JP2015050033A - Socket plug mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a socket plug mechanism capable of fastening a socket and a plug with each other with certainty, of giving a stable electrical connection, and of readily releasing the fastening in a case where a code is pulled unexpectedly.SOLUTION: Provided is a socket plug mechanism that engages and fastens a plug part consisting of a rectangular parallelepiped box body connected with a code of a power supply tool, with a socket part consisting of an oblong recessed hole having short and long axis end part lateral faces and a bottom face, and that supplies a power. In a state that a plug contact provided on a front end surface of the rectangular parallelepiped box body is made abut on and press against a socket contact provided on the bottom face of the oblong recessed hole to lock the plug part with the socket part, a gap is provided between the long axis end part lateral face and the plug part, and a rotatable ball bearing is accommodated in the gap and urged toward the socket part or the plug part by a coil spring, so that the rectangular parallelepiped box body is rotated with the bottom face close to one of the long axis end part lateral faces as a fulcrum to enable release of the fastening of the socket part and the plug part.

Description

  The present invention relates to a socket / plug mechanism for supplying power to an electronic device, and more particularly to a small socket / plug mechanism for a precision electronic device that requires a large current while being a small electronic device.

  In an adapter device that performs voltage adjustment and rectification from an AC commercial power supply and supplies power to an electronic device, a plug at the tip of a cord is inserted into a socket of the electronic device. In recent years, the amount of current required for high-performance electronic devices such as mobile computers has increased, and the above-described socket / plug mechanism ensures a large amount of current without being easily displaced. It must be possible to supply stably. On the other hand, in order to prevent damage to precision electronic devices that are sensitive to shock and vibration, when the cord is pulled unexpectedly, the socket and plug are separated and the precision electronic device is dropped together with the cord. It is also required for the socket / plug mechanism to prevent this.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a socket / plug mechanism that can be separated by pulling a cord. Specifically, a connecting portion including a socket (receptacle) and a plug is provided at one end of a relay cord attached to the electronic device, and the cord is connected to the plug. The plug has a substantially cylindrical shape, and is easily separated from the socket with respect to the pulling in the axial direction. Here, even when the cord is pulled in a direction other than the axial direction, the relay cord is bent and a pulling force is applied to the connecting portion in the axial direction of the plug, and the plug is easily separated from the socket. .

  For example, Patent Document 2 discloses a socket / plug mechanism that can be separated by pulling a cord. Such a socket / plug mechanism is composed of a socket (receiving port) having a substantially rectangular opening and a plug having a substantially rectangular tip portion that can be inserted into the socket. On the bottom surface of the socket, pins are erected at two positions apart in the longitudinal direction. Also, the tip end surface of the plug is provided with two pin insertion holes that can accommodate the pins of the socket, and a magnet for locking the socket is also provided. Yes. A cord is connected to the rear end of the plug. When such a cord is pulled, the plug rotates around one pin insertion hole as a fulcrum, and is released from being fixed by the magnet and separated from the socket. Here, the other pin insertion hole of the pin insertion hole that became a fulcrum at the time of rotation of the plug is cut to a large size outward so as not to be caught by the pin, so that the plug can be smoothly rotated and easily separated from the socket. Yes.

  Also, Patent Document 3 discloses a socket / plug mechanism that can be separated by pulling a cord. Such a socket / plug mechanism includes a socket having a substantially rectangular opening and a plurality of terminals arranged in a direction perpendicular to the depth direction of the socket, and a fitting that is inserted and fitted in the opening of the socket in the axial direction. A plug having a portion. Holding springs are arranged on the four inner side surfaces of the socket opening, and concave portions for engaging the holding springs are provided on the outer side surface of the fitting portion of the plug. The length of the fitting portion in the axial direction can be shortened by the arrangement of the terminals, and the force necessary for fitting the plug to the socket by the holding spring can be obtained. As a result, the plug can be easily separated from the socket even if the cord is pulled in a direction other than the axial direction.

JP 2008-123801 A JP-A-5-54932 JP 2012-9375 A

  As described above, in a socket / plug mechanism of a precision electronic device, since a large current is supplied, the plug should not be easily displaced from the socket. On the other hand, it is preferable that the socket and the plug can be separated when the cord is pulled unexpectedly. In order to use such a socket / plug mechanism in a small electronic device, particularly a mobile device, it is required to be small.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above situation, and an object of the present invention is a small socket / plug mechanism for a precision electronic device that requires a large current while being a small electronic device. Provided is a socket / plug mechanism that allows the socket and the plug to be securely fastened and provides a stable electrical connection, while the socket and the plug can be immediately released when the cord is pulled unexpectedly. There is.

  The socket / plug mechanism according to the present invention includes a plug portion formed of a rectangular box body connected to a cord of a power supply tool in a socket portion formed of a laterally long recessed hole having a short shaft end portion side surface and a long shaft end portion side surface and a bottom surface. A socket / plug mechanism for fitting and fastening to supply power, wherein the plug contact provided on the front end surface of the rectangular box is brought into contact with and pressed against the socket contact provided on the bottom surface of the horizontally elongated hole. In a state where the plug portion is locked to the socket portion, the rectangular box body is rotated with the bottom face close to one of the side surfaces of the long axis end portion as a fulcrum to fasten the socket portion and the plug portion. A gap is provided between the side surface of the end of the long shaft and the plug part so that it can be released, and a rotatable ball bearing is accommodated in the gap, and is attached to the socket part or the plug part by a coil spring. Characterized in that it is.

  According to this invention, the plug part is fitted and fastened to the socket part in a direction orthogonal to the direction in which the plug contact is brought into contact with the socket contact and pressed, and the socket and the plug are securely fastened while being small. On the other hand, when the cord is unexpectedly pulled, the plug portion can be rotated by the rotatable ball bearing, and the fastening between the socket portion and the plug portion can be immediately released.

  In the above-described invention, the plug contact is pressed against the socket contact while the pin body provided on the bottom surface of the socket part is rubbed against the notch provided on the tip surface of the rectangular box. This may be a feature. According to this invention, even if the plug portion is rotated, the pin body is not caught in the notch, and the socket portion and the plug portion can be fitted and fastened at a position where the plug contact contacts the socket contact. In other words, the socket and the plug are more securely fastened while the fastening is easily released.

  In the above-described invention, the socket portion or the plug portion biased by the ball bearing may have a locking recess for receiving the ball bearing. According to this invention, the socket part and the plug part are more securely fastened, the fastening position is stabilized, and a more stable electrical connection is provided.

  In the above-described invention, a hook-shaped groove that guides the ball bearing to the locking recess may be connected to the locking recess. According to this invention, the socket portion and the plug portion can be fastened more stably and reliably, and the fastening can be easily released.

FIG. 6 is a top view of a socket and plug mechanism according to the present invention. It is (a) top sectional view and (b) front view of a socket. It is the (a) top view, (b) side view, and (c) front view of a plug. It is a front view of the socket which shows the positional relationship of a socket and the front end surface of a plug. It is the top view which has the partial cross section display which shows the state which fastened the plug to the socket, (b) The elements on larger scale of the upper cross section. It is the (b) top view which has the partial cross-section display which shows the state which released | fastened the socket and the plug, and (c) is the elements on larger scale. It is a perspective view which shows the usage example of a connector. (A) Top view having a partial cross-sectional display of the main part of the socket, (b) Upper cross-sectional view of the main part of the plug, (c) Upper cross-sectional view showing a state in which these are fastened. It is the (a) upper cross-sectional view and (b) front view of another socket.

  One embodiment of the socket and plug mechanism according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the connector 1 includes a socket 10 provided in a small precision electronic device such as a mobile computer as a power supply unit, and a plug 20 that is inserted into a concave hole 12 on the front thereof and fastened. The plug 20 is connected to a power source by a cord 31 derived from the back surface thereof, and supplies power to the precision electronic device via the socket 10.

  Referring to FIG. 2, the socket 10 includes a socket body 11 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and the socket body 11 includes a concave hole 12 that opens horizontally in front of the socket body 11. In particular, as shown in FIG. 2B, the side surface of the concave hole 12 is a curved surface. A part of each of the pair of bearing balls 14 is exposed inside the concave hole 12 from the side surface. The bearing ball 14 is accommodated together with a spring 15 in a substantially cylindrical barrel 13 having an opening with an inner diameter slightly smaller than its diameter. The pair of barrels 13 are arranged so that the openings face each other and the openings are aligned with the side surfaces of the concave holes 12. The bearing ball 14 is urged from the inside of the barrel 13 toward the opening by a spring 15. As a result, the bearing ball 14 can move from the opening of the barrel 13 toward the inside thereof and can rotate. The concave hole 12 includes a substantially frustoconical pin 17 protruding toward the front side at the center of the bottom surface 16, and a plurality of male contacts 18 on the left and right sides of the pin 17. The male contact 18 is biased by a spring (not shown) from the inside of the socket body 11 toward the front.

  Referring to FIG. 3, the plug 20 includes a plug main body 21 that is a box having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape and a cord 31 connected to the back side thereof. The plug body 21 has an outer shape with a size smaller than that of the inner surface of the recessed hole 12 in the vertical and horizontal directions at the front end portion on the front side. The front end surface 22 on the front side of the plug main body 21 is provided with a notch 23 that is a substantially hemispherical recess into which the pin 17 of the socket 10 is inserted. The same number of female contacts 24 as the male contacts 18 are provided on the left and right sides of the notch 23, and can be connected to the respective male contacts 18. The side surface of the plug main body 21 is provided with a locking portion 25 that is a recess for receiving the bearing ball 14 and a hook-shaped groove 26 that extends from the end of the front end surface 22 to the locking portion 25 toward the back side. Yes. The dimension of the locking portion 25 in the depth direction is larger than the depth dimension of the groove 26. Thereby, the latching | locking part 25 abuts the received bearing ball | bowl 14 on an inclined surface, and suppresses the relative movement to the groove | channel 26 direction of the bearing ball | bowl 14. FIG.

  Next, fastening and releasing of the connector 1 will be described.

  Referring to FIG. 4, when the tip portion of the plug 20 is to be inserted into the recess 12 of the socket 10, it is assumed that the corner C <b> 1 of the tip surface 22 is positioned outward from the opening of the recess 12. Then, the plug 20 is not inserted into the concave hole 12 as it is. However, the concave hole 12 has a curved side surface, and the plug 20 that contacts the opening on the side surface is rotated in the direction of the arrow by a force that pushes the plug 20 into the concave hole 12, and the corner located outside the opening. C1 can be guided into the recessed hole 12. This facilitates insertion of the plug 20 into the concave hole 12 even if the connector 1 is small.

  As shown in FIG. 5A, the plug 20 inserted into the concave hole 12 enters the side surface groove 26 along the bearing ball 14 until the front end surface 22 contacts the bottom surface 16. That is, the plug 20 can be guided to a predetermined entry path by the groove 26. When the front end surface 22 is brought into contact with the bottom surface 16, the front end of the bearing ball 14 is received by the engaging portion 25, and the plug 20 is fitted and fastened to the socket 10 in the direction in which the barrel 13 faces (see FIGS. 2 and 3 together). See). In particular, referring also to FIG. 5 (b), at this time, the pin 17 is inserted into the notch 23, and the tip thereof is guided to the center of the bottom surface while being rubbed against the bottom surface which is the hemispherical surface of the notch 23. Thereby, the approach path | route and fastening position of the plug 20 are defined correctly. At such a fastening position, the male contact 18 is pressed against each of the female contacts 24 by urging the socket 10 in the front direction by a spring (not shown), so that electrical connection is reliably obtained. Note that the bottom surface of the notch 23 may have another shape having an inclination toward the center of the bottom surface, for example, a conical shape. Further, the pin 17 can be formed in another shape in accordance with the shape of the notch 23, for example, the tip is semispherical so that the tip is rubbed to the notch 23 and guided to the center. .

  Thus, at the fastening position of the plug 20 with respect to the socket 10 that has obtained electrical connection, the distal end portion of the plug body 21 has an outer shape smaller in size than the inner surface of the concave hole 12 as described above, and a concave portion is formed around it. A gap with respect to the hole 12 is provided. Here, the fastening position is accurately determined by the positional relationship between the pin 17 and the notch 23 and the positional relationship between the bearing ball 14 and the locking portion 25.

  When the plug 20 is separated from the socket 10, the plug body 21 is tilted sideways as shown in FIG. In particular, referring also to FIG. 6B, the corner C2 of one side end of the front end surface 22 is brought into contact with the bottom surface 16 of the concave hole 12, and the plug body 21 is rotated with the corner C2 as a fulcrum. At this time, the rotation is facilitated by the rotatable bearing ball 14. Further, the shape of the notch 23 allows the plug body 21 to be smoothly rotated so that the pin 17 is not caught.

  When the rotation angle α is small, the bearing ball 14 presses the side surface of the plug body 21 from the left and right, and tries to return the plug body 21 to the fastening position. Here, the bearing ball 14 presses the end surface of the plug main body 21 toward the inside of the concave hole 12 to maintain a gap between the plug main body 21 and the concave hole 12. Thereby, the distance until the plug main body 21 is brought into contact with the corner C4 of the opening of the concave hole 12 is secured. That is, the angle α can be increased, and the angle C3 on the side opposite to the angle C2 serving as the fulcrum can be greatly separated from the bottom surface 16. As a result, the corner C3 moves beyond the bearing ball 14 to release the fastening of the plug 20, and the plug 20 can be separated from the socket 10.

  In addition, by adjusting the positional relationship between the plug main body 21 and the bearing ball 14 according to the depth of the groove 26 or the like, or adjusting the strength for urging the bearing ball 14, the above-described fastening release can be released. The ease can also be adjusted.

  In the connector 1, by urging the bearing ball 14 toward the plug 20, the plug 20 can be securely fastened to the socket 10 to provide a small but stable electrical connection. Therefore, the connector 1 is suitable for use in precision electronic equipment that requires a large current. Further, when the plug 20 is easily rotated by the rotatable bearing ball 14 and the cord is unexpectedly pulled, the lightweight electronic device can be fastened even if it is a small precision electronic device. It can be released immediately.

  In particular, as shown in FIG. 7, when a thin electronic device 40 such as a mobile computer is placed on a table 50, for example, when the connector 1 is disposed so that the concave hole 12 is horizontally long on the side surface, the code 31 Are arranged along the upper surface of the table 50. At this time, if the cord 31 is unexpectedly pulled by hooking a leg under the table 50 or the like, the cord 31 is likely to be oriented in one of the directions along the upper surface of the table 50 (the range of the arrow A). The cord 31 applies a pulling force in this direction to the plug 20. That is, the plug 20 is likely to rotate as described above so as to be tilted to the side, and the fastening can be easily released. That is, it is easy to separate the plug 20 from the socket 10 when the cord 31 is pulled unexpectedly.

  In addition, the barrel 13 which accommodates the bearing ball | bowl 14 can also be used as a signal pin. That is, the electrical connection between the bearing ball 14 and the locking portion 25 can be obtained, and it is confirmed by an electrical signal that the fastening position has been obtained, or an electrical signal indicating a specific code is exchanged to the socket 10. Thus, it is possible to check whether the plug 20 is a compatible product or to determine whether the plug 20 is a copy product. The electrical connection between the male contact 18 and the female contact 24 is such that the connection between the bearing ball 14 and the groove 26 and the side surface of the plug body 21 can be obtained and the plug 20 is in the middle of being inserted into the socket 10. It can also be detected before a connection is obtained.

  For the plurality of male contacts 18, when the plug 20 is inserted into the socket 10, electrical connection with the female contact 24 connected to the GND potential is first obtained from the female contact 24 to which the DC voltage is input. It is preferable to make it. Similarly, regardless of the inclination of the plug 20 from the fastening position, the electrical connection with the female contact 24 of the GND potential is maintained until the electrical connection with the female contact 24 to which the DC voltage is input is disconnected. Is preferred. That is, a short circuit caused by the female contact 24 to which a DC voltage is input is prevented. These can be achieved, for example, by increasing the movable distance of a male contact 18 connected to the female contact 24 of the GND potential among a plurality of male contacts 18 by a spring (not shown).

  As another example of the pin and the notch described above, FIG. 8 shows a pin 60 provided in the socket 10 and a notch 65 provided in the plug 20. As shown in FIG. 8A, the pin 60 includes a substantially frustoconical main body 61, a substantially hemispherical tip 63, and a groove 62 cut between them. Further, as shown in FIG. 8B, the notch 65 includes a conical surface 66 and a central hole 67 at the center thereof, and a circular groove 68 that makes one round along the opening end of the central hole 67. A C-ring 70 is inserted into the circumferential groove 68, and the inner diameter side of the C-ring 70 is exposed into the center hole 67 while allowing the diameter to be enlarged or reduced. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 8C, when the plug 20 is inserted into the socket 10 and the tip surface 22 is brought into contact with the bottom surface 16, the pin 60 is inserted into the notch 65. At this time, the distal end portion 63 is guided to the center hole 67 while being rubbed against the conical surface 66, and is inserted into the C ring 70. When the C-ring 70 is engaged with the groove 62, the bottom surface 16 and the front end surface 22 are brought into contact with each other to obtain the above-described fastening position. Also by this, the approach path and the fastening position of the plug 20 are accurately determined. Further, the engagement between the C ring 70 and the groove 62 allows the operator to obtain a click feeling, thereby confirming that the fastening position has been obtained.

  As another embodiment, as shown in FIG. 9, a magnet 19 can be disposed on the bottom surface 16 of the socket 10. At this time, the tip portion (tip surface 22) of the main body 21 of the plug 20 is a soft magnetic material. Then, the magnet 19 can attract the tip surface 22 of the plug 20 to assist the pressing of the male contact 18 to the female contact 24 at the above-described fastening position, and the fastening of the plug 20 to the socket 10 can be further strengthened. In particular, since the attractive force by the magnet 19 is inversely proportional to the square of the distance to the tip surface 22, the plug body 21 is returned to the fastening position when the angle α of rotation of the plug body 21 (see FIG. 6) is small. The force is increased to obtain a reliable fastening, and when the angle α is increased, the force is weakened and the fastening is easily released. That is, it has both the strength of fastening and the ease of releasing the fastening. Further, the strength of fastening and the ease of release can be easily adjusted by adjusting the attractive force of the plug 20 by the magnetic force of the magnet 19 and its arrangement. In addition, in order to prevent the short circuit of the contact connected to a power supply, it is preferable that the magnet is not provided in the plug 20 but is provided in the socket.

  In the above-described embodiment, the bearing ball 14 is disposed in the socket 10, but may be disposed in a plug. That is, the bearing ball is arranged on the plug side and is urged toward the inner surface of the socket's concave hole to provide the locking portion on the socket. In this case as well, it is possible to provide a stable electric connection while being small, and it is possible to immediately release the fastening when the cord is unexpectedly pulled.

  As mentioned above, although the Example by this invention and the modification based on this were demonstrated, this invention is not necessarily limited to this, A person skilled in the art will deviate from the main point of this invention, or the attached claim. Various alternative embodiments and modifications could be found without doing so.

1 Connector 10 Socket 11 Socket body 12 Recess hole 14 Bearing ball 16 Bottom face 17, 60 Pin 20 Plug 21 Plug body 22 End face 23, 65 Notch 31 Cord

Claims (4)

A socket for supplying power by fitting and fastening a plug portion made of a rectangular box connected to a cord of a power supply tool to a socket portion made of a laterally long concave hole having a short shaft end portion side surface and a long shaft end portion side surface and a bottom surface. A plug mechanism,
In a state where the plug contact provided on the front end surface of the rectangular box body is brought into contact with and pressed against the socket contact provided on the bottom surface of the horizontally elongated concave hole, and the plug portion is locked to the socket portion,
The long-axis end portion side surface is configured such that the rectangular box body can be rotated with the bottom surface close to one of the long-axis end portion side surfaces as a fulcrum to release the fastening between the socket portion and the plug portion. A socket / plug mechanism characterized in that a gap is provided between the plug part and a rotatable ball bearing is accommodated in the gap and is biased toward the socket part or the plug part by a coil spring.   The plug contact is pressed against the socket contact while a pin body provided on the bottom surface of the socket portion is rubbed against a notch provided on the tip surface of the rectangular box. The socket and plug mechanism according to claim 1.   3. The socket / plug mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the socket portion or the plug portion biased with the ball bearing has a locking recess for receiving the ball bearing.   4. The socket / plug mechanism according to claim 3, wherein a hook-shaped groove for guiding the ball bearing is provided in the locking recess so as to be connected to the locking recess.

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