Apparatus pertaining to a keyboard comprised of physically-discrete hinged segments

1. An apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a keyboard comprised of a plurality of keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments that are hingeably coupled to one another, wherein the keyboard is configured to have a deployed configuration and a non-deployed configuration, the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments being all disposed on a back side of the housing and facing outwardly away from a back side of the apparatus when in the non-deployed configuration and being disposed substantially planar with respect to the housing and facing outwardly away from a front side of the apparatus when in the deployed configuration, and wherein, when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments move from the non-deployed configuration to the deployed configuration, individual ones of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments reach their respective deployed configuration one-by-one;

a plate hingeably coupled to one of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments and configured to move with the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments move back and forth between the non-deployed configuration and the deployed configuration, wherein the plate has recesses formed therein to receive segment hinges when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are in the deployed configuration to thereby dispose the plate closely to an underside surface of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments and thereby provide physical support for the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments when in the deployed configuration.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the apparatus comprises a portable communications device.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising:

a display supported by the housing facing outwardly away from the front side of the apparatus.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the keyboard comprises, at the least, a QWERTY-layout keyboard.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein each of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments comprises a single row of keycaps.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the plurality of keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments comprise at least three keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are configured to move from the non-deployed configuration to the deployed configuration via a caterpillar movement.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are configured to move from the deployed configuration to the non-deployed configuration via a caterpillar movement.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are configured to move between the deployed and non-deployed configurations via a caterpillar movement.

10. An apparatus comprising:

a housing;

a keyboard comprised of a plurality of keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments that are hingeably coupled to one another, wherein the keyboard is configured to have a deployed configuration and a non-deployed configuration, the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments being disposed on a back side of the housing and facing outwardly away from a back side of the apparatus when in the non-deployed configuration and being disposed substantially planar with respect to the housing and facing outwardly away from a front side of the apparatus when in the deployed configuration, and wherein, when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments move from the non-deployed configuration to the deployed configuration, individual ones of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments reach their respective deployed configuration one-by-one;

wherein the housing has recesses formed in the back side of the housing to receive segment hinges when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are in the non-deployed configuration to thereby dispose the back side of the housing closely to an underside surface of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments when in the non-deployed configuration.

11. A portable communications device comprising:

a housing;

a display supported by the housing and facing outwardly away from a front side of the portable communications device;

a keyboard comprised of a plurality of keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments that are hingeably coupled to one another, wherein the keyboard is configured to have a deployed configuration and a non-deployed configuration, the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments all being disposed on a back side of the housing and facing outwardly away from a back side of the portable communications device when in the non-deployed configuration and being disposed substantially planar with respect to the housing and facing outwardly away from a front side of the portable communications device when in the deployed configuration, and wherein, when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments move from the non-deployed configuration to the deployed configuration, individual ones of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments reach their respective deployed configuration one-by-one;

a plate hingeably coupled to one of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments and configured to move with the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments move back and forth between the non-deployed configuration and the deployed configuration, wherein the plate has recesses formed therein to receive segment hinges when the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments are in the deployed configuration to thereby dispose the plate closely to an underside surface of the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments and thereby provide physical support for the keycap-bearing physically-discrete segments when in the deployed configuration.