FR3051096A1 - HOUSING FOR FIXING AN ELECTRONIC APPARATUS ON A CARRIAGE - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a housing (1) for receiving an electronic device, said housing (1) comprising - an upper shell (11); - a lower shell (12) comprising a bottom (121) and being fitted into the upper shell (11) so as to form a receiving housing (110) for the electronic apparatus, and at least one fixing means (123) , 130, 113) for fixing the housing to a handle of a carriage; According to the invention, the upper shell (11) and the lower shell (12) are arranged in such a way that the lower shell (12) fits into the upper shell (11) by tilting of said lower shell (12). ) with respect to one side of the upper shell (11).

Description

HOUSING FOR FIXING AN ELECTRONIC APPARATUS ON A

TROLLEY

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to a housing adapted to accommodate an electronic device, in particular a touch pad and which can be attached to a handle of an individual carriage handle. The term "individual handle trolley" means a structure mounted on a rolling element which can be moved by pushing or pulling by an individual while walking and which is configured to support loads such as parcels, racing products, in particular to be used in store, especially in the supermarket. Unless otherwise indicated, the individual handle trolley is hereinafter referred to as the trolley. State of the art

It is becoming increasingly common for retail chains, through mobile applications, to inform a customer about current promotions, information about a particular product or simply the customer loyalty points. To facilitate access to this information, a customer, before starting his shopping, can bring a touch pad displaying this information.

Utility model DE8701440 discloses a housing for receiving a pocket calculator. This housing comprises an upper shell, a lower shell having a calculator support bottom and a third fastener. The upper shell slides relative to the lower shell between a closed position and an open position of the housing. To attach the housing to the handle of a carriage, the third attachment part encompasses the underside of the handle and is fixed by screwing to the lower shell which is placed on the top of the handle.

However, this casing has the disadvantage of having an additional piece, in addition to the shells, to fix the casing on the handle. Such a multi-piece housing requires a complex and therefore expensive manufacturing process. In addition, the upper shell cooperates with the lower shell by sliding, which implies a relatively complex mechanism.

In this context, the technical problem that aims to solve the invention is to simplify the attachment of an electronic device, including an electronic tablet on a carriage.

General Description of the Invention The invention relates to a housing for receiving an electronic device, said housing comprising an upper shell; a lower shell comprising a bottom and being fitted into the upper shell so as to form a receiving housing for the electronic device, and at least one fixing means for fixing the housing on a handle of a single handle trolley ;

According to the invention, the upper shell and the lower shell are arranged so that the lower shell fits into the upper shell by tilting of said lower shell relative to one side of the upper shell.

Thus, the interlocking of the lower shell in the upper shell is by a simple tilting and it requires no additional parts in addition to the shells for securing said housing on the carriage. It is therefore a quick and simple assembly of the two hulls. In addition, the housing, with the lower shell nested in the upper shell, is fixed on the handle of the carriage through the fastening means. In this way the lower shell is blocked by the upper face of the handle and it no longer tilts relative to the upper shell. We thus obtain a good maintenance of the housing on the handle of the carriage.

According to an advantageous but optional feature of the invention, the housing comprises a first fixing means and a second fixing means. Thus, the two fastening means make it possible to improve the safety of maintaining the casing on the handle.

According to another advantageous but optional feature of the invention, the lower shell comprises a first fixing means defining a receiving location for receiving at least an upper portion of the handle.

Advantageously but optionally, the first fixing means is fixedly mounted on the bottom of the lower shell. Thus, the bottom and the first attachment means form a single assembly, which is convenient for handling the assembly during assembly of the housing. The fixing means may be fixed to the bottom by screwing, welding or any other means known to those skilled in the art.

According to an advantageous but not optional feature of the invention, the first fastening means is a U-shaped piece. Thus, the U-shaped piece can be square or rounded to accommodate different shapes of the handle such as the flat handle. or the cylindrical handle.

Advantageously but optionally, the upper part comprises an extension extending beyond the lower shell and the extension carries a second fixing means is at a distance and facing the first fixing means.

According to an advantageous but optional feature of the invention, the second fixing means comprises a member movable between a retracted position and an extended position in which the movable member is located opposite the home position of the first fixing means so as to form a space for receiving the handle once the housing is placed on the carriage; the handle, housed in said space, being clamped between the first and second fixing means. In other words, once the handle is housed in such a space, it is gripped by the first and second fastening means. Thus, these fastening means, as arranged, ensure a good tightening of the housing to the handle.

Advantageously but optionally, the movable element is connected to a lock cooperating with a key so that the movable element changes from the recessed position to the deployed position or vice versa by a rotation of the key inserted in the lock. Thus, once the mobile element is deployed by the action of the key and a responsible for the sign removes the key, the housing is both secured and secure on the carriage. A person of bad faith can not easily remove the cart housing unless it has the correct key.

According to an advantageous but optional feature, the movable element is a pivoting bar relative to the extension of the upper shell.

Alternatively, the movable element is a spring bolt.

The pivot bar or the spring bolt are easy to find elements in the trade while remaining effective to secure the housing to the handle.

According to an advantageous but optional feature of the invention, the housing comprises an anti-tilt means adapted to hold together the lower shell and the upper shell. Thus, the lower shell, once fitted into the lower shell but not yet installed on the handle, remains attached to the upper shell. This has the advantage of facilitating the grip of the housing as a whole to install on the handle.

Advantageously but optionally, the lower and upper shells are made of metal or plastic. The material of these hulls is chosen according to the criteria of the sign. For example, the metal housings are chosen for their rigidity or the plastic housings are chosen for their lightness. The invention also relates to an individual carriage with a handle comprising a housing according to the invention, the housing being fixed on the handle of the carriage.

Advantageously but optionally, the fastening means is arranged to press the lower shell against an upper face of the handle.

Brief description of the figures

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a first embodiment of a housing according to the invention in an assembled state;

Figure 2 shows a schematic sectional view of the housing of Figure 1 attached to a handle of a carriage;

Figures 3A to 3C show the handle of a carriage for receiving the housing of Figure 1, respectively in perspective view, in rear view and in front view;

FIG. 4A and FIG. 4B show the handle of the shopping trolley of FIGS. 3A to 3B, with the housing according to the invention mounted on it, respectively seen from above and viewed from below;

Figure 5A and Figure 5B show a front view and a side view of an upper shell of the housing of Figure 1;

Figure 6A and Figure 6B show a front view and a side view of a lower shell of the housing of Figure 1;

Figure 7A and Figure 7B respectively show an assembly of the housing of Figure 1, wherein the lower shell is tilted relative to the upper shell;

FIG. 7C shows the casing of FIG. 1, after the tilting of FIGS. 7A and 7B, provided with an anti-tilt means and a shim;

Figure 8 shows a schematic sectional view of a second embodiment of the housing according to the invention.

Detailed description of the invention

FIG. 1 represents an exemplary embodiment of a housing 1 according to the invention. The casing 1 is intended to be fixed on a flat portion of a handle 2 of a race carriage, such as that illustrated in FIGS. 3A to 3C.

Figures 2, 4A and 4B illustrate the housing attached to the handle 2. These figures also illustrate a portion of a shopping trolley 4 according to the invention.

In order to make it possible to see the lower shell 12 and the fixing means of the housing 1, the latter is shown upside down in FIG. 1, whereas it is shown in the place in FIG.

The housing 1 comprises an upper shell 11 enveloping a lower shell 12 from above.

The lower shell 12 comprises a bottom 121, configured to receive an electronic device, in this example an electronic tablet 3, including touch. For clarity, the touch pad 3 is not shown in Figures 1 and 2.

According to the invention, as in this example, the carriage 4 comprises a basket 41 for placing the purchases of a customer from a store. The flat portion 21 may be generally in the middle of the handle 2, allowing the customer to grasp the round portions of the latter on either side of the flat portion 21.

The lower shell 12 also comprises a U-shaped piece 123 which forms a receiving location 124 adapted to accommodate at least one upper face 21 of the flat portion 24 of the handle 2. In this example, the U-shaped piece 123 is welded to the back of the bottom 121. Of course, these two elements can be connected by other means such as by screwing or clipping.

The lower shell 12 and the upper shell 11 may be metal.

They may be of polymeric material, such as a plastic material. In this case, the U-shaped piece 123 and the bottom 121 can be integrally formed in one piece.

The upper shell 11 and the lower shell 12 are respectively illustrated in Figures 5A, 5B and 6A, 6B.

The upper shell 11 includes an opening 111 to reveal the screen of the touch pad 3 once it is installed inside the housing 1, as can be seen in Figure 4A. The upper shell 11 further comprises an extension 112 which extends beyond the lower shell 12, so downwards when the box 1 is positioned on the flat portion 24. The extension 112 carries a pivot bar 113 around a pivot axis A and associated with said extension 112. The bar 113 is movable between a recessed position and an extended position. In FIGS. 1 and 2, the bar 113 is in the deployed position and is facing the home location 124. The space 23 defined between the bar 113 and the U-shaped part 123 corresponds to the volume of the flat portion 24 of the handle 2.

When the housing 1 is placed on the flat portion 24 of the handle 2, this flat portion 24 is housed in the space 23, and is clamped both at its upper face 21 by the U-shaped part 123 and at its underside. 22 by the bar 113. This double tightening makes it possible to hold the casing 1 firmly on the carriage, by taking the flat portion in a vice

The housing 1 further comprises a shim 13 for adjusting the position of the lower shell 12 relative to the upper shell 11 so that the main part of the screen of the tablet 3 is clearly visible from the outside through the opening 111.

Furthermore, to prevent the lower shell 12 from tilting in the direction allowing it to separate from the upper shell 11, when the housing 1 is manipulated while it is not fixed on the carriage 3, the housing 1 can comprise, as in this example, a bracket 14. The latter is pressed against the lower shell 12. The bracket 14 is screwed to the wedge 13 by means of a screw 15. In another example, the bracket 14 can be replaced by a male-female type of cooperation means for securing the lower shell 12 to the upper shell 11. In a different example, the wedge 13 and the bracket 14 can be made of a single block.

To aid in the understanding of the invention, in this document, the terms "up", "down" "superior", "lower", "below", "above", "forward", "back" are defined relative at the position of the housing in which it is intended to be fixed on the carriage, Γ "back" being the side where is positioned in this case a user pushing the carriage with the handle. To facilitate the understanding of these orientations, in some figures the X, Y and Z axes are represented. The X axis defines a longitudinal orientation, from back to front, the Y axis defines a transverse orientation, or from one side to the other side, and the Z axis defines a vertical orientation, either from the bottom to the top.

As can be seen in FIGS. 3A to 3C, the flat portion 24 may comprise a flat or slightly rounded rear edge 25 and a front edge 26, having a shoulder 27.

The U-shaped part 123 comprises a first branch 125 and a second branch 126 connected by a transverse plate 127. In this example, this transverse plate 127 is welded to the bottom face of the bottom 121 of the second shell 12. .

This first branch 125 and this second branch 126 form a rear stop and a front of the flat portion 24 of the handle 2. The distance between these two branches is particularly adapted to the width of the flat portion 24.

The flat portion 24 of the handle 2 comprises in this example a shoulder 27, formed by a groove 28, having side edges 28a and 28b, visible in Figure 3C.

The second branch 126 of the part U 123, comprises a return 128 located at a distance and vis-à-vis the location 124.

When fixing the housing 1 on the flat portion 24 of the handle 2, the return 128 is housed in the groove 28, then the housing 1 is folded over the flat portion 24, then the bar 113 is actuated, passing under against the lower face 22 of the flat portion 24 of the handle 2.

Thus, once attached to the carriage 3, in this example, not only the flat portion 24 is tightened both at its upper face 21 by the U-shaped piece 123 and at its lower face 22 by the bar 113, but also at its face. lower 21 by the return 128, at the shoulder 27.

According to the invention, and as in this example, the handle can be clamped by the housing in three locations, especially below back and forward and up.

According to the invention, the lower shell 12 comprises a first fastening means intended to clamp the handle on its upper face 21 and its lower face 22. In this example, the first fastening means is therefore formed by the U-shaped piece 123, and in particular his return 128.

The return 128, may comprise, as here side edges 128a and 128b which cooperates with the side edges 28a and 28b of the groove, which thus form lateral stops to block the translational movement of the housing 1 relative to the flat portion 24.

According to the invention, the upper shell 11 may comprise a second fastening means for clamping the handle on its upper face 21 and its lower face 22. In this example, the first fastening means is thus formed by bar 113 as previously described. .

According to the invention, the housing can therefore comprise the first and second attachment means, one on the lower shell and the other on the upper shell. The two fastening means can be arranged to together secure the housing 1.

The fact of distributing these two attachment means each on one of the shells allows to leave more freedom in the dimensions of the shells. In particular, by placing the first fixing means on the lower shell 12, it allows the bottom 121 to be extended behind the second branch of the "U", thus facilitating the housing thereof in the upper shell and the tilting assembly of the hulls together. It also allows a better hulls plating between them thanks to the second fastening means on the upper shell, including its extension 112. This will appear more in the explanations of the mounting hulls 11 and 12 that will follow.

As can be seen in FIG. 7C, once the hulls 11 and 12 have been assembled together, the shelf 3 is sandwiched between the edges 114, 115 of the opening 111 of the upper shell 11 and the bottom 121 of the lower shell. 12.

To obtain this assembly, the bottom 121 of the lower shell 12 is inserted into a rotational housing 116 that comprises the upper shell 12. Here the rotational housing 116 is located at the front of the upper shell 12. It is for example formed between the front edge 114 of the opening 111, a front edge 118 of the upper shell 11 and a flange 117 of the front edge 118, located opposite the front edge 114 of the opening 111.

This rotational housing 116 is dimensioned so as to allow the diagonal insertion, as in FIG. 7A, of the lower shell 12, then the tilting thereof towards the opening of the upper shell 11, while having a minimum play once the lower shell 12 tilted, as in Figure 7B.

Then, the wedge 13 and the bracket 14 can be assembled to the shell to prevent play.

This allows simple assembly with a minimum of parts.

This tilting arrangement also has another advantage.

As can be seen in FIG. 2, once the bar 113 has been deployed, the bar clamps the handle under the lower face 21 of its flat portion 24. Thus, by the same pivoting action, the bar 113 causes a moment on the rim 117 of the upper shell, resulting in the three-point clamping of the two hulls together: under the rear of the lower hull 12 with the rim 117 of the upper hull 11, above the lower hull 12 with the edges 114 of the opening 111, and under the handle 2. The handle 2 thus plate, because of the bar 113, the lower shell 12 against the upper shell 11.

Thus, once the housing 1 fixed on the carriage 3, the tilting of the lower shell 12 relative to the upper shell 13 can no longer be achieved, it being blocked at the top by the upper shell 11, bottom by the 2. The fixing is safe, thus avoiding a risk of accidental opening of the housing and the fall of the tablet 3.

As illustrated, the bar 113 may be the latch of a latch 130 mounted in the extension 112. This latch is actuated via a lock 131. Thus, to pass the bar in the withdrawal position as in Figure 7C before attachment to the carriage, it is necessary to have a key. As a result, the attachment of the tablet to the carriage is secured.

Thus, this housing can be used for example in the store, the shelf being mounted in the housing beforehand by a store staff.

If a customer wants to use the tablet, he can pay a deposit. The staff then attaches the case to the handle and locks it and holds the key.

The customer can then walk in the store with the cart, without risk that a third party steals the tablet without his knowledge, and so loses his deposit.

Once the purchases are completed, the staff recovers the box 1 containing the tablet 3 and returns the deposit.

The staff does not need to disassemble the hulls except to repair a faulty tablet.

The upper shell 11 may comprise, according to the invention and as illustrated in FIG. 5B, a notch 133 allowing the passage of a feed connector (not shown) of the tablet 3, arranged so as to allow feeding of this last without disassembling hulls 11 and 12.

Moreover, the upper shell 11 may comprise a first lumen 132, making it possible to place the front lens of the tablet vis-à-vis this first light 132.

Thus, when the customer circulates in the store, this front lens can capture the light rays. Therefore, it is possible a software that processes the reception of light signals by this front lens. For example, it is possible to emit Lifi signals into the store, ie emissions in modulated visible light to carry a signal. The tablet will capture this signal and may return information to the customer, such as current promotions and their location.

According to the example illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, the upper shell 11 has a length h along the axis Y, a width pi along the axis X and a thickness ei along the axis Z. In this example, the upper shell 11a has a length h of 208 mm, a width pi of 150 mm and a thickness ei of 64 mm. In addition, the extension 112 has a width p'i along the X axis which here has a value of 32 mm.

The lower shell 11 may comprise an orifice 134 intended to face the rear objective of the tablet 3. The upper shell may comprise a second light 135 arranged opposite the orifice 134. in this example at the end of the extension 112. Thus once the tablet 3 mounted in the housing 1, its rear lens is aligned with the orifice 134 and the second light 135.

This allows, for example, to use the back lens to scan barcodes or loyalty cards.

According to the example illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the lower shell 12 has a length l2 along the Y axis and a width p2 along the X axis. In this example, the lower shell has a length l2 of 204 mm. p2 width of 139 mm.

The bottom 121 of the housing comprises a bottom wall 121a for receiving the back of the tablet. The bottom wall 121a has on one side the U-shaped part 123 and on the other side of the flanges 121b, to surround the edges of the tablet. The thickness β2 along the Z axis of the bottom wall 121a and the flanges 121b is 10 mm. The thickness e3, along the Z axis, of the U-shaped piece 123 on the rear side is 32 mm.

Of course, nothing prevents the skilled person to change the dimensions of the upper shell and the lower shell to suit suitably different sizes of tablet.

Figure 8 illustrates another embodiment, wherein the housing 201 differs from the previous differs by its first fastening means and by its second fastening means.

According to the invention, and as in this other example, the first fixing means is adapted to be fixed on a round portion of a handle 202 of a carriage, not shown.

This first fastening means is for example a collar 213 welded to the lower face of the bottom 221 of the lower shell 212. This collar comprises a cylindrical portion which surrounds the handle 202, and ends at two ends by flat legs coming into contact so as to tighten the collar around the handle 202.

In this example, the second fixing means is a latch 230 which is carried by an extension 312 of the upper shell 211, according to an arrangement identical to that of the previous example. However, this latch 230 is different in that it comprises clamping means 314 arranged on either side of the two flat tabs. The clamping means are actuated by the latch 230, by actuating the lock 231 thereof. Thus fixing and securing the housing to the lock is provided by these clamping means 314. These can be actuated by a pivot bar 313, which when it moves from its retracted position to its deployed position, illustrated in Figure 8 close the clamping means 314 to one another. I Box II Top Cover 110 Tablet Home III Opening 112 Extend 113 Swivel Bar 114 Front Edge of Opening 111 115 Back Edge of Opening 111 116 Swivel Housing 117 Front Edge Edge 118 118 Front Edge of Door upper hull 11 12 Lower hull 121 Bottom 121a Bottom wall 121b Bottom rims

123 U-Shaped 124 Home Location 125 First Branch (Behind) 126 Second Branch (Front) 127 Back Plate 128 Back 128a Side Edge of One Side 128b Side Edge of Second Side 130 Lock 131 Lock 132 First Light 133 Notch 134 Bottom Hole 135 Second Light 13 Shim 14 Bracket 15 Screw 2 Handle 21 Top of Handle 22 Bottom of Handle 23 Handle Area 24 Flat Portion of Handle 25 Back Edge of Flat Portion 26 Edge front of the flat portion 27 Shoulder 28 Groove 28a Side edge of a first side of the handle 28b Side edge of a second side of the handle 3 Touch pad 4 Cart 41 Basket A pivot axis 201 Box of a second embodiment 202 Carriage round handle 211 Upper housing 213 Clamp (first attachment) 212 Lower housing 221 Base 230 Lock (Second attachment) 231 Lock 3 12 Extension 313 Swivel bar 314 Clamping means

Claims (11)

A housing (1; 201) for receiving an electronic apparatus (3), said housing comprising an upper shell (11; 211); a lower shell (12; 212) having a bottom (121; 221) and being fitted into the upper shell (11; 211) so as to form a receiving housing (110) for the electronic apparatus (3), and at least one fastening means (123, 130, 113; 213, 230, 313) for fixing the housing to a handle (2; 102) of a carriage (4); said housing (1; 201) being characterized in that the upper shell (11; 211) and the lower shell (12; 212) are arranged in such a way that the lower shell (12; 212) fits into the shell upper (11; 211) by tilting said lower shell (12; 212) relative to a side of the upper shell (11; 211). 2. Housing according to claim 1 characterized in that the lower shell (12; 212) comprises a first fixing means (123; 213) defining a receiving location (124) intended to receive at least one upper face (21). of the handle (2; 202). 3. Housing according to claim 2 characterized in that the first fastening means (123; 213) is fixedly mounted on the bottom (121; 221) of the lower shell (12; 212). 4. Housing according to claim 2 or claim 3 characterized in that the first fixing means is a U-shaped piece (123). 5. Housing according to one of claims 2 to 4 characterized in that the upper shell (11; 211) comprises an extension (112; 312) extending beyond the lower shell (12; 212) and that the extension (112, 312) carries a second fastening means (130, 113; 230, 313) which is remote and facing the first fastening means (123; 213). 6. Housing according to claim 5 characterized in that the second fastening means (130, 113; 230, 313) comprises a movable element (113; 313) between a retracted position and an extended position in which the movable element ( 113; 313) is located opposite the receiving location (124) of the first fastening means (123) so as to form a space (23) for receiving the handle (2) once the casing (1) is placed on the carriage (4); the handle (2) housed in said space (23) being clamped between the first and second fastening means (123, 130, 113; 213, 230, 313). 7. Housing according to claim 6 characterized in that the movable element (113; 313) is connected to a lock (131; 231) intended to cooperate with a key so that the movable element (113; the retracted position in the deployed position or conversely by a rotation of the key inserted in the lock (131; 231). 8. Housing according to claims 6 or 7 characterized in that the movable member (113; 313) is a pivot bar relative to the extension (112; 312) of the upper shell (11; 211). 9. Housing according to one of claims 1 to 8 characterized in that it comprises an anti-tilt means (13) adapted to hold together the lower shell (12; 212) and the upper shell (11; 211) . 10. Individual handle trolley comprising a housing (1; 201) according to one of claims 1 to 9, said housing being fixed on the handle of said carriage. 11. Trolley according to claim 10 characterized in that the fastening means (123, 130, 113; 213, 230, 313) is arranged to press the lower shell (12; 212) against an upper face (21) of said handle (2; 202).