JP3189376U - Connection port expansion unit - Google Patents

Abstract

A connection port expansion device for facilitating insertion and connection to a connection port located on the back surface of an electronic device.
A connection port expansion device includes an expansion housing 110 and an expansion circuit module. The expansion housing includes a holder part 111 and an extension part 112 connected to each other. The holder part and the extension part communicate with each other and accommodate the extension circuit module therein. The holder part includes at least one downstream opening 114 located at the tip of the holder part, one or more upstream openings located at the end of the extension part, and a positioning groove 116 located at the upper end of the holder part. The expansion circuit module includes at least one downstream port 131 and one or more upstream ports 132 provided in the downstream opening. The upstream port protrudes from the expansion housing through the upstream opening. In the mounted state, the upstream port is joined to the connection port, and a part of the lower edge of the apparatus housing is located in the positioning groove.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to an expansion device, and more particularly to a connection port expansion device.

Due to the development of science and technology, it has become common for many electronic devices such as displays and all-in-one personal computers to have connection ports with different interfaces. Manufacturers often provide these connection ports on the back of the electronic device for aesthetic purposes. However, if the user needs to insert and connect another device to these connection ports, the user must expend effort to reach the back of the electronic device. In particular, when the display is hung on a wall such as a wall-mounted display, there is not enough space for the user to perform an operation of inserting and connecting to the connection port.

JP2012-027896, abstract

Therefore, how to eliminate the difficulty of being difficult to insert and connect to the connection port located on the back surface is a problem that is desired to be solved quickly by those skilled in the art.

In view of the above problems, it is an object of the present invention to provide a connection port expansion device capable of solving the problem of inconvenient insertion connection to the connection port located on the back surface of the electronic device described above. .

In an embodiment according to the present invention, a connection port expansion device applied to an electronic device is provided. One or a plurality of connection ports are provided on the back surface of the device housing of the electronic device. The connection port expansion device includes an expansion housing and an expansion circuit module.

The expansion housing includes a holder part and an extension part connected to each other. The inside of the holder part and the inside of the extension part communicate with each other to form a storage space. The holder part includes at least one downstream opening located at the tip of the holder part, one or more upstream openings located at the ends of the extension part, and a positioning groove located at the upper end of the holder part.

The expansion circuit module is provided in the accommodation space and includes at least one downstream port and one or more upstream ports. The downstream ports are respectively provided corresponding to the downstream openings. The upstream port projects from the expansion housing through the upstream opening. In the mounted state, the upstream port is joined to the connection port, and a part of the lower edge of the apparatus housing is located in the positioning groove.

In the connection port expansion device according to the present invention, the insertion connection direction of the connection port located behind the electronic device can be directed to the front of the electronic device, which is convenient in use. Further, the curved portion of the connection port expansion device is advantageous for the user to accommodate the downstream device connected to the downstream port. In addition, the configuration of the positioning groove can prevent the heat dissipation hole of the electronic device 200 from being blocked, and can assist in exhaust heat. In addition, by providing one or a plurality of upstream ports, one or a plurality of downstream ports, and an expansion circuit module (including a multiplexer, a demultiplexer, and a protocol conversion circuit) combined therewith, the connection of the electronic device Port functions and the number of downstream devices connected can be expanded.

It is the figure which showed the use condition of the connection port expansion apparatus which concerns on 1st Example of this invention. 1 is a perspective view of a connection port expansion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A ′ in FIG. 2. 1 is an exploded view of a connection port expansion device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is the figure which showed mounting | wearing of the connection port expansion apparatus and electronic device which concern on 1st Example of this invention. It is the local enlarged view of the B area in FIG. 5A. It is the figure which showed the example of a change of the connection port expansion apparatus which concerns on 1st Example of this invention. It is another perspective view of the connection port expansion device concerning the 1st example of the present invention. It is the figure which showed the example of a change of mounting | wearing of the connection port expansion apparatus and electronic device which concern on 1st Example of this invention. It is the figure which showed mounting | wearing of the connection port expansion apparatus and electronic device which concern on 2nd Example of this invention. It is the local enlarged view of C area in FIG. 9A. It is a perspective view of the connection port expansion apparatus concerning the 3rd example of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the connection port expansion apparatus concerning the 4th example of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the connection port expansion device concerning the 5th example of the present invention. It is a perspective view of the connection port expansion device concerning the 6th example of the present invention.

The terminology relating to the spatial relationship referred to below, for example, “tip”, “top”, etc., is a simple relational description for describing the element or feature shown in the drawing and other elements or features. It should be understood that the terminology of these spatial terminology includes different directions of the device used or combined externally outside the direction of drawing in the drawing. For example, when the device in the drawing is flipped, an element whose relationship to other elements or features is described as “underside” is formed such that the relationship with other elements or features is “upside”. Changes to. Therefore, the term “under the surface”, which is a technical term for displayability, can include directions of “up” and “down”. The device depicted in the drawing may be in other orientations (eg, rotated 90 degrees or located in other directions) and can interpret its relative orientation in accordance with the description of the spatial relationship used.

A description will be given with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a usage state of a connection port expansion device 100 according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

The connection port expansion device 100 can be applied to the electronic device 200. A connection port 230 is provided on the back surface 220 of the device housing 210 of the electronic device 200. The electronic device 200 may be a device such as a liquid crystal display or an all-in-one personal computer. The connection port 230 may be compatible with a universal serial bus (USB) or an audio socket.

This will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the connection port expansion device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A ′ in FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is an exploded view of the connection port expansion device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

The connection port expansion device 100 includes an expansion housing 110 and an expansion circuit module 130. The expansion housing 110 includes a holder part 111 and an extension part 112 connected to each other. The inside of the holder part 111 and the inside of the extension part 112 communicate with each other to form the accommodation space 113.

The holder portion 111 includes at least one downstream opening 114 (a plurality of downstream openings 114 in this embodiment) and an upstream opening 115. The downstream opening 114 is located at the tip of the holder part 111. The upstream opening 115 is located at the end of the extension 112. The holder part 111 further includes a positioning groove 116 located at the upper end of the holder part 111. In the present embodiment, the holder portion 111 has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape.

The extension circuit module 130 is provided in the accommodation space 113. The extension circuit module 130 includes at least one downstream port 131 (a plurality of downstream ports 131 in this embodiment) and an upstream port 132. The downstream ports 131 are provided corresponding to the downstream openings 114, respectively. The upstream port 132 protrudes from the expansion housing 110 through the upstream opening 115. Thus, in the mounted state, the upstream port 132 and the connection port 230 are joined, and a part of the lower edge of the apparatus housing 210 is positioned in the positioning groove 116 (shown in FIG. 5A).

FIG. 5A is a diagram illustrating attachment of the connection port expansion device 100 and the electronic device 200 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram illustrating a local portion viewed from the side. FIG. 5B is a local enlarged view of area B in FIG. 5A.

This will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B together. When the user tries to connect the downstream device (or the connection terminal of the downstream device) to the downstream port 131, the holder unit 111 is brought into contact with the lower edge of the front surface 240 of the device housing 210, so The force from front to back is offset. Furthermore, since the downstream port 131 faces the front of the electronic device 200, the user does not have to spend effort on the rear of the electronic device 200 to connect the downstream device to the connection port 230. The downstream device may be a flash disk, an IC recorder, a mobile phone, or the like.

As shown in FIG. 4, the extended circuit module 130 further includes a circuit board 133 in which the downstream port 131 and the upstream port 132 are electrically connected. The downstream port 131 is provided on the circuit board 133, and the upstream port 132 is connected to the circuit board 133 through the conductive wire 134. The circuit board 133 has a multiplexer / demultiplexer so that when the downstream port 131 is connected to the downstream device, the downstream device and the electronic device 200 can cooperate with each other via the connection port expansion device 100. May be. In order to avoid overcomplicating the drawing, the detailed structure of the circuit board 133 (for example, wiring, multiplexer / demultiplexer chips, and other electronic components) is not depicted in the drawing.

As shown in FIG. 2, the downstream port 131 and the upstream port 132 are the same connection interface, and both are USB interfaces here. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to this, and the downstream port 131 and the upstream port 132 may be different connection interfaces, or the downstream ports 131 may be different connection interfaces. For example, the upstream port 132 is a USB interface, the downstream port 131 is an Ethernet (registered trademark) interface, and the other downstream ports 131 are USB interfaces. The circuit board 133 needs to further include a USB Ethernet (registered trademark) protocol conversion module so that the electronic device 200 can communicate with a modem having an Ethernet (registered trademark) interface via the USB interface.

As shown in FIG. 2, the extending portion 112 extends curvedly upward from the rear end of the holder portion 111. The extended distance is approximately the distance from the connection port 230 of the electronic device 200 to the lower end of the device casing 210. However, the extending distance can be appropriately adjusted depending on from which part of the holder portion 111 the extending portion 112 extends. For example, when extending from the upper end of the holder portion 111, the extending distance may be shorter than the distance extending from the rear end of the holder portion 111, and a part of the lower edge of the apparatus housing 210 is attached. As long as it can be positioned in the positioning groove 116 in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, the curved portion 117 between the extending portion 112 and the holder portion 111 forms an arc surface. However, in another embodiment, the curved portion 117 may have a recess that is not an arc surface. That is, the expansion housing 110 can further include an arrangement groove located at the curved portion 117 between the holder portion 111 and the extending portion 112. Thereby, the user can arrange | position articles | goods in an arrangement | positioning groove | channel. For example, when a mobile phone is connected to the downstream port 131 via a transmission cable (for example, when charging), the mobile phone can be used as a storage by placing it on the curved portion 117.

As shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment, the opening direction of the connection port 230 of the electronic device 200 is slightly downward in the horizontal direction, and extends in the joining direction D1 of the upstream port 132 so that the joining is closely matched. An acute angle is sandwiched between the extending direction D2 of the existing portion 112. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to this, and in the electronic device 200 to which the connection port 230 having another opening direction is applied, the angle between the joining direction D1 and the extending direction D2 is another angle. Or an acute angle, or a right angle or an obtuse angle.

As shown in FIG. 2, the extending portion 112 gradually decreases in the extending direction D2 (that is, the direction away from the holder portion 111) from one end adjacent to the holder portion 111 to form a sector 118, A grip portion 119 having an invariable width extends from the reduced end of the sector 118. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to this. For example, in one embodiment, the grip portion 119 of the extending portion 112 is recessed on both sides corresponding to the upstream opening 115 (that is, the upstream port 132). A neck 120 may be formed (shown in FIG. 6). FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a modification of the connection port expansion device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

This will be described with reference to FIG. The expansion housing 110 may have a structure in which the upper and lower lids are separated (including the upper lid 121 and the lower lid 122), and may be fitted together or locked together.

Next, the detailed structure of the positioning groove 116 will be further described. As shown in FIG. 5B, the positioning groove 116 includes a bottom surface 123, a front side surface 124, a rear side surface 125, and a stopper 126. The bottom surface 123 is located at the bottom of the positioning groove 116. The front side surface 124 is close to the tip of the holder part 111 (that is, one end away from the extending part 112), is connected to the bottom surface 123, and contacts the front surface 240 of the apparatus housing 210 in the mounted state. The rear side surface 125 is connected to the bottom surface 123 and faces the front side surface 124 (that is, located at one end close to the extending portion 112 of the positioning groove 116). The stopper 126 is provided at a connection portion between the front side surface 124 and the bottom surface 123, and the height of the stopper 126 is lower than the height of the front side surface 124, and contacts the lower surface 250 of the apparatus housing 210 in the mounted state. Thereby, when the front side surface 124 of the positioning groove 116 and the front surface 240 of the apparatus housing 210 are in contact with each other, a reaction force opposite to the force of the insertion connection can be provided, and the connection port expansion device 110 is inserted and connected. It is possible to avoid moving backward due to the force of. At the same time, since the lower surface 250 of the electronic device 200 may have a plurality of heat radiation holes 260, the stopper 126 can prevent the lower surface of the device housing 210 from contacting the bottom surface 123 of the positioning groove 116. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the connection port expansion device 110 from blocking the heat radiation hole 260 and to maintain a space for allowing the gas to flow.

FIG. 7 is another perspective view of the connection port expansion device 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

This will be described with reference to FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 7 together. The positioning groove 116 may further include a plurality of convex ribs 127. One end of each convex rib 127 is connected to the stopper 126. The length of each convex rib 127 is shorter than the distance between the rear side surface 125 of the positioning groove 116 and the stopper 126. The height of the convex rib 127 is the same as the height of the stopper 126. As a result, the plurality of heat radiation spaces partitioned by these convex ribs 127 correspond to the heat radiation holes 260 of the apparatus housing 210 in the mounted state. That is, in the mounted state, each heat radiating space is located below one heat radiating hole 260.

The front side surface 124 and the rear side surface 125 oppose each other substantially in parallel.

This will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 8 is a view showing a modified example of mounting of the connection port expansion device and the electronic device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the height of the convex rib 127 may be lower than the height of the stopper 126. Thereby, air can be more easily flowed out toward the both sides of the positioning groove 116.

FIG. 9A is a diagram illustrating the mounting of the connection port expansion device 100 and the electronic device 200 according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9B is a local enlarged view of area C in FIG. 9A.

As shown in FIGS. 9A and 9B, the rear side surface 125 may be an inclined surface that obliquely extends from the bottom surface 123 to the rear end of the holder unit 111, and thereby, between the inclined surface and the device housing 210 of the electronic device 200. A large heat dissipation space can be secured.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a connection port expansion device 100 according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 10, the present embodiment is substantially the same as the first embodiment, and the difference is that the holder portion 111 of the connection port expansion device 100 according to the present embodiment further includes a plurality of air flow passages 128. It is.

The airflow path 128 is located at the upper end of the holder portion 111. The open end of each airflow passage 128 communicates with the positioning groove 116, and the airflow passage 128 extends toward the extending portion 112. The airflow passage 128 may be in the form of a groove (ie, the open end is located at the upper edge of the rear side surface 125 of the positioning groove 116) or may be in the form of a tube (ie, the open end is located in the positioning groove 116). Located in the middle area of the rear side 125). As a result, heat can be radiated toward the left and right sides of the positioning groove, and a heat radiation path in the rearward direction can be added, and the heat radiation effect can be enhanced.

The open ends correspond to the heat radiation holes 260 of the apparatus housing 210 in the mounted state, respectively. That is, the opening end is provided corresponding to the heat dissipation space described above. In other words, the convex rib 127 faces the partition portion 129 of the two adjacent airflow passages 128. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to this, and in other embodiments, the plurality of air flow passages 128 may correspond to one heat radiation hole 260.

As can be seen from the above description, the connection port expansion device 100 according to the above-described embodiment can be applied to the electronic device 200 having the connection port 230 on the back surface 220 and more than the single connection port 230. Extended functions can be provided. Further, the user can insert and connect the downstream device in front of the electronic device 200. In the above description, the positioning groove 116 is in contact with the lower edge of the front surface 240 of the apparatus housing 210. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to this. It may be brought into contact with the side or upper edge of the front surface 240 of the body 210 and need only be in contact with the front surface 240.

Next, a connection port expansion device 100 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a connection port expansion device 100 according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. Unlike the connection port expansion device 100 according to the above-described embodiment having a plurality of downstream ports 131, the connection port expansion device 100 according to the present embodiment has only one downstream port 131. The downstream port 131 and the upstream port 132 are both USB interface connection ports. However, the embodiment according to the present invention is not limited to the upstream port 132 and the downstream port 131 being the same interface.

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a connection port expansion device 100 according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. The difference of this embodiment from the first embodiment described above is that it has only one downstream port 131, and the upstream port 132 and the downstream port 131 in the fourth embodiment are both the same interface. Unlike the case, the downstream port 131 of this embodiment is a reader interface that supports a card 300 such as an IC card or a cash card, and the upstream port 132 is an interface that supports USB.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a connection port expansion device 100 according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. What should be explained is that all of the above-described embodiments are exemplified by a single upstream port 131, whereas the embodiment of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the connection port expansion device 100 includes a plurality of upstream ports 131. And may be connected corresponding to the plurality of connection ports 230 of the electronic device 200. Further, these upstream ports 131 are connected to different one or more downstream ports 132 via different conversion circuits in the extension circuit module 130, respectively.

In this embodiment, the upstream port 131 that is the same interface is taken as an example, but the upstream ports 131 may be different interfaces. For example, one upstream port 131 is a USB interface, corresponds to the downstream port 132 that is a USB interface, and supports the downstream port 132 that is an SD memory card interface. The other upstream port 131 is an audio interface and corresponds to the downstream port 132 that is an audio interface.

As described above, the connection port expansion device 100 according to the present invention can make the insertion connection direction of the connection port 230 located behind the electronic device 200 face the front of the electronic device 200, which is convenient for use. . Further, the curved portion 117 of the connection port expansion device 100 is advantageous for the user to accommodate the downstream device connected to the downstream port 132. In addition, the configuration of the positioning groove 116 can prevent the heat radiation hole 260 of the electronic device 200 from being blocked, and can assist in exhaust heat. Also, an electronic device is provided by providing one or more upstream ports 131, one or more downstream ports 132, and an expansion circuit module (including a multiplexer, a demultiplexer, and a protocol conversion circuit) combined therewith. The function of 200 connection ports 230 and the number of downstream devices connected can be expanded.

As mentioned above, although this invention was demonstrated by the Example, these do not limit this invention and those skilled in the art will add change and correction with respect to this invention in the range which does not deviate from the meaning and scope of this invention. Can do. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention must be based on the contents specified in the claims for utility model registration of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Connection port expansion apparatus 110 Expansion housing | casing 111 Holder part 112 Extension part 113 Accommodating space 114 Downstream opening 115 Upstream opening 116 Positioning groove 117 Curved location 118 Fan-shaped 119 Grip part 120 Neck part 121 Upper lid 122 Lower lid 123 Bottom surface 124 Front side surface 125 Rear Side 126 Stopper 127 Convex rib 128 Airflow path 129 Partition location 130 Extended circuit module 131 Downstream port 132 Upstream port 133 Circuit board 134 Conductor 200 Electronic device 210 Device housing 220 Rear surface 230 Connection port 240 Front surface 250 Lower surface 260 Heat radiation hole 300 Card AA 'Section line B, C Area D1 Joining method D2 Extension direction

Claims (16)

A connection port expansion device applied to an electronic device provided with a connection port on the back of the device housing,
In an extended housing that includes a holder part and an extension part connected to each other, and in which the inside of the holder part and the inside of the extension part communicate with each other to form an accommodation space, the holder part includes the holder part An expansion housing including at least one downstream opening located at the distal end of the extension part, an upstream opening located at the end of the extension part, and a positioning groove located at the upper end of the holder part,
In the extended circuit module provided in the housing space, the at least one downstream port corresponding to the at least one downstream opening installation and the upstream opening project from the expansion housing, so that in the mounted state, An expansion circuit module including an upstream port that is joined to the connection port and a part of a lower edge of the device housing is located in the positioning groove;
A connection port expansion device comprising: The positioning groove is
A bottom surface located at the bottom of the positioning groove;
A front side surface that is close to a tip of the holder part and connected to the bottom surface, and in contact with a front surface of the apparatus housing in the mounted state;
A rear side surface connected to the bottom surface and facing the front side surface;
A stopper that is provided at a connection portion between the front side surface and the bottom surface, has a height lower than the height of the front side surface, and contacts a lower surface of the device housing in the mounted state;
The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, comprising: The connection port expansion device according to claim 2, wherein the positioning groove further includes a plurality of convex ribs whose one ends are connected to the stopper. The connection port expansion device according to claim 3, wherein a height of the plurality of convex ribs is lower than a height of the stopper. 4. The connection port expansion device according to claim 3, wherein a length of each of the plurality of convex ribs is shorter than a distance between the rear side surface of the positioning groove and the stopper. 4. The connection port expansion device according to claim 3, wherein the plurality of heat radiation spaces partitioned and formed by the plurality of convex ribs correspond to the plurality of heat radiation holes of the device housing in the mounted state. 2. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, wherein an angle between the joining direction of the upstream port and the extending direction of the extending portion is an acute angle. 2. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, wherein the extending portion is curved and extended upward from a rear end of the holder portion. The connection port expansion device according to claim 8, wherein the expansion housing further includes a disposition groove positioned at a curved portion between the holder portion and the extension portion. The connection port expansion device according to claim 9, wherein the curved portion forms an arc surface. 2. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, wherein the width of the extending portion gradually decreases in the extending direction from one end adjacent to the holder portion. 2. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, wherein the extension part is formed with a neck part with both sides corresponding to the upstream opening being recessed inward. The holder part further includes a plurality of airflow passages positioned at the upper end of the holder part, each open end communicating with the positioning groove and extending toward the extension part. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1. 14. The connection port expansion device according to claim 13, wherein each of the minor opening ends corresponds to a plurality of heat radiation holes of the device casing in the mounted state. The connection according to claim 14, wherein the positioning groove further includes a plurality of convex ribs, one end of which is connected to the stopper and is opposed to a partition portion of two adjacent plurality of airflow passages. Port expansion unit. The connection port expansion device according to claim 1, wherein the expansion housing has a structure in which upper and lower lids are separated, and fitting or lock fixing is used together.