Damped, mechanically driven lid for a handheld device

A device sufficiently small to use upon a a desktop, comprising:

• a housing having operative components, said housing including first and second cylindrical hollow cavities, said cylindrical hollow cavities sharing a common central axis,
• a lid structure pivotally connected to a rotational drive mechanism, said lid structure including a cover portion with a hinge portion formed along one edge of said cover portion, the hinge portion extending between said first and second cylindrical hollow cavities and intersecting the common central axis, and
• said rotational drive mechanism, comprising
• a drive spring located in a first cylindrical hollow cavity with one end of the spring attached to the housing and the other end of the spring attached to the lid, and
• a damping means positioned within a second cylindrical hollow cavity, the damping means comprising a rotatable drum and a viscous liquid interposed between the outer surface of the rotatable drum and the inner surface of the second cylindrical hollows cavity, said rotatable drum having an outer diameter substantially equivalent to the inner diameter of the second cylindrical hollow cavity,
• wherein the rotational drive mechanism effectuates a controlled pivotal motion of said lid structure, biasing said lid structure, from a closed position covering some or all of said operative components to an open position where some or all of the operative components are exposed.