JP2008219850A - Mobile terminal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a portable terminal which can be made compact and thin while improving strength of a sliding type mobile terminal. <P>SOLUTION: Reinforced parts 13, 15 are provided to the inside of housing parts 11a, 11b. Therefore, when inserting parts 12a, 12b are extracted from the housing parts 11a, 11b to shift to an expanded open state and when operating parts 24, 35 are provided outside the housing parts 11a, 11b, for example, the reinforcing parts 13, 15 can rigidly support the operating parts 24, 35 even when a user depresses the operating parts 24, 35, so that operability is improved. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a portable terminal capable of selecting a closed state in which a first housing and a second housing overlap each other and an open state in which the first housing and the second housing slide and extend.

Conventionally, a portable terminal in which a box-shaped upper housing and a lower housing are slidably coupled by a coupling portion is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
The portable terminal described in Patent Literature 1 has a display unit and an upper operation unit on the upper surface of the upper housing, and has a lower operation unit on the upper surface of the lower housing. Both the upper and lower housings are slidably connected by a connecting portion including a rail and a guide. Since both the housings overlap in the closed state, the lower operation unit is hidden under the upper housing. On the other hand, when both housings are moved relative to each other to be in the open state, the lower operation portion of the lower housing appears and enters the open state.
JP 2005-244679 A

  However, the slide-type mobile terminal has a structure in which the upper casing, the lower casing, and the rail are sequentially stacked, and since the fixed thickness is required, the mobile terminal cannot be thinned. . In addition, when the casing itself is thinned, there is a problem in the drop strength and the strength against button press.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a small, thin and strong portable terminal.

  The portable terminal of the present invention includes a first housing, a second housing, a connecting portion that slides the first housing with respect to the second housing, and the first housing and the connecting portion by the connecting portion. In a closed state in which the second housings overlap with each other, an accommodation portion provided in the first housing, an insertion portion provided in the second housing and inserted into the accommodation portion, and an inside of the accommodation portion And a reinforcing portion provided.

  In the present invention, since the reinforcing portion is provided inside the housing portion, the operation portion is provided outside the housing portion, for example, when the insertion portion is extracted from the housing portion and shifted to the open state. In this case, even if the user depresses the operation unit, the operation unit can be rigidly supported, and the operability is improved.

  The portable terminal of the present invention is characterized in that the reinforcing portion is provided by a metal member embedded in the first housing.

In such this invention, since the metal member is embed | buried by insert molding, for example with respect to the resin-made 1st housing | casing, the accommodating part of a 1st housing | casing can be reinforced without accompanying thickness increase.
In addition, as a shape of a metal member, plate shape, strip | belt shape, rod shape, lattice shape etc. can be illustrated, for example.

  Furthermore, the portable terminal of the present invention is characterized in that an operation unit is provided outside the housing unit.

  In the present invention, since the operation part is provided outside the housing part provided with the reinforcement part on the inside, the reinforcement part supports when the user depresses the operation part. And operability is improved.

  Furthermore, the portable terminal of the present invention is characterized in that the reinforcing portion includes a metal plate that is separate from the first housing and a resin member that covers an edge of the metal plate.

  In the present invention, since the reinforcing portion is provided by a separate metal plate, the reinforcing portion does not interfere with the design and manufacture of the first housing, and the change is easy. In the present invention, since the edge of the metal plate is covered with the resin member, the edge of the metal plate is accommodated in the first housing or the first housing after being arranged at a predetermined position of the first housing. It is possible to prevent the other casings from being scraped and scraped.

  Furthermore, the portable terminal of the present invention is characterized in that the reinforcing portion is in contact with a circuit board accommodated in the first housing.

  In the present invention, since the reinforcing portion is supported by being in contact with, for example, the base material of the circuit board or the electronic component mounted on the base material, when the operating portion is pressed down in the open state, the reinforcing portion is The part supports the operation part, and the operability and the rigidity feeling are surely improved.

  In addition, the portable terminal of the present invention includes a display unit and a first operation unit, a first case having a step shape, a second case having a second operation unit and a step shape, In the state where the first casing is slid relative to the second casing, and the connecting section that slides the first casing relative to the second casing, the first casing and the second casing It has the space | gap produced between a body and the reinforcement part provided between the said 1st operation part and the said space | gap, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  Furthermore, the portable terminal of the present invention is characterized in that the reinforcing portion is a metal plate separate from the first housing, and a flexible substrate is disposed along both surfaces of the metal plate. .

  In the present invention, the metal plate can be manufactured separately and used separately from the casing. Moreover, since a highly rigid metal plate is used for the reinforcement part and the flexible substrate is disposed along both surfaces of the metal plate, a flexible substrate having low rigidity can be used. Moreover, since a flexible substrate is arrange | positioned on both surfaces of a metal plate, a housing | casing can be made thin.

  Furthermore, in the mobile terminal of the present invention, the reinforcing portion is a metal plate separate from the first housing, and a bent portion that supports a switch provided on a side portion of the first housing is provided. It is provided.

  In the present invention, since the bent portion of the metal plate supports the switch on the side of the casing, a sense of rigidity can be obtained in the switch operation without providing a support member for supporting the separate switch, and the casing can be thinned. Can be achieved.

  Furthermore, the portable terminal of the present invention includes a display unit and a first operation unit, a first casing having a step shape, a second casing having a second operation unit and having a step shape, In the state where the first casing is slid relative to the second casing, and the connecting section that slides the first casing relative to the second casing, the first casing and the second casing And a reinforcing part provided between the second operating part and the gap, and a card connector stopper is insert-molded on the surface of the reinforcing part. And

  In the present invention, a reinforcing portion is provided between the second operation portion and the gap of the second casing in the gap generated when the first casing and the second casing are slid. Therefore, even if the user depresses the second operation unit, the second operation unit can be rigidly supported, and the operability is improved. In addition, since the card connector stopper is provided on the surface of the reinforcing portion, the card connector can be securely held even when an impact is applied, and the card connector stopper is integrally provided on the reinforcing portion by insert molding. Therefore, the housing can be reduced in size and thickness.

  The present invention can achieve a reduction in size and thickness while improving the strength of a slide-type mobile terminal.

Hereinafter, a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an overall perspective view of a mobile terminal in an open state according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2A is a plan view of the mobile terminal in a closed state, and FIG. 2B is BB in FIG. 3A is a plan view of the mobile terminal in an open state, FIG. 3B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 3A, and FIG. 4 is an upper housing and a lower housing 5 is an exploded perspective view of the lower casing, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the reinforcing portion of the lower casing, FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the main operation section of the lower casing, and FIG. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the reinforcing plate viewed from the upper surface side.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the mobile terminal 10 includes an upper housing 20 that is a first housing having a rectangular box shape, and a lower housing 30 that is a second housing having a rectangular box shape. And a connecting portion 40 (see FIG. 4) for slidably connecting the upper housing 20 and the lower housing 30.

The upper housing 20 includes a flat frame-shaped upper cover 21 and a box-shaped upper case 22 having an upper opening. The upper cover 20 surrounds the opening at the upper end of the upper case 22. 21 is attached (see FIG. 4). The upper case 22 is large enough to be exposed on the lower surface in the open state, and is provided only on the upper portion (the left end portion in FIG. 1) of the upper cover 21.
That is, the side end of the first housing movement direction (see arrows in FIGS. 1 to 4), which is the relative movement direction of the upper housing 20 when changing from the closed state shown in FIG. 2 to the open state shown in FIG. The thickness HU1 of the portion 20A is configured to be thicker than the thickness HU2 of the end portion 20B opposite to the first housing movement direction.
On the upper surface 21a of the upper cover 21 in the upper housing 20, a display unit 23, a navigation operation unit 24, a receiver 25, and the like are provided.

Further, the lower housing 30 has a rectangular box-shaped lower case 32 and a lower cover 31 that covers the vicinity of one end (left end in FIG. 3) of the lower case 32, from the closed state to the open state. The thickness HL1 of the second housing movement direction (see the arrow in FIGS. 1 to 4) side end portion HL1 when changing is thicker than the thickness HL2 of the second housing movement direction opposite side end portion 30B.
A main operation unit 35 (second operation unit) having a plurality of keys 35a, a microphone 36, and the like are provided on the upper surface 31a of the lower cover 31 at the end of the lower case 30 in the second case movement direction. A space is provided below the main operation portion 35 to form a housing portion 11b. Further, a battery cover 33a and the like are provided on the lower surface 32a of the lower case 32 in the lower housing 30, and the battery 33 is accommodated inside.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, in the closed state, the end 20B opposite to the first casing movement direction of the upper casing 20 having a small thickness (HU2) and the lower casing 30 having a large thickness (HL1). Therefore, the main operation unit 35 is hidden under the navigation operation unit 24.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, when the upper casing 20 and the lower casing 30 are relatively slid by the connecting portion 40, the upper casing 20 and the lower casing 30 are extended in the open state. The opposite end 20B of the upper casing 20 and the opposite end 30B of the lower casing 30 in the second casing movement direction overlap. Therefore, the main operation unit 35 is exposed to the lower side (left side in FIG. 3) of the navigation operation unit 24 (first operation unit) and can be operated.

  As shown in FIG. 4, an upper circuit board 50 is built in an internal space formed by the upper cover 21 and the upper case 22 of the upper housing 20. The upper circuit board 50 is locked to the upper cover 21 by a locking claw 21 b provided on the upper cover 21, and is fastened to the upper cover 21 together with the slide rail 41 together with a slide rail 41, which will be described later. .

  As shown in FIG. 4, on the lower side (upper side in FIG. 4) of the upper circuit board 50 inside the upper casing 20, a connecting portion 40 that slidably connects the upper casing 20 and the lower casing 30 is provided. A metal slide rail 41 which is a rail to be configured is provided. The slide rail 41 is fastened to the upper cover 21 via the upper circuit board 50 by screws 41a, and is fastened to the upper circuit board 50 by screws 41b. The slide rail 41 is formed in an overall H-shape from a pair of left and right rail portions 42a and 42b and a wide covering portion 43 that connects the rail portions 42a and 42b.

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, a slide base 44 constituting the connecting portion 40 is attached between the lower cover 31 and the lower case 32 in the lower housing 30. That is, the slide base 44 is fixed between the lower cover 31 and the lower case 32 by screws 45a, and is fixed to the lower case 32 by screws 45b.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a space is provided below the key sheet 24 a of the navigation operation unit 24 provided in the upper housing 20 to form a storage unit 11 a (see FIG. 3), which is in a closed state. In FIG. 3, the operation part 35 which is the insertion part 12a (see FIG. 3) provided in the lower housing 30 is inserted. Further, in the open state, the operation portion 35 that is the insertion portion 12a is extracted from the accommodating portion 11a, and a gap 14a as shown in FIG. 3 is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a metal plate 13 as a metal member of the reinforcing portion is provided on the inner side of the accommodating portion 11 a, that is, on the back surface (the lower surface in FIG. 3B) of the key sheet 24 a of the navigation operation portion 24. Yes. The metal plate 13 is covered with a frame-shaped resin member 13a at the edge, and is attached to the upper cover 21 of the upper housing 20 via the resin member 13a. Alternatively, the edge of the metal plate 13 can be provided in the upper cover 21 by insert molding so as to be embedded in the upper cover 21. Accordingly, the key sheet 24 a is disposed below the navigation operation unit 24, and the metal plate 13 is provided integrally with the upper cover 21 below the key sheet 24 a.

  Thereby, while being able to attach the metal plate 13 thinly, the key sheet | seat 24a can be reinforced reliably, and the operativity of the navigation operation part 24 improves. In addition, since the metal plate 15 does not directly contact the resin portion of the upper housing 20, it is possible to prevent the metal plate 15 from scraping the resin portion of the upper housing 20. When the housing portion 11a of the upper housing 20 is provided with a circuit board (not shown), an electronic component (not shown) mounted on the circuit board, a connecting portion 40, etc., the slides of both the housings 20 and 30 are performed. If there is no hindrance, it is desirable to support the metal plate 13 with these components. Moreover, as a shape of the metal member of a reinforcement part, plate shape, strip | belt shape, rod shape, lattice shape etc. can be illustrated, for example.

  In addition, a space is provided on the lower side (upper side in FIG. 4) of the key 35a of the operation unit 35 provided in the lower housing 30 to form a housing portion 11b (see FIG. 3). In this case, the rail portions 42a and 42b of the slide rail 41, which is the insertion portion 12b (see FIG. 34) provided in the upper housing 20, are inserted. Further, in the open state, the rail portions 42a and 42b, which are the insertion portions 12b, are extracted from the accommodating portion 11b, and a gap 14b as shown in FIG. 3 is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, a metal plate 15 as a metal member of the reinforcing portion is provided on the back surface of the accommodating portion 11b, that is, the back surface of the key sheet 35b of the main operation portion 35 (the bottom surface in FIG. 3B). Yes.

  For example, a frame-shaped resin member 15a (see FIG. 5) is integrally covered with the edge of the metal plate 15 by insert molding. And it is attached to the lower cover 31 of the lower housing | casing 30 via this resin member 15a. Alternatively, the edge of the metal plate 15 can be provided in the lower cover 31 by insert molding so as to be embedded in the lower cover 31. Thereby, since the metal plate 15 does not directly contact the resin portion of the upper housing 20, it is possible to prevent the metal plate 15 from scraping the resin portion of the upper housing 20. Note that the metal plate 15 contacts the housing member 16 such as a circuit board (not shown) provided in the housing portion 11 b of the lower housing 20, an electronic component (not shown) mounted on the circuit board, and the connecting portion 40. Adjacent and supported.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the metal plate 15 is separate from the lower housing 30, and a flexible substrate 37 (see FIG. 8) is provided along the upper surface of the metal plate 15, and along the lower surface of the metal plate 15. A flexible substrate 38 (see FIG. 7) is provided. 6 to 8, the “upper surface side” is the upper surface side of the mobile terminal 10, the “lower surface side” is the lower surface side of the mobile terminal 10, and the “upper side” is the upper side in the usage state of the mobile terminal 10, “Lower side” indicates the lower side of the mobile terminal 10 in use.

  Therefore, as shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 6, the metal plate 15 can be manufactured separately and used in an overlapping manner, so that the manufacture is easy. Further, since the metal plate 15 having high rigidity is used for the reinforcing portion and the flexible substrates 37 and 38 are disposed along the upper and lower surfaces of the metal plate 15, the flexible substrates 37 and 38 having low rigidity can be used. Moreover, since the flexible substrates 37 and 38 are disposed on both the upper and lower surfaces of the metal plate 15, the lower housing 30 can be made thin.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, a bent portion 15 b that supports a switch provided on the side portion of the lower housing 30 is bent at the side end portion of the metal plate 15 downward. Accordingly, since the bent portion 15b of the metal plate 15 supports the switch on the side portion, the switch operation can have a sense of rigidity without providing a support member for supporting the separate switch, and the casing can be thinned. .
A resin card connector stopper 60 is integrally provided on the lower surface of the metal plate 15 by insert molding. For example, when the resin member 15a is provided on the metal plate 15 by insert molding, it can be provided at the same time.

  As shown in FIG. 8, a flexible substrate 37 is provided on the upper surface of the metal plate 15, and a switch substrate 39 for the main operation unit 35 is provided on the upper surface of the flexible substrate 37. An extension portion 39b is provided on the side portion of the switch substrate 39 along the bent portion 15b of the metal plate 15 to form a switch 39c on the side portion of the lower housing 30. The switch board 39 is provided with a plurality of (for example, 3 × 4, twelve) switches 39a corresponding to the keys 35a.

As shown in FIG. 7, the card connector stopper 60 provided on the surface of the metal plate 15 protrudes downward from the notch 38a (see FIG. 6) of the flexible substrate 38 and is exposed. Further, a SIM card slot 62 for holding the SIM card 61 is provided on the lower surface of the flexible substrate 38, and one end of the SIM card slot 62 is attached to the lower surface of the metal plate 15 through the flexible substrate 38. . In a state where the SIM card slot 62 is mounted, the card connector stopper 60 constitutes a part of the SIM card slot 62.
Note that the SIM card 61 (Sim Card, Subscriber Identity Module Card) is an IC card in which a unique ID number for identifying a telephone number used in a mobile phone of a system such as GSM or W-CDMA is recorded. That is.

  The SIM card slot 62 has a holding portion 62a that holds the SIM card 61 along the left and right edges, and a lid 63 that opens and closes in the direction of arrow A in FIG. Accordingly, when the SIM card 61 is held by the holding portion 62a of the lid 63 and the lid 63 is closed (as shown in FIG. 7), the SIM card 61 accommodated in the SIM card slot 62 is accommodated inside the card connector stopper 60. Then, it is pressed against the terminal provided on the flexible substrate 38 to be connected.

  For this reason, the SIM card 61 can be reliably held without dropping even when the mobile terminal 10 is dropped or the like, and the card connector stopper 60 is inserted into the reinforcing plate by insert molding. Since they are provided integrally, the lower housing 30 can be reduced in size and thickness.

As described above, according to the mobile terminal 10 described above, when the upper casing 20 and the lower casing 30 are moved from the closed state to the open state by relatively sliding the upper casing 20 and the lower casing 30, At the same time that the insertion portion 12a of the lower housing 30 inserted into the housing portion 11a of the housing 20 is extracted, the insertion portion 12b of the upper housing 20 inserted into the housing portion 11b of the lower housing 30 is removed. Is issued. For this reason, although space | gap is made in accommodating part 11a, 11b, the navigation operation part 24a in which the metal plates 13 and 15 provided in the inner side of accommodating part 11a, 11b are provided in the outer side of accommodating part 11a, 11b, Since the main operation portion 35 is reinforced, it is possible to reduce the size and thickness while improving the strength. Further, when the operation parts 24 and 35 are pushed down, the metal plates 13 and 15 support the operation parts 24 and 35, so that the upper housing 20 and the lower housing 30 are not easily deformed such as bent or bent. The operability can be improved.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the navigation operation unit 24 of the upper housing 20 and the operation unit 35 of the lower housing 30 are reinforced with the metal plates 13 and 15 has been described. Only 35 can be reinforced.

  As described above, according to the present invention, the operability of the operation unit is improved, the deformation of the housing is suppressed, and the mobile terminal can be thinned. This is useful as a portable terminal or the like that can select a portable state in which the second casing is stacked and an extended state in which the first casing and the second casing are relatively translated and arranged in a stepped manner. The present invention is suitable for application to small slidable electronic devices such as mobile phones, PDAs, mobile PCs, and notebook PCs.

It is a whole perspective view in the open state of the portable terminal of an embodiment concerning the present invention. FIG. 3A is a plan view of a mobile terminal in a closed state, and FIG. 2B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. (A) is a top view of the portable terminal of an open state, (B) is sectional drawing of the BB position in FIG. 3 (A). It is the disassembled perspective view which looked at the upper housing and the lower housing from the lower housing side. It is the perspective view seen from the lower side which shows the reinforcement part of a lower housing | casing. It is a disassembled perspective view of the main operation part of a lower housing | casing. It is the perspective view which looked at the reinforcing plate from the lower surface side. It is the perspective view which looked at the reinforcement version from the upper surface side.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Portable terminal 11a, 11b Storage part 12a, 12b Insertion part 13, 15 Metal plate (reinforcement part, metal member)
13a, 15a Resin member 15b Bending portion 16 Housing member 20 Upper housing (first housing)
24 Navigation operation unit (first operation unit)
35 Main operation unit (second operation unit)
30 Lower case (second case)
37, 38 Flexible substrate 40 Connecting part 60 Card connector stopper

Claims (9)

A first housing;
A second housing;
A connecting portion for slidingly moving the first housing relative to the second housing;
In a closed state in which the first housing and the second housing overlap each other by the connecting portion, a housing portion provided in the first housing;
An insertion portion provided in the second housing and inserted into the housing portion;
A portable terminal comprising: a reinforcing portion provided inside the housing portion.   The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein the reinforcing portion is provided by a metal member embedded in the first housing.   The mobile terminal according to claim 1, wherein an operation unit is provided outside the housing unit.   The said reinforcement part has a metal plate separate from the said 1st housing | casing, and the resin member which covers the edge of the said metal plate, The any one of Claim 1 to 3 characterized by the above-mentioned. The mobile terminal according to item 1.   The portable terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the reinforcing portion is in contact with a circuit board accommodated in the first housing. A first housing having a display unit and a first operation unit and having a step shape;
A second housing having a second operation portion and having a step shape;
A connecting portion for slidingly moving the first housing relative to the second housing;
A gap formed between the first housing and the second housing in a state where the first housing is slid relative to the second housing;
A portable terminal comprising: a reinforcing portion provided between the first operation portion and the gap.   The mobile terminal according to claim 3, wherein the reinforcing portion is a metal plate separate from the first housing, and a flexible substrate is disposed along both surfaces of the metal plate.   The reinforcing portion is a metal plate separate from the first housing, and a bent portion for supporting a switch provided on a side portion of the first housing is provided. The mobile terminal according to claim 3. A first housing having a display unit and a first operation unit and having a step shape;
A second housing having a second operation portion and having a step shape;
A connecting portion for slidingly moving the first housing relative to the second housing;
A gap formed between the first housing and the second housing in a state where the first housing is slid relative to the second housing;
A reinforcing portion provided between the second operating portion and the gap,
A portable terminal, wherein a card connector stopper is insert-molded on the surface of the reinforcing portion.

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