JP2001176607A - Insertion-ejection mechanism of flash memory card - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an insertion-ejection mechanism of flash memory card which scarcely affects the outer dimension of main body of portable information terminal device and realizes the insertion and extraction of flash memory card depending on a relatively simple structure. SOLUTION: A tray 5 moves horizontally without touching a main board 2 when the user pulls a lid 6 in the direction of an arrow holding the finger intact. At the same time, an ejector 4 fixed to the tray 5 by a lock 10 gets into an ejection opening 9 of a connector 3 while it moves horizontally, and a front end part 4a of the ejector 4 touches the side face of the flash memory card 8. When the user pulls the lid 6 in the direction of an arrow, the front end part 4a of the ejector 4 pushes the side face of the flash memory card 8, and the flash memory card 8 is pushed out from the connector 3.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism, and more particularly to a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism for realizing insertion / removal of a flash memory card with a connector having no ejector function.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In portable information terminals, miniaturization and thickness reduction are being promoted, and flash memory cards are used as storage media suitable for miniaturization and thickness reduction. Therefore, there is an increasing demand for a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism for attaching / detaching the flash memory card to / from a portable information terminal. A conventional portable information terminal having a connector without an ejector function has a flash memory card 104 as shown in FIG.
A cover portion 101 formed in a U-shape so as to be picked up with a thumb and an index finger when taking out the cover portion;
And a lid 102 with a rotating shaft capable of concealing this space. A portable information terminal using a connector having an ejector function by an eject button is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2B, a cover 101, a bottom 102 having an opening for securing a space for pressing an eject button 105 with a finger when taking out the flash memory card 104, and covering the opening of the bottom 102 are covered. And a lid 103 with a rotating shaft.

In the portable information terminal shown in FIG. 4A, a user opens the lid 103 having a rotating shaft to expose the flash memory card 104, and the flash memory card 104 is exposed. 104
The upper and lower surfaces can be pulled out with a finger. The mounting and storage of the flash memory card 104 are completed by performing the reverse operation. In the portable information terminal shown in FIG. 4B, when the cover 103 with the rotating shaft is opened and the eject button 105 is pressed with a finger, the flash memory card 1 is operated by the ejector function of the connector inside the terminal.
04 is protruded, and it becomes possible to pull it out with a finger. At the time of mounting, the flash memory card 104 is inserted into the opening of the bottom part 102 and the lid 103 with the rotating shaft is closed, whereby mounting and storage are completed.

[0004]

However, in the conventional flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism, in the case of FIG. 4A, the width X of the portable information terminal must be increased in order to secure a space to be pinched by a finger. There were challenges. In addition, in FIG. 4B, as a result of adopting a connector with an ejector function using an eject button, the width W of the opening is increased as compared with a connector without the eject button, and furthermore, space for a finger pressing the ejector button 105 must be secured. Therefore, there is a problem that the total length Y and the thickness Z of the portable information terminal must be increased.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism which has little influence on the external dimensions of the main body of the portable information terminal and can realize insertion / removal of the flash memory card with a relatively simple structure. That is.

[0006]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to the present invention is a connector to which an electrode terminal of an inserted flash memory card is connected, and one end of which is provided with the above-mentioned connector. A connector provided with a flash memory card insertion opening and a projection opening at the other end; a drawer tray arranged so that one main surface faces the connector; and one main surface of the drawer tray And an ejector that moves along the projecting opening in conjunction with the movement of the drawer tray and pushes out the inserted flash memory card. Preferably,
The drawer tray may further include a pressing spring for pressing the ejector against the connector. Further, the ejector comes into contact with one end of the projecting opening of the connector on the insertion port side and stops.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Next, a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, taking an example in which the present invention is applied to a portable information terminal.

FIGS. 1A to 1E are external views for explaining an insertion / removal operation of a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the portable information terminal for explaining a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a plan view of a lid portion of a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3B is a flash memory according to one embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a user puts a finger on a lid portion of the card insertion / removal mechanism, and FIGS.
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view for explaining an insertion / removal operation of the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention.

A flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention is a connector 3 to which an electrode terminal of a flash memory card 8 inserted is connected, and one end of the flash memory card insertion slot 3a. A connector 3 provided with a projecting opening 9 at the other end;
A drawer tray 5 having one main surface opposed to the connector 3, and a drawer tray 5 fixed to the one main surface of the drawer tray 5, being moved along the protrusion opening 9 in conjunction with the movement of the drawer tray 5. An ejector 4 that pushes out the inserted flash memory card by moving the ejector 4 and stops at the tip end 4a of the ejector opening 9 in contact with one end 9a of the opening 9a on the side of the insertion opening 3a. And characterized in that: further,
The drawer tray 5 has a pressing spring portion 23 whose outer side is formed of a sheet metal part, is disposed so as to surround the lower part of the connector 3 and the outer side of the left and right side surfaces, and acts to press the ejector 4 against the connector 3. ing. The connector 3 itself does not have the conventional ejector function, and is electrically connected to the electrode terminals of the flash memory card when the flash memory card 8 is inserted.

Further, a pair of contact springs 11 are formed on the one main surface of the drawer tray 5 to serve both as a countermeasure against static electricity to the mounted flash memory card 8 and as a stopper. Further, a fixed lock 10 for fixing the ejector 4 is formed on the one main surface of the drawer tray 5 so as to engage with the ejector 4. Further, the drawer tray 5 is curled at the front end thereof for the purpose of preventing injury, and a lid 6 is attached to the front end so as to be rotatable via rotary shafts 12 on both sides thereof. I have. This lid 6 is a lid 6
When the flash memory card 8 is closed,
The pushing rib 13 that acts to push the finger toward the side, the opening preventing claw 20 that prevents the closed lid 6 from opening naturally, and the first finger hook flap 21 that constitutes an H-shaped slit that improves finger catching And a second finger hanging flap 22. The first finger hook flap 21 is formed relatively thin, and the second finger hook flap 21 is formed relatively thick. The H-shaped slit is configured as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the portable information terminal employing the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a liquid crystal 24 for displaying character image information and the like. The main board 2 on which the connector 3 is mounted, the connector 3, the ejector 4, the drawer tray 5, the lid 6, a pair of stopper ribs 14 that regulate the pulling operation of the drawer tray 5, and a pair of The circuit components are covered between the bottom part 7 and the bottom part 7 having the guide rib 15, the top plate 16 forming the insertion opening of the flash memory card 8, and the side wall part 17 having the claw storage hole part 18 of the lid 6. And a cover unit 1 for exposing the liquid crystal 24.

Next, the operation of the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 3C, it is assumed that the flash memory card 8 is mounted on the portable information terminal and the lid 8 is closed. next,
As shown in FIG. 3 (B), when the user presses his / her finger on the first and second finger hanging flaps 21 and 22 of the lid 6 and pulls out the hand, the thin finger hanging flap 21 bends inside the device, and this finger hook is bent. Since the finger hanging flap 22 which is thicker than the flap 21 bends to the outside of the apparatus, the number of hooks on the finger increases and the finger can be easily pulled out.

In this state, as shown in FIGS. 1B and 3D, when the lid 6 is pulled out in the direction of the arrow as it is,
The claw 20 is disengaged from the claw storage hole 18 and is guided by the guide ribs 15 and the top plate 16 of the bottom portion 7, so that the tray 5 moves horizontally without contacting the main board 2. Then, the ejector 4 fixed to the tray 5 by the lock 10 moves into the projecting opening 9 of the connector 3 while moving horizontally, and the tip 4 a of the ejector 4 comes into contact with the end face of the flash memory card 8. Further, when the user pulls out the lid 6 in the direction of the arrow, the tip 4a of the ejector 4 pushes the end face of the flash memory card 8, and the flash memory card 8 is pushed out from the connector 3. The drawer tray 5 is provided with one end 9 a of the ejector 4 at the opening end 9 a of the connector 3 on the side of the insertion opening 3 a of the projecting opening 9.
It can be pulled out in the direction of the arrow until a touches, and stops here. At this time, since the ejector 4 is constantly pressed toward the connector 3 by the pressing spring portion 23 of the tray 5, the connector 3 is warped by the substrate 2 and the bottom portion 7.
Even if the distance between the flash memory card 8 and the ejector 4 becomes larger than the design value, the flash memory card 8 can be reliably pushed out.

Next, as shown in FIGS. 1 (C) and 3 (E), when the user turns the lid 6 downward by 90 degrees about the rotation shaft 12 in the direction of the arrow, the user can prevent injuries. The flash memory card 8 can be protruded from the end of the tray 5 curled around and the surfaces of the cover 1 and the bottom 7. Then, FIG. 1 (D) and FIG. 1 (E)
As shown in (1), the user can easily pinch the flash memory card 8 with his finger and pull it out.

When the user inserts the flash memory card 8 into the device, the user pulls out the lid 6 and moves the cover 9 downward.
The flash memory card 8 is inserted into the gap between the tray 5 and the bottom part 7 by rotating it 0 degrees and opening. At this time, the contact spring 11 for preventing static electricity of the tray 5 in contact with the connector 3
The frictional force makes it difficult for the tray 5 to be dragged into the device by being dragged by the flash memory card 8. Further, when the lid 6 is rotated upward by 90 degrees and pushed into the bottom portion 7 while being horizontally moved, the rib 13 attached to the lid 6 pushes the flash memory card 8 into the connector 3 and the lid 6 is completely stored. , The flash memory card 8 is also connected to the connector 3.

According to the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism of the present embodiment, the lid 6 is attached to the drawer tray 5 so as to be rotatable via the rotary shaft 12 while the user presses the finger. By being pulled out, the tray 5 is guided by the guide ribs 15 and the top plate 16 of the bottom part 7 and moves horizontally without contacting the main substrate 2, and the ejector 4 fixed to the tray 5 by the lock 10 moves horizontally. When the distal end 4a of the ejector 4 comes into contact with the end face of the flash memory card 8 and the user pulls out the lid 6,
The tip 4a of the ejector 4 is a flash memory card 8
2 and the flash memory card 8 is pushed out of the connector 3, as shown in FIG. 2, the flash memory card 8 has a relatively simple structure in a portable information terminal having a connector without an ejector function by an ejector button. Can be realized.

Further, the tray 5 is made of a thin sheet metal, and the above-mentioned insertion and removal of the flash memory card 8 can be realized only by securing a very small space under the connector 3 and outside the left and right side surfaces so that the tray 5 can be moved. Therefore, it is possible to improve the adverse effect of the insertion / removal mechanism of the flash memory card on the external dimensions of the portable information terminal. That is, the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism can be reduced in size and thickness as compared with the related art. As a result, in the portable information terminal employing this insertion / removal mechanism, the width and the overall length can be reduced, and the thickness can be reduced.

Further, according to the present embodiment, the tray 5
Press spring 23 always acts to press the ejector 4 against the connector 3. Therefore, even if the distance between the connector 3 and the ejector 4 becomes larger than the design value due to the warpage of the main board 2 and the bottom portion 7, The ejector 4 that moves horizontally is reliably inserted into the projecting opening 9 of the connector 3, the tip 4 a of the ejector 4 is reliably brought into contact with the end face of the flash memory card 8, and the flash memory card 8 is pushed out from the connector 3. be able to.

[0021]

As described above, according to the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism of the present invention, the flash memory card is fixed to the tray and moves along the projecting opening of the connector in conjunction with the movement of the tray to be inserted. Since the ejector for pushing out the flash memory card is provided, the ejector fixed to the tray can push out the flash memory card when the user pulls out the tray. Therefore, the flash memory card can be inserted / removed with a relatively simple structure while the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism has almost no adverse effect of increasing the external dimensions of the portable information terminal.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A to 1E are external views for explaining an insertion / removal operation of a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the portable information terminal for explaining a flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a plan view of a lid according to one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view showing a state where a finger is put on the lid according to one embodiment of the present invention; And (C)
(E) through (E) are cross-sectional views for explaining the insertion / removal operation of the flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are external views for explaining a conventional flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Cover part 2 Main board 3 Connector 3a Connector insertion port part 4 Ejector 4a Ejector tip part 5 Tray 6 Lid 7 Bottom part 8 Flash memory card 9 Projecting opening 9a Opening one end 10 Lock 11 Contact spring 12 Rotating shaft 13 Pushing Rib 14 Stopper rib 15 Guide rib 16 Top plate 17 Side wall 18 Claw storage hole 19 Curling part 20 Claw 21 First finger hook flap 22 Second finger hook flap 23 Press spring 24 Liquid crystal

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A connector to which an electrode terminal of an inserted flash memory card is connected, wherein the connector has an insertion port at one end and a projection opening at the other end. A drawer tray arranged such that one main surface faces the connector,
An ejector that is fixed to the one main surface of the drawer tray, moves along the protrusion opening in conjunction with the movement of the drawer tray, and pushes out the inserted flash memory card. Memory card insertion and removal mechanism. 2. The flash memory card insertion / removal mechanism according to claim 1, wherein said drawer tray further comprises a pressing spring portion for pressing said ejector against said connector. 3. The flash memory card insertion / removal according to claim 1, wherein the ejector comes into contact with one end of the connector on the side of the insertion opening of the connector and stops. mechanism.