JP2014128458A - Electronic apparatus storage case, and electronic apparatus storage case set - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a storage case capable of protecting an input portion of a stored touch pen as well as capable of certainly storing the touch pen to an electronic apparatus.SOLUTION: An electronic apparatus storage case 10 for holding at least both side faces and a rear face of an electronic apparatus including a touch pen in the front includes: a rear face plate 11 for holding the rear face; side face plates 12 erected from both sides of the rear face plate 11, for holding both the side faces; and a pen storage part 20 provided outside one of the side face plates 12, and stored with a touch pen 30 used for operation of the touch panel. The pen storage part 20 includes: a nearly cylindrical tip-holding part 21 for holding a tip portion of the touch pen 30; a nearly cylindrical rear end-holding part 22 for holding a rear end portion of the touch pen 30; and an intermediate holding part 24 connecting between the tip-holding part 21 and the rear end-holding part 22.

Description

  The present invention relates to a case for storing an electronic device equipped with a touch panel as an input means, and a set of the case and an input touch pen.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, electronic devices such as smartphones, tablet terminals, and portable game machines that have a touch panel as an input means are rapidly spreading. As a touch panel provided in such an electronic device, a pressure-sensitive type that senses pressure applied to the surface has been mainstream in the past, but in recent years, a capacitance that senses a change in the capacitance of the panel surface. The method is becoming mainstream, and almost all of the smartphones and tablet terminals adopt this method.
In the case of the pressure-sensitive method, a so-called stylus pen for input is usually used. In the case of the electrostatic capacity method, it is usual to perform an input operation by directly touching with a finger, but recently, an attempt has been made to use a stylus pen like a pressure sensitive method. A stylus pen that can be used for such a capacitance method requires that the pen tip is made of a conductive material or that the surface thereof is plated with a conductive material. It is necessary to connect from the tip to the grip portion of the pen gripped by the user through a conductive path. Such a stylus pen is sometimes referred to as a touch pen.

By the way, such an electronic device is often carried in an open pocket or bag, but may be carried in a state of being stored in a case as shown in Patent Document 1.
Further, as in Patent Document 2, a storage case is also disclosed in which a mobile phone and a writing instrument for taking notes can be stored integrally.
Further, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for attaching a strap using an earphone jack of a smartphone, and the touch pen can be used as the strap.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-199008 JP 2007-329536 A Utility Model Registration No. 3173919

  In the prior art described in Patent Document 2, a writing instrument is inserted into a substantially cylindrical pocket, and the vicinity of the entrance of the pocket is sandwiched and fixed by a clip of the writing instrument. For this reason, the clip to be fixed serves as a fulcrum, and the writing tip portion on the opposite side moves and rubs in the pocket. Here, when this writing instrument is replaced with a touch pen that can be used for capacitive input, the input destination application may be damaged by movement in the pocket depending on the material of the input tip of the touch pen. there is a possibility. In the first place, in this prior art, if the writing instrument is not equipped with a clip, the writing instrument is simply inserted into the pocket and is not fixed. Therefore, when the storage case is turned upside down, the writing instrument may easily fall from the pocket.

On the other hand, when the prior art described in Patent Document 3 is used for attaching a touch pen, the connection method is such that the touch pen hangs from the earphone jack of the smartphone as a strap. In this case, the touch pen remains completely exposed, and when it is housed in a pocket or a bag in this state, the touch pen can move freely, so that the input tip or the shaft tube is in contact with the surrounding area and damaged, There is also a possibility that the touch pen may make an unexpected contact with the touch panel, resulting in erroneous input or failure.
In view of the above-described problems of the prior art, the present invention provides a storage case capable of protecting the input portion of the stored touch pen as well as the storage of the touch pen with respect to the electronic device. And

Moreover, in addition to the said 1st subject, this invention makes it the 2nd subject to protect the side part of the accommodated touch pen, smoothing accommodation of the touch pen in a storage case.
Furthermore, in addition to the said 2nd subject, this invention makes it 3rd subject to make it easy to hold | grip a storage case by hand.
Moreover, in addition to the said 1st, 2nd or 3rd subject, this invention makes it the 4th subject to make it easy to take out the accommodated touch pen.
Furthermore, in addition to the first, second, third, or fourth problem, the present invention has a fifth problem that enables input by a touch pen to a stored electronic device by combining a touch pen. To do.

(1) 1st invention In view of the said 1st subject, 1st invention among this application is the electronic device storage case 10 which hold | maintains at least both sides and a back surface of an electronic device provided with a touch panel on the front,
A back plate 11 for holding the back surface;
Side plates 12 respectively standing from both sides of the back plate 11 and holding the both side surfaces;
A pen storage unit 20 that is provided outside one of the side plates 12 and stores a touch pen 30 used to operate the touch panel; and
The pen storage unit 20
A substantially cylindrical tip holding portion 21 for holding the tip portion of the touch pen 30, and
A substantially cylindrical rear end holding portion 22 for holding the rear end portion of the touch pen 30, and
An intermediate holding part 24 that communicates between the front end holding part 21 and the rear end holding part 22,
It is characterized by providing.

Here, the “electronic device” is not particularly limited as long as it has a touch panel for input on the front surface. Specifically, a smartphone, a mobile phone, a tablet terminal, a portable game machine, and the like are assumed. .
As for the “touch panel”, a capacitive type is desirable, but a pressure-sensitive type can also be used.
The “electronic device storage case 10” needs to include a “back plate 11” for holding at least the back surface of the electronic device to be stored and “side plate 12” for holding both side surfaces. It is not limited whether the top surface and the bottom surface are provided with a structure for holding the top surface and the bottom surface, but in view of the fact that there is a high possibility that terminals for connecting and removing electronic devices and chargers and earphones are located. Such a structure is not necessarily provided.

The “pen storage unit 20” is provided outside one of the two “side plates 12”, and has a structure in which a touch pen 30 used for touch panel operation is stored. Here, which one of the “side plates 12” is provided is designed in consideration of usage circumstances such as a user's dominant hand. If the user is right-handed and uses the touch pen 30 with the right hand, the touch pen 30 is provided outside the right side plate 12.
Here, the “touch pen 30” has a structure corresponding to the input method of the touch panel. However, regardless of the input method, it is provided with a shaft tube portion 31 for the user to hold and an input portion 32 located at the front or rear end of the shaft tube portion 31 and in direct contact with the touch panel. is there.

  The “tip holding part 21” is for holding the tip part of the touch pen 30 when the touch pen 30 is stored. The “rear end holding portion 22” is for holding the rear end portion of the shaft cylinder of the touch pen 30. It should be noted that these structures are “substantially cylindrical” and do not need to be “cylindrical” in a geometrically strict sense, and have a slightly distorted shape, or a part thereof is depressed or protruded. Or a through portion such as a hole or a slit 27 is provided. In addition, the rear end and the front end of the “rear end holding portion 22” need to be opened to enable the touch pen 30 to be removable, and at least the rear end of the “rear end holding portion 21” is open. There is a need.

In addition, when the input portion 32 of the touch pen 30 is provided on the tip side inside the “tip holding portion 21”, a structure (for example, equidistant holding) is provided without contacting the input portion 32 of the touch pen 30. It is desirable that a rib structure is provided.
The “intermediate holding portion 24” is a portion that connects the “front end holding portion 21” and the “rear end holding portion 22”. As a result, at least a part of the side surface of the shaft cylinder of the touch pen 30 is held, and the touch pen 30 can be held more securely than when only the “tip holding part 21” and “rear end holding part 22” are provided. Is supposed to be made.
When the touch pen 30 is inserted into the pen storage unit 20 of the present invention, the tip of the touch pen 30 is first inserted into the rear end opening of the rear end holding unit 22 and is moved in the direction of the tip as it is, and the touch pen 30 is also inserted from the front end opening. Project the tip of. Next, the tip of the touch pen 30 is inserted into the rear end opening of the tip holding portion 21 while moving the touch pen 30 along the intermediate holding portion 24. Then, the movement of the touch pen 30 to the tip is stopped at the stage of contact with the structure that holds the periphery of the tip portion in the inner space of the tip holding portion 21, and thus the touch pen 30 is stored in the pen storage portion 20. become.

(2) Second invention In view of the second problem, the second invention of the present application is characterized in that, in addition to the features of the first invention, the intermediate holding portion 24 is formed in a cylindrical shape. And
That is, the shape of the intermediate holding portion 24 may be a rail-like structure that can guide the insertion direction when the touch pen 30 is inserted in the distal direction, for example, a hook-like structure. However, as in the third aspect of the present invention, the insertion direction can be guided when the touch pen 30 is inserted in the distal direction also by forming the intermediate holding portion 24 in a cylindrical structure. Accordingly, when the touch pen 30 is inserted, it is possible to securely store it without necessarily looking at the hand. Furthermore, not only the front end portion and the rear end portion of the touch pen 30 but also the shaft tube portion 31 therebetween is covered by the intermediate holding portion 24 when stored. As a result, the shaft tube portion 31 of the touch pen 30 can be protected.

(3) Third invention In view of the third problem, the third invention of the present application is characterized in that, in addition to the features of the second invention, the width of the intermediate holding part 24 includes the tip holding part 21 and the It is characterized by being smaller than the width of the rear end holding part 22.
That is, the intermediate holding portion 24 has a shape that is recessed inward with respect to the front end holding portion 21 and the rear end holding portion 22. As a result, when the electronic device storage case 10 in the state where the electronic device is stored is gripped by hand, the tip of the finger is hooked in this shape and becomes difficult to slip, so that a reliable grip is possible.

(4) Fourth invention In view of the fourth problem, the fourth invention of the present application is characterized in the longitudinal direction of the rear end holding portion 22 in addition to the features of the first, second or third invention. A slit 27 is formed along the rear end holding portion 22 along the rear end edge.
For example, if a protrusion 33 or a protrusion protruding outward is provided at the rear end portion of the touch pen 30, the touch pen 30 can be accommodated with the protrusion 33 or protrusion aligned with the slit 27. The touch pen 30 can be taken out smoothly by sliding the protrusion 33 or the protrusion back along the slit 27.

(5) 5th invention In view of the said 5th subject, the electronic device storage case set 50 which concerns on 5th invention among this application is the electronic device which concerns on the said 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th invention. The storage case 10 and the touch pen 30 that can be stored in the pen storage unit 20 are combined.
As described above, the “touch pen 30” has a structure corresponding to the input method of the touch panel. However, regardless of the input method, it is provided with a shaft tube portion 31 for the user to hold and an input portion 32 located at the front or rear end of the shaft tube portion 31 and in direct contact with the touch panel. is there.

Here, when the touch panel is of a capacitive type, it is desirable that the touch pen 30 is formed so as to ensure a conductive path from the input portion 32 to a grip portion by a finger. In other words, the input portion 32 has conductivity, and the grip portion by the fingers also has conductivity, and the input portion 32 and the grip portion are in direct contact with each other, or another conductive substance is interposed therebetween. It is supposed to be. As a result, a conductive path is ensured from the finger to the grip portion and the input portion 32, and in this state, the input portion 32 touches the touch panel to change the capacitance, thereby enabling an input operation.
Here, the entire input portion 32 may be formed of a conductive material such as a metal or a conductive resin, or the surface of the input portion 32 may be a metal even if formed of a non-conductive material. If it is plated or coated with a conductive material, the conductivity of the input portion 32 is guaranteed.

  Further, conductive fibers may be planted at the tip of the touch pen 30 as the input portion 32. According to the present invention, even such a delicate structure of the input portion 32 is reliably protected during storage.

Since this invention is comprised as mentioned above, there exists an effect described below.
That is, according to the first invention of the present application, it is possible to provide a storage case capable of protecting the input part of the stored touch pen as well as the storage of the touch pen with respect to the electronic device.
According to the second invention of the present application, in addition to the effects of the first invention, it is possible to protect the side portion of the stored touch pen while smoothly storing the touch pen in the storage case. Become.
Furthermore, according to the third aspect of the present application, in addition to the effects of the second aspect, it is possible to easily hold the storage case by hand.

Moreover, according to 4th invention among this application, in addition to the effect of the said 1st, 2nd or 3rd invention, it becomes easy to take out the accommodated touch pen.
Furthermore, according to the fifth invention of the present application, in addition to the effects of the first, second, third, or fourth invention, the touch pen can be used to input to the electronic device to be stored by combining the touch pen. It becomes.

The electronic device storage case which concerns on embodiment of this invention is shown with the left direction perspective view (A) and the right direction perspective view (B). The electronic device storage case of FIG. 1 is shown by the right side view (A) and the II-II cross section (B) of the same drawing. The electronic device storage case set which concerns on embodiment of this invention is shown with the left direction perspective view (A) and the right direction perspective view (B). The electronic device storage case set of FIG. 1 is shown by the right side view (A) and the IV-IV cross section (B) of the same drawing. Another example of the touch pen used for the case set of the electronic device collection of this invention is shown with sectional drawing. Another example of the input part in the touch pen of FIG. 6 is shown with sectional drawing.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 shows a left perspective view (A) and a right perspective view (B) of an electronic device storage case 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
The electronic device storage case 10 includes a back plate 11 for holding the back of the electronic device, a left side plate 13 as a side plate 12 for holding the left side, a right side plate 14 as a side plate 12 for holding the right side, A pen storage unit 20 is provided outside the right side panel along the longitudinal direction.
In the present embodiment, the direction in which the upper side of the electronic device stored in the electronic device storage case 10 is located is “upper”, and the direction in which the lower side is located is “lower”. For the pen storage unit 20, the upper side may be described as “rear” or “rear end”, and the lower side may be described as “front” or “front end”.

Each of the left side plate 13 and the right side plate 14 has a shape in which the upper side and the lower side are curved inward. This is formed in this way to maintain the shape of the four corners of the electronic device.
A substantially cylindrical tip holding portion 21 that holds the tip end side of the touch pen 30 to be stored is provided on the tip end side of the pen storage portion 20, and a rear end side of the touch pen 30 to be stored is provided on the rear end side. A substantially cylindrical rear end holding portion 22 for holding is provided. Further, a hook-shaped portion 23 having an arcuate cross section is formed between the tip holding portion 21 and the rear end holding portion 22.
In the electronic device storage case 10 described above, the back plate 11, the left side plate 13, the right side plate 14, the front end holding portion 21, the rear end holding portion 22 and the bowl-like portion 23 are integrally formed of silicon rubber.

Further, a cylindrical tip cap 25 whose tip is closed and whose rear end is open is inserted into the tip holding portion 21 (see FIG. 2B). The tip of the tip holding part 21 is closed by the tip cap 25 (see FIG. 1). On the other hand, a slit 27 is provided along the longitudinal direction on the front side of the rear end holding portion 22 (see FIG. 1). This will be described later.
Further, an intermediate holding portion 24 formed as a polycarbonate cylindrical tube is mounted between the front end holding portion 21 and the rear end holding portion 22 along the flange portion 23 (see FIG. 1). The front end portion of the intermediate holding portion 24 is inserted into the front end holding portion 21, and the front end edge thereof is in contact with the rear end edge of the front end cap 25 (see FIG. 2B). Further, the rear end portion of the front end holding portion 21 is inserted into the rear end holding portion 22 (see FIG. 2B). In addition, ribs 26 protruding inward are equally arranged on the inner peripheral surface of the tip portion of the intermediate holding portion 24 (see FIG. 2B). The rib 26 is provided to hold the tip portion of the stored touch pen 30.

The front end holding portion 21, the rear end holding portion 22, the front end cap 25, and the intermediate holding portion 24 constitute a pen storage portion 20. Here, the present embodiment assumes a case where the user is right-handed, but the pen storage unit 20 may be provided on the left side plate 13 for left-handed use. Note that the portion of the pen storage unit 20 where the intermediate holding unit 24 is exposed is lower than the tips of the front end holding unit 21 and the rear end holding unit 22. In other words, the width of the intermediate holding part 24 is shorter than that of the front end holding part 21 and the rear end holding part 22. Therefore, when holding the electronic device storage case 10 by hand, the tip of a finger is hung on this part, so that it is easy to hold.
The touch pen 30 housed in the pen housing unit 20 shown in the present embodiment is provided with a protrusion 33 along the longitudinal direction in the vicinity of the rear end thereof. The width of the projection 33 is long enough to fit in the slit 27 (see FIG. 3).

When the touch pen 30 is stored in the pen storage unit 20, the touch pen 30 is inserted from the front end thereof into the rear end opening of the rear end holding unit 22. Then, when the protrusion 33 is pushed along the slit 27 while being inserted in the distal direction along the inner space of the intermediate holding portion 24, the distal end portion of the touch pen 30 is held in contact with the rib 26 (FIG. 4 ( B)). The combination of the touch pen 30 and the electronic device storage case 10 constitutes an electronic device storage case set 50 (see FIG. 4B).
Here, the touch pen 30 shown in a sectional view in FIG. 4 is configured to be used as a ballpoint pen. That is, the ballpoint pen refill 34 is accommodated in the shaft tube portion 31 made of metal or conductive resin. The ball-point pen refill 34 is formed so as to be able to appear and retract from the tip portion of the touch pen 30 by rotating the latter half of the shaft tube portion 31. An input portion 32 made of a substantially hemispherical conductive resin is attached to the rear end of the touch pen 30. Here, since the conductive resin input portion 32 is in contact with the metal shaft tube portion 31, a conductive path from the input portion 32 to the shaft tube portion 31 is secured, and the shaft tube is gripped with fingers. The input operation can be performed by bringing the input portion 32 into contact with the touch panel.

In FIG. 4, the touch pen 30 is stored in the pen storage unit 20 with the tip of the ballpoint pen refill 34 being immersed, but even if it is stored in the pen storage unit 20 in a state where it protrudes, Since the tip fits in the internal space of the tip cap 25, the touch pen 30 can be stored without any problem.
As shown in FIG. 3, the touch pen 30 stored in the pen storage unit 20 can be easily taken out by sliding the protrusion 33 exposed from the slit 27 backward.
Further, in the touch pen 30 shown in FIG. 4, the input portion 32 used for touch panel input is provided at the rear end, but this may of course be provided at the front end. In this case, the input portion 32 may be a pay-out type like the ballpoint pen refill 34 in FIG. 4, or the input portion 32 may be constantly exposed as shown in FIG. In either case, storage as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 is possible. Here, in the touch pen 30 shown in FIG. 5, a support portion 37 that supports the center core 36 is fixed in the tip inner space 35 of the shaft tube portion 31 made of metal or conductive resin. In this manner, an input portion 32 made of conductive resin is attached. A flange-like base portion 38 is formed at the rear end of the input portion 32, and is in contact with the shaft tube portion 31 at the periphery of the base portion 38. Thereby, a conductive path from the input portion 32 to the shaft tube portion 31 is secured. On the other hand, a tail plug 40 is attached to the rear end of the shaft tube portion 31 by inserting a cylindrical insertion portion 41 at the tip thereof.

  Note that conductive fibers 39 made of conductive resin are electrostatically implanted at the tip of the input portion 32 shown in FIG. The conductive fiber 39 comes into contact with the touch panel at the time of input, and a soft operation feeling is obtained. As described above, even if the conductive fiber 39 is implanted in the input portion 32 located at the tip of the touch pen 30, the input portion 32 is stored inside the tip cap 25 (see FIG. 4B) when stored. The 32 tips will not be damaged.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be used for a case that houses an electronic device that includes a touch panel as input means.

10 Electronic device storage case 11 Back plate 12 Side plate
13 Left side plate 14 Right side plate
20 Pen holder 21 Front end holding part 22 Rear end holding part
23 Hook-shaped part 24 Intermediate holding part 25 Tip cap
26 Rib 27 Slit
30 Touch pen 31 Shaft tube part 32 Input part
33 Protrusion 34 Ballpoint pen refill 35 Tip internal space
36 Center core 37 Support section 38 Base
39 Conductive fiber
40 Tail plug 41 Insertion section
50 Electronic device storage case set

Claims (7)

An electronic device storage case that holds at least both side surfaces and the back surface of an electronic device including a touch panel on the front surface,
A back plate for holding the back surface;
Side plates that stand from both sides of the back plate and hold the both side surfaces, respectively.
A pen storage unit that is provided outside one of the side plates and that stores a touch pen used for operation of the touch panel;
The pen storage unit
A substantially cylindrical tip holding portion for holding the tip portion of the touch pen;
A substantially cylindrical rear end holding portion for holding a rear end portion of the touch pen;
An intermediate holding part that communicates between the front end holding part and the rear end holding part;
An electronic device storage case comprising:   The electronic device storage case according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate holding portion is formed in a cylindrical shape.   The electronic device storage case according to claim 2, wherein a width of the intermediate holding portion is smaller than a width of the front end holding portion and the rear end holding portion.   4. The electronic device storage case according to claim 1, wherein a slit is formed along the longitudinal direction of the rear end holding portion so as to communicate with the rear end edge of the rear end holding portion. Electronic device storage case according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4,
An electronic device storage case set comprising a touch pen that can be stored in the pen storage unit. The touch panel is a capacitive type,
6. The electronic device storage case set according to claim 5, wherein the touch pen is formed so as to secure a conductive path from an input portion to a grip portion by a finger.   The electronic device storage case set according to claim 6, wherein conductive fibers are planted at a tip of the input portion.

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