JP2002083642A - Connector device and information processor provided with connector device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To constitute a female-type connector device so that a thin and male- type connector can be connected directly. SOLUTION: A connector device K is equipped at a body part 1 of a notebook personal computer NP of a thin-type as an information processor. In the body part 1, a thin housing space S opened up to this outside is formed. The connector device K has a lower jaw member 21 and an upper jaw member 22 respectively formed thin, and the upper jaw member 22 is set swingable possible in the top and bottom directions. A connection terminal 41 is arranged and installed between the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22. The lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 are capable of selectively taking a housing state housed in the body part 1 and in a protruding state protruding to the outside in a folding state of being mutually overlapped and made thin. In the protruding state, the upper jaw member 22 is swung upward by a large amount to be made into a wide-open state, and between the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 in this wide-open state, a male-type connector 12 is inserted and connected.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector device, particularly a female connector device to which a male connector for RJ-45 or RJ-11 connected to an end of a communication cable is detachably connected. Regarding the preferred ones.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Information processing apparatuses, such as notebook personal computers, to which a communication cable is detachably connected, for example, for LAN construction or facsimile communication, are increasing. That is, the information processing apparatus is often provided with a built-in communication modem and a connector device for detachably connecting the modem to a communication cable. A standardized and widely used male connector such as RJ-45 or RJ-11 is connected to the end of the communication cable. A female connector device to be freely connected is provided.

The above-mentioned male connector for RJ-45 or RJ-11 has a block-shaped main body provided with a plurality of wire cores, and is elastically deformable extending rearward from the upper surface of the tip end of the main body. It has an operating portion and a protruding engagement portion formed in the middle of the operating portion, and the base end of the operating portion is integrated with the upper end of the main body portion via a small block-shaped connecting portion. . When such a male connector is inserted into a female connector device, the engaging portion is locked by a projection-shaped locking portion formed inside the upper surface of the female connector device to prevent the female connector device from falling off. . In this state, the wire core of the main body is brought into contact with and connected to the wire core provided in the female connector device. By elastically deforming the operating portion so as to approach the main body, the engagement between the engaging portion and the engaging portion is released, and the male connector can be removed from the female connector device.

[0004]

Incidentally, among information processing apparatuses, for example, notebook personal computers and the like have been rapidly reduced in thickness. On the other hand, the height (thickness) of the connector device is considerably large, and it is becoming impossible to directly mount the connector device on a thinned information processing device.

For example, in a notebook personal computer, the thickness of a main body having a large number of operation keys can be reduced to, for example, about 5 mm.
RJ-45 or R which is a typical communication connector
In J-11, the height is as large as about 7 to 8 mm. Therefore, it becomes impossible to mount the female connector device for RJ-45 or RJ-11 directly on a thinned notebook personal computer.
Of course, it is conceivable to make the male connector connected to the end of the communication cable thinner than in the past, but doing so makes the connector connected to the end of the communication cable widespread. It is necessary to make a special specification different from the standard product, and it is generally difficult to adopt it.

Under such circumstances, at present, a connection card is inserted into a PC card slot provided in an information processing apparatus, a short intermediate cable is extended from the connection card, and the end of the intermediate cable is connected to the end of the intermediate cable. A female connector device is connected, and a male connector connected to an end of a communication cable is detachably connected to the female connector device. However, in this case, it is necessary to separately use a connection card and an intermediate cable, which leads to an increase in cost and complexity of wiring, and furthermore, an obstacle to compactness.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to make it possible to directly connect a male connector having a large height when in use, while allowing it to be directly mounted on a thin information processing apparatus. And an information processing apparatus having the connector device.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, in the connector device of the present invention, the upper jaw member is basically formed by using the thinned lower jaw member and upper jaw member. The lower jaw member can be swung up and down, and the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are expanded in accordance with the swing, and the upper jaw member is folded and the lower jaw member is folded. And can be taken selectively. And, a connection terminal is arranged between the upper jaw member and the lower jaw member, and between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member in the expanded state,
A tall male connector is inserted and connected. When not in use, the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are stored in the storage space in the casing in a folded state, that is, a thin state as a whole. The casing itself can store the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member that have been folded and thinned, so that the entire casing can be thinned. Since the casing is thin, it is possible to directly mount the folded lower jaw member and the upper jaw member even on a sufficiently thin information processing apparatus.

In the state where the male connector is inserted between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member in the expanded state, when an excessive tensile force is applied to the male connector or an excessive torsion force is applied. In this case, the excessive force makes it possible to generate a component force that swings the upper jaw member, which extends obliquely with respect to the male connector, further upward to bring the upper jaw member into a further expanded state. It is possible to prevent the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member from being damaged as a situation in which the male connector is easily absorbed or the male connector is easily pulled out. Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of embodiments.

[0010]

1 and 2 show a notebook personal computer (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a "notebook personal computer") NP as a portable information processing device in which a connector device K according to the present invention is incorporated. An example is shown.
As is known, the notebook personal computer NP has a main body 1 and a cover 2, a large number of operation keys 3 are provided on the upper surface of the main body 1, a touch pad 4 for cursor operation, a left click Button 5 and right-click button 6 are provided. The lid 2 is openable and closable with respect to the main body 1, and a flat display screen 7 such as a liquid crystal display is provided on an inner surface thereof. It should be noted that the above-described portions are well known in the related art, and therefore, further detailed description will be omitted.

The main body 1 is equipped with a connector device K according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the connector device K is in a stored state substantially flush with the side surface of the main body portion K.
As shown in (1), a part of the main body 1 can be selectively protruded from the side surface. In FIG. 2, the parts protruding from the side surface of the main body 1 are a lower jaw member 21 and an upper jaw member 22, which will be described later. In this protruding state, the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 It can take a wide open state. And the lower jaw member 21 in the expanded state
The male connector 12 connected to the distal end of the communication cable 11 is inserted, that is, connected between the upper jaw member 22 and the upper jaw member 22.

In the embodiment, the male connector 12 is a general RJ-45 or RJ-11 as a connector for a communication cable. The male connector 12 will be briefly described with reference to FIGS. The male connector 12 is a block-shaped (substantially rectangular parallelepiped) main body 1.
3 and a plurality of wire cores 14 provided on the main body 13 as connection terminals. In the embodiment, eight wire cores 14 are provided. The plurality of wire cores 14 are arranged side by side at small intervals in the width direction of the main body 13 (horizontal direction in FIG. 6), and are arranged vertically along the distal end surface of the main body 13 (left side in FIG. 3). A main body 1 extending from upper and lower portions 14a and lower ends of the upper and lower portions 14a;
3 and a front and rear portion 14b extending along the bottom surface.

A small block-shaped connecting portion 15 is formed at the upper end of the main body portion 13.
An operation unit 16 is extended to extend rearward (rightward in FIG. 3) along the upper surface of the main body 13. The operation portion 16 has a narrow portion 16a which is narrowed toward the distal end from the middle thereof, and a pair of left and right engaging protrusions 17 is formed at a base end of the narrow portion 16a. I have. The engaging projection 17 is configured so that its upper surface 17a gradually increases as it goes rearward, and its rear surface is a flat engaging surface 17b that extends substantially vertically. The main body 13, the connecting part 15, the operating part 16, and the engaging projection 17 of the male connector 12 are provided.
Is integrally formed of a synthetic resin.

The engagement projection 17 is vertically displaced in accordance with the vertical displacement of the operation section 16. That is, the operating portion 16 is elastically deformed by pressing the narrow portion 16 a of the operating portion 16 downward, that is, toward the main body portion 13 from the free state in FIG. 3 in which no external force acts on the operating portion 16. The engagement projection 17 is displaced downward. By releasing the downward external force from the operation unit 16, the operation unit 16, that is, the engagement protrusion 17 returns to the state of FIG. 3 by the elastic return action of the operation unit 16. Since the male connector 12 itself is well known in the related art, further detailed description will be omitted.

Next, the details of the connector device K will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 16. First, the components of the connector device K will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8. FIG. 7 and 8, reference numeral 25 denotes a casing, which is a pair of left and right side wall portions 25a.
And a rear wall 25b connecting the base ends of the pair of left and right side walls 25a. A stopper 25c slightly protruding inward is formed at the tip of the pair of left and right side walls 25a. At the end of the rear wall 25b, an elongated rod-shaped spring holding member 26 is formed so as to protrude along the side wall 25a.

The upper and lower surfaces of the casing 25 are covered by a thin plate-like lid member 27. In the drawing, only the lid member 27 for covering the upper surface is shown, and the lid member for covering the lower surface is the same as the lid member for covering the upper surface, so that illustration is omitted. Thereby, in the casing 25,
A storage space S for storing the above-described lower jaw member 21 and upper jaw member 22, and a slide member and a spring described below is defined. The storage space S includes a pair of left and right side walls 25.
a is opened to the outside of the casing through an opening S1 formed on the front end side of FIG. The thickness of the casing 25 is
The thickness of the main body 1 of the notebook personal computer NP, including the thickness of the pair of upper and lower lid members 27 covering the upper and lower surfaces, is made smaller (for example, about 4 to 5 mm).

Reference numeral 28 in the figure denotes a slide member. The slide member 28 is stored in the storage space S, and is slidable between a pair of left and right side walls 25 a of the casing 25. The slide member 28 has a wide width portion 28a serving as a slide portion for the pair of left and right side walls 25a.
And a narrow portion 28b formed on the tip side.
The stepped surface between the narrow portion 28a and the wide portion 28b formed on the left and right forms an engagement surface 2 which is in contact with the stopper portion 25c.
8c. That is, when the slide member 28 in the storage space S is slid toward the opening S1, the engagement surface 28c comes into contact with the stopper 25c, and the further displacement toward the opening S1 is restricted. Then, the retaining is performed. The slide member 28 is provided in the storage space S
The spring 32 is urged toward the opening portion S1 by a spring 32 disposed therein. The spring 32 is in the form of a long coil spring, and is fitted and held by the spring holding member 26 described above. .

The lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 are swingably connected to the narrow portion 28b of the slide member 28, respectively. This swingable connection,
This is performed by using one shaft member 29 extending in the width direction.

The lower jaw member 21 is formed thin so as to be entirely flat, and has a thin plate-like substrate portion 21a and a pair of left and right side wall portions which are shortly extended upward from the widthwise end of the substrate portion 21a. 21b. The height of the side wall 21b is equal to the height of the storage space S, that is, the side wall 2 of the casing 25.
The height is set slightly smaller than the height of 5a. The opening 3 is provided substantially at the center of the substrate 21a.
0 is formed, and a plurality of guide grooves 31 are formed on the tip side of the opening 30. In the embodiment,
The number of the guide grooves 31 is eight, which is the same as the number of the wire cores 14. The plurality of guide grooves 31 are attached to the lower jaw member 21.
Are formed in parallel with each other at small intervals in the width direction of the lower jaw member 21, and their rear ends are connected to the opening 30. Each guide groove 31
Corresponds to a plurality of wire cores as connection terminals provided on the connector device K side described later, and one guide groove 31 is used for one wire core. The function of the guide groove 31 will be described later.

The upper jaw member 22 is formed thin so as to be entirely flat, and has a width slightly smaller than a dimension between the pair of left and right side walls 21a of the lower jaw member 21. I have. The maximum thickness of the upper jaw member 22 is determined by a pair of left and right side wall portions 21 a of the lower jaw member 21.
It is set to about the same height. Further, the length of the upper jaw member 22 is set substantially equal to the length of the lower jaw member 21. Thus, the upper jaw member 22 can assume a folded state overlapping the substrate 21a of the lower jaw member 21 between the pair of left and right side walls 21a of the lower jaw member 21. The total thickness of the jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 is slightly smaller than the thickness of the storage space S.

The upper jaw member 22 has an opening 35 at a substantially central portion thereof. This opening 35
Is for forming an escape space in which the connecting portion 15 of the male connector 12 is located. Also, the upper jaw member 22
A plurality of guide grooves 36 are formed in the upper surface of the rear of the opening 35, and the number of the guide grooves 36 is equal to eight as the number of the wire cores 14 in the embodiment. The plurality of guide grooves 36 extend shortly in the longitudinal direction of the upper jaw member 22 and are formed in parallel at small intervals in the width direction of the upper jaw member 22. A rear through-hole 37 is formed in the upper jaw member 22 immediately behind the guide groove 36, and a front through-hole 38 is formed immediately before the guide groove 36. The guide groove 36 and the through holes 37 and 38 are for holding the wire core on the connector device K side to the upper jaw member 22 as described later.

On the inner surface of the distal end portion of the upper jaw member 22, that is, on the distal end side, that is, the inner surface on the front side of the opening 35, a locking projection 39 as a pair of left and right locking portions is formed. The locking projection 39 corresponds to the engagement projection 17 of the male connector 12 described above. A pair of left and right concave portions 40 is formed on the inner surface of the upper jaw member 22 on the side of the opening 35. The recess 40 is for forming an escape space in which the main body 13 of the male connector 12 is located.

Reference numeral 41 denotes a wire core for the connector device K,
A total of eight wires are provided in accordance with the number of wire cores 14 in the male connector 12. The wire core 41 is used for the upper jaw member 2
2 is held. That is, the wire core 41 is formed as shown in FIGS.
As shown in FIG. 2, the upper jaw member 2 extends from below the upper jaw member 22 through the rear through hole 37 to the upper surface side of the upper jaw member 22, passes through the guide groove 36, passes through the front through hole 38, and passes through.
2 so as to extend downward. The extended portion 41a extending downward from the front through hole 38 to the lower part of the upper jaw member 22 is relatively long and has a length such that it reaches the guide groove 31 of the lower jaw member 21 in an expanded state described later. Have been. Like the wire core 14, the wire core 41 is configured to be relatively rigid by being composed of a slightly thicker metal wire, so that at least the extended portion 41a has an elastic force. That is,
The extension portion 41a is set so as to exhibit an elastic restoring force for returning to the original state when receiving a slight bending force.

In the casing 25, a plurality of connecting wire cores 42 are positioned so as to be located above the storage space S. In the embodiment, the number of connecting wire cores 42 is
The number is set to eight in correspondence with the number of. This connecting wire core 42
Are fixed to, for example, the inner surface of the upper lid member 27, extend in the front-rear direction, and are arranged side by side at small intervals in the width direction. The connecting wire core 42 has a slightly large width and extends from the rear end of the casing 25 to a substantially middle position in the longitudinal direction of the casing 25.

The rear end of the wire core 41 is always slidably contacted with the connecting wire core 42. That is, FIG.
As shown in the figure, the wire core 41 extends rearward through the plurality of guide grooves 43 formed on the bottom surface of the wide portion 28a of the slide member 28 behind the upper jaw member 22, And extends upward through the opening 44 formed in the connecting wire core 42 so as to be constantly in contact with the lower surface of the connecting wire core 42. In the embodiment, the number of such guide grooves 43 is eight corresponding to the number of the wire cores 41 in the embodiment. Then, when the slide member 28 slides with respect to the casing 25, the wire core 41 is slid with respect to the connecting wire core 42. The rear end of the connecting wire core 42 is connected to a communication modem provided in the main body 1 of the notebook computer NP. This connection may be a permanent connection such as soldering, or a general-purpose connection. It may be a detachable connection using a thin connector. It is preferable that the connection between the connecting wire core 42 and communication equipment such as a modem is detachably connected using a separate connector, for example, in order to facilitate replacement of the connector device K.

Next, the operation of the connector device K will be described, including the detachable connection with the male connector 12.
First, the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 are in a flat shape slightly thinner than the thickness of the storage space S in the folded state where they are overlapped with each other, and can be stored in the storage space S in the casing 25. 1 and 7 show the storage state in the storage space S. At this time, the tip surfaces of the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 and the notebook computer N
P is substantially flush with the side surface of the main body 1.

From the above-mentioned folded state, the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 can protrude from the side surface of the main body 1 of the notebook personal computer NP. It is done as it is.

Immediately after the projecting state, the upper jaw member 22 is swung upward by the elastic force of the extension portion 41a of the wire core 41, and is brought into the expanded state. This expanded state is shown in FIGS.

In the expanded state, the male connector 12
It is inserted between the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22, and this insertion is performed by
The lower jaw member 21 is slid on the substrate 21a of the lower jaw member 21 while being positioned between the pair of left and right side wall portions 21b. Male connector 1 to specified depth
2, the connection between the male connector 12 and the connector device K is automatically completed.
Is shown in That is, in the process of inserting the male connector 12 between the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 in the expanded state, the engagement projection 17 of the male connector 12 is elastically deformed by the operation portion 16. But the upper jaw member 22
Of the male connector 12 is prevented from falling out of the connector device K by the operation portion 16 being elastically restored immediately after the engagement projection 17 has passed over the engagement projection 39. Is done. In a state where the engaging protrusion 17 is locked to the locking protrusion 39, the extended portion 41 a of the wire core 41 in the connector device K and the wire core 14 of the male connector 12 are contacted and connected. .

When the engaging projection 17 is locked to the locking projection 39, the distal end surface of the connecting portion 15 of the male connector 12
The upper jaw member 22 is in contact with the rear opening edge of the opening 35, and further insertion is firmly restricted. At this time, the upper end of the distal end which is a part of the connecting portion 15 is located in the opening 35. The left and right ends of the main body 13 of the male connector 12 are located in the recesses 40 of the upper jaw member 22. Thus, a part of the male connector 12 is
Opening 3 as an escape space formed in upper jaw member 22
5, the upper jaw member 22 is located in the recess 40.
The male connector 12 can be connected to the connector device K without extremely swinging upward.

In order to disconnect the male connector 12 from the connector device K, the operating portion 16 of the male connector 12 is pressed downward so that the engaging projection 17 is positioned below the locking projection 39. In this state, the male connector 12 may be pulled out. As described above, the attachment / detachment of the male connector 12 to / from the connector device K can be performed by a method completely the same as the conventional method.

When the state is changed from the expanded state to the folded state,
The extension portion 41a of the wire core 41 has a tip portion at the lower jaw member 2
1 and is accommodated in the guide groove 31 while sliding in the guide groove 31.

Here, a case where a large tensile force (see arrow A in FIG. 17) acts on the male connector 12 via the communication cable 11 in a state where the male connector 12 and the connector device K are connected. Think. At this time, the locking projection 3
An upward component force acts on the upper jaw member 22 via 9,
The upper jaw member 22 can further swing upward by this component force, so that an excessive tensile force is applied to the lower jaw member 21.
The upper jaw member 22 and the like can be absorbed without being damaged.

Preferably, when an excessive tensile force is applied, the upper jaw member 22 is further swung upward by utilizing the above-mentioned component force, so that the engagement projection 1 by the engagement projection 39 is provided.
It is also possible for the male connector 12 to be withdrawn from the connector device K by releasing the locking action on the connector 7.

In order to effectively generate the component force, the locking surface 39a of the locking projection 39, which is located on the front surface of the engagement projection 17, is gradually moved downward to allow the upper jaw member 22 to move downward. It is preferable to set the inclined surface so as to face the distal end side, that is, the direction in which the male connector 12 is disconnected.

Next, consider a case where a large torsion force (see arrow B in FIG. 17) acts on the male connector 12. Also at this time, the upper jaw member 22 is further swung upward by the male connector 12 which is about to be rotated as indicated by the arrow B by a large torsion force. To prevent the connector device K from being damaged.

In the embodiment, the lower jaw member 21 can also swing up and down, and the amount of downward swing is up to a position where the lower jaw member 21 contacts the desk surface on which the notebook computer NP is placed. . By making the lower jaw member 22 also swingable, the male connector 12 can be connected without swinging only the upper jaw member 22 extremely large upward, and the excessive tensile force described above. When the lower jaw member 21 swings downward, the twisting force can be more effectively absorbed.

Here, biasing the slide member 28 toward the projecting state by the spring 32 is effective for easily setting the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 to the projecting state. On the other hand, in order to keep the upper jaw member 21 and the lower jaw member 22 in the housed state, it is necessary to lock the slide member 28 against the urging force of the spring 32.

For the locking operation of the slide member 28, for example, as shown in FIG. 18, a locking projection 51 is formed on the inner surface of the side wall 25a of the casing 25, while the side wall of the slide member 28 is In the state position, the locking concave portion 52 engaged with the locking convex portion 51 can be formed. The engaging force between the locking convex portion 51 and the locking concave portion 52 is set to a minimum size that resists the urging force of the spring 32, and when in the retracted state, for example, the hairpin is applied to the upper jaw member 22. The engagement between the locking projection 51 and the locking concave portion 52 is released by giving a slight pulling force by, for example, and the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 22 are projected by the spring 32 after this engagement is released. It is greatly displaced toward the state.
Note that the locking projection 51 may be formed on the slide member 28 and the locking recess 52 may be formed on the casing 25.

The slide member 28 is opposed to the spring 32.
19 can be set as shown in FIG. 19 as another example of holding in the storage state position. That is, the locking recess 61 is formed on the side surface of the slide member 28, and the slide member 2
The locking rod member 62 is disposed with respect to the locking recess 61 when 8 is in the housed position. The locking rod member 62 is slidably held by the side wall 25 a of the casing 25, and is urged by a spring 63 in a direction to protrude into the locking recess 61.

An operation member 64 is provided so as to be displaceable in the sliding direction of the slide member 28. This operation member 6
4 can be held in the casing 25 or the main body 1 of the notebook personal computer NP, and the base end serving as an operation part thereof can be operated from outside the notebook personal computer NP. A tapered inclined surface 64a is formed at the tip of the operating member 64.
Pressure receiving part 62 formed on the base end side of locking rod member 62
a faces so that it can abut.

In the locked position of FIG. 19 in which the locking rod member 62 has entered the locking recess 61 of the slide member 28 in the stored state, the slide lid member 28 is in the stored state against the urging force of the spring 32. Held in position. When the operating member 64 is pressed from the outside in this locked state, the locking rod member 62 is displaced upward in FIG. 19 through the inclined surface 64a and the pressure receiving portion 62a, and the locking rod member 6 is displaced upward.
2 is released from the locking concave portion 61 to be in the unlocked state. Thus, the slide member 28 is largely displaced by the spring 32 so as to be in the protruding state position.
When the slide member 28 is set to the stored state, the operation member 64 is manually returned to the original position in FIG. 19 in advance. It should be noted that a spring for urging the operation member 64 back to the original position in FIG. 19 may be separately provided.

The operating member 64 may be displaced in a direction perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 19 so that the operating member 64 can be operated from the bottom side of the main body 1 of the notebook personal computer NP.

In order to detachably connect the connecting wire core 42 to communication equipment, as shown in FIG.
It is preferable that an intermediate connecting portion is formed at the rear end of 5. That is, the rear wall 25b of the casing 25 holds a connection pin 71 as an intermediate connection part having excellent rigidity according to the number of the connection cores 42. The rear end of the connection pin 71 is connected to the rear surface of the casing 25. From the outside.
The connecting wire core 42 is connected to the front end of the connection pin 71, and a connector 72 extending from communication devices is detachably connected to the rear end of the connection pin 71. Needless to say, the connection pins 71 have a plurality of connection pins in the direction perpendicular to the paper of FIG. 20, while the connectors 72 are elongated in the direction perpendicular to the paper of FIG. 20, and have a number of connection terminals corresponding to the number of the connection pins 71.

Although the embodiment has been described above, the present invention is not limited to this, and includes, for example, the following case. The number of the wire cores 41 and 14 is not limited to eight, but can be set appropriately, such as four. The male connector 12 detachably connected to the connector device K is not limited to a general RJ-45 or RJ-11 for communication, and may be any suitable one. It is not limited. The connection terminal (wire core 41) on the connector device K side may be held on the lower jaw member 21 side. The information processing device in which the connector device K is incorporated is not limited to the notebook personal computer NP.
A function expansion device connected to a DA (Personal Digital Assistant) or PDA, or a desktop computer can be selected as appropriate. In addition, the casing 25 of the connector device K may be constituted by the casing of the information processing device. In this case, it is unnecessary to separately provide the casing 25 in addition to the casing of the information processing device.

The locking portion (locking projection) 39 included in the connector device K can be formed on the lower jaw member 21, and depending on the shape of the male connector 12, the lower jaw member 21 and the upper jaw member 21 can be formed. It can also be formed on both the jaw member 22. A flexible (foldable) band-shaped cable can be used as the plurality of connecting wire cores 42. In this case, the band-shaped cable itself elastically deforms in accordance with the sliding of the slide member 28. , Wire core 41
Can be fixedly connected to the belt-shaped cable (for example, permanent connection by soldering).

The lower jaw member 21 may be set so as not to swing. In this case, the slide member 28 and the lower jaw member 2
1 can be integrally formed. The purpose of the present invention is not limited to what is specified, but also implicitly includes providing what is substantially preferred or expressed as an advantage.

[0048]

According to the present invention, when not in use, the whole is extremely thin as a folded state, so that it can be directly mounted on a thin information processing apparatus, and can also be stored outside in the folded state. It can be prevented from protruding. In use, the male connector with a large height can be directly connected by setting the extended state in the protruding state.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of a notebook computer in which a connector device according to the present invention is incorporated, in which a lower jaw member and an upper jaw member are stored.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a lower jaw member and an upper jaw member are in a protruding state and an expanded state from the state of FIG. 1 and a male connector is connected;

FIG. 3 is a side view showing an example of a male connector.

FIG. 4 is a top view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a bottom view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a left side view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing an example of the connector device according to the present invention, showing a state in a housed state with a lid member removed.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the connector device shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a connecting wire core provided in the connector device.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a wire core provided in the connector device.

11 is a cross-sectional view showing a relationship between a guide groove formed on an upper surface of an upper jaw member and a wire core, and is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line X11-X11 in FIG. 8;

FIG. 12 is a sectional view corresponding to line X12-X12 in FIG. 11;

13 is a cross-sectional view showing a relationship between a guide groove formed in a slide member and a wire core, and is a cross-sectional view corresponding to line X13-X13 in FIG. 8;

FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the lower jaw member viewed from below when the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are in a protruding state and a folded state.

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the upper jaw member in a protruding state as viewed from below.

FIG. 16 is a perspective view showing a state where the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are in an expanded state.

FIG. 17 is an enlarged side sectional view showing a state where the male connector is connected to the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member.

FIG. 18 is a plan cross-sectional view of an essential part showing an example of a mechanism for locking a slide member against the urging force of a spring.

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional plan view of a main part showing another example of a mechanism for locking a slide member against the urging force of a spring.

FIG. 20 is a side cross-sectional view of an essential part showing an example of an intermediate connecting part.

[Explanation of symbols]

K connector device, NP notebook computer, S storage space, S1 Opening of storage space to outside, 1 notebook computer main body, 11 communication cable, 1
2 male connector, 13 body, 14 wire core,
15 connecting part, 16 operating part, 17 engaging projection,
21 lower jaw member, 22 upper jaw member, 25 casing, 25c stopper portion, 27 lid member, 2
8 slide member, 28c engagement surface (for stopper),
29 shaft member (oscillation axis), 31 guide groove, 32
Spring, 35 Opening (Escape Space for Male Connector), 36 Guide Groove, 37 Rear Through Hole, 3
8 front through hole, 39 locking projection, 40 recess (relief space for male connector), 41 wire core (connection terminal), 42 connection wire core, 61 locking recess, 62
Locking rod member, 62a pressure receiving portion, 63 spring, 64 operating member, 64a inclined surface, 71 connecting pin (intermediate connecting portion), 72 connector (for detachable connection to the intermediate connecting portion),

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Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A female connector device in which a male connector is detachably engaged, comprising: a casing having a thinly formed storage space open to the outside; a thinly formed lower jaw member; The lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are expanded in response to the swing around the predetermined axis line. An upper jaw member capable of selectively taking an expanded state and a folded state in which the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member overlap with each other; and a connection terminal disposed between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member. And for forming the male connector formed on at least one of the upper jaw member and the lower jaw member and inserted between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member in the expanded state to prevent the male connector from coming off. A locking portion, wherein the lower jaw member and the upper In the folded state, the member is slidable with respect to the casing, and is stored in the storage space in the folded state, and a protruding state projected from the storage space to the outside of the casing. Wherein the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member can take the expanded state when in the protruding state. 2. The storage space of the casing according to claim 1, wherein a slide member is slidably housed so as not to fall out of the storage space, and the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are together with the slide member. A connector device, wherein the connector device is connected to the slide member so as to slide with respect to the casing. 3. The connector device according to claim 2, wherein the lower jaw member is connected to the slide member so as to be swingable about the predetermined axis. 4. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the locking portion is formed as a locking projection formed on an inner surface of a distal end portion of the upper jaw member. 5. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein a relief portion is formed in the upper jaw member where a distal end of the male connector is partially located. 6. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the lower jaw member is formed with a pair of left and right side walls for guiding the male connector. 7. The spring according to claim 2, wherein a spring for urging the slide member such that the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are in the protruding state is provided. A stopper for holding a position corresponding to the storage state against an urging force, and an operation member for manually operating and releasing an action of the stopper on the slide member are further provided. Connector device. 8. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the connection terminal is constituted by a plurality of wire cores arranged in parallel in the width direction of the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member. 9. The connector device according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of wire cores are set so as to extend substantially vertically in the expanded state. 10. The extension according to claim 9, wherein the plurality of wire cores have an extended portion that is held by the upper jaw member and extends from the upper jaw member to the lower jaw member. The connector device is urged to be in the expanded state by the elastic force of the connector device. 11. A plurality of guides according to claim 10, wherein the inner surfaces of the distal ends of the lower jaw members are spaced apart in the width direction to guide the distal ends of the plurality of wire cores in a slidable manner. A connector device, wherein a groove is formed. 12. The upper jaw member according to claim 10, wherein a plurality of guide grooves are formed on an upper surface of the upper jaw member at intervals in a width direction, and the upper and lower jaw members are formed at the front and rear ends of the respective guide grooves. Corresponding front side through holes and rear side through holes are formed, and the plurality of wire cores pass through the front side through holes from the inner surface side of the lower jaw member through the rear side through holes and the guide grooves. A connector device, wherein the connector device is disposed in the connector device. 13. The casing according to claim 8, wherein an intermediate connection portion for devices is provided at a rear end of the casing, and the plurality of wire cores are connected to the intermediate connection portion. A connector device characterized by the above-mentioned. 14. The connector device according to claim 8, wherein the connector device is used for an RJ-45 or an RJ-11. 15. An information processing device having a female connector device in which a male connector is detachably engaged, wherein a storage space formed in the information processing device and opened to the outside, and thinly formed. The lower jaw member and the lower jaw member are formed thin, and are swingable about a predetermined axis with respect to the lower jaw member. An upper jaw member configured to selectively take an expanded state in which a member is expanded and a folded state in which the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are overlapped, and between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member The male connector formed on at least one of the upper jaw member and the lower jaw member and inserted between the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member in the expanded state. And a locking portion for preventing the The lower jaw member and the upper jaw member are configured such that, in the folded state, a storage state in which the storage space is stored in the storage space, and a protruding state in which the upper jaw member is projected from the storage space to the outside, can be selectively taken; An information processing apparatus provided with a connector device, wherein the lower jaw member and the upper jaw member can be in the expanded state when in the protruding state. 16. The RJ-45 connector according to claim 15, wherein the connector device is an RJ-45 connector.
An information processing apparatus provided with a connector device, wherein the connector device is used.