JP2006202972A - Opening and closing cover structure of card insertion slot in electronic equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable a user to restore smoothly a cover to the state where the cover can be opened and closed freely by pushing the cover member to the closing direction, in the case that the projection axis is separated from a bearing recess, in the opening and closing cover structure having a hinge mechanism where the projection axis at the edge of an arm part projected from the cover member made of resin is fitted into the bearing recess of the side of the device main body. <P>SOLUTION: A card insertion slot 4 is formed in a recess 11 arranged in the body casing of a printer, and a cover member 6 is formed so that the front of the recess 11 may be covered in a free way of opening and closing. Owing to its own elasticity of the arm 8, the projection axis 9 formed in the edge of the arm 8 of the cover member 6 is fitted into the bearing recess of the casing side of the main body so that it may become a rotation center. In the external curved surfaces of the arm 8 comprising two or more bent surfaces 8a, 8b and 8c. The projection axis rotates without catching the arm 8 in the body casing side, when pushing the cover member 6 to the closing direction, since a surface 8d which approaches most closely to a notch is formed in a smooth curved surface at the time of opening and closing of the cover member 6. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a structure of an opening / closing lid of a recess for a card insertion slot formed on the front surface of a housing in a printer apparatus and other electronic devices.

  Card-type non-volatile memories such as smart cards (registered trademark) and compact flash cards (registered trademark) have been dramatically increasing in capacity in recent years. For example, an insertion slot for these cards is formed in a printer device and inserted. The image information stored in the card-like non-volatile memory can be directly printed on a sheet by a printer device. In this case, a card insertion slot is provided on the front surface of the printer device so that the user can easily insert or remove the card, and the card insertion / removal direction is the horizontal direction. Also, the structure in which the opening of the card insertion slot is exposed on the front surface of the printer device is not adopted because the dust from the slot opening easily intrudes or is unfavorable in design. A recess is formed in a part of the card, an opening for the card insertion slot is formed in the recess, and an opening / closing lid is provided so as to cover the front surface of the recess.

On the other hand, as a hinge mechanism of the document pressing cover of the scanner, a cam body and a tension spring are used to support the document pressing cover opened by the user at an appropriate angle so as to antagonize the weight of the document pressing cover. There is known one designed so as not to feel the weight of the pressing cover (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 11-294000 A

  As described above, the opening / closing lid of the concave portion for the card insertion slot formed on the front surface of the printer device or the like covers the front surface of the concave portion without gaps and the front surface of the housing and the surface of the lid member in the closed state so as to prevent dust from entering. Forms the outline of a series of printer devices, and in the open state, the lid member must be opened largely forward so that the user can easily insert the card into the horizontal card insertion slot. As the hinge structure, the following structure is often used.

  In other words, an arm portion curved in a substantially J shape is greatly extended rearward from the back surface of the lid member made of a resin material, and the protruding shaft at the tip of the arm portion is fitted into a bearing recess provided inside the main body side. The lid is designed so that the lid member rotates while drawing a large arc around the hinge axis located below the recess.

  This will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 shows an example of the lid member, and FIG. 8 shows a state in which the lid member is incorporated in the printer apparatus main body. The main body portion 52 of the lid member 51 has a loosely curved shape that is continuous with the outer shape of the apparatus main body, and arm portions 53 that are curved in a substantially J shape are integrally extended from both sides of the back surface thereof. A protruding shaft 54 that protrudes outward is formed at the tip of the arm portion 53, and these two protruding shafts 54 are inward due to the elasticity of the arm portion 53 itself in bearing recesses (not shown) formed on the apparatus main body side. The hinge is inserted into the outside to form a hinge. Further, a notch 56 (corresponding to a notch 12 in the present invention to be described later) that allows the arm portion 53 to rotate when the lid member 51 is opened and closed is formed on the inner wall of the recess 55 on the apparatus main body side. It is.

  By the way, in the lid member having the above-described hinge structure, the protruding shaft 54 at the tip of the arm portion is merely fitted into the bearing recess on the apparatus main body side by the elasticity of the arm portion 53 itself. If the lid member is opened beyond this point, the projecting shaft 54 at the tip of the arm part may be detached from the bearing recess (indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 8). Even in such a case, if the user manually pushes the lid member 51 in the closing direction again, the protruding shaft 54 at the tip of the arm portion is reinserted into the bearing recess by the movement in the closing direction. In addition, a guide surface is formed around the bearing recess. That is, specifically, a triangular guide inclined surface having a width narrowing downward is formed above the bearing recess.

  As described above, in the hinge mechanism in which the protruding shaft 54 at the tip of the arm portion is fitted into the bearing recess by the elasticity of the resin, even if the protruding shaft 54 is detached from the bearing recess, the user basically However, there are cases where the above recovery operation by the user cannot be performed smoothly.

  That is, the notch 56 formed in the inner wall of the recess 55 so as to allow the arm portion 53 to rotate allows the arm portion 53 to rotate in order to prevent dust, dust, and the like from entering the apparatus main body. The outermost portion of the curved outer surface of the arm portion 53 when the user pushes the lid member 51 set to the minimum size and rotated beyond the limit in the normal opening direction into the closing direction by the user. In some cases, 53a is caught by the edge 56a of the notch 56 and the pushing of the lid member 51 in the closing direction is prevented.

  The inventor carefully inspected the above trouble, and the trouble is mainly that the curved outer surface of the arm portion 53 is composed of a plurality of continuous planes for the convenience of forming a molding die, and the planes are angular. It was ascertained that the joint 53a was generated by being caught by the edge 56a of the notch. In addition, the inventor must move the projecting shaft 54 along the guide inclined surface in order to reinsert the projecting shaft 54 at the tip of the arm portion into the bearing recess. Since it is constrained by the inclined surface, the width of the projecting shaft 54 to freely move back and forth (in the left-right direction in FIG. 8) is narrowed, which is also sufficient between the curved outer surface of the arm portion 53 and the notch 56. It has also been found that it is difficult to push the lid member 51 by making a gap (so that the outer surface of the arm portion 53 is not caught by the notch 56). That is, it has been found that the above trouble does not occur simply due to the skill of the operation when the user pushes the lid member 51.

  Accordingly, the present invention provides a card insertion having a hinge mechanism having a structure in which the protruding shaft at the tip of the substantially J-shaped arm is fitted into the bearing recess on the apparatus main body side by the elasticity of the resin under the circumstances as described above. In the slot opening / closing lid structure, when the projecting shaft at the tip of the arm part is disengaged from the bearing recess due to an unexpected overload, the projecting shaft smoothly slides into the bearing recess by manually pushing the lid member in the closing direction. It is an object of the present invention to provide an opening / closing lid structure for a card insertion slot in an electronic device that can be reinserted into the housing and the lid member can be easily restored to a state in which the lid member can be freely opened and closed.

  According to a first aspect of the present invention for achieving the above object, a card insertion slot is provided on a substantially vertical surface in a recess formed in the front surface of a casing of an electronic device, and the front surface of the recess is openably opened and closed. Provided is a resin lid member that opens largely in front of the recess so that the card can be inserted into and removed from the card insertion slot in the horizontal direction, and a hinge structure for attaching the lid member to the electronic device casing includes the lid member. An arm portion that is integrally extended from the front end and has a projecting shaft in a lateral direction at the tip, and a bearing recess into which the projecting shaft formed below the recess in the electronic device housing is fitted, The housing surface continuous to the bearing recess is formed with a guide inclined surface that guides the projecting shaft to the bearing recess while the arm portion enters and bends and deforms during assembly. In the recess, the lid member is In the opening / closing lid structure of the card insertion slot in the electronic device formed with the cutout of the minimum size that allows the arm portion to rotate when performing the closing operation, the arm portion has a curved inner surface and an outer surface. The curved outer surface is composed of a plurality of planes bent in stages, and when the lid member is opened and closed, the portion closest to the notch is formed into a smooth curved surface without corners. It is formed.

  The invention of claim 2 provides a card insertion slot in a recess formed in the front surface of the casing of the electronic device, covers the front surface of the recess so as to be openable and closable, and allows the card to be inserted into and removed from the card insertion slot in the open state. A resin lid member is provided so that the front of the recess is opened as much as possible, and the hinge structure for attaching the lid member to the electronic device casing extends substantially from the lid member and has a projecting shaft in the lateral direction at the tip. The arm portion curved in a J-shape and a bearing recess into which the projecting shaft formed below the recess in the electronic device casing is inserted. A guide inclined surface for guiding the protruding shaft to the bearing recess is formed while the arm portion enters and the arm portion is bent and deformed, and when the lid member performs an opening / closing operation in the recess, Allow rotation of the arm In the opening / closing lid structure of the card insertion slot in the electronic device in which the notch is formed, the arm portion is constituted by a series of a plurality of planes whose curved inner surface and outer surface are bent in stages, and the curved outer surface. Is formed into a smooth curved surface without corners.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the notch has a minimum size that allows the arm portion to rotate when the lid member opens and closes.

  According to the present invention, in the opening / closing lid structure of the card insertion slot having the hinge mechanism in which the protruding shaft at the tip of the substantially J-shaped arm portion is fitted into the bearing recess on the apparatus main body side by the elasticity of the resin, When the protruding shaft at the tip is detached from the bearing recess due to unexpected overload, etc., the user manually pushes the lid member in the closing direction so that the protruding shaft smoothly reinserts into the bearing recess, and the lid member is It can be easily restored to an openable / closable state.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows the entirety of a printer apparatus 1 having an opening / closing lid structure according to this embodiment, which has a paper supply port 2 at the rear part of a housing 1a, and a paper discharge port after printing at the front lower part of the housing 1a. 3. In this embodiment, a horizontally long rectangular recess is formed in the upper right portion of the front surface of the casing 1a of the printer apparatus 1, and the card insertion slot 4 and the USB connector 5 are formed in the recess. A resin lid member 6 is provided to cover the front surface of the lid so as to be freely opened and closed.

  2 to 6 show the detailed configuration of the lid member 6. With reference to these drawings, the lid member 6 and the hinge structure of the attachment to the printer apparatus housing 1a will be described in detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the lid member 6 of the present embodiment is a main body 7 having a loosely curved shape that is continuous with the outer shape of the front surface of the housing 1 a, and a substantially extended rearwardly from the lower portions on both sides of the back surface. A J-shaped arm portion 8 is formed, and a pin-shaped protruding shaft 9 protruding outward is formed at the tip of the arm portion 8. The curvature of the outer surface of the arm portion 8 is composed of a series of three planes 8a, 8b, and 8c that are bent stepwise, but a portion 8d where the outermost plane joins from the projecting shaft 9 is formed into a smooth curved surface. It is. By forming a part of the arm portion 8 in a curved line instead of a linear shape, there is a risk of warping during injection molding. However, as described above, only a part of the arm portion 8 is curved instead of the whole. This minimizes the fear.

  Next, the structure of the printer device on the housing 1a side will be described. In this embodiment, the recess formed in the housing 1a is formed of a resin molded component 10 which is a separate member from the front surface of the housing 1a, as shown in FIGS. The resin molded part 10 has a vertical inner wall 10a and an arc-shaped inner wall 10b that form the inner wall of the recess 11, and the card insertion slot 4 and the USB connector opening 5 are formed in the vertical inner wall 10a. Further, a notch 12 that allows the arm portion 8 of the lid member 6 to rotate is formed in the arc-shaped inner wall 10b. The notch 12 is formed to have a minimum size that allows the arm portion 8 to rotate even if the arm portion 8 rotates while drawing a large arc. In other words, the width of the notch 12 is slightly larger than the width of the arm portion 8, and the length of the notch 12 is formed to be slightly outside the outer edge of the rotation locus of the arm portion 8. .

  Next, the resin molded component that is provided below the resin molded component 10 and constitutes the bearing of the arm portion 8 of the lid member 6 will be described. Below the resin molded part 10 constituting the recess 11, a box-shaped resin molded part 13 is provided as shown in perspective in FIG. 4 and in cross section in FIG. The inner volume of the resin molded component 13 is formed to a depth that allows the lower half of the arm portion 8 of the lid member 6 to enter (FIG. 6), and the side walls 14 on the inside have a protruding shaft at the tip of the arm portion. A circular through hole 15 is formed as a bearing recess into which 9 is fitted. Further, a guide inclined surface 16 having a triangular shape in a side view narrowing toward the through hole 15 is formed on the side wall continuous with the through hole 15. The guide inclined surface 16 is a groove formed in the side wall 14 and is formed so that its depth becomes shallower downward, and the arm portion 8 of the lid member 6 is incorporated in the resin molded part 13. Sometimes, the protruding shaft 9 at the tip of the arm portion moves downward while being guided by the guide inclined surface 16, and is fitted into the through hole 15 as a bearing recess.

  That is, the tip of the arm portion 8 that has entered the guide inclined surface 16 is gradually bent inward as the tip of the arm portion 8 approaches the through hole 15 because the guide inclined surface 16 becomes shallower downward. When the protruding shaft 9 at the tip of the arm portion 8 reaches the through-hole 15, the protruding shaft 9 is instantaneously fitted into the through-hole 15 by the elastic repulsive force due to the bending, and the state is maintained. Further, since the guide inclined surface 16 has an inverted triangular shape, the projecting shaft 9 at the tip of the arm portion that has entered the guide inclined surface 16 changes its front-rear position (left-right position in FIG. 6) as it enters downward. It is guided to the through hole 15 while being regulated.

  The lid member 6 and the attachment hinge structure to the printer apparatus housing 1a of the present embodiment are as described above, and are assembled as follows at the time of assembly. That is, first, the arm part 8 of the lid member 6 is inserted into the resin molded part 13 fixed in the main body housing 1 a as described above, and the protruding shaft 9 at the tip of the arm part is inserted into the through hole 15 of the resin molded part 13. (Indicated by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 6). Thus, the arm portion 8 enters the notch 12 into the resin molded component 10 constituting the recess with respect to the lid member 6 that is rotatable about the through hole 15 with respect to the main body casing 1a. Assemble.

  The opening / closing lid structure assembled as described above fits in the through hole 15 if the user rotates forward with a knob portion (not shown) formed on the main body portion 7 of the lid member 6. A large circular arc is drawn around the protruding shaft 9 and opened to the front and lower, and the card insertion slot 4 and the USB connector opening 5 in the recess 11 are exposed. Thus, the user inserts a predetermined card into the card insertion slot 4. Or connect a USB connector to the opening 5 of the USB connector. When closing the lid member 6, if the user lifts the main body portion 7 of the lid member 6 obliquely upward and then pushes it forward, the lid member 6 rotates about the protruding shaft 9, and the front surface of the recess 11 is a gap. Closed without any problems.

  When the lid member 6 is opened forward, the lid member 6 rotates beyond the limit due to an unexpectedly large load, and the protruding shaft 9 at the tip of the arm portion 8 is detached from the through hole 15. The lid member 6 temporarily becomes unable to normally open and close, but the protruding shaft 9 can be reinserted into the through-hole 15 by the user's manual pushing operation, and can be easily restored to the normal state. it can.

  That is, if the user holds the main body portion 7 of the lid member 6 and pushes it in the closing direction, the protruding shaft 9 at the tip of the arm portion 8 is guided to the guide inclined surface 16 in the resin molded part 13. It moves downward along the inclined surface 16. At this time, since the front and rear positions of the projecting shaft 9 are regulated by the guide inclined surface 16, the arm portion 8 draws substantially the same rotation trajectory as that during the normal opening and closing operation, and the lid closing direction (the clock shown in FIG. Direction). And since the arm part 8 forms the outermost side (that is, the part closest to the notch) 8d in the curved outer surface into a smooth curved surface without corners, the arm part 8 rotates when it is normal. The outer surface 8d of the arm 8 is in contact with the edge 12a (FIG. 3) of the notch 12 by rotating through the back side of the recess 11 (rightward in FIGS. 5 and 6) from the locus. However, the rotation is not stopped by the contact, the arm portion 8 continues to rotate smoothly, and the protruding shaft 9 fits smoothly into the through hole 15 as a bearing recess.

  In the present embodiment, even if there is a trouble that the projecting shaft 9 is detached from the through hole 15, the projecting shaft 9 is guided by the guide inclined surface 16 in the resin molded part 13, and the notch 12 Since the size is formed to a minimum size that allows the arm portion 8 to rotate, the protruding shaft 9 does not protrude upward beyond the notch 12, so that the lid member 6 is completely removed from the main body housing. There is no separation from the body 1a.

  Further, in this embodiment, the bearing recess into which the protruding shaft 9 is fitted is the circular through hole 15 formed in the resin molded component 13, but this is a bottomed circular recess that does not penetrate the wall surface of the resin molded component. It may be formed.

1 is an overall perspective view of a printer apparatus including an opening / closing lid structure according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view of the cover member. The perspective view of the resin molding component which comprises the recessed part. The perspective view of the resin molding component which comprises a coaxial receiving recess. The side view which shows the hinge attachment state to the main body housing | casing of the cover member. The figure which shows the hinge attachment state to the resin molding component which comprises the bearing recessed part of the cover member. The perspective view of the conventional lid member. The side view which shows the hinge attachment state to the main body housing | casing of the cover member.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Printer apparatus 4 Card insertion slot 6 Cover member 8 Arm part 8a Plane 8b Plane 8c Plane 8d Smooth curved surface 9 Projection shaft 10a Vertical inner wall (vertical surface)
11 Recess 12 Notch 15 Through hole (bearing recess)
16 Guide slope

Claims (3)

A card insertion slot is provided in a substantially vertical surface in a recess formed in the front surface of the housing of the electronic device, and the front surface of the recess is covered so as to be openable and closable. In the open state, the card is inserted into and removed from the card insertion slot in the horizontal direction. A resin lid member is provided so that the front of the recess is opened so that it can be removed, and a hinge structure for attaching the lid member to the electronic device casing extends integrally from the lid member and has a laterally protruding shaft at the tip. The arm portion curved in a substantially J shape and a bearing recess into which the projecting shaft formed below the recess in the electronic device casing is inserted. When the arm portion enters and the arm portion is bent and deformed, a guide inclined surface for guiding the protruding shaft to the bearing recess is formed, and the lid member performs an opening / closing operation in the recess. Allowing the arm part to rotate In closing cover structure of the card insertion slot in minimum size electronic device to form a notch that,
The arm portion is configured by a series of a plurality of planes in which the curved inner surface and outer surface are bent stepwise, and when the lid member is opened and closed among the curved outer surfaces, the notch and An opening / closing lid structure for a card insertion slot in an electronic device, wherein the closest part is formed into a smooth curved surface without corners. A card insertion slot is provided in a recess formed in the front surface of the casing of the electronic device, and the front surface of the recess is covered so as to be openable and closable so that the front of the recess can be inserted into and removed from the card insertion slot in the open state. An arm that is provided with a resin lid member that opens widely, and the hinge structure of the lid member attached to the electronic device casing is integrally extended from the lid member and curved in a substantially J shape having a protruding shaft in the lateral direction at the tip. And a bearing recess into which the protruding shaft formed below the recess in the electronic device housing fits, and the arm portion enters the housing surface continuous with the bearing recess during assembly, A guide inclined surface that guides the protruding shaft to the bearing recess while bending and deforming the arm portion is formed, and the recess rotates the arm portion when the lid member performs an opening / closing operation. Electricity with a notch formed In closing cover structure of the card insertion slot in the device,
The arm portion is constituted by a series of a plurality of planes whose curved inner and outer surfaces are bent in stages, and the curved outer surface is formed into a smooth curved surface without corners. Open / close lid structure of card insertion slot in equipment.   3. The opening / closing lid of the card insertion slot in the electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the notch has a minimum size that allows the arm portion to rotate when the lid member opens and closes. Construction.

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