JP2004362975A - Electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To fix a connector portion to a case without looseness. <P>SOLUTION: A notched portion 43 having an inclined face 43a obliquely extending to an opening face 42d of a case 42 with an electronic part 62 built therein is formed on a wall 42b of the case 42. A connector portion 64 connected to the part 62 is engaged with the notched portion 43 to fix the connector portion 64 to the case 42. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a novel electronic device. Specifically, in an electronic device in which an electronic component is built in a case and a connector portion for connecting the electronic component to the outside protrudes from the case, a technique for fixing the connector portion to the case without play. About.
[0002]
[Prior art]
An electronic device in which an electronic component is built in a case and a connector portion for connecting the electronic component to the outside is protruded from the case is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H11-163873.
[0003]
In an electronic device disclosed in Patent Document 1, a resin busbar case in which a conductive member (terminal) is insert-molded is disposed in a case including a substantially box-shaped base portion and a plate-shaped cover member, An electronic component connected to the conductive member is arranged in the space of the bar bar case, and a connector portion for connecting the electronic component to the outside is provided integrally with the bus bar case, and the connector portion is provided on the base portion. It has a configuration protruding to the outside from the provided notch.
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP 2001-43987 A
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, in the above-described conventional electronic device, only a simple notch is formed in the case (a part of the base), and only the fact that the connector protrudes from the notch is shown. When the connector is applied as an electronic component for an automobile, the position of the connector portion is not stable with respect to the case. Further, since no waterproof means is provided between the case and the connector portion, it cannot be used in a place requiring waterproofing. Therefore, when used in places requiring waterproofing, it is necessary to take waterproofing means such as interposing a sealing member such as an O-ring between the cutout part of the case and the connector part, and the number of parts increases and There is a problem that the structure is complicated.
[0006]
Therefore, an object of the present invention is to fix the connector portion to the case without play.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to solve the above-described problems, the electronic device of the present invention has a notch having an inclined surface extending obliquely to an opening surface of a case formed on a wall of a case in which the electronic component is built, and The connector is fixed to the case by engaging a connector connected to the electronic component.
[0008]
Therefore, in the electronic device of the present invention, by forming the angle between the inclined portion formed in the notch portion and the inclined surface formed in the connector portion to be substantially the same, the connector portion can be perfectly engaged with the notch portion. Thus, the connector portion can be fixed to the case without play.
[0009]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the illustrated embodiment, the present invention is applied to a discharge bulb lighting circuit device of an automotive headlamp.
[0010]
The discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 of the automotive headlamp 10 is formed also as a cover that removably closes a working opening 12 formed in a rear portion of the lamp body 11 of the automotive headlamp 10.
[0011]
As can be seen from FIG. 1, the automotive headlamp 10 includes a container-like lamp body 11 having an open front surface, and the front opening of the lamp body 11 is covered by a front cover 13 to form a lamp chamber 14. . A reflector 15 is disposed in the lamp room 14. The reflector 15 is supported on the lamp body 11 by, for example, one rotating fulcrum portion and two interval adjusting portions (not shown) so as to be tilt-adjustable. The interval adjusting section usually includes an adjusting shaft (sometimes referred to as an adjusting screw) rotatably supported by the lamp body 11, and the adjusting shaft of the reflector is connected by rotating the adjusting shaft. The distance between the cut portion and the lamp body 11 is adjusted. Therefore, when one of the adjustment shafts is rotated, the reflector 15 is rotated about the line connecting the portion connected to the other adjustment shaft and the portion supported by the rotation fulcrum.
[0012]
A discharge bulb 30 is detachably supported by a known means at the rear center of the reflector 15. Reference numeral 16 denotes a shade for covering the front side of the discharge bulb 30. The shade 16 prevents direct light from being emitted from the discharge bulb 30, and only the light emitted from the discharge bulb 30 and reflected by the reflection surface 15a of the reflector 15 has a front surface. The light is irradiated forward through the cover 13. The entire reflecting surface 15a of the reflector 15 is divided into small segments (in some cases, the segments can be visually confirmed, and in some cases, the segments are smoothly connected so that they cannot be visually confirmed). It has a unique reflection characteristic, that is, a reflection angle, a divergence angle, etc., and a beam having a light distribution required as a headlight is illuminated by a collection of light reflected by all segments. I have. Therefore, the front cover 13 is a so-called plain light-transmitting member having almost no lens function, that is, having no function of refracting or diffusing transmitted light in a desired direction. In addition, the relationship between the reflector 15 and the front cover 13 is not limited to the above, and the reflector 15 may have a single reflection characteristic, for example, as a parallel light beam or as a light beam condensed at a specific point or area. The front cover 13 may be configured to have characteristics such as reflection, and the front cover 13 may be segmented to give each segment a unique transmission characteristic, thereby obtaining a desired light distribution. Alternatively, it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which the reflector 15 and the front cover 13 share the function for forming the light distribution at an arbitrary ratio.
[0013]
A circular working opening 12 is formed in the rear portion of the lamp body 11 at a position facing the portion of the reflector 15 where the discharge bulb 30 is supported. The working opening 12 is formed to have a width slightly in the front-rear direction, that is, a cylindrical or annular shape having a short axial length, and an inner flange portion protruding inward at a substantially intermediate position in the front-rear direction. 12a. A plurality of notches (not shown) are formed in the opening edge of the inner flange portion 12a at intervals in the circumferential direction.
[0014]
As can be seen in FIG. 1, the working opening 12 formed at the rear of the lamp body 11 is closed by a detachable discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20. As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 includes a case body 40, which is formed by a cover 41 and a case body 42. The cover portion 41 is formed integrally with a disc-shaped main plate 41a and an annular peripheral wall portion 41b that protrudes forward from a position slightly inward from the peripheral edge of the front surface of the main plate 41a. Have engaging pieces 41c, 41c,... Projecting outward at intervals in the circumferential direction (see FIG. 2). The outer diameter of the main plate 41a is substantially equal to the inner diameter of the working opening 12 of the lamp body 11, and the outer diameter of the peripheral wall portion 41b is substantially equal to the inner diameter of the inner flange portion 12a of the working opening 12 (see FIG. 1). ). The engaging pieces 41c, 41c,... Are formed at positions corresponding to the not-shown notches of the inner flange 12a. An insertion hole 41 d is formed at a position near the periphery of the main plate 41.
[0015]
As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the case main body 42 is formed by integrally forming a substantially rectangular rear side plate 42a and a peripheral wall portion 42b protruding forward from a peripheral edge of the rear side plate 42a. Attachment pieces 42c, 42c, 42c protrude from the outer surface of the peripheral wall 42b (see FIG. 2), and a notch 43 is formed at the lower side of the peripheral wall 42b. Both sides 43a, 43a of the notch 43 are formed on an inclined surface. The inclined surfaces 43a, 43a are inclined in directions away from each other toward the opening surface 42d (see FIG. 3) of the case body 42, and the angle θ of the inclined surfaces 43a, 43a with respect to the opening surface 42d of the case body 42. (See FIG. 3) is desirably 75 ° or less.
[0016]
The cover 41 and the case body 42 are formed of metal, for example, aluminum. In the case of forming with aluminum, for example, it is preferable to form as aluminum die casting.
[0017]
In the case body 42, the screws 44, 44, and 44 through which the mounting pieces 42c, 42c, and 42c are inserted from the rear are attached to the cover portion 41 with the front end of the peripheral wall portion 42b abutting on the rear surface of the main plate 41a of the cover portion 41. The main body 41 is fixed to the cover part 41 by being screwed to the main plate 41a of the main body 41, thereby forming a case body 40. The case body 40 incorporates a ballast circuit which is a part of a discharge bulb lighting circuit described later. .
[0018]
FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically showing a circuit configuration of a discharge bulb lighting circuit 50 for lighting the discharge bulb 30.
[0019]
In the discharge bulb lighting circuit 50, the power supply voltage of the battery 51 is boosted by a DC-DC booster circuit (DC / DC converter) 52 and orthogonally converted by a DC-AC converter circuit (DC / AC inverter) 53. The lighting voltage is a high AC voltage, and the lighting voltage is applied to the discharge bulb 30. Further, a starting circuit (starter circuit) 54 is provided so that a starting voltage is superimposed on the lighting voltage and applied to the discharge bulb 30 when the discharge bulb 30 is started (lighting start). In the case body 40, a part of the discharge bulb lighting circuit 50 except for the battery 51 and the starting circuit 54, that is, a so-called ballast circuit 55 is incorporated.
[0020]
As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the ballast circuit 55 is unitized (ballast circuit unit 60) and built in the case body 40. The ballast circuit unit 60 includes a ceramic substrate 61 on which electronic components are mounted on only one side to form a ballast circuit 55, and a housing 63 formed of an insulating material such as a synthetic resin. A power IC, a flyback transformer and other electronic components are mounted on the ceramic substrate 61. The housing 63 has spaces 63a, 63a, ... for holding relatively large electronic components 62, 62, ..., and connects the electronic components 62, 62, .... Are held integrally by insert molding in a state where most of the conductive members 63b are buried in the housing 63.
[0021]
A connector portion 64 protrudes from one end of the housing 63. The connector portion 64 includes a connector case 64a formed integrally with the housing 63, and connector terminals 64b, 64b arranged in the connector case 64a. The connector terminals 64b, 64b are formed as part of the conductive members 63b, 63b,... The outer peripheral surface of the connector case 64a has a rear flat surface 64c and inclined surfaces 64d, 64d inclined in directions away from each other as going forward from both sides of the flat surface 64c, and the inclined surfaces 64d, 64d are The notch 43 formed in the case main body 42 has the same inclination angle as the inclined surfaces 43a, 43a, and the width of the flat surface 64c is formed to be the same as the length of the inner surface 43b of the notch 43.
[0022]
Further, an output connector 65 is formed on the housing 63 toward the front surface.
[0023]
Then, the housing 63 is inserted into the case main body 42, and the connector portion 64 is fixed to each surface 43a, 43a, 43b of the cutout portion 43 of the case main body 42 by an adhesive. At this time, it is preferable that the adhesive 71 is automatically applied to the respective surfaces 43a, 43a, 43b of the cutout portion 43 by an adhesive dispenser 70 as shown in FIG. When the viscosity of the adhesive 71 is 300 to 400 pascals, if the angle θ of the inclined surfaces 43 a of the notch 43 with respect to the opening surface 42 d of the case body 42 is 75 ° or less, the adhesive 71 becomes inclined surfaces 43 a, 43 a. It stays on and can be glued. Therefore, it is more preferable to set the above θ to about 60 ° in consideration of the process capability.
[0024]
As described above, since the surfaces 64d, 64d, and 64c corresponding to the surfaces 43a, 43a, and 43b of the cutout portion 43 of the case body 42 are formed in the connector portion 64, the respective inclined surfaces 43a, 43a, and 64d are formed. , 64d can be surely brought into close contact with each other, and even if there is some error due to tolerance, a slight gap caused by the error is filled with the adhesive 71. The connector portion 64 can be fixed to the case main body 42 without play.
[0025]
The ceramic substrate 61 is fixed to the inner surface of the rear plate 42a of the case main body 42 with an adhesive. Then, the housing 63 is put on the ceramic substrate 61 from the front side, and the housing 63 is also fixed to the case body 42 by adhesion. At this time, as described above, the connector portion 64 is fixed to the cutout portion 43 of the case main body 42 with an adhesive.
[0026]
Then, as described above, the case main body 42 to which the ceramic substrate 61 and the housing 63 are attached is screwed to the cover portion 41, so that the discharge bulb lighting circuit device in which the ballast circuit unit 60 is built in the case body 40. 20 are formed. At this time, the power supply connector 63 protrudes out of the case body 40 from the notch 43 of the case body 40, and the tip end of the output connector 65 protrudes from the insertion hole 41d of the cover part 41 to the front side of the main plate 41a. (See FIG. 1).
[0027]
As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the ballast circuit unit 60 and the discharge bulb 30 are connected via a bulb socket 80. The bulb socket 80 is detachably attached to the base 31 of the discharge bulb 30, and the starting circuit 54 of the discharge bulb lighting circuit 50 is built in the bulb socket 80. From the bulb socket 80, a cord 81 connected to an input end of the starting circuit 54 and a terminal connected to the discharge bulb 30 is led out, and a light bulb side connector 82 is connected to a tip of the cord 81. The cord 81 is a shield cord whose outside is covered with a metal net.
[0028]
The connection of the discharge bulb lighting circuit 50 to the discharge bulb 30 and the closing of the working opening 12 of the lamp body 11 by the discharge bulb traditional circuit device 20 are performed as follows.
[0029]
First, the bulb socket 80 is inserted into the lamp body 11 through the working opening 12, and the bulb socket 80 is mounted on the base 31 of the discharge bulb 30. Then, the light bulb side connector 82 provided at the end of the cord 81 led out from the bulb socket 80 is connected to the output connector 65 of the ballast circuit unit 60. The O-ring 45 is externally fitted to a portion of the outer peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion 41b of the cover portion 41 between the main plate 41a and the engaging pieces 41c, 41c,.
[0030]
Then, the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is moved forward with the engaging pieces 41c, 41c,... Of the case body 40 being aligned with the not-shown notches of the inner flange portion 12a of the lamp body 11, and The cover 41 of 40 is inserted into the working opening 12 of the lamp body 11. As a result, the engagement pieces 41 c, 41 c,... Pass through the notch of the inner flange portion 12 a to the front side, and the case body 40 is inserted into the work opening 12 to the cover portion 41. Then, the O-ring 45 is compressed between the outer peripheral surface of the peripheral wall portion 41 b of the cover portion 41 of the case body 40 and the inner peripheral surface of the working opening 12. Thereby, the space between the working opening 12 and the case body 40 is waterproofed. Therefore, when the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is rotated in a predetermined direction, for example, a clockwise direction by a predetermined angle, the rotation of the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is stopped by a stopper (not shown), and the engagement pieces 41c, 41c, Are engaged with the inner side surface of the inner flange 12a, whereby the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is attached to the lamp body 11 with the working opening 12 closed.
[0031]
After attaching the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 to the lamp body 11 as described above, a power supply side connector (not shown) is connected to the connector portion 64. Thus, the discharge bulb 30 can be turned on.
[0032]
When detaching the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 from the lamp body 11, first, a connector (not shown) on the power supply side is detached from the connector portion 64. Then, the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is rotated in the direction opposite to the direction at the time of attachment so that the positions of the engagement pieces 41c, 41c,... Coincide with the positions of the notches of the inner flange portion 12a, and the state is maintained. Then, the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is pulled backward. As a result, the engagement pieces 41c, 41c,... Slip out of the notch portion rearward, and the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 can be removed from the lamp body 11. Then, for example, when replacing the discharge bulb 30, the bulb socket 80 is detached from the old discharge bulb 30, the discharge bulb 30 is replaced with a new one, the bulb socket 80 is mounted on the new discharge bulb 30, and then the above-described operation is performed. Thus, the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is attached to the lamp body 11.
[0033]
5 and 6 show another embodiment of the electronic device of the present invention. In this embodiment, the present invention is also applied to a discharge bulb lighting circuit device, and most of the structure is the same as that of the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20. The illustration and description of the portions are omitted, and only the portion including the discharge bulb lighting circuit device 20 is illustrated and described.
[0034]
In this embodiment, the connector section 90 is formed separately from a housing integrally holding a conductive member. The connector section 90 includes a connector case 91 formed of an insulating material, and connector terminals 93, 93 are arranged in the connector case 91. The width of the flat bottom surface 91a is substantially equal to the length of the back surface 43b of the notch 43 formed in the case main body 42, and the connector cases 91 of the side surfaces 91b and 91b are flat bottom surfaces. 91a and inclined side surfaces 91b and 91b. The width of the flat bottom surface 91a is substantially equal to the length of the back surface 43b of the notch 43 formed in the case main body 42, and the inclination angles of the side surfaces 91b, 91b are The surfaces 43a are formed so as to have substantially the same inclination angle as the surfaces 43a. Notch grooves 91c, 91c extending to both upper and lower ends are formed on both sides of the connector case 91, and the connector terminals 93, 93 are exposed in the notch grooves 91c, 91c.
[0035]
In the housing (not shown), the connection ends 92 of the conductive member embedded in the housing are opposed to each other at a position facing the notch 43 of the case body 42 at a slight interval. I have.
[0036]
Then, the connection end portions 92 of the conductive member are engaged with the cutout grooves 91c of the connector case 91 in a press-fit manner. When the connection ends 92, 92 are press-fitted into the notch grooves 91c, 91c, as shown in FIG. 6, the connection ends 92, 92 are pressed against the connector terminals 93, 93 in the connector case 91. It becomes a state and is electrically connected. Thus, the connector section 90 is integrated with the housing. Then, when the housing is fixed to the case main body 42, the connector portion 90 is fixed to the notch 43 of the case main body 42 by an adhesive.
[0037]
In the above embodiment, the electronic device of the present invention is applied to a discharge bulb lighting circuit device. However, the present invention is applied to an electronic device having a structure in which various other connector portions protrude from a case. It is possible to apply to.
[0038]
Further, the shape and structure of each part shown in each of the above-described embodiments are merely examples of the specific embodiments performed when carrying out the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention is limited by these. It must not be interpreted conscientiously.
[0039]
【The invention's effect】
As is apparent from the above description, the electronic device of the present invention has a notch having an inclined surface extending obliquely to an opening surface of a case formed on a wall of a case in which an electronic component is built, A connector portion connected to the electronic component is engaged with the electronic component to fix the connector portion to the case.
[0040]
Therefore, in the electronic device of the present invention, by forming the angle between the inclined portion formed in the notch portion and the inclined surface formed in the connector portion to be substantially the same, the connector portion can be perfectly engaged with the notch portion. Thus, the connector portion can be fixed to the case without play.
[0041]
In the invention described in claim 2, an adhesive is applied to the opening surface including the inclined surface of the cutout portion, and the connector portion is fixed by the adhesive, so that the connector portion is firmly attached to the case. In addition to being fixed, the space between the connector portion and the notch portion has waterproofness, and the assembly is facilitated by supplying the adhesive with an automatic supply device. In addition, since it has waterproofness as described above, a separate member such as an O-ring for achieving waterproofness is not required, which contributes to cost reduction by reducing the number of parts and assembling man-hours. There is no deterioration of waterproofing due to deterioration of members.
[0042]
In the invention described in claim 3, a housing in which a conductive member to which the electronic component is connected is integrally provided in the case, and the connector portion is integrated with a housing made of the insulating material. And a part of the conductive member is arranged in the connector part to be a connector terminal, so that there is no need to prepare the connector terminal as a separate part, thereby reducing the number of parts and the number of assembling steps to reduce costs. To contribute.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing an example of a vehicle headlamp using a discharge valve device according to an embodiment to which the present invention is applied.
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a discharge bulb lighting circuit device.
FIG. 3 is a side view schematically showing an operation of applying an adhesive to a notch.
FIG. 4 is a block diagram schematically showing a discharge bulb lighting circuit.
FIG. 5 shows a discharge bulb lighting circuit device according to another embodiment together with FIG. 6, and is a perspective view of a main portion showing a state where a housing and a connector portion are separated.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a main part in which a housing and a case in which a connector part is integrated are shown separately.
[Explanation of symbols]
Reference numeral 20: discharge bulb lighting circuit device (electronic device), 42: case body (case), 42b: peripheral wall portion (wall), 42d: opening surface, 43: notch portion, 43a: inclined surface, 62: electronic component, 63 ... Housing, 63b: conductive member, 64: connector portion, 64b: connector terminal, 71: adhesive, 90: connector portion, 92: connection end (conductive member)

Claims (3)

Forming a notch having a slope extending obliquely to the opening of the case on the wall of the case in which the electronic component is built,
An electronic device, wherein a connector portion connected to the electronic component is engaged with the notch portion to fix the connector portion to the case. 2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein an adhesive is applied to an opening surface of the notch including the inclined surface, and the connector is fixed by the adhesive. A housing provided integrally with a conductive member to which the electronic component is connected is arranged in the case,
3. The connector according to claim 1, wherein the connector is formed integrally with a housing made of the insulating material, and a part of the conductive member is disposed in the connector to form a connector terminal. An electronic device according to claim 1.

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