JPH10322038A - Electrical equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To cover the connection part of a connector with an external equipment with a case at the time of the normal use of an electrical equipment, to prevent dusts or the like from intruding in the case and to make it possible to take out an internal equipment in the forward direction of the case, by a method wherein the connection part, which enables the connection of the connector with the external equipment, is provided on the circumferential surface of a frame and, when the frame is pulled out, this connection part is made to expose to the outside of a case main body. SOLUTION: A slot 3 for PC card a hole 7 for volume control and a hole 34 for connector insertion are formed in both side plates of a frame in a state that the slot 3, the hole 7 and the hole 34 respectively correspond to a PC card 4, a volume 32 and a connector 8. When the frame 25 is pulled out forward at a prescribed amount from a case main body 5 along with a front surface cover 2, the slot 3 and the holes 7 and 34 are exposed in the forward direction of a control board 10 and a mounting of the card 4 to the side plate of the frame 25, a control of the volume 32 and the connection of an external equipment with the connector are made possible.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electric device applied to an air conditioner of an air conditioner control device, and more particularly to an electric device which can be pulled out inside a wall or a control panel.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In an air-conditioning control device, operation / stop switching, setting and changing of operating conditions such as temperature and air flow are performed by an air-conditioning setting device mounted on a wall or the like.
Therefore, the air-conditioning setting device includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) for displaying a setting state, a push button switch, and the like, and is connected to the air-conditioning control device by a cable for signal transmission.
In addition, recent setting devices of this type include setting of temperature, air volume, etc.
At the time of adjustment, a device provided with a connection unit that enables connection of an external device such as a personal computer (PC) or a memory card (PC card) is known.

FIGS. 9 and 10 show a conventional example of such an air conditioner. FIG. 9A shows an example in which a JEIDA (Japan Electronic Industry Development Association) standard PC card 4 is inserted into a slot 3 provided in the front cover 2 of the air-conditioning setting device 1, and FIG. (C) of an example in which the PC card 4 is inserted into the slot 3 provided on the side surface of FIG.
Shows an example in which the PC card 4 is built in the case body 5. In FIG. 9A, the insertion end of the PC card 4 is connected to a connector provided in the air conditioner 1, and the end opposite to the insertion side protrudes forward of the front cover 2. In the example of (a) -2, the end of the insertion side of the PC card 4 protrudes to the rear of the case body 5 and is connected to the connector 6 provided separately from the air conditioner 1, and is opposite to the insertion side. An example in which the side end is completely inserted into the slot 3 is shown.

FIG. 10A shows an example in which a hole 7 for adjusting the volume is provided on the front surface of the front cover 2, and FIG.
Connector for PC connection such as D-sub 15 pin on the front of
Are shown below. Note that a screwdriver or the like is inserted into the volume adjustment hole 7.

[0005]

However, the above-mentioned conventional air conditioner 1 has the following problems. That is, in the air-conditioning setting device shown in FIGS. 9A and 10, since the slot 3, the volume connection hole 7 or the connector 8 is exposed on the front side of the front cover 2, the appearance is not good. Alternatively, there is a problem that dust and the like enter, which is not preferable. FIG.
In the air-conditioning setting device shown in (b), the PC card slot 3 is open to the side of the case body 5,
There is a problem that dust and the like enter. In the air-conditioning setting device shown in FIG. 8C, a storage space for storing the PC card 4 needs to be provided in the case main body 5, so that the length of the case main body 5 is increased, which is disadvantageous for miniaturization. is there.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and has as its object a relatively simple structure, which covers a connection portion with an external device during normal use to provide an external appearance. An object of the present invention is to provide an electric device which has a good appearance, can prevent dust and the like from entering, and can take out an internal device forward.

[0007]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention relates to a case body and a front cover for covering a front opening of the case body in an electric device incorporated and mounted in a control panel, a wall or the like. And a frame fixed to the front cover and housed in the case main body so as to be able to be pulled out, and provided on a peripheral surface of the frame with a connection portion that enables connection with an external device. And is exposed to the outside of the case main body when being pulled out. In the present invention, since the connection portion is normally covered by the case body, dust and the like do not enter the connection portion. Further, since the connection portion is provided on the side surface of the frame, the appearance of the device is not impaired.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that a frame locking mechanism for locking the frame at a predetermined drawing position is provided. In the present invention, the frame locking mechanism securely locks the frame at a predetermined draw-out position.

Further, the present invention provides a locking mechanism for a frame,
It is characterized by comprising a locking member having a locking hole and elastically deformable in the thickness direction provided on the case body and a locking piece provided on the frame and locked by the locking hole. I do. In the present invention, the structure of the frame locking mechanism is simple and the number of parts is small.

Further, the present invention is characterized in that the frame can be pulled out of the case body when the locked state of the locking piece by the locking hole is released. Therefore, when the device itself breaks down, the frame can be easily pulled out from the front side of the case body.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a state where the present invention is applied to an air-conditioning setting device, which is attached to a control panel, FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG.
3 is a side view of a main part of the case main body and the front cover, FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 3, FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the frame as viewed from diagonally forward left, with the frame pulled out from the case body, and FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII of FIG. The same components as those shown in the section of the prior art are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate. In these figures, reference numeral 10 denotes a control panel, and 11 denotes an air conditioner set in a mounting hole 12 provided on the surface of the control panel 10.

The air-conditioning setting device 11 is a horizontally long box-shaped case body 5 formed of a synthetic resin and having an open front surface.
And a front cover 2 that covers the front opening of the case body 5.
The case body 5 is fitted into the mounting hole 12 of the control panel 10 from the front and fixed by a plurality of screws (not shown). At the front end of the outer surface of the case body 5, a rib 14 that abuts on the periphery of the mounting hole 12 on the front surface side of the control panel 10 is integrally protruded over substantially the entire circumference. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, a cover locking piece 15 for locking the front cover 2 is integrally provided at a middle portion in the height direction of 5 a.

The cover locking piece 15 is provided with the side plate 5a.
The upper and lower surfaces are separated from the side plate 5a by the two upper and lower slits 16 provided at the rear end, so that the rear end side is formed in a tongue shape elastically deformable in the plate thickness direction connected to the side plate 5a,
On the outer surface of the front end portion, a button 18 is integrally protruded from a notch 17 provided on a side surface of the front cover 2.
The button 18 is exposed outside the control panel 10 as shown in FIG. 1 when the air conditioner 11 is attached to the control panel 10. Further, the locking piece 15 for the cover,
It has an outward bias, its front end protrudes forward by the thickness of the rib 14 in front of the side plate 5a, and a cover locking rib 20 is integrally formed on the outer surface of the front end. ing.

On the other hand, on the inner surface of the front cover 2, a projection 21 is integrally provided corresponding to the rib 20. The projection 21 engages with the rib 20 when the front cover 2 is covered with the front opening of the case body 5. Near the upper and lower ends of the inner surface of the front cover 2, a pair of left and right resilient engagement pieces 22 (see FIG. 8) are integrally formed to protrude, respectively. When the cover 5 is covered, the case 5 engages with engagement holes 23 formed at the front ends of the upper plate and the lower plate of the case body 5. As a result, the front cover 2 is detachably attached to the case body 5. When the front cover 2 is detached from the case body 5, the left and right buttons 18 are pressed by hand to elastically deform the locking pieces 15 for the cover inward, thereby releasing the engagement between the ribs 20 and the protrusions 21. In this state, when the front cover 2 is pulled toward the user to disengage the engagement pieces 22 and the engagement holes 23, the front cover 2 can be easily removed. The slit 16 is formed substantially rearward from the front end face of the side plate 5a to substantially the center of the side plate 5a.

Inside the case body 5, a frame 25 which can be pulled out is housed. This frame 25
Is formed in a frame shape smaller than the case body 5 by bending a metal plate, and an LCD 26 and a plurality of LEDs 27 are provided on the front surface. The display of the LCD 26 is exposed to the outside through an opening 28 formed in the center of the front cover 2, and the LED 27 is inserted into a small hole 29 formed on one side of the front cover 2. As shown in FIG. 2, a printed wiring board 30, a connector 8 such as a 15-pin PC D-sub, etc., which constitutes a connection portion with an external device, an adjustment volume 32, and a PC card 4 are mounted inside the frame 25. Various electric components such as a PC card drive 31 are stored. Therefore, both sides of the frame 25 are provided with a slot 3 for PC card and a hole 7 for volume adjustment.
A connector insertion hole 34 is formed corresponding to the PC card 4, the adjustment volume 32, and the connector 8, respectively. In such a frame 25, a total of four elastic resilient engagement pieces 36 projecting in pairs on both sides of the inner surface of the front cover 2 engage with engagement holes (not shown) formed on both side plates of the frame 25. Thereby, it is detachably attached to the front cover 2. When the frame 25 is pulled out of the case body 5 by a predetermined amount together with the front cover 2 as shown in FIGS. Exposed in front of 10,
The mounting of the PC card 4, the adjustment of the volume 32, and the connection of an external device are enabled.

3, FIG. 5, FIG. 6, and FIG. 8, both side plates 5a of the case main body 5 are further provided with a frame locking mechanism 40 for locking the frame 25 at a predetermined drawing position. I have. This frame locking mechanism 40
Is provided with a locking member 41 having an appropriate width, which is disposed along the inner surface of the side plate 5a of the case body 5 and is made of a leaf spring that is long in the front-rear direction. The rear end of the locking member 41 is bent into an L-shape to form a fixed portion 41a, and is inserted into and locked by a sun-shaped locking hole 42 provided in the side plate 5a. The front portion of the locking member 41 from the fixed portion 41a constitutes a free end portion 41b, which is bent inward to be separated from the inner surface of the side plate 5a in a natural state as shown in FIG. And its front end 41
c protrudes forward of the case body 5 and is bent outward in the shape of a "<". The locking member 4
A locking hole 44 for locking the frame 25 at a predetermined drawing position and a long hole 45 are formed in the one free end portion 41b. The locking hole 44 is formed in front of the long hole 45. The long hole 45 is for releasing the locking piece 46 provided on the frame 25 when the frame 25 is stored in the case main body 5, and is formed to be long in the front-rear direction of the locking member 41, and has a front edge. A tongue piece 47 bent at a required angle is provided outside. The tongue piece 47 is provided to prevent the locking piece 46 from contacting the front edge of the elongated hole 45 when the frame 25 is pulled out of the case body 5. A concave portion 50 is formed in a portion of the inner surface of the side plate 5a corresponding to the free end portion 41b of the locking member 41, and a through hole 5 corresponding to the tongue piece 47 is formed.
1 is formed. The locking piece 46 is attached to the frame 25.
Is formed by cutting and raising a part of the side plate constituting the side surface at the required angle outward. The width of the locking piece 46 is smaller than the width of the locking hole 44.

The air-conditioning setting device 11 having such a structure.
, The frame 25 is housed in the case body 5 along the inner surface of the locking member 41. When the frame 25 is gradually inserted into the case main body 5, the locking piece 46 presses the free end 41b of the locking member 41 from the inside, so that the free end 1b is elastically deformed outward and the side plate 5a. The frame 25 is elastically held by the elastic force at this time. When the frame 25 is completely inserted into the case body 5, the locking pieces 46 are located in the elongated holes 45. In this state, the slot 3, the volume adjustment hole 7
Since the connector insertion hole 34 is covered by the case body 5, dust and the like do not enter.

In order to pull out the frame 25 stored in the case body 5 by a predetermined amount, the button 18 of the cover locking piece 15 provided on the right and left side plates of the case body 5 is pressed by hand to lock the cover. The piece 15 is elastically deformed inward to release the engagement between the rib 20 and the protruding body 21, and in this state, the front cover 2 is pulled forward to disengage the engagement piece 22 from the engagement hole 23. Then, the frame 25 is pulled out of the case body 5. At this time, the frame 25 is pulled out along the inner surface of the locking member 41, and when pulled out by a predetermined amount, the front end of the locking piece 46 comes into contact with the front edge of the locking hole 44 and stops. FIG. 8 shows this state. When the frame 25 is pulled out by a predetermined amount, the slot 3, the volume adjustment hole 7 and the connector insertion hole 34 are exposed in front of the case body 5, and the mounting of the PC card 4, the adjustment of the volume 32, and the external device Enable connection.

When it is necessary to pull out the frame 25 from the case main body 5 due to a failure of the air conditioner 11 itself, the frame 25 is pulled out to a predetermined position as shown in FIG. Is elastically deformed in the direction of the arrow to bring the free end portion 41b into close contact with the concave portion 50 and release the engagement between the locking hole 44 and the locking piece 46, whereby the frame 25 can be easily pulled out of the case body 5.

In the above embodiment, an example is shown in which the air conditioner 11 is attached to the control panel 10.
The present invention is not limited to this, and can be applied to an air-conditioning setting device 11 mounted on a wall surface, and is not limited to the air-conditioning setting device, and is applied to various electric devices mounted on a wall surface, a control panel, a switchboard, and the like. It is possible to

[0021]

As described above, according to the electric device of the present invention, since the connection portion to which the external device is connected is usually covered by the case body, dust and the like do not enter the connection portion. Further, since the connection portion is provided on the side surface of the frame, the design is excellent without impairing the appearance. Further, in the present invention, since the locking mechanism for the frame is provided, the frame can be reliably locked at the predetermined drawing position. Further, the structure of the frame locking mechanism is simple, the number of parts is small, and the frame can be provided at low cost. Further, in the present invention, the frame can be pulled out of the case body when the locked state of the locking piece by the locking hole is released.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of an example in which the present invention is applied to an air conditioner, which is mounted on a control panel.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view taken along the line II-II of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view of a main part of a case body and a front cover.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along line VV of FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the frame pulled out from the case main body as viewed obliquely from the right front side.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the frame pulled out from the case main body as viewed obliquely from the left front.

8 is a sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII in FIG.

FIGS. 9A, 9B, and 9C are perspective views each showing a conventional example of an air-conditioning setting device capable of mounting a PC card.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are perspective views each showing another conventional example of the air conditioner.

[Explanation of symbols]

2 ... Front cover, 3 ... Slot, 4 ... PC card, 5 ...
Case body, 8: Connector for external device, 10: Control panel, 11: Air conditioner, 12: Mounting hole, 15: Locking piece for cover, 25: Frame, 26: LCD, 40: Locking for frame Mechanism, 41: locking member, 46: locking piece, 50
... locking holes.

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An electric device incorporated and mounted in a control panel, a wall, or the like, a case main body, a front cover covering a front opening of the case main body, and fixed to the front cover so as to be freely drawn into the case main body. And a connection portion that enables connection with an external device is provided on a peripheral surface of the frame, and the connection portion is exposed to the outside of the case body when the frame is pulled out. Electrical equipment. 2. The electric device according to claim 1, further comprising a frame locking mechanism for locking the frame at a predetermined drawing position. 3. The electric device according to claim 2, wherein the frame locking mechanism is provided on the frame, the locking member having a locking hole and being elastically deformable in a thickness direction provided on the case body. And a locking piece locked by the locking hole. 4. The electric device according to claim 3, wherein the frame can be pulled out of the case body when the locked state of the locking piece by the locking hole is released.