JP5060628B2 - Electronics - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electrical apparatus that can selectively emit one among a plurality of emitting portions of a lens, each of which is adjacent. <P>SOLUTION: A lighting indicating unit 10, that is incorporated into a casing 16a of a note book PC, includes the lens 30 that connects a plurality of transparent resin-made light guide lenses 32 with a connecting part 34. Light-shielding plates 40 that are protruded from inside of the casing 16a are each interposed between the plurality of the guide lenses 32. Each light-shielding plate 40 has a top edge which in height exceeds a light-receiving surface 31 of the light guide lenses 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&amp;INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus including a lens body that emits light emitted from a plurality of light sources through a plurality of light guide lenses arranged close to each other.

  In Patent Document 1 below, a lens group that emits light emitted from a plurality of LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) arranged close to each other in a row through a plurality of light guiding lenses from a light emitting portion of each light guiding lens. Is disclosed. The plurality of light guide lenses are integrally connected in a state of being close to each other via a plurality of connecting portions formed by bending in a U-shape.

  Since the connecting portion is integrally formed of the same transparent resin as that of the light guide lens, light passing through one adjacent light guide lens is transmitted to the other light guide lens through the connecting portion. At this time, if a large amount of light is transmitted through the connecting portion, even if one of the plurality of light emitting portions is selectively made to emit light, light is slightly transmitted to the adjacent light emitting portions. become.

  For this reason, the lens group of Patent Document 1 reduces the light that is undesirably transmitted to the adjacent light guide lens through the connection portion by bending the connection portion connecting the plurality of light guide lenses into a U shape. It is devised to do.

JP 2008-96745 A (paragraph, FIG. 1)

  However, in the lens group of Patent Document 1, it is possible to expect a slight effect of reducing the light passing through the connecting portion by bending the connecting portion into a U-shape, but a measure for preventing the adjacent light emitting portion from shining. Is not enough. For example, in the lens group of Patent Document 1, since there is nothing between the plurality of light guide lenses, light is transmitted between adjacent light guide lenses. Further, in the lens group of Patent Document 1, since the distance from the light receiving portion to the connecting portion of each light guide lens is relatively short, the light incident from the light receiving portion is easily transmitted to the adjacent light guiding lens through the connecting portion. Will be.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an electronic device capable of selectively causing one light emitting portion of a lens body having a plurality of light emitting portions adjacent to each other to emit light.

In order to achieve the above object, an electronic apparatus according to the present invention is separated from the first light receiving surface, a first light source unit, a second light source unit, a first light receiving surface that receives light from the first light source unit, and A first light guide lens that transmits light received by the first light receiving surface to the first light emitting surface, a second light receiving surface that receives light from the second light source unit, A second light-emitting surface that is spaced apart from the second light-receiving surface, and the light received by the second light-receiving surface is transmitted to the second light-emitting surface; and the first light-guide lens And the second light guide lens, and is connected to the first light guide lens and the second light guide lens. The light shielding plate has a size that hides the first and second light guide lenses from each other. a connecting portion of the translucent bent portion exceeding the light shielding plate is sectional than other parts Ru small and constricted Tei with, A.

  Since the electronic device of the present invention has the above-described configuration and operation, it is possible to selectively cause one light-emitting portion of the lens body having a plurality of light-emitting portions close to each other to emit light.

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view showing an example of an electronic apparatus incorporating a lens body according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged external view showing a lighting display unit incorporated in the PC main body of the notebook PC of FIG. FIG. 3 is a partially enlarged plan view showing a state where the circuit board is removed from the lighting display unit of FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged external view showing a state in which a lens body is further removed from the structure of FIG. FIG. 5 is an external perspective view showing a lens body incorporated in the lighting display unit of FIG. 6 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 7 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. 8 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a notebook personal computer 100 (hereinafter simply referred to as a notebook PC 100) as an example of an electronic apparatus incorporating a lighting display unit 10 (described later) according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is shown.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a notebook PC 100 is rotatably attached via a hinge 14 to a PC main body 11 having an input device such as a keyboard 12 and a touch pad 13 on a surface 11 a and a rear end of the PC main body 11. The display panel 15 is provided. The display panel 15 has a display screen 15a on its inner surface, and can be opened and closed between an open position where the surface 11a of the PC main body 11 is opened and a closed position (not shown) where the surface 11a is closed as shown. It has become.

  The PC main body 11 has a rectangular plate-shaped casing 16 in which a front-side casing 16 a and a rear-side casing 16 b provided with the input devices 12 and 13 are fitted. A lighting display unit 10 is incorporated in the housing 16 on the left front side in the figure. A plurality (5 in the present embodiment) for exposing light emitting surfaces 33 of a plurality of light guide lenses 32 described later on the front side wall of the front side case 16a facing the lighting display unit 10. A circular hole 17 is formed.

  The lighting display unit 10 of the present embodiment includes a lamp for displaying whether or not a power plug is inserted into the notebook PC 100, a lamp for displaying whether or not the power of the notebook PC 100 is ON, and a notebook It has five lamps such as a lamp for displaying whether or not a hard disk drive (HDD) (not shown) of the PC 100 is operating. Each lamp displays its state by lighting, blinking, extinguishing or the like.

Hereinafter, the lighting display unit 10 incorporated in the housing 16 of the PC body 11 will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 to 8.
FIG. 2 is a partial enlarged external perspective view of the lighting display unit 10 attached to the inside of the casing 16a on the surface 11a side of the PC main body 11 as viewed from the inside of the casing 16a. 3 shows a partially enlarged plan view with the circuit board 18 of FIG. 2 removed, and FIG. 4 shows a partially enlarged external perspective view with the lens body 30 of FIG. 3 further removed. FIG. 5 is an external perspective view of the lens body 30 shown in FIGS. Further, FIG. 6 shows a partially enlarged sectional view taken along line VI-VI in FIG. 2, and FIG. 7 shows a partially enlarged sectional view taken along line VII-VII in FIG. FIG. 8 shows a partially enlarged sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

The lighting display unit 10 includes five LEDs 20 (light source unit), a lens body 30, and four light shielding plates 40.
Five LEDs 20 (only one is shown in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8) are arranged on the circuit board 18 accommodated in the housing 16 in a posture substantially parallel to the surface 11 a of the PC body 11. Has been implemented. More specifically, the five LEDs 20 are mounted on the surface of the circuit board 18 facing the housing 16a (on the front surface side) at substantially equal intervals along the front side edge 18a of the circuit board 18. .

  Since various other electronic components are mounted on the circuit board 18, when an undesired impact is applied to the PC body 11, the front side edge 18 a and the side wall on the front side of the housing 16 a come into contact with each other. In order to avoid this, it is necessary to form a gap between the two. For this reason, the mounting position of the LED 20 mounted along the front side edge 18a is necessarily a position away from the front side wall of the housing 16a.

  The lens body 30 includes five light guide lenses 32 and four connecting portions 34 that connect the light guide lenses 32. As shown in FIG. 5, the lens body 30 is integrally formed of a transparent resin, and the light guide lens 32 and the connecting portion 34 are also formed of a continuous transparent material. The shape of the lens body 30 is designed to be a shape that can be integrally molded using a mold.

  Each light guide lens 32 has a rectangular light receiving surface 31 and a circular light emitting surface 33 spaced from the light receiving surface 31 at both ends. Each light guide lens 32 has a reflecting surface 35 between the light receiving surface 31 and the light emitting surface 33 for bending the optical axis by approximately 45 °. That is, the light receiving surface 31 and the light emitting surface 33 are orthogonal to each other. Further, each light guide lens 32 has a tapered shape that is converged so as to be tapered from the reflecting surface 35 toward the light emitting surface 33.

  In a state where the lens body 30 is assembled at a predetermined position, the light receiving surface 31 of each light guide lens 32 is in close proximity to the LED 20 mounted on the circuit board 18 on a one-to-one basis. In this state, the light emitting surface 33 of each light guide lens 32 is exposed to the outside of the PC main body 11 through a hole 17 formed in the front side wall of the housing 16a as shown in FIG. In other words, a gap is formed between each LED 20 and the light receiving surface 31 of each light guide lens 32 assuming that the circuit board 18 is bent due to an external force applied to the PC body 11.

  The connecting portion 34 connecting the plurality of light guide lenses 32 is provided at a position closer to the light emitting surface 33 than the light receiving surface 31 of each light guide lens 32. In other words, each connecting portion 34 connects a plurality of adjacent light guide lenses 32 at positions away from the light receiving surface 31. Thereby, the light from the LED 20 received via the light receiving surface 31 is prevented from reaching the connecting portion 34 immediately.

  That is, in this case, the light received by the light receiving surface 31 is diffused and weakened through the light guide lens 32 and then reaches the connecting portion 34, and the adjacent light guide lens 32 through the connecting portion 34. The light transmitted to can be reduced. In the present embodiment, the connecting portion 34 is disposed at a position (see FIG. 7) where the adjacent light guide lens 32 is connected between the reflecting surface 35 and the light emitting surface 33.

  The four light shielding plates 40 are integrally projected substantially vertically from the inner surface of the housing 16a on the surface 11a side of the PC main body 11. As shown in FIG. 4, the light shielding plates 40 are arranged in parallel postures at a substantially equal interval along the side wall on the front side of the housing 16 a, and each of the five light guide lenses 32. Located between. Since the casing 16a of the PC main body 11 is formed of an opaque resin material, the four light shielding plates 40 are also formed of an opaque material that does not transmit light.

  As shown in FIG. 7, each light shielding plate 40 has an upper edge 41 arranged at a height exceeding the light receiving surface 31 of each light guide lens 32 with the lens body 30 described above attached at a predetermined position. Have. The height of each light shielding plate 40 is also designed such that the upper edge 41 thereof does not contact the circuit board 18. In addition, each light shielding plate 40 is formed in a size larger than the size of the light guide lens 32 as a whole so that the two light guide lenses 32 positioned on both sides are hidden from each other.

  By making the upper edge 41 of the light shielding plate 40 higher than the light receiving surface 31 of the light guide lens 32, the light incident from the LED 20 facing through the light receiving surface 31 of the one light guide lens 32 is guided to the other light guide. It is possible to prevent the problem of direct incidence through the light receiving surface 31 of the optical lens 32. Thereby, it is possible to prevent light from interfering with each other between the two adjacent light guide lenses 32, and it is possible to selectively cause only the light emitting surface 33 of one light guide lens 32 to emit light. In addition, since the size of each light shielding plate 40 is set such that the two adjacent light guide lenses 32 are completely hidden from each other, there is no concern that light is transmitted between the two light guide lenses 32.

  Moreover, each light shielding plate 40 has a stepped portion 42 into which a connecting portion 34 connecting a plurality of light guide lenses 32 is fitted, as shown in FIG. The step portion 42 is located at a position lower than the upper end edge portion 41. In other words, each connecting portion 34 is bent into a substantially U-shaped cross section in order to get over the stepped portion 42. In this way, by bending the connecting portion 34, it is possible to prevent a problem that light is undesirably transmitted between the adjacent light guide lenses 32 via the connecting portion 34.

  Furthermore, the overpassing portion 34 a where each connecting portion 34 gets over the stepped portion 42 of the light shielding plate 40 is made thinner than other portions of the connecting portion 34. In other words, the cross section of the overpass portion 34a is made smaller than the cross sections of other portions. As a result, even if light that may be slightly transmitted passes through the connecting portion 34, it can be reduced by passing through the crossing portion 34 a, so that it is transmitted between the adjacent light guide lenses 32. Less light.

  In other words, the connecting portion 34 connecting the plurality of light guide lenses 32 is not only having a shape obtained by bending an elongated strip-like member into a U-shape, but is also cut obliquely so as to taper toward the top. Has a shape. This shape is not a problem when the lens body 30 is integrally formed, and does not increase the manufacturing cost.

  A reinforcing plate 44 for connecting and reinforcing the plurality of light shielding plates 40 is provided between the plurality of light shielding plates 40. These reinforcing plates 44 are also integrally raised vertically from the inner surface of the housing 16a.

  When assembling the lighting display unit 10 described above, the lens body 30 is attached so that the connecting portions 34 of the lens body 30 are fitted to the step portions 42 of the light shielding plates 40 shown in FIG. A boss portion 22 for fixing the hole 30a of the lens body 30 and a boss portion 24 for fixing the hole 30b of the lens body are projected from the inner surface of the housing 16a. Further, a boss portion 26 for projecting and fixing the circuit board 18 with screws (not shown) is provided on the inner surface of the housing 16a.

  That is, the lighting display unit 10 shown in FIG. 2 is assembled by attaching the lens body 30 to the boss portions 22 and 24 and then fastening and fixing the circuit board 18 to the boss portion 26. At this time, it goes without saying that the plurality of LEDs 20 mounted on the circuit board 18 are closely opposed to each light receiving surface 31 of the light guide lens 32 through a slight gap.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the light shielding plate 40 disposed between the plurality of light guide lenses 32 of the lens body 30 has the upper end edge 41 having a height exceeding the light receiving surface 31 of the light guide lens 32. Therefore, it is possible to prevent a problem that light from the other adjacent LEDs 20 enters through the light receiving surface 31 of the light guide lens 32. In addition, according to the present embodiment, since the transparent connecting portion 34 connecting the plurality of light guide lenses 32 is arranged at a position away from the light receiving surface 31 of the light guide lens 32, the light received through the light receiving surface 31 is received. The amount of light transmitted to the connecting portion 34 can be reduced. Furthermore, since the shape of the connecting portion 34 is bent into a U shape and the cross section of the climbing portion 34a is reduced, the amount of light that can be transmitted through the connecting portion 34 can be further reduced. That is, by using the lighting display unit 10 of the present embodiment, a plurality of lamps arranged close to each other can be selectively illuminated independently, and visibility can be improved.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, you may delete some components from all the components shown by embodiment mentioned above. Furthermore, you may combine the component covering different embodiment suitably.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where the present invention is applied to the lighting display unit 10 incorporated in the notebook PC 100 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can also be applied to PDAs and other electronic devices. .

  Hereinafter, the invention described in the scope of claims at the beginning of the application of the present application will be added.

[1]
A plurality of light source units;
Among these light sources, a light receiving surface facing one light source and a light emitting surface spaced from the light receiving surface are provided at both ends, and light from the one light source received by the light receiving surface is incident on the light emitting surface. A plurality of light guiding lenses to be transmitted are juxtaposed in correspondence with each of the plurality of light source parts so that the light emitting surfaces are arranged close to each other, and the plurality of light guiding lenses adjacent to each other are connected to the connecting part. A lens body connected with
A light shielding plate disposed between the plurality of light guide lenses and having a height exceeding the light receiving surface of the light guide lens on both sides thereof;
An electronic device comprising:

[2]
The electronic device according to [1], wherein the connecting portion connects the light guide lenses adjacent to each other at a position closer to the light emitting surface than the light receiving surface.

[3]
The electronic device according to [1], wherein the connecting portion is bent into a U-shaped cross-section over the light shielding plate.

[4]
The electronic device as set forth in [3], wherein the connecting portion has a cross-section at a portion over the light-shielding plate that is smaller than a cross-section at another portion.

[5]
The light guide lens has a reflective surface between the light receiving surface and the light emitting surface,
The electronic device according to [1], wherein the connecting portion connects the light guide lenses adjacent between the reflecting surface and the light emitting surface.

[6]
The electronic device according to any one of [1] to [5], wherein the plurality of light guide lenses and the connecting portion of the lens body are integrally formed of resin.

[7]
Multiple light sources;
Among the plurality of light sources, a light-receiving surface close to and opposed to one light source and a light-emitting surface spaced from the light-receiving surface are provided at both ends, and light from the one light source received by the light-receiving surface is transmitted to the light-emitting surface. A plurality of light guide lenses are arranged side by side in correspondence with the plurality of light sources so that the light emitting surfaces are arranged close to each other, and the plurality of light guide lenses adjacent to each other are arranged above the light receiving surface. A lens body connected by a transparent connecting portion at a position close to the light emitting surface;
An electronic device comprising:

[8]
[7] The electronic apparatus according to [7], further comprising a light shielding plate disposed between the plurality of light guide lenses and having a height exceeding the light receiving surface of the light guide lens on both sides thereof.

[9]
The electronic device according to [8], wherein the connecting portion is bent into a U-shaped cross-section over the light shielding plate.

[10]
[9] The electronic device as set forth in [9], wherein the connecting portion has a cross-section at a portion over the light-shielding plate that is smaller than a cross-section at another portion.

[11]
The light guide lens has a reflective surface between the light receiving surface and the light emitting surface,
The electronic device according to [7], wherein the connecting portion connects the light guide lenses adjacent between the reflecting surface and the light emitting surface.

[12]
The electronic device according to any one of [7] to [11], wherein the plurality of light guide lenses and the connecting portion of the lens body are integrally formed of a transparent resin.

[13]
A housing containing a circuit board having a plurality of light sources;
From the one light source having a light receiving surface close to and opposed to one light source of the plurality of light sources and a light emitting surface exposed to the surface of the housing at a distance from the light receiving surface and received by the light receiving surface A plurality of light guide lenses for transmitting the light to the light emitting surface are arranged side by side corresponding to the plurality of light sources so that the light emitting surfaces are arranged close to each other. A lens body in which a light guide lens is connected by a transparent connecting portion;
A light-shielding plate that protrudes from the inner surface of the housing and is disposed between the plurality of light-guiding lenses and has a height that exceeds the light-receiving surface of the light-guiding lens on both sides thereof;
An electronic device comprising:

[14]
The electronic device according to [13], wherein the connecting portion connects the light guide lenses adjacent to each other at a position closer to the light emitting surface than the light receiving surface.

[15]
The electronic device as set forth in [13], wherein the connecting portion is bent in a U-shaped cross section over the light shielding plate.

[16]
The electronic device as set forth in [15], wherein the connecting portion has a cross-section at a portion over the light-shielding plate that is smaller than a cross-section at another portion.

[17]
The light guide lens has a reflective surface between the light receiving surface and the light emitting surface,
The electronic device according to [13], wherein the connecting portion connects the light guiding lenses adjacent to each other between the reflecting surface and the light emitting surface.

[18]
The electronic device according to any one of [13] to [17], wherein the plurality of light guide lenses and the connecting portion of the lens body are integrally formed of a transparent resin.

  The present invention can be applied to electronic devices such as notebook PCs and PDAs, and can be applied to electronic devices having a built-in lighting display unit having a plurality of lamps for notifying the power state of the device and the operating state of the HDD. It is.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Lighting display unit, 11 ... PC main body, 11a ... Surface, 14 ... Hinge, 15 ... Display panel, 16, 16a, 16b ... Case, 17 ... Hole, 18 ... Circuit board, 20 ... LED, 30 ... Lens body , 31 ... light receiving surface, 32 ... light guide lens, 33 ... light emitting surface, 34 ... connecting part, 34a ... ride over part, 35 ... reflecting surface, 40 ... light shielding plate, 41 ... upper edge, 42 ... step part, 100 ... personal computer.

Claims (11)

A first light source unit;
A second light source unit;
A first light receiving surface that receives light from the first light source unit and a first light emitting surface that is spaced apart from the first light receiving surface, and the light received by the first light receiving surface is transmitted to the first light emitting surface. A first light guide lens that is
A second light receiving surface that receives light from the second light source unit, and a second light emitting surface that is spaced apart from the second light receiving surface, and the light received by the second light receiving surface is transmitted to the second light emitting surface. A second light guide lens,
A light-shielding plate positioned between the first light guide lens and the second light guide lens and having a size for hiding the first and second light guide lenses from each other ;
A connecting portion of the translucent bent portion exceeding the light shielding plate is sectional than other parts Ru small and constricted Tei with connecting the said first light guide lens and the second light guide lens,
Electronic equipment having   The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the connecting portion, the first light guide lens, and the second light guide lens are integrally formed.   The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the second light emitting surface is positioned in the vicinity of the first light emitting surface.   2. The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a housing provided with a first opening from which the first light emitting surface is exposed and a second opening from which the second light emitting surface is exposed.   5. The electronic apparatus according to claim 4, wherein a part of the first light guide lens passes through the first opening and a part of the second light guide lens passes through the second opening. A first light source unit;
A second light source unit;
A first light guide lens having a first light receiving surface and a first light emitting surface, to which light from the first light source unit is transmitted;
A second light guide lens having a second light receiving surface and a second light emitting surface, to which light from the second light source unit is transmitted;
A light-shielding plate positioned between the first light guide lens and the second light guide lens and having a size for hiding the first and second light guide lenses from each other ;
A connecting portion of the light-transmitting part, along with the light shielding plate is sectional than other parts Ru small and constricted Tei with connecting the said first light guide lens and the second light guide lens across the light shielding plate,
Electronic equipment having A housing provided with an opening,
A light source that is positioned in the housing,
Is positioned in the housing, comprising a first light guide lens, and a second light guide lens, a consolidated portion you continuously and the first light guide lens and the second light guide lens, and the opening and the translucent lens member transmitting light from the light source through,
A light-shielding plate positioned between the first light guide lens and the second light guide lens and having a size for hiding the first and second light guide lenses from each other;
An electronic device in which a portion of the connecting portion straddling the light shielding plate is smaller in cross section than other portions and is constricted . It further has a housing in which the housing portion on the front surface side and the housing portion on the back surface side provided with the input device are fitted,
2. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein holes for exposing the first light emitting surface of the first light guide lens and the second light emitting surface of the second light guide lens are formed in a side surface of the housing. A housing,
A board on which electronic components are mounted and the first and second light source parts are mounted on the side edges thereof; and
The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the substrate is disposed at a position where the side edge is separated from a side wall of the housing.   A gap is formed between the first light source unit and the first light receiving surface of the first light guide lens, and the second light source unit and the second light receiving surface of the second light guide lens are formed. The electronic device according to claim 1, wherein a gap is formed therebetween.   The electronic apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a housing in which the light shielding plate is integrally projected from an inner surface thereof.

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