JP2006294637A - Connector for card - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connector for a card with improved durability, without risk of failure even if the card is pulled out by a wrong operation. <P>SOLUTION: A housing 11 is provided with a heart cam block 20 sliding along card insertion/removal direction R1, R2, structured with a push-push type card ejection mechanism. An elastic piece 40 for locking having a locking claw part 45 capable of fitting to a recess 3 for locking an SD card 1 is fixed to the heart cam block 20. When the heart cam block 20 is pushed toward the card insertion direction R1 together with the SD card 1, the elastic piece 40 for locking is elastically deformed by a spring member 35, and the locking claw part 45 engages with the recess 3, in the above state, the heart cam block 20 is locked. When the SD card is compulsorily pulled out, the elastic piece 40 for locking is elastically deformed, and the engagement of the locking claw part 45 with the recess 3 is released. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a card represented by a memory card such as an SD (Secure Digital) memory card, a multimedia card and a memory stick (especially a card with a built-in integrated circuit) as an electronic device (for example, a portable electronic device or a notebook computer). The present invention relates to a card connector for electrical connection to a wiring board or the like.

A portable electronic device represented by a mobile phone, a digital camera, and a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant) often has a memory slot for inserting a memory card. Inside the memory slot, a card connector for electrically connecting the electrical contacts of the memory card to the internal wiring board is provided.
The prior art of the card connector is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1 below. The card connector according to this prior art has an insulating housing in which a plurality of terminals are mounted side by side, a shell cover assembled to the housing, and a heart cam block that advances and retreats in the insertion / removal direction as the card is inserted / removed. The so-called push-push type card ejection mechanism is adopted. The heart cam block is biased in the card ejection direction by a coil spring. The heart cam block has a heart-shaped cam groove, and a transmission pin formed by bending a metal rod once at a right angle is engaged with the cam groove. The other end of the metal bar is fixed to the housing.

The heart cam block is pushed into the back of the housing together with the card by applying an external force in the insertion direction to the card. In this process, the operating portion of the transmission pin moves in the cam groove, and the external force applied to the card is released, thereby being guided to the cam groove lock position. Thereby, the heart cam block is held in a state of being pushed into the housing.
When an external force in the insertion direction is again applied to the card, the transmission pin operating portion is disengaged from the lock position in the cam groove. Thereafter, when the external force on the card is released, the heart cam block is moved in the card removal direction by the biasing force from the coil spring, and the operating portion of the transmission pin circulates in the cam groove. Thereby, the card is pushed out of the housing together with the heart cam block.

The heart cam block is provided with an engaging protrusion that engages with a recess formed on the side surface of the memory card. Further, the heart cam block is provided with a protrusion that engages with a special-shaped guide groove formed in the shell cover and the housing.
With this configuration, when the heart cam block is slid in the insertion / removal direction, the protrusion is guided by the guide groove so that the engagement protrusion is directed toward the side surface of the memory card and the direction away from the side surface of the memory card. It is displaced to. That is, the engaging protrusion engages with the recess on the side surface of the memory card in the process of inserting the heart cam block into the back of the housing, and the recess in the process of moving the heart cam block in the card removal direction. The engagement is released by retreating.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2002-83651

When the card is attached to the connector, the rear end of the card slightly protrudes from the card slot. This is to secure a push-in allowance when taking out the card.
However, a user unfamiliar with the push-push type card ejecting mechanism may try to pull out the card from the card slot by picking the rear end of the card slightly protruding from the card slot.

  In such a case, in the above prior art, the recess on the side surface of the card and the engaging projection remain engaged, and the heart cam block is pulled out together with the card. At this time, the operating portion of the transmission pin moves over the cam groove formed in the heart cam block, and at that time, the cam groove is damaged. Therefore, when the user repeats the same operation many times, the cam groove of the heart cam block is broken, and the heart cam block is not held at the position where the heart cam block is pushed into the housing (the state where the card is inserted). As a result, the memory card cannot be inserted into the memory slot, resulting in failure.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a card connector that does not cause a failure even when the card is pulled out by an erroneous operation, thereby improving durability.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 is a connector for electrically connecting a card having an engagement recess on a side surface to a device, having a receiving space for receiving the card, A housing in which an electrical contact that contacts the electrical contact is implanted, a metal shell fixed to the housing so as to cover at least a part of the housing, and the card is inserted to a predetermined complete insertion position in the housing A lock claw part that is sometimes engaged with an engagement recess of the card, and is formed integrally with the metal shell by punching the metal shell, and supports the lock claw part with respect to the card. When an external force in the card removal direction is applied, the card is elastically deformed by receiving a force acting on the lock claw from the card, and the lock claw and the engagement recess of the card A card connector which comprises a resilient piece to release the engagement.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the engagement recess has an engagement surface that is substantially perpendicular to a card insertion / extraction direction with respect to the housing, and the lock claw portion faces the engagement surface of the engagement recess. The lock engagement side or the lock engagement surface has an external force that acts on the lock claw portion from the card when an external force in the card removal direction is applied to the card. 2. The elastic piece according to claim 1, wherein the elastic piece is inclined with respect to a side surface of the card in a state of being elastically deformed, and is in sliding contact with an exit edge of the engagement recess of the card. This is a card connector.

  The invention according to claim 3 is coupled to the housing so as to be slidable along the card insertion / extraction direction, and receives a force in the card insertion direction from the card when the card is inserted into the housing. A push-push type slide member that slides in the insertion direction and is locked at a predetermined lock position, and is unlocked when the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from the locked state, and the push-push type slide 3. The card connector according to claim 1, further comprising biasing means for biasing the member in the card removal direction.

  A card connector according to one specific example is a connector (10) for electrically connecting a card (1) having an engagement recess (3) on a side surface to a device, and a storage space (15) for storing the card. A housing (11) in which an electrical contact (13) that contacts the electrical contact of the card is implanted, and an engagement recess of the card when the card is inserted to a predetermined complete insertion position in the housing. A lock claw portion (45, 65, 75) that engages with the card, and the lock claw portion, and when an external force is applied to the card in the card removal direction (for example, the card When such an external force is directly applied to the card), the card is elastically deformed by receiving a force acting on the lock claw part from the card, and the engagement between the lock claw part and the engagement recess of the card is Elastic pieces (40, 0, 70) and the housing are slidably coupled along the card insertion / removal direction, and when the card is inserted into the housing, the card insertion direction receives a force from the card in the card insertion direction. And a push-push type slide member (20) which is locked at a predetermined lock position and is unlocked when the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from the locked state, and the push-push type An urging means (31) for urging the slide member in the card removal direction, and when the push-push type slide member slides in the card insertion direction, the elastic piece is engaged with the engagement recess between the lock claw portion and the card. The unlocked push-push type slide member is guided to the position where it is engaged with the place. An elastic piece driving member (35, for guiding the elastic piece to a posture in which the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card is released when the card is slid in the card removal direction by receiving the urging force from 68), and the engagement recess has an engagement surface (3a) substantially orthogonal to a card insertion / extraction direction (for example, a direction parallel to the card side surface) with respect to the housing, There is a lock engagement side or lock engagement surface (45a, 65a) facing the engagement surface of the engagement recess, and this lock engagement side or lock engagement surface is the engagement between the lock claw portion and the card. In a state where the joint recess is engaged and no external force is applied to the card in the card removal direction, the engagement surface of the engagement recess becomes closer to the inside of the engagement recess. While approaching, remove the card from the card When an external force in the scraping direction is applied and the elastic piece is elastically deformed by the external force acting on the lock claw from the card, the card is inclined with respect to the side surface of the card, and the inside of the engagement recess The further away from the engagement surface of the engagement recess, the closer to the exit edge of the engagement recess of the card. The alphanumeric characters in parentheses indicate corresponding components in the embodiments described later. The same applies hereinafter.

  According to the above configuration, when the card is inserted to the complete insertion position, the engagement recess of the card and the lock claw are engaged, and the card is prevented from being accidentally dropped. On the other hand, since the lock claw portion is supported by the elastic piece, when the card is attempted to be pulled out with the engagement recess of the card and the lock claw portion engaged, the elastic deformation of the elastic piece The engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess is released. Therefore, since the lock claw portion does not move in the card removal direction together with the card, the components coupled to the elastic piece supporting the lock claw portion are not damaged. Therefore, even when the card is pulled out by mistake, no failure occurs, so that the durability of the card connector can be improved.

The lock claw portion may be a separate component from the elastic piece, or may be formed integrally with the elastic piece. That is, for example, when the elastic piece is configured by a leaf spring member, a lock claw portion may be formed protruding from a part of the elastic piece toward the accommodation space.
Further, since the lock engagement side or the lock surface of the lock claw portion can be brought into sliding contact with the exit edge of the engagement recess of the card by elastic deformation of the elastic piece, when the card is pulled out by mistaken operation The engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card can be reliably released.

  Furthermore, by pushing the card in the card insertion direction, the push-push type slide member is slid in the card insertion direction, and the card is guided to the complete insertion position, and in this state, the push-push type slide member is locked in the lock position. can do. When the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from this state, the lock state of the push-push type slide member is released, and the push-push type slide member is slid in the card removal direction by the action of the urging means. At the same time, the card is pushed out of the housing by the push-push type slide member.

The push-push type slide member may be formed with a heart-shaped cam groove (21). In this case, it is preferable to further include a transmission pin (33) having an operating portion (33a) circulating in the cam groove in one direction at one end and the other end coupled to the housing.
Further, a cam block having a heart-shaped cam groove may be provided on the housing side, the operating portion of the transmission pin may be engaged with the cam groove of the cam block, and the other end may be coupled to the push-push type slide member.

In any case, the operation of the transmission pin is not performed when the user is forced to remove the card by directly applying an external force in the card removal direction to the card, rather than the correct operation of pushing the card in the card insertion direction. It is preferable that the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card is released while the portion is held at the lock position in the cam groove.
In the above configuration, when the push-push type slide member slides in the card insertion direction by the action of the elastic piece driving member, the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card are engaged, and the push-push When the mold slide member slides in the card removal direction, the posture of the elastic piece changes so that the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card is released.

  On the other hand, when the card is removed, if the wrong operation is performed by grasping the rear end of the card and pulling it in the card removal direction instead of pushing the card in the card insertion direction, the lock claw portion and the card engagement recess The disengagement is achieved mainly by elastic deformation of the elastic piece, not by the action of the elastic piece driving member. Therefore, the user pulls out the card while feeling resistance due to the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card.

The elastic piece drive member may be made of an elastically deformable member.
A card connector according to another specific example is a connector for electrically connecting a card having an engagement recess on a side surface to a device, and has a storage space for storing the card, and is used as an electrical contact of the card. A housing in which electrical contacts to be contacted are implanted, a lock claw portion that engages with an engagement recess of the card when the card is inserted to a predetermined complete insertion position in the housing, and the lock claw portion. When an external force in the card removal direction is applied to the card, the card is elastically deformed by receiving a force acting on the lock claw from the card, and the lock claw and the card are engaged. When the card is inserted into the housing, the card is removed from the card when the card is inserted into the housing. Push-push type slide that receives the force in the insertion direction, slides in the card insertion direction and is locked at a predetermined lock position, and is unlocked when the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from this locked state. A member, an urging means for urging the push-push type slide member in the card removal direction, and an elastically deformable member. When the push-push type slide member slides in the card insertion direction, the elasticity The piece is brought into a posture in which the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card engage with each other, and the unlocked push-push type slide member receives the urging force from the urging means in the card removal direction. When sliding, the elastic piece is in a posture in which the engagement between the lock claw and the engagement recess of the card is released. Ku and an elastic piece drive member.

According to these configurations, when the card is forcibly removed from the housing by an erroneous operation, the elastic piece is elastically deformed, and further, the elastic piece driving member is elastically deformed. As a result, the engagement between the engagement recess of the card and the lock claw can be released more smoothly, and failure of the card connector can be effectively prevented.
The elastic piece is cantilevered so as to be able to swing around a fixed base end, and the elastic piece driving member engages the elastic piece with the lock claw portion and the card. It is preferable to include a pressing portion that contacts the elastic piece at a position closer to the base end portion than the lock claw portion in the vicinity of the lock claw portion when the recess is engaged.

  Further, it is preferable that the metal shell further includes a metal shell fixed to the housing so as to cover at least a part of the housing, and the elastic piece driving member is integrally formed on the metal shell by punching. . For example, when the metal shell is manufactured by processing a metal plate, the elastic piece drive member can be configured by a cantilever beam formed by punching the metal shell.

  The engagement recess has an engagement surface that is substantially orthogonal to the card insertion / extraction direction with respect to the housing, and the lock claw portion is a lock engagement side or lock engagement that faces the engagement surface of the engagement recess. The lock engagement side or the lock engagement surface has an external force applied to the card in the card removal direction, and the elastic piece elastically receives an external force acting on the lock claw portion from the card. In a deformed state, it is preferable that the card is inclined with respect to the side surface of the card and is in sliding contact with the exit edge of the engagement recess of the card.

  The elastic piece urges the lock claw portion in a direction away from the engagement recess of the card, and the elastic piece driving member has the push-push type slide member in the card insertion direction. By sliding, the elastic piece is preferably deformed so as to be guided to an engagement position where the lock claw portion engages with the engagement recess of the card against the urging force. .

  A card connector according to still another specific example is a connector for electrically connecting a card having an engagement recess on a side surface to a device, having a storage space for storing the card, and contacting an electrical contact of the card A housing in which electrical contacts are mounted, a lock claw portion that engages with an engagement recess of the card when the card is inserted to a predetermined complete insertion position in the housing, and supports the lock claw portion When an external force in the card removal direction is applied to the card, the card is elastically deformed by receiving a force acting on the lock claw portion from the card, and the engagement recess between the lock claw portion and the card is An elastic piece for releasing the engagement state with the place, and slidably coupled to the housing along the card insertion / removal direction, and when the card is inserted into the housing, the card from the card Push-push type slide that receives the force in the insertion direction, slides in the card insertion direction and is locked at a predetermined lock position, and is unlocked when the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from this locked state. A member, an urging means for urging the push-push type slide member in the card removing direction, and the elastic piece when the push-push type slide member slides in the card insertion direction, When the unlocked push-push type slide member slides in the card removal direction upon receiving the biasing force from the biasing means, the elastic piece is brought into a posture of engaging with the engagement recess of the card. An elastic piece drive member that leads to a posture in which the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card is released, The elastic piece swings around a base end portion fixed to the push-push type slide member, and from a spring member that generates a biasing force that biases the swing arm portion toward the accommodation space. The swing arm portion has an intermediate portion provided with a lock claw portion, and a guide portion formed in a shape extending from the intermediate portion in the card removal direction and inclined to the outside of the receiving space. The elastic piece driving member abuts on the surface of the swing arm portion on the housing space side, and the housing of the swing arm portion is moved in the process in which the push-push type slide member is displaced in the card insertion direction. It slides on the surface of the space side and moves to the guide part side beyond the intermediate part.

  The engagement recess has an engagement surface that is substantially orthogonal to the card insertion / extraction direction with respect to the housing, and the lock claw portion is a lock engagement side or lock engagement that faces the engagement surface of the engagement recess. The lock engagement side or the lock engagement surface has an external force applied to the card in the card removal direction, and the elastic piece elastically receives an external force acting on the lock claw portion from the card. In a deformed state, it is preferable that the card is inclined with respect to the side surface of the card and is in sliding contact with the exit edge of the engagement recess of the card.

Further, it is preferable that the elastic piece is attached to the push-push type slide member, and the elastic piece driving member is fixed to the housing. According to this configuration, relative movement between the elastic piece and the elastic piece drive member occurs as the push-push type slide member slides, and the elastic piece can be driven using this.
If the card is forcibly removed from the housing by an incorrect operation, an external force in the card removal direction is transmitted from the engagement recess of the card to the push-push type slide member via the lock claw and the elastic piece. . At this time, due to the deformation of the elastic piece, the engagement between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card can be released while the push-push type slide member is held in the lock position. preferable. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the mechanism that holds the push-push type slide member in the locked position from being broken.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 is a plan view of a card connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a right side view thereof, and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a section line II in FIG. FIG. The card connector 10 is for electrically connecting an SD card 1 which is an example of a memory card to a wiring board of an electronic device. In FIG. 1 to FIG. 3 and the like, the card connector 10 and the like are shown enlarged, but the actual size of the card connector 10 is, for example, about 30 mm in length, about 28 mm in width, and about 3 mm in thickness.

  The SD card 1 is a thin memory card in which a memory IC (integrated circuit) is resin-sealed, and is formed in a substantially rectangular shape in plan view. A notch 2 is formed. In the SD card 1, a locking recess 3 is formed in a rectangular cut out on the rear side surface of the cutout 2. On the other side of this side, a write protection switch 4 for prohibiting rewriting of the memory is provided. By sliding the write protection switch 4 along the side surface of the SD card 1, the SD card 1 can be switched between a write permission state and a write prohibition state. On the other hand, a plurality of signal contacts 5 are provided in an exposed state on one surface of the SD card 1 (the surface on the back side in FIG. 1).

  The card connector 10 includes a resin housing 11, a U-shaped metal shell 12 that covers the upper surface and side surfaces of the resin housing, and a plurality of signal contacts 13 that are implanted in the housing 11. ing. The plurality of signal contacts 13 each have a pressure contact portion 13a that is press-contacted to the signal contact 5 of the SD card 1 at one end and a soldering portion 13b that is surface-soldered to the wiring board of the electronic device at the other end. is doing.

  FIG. 4 is a plan view showing the card connector 10 with the metal shell 12 removed. The housing 11 is formed in a substantially U shape in plan view, and forms a card accommodation space 15 that is open on the front end side where the SD card 1 is inserted. That is, the housing 11 has a plurality of signal contacts 13 along the insertion direction R1 of the SD card 1 and the extraction direction R2 opposite to the insertion direction (when both directions are collectively referred to as “card insertion / extraction directions R1, R2”). And a pair of arm portions 11B and 11C projecting in parallel from both sides of the main body portion 11A toward the card removal direction R2. ing. The SD card 1 is received between the pair of arm portions 11B and 11C, and the signal contact 5 is pressed against the press contact portion 13a of the signal contact 13 implanted in the main body portion 11A.

Hereinafter, for the card connector 10, the card removal direction R2 side (that is, the side that accepts the SD card 1) is the front, and for the SD card 1, the card insertion direction R1 side (that is, the side facing the card connector 10). ) Is assumed to be the front.
A card detection switch 16 for detecting that the SD card 1 is completely installed in the card accommodation space 15 is fixed to the rear end of the main body 11A. A write protection detection switch 17 is fixed along the outer surface of one arm portion 11B. Between the write protection detection switch 17 and the card detection switch 16, a common terminal 18 is fixed to the main body 11A.

  The common terminal 18 is made of a metal leaf spring piece, has a soldering portion 18a that is surface-soldered to the wiring board in the vicinity of the rear end portion of the main body portion 11A, and further has a contact portion 16a of the card detection switch 16. A card detection contact 18b that has entered the inside of the card accommodation space 15 and a write protection switch detection contact 18c that has entered the inside of the card accommodation space 15 rather than the contact portion 17a of the write protection detection switch 17. Yes.

The card detection switch 16 is made of a metal leaf spring piece, and has a contact portion 16a facing the card detection contact 18b of the common terminal 18 and a soldering portion 16b that is surface-soldered to the wiring board.
The write protection detection switch 17 has a contact portion 17a facing the write protection switch detection contact 18c of the common terminal 18 at one end, and is soldered to the wiring board at the other end located near the tip of the arm portion 11B. A soldering portion 17b is provided.

In a state where the SD card 1 is completely inserted and mounted in the card accommodation space 15, the card detection contact 18b is elastically deformed and is pressed against the contact portion 16a of the card detection switch 16. Therefore, whether or not the SD card 1 is mounted can be detected by detecting the presence or absence of electrical continuity between the card detection switch 16 and the common terminal 18.
On the other hand, the write protection switch detection contact 18c is opposed to the write protection switch 4 when the write protection switch 4 of the SD card 1 in the state of being completely inserted into the card accommodation space 15 is in the write permission position. When the switch 4 is in the write-inhibited position, it is arranged so as not to face it. Therefore, the write protection switch detection contact 18c of the common terminal 18 is connected to the write protection detection switch 17 only when the SD card 1 is completely inserted into the card accommodation space 15 and the write protection switch 4 is in the writable position. It is pushed out to the side of the part 17a and press-contacts with this contact part 17a. Therefore, if the presence or absence of electrical continuity between the write protection detection switch 17 and the common terminal 18 is detected, it is possible to detect whether the mounted SD card 1 is set for write protection.

  A heart cam block 20 that can reciprocally slide in the card insertion / removal directions R1 and R2 is engaged with the arm 11C side of the housing 11 along the arm 11C. The heart cam block 20 receives a spring force from a coil spring 31 housed in a spring housing groove 30 formed in the housing 11 along the card insertion / removal direction R1, R2, and is urged toward the card removal direction R2. Yes. Further, the displacement of the heart cam block 20 in the card removal direction R2 is regulated by a retaining portion 32 formed at the tip of the arm portion 11C.

  The heart cam block 20 has a heart-shaped cam groove 21 on the upper surface (the surface facing the wiring board is the lower surface and the opposite surface). A transmission pin 33 is bridged between the cam groove 21 and the retaining portion 32. More specifically, the transmission pin 33 is formed by bending both end portions of the metal rod substantially at right angles and providing pins parallel to each other, and one pin circulates in the cam groove 21. The actuating portion 33 a is provided, and the other pin is rotatably received in a receiving hole formed in the retaining portion 32.

  The heart cam block 20 is generally formed in an inverted L shape in a plan view, and has a card receiving portion 22 protruding into the card receiving space 15 on the rear side of the housing 11. The card receiving portion 22 is orthogonal to the card insertion direction R1 corresponding to the inclined surface corresponding to the notch 2 and the front end surface of the SD card 1 so as to receive the corner portion on the notch 2 side of the SD card 1. And a card receiving surface 22a composed of a vertical surface formed as described above.

Accordingly, when the SD card 1 is pushed in the card insertion direction R1, the SD card 1 is received by the card receiving portion 22. In order to completely insert the SD card 1 into the card accommodation space 15, the operator pushes the SD card 1 further in the card insertion direction R1 against the spring force of the coil spring 31.
In this process, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 moves in the cam groove 21 and is guided to the locked position. As a result, the heart cam block 20 is locked at the position when the SD card 1 is completely inserted in the card insertion direction R1 (the lock position of the heart cam block).

  From this state, when the SD card 1 is pushed in again toward the card insertion direction R1 by a slight amount against the spring force of the coil spring 31, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 is released from the locked position, It moves in the cam groove 21. Thereby, the heart cam block 20 is pushed out in the card removal direction R2 by the spring force of the coil spring 31, and the SD card 1 is moved out of the card connector 10 by receiving the force from the card receiving portion 22 of the heart cam block 20. Will be pushed out.

A lock elastic piece 40 made of a leaf spring piece is fixed to the heart cam block 20. That is, a press-fit groove 24 is formed at the rear end portion of the heart cam block 20, and the base end portion 41 of the lock elastic piece 40 is press-fit into the press-fit groove 24.
The lock elastic piece 40 is cantilevered so as to be able to swing around a base end portion 41 fixed to the press-fitting groove 24, and the card receiving space from the base end portion 41 and the base end portion 41. 15 and the card receiving space 15 after extending along the card removal direction R2 from the connecting part 42 in a state where no external force is received, and the connecting part 42 extending obliquely toward one side (arm part 11C side) of the card 15. Is bent from an oscillating arm 43 having a shape bent obliquely so as to be separated from the card and extending in that direction, and bent again toward the card receiving space 15, and a tip 43 a of the oscillating arm 43. Therefore, the lock claw portion 45 is formed so as to protrude toward the card housing space 15. The heart cam block 20 is formed with a recess 23 that secures an operating space for the lock claw portion 45.

The locking claw portion 45 is disposed at a position facing the locking recess 3 of the SD card 1 in a state where the front end is in contact with the card receiving portion 22. The lock claw portion 45 has a lock engagement side 45a that engages with the inner wall surface 3a on the downstream side of the lock recess 3 in the card insertion direction R1.
5 (a) and 5 (b) are enlarged plan views showing the configuration of the main part. As shown in FIGS. 5 (a) and 5 (b) and FIG. 2 described above, a cantilever-like spring member 35 is formed on the side wall of the metal shell 12 on the arm portion 11C side by punching. It is formed by being formed into a “<” shape protruding toward the inside of the storage space 15.

As shown in FIG. 5 (a), when the heart cam block 20 is positioned at the end in the extraction direction R2 side, the pressing portion 35a of the spring member 35 is positioned at the base end 41 side of the locking elastic piece 40. It is in contact with the surface of the swing arm 43 at (a portion substantially parallel to the card insertion / removal direction R1, R2).
On the other hand, when the heart cam block 20 is pushed together with the SD card 1 in the card insertion direction R1, the relative position between the pressing portion 35a of the spring member 35 and the elastic piece 40 for locking fluctuates, and the pressing portion 35a is a swing arm portion. When the SD card 1 is guided by sliding on the surface of 43 and is completely accommodated in the card accommodation space 15, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the vicinity of the distal end portion 43 a of the swing arm portion 43. , The base end 41 side of the lock claw 45 is reached. As a result, the elastic piece for locking 40 is elastically deformed by receiving the pressing force from the pressing portion 35 a and is pushed out so that the lock claw portion 45 protrudes into the card accommodation space 15. As a result, the lock claw portion 45 enters the lock recess 3, and the SD card 1 is prevented from being accidentally dropped by the engagement between the lock engagement side 45a and the inner wall surface 3a.

The lock engagement side 45a is locked when the lock claw portion 45 and the lock recess 3 of the SD card 1 are engaged and no external force is applied to the SD card 1 in the card removal direction R2. The position is closer to the inner wall surface 3a of the locking recess 3 as it goes inward of the engagement recess 3 (see FIG. 5B).
FIG. 6 shows that when the SD card 1 is removed, the operator does not perform the correct operation of pushing the SD card 1 again in the card insertion direction R1, and picks the rear end protruding from the card connector 10 to remove the card. It is a partial enlarged plan view which shows the condition which is going to pull out forcibly in direction R2. Since the lock claw portion 45 is provided at the distal end portion 43a of the swingable arm portion 43 that can be elastically deformed, the force from the inner wall surface 3a of the lock recess 3 of the SD card 1 is transmitted to the lock engagement side 45a. Then, the lock claw portion 45 starts to rotate in a plane along the upper and lower surfaces of the SD card 1 while elastically deforming the lock elastic piece 40 and the spring member 35. As a result, the lock engagement side 45a is positioned so as to move away from the inner wall surface 3a of the locking recess 3 toward the inside of the locking recess 3, and in an inclined state with respect to the outlet edge of the inner wall surface 3a. Abut. Therefore, the lock claw portion 45 loses a strong engaging force with respect to the lock recess 3, and the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 is disengaged from the lock position of the cam groove 21 of the heart cam block 20 to which the lock elastic piece 40 is coupled. Before that, the engagement between the locking claw portion 45 and the locking recess 3 is released.

  That is, the lock claw portion 45 withstands a pulling force up to a predetermined force and engages with the locking recess 3 to prevent the SD card 1 from being unintentionally pulled out. When an external force is applied to the extent that the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 is released, the engagement with the locking recess 3 is released in order to prevent such disengagement of the operating portion 33a. As a result, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 can be prevented from moving by destroying the cam groove 21, so that the heart cam block 20 can be prevented from being destroyed, and the durable life of the push-push type discharging mechanism can be improved. Furthermore, the durable life of the card connector 10 can be improved.

FIG. 7A is a schematic view of the heart-shaped cam groove 21, and FIG. 7B is a development view showing the configuration of the cam surface of the cam groove. The bottom surface of the cam groove 21 is composed of a plurality of cam surfaces A to H having different heights, and the operation portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 displays the cam surfaces A to H as the heart cam block 20 reciprocates. It circulates in the direction of the arrow 7 (a) (clockwise in the figure).
The bottom portion of the V-shaped portion of the cam groove 21 forming a heart shape is a lock portion of the cam groove 21. The cam surface E forming the lock portion is set higher than the cam surface F adjacent in the circulation direction (clockwise direction) but lower than the cam surface D adjacent in the counter-circulation direction (counterclockwise direction). .

In the state where the SD card 1 is not attached, the heart cam block 20 is located at the end in the card removal direction R2. At this time, the operating portion 33 a of the transmission pin 33 is located on the cam surface A.
From this state, when the SD card 1 is pushed into the card receiving space 15 in the card insertion direction R1 and the heart cam block 20 is moved in the card insertion direction R1, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 is inclined from the cam surface A. Through the cam surface B composed of a surface, the cam surface C is higher than the cam surface A, and further guided to the cam surface D lower than the cam surface C. Thereafter, when the external force in the card insertion direction R1 with respect to the SD card 1 is released, the heart cam block 20 receives the restoring force of the coil spring 31 and moves in the card removal direction R2. At this time, due to the step between the cam surfaces C and D, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 cannot return to the cam surface C, and the step between the cam surfaces C and D goes to the cam surface E. Therefore, the operating portion 33a is guided to the cam surface E and is guided to the bottom of the V-shaped portion to be stabilized. As a result, the heart cam block 20 is locked at a position where the heart cam block 20 is pushed in the card insertion direction R1 more than when the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 is on the cam surface A.

  When the SD card 1 is removed from this state, the operator applies an external force to the SD card 1 in the card insertion direction R1, and pushes the heart cam block 20 in the card insertion direction R1. At this time, due to the step between the cam surfaces D and E, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 cannot return to the cam surface D, but is guided by the inner wall of the cam surface E portion. The cam surface F is lower than E.

Thereafter, when the external force in the card insertion direction R1 with respect to the SD card 1 is released, the heart cam block 20 is moved in the card removal direction R2 by the restoring force of the coil spring 31. Accordingly, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 reaches the cam surface H higher than the cam surface A from the cam surface F through the cam surface G formed of an inclined surface, and is further guided to the cam surface A. .
Next, when an external force in the card insertion direction R1 is applied to the heart cam block 20, the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 may return to the cam surface H due to a step between the cam surface A and the cam surface H. In addition, since the stepped portion forms a guide surface that guides the operating portion 33a to the cam surface B, the operating portion 33a is directed toward the cam surface B.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in order to prevent the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 from coming off the cam groove 21, the top wall of the metal shell 12 has a cantilevered transmission pin press formed by punching. The member 28 is provided in a state of projecting inward toward the upper surface of the heart cam block 20. The transmission pin pressing member 28 is elastically deformable and presses the operating portion 33a against the cam surfaces A to H while allowing the operating portion 33a of the transmission pin 33 passing through the cam surfaces A to H to move up and down.

FIG. 8 is a partial plan view showing a configuration in the vicinity of the arm portion 11C of the housing 11, FIG. 9 (a) is a plan view of the heart cam block, and FIG. 9 (b) is a right side view thereof. 9 (c) is a bottom view thereof, FIG. 9 (d) is a front view of the heart cam block 20 seen from the card insertion direction R1, and FIG. 9 (e) is a rear view seen from the card removal direction R2. is there.
The housing 11 is formed with spring accommodating grooves 30 along the card insertion / removal directions R1 and R2, and a coil spring 31 is accommodated therein. The position of the coil spring 31 is restricted by a protrusion 36 formed along the card insertion / removal direction R1, R2 on the bottom surface of the spring housing groove 30. The front end portion side of the coil spring 31 is received in a spring receiving groove 25 formed on the bottom surface 20a side of the heart cam block 20, and a coil is formed on the end surface 25a of the spring receiving groove 25 on the card removal direction R2 side. The front end of the spring 31 comes into contact.

  A key 26 made of a protrusion along the card insertion / removal direction R1, R2 is formed on the card removal direction R2 side of the spring receiving groove 25. In the housing 11, a guide groove 37 continuous with the spring housing groove 30 is formed on the card housing direction R <b> 2 side of the spring housing groove 30. When the key 26 is slidably engaged with the guide groove 37, the heart cam block 20 is slidable along the card insertion / removal directions R1 and R2.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are plan views showing the configuration of the main part of the card connector according to the second embodiment of the present invention. In the description of this embodiment, the above-described FIGS. 1 to 4 will be referred to again. In FIGS. 10 (a) and 10 (b), portions corresponding to those shown in FIGS. To the same reference numerals as those in FIG.
In this embodiment, the lock elastic piece 60 attached to the heart cam block 20 is cantilevered so as to be able to swing around a base end portion 61 fixed to the press-fitting groove 24. 20, the base end portion 61 fixed to the rear end portion, the connecting portion 62 extending from the base end portion 61 toward the arm portion 11C, and the connecting portion 62 extending substantially along the arm portion 11C. And a swing arm portion 63. The swing arm portion 63 includes an inclined portion 63b extending obliquely from the connecting portion 62, an intermediate portion 63a formed with a lock claw portion 65, and a guide extending further from the intermediate portion 63a in the card removal direction R2. Part 63c. The guide part 63c is formed in a shape inclined to the outside of the card accommodation space 15.

The lock claw portion 65 is formed to protrude from the intermediate portion 63 a of the swing arm portion 63 toward the card accommodation space 15. The lock claw portion 65 has a lock engagement side 65a facing the inner wall surface 3a of the lock recess 3 of the SD card 1 on the card insertion direction R1 side.
For example, a guide member 68 formed by bending is suspended from the top surface of the metal shell 12 mounted on the housing 11. The guide member 68 is located closer to the arm portion 11C than the card accommodation space 15. The lock elastic piece 60 is a spring member that generates an urging force that causes the swing arm 63 to swing toward the card storage space 15. The swing of the swing arm 63 is caused by the guide member 68. Being regulated. In other words, the guide member 68 is in contact with the surface of the swing arm 63 on the card accommodating space 15 side.

When the heart cam block 20 is located at the end on the card removal direction R2 side, the guide member 68 is closer to the base end portion 61 side than the intermediate portion 63a of the swing arm portion 63, as shown in FIG. The lock claw portion 65 is restricted to the position retracted from the card storage space 15.
When the SD card 1 is pushed in this direction toward the card insertion direction R1, the heart cam block 20 is displaced in the card insertion direction R1 accordingly. In this process, the guide member 68 slides on the surface of the swing arm portion 63 on the card accommodation space 15 side, and moves to the leading end side guide portion 63c side beyond the intermediate portion 63a. In the intermediate portion 63a, a lock claw portion 65 is formed, for example, so as to protrude from the edge (lower side) opposite to the metal shell 12 of the plate-like elastic piece for locking 60 to the card accommodating space 15 side. The guide member 68 is formed to have a length (hanging amount) that can move relative to the swing arm portion 63 without interfering with the lock claw portion 65.

Thus, when the SD card 1 is completely pushed into the card receiving space 15, the lock claw portion 65 enters the lock recess 3 by the restoring force of the lock elastic piece 60 as shown in FIG. The SD card 1 is prevented from being removed.
From this state, when the SD card 1 is forcibly removed without performing the correct operation of pushing the heart cam block 20 again in the card insertion direction R1, the inner wall surface 3a of the locking recess 3 is locked by the locking claw portion 65. The lock engaging side 65a. As a result, the swing arm portion 63 is bent and deformed so as to be separated from the card receiving space 15 due to an external force acting on the lock claw portion 65, and the lock engagement side 65a is inclined and contacts the outlet edge of the inner wall surface 3a. To the state. If the operation of further removing the SD card 1 from this state is continued, the lock engaging side 65a is guided to the outside of the locking recess 3 while being in sliding contact with the outlet edge of the inner wall surface 3a. Thereby, the SD card 1 is extracted without destroying the heart cam block 20.

Of course, even if the SD card 1 tries to be pulled out in the card removal direction R1 with a force that does not cause the heart cam block 20 to be destroyed, the engagement of the locking recess 3 and the locking claw 65 causes the SD card 1 to It will not be extracted.
In this way, even with the configuration of this embodiment, the SD card 1 can be prevented from being accidentally pulled out, and the heart cam block 20 can be prevented from being destroyed.

  FIGS. 11A and 11B are plan views for explaining the configuration of the card connector according to the third embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, an elastic piece 70 for locking that is punched out on the side surface of the metal shell 12 on the side of the arm 11C, passes through the space above the heart cam block 20 and reaches the vicinity of the card receiving space 15 is connected to the metal shell 12. It is integrally formed. The lock elastic piece 70 has a portion 71 substantially parallel to the inner edge of the arm portion 11 </ b> C, and a lock claw portion 75 that protrudes toward the card accommodation space 15 is provided in this portion 71. The lock claw portion 75 is formed in a trapezoidal shape projecting toward the card accommodation space 15 in a plan view, and the oblique side on the card insertion direction R1 side is with respect to the outlet edge of the inner wall surface 3a of the lock recess 3. The locking engagement side 75a is inclined, and the oblique side on the card extraction direction R2 side forms a guide side 75b inclined with respect to the outer edge of the inner wall surface 3b on the card extraction direction R2 side of the locking recess 3. Yes.

  When the SD card 1 is pushed in the card insertion direction R1, the notch 2 (see FIG. 1) of the SD card 1 comes into contact with the guide side 75b of the lock claw portion 75, and the lock claw portion 75 is located on the side of the SD card 1. It will be in the state which touches. When the SD card 1 is pushed together with the heart cam block 20 from this state, the lock claw portion 75 is fitted into the lock recess 3 by the restoring force of the lock elastic piece 70. In this state, the heart cam block 20 is locked.

  From this state, when the SD card 1 is pushed a little in the card insertion direction R1, the locked state of the heart cam block 20 is released, and the heart cam block 20 is urged in the card removal direction R2 by the coil spring 31, Accordingly, the SD card 1 is urged in the card removal direction R2. As a result, the outlet edge of the inner wall surface 3a of the locking recess 3 of the SD card 1 comes into sliding contact with the engagement side 75a, and the SD card 1 is further moved in the card removal direction R2 by the spring force of the coil spring 31. By doing so, the lock claw portion 75 escapes from the locking recess 3. Thus, the SD card 1 is ejected.

  On the other hand, consideration is given to a case where the operator does not perform the correct operation of pushing the SD card 1 in the card insertion direction R1, but performs an incorrect operation of grasping the rear end portion of the SD card 1 and extracting it in the card removal direction R2. To do. At this time, instead of the force from the coil spring 31, the SD card 1 is moved in the card removal direction R2 by an external force directly applied by the operator. It is elastically deformed as in the case, and the engagement between the lock claw portion 75 and the lock recess 3 is released. That is, while the locked state of the heart cam block 20 is maintained, the engagement between the lock claw portion 75 and the locking recess 3 is released, and the heart cam block 20 is not destroyed. Of course, unless an external force of a certain level or more is applied, the engagement between the lock claw portion 75 and the lock recess 3 is maintained, so that the SD card 1 does not fall off carelessly.

Although three embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention can be implemented in other forms. For example, in the above embodiment, the example in which the lock claw portion has the engagement side has been described, but the lock claw portion having the engagement surface that engages with the inner wall surface 3a of the lock recess 3 of the SD card 1 is used. May be.
In the above embodiment, the card connector 10 for the SD card 1 is taken as an example. However, for the card for other types of memory cards represented by memory sticks, multimedia cards, smart media, etc. The present invention can be similarly applied to connectors. In addition to the memory card connector, the configuration of the present invention can be applied to various card shapes having the same shape such as a function card having an I / O function.

  In addition, various design changes can be made within the scope of the matters described in the claims.

1 is a plan view of a card connector according to a first embodiment of the present invention. It is a right view of the connector for cards of FIG. It is sectional drawing seen from the cut surface line II of FIG. It is a top view which shows the connector for cards of the state which removed the metal shell. It is a top view which expands and shows the structure of the principal part of the said connector for cards. FIG. 5 is a partially enlarged plan view showing a situation where the rear end of the SD card is picked and forcibly pulled out. (a) is a schematic view of a heart-shaped cam groove, and (b) is a development view showing the configuration of the cam surface of the cam groove. It is a fragmentary top view which shows the structure of the vicinity of one arm part of a housing. (a) is a plan view of the heart cam block, (b) is a right side view thereof, (c) is a bottom view thereof, (d) is a front view thereof, and (e) is a rear view thereof. It is. It is a top view which shows the structure of the principal part of the connector for cards which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view for demonstrating the structure of the connector for cards which concerns on 3rd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 SD card 2 Notch 3 Locking recess 3a Inner wall surface 3b Inner wall surface 4 Write protection switch 5 Signal contact 10 Card connector 11 Housing 11A Body part 11B Arm part 11C Arm part 12 Metal shell 13 Signal contact 13a Pressure contact part 13b Solder Attaching part 15 Card receiving space 16 Card detection switch 16a Contact part 16b Soldering part 17 Protection detection switch 17a Contact part 17b Soldering part 18 Common terminal 18a Soldering part 18b Card detection contact 18c Protection switch detection contact 20 Heart cam block 20a Bottom face 21 Cam groove 22 Card receiving part 22a Card receiving surface 23 Recess 24 Press-fit groove 25 Spring receiving groove 25a End face 26 Key 28 Transmission pin pressing member 30 Spring receiving groove 31 Coil spring 32 Retaining prevention part 33 Transmission pin 33a Actuating portion 35 Spring member 35a Pressing portion 36 Projection 37 Guide groove 40 Elastic piece for locking 41 Base end portion 42 Connecting portion 43 Swing arm portion 43a Tip portion 45 Locking claw portion 45a Lock engaging side 60 Locking elastic piece 61 Base end portion 62 Connecting portion 63 Swing arm portion 63a Intermediate portion 63b Inclined portion 63c Guide portion 65 Lock claw portion 65a Lock engaging side 68 Guide member 70 Locking elastic piece 75 Lock claw portion 75a Lock engaging side 75b Guide side A 〜H Cam surface R1 Card insertion direction R2 Card removal direction

Claims (3)

A connector for electrically connecting a card having an engagement recess on a side surface to a device,
A housing having an accommodating space for accommodating the card, and an electrical contact that contacts the electrical contact of the card;
A metal shell fixed to the housing so as to cover at least a part of the housing;
A lock claw portion that engages with an engagement recess of the card when the card is inserted to a predetermined complete insertion position in the housing;
It is integrally formed with the metal shell by punching the metal shell, supports the lock claw portion, and when an external force in the card removal direction is applied to the card, the card A card connector comprising: an elastic piece that is elastically deformed by receiving a force acting on a lock claw portion and releases an engagement state between the lock claw portion and the engagement recess of the card. The engagement recess has an engagement surface substantially orthogonal to the card insertion / extraction direction with respect to the housing,
The lock claw portion has a lock engagement side or a lock engagement surface facing the engagement surface of the engagement recess,
In this lock engagement side or lock engagement surface, an external force in the card removal direction is applied to the card, and the elastic piece is elastically deformed by receiving an external force acting on the lock claw portion from the card. 2. The card connector according to claim 1, wherein the card connector is inclined with respect to a side surface of the card and is in sliding contact with an exit edge of the engagement recess of the card. It is slidably coupled along the card insertion / removal direction with respect to the housing, and when the card is inserted into the housing, the card is slid in the card insertion direction by receiving a force in the card insertion direction from the card. A push-push type slide member that is locked in a locked position and is unlocked when the card is further pushed in the card insertion direction from the locked state;
3. The card connector according to claim 1, further comprising an urging means for urging the push-push type slide member in a card removing direction.

Images