JPH1056274A - Cover body linking mechanism for electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To hold the display section, i.e., the cover body, surely and stably at an arbitrary angle by arranging a frictional body, an urging means and a face pressure control member sequentially on a coupling shaft with the cover body supported rotatably on the body side. SOLUTION: When a cover body 15 is turned from a 90 deg. position toward a 180 deg. position where the cover body 15 intersects a computer body 12 substantially perpendicularly, a cam member 22 turns along with a linking shaft 19 and a cam member 21, being recovered by releasing a coned disc spring 23, presses a curved protrusion 21a gradually through a curved protrusion 22a. Consequently, the cam member 21 is separated by a maximum distance from the other cam member 22 and an annular frictional body 20c is compressed strongly. Frictional force between the annular frictional body 20c and an annular frictional body 20a increases the operating force required for turning the cover body 15. It is balanced with the downward turning force caused by the self- weight of the cover body 15 and the actual operating force is kept at a substantially constant level at the time of opening/closing the cover body 15. Furthermore, the cover body 15 can be held surely and stably at that angular position.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a lid connecting mechanism for an electronic device such as a portable terminal or a notebook personal computer, and more particularly to a lid connecting mechanism for securely holding a lid at an arbitrary angle with respect to a main body. Regarding the mechanism.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a small word processor, a notebook personal computer, a subnotebook personal computer, and the like (hereinafter, also collectively referred to as a notebook personal computer or a notebook PC), a cover with a display screen has a It is provided on the computer main body so as to be openable and closable, and is configured so that the inclination can be adjusted back and forth according to the preference of the operator. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-324125 discloses a conventional notebook PC having a structure for holding a lid with a display screen (lid) at an arbitrary angle with respect to a computer main body (main body).
There is an angle adjusting device (first conventional example) described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 62-96730, and a display unit opening / closing structure (second conventional example) described in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open No. 62-96730.

In the angle adjusting device of the first conventional example, a one-way clutch is provided on a hinge portion for rotatably supporting a display portion, which is a lid with a display screen, and a forward direction is provided when the display portion is opened. Apply torque to the one-way clutch,
In addition, by applying a reverse torque to the one-way clutch when closing the display unit, the operating force for opening the display unit from its closed position is lighter than the operating force for moving from the open position to the closed position. Become.

In the second prior art display unit opening / closing structure, a rotating shaft for rotatably supporting the display unit with respect to the main body, a large frictional force is applied to the rotating shaft when the rotating shaft is rotated forward, and A shaft spring that applies a small frictional force to the rotating shaft at the time of reverse rotation, a rack that slides in the front-rear direction in conjunction with the rotation of the rotating shaft, and a rack and a spring stop at both ends of the rack are provided, and a display unit is provided. A rack spring that is fully extended when it is at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the main body. In this display unit opening / closing structure, the rotation force generated by the weight of the display unit is reduced at all angles by the action of the rack spring, and the force holding the display unit by the frictional force of the shaft spring with respect to the rotating shaft is substantially reduced at all angles. Make it even.

[0005]

According to the angle adjusting device of the first example, the display unit has a 6-degree angle in the front-rear direction about the axis of the upper part.
Although it is a type that rotates about 0 °, when the display unit opening / closing structure in this angle adjustment device is applied to a notebook PC in which the display unit rotates from a 0 ° position to a 180 ° position with respect to the main body, The following problems arise. In other words, in the range of the display unit from the 90 ° position perpendicular to the main body to the 180 ° position inclined backward, the torque by its own weight acts in the 180 ° position direction, and this torque acts on the one-way clutch in the forward direction. Therefore, the display unit is not stably held.

In the display unit opening / closing structure of the second example, the operating force at the time of opening and closing the display unit can always be kept constant by combining the shaft spring and the rack spring, but the torque generated by the rotating shaft and the shaft spring is generated. Since a rack and a rack spring must be mounted in addition to the mechanism, it is difficult to reduce the size of the device.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the above, the present invention provides a lid connecting mechanism of an electronic device which can be downsized and can securely and stably hold a lid as a display unit at an arbitrary angle. With the goal.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, a lid connecting mechanism for an electronic device according to the present invention includes an electronic device having a main body and a lid that is openably and closably connected to the main body. A first friction body supported on the main body side, and sliding on the first friction body when the lid body opens and closes with respect to the main body. A second friction member, an urging means for applying a surface pressure to a contact surface between the first friction member and the second friction member, and a pressing member for moving the cover over a first position substantially orthogonal to the main body. And a surface pressure control member for making the surface pressure by the urging means larger than the surface pressure by the urging means until the lid reaches the first position.

In the lid connecting mechanism of the electronic device according to the present invention, the surface pressure by the urging means after the lid has passed the first position substantially orthogonal to the main body reaches the first position of the lid. For example, if the lid body is rotated to the 180 ° position side beyond the first position and stopped at an arbitrary angle, the lid will further rotate in the same direction by its own weight, for example, because the surface pressure becomes larger than the contact pressure by the urging means. Can be reliably and stably held at the angular position. Also, if the lid is rotated to the 0 ° position side beyond the first position and stopped at an arbitrary angle, the lid that is to be further rotated in the same direction by its own weight is reliably and stably positioned at the angular position. Can be held.

Preferably, the lid is rotatably supported on the main body by a connecting shaft having one end fixed to the lid and the other end rotatably supported by the main body. You. Preferably, the first frictional body, the second frictional body,
The urging means and the surface pressure control member are sequentially arranged on the connection shaft. According to this structure, all parts can be collected on the connecting shaft to save space, so that the connecting structure of the lid is not enlarged.

Further, the surface pressure control member is slidably fitted to the connection shaft in a state in which the surface pressure control member is prevented from rotating relative to the main body; A second cam member adjacent to the first cam member, wherein when the first cam member and the second cam member rotate relative to each other, the first cam member corresponds to a rotation angle of the lid. It is preferable that the second cam member is formed into a shape that changes its position on the connection shaft by being pressed. Further, the biasing means is constituted by a disc spring that is elastically deformed by being pressed by the first cam member that moves on the connection shaft and that changes the surface pressure applied to the first friction body and the second friction body. be able to.

The second friction member is formed of a cam member fixed to the connection shaft and constituting the surface pressure control member, and the first friction member slides on an outer peripheral portion of the second friction member to make the connection. It is also a preferable embodiment to comprise a leaf spring for applying a different surface pressure to the second friction body in accordance with the rotation angle of the shaft, and to constitute the urging means. According to this configuration, since the second friction member and the surface pressure control member, and the first friction body and the urging means can be respectively constituted by one part, space saving can be realized, and therefore, the connection structure of the lid body can be realized. Enlargement can be avoided.

[0013]

The present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 11 shows a notebook PC to which the present invention is applied.
1 is an exploded side view showing a lid connecting mechanism in the notebook PC, and FIG. 2 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 0 ° position. FIG. 3
FIG. 4 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at the 90 ° position, and FIG. 4 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at the 180 ° position. is there.

[0014] As shown in FIG.
A computer body 12 having a keyboard 11,
Openable and closable lid 1 having liquid crystal display screen (LCD) 13
5 The lid 15 has legs 16 on the left and right sides, respectively. The legs 16 are rotatably supported on the computer main body 12 by a connection shaft 19 (see FIG. 1).

As shown in FIG. 1, the connecting shaft 19 on one of the left and right legs 16 has a flange 19a at an intermediate portion, and a fixing portion 19b provided at one end is provided with a rotating connecting portion 16 of the lid 15.
And a fitting portion 19c provided at the other end thereof is attached to the base bracket 17 fixed to the computer main body 12.
Is rotatably penetrated and supported by the through hole 17a.

The first annular friction body 20a, the second annular friction bodies 20b and 20c, the disc spring 23, and the rotationally symmetrically adjacent fitting portion 19c protruding from the through hole 17a to the inside of the main body 12. A pair of the first cam member 21 and the second cam member 22 and a fixing member 22 fixed to an end of the fitting portion 19c
Are fitted. Further, the first annular friction body (first friction body) 20a is fixed to the computer main body 12 side, and a fitting portion 19c is rotatably penetrated through the hole 18 at the center. Further, the second annular friction bodies 20b and 20c located at the position sandwiching the first annular friction body 20a have their respective central portions in a state where mutual rotation with respect to the fitting portion 19c is suppressed and axial movement is allowed. The fitting portion 19c is fitted into the holes 24 and 25 of the first and second holes.

The first cam member 21 is slidably fitted to the fitting portion 19c of the connecting shaft 19 in a state where mutual rotation with respect to the main body 12 is suppressed. 19 is fixed to the fitting portion 19c. First and second
The cam members 21 and 22 respectively have curved convex portions 21a and 22a and curved convex portions 21a and 22 protruding in the axial direction of the connection shaft 19.
a is provided with curved concave portions 21b and 22b formed to face each other. Since the first and second cam members 21 and 22 have the above-described shape, when the first and second cam members 21 and 22 rotate relative to each other, the first cam member 21 is pressed against the second cam member 22 in accordance with the rotation angle of the lid 15. Then, it moves on the connecting shaft 19. In the closed position (0 ° position) where the lid 15 is completely closed with respect to the computer main body 12, the first and second cam members 21 and 22 are, as shown in FIG. 9 in FIG.
The first cam member 21 is turned 90 ° from the 0 ° position.

The disc spring 23 is fitted into the hole 26 at the center of the fitting portion 1.
9c is slidably fitted, is pressed and compressed by the first cam member 21 moving on the connecting shaft 19, presses the second annular friction body 20c, and presses the first and second annular friction bodies. 20
a, 20b, and 20c apply the surface pressure applied to each contact surface to the lid 1
5 (the connecting shaft 19) is changed stepwise in accordance with the rotation angle.

In the notebook PC 10 having the above structure, the lid 1
5 with respect to the computer body 12 in the closed position (0
In the (゜) position, the second cam member 22 of the lid connecting mechanism rotates 90 ° with respect to the first cam member
a is pressed in the axial direction by the curved convex portion 22a, and the first cam member 21 is moved by the distance a in the axial direction. As a result, the disc spring 23 is compressed by the distance a and presses the second annular friction body 20c.
However, the second annular friction body 20c and the second annular friction body 20b which abuts on the base bracket 17 and is prevented from moving in the axial direction.
And sandwiched by. For this reason, the lid 15 is opened by the frictional force between the second annular frictional bodies 20b and 20c and the first annular frictional body 20a whose rotation relative to the connection shaft 19 fixed to the lid 15 is suppressed. A predetermined operating force required for the operation is generated.

In the above state, when the lid 15 is rotated toward a position 90 ° substantially perpendicular to the computer main body 12, the second cam member 22 rotates together with the connecting shaft 19, and the curved convex portion is formed. The curved convex portion 22a pressing the 21a is
The first cam member 21 is released by gradually rotating in a direction approaching the curved concave portion 21b. Therefore, at the 90 ° position of the lid 15, the first cam member 21 moves toward the second cam member 22 by the urging force of the disc spring 23, as shown in FIG. Release the body 20c.

Thereafter, the cover 15 is moved 180 degrees from the 90 ° position.
When the second cam member 22 is rotated toward the ゜ position, the second cam member 22 further rotates together with the connection shaft 19, and the first cam member 21 that has been released and restored by the disc spring 23 is bent by the curved convex portion 22a. The convex part 21a is gradually pressed. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 4, the first cam member 21 is moved by a distance obtained by adding the distance b to the distance a in FIG.
0c is strongly compressed. Therefore, the second annular friction body 20b,
The operating force required to rotate the lid 15 increases due to the frictional force between the first annular frictional body 20a and the first annular frictional body 20a.

As described above, in the present lid connecting mechanism which is displaced as shown in FIGS.
The surface pressure of the disc spring 23 after exceeding a 90 ° position substantially orthogonal to 2 becomes larger than the surface pressure of the disc spring 23 until the lid 15 reaches the 90 ° position.

FIG. 5 shows the correlation between the operating force for opening and closing the lid and the rotation angle. As shown in FIG.
Is released from its closed position, the operation force required to start rotating the lid 15 from the 0 ° position is small. Thereafter, the operation force monotonously increases in accordance with the rotation angle of the lid 15. At the 90 ° position, the first cam member 21 abuts the second cam member 22 in a complete state, and is farthest from the second annular friction body 20c, and further moves the lid 15 from the 90 ° position toward the 180 ° position. When rotated, the rotating second cam member 22 strongly presses the first cam member 21 against the second annular friction body 20c while prying the first cam member 21.
It becomes maximum at the 0 ° position.

When the opened lid 15 is rotated toward its closed position, the second cam member 22 is moved to the position shown in FIG.
From this state, the first cam member 21 is smoothly rotated while moving to the left in the drawing, and the operating force monotonically increases from the minimum state at the 180 ° position to the 90 ° position. 9
At the 0 ° position, the first cam member 21 abuts the second cam member 22 in a perfect state, and is furthest away from the second annular friction body 20c. When the lid 15 is further rotated from the 90 ° position to the 0 ° position, the second cam member 22
However, while prying the first cam member 21, the second annular friction body 20
Since the pressing force is applied to the c side, the operating force is maximized at the 0 ° position.

As described above, according to the present lid connecting mechanism,
In both the case where the lid 15 is rotated from the 0 ° position to the 180 ° position and the case where the lid 15 is rotated from the 180 ° position to the 0 ° position, the operating force required for opening and closing increases monotonically. However, in actuality, a force that tends to rotate downward due to its own weight always acts on the lid 15. Therefore, when the turning power due to its own weight and the necessary operating force are combined, the actual rotation of the lid 15 is performed. The moment of time is almost always constant at all angles. Therefore, the actual operating force for opening and closing the lid 15 is almost always constant.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the lid connecting mechanism in the second embodiment, FIG. 7 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at the 0 ° position and the 180 ° position, FIG.
FIG. 6 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 90 ° position. FIG. 9 is a side view showing the state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid rotates from the 0 ° position to the 90 ° position, and FIG.
It is a side view which shows the state of the lid connection mechanism at the time of rotating to a position. In FIG. 6, members common to those of the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIG. 6, the leg 16 of the lid 15
Is rotatably supported on the computer main body 12 side by the connecting shaft 29. The connection shaft 29 includes a flange portion 29a at an intermediate portion, a fixed portion 29b at one end portion is fixed to the rotation connection portion 16 of the lid 15, and a fitting portion 29c at the other end portion is formed as a through hole of the base bracket 17. 17a so as to be rotatably penetrated and supported. A second friction body 29d is fixed to an intermediate portion of the fitting portion 29c. The second friction body 29d is formed of a cam member having an elliptical shape in side view, which constitutes a surface pressure control member.

A first friction body 30 is provided at a position surrounding the second friction body 29d. The first frictional body 30 is formed of a leaf spring that slides on the outer peripheral portion of the second frictional body 29d and applies a different surface pressure to the second frictional body 29d according to the rotation angle of the connecting shaft 29. The first friction body 30 is formed by a single leaf spring, and includes flat portions 30a and 30b and a semicircular portion 30c substantially surrounding the second friction body 29d.
a flat portion 30d following the flat portion 30a and the flat portion 3 following the flat portion 30b
0e, and is fixed to the base bracket 17 by a fixing screw 31 screwed into the screw hole 17b of the base bracket 17.
Fixed to

Flat portions 30a, 30b and semicircular portion 30c
The second friction member 29d, which is rotatably supported in the space surrounded by the circle, has a long axis of the ellipse as shown in FIG. 7 when the lid 15 rotates to the 0 ° position and the 180 ° position. Are slid in contact with the inner surfaces of the flat portions 30a and 30b, respectively, and the flat portions 30a and 30b are expanded left and right by a distance c to increase the frictional force with the first frictional body 30. . When the lid 15 is rotated to the 90 ° position, the second friction member 29d is configured such that only one end along the major axis of the ellipse is formed on the inner surface of the semicircular portion 30c as shown in FIG. , And push up the semicircular portion 30c upward to reduce the frictional force between the first frictional body 30 and the lid 15 at the 0 ° position and 18 °.
It should be smaller than the operating force when rotating to the 0 ° position.

Therefore, in the lid connecting mechanism of the second embodiment, the required operating force for opening and closing the lid 15 changes as follows. That is, when the lid 15 at the closed position (0 ° position) starts to be opened, the surface pressure α applied from the first friction body 30 to the second friction member 29d becomes, as shown in FIG. And γ. Also, if the lid 15 is 9
Surface pressure α when rotating from 0 ° position to 180 ° position
Can be considered as the distributed moments δ and ε. Β among the dispersed moments is the second friction member 29d
Is rotated in the direction of arrow B in FIG.
The operation force when rotating 5 from the 0 ° position to the 90 ° position is reduced. Conversely, δ of the dispersed moments is a force for suppressing the rotation of the second friction member 29d in the direction of arrow C in FIG.
Increase the operating force when rotating toward the 80 ° position.

When the lid 15 is rotated in the closing direction, a force in the opposite direction acts on the second friction member 29d which rotates in the opposite direction. In FIG. 10, a force similar to the moment β in FIG. 9 acts on the second friction member 29d that rotates counterclockwise, so that the lid 15 is rotated from the 180 ° position to the 90 ° position. The operating force at the time becomes lighter. In addition, since the same force as the moment δ in FIG. 10 acts on the friction member 29d that rotates in the counterclockwise direction in FIG.
The operation force when rotating from the ゜ position to the 0 ゜ position becomes heavy.

Therefore, the cover 15 is changed by the change in the shape of the first friction member 30 caused by the rotation angle of the second friction member 29d and the dispersion moments β and δ caused by the change in shape.
The operating force for opening and closing the door is the same as FIG. 5 in the first embodiment.
Changes in the same manner as the operation force change curve. In the present embodiment, the second member, which is a separate member in the first embodiment, is used.
Annular friction members 20b and 20c and first and second cam members 2
The first and second friction members 29d can be configured as one piece as a second friction member 29d.
Can be composed of one part as the first friction body 30. Thereby, space saving can be realized, and enlargement of the connection structure of the lid 15 can be avoided.

Although the present invention has been described based on the preferred embodiment, the lid connecting mechanism of the electronic apparatus of the present invention is not limited to the configuration of the above-described embodiment. A cover connecting mechanism of an electronic device in which various modifications and changes have been made from the configuration of the embodiment is also included in the scope of the present invention.

[0034]

As described above, according to the lid connecting mechanism of the electronic device of the present invention, the lid as the display unit can be securely and stably held at an arbitrary angle, and its size can be reduced. Is easy.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded side view showing a lid connecting mechanism in a notebook PC according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 0 ° position.

FIG. 3 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 90 ° position.

FIG. 4 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 180 ° position.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing a correlation between an operation force and a rotation angle when the lid of the lid coupling mechanism is opened and closed.

FIG. 6 is an exploded side view showing a lid connecting mechanism in a notebook PC according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at the 0 ° position and the 180 ° position.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid is at a 90 ° position.

FIG. 9 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid rotates from the 0 ° position to the 90 ° position.

FIG. 10 is a side view showing a state of the lid connecting mechanism when the lid rotates from a 90 ° position to a 180 ° position.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an entire notebook PC to which the present invention is applied.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 10 notebook personal computer (electronic device) 12 computer main body (main body) 15 lid 17 base bracket 17 17a through hole 19, 29 connecting shaft 19b, 29b fixing portion 19c, 29c fitting portion 20a first annular friction body (first 20b, 20c 2nd annular friction body (2nd friction body) 21 1st cam member (surface pressure control member) 22 2nd cam member (surface pressure control member) 23 disc spring (biasing means) 29d 2nd Friction body (contact pressure control member) 30 First friction body (biasing means)

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A lid coupling mechanism for an electronic device, comprising: a main body; and a lid connected to the main body so as to be openable and closable, wherein: a first friction body supported on the main body side; A second frictional body that is supported and slides with respect to the first frictional body when the lid opens and closes with respect to the main body; and a surface pressure is applied to a contact surface between the first frictional body and the second frictional body. And a cover for applying a surface pressure by the urging unit after the lid has passed a first position substantially orthogonal to the main body.
A surface pressure control member for increasing the surface pressure by the urging means until the position reaches the position. 2. The lid is rotatably supported on the main body by a connection shaft having one end fixed to the lid and the other end rotatably supported on the main body side. , Claim 1
4. A lid connecting mechanism for an electronic device according to claim 1. 3. The electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the first friction member, the second friction member, the urging means, and the surface pressure control member are sequentially arranged on the connection shaft. mechanism. 4. A first cam member slidably fitted to the connection shaft in a state in which the surface pressure control member is prevented from rotating relative to the main body, wherein the first cam member is fixed to the connection shaft and A second cam member adjacent to the first cam member, wherein when the first cam member and the second cam member rotate relative to each other, the first cam member corresponds to a rotation angle of the lid. 4. The lid connection mechanism of the electronic device according to claim 3, wherein the lid connection mechanism is pressed by a second cam member and moves on the connection shaft. 5. 5. The urging means changes the surface pressure applied to the first friction member and the second friction member by being elastically deformed by being pressed by the first cam member moving on the connection shaft. The lid connecting mechanism of the electronic device according to claim 4, comprising a disc spring. 6. The second friction body comprises a cam member fixed to the connection shaft and constituting the surface pressure control member.
The first friction body includes a leaf spring that slidably contacts an outer peripheral portion of the second friction body and applies a different surface pressure to the second friction body in accordance with the rotation angle of the connection shaft. The lid connecting mechanism of the electronic device according to claim 2, wherein the lid connecting mechanism is configured.