JP3927004B2 - IC card insertion / removal device - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an IC card insertion / removal device that is incorporated in an electronic device and into which an IC card is detachably inserted.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In this type of insertion / removal device, the IC card, which is an information medium, naturally needs to be held (locked) during use after insertion, and should be properly removed (ejected) after use. Is done.
[0003]
For this reason, conventionally, the IC card is inserted into the insertion / removal device with the rear end side partially protruded, and at the time of ejection, the protruding rear end side is picked and removed, or for the IC card of the insertion / removal device There have already been proposed a method of providing an eject button or the like in the vicinity of the card insertion slot, and a method of ejecting by pressing again from the locked state in which the IC card is inserted.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the method of partially protruding the rear end side of the IC card, unnecessary external force may be applied to the rear end side of the card, and there is a variation in the force when the user pulls out. There was a problem of causing damage.
[0005]
On the other hand, the method using an eject button or the like has the advantage of always ejecting with a constant force, but has a problem that a space for providing an eject button or the like is required near the card insertion slot. In other words, it was not suitable for space saving.
[0006]
In this respect, in the method of ejecting by re-pressing from the locked state of the IC card, it can be said that it is an excellent method compared with the above two examples. There were still points to be improved.
[0007]
For example, this type includes the one shown in FIG. 8 (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2000-251025). This apparatus includes a housing 10 serving as a base and a cover 20 that covers the housing 10, thereby forming a storage portion for the IC card 1, and an IC on one side (upper right side in the figure) of the housing 10. As a card lock and eject mechanism 30, a card pusher 31 made of a long structure, a spring 32 that always presses the card pusher 31 toward the card insertion slot (front side in the figure), and a bottom surface of the housing 10 are engraved. One mechanism is fixed to the heart cam 33 and the bottom side of the card pusher 31 and the other free end is provided with a swing arm 34 engaged with the heart cam 33.
Therefore, in this apparatus, if the IC card 1 is inserted and locked and then pressed again, the IC card 1 can be easily ejected by the engagement relationship between the heart cam 33 and the swing arm 34.
[0008]
However, in the case of this device, the card pusher 31 has a structure that is long in comparison with the structure that moves only within the range of the heart cam 33, which leads to an increase in the size of parts, and the swing arm. since 34 is configured to be sandwiched between the bottom side of the bottom side and the housing 10 of the card pusher 31, hardly assembled, and it is after the assembly is configured to not be visible, the heart cam 33 needs to be configured on the bottom side of the housing 10 Therefore, it is difficult to provide as a small part, and a part (lower left side in the figure) of the storage portion of the IC card 1 is constituted by the folded piece 21 portion of the cover 20, so that the IC card 1 is stabilized. However, there are problems such as requiring high manufacturing accuracy.
[0009]
The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional situation, and is intended to reduce the size and simplification of parts used, and to insert an excellent IC card that is stably held even in an IC card. It is intended to provide a removal device.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention according to claim 1 is an IC card insertion / removal device incorporated in an electronic apparatus, comprising a housing and a cover for covering the housing, wherein the housing is a substantially U-shaped frame portion and a reinforcing part thereof. An IC card guide groove is formed on the inner side of both longitudinal frame portions facing the frame portion, and IC card contacts are arranged on the bottom frame portion perpendicular to the both longitudinal frame portions. The length of the one longitudinal frame portion is approximately half of the length of the longitudinal frame portion, and the longitudinal frame portion is located on the upper surface side of the longitudinal frame portion. is slidably received in recess space portion of the over the bottom frame portion from extent, a slider that moves back and forth to the IC card in the same direction by insertion and removal of the IC card, the scan The projecting hook on the end of the recessed groove in the longitudinal direction of the frame portion card insertion port side of the (front side) provided provided with a projecting hook into the card insertion port side of the Ida (front side), and a card insertion port side of the slider An urging means provided between the card insertion slot side of the one longitudinal frame portion and hooking the projecting hook in an embedded manner and constantly urging the slider toward the card insertion slot side of the IC card guide groove; A substantially heart-shaped cam groove provided on the upper surface of the slider and integral with a part of the slider, and a free end of the cam groove is engaged from the upper surface side of the slider, and the other end is Ejeku by the lock and re-pressing of the IC card with said bottom frame portion from the upper surface side of the slidable fixed to embedded shape recessed groove of said bottom frame portion spring pins Incorporate mechanisms, also in the guide groove for the other longitudinal frame portion IC card viewed spring metal fitting embedded with an elastic pressing piece consisting of two members for pressing the side surface of the IC card to elastically protrude, the The IC cartridge insertion / removal device is characterized in that one elastic pressing piece portion of the other spring metal fitting is brought into contact with the one elastic pressing piece of the spring metal fitting from the outside .
[0011]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the IC card insertion / removal device according to the first aspect, wherein the slider is provided with a sloped portion with which a corner sloped portion of the IC card abuts.
[0012]
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided the IC card insertion / removal device according to the first or second aspect, wherein the slider is slid on a guide rod portion provided on the longitudinal frame portion.
[0013]
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the IC card insertion / removal device according to the first, second, or third aspect, an elastic pressing piece for pressing the surface of the IC card is provided on a part of the cover. is there.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
1 to 2 show an embodiment of an IC card insertion / removal device according to the present invention, FIG. 3 shows a slider used in the device, and FIGS. 4 to 7 show operating states of the lock and eject mechanism. Is shown. In the figure, 100 is a housing and 200 is a cover.
[0015]
The housing 100 includes a substantially U-shaped frame portion 110 and a reinforcing bottom surface 120, and is formed, for example, as a resin molded product. The reinforcing bottom surface 120 may have a configuration in which the card insertion slot side is greatly cut out as shown in the drawing, or a configuration in which the entire surface is closed. In addition, IC card guide grooves 113 and 113 are provided inside the opposing longitudinal frame portions 111a and 111b of the frame portion 110 to serve as an IC card storage portion, while the longitudinal frame portions 111a. , 111b, a plurality of contacts 130 connected to the IC card are arranged on the bottom frame portion 111c.
[0016]
The one longitudinal frame portion 111a (upper left in the figure) has a slider 310 that moves forward and backward in the same direction as the IC card 1 when the IC card 1 is inserted and removed, and this slider 310 is always a guide for an IC card. An urging means 320 such as a coil spring that urges the groove 113 toward the card insertion slot, a substantially heart-shaped cam groove 330 provided in the slider 310, and a free end thereof is engaged with the cam groove 330. A lock and eject mechanism 300 for an IC card including a swingable spring pin 340 whose other end is fixed to the bottom frame portion 111c side is incorporated.
[0017]
As apparent from FIG. 1, the slider 310 is approximately half the length of the longitudinal frame portion 111a and is miniaturized, and a recessed space portion 114 extending from the middle of the frame portion 111a to the bottom frame portion 111c. Is slidably housed. This sliding is performed by sliding the guide rod portion 114a provided on the inner side (front side in FIG. 1) of the frame portion 111a into the rail groove 311 provided on the bottom side edge of the slider 310. Thereby, smooth sliding is ensured.
[0018]
A projecting hook 312 is formed on the front side (left side in FIG. 1) of the slider 310, and one end of a coil spring which is the biasing means 320 is hooked on this. Further, the other end of the coil spring is hooked on a protruding hook 115a provided at the end of the recessed groove 115 on the near side (left side in FIG. 1) of the longitudinal frame portion 111a. Therefore, even a relatively large coil spring can be smoothly embedded in the thin frame portion 111a as a whole.
[0019]
A bulging portion 313 is formed on the inner side (front side in FIG. 1) of the slider 310, and the corner inclined portion 1 a of the IC card 1 is applied to the card insertion opening side of the bulging portion 313. A contacting slope 313a is provided.
Thus, when the IC card 1 is inserted into the housing 100, the corner inclined portion 1a of the IC card 1 comes into contact with the inclined surface portion 313a, so that the slider 310 resists the elastic contraction force of the biasing means 320. , Will move forward.
[0020]
As shown in FIG. 3, the substantially heart-shaped cam groove 330 is provided integrally with a part of the slider 310 in this example. Thereby, further miniaturization and high density storage of both parts are achieved. The free end 341 side of the spring pin 340 engaged with the cam groove 330 will be described in more detail later, but it is subjected to ejection (unlocking) by insertion, locking, and re-pressing of the IC card 1, and the direction of the arrow in FIG. Moving.
At this time, a click hole 331 in which the tip of the free end 341 falls may be provided as appropriate in order to securely stop at a predetermined place and transmit the feel and sound to the user side. In addition, the cam groove 330 and the slider 310 can be configured as separate bodies and can be combined at the time of assembly.
[0021]
The other end 342 of the spring pin 340 is fixedly embedded in the recessed groove 116 of the bottom frame portion 111c. The mounting of the spring pin 340 can be performed very easily since the slider 310 is assembled and then dropped from the upper side as shown in FIG. Moreover, since the mounting state can be surely silenced, it is easy to check. Furthermore, as a whole, since the spring pin 340 is mounted in an embedded state, it does not interfere with other portions.
[0022]
On the other hand, in the other longitudinal frame portion 111b portion of the substantially U-shaped frame portion 110, for example, spring metal fittings 410 and 420 made of two members are incorporated into a slit-like engagement portion 117 formed on the side surface. It is. The elastic pressing piece 411 of one spring metal fitting 410 is elastically projected into the guide groove 113 for the IC card from the opening 118 opened at the substantially central portion of the frame portion 111b. Furthermore, one elastic pressing piece 421 portion of the other spring metal fitting 420 is brought into contact with the elastic pressing piece 411 from the outside. Thereby, a more flexible elastic force is applied to the elastic pressing piece 411. Of course, the other spring metal fitting 420 can be omitted and only one spring metal fitting 410 can be used.
[0023]
Thus, the side surface of the IC card 1 inserted into the housing 100 is elastically pressed by the two spring metal fittings 410 and 420 in the guide groove 113 of the longitudinal frame portion 111b portion, and stably. Retained.
In addition, by adopting the spring metal fittings 410 and 420, a certain margin can be given to the interval between the guide grooves 113 and 113 of the opposing longitudinal frame portions 111a and 111b, so that a margin in manufacturing accuracy can be obtained. . That is, an improvement in yield can be expected. Further, even when viewed from the user side, if there is a sufficient space between the guide grooves 113, 113, it means that the card insertion slot is wide, and the card can be easily inserted, so that good usability can be obtained.
[0024]
More preferably, as shown in the lower right part of FIG. 1, a spring metal fitting 430 having an elastic pressing piece 431 is also prepared, and this is assembled near the base of the longitudinal frame portion 111b (not shown). The elastic pressing piece 431 can be protruded into the guide groove 113. Then, the IC card 1 inserted into the housing 100 is elastically pressed at two locations together with the elastic pressing piece 411 of the spring metal fitting 410, so that more stable holding is ensured.
[0025]
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, more preferably, the elastic force that presses the surface of the IC card 1 to a part corresponding to the front side (upper left side in FIG. 1) of the longitudinal frame portion 111a, as shown in FIG. The pressing piece 210 may be provided downward. Thereby, the floating of the IC card 1 is prevented. Further, since the elastic pressing piece 210 is located substantially opposite to the elastic pressing pieces 411 and 431 of the spring metal fittings 410 and 430, the respective actions are well balanced, and the IC card 1 is loose. It is very stable without lifting.
[0026]
Next, insertion / removal of the IC card 1 in the insertion / removal apparatus configured as described above will be described. Of course, the insertion / removal device is incorporated in a predetermined part of the electronic apparatus.
In this state, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, the IC card 1 is inserted into the card insertion slot between the guide grooves 113, 113 facing the housing 100, with the corner inclined portion 1 a as the tip.
[0027]
Then, as shown in FIG. 4, the corner inclined portion 1 a of the IC card 1 first comes into contact with the inclined portion 313 a of the slider 310. In this state (free state), the slider 310 is positioned at the lowermost position in the drawing due to the elastic contraction force of the coil spring 320, and the spring pin 340 is held substantially vertically in the drawing.
[0028]
When the IC card 1 is further pressed from this state, as shown in FIG. 5, the slider 310 is pushed upward in the drawing, and the free end 341 of the spring pin 340 is in the path on the right side of the cam groove 330 in the drawing. Proceeds, falls into the click hole 331 in the lower right part, and is temporarily locked. At this time, the user can feel the feeling of the drop in the click hole 331 and the sound.
[0029]
However, in this pressed state, the free end 341 side of the spring pin 340 is bent in an unreasonable shape on the right side in the figure, and as a result, the spring force automatically returns to the left side in the figure as shown in FIG. The cam groove 330 is fitted and locked to the top.
This is a lock in the use state, and desired data and the like are exchanged between the IC card 1 and the electronic device. In this state of use, the slider 310 is pulled back downward in the figure by the amount that the free end 341 of the spring pin 340 has moved to the top of the cam groove 330, so that there is a gap between the tip of the IC card 1 and the inner wall surface of the bottom frame portion 111c. Has a moving space (gap) for the eject.
[0030]
Therefore, when the user re-presses the rear end of the IC card 1 from the use state of the IC card 1, the free end 341 of the spring pin 340 moves from the top of the cam groove 330 as shown in FIG. At the same time as proceeding to the middle left side, the spring pin 340 is bent slightly to the right side in the drawing even in this state, and therefore further advances to the leftmost end side in the drawing by the spring force. In this way, once the free end 341 of the spring pin 340 moves to the leftmost end side, the free end 341 enters the left path, so that the slider 310 itself is pulled back downward in the figure by the elastic contraction force of the coil spring 320. This returns to the state shown in FIG. This is the eject of the IC card 1.
As a result, the rear end side of the IC card 1 slightly protrudes from the card insertion slot. Therefore, the user can pick up the IC card 1 by grasping the rear end side.
[0031]
【The invention's effect】
As is apparent from the above description, according to the IC card insertion / removal device of the present invention, the parts used can be reduced in size and simplified, so that cost reduction can be expected. For example, the length of the slider in the lock and eject mechanism can be shortened in the longitudinal direction and the form of joining with the cam groove. As a result, high-density storage can be achieved, and the entire apparatus can be thinned.
[0032]
In addition, since the slider is provided with a slope portion with which the corner slope portion of the IC card abuts, the lock and eject mechanism operates almost automatically by insertion of the IC card. Thereby, favorable usability can be obtained.
[0033]
Further, when the slider is slid on the guide rod portion provided in the longitudinal frame portion, the slider can be stably slid with a simple configuration.
[0034]
Also, a spring metal fitting having an elastic pressing piece that elastically protrudes into the guide groove for the IC card and presses the side surface of the IC card can be incorporated in the longitudinal frame portion where the IC card lock and ejection mechanism is not incorporated. Thus, stable IC card holding can be obtained.
[0035]
In addition, if an elastic pressing piece that presses the surface of the IC card is provided in a part of the cover, the IC card is prevented from lifting, so there is a synergistic effect with the spring metal fitting, and a more stable IC card Retention is obtained.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an entire IC card insertion / removal device according to the present invention.
2 is a perspective view showing a housing and an IC card with a cover attached in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1. FIG.
FIG. 3 is an enlarged plan view of a slider in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1;
4 is an enlarged plan view showing a free state of a lock and eject mechanism in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1; FIG.
FIG. 5 is an enlarged plan view showing the lock and eject mechanism when the card is inserted in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1;
6 is an enlarged plan view showing a locked state of a lock and eject mechanism in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1. FIG.
7 is an enlarged plan view showing an ejecting process of a lock and eject mechanism in the insertion / removal device of FIG. 1; FIG.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a conventional IC card insertion / removal device.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 IC card 1a Corner inclination part 100 Housing 110 Frame part 111a, 111b Longitudinal frame part 111c Bottom frame part 114a Guide rod part 113 Guide groove 120 Bottom face 200 Cover 210 Elastic pressing piece 300 Lock and eject mechanism 310 Slider 313a Slope part 320 Attachment Urging means 330 substantially cam-shaped cam groove 340 spring pin 410, 420, 430 spring metal fitting 411 , 421, 431 elastic pressing piece

Claims (4)

An IC card insertion / removal device incorporated in an electronic apparatus, comprising a housing and a cover for covering the housing, wherein the housing comprises a substantially U-shaped frame portion and a bottom surface for reinforcement thereof, and is opposed to the frame portion. IC card guide grooves are provided on the inner side of both longitudinal frame portions, IC card contacts are arranged on the bottom frame portion orthogonal to both the longitudinal frame portions, and the one longitudinal direction The frame portion is approximately half the length of the longitudinal frame portion, and is hung from the middle of the longitudinal frame portion to the bottom frame portion on the upper side of the longitudinal frame portion. is recessed slidably housed in the space portion, a slider that moves back and forth to the IC card in the same direction by insertion and removal of the IC card, the card insertion port side of the slider ( Provided with a projecting hook on the front side) of the projecting hook on the end of the recessed groove in the longitudinal direction of the frame portion card insertion port side of the (front side) provided, in the longitudinal frame portions of the card insertion opening side the one of the slider provided between the card insertion port side, a biasing means for biasing the card insertion port side of the guide groove for always the IC card the slider with catches on the embedded form in said projecting hook provided on an upper surface of the slider A substantially heart-shaped cam groove integrated with a part of the slider, and a free end of the cam groove engaged with the cam groove from the upper surface side of the slider, and the other end of the upper surface on the bottom frame portion side. incorporate eject mechanism by the lock and re-pressed for IC card having a slidable spring pin which is fixed from the side to the buried shape recessed groove of said bottom frame part, also, Serial viewed spring metal fitting embedded with the other longitudinal frame portion elastic pressing piece in the guide groove for the IC card consisting of two members for pressing the side surface of the IC card to elastically protrude in one of the of the spring bracket An IC cartridge insertion / removal device characterized in that one elastic pressing piece portion of the other spring metal fitting is brought into contact with the elastic pressing piece from the outside .   2. The IC card insertion / removal device according to claim 1, wherein the slider is provided with a slope portion with which a corner slope portion of the IC card abuts.   3. The IC card insertion / removal device according to claim 1, wherein the slider is slid on a guide rod portion provided on the longitudinal frame portion.   4. The IC card insertion / removal device according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein an elastic pressing piece for pressing the surface of the IC card is provided on a part of the cover.

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