JP7626092B2 - Shutter-type storage compartment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a shutter-type storage container.

An example of this type of shutter-type storage container is the door device described in Patent Document 1. The door device described in Patent Document 1 has a door that is slidably installed at an opening provided in a part of an object so as to selectively open and close the opening. The door has a blind-like bendable door body and a flexible sheet-like member that is overlapped and positioned on the front side of the door body. The object is provided with a pair of guide grooves that slidably guide the door body in a curved state. The widthwise ends of both the door body and the sheet-like member are positioned within the guide grooves.

A handle is provided at the first end in the sliding direction of the door. More specifically, at the first end, the ends of the door body and the sheet-like member are connected via a plate-shaped bracket. The handle is formed integrally with the bracket.

A connecting structure is provided at the second end opposite the first end in the sliding direction of the door to connect the ends of the door body and the sheet-like member. The connecting structure has a rectangular hole and includes a protector connected to the end of the sheet-like member, a bar-shaped protrusion that is integral with the door body and inserted into the rectangular hole so as to be displaceable in the sliding direction, and a compression coil spring that is interposed between the bar-shaped protrusion and the protector.

JP 2006-57372 A

According to the door device described in Patent Document 1, the sliding of the door body and the sheet-like member is guided by a pair of guide grooves. Therefore, the structure of the door device is simpler than when guide grooves are provided to guide the door body and the sheet-like member separately.

Furthermore, since the bending load of the door is smaller than that of a door in which the door body and a sheet-like member are bonded together to form an integrated unit, the load required to operate the door is reduced.
In addition, when the door passes through the curved portion of the guide groove as the door is opened, the door body located on the inner periphery leads the sheet-like member, causing a misalignment between the two in the sliding direction, which is absorbed by the elastic deformation of the compression coil spring, thereby preventing the sheet-like member from being deflected and deformed away from the door body due to the misalignment.

However, this type of door device has problems with the number of parts increasing and the door structure becoming more complex because it is equipped with a compression coil spring and a structure for attaching the compression coil spring.

On the other hand, if the sheet-like member and the door body are connected via a bracket or the like instead of the above-mentioned connecting structure, the bending load of the door increases, which causes problems such as an increase in the load required to operate the door.

A shutter-type storage container for solving the above problems comprises a storage container body having an opening, a shutter configured to open and close the opening by moving along the opening surface of the opening, and a shutter storage section provided adjacent to the storage container body and configured to store the shutter in a curved state, and the storage container body and the shutter storage section are provided with a pair of guide grooves located on both sides of the shutter in the width direction and guiding the movement of the shutter. The shutter is a shutter-type storage container having a plurality of slats connected to each other, a shutter body configured to be curved, and a flexible sheet covering the shutter body from the front side. and a guide member, the widthwise ends of both the shutter body and the sheet member are located within the guide groove portion, an operating portion is provided at a first end in the movement direction of the shutter, and a restricting portion is provided on either the shutter body or the sheet member at a second end opposite the first end in the movement direction of the shutter, the restricting portion being provided on either the shutter body or the sheet member and contacting the other from the opposite side to the one to restrict the sheet member from moving away from the shutter body, and when the shutter is in a closed position blocking the opening, a gap is formed between the restricting portion and the other in the movement direction.

According to this configuration, the restricting portion restricts the sheet member from moving away from the shutter body. This prevents the sheet member from rubbing against the inner surface of the shutter storage portion due to slack in the sheet member.

In addition, according to the above configuration, the regulating portion is provided on either the shutter body or the sheet member. When the shutter is in a closed position that blocks the opening, a gap is formed in the movement direction of the shutter between the regulating portion and the other of the shutter body and the sheet member on which the regulating portion is not provided. Therefore, the gap allows relative movement between the shutter body and the sheet member in the movement direction, thereby reducing the bending load of the shutter. As a result, the operating load of the shutter can be reduced.

Therefore, the operation load of the shutter can be reduced while the occurrence of slack in the sheet member can be suppressed with a simple structure.
In the above-mentioned shutter-type storage container, the regulating portion has a first portion that faces the surface of the shutter body opposite the sheet member and extends forward in the direction of movement further than the shutter body, a second portion that faces the surface of the sheet member opposite the shutter body and extends forward in the direction of movement further than the sheet member, and a connecting portion that connects the first portion and the second portion, and the regulating portion is fixed to the shutter body or the sheet member.

According to this configuration, the regulating part, which has a first part, a second part, and a connecting part and is configured as a separate member from the shutter body and the sheet member, is fixed to the shutter body or the sheet member. Therefore, the configuration of the shutter body and the sheet member can be simplified compared to when the regulating part is integrally formed with the shutter body or the sheet member.

In the above-mentioned shutter-type storage container, a plurality of the restricting portions are provided at intervals from each other in the width direction of the shutter.
According to this configuration, the above-mentioned effect is exerted over a wide range of the second end in the width direction, as compared to, for example, a case where a single restricting portion is provided in the center of the second end in the width direction. Also, for example, compared to, for example, a case where a long restricting portion extending in the width direction is provided at the second end, the above-mentioned effect is exerted over a wide range of the second end in the width direction, while the material of the restricting portion can be reduced.

The present invention makes it possible to reduce the operating load of the shutter while preventing slack in the sheet member through a simple configuration.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a shutter-type storage container, showing a state in which the shutter is closing an opening portion. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2-2 of FIG. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 of FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing the shutter of the shutter-type storage container of FIG. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2, showing the shutter of the container of FIG. 1 in a state in which the shutter is being opened. FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the restricting portion of FIG. 6 at its center. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2, showing the shutter of the container of FIG. 1 in a state where the shutter is open.

Below, one embodiment of a shutter-type storage container will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 8. Note that in each drawing, for the sake of convenience, some components may be exaggerated or simplified. Also, the dimensional ratios of each component may differ from the actual ones.

<Basic configuration of shutter-type storage compartment>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the shutter-type storage compartment is provided, for example, in the center console of an automobile, and has a storage compartment body 10 having an opening 11 and a shutter 20 for opening and closing the opening 11.

The shutter-type container also has a shutter storage section 30 that stores the shutter 20, and a pair of guide groove sections 40 that guide the movement of the shutter 20.
Each component will be described in detail below.

<Storage compartment body 10>
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the container body 10 has a peripheral wall 12 that defines the opening 11 , and a bottom wall 15 that is connected to the peripheral wall 12 and faces an opening surface 11 A of the opening 11 .

The opening 11 has a rectangular shape in a plan view.
The peripheral wall 12 has a pair of first peripheral walls 13 (see FIG. 1) that form the longer sides of the opening 11, and a pair of second peripheral walls 14 (see FIG. 2) that form the shorter sides of the opening 11.

The peripheral wall 12 and the bottom wall 15 define a space S in which items such as beverage containers and small items can be stored.
<Shutter 20>
1 to 4, the shutter 20 has a shutter body 21, a flexible sheet member 24, an operation portion 25 having a handle 25a for operating the shutter 20, and a restriction portion 26. The shutter 20 has a rectangular plate shape as a whole.

In the following description, the longitudinal direction of the shutter 20 will be simply referred to as the longitudinal direction X. The width direction of the shutter 20 will be simply referred to as the width direction Y. The thickness direction of the shutter 20 will be simply referred to as the thickness direction Z.

The shutter body 21 has a plurality of slats 22 aligned in the longitudinal direction X, and a tape member 23 connecting the plurality of slats 22 together.
3, the slat 22 is made of, for example, a hard resin material. The slat 22 has an elongated slat body 22a that is long in the width direction Y and a cylindrical shaft portion 22c that protrudes outward from both end faces 22b of the slat body 22a in the width direction Y.

The tape member 23 is, for example, a nonwoven tape. The tape member 23 is attached to the front surface side of the plurality of slats 22.
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 , the shutter body 21 is configured to be bendable in the longitudinal direction X by a plurality of slats 22 connected to one another by tape members 23 .

As shown in FIG. 3, the sheet member 24 is composed of multiple layers (all not shown), such as a base material made of a soft resin material, a surface layer made of a stretchable resin material and constituting the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24, and an adhesive layer located between the base material and the surface layer and bonding them together.

3 and 4, the sheet member 24 covers the front surface 21a side of the shutter main body 21. The sheet member 24 covers the entire front surface 21a of the shutter main body 21.
In this embodiment, the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24 is a smooth surface.

As shown in FIG. 1, the operating unit 25 is provided at one end (hereinafter, the first end 20a) in the movement direction of the shutter 20 (the longitudinal direction X in FIG. 1). The operating unit 25 is configured to integrate the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 at the first end 20a.

As shown in Figures 1 and 4, multiple regulating portions 26 (two in this embodiment) are provided at the other end (hereinafter, second end 20b) in the movement direction of the shutter 20 (longitudinal direction X in Figure 1).

The pair of restricting portions 26 are provided at an interval from each other in the width direction Y.
As shown in Figure 5, the regulating portion 26 has a first portion 26a facing the shutter body 21, a second portion 26b facing the sheet member 24, and a connecting portion 26c connecting the first portion 26a and the second portion 26b.

The first portion 26a faces the back surface 21b of the shutter body 21 opposite the front surface 21a that faces the sheet member 24 in the thickness direction Z. The first portion 26a extends forward (to the left in the left-right direction in FIG. 5) of the shutter body 21 in the movement direction in which the shutter 20 moves (the longitudinal direction X in FIG. 5).

The second portion 26b faces the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24 on the opposite side to the back surface 24b facing the shutter body 21 in the thickness direction Z. In this embodiment, the second portion 26b of the restricting portion 26 is fixed to the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24 by a method such as adhesion. The second portion 26b extends forward (to the left in FIG. 5) of the sheet member 24 in the movement direction of the shutter 20 (the longitudinal direction X in FIG. 5).

A gap G is formed uniformly in the thickness direction Z between the connecting portion 26c and the shutter body 21 and between the connecting portion 26c and the sheet member 24 in the longitudinal direction X.
The restricting portion 26 is configured so that the first portion 26 a comes into contact with the shutter body 21 from the side opposite to the sheet member 24 , thereby restricting the sheet member 24 from moving away from the shutter body 21 .

<Shutter storage section 30>
As shown in Figures 1, 2, 6, and 8, the shutter storage section 30 is configured to store the shutter 20 in a curved state, and is provided adjacent to the storage body 10 in the longitudinal direction X.

The shutter storage section 30 has an outer peripheral wall 31, an annular inner peripheral wall 32, and a pair of side wall portions 33 connecting both ends in the width direction Y of the outer peripheral wall 31 and the inner peripheral wall 32.
As shown in Figure 8, when the shutter 20 is stored in the shutter storage section 30, i.e., when the shutter 20 is in the open position, the outer peripheral wall 31 covers the surface of the shutter 20, i.e., the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24.

In the open position, the inner peripheral wall 32 covers the rear surface opposite to the front surface of the shutter 20, i.e., the rear surface 21b of the shutter main body 21.
The pair of side walls 33 cover both ends of the shutter 20 in the width direction Y.

<Guide groove portion 40>
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 , the guide groove portions 40 are provided on both sides in the width direction Y of both the container body 10 and the shutter storage portion 30 .

The guide groove portion 40 has a straight portion 41 that extends linearly in the longitudinal direction X, and a curved portion 42 that extends continuously from the straight portion 41 and is curved.
The straight portion 41 is provided at a position adjacent to a portion of the first peripheral wall 13 that defines the opening 11 (see FIG. 3 ).

The curved portion 42 is provided on the side wall portion 33 of the shutter storage portion 30 .
As shown in FIG. 3 , both the shaft portion 22 c of the shutter body 21 and the end 24 c of the sheet member 24 in the width direction Y are positioned within the guide groove portion 40 .

As shown in Figures 2, 6, and 8, the shutter 20 is configured to be movable between a closed position (see Figure 2) in which the shutter 20 closes the opening 11 by being guided along the guide groove portion 40, and an open position (see Figure 8). At this time, a portion of the shutter 20 including the first end portion 20a moves along the opening surface 11A of the opening 11. More specifically, the first end portion 20a moves in the longitudinal direction X of the surface direction of the opening surface 11A.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.
6 and 7, the first portion 26a of the restricting portion 26 abuts against the shutter body 21 from the side opposite to the sheet member 24, thereby restricting the sheet member 24 from moving away from the shutter body 21. This prevents the sheet member 24 from rubbing against the inner surface 31a of the outer peripheral wall 31 of the shutter storage portion 30 due to slack in the sheet member 24. In addition, in FIG. 7, the state of the sheet member 24A of the shutter 20A in the shutter storage portion 30 when the restricting portion 26 is not provided is shown by a two-dot chain line.

In addition, according to the configuration of this embodiment, the regulating portion 26 is fixed to the sheet member 24. When the shutter 20 is in the closed position (see FIG. 2) in which the opening 11 is closed, a gap G is formed between the regulating portion 26 and the shutter body 21 and sheet member 24 in the movement direction of the shutter 20 along the straight portion 41 of the guide groove portion 40 (longitudinal direction X in FIG. 2). Therefore, the gap G allows relative movement between the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 in the movement direction of the shutter 20 (extension direction of the curved portion 42 of the guide groove portion 40 in FIGS. 6 and 7), thereby reducing the bending load of the shutter 20. As a result, the operating load of the shutter 20 is reduced.

Next, the effects of this embodiment will be described.
(1) The shutter-type storage container includes a storage container body 10 having an opening 11, a shutter 20 configured to be able to open and close the opening 11, and a shutter storage section 30 configured to store the shutter 20 in a curved state. The storage container body 10 and the shutter storage section 30 are provided with a pair of guide grooves 40 located on both sides of the shutter 20 in the width direction Y and guiding the movement of the shutter 20. The shutter 20 includes a shutter body 21 having a plurality of slats 22 connected to each other and configured to be able to be curved, and a flexible sheet member 24 covering the shutter body 21 from the front surface 21a side. The shaft portion 22c of the shutter body 21 and the end 24c of the sheet member 24 in the width direction Y are located within the guide groove 40. An operating section 25 is provided at a first end 20a of the shutter 20. A restricting section 26 is provided on the sheet member 24 at a second end 20b opposite to the first end 20a. When the shutter 20 is in the closed position in which the shutter 20 closes the opening 11 , a gap G is formed in the longitudinal direction X between the restricting portion 26 and the shutter body 21 and between the restricting portion 26 and the sheet member 24 .

This configuration provides the above-mentioned effects, and therefore the operation load of the shutter 20 can be reduced, while the occurrence of slack in the sheet member 24 can be suppressed with a simple configuration.
(2) The restricting portion 26 has a first portion 26a facing a back surface 21b of the shutter body 21 opposite the sheet member 24. The restricting portion 26 also has a second portion 26b facing a design surface 24a of the sheet member 24 opposite the shutter body 21. The restricting portion 26 also has a connecting portion 26c connecting the first portion 26a and the second portion 26b. The restricting portion 26 is fixed to the sheet member 24.

With this configuration, the restricting portion 26, which has the first portion 26a, the second portion 26b, and the connecting portion 26c and is configured as a separate member from the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24, is fixed to the sheet member 24. Therefore, the configuration of the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 can be simplified compared to when the restricting portion 26 is integrally formed with the shutter body 21 or the sheet member 24.

(3) The restricting portions 26 are provided in plurality at intervals in the width direction Y of the shutter 20 .
According to this configuration, for example, compared to a case where one restricting portion 26 is provided in the center of the second end 20b in the width direction Y, the above-mentioned action and effect are exerted over a wide range of the second end 20b in the width direction Y. Also, for example, compared to a case where an elongated restricting portion 26 extending in the width direction Y is provided at the second end 20b, it is possible to reduce the material of the restricting portion 26 while exerting the above-mentioned action and effect over a wide range of the second end 20b in the width direction Y.

<Example of change>
This embodiment can be modified as follows: This embodiment and the following modifications can be combined with each other to the extent that there is no technical contradiction.

The design surface 24a of the sheet member 24 is not limited to a smooth surface as illustrated in this embodiment, and may have an uneven shape, for example.
The number of the restricting portions 26 is not limited to two as illustrated in this embodiment, and may be one, or three or more.

The shape of the regulating portion 26 is not limited to the one exemplified in this embodiment in which the gap G is uniformly formed in the thickness direction Z between the connecting portion 26c and the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24. For example, the shape of the regulating portion 26 may be such that the gap G between the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 becomes larger in the thickness direction Z toward the center of the connecting portion 26c, i.e., the connecting portion 26c has a curved shape.

The restricting portion 26 is not limited to the restricting portion 26 having the second portion 26b fixed to the design surface 24a side of the sheet member 24 as illustrated in this embodiment. For example, only the first portion 26a of the restricting portion 26 may be fixed to the back surface 21b of the shutter body 21.

The restricting portion 26 is not limited to being configured as a separate member from the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 as exemplified in this embodiment, but may be provided integrally with the sheet member 24 or the shutter body 21. In this case, for example, the restricting portion 26 may be configured by extending the end portion on the front side (left side in FIG. 5) of the longitudinal direction X of the sheet member 24 and folding it back so as to face the rear surface 21b of the shutter body 21. The restricting portion 26 may also be configured by extending the end portion on the front side (left side in FIG. 5) of the longitudinal direction X of the shutter body 21 and folding it back so as to face the design surface 24a of the sheet member 24.

- In the present embodiment, a gap G is always formed between the regulating portion 26 and the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 while the shutter 20 moves from the closed position to the open position, but this is not limited to the above. For example, the shutter 20 may be configured such that the regulating portion 26 abuts against at least one of the shutter body 21 and the sheet member 24 in the movement direction of the shutter 20 while the shutter 20 is moving to the open position or at the open position.

G...gap S...space X...longitudinal direction Y...width direction Z...thickness direction 10...storage container body 11...opening 11A...opening surface 12...circumferential wall 13...first peripheral wall 14...second peripheral wall 15...bottom wall 20...shutter 20A...shutter 20a...first end 20b...second end 21...shutter body 21a...front surface 21b...back surface 22...slat 22a...slat body 22b...end surface 22c...shaft 23...tape member 24...sheet member 24A...sheet member 24a...design surface 24b...back surface 24c...end 25...operation portion 25a...handle 26...regulating portion 26a...first portion 26b...second portion 26c...connecting portion 30...shutter storage portion 31...outer peripheral wall 31a: inner surface 32: inner circumferential wall 33: side wall portion 40: guide groove portion 41: straight portion 42: curved portion

Claims (3)

A shutter-type storage container comprising: a storage container body having an opening; a shutter configured to be able to open and close the opening by moving along an opening surface of the opening; and a shutter storage section provided adjacent to the storage container body and configured to store the shutter in a curved state, wherein the storage container body and the shutter storage section are provided with a pair of guide grooves located on both sides of the shutter in a width direction and guiding the movement of the shutter,
The shutter includes a shutter body having a plurality of slats connected to each other and configured to be bendable, and a flexible sheet member covering the shutter body from a front surface side,
The ends of both the shutter body and the sheet member in the width direction are located within the guide groove portion,
An operation unit is provided at a first end in a moving direction of the shutter,
a restricting portion is provided on either the shutter body or the sheet member at a second end portion opposite to the first end portion in the moving direction of the shutter, the restricting portion being adapted to restrict the sheet member from moving away from the shutter body by contacting the other of the two from the opposite side to the one;
When the shutter is in a closed position where the shutter closes the opening, a gap is formed between the restricting portion and the other portion in the movement direction.
Shutter-type storage compartment. the regulating portion has a first portion that faces a surface of the shutter body opposite to the sheet member and extends forward of the shutter body in the movement direction, a second portion that faces a surface of the sheet member opposite to the shutter body and extends forward of the sheet member in the movement direction, and a connecting portion that connects the first portion and the second portion,
The regulating portion is fixed to the shutter body or the sheet member.
2. The shutter-type storage container according to claim 1. The restricting portion is provided in a plurality of portions spaced apart from each other in the width direction of the shutter.
3. The shutter-type storage container according to claim 1 or 2.

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