CN216118662U

CN216118662U - Clamping mechanism

Info

Publication number: CN216118662U
Application number: CN202122806085.0U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 吕玉清; 王磊; 李晓伟; 齐浩宇
Original assignee: Cooler Master Technology Inc
Current assignee: Cooler Master Technology Inc
Priority date: 2021-11-16
Filing date: 2021-11-16
Publication date: 2022-03-22
Anticipated expiration: 2031-11-16

Abstract

A card fixing mechanism is suitable for being arranged on a shell and used for fixing at least one expansion card. The clamping mechanism comprises a fixing piece, an operating piece, a pressing piece and an elastic piece. The fixing member includes a fixing frame and a supporting body. The fixing frame body is used for being fixed on the machine shell. The bearing body is connected with the fixed frame body and is used for bearing at least one expansion card. The operating piece is pivoted on the fixing frame body of the fixing piece. The pressing piece is pivoted on the operating piece. One end of the elastic piece is fixed on the fixing frame body of the fixing piece, and the other end of the elastic piece is fixed on the pressing piece. The operating member can rotate relative to the fixing member and drive the pressing member to rotate relative to the fixing member so as to press against or separate from at least one expansion card.

Description

Clamping mechanism

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a fastening mechanism, and more particularly, to a fastening mechanism that can be assembled without using a tool.

Background

With the development and progress of electronic technology, the development trend of electronic devices is moving toward strong computing function, fast speed and small size, in other words, the electronic devices need to have competitiveness, and besides fast speed and strong performance, the electronic devices also need to have the advantages of lightness, thinness, miniaturization, continuous expansion, and the like.

With the reduction of the volume of the electronic device, the internal space of the electronic device is also limited, so that when the access device or the expansion interface card is to be installed or replaced, the internal space available for operation is further limited. In a conventional electronic device, a fixed access device or a PCIe card (peripheral component interconnect express) is usually connected and locked by a fixing bracket, and then the fixing bracket is connected and locked with a housing of the electronic device, so that the access device or the PCIe card can be stably disposed inside the electronic device. In the conventional method, screws are directly used for connection and locking.

However, the process of locking screws requires aligning the screws with the screw holes and then locking them, which requires a lot of labor and time, and the screws are locked in a narrow space. If the screw is accidentally dropped, it is difficult to pick up the dropped screw, and if the screw is dropped and lost during the locking process, or even if the screw and the screw hole are not of the same size, or if the force is applied too much during the locking process, the corresponding screw hole is damaged …, etc., the subsequent operations of setting and replacing the access device or the PCIe card cannot be performed smoothly.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The present invention provides a fixing mechanism to achieve the installation of the expansion card without using tools.

The fixing mechanism disclosed in one embodiment of the present invention is suitable for being installed in a chassis and used for fixing at least one expansion card. The clamping mechanism comprises a fixing piece, an operating piece, a pressing piece and an elastic piece. The fixing member includes a fixing frame and a supporting body. The fixing frame body is used for being fixed on the machine shell. The bearing body is connected with the fixed frame body and is used for bearing at least one expansion card. The operating piece is pivoted on the fixing frame body of the fixing piece. The pressing piece is pivoted on the operating piece. One end of the elastic piece is fixed on the fixing frame body of the fixing piece, and the other end of the elastic piece is fixed on the pressing piece. The operating member can rotate relative to the fixing member and drive the pressing member to rotate relative to the fixing member so as to press against or separate from at least one expansion card.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the electronic device further includes a first locking portion and a second locking portion, the first locking portion and the second locking portion have a concave-convex structure matching with each other, the supporting body has a supporting surface and a back surface opposite to each other, the supporting surface is used for supporting the at least one expansion card, the first locking portion is disposed on the supporting body and protrudes out of the back surface, and the second locking portion is disposed on the operating element and is used for locking the first locking portion.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the fastening device further includes a first pivot and a second pivot, the operating element is pivotally disposed on the fixing element through the first pivot, the pressing element is pivotally disposed on the operating element through the second pivot, and when the second locking portion is locked to the first locking portion, a central connection line between the first pivot and the second pivot is not perpendicular to a normal direction of the supporting surface.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a combination relationship between the second locking portion and the first locking portion is an interference fit.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the expansion card further includes at least one positioning element, the at least one positioning element is disposed on the carrier and protrudes from the carrier, and the at least one positioning element is used for positioning a baffle of the at least one expansion card.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the at least one positioning element is locked to the supporting body.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the electronic device further includes a first limiting member and a second limiting member, the first limiting member is used to connect to the housing, the second limiting member is connected to the pressing member, the operating member can rotate between an open position and a clamping position, when the operating member is located at the open position, the second locking portion is separated from the first locking portion, and the pressing member is separated from the at least one expansion card, when the operating member is located at the clamping position, the second locking portion is locked to the first locking portion, and the pressing member presses the at least one expansion card, when the operating member rotates from the open position to the clamping position, the first limiting member stops the second limiting member, so that the pressing member and the operating member are folded.

In an embodiment of the utility model, when the operating element is located at the open position, the pressing element abuts against the operating element, so that the operating element is located at the open position.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the electronic device further includes a first positioning protrusion and a second positioning protrusion, the first positioning protrusion is used to be fixed to the housing, the second positioning protrusion is fixed to the operating element, and when the operating element is located at the open position, the first positioning protrusion is located on a rotation path of the second positioning protrusion to stop the second positioning protrusion.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a combination relationship between the first positioning protrusion and the second positioning protrusion is an interference fit.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the elastic member is an extension spring, and the elastic member is stretched and deformed along a stretching direction, and when the operating member is located at the fastening position, the stretching direction is parallel to a normal direction of the bearing surface.

In an embodiment of the utility model, the pressing member includes a pressing frame body and a flexible pad, the pressing frame body is pivoted to the operating member, and the flexible pad is fixed to the pressing frame body and presses against the at least one expansion card.

According to the clamping mechanism of the above embodiment, through the design that the operating part is pivotally arranged on the fixing part, the pressing part is pivotally arranged on the operating part, and the elastic part is connected with the fixing part and the pressing part, when a user wants to install or remove the expansion card, the pressing part and the supporting body of the fixing part can clamp the baffle of the expansion card together only through the operation of the operating part and the driving of the operating part to the pressing part to rotate relative to the fixing part. Therefore, the user can install the expansion card without a tool.

The foregoing summary of the utility model and the following detailed description of the embodiments are provided to illustrate and explain the principles of the utility model and to provide further explanation of the utility model as claimed.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a fastening mechanism and an expansion card mounted on a housing according to a first embodiment of the utility model;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the operating member of the clamping mechanism of FIG. 1 shown open;

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

FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of FIG. 2;

fig. 6 to 8 are operation schematic diagrams of the locking mechanism of fig. 1.

[ notation ] to show

10: clamping mechanism

20: casing (CN)

30: expansion card

32: baffle plate

34: card body

100: fixing piece

110: fixed frame

120: supporting body

121: bearing surface

122: back side of the panel

123: combining hole

200: operating element

300: pressing piece

310: support pressing frame

311: first side surface

312: second side surface

320: flexible pad

400: elastic piece

510: first pivot

520: second pivot

610: first buckle part

620: second fastening part

700: locating piece

810: first position limiting part

820: second position limiting part

910: a first positioning convex part

920: second positioning convex part

E1-E4: direction of stretching

A to C: direction of rotation

L: center connecting line

N: normal direction

Detailed Description

Please refer to fig. 1 to 5. Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a fixing mechanism 10 and an expansion card 30 mounted on a housing 20 according to a first embodiment of the utility model. Fig. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the operating member 200 of the fastening mechanism 10 of fig. 1 opened. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of fig. 2 from another angle. Fig. 4 is a partially exploded view of fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of fig. 2.

The fixing mechanism 10 of the present embodiment is suitable for being installed on a housing 20 and fixing at least one expansion card 30 in a screw-lock-free manner. The fastening mechanism 10 includes a fixing member 100, an operating member 200, a pressing member 300 and an elastic member 400. In addition, the fastening mechanism 10 may further include a first pivot 510 and a second pivot 520.

The fixing member 100 includes a fixing frame 110 and a supporting body 120. The fixing frame 110 is fixed to the housing 20 by an assembling method such as a snap fit, a welding, a riveting, a locking, etc. The carrier 120 is connected to the fixing frame 110 and is used for carrying at least one expansion card 30. The number of the expansion cards 30 carried by the carrier 120 is proportional to the width of the carrier 120.

The fixing frame 110 and the supporting body 120 of the fixing member 100 are integrally formed, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the fixing frame and the supporting body of the fixing member may be formed by combining two independent members.

The operating member 200 is made of plastic or metal, for example. The operation member 200 is pivoted to the fixing frame 110 of the fixing member 100 through a first pivot 510, for example.

The material of the pressing member 300 is, for example, plastic or metal. The pressing member 300 includes a pressing frame 310 and a flexible pad 320. The pressing frame 310 is pivoted to the operating member 200 through the second pivot 520, and has a first side 311 and a second side 312 opposite to each other. The flexible pad 320 is, for example, a silicone pad or a rubber pad. The flexible pad 320 is fixed on the second side 312 of the pressing frame 310 and presses against the expansion card 30 mounted on the carrier 120.

The elastic element 400 is, for example, an extension spring, one end of the elastic element 400 is fixed to the fixing frame 110 of the fixing element 100, and the other end of the elastic element 400 is fixed to the pressing element 300. In this way, during the rotation of the operation element 200 relative to the fixing element 100, the operation element 200 can drive the pressing element 300 to rotate relative to the fixing element 100 through the elastic force of the elastic element 400.

In the present embodiment, the carrier 120 has a carrying surface 121 and a back surface 122 opposite to each other. The carrying surface 121 is used for carrying the expansion card 30. The fastening mechanism 10 may further include a first fastening portion 610 and a second fastening portion 620, and the first fastening portion 610 and the second fastening portion 620 have a concave-convex structure matching with each other to be fastened together. In detail, the first fastening portion 610 is, for example, a ball rivet and has a ball-shaped protruding structure. The first locking portion 610 is disposed on the carrier 120 by riveting, and the spherical protrusion protrudes from the back surface 122. The second latching portion 620 is integrally connected to the operating element 200, and has a groove structure. The second locking portion 620 is used to lock with the first locking portion 610.

In the embodiment, the first fastening portion 610 having the protruding structure and the second fastening portion 620 having the recessed structure are respectively disposed on the carrier 120 and the operation element 200, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the positions of the first locking portion with the protruding structure and the second locking portion with the recessed structure may also be reversed, that is, the first locking portion with the protruding structure and the second locking portion with the recessed structure are respectively disposed on the operating element and the carrier.

In the present embodiment, the first locking portion 610 is disposed on the carrier 120 by riveting, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the first locking portion can be disposed on the carrier by a combination method such as locking, screwing, or protruding portion. In addition, the second locking portion 620 is integrally connected to the operating element 200, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the second locking portion can also be assembled to the operating element in a combined manner.

In this embodiment, the carrier 120 may further have a plurality of combining holes 123. The combining hole 123 penetrates the carrying surface 121 and the back surface 122. The fixing mechanism 10 may further include a plurality of positioning elements 700, for example, each positioning element 700 is disposed in the combining hole 123 of the carrier 120 by screwing, and at least partially protrudes from the carrier surface 121, so as to position the expansion card 30. In detail, the expansion card 30 includes a baffle 32 and a card body 34. The baffle 32 is fixed on one side of the card body 34, and the baffle 32 has a through hole for the positioning member 700 to pass through. Therefore, when the baffle 32 of the expansion card 30 is fitted on the positioning member 700, the expansion card 30 can be positioned on the carrier 120 through the positioning member 700.

In the embodiment, the combination hole 123 of the carrier 120 penetrates through the carrying surface 121 and the back surface 122, and is a through hole, for example, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the combination hole of the carrier body can be a blind hole.

In the present embodiment, the number of the positioning members 700 is plural, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the number of the positioning elements may be matched to the number of the expansion cards, for example, if the number of the expansion cards is single, the number of the positioning elements may be single.

In the present embodiment, the positioning element 700 is disposed on the carrier 120 by screwing, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the positioning element may be disposed on the carrier by riveting, fastening, pressing, welding, or the like.

In the present embodiment, the fixing mechanism 10 may further include a first limiting member 810 and a second limiting member 820, for example. The first position-limiting member 810 is made of metal, for example, and is integrally connected to the housing 20. The second position-limiting member 820 is made of plastic, for example, and is integrally connected to the pressing member 300.

In the embodiment, the first position-limiting member 810 is made of metal, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the material of the first position-limiting member can be plastic or other materials. If the material of the first position-limiting member is changed to plastic, the first position-limiting member is disposed on the housing by, for example, a cladding injection method. In addition, in the embodiment, the second position limiting member 820 is made of plastic, but not limited thereto. In other embodiments, the material of the second position-limiting member may also be changed to metal or other materials. If the second position-limiting member and the pressing member are made of metal, the second position-limiting member is integrally connected to the pressing member through a metal plate bending technique.

In this embodiment, the fastening mechanism 10 may further include a first positioning protrusion 910 and a second positioning protrusion 920. The first positioning protrusion 910 is integrally connected to the housing 20, for example. The second positioning protrusion 920 is fixed to the operating member 200. The first positioning protrusion 910 is located on the rotation path of the second positioning protrusion 920 to stop the second positioning protrusion 920, and the combination relationship of the first positioning protrusion 910 and the second positioning protrusion 920 is interference fit.

Please refer to fig. 5 to 8. Fig. 6 to 8 are operation schematic diagrams of the locking mechanism 10 in fig. 1.

The operating member 200 is rotatable between an open position (shown in FIG. 5) and a retaining position (shown in FIG. 8). In detail, as shown in fig. 5, when the operating element 200 is located at the open position, the second latching portion 620 is disengaged from the first latching portion 610, and the pressing member 300 is disengaged from the expansion card 30 and the carrier 120. In addition, when the operating element 200 is located at the open position, the elastic element 400 is stretched along the direction E1, and the first side 311 of the pressing element 300 abuts against the operating element to counteract the elastic force of the elastic element 400 so that the operating element 200 is maintained at the open position. In this way, the user can fix the operating element 200 at the open position without holding the operating element 200 by hand, and take the expansion card 30 out of the fixing element 100 or install the expansion card 30 in the fixing element 100.

Then, when the expansion card 30 is assembled or disassembled, as shown in fig. 6, the user can press the operating element 200 in the direction a, so that the operating element 200 rotates relative to the fixing element 100, and the second positioning protrusion 920 of the operating element 200 rotates beyond the first positioning protrusion 910, so as to release the stop positioning effect between the first positioning protrusion 910 and the second positioning protrusion 920. In addition, the elastic element 400 is deformed along the direction E2, and the pressing element 300 is driven to rotate along the direction B by the elastic force of the elastic element 400.

Next, as shown in fig. 7, the user can continue to press the operating element 200 in the direction a, so that in the process of rotating the operating element 200 from the open position to the fastening position, the first limiting member 810 stops the second limiting member 820, so that the pressing member 300 and the operating element 200 are folded, and the flexible pad 320 of the pressing member 300 starts to press the baffle 32 of the expansion card 30. If the expansion card 30 is not disposed on the carrier 120, the flexible pad 320 of the pressing element 300 is pressed against the carrier 120. In addition, when the second limiting member 820 of the pressing member 300 is stopped by the first limiting member 810, the pressing member 300 rotates relative to the fixing member 100 along the direction C and drives the elastic member 400 to stretch and deform along the direction E3.

Next, as shown in fig. 8, the user can continue to press the operating element 200 in the direction a until the second locking portion 620 is locked to the first locking portion 610, so that the operating element 200 is located at the locking position, and the flexible pad 320 of the pressing member 300 can press the expansion card 30 to fix the expansion card 30 to the carrier 120.

In addition, when the operating element 200 is located at the fastening position, the central connection line L between the first pivot 510 and the second pivot 520 is not perpendicular to the normal direction N of the supporting surface 121, and the stretching direction E4 of the elastic element 400 is parallel to the normal direction N of the supporting surface 121, so that the second fastening part 620 located on the operating element 200 is fastened to the first fastening part 610 located on the carrier 120 more tightly by applying the non-uniform stress direction.

As can be seen from the operation of the above-mentioned locking mechanism 10, when a user wants to install the expansion card 30 or remove the expansion card 30, the pressing member 300 and the supporting body 120 of the fixing member 100 can clamp the baffle 32 of the expansion card 30 together only by the operation of the operating member 200 and the operation of the operating member 200 driving the pressing member 300 to rotate relative to the fixing member 100. Thus, the user can complete the installation of the expansion card 30 without the need of screw locking.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it should be understood that various changes and modifications can be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the utility model.

Claims

1. A kind of card fixing mechanism, characterized by, suitable for installing in a chassis and is used for fixing at least one expansion card, the card fixing mechanism includes:

a fixing member, including a fixing frame and a carrier, the fixing frame is used for fixing to the casing, the carrier is connected to the fixing frame and is used for carrying the at least one expansion card;

the operating piece is pivoted on the fixed frame body of the fixed piece;

a pressing piece pivoted to the operating piece; and

one end of the elastic piece is fixed on the fixing frame body of the fixing piece, and the other end of the elastic piece is fixed on the pressing piece;

the operating member can rotate relative to the fixing member and drive the pressing member to rotate relative to the fixing member so as to press against or separate from the at least one expansion card.

2. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a first locking portion and a second locking portion, wherein the first locking portion and the second locking portion have a concave-convex structure matching with each other, the carrier has a carrying surface and a back surface opposite to each other, the carrying surface is used for carrying the at least one expansion card, the first locking portion is disposed on the carrier and protrudes from the back surface, and the second locking portion is disposed on the operating member and is used for locking the first locking portion.

3. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a first pivot and a second pivot, wherein the operating member is pivotally disposed on the fixing member through the first pivot, the pressing member is pivotally disposed on the operating member through the second pivot, and when the second locking portion is locked to the first locking portion, a central connecting line of the first pivot and the second pivot is not perpendicular to a normal direction of the supporting surface.

4. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 2, wherein the combination relationship between the second locking portion and the first locking portion is an interference fit.

5. The locking mechanism of claim 2, further comprising at least one positioning member disposed on the carrier and protruding from the carrier, the at least one positioning member being used for positioning a baffle of the at least one expansion card.

6. The locking mechanism according to claim 5, wherein the at least one positioning element is locked to the carrier.

7. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 2, further comprising a first position-limiting member and a second position-limiting member, the first position-limiting member being connected to the housing, the second position-limiting member being connected to the pressing member, the operating member being capable of rotating between an open position and a locking position, when the operating member is located at the open position, the second locking portion being disengaged from the first locking portion, and the pressing member being disengaged from the at least one expansion card, when the operating member is located at the locking position, the second locking portion being locked to the first locking portion, and the pressing member being pressed against the at least one expansion card, and when the operating member rotates from the open position to the locking position, the first position-limiting member stops the second position-limiting member, so that the pressing member and the operating member are folded.

8. The clamping mechanism according to claim 7, wherein when the operating member is located at the open position, the pressing member abuts against the operating member to position the operating member at the open position.

9. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 7, further comprising a first positioning protrusion and a second positioning protrusion, the first positioning protrusion is used to be fixed to the housing, the second positioning protrusion is fixed to the operating member, and when the operating member is located at the open position, the first positioning protrusion is located on a rotation path of the second positioning protrusion to stop at the second positioning protrusion.

10. The fastening mechanism according to claim 9, wherein the first positioning protrusion and the second positioning protrusion are assembled by interference fit.

11. The locking mechanism as claimed in claim 7, wherein the elastic member is an extension spring, and the elastic member is stretched and deformed along a stretching direction, and the stretching direction is parallel to a normal direction of the bearing surface when the operating member is located at the locking position.

12. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the pressing member includes a pressing frame and a flexible pad, the pressing frame is pivotally disposed on the operating member, and the flexible pad is fixed to the pressing frame and presses against the at least one expansion card.