving the microphone and receiver. The microphone has
to be held in place by a corresponding retaining bracket,
and the same is true for the receiver. A balance weight has
to be fitted in the shallow recess between the microphone
and receiver.
An object of the invention is to simplify the
constructlon of the handset.
Accordingly the present invention provides a telephone
handset comprising an elongate housing with a shallow
; ~ central recess and a pair of opposed deep recesses at
opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively a
microphone and a receiver, an elastomeric mounting plate ;~
snugly fitted within said elongate body, and a cover plate ~ -
for closing said elongate body to retain said microphone and
receiver in clamping engagement in said respective recesses
between said cover plate and said housing.
Preferably a balance weight is molded integrally with
~: :-- - :
the elastomeric mounting plate. ~-
2~7~2 `` ~
By using the elastomeric mounting plate to resillently ~
retain the microphone and receiver in situ, the respective ~;
mounting brackets can be eliminated and the construction of
the handset considerably simplified. The incorporation of `
the weight into the mounting place further simplifies the
construction of the handset.
The invention also provides a method of making a
telephone handset comprising forming an elongate housing
with a shallow central recess and a pair of opposed deep
recesses at opposite ends thereof for receiving respectively ~ ~-
a microphone and a receiver, fitting an elastomeric mounting
plate snugly within said elongate body, closing said
elongate body with a cover plate to resiliently retain said ~
microphone and receiver in clamping engagement in said ~ `
respective recesses between said cover plate and said
housing.
The invention will now be described in more detail, by
way of example only, with reference to the accompanying
drawings, in which~
Figure 1 is an exploded view of a prior art handset;
and
Figure 2 is an exploded view of a handset in accordance
with one embodiment of the invention. :
In the drawings, like parts bear like reference
numerals.
'',' ~ :~''""'.''-'
Referring now to Figure 1, the telephone handset
comprises a main elongate housing 1 with a central shallow
recess la, a receiver recess lb, and a microphone recess lc
at opposite ends thereof. A balance weight 2 is located in -~
the shallow recess la between screw posts 3.
. -' ~'''','.'''`
- 2 - ;`
, . " ` ., . , `. ., . ~ : , , . I ., .
2 ~
In receiver recess lb are located a rubber seal 4 and a
receiver 5, retained in place by receiver mounting bracket
6, which is screwed by means of three screws 7 into
corresponding holes 8 in the receiver recess lb.
A similar arrangement, consisting of rubber seal 9 and
microphone mounting bracket 10, contains the microphone 11
in the microphone recess lc.
A telephone jack 12 and corresponding grommet 13 are
located in a molded recess 14 formed in the end of the
housing 1. Once all the parts have been assembled, cover
plate 15 is applied to close the housing 1. The cover plate
and housing are either screwed, snappedj or ultrasonically
welded together.
.
Referring now to Figure 2, the elongate housing 1 and
cover plate 15 have the same configuration as in Figure 1.
However, the mounting plate 6 and 10 are eliminated.
Instead, a mounting plate 20 made of elastomeric rubber with
a balance weight 21 integrally molded therein and having a
shape complementary to the interior of the housing 1 is
snugly inserted therein. The mounting plate 20 has opposed
apertures 22, 23 so that the material of the plate can be
elastomerically stretched around the receiver 5 and
microphone 11, which accordingly become resiliently retained
in the respective apertures 22 and 23. Aperture 22 has a
cylindrical protrusion 24 with an inturned lip (not shown) ~ --
on the underside of the mounting plate 20 so as to
completely capture and seal the receiver 5. In a preferred
embodiment the elastomeric mounting plate 20 also has a
recess at one end to receive the telephone jack 12 and
rubber grommet 13.
Prior to final assembly, the telephone receiver 5,
microphone 11, grommet 13, and telephone jack 12 are all ~`
retained by the elastomeric mounting plate 20, which also
- 3 -
:: :
- ~7~3~
incorporates the balance weight 2. The latter is provided
for ergonomic reasons. The wires from the jack 12 can be
connected to the receiver 5 and microphone 11.
On final assembly, the mounting plate complete with all ~ -
the accessory components of the handset is inserted into the
main housing 1 and the cover plates 15 are screwed in place.
Alternatively, other attachment techniques can be used, for
example snapping in place or ultrasonic welding.
The cover plate 15 slightly compresses the resilient
mounting plate 20 so that the microphone and receiver are
resiliently and clampingly retained in place in their
respective recesses.
It will be seen that the use of the resilient mounting ~ ~ ;
plate considerably reduces the number of components required
to manufacture the handset and thereby substantially ~ ~;
simplifies manufacture. The mounting brackets are entirely ;~
eliminated. Furthermore, the resilience of the mounting
plate enhances the ruggedness of the final assembly by
absorbing and distributing the energy of the internal -
components during abusive treatment.
:
The rubber mounting plate also acts as a barrier to
enhance the acoustic separation between the microphone and
receiver transducers, which is a further advantage of the
described construction.
The microphone and receiver have been illustrated as
being captured in apertures in the mounting plate 20. In an
alternative arrangement, the microphone and receiver
transducers are placed over the elastomeric rubber holder.
`~
- 4 -
~$ ~
:.,, . .: , . . .. ~ . ~ : .. . . .
