JP2006134087A - Ic card tray, and ic card reader/writer equipped with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an IC card tray for improving operability in inserting/ejecting an IC card and visibility in the mounted IC card, and to provide an IC card reader/writer equipped with the IC card tray. <P>SOLUTION: The IC card tray includes a bottom surface part which is at least partially substantially transparent and can be brought into surface contact with one surface of the IC card to be placed; and an erecting part which is arranged by erection from the bottom surface part, so as to restrict the position of the IC card which is brought into surface contact. The IC card reader/writer includes the IC card tray. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an IC card tray necessary for inserting an IC card into an IC card reader / writer to which an IC card can be mounted, removing it from the IC card reader / writer, and holding the IC card inside the IC card reader / writer, and this The present invention relates to an IC card reader / writer equipped with such an IC card tray, and more particularly to an IC card tray suitable for accommodating a small IC card and an IC card reader / writer equipped with an IC card tray.

  With the spread of information products such as computers, digital cameras, and digital recording devices, consumer demand for information storage devices is increasing day by day. In addition, the development of mobile devices has become active toward a ubiquitous society wherever and whenever possible. Under such circumstances, card-like electronic components holding various data are being used along a light, thin and small flow.

  As for a mechanism for inserting and removing a card-like electronic component from a host device, for example, a mechanism using a tray has been proposed as disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 below. These mechanisms are based on the premise of using a card having an input / output connector formed on the end face of the card, represented by a PCMCIA (personal computer memory card international association) card, and an IC card having a thickness of 1 mm or less. It is difficult to apply.

  In computer systems and network systems, there is an increasing demand for data protection and security measures. In response to such demands, IC cards, which are card-like electronic components incorporating IC devices, are widely used as having extremely high security in terms of tamper resistance and data retention performance. A general IC card is 54 mm × 86 mm × 0.8 mm in thickness, which is the same size as a magnetic card, and is thinner than the PCMCIA card or the CompactFlash (registered trademark) card. As a mechanism for inserting and removing such a thin card into the host device, for example, a loading mechanism as disclosed in Patent Document 3 below, or when the card is further pushed out when the card is further locked when removed during insertion, the card pops out. There is such a mechanism (pushback mechanism).

  On the other hand, an IC card having a very small size, which is different from the above-mentioned IC card, can be recently mounted on a mobile phone terminal or the like. It is called a SIM, UIM, or USIM card and is used as a security ID module. A UIM (user identity module) is a small IC card in which contractor information issued by a mobile phone company is recorded, and is incorporated into a mobile phone terminal and used for user identification. This UIM is an extension of the SIM (subscriber identity module) that has the same functions, and encrypts and registers private information such as phone books and personal identification information for credit payments in addition to subscriber information. You can also. Since UIM is based on SIM, it is also called USIM (universal SIM).

  The SIM is intended to use the GSM mobile phone service, but the UIM can be used, for example, by inserting it into a cdma2000 mobile phone in the United States and receiving an international roaming service. Instead of individually holding a mobile device main body represented by a mobile phone terminal, it is possible to match the user with the mobile device by replacing the SIM card, or to prevent the mobile device from being used by others. For this reason, it is necessary to enable the SIM card to be inserted into and removed from the host device. Hereinafter, in the present specification, the term “SIM” may mean UIM and USIM.

In order to insert / remove the SIM card into / from the host device, for example, a pushback mechanism can be used in the same manner as the above-described normal IC card. Alternatively, as disclosed in Patent Document 4 below, a form in which a tray is used and a SIM is mounted on the tray and the tray itself is handled as a card-like electronic component has been proposed.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-36524 JP 2001-101348 A JP-A-7-244711 JP 2001-143045 A

  The operability of inserting / removing the SIM card into / from the host device is an important point as a product. A conventional structure for inserting / removing a SIM card has a complicated mechanism, and there is a point to be improved in that a connector that makes electrical contact with the SIM card becomes expensive. Moreover, since the mechanism is complicated, it is necessary to cope with the case where the mechanism is broken. For example, in order to avoid the problem that the SIM card cannot be inserted into the host device and cannot be removed, the SIM card is held by the force that is in contact with the connector terminal, and can be removed using tweezers. .

  Such removal is troublesome, and further, the SIM card may be out of the normal position by some impact only by being held by the force with which the SIM card is in contact with the terminal of the connector. Further, the inserted SIM card has a disadvantage that only the end face and side face can be seen and it is not known what or who SIM card is inserted. In order to confirm, it is necessary to take out the SIM card from the host device, which is inconvenient.

  The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-described situation. In order to insert an IC card into an IC card reader / writer to which an IC card can be mounted, to remove the IC card from the IC card reader / writer, and in the IC card reader / writer, IC card tray necessary for holding a card, and an IC card tray capable of improving the operability of insertion / removal and improving the visibility of a mounted IC card in an IC card reader / writer equipped with such an IC card tray An object is to provide an IC card reader / writer provided with an IC card tray.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, an IC card tray according to the present invention stands up from a bottom surface portion that can be brought into surface contact with one surface of an IC card to be placed and at least partially transparent, and the bottom surface portion. And an upright part that regulates the position of the IC card brought into surface contact.

  That is, the IC card tray can regulate the position of the mounted IC card by the standing part, and the standing part surely moves the IC card even when the IC card is inserted into and removed from the IC card reader / writer. . The IC card placed on the tray can be electrically connected with a connector from the side opposite to the tray. At this time, the IC card can be reliably held in the vertical direction by the tray and the connector. Therefore, by using this IC card tray, the operability for inserting and removing the IC card can be improved. Furthermore, since at least a part of the bottom surface of the tray is transparent, it is easy to visually recognize through the tray that the IC card is placed on the tray.

  An IC card reader / writer equipped with an IC card tray according to the present invention is an IC card reader / writer equipped with an IC card tray having an insertion slot for inserting an IC card tray on which an IC card is placed. The IC card tray and the IC card tray are inserted into the insertion slot, and the IC card tray side is placed on the IC card placed and regulated at the upright portion of the IC card tray. And a connector provided to make electrical contact from the opposite side.

  That is, in the IC card reader / writer, when the IC card tray is inserted into the IC card reader / writer as the main body, the connector is positioned on the exposed surface of the IC card placed thereon. The connector and the IC card tray establish electrical contact between the IC card and the connector while the vertical position of the IC card is reliably maintained. In addition, the position and movement of the IC card can be controlled by the IC card tray as described above. Further, since the bottom surface of the IC card tray that comes into surface contact with the IC card is at least partially transparent, the IC card mounted on the IC card reader / writer can be visually recognized through the tray when the IC card tray is inserted into the main body. Easy to do. Therefore, the operability of inserting / removing the IC card and the visibility of the mounted IC card can be improved.

  According to the present invention, an IC card tray required for inserting an IC card into an IC card reader / writer to which an IC card can be attached, removing it from the IC card reader / writer, and holding the IC card inside the IC card reader / writer. In addition, in the IC card reader / writer equipped with such an IC card tray, an IC card tray and an IC card reader / writer equipped with the IC card tray capable of improving the operability of insertion / removal and improving the visibility of the mounted IC card. Can be provided.

  As an embodiment of the present invention, the IC card tray may be substantially rectangular as a tray shape, and may have at least one protrusion or dent in the vicinity of the vertex as the rectangle. By providing a complementary portion corresponding to the protrusion or dent on the main body side, the IC card tray is not easily detached from the main body when it is pulled out from the main body.

  Further, as an embodiment, a groove may be formed on the surface of the bottom surface portion on the opposite side to the surface of the bottom surface portion where the IC card placed above makes surface contact. The surface of the bottom surface where the groove is formed is a surface exposed to the external space for visual recognition of the IC card placed when the IC card tray is inserted into the main body. Therefore, if a groove is formed on this surface, it is convenient to hook the IC card tray and pull it out from the main body.

  Further, as an embodiment, a protrusion may be formed in a direction perpendicular to the slidable direction and at a position that does not interfere with the IC card placed as described above. For example, by projecting the protrusion from the main body, it can be used as an auxiliary for pulling out the IC card tray from the main body.

  Further, as an embodiment, a groove that communicates with and penetrates the end portion may be formed in the bottom surface portion so as to avoid surface contact with the IC card placed above. A detector for detecting the presence or absence of the IC card can be provided on the main body side using this groove.

  Further, as an embodiment, the upright portion may not be formed on one side of the IC card placed as described above. For example, the one side can be the front side when inserted into the main body. This is a mode in which the IC card is directly pushed together with the IC card tray from the front side to the back. Here, at least a part of the bottom surface portion where the standing portion is not formed may be missing so as to avoid surface contact with the IC card placed thereon. If the IC card tray is missing as described above, it is easy to pick up the IC card when the IC card tray is pulled out from the main body.

  Further, as an embodiment of the IC card reader / writer, the IC card reader / writer further includes a tray cover that closes the insertion opening in a state where the IC card tray is inserted, and the insertion opening is blocked by the tray cover. It is good also as position control to the insertion slot side being carried out. Such a tray cover not only restricts the position of the IC card, but also increases the continuity with the outer surface of the housing at the insertion slot, creating a good design impression.

  Further, as an embodiment, an IC card placed on the IC card tray may be further provided such that a retracted portion is positioned in the front with the IC card tray being inserted into the insertion slot. If the IC card is held in the main body in such a direction, when the IC card is inserted into and removed from the main body by the IC card tray, the contact between the IC card electrode terminal and the connector contact moves. There is an advantage that short circuit due to can be surely prevented.

  Based on the above, embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the configuration of an IC card tray according to an embodiment of the present invention, together with the IC card placed thereon. In FIG. 1, FIG. 4, FIG. 12, and FIG. 12, the IC card tray 1 is drawn in a direction where the tray shape is looked up from below for convenience of explanation.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the IC card tray 1 has a bottom surface portion that comes into surface contact with one surface of the IC card 2 and an upright portion 1 a for regulating the position of the IC card 2 placed on the bottom surface portion. The standing portion 1a is provided upright from the bottom surface portion, but is not formed at all on one side of the IC card 2 placed thereon. As will be described later, this takes into account the convenience of taking out and placing the IC card 2 from the IC card tray 1. The material of the IC card tray 1 can be a resin having some flexibility, for example.

  In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1b denotes a pull-out prevention protrusion, and reference numeral 1c denotes a through groove. Their functions will be described later. The IC card 2 is provided with an electrode terminal 2a on one side (the side opposite to the side of the IC card tray 1), and when it is placed on the IC card tray 1, the side of the IC card 2 has no upright portion 1a. The corner retreat part 2b is located.

  FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the configuration of the IC card 2. This figure shows the surface on which the electrode terminal 2a is provided. In the case of a SIM card, the vertical size is 15 mm and the horizontal size is 25 mm, which is much smaller than an IC card having the same size as a magnetic card (54 mm × 86 mm × thickness 0.8 mm). However, there is no change in the function of the mounted IC, and the functionality that can be possessed as an IC card is the same. The corner retreating part 2b is for showing the direction of the IC card 2 to the user.

  FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing only the IC card tray 1 shown in FIG. Each reference numeral is common to FIG. As shown in FIG. 3, the IC card tray 1 has a bottom surface portion 1 d (part) of which is at least transparent, through which the IC card placed from the bottom surface portion 1 d side can be confirmed. Further, a missing portion 1e is formed in a part of the bottom portion 1d portion where the standing portion 1a is not formed at all. This is because when the IC card tray 1 is pulled out from the main body with the missing portion 1e in front, the IC card can be easily picked up and placed.

  FIG. 4 is a perspective view for explaining an IC card mounting mode in the IC card reader / writer according to the embodiment of the present invention. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. When the IC card tray 1 described above is inserted into the IC card reader / writer as the main body, the IC card 2 placed thereon is held in the state shown in FIG. That is, the position of the IC card 2 is regulated by the bottom portion 1d of the IC card tray 1 on the upper side and the IC card connector 3 mounted on the wiring board 4 on the lower side, and the short side direction and the long side of the IC card 2 One of the directions is restricted by the standing portion 1 a of the IC card tray 1.

  When the IC card tray 1 is pulled out in the long side direction of the IC card 2 on which the IC card tray 1 is placed with the missing part 1e facing forward, a part of the standing part 1a reliably changes the position of the IC card 2 and is removed from the main body. Assist. When the IC card 2 is inserted into the main body, the IC card 2 is placed in a predetermined direction on the IC card tray 1 pulled out from the main body, and then the missing portion 1e side of the IC card tray 1 and the IC card 2 on the side thereof are placed. Push the end face into the body at the same time. The IC card tray 1 stops at a predetermined insertion direction position by an abutting surface provided on the main body side.

  The reason why the wiring board 4 and the IC card connector 3 are arranged so that the corner retracted portion 2b of the IC card 2 is on the near side is that the arrangement of the electrode terminals 2a of the IC card 2 is taken into consideration. . That is, if the IC card 2 is held in the main body in such a direction, when the IC card 2 is inserted into and removed from the main body by the IC card tray 1, the electrode terminal 2a of the IC card 2 and the connector 3 are arranged. A short circuit due to the movement of the contact with the contact can be reliably prevented.

  FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the wiring board 4 and the IC card connector 3 in the IC card reader / writer according to the embodiment of the present invention. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. Although not shown, each electrical / electronic component that performs electrical processing is mounted on the wiring board 4, and an IC card connector 3 that performs electrical contact with the IC card 2 is also mounted as a part thereof. . The IC card connector 3 is provided with a springy terminal for making electrical contact with the electrode terminal 2 a of the IC card 2. Due to this spring property, when the IC card 2 is mounted in the main body, it is securely pressed against the IC card tray 1 side and held.

  FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the wiring board 4 and the IC card connector 3 shown in FIG. 5 and the mounted IC card 2. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. As shown in FIG. 6, the side of the electrode terminal 2 a of the IC card 2 faces the IC card connector 3.

  FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a desired positional relationship between the wiring board 4 and the IC card 2 shown in FIG. 6 and the IC card tray 1 shown in FIG. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. As shown in FIG. 7, the IC card tray 1 is located on the opposite side of the IC card 2 from the wiring board 4, and this state is the mounting state (holding state) of the IC card 2. The installed IC card 2 can be visually recognized through a part of the IC card tray 1 because it is transparent.

  A lead groove 1f is formed on the surface of the IC card tray 1 opposite to the side where the IC card 2 is located. The user can move the IC card tray 1 in the direction of pulling out from the main body by hooking a nail or the like in the groove. Instead of the drawer groove 1f, a protrusion may be provided from the IC card tray 1 so as to protrude from the main body so as not to interfere with the position of the IC card 2 in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the IC card tray 1 slides. . In this case, the IC card tray 1 can be slid in the direction to be pulled out from the main body by providing a slit in the main body so that the protrusion can slide and moving the protrusion in the slit.

  The pull-out prevention protrusion 1b is for preventing pull-out when the IC card tray 1 is pulled out from the main body, and is provided at least in the vicinity of the apex as a rectangular tray shape. It may be a dent instead of a protrusion, and the main point depends on the shape of the complementary part on the main body side.

  The through groove 1c communicates with and penetrates the end of the IC card tray 1 so as to avoid surface contact with the IC card 2 placed thereon. By adopting such a shape, a switch for detecting the presence of the IC card 2 can be easily provided on the wiring board 4. That is, since the through groove 1c is difficult to place the IC card 2 as a cut in the sliding direction, it does not react to the IC card tray 1 at the position shown in FIG. It is easy to provide a switch that reacts only on the wiring board 4.

  Further, by making the notch deeper than the middle of the tray shape, when the IC card tray 1 is pulled out from the main body, the base is narrowed in the width direction, and the IC card tray 1 is moved away from the pull-out preventing projection 1b. It is also possible to remove it easily. The through groove 1c also facilitates the formation (insertion) of the IC card tray 1 on the main body side during assembly by forming the IC card tray 1 as a separate body during manufacture. Since there is no movable part on the main body side before the IC card tray 1 is assembled, its assemblability is very good.

  FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the wiring board 4, IC card 2, IC card tray 1 and IC card tray cover 5 shown in FIG. 7. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. The IC card 2 mounted as shown in FIG. 7 is regulated by the IC card tray cover 5 on the front side of the drawer as shown in FIG. As a result, the position of the IC card 2 is restricted in all six directions of the vertical direction, short side direction, and long side direction, so that the positional relationship with the main body side is fixed.

  FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing the positional relationship between the wiring board 4, the IC card 2, the IC card tray 1, the IC card tray cover 5, and the housing cover 6 shown in FIG. 8. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. As shown in FIG. 9, the housing cover 6 has an IC card visualizing opening 6a for visually recognizing the mounted IC card 2. As shown in the figure, the opening 6a is also an opening for accessing a drawer groove 1f for pulling out the IC card tray 1 from the main body.

  The IC card tray cover 5 fits into an IC card tray insertion slot 6 b provided in the housing cover 6, and thus has a shape showing continuity with the housing cover 6. Further, the IC card tray cover 5 is prevented from being lost by engaging one end in the longitudinal direction with the housing cover 6 in a state where the IC card tray 1 is pulled out from the main body. The Reference numeral 6c denotes an LED light guide hole for allowing light emitted from the LED mounted on the wiring board 4 to pass therethrough.

  FIG. 10 is a side view of the IC card tray insertion slot 6b when the IC card tray cover 5 is removed in the IC card reader / writer according to the embodiment of the present invention (IC card mounted). The reference numerals are the same as those already described. As shown in FIG. 10, the position of the IC card 2 is restricted by the IC card tray 1 on the upper and left and right sides, and the position of the IC card 2 is restricted by contacting the IC card connector 3. Further, the IC card tray 1 is guided by the tray slide frame 6d in relation to the housing cover 6 and can be inserted and removed from the main body, and the movable range in the slide direction is defined.

  FIG. 11 is a side view of the IC card tray insertion slot 6b when the IC card tray cover 5 is fitted in the IC card reader / writer according to the embodiment of the present invention. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. As described in FIG. 9, the IC card tray cover 5 fits into the IC card tray insertion slot 6 b and has a shape that is continuous with the outer surface of the housing cover 6.

  FIG. 12 is a perspective view illustrating an aspect in which the IC card tray 1 slides in the IC card reader / writer according to the embodiment of the present invention. The reference numerals are the same as those already described. FIG. 12A shows a state in which the IC card tray 1 is inserted into the main body, and FIG. 12B shows a state in which the IC card tray 1 is pulled out from the main body. The illustration of the side 4 is omitted.

  In this embodiment, the pull-out prevention protrusion 1b of the IC card tray 1 works to stop the pull-out from the main body side in the state shown in FIG. Therefore, in this state, the IC card 2 is placed on the IC card tray 1 or taken out. At this time, since the IC card tray 1 has the missing portion 1e, it can be handled easily by pinching the IC card 2.

  The embodiment of the present invention has been described above. However, as an overall feature, there are advantages that the structure is simple, the number of parts is small, and the degree of processing is small. As a result, in addition to the functional aspects of improving the operability of inserting / removing the IC card and improving the visibility of the mounted IC card, a favorable result is obtained in terms of cost.

The perspective view which shows the structure of the IC card tray which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention with the IC card in which it was mounted. The top view which shows the structure of an IC card. The perspective view which shows only the IC card tray shown in FIG. The perspective view explaining the mounting | wearing aspect of the IC card in the IC card reader / writer which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. The perspective view which shows the positional relationship of the wiring board and IC card connector in the IC card reader / writer which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a positional relationship between the wiring board and the IC card connector shown in FIG. 5 and a mounted IC card. The perspective view which shows the positional relationship which the wiring board and IC card shown in FIG. 6, and the IC card tray shown in FIG. 3 should be. The perspective view which shows the positional relationship of the wiring board shown in FIG. 7, an IC card, and an IC card tray, and an IC card tray cover. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a positional relationship between a wiring board, an IC card, an IC card tray, and an IC card tray cover shown in FIG. 8 and a housing cover. 1 is a side view of an IC card tray insertion slot when an IC card tray cover is removed in an IC card reader / writer according to an embodiment of the present invention (IC card mounted). 1 is a side view of an IC card tray insertion slot when an IC card tray cover is fitted in an IC card reader / writer according to an embodiment of the present invention. The perspective view explaining the aspect which an IC card tray slides in the IC card reader / writer which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... IC card tray, 1a ... Standing part, 1b ... Pull-out prevention protrusion, 1c ... Through-groove part, 1d ... Bottom part, 1e ... Missing part, 1f ... Pull-out groove, 2 ... IC card (SIM card), 2a ... Electrode Terminals, 2b ... recessed corner, 3 ... IC card connector, 4 ... wiring board, 5 ... tray cover, 6 ... casing cover, 6a ... IC card viewing opening, 6b ... IC card tray insertion slot, 6c ... LED lead Light hole, 6d: tray slide frame.

Claims (10)

A bottom surface part which can be brought into surface contact with one side of the IC card to be placed and at least a part of which is almost transparent;
An IC card tray, comprising: an upright portion that stands up from the bottom surface portion and restricts a position of the IC card that is in surface contact with the IC card. The tray shape is almost rectangular,
2. The IC card tray according to claim 1, further comprising at least one protrusion or dent in the vicinity of the rectangular vertex.   2. The IC card tray according to claim 1, wherein a groove is formed on the surface of the bottom surface portion opposite to the surface of the bottom surface portion where the IC card placed on the surface contacts the surface.   2. The IC card tray according to claim 1, wherein a protrusion is formed at a position perpendicular to the slidable direction and not interfering with the IC card placed as described above.   2. The IC card tray according to claim 1, wherein a groove communicating with and passing through the end portion is formed in the bottom surface portion so as to avoid surface contact with the IC card placed above.   2. The IC card tray according to claim 1, wherein the upright portion is not formed on one side of the IC card placed thereon.   7. The IC card according to claim 6, wherein at least a part of the portion of the bottom surface portion where the standing portion is not formed is missing so as to avoid surface contact with the IC card placed thereon. tray. An IC card reader / writer having an IC card tray having an insertion slot for inserting an IC card tray on which an IC card is placed,
An IC card tray according to any one of claims 1 to 7,
In a state where the IC card tray is inserted into the insertion slot, the IC card tray should be placed in electrical contact from the side opposite to the side of the IC card tray. And an IC card reader / writer equipped with an IC card tray. A tray cover for closing the insertion slot in a state where the IC card tray is inserted;
9. The IC card reader / writer equipped with an IC card tray according to claim 8, wherein the position of the IC card tray toward the insertion port is restricted by the insertion of the insertion port by the tray cover.   The IC card according to claim 8, further comprising an IC card placed on the IC card tray so that a corner retreating portion is positioned in front of the IC card tray in the state where the IC card tray is inserted into the insertion slot. IC card reader / writer with IC card tray.

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