JPH07180711A - Snap fit connection structure easy of disassembly - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To improve operation efficiency at the time of mending recycle by forming holes in which tools are inserted in the or vicinity of claw engagement portions corresponding to two member fixing claws, and thereby facilitating disassembly without using a specified tool. CONSTITUTION:A lower cover 1 and an upper cover 2 are made of thermoplastic resin easy in recycling such as ABS resin, and fixed from the inside by means of claws 3, 4. In the case of diassembling for the purpose of recycle or mending, force is applied inward to claws 3, 4 for flexing them. Fixation of the claws 3, 4 is released, and the upper cover 2 is removed. Tool inserting holes 5, 6 are so formed that force can be directly applied from the outside by means of tools such as an attachment jig or a driver at the time of diassembling. Parts fixed by a snap fit can be speedily and easily disassembled.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a snap-fit coupling structure which can be disassembled quickly and easily without the need for using a special tool, thereby shortening the working time, and particularly when repairing or repairing. The present invention relates to a snap-fit connection structure that can be easily disassembled for recycling at the time of disposal.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, snap fit connection has been widely adopted as a method of fixing a plurality of parts constituting a case or the like in various kinds of electronic equipment such as AV equipment. This snap-fit connection is a structure in which a claw portion is formed on one component, and a fixing portion to which this claw portion fits is provided at a corresponding position of the counterpart component, and the work during assembly is extremely easy. There is an advantage.

However, although the parts joined by the snap fit are easy to assemble,
When disassembling the case or the like for repair, it is difficult to remove the claws, and the disassembling work requires a lot of time, which causes a problem of cost increase. Also, from the viewpoint of environmental protection, so-called recycling measures are required, and for the recycling of parts, the need for a structure that can disassemble the snap-fit connection quickly and easily is increasing. The structure which can be supported is not so much proposed.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In the present invention, such inconveniences in the conventional snap-fit connection structure,
In other words, it is necessary to use a special tool to solve the inconvenience that both parts that are connected by snap fit are easy to assemble, but difficult to disassemble such as repair or recycling of parts. It is an object of the present invention to provide a snap-fit connection structure that can be quickly and easily disassembled without any operation and improve work efficiency during repair and recycling.

[0005]

According to the present invention, firstly,
In a snap-fit connection structure for fixing two members each having a claw portion on one side and a claw locking portion on the other side,
In this structure, a hole for inserting a tool is provided in the vicinity of the mating claw engaging part corresponding to the claw part.

Secondly, in the first snap-fit coupling structure, the position of the hole is located below the mating claw engaging portion corresponding to the claw portion.

Thirdly, in the second snap-fit coupling structure, the shape of the hole is formed below the mating claw engaging portion corresponding to the claw portion and is notched. .

Fourthly, in the first snap-fit coupling structure, one member is made of a thermoplastic resin and the other member is made of a plate-shaped metal.

Fifth, in the snap-fit connection structure for fixing a member having a claw portion on one side and a claw locking portion on the other side, the two members are each made of a thermoplastic resin, and the claw portion is In the configuration, a mark indicating a position to which a tool is applied at the time of disassembling is provided near or below the corresponding claw locking portion of the counterpart.

Sixthly, in an electronic device comprising a member having a claw portion for locking a substrate and a substrate such as a chassis locked by the claw portion of the member, a claw on the substrate such as the chassis is provided. This is a structure in which a hole for inserting a tool is provided at a position corresponding to the part.

[0011]

In the present invention, the difficulty in disassembling the conventional snap-fit structure is that the claws of the snap-fit cannot be touched directly from the outside after assembly. The claws can be operated so that the disassembly work can be easily performed. Therefore, in the present invention, a hole for inserting a tool for removing the claw portion of the snap fit structure is provided.

Specifically, according to the present invention, there is provided a hole into which a tool such as a detachable jig or a screwdriver used for removing the claw portion of the snap fit can be inserted.
Therefore, the invention of claim 4). The position of the hole is provided in the claw portion or the lower portion of the claw portion (the inventions of claims 1 to 3).

The shape of the hole may be a square hole, a round hole, or a screw hole for assembling other parts according to the shape of the claw portion (the invention of claim 1 or 2). Further, the shape of the hole may be a notch shape for separating the parts in the upward direction with the tool inserted (the invention of claim 3).

Further, by providing a tool contact surface for taking a large number of contact portions of the tool with the shape of the claw portion and a tool receiving portion for preventing the tool from being displaced, the disassembling work is stabilized (claim) Invention of Item 3). If the part on the side of the claw is made of resin and the part to be fixed is made of sheet metal, it is possible to separate the parts by providing a brim in the hole of the fixed part and removing the claw by deforming with a tool. (Invention of Claim 4)

In the case of a member in which it is inappropriate to provide a hole in terms of design, a mark indicating a position to which a tool is applied at the time of disassembling is provided so that disassembling work can be performed quickly (invention of claim 5). . When a board such as a chassis has a structure in which the claw is fixed, a hole for inserting a tool is provided at a position corresponding to the claw on the board so that disassembling work can be performed quickly. Invention of 6).

[0016]

[Embodiment 1] Next, an easily disassembled snap-fit connection structure of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 1.

The snap-fit coupling structure that has been conventionally used is provided with a tab portion at the assembly portion,
It is a joining method that fixes both parts at the same time as inserting the parts,
Also in this invention, this snap fit coupling structure itself is
Have in common. As described above, the present invention is characterized in that the hole for inserting the tool for removing the claw portion is provided.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the essential structure of a snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, in which (1) is a left side view showing the external appearance after assembly, and (2) is FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view after assembly, (3) is an enlarged view of a claw portion provided with a tool contact surface, and (4) is an enlarged view of a claw portion provided with a tool receiving portion. In the figure, 1 is a lower cover, 2 is an upper cover, and 3 and 4.
Are claws provided on the lower cover 1 and 5 and 6 are upper covers 2.
Numeral 7 is a claw engaging portion also serving as a tool insertion hole, numeral 7 is a nail portion provided with a tool contact surface, and numeral 8 is a nail portion provided with a tool receiving portion.

FIGS. 1 (1) to 1 (4) show an example of a basic connection between the lower cover 1 and the upper cover 2 by snapping. The lower cover 1 and the upper cover 2 are each made of an easily recyclable thermoplastic resin such as ABS resin, PP resin, and PS resin, and are fixed from inside by the claw portions 3 and 4.

In the case of disassembling for the purpose of recycling or repair, the claws 3 and 4 are released from the fixation by bending the claws 3 and 4 by applying force to the claws 3 and 4 inwardly. Can be separated. However, in the conventional structure, such a force cannot be directly applied to the claw portions 3 and 4 from the outside, or the workability for applying the force is poor, so disassembling work of the snap fit connection is very difficult. there were.

In the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 1 (1) and 1 (2), the tool insertion hole 5 can be directly applied from the outside by a tool such as a detachable jig or a screwdriver during disassembly. , 6 are provided. The shape of the tool insertion holes 5 and 6 is preferably a square hole, a round hole or the like according to the shape of the claw portions 3 and 4, but a screw hole for assembling other parts may also be used.

Further, the shape of the claw portions 3 and 4 is shown in FIG.
It is also possible to provide a tool contact surface 7 as shown in Fig. 1 for taking a lot of contact parts of the tool and a tool receiving portion 8 in order to prevent the tool from being displaced as shown in Fig. 1 (4). With such a structure, the stability of the disassembling work can be obtained.
As described above, the snap-fit connection structure of the present invention, which is easily disassembled, is characterized in that the hole for inserting the tool for removing the claw portion is provided. Therefore, the parts fixed by the snap fit can be disassembled quickly and easily if necessary.

[0023]

Second Embodiment Next, a second embodiment will be described. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 2. The second embodiment is characterized in that the position of the tool insertion hole is provided in the lower portion of the claw portion and the contact surface is increased so that the tool hits the claw portion vertically.

FIG. 2 is a view showing a second embodiment of the essential structure of the snap-fit connection structure of the present invention, which is easily disassembled. (1) is a left side view showing the appearance after assembly, (2) )
[Fig. 4] is a vertical sectional view after assembly. In the figure, 11 is a lower cover, 12 is an upper cover, 13 and 14 are claw portions provided in the lower cover 11, 15 and 16 are tool insertion holes provided in the upper cover 12, and 17 and 18 are claw locking portions. Indicates.

In FIG. 2, the length of the claw portions 13 and 14 is made larger than that in the case of FIG.
6 and the claw locking portions 17 and 18 are provided separately. Since the tool insertion holes 15 and 16 are closed by the claw portions 13 and 14, it is possible to prevent foreign matter such as dust from entering. Other structures and operations are similar to those in the case of FIG.

[0026]

Third Embodiment Next, a third embodiment will be described. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 3. The third embodiment is characterized in that the shape of the tool insertion hole is notched.

FIG. 3 is a view showing a third embodiment of the essential structure of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, in which (1) is a left side view showing the appearance after assembly, (2) )
[Fig. 4] is a vertical sectional view after assembly. In the figure, 21 is a lower cover, 22 is an upper cover, 23 and 24 are claw portions provided on the lower cover 21, 25 and 26 are claw locking portions also provided on the upper cover 22, which also serve as tool insertion holes, and 27. 28 is a notch of the tool insertion hole, and 29 and 30 are tool receiving portions provided on the claws.

In FIG. 3, notches 27 and 28 are provided in the tool insertion holes 25 and 26 so that the upper cover 22 can be removed upward while the tool is still inserted. Further, by providing the tool receiving portions shown in FIG. 1 (4) on the claw portions 29 and 30, the upper cover 2
2 can be securely removed.

[0029]

Fourth Embodiment Next, a fourth embodiment will be described. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 4. In the fourth embodiment, when the part on the side of the claw part is made of resin and the part to be fixed is made of sheet metal, a brim is provided in the hole of the part to be fixed,
It is characterized in that the claws are disengaged when deformed by a tool and the parts can be separated.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a fourth embodiment of the essential structure of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled. (1) is a left side view showing the appearance after assembly, (2) )
[Fig. 4] is a vertical sectional view after assembly. In the figure, 31 is a resin lower cover, 32 is a sheet metal upper cover, 33 and 34 are claw portions provided on the lower cover 31, 35 and 36 are claw locking portions provided on the upper cover 32, and 37. And 38 are top covers 3
The brim (tool receiving surface) provided in 2 is shown.

4 (1) and 4 (2), the lower cover 31 is made of resin and the upper cover 32 is made of sheet metal.
By applying force with a tool to deform the collars 37, 38 provided on both sides of the claw portions 33, 34 to the inner side, the claw portions 33, 34 are held in a state of being warped inward, so that the upper cover 32 is Can be removed upwards. Further, since the upper cover 32 is made of sheet metal and can be easily returned to its original shape even if the flanges 37 and 38 are deformed, the upper cover 32 is formed.
Can be used repeatedly.

[0032]

Fifth Embodiment Next, a fifth embodiment will be described. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 5. The fifth embodiment shows the case of an exterior component made of a thermoplastic resin.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a fifth embodiment of the essential structure of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled. (1) is a left side view showing the appearance after assembly, (2) )
[Fig. 4] is a vertical sectional view after assembly. In the figure, 41 is a lower cover, 42 is an upper cover, 43 and 44 are claw portions provided on the lower cover 41, 45 and 46 are claw locking portions provided on the upper cover 42, and 47 and 48 are upper covers 42. Reference numeral 49 denotes a tool receiving portion provided on the upper cover 42.

FIGS. 5 (1) and 5 (2) show the case of the exterior part. Since it is difficult to provide the tool insertion hole due to design restrictions, the wall thickness of the tool receiving portions 47 and 48 should be reduced. A marking 49 is provided on that portion. At the time of disassembly, the tool receiving portions 47 and 48 are broken by a tool, and the claw portions 43 and 44 can be removed by inserting the tool.

Further, the insertion position can be easily discriminated by marking the upper cover with markings indicating the position of the tool receiving portion on both sides in advance. In FIG. 5, the tool receiving portion 4
The insides of the claws 7 and 48 are provided at positions corresponding to the claw locking parts 45 and 46, but the claws are made longer as in the embodiment shown in FIG. It is also possible to provide a tool receiving portion in the. By doing so, the claw portion can be removed by the same method as the structure of FIG.

[0036]

Sixth Embodiment Next, a sixth embodiment will be described. This embodiment corresponds to the invention of claim 6. In the sixth embodiment, another basic coupling structure of snap fit is shown.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a sixth embodiment of the essential structure of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled. In the figure, 51 is a chassis,
Reference numeral 52 is an electronic component substrate, 53 and 54 are claw portions provided in the chassis 51, 55 and 56 are tool insertion holes provided in the electronic component substrate 52, and 57 and 58 are tool insertion recesses provided in the chassis 51. .

In FIG. 6, a chassis 51 made of a thermoplastic resin, which is easy to recycle, and an electronic component board 52 are fixed by claw portions 53 and 54. In this case as well, the tool insertion holes 55 and 56 are provided in the electronic component substrate 52, and by inserting a tool into the tool insertion holes 55 and 56 and applying a force to the outside, the claw portions 53 and 54 are opened to the outside. The separation of the electronic component board 52 is facilitated.

[0039]

According to the inventions of claims 1 to 4,
The work time can be shortened at the time of disassembly and repair, and it can be disassembled without the need for special tools. Claim 5
According to the invention of (1), since the position where the tool is applied can be accurately determined when disassembling, the working time can be shortened. According to the invention of claim 6, at the time of disassembling or repairing, the working time can be shortened, and the disassembling can be performed without requiring a special tool.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the main configuration of a snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the configuration of the essential parts of a snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention that can be easily disassembled.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the essential structure of a snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled.

FIG. 4 is a view showing a fourth embodiment of the essential configuration of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled.

FIG. 5 is a view showing a fifth embodiment of the essential configuration of the snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled.

FIG. 6 is a vertical cross-sectional view showing a sixth embodiment of the essential structure of a snap-fit coupling structure according to the present invention, which is easily disassembled.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Lower cover 2 Upper cover 3 and 4 Claws 5 and 6 Claw locking part that also serves as a tool insertion hole 7 Claw with a tool contact surface 8 Claw with a tool receiving part

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A snap-fit coupling structure for fixing two members having a claw portion on one side and a claw locking portion on the other side, wherein a tool is provided near the other side claw locking portion corresponding to the claw portion. Snap-fit connection structure featuring holes for insertion. 2. The snap-fit coupling structure according to claim 1, wherein the position of the hole is below a mating claw engaging portion corresponding to the claw portion. 3. The snap-fit connection structure according to claim 2, wherein the shape of the hole is a notch below a mating claw engaging part corresponding to the claw part. Construction. 4. The snap-fit connection structure according to claim 1, wherein one member is a thermoplastic resin and the other member is a plate-shaped metal. 5. A snap-fit connection structure for fixing a member having a claw portion on one side and a claw engaging portion on the other side, wherein the two members are each a thermoplastic resin and correspond to the claw portion. A snap-fit coupling structure characterized in that a mark indicating the position where a tool is applied when disassembling is provided near or below the mating claw locking part. 6. A member having a claw portion for locking the substrate,
An electronic device comprising a substrate such as a chassis locked by a claw portion of the member, characterized in that a hole for inserting a tool is provided at a position corresponding to the claw portion on the substrate such as the chassis. Fit coupling structure.