JPH05258776A - Rechargeable battery - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To make convenient the simultaneous transporting with an electric appliance as load by allowing a casing formed capable of being mounted and removed on/from the load to accommodate a secondary battery and a charger, and fitting the casing with an AC connector plug in such a way that it can emerge and retract any as desired. CONSTITUTION:A secondary battery 21 for supplying electric power to an electric appliance concerned 10 and a charger 30 for charging this battery 21 are installed in a casing 40, which is fitted with a connector plug 33 of slide type to be inserted in an AC outlet for supplying commercial AC voltage to the charger 30 in such a way that the plug 33 can emerge and retract any as desired. To charge the battery 21 with this constitution, it is only required to plunge the plug 33 out of the casing 40 and insert, in the AC outlet. Therein the easing 40 is so arranged as capable of being mounted and removed on/from the appliance 10 as the load, so that it is convenient to make simultaneous transport with the appliance 10 and easy charging can be made even at the site of battery service.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rechargeable battery which is detachably mounted as a power source in, for example, a portable small electric device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a rechargeable battery, that is, a secondary battery (for example, nickel-cadmium battery) has been used as a power source for portable electric equipment such as a mobile phone, an 8-mm video camera, and a headphone stereo player. In this case, when the secondary battery is discharged, it is necessary to charge it with the charger.

For example, in the case of an extremely small electric device such as a shaver (electric razor), a secondary battery and a charger are built in, and an AC plug is arranged invisible in the housing of the shaver. , Some have been designed so that they can be charged directly from an AC outlet, but with such a built-in type, when the weight of a portable electric device increases and the life of the secondary battery is exhausted, the entire device must be replaced. There was a problem that it was not economical. Further, there is a problem that an expensive device such as an 8 mm video camera having a relatively large main body device is not suitable for the built-in type.

For this reason, generally, the rechargeable battery is detachable from the electric equipment and is charged by a general-purpose or dedicated charger separate from the battery.

[0005]

By the way, the secondary battery used as a power source for a small electric device cannot be made too large because it is restricted in size, weight, etc. Its capacity is set so that it can operate only for 1-2 hours. Therefore, if you expect to use an 8mm video camera on the go beyond the time equivalent to its power capacity, carry a spare secondary battery or carry an attached charger. ,
It is necessary to charge the secondary battery.

However, the spare secondary battery and the attached charger as described above are relatively bulky, and are not always convenient for simultaneous carrying with a main body device such as an 8 mm video camera. There was a problem. Also,
If you forget to carry your charger, you can no longer charge it.

An object of the present invention is to provide a rechargeable battery capable of eliminating the above problems.

[0008]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a rechargeable battery according to the present invention has a secondary battery 21 for supplying electric power to an electric device 10 in correspondence with the reference numerals of the embodiments described later. And a charger 30 for charging the secondary battery 21 are built in the housing 40, and the AC
A connector plug 33, which is inserted into an outlet to supply a commercial AC voltage to the charger 30, is provided in a housing 40 so as to be hidden.

[0009]

With the above-mentioned structure, when charging the secondary battery, it is only necessary to project the connector plug 33 from the housing 40 and insert it into the AC outlet.

Since a separate charger is not required, it is convenient to carry with a load electric device at the same time, and can be easily charged on the go. Further, when the life of the secondary battery is exhausted, only the power supply device needs to be replaced, which is more economical than the integrated type.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the rechargeable battery according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The mechanical structure of one embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1, and the electrical structure is shown in FIG.

In FIG. 2, 10 is a small electric device such as an 8 mm video camera, 20 is a rechargeable battery of this embodiment, and a secondary battery for supplying electric power to the electric device 10 as a load. As described above, for example, a nickel-cadmium battery is used as 21.

The charger 30 is mainly composed of, for example, a transformer 31 and a rectifier 32. The secondary battery 21 and a pair of power supply terminals 22a and 22b are connected to the output side of the rectifier 32. The power supply terminals 22a and 22b are used for the electric device 1
When the rechargeable battery 20 is stored in the 0 battery storage portion, it is connected to the power supply terminals 11a and 11b of the electric device 10, respectively. A slide type AC plug pin 33 is connected to the primary winding 31p of the transformer 31 via the sliding contacts 34a and 34b.

As shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment, AC
The plug pin 33 is disposed so as to be concealed from the openings 41a and 41b formed in the side wall 40a of the housing 40 made of, for example, synthetic resin. That is, in this example,
A slide knob 33k is arranged in a long hole 42 formed in the back surface 40b of the housing 40, and the slide knob 33k is slid along the long hole 42 in the directions of arrows A and B in the drawing. The AC plug pins 33 are housed inside the housing 40 and hidden, or projected from the housing 40 as illustrated. In this case, at the maximum sliding movement point in the directions of arrows A and B, the sliding movement is latched so as to be blocked. To release this latch, for example, the knob 33
Just press k.

At the time of charging, the knob 33k is slid in the direction of arrow A, and as shown by the chain line in FIG.
3 is projected from the openings 41a and 41b of the side wall 40a of the housing, and the plug 33 is inserted into an outlet (not shown) of a commercial power source. Then, the built-in charger 30 charges the secondary battery 21.

After the secondary battery 21 is charged, the battery 20 is removed from the outlet and the knob 33k is slid in the elongated hole 42 in the direction of arrow B to open the AC plug 33 in the side wall 40a of the housing. It stores in 41a, 41b. Then, the casing 40 of the battery 20 is attached to a predetermined coupling mechanism, for example, the ridge 43.
By engaging a and 43c with corresponding guide grooves (not shown) of the electric device, they are detachably connected to the electric device 10.

In this combined state, the back surface 40b of the housing 40
The power supply terminals 22a and 22b arranged in the
Power is supplied from the secondary battery 21 to the electric device 10 by being elastically pressed against the power supply terminals 12a and 12b.

In this embodiment, a secondary battery and a charger are housed in a housing that is detachably attached to an electric device as a load, and a sliding AC plug is hidden in the housing. Therefore, it is convenient to carry with an electric device at the same time, and can be easily charged on the go. Further, when the life of the secondary battery is exhausted, only the battery 20 needs to be replaced, which is more economical than the integrated type.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, the slide type AC plug is used. However, a rotating type AC plug may be used as shown in FIG. 3, and as shown in FIG. ) AC plug may be used.

That is, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the AC plug 33r on which the conductor rotation shaft 33ax is erected is rotatably arranged in the accommodation recess 44 formed in the back surface 40b of the housing 40. Is set up. At the time of charging, as shown in the figure, the AC plug 33r is erected on the back surface 40b of the housing, and after charging, the AC plug 33r is rotated clockwise to be housed in the recess 44 of the back surface 40b of the housing. The embodiment of FIG. 3 also operates in the same manner as the above-described embodiment and has the same effect.

Further, in the embodiment of FIG. 4, a housing 40
A notch 45 is formed at one corner of the
A detachable AC plug 33 s is formed in the same size as 5.
The contacts 34a and 34b (see FIG. 2) are provided on the side surface 45s of the notch 45, and the conductor piece 33 of the plug 33s is provided.
Housing holes 46a and 46b of a and 33b are engraved. The plug 33s is provided with the housing through holes 35a and 35b for the contacts 34a and 34b of the notch 45. This AC plug 33
The s is detachably coupled to the housing 40 by an appropriate coupling mechanism such as the protrusions 36a and 36b at the lower end thereof and the guide grooves 47a and 47b around the bottom surface 45b of the notch 45.

At the time of charging, the AC plug 33s is connected to the notch 45 of the housing 40 in the direction shown in the drawing so as to protrude, and after the charging is completed, the AC plug 33s is horizontally inverted and connected to the notch 45. The holes 46a and 46b. The embodiment of FIG. 4 also operates and produces the same effect as the above-described embodiment.

[0023]

As described above, according to the present invention, the secondary battery and the charger are housed in a housing detachably attached to the electric equipment of the load and built in the housing. Since the AC connector plug of the charger is arranged so as to be concealed, charging can be performed simply by inserting the AC connector plug into an AC outlet, and a separate charger is not required. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a rechargeable battery that is convenient to carry with a load electrical device at the same time.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a mechanical structure of an embodiment of a rechargeable battery according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a mechanical structure of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a mechanical structure of still another embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Electrical Equipment 20 Rechargeable Battery 21 Secondary Battery 30 Charger 33, 33r, 33s AC Plug 40 Housing

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A rechargeable battery for supplying electric power to an electric device and a charger for charging the rechargeable battery are housed in a housing and plugged into an AC outlet to the charger. A rechargeable battery in which a connector plug for supplying a commercial AC voltage is disposed in the housing so as to be concealed.