The invention relates to an anti theft case for mobile phones that has a flat design and can be attached to the mobile phone to be protected and in a state adjusted for sensing an alarm the mobile phone is in a wireless connection with an outer device or a mobile unit, wherein the connection depends on the distance from to mobile phone and if the distance is higher than a predetermined value, the device or the mobile unit is set to alarm state.

Mobile phones have an ever increasing role in everyday life owing to their high processor power, several fields of their applications, therefore in case they get lost or being stolen constitutes a high problem and in several cases the associated losses are much higher than their market value. At the same time owing to their small size and weight mobile phones provide excellent target for thieves, therefore the number of their theft is significant.

Besides being stolen the number of losing the phones is also high. A remedy if a mobile phone is lost -if it happens in an apartment or in an office - the calling of the number provides assistance, since the ringing tone indicates its whereabouts, whereas if it gets lost outside the home or the office or if the phone is set to silent mode renders the calling unsuccessful.

For the mechanical protection of mobile phones the use of different types or colored cases has become widely spread, and to practically all types and models of mobile phones one can find one or more case fitted to its size, which is designed so that it allows access to the handling buttons or fields, and where there is a need for a window or an opening (e.g. for taking a picture or for connecting charging or other cables) the case comprises suitable openings. The cases are generally made of shock resistant and flexile material and provide protection if the phone is dropped.

The utility model CN 2003135998U describes an electronic unit built in the case of a mobile phone, which is in a bluetooth connection protected by a password with an outside device, and when the connection is interrupted then the outer device is set to alarm mode. The outside device is generally held by the owner in his pocket or in his vicinity, therefore the user will immediately obtains a warning if the phone gets lost or becomes stolen, because the bluetooth connection can be maintained only within a small distance.

The document CN 104473407A describes another anti theft device built in the case of the mobile phone, in which no outer device is used, but on the rear side of the case a light sensitive sensor is arranged, and if it is exposed to light (e.g. because if the phone has been stolen from the pocket of the owner) then in response to such sensed light immediately a sound and/or light signal will be generated that helps catching the thief. The above mentioned anti theft devices might be appropriate for given tasks, however, they can e neutralized in several ways, t which thieves have high expertise. One possibility is the removal of the case from the mobile device and another one is the switching off of the phone or making it inactive. The alarm will in vain be sensed by the owner if he will never get information about the location of the phone and the thief can safely disappear.

The object of the invention is to provide an improved anti theft case and an application program associated therewith, which is capable of preventing that the thief can switch the phone off and make it inactive.

A further object is to ensure that in case of a theft the phone will deliver in a non stoppable way appropriate sound and/or light signals and in given cases send messages to dedicated persons together with position data, which helps its finding.

The third objective of the invention is to design the case in such a way that it can be removed from the mobile phone only by the release of a combination lock.

For attaining these objectives an anti theft case has been provided for mobile phones that has a flat design and can be attached to the mobile phone to be protected and in a state adjusted for sensing an alarm the mobile phone is in a wireless connection with an outer device or a mobile unit, wherein the connection depends on the distance from to mobile phone and if the distance is higher than a predetermined value, the device or the mobile unit is set to alarm state, and according to the invention the case has a side that covers a push button located on a side of the mobile phone to be protected and which controls at least the switching on and off of the mobile phone, and on this side of the case a further push button is arranged which is visible and can be handled from the outside and which takes the function of the previous push button, and the mobile phone has a bottom comprising a multi-pole socket in which a connector arranged in the case is inserted which provides the function of the multi pole socket arranged in an opening made in the bottom of the case, and an anti theft application program is downloaded in the mobile phone which in an alarmed state disables at least said switch off function of said further push button accessible from the outside and sets the mobile phone into a mode that realizes predetermined functions.

In a preferred embodiment the mobile unit is a small sized electronic unit which is in a wireless connection with the mobile phone in a state when alarm sensing is set, and when said connection gets interrupted, a sound and/or light signaling and in given cases a vibration function is activated. It is preferred when in alarm state the mobile phone is set into an active state that cannot be switched off, and periodically forwards its actual position data to one or more addresses.

Besides the above it can be preferred the mobile phone has a display and in alarmed state on the display there is a flashing alarm signal and/or an alarm sound signal is generated.

According to a further aspect of the invention the anti theft case comprises two parts that can be interconnected by sliding them together so that they surround the mobile phone, and a combination lock is provided for preventing disassembly of the parts.

In this case it is preferred if from an end of one of these parts lock arms arranged beside each other are extending out towards the other part that have sides parallel to the side of the case, on the sides of the lock arms recesses are provided that have predetermined profiles and facing away from the associated side, and the other part comprises guiding sleeves for receiving the lock arms, the recesses have sides arranged in the line of the sides of the lock arms, and the lock arms can be inserted in a guided way into the oppositely arranged sleeves in the open state of the lock, and in the other part beside the guiding sleeves at least a respective disc is arranged so that at least a portion of the disc protrudes into the interior of the guiding sleeve, and each disc has a linear cut that has a position when the cut is aligned with the side of the associated guiding sleeve then the insertion of the associated lock arm is made possible.

It is further preferred that each disc comprises a central profiled opening, and the case comprises a rear plate on which at positions corresponding to positions of said profiled openings respective openings are provided to allow access of an appropriate tool to the profiled opening behind it, the discs contain color zones at their rear surface, and the rear plate of the case has windows associated with the respective discs to enable viewing said color zones, whereby a combinations of the position of said discs can be adjusted, in which all of the cuts is parallel to the side, whereby the lock is set into an open state.

In a preferred embodiment the case is provided with an own electronic including sensing elements that sense any aggressive removal or removal experiment of the case, and upon sensing such an event the alarm state is activated.

With a case design in this way the owner of the mobile phone will have an increased degree of safety and he is immediately informed if the phone gets stolen, and can obtain continuous information on the position of the phone. The thief will be unable to switch off the phone being in alarmed state and he cannot remove the case therefore he will not be interested in keeping such a phone. The invention will now be described in connection with preferable embodiments thereof, in which reference will be made to the accompanying drawings. In the drawing:

Fig. 1 shows the schematic top view of the anti theft case and the mobile phone arranged therein;

Fig. 2 shows the side view of the case shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 shows a detail of the case in open state; and

Fig. 4 shows the schematic top view of a portable unit.

Fig. 1 shows the simplified top view of a theft prevention case 10 designed according to the invention in a position placed on a mobile phone 20. The mobile phone 20 has been illustrated only in a schematic way, and it comprises a touch screen display 21, under it a control knob 22 and above it an opening 29 for taking pictures and further small openings 24 serving different purposes. At a side of the mobile phone 20 an elongated push button 25 is arranged that has the main task of switching the device on and off and the selection of different functional modes. In Fig. 1 the push button 25 was shown by a dashed line because it is fully covered by the case 10 and thereby any access to it is made impossible.

The case 10 has a rectangular, flat hollow body open from above which can be positioned on the mobile phone 20 from rearward direction and by a flexible shape distortion it can be snapped thereon. The case 10 consists of an upper part 13 and a lower part 12 which can be fitted to each other and connected to each other by a lock that enables release of the parts 12, 13. When the parts 12 and 13 are interconnected, the case 10 cannot be removed from the mobile phone 20. Fig. 2 is the side view of the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, in which the parts 12 and 13 are interconnected and in this state they surround the mobile phone 20 from three sides and provide also a mechanical protection to it. On the side that corresponds to the covered position of the push button 25 but slightly under it a push button 11 is arranged at the side of the case 10 which has the same size and appearance and basic functions as the covered push button 25 has. This means that during use of the mobile phone 2 when protected by the case 10 an average user will not even notice that the push button 11 differs from the push button 25 that belongs to the mobile phone 25.

In Fig. 1 a dashed line indicates that the push button 11 is connected through a multistrand wire 26 is connected to and electronic 27 arranged in the interior of the bottom of the case 10 and it is provided with a special connector 28 that matches into a multi pole socket present in the central part of the lower edge of the mobile phone 20 (that can be e.g. an USB socket) and the lower end of the connector 28 is also provided with such a socket. Such a design of the connector 28 suggests the impression for the user of the mobile phone 2 placed in the case 10 as if the connector 28 (socket) arranged in a narrow opening at the central part of the bottom edge would be identical with the own socket of the mobile phone 20, whereas this design provides a connection between the push button 11, the electronic 27 and the mobile phone 20, by which the functions to be described below can be realized.

For the sake of completeness reference is made now to Fig. 3 that shows the upper part of the case 10 when the parts 12 and 13 offset position and the components of the lock can be observed. In the upper part 13 there are a pair of flat lock arms 14, 15 which have slightly rounded ends and sides which are substantially parallel with each other and with the longer sides of the body of the case 10, and in appropriate arrangement these side are provided with recesses 16 having shapes of a circular arc. The number of the lock arms 14, 15 and of the recesses 16 provided thereon can be increased to any value, but already the illustrated three recesses 16 shown in the exemplary embodiment can provide substantial number of combination possibilities so that a non-authorized person cannot open the case 10 positioned and locked on the mobile phone 20 in a simple and fast way.

At the upper end of the lower part 12 of the case 10 in positions corresponding to the locations of the opposite lock arms 14, 15 respective flat guiding sleeves 17 are provided into which under special combination conditions the lock arms 14 and 15 can be inserted. The combination i.e. the condition of such an insertion is provided by the presence of one or more flat discs 18 arranged in the bottom of the part 12 which have side surfaces arranged just in the line of a respective side of the lock arms 14, 15. On each disc 18 an appropriate linear cut 19 is provided. The cuts 19 have the same distance from the centre of the disc 18 wherein when the disc 18 is turned so that the cut 19 will take a position parallel to the side wall of the guiding sleeve 17, then no part of the disc 18 will protrude into the internal space of the guiding sleeve 17, whereby the lock arms 14, 15 can be freely inserted into the guiding sleeves 17. This requires naturally that all of the discs 18 are turned to this parallel appropriate "open" position. The closure of the two inserted parts 12, 13 takes place by the turning of the discs 18, because in that case the discs 18 will protrude in the respective opposite recesses 16 of the lock arms 14, 15 and the parts 12, 13 will be interconnected so that they cannot be opened any more.

For the opening of the parts 13, 14 the discs 18 should be turned to their respective open positions. To this purpose on the rear plate 31 of the lower part 12 at positions corresponding to the centers of the discs 18 respective openings 32 are provided (Fig. 2) through which by means of the tip of an appropriately shaped tool access can be made to similarly shaped bores 30 made in the centers of the discs 18, whereby they can be turned into any required position. In the range of the discs 18 at distances smaller than the radial distance of the cut 19 in randomly chosen positions respective further openings, namely windows 33 are provided. On the rear face of the discs 18 in ranges corresponding to the windows 33 differently colored painted zones are provided. Already by using four-five colored zone along rear surface of each disc 18 can provide sufficiently high number of combinations that the case 10 cannot be opened by accidental probes. For opening the case 10 the user has to learn only three colors and their arrangements, because if the discs 18 are all turned to the positions of such codes, then all of the cuts 19 will take a parallel position with the side walls and that enables pulling and removal of the upper part 13, whereby the mobile phone 20 can be removed from the case 10.

The invention comprises furthermore a small flat security unit 40 (Fig. 4), which through a bluetooth or other wireless way is in connection with the mobile phone 20 and it is preferably provided with an own sound source or vibrator and/or light indicator (e.g. LED lamp). The use of the unit 40 is very useful but not always required, because by means of an appropriate users program its role can be taken by a different mobile phone.

For understanding the operation of the device according to the invention, it is a pre-condition that previously a user's anti theft application program be downloaded in the mobile phone 20. In the simplest design the program ensures to following possibilities (of course, when the mobile phone 20 is arranged in the case 10):

- In the mobile phone 20 the function of the own push button 25 is transferred to the push button 11 arranged in the case 10.

- By means of the connector 28 ensure appropriate connectivity to the mobile phone 20.

Provides a wireless connection with the security unit 40 or with a different device that takes its role.

As a result of these steps an authorized user can use the mobile phone 20 with all the features as if the present anti theft function did not exist, and the presence of the protective case 10 provided only a mechanical protection as conventional cases do.

The special steps can be triggered by one of two events. Of these the first and most important is when the mobile phone 20 is stolen from its owner or taken away against his will, then the connection with the security unit 40 gets broken (or if the distance between the two devices is measured, then the distance will be greater than a predetermined value). This fact brings the system into alarm state. In alarm state the following events take place: The switch off function of the push button 11 is terminated i.e. the push button 11 cannot be used to switch off the phone or to set it into a different mode.

The security unit 40 is set to alarm mode and generates a sound and/or light signal or vibration, in order to inform its user who holds the unit in his pocket or in his bag about the fact that the mobile phone 20 has been brought outside the allowed range.

In addition to the here described minimum response the following further possibilities can be adjusted or used:

The mobile phone itself is set to alarm position and provides a flashing sound and/or light signal. In addition thereto:

- The position identification function of the mobile phone 20 will be activated snd this position signal will be forwarded to an alarm center and/or to an assigned observer.

The mobile phone 20 sends in predetermined pre-programmed intervals sms messages to friends or to inspectors.

A further condition that can trigger an alarm can be the opening, removal or aggressive injury of the case 10 in the active state of the device. In this case a sensor located in the electronic 27 in the case 10 will sense the aggressive event and initiates the same events as done in the previous case (when the device has become outside the range).

Naturally the rightful owner or user has a code by which the alarmed state can be switched off before any alarm would occur, and the user can have a further code by which he can disable the alarm after such has occurred because the positioning of the mobile phone 20 to a remote location can take place accidentally without any bad intention.

A substantial advantage of the solution according to the invention lies in that it not only combines the mechanical and electronic protections in a simple way but it renders the switching off the phone or the change of its mode impossible, whereas as long as no alarm condition take place the normal operation of the phone is provided, and outside users can see only a device provided with a normal protective case, the presence of which is not special since the use of cases has been widely spread.