JP7335720B2 - electronic pen - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an electronic pen, and more particularly to a rechargeable electronic pen.

2. Description of the Related Art In recent school education, there have been an increasing number of situations in which students are required to use an electronic pen to input data into a computer. By using an electronic pen, even children who are unfamiliar with keyboards can easily perform computer input.

Electronic pens include those that require a power supply, such as active electrostatic electronic pens, and those that do not require a power supply, such as electromagnetic induction electronic pens. The former electronic pens are classified into battery type and rechargeable type. Under normal usage conditions, the battery type can be used continuously for about three months, and the rechargeable type can be used for several weeks. In the case of a rechargeable pen, a receptacle containing a charging terminal is provided in the main body of the electronic pen, and charging is performed by connecting a power source to this receptacle.

Patent Literature 1 discloses an example of a rechargeable electronic pen. This electronic pen has a charging receptacle (First electrical connector 61) on the side, and the receptacle can be covered by a ring-shaped rotatable ring (Rotatable ring 11) having an opening (Movable opening 110). is configured to When charging the electronic pen, the charging cable can be attached to the receptacle by rotating the rotating ring in the circumferential direction to expose the receptacle in the opening. According to the configuration of Patent Document 1, since the receptacle is not exposed when the battery is not charged, the appearance of the electronic pen can be improved and dust can be prevented from entering the receptacle.

The electronic pen of Patent Document 1 is also configured with a clip portion (Pen holder 12) for holding the electronic pen in a breast pocket or the like. The rotary ring is configured such that the opening is hidden by the clip portion when charging is not performed, thereby further improving the appearance of the electronic pen.

U.S. Patent Publication No. 2016/0320868

However, according to the configuration of Patent Document 1, since a complicated structure such as a rotating ring is used, problems such as an increase in the number of parts and an increase in manufacturing cost occur. Therefore, there has been a demand for an electronic pen with a simpler configuration.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, one object of the present invention is to provide an electronic pen having a simpler configuration than the conventional one.

An electronic pen according to the present invention is an electronic pen having a pen-shaped housing, a charging receptacle provided on a side surface of the housing, and a clip section configured to be insertable into and removable from the receptacle.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an electronic pen with a simpler configuration than the conventional one.

It is a figure showing the appearance of electronic pen 1 by an embodiment of the invention. 3 is a diagram showing a cross section of the electronic pen 1 in the vicinity of the receptacle 5 and a cross section of the plug 21 forming part of the charging cable 20. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a cross section of the electronic pen 1 in the vicinity of the receptacle 5 and a cross section of the dummy plug 12b forming part of the clip portion 10. FIG. 4A and 4B are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation of the clip unit 10. FIG.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1(a) and 1(b) are diagrams showing the appearance of an electronic pen 1 according to the present embodiment. The electronic pen 1 is a rechargeable electronic pen that incorporates a secondary battery (not shown). 10. 1(a) shows the clip portion 10 removed from the housing 2, and FIG. 1(b) shows the clip portion 10 attached to the housing 2. FIG. Hereinafter, as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the pen axis direction of the electronic pen 1 is referred to as the x direction, the insertion/removal direction of the clip portion 10 is referred to as the z direction, and the direction orthogonal to the x and z directions is referred to as the x direction. We call it the y-direction.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, a pen tip 3 is formed at one end of the housing 2 in the x direction. The user performs input with the electronic pen 1 by sliding the pen tip 3 on the touch surface of a position detection device (for example, a tablet terminal or a digitizer) (not shown). In addition, a concave portion 4 for fitting the clip portion 10 and a receptacle 5 for charging are provided on a side surface of the housing 2 near the other end in the x direction. The receptacle 5 is exposed on the bottom surface of the recess 4 . In a typical example, the receptacle 5 is a USB (Universal Serial Bus) Type-C female connector.

2A to 2D are diagrams showing a cross section of the electronic pen 1 near the receptacle 5 and a cross section of the plug 21 forming part of the charging cable 20. FIG. 2(a) and 2(c) show cross sections in the x direction, and FIGS. 2(b) and 2(d) show cross sections in the y direction. 2(a) and 2(b) show a state in which the plug 21 is not connected to the receptacle 5, and FIGS. 2(c) and 2(d) show a state in which the plug 21 is connected to the receptacle 5. there is

As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the receptacle 5 includes a groove 6 provided in the bottom surface of the recess 4 and a projecting portion 7 projecting from the bottom surface of the groove 6. As shown in FIGS. The groove 6 has a columnar shape with side surfaces parallel to the z-direction, and the opening and bottom surface of the groove 6 are congruent and parallel to each other and are formed by rounded rectangles elongated in the x-direction. . The projecting portion 7 has the shape of a substantially quadrangular prism located in the center of the groove 6 when viewed in plan. One or more notch portions 7a are provided on the y-direction side surface of the projecting portion 7, and a plurality of electrodes 7b are formed on the upper end. The plurality of electrodes 7b are arranged at equal intervals along each of the two long sides of the upper surface of the projecting portion 7, which is a rectangle elongated in the x direction.

Plug 21 is a cylindrical member formed to fit into groove 6 and is provided at one end of charging cable 20 . The outer surface of the plug 21 is formed in a shape corresponding to the side surface shape of the groove 6 and the inner surface is formed in a shape corresponding to the side surface shape of the protrusion 7 . For example, if the receptacle 5 is a USB Type-C female connector, the plug 21 is a USB Type-C male connector.

Protrusions 21a are provided on the inner surface of the plug 21 at positions corresponding to the plurality of cutouts 7a. These projecting portions 21a constitute a stopper structure for maintaining the fitted state together with the corresponding notch portion 7a. That is, as shown in FIG. 2(c), when the plug 21 is inserted into the groove 6, the projecting portion 21a enters the notch portion 7a, so that the plug 21 is prevented from falling out of the groove 6. As shown in FIG. In order to pull out the plug 21 from the groove 6, it is necessary to remove the protrusion 21a from the notch 7a by pulling the plug 21 with a force greater than or equal to a predetermined value.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2B, electrodes 21b are provided on the upper end of the inner surface of the plug 21 at positions corresponding to the plurality of electrodes 7b. Although not shown, each electrode 21b is connected to a conductor that constitutes the charging cable 20, and is connected to a commercial power supply or a mobile battery via this conductor. As shown in FIG. 2(d), when the plug 21 is fitted in the groove 6, the corresponding electrodes 7b and 21b are physically in contact with each other. Power supply from a commercial power source or a mobile battery to each electrode 7b is realized through this physical contact.

Return to FIG. The clip portion 10 includes a rod-shaped member 11 extending in the x-direction, a base portion 12 fitted to the receptacle 5 at one end in the z-direction, and an elastic member 13 provided between the rod-shaped member 11 and the base portion 12. , and a pin 14 for connecting the bar member 11 and the base portion 12 to each other.

The base portion 12 includes a cover portion 12a that fits into the recess 4 and a dummy plug 12b that fits into the receptacle 5 . The shape of the upper surface of the cover portion 12a is configured such that when the clip portion 10 is attached to the housing 2, the upper surface of the cover portion 12a and the surface of the housing 2 are flush with each other. Therefore, as is clear from FIG. 1B, the electronic pen 1 to which the clip portion 10 is attached looks like an ordinary electronic pen with a clip when viewed from the user.

3A to 3D are diagrams showing cross sections of the electronic pen 1 and the pseudo plug 12b in the vicinity of the receptacle 5. FIG. Among them, the cross section of the electronic pen 1 is the same as that shown in FIGS.

The pseudo plug 12b has the same shape as the plug 21 shown in FIG. 2 except that it does not have a configuration corresponding to the electrode 21b. A plurality of projecting portions 12ba are provided on the inner surface of the pseudo plug 12b corresponding to the plurality of projecting portions 21a of the plug 21 . Like the projecting portion 21a, the projecting portion 12ba constitutes a stopper structure for maintaining the fitted state of the dummy plug 12b and the receptacle 5 together with the corresponding notch portion 7a.

Return to FIG. The rod-shaped member 11 has a rod-shaped portion and projecting portions 11 a and 11 b projecting from the rod-shaped portion toward the housing 2 . The projecting portion 11a is composed of two portions located on both sides of the other end of the base portion 12 in the z direction, and the pin 14 is inserted into a hole passing through each of these portions and the base portion 12. Fixed. Thereby, the rod-like member 11 is configured to be rotatable with respect to the base portion 12 with the pin 14 as the center. The projecting portion 11b is provided at one end of the rod-shaped member 11 in the x direction (the end on the pen tip side).

As shown in FIG. 1(a), the elastic member 13 is composed of a spring having one end fixed to the surface of the cover portion 12a and the other end fixed to the lower surface of the rod-shaped member 11. As shown in FIG. However, it goes without saying that the elastic member 13 may be made of another type of elastic member such as rubber. The elastic member 13 is provided at a position closer to the other end (near the bottom of the pen) of the housing 2 in the x direction when viewed from the pin 14 .

4A to 4C are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation of the clip section 10. FIG. Hereinafter, the operation of the clip portion 10 including the insertion/removal operation will be described in detail with reference to these drawings. It should be noted that the shape of the clip portion 10 is schematically shown in FIG. 1 in order to facilitate understanding of the operation of the clip portion 10 . In addition, in the same figure, a projecting portion 11c is drawn on the other end of the rod-shaped member 11 in the x direction (the end on the pen butt side). The protruding portion 11c is configured to protrude toward the housing 2 from a bar-shaped portion, similar to the protruding portion 11b. The clip portion 10 may or may not have such a projecting portion 11c.

First, FIG. 4A shows the initial state when the clip portion 10 is inserted into the electronic pen 1. As shown in FIG. As shown in the figure, the rod-shaped member 11 is biased in the illustrated A direction by the elastic force of the elastic member 13 .

FIG. 4(b) shows a state in which the user pulls up the end of the rod-shaped member 11 closer to the pen tip in the illustrated direction B. FIG. A user can provide a gap G between the projecting portion 11b and the housing 2 by holding the rod-shaped member 11 by hand and pulling it up in the B direction with a force that overcomes the elastic force of the elastic member 13 . After inserting the part where the electronic pen 1 is to be held into the gap G, the electronic pen 1 can be held in a binder, a breast pocket, or the like by removing the hand and canceling the lifting force.

FIG. 4(c) shows a case where the user pulls up the end of the rod-like member 11 closer to the pen tip than in the state shown in FIG. 4(b). When the pull-up force becomes stronger than a certain level, the projecting portion 11c (the end portion of the rod-shaped member 11 near the pen end) comes into contact with the housing 2, and the rod-shaped member 11 cannot be rotated any more. As a result, a second-class lever is formed with the contact point S between the rod-shaped member 11 and the housing 2 as a fulcrum and the pin 14 as an action point. When this force exceeds the holding force of the stopper structure described above (the structure composed of the projecting portion 12ba and the notch portion 7a shown in FIG. The base portion 12 is moved by a distance δ in the C direction. After that, the user can remove the clip portion 10 from the receptacle 5 by further pulling up the rod-shaped member 11 .

Here, the direction of the force applied to the pin 14, which is the point of action of the second type lever, is inclined with respect to both the z direction and the x direction. z-direction. This is because the base portion 12 is configured to be rotatable about the pin 14 and the side surfaces of the groove 6 forming the receptacle 5 are parallel to the z-direction. . As a result, the moving direction of the base portion 12 can be restricted to the z direction only, so that the base portion 12 can be smoothly pulled out from the groove 6 of the receptacle 5 .

As described above, according to the configuration of the electronic pen 1 according to the present embodiment, the clip portion 10 can be used as a lid for the receptacle 5 when not charging. Therefore, it is possible to improve the external appearance of the rechargeable electronic pen 1 and prevent dust from entering the charging receptacle 5 with a simpler configuration than the conventional configuration using a rotating ring.

Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is by no means limited to such embodiments, and the present invention can be implemented in various forms without departing from the gist thereof. is of course.

1 Electronic Pen 2 Housing 3 Pen Tip 4 Recess 5 Receptacle 6 Groove 7 Projection 7a Notch 7b Electrode 10 Clip 11 Bar-shaped members 11a to 11c Projection 12 Base 12a Cover 12b Pseudo plug 12ba Projection 13 Elastic member 14 pin 20 charging cable 21 plug 21a protrusion 21b electrode

Claims (5)

a pen-shaped housing,
a charging receptacle provided on the side surface of the housing;
a clip portion configured to be insertable into and removable from the receptacle;
has
The clip portion
a base portion that fits into the receptacle at one end;
a rod-shaped member connected to the other end of the base portion and configured to be rotatable with respect to the base portion;
has
The clip portion is configured such that when one end in the longitudinal direction of the rod-shaped member is lifted while one end of the base portion is fitted in the receptacle, the other end in the longitudinal direction of the rod-shaped member contacts the housing. configured to
The clip portion further has an elastic member provided between the base portion and the rod-shaped member,
electronic pen. The base portion is configured to be rotatable around a pin,
The receptacle is configured to have a groove having side surfaces parallel to the insertion/removal direction of the clip portion,
The electronic pen according to claim 1. The receptacle and the base have a stopper structure for maintaining the fitted state,
The electronic pen according to claim 2 . A protruding portion that protrudes toward the housing is provided at the other end of the rod-shaped member in the longitudinal direction,
The electronic pen according to claim 1. wherein the elastic member is a spring;
The electronic pen according to claim 1.

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