JPH08255036A - Expansion unit for portable information processing device - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Object] An expansion unit of a portable information processing device is intended to have a small volume and to improve reliability of connection to the portable information processing device. An expansion unit for a portable information processing device, in which an expansion circuit for the portable information processing device 1 is housed in a casing 2, wherein the casing 2 is a side wall surface connected to the portable information processing device 1. And a mounting portion 3 that is bulged from the back and supports the back surface of the end of the portable information processing device 1 on the connection side.
The portable information processing device 1 and the movable part 4 cooperate with each other to form a support surface of the portable information processing device 1 and a movable part 4 that can be pulled out in the width direction from the mounting part 3.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an expansion unit for a portable information processing device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An expansion unit is used by connecting to a portable information processing device when connecting an external device to the portable information processing device such as a notebook personal computer. Generally, it is configured by accommodating an expansion board or the like in a casing.

On the other hand, if the expansion unit is directly connected to the main body of the apparatus (portable information processing apparatus), an abnormal load is generated at the connecting portion when the main body of the apparatus is moved, and the connector or the like is damaged. Usually, the mounting portion is bulged in the casing of the expansion unit, and the apparatus main body is connected to the expansion unit with the end portion on the side of connection with the expansion unit placed on the mounting portion.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned conventional example, in order to strengthen the connection between the expansion unit and the apparatus body, the mounting portion having a width substantially matching the widthwise dimension of the apparatus body is formed. It is necessary, and as a result, it has a drawback that the volume becomes large and problems occur in storage, transportation and the like.

The present invention has been made to solve the above drawbacks, and can reduce the volume, and
It is an object of the present invention to provide an expansion unit that is highly reliable in connecting to a portable information processing device.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, the above object is to provide an expansion circuit for a portable information processing device 1 with a casing 2.
An expansion unit of a portable information processing device housed inside, wherein the casing 2 is bulged from a side wall surface connected to the portable information processing device 1,
Of the portable side information processing device 1 in cooperation with the mounting part 3 that supports the rear surface of the end of the connection side of the movable part 4 that can be pulled out from the mounting part 3 in the width direction. It is achieved by providing an expansion unit of a portable information processing device having:

[0007]

In the present invention, the movable portion 4 is connected to the mounting portion 3 for supporting the portable information processing device 1 so that the movable portion 4 can be pulled out.
In the state where it is not connected to the portable information processing device 1, it can be placed close to or adjacent to the mounting portion 3.

On the other hand, when connecting to the portable information processing device 1, it is possible to secure the bearing surface of the portable information processing device 1 by pulling out the movable part 4, which causes rattling and anxiety during mounting. Qualitative is eliminated.

From the above, it is possible to reduce the volume during storage and transportation and to improve the reliability of mounting.

[0010]

1 to 3 show an embodiment of the present invention. The expansion unit is configured by housing an expansion circuit such as an I / O board, a memory, and an external storage device in a casing 2 formed by joining the upper and lower covers 20 and 21.

The casing 2 provides a coupling surface 23 on which a connector 22 for coupling to the apparatus body (portable information processing apparatus 1) is arranged, and a bearing surface for bearing the rear end side rear surface of the apparatus body 1. And the mounting portion 3. The bearing surface is slightly inclined with respect to the back surface of the casing 2 which is a grounding surface for the desk 9 and the like, and the connecting surface 23 is substantially orthogonal to the bearing surface, so that the device body 1 is inclined forward. The bearing surface is in contact with the rear surface of the apparatus main body 1, and the connector arranged on the rear surface side of the apparatus main body 1 can be fitted to the connector 22 on the casing 2 side in an orthogonal manner.

A movable part 4 is mounted on the mounting part 3.
The movable portion 4 has a straight rod portion 5 and a leg portion 6 that is bulged at the tip of the straight rod portion 5, and is formed in a substantially inverted T-shape in a side view, and the straight rod portion 5 is moved back and forth to the mounting portion 3. It is freely inserted and mounted on the mounting portion 3.

The ceiling surface 60 of the leg portion 6 has substantially the same height as the ceiling surface 30 of the mounting portion 3, and the leg portion 6 and the mounting portion 3 cooperate with each other to form a bearing surface of the apparatus main body 1, further,
The bottom surface of the leg portion 6 is set to serve as a grounding surface for the desk 9 or the like.

In the present embodiment, which is optimized to be mounted at a position offset to one side edge of the apparatus body 1, the movable portion 4
Can be pulled out along the width direction of the apparatus body 1 from the state where the leg portions 6 are along the side edge of the mounting portion 3 until the leg portion 6 is located near the other side edge side of the apparatus body 1.

Therefore, in this embodiment, when the apparatus is not connected to the apparatus main body 1, as shown in FIG. 1A, the straight rod portion 5 is housed in the mounting portion 3 so that the entire widthwise dimension is reduced. Can be made smaller. Further, at the time of use, as shown in FIG. 1B and FIG. 2, the straight rod portion 5 is pulled out and the leg portion 6 is moved to the vicinity of the other side edge of the device body 1, so that the back surface of the device body 1 is casing. The two mounting portions 3 and the ceiling surfaces 30 and 60 of the leg portions 6 can be supported.

In the above embodiment, the movable portion 4 can be expanded and contracted only in one direction of the casing 2, but it can be configured to be movable in both directions. 4 to 6 show details of the sliding structure of the movable portion 4. First, as shown in FIG. 4, the straight rod portion 5 of the movable portion 4 is formed to have a U-shaped cross section, and a retaining stopper 50, a stopper notch 51, and an elastically deforming portion 7 are formed in the vicinity of the end portion thereof. To be done. The retaining stopper 50 regulates the stroke of the movable portion 4 in the pulling direction, and projects upward from the bottom wall 52 of the straight rod portion 5. The stopper notch 51 is
It is formed by restricting the storage side stroke of the movable part 4 and notching the side wall 53 of the straight rod part 5.

On the other hand, the elastically deforming portion 7 is provided to obtain a click feeling at the stroke end position by elastically locking the lock portion 71, which is bulged on the back surface, in the opening 8 on the casing 2 side. . In order to obtain a good click feeling in the reciprocating direction with only one elastically deforming portion 7 by using both of the opposing inclined surfaces of the lock portion 71 formed in a substantially triangular shape as stopper wall surfaces, in this embodiment, The elastically deformable portion 7 is not a cantilever shape, but has a shape in which meat is connected in the advancing / retreating direction of the straight rod portion 5, and in order to impart elasticity to the elastically deformable portion 7, The surface of the bottom wall is dented to make it thinner, and two slits 70,
By arranging 70 along the side wall, the meat connection with the side wall 53 is cut.

A guide rail 80 having a U-shaped cross section is fixed to the casing 2 side in order to hold the movable portion 4 constructed as described above so as to be movable back and forth. The guide rail is fixed to a boss 24 projecting on the rear surface of the upper cover 20 with a fastener 25 such as a tapping screw, with the opening facing upward, and cooperates with the rear surface of the upper cover 20. A cylindrical space into which the straight rod portion 5 of the movable portion 4 is inserted is formed.

An opening 8 is formed in the bottom wall of the guide rail, that is, in the sliding contact wall with the bottom wall of the straight rod portion 5. Opening 8
Is opened at a position corresponding to the lock portion 71 at the stroke end position on the pull-out side of the movable portion 4 and the storage side. The guide rail 80 is formed of sheet metal or the like, and the opening 8
When sharp edges such as burrs are generated on the edge of the lock portion 71, a folded-back portion 81 is formed on the side of the lock portion 71 on the riding side as shown in FIGS. It is desirable to prevent such problems.

On the other hand, a stopper projection 26 and a guide projection 27 are provided on the back surface of the upper cover 20. The stopper protrusion 26 and the guide protrusion 27 are fitted in the opening of the straight rod portion 5, and the stopper protrusion 26 is attached to the retaining stopper 50 of the straight rod portion 5 at the pull-out side stroke end position of the movable portion 4. It is provided at a position where it abuts and prevents detachment of the movable part 4 (see FIG. 6). The guide protrusion 27 is mounted on the mounting portion 3.
Is provided in the vicinity of the opening-side end portion of the movable portion 4 to prevent backlash of the straight rod portion 5 at the pull-out position.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the straight rod portion 5
Is accommodated in the mounting portion 3 and the leg portion 6 is located along the side of the mounting portion 3, the stopper notch 51 of the straight rod portion 5 has the stopper notch 51.
The storage side stroke of the movable part 4 is determined by abutting against the stopper 28 projecting from the rear surface of 0, and at the same time, the lock part 71 of the straight rod part 5 is locked in the opening 8 of the guide rail, so that the withdrawal is possible. A resistance force against the force on the side is given, and the careless protrusion of the movable portion 4 is prevented.

When a force is applied to the pull-out side from the leg portion 6 from this state, the elastically deforming portion 7 gradually elastically deforms and the lock portion 71 rides on the edge of the opening 8 of the guide rail and is slidable. Becomes Thereafter, when the leg portion 6 is further moved to the pulling-out side, the stopper stopper 50 of the straight rod portion 5 abuts the stopper projection 26 of the upper cover 20 at the pulling-out side stroke end position, and subsequent movement in the pulling-out direction is restricted. To be done. When the lock portion 71 reaches the opening 8 of the guide rail 80 at or near the collision position between the stopper stopper 50 and the stopper projection 26, the elastic deformation portion 7 is restored to its original shape by the elastic restoring force, and the lock portion 71 is opened. Locked at 8. In this state, the user is given a click feeling to recognize that the stroke end position is reached, and movement to the storage side is restricted, so that careless movement of the leg portion 6 is prevented.

[0023]

As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, the volume during storage and transportation can be reduced and the reliability of connection to the apparatus main body can be improved.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a storage state and (b) is a usage state.

2A and 2B are diagrams showing a mounting state on the apparatus main body, FIG. 2A is a side view, and FIG. 2B is a view in the direction B of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of FIG. 2;

4A and 4B are views showing a movable portion, FIG. 4A is a sectional view, FIG. 4B is a view in the direction B in FIG. 4A, and FIG. 4C is a view in the direction C in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a retracted state of a movable part.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an expanded state of a movable part.

[Explanation of reference numerals] 1 portable information processing device 2 casing 3 mounting portion 4 movable portion 5 straight rod portion 6 leg portion 7 elastically deforming portion 70 slit 71 lock portion 8 opening

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An expansion unit for a portable information processing device, wherein an expansion circuit for the portable information processing device is housed in a casing, wherein the casing is expanded from a side wall surface connected to the portable information processing device. And the mounting part that supports the back surface of the end of the connection side of the portable information processing device and the supporting part of the portable information processing device that cooperates with the mounting part and can be pulled out in the width direction from the mounting part. Expansion unit of a portable information processing device having various movable parts. 2. The portable information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the movable portion includes a straight rod portion that is inserted into the mounting portion so as to be able to advance and retreat, and a leg portion that is formed at an end of the straight rod portion. Expansion unit. 3. The straight rod portion is provided with an elastic deforming portion that is long in the forward and backward direction of the straight rod portion sandwiched by slits on both sides, and an opening in which a locking portion that bulges on the elastic deforming portion is recessed on the mounting portion side. The expansion unit for a portable information processing device according to claim 2, wherein the expansion unit is elastically locked to give a click feeling at a predetermined stroke position.