HK1168911B - Light isolating protective cover for small form factor electronic device - Google Patents

Description

Optical isolation protective cover for small form factor electronic devices

Technical Field

The described embodiments relate generally to electronic devices and, more particularly, to small form factor electronic devices. More specifically, a protective cover for a small form factor electronic device having a rearward facing camera assembly is provided that prevents light from leaking from the light source while interfering with images captured by the rearward facing camera assembly.

Background

Small form factor electronic devices, such as the iPhone manufactured by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif^TMIt has become to include many other functions in addition to those associated with voice communications. These "smart phones"may include an image capture device, such as a still or video camera that may be used to capture images that may be used to provide a single snapshot or processed into video. However, in order to protect the exterior of small form factor electronic devices, a plethora of protective covers have been used in the market place. The protective cover is typically formed of a plastic material and is designed so as to substantially enclose at least the rear of the small form factor electronic device, leaving a front portion exposed so as to accommodate a front facing display device.

To accommodate the rearward facing camera assembly, typical covers provide appropriately sized and shaped openings in the protective cover. However, when a light source (typically in the form of a flash or strobe) is used to illuminate the subject, some of the light emitted by the light source may be reflected into the area between the inner surface of the cover and the outer surface of the small form factor electronic device. At least some of this reflected light may proceed to the lens portion of the camera assembly where it may add to the light received from the illuminated object, which may adversely affect the quality of the captured image. For example, when the cover is formed of a material (e.g., plastic) that can absorb and reflect light, the color of the reflected light may shift toward the color of the cover. In this way, the substantially white light provided by the light source may be color shifted to the color of the cover, causing severe color contamination of the captured image, which may or may not be correctable.

Accordingly, there is a need for a protective cover for a small form factor electronic device having a rear facing camera assembly, wherein the protective cover does not adversely affect the quality of the captured image.

Disclosure of Invention

Protective covers for small form factor electronic devices are described. The small form factor electronic device has at least a rear-facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating the object, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some light reflected from the object, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the object is provided by the light source. Accordingly, the protective cover includes at least a housing having a shape conforming to a small form factor electronic device adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear portion of the small form factor electronic device. The housing in turn includes at least an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly that enables light from the light source to illuminate the object. At least some of the light emitted from the light source is then reflected back to the lens assembly for image capture. The protective cover also includes at least a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by anything other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

Methods for forming a protective cover for protecting a small form factor electronic device are described. The small form factor electronic device has at least a rearward facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly. The method may be performed by: receiving a housing molded to conform to the small form factor electronic device, providing an opening in the housing that is appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly such that when the protective cover is properly positioned onto the small form factor electronic device, the opening allows light from the light source to illuminate the object in a manner such that at least some of the light from the light source is reflected back and captured by the lens assembly for image capture, the method further providing a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

In yet another embodiment, a system is described. The system includes at least a small form factor electronic device having at least a rear facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating the subject, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some light reflected from the subject, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the subject is provided by the light source and a protective cover attached to the small form factor electronic device. In the described embodiments, the protective cover includes at least a housing having a shape conforming to a small form factor electronic device adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear portion of the small form factor electronic device. The housing includes an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly that allows light from the light source to illuminate the subject and then reflect this light back to the lens assembly for image capture, and a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by anything other than the illuminated subject from reaching the lens assembly.

Other apparatus, methods, features and advantages of the described embodiments will be or will become apparent to one with skill in the art upon examination of the following figures and detailed description. It is intended that all such additional devices, methods, features and advantages be included within this description, be within the scope of the accompanying claims, and be protected by the accompanying claims.

Drawings

The embodiments and their advantages are best understood by referring to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 and 2 show a representative small form factor electronic device according to the described embodiments.

Fig. 3-9 illustrate various embodiments of protective caps.

Fig. 10-14 show representative cross-sections of protective caps according to the embodiments.

Fig. 15 shows a flow chart detailing a process according to the described embodiment.

Detailed Description

In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the concepts underlying the embodiments. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the embodiments may be practiced without some or all of these specific details. In other instances, well known process steps have not been described in detail in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the underlying concepts.

Aspects of the described embodiments relate to small form factor electronic products. For the remainder of this discussion, the small form factor electronic device will be described with respect to a personal media device. The personal media device may include a housing adapted to enclose and support various operational components. The housing may support various input/output mechanisms such as volume switches, power buttons, data and power connectors, audio jacks, and the like. The housing may include an opening to receive the input/output mechanism. The location at which the input/output mechanism is arranged may be selected to enhance the usability of the interface in case of an intention to operate the device. For example, for a device intended to be operated with a single hand, an input mechanism such as an audio control switch may be set to a position that is easily operated with a finger when the device is held in the palm of the hand. Other output mechanisms, such as audio jacks, may be provided to locations that do not interfere with holding the device, such as the top edge of the device.

The personal media device may include a front facing display and a rear facing camera assembly, which may include at least a flash and a lens assembly proximate a light source. In this way, the maximum amount of light generated by the light source can be transmitted to the object and subsequently reflected from the object. Light reflected from the object may be captured by a lens assembly for image processing by image processing circuitry in the personal media device. In some cases, the front facing display may be used as a viewfinder, where images of the subject may be presented in real time in the front facing display. In this way, the approximate composition of the captured image can be used to decide whether to initiate the image capture process. The image capture process may include initiating a flash sequence in those situations where additional light may also be required relative to the ambient light.

A protective cover may be provided to protect the personal media device. In particular, the protective cover can have a wrap-around design, wherein the protective cover at least partially wraps around and encloses the personal media device. In either case, the protective cover substantially covers the rear of the personal media device regardless of the amount of wrap. To not obstruct the image capture process while still allowing the cover to enclose the personal media device, various configurations of the cover may be provided that allow light from the light source to illuminate the object that is the subject of the image capture event.

In contrast to conventional cover attachments, the protective cover and various attachments described herein substantially eliminate the possibility that any light emitted by the light source and reflected/transmitted in the area between the cover or attachment and the personal media device housing affects the image capture process by, for example, adding color shifted light to the light received by the lens assembly. In one embodiment, to prevent back-reflected light from adding to light captured by the lens assembly, at least a portion of the camera assembly is at least partially protected by a light shield or dam (light dam). In this way, the mask may absorb any reflected light near the camera assembly (and more importantly, the lens assembly). The mask may be configured to protect the entire camera assembly (i.e., lens assembly and associated light source, such as a flash). In some embodiments, the light shield may be arranged to protect a portion of the camera assembly. For example, the shutter plate may only protect the lens assembly by substantially surrounding only the lens assembly and thereby optically isolating the lens assembly from light contamination, such as back reflected light. In other arrangements, the light source may be substantially surrounded by the light shield such that little or no light emitted by the light source proceeds into the retro-reflective region. In this manner, by surrounding the light source, any back-reflected light is substantially eliminated, thereby eliminating the need to protect the lens assembly.

In yet another embodiment, a reflective layer may be added to the bezel in the area closest to the light source. In this way, absorption of light emitted by the light source that is to illuminate the object whose image is captured can be minimized, if not substantially eliminated. In this way, the amount of light used to illuminate the object remains substantially constant with respect to the amount of light emitted by the light source. Another convenience of using a reflective layer is that, since the light emitted by the light source can be aligned in a more collimated manner, the amount of light reaching the object can be maximized, thereby increasing the total amount of light that actually illuminates the object.

The shape of the shutter plate may take many forms. In some embodiments, the shape of the shutter plate may be oblong (i.e., a geometric shape such as a square, rectangle, triangle, parallelogram, etc.). In other embodiments, the opening may have a curvilinear shape, such as a circle, an ellipse, or any combination thereof. In some embodiments, a reflective layer may be provided. The reflective layer serves to maximize the amount of light emitted by the light source that illuminates the object. In this way, the amount of light that is reflected back may be reduced while optimizing the amount of light that may be used to illuminate the object. In this manner, the quality of the captured image (i.e., color accuracy, shading, etc.) may be greatly improved over conventional protective covers.

These and other embodiments are discussed below with reference to fig. 1-15. However, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the detailed description given herein with respect to these figures is for explanatory purposes only and should not be considered limiting.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing various views of a fully assembled personal media device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. In particular, FIG. 1 shows a front portion of a personal media device 100. Personal media device 100 may be sized for one-handed operation and may be placed into a small area such as a pocket, i.e., personal media device 100 may be a handheld, pocket-sized electronic device. By way of example, personal media device 100 may correspond to a computer, media device, telecommunications device, or the like. Personal media device 100 is capable of processing data, particularly media such as audio. Personal media device 100 may generally correspond to a music player, a game player, a video player, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), or the like. With respect to the handheld aspect, personal media device 100 may be operated by the user's hand alone, i.e., without requiring a reference surface such as a desktop. In some cases, the handheld device is sized to fit into a pocket of a user. By being pocket sized, the user does not need to transport the device directly, so the device can be taken almost anywhere the user goes (e.g., the user is not limited by transporting a large, bulky device).

Personal media device 100 may vary widely. In some implementations, personal media device 100 may perform a single function (e.g., a device dedicated to playing and storing media) while in other cases personal media device may perform multiple functions (e.g., a device that plays/stores media, receives/sends telephone calls/text messages/internet, and/or performs web browsing). Personal media device 100 is capable of communicating wirelessly (with or without the assistance of a wireless-enabled accessory system) and/or via a wired path (e.g., using a conventional wire). In some implementations, personal media device 100 can be very lightweight (e.g., small form factor, thin, low profile, lightweight). Personal media device 100 may even be sized for one-handed operation and may be placed into a small area such as a pocket, i.e., personal media device 100 may be a handheld, pocket-sized electronic device. Personal media device 100 may correspond to an iPod available from Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif^TMOr iPhone^TMAny of those electronic devices.

Personal media device 100 may include a housing 102, where housing 102 is configured to at least partially enclose any suitable number of components associated with personal media device 100. For example, the housing 102 may enclose and internally support various electronic components (including integrated circuit chips and other circuitry) to provide computing operations for the device. The integrated circuit chips and other circuitry may include a microprocessor, memory, battery, circuit board, I/O, various input/output (I/O) support circuits, and the like. Although not shown in this figure, the housing 102 may define a cavity in which components may be disposed, and the housing 102 may also physically support any suitable number of mechanisms in the housing 102 or in an opening through a surface of the housing 102.

In addition to the above, housing 102 may also at least partially define the appearance of personal media device 100. That is, the shape and style of the housing 102 may help define the overall shape and style of the personal media device 100, or the contour of the housing 102 may embody the physical appearance of the personal media device 100. Any suitable shape may be used. In some embodiments, the size and shape of the housing 102 may be defined to fit comfortably in a user's hand. In some embodiments, the shape includes a slightly curved back surface and a highly curved side surface. The housing 102 is integrally formed in such a manner as to constitute a single integral unit. By being integrally formed, the housing 102 has a seamless appearance rather than comprising two parts secured together, as in conventional housings, with a distinct gap formed therebetween. That is, unlike conventional housings, the housing 102 does not include any interruptions, thereby making it stronger and more aesthetically pleasing. The housing 102 may be formed from any number of materials including, for example, plastic, metal, ceramic, and the like. In one embodiment, the housing 102 may be formed of stainless steel in order to provide an aesthetically pleasing look and feel, as well as provide structural integrity and support for all of the sub-components mounted therein. When metal, the housing 102 may be formed using conventional collapsible metal core molding techniques well known to those skilled in the art.

Personal media device 100 also includes a display 104 that may be assembled and contained within housing 102. Such user input events may be used for any purpose, such as resetting personal media device 100, selecting between display screens presented on display assembly 104, and so forth. In one embodiment, the cover layer 106 may be a protective top layer of transparent or translucent material (clear) so that the display assembly 104 may be viewed therethrough. That is, the cover layer 106 acts as a window for the display assembly 104 (i.e., a transparent cover overlies the display screen). In a particular embodiment, the cover layer 106 is formed of glass (e.g., cover glass), and more particularly, highly polished glass. However, it should be recognized that other transparent materials, such as transparent plastics, may be used.

To receive one or more touch inputs that help control various aspects of what is displayed on the display screen, the viewing area can be touch sensitive. In some cases, the one or more inputs may be received simultaneously (e.g., multi-touch). In these embodiments, a touch sensing layer (not shown) may be located under the cover glass 106. The touch sensing layer may be located, for example, between the cover glass 106 and the display assembly 104. In some cases, the touch sensing layer is applied to the display component 104, while in other cases the touch sensing layer is applied to the cover layer 106. The touch sensing layer may be, for example, attached to (printed, deposited, laminated, or otherwise bonded to) the inner surface of the cover glass 106. The touch sensing layer typically includes a plurality of sensors configured to activate when a finger touches the upper surface of the cover layer 106. In the simplest case, an electrical signal is generated each time a finger passes a sensor. The number of signals in a given time frame may indicate the position, direction, speed and acceleration of the finger on the touch sensitive portion, i.e. the more signals, the more the user moves his finger. In most cases, the signals are monitored by an electrical interface that converts the number, combination, and frequency of the signals into position, direction, velocity, and acceleration information. Such information may then be used by personal media device 100 to perform desired control functions with respect to display assembly 104.

Fig. 2 shows a rear portion 200 of the personal media device 100 according to the described embodiment. A camera assembly 202 may be positioned on the rear portion 200. The lens unit 204 of the camera assembly 202 may be used to capture light reflected from an object. The captured light may then be processed by image processing circuitry in personal media device 100, or at least associated with personal media device 100, to form a captured image, or simply an image. The image may then be further processed to form a single image, such as a snapshot, or as part of a video in the form of a video frame.

In those cases where the ambient light level is insufficient (or simply more light is desired), the light source 206 may act as a light source arranged to produce light that can be used to increase the ambient light. In some cases, the light source 206 may take the form of a flash that can produce a large amount of light in a short period of time. As a flash, the light source 206 is well suited to increase the ambient light for a single image. In some embodiments, the light source 206 may take the form of a lamp configured to produce light of a longer duration than the light source configuration. In this way, the light source 206 configured as a lamp may be well suited for applications such as video generation that prefer a continuous light source.

Since the light from the light source 206 is spread out in a more or less spherical manner, some of the light from the light source 206 may be reflected back from the inner surface of the conventional cover unit as well as from the outer surface of the housing 102. The process of back reflection is exacerbated in those cases where the housing 102 is formed of a highly polished material (e.g., plastic or glass) that reflects a large portion of the incident light. In this manner, at least some of the back-reflected light 302 may reach the lens unit 204, and at least some of this light may be added as light pollution 306 to the light 304 reflected from the object. Light contamination 306 can adversely affect the image capture process by adding color components corresponding to the color of conventional protective cover units and changing overall white levels and reducing contrast.

To prevent light contamination 306 from adversely affecting the image capture process of personal media device 100, various embodiments of protective covers can be implemented as shown in the following figures.

As shown in fig. 4, the protective cover 400 can surround and enclose at least a portion of the device 100. For the remainder of this discussion, it is assumed that in all embodiments, at least some of the display 104 remains visible. Thus, the various embodiments of the protective cover described herein are assumed to enclose at least a majority of the rear portion 200 of the personal media device 100 and leave at least a portion of the display 104 visible. In this manner, as shown in FIG. 4, the protective cover 400 can include an opening 402, wherein the opening 402 has a size at least according to the camera assembly 202. The opening 402 may be positioned so as not to interfere with the ability of the camera assembly 202 to function properly. In this regard, the opening 402 may have a widely varying shape as given below. For example, the opening 402 in fig. 4 may have a curvilinear shape along a line of any combination of circles, ellipses, or the like. The opening 402 may also have a shape that, although somewhat curved in nature, does not describe a regular conical section (circular, elliptical), but may be more along a line with an irregularly enclosed area having an overall curvilinear shape. To prevent back reflection of light emitted by the light source 206, a light dam (or light blocking portion) 404 may be provided. The light-blocking portion 404 may be a part of the cover 400, and in particular forms an enclosed area around the opening 402. By enclosed area is meant that the dam 404 is configured to block (or absorb) any incident light, at least some of which is generated by the light source 206. The light blocking portion 404 may be formed of any number and type of suitable materials having suitable light blocking properties.

Fig. 5 shows another embodiment of a lid 500 having a rectangular shaped opening 502, the opening 502 having an associated light dam 504.

Fig. 6 illustrates another embodiment of a cover 600 having an opening 602, wherein the opening 602 has both curvilinear and rectangular compositions, and the opening 602 has an associated optical dam 604.

In another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, a cover 700 may be used, wherein corner portions 702 have been removed to expose camera assembly 202. In such embodiments, optical dam 704 may be used to optically isolate camera assembly 202 and the area between cover 700 and housing 102.

In some embodiments as shown in fig. 8, cover 800 may include an opening 802 for light source 206, now having a light blocking portion, and an opening 804 having a light blocking portion 806. In this manner, light block 806 optically isolates lens unit 204 from any back reflected light from light source 206. In this manner, the amount of light from the light source 206 that is blocked by the light block 806 may be reduced while still protecting the lens unit 206 from the light contamination 306.

On the other hand, fig. 9 shows another embodiment of a cover 900, wherein the cover 900 has an opening 902 without a light blocking portion associated with the lens unit 204 and an opening 904 with a light blocking portion 906 associated with the light source 206.

Fig. 10 illustrates a representative cross-section 1000 of a single opening 1002 along the lines shown in fig. 4-6, illustrating the manner in which at least some light from the light source 206 may be prevented from being reflected back in the area between the cover 400 and the housing 102 by the mediation of the light blocking portion 1004. It should be noted that fig. 10 shows only a cross-sectional view and, in reality, the light blocking portion 1004 conforms to the perimeter of the opening 1002 in order to prevent light from leaking to the lens unit 204 as much as possible.

Fig. 11 shows a representative cross-sectional view 1100 of a multi-aperture arrangement of a cover 400, wherein the cover 400 has an aperture 1102 with an associated light-blocking portion 1106 and an associated aperture 1104 without a separate light-blocking portion. As can be seen, light 1108 from the light source 206 incident on the light blocking portion 1106 may be directly blocked, while the back-reflected light 1110 may be blocked by the light blocking portion 1112. In this way, the lens unit 206 is protected from any light contamination caused by the back-reflected light from the light source 206.

In some embodiments, such as shown in fig. 12, a reflective layer 1200 may be applied to at least a portion of the outer surface 1202 of the light blocking portion. In this manner, a portion of the reflected light R1 may be redirected to the object illuminated by the light T1 from the light source 206. In this way, the total amount of light available for illumination by the subject may be about the sum of R1 and T1. To further increase the reflected light, a second reflective layer 1204 may be added, as shown in fig. 13 and 14. The second reflective layer 1204 may add the reflected light R2 to the incident light T1 and the first reflected light R1 to further illuminate the illuminated object.

FIG. 15 shows a flow chart detailing a process 1500 according to the described embodiment. The process 1500 may begin at 1502 by receiving a housing molded in accordance with a small form factor electronic device. At 1504, an opening is provided in the housing. In the described embodiments, the opening is appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly such that when the protective cover is properly positioned onto the small form factor electronic device, the opening allows light from the light source to illuminate the object in such a way that at least some of the light from the light source is reflected back and captured by the lens assembly for image capture. At 1506, a light blocking mechanism is provided that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any other object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a protective cover for a small form factor electronic device having at least a rear-facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating an object, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the object, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the object is provided by the light source, the protective cover comprising: a housing having a shape that conforms to the small form factor electronic device, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the small form factor electronic device, the housing comprising: an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture; and a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any other object than the irradiated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a method for forming a protective cover for protecting a small form factor electronic device having at least a rearward facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the method comprising: receiving a housing, the housing shaped according to the small form factor electronic device; providing an opening in the housing that is appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly such that when the protective cover is properly positioned onto the small form factor electronic device, the opening allows light from the light source to illuminate the object in a manner such that at least some of the light from the light source is reflected back and captured by the lens assembly for image capture; and providing a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a system comprising: a small form factor electronic device having at least a rear-facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating a subject, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the subject, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the subject is provided by the light source; and a protective cover attached to the small form factor electronic device, the protective cover comprising: a housing having a shape that conforms to the small form factor electronic device, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the small form factor electronic device, the housing comprising: an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture, and a light blocking mechanism preventing light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a protective cover for an electronic device having at least a rearward facing camera assembly, the camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating a subject, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the subject, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the subject is provided by the light source, the protective cover comprising: a housing having a shape conforming to the electronic device, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the electronic device, the housing comprising: an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture; and a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any other object than the irradiated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a method for forming a protective cover for protecting an electronic device having at least a rearward facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the method comprising: receiving a housing, the housing shaped according to the electronic device; providing an opening in the housing that is appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly such that when the protective cover is properly positioned onto the electronic device, the opening allows light from the light source to illuminate the object in a manner such that at least some of the light from the light source is reflected back and captured by the lens assembly for image capture; and providing a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

There is provided a system comprising: an electronic device having at least a rear-facing camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating a subject, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the subject, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the subject is provided by the light source; and a protective cover attached to the electronic device, the protective cover comprising: a housing having a shape conforming to the electronic device, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the electronic device, the housing comprising: an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture, and a light blocking mechanism preventing light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

The various aspects, embodiments, implementations or features of the described embodiments may be used alone or in any combination. Aspects of the described embodiments may be implemented by software, hardware, or a combination of hardware and software. The foregoing description, for purposes of explanation, used specific nomenclature to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that these specific details are not required in order to practice the described embodiments. Thus, the foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments described herein are presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the embodiments to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching to those skilled in the art.

Claims (21)

1. A protective cover for an electronic device having at least a rearward facing camera assembly located within a device housing of the electronic device, the camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating an object, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the object, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the object is provided by the light source, the protective cover comprising:

a housing having a shape conforming to an exterior surface of a device housing of the electronic device, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the device housing, the housing comprising:

an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture; and

a light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any other object than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

2. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein the housing is formed of plastic.

3. The protective cover of claim 1 or 2, wherein the opening is rectangular in shape, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

4. The protective cover of claim 1 or 2, wherein the shape of the opening is curvilinear, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

5. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein the light blocking mechanism comprises at least a light reflecting mechanism for reflecting light from the light source that would otherwise be blocked and absorbed by the light blocking mechanism.

6. The protective cover of claim 1 or 5, wherein the light blocking mechanism optically isolates the lens assembly and light emitted by the light source and reflected back in an area between the electronic device and the protective cover only around the lens assembly.

7. The protective cover of claim 1, wherein the light blocking mechanism only surrounds the light source in a manner that optically isolates the light source from an area between the electronic device and the protective cover, thereby eliminating any back-reflected light from the light source.

8. A method for forming a protective cover for protecting an electronic device having at least a rearward facing camera assembly located within a device housing of the electronic device, the camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the method comprising:

receiving a housing, the housing being shaped according to an outer surface of the device housing;

providing an opening in the housing that is appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly such that when the protective cover is appropriately positioned along the exterior surface of the device housing, the opening allows light from the light source to illuminate the object in a manner such that at least some of the light from the light source is reflected back and captured by the lens assembly for image capture; and

a light blocking mechanism is provided that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any object other than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the housing is formed of plastic.

10. The method of claim 8 or 9, wherein the opening is rectangular in shape, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

11. The method of claim 8 or 9, wherein the shape of the opening is curvilinear, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

12. The method of claim 8, wherein the light blocking mechanism comprises at least a light reflecting mechanism for reflecting light that would otherwise be blocked and absorbed by the light blocking mechanism.

13. The method of claim 8 or 12, wherein the light blocking mechanism optically isolates the lens assembly and light emitted by the light source and reflected back in an area between the electronic device and the protective cover only around the lens assembly.

14. The method of claim 8, wherein the light blocking mechanism only surrounds the light source in a manner that optically isolates the light source and the area between the electronic device and the protective cover, thereby eliminating any back-reflected light from the light source.

15. A system for preventing light leakage from a light source, comprising:

an electronic device having at least a rear-facing camera assembly located within a device housing of the electronic device, the camera assembly having a lens assembly and a light source proximate the lens assembly, the light source arranged to emit light for illuminating an object, the lens assembly arranged to capture at least some of the light reflected from the object, wherein a portion of the light reflected from the object is provided by the light source; and

a protective cover surrounding at least a portion of the device housing, the protective cover comprising:

a housing having a shape conforming to an exterior surface of the device housing, the shape adapted to enclose at least a portion of a rear of the device housing, the housing comprising:

an opening appropriately sized and positioned with respect to the camera assembly, the opening allowing light from the light source to illuminate the object and then reflect back to the lens assembly for image capture, an

A light blocking mechanism that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected by any other object than the illuminated object from reaching the lens assembly.

16. The system of claim 15, wherein the housing is formed of plastic.

17. The system of claim 15 or 16, wherein the opening is rectangular in shape, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

18. The system of claim 15 or 16, wherein the shape of the opening is curvilinear, and wherein the light blocking mechanism conforms to the shape of the opening and is attached to the housing at the opening in a manner that prevents light emitted by the light source and reflected back between the housing of the protective cover and the electronic device from reaching the lens assembly.

19. The system of claim 15, wherein the light blocking mechanism comprises at least a light reflecting mechanism for reflecting light from the light source that would otherwise be blocked and absorbed by the light blocking mechanism.

20. The system of claim 15 or 19, wherein the light blocking mechanism optically isolates the lens assembly and light emitted by the light source and reflected back in an area between the electronic device and the protective cover only around the lens assembly.

21. The system of claim 15, wherein the light blocking mechanism only surrounds the light source in a manner that optically isolates the light source and the area between the electronic device and the protective cover, thereby eliminating any back-reflected light from the light source.