JP2016010302A - External case for electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an external case for an electronic apparatus which is capable of minimizing an improvement on the electronic apparatus and presenting the sense of touch cooperatively with the electronic apparatus.SOLUTION: An external case 10 can be mounted to an electronic apparatus 100 in a freely removable manner and includes: a panel 30 forming a part of the case 10; an actuator 50; and a conversion section 60 which is engaged to the panel 30 and the actuator 50, converts a displacement direction and a displacement amount of the actuator 50 into a different displacement direction and a different displacement amount by displacing the actuator 50 and slides the panel 30.

Description

  The present invention relates to an external case of an electronic device.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for presenting a realistic tactile sensation to a contact object such as a finger on a panel such as a touch panel. The tactile sensation providing device disclosed in Patent Document 1 presents a pressing feeling of “pressed” to the operator by utilizing a squeeze film effect generated between the panel and the contact object by vibrating the panel in the thickness direction. Yes.

Japanese Patent No. 4875050

  Since the conventionally known tactile sensation presentation apparatus vibrates the panel in the thickness direction, for example, when it is applied to an electronic device such as a smartphone, the panel support mechanism or the like needs to be significantly improved.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an external case of an electronic device that can minimize the improvement of the electronic device and can provide a tactile sensation in cooperation with the electronic device.

The external case of the electronic device according to the present invention that achieves the above object is
An external case that can be detachably attached to an electronic device,
A panel constituting a part of the case;
An actuator,
A converter that engages with the panel and the actuator, converts a displacement direction and a displacement amount of the actuator into a different displacement direction and a different displacement amount according to the displacement of the actuator, and slides the panel;
Is provided.

  The external case of the electronic device according to the present invention may further include an electrical coupling portion that can be electrically coupled to the electronic device.

  The conversion unit may include a rotation member that rotates by the displacement of the actuator to slide the panel.

  The conversion unit has a slope extending in a direction intersecting with a displacement direction of the actuator, a linearly moving member that linearly moves in the displacement direction of the actuator by the displacement of the actuator, and the slope according to the displacement of the linearly moving member. And a sliding member that slides the panel.

  In the external case of the electronic device according to the present invention, the panel further includes a pressurizing unit that applies the pressurizing force to the conversion unit and applies the pressurizing unit to the actuator. It is good to have.

The actuator includes a laminated piezoelectric element,
The laminated piezoelectric element may be arranged such that the displacement direction intersects the sliding direction of the panel in a plan view of the panel.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the improvement of an electronic device can be minimized and the external case of the electronic device which can show a tactile sense in cooperation with an electronic device can be provided.

1 is an external perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an external case according to a first embodiment of the present invention and an electronic device to which the external case can be attached. It is a top view which expands and shows schematic structure of the principal part of the external case of FIG. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect | action of the conversion part of FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the conversion part of FIG. It is a functional block diagram which shows the circuit structure of the principal part of the external case and electronic device of FIG. It is a top view which shows schematic structure of the principal part of the external case which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure for demonstrating the effect | action of the conversion part of FIG. It is a figure which shows the modification of the conversion part of FIG. It is a figure which shows the other modification of the conversion part of FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing a schematic configuration of an external case according to the first embodiment of the present invention and an electronic device to which the external case can be attached. The external case 10 according to the present embodiment is, for example, an electronic device so as to protect the surface and surrounding side surfaces of the electronic device 100 such as a mobile phone such as a smartphone, a portable music player, a wristwatch, a tablet terminal, and a game machine. It is used by being detachably attached to 100.

  In FIG. 1, the external case 10 includes a case body 20 whose external shape is a substantially rectangular shape. The case body 20 is made of metal, hard plastic, or the like. A panel 30 is disposed inside the case body 20 and on the surface plate 21 side.

  The panel 30 is formed, for example, in a rectangular shape from a synthetic resin such as glass or acrylic. The panel 30 is supported by the case body 20 so as to be slidable in the longitudinal direction. In the panel 30, a region excluding the peripheral portion of the surface 30 a is exposed from an opening 21 a formed in the surface plate 21 of the case main body 20 and constitutes a part of the external case 10 over the slide range. The external case 10 is detachably attached to the electronic device 100 so as to cover the front surface and surrounding side surfaces of the electronic device 100 and to expose the back surface.

  On the other hand, the electronic device 100 to which the external case 10 is attached includes a housing 120 whose external shape is substantially rectangular. The housing 120 is made of metal, hard plastic, or the like. The casing 120 has a touch panel 130 for detecting contact with a contact object such as an operator's finger, a pen, or a stylus pen on the front side, and a part of the touch panel 130 is shown in FIG. As shown in a cutout, the display unit 140 is held.

  The touch panel 130 is formed, for example, in a rectangular shape from a synthetic resin such as glass or acrylic. The touch detection method using the touch panel 130 may be any method such as a capacitance method, a resistive film method, a surface acoustic wave method (or an ultrasonic method), an infrared method, an electromagnetic induction method, or a load detection method. In combination with the external case 10 according to the embodiment, the electrostatic capacity method is preferable. The touch panel 130 may be configured integrally with the display unit 140.

  The display unit 140 is configured using, for example, a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, an inorganic EL display, electronic paper, or the like. The display unit 140 displays images (pages) in application software (hereinafter simply referred to as “applications”) such as browsers and electronic books, input objects such as icons and push buttons, and the like.

  When the external case 10 shown in FIG. 1 is attached to the electronic device 100, the touch panel 130 exposed from the surface of the electronic device 100 is positioned in the region of the opening 21 a of the external case 10. The user of the electronic device 100 can operate the touch panel 130 of the electronic device 100 via the panel 30 of the external case 10.

  FIG. 2 is an enlarged plan view showing a schematic configuration of a main part of the external case 10. In FIG. 2, the surface plate 21 of the case body 20 is removed. The case body 20 is provided with guide members 22 for positioning the long sides 30b and 30c of the panel 30 to guide the slide of the panel 30. FIG. 2 shows an example in which a total of four guide members 22 are arranged at both ends of the long sides 30b and 30c of the panel 30, but the number of guide members 22 is not limited to four, but three or more on each long side or The structure which provides one elongate guide member may be sufficient.

  The case body 20 is provided with an actuator 50 and a conversion unit 60 on one short side 30 d side of the panel 30. The actuator 50 constitutes a drive source for sliding the panel 30 and is constituted by using, for example, a piezoelectric element 51. The piezoelectric element 51 is an element that expands or contracts or bends according to an electromechanical coupling coefficient of a constituent material by applying an electric signal (voltage). These elements are made of, for example, ceramic or quartz. The piezoelectric element 51 may be a unimorph, bimorph, or multilayer piezoelectric element. The laminated piezoelectric element includes a laminated bimorph element in which bimorphs are laminated, or a laminate of a plurality of dielectric layers made of PZT (lead zirconate titanate), for example, and an electrode layer disposed between the plurality of dielectric layers. There is a stack type composed of structures. The unimorph is elastically displaced when an electric signal is applied, the bimorph is bent and displaced when an electric signal is applied, and the stack type laminated piezoelectric element is elastically displaced along the laminating direction when an electric signal is applied. In the present embodiment, the piezoelectric element 51 is formed of a stack type stacked piezoelectric element.

  One end of the piezoelectric element 51 is fixed to the inner wall of the case main body 20, and is arranged so as to extend substantially parallel to the short side 30 d of the panel 30. Therefore, the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51 and the sliding direction of the panel 30 intersect each other in plan view of the panel 30. In order to guide the displacement of the piezoelectric element 51, a pair of guide members 23 are arranged in the case body 20 so as to sandwich the piezoelectric element 51.

  The conversion unit 60 is arranged to engage with the short side 30 d of the panel 30 and the end surface of the other end of the piezoelectric element 51. The conversion unit 60 slides the panel 30 by converting the displacement direction and the displacement amount into different displacement directions and different displacement amounts according to the displacement of the piezoelectric element 51. In the present embodiment, the conversion unit 60 has a rotating member 61. The rotating member 61 includes an engaging portion 61a that is rotatably engaged with the fixed shaft 62, an abutting portion 61b with which the piezoelectric element 51 abuts, and an abutting portion 61c with which the short side 30d of the panel 30 abuts. The locking portion 61a is formed in a hook shape, and the contact portions 61b and 61c are formed in a protruding shape.

  On the other hand, a pressurizing portion 70 is disposed on the other short side 30 e side of the panel 30. In FIG. 2, the pressurizing unit 70 urges the panel 30 in the right direction so that the short side 30 d of the panel 30 is abutted by applying pressure to the abutting part 61 c of the rotating member 61 and rotates. The contact portion 61b of the member 61 is brought into contact with the piezoelectric element 51 by applying a pressure. The pressurizing unit 70 is made of an elastic body such as a buffer material, a spring, or rubber.

  In FIG. 2, when the piezoelectric element 51 is displaced upward, the rotating member 61 rotates counterclockwise with the fixed shaft 62 as a fulcrum. As a result, the displacement direction by the piezoelectric element 51 is converted to approximately 90 degrees by the conversion member 60 and transmitted to the panel 30, and the panel 30 slides leftward against the pressurization of the pressurization unit 70.

Here, the effect | action of the conversion part 60 is demonstrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the conversion unit 60. In FIG. 3, the fulcrum indicates the fixed shaft 62 with which the locking portion 61 a of the rotating member 61 is engaged, the force point indicates the abutting portion 61 b of the rotating member 61 with which the piezoelectric element 51 abuts, and the operating point is the panel 30. The abutting part 61c with which the short side 30d abuts is shown. The input displacement amount input to the force point by the displacement of the piezoelectric element 51 is S, the throwing input is T, the displacement amount acting on the action point is D, the generated force is F, and the distance from the fixed shaft 62 serving as a fulcrum to the force point Is L1, and the distance from the fulcrum to the action point is L2, the displacement amount D and the generated force F can be approximated by the following equations (1) and (2). However, L1 and L2 are sufficiently larger than S and D, respectively.
D = S × L2 / L1 (1)
F = T × L1 / L2 (2)

  From the above formulas (1) and (2), it is possible to obtain a sufficient amount of displacement D and generated force F that can present a tactile sensation by appropriately setting the positions of the force points and the action points, that is, the distances L1 and L2. . In general, the laminated piezoelectric element 51 has a large throwing input T but a small throwing displacement amount S. On the other hand, the sliding amount of the panel 30 that can present a tactile sensation, that is, the displacement amount D is larger than the closing displacement amount S, and the sliding force, that is, the generated force F is smaller than the throwing input T. Therefore, it is possible to use a readily available stacked piezoelectric element 51.

  Further, the angle formed by the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51 and the sliding direction of the panel 30, that is, the conversion angle of the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51 is not limited to 90 degrees and can be arbitrarily set. Therefore, it can be configured easily.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, the rotating member 61 has a drag A (= T) due to the piezoelectric element 51 that is a force generator, a drag B (= F) due to the panel 30 that is a moving object, and a drag. A drag C (= (T ² + F ² ) ^1/2 ) for balancing A and drag B is generated. That is, if the position of the fixed shaft 62 is determined so that the drag A and the drag B are always generated, the position of the rotating member 61 is determined by the balance of the three effects A, B, and C. Therefore, since it is not necessary to hold the rotating member 61 tightly on the fixed shaft 62, the rotating member 61 is shaped as shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C instead of the shape of FIG. While the freedom degree of the shape of the rotation member 61 can be improved, the assembly property of the conversion part 60 can be improved.

  In the rotating member 61 shown in FIG. 4A, the engaging portion 61a is formed in a hook shape, and contact portions 61b and 61c are formed on both sides of the fan shape. The rotating member 61 shown in FIG. 4B has a fan-shaped polygonal shape as a whole, and a locking portion 61a having an opening larger in diameter than the fixed shaft 62 is formed at the apex portion of the fan shape. Abutting portions 61b and 61c are formed on both side surfaces. The rotating member 61 shown in FIG. 4C has an L shape as a whole, an L-shaped inner corner portion forms a locking portion 61a, and contact portions 61b and 61c are formed on the outer surface. is there.

  Further, since the drag A and the drag B always act on the rotating member 61, even if friction is generated in the engaging portion between the rotating member 61 and the fixed shaft 62, L1: L2, that is, D: S and T: F are set. It can be kept almost constant. Therefore, the panel 30 can be stably slid over a long period of time under the initial conditions without being affected by wear.

  In the external case 10 according to the present embodiment, when the electronic device 100 is attached, a contact object such as an operator's finger, pen, or stylus pen comes into contact with the panel 30 and the panel 30 is pressed. The electronic device 100 controls the driving of the piezoelectric element 51 of the external case 10 by detecting the touch or pressing of the panel 30 with the contact object using the touch panel 130. Thereby, the panel 30 of the external case 10 in contact with the contact object is slid to feed back the tactile sensation to the operator. Therefore, as will be described later, the external case 10 and the electronic device 100 are each provided with an electrical coupling portion for electrically coupling the external case 10 to the electronic device 100 when the external case 10 is attached to the electronic device 100.

  FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram showing circuit configurations of the main parts of the external case 10 and the electronic device 100 of FIG. The external case 10 includes an electrical coupling portion 71, a piezoelectric element driving portion 72, and the piezoelectric element 51 described above.

  The electrical coupling unit 71 is electrically coupled to the electronic device 100 and receives the control signal of the piezoelectric element 51 from the electronic device 100 when the external case 10 is attached to the electronic device 100. The electrical coupling unit 71 may have a connection terminal such as a USB terminal, or may have a wireless connection using Bluetooth (registered trademark), RFID (radio frequency identifier), or the like.

  The piezoelectric element driving unit 72 generates an electrical signal to be applied to the piezoelectric element 51 based on a control signal from the electronic device 100 received by the electrical coupling unit 71 and applies the electrical signal to the piezoelectric element 51. Thereby, the piezoelectric element 51 is displaced, and the displacement is transmitted to the panel 30 via the conversion unit 60, and the panel 30 slides. The external case 10 may have a built-in battery that covers the power consumed by the external case 10, or depending on the configuration of the electrical coupling portion 71, the external case 10 may include a required amount from the electronic device 100 without incorporating the battery. You may make it receive supply of electric power.

  On the other hand, the electronic device 100 includes, for example, a control unit 170, a storage unit 171, an electrical coupling unit 172, and the touch panel 130 and the display unit 140 described above. The control unit 170 is a processor that controls and manages the entire device including each functional block of the electronic device 100. The control unit 170 includes a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes a program that defines a control procedure. Such a program is stored in, for example, the storage unit 171 or an external storage medium.

  The storage unit 171 is configured by a semiconductor memory or the like, and stores various information, a program for operating the electronic device 100, and the like, and also functions as a work memory.

  The electrical coupling unit 172 is electrically coupled to the external case 10 while the external case 10 is attached to the electronic device 100, and transmits a control signal for the piezoelectric element 51 to the external case 10. Similar to the electrical coupling portion 71 of the external case 10, the electrical coupling portion 172 includes a connection terminal such as a USB terminal or a wireless connection portion using Bluetooth (registered trademark), RFID, or the like. Actually, the electrical coupling portion 71 of the external case 10 is configured according to the specifications of the electrical coupling portion 172 of the wireless device 100.

  The display unit 140 displays an image (page) in the application, an input object such as an icon or a push button, and the like under the control of the control unit 170. The touch panel 130 detects contact by an object with respect to the object displayed on the display unit 140. When the external case 10 is attached to the electronic device 100, the touch panel 130 detects contact by the contact object with respect to the object displayed on the display unit 140 via the panel 30 of the external case 10. The output of the touch panel 130 is supplied to the control unit 170, and the position of contact of the contact object with the touch panel 130 is detected.

  When the control unit 170 detects contact by the contact object with respect to the input object displayed on the display unit 140 based on the output of the touch panel 130, the control unit 170 transmits a drive control signal to the external case 10 via the electrical coupling unit 172. To do. When the external coupling 10 receives a control signal from the electric device 100 at the electrical coupling unit 71, the piezoelectric element driving unit 72 drives the piezoelectric element 51 with a predetermined driving pattern based on the received control signal. As a result, the panel 30 of the external case 10 slides, and the tactile sensation of operating the input object is fed back to the operator. The control unit 170 executes processing corresponding to the input object for which contact is detected in synchronization with the transmission of the control signal to the external case 10.

  The control unit 170 may detect contact with the touch panel 130 and may further detect that the pressing load on the touch panel 130 by the contact object has reached a predetermined value and output a drive control signal. In this case, the pressing load on the touch panel 130 can be detected based on, for example, the output of the touch panel 130, or can be detected by attaching a load sensor such as a piezoelectric element or a strain sensor to the touch panel 130.

  The drive pattern of the piezoelectric element 51 can be set according to, for example, an input object in which contact of a contact object is detected. For example, when presenting a tactile sensation when a push button is pressed, a driving pattern in which a panel 30 is slid back and forth by applying a pulse-like driving voltage of a half cycle of a predetermined frequency to the piezoelectric element 51 can be obtained. In addition, a driving pattern in which a plurality of cycles of a predetermined frequency of driving voltage is applied to the piezoelectric element 51 in accordance with the input object, and the panel 30 is slid back and forth a plurality of times.

  According to the external case 10 according to the present embodiment, the external case 10 has a tactile sensation presentation function, and the external case cooperates with the electronic device 100 when the external case 10 is attached to the electronic device 100. Ten panels 30 are slid to present tactile sensations. Therefore, since the electronic device 100 does not need to vibrate the touch panel 130, the improvement of the electronic device 100 can be minimized.

  Further, since the external case 10 slides the panel 30 to provide a tactile sensation, for example, the restriction of the dimension of the case body 20 in the thickness direction is improved as compared with the case where the panel 30 is displaced in the thickness direction. The Therefore, the overall thickness can be reduced in a state where the external case 10 is mounted on the electronic device 100. Moreover, since the conversion part 60 has the rotation member 61, as demonstrated in FIG. 3, it becomes possible to comprise simply using the laminated piezoelectric element 51 which can be obtained easily. In addition, since it is not necessary to hold the rotating member 61 tightly on the fixed shaft 62, the degree of freedom of the shape of the rotating member 61 can be improved, the assemblability of the conversion unit 60 can be improved, and the rotating member 61 and the fixed shaft 62 can be improved. The panel 30 can be stably slid over a long period of time under the initial conditions without being affected by the wear of the engaging portion.

  In addition, since the pressurizing unit 70 causes the panel 30 to abut on the abutting part 61 c of the rotating member 61 and the abutting part 61 b of the rotating member 61 abuts on the piezoelectric element 51, the panel 30 Can be smoothly slid by the piezoelectric element 51. The piezoelectric element 51 is arranged along the short side of the panel 30, that is, in a plan view of the panel 30, so that the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51 intersects the sliding direction of the panel 30. The size of the device in the side direction can be reduced, and the size can be reduced.

(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the main part of the external case according to the second embodiment of the present invention, and corresponds to FIG. The external case 11 according to the present embodiment is different from the external case 10 according to the first embodiment in the configuration of the conversion unit 60. Hereinafter, the same components as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and different portions will be described.

  In FIG. 6, the conversion unit 60 includes a linear moving member 63 and a sliding member 64. The linear moving member 63 has a triangular shape having an inclined surface 63 a extending in a direction intersecting the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51, a side 63 b coupled to the piezoelectric element 51, and a side 63 c sliding on the inner wall of the case body 20. Consists of. The sliding member 64 is provided in the case body 20 by extending in the direction of the long side of the panel 30, the sliding surface 64 a sliding on the slope 63 a of the linearly moving member 63, the side 64 b coupled to the short side 30 d of the panel 30. The guide member 24 has a triangular shape having a side 64c that slides. The linear moving member 63 is not limited to a triangular shape, and may have any shape as long as it has a slope 63 a extending in a direction intersecting the displacement direction of the piezoelectric element 51 and a coupling surface with the piezoelectric element 51. . Similarly, the sliding member 64 is not limited to a triangular shape, and may have any shape as long as it has a sliding surface 64 a that slides on the slope 63 a of the linear moving member 63 and a coupling surface with the panel 30.

  In FIG. 6, when the piezoelectric element 51 is displaced upward, the linear moving member 63 is also guided by the case body 20 and displaced upward integrally with the piezoelectric element 51. When the linear movement member 63 is displaced upward, the sliding member 64 slides on the slope 63a of the linear movement member 63 along with the displacement, and linearly moves along the guide member 24 in the left direction in FIG. As a result, the displacement direction by the piezoelectric element 51 is converted to approximately 90 degrees by the conversion member 60 and transmitted to the panel 30, and the panel 30 slides leftward against the pressurization of the pressurization unit 70.

Here, the effect | action of the conversion part 60 is demonstrated with reference to Fig.7 (a)-(c). 7A is an enlarged view of the conversion unit 60, FIG. 7B is an enlarged view of the linear moving member 63, and FIG. 7C is an enlarged view of the sliding member 64. FIG. In FIG. 7A, the displacement amount to be applied to the force point of the linear moving member 63 due to the displacement of the piezoelectric element 51 is S, and the throwing input is T, and the sliding member 64 (panel 30) from the operating point of the linear moving member 63. Let D be the amount of displacement received by F, F be the generated force, and θ be the angle formed by the slope 63a with respect to the displacement direction of the linear moving member 63. In this case, the displacement amount D is expressed by the following expression (3).
D = S × tanθ (3)

On the other hand, the frictional force between the linear moving member 63 and the case body 20 serving as a guide is P1, the friction coefficient is μ1, the frictional force between the linear moving member 63 and the sliding member 64 is P2, the friction coefficient is μ2, and sliding. Assume that the frictional force between the member 64 and the guide member 24 is P3, the friction coefficient is μ3, and the throwing force and the generated force considering the friction are T ′ and F ′, respectively. In this case, the frictional forces P1 and P2 act on the linear moving member 63 as shown in FIG. These frictional forces P1 and P2 are expressed by the following equations. N ′ is a combined force of the throwing force T ′ acting in the normal direction of the slope 63a and the generated force F ′.
P1 = μ1 × F ′
P2 = μ2 × N ′ = μ2 × T ′ / sinθ

Therefore, the throwing input T in this case is expressed by the following equation (4).
T = T ′ + P1 + P2 × cos θ
= T ′ + μ1 × F ′ + μ2 × T ′ / sinθ × cosθ
= T '+ μ1 × T ′ × cotθ + μ2 × T′cotθ
= T '× (1 + μ1cotθ + μ2cotθ) (4)

Further, frictional forces P2 and P3 act on the sliding member 64 as shown in FIG. These frictional forces P2 and P3 are expressed by the following equations.
P2 = μ2 × N ′ = μ2 × T ′ / sinθ
P3 = μ3 × T ′

Therefore, the generated force F in this case is expressed by the following equation (5).
F = F′−P3−P2 × sinθ
= T ′ / tan θ−μ3 × T′−μ2 × T ′
= T ′ × (cot θ−μ2−μ3) (5)

From the above formulas (4) and (5), the generated force F acting on the panel 30 by the throwing input T by the piezoelectric element 51 is represented by the following formula (6).
F = T × (cotθ−μ2−μ3) / (1 + μ1cotθ + μ2cotθ) (6)

  When there is no friction, F = T × cot θ. If all the friction coefficients are the same (μ), then F = T × (cot θ−2 μ) / (1 + 2 μcot θ).

  According to the present embodiment, from the above equations (3) and (6), by appropriately setting the angle θ formed by the inclined surface 63a with respect to the displacement direction of the linear moving member 63, a sufficient displacement amount D that can present a tactile sensation and The generated force F can be obtained. Therefore, as in the case of the first embodiment, it is possible to use the readily available stacked piezoelectric element 51. In addition, since both the linear moving member 63 and the sliding member 64 move linearly, it can be configured more easily. Other functions and effects are the same as those in the first embodiment. In addition, the conversion angle of the displacement direction by the linear moving member 63 and the sliding member 64 is not limited to 90 °, and can be an arbitrary angle.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and many variations or modifications are possible. For example, in FIG. 5, the electronic device 100 may include a piezoelectric element driving unit 72 that drives the piezoelectric element 51. The panel 30 of the external case 10 may be a touch panel. In this case, in a state in which the external case 10 is mounted on the electronic device 100, for example, the touch panel 130 function of the electronic device 100 is disabled, the touch panel function of the panel 30 of the external case 10 is enabled, and contact is detected by the panel 30. In synchronism with this, the panel 30 may be slid to feed back the tactile sensation. This makes it possible to more reliably detect contact of the contact object with the panel 30 and present a tactile sensation. Furthermore, a display unit may be provided on the external case 10 and a touch panel may be provided as the panel 30 on the display unit. In this case, in a state where the external case 10 is mounted on the electronic device 100, for example, the functions of the touch panel 130 and the display unit 140 of the electronic device 100 are invalidated, and the display unit of the external case 10 and the touch panel function of the panel 30 are valid. Good.

  The actuator is not limited to a piezoelectric element, and may be configured using a magnetostrictive element, a shape memory alloy, or the like. Furthermore, in the second embodiment, the conversion unit 60 may be configured as shown in FIG. 8 or FIG.

  In the conversion unit 60 shown in FIG. 8, the slope 63a of the linear movement member 63 is formed into a curved surface, and the sliding surface 64a of the sliding member 64 is formed into a curved surface according to the shape of the slope 63a. In this way, if the slope 63a of the linear moving member 63 is formed into a curved surface, the angle of the tangent line at the point of contact with the sliding member 64 changes with the displacement of the linear moving member 63, so the displacement amount D and the generated force F Can be made non-linear with respect to the input displacement.

  Therefore, for example, by making the angle θ ′ of the upper part of the linearly moving member 63 in FIG. 8 smaller than the angle θ shown in FIG. 7, the sliding member 64 is initially displaced, but the frictional force P2 is small. It is possible to reduce the load caused by the static friction and to increase the displacement of the sliding member 64 after the dynamic friction. Thereby, the panel 30 can be slid more smoothly.

  The conversion unit 60 shown in FIG. 9 is between the linear movement member 63 and the case main body 20 serving as a guide, between the linear movement member 63 and the sliding member 64, and between the sliding member 64 and the guide member 24. Each includes a plurality of bearings 65. The bearing 65 may be spherical or cylindrical. Thus, if the bearing 65 is loaded in each of the portions where the frictional forces P1, P2 and P3 are generated in the second embodiment, the frictional force can be reduced to almost zero. It becomes possible to slide 30 more smoothly.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10, 11 External case 20 Case main body 30 Panel 50 Actuator 51 (Stacked type) Piezoelectric element 60 Conversion part 61 Rotating member 62 Fixed shaft 63 Linear moving member 63a Slope 64 Sliding member 65 Bearing 70 Pressurizing part 100 Electronic device 120 Enclosure Body 130 Touch panel 140 Display unit

Claims (6)

An external case that can be detachably attached to an electronic device,
A panel constituting a part of the case;
An actuator,
A converter that engages with the panel and the actuator, converts a displacement direction and a displacement amount of the actuator into a different displacement direction and a different displacement amount according to the displacement of the actuator, and slides the panel;
An external case for electronic equipment. An electrical coupling unit electrically connectable to the electronic device;
The external case of the electronic device of Claim 1. The conversion unit includes a rotating member that rotates by the displacement of the actuator to slide the panel.
The external case of the electronic device of Claim 1 or 2. The conversion unit has a slope extending in a direction intersecting with a displacement direction of the actuator, a linearly moving member that linearly moves in the displacement direction of the actuator by the displacement of the actuator, and the slope according to the displacement of the linearly moving member. A sliding member that slides the panel to slide the panel,
The external case of the electronic device of Claim 1 or 2. The panel further includes a pressurizing unit that applies a pressurization to the conversion unit and applies the pressurization to the actuator.
The external case of the electronic device in any one of Claims 1 thru | or 4. The actuator includes a laminated piezoelectric element,
The laminated piezoelectric element is disposed so that the displacement direction intersects the sliding direction of the panel in a plan view of the panel.
The external case of the electronic device in any one of Claims 1 thru | or 5.

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