Hand-held data capture system with interchangeable modules

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INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

The descriptive matter of the above-referred to PCT application PCT/US90/03282, filed Jun. 7, 1990, including forty-six pages of specification and nineteen sheets of drawings including FIGS. 1 through 37, is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, and is made part of this application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to data collection systems, and more particularly to such systems wherein a hand-held unit may be operated to collect data, to selectively process, and to communicate collected data within such systems by various automated or manual operations. A typical automated process which may be included in such operations relates to collecting data by scanning bar code data with a laser scanning device. Subsequently, the collected data or information may be processed such as by becoming included in a data base. In another operation, it may be desired to communicate the information to another unit within a respective data collection system.

Various investigatory efforts in this area have shown that some functional applications of the data collection systems may require certain features on such hand-held units which may not at all be required in other functional applications. Going toward specialization of the units for specific tasks, the cost of operating the data collection systems tends to become more and more prohibitive as systems become configured to accommodate various specific applications. On the other hand, when data entry units are mass produced for general applications, efficiency in the application is jeopardized and compromise on various features results in less than the most efficient data handling procedures. It is consequently desirable to provide a data collection system in which hand-held units are equipped with features relating to particular needs without having a prohibitively high price tag.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The PCT application Ser. No. 90/0382, filed Jun. 7, 1990, assigned to and owned by the assignee of the present application, the descriptive matter of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety, refers to a modular hand-held unit and discloses a manner of attaching one functional module to another.

In accordance with the present invention, a selected one of a plurality of special purpose functional modules may be attached to another module of one of a selected second functional configurations to configure a plurality of different modules of different specific functional features. Thus, according to one aspect of the invention, with a reasonable number of functional modules a great number of differently configured modules may be provided.

A hand-held data collection terminal unit includes an elongate housing having a lower portion supportable in the hand of a user and an upper portion facing such user when the terminal is in a typical use position. The upper portion includes a keyboard and a display screen. In accordance with the invention, the hand-held terminal comprises a plurality of modules in which a base module extends longitudinally and includes inner and outer end caps of the terminal. The inner end cap is disposed on the end of the terminal which typically points toward a user when the terminal is in use, the outer end cap being disposed on opposite end of the terminal. A keyboard module is defined as an intermediate module disposed adjacent the base module and between the end caps. A display screen module is further disposed adjacent the intermediate module and adjacent the outer end cap of the base module.

According to a more particular aspect of the invention, the display screen module extends from the outer end cap of the base module longitudinally toward an end intermediate of the inner and outer end caps, such that a portion of the keyboard module remains exposed and features an array of manual input keys arranged in an area between the display screen module and the inner end cap.

According to another aspect of the invention, a data collection terminal unit includes a base module, a keyboard module disposed adjacent the base module and substantially of the same length and width as the base module. A display screen module is disposed adjacent the keyboard module and is disposed over at least one key arrangement of the keyboard unit. The display screen module is slidably arranged to be selectively slidable outward away from a user and from such at least one key arrangement to expose such keys for user access when the terminal unit is being placed into use.

According to yet another aspect of the invention, it is desired to protect the modular hand-held units from damage when the units are accidentally dropped. Resilient end caps and a layered resilient interface extending peripherally beyond substantial module portions impart shock absorbing qualities to the modular hand-held units.

According to a further aspect of the invention, a scanner module is attached as an end cap module to an outer end of a modular hand-held terminal unit. The scanner module includes a scanner head which is rotatable about a longitudinal axis of the modular hand-held terminal unit and selectively adjustable to one of a plurality of user positions in which the scanner may conveniently be used to collect data from, for example, bar code labels while a display screen on a display screen module remains in view of the user of the terminal unit.

In further describing the various features and advantages of the invention and of particular hand-held terminal units including and embodying features of the invention, the following spacial relations are being followed. Directional indications refer to a normal position of use of a hand-held data collection terminal. In such position the user would hold the terminal or terminal unit such that a display screen faces "up" into the direction of view of the user. Similarly, a keyboard would normally face up to be visible and manually accessible to a user. Correspondingly, the upper face of a data collection terminal unit is also referred to as a frontal side or face. The opposite side or portion of the unit is referred to as the rear or bottom portion of the unit and the direction in which the rear portion faces is the "lower, bottom or down" direction, or term of similar import. Also of interest are the descriptors at opposite ends of a longitudinal axis through a terminal unit. With the keyboard and display screen facing up, the longitudinal end of the terminal unit typically facing away from the user will be referred to and denoted as an "outer" end, while an opposite end of the unit directed toward the user when the unit is in a general position as described, is referred to as an "inner" end. These references should be kept in mind when reading the following detailed description.

Various other features and advantages of the data collection terminal in accordance with the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, which may be best understood when read with reference to the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a frontal view of a modular data collection terminal unit having a display screen module which is enlarged to one side of a generally elongate shape of the terminal unit;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the data collection terminal unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an outer end view of the data collection terminal unit shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a frontal view of an alternate embodiment of a data collection terminal unit such as shown in FIG. 1, the alternate embodiment showing additional features including an RF communications capability, as indicated by an attenna extending laterally of the longitudinal body of the data collection terminal unit;

FIG. 5 is a side view of the data collection terminal unit shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a frontal view of yet another embodiment of a data collection terminal unit in accordance with the invention, the terminal unit showing a display screen which extends laterally beyond the basic longitudinal shape of the terminal unit;

FIG. 7 is a frontal view of a data collection terminal unit similar to the terminal unit shown in FIG. 1, except that a display screen module is shown which is confined to the generally longitudinal shape of the data collection terminal unit;

FIG. 8 is a frontal view of another embodiment of a data collection terminal unit in which the display screen module of the terminal unit in FIG. 7 has been replaced by an elongate display screen module in which function or control keys have been eliminated to afford room for added display area of the display screen;

FIG. 9 is a frontal view of a data collection terminal unit showing a first keyboard array adjacent an inner end of the terminal unit and a display screen module adjacent an outer end of the terminal unit;

FIG. 10 is a frontal view of the data collection terminal unit shown in FIG.