Telescopic Handle for Hard-Sided Suitcase

Abstract

A hard-sided suitcase may have a front and a back hard-sided shell that together comprise a main storage compartment. A telescopic handle may have retractable or extendable arms, corresponding fixed tubes configured to house the arms, and a curved handle. The fixed tubes and/or frame of the telescopic handle may be at least partially encased within the back hard-sided shell. The fixed tubes may be approximately flush with the exterior of the back hard-sided shell, and the interior of the back hard-sided shell may provide a smooth and continuous surface to the main storage compartment to alleviate packing around the telescopic handle during use. The curved handle may have an undulating bend, and be configured to fit into a corresponding curved surface on the top of the back hard-sided shell. The top and backmost portions of the curved handle may be approximately flush with the back hard-sided shell.

1 . A hard-sided suitcase, the hard-sided suitcase comprising:
 front and back hard-sided shells defining a main storage compartment; and   a telescopic handle having retractable arms, a handle, and fixed tubes, the retractable arms being configured to extend into and out of the fixed tubes,   wherein the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are at least partially encased within, and immovable with respect to, the back hard-sided shell such that a backmost portion of the fixed tubes is approximately flush with a backmost exterior of the back hard-sided shell, while simultaneously, a smooth and continuous surface is provided by or on an interior of the back hard-sided shell that faces toward the main storage compartment to facilitate packing of clothing or other articles within the main storage compartment without requiring packing around the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle.   
     
     
         2 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are partially encased within the back hard-sided shell such that the fixed tubes remain partially visible. 
     
     
         3 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the handle is a curved handle and includes a push button configured to allow retracting the retractable arms into the fixed tubes. 
     
     
         4 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the handle and retractable arms are made of metal and comprise a single piece. 
     
     
         5 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the fixed tubes remain visible from an exterior of the hard-sided suitcase and are made of metal. 
     
     
         6 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the fixed tubes are permanently affixed to the back hard-sided shell without any fasteners or fastening devices. 
     
     
         7 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 1 , wherein the handle is a curved handle that has an undulating bend that bends inward toward a center of the hard-sided suitcase. 
     
     
         8 . A hard-sided suitcase, the hard-sided suitcase comprising:
 front and back hard-sided shells defining a main storage compartment; and   a telescopic handle having left and right retractable arms, a handle, and left and right fixed tubes, the left and right retractable arms being configured to extend into and out of the left and right fixed tubes, respectively,   wherein the left and right fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are at least partially encased within, and immovable with respect to, the back hard-sided shell such that a backmost portion of the left and right fixed tubes is approximately flush with a backmost exterior of the back hard-sided shell, while simultaneously, a generally smooth and continuous surface is provided by or on an interior of the back hard-sided shell that faces toward the main storage compartment during use to facilitate packing of clothing or other articles within the main storage compartment without requiring packing around the left and right fixed tubes of the telescopic handle.   
     
     
         9 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the left and right fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are partially encased within the back hard-sided shell such that the fixed tubes remain partially visible when viewing the backmost exterior of the back hard-sided shell. 
     
     
         10 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the handle is a curved handle and includes a push button configured to allow retracting the left and right retractable arms into the left and right fixed tubes, respectively. 
     
     
         11 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the handle and the left and right retractable arms are made of metal and comprise a single piece. 
     
     
         12 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the left and right fixed tubes remain visible when viewed from an exterior of the hard-sided suitcase and are made of metal. 
     
     
         13 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the left and right fixed tubes are permanently affixed to the back hard-sided shell without any fasteners or fastening devices. 
     
     
         14 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 8 , wherein the handle is a curved handle that has an undulating bend that bends inward toward a middle of the hard-sided suitcase. 
     
     
         15 . A hard-sided suitcase, the hard-sided suitcase comprising:
 front and back hard-sided shells defining a main storage compartment; and   a telescopic handle having extending arms and a handle portion, the handle portion having a push button that facilitates the extending arms retracting into and from corresponding fixed tubes of the telescopic handle, wherein the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are partially encased within, and immovable with respect to, the back hard-sided shell such that the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle remain visible from a back of the back hard-sided shell and are substantially flush with an exterior of the back hard-sided shell, while simultaneously, a continuous surface is provided on or by an interior of the back hard-sided shell to facilitate packing of clothing or other articles within the main storage compartment without requiring packing around the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle during use.   
     
     
         16 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 15 , wherein the fixed tubes of the telescopic handle are partially encased within the back hard-sided shell such that the fixed tubes remain partially visible when viewing the exterior of the back hard-sided shell. 
     
     
         17 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 15 , wherein the handle portion and the extending arms are made of metal and comprise a single piece. 
     
     
         18 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 15 , wherein the fixed tubes remain visible when viewing the exterior of the back-sided shell. 
     
     
         19 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 15 , wherein the fixed tubes are permanently affixed to the back hard-sided shell without any fasteners or fastening devices. 
     
     
         20 . The hard-sided suitcase of  claim 15 , wherein the handle portion comprises an undulating bend that bends inward toward a middle of the hard-sided suitcase.