JPH0822350A - Tilt mechanism for keyboard surface - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a tilt mechanism which requires no large space and has high rigidity and also forms a storage part at a housing bottom part when tilted as to a mechanism which converts the tilt of a keyboard surface so as to improve the operability of a keyboard. CONSTITUTION:Part of the bottom surface and back surface of the housing 2 provided with the keyboard surface 4 on its top surface is raised and the sides of plural raised plate type members 6 and 8 are engaged to assemble a support leg 13 on the bottom surface of the device. A bottom plate 8 provided having front side pivoted on the bottom surface of the housing, a rear cover 6 provided having the base pivoted so as to cover the connector mount part of the back of the device, and a wedgelike side plate provided having the internal side pivoted on the housing bottom surface are used as the plate type members 6 and 8. The combination of the plate type members 6 and 8 is changed to vary the height of the support leg 13 in two stages. Further, >=2 plate type members are combined to form the storage space for a floppy disk, etc.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a tilt mechanism for a keyboard surface of an information processing apparatus, that is, a mechanism for converting the tilt of the keyboard surface in order to improve the operability of the keyboard. The present invention relates to the above-mentioned mechanism particularly suitable for a device in which a keyboard surface is provided on a flat housing which is small-sized and high-density mounted.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Some notebook computers are provided with a tilt mechanism for inclining the keyboard surface in order to improve the input operation from the keyboard. 17 and 18 show an example of a conventional structure of this type of tilt mechanism, in which pull-out type legs 41 are provided on both sides of the rear end of the flat casing 2 having a keyboard surface 4 on its upper surface. The keyboard surface 4 is inclined by pulling out 41.

In a notebook computer, the housing 2 has the same thickness on the front side and the back side in order to improve portability and storability. Therefore, such a tilt mechanism is provided. Without it, the keyboard surface 4 becomes horizontal during operation, and it becomes very difficult to perform key operation. Therefore, a pull-out type leg 41 is provided and the leg surface 41 is pulled out at the time of operation to incline the keyboard surface 4, thereby improving operability at the time of key input.

[0004]

In a notebook computer, there is a strong demand for downsizing of the device in order to improve portability. Therefore, various electronic devices and electronic components are mounted in the device housing 2 at high density, and the space for housing the legs 41 is inevitably small. Therefore, the strength of the leg 41 and the rigidity of the pull-out mechanism cannot be sufficiently increased, and the strength when the leg 41 is pulled out tends to be insufficient. Therefore, there is a problem in that the supporting rigidity of the keyboard surface 4 is insufficient, which gives an unstable impression during operation, is easily damaged by an external load, and causes a wasted space in a portion where the device is floated. .

An object of the present invention is to obtain a tilting mechanism that can support a keyboard surface in a tilted state with high rigidity without taking up any space, and further reduce the number of parts by also serving as an external cover. An object of the present invention is to obtain the above-mentioned mechanism, the above-mentioned mechanism that can change the height in two steps, and the above-mentioned mechanism in which a housing portion such as a floppy disk is formed at the bottom of the housing device when the keyboard surface is tilted. I am trying.

[0006]

According to the present invention, a part of a bottom surface or a back surface of a housing 2 having a keyboard surface 4 on its upper surface is erected, and the sides of a plurality of erected plate-shaped members are fitted to each other. As a result, the above problem is solved by assembling and forming one highly rigid support leg 13, 19, 23, 35 on the bottom surface of the device.

As the plate-like member for forming the support legs 13, 19, 23, 35, a bottom plate 8 pivotably attached to the bottom surface of the casing to erect the front side, a connector mounting portion on the rear surface of the apparatus. A rear cover 6 which is pivotally attached at its lower side so as to be openable and closable, and a side whose inner side is pivotally attached at its bottom surface so that it can be raised and lowered and whose outer side is inclined toward the front side so as to be narrowed. The plate 15 and the narrow hinge plate 25 connected to the pivot side of the bottom plate 8 may be used. Of the above-mentioned members, the rear cover 6 is a member that forms a part of the back surface of the housing when closed, and the bottom plate 8, the side plate 15, and the hinge plate 25 form a part of the bottom surface of the housing when lying down. It is a member that does.

Among the plate-shaped members formed as described above, for example, by engaging the inner side of the drawn out bottom plate 8 and the upper side of the rear cover 6 which is rotated about 180 degrees toward the apparatus bottom side, the support leg 13 is formed. , Or the side plate 15 that is erected with the side of the bottom plate 8 that has been pulled out,
By fitting the outer side of 15 to the support leg 19,
Alternatively, the support legs 23 can be formed by fitting the inner sides of the standing side plates 15 and 15 and the side sides of the rear cover 6 opened approximately 180 degrees to the bottom side.

By changing the combination of the plate-shaped members for assembling the support legs 13 and 19, it is possible to change the height of the support legs to be assembled in two steps.

Further, in the structure in which the hinge plate 25 is provided on the hinged side of the bottom plate 8, the bottom plate 8 is pulled out while the hinge plate 25 is erected, and the side plates 15 are erected on both sides and the inner side. By fitting the outer side of 15 and the upper side of the rear cover 6 rotated to the bottom side, the support leg 35 can be formed, and the space 37 for accommodating the floppy disk 38 and the like can be formed therein.

[0011]

According to the structure of the present invention, the supporting legs 13, 19, 23, 35 for inclining the keyboard surface 4 are formed by engaging two to five plate-shaped members with their adjacent sides. The assembled and assembled support legs 13, 19, 23, 35 are brought into contact with the mounting surface of the device by a long contact line or contact surface in the width direction of the housing 2, and support when the keyboard surface 4 is inclined. Legs 13, 19, 2
The rigidity of 3, 35 in the left-right direction is guaranteed. Further, the rigidity of the support legs 13, 19, 23, 35 is ensured by the triangular or standing side plate 15 formed when the upper side of the rear cover 6 and the inner side of the bottom plate 8 are engaged with each other.

Further, since the plate-shaped members forming the support legs 13, 19, 23, and 35 are part of the members forming the bottom surface and the back surface of the apparatus housing, these members are provided inside the housing 2. Does not require space to accommodate. Further, by using the member 6 provided as a cover as one of these members, the housing structure can be simplified.

Further, by changing the combination of plate members constituting the support legs 13 and 19, the height of the support legs can be changed, and the inclination angle of the keyboard surface 4 can be changed according to the operator's preference. Become.

Further, if five plate-like members are provided so that the support legs 35 are formed in a box shape, the floppy disk 38, memo paper, etc. will be placed on the bottom of the housing 2 when the support legs 35 are erected. A space 37 that can be accommodated can be formed, and when the keyboard surface 4 is tilted, the space generated at the bottom of the housing 2 can be effectively used.

[0015]

1 to 3 show a first embodiment of the present invention in which a tilt mechanism of the present invention is adopted in a notebook computer. The notebook computer 1 has a flat shape with the same thickness on the front side and the back side, and is vertically divided into two parts on the front side. The computer 1 is composed of a lower housing 2 and an upper display body 3 which is provided so as to be capable of undulating around a horizontal axis parallel to the inner side of the housing 2. A keyboard surface 4 is arranged on the front upper surface of the housing 2, and an external connection interface connector 5 is arranged on the rear surface of the housing. The connector 5 is covered with a rear cover 6 whose lower side is pivotally attached to the inner surface of the housing. A rectangular recess 7 having the same lateral length as the rear cover and a shallow depth is formed in the bottom center of the housing, and the bottom plate 8 is formed in this rectangular recess.
Is stored. The bottom plate can be undulated by a hinge 9 provided on the front side of the recess 7, and is locked to the bottom surface by an engaging piece provided on the back side of the recess 7 when not in use. A fitting groove 11 is provided on the inner side of the bottom plate 8 along the inner side of the housing.

In order to tilt the upper surface of the keyboard surface 4 using the tilt mechanism of this embodiment, the bottom plate 8 is rotated around the hinge 9 and the rear cover 6 is rotated about 180 degrees downward so that the upper side 12 thereof. The support legs 13 may be assembled by inserting into the fitting groove 11 of the bottom plate. External stress applied to the housing 2 is received by the lower side of the support leg, that is, the inner side of the bottom plate 8, so that the lateral rigidity of the support leg 13 is guaranteed.

4 to 6 show a second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the rectangular recess 7 on the bottom surface of the housing is used.
A trapezoidal recess 14 having a narrow front side is provided on both sides of the. A side plate 15 is housed in the trapezoidal recess 14, and the side plate is locked at its inner side by a hinge 16 provided in parallel with the side of the bottom plate 8 so as to be capable of undulating toward the bottom plate. ing. Two protrusions are provided on the outer side of the side plate 15, and the cutouts 1 that engage with the protrusions 17 are formed on both sides of the bottom plate 8.
8 are provided.

In order to incline the keyboard surface using the tilt mechanism of this embodiment, the bottom plate 8 and the side plate 15 are rotated around the hinges 9 and 16, and the projection 17 and the notch 18 are fitted together. Assemble the support legs 13. Case 2
Since the external stress applied to the support leg is received by the lower side of the support leg, that is, the inner side of the bottom plate 8, the lateral rigidity of the support leg 13 is guaranteed.

7 to 9 show a third embodiment of the present invention. In the present embodiment, trapezoidal recesses 14 are provided on the left and right sides of the bottom surface of the housing at the same distance as the length of the rear cover in the left-right direction and the front side is narrow, and the hinges 1 are provided in the trapezoidal recesses.
A side plate 15 which can be raised and lowered is stored in the table 6. One notch 20 is provided on each of the inner sides of the side plates. A rear cover 6 is provided on the inner surface of the housing so as to be openable and closable by a hinge 21, and the notch 20 is provided on the side thereof.
A projecting piece 22 that fits with is projected.

To tilt the keyboard surface 4 by the tilt mechanism of this embodiment, the side plate 15 is hinged 16.
Stand up around the rear cover 6 around the hinge 21 and make about 18
The support leg 23 is assembled by rotating the projecting piece 22 into the notch 20 by rotating it by 0 degree. External stress applied to the housing is received by the lower side of the rear cover and the outer side of the side plate.

FIG. 10 and FIG. 11 show a fourth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is a combination of the structure shown in the first embodiment and the structure shown in the second embodiment, and the protrusion height when the rear cover 6 is protruded to the bottom side is raised by the side plate 15. It is larger than the standing height of the inner side when it is made to move. When the upper surface of the keyboard surface 4 is largely inclined, the support leg 13 of the first embodiment is used.
Is used, and when inclining a little, the supporting leg 1 of the second embodiment
9 is used.

12 to 16 show a fifth embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is the support leg 1 of the first embodiment.
A hinge plate 25 is provided in addition to the support legs 19 of the third and second embodiments so that a space for accommodating a floppy disk or the like can be formed in the support legs.
The hinge plate 25 is a narrow plate member having the same length as the tip side of the bottom plate 8, and the back side thereof is connected to the front side of the bottom plate by a hinge 26. The front side of the side plate 15 is equal to the width of the hinge plate 25, the back side is equal to the protruding height of the rear cover 6, and the outer side of the side plate 15 is equal to the side of the bottom plate 8. On the bottom surface of the housing, a recess 27 having a shape in which the bottom plate 8, the hinge plate 25, and the side plate 15 are combined in a plane is formed, and both side wall walls 28 of the region where the hinge plate 25 is housed.
Is formed with a long hole 29 in the width direction of the hinge plate, and a pin 31 provided on the front side of the hinge plate is fitted into the long hole 29. In addition, circular holes are provided in the front and rear side walls 32 and 33 in the region where the side plate 15 is housed,
A shaft 34 provided on the inner side of the side plate is provided in the circular hole.
Has been inserted.

In order to tilt the keyboard surface 4 by the tilting mechanism of this embodiment, after raising the bottom plate 8 around the hinge 26, it is pulled out to the back side and the pin 31 of the hinge plate 25 is placed at the back end of the slot 29. Abut. Next, the side plate 15 is erected around the shaft 34 and fitted into the notch 18 of the bottom plate by the protrusion 17 to form the support leg 35. At this time, the front side of the side plate 15 comes into contact with the inner side surface of the hinge plate 25, and the outer side of the side plate 15 comes into contact with the side side of the bottom plate to form a space 37 having an opening 36 in the back side of the housing (see FIG. 15). The space 37 is closed by inserting the floppy disk 38 through the opening 36 and rotating the rear cover 6 by about 180 degrees. The rear surface of the housing is opened by the rotation of the rear cover, and the cable 39 can be connected to the connector 5 that is exposed to the rear surface of the housing 2. The external stress applied to the housing is received by the entire support leg 35.

[0024]

According to the tilt mechanism of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a highly rigid support leg that is long in the width direction of the housing, and the rigidity in the left-right direction when the keyboard surface is inclined is guaranteed. In the case of using the rear cover of the housing, the number of parts of the supporting legs can be reduced, and the height of the keyboard surface can be inclined in two steps by changing the protruding height of the rear cover and the side plate. it can. Furthermore, if a hinge plate is hinged to the tip side of the bottom plate, a storage space can be formed between the bottom surface of the housing and the desk when the keyboard surface is tilted, and the space can be effectively used. .

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a side view showing a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a rear view showing the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a bottom view showing the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a rear view showing the second embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a bottom view showing the second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a side view showing a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a bottom view showing the third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a rear view showing the third embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a bottom view showing the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a side view showing a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a rear view showing the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a bottom view showing the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing a fifth embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view during assembly showing the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a sectional view of the fifth embodiment when storing a floppy disk.

FIG. 17 is a side view showing a conventional structure.

FIG. 18 is a rear view showing the conventional structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 notebook computer 2 housing 4 keyboard surface 6 rear cover 8 bottom plate 11 fitting groove 13 support leg 15 side plate 17 projection 18 notch 19 support leg 23 support leg 25 hinge plate 35 support leg 37 space 38 floppy disk

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A housing (2) whose upper surface is a keyboard surface (4)
A bottom plate (8) having a back side and a front side parallel to the back side of the housing is cut and formed on the bottom surface of the housing, and the front side is hinged to the device housing (2). A rear cover (6) that covers the external connectors provided on the back of the housing is attached to the back of the housing by pivoting the bottom side of the housing to the equipment housing (2). A tilt mechanism for a keyboard surface, characterized in that locking means (11) for locking the inner side and the upper side of the rear cover (6) with the rear cover (6) opened to the bottom side is provided. 2. A housing (2) having a keyboard surface (4) on its upper surface.
A bottom plate (8) having a back side and a front side parallel to the back side of the housing is cut and formed on the bottom surface of the housing, and the front side is hinged to the device housing (2). The bottom plate (8) is a side plate (15) whose inner side in the front and rear direction of the bottom surface of the housing is pivotally attached to the housing (2) and whose outer side is inclined toward the front side so as to be narrowed. Notches are formed on both sides of the bottom plate, and engaging means (17, 18) are provided on the side edge of the bottom plate and the outer edge of the side plate to engage both when the side plate (15) is erected. A tilt mechanism for the keyboard surface, which is characterized by 3. A rear cover (6) provided on the rear side of the case for covering external connection connectors and the like provided on the back side of the case is provided such that its lower side is pivotally attached to the apparatus case (2). A side plate in which the inner side provided in the front-rear direction of the bottom surface is pivotally attached to the housing (2) and the outer side is inclined toward the front side so as to be narrowed.
The side plate (15) and the rear cover (6) are formed by notching (15) at the same distance as the left and right length of the rear cover.
The engaging means (20, 22) is provided for engaging the side of the rear cover (6) and the inner side of the side plate with the side plate (15) standing upright with the side plate (15) raised. The tilt mechanism of the keyboard surface, which is characterized by 4. A housing (2) whose upper surface is a keyboard surface (4)
A bottom plate (8) having a back side and a front side parallel to the back side of the housing is cut and formed on the bottom surface of the housing, and the front side is hinged to the device housing (2). A rear cover (6), which covers the external connection connectors and the like provided on the back of the housing, is pivotally attached to the lower side of the equipment housing (2) on the rear surface of the housing, and Side plates (15) whose inner sides are pivotally attached to the housing (2) and whose outer sides are inclined toward the front side so as to be narrowed, are formed on both sides of the bottom plate (8) by cutting. Bottom plate (8)
And an engaging means (11) for engaging the upper side of the rear cover and the inner side of the bottom plate with the rear cover (6) open to the bottom side.
And engaging means (17, 18) for engaging the outer side of the standing side plate and the side of the bottom plate, and the protruding height when the rear cover (6) is protruded to the bottom side,
A tilt mechanism for a keyboard surface, characterized in that a height difference is provided between the side plate (15) and the standing height on the inner side when the side plate (15) is raised. 5. A housing (2) whose upper surface is a keyboard surface (4)
A bottom plate (8) having a back side and a front side parallel to the back side of the housing is cut and formed on the bottom surface of the housing, and the front side is hinged to the device housing (2). A rear cover (6), which covers the external connection connectors and the like provided on the back of the housing, is pivotally attached to the lower side of the equipment housing (2) on the rear surface of the housing, and Side plates (15) whose inner side is pivotally attached to the housing (2) and whose tip side is inclined toward the front side so as to be narrowed are formed on both sides of the bottom plate (8) by cutting. Bottom plate (8)
And the rear cover (6) opened to the bottom side, engaging means (1) for engaging the front side of the rear cover with the rear side of the bottom plate.
1) and engaging means (17, 18) for engaging the outer side of the standing side plate and the side of the bottom plate, and the protruding height of the rear cover (6) and the inner side of the side plate (15). Of the bottom plate (8) and a hinge plate (25) having the same width as the standing height of the front side of the side plate (15) is pivotally attached to the front side of the bottom plate (8). A tilt mechanism for the keyboard surface, the sides of which are pivotally attached to the device housing (2).