Handheld Electronic Luggage Scale

Abstract

A hand-held electronic luggage scale includes a handle designed to be held generally horizontally, and a hook supported by the handle, which extends generally vertically below the handle. The handle houses an electronic scale, the electronic scale connected to the hook for calculating a weight of an object suspended from the hook. The hook may be metal and have a rubber and/or plastic exterior. A touch screen display may be provided in a top surface of the handle that displays the calculated weight from the electronic scale component. The touch screen display may include an icon representing a virtual control button that controls a user-selectable setting, and provides haptic feedback when the user-selectable setting changes due to a user pressing the virtual control button for a predetermined period of time. The touch screen display may include icons that control power, illumination, units of measurement, and/or other functionality.

1 - 20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . A handheld electronic luggage scale, comprising:
 a handle;   a luggage hook attachment that is centrally located on a bottom surface of the handle, the luggage hook attachment protruding from the bottom surface of the handle in a downward direction, wherein the handle is symmetrically shaped to allow a user to grasp the handle to either or both sides of the luggage hook attachment;   a connector housed within the luggage hook attachment with an opening at one end, wherein the one end of the connector is spaced apart from the bottom surface of the handle by the luggage hook attachment so that the user's fingers grasping the handle do not contact the one end of the connector;   a curved hook having a diameter sized to be accepted by the opening of the connector such that the curved hook is supported by the connector and extends generally vertically below the handle;   an electronic scale housed within the handle, the electronic scale interconnected with the curved hook via the connector for calculating a weight of an object suspended from the curved hook; and   a touch screen display provided on a surface of the handle, the touch screen display being configured to display the calculated weight from the electronic scale component, and an icon representing a virtual control button, the virtual control button being configured to adjust a user-selectable setting when the user touches the icon representing the virtual control button for a predetermined period of time.   
     
     
         22 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of claim  11 , wherein the touch screen display is provided on a top surface of the handle, the virtual control button is a virtual on/off button, and the predetermined period of time is a few seconds. 
     
     
         23 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 22 , wherein the touch screen display comprises a second icon representing a second virtual control button that is configured to switch units of measurement of the object being weighed. 
     
     
         24 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 21 , wherein the touch screen display comprises a battery gauge. 
     
     
         25 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 21 , wherein the touch screen display is configured to change colors. 
     
     
         26 . A handheld electronic luggage scale, comprising:
 a handle;   an electronic scale component configured to weigh an object, the handle acting as a housing for the electronic scale component;   a luggage hook attachment that is centrally located between a first and a second longitudinal end of the handle, the luggage hook attachment protruding from a bottom surface of the handle in a downward direction, the bottom surface of the handle being curved on either side of the luggage hook attachment to provide an ergonomic support for a user to lift the object to be weighed;   a connector housed within the luggage hook attachment with an opening at one end, the one end of the connector with the opening extending below the luggage hook attachment, wherein the one end of the connector is spaced apart from the bottom surface of the handle by the luggage hook attachment so that the user's fingers grasping the handle do not contact the one end of the connector;   a curved hook having a diameter sized to be accepted by the opening of the connector such that the curved hook is supported by the connector and interconnected with the electronic scale component via the connector, the curved hook extending generally vertically below the handle; and   a touch screen display provided in a top surface of the handle, wherein the touch screen display is configured to display a calculated weight of the object being lifted via the curved hook from the electronic scale component, the touch screen display comprising an icon representing a virtual control button that controls a user-selectable setting, and provides at least one of auditory, visual, and haptic feedback when the user-selectable setting changes due to the user pressing the virtual control button for a predetermined period of time.   
     
     
         27 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 26 , wherein the touch screen display comprises two icons representing two virtual control buttons, each of the two virtual control buttons being configured to change an associated user-selectable setting. 
     
     
         28 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 26 , wherein the virtual control button is a virtual on/off button, and the predetermined period of time is a few seconds. 
     
     
         29 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 26 , wherein the virtual control button is configured to change a unit of measurement of the weight of the object being weighed by the electronic scale component. 
     
     
         30 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 26 , wherein the user-selectable setting changes a background color of the touch screen display. 
     
     
         31 . A handheld electronic luggage scale, comprising:
 a handle comprising top and bottom surfaces, and extending along a longitudinal length between first and second longitudinal ends, and further comprising a luggage hook attachment that is centrally located on the bottom surface between the first and second longitudinal ends, the handle being symmetrically shaped about the luggage hook attachment to allow the user to grasp the handle to either or both sides of the luggage hook attachment;   a connector housed within the luggage hook attachment and comprising a lower end;   a luggage hooking device for suspending the object to be weighted, the luggage hooking device supported by the lower end of the connector and extending generally vertically below the handle;   an electronic scale component housed within the handle, the electronic scale component coupled to the connector and configured to calculate a weight of the object suspended from the luggage hooking device; and   a touch screen display arranged on the top surface of the handle, the touch screen display configured to display the weight of the object calculated by the electronic scale components.   
     
     
         32 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 31 , wherein the touch screen display comprises a virtual control button, the virtual control button being configured to change a user-selectable setting of the handheld electronic luggage scale when the user presses the virtual control button for a predetermined period of time. 
     
     
         33 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 32 , wherein the virtual control button is a virtual on/off button, and the predetermined period of time is a few seconds. 
     
     
         34 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 32 , wherein at least one of auditory, visual, and haptic feedback is provided when the user-selectable setting changes due to the user pressing the virtual control button for a predetermined period of time. 
     
     
         35 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 34 , wherein the virtual control button is a virtual on/off button, and the predetermined period of time is a few seconds. 
     
     
         36 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 32 , wherein the touch screen display comprises a second virtual control button that is configured to switch units of measurement of the object being weighed. 
     
     
         37 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 31 , wherein the touch screen display comprises a battery gauge. 
     
     
         38 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 31 , wherein the touch screen display comprises two icons representing two virtual control buttons, each of the two virtual control buttons being configured to change an associated user-selectable setting. 
     
     
         39 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 31 , wherein the luggage hook attachment provides physical separation between the bottom surface of the handle and the lower end of the connector so that the user's fingers grasping the handle do not contact the lower end of the connector. 
     
     
         40 . The handheld electronic luggage scale of  claim 31 , wherein the connector and the luggage hooking device are separate components, and the luggage hooking device comprises a curved hook.