US3241149A

US3241149A - Single rod antenna

Info

Publication number: US3241149A
Application number: US365958A
Authority: US
Inventors: Berger Jerome
Original assignee: Jfd Electronics Corp
Current assignee: Jfd Electronics Corp
Priority date: 1964-05-08
Filing date: 1964-05-08
Publication date: 1966-03-15
Anticipated expiration: 1983-03-15

Description

March 15, 1966 J. BERGER 3,241,149

SINGLE ROD ANTENNA Filed May 8, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 4 ,4 .L. Q i II 3. .Za

% "F1" (rs--5. f6

INVENTOR. aseolw 6e March 15, 1966 J. BERGER SINGLE ROD ANTENNA 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 8, 1964 March 15, 1966 Filed May 8, 1964 J. BERGER SINGLE ROD ANTENNA 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR.

March 15, 1966 J. BERGER SINGLE ROD ANTENNA 4 Sheets-Sheet 4,

Filed May 8, 1964 INVENTOR. JZOM 54596156 United States Patent 3,241,149 SINGLE ROD ANTENNA Jerome Berger, North Woodmere, N.Y., assignor to JFD Electronics Corporation, Brooklyn, N.Y. Filed May 8, 1964, Ser. No. 365,958 9 Claims. (Cl. 343901) This invention relates to antennas and more particularly to telescoping antennas of the single rod type which are arranged to be substantially completely retracted within the receiver housing while having a fixed antenna lead connection eliminating any movement whatsoever of the antenna lead; having a novel ball joint structure enabling orientation of the extended antenna in any desired plane, as well as permitting movement of both tube and rod elements of the telescoping antenna through the ball member; and further, having novel means for mounting the antenna unit to a receiver housing which may be of varying thickness and further achieving said mounting without the need for any screws or other like fastening members.

In TV receivers, especially those typically referred to as portable TV units which may be provided with handles to facilitate their portability, such units, due to their deliberate design for use as a portable unit, preferably contain a self-storing telescoping antenna unit so that such a TV receiver may be used in any room of the home, or outdoors for that matter, without the necessity for connection to a permanent type antenna which is typically aflixed to the roof or inthe attic of a home. Since portable TV receiver designers are most concerned with enhancing the portability, and hence the size and weight of portable TV sets, it is extremely desirable to provide a telescoping antenna unit for such portable sets which are simple in design, light in weight, easy to assemble and which occupy a minimum of space within the TV set housing.

Present day single rod antenna units are typically aflixed to the receiver housing by means of fastening elements such as screws, thereby requiring additional screw holes to be provided in the housing which detract from the set decor, in addition to the opening through which the telescoping antenna projects. Such antennas are further provided with a terminal connected to the bottom end of the telescoping antenna tube, which terminal receives the antenna lea-d wire which connects the receiver to the antenna. Each time the antenna is extended and retrac-ted this terminal moves together with the movement of the antenna, thereby placing a large amount of stress upon this lead which may subsequently cause a fracturing of the wire. In addition thereto, present day antennas even when fully extended are not adapted to permit the antenna rod to be oriented in the horizontal plane. Such orientation is extremely desirable to provide optimum reception of VHF and UHF television broadcasts.

The device of the instant invention overcomes all of the above disadvantages while at the same time providing an antenna unit which is simple in design, easy to construct, and assemble, and which may very simply be mounted to a TV receiver housing which requires a minimum amount of space within the housing when in the fully retracted position.

The antenna of the instant invention is comprised of a telescoping tube and rod assembly having a plurality of tubes of diminishing diameters arranged to telescope into the tube of the next larger diameter. The tube of the smallest diameter is further designed to receive a rod member which is designed to telescope into the smallest diameter tube. The entire telescoping assembly is further mounted for reciprocal movement in a first housing having a dome-shaped upper end and being open at top and bottom to enable the reciprocally mounted telescoping Patented Mar. 15, 1966' ice means, said means being a single element designed to perform the dual functions of creating frictional engagement between the first and second housings and by virtue of making wiping electrical contact with the first housing which supports the telescoping assembly thereby provides a stationary terminal means for mounting a lead to connect the antenna unit into the receiver of the TV set. Thus, even though the telescoping antenna assembly and the assembly first housing means are both capable of experiencing reciprocating movement, the terminal-clutch means remains completely stationary so that the burden of such reciprocating movement is not imposed upon the lead connecting the terminal to the receiver of the TV set.

The second housing is further provided with first and second slots alongopposite sides of its outer periphery. The slots are positioned to lie beneath a flange which extends around the outer periphery of the second housing means. The entire antenna unit is mounted to a TV set housing by inserting the unit through an aperture in the housing. The flange of the second housing means is arranged to be of greater diameter than the opening in the TV set housing, causing the flange to be seated upon the top surface of the TV set housing. The first and second slots provided in the second housing means are arranged to receive novel substantially U-shaped spring clip means which are designed to be received within the first and second slots and act to bear up against the TV set housing and to beat down against the slots of said second housing means so as to rigidly secure the antenna unit to the TV set housing. The resiliency of the spring means enables the antenna unit to be mounted to TV set housings having a substantially wide variety of thicknesses since the difference in thickness will be taken up by the resilient spring means. In cases where the thicknesses of the TV set housing cover an extremely large range of dimensions such as, for example, where the housing of metal may be approximately & thick and a housing of wood may be /8" or more in thickness, it is possible to provide a family of such first and second slots on the second housing means to accommodate the use of the antenna unit in any conceivable receiver. While TV sets have been referred to herein, it should be understood that the single rod antenna may likewise be used with equal success in AM and FM radios.

The terminal-clutch means may further be provided with a balun transformer mounted thereto to aiford a means of converting the monopole 72 ohm impedance to a 300 ohm impedance in order to match the TV set input.

A pair of single rod antenna units of the type described herein may be employed in a single TV receiver set to provide a dipole assembly which is extremely advantageous in cases where it is desired to increase the directivity of the TV antenna. This is typically done by arranging the single rod pair in a horizontal plane, forming a V-configuration therebetween and directing this V toward the transmitting station which it is desired to receive signals from. Such an orientation is not capable of being achieved in present day telescoping antenna units.

It is therefore one object of the instant invention to provide a novel single rod antenna unit of the telescoping type which is designed to be completely retractable within a receiver housing.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a telescoping antenna assembly having novel means for mounting the assembly to a receiver housing.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a telescoping antenna assembly having novel means for mounting the assembly to a receiver housing such that no mounting screws whatsoever need be employed.

Still another object of the instant invention is to provide a novel telescoping antenna assembly which is designed to be completely retractable within a receiving unit housing and having stationary terminal means for connecting the telescoping antenna to the receiver input.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a novel telescoping antenna assembly having novel ball joint means to which telescoping elements may pass to provide a novel reciprocal mounting therefor.

Still another object of the instant invention is to provide a novel telescoping antenna unit having a ball joint arrangement which reciprocally mounts a telescoping antenna assembly and further having a ball joint socket which is notched in such a manner as to permit orientation of the telescoping antenna in any desired angle when in the extended position.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a novel telescoping antenna unit having housing means for securing the antenna unit to the receiver set housing without requiring fastening means and further providing the dual function of reciprocally mounting the telescoping antenna metallic housing and providing Wiping contact between the antenna and lead terminal means.

Another object of the instant invention is to provide a novel telescoping antenna unit having housing means for securing the antenna unit to the receiver set housing without requiring fastening means and further providing the dual function of reciprocally mounting the telescoping antenna metallic housing and providing wiping contact between the antenna and lead terminal means wherein balun transformer means may further be provided on said lead terminal means in order to provide suitable impedance matching between the antenna and the receiver input.

These and other objects of the instant invention will become apparent when reading the accompanying descrip tion and drawings in which:

FIGURES la, 1b and 1c are top, side and end views respectively of a telescoping antenna unit designed in accordance with the principles of the instant invention.

FIGURE 2 shows a side elevational view of the assembly of FIGURES la-lc mounted to a receiver housing, only a portion of the housing being shown in the figure.

FIGURES 3a and 3b are sectional views taken along line a-a' of FIGURE 1a.

FIGURE 3c is a sectional view taken along the line a-a' of FIGURE 1a showing the internal construction of the telescoping antenna assembly of FIGURES 3a3b.

FIGURE 3d shows the front view of the antenna and transformer of FIGURE 3b.

FIGURE 32 is a schematic diagram of the balun trans former of FIGURES 3b and 3d.

FIGURES 4a-4c show the insulating housing member of FIGURES 1-3 in greater detail, with FIGURES 4a and 4b showing the top view of two alternative housing members and FIGURE 40 showing a cross section of the insulating housing member taken along the lines 11-19 of either FIGURE 4a or 4b.

FIGURES 5a and 5b are side and front views respectively of the fastening member shown in FIGURE 2.

FIGURES 6a and 6b are front and side views respectively, of the terminal-clutch means employed in the insulating housing and shown in FIGURES 3a and 3b.

FIGURE 7 is an elevational view of two antennae of the type shown in FIGURE 1 mounted in a dipole arrangement.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to FIGURES la-lc and 2, there is shown therein an antenna unit 10 employing the principles of the instant invention which antenna unit is comprised of a plurality of telescoping elements including a rod element 11 and one or more cylindrical elements 12 (note especially FIGURE 212). These telescoping elements are so arranged that the rod 11 telescopes into the cylinder of the narrowest diameter and each succeeding cylinder receives the adjacent cylinder of the next smallest diameter. The partially extended position of the telescoping elements is shown best in FIGURES 1b and 3b, while the fully retracted position is shown best in FIGURES 1c and 3a, respectively. The cylinder 12a of the largest diameter, which cylinder houses all of the other cylinders 12, as well as rod 11, is arranged to pass through and make sliding engagement with a ball member 13. The ball member 13 is provided with means to be more fully described, Which creates frictional engagement between ball member 13 and tube 12a so that after tube 12a is positioned at any desired altitude, this position will be retained without danger of tube 12a slipping due to gravity. Like frictional engagement also exists between neighboring telescoping elements of the

assembly

12a, 12 and 11, simply by providing a fair degree of pressure fit between these elements.

The ball means 13 forms a ball joint (or ball and socket joint) with the dome-shaped head 14a of the metallic antenna housing 14, which can best be seen in its entirety in FIGURES 3a-3c. This entire metallic housing 14 is reciprocally mounted within a housing 15 formed from an insulating material. The metallic housing 14 is reciprocally and rotatably mounted within insulating housing 15 in such a manner that the dome-shaped portion 14a of housing 14, as well as the ball means 13 may be moved from its fully extended position shown in FIGURE 1b to its fully retracted position shown in FIG- URE 1c. This reciprocating movement in a vertical upward or downward direction is completely independent of the reciprocating movement of the

telescoping elements

11, 12 and 12a.

The insulating housing 15 is provided with first and

second slots

15a and 15b arranged along the periphery thereof. The pair of

slots

15a and 15b cooperate with a mounting clip means 16 and a flange provided on insulating housing 15 in order to securely fasten the antenna unit 10 to a receiver set housing which in FIGURE 2 is represented by the fragmentary housing 17, which mounting arrangement is to be more fully described.

Turning now to FIGURES 3a3c, the insulating hous ing member 15 is herein shown in cross section (in FIG- URES 3a and 3b) to expose the internal structure of the antenna assembly. As shown in FIGURE 31; the

telescoping elements

11, 12 and 12a are shown in the partially extended position, while FIGURE 3a shows the same elements in the fully collapsed position. FIGURE 3b shows the metallic housing 14 in the fully collapsed position while FIGURE 3a shows the metallic housing 14 in the fully extended position.

The metallic housing 14 is comprised basically of two major portions. The substantially rectangular shaped shell 14b forming the lower part thereof and the domeshaped shell 14a forming the upper part thereof. These two parts 14a and 14b, as well as ball means 13, are. shown in cross section to expose the internal structure; contained within the metallic housing 14. As can best be; seen in FIGURE 30, the ball means 13 rests upon an out-- wardly directed flange 18a provided along, the upward.

5. marginal edge of a ferrule 18. The ferrule 18 supports the ball member 13 upon its outwardly directed flange 18a and acts to urge ball 13 substantially vertically upward so as to make wiping contact against the interior surface of dome 14a. The upward vertical force is provided by means of a spring member 19 wound in helical fashion throughout the outer periphery of ferrule 18 and having its upper end bearing against flange 18a and its lower end seated upon a washer member which, in turn, is supported by a flange 14c surrounding the lower opening of rectangular shaped shell 14b. Thus, the spring member 18, being firmly positioned by washer 20, urges the ferrule 18 against ball 13 so as to provide substantial frictional engagement between ball 13 and dome 1411 which acts as the socket to form a ball and socket joint comprising the

elements

13 and 14a.

As can best be seen in FIGURE 30, the ball 13 is provided with a centrally located hole 13a lined vertically in FIGURE 3c so as to receive the

telescoping elements

11, 12 and 12a. The outermost telescoping tube 12a is shown in fragmentary fashion in FIGURE 30. An intermediate portion of the hole 13a is keyed to receive a multiple sided sleeve member 21 which due to its configuration has its inner surfaces making substantial frictional engagement between the sleeve 21 and the tube 12a. This arrangement enables tube 12a to be retained in any vertical position once moved to that position by the user without any danger of tube 12a slipping due to gravity.

As can be seen in FIGURES 3a and 3!), tube 12a is provided with a lip 120 at its upper end. When the button 11a, provided at the top of rod 11, is depressed downwardly when in the position of FIGURE 3a, lip 12c bears against the ball member 13, causing the metal housing 14 to move vertically downward from the position of FIGURE 3a to the position of FIGURE 3b. In order to move the metallic housing 14 from its fully collapsed position of FIGURE 3b to the fully extended position of FIGURE 3a, the tube 12a is provided with a similar lip 12d at its lower end which, in turn bears against the underside of ball member 13 causing the housing to be moved vertically upward when tube 12a is moved to its extended position so that when tube 12a is moved vertically upward it carries metallic housing 14 upward with it to the fully extended position of FIGURE 3a. It should be noted that metal housing 14 is rotatable about its longitudinal axis within insulating member 15 regardless of I the vertical position of metal housing 14.

As can be seen in FIGURES la, 1b, 3a and 3b, the dome portion 14a is provided with an opening 14d which is substantially comprised of a circular shaped opening 14:: lying in a horizontal plane when considering FIG- URES 1a, 1b and 3Ll-3C, which circular opening is further joined with an arcuate shaped opening 14 which extends from the circular shaped portion 14a downwardly and along the side of the dome shaped shell 14a. The provision of this notch affords tremendous flexibility to the angular orientation of the antenna never before achievable with present day antenna designs. The manner of achieving this performance is obtained simply by moving the metallic housing from the fully collapsed position shown in FIGURE 3b to the fully extended position shown in FIGURE 3a. When the metallic housing 14 is in the fully extended position the antenna telescoping elements are then moved to the extended position with the minimum requirement that .at least the element or tube 12a is moved to its fully extended position. The other telescoping elements need not be moved to their fully extended position in order to get the maximum orientation flexibility and range of operation.

Once the tube 12a is in its fully extended position the antenna may be moved from the vertical position, as shown in either FIGURE lb or 3b, to a horizontal position as shown by the dotted representation 11', 12', 12a, shown in FIGURE 2. Present day antennas are not capa-ble of achieving a complete horizontal position as shown in FIGURE 2, with the best that can be expected from such antennas being the angular position 12", shown in FIGURE 2. The reason why this can be achieved is due to the fact that the metallic housing 14 is reciprocally mounted within the insulating housing 15 so as to completely position the opening 14d above the upper edge of insulating housing 15. The vertical positioning of the dome portion 14a, together with the novel notch configuration 14d, cooperate to provide this wide range of angular orientation.

Electrical connection between the antenna and the receiver input (not shown) to which the antenna is connected is provided for by novel terminal clutch means 22, which can best be seen in FIGURES 3a, 3b, 6a and 6b, respectively. Considering first the insulating member 15, this member can best "be seen in FIGURES l-3b and especially FIGURES 4a-4c. The insulating member 15 is substantially cylindrical in shape and as previously described, is provided with a pair of

slots

15a and 15b arranged on opposite sides of its outer periphery. These slots cooperate with a flange which is arranged to seat the insulating housing member 15 upon the receiver set housing in a manner shown in FIGURE 2, to be more fully described.

The insulating housing member 15 is provided with a central opening 23 extending through the member. The opening 23 is provided with a shoulder 24 near the upper end of housing 15 which is designed to abut the rectangular shell portion 14b shown in FIGURES 3a and 3c, in the manner shown in FIGURE 3a so as to limit the vertical upward movement of the metallic housing 14. The opening 23 is further provided with a groove 25 extending around the entire inner periphery of opening 23. This groove is designed to receive a retaining ring 26 which can best be seen in FIGURES 3a and 3b. Retaining ring 26 acts to abut the lower edge of rectangular shell 14b in the manner shown in FIGURE 3b so as to limit the downward vertical movement of metallic housing 14. The insulating housing 15 is provided with a terminal-clutch member 22 which can best be seen in FIGURES 6a and 6b. The terminal-clutch means 22 is a metallic member having a terminal ear 27 provided with an opening 28 near a first end thereof and having its opposite end forming the central portion 29 of a substantially U-shaped arrangement 30. First and second arms 31 and 32 extend downwardly from the central portion 29 in the manner shown in FIGURES 6a and 6b. The arms 31 and 32 are bent at 33 and 34 respectively, so as to form a five-sided substantially hexagonal-shaped configuration comprised of the

segments

29, 32a, 32b, 31a and 31b, with the sixth side being omitted therefrom. The terminal-clutch means 22 is wedged into the opening 23 of insulating housing 22 intermediate the ends thereof and in the position shown in FIGURES 3a and 3b. With the terminal-clutch member 22 placed in that position, the metallic housing is then inserted into the opening 23 of insulating housing 15. The arrangement is such that the distance D between opposing sides 31a and 32b and 32a and 31b is less than the outer diameter of the shell portion 14b. This causes substantial frictional engagement between shell 14b and the

sides

31a, 31b, 32a, 32b and 29 of the terminal-clutch means 22. The distance D between the

corners

33 and 34 is substantially greater than the inner diameter of opening 23 and insulating housing 15, causing the terminal-clutch member to be firmly wedged into the position shown in FIGURES 3a and 3b. As can be seen, in FIGURES 3a and 3b, electrical engagement is always maintained between terminal-clutch means 22 and shell 14b regardless of the fact that the metallic housing 14 is either in the fully collapsed position of FIGURE 3b, or the fully extended position of FIGURE 3a. The opening 28 in member 27 of terminal-clutch means 22 is arranged to receive suitable lead means (not shown) for connecting the antenna to the receiver input. This novel arrangement of providing wiping electrical contact between terminal-clutch means 22 and metallic housing 14, and hence

antenna telescoping elements

11, 12 and 12a, permits the lead to be connected at 28 to be a completely stationary connection while the telescoping antenna moves through its full range of motion.

Turning now to FIGURE 2, there is shown therein the manner in which the antenna unit may be mounted to a receiver set housing. As was previously described, the insulating housing 15 is provided with the pair of

notches

15a and 15b, as well as the flange 15c. In order to mount the antenna unit to the receiver set housing, the housing 17 (which is shown only in fragmentary fashion) is first provided with an opening 17a substantially equal to the outer diameter of the insulating housing 15. Housing 15 is then inserted through the opening 17a in the manner shown in FIGURE 2, so that flange 15c rests upon the top surface of housing 17. The ins'ulating housing 15 is substantially rigidly secured to housing 17 by means of the metallic mounting clip 16, which is shown in detail in FIGURES 5a and 5b. Clip 16 has a substantially U-shaped configuration wherein the central portion 16a has two arms 16b and 16c extending away from central portion 16a, with both arms being extended in the same direction. As can be seen from the end view of FIGURE 5a; the central portion 16a is bent at 35 and arms 16b and 160 are bent at 36 and 37, respectively, so as to form a serpentine configuration.

After the insulating housing is positioned in the manner shown in FIGURE 2, the clip means 16 is pushed into engagement with insulating housing 15 along the

slots

15a and 15b so that the

bent portions

35 and 37 bear against the underside of housing 17 and so that the bent portions 36 bear against the lower edges 15d of

slots

15a and 15b. The housing 17 being stationary, this causes clip means 16 to provide a downward vertical force upon insulating housing 15 relative to housing 17. The downward vertical movement of housing 15 being limited by flange 150, this causes housing 15 to be very rigidly secured to the receiver set housing 17. Due to the inherent resiliency of metallic clip 16, the thickness of the housing 17 need not be very accurately controlled since spring clip 16 will accommodate substantially large tolerances in the thickness of housing 17 by bending to a greater degree when the housing 17 is on the thin side and by flattening out more when the housing 17 is on the thick side. It should be noted that the insulating housing embodiment 15 of FIGURE 2 differs from that shown in FIGURES 1b and 1c in that the

slots

15a and 15b in FIGURE 2 are a greater distance away from flange 150 than the

slots

15a and 15b in the embodiments of FIGURES lb and 10. For the embodiment of FIGURE 2, the slots are designed for mounting the antenna to a receiver set housing which may, for example, be made of wood, such that its thickness is on the order of In the embodiments of FIGURES 1b and 1c, the insulating housing 15 is designed to mount the antenna unit to a metallic housing, the thickness of which may be of the order of thick. These embodiments may further be distinguished from one another by their flange configuration, as shown in FIGURES 4a and 4b, wherein the embodiment of FIG- URE 4a is provided with a substantially square-shaped flange 15c identifying this insulating member as being designed for use in mounting antenna to receiver set housings which are substantially thick, while the circular flange 15c of FIGURE 4b identifies the insulating hous ing as being designed to mount the antenna unit to a receiver set housing which is substantially thin. As a further modification, it is possible to provide the insulating housing 15 with a family of pairs of slots arranged along opposite sides of the insulating member so as to give a single insulating member a high degree of flexibility as to the types of receiver set housings to which it may be secured.

In order to provide suitable impedance matching between the antenna and the receiver input means, the ferrule 18 shown in FIGURES 31), 3d and 3e, may be provided with a balun transformer 41. The balun transformer 41 is provided with input leads 42, connected to the antenna and ground, and output leads 43 for connecting the receiver input lead to the transformer. The transformer is designed to provide impedance matching between a receiver input of 300 ohms to the single rod antenna which is at 72 ohms.

It should be further understood that a pair of antenna units of the type described herein may be provided on a single receiver set in order to provide the receiver set with dipole action. In numerous cases, and especially for VHF and UHF reception, it is extremely desirable to align each single rod of the dipole arrangement in the horizontal direction and to form a V-configuration between the two antennas. The V-configuration in order to provide optimum directivity may then be pointed in the direction of the station which it is desired to receive. This arrangement provides optimum signal strength and hence optimum reception. Since prior art telescoping antennas are not capable of moving through the range of motion which is easily achieved by the device of the instant invention, such optimum reception is not possible in present day receiver sets.

First and second antenna assemblies 10 and 10' (see FIGURE 7) are mounted to the receiver set housing in the manner previously described. The antenna leads and 50 are connected to the twin lead 51 having lugs 52, 52 for connection to the receiver input (not shown). The

antennae

10 and 10 may be extended, collapsed and rotated in the same manner as previously described.

By providing a novel arrangement in which all of the telescoping elements of the antenna are arranged to pass through the opening 13a in ball 13, together with providing independent reciprocating movement for the metallic housing 14, this provides an extremely compact configuration when the antenna is in its fully collapsed position, thereby occupying substantially less space within a receiver set than present day telescoping antenna units.

It can therefore be seen that the instant invention provides an extremely compact design; is fully retractable within the receiver set housing so as to substantially increase the aesthetic appearance of the receiver set when not in use; provides a range of angular orientation for the antenna telescoping assembly never before achievable; provides a novel terminal means which remains completely stationary while the entire telescoping antenna assembly may experience reciprocal movement such that the input lead will likewise experience no movement and further provides a novel fastening arrangement requiring no fastening screw elements and usable with receiver set housing thicknesses of substantially wide tolerances.

Although there has been described a preferred embodiment of this novel invention, many variations and modifications will now be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, this invention is to be limited not by the specific disclosure herein, but only by the appending claims.

What is claimed is: 1. Retractable antenna means for use in receiver housings comprising a telescoping antenna assembly;

first housing means including ball and socket means for reciprocally and pivotally mounting said telescoping assembly; second stationary housing means rigidly secured to the receiver housing for reciprocally mounting said first housing means;

the reciprocal movement of said first housing means and said telescoping antenna assembly being totally independent of one another;

said first housing means being movable between a collapsed and an extended position relative to said second housing means;

said first housing means being completely contained within said second housing means when in the collapsed position.

2. The antenna assembly of claim 1 wherein said first housing means is a metallic housing electrically connected to said telescoping antenna assembly;

said second housing means being an insulating member;

terminal means mounted within said second housing means making wiping contact with said first housing means;

said terminal means providing a stationary electrical connection for a lead wire.

3. Retractable antenna means comprising a telescoping antenna assembly; metallic housing means for reciprocally mounting said telescoping antenna assembly; an insulated housing for reciprocally mounting said metallic housing said metallic housing means comprising a metal lic shell having a dome-shaped first end; metallic ball means positioned with-in said dome-shaped portion to form a ball joint with said metallic shell; said dome-shaped first end having an opening for passage of said telescoping antenna assembly; said opening being an annular hole positioned at the top of said dome coupled with a notch extending downward from said dome in a direction toward the opposite end of said metallic housing; said opening enabling said antenna to assume a horizontal position when extended; said metallic housing means being movable between a collapsed and an extended position relative to said insulator housing means; said metallic housing means being completely contained within said insulator housing means when in the col-lapsed position.

4. Retractable antenna means comprising a telescoping antenna assembly; metallic housing means for reciprocally mounting said telescoping antenna assembly; said housing means comprising a metallic shell having a dome-shaped first end; metallic ball means positioned within said domeshaped portion to form a ball joint with said metallic shell; said dome-shaped first end having an opening for passage of said telescoping antenna assembly; said opening being an annular hole positioned at the top of said dome coupled with a notch extending downward from said dome in a direction toward the opposite end of said metallic housing; said opening enabling said antenna to assume a horizontal position when extended; an insulated housing means for reciprocally mounting said metallic shell; said metallic shell being movable to a fully extended position to expose said annular hole and said notch; and being movable to a collapsed position with said annular hole and said notch contained within the confines of said second housing means.

5. Retractable antenna means comprising a telescoping antenna assembly; metallic housing means for reciprocally mounting said telescoping antenna assembly; an insulated housing for reciprocally mounting said metallic housing said metallic housing means comprising a metallic shell having a dome-shaped first end; metallic ball means positioned within said dome-shaped portion to form a ball joint with said metallic shell; said dome-shaped first end having an opening for passage of said telescoping antenna assembly; said metallic ball means having an opening extending therethrough said telescoping antenna assembly being reciprocally movable through the opening in said ball means; said metallic housing means being movable between a collapsed and an extended position relative to said insulator housing means; said metallic housing means being completely contained within said insulator housing means when in the collapsed position.

- 10 6. Retractable antenna means comprising a telescoping antenna assembly; metallic housing means for reciprocally mounting said telescoping antenna assembly; an insulated housing for reciprocally mounting said metallic housing said metallic housing means; said metallic housing means comprising a metallic shell having a dome-shaped first end; metallic ball means positioned within said domeshaped portion to form a ball joint with said metallic shell; said dome-shaped first end having an opening for passage of said telescoping antenna assembly; said metal lic ball means having an opening extending therethrough; said telescoping antenna assembly being reciprocally movable through the opening in said ball means; friction means in said ball means opening for making suitable wiping contact with telescoping antenna assembly; said friction means having a non-circular shape for enhancing the contact pressure provided thereby; said metallic housing means being movable between a collapsed and an extended position relative to said insulator housing means; said metallic housing means being completely contained within said insulator housing means when in the collapsed position.

7. Retractable antenna means for use in receiver housings comprising a telescoping antenna assembly; first housing means for reciprocally and pivotally mounting said telescoping antenna assembly; second housing means for reciprocally mounting said first housing means; the reciprocal movement of said first housing means and said telescoping antenna assembly being totally independent of one another; second housing means having a substantially annular shaped outer periphery; a flange formed at one end of said second housing means; first and second slot means provided on the periphery of said second housing means adjacent said flange; substantially U-shaped clip means having first and second arms slidably engaging said first and second slot means, respectively, for rigidly securing said mounting means to a receiver housing.

8. Mounting means for securing telescoping antennas to a receiver housing having an opening for receiving said mounting means, the improvement comprising a telescoping antenna structure movable between a collapsed and an extended position;

housing means for reciprocally mounting said telescoping antenna structure said housing means being further comprised of a ball and socket joint positioned wiithin said housing and slidably receiving said telescoping antenna structure; means for restraining the ball and socket joint Within the housing while allowing the antenna to be tilted when in the extended position;

said housing means having a substantially circularshaped outer periphery; a flange formed at one end of said housing means; first and second slot means provided on the periphery of said housing means adjacent said flange;

substantially U-shaped clip means having first and second arms slidably engaging said first and second slot means respectively, for rigidly securing said mounting means to a receiver housing;

said U-shaped clip means having a central portion joining said first and second arms;

said central portion having a first bend, and said first and second arms each having second and third bends at the intermediate portion and end portion respectively, of said arms forming a serpentine configuration.

9. The assembly of claim 8 wherein said U-shaped clip means is mounted relative to said housing means with said first and third bent portions engaging the interior surfiace of the receiver housing and said second bent portions engaging said first and second slot means for rigidly securing said mounting means to said receiver housing without the need for conventional fastening devices.

(References on following page) References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Patino 343-882 Lidz 343-702 Race 343-805 Klancnik 343-901 Leonard 343-805 1 2 2,983,917 5/1961 Spirt 343-702 3,154,785 10/1964 Taylor 343-901 FOREIGN PATENTS 978,295 4/1951 France.

HERMAN KARL SAALBACH, Primary Examiner.

R. F, HUNT, JR., Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. RETRACTABLE ANTENNA MEANS FOR USE IN RECEIVER HOUSINGS COMPRISING A TELESCOPING ANTENNA ASSEMBLY; FIRST HOUSING MEANS INCLUDING BALL AND SOCKET MEANS FOR RECIPROCALLY AND PIVOTALLY MOUNTING SAID TELESCOPING ASSEMBLY; SECOND STATIONARY HOUSING MEANS RIGIDLY SECURED TO THE RECEIVER HOUSING FOR RECIPROCALLY MOUNTING SAID FIRST HOUSING MEANS; THE RECIPROCAL MOVEMENT OF SAID FIRST HOUSING MEANS AND SAID TELESCOPING ANTENNA ASSEMBLY BEING TOTALLY INDEPENDENT OF ONE ANOTHER; SAID FIRST HOUSING MEANS BEING MOVABLE BETWEEN A COLLAPSED AND AN EXTENDED POSITION RELATIVE TO SAID SECOND HOUSING MEANS; SAID FIRST HOUSING MEANS BEING COMPLETELY CONTAINED WITHIN SAID SECOND HOUSING MEANS WHEN IN THE COLLAPSED POSITION.