JP2004056164A - Waterproofed structure for battery - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a waterproofed structure good in productivity, cost, yield, etc. <P>SOLUTION: A pocket 30 for housing a battery pack 36 is closed with a double cover structure of an outer and inner covers 32, 34 and an O-ring 56 assembled therein to block water from penetrating. A lock mechanism composed of a rotary lock 44, locking claws 50 thereof, a lock 62 at a body 28, etc. and a handle 45 connected to the lock mechanism facilitate mounting/removing the double cover structure. Even after repetition of this mounting/removing, the waterproof performance by the O-ring 56 assembled in the double cover structure is approximately maintained. Instead of them, a slide lock double cover structure may be used. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a portable device such as a mobile phone that is suitable for use on the shore such as on a ship or a beach, and in particular, protects a battery pack that is attached to the portable device and that is replaced as necessary from moisture intrusion. Related to waterproof structure.
[0002]
[Prior art]
A mobile phone is a small and lightweight mobile communication terminal, and is already widely used on a national scale. Some mobile phones have been developed and designed for a specific use environment. For example, when developing and designing a mobile phone used at the water's edge, waterproof measures are taken so that even if it is slightly wet or immersed in water, it does not cause a failure or the like. In mobile phone related companies including the applicant of the present application, various studies are being conducted to secure and improve waterproof performance. In fact, the waterproof type mobile phone that has been developed up to now has excellent waterproof performance so that even if it is immersed in water for several minutes or even tens of minutes, there is almost no occurrence of internal flooding and associated failures etc. Is being realized.
[0003]
Also, among the components that make up the mobile phone, the battery pack is a component that may be replaced by an end user or the like. Therefore, the waterproof structure for preventing moisture from entering the battery pack must be independent of the waterproof structure for a circuit board or the like incorporated in the main body housing. As described above, since the waterproof structure of the mobile phone body and the waterproof structure of the battery pack are made independent, in order to obtain the above-described level of waterproof performance, not only waterproof measures for the mobile phone body but also waterproof measures for the battery pack are required. You have to be creative.
[0004]
FIG. 10 shows an example of a conventional battery pack waterproof structure. In the figure, 10 is a main body of the mobile phone, 12 is a battery pack, and 14 is a pocket for accommodating the battery pack 12. The pocket 14 is provided at a lower rear portion of the main body 10 or the like, and has an opening size and a depth that can accommodate the battery pack 12. The battery pack 12 can be attached to and detached from the pocket 14 at any time, as indicated by arrows at both ends in the figure. The end user or the like performs this attaching / detaching operation when replacing the consumed battery pack 12 with a new battery pack 12 or the like. In the pocket 14, a mechanism for locking and fixing the battery pack 12, a connector for electrically connecting the battery pack 12 to a circuit in the main body 10, and the like are provided. For example, 16 in the figure is a connector for connecting the battery pack 12 to a circuit, and 18 is a claw for fixing the battery pack 12.
[0005]
FIG. 11 shows an AA cross section of the battery pack 12. As shown in the drawing, the conventional battery pack 12 has a structure in which a cell 20 having an electromotive force is housed in a case formed of resin or the like. The case shown in FIG. 1 includes a case body 22 for accommodating the cell 20 and a lid 24 for closing an opening of the case body 22. The lid 24 is provided with a low-profile peripheral wall, and the front end of the side wall of the case body 22 is provided with slits for receiving the peripheral wall. The mid-lateral position is regulated and regulated.
[0006]
In the case having such a structure, it is expected that moisture will enter the inside of the case from the joint 26 between the case body 22 and the lid 24 (see the arrow line in FIG. 11). The lid 24 is fixed to the case main body 22 by means such as welding by ultrasonic waves or bonding with an adhesive in order to prevent intrusion of moisture from the seam portion 26 and thereby failure or malfunction of the cell 20. Is done.
[0007]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
Here, if poor adhesion or poor adhesion of the lid 24 to the case body 22 occurs, the expected waterproof performance cannot be obtained. Therefore, when manufacturing the battery pack 12, it is necessary to perform a step of incorporating the cell 20 into the case and a step of fixing the lid 24 by welding, bonding, or the like, and then perform an inspection using a leak inspection machine or the like. As a result of this inspection, products that are found to be inadequate in welding or bonding and cannot meet the criteria for waterproof performance are excluded and put into another process including manual work.
[0008]
That is, since the cell 20 is generally expensive, it is uneconomical to discard this kind of defective product as it is. On the other hand, in the case of external sealing (repair), welding or poor adhesion of the seam portion 26 at the seam portion 26 may occur. Conventionally, since it cannot be repaired sufficiently, conventionally, a series of operations of opening the case by peeling off the joint portion 26, taking out the cell 20 inside, returning the taken out cell 20 to the previous process, and incorporating it into a new case. I was going. Of this series of operations, the operation of opening the case and the operation of removing the cell 20 are difficult to mechanize (manual work is lower in cost than mechanization). In addition, the case where the welding or the adhesion failure occurs is destroyed when the cell 20 is taken out, so that the case has to be discarded.
[0009]
As described above, in the past, there has been a case where defects such as welding and adhesion for water-tightly sealing the case may occur, and there are problems such as a decrease in productivity due to manual work following the case and an increase in cost due to disposal of the case. there were. The present invention has been made to solve such problems, and is suitable for portable devices such as a waterproof mobile phone, and can only stably obtain a high level of waterproof performance with respect to its battery. It is another object of the present invention to provide a waterproof structure that does not require the case to be strictly sealed by welding or bonding.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve such an object, the waterproof structure according to the present invention is (1) a waterproof structure for a battery in a portable device having a pocket for accommodating the battery, and (2) the waterproof structure. And (3) an outer cover that provides a part of the exterior surface of the portable device, wherein the inner cover substantially covers the opening of the pocket. And (4) a packing attached to the inner cover so as to prevent moisture from entering the opening through a gap between the inner cover and the peripheral wall of the pocket. The attached inner cover and the outer cover which is integral with or separate from the inner cover are detachably attached to the opening of the pocket as needed.
[0011]
In the waterproof structure according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inner cover is provided with a peripheral wall so as to fit into the pocket, and the inner cover is fixed to the inner bottom surface of the outer cover, and an O-ring used as a packing is provided. The inner cover is mounted on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the inner cover so as to be in contact with the entire inner surface of the peripheral wall of the pocket and elastically deform. More preferably, the outer cover is provided with a high-back peripheral wall that is taller than the peripheral wall of the inner cover when viewed from the inner bottom surface of the outer cover. The high-back peripheral wall is provided on the outer cover so as to surround at least a part of the peripheral wall of the pocket. More preferably, the outer cover is provided with a low-back peripheral wall that is shorter than the peripheral wall of the inner cover when viewed from the inner bottom surface of the outer cover. The low-back peripheral wall is provided so as to surround at least a part of the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the inner cover, and to cooperate with the high-back peripheral wall so as to sandwich the tip of the peripheral wall of the pocket. Further, it is desirable that a bent portion facing outward is provided at the end of the peripheral wall of the inner cover, and a space for mounting the O-ring in a fixed position is formed between the end and the distal end of the low-back peripheral wall. Further, it is desirable to provide a lock mechanism that exhibits a first state in which the outer cover is fixed to the peripheral wall of the pocket while pressing the inner cover inward of the pocket, and a second state in which the fixing is released. The lock mechanism is incorporated in the inner cover and the outer cover so that the state is switched according to a manual operation from the outside as viewed from the outer cover. It is desirable to further connect a handle to this lock mechanism. The handle is incorporated into the inner cover and the outer cover, for example, so that the handle can be raised from the outer bottom surface of the outer cover by a manual operation from the outside of the outer cover and can be rotated around an axis perpendicular to this surface, and By being turned upright, the lock mechanism is connected to the lock mechanism such that the state of the lock mechanism switches between the first and second states.
[0012]
In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, a non-porous flat plate-shaped packing fixed to the inner bottom surface of the inner cover is used as the packing. The inner cover has a peripheral wall which engages with the peripheral wall tip of the opening of the pocket and defines its position in a plane parallel to the opening. The outer cover is provided so as to be slidable in a predetermined direction with respect to the inner cover, and claws are provided on the outer peripheral surface of the pocket and the outer cover, respectively. For these claws, the inner cover is placed on the opening so that the packing contacts the entire periphery of the peripheral wall of the opening of the pocket, and the outer cover is further placed on the inner cover, and the outer cover is moved in the direction of the inner cover. When the outer cover is slid along the above-mentioned predetermined direction to a predetermined position in a pressed state, the outer cover is provided so as to be locked to the peripheral wall of the pocket.
[0013]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, an example of application to a waterproof mobile phone is shown, but the present invention can be applied to other types of mobile devices as long as the essence of the invention is not impaired. Although the structure of the battery pack itself is not particularly described, in the present invention, packing such as an O-ring is incorporated into a double cover structure including an outer cover and an inner cover to achieve waterproofness, productivity, exterior properties, and the like. Therefore, the battery pack can have a simpler structure than the battery pack 12 in the conventional technique shown in FIG. 11, that is, a structure in which waterproof measures are not taken so strictly. More essentially, any component that functions as a battery (cell itself or a battery pack in which the cell is incorporated) for operating the portable device may be used.
[0014]
1 to 4 show a waterproof structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 28 denotes a main body of the mobile phone, and reference numeral 30 denotes a pocket for accommodating the battery pack 36. The pocket 30 is provided, for example, at the lower rear portion of the mobile phone, and is designed to have a size, shape, and the like so that the battery pack 36 can be housed therein and a double cover structure can be attached to the opening. Further, in this figure, in order to simply show the structure, the double cover structure constituted by the outer cover 32 and the inner cover 34 and the lock mechanism incorporated therein are exploded and drawn. The connectors are also not shown (hidden).
[0015]
Further, the double cover structure in the present embodiment is a structure in which the outer bottom surface of the inner cover 34 is fixed to the inner bottom surface of the outer cover 32 with an adhesive or the like, and further a lock mechanism is incorporated therein. Fixing with screws etc. is not adopted. The “inner bottom surface” of the outer cover 32 referred to here is a surface facing downward and hidden in FIG. 1, and the “outer bottom surface” of the inner cover 34 is defined as an upper surface shown in FIG. Plane. In FIG. 1, a hatched portion 38 drawn on the outer bottom surface of the inner cover 34 is a surface for fixing to the outer cover 32. Preferably, an adhesive is applied to this portion 38 and the inner cover 34 is bonded to the outer cover 32.
[0016]
The inner cover 34 has a peripheral wall 40 as shown in FIG. 2 (BB section) and FIG. 3 (CC section). The distal end portion 42 of the peripheral wall 40 is bent outward. The peripheral wall 40 surrounds the inner cover 34 over the entire circumference, and therefore, the distal end portion 42 borders the inner cover 34 over the entire circumference. The outer dimensions of the border, that is, the contour dimensions of the inner cover 34, are set so as to fit into the opening of the pocket 30 with almost no gap as shown in FIG. In other words, one of the roles that the inner cover 34 plays when the double cover structure is attached to the opening of the pocket 36 is to close the opening of the pocket 30. Further, an O-ring 56 is mounted on the outer surface of the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34. The O-ring 56 closes a gap between the peripheral wall 64 of the pocket 30 and the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34 when the double cover structure is attached to the opening of the pocket 30.
[0017]
The inner cover 34 further includes a concave portion 46 for accommodating the rotation lock 44, a claw 48 for fixing the rotation lock 44 to the inner cover 34, and rotation of a locking claw 50 provided at a tip of the rotation lock 44. A space 52 and the like are also provided. The rotation lock 44, its claw 48, the leaf spring 49, and the like, together with the lock portion 62, constitute a lock mechanism for fixing / unfixing the double cover structure to the opening of the pocket 30. The lock portion 62 is a part of the peripheral wall 64 of the pocket 30 and is taller than other portions of the peripheral wall 64, and is provided on the left and right sides of the pocket 30 in the example of FIG. The inner wall surface is provided with a concave portion 61 that engages with the distal end of the locking claw 50. The distal end of the locking claw 50 engages with the concave portion 61, and is in a fixed state. State. The leaf spring 49 causes a click feeling when the fixing / unfixing operation is performed. Since these lock mechanisms are covered with the outer cover 32 except for a part accessed by an end user or the like, for example, a part such as the handle 45, the lock mechanism is not easily damaged.
[0018]
The handle 45 is a member for simplifying the manual operation of the lock mechanism. Both ends of the handle 45 are supported by the rotation lock 44. The outer cover 32 is provided with a substantially circular hole 47 so that a user can access the handle 45 or the lock mechanism. The handle 45 can be in a state of being laid down exactly as shown in FIG. 1, or can be in a state of being erected outward through a hole 47 as shown in FIG. When the handle 45 is rotated around an axis perpendicular to the outer bottom surface of the outer cover 32, as shown by a double-headed arrow in FIG. . Therefore, when attaching / detaching the double cover structure to / from the opening of the pocket 30, the user may perform the turning operation of the handle 45 by raising the handle 45 and pinching it with fingers. Although the convenience in operation is somewhat impaired, the number of members may be reduced by omitting the handle 45 and providing a slit through which a coin or the like can be inserted on the externally exposed surface of the rotation lock 44.
[0019]
Further, among the irregularities provided on the outer bottom surface of the inner cover 34, the concave portion 46, the rotating space 52, and the like are spaces for providing the lock mechanism and the handle 45. The inner cover 34 has no holes except for a ventilation hole (hidden by the ventilation film 54 in the figure) for providing the ventilation film 54. The gas permeable film 54 is a film 54 that allows the closed space between the outer cover 32 and the inner cover 34 to communicate with the space in the pocket 30. Since the pressure difference is eliminated / reduced by providing the gas permeable film 54, the fluctuation of the pressure difference inside and outside the pocket 30 can be absorbed. Therefore, there is no need to pull the handle 45 with a large force when removing the double cover structure from the opening of the pocket 30 or the like. In addition, since the ventilation film 54 is hidden from the end user and the like by the outer cover 32, the end user and the like do not accidentally peel off.
[0020]
On the other hand, the outer cover 32 is also provided with peripheral walls 58 and 60. The peripheral walls 58 and 60 surround the outer cover 32. However, as shown in FIG. 1, a part is missing so as not to conflict with the lock portion 62 and the like. In addition, the outer peripheral wall 58 is taller and the inner peripheral wall 60 is shorter than the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34 based on the inner bottom surface of the outer cover 32. The outer surface of the former, that is, the high back peripheral wall 58, together with the outer bottom surface (the upper surface in FIG. 1) of the outer cover 32, is a part of the exterior of the mobile phone. That is, the outer cover 32 forms a part of the exterior surface of the mobile phone. In addition, when the double cover structure is attached to the opening of the pocket 30, as shown in FIGS. 4A to 4D, the high-back peripheral wall 58 taller than the peripheral wall 40 serves as a guide. Thereby, the simplicity of the mounting operation and the like is enhanced.
[0021]
A gap 68 between the high-back peripheral wall 58 and the other peripheral wall, that is, the low-back peripheral wall 60 (see FIG. 4) is a slit for receiving and holding the distal end 66 of the peripheral wall 64. The width of the slit 68 is set so that the distal end 66 of the peripheral wall 64 of the pocket 30 can be received almost without any gap. When the double cover structure is mounted on the opening of the pocket 30, the high-back peripheral wall 58 is used as a guide as described above, and the pocket 30 is so fitted that the front end 66 of the peripheral wall 64 fits into the slit 68. The position of the double cover structure is generally determined, and the mounting process is performed according to the flow shown in FIGS. After the mounting, the slit 68 has a role of sandwiching and fixing the distal end portion 66 of the peripheral wall 64. In addition, the protrusion 70 provided on the outer surface of the peripheral wall 64 serves as a stopper for stopping the distal end of the high-back peripheral wall 58.
[0022]
The low-back peripheral wall 60 also plays a role in determining the position of the O-ring 56. That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the position of the O-ring 56 mounted on the outer surface of the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34 is orthogonal to the position of the O-ring 56 by the outer surface of the peripheral wall 40 in a direction parallel to the opening surface of the pocket 30. In the direction in which the peripheral wall 40 extends, the distal end 42 of the peripheral wall 40 and the distal end of the low-back peripheral wall 60 are respectively defined. In particular, as clearly shown in FIG. 4, the O-ring 56 is not only sandwiched (crushed) by the outer surface of the peripheral wall 40 and the inner surface of the peripheral wall 66, but also closes a gap between the inner cover 34 and the peripheral wall 66. Since the distal end portion 66 of the outer peripheral wall 64 is pressed against the distal end portion of the low-back peripheral wall 60, the clearance between the outer cover 32 and the peripheral wall 64 and the clearance between the low-back peripheral wall 60 and the peripheral wall 40 are also closed.
[0023]
As described above, in the present embodiment, the outer cover 34 has a role of forming a part of the exterior surface of the mobile phone among the roles of the lid 24 in the conventional example shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. Conventionally, the cell 20 is waterproofed by welding or bonding the lid 24 and the case main body 22, which are members that have this role. However, as a result, the cost for dealing with a defect has been high. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the opening of the pocket 30 is covered by the inner cover 34 which is a member different from the outer cover 32 serving as an exterior, and the inner cover 34 substantially covers the opening of the pocket 30. The inner cover 34 is positioned with respect to the opening by the outer cover 32, particularly the high-back peripheral wall 58 and the slit 68 so as to cover the inner cover 34, and the inner cover 34 is fixed to the inner cover 34 by a kind of packing O-ring 56 mounted on the inner cover 34. The gap between the pocket 30 and the peripheral wall 64 is closed to prevent moisture from entering the pocket 30. That is, a measure corresponding to welding / adhesion of the joint portion 26, which has conventionally been a cause of failure, has not been taken.
[0024]
Therefore, according to the waterproof structure according to the present embodiment, since the welding / adhesion failure itself of the joint portion 26 does not occur, effects such as an improvement in productivity, a reduction in cost for failure measures, and an improvement in yield can be obtained. Although the inner cover 34 is bonded to the outer cover 32 in the present embodiment as well, the bonding portion 38 does not directly contribute to the prevention of moisture intrusion. It is not necessary to take measures that involve destruction or destruction of components.
[0025]
Further, in the conventional example, since the lid 24 forms a part of the exterior surface, the case design of the battery pack 12 has to be determined for each model. That is, it was not possible to use the battery pack 12 using the same design case between models having different appearances and outer designs including design, texture, and the like. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, the member that depends on the appearance / outside design of the model is mainly the outer cover 32, and the other members, particularly the battery pack 36 to be waterproof, are not related to the outer design. Therefore, according to this embodiment, battery packs 36 of the same design can be diverted between different models. As a result, the production cost of the battery pack 36 and the development cost of the exterior can be easily reduced, and the price of the mobile phone can be further reduced.
[0026]
In a portable device such as a mobile phone, an end user or the like generally performs battery replacement or the like. For this reason, it is desirable to avoid the trouble of replacing batteries due to taking waterproof measures as much as possible. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the inner cover 34 and the outer cover 32 are integrated by bonding or the like so that the double cover structure formed thereby can be attached to and detached from the opening of the pocket 30 as needed. As a packing, an O-ring 56 is mounted on the inner cover 34. No screw or the like is used as a member for mounting / fixing the double cover structure, and a hole leading to the pocket 30 is not provided. Therefore, for the end user or the like, the battery pack 36 can be replaced by a simple operation of attaching and detaching the double cover structure. Further, in the operation, the operation of the handle 45 or the operation with a coin or the like may be performed, and the inconvenience is hardly felt. Since the inner cover 34 and the outer cover 32 are integrated by bonding or the like, the outer cover 32 is unlikely to rise from the inner cover 34.
[0027]
Furthermore, it is required that the waterproof performance of the battery does not deteriorate even if the end user or the like repeatedly exchanges the battery. In the present embodiment, the O-ring 56 is incorporated in the double cover structure in a stable form of being attached to the inner cover 34, and the waterproof performance does not significantly deteriorate even if the battery replacement operation is frequently repeated. More specifically, while fixing the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34 provided so as to fit into the pocket 30 to the inner bottom surface of the outer cover 32, the O-ring 56 is mounted on the outer surface of the peripheral wall 40 of the inner cover 34, When the double cover structure is mounted on the opening, the O-ring 56 is brought into contact with the entire inner surface of the peripheral wall 66 of the pocket 30 so as to be elastically deformed. As described above, the position of the O-ring 56 is stably maintained by the action of the peripheral wall 40, the distal end portion 42, the low-back peripheral wall 60, and the like. The direction in which the distal end 66 enters is also substantially constant by the action of the peripheral wall group (40, 58, 64) and the like. Therefore, the moisture intrusion path can be closed over the entire circumference, and the O-ring 56 is not deformed or damaged, so that the waterproof performance is not significantly impaired even if the attachment and detachment are repeated. The elastic deformation direction of the O-ring 56 is, for example, as shown in FIG. 4D, a direction parallel to the opening surface, that is, a direction parallel to the rotation surface of the locking claw 50. There is no burden on the locking mechanism.
[0028]
As described above, according to the present embodiment, it is possible to provide a waterproof structure that is suitable for a portable device such as a waterproof mobile phone and that can stably obtain a high level of waterproof performance with respect to the battery pack 36. For example, even if the mobile phone provided with the waterproof structure according to the present embodiment on the battery portion is immersed in still water having a depth of 1 m for 30 minutes, almost no moisture will enter the pocket 30 and thus the battery pack 36. Further, as prior art documents relating to waterproofing of a battery, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 8-17413 (mounting of packing on the main body side), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 8-77990 (lid with a sliding opening), and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 11-25940. There are documents such as Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Sliding-opening type lid and lid-side packing, etc.), but even if the technologies described in these documents are combined, the double cover structure as in the present embodiment cannot be obtained. It is not possible to improve the productivity, cost, yield, etc. while solving the above problems while stably obtaining the waterproof performance as described above.
[0029]
5 to 9 show a waterproof structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 5, reference numeral 72 denotes a main body of the mobile phone, and reference numeral 74 denotes a pocket for accommodating the battery pack 76. In this figure, a state in which the double cover structure including the outer cover 78 and the inner cover 80 is removed from the opening of the pocket 74 is illustrated for the sake of simplicity. In the present embodiment, the outer cover 78 and the inner cover 80 are separate bodies. Further, as means for fixing the outer cover 78 to the main body 72, a plurality of (eight in total, right and left in FIG. 5) claws 84 are provided on the inner surface of the peripheral wall 82 of the outer cover 78, and correspondingly, A plurality of claws 86 are provided on the side surface. That is, the outer cover 78 is fixed to the main body 72 by sliding the outer cover 78 as shown by the outline arrow line in FIG. When releasing the fixation, the operation is reversed. The peripheral wall 82 is provided only on the left and right in the example shown in FIG.
[0030]
The inner cover 80 has a peripheral wall 88 all around as shown in FIGS. 6 (DD section) and 7 (EE section), and a flat non-porous packing is provided on the inner bottom surface. 90 are incorporated. Preferably, the packing 90 is adhered to the inner bottom surface of the inner cover 80 or the like. The dimensions and shape of the peripheral wall 88 are set such that when the inner cover 80 is mounted on the opening of the pocket 74, the inner surface of the peripheral wall 88 is substantially in surface contact with the outer surface of the peripheral wall 92 over the entire circumference. When the double cover structure according to the present embodiment is mounted on the opening of the pocket 74, first, the peripheral wall 88 is positioned with respect to the peripheral wall 92, and the inner cover 80 is mounted on the opening. The outer cover 78 is mounted and locked in the same manner as described above. When this operation is performed, the packing 90 comes into close contact with the rib 93 provided at the distal end of the peripheral wall 92, and as a result, the space between the inner cover 80 and the main body 72 is suitably closed. Further, since the outer cover 78 slides and the inner cover 80 does not slide, the packing 90 is not twisted and the packing 90 is not damaged by the sliding. In addition, 94 in FIG. 7 is a projection provided on the outer surface of the peripheral wall 92 to stop the peripheral wall 88.
[0031]
As described above, in the present embodiment, the outer cover 78 has a role of forming a part of the outer surface of the mobile phone among the roles of the lid 24 in the conventional example shown in FIGS. 10 and 11. In the present embodiment, the opening of the pocket 74 is covered by an inner cover 80 which is a member different from the outer cover 78. More specifically, the inner cover 80 is positioned relative to the opening such that the inner cover 80 substantially covers the opening of the pocket 74 by the parallel positioning of the opening by the peripheral wall 88 and the peripheral wall 92 and the vertical positioning by the outer cover 78. And, the gap between the inner cover 80 and the peripheral wall 92 of the pocket 74 is closed by the packing 90 attached to the inner cover 80, thereby preventing moisture from entering the pocket 74. Therefore, no measures corresponding to the welding and bonding of the seam portion 26, which has conventionally been a cause of failure, have not been taken, and as a result, effects such as improvement in productivity, reduction in cost for failure measures, and improvement in yield can be obtained.
[0032]
Further, as described above, the packing 90 is not twisted or damaged due to the attachment and detachment, and since the plurality of claws 84 and 86 are provided, the load is dispersed and the entire contact portion between the packing 90 and the rib 93 is formed. Good adhesion over the circumference, and even if moisture invades between the inner cover 80 and the packing 90 as shown by the arrow in FIGS. The waterproof performance in the present embodiment is stable because it does not invade the inside, and the waterproof performance can be continuously provided by sufficiently withstanding the double cover structure and the repeated attachment and detachment of the battery pack 76 by the user.
[0033]
FIGS. 8A and 9A show an example in which a rectangular frame-shaped packing 90A is used in comparison with the present embodiment. In this configuration, if there is a gap between the peripheral wall 88 and the projection 94 and between the inner cover 80 and the packing 90, moisture may enter the pocket 74. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, since the packing 90 has a non-perforated flat plate shape, the entry path is blocked.
[0034]
Furthermore, in the present embodiment, for the same reason as in the first embodiment, the battery pack 76 having the same design can be diverted between different models, and the production cost and the development cost of the battery pack 76 can be easily reduced. Can also be suppressed. The operation for replacing the battery pack 76 and the like is also simple. Even if the techniques described in JP-A-8-17413, JP-A-8-77990, JP-A-11-25940, etc. are combined, the double cover structure as in the present embodiment cannot be obtained or as described above. No effect. In consideration of these points, according to the present embodiment, the present invention is suitable for a portable device such as a waterproof mobile phone, and can not only stably obtain a high level of waterproof performance with respect to the battery pack 76 but also obtain a case by welding or bonding. A waterproof structure that does not need to be tightly sealed can be provided.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a waterproof structure according to a first embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a BB sectional view showing the structure of the present embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a CC cross-sectional view showing the structure of the present embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a procedure at the time of mounting according to the present embodiment in a CC cross section, and particularly shows a progress state from the start of mounting to the end of mounting in the order of (a), (b), (c), and (d). FIG.
FIG. 5 is an exploded perspective view showing a waterproof structure according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a DD sectional view showing the structure of the present embodiment.
FIG. 7 is an EE sectional view showing the structure of the present embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a view showing a packing shape in the present embodiment, in particular, (b) shows a non-porous flat packing used in the present embodiment, and (a) shows a square frame-shaped packing to be compared with the packing. It is a perspective view.
FIG. 9 is a view showing one of the advantages of the non-perforated flat packing in the present embodiment, in particular, FIG. 9 (b) shows prevention of intrusion by the non-perforated flat packing used in this embodiment, and FIG. It is a figure which shows the penetration by the square frame-shaped packing compared with each in a cross section.
FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing a battery pack according to a conventional example.
FIG. 11 is an AA sectional view showing the waterproof structure.
[Explanation of symbols]
28, 72 body, 30, 74 pocket, 32, 78 outer cover, 34, 80 inner cover, 36, 76 battery pack, 38 adhesive part, 40, 64, 82, 88, 92 peripheral wall, 42, 66 tip, 44 Rotation lock, 45 handle, 49 leaf spring, 50 locking claw, 54 gas permeable membrane, 56 O-ring, 58 high back peripheral wall, 60 low back peripheral wall, 61 concave portion, 62 lock part, 68 slit, 84, 86 pawl, 90 packing , 93 ribs.

Claims (7)

A waterproof structure for a battery in a portable device having a pocket for containing the battery,
An inner cover for covering the opening of the pocket,
An outer cover that provides a part of an exterior surface of the portable device, wherein the inner cover holds a state in which the inner cover substantially covers the opening of the pocket,
A packing mounted on the inner cover so that moisture intrusion into the opening through a gap between the inner cover and the peripheral wall of the pocket is prevented,
A waterproof structure, wherein an inner cover to which a packing is attached and an outer cover that is integral with or separate from the inner cover are attached to and detached from the opening of the pocket at any time. The waterproof structure according to claim 1,
The inner cover has a peripheral wall provided to fit into the pocket, and is fixed to an inner bottom surface of the outer cover,
A waterproof structure, wherein the packing is an O-ring mounted on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the inner cover so that the packing comes into contact with the entire inner surface of the peripheral wall of the pocket and is elastically deformed. The waterproof structure according to claim 2,
A waterproof structure, wherein a high-back peripheral wall taller than the peripheral wall of the inner cover as viewed from the inner bottom surface of the outer cover surrounds at least a part of the peripheral wall of the pocket, and is provided on the outer cover. Construction. The waterproof structure according to claim 3,
The low-back peripheral wall, which is lower than the peripheral wall of the inner cover as viewed from the inner bottom surface of the outer cover, surrounds at least a part of the outer peripheral surface of the peripheral wall of the inner cover, and cooperates with the high-back peripheral wall. It is provided on the outer cover so as to pinch the tip of the peripheral wall of the pocket,
An outer bent portion is provided at an end of the peripheral wall of the inner cover so that a space for mounting the O-ring in a fixed position is formed between the O-ring and the distal end of the low-back peripheral wall. And waterproof structure. In the waterproof structure according to any one of claims 2 to 4,
A lock mechanism that exhibits a first state in which the outer cover is fixed to the peripheral wall of the pocket while pressing the inner cover inward of the pocket, and a second state in which the fixation is released, A waterproof structure comprising: a lock mechanism incorporated in the inner cover and the outer cover so that the state is switched according to a manual operation from the outside as viewed from the outer cover. The waterproof structure according to claim 5,
The outer cover is incorporated into the inner cover and the outer cover so that it can be raised from the outer bottom surface of the outer cover by a manual operation from the outside and can be rotated around an axis perpendicular to this surface, and is turned upright. A waterproof structure comprising: a handle connected to the lock mechanism such that the state of the lock mechanism is switched between the first and second states by moving the handle. The waterproof structure according to claim 1,
The packing is a non-porous plate-shaped packing fixed to the inner bottom surface of the inner cover,
The inner cover has a peripheral wall that engages with a distal end of the peripheral wall of the opening to define its position in a plane parallel to the opening,
The outer cover is slidably provided in a predetermined direction with respect to the inner cover,
The inner cover was placed on the opening so that the packing was in contact with the entire periphery of the peripheral wall of the opening, and the outer cover was further placed thereon, and the outer cover was pressed in the direction of the inner cover. In this state, when the outer cover is slid to the predetermined position along the predetermined direction, the outer cover is locked to the peripheral wall of the pocket so that the outer cover is caught on the outer surface of the peripheral wall of the pocket and the outer cover. The waterproof structure characterized by having provided.

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