JP2571426Y2 - Connector device - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector device which can use two types of devices, for example, a memory card and a bird disk drive package, as a data storage device to be connected to, for example, a personal computer or a notebook PC.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Recent developments in personal computers have resulted in what is known as a laptop computer and is substantially portable and consumes little power. A further advance of this laptop computer is a so-called notebook personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a notebook PC).

[0003]

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Such a personal computer, a laptop computer, and a notebook P
While the miniaturization of computer devices such as C is promoted, it is desired to increase the data storage capability at low cost. In order to increase the processing speed of data storage and increase the capacity, it is desirable to use a memory card or hard disk rather than a floppy disk as a data storage medium.

Here, the memory card has an advantage that it is detachable from a computer device and portable.

On the other hand, a hard disk drive (HDD) package incorporating a hard disk is becoming thinner and more portable, but is relatively expensive. Therefore, each computer device has H
If the DD package is integrated, the cost of the computer increases if the HDD package is integrated into the computer.

Further, if the computer device and the HDD package are integrated, the OS (operatin sys.
tem) can be activated, so that data stored on the hard disk may be stolen or misused.

Accordingly, by making the HDD package detachable from the computer device like the memory card, one HDD package can be used interchangeably with a plurality of second computer devices, and the HD package can be used.
It is required that the D package can be stored or configured separately from the computer device. In addition, since the use of the hard disk differs depending on the OS, it is preferable to give the end user selectivity of the OS.

The present invention has been made based on such a demand, and an object of the present invention is to provide a connector device which can be used for two types of data storage devices and which can be detachably accommodated.

[0009]

According to the present invention, there is provided a connector device for selectively connecting at least one data storage device between a memory card and a hard disk drive package. A storage space formed by opposed side walls of the storage space, an insertion opening formed at one end for inserting the at least one data storage device into the storage space, and dividing the storage space in a height direction. A housing having upper and lower storage decks formed and continuous with each other and having no obstacle between them, and a connector body connected to the housing at a side opposite to the insertion opening, wherein the connector body includes an upper and lower storage deck. At least one row of contacts that can be connected to a memory card fixedly arranged on one of the storage decks; At least two contact rows, the at least two contact rows having at least one contact row connectable to a memory card and at least one contact row connectable to a hard disk drive package. . The storage space of the housing has a height substantially equal to the height of the at least one hard disk drive package, and each storage deck formed in the storage space of the housing has a height higher than that of the at least one memory card. Preferably have a height that is greater than or equal to this. Also, for each of the storage decks,
A pair of opposing guide slots are formed longitudinally along an inner surface of each side wall of the housing, and each pair of opposing guide slots receives a memory card and is disposed in a respective storage deck, and the inserted memory slot is provided. Preferably, the card is guided and the memory card is engaged with a connectable contact row. The non-slotted portions of each side wall are spaced approximately equal to the width of the hard disk drive package to form a passageway for receiving the hard disk drive package, and each pair of opposing guide slots has a width equal to the width of the memory card. They may have approximately equal widths. The memory card has a width W _M , the hard disk drive package has a width W _H , the width W _{M of the} memory card is larger than the width W _{H of the} hard disk drive package, and a first pair of opposing guide slots is A top portion of the storage deck is formed longitudinally along an inner surface of each side wall of the housing, and a second pair of opposing guide slots is formed longitudinally along an inner surface of each side wall of the housing at the remainder of each storage deck. is, opposing guide slots in each first pair of the top of each storage deck, W _M and has a width substantially equal and form a channel for receiving a memory card, the second pair of the remainder of the housing deck Opposing guide slots have a width approximately equal to W _H and can form a channel for receiving a hard disk drive package. In each of the storage decks, the at least one contact row connectable to a memory card is disposed on an upper portion of the storage deck, and a first pair of opposing guide slots of each storage deck has a memory inserted therein. Preferably, the card is guided and electrically connected to the at least one contact row. Further, at least one door is pivotally mounted to a front edge proximate the insertion opening of the housing, the door being disposed over a portion of the insertion opening corresponding to at least one of the storage decks. Preferably, the storage device is pivotable into the housing when inserted into the at least one storage deck. Preferably, each of the storage decks connectable to the memory card further includes a memory card interface circuit electrically connected to the at least one contact row. The apparatus may further include a hard disk drive controller electrically connected to the at least one contact row connectable to a hard disk drive package. A lock member pivotally mounted on the housing proximate the insertion opening, the lock member at least partially opening the insertion opening when the hard disk drive package is connected to one of the contact rows. Preferably, the plugging prevents the hard disk drive package from accidentally separating from the at least one contact row. The storage device further includes a discharge mechanism for discharging the storage device from each storage deck, the discharge mechanism including at least a first slide plate disposed near a storage deck having at least one contact row arranged therein. The first slide plate is slidable in a first plane parallel to a plane formed by the opposed side walls in a direction toward the connector section and in a direction away from the connector section. An engagement hook extending a sufficient distance to engage a front end face of a storage device connected to the at least one contact row, and further having at least two internal therein. A second slide plate disposed near a storage deck having two contact rows, wherein the second slide plate is The second slide plate is slidable in a second plane parallel to a plane formed by the opposite side walls in a direction toward and away from the connector portion, and the second slide plate has a storage deck having at least two contact rows. Within, there may be an engagement hook extending a sufficient distance to engage a front end surface of a storage device connected to one of the at least two contact rows.

[0010]

According to the connector device of the present invention, the upper and lower storage decks formed by dividing the housing space of the housing in the height direction are continuous with each other and no obstacle is arranged therebetween, so that the connector device can be used as required. Insert one memory card into each of these upper and lower storage decks and connect them to the corresponding contact rows of the connector body, or insert one hard disk drive package into these upper and lower storage decks and Are connected to the corresponding contact row. The storage space of the housing has a height substantially equal to the height of at least one hard disk drive package, and each storage deck formed in the storage space of the housing is greater than the height of at least one memory card, respectively. If the height is equal to this, the storage space is formed to the minimum size. At least one door is pivotally mounted to a front edge proximate the insertion opening of the housing, the door being disposed over a portion of the insertion opening corresponding to at least one of the storage decks, and The at least one
When the data storage device is not accommodated when it is inserted into the storage deck, dust or fine particles can be prevented from entering the housing when the data storage device is not accommodated.

[0011]

1 and 2 show a first embodiment of the present invention.
In each drawing, the width direction of the connector device and the data storage device is referred to as X direction, the length direction is referred to as Y direction, and the thickness direction is referred to as Z direction. The connector device 1 according to this embodiment includes one to three memory cards as data storage devices, only one hard disk drive package (hereinafter abbreviated as HDDP), or one memory card and one H
The DDP can be connected as needed. The connector device 1 includes a housing 2 and a connector body 4 connected to a rear end. The housing 2 has a pair of side walls 6 defining both side surfaces thereof, and upper and lower housing plates 8a, 8 defining upper and lower surfaces of the housing 2.
c, a partition plate 8b separating the inside of the housing 2 up and down, and a front body 1 defining a front end of the housing 2.
0. The front body 10 has an insertion opening 16.
The front body 10 and the connector body 4 of the housing 2 are formed of an insulating material, for example, plastic, but a conductive material such as a metal may be used for the housing plates 8a and 8c. An appropriate attachment member 20 having an insertion hole 18 for inserting a screw or the like is attached to such a connector device 1. With the attachment member 20, the connector device 1 is attached to a computer system (not shown) such as a personal computer, a laptop computer, or a notebook computer or an electronic device (not shown).

As shown in FIG. 2 in particular, the housing space in the housing 2 communicating with the insertion opening 16 includes first, second, and third decks 11, 12, which are storage decks along the Z direction.
It is divided into thirteen. 1st deck 11 and 2nd deck 1
2 are separated from each other by a partition plate 8b. The second deck and the third deck 13 communicate with each other in the Z direction, and a double deck 14 formed by combining these two decks 12 and 13 is provided.
Are formed. One memory card can be stored in each of the first deck 11, the second deck 12, and the third deck 13. The double deck 14 including the second deck 12 and the third deck 13 can store one HDDP instead of two memory cards.

More specifically, the first deck 11 is a dedicated deck for a memory card, and its dimension D _{1 in} the Z direction is the height H _M of the memory card, for example, 3.5 mm. The second deck 12 has an upper deck 12a and a lower deck 12b,
The third deck 13 includes an upper deck 13a and a lower deck 13
b. In the second and third decks 12 and 13, one memory card is stored only in each of the upper decks 12a and 13a. Therefore, the upper deck 12
The dimensions D _2a and D _3a of each of the a and 13a in the Z direction are set equal to H _M. The Z direction dimension D ₄ of the double deck 14 is
It is equal to the height H _{H of the} HDDP. The dimension D ₄ is given by the following equation. _{D 4 = H H = D 2a} + D 2b + D 3a + D 3b = 2 × H M + D 2b + D 3b ( wherein D _2b, D _3b, the lower deck 12b of each brother 2 deck 12, lower deck of the third deck 13 Z of 13b
Therefore, by appropriately setting the dimensions D _2b and D _3b , the double deck 14 can correspond to two memory cards or one HDDP.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the second deck 1
On the inner surface of the housing side wall 6 in the upper deck 12a of the second deck 13 and the upper deck 13a of the third deck 13, guide slots 26 and 28 for allowing the memory card 3 to enter and exit the upper decks 12a and 13a are formed along the Y direction. Have been. On the inner surface of the housing side wall 6 in the lower deck 12b of the second deck 12 and the lower deck 13b of the third deck 13, guide slots 30 for allowing the HDDP5 to enter and exit the double deck 14 are formed along the Y direction.

The memory card 3 shown in FIG. 5 basically has a random access memory (RAM) in a card-like device.
Incorporate. The memory card 3 is typically a non-volatile RAM card, and can be pulled out after data is once loaded into a computer system. On the front end face of the memory card 3, first, second and third pin contact groups 31, 32,
There is provided a socket into which 33 is fitted, that is, an I / O connector 3a.

The HDDP5 shown in FIG. 6 is a thin pan cage composed of a thin HDD, for example, a thin housing 51 containing a 1.8-inch disk drive (not shown) and a base plate 53 on which the housing 51 is installed. is there. Further, on the front end face of the base plate 53, a socket to which a fourth pin contact group 34 described later of the connector device 1 is fitted, that is, an I / O connector 55 is provided. The dimensions of the HDDP5 are, for example, 50.8 mm width ×
It is 76.85 mm or 70 mm long x 10 mm or 15 mm thick. Such an HDDP5 can be used in the same manner as the memory card 3. Referring again to FIG. 3, the distance between the pair of memory card guide slots 26 (X direction)
Is the width W _M for example 54mm of the memory card 3, the distance between the pair of memory card guide slots 28 (X direction) is W _M. The distance (X direction) between the pair of HDD guide slots 30 is the width W _{H of} the HDDP, for example, 5
0.8 mm. In this design the width W _M of the memory card 3 is greater than the HDDP for the width W _H, erroneous insertion into the HDD guide slot 30 of the memory card 3 is prevented. The insertion port 16 of the housing 2 has first, second, and third
First and second decks 11, 12 and 13 respectively
And third opening / closing doors 21, 22, 23. The first door 21 is rotatably attached to the front end of the upper housing plate 8, and the second door 22 is attached to the partition plate 8.
b, is rotatably attached to the front end of the third opening / closing door 23.
Is rotatably attached to the front end of the bottom housing plate 8c.

First, second and third doors 21, 22, 2
3 is a deck 1 for each one memory card 3
1, 12 and 13 doors, two opening and closing doors 22 and 23
Forms the door of the double deck 14 for one HDDP5. When the data storage device is inserted into the housing 2 through the insertion slot 16, as shown by the dotted lines in FIG. 2, the first and second doors 21 and 22 are moved around the upper ends thereof as fulcrums. To rotate. The third door 23,
It pivots into the housing 2 with its lower end as a fulcrum. For example, when the memory card 3 is inserted into the first, second, and third decks 11, 12, 13, the first, second, and third decks are used.
The doors 21, 22, 23 are independently rotated. On the other hand, when the HDDP5 is inserted into the double deck 14, the front end face of the HDDP5 has the second and third doors 22,2.
3, the second and third doors 22 and 23 are simultaneously rotated. In the state where no data storage device is present in the housing 2, as shown in FIG.
And the second and third opening / closing doors 21, 22, 23 close the insertion opening 16, thereby preventing dust and fine particles from entering the housing. As a result, short-circuiting of the pin contact groups 31, 32, 33, 34 described later of the connector body 4 is prevented. Such operations of the doors 21, 22, 23 are achieved by providing an appropriate spring (not shown).

As particularly shown in FIG. 2, the connector body 4 has four sets of conductive metal pin contacts in the Z direction. That is, the first, second and third decks 11, 1
I / O connector 3a of memory card 3 in 2 and 13
And the HD to be fitted to the I / O connector 55 of the HDDP 5 in the double deck 14.
And a D pin contact group 34. 1st deck 11
Each of the pins forming the first pin contact group 31 for the card corresponding to is a straight pin. Pin contact groups 32 and 33 for the second and third cards corresponding to the upper deck 12a of the second deck 12 and the upper deck 13a of the third deck 13.
Are L-shaped pins. The pins forming the HDD pin contact group 34 corresponding to the lower deck 132 of the third deck 13 are L-shaped pins.

The connector device 1 preferably includes a connection circuit board as shown in FIG. Each straight pin of the memory card first pin contact group 31 has a first pin.
One end of the flexible printed circuit board or ribbon cable 41 is soldered. The base end of each L-shaped pin of the memory card second pin contact group 32 is
2 and soldered. One end of a second flexible printed circuit board or a ribbon cable 45 is soldered to the connection board 42. Connection board 42
Is an interface board for connecting the second pin contact group 32 to a memory card circuit board 43 described later. Each L of the third pin contact group 38 for the memory card
The base end of the letter-shaped pin is mounted on the memory card circuit board 43 and soldered. Circuit board for memory card 4
Reference numeral 3 denotes an interface circuit board for accessing, for example, data of the memory card 3 to and from the motherboard and inputting and outputting the data. Two zero insertion force connectors 46 and 48 are mounted on the memory card circuit board 43. The other ends of the first and second flexible printed circuit boards or the ribbon cables 41 and 45 are connected to these zero insertion force connectors, respectively. In such a design, one memory card circuit board 43 can be shared by a plurality of memory cards 3, and a high circuit layout flexibility is provided together with a minimum board space.

The base end of each L-shaped pin of the HDD pin contact group 34 is mounted on the HDD circuit board 44 and soldered. The HDD circuit board 44 is an HDDP5
Has a disk drive control circuit board,
It may be a motherboard (not shown) or a daughter board (not shown) of the computer system. Alternatively,
When the HDDP5 does not include a disk drive control circuit board for portability, the circuit board 44 may be a disk drive control circuit board. The circuit connection between the memory card circuit board 43 and the HDD circuit board 44 is as follows.
A vertical card connector 50 is provided on the upper surface of the HDD circuit board 44.
And the vertical header 52 is provided on the lower surface of the memory card circuit board 43, or vice versa.

According to the connector device 1, the memory card 3 is stored in at least one of the three decks 11, 12, and 13 in the housing 2, or one HDDP5 is stored in the double deck 14. Can be. When one HDDP5 is stored in the double deck 14, the memory card 3 can be stored in the first deck 11 at the same time. Therefore, the memory card 3 and the HDDP5
Can be selectively mounted on a computer system. Further, when exchanging the data storage medium connected to the computer system from the memory card 3 to the HDDP5 or vice versa, there is no need to switch circuits. Therefore, the circuit design becomes easy despite the fact that the same connector device 1 is shared by two different types of data storage media 3 and 5.

The housing 2 preferably has first, second, and third discharge mechanisms 54a, 54b, 54c corresponding to the first, second, and third decks 11, 12, 13, respectively. The structures of these three discharge mechanisms 54a, 54b, 54c are basically the same. In the drawing, the reference numeral indicating the component of the first ejection mechanism 54a is letter a, the reference symbol indicating the component of the second ejection mechanism 54b is letter b, and the reference symbol indicating the component of the third ejection mechanism 54c. Has the letter c
Is shown alongside. In the following description, the first discharge mechanism 54a will be described as a representative unless otherwise specified.

FIGS. 7 and 8 show the connector device 1 respectively.
The first discharge mechanism 54a seen from the upper surface side and the lower surface side of the upper housing plate 8a is shown. In the vicinity of the inserted population 16 of the housing 2, a swing lever 56a is pivotally supported on the housing plate 8a by a rotation shaft 58a. To swing the swing lever 56a around the rotation shaft 58a, one end 60a of the swing lever 56a is supported by one end of the discharge slide member 62a by a rotation shaft 64a. The slide member 62a slides in the guides 66a, 68a provided on the one side wall 16 along the Y direction. The guides 66a and 68a are formed integrally with the housing 2, for example. A tongue piece 70a is formed integrally with the other end of the swing lever 56a. The tongue-shaped piece 70a is slidably in contact with the inside of a belt-shaped sliding guide 72a slightly raised from the surface of the housing plate 18. The sliding guide 72a is formed, for example, by punching the housing plate 18. Therefore, by manually sliding the slide member 62a in the Y direction, the swing lever 56a is moved to the housing plate 8a.
Along the upper surface of the rotary shaft 58a around the rotation shaft 58a.

Further, the swing lever 56a is formed with a claw 74a projecting toward the housing plate 8a, for example, by punching. In particular, the slide plate 76 a shown in FIG. 9 is for pulling out the memory card 3 electrically connected to the connector section 14 of the connector device 1 from the connector body 4 when the memory card 3 is not used. As shown in FIG. 7, the slide plate 76a has a claw 80a formed by cutting and raising the base end portion 78a, and the claw 80a moves with the swing of the swing lever 56a. The hook 56a can be engaged with the pawl 74a. Therefore, when the swing lever 56a swings, the slide plate 76a slides on the surface of the housing plate 18 in the Y direction. At the time of this sliding, a base end portion 78a of the slide plate 76a and an arm 82a to be described later are used.
And notches 86a, 88 described later of the housing plate 8a.
a serves as a sliding guide, and the movement of the slide plate 76a in the X direction is restricted.

As shown in FIG. 9, the slide plate 76
The arm 82a is provided at both ends of the arm a toward the connector body 14 side. Each of the arms 82a has a bent portion 84a.
The bent portion 84a is stepped with respect to the slide plate 76a so as to protrude toward the inner surface side of the housing plate 8a through cutouts 86a formed at both ends of the housing plate 8a on the connector body 14 side. Similarly, the base end portion 78a of the slide plate 76a is stepped relative to the slide plate 76a so as to protrude toward the inner surface side of the housing plate 8a through a notch 88a formed in the housing plate 8a. Further, the distal end of the bent portion 84a of the arm 82a is bent to form a discharge hook 90a to be engaged with the socket-side end surface of the memory card 3.

FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a pivot portion of the swing lever 56a. The cylindrical projection 92a formed on a part of the swing lever 56a is fitted in a bearing hole 94a formed in the housing plate 8a. A rotating shaft 58a made of, for example, brass is inserted inside the cylindrical protrusion 92a. The rotating shaft 58a has a through hole 96a at the center, a flange 98a provided at one end, and a caulking at the other end to prevent it from falling off. Therefore, the rotation shaft 58a
Rotates in the bearing hole 94a according to the swing of the swing lever 56a. Therefore, the swing lever 56a is repeatedly rotated while the inner peripheral surface of the bearing hole 94a of the housing plate 8a is in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical projection 92a of the swing lever 56a of the same material. In this case, the cylindrical projection 92
Since both the outer peripheral surface of a and the inner peripheral surface of the bearing hole 94a have high abrasion resistance, the durability of the shaft support portion of the swing lever 56a is improved. The middle discharge mechanism 54b has basically the same configuration as the upper discharge mechanism 54a. However, the middle discharging mechanism 54b
When the HDDP5 is stored in the housing 2,
In order to prevent the connection between the I / O connector 55 of the DP 5 and the pin contact group 34 from being loosened, it is preferable to provide a locking mechanism 100 for locking the HDDP 5.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, the locking mechanism 100 has a rotation shaft 102 inserted through the slide member 62b of the lower discharge mechanism 54b, and the rotation shaft 102 allows the tip of the slide member 62b to rotate. And a rotating member 104 that is pivotally supported. The rotating member 104 also serves as a handle for operating the slide member 62b. Also,
The rotating shaft 102 can be slightly pulled out from the distal end of the slide member 62b by pulling the handle 104 toward the user. This operation is performed, for example, by a spring (not shown).
Is achieved by the action of A groove 106 is formed on the distal end surface of the slide member 62b, and a ridge 108 to be engaged with the groove 106 protrudes from the base end surface of the handle 104. The handle 104 is normally in the pivot position shown in FIG. 11, and in this state, the groove 106 of the slide member 62b and the ridge 108 of the handle 104 are completely engaged.

When the HDDP 5 is stored in the housing 2, the handle 104 is manually pulled out, and then turned in the direction of the arrow 110 (FIG. 11) until it reaches the rotation position shown in FIG. Be moved. In this state,
The groove 106 and the ridge 108 are partially engaged. At this time, the handle 104 projects to the front end face of the second deck 12 and comes into contact with the rear end face of the HDDP5.
P5 is locked. On the other hand, when releasing the lock of the HDDP5, the handle 104 is pulled out to the near side from the state shown in FIG. 12, then rotated in the direction of the arrow 112 (FIG. 12), and returned to the initial position shown in FIG. You. This allows HD
The lock of DP5 is released.

The lower discharging mechanism 54c includes the upper discharging mechanism 54
It has the same configuration as a. Discharge mechanism 54a, 54b, 54
The operation of the connector device 1 provided with c will be described. Here, it is assumed that the connector device 1 is mounted on a computer system, and the circuit boards 42 and 44 are appropriately connected to the computer system. When the memory card 3 is inserted into and released from the computer system using the connector device 1, the ejection mechanisms 54a, 54b, 54c corresponding to the decks 11, 12, 13 into which the memory card 3 is inserted.
54c is used. For example, in order to insert one memory card 3 into the computer system, the memory card 3 is inserted into the first deck 11 through the housing insertion slot 21 and the I / O connector 3a of the memory card 3 and the upper side of the connector body 14 are inserted. The pin contact group 31 is fitted. This allows the computer system and the memory card 3
Are connected. At this time, the front end surface of the memory card 3 is engaged with the discharge hook 90a of the slide plate 76a, and the swing plate 56a moves forward, so that the swing lever 56a is also rotated around the rotation shaft 58a. Thereby, the slide member 62a protrudes from the end face of the housing 2 on the insertion port 22 side.

Next, to release the mounting of the memory card 3, the slide member 62a is pressed and the swing lever 56a is released.
Is rotated around the rotation axis 56a. Then, the slide plate 76a is moved to the housing plate 8a by the engagement between the swing lever pawl 74a and the slide plate pawl 80a.
Move in the Y direction along the surface of. Accordingly, the fitting between the memory card 3 and the pin contact group 36 is released by the discharge hook 90a, and the memory card 3 is pulled out from the connector body 14. Alternatively, even when one memory card 3 is inserted into the second deck 12 or the third deck 13 and fitted into the pin contact group 32 or 33, the above-mentioned explanation is performed by the middle or lower ejection mechanism 54b or 54c. Similarly, the memory card 3 can be released.

The three discharge mechanisms 54a, 54b, 5
4c can operate independently of each other, so that when two or three memory cards 3 are accommodated in the connector device 1 at the same time, each of the memory cards 3 is independently mounted and unmounted on the computer system. can do. For example, while data is being loaded from one memory card 3 to the computer system, it is possible to disconnect the other two memory cards 3 from the computer system. On the other hand, when the HDDP5 is attached to and detached from the computer system, only the middle ejection mechanism 54b is used.

In order to mount the HDDP5 on the computer system, the HDDP5 is inserted into the housing 2 through the housing insertion port 22, and the HDP5 is guided by the slot 30.
The I / O connector 55 of D and the lower pin contact group 34 are fitted. This allows the computer system and HD
DP5 is connected. In this state, the middle discharging mechanism 5
The discharge hook 90b of the slide plate 76b of FIG.
It is engaged with the end face of the HDDP5 on the I / O connector 55 side.
Then, similarly to the memory card 3, the HDDP5 can be mounted on and released from the computer system.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications are possible. For example, in the above-described embodiment, the number of data storage devices that can be accommodated in the connector device 1 is three at the maximum when the memory card 3 is used, and is one at the maximum when the HDDP5 is used. The present invention is not limited to this. By increasing the height of the housing 2 in the Z direction to increase the number of decks, a greater number of memory cards 3 and / or HDDs
P5 may be stored. Alternatively, in addition to the deck 14 serving as the memory card 3 and the HDDP 5,
5, a dedicated deck may be provided. The connection between the housing 2 and the connector body 14 may be made detachable by a known method.

Further, the upper and lower discharge mechanisms 54a, 54
If c is not provided, the upper and lower housing plates 8a and 8c of the housing 2 do not need to be provided.
In this case, the upper and lower surfaces of the housing 2 can be defined by the casing of the computer system.

[0035]

According to the connector device of the present invention, the upper and lower storage decks formed by dividing the housing space in the height direction are continuous with each other and no obstacles are arranged between them. Since one connector device can be used for two types of data storage devices, a memory card and a hard disk package, the two types of data storage devices can be mounted on electronic devices such as computer systems as necessary, and removed from them. Can be. A housing storage space having a height substantially equal to the height of the at least one hard disk drive package;
Each storage deck formed in the storage space of the housing has a height greater than or equal to the height of at least one memory card, respectively.
This storage space is formed to a minimum size, and the connector device can be made extremely small. At least one door is pivotally mounted to a front edge proximate the insertion opening of the housing, the door being disposed over a portion of the insertion opening corresponding to at least one of the storage decks, and If it rotates into the housing when it is inserted into the at least one storage deck, dust or fine particles can be prevented from entering and the inside can be kept clean.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a connector device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the connector device of FIG. 1 with a door closed.

FIG. 4 is a front view of the connector device of FIG. 1 in a state where a door is opened.

FIG. 5 is a side view showing a memory card used in the connector device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a hard disk drive package (HDDP) used in the connector device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a top view of the connector device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the connector device of FIG. 1 as viewed from the back side of an upper housing plate.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a slide plate in the connector device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a sectional view showing a pivot support portion of the swing lever in the connector device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 shows a handle in the connector device of FIG.
It is a perspective view shown in the non-locking state of DP.

FIG. 12 shows a handle in the connector device of FIG.
It is a perspective view shown in the lock state of DP.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Connector apparatus, 2 ... Housing, 3 ... Memory card, 3a ... I / O connector, 4 ... Connector body, 5 ...
Hard disk drive package, 8a, 8b, 8c
... plate, 10 ... front body, 11, 12, 13, 1
4 deck, 16 insertion slot, 21, 22, 23 ... door, 26, 28, 30 ... guide slot, 31, 32,
33, 34 ... pin contact group, 41, 42, 43, 4
4, 45 ... board, 46, 48, 50 ... connector, 52 ...
Header, 54a, 54b, 54c... Ejection mechanism, 56a
... Swinging lever, 62a ... Sliding member, 64a ... Rotating shaft, 66a, 68a ... Guide, 70a ... Tongue piece, 74a
... Nail, 76a, 76b, 76c ... Slide plate, 9
0a, 90b, 90c: discharging hook, 100: locking mechanism, 102: rotating shaft, 104: rotating member, 106: groove,
108 ... ridge.

Claims (11)

(57) [Scope of request for utility model registration] 1. A connector device for selectively connecting at least one data storage device between a memory card and a hard disk drive package, comprising: a housing space formed by a pair of opposed side walls; An insertion opening formed at one end for inserting the at least one data storage device into the storage space; and an upper and lower portion formed in the accommodation space by dividing the accommodation space in the height direction and continuous with each other and having no obstacle between them. A housing having a storage deck; and a connector body connected to the housing at a side opposite to the insertion opening, wherein the connector body is connected to a memory card fixedly arranged on one of upper and lower storage decks. A contact row and at least two contact rows fixedly arranged on another storage deck, wherein Also two contact rows, a connector device having at least one contact row can be connected to at least one contact row and the hard disk drive package which can be connected to a memory card, a. 2. The storage space of the housing has a height substantially equal to a height of the at least one hard disk drive package, and each storage deck formed in the storage space of the housing is provided with a respective one of the at least one hard disk drive package. 2. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the height of the connector device is greater than or equal to the height of the memory card. 3. In each of the storage decks, a pair of opposing guide slots are formed longitudinally along the inner surface of each side wall of the housing, and each pair of opposing guide slots receives a memory card and 3. The connector device according to claim 2, wherein the connector device is arranged on each storage deck, guides the inserted memory card, and meshes and connects the memory card with a connectable contact row. 4. The non-slotted portion of each side wall is spaced substantially equal to the width of the hard disk drive package to form a passageway for receiving the hard disk drive package, and each pair of opposing guide slots includes 4. The connector device according to claim 3, wherein the connector device has a width substantially equal to a width of the memory card. 5. The memory card has a width W _M , the hard disk drive package has a width W _H , and the memory card width W _M is the hard disk drive package width W _H.
A first pair of opposing guide slots is formed longitudinally along the inner surface of each side wall of the housing at the top of each storage deck, and a second pair of opposing guide slots is formed in the remainder of each storage deck. in is formed longitudinally along the inner surface of each side wall of the housing, opposing guide slots in each first pair of the top of each storage deck has a width which is substantially equal to a W _M and for receiving a memory card The connector device of claim 1, wherein a channel is formed, and each second pair of opposing guide slots in the remainder of each storage deck has a width substantially equal to W _H and forms a channel for receiving a hard disk drive package. 6. In each storage deck, each of said at least one contact row connectable to a memory card is disposed at an upper portion of the storage deck, and a first pair of opposing guide slots of each storage deck are inserted therein. The connector device according to claim 5, wherein the memory card is guided to be electrically connected to the at least one contact row. 7. At least one door is pivotally mounted on a front edge of the housing proximate an insertion slot, the door covering a portion of the insertion slot corresponding to at least one of the storage decks. 2. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the connector device is arranged to be rotatable within the housing when the storage device is inserted into the at least one storage deck. 8. The connector device according to claim 1, further comprising a memory card interface circuit electrically connected to said at least one contact row in each storage deck connectable to a memory card. 9. The connector device according to claim 1, further comprising a hard disk drive controller electrically connected to the at least one contact row connectable to a hard disk drive package. 10. A lock member pivotally mounted on the housing proximate to the insertion slot, wherein the lock member is configured to be inserted when the hard disk drive package is connected to one of the contact rows. 2. The connector device of claim 1, wherein the connector device is at least partially closed to prevent accidental disconnection of the hard disk drive package from the at least one contact row. 11. A discharge mechanism for discharging a storage device from each storage deck, the discharge mechanism being at least a first slide plate disposed near a storage deck having at least one row of contacts arranged therein. The first slide plate is slidable in a first plane parallel to a plane formed by the opposed side walls in a direction toward the connector section and in a direction away from the connector section. Has an engagement hook extending in the storage deck having at least one row of contacts a distance sufficient to engage a front end surface of a storage device connected to the at least one row of contacts; A second slide plate disposed near a storage deck having at least two contact rows arranged therein;
The second slide plate is slidable on a second plane parallel to a plane formed by the opposed side walls in a direction toward the connector section and in a direction away from the connector section. The storage hook according to claim 1, further comprising an engagement hook extending in the storage deck having the two contact rows, a distance sufficient to engage a front end face of a storage device connected to one of the at least two contact rows. The connector device as described.