JP3324531B2 - Information processing device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention provides an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer or an information processing apparatus with a function of simultaneously locking a detachable functional unit and an information processing apparatus main body using one Kensington lock. About how to lock.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an information processing apparatus such as a personal computer, C
In the case where a functional unit such as a D-ROM or a battery is detachable, the detachable functional unit can be easily pulled out without a locking function in many cases without a locking function. Therefore, even if the main unit is locked at a store,
There was a risk that the functional unit would be taken away by a third party. In order to prevent this, in order to lock a removable function unit, it is necessary to manage a key of the information processing apparatus main body and a key of the removable function unit, and two types of keys.

FIG. 3A shows the configuration of such a conventional detachable functional unit. In FIG. 3A, 1 is an information processing apparatus main body, 2 is a detachable functional unit, 3 is a Kensington lock, and 11 is a lock mechanism of a detachable functional unit. Normally, after the detachable functional unit 2 is inserted into the information processing apparatus main body 1, the detachable functional unit 2 is locked using the lock mechanism 11 so as not to be pulled out. On the other hand, to lock the information processing apparatus main body 1, generally, the information processing apparatus main body 1 is separated from the specific position by using the Kensington lock 3 to bind the Kensington lock cable 3c to a specific position (eg, a leg of a desk). I was not there. That is, two types of locking are performed, and two types of keys are managed.

As another method, a method shown in FIG. 3B has been proposed (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. Hei 9-297632). FIG. 3B is a front view of the information processing apparatus main body, in which a part of the outer periphery of the Kensington lock 3 covers the opening end of the functional unit 2. With this configuration, a single key can prevent both the main unit 1 and the functional unit 2 from being stolen.
There were problems such as a low degree of freedom in designing the key position and an increase in the width. In this method, the position where the key is provided is limited to both ends of the opening of the functional unit 2. In general, in an information processing apparatus such as a small and high-density portable notebook personal computer, there are many cases in which both ends of an opening are provided with another slot, another device, a component, or the like, or a corner of a device.
Therefore, in order to provide the Kensington lock 3 at the end of the opening, it was necessary to move other components or to increase the width of the device.

The Kensington lock is an optional component generally sold separately from the information processing device, and is commercially available from Kensington Microware Limited. The Kensington lock is generally comprised of a housing on which a spindle is rotatably mounted. By inserting a substantially T-shaped shaft protruding outside the housing into the outer wall of the information processing device and rotating the key by 90 degrees, the Kensington lock is released from the Kensington slot provided in the wall of the information processing device main body. It will not come off. For details of the Kensington lock, see the specification of U.S. Pat. No. 5,381,685 (Tokuhyo Hei 6-51).
No. 1297).

[0006]

As described above, in the prior art, the detachable functional unit is not particularly locked,
Had a fear of theft. Alternatively, another key must be provided for the detachable functional unit, and the two types of keys, the anti-theft key of the information processing apparatus main body and the detachable functional unit key, must be locked twice to manage the two types of keys. Must or 1
There has been a problem that the degree of freedom is restricted in design when trying to use different types of keys.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems. One key can be used to prevent theft of an information processing apparatus main body and a removable functional unit by using a key of a Kensington lock. The configuration has a high degree of design freedom with respect to the arrangement of the insertion port and the like, and its object is to solve two problems of double management of keys and design freedom.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve this problem, the present invention provides a Kensington slot in a wall of an information processing apparatus main body, and a part of a detachable functional unit on an extension of the Kensington slot. When the Kensington lock is inserted and locked to the information processing apparatus main body, the head of the substantially T-shaped shaft, which is the tip of the Kensington lock, is caught by the concave portion of the detachable functional unit. Thus, the detachable functional unit can be locked at the same time, so that the detachable functional unit cannot be taken out. With this configuration, it is possible to solve the two problems of double key management and design freedom.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is directed to a functional unit detachable from an information processing apparatus, and a storage section for the functional unit provided along an outer peripheral housing of the information processing apparatus. And a key hole provided in the outer peripheral housing, wherein a shaft head of the key unit locked in the key hole is engaged with a concave portion of the functional unit stored in the storage portion. If a key unit is provided with a cable like a Kensington key or the like, and one end of the cable can be connected to a fixed object, both the information processing apparatus main body and the functional unit can be prevented from being stolen. Therefore, one key can prevent both thefts. Further, since the present invention has a structure in which the shaft head of the key unit is engaged with the concave portion provided on the side surface of the information processing device, it is necessary to consider interference with other slots, other internal devices, and components. And a key hole can be provided. That is, the setting place of the key hole is limited to the side surface of the functional unit, but since this side surface is provided along the outer peripheral housing, the key inserted into the key hole can be used with other slots, other internal devices, and components. There is no interference. Therefore, the degree of freedom in designing the key hole setting place is large, and it is not necessary to move the interference component by providing the key hole.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the functional unit is a storage device having a recording medium, and the storage unit stores information that is particularly important. Removal of the device can be prevented.

(Embodiment) An example in which an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a personal computer will be described below with reference to FIGS. Components having the same functions as those described in the related art are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a personal computer according to the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a main part of FIG.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, the personal computer main body 20 has a housing 22 for housing the functional unit 2 formed by cutting out a part of the outer housing 21a and substantially contacting the outer housing 21b. . The functional unit 2 can be attached to and detached from a notch 23 provided on the outer peripheral housing 21a. A concave portion 2 a is formed on the left side surface of the functional unit 2.

The Kensington slot 1a provided in the outer casing 21b is provided such that the concave portion 2a of the functional unit 2 stored in the storage section 22 is located on an extension of the Kensington slot 1a. Kensington slot 1a
By inserting the Kensington lock 3 into the lock unit 3 and rotating the key 3b by 90 degrees, the head 3a of the shaft of the Kensington lock 3 does not come off from the outer casing 21b. -Since the head 3a of the shaft of the lock 3 is caught, the detachable detachment of the functional unit 2 can be prevented.

By tying the cable 3c of the Kensington lock 3 to a specific position (for example, a desk leg) in the office, the personal computer main body 20 and the detachable functional unit 2 cannot be simultaneously separated from a predetermined position. Can be.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, the accommodation unit for the functional unit 2 is provided along the outer casing 21b, and the functional unit 2 is inserted in parallel with the outer casing 21b. There is no interference between the outer housing 21b where the Kensington slot 1a is to be provided and the functional unit 2 and the head 3a of the shaft. Therefore, according to the embodiment, the Kensington slot 1a can be provided at an arbitrary position of the outer peripheral housing 21b facing the storage section 22.

Even if the outer casing 21a is on the operation surface side of the personal computer main body 20, the Kensington lock 3 is attached to the outer casing 21b. Can be used.

If the Kensington lock 3 is a little obstructive, moving the Kensington slot 1a to the rear side along the outer casing 21b has no design obstacle.

If it is desired to provide an insertion slot for the functional unit 2 on the outer casing 21b, the Kensington slot 1a may be provided on the outer casing 21c.

In the present embodiment, when the functional unit 2 is a recording device having a recording medium, not only can the recording device itself be prevented from being stolen, but also the leakage of important information stored inside the recording device can be prevented. Especially effective.

[0021]

As described above, by implementing the method for locking a detachable functional unit according to the present invention, the information processing apparatus main body can be locked by the Kensington lock, and at the same time, the detachable functional unit can be prevented from being stolen. Since it can be shared automatically, only one lock is required,
Only one key needs to be managed. In addition, according to the present invention, since a functional unit that can be detached and locked only by the Kensington lock can be locked, the number of steps for assembling the information processing apparatus can be reduced by eliminating parts related to locking.

According to the present invention, even in an information processing apparatus in which a detachable functional unit is inserted from the front of the information processing apparatus main body, the Kensington lock is attached to the side wall of the main body of the information processing apparatus. The degree of freedom of design is high such that the Kensington lock can be left attached regardless of whether the device is used or not.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a locking method according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a locking method according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a plan view showing a conventional method of locking a functional unit. FIG. 3B is a front view showing another method of locking a conventional functional unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Information processing apparatus main body 1a Kensington slot 2 Function unit 2a Function unit concave part 3 Kensington lock 3a Shaft head 20 Personal computer main body 21a, 21b, 21c Outer housing 22 Storage part

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] An information processing apparatus includes a functional unit detachable from the information processing apparatus, a storage unit for the functional unit provided along an outer peripheral housing of the information processing apparatus, and a key hole provided in the outer peripheral housing. An information processing apparatus, wherein a shaft head of the key unit locked in the key hole is engaged with a concave portion of the functional unit stored in the storage portion. 2. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the functional unit is a storage device having a recording medium.