JPH11329580A - Connector device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent an IC card from being diagonally inserted across a plurality of card insertion portions by providing a housing having a storing space to which a plurality of IC cards and HDD package can selectively attached and providing removable partition member placed between the plural card insertion portions formed at an opening end of the storing space. SOLUTION: Guide grooves 2a, 2b are respectively formed in the upper part and the lower part of the inner side surface of a housing 1 which sandwich and storing space 2 and are facing each other, and guide side movement of an IC card. A partition plate 4 can be attached or detached to slender grooves 2d on the right and left sides of a narrow width portion 2c of the housing 1, and divides the storing space 2 into up and down parts when it is attached. Therefore, the operability during insertion of the IC card is largely improved. Because the partition plate 4 can be easily detached from the housing 1 by hanging a finger into an oblong hole 4a, it does not provide any trouble for insertion of an HDD package.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a connector device mounted on a device which is used by inserting and removing a data storage medium such as an IC card, and more particularly, to selectively connecting a plurality of IC cards and a hard disk drive package. The present invention relates to an insertable connector device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a connector device of this type, a housing having a storage space in which two IC cards and a hard disk drive (hereinafter abbreviated as HDD) package can be selectively loaded, and an innermost portion of the storage space. In general, there is known a configuration having a large number of pin contacts disposed in a housing and an ejection mechanism for ejecting an inserted IC card or HDD package. In some cases, the housing may be formed by combining a pair of frames that sandwich the storage space from both left and right sides and a pin housing into which the pin contact group is pressed and fixed.

As shown in FIG. 7, the conventional connector device having the above-described structure has an upper portion and a lower portion of an inner surface of a housing 1 opposed to each other with a storage space 2 therebetween. Guide grooves 2a and 2b for guiding the sliding movement are formed along the longitudinal direction, and each guide groove 2a and 2b is extended to the opening end on the near side of the storage space 2 so that the upper part of the opening end and The lower part defines card insertion parts 3a and 3b into which IC cards can be individually inserted and extracted. The area between the upper and lower guide grooves 2a and 2b in the storage space 2 is a narrow portion 2c which is slightly smaller than the width of the IC card.
The narrow portion 2c guides the sliding movement of the HDD package (not shown) at the time of insertion and removal, and the narrow portion 2c
c, the upper card insertion portion 3a and the guide groove 2a
And the lower card insertion portion 3b and the guide groove 2b are clearly distinguished, so that erroneous insertion of the IC card can be easily avoided.

The IC card inserted into the card insertion portion 3a can be guided to the guide groove 2a and securely connected to the corresponding pin contact, and the IC card inserted into the card insertion portion 3b can be guided to the guide groove 2b. Can be securely connected to the corresponding pin contact.
It can be used by inserting two IC cards into one of the upper and lower card insertion sections 3a and 3b, or can be used by inserting two IC cards into the card insertion sections 3a and 3b at the same time. If an HDD package is inserted instead of an IC card, the HDD package guided by the narrow portion 2c can be reliably connected to the corresponding pin contact.

[0005]

However, in the above-described conventional connector device, although the guide grooves 2a and 2b and the narrow portion 2c are formed, the storage space 2 itself is not divided, and Card insertion part 3a,
As shown in FIG. 8, there is no partition between the upper and lower card insertion sections 3b.
There has been a problem that it is easy to be inserted obliquely over a and 3b. Further, the IC card 1 thus erroneously inserted.
Since 0 is guided by the upper and lower guide grooves 2a and 2b and slides rearward, the operator is often late in noticing the erroneous insertion and impairs the operability.

[0006]

According to the connector device of the present invention, a partition is provided between a plurality of card insertion portions formed at an opening end of a storage space, so that an IC card spans a plurality of card insertion portions. As a result, operability when inserting an IC card is improved. Further, by making the partition detachable, the insertion of the HDD package is not hindered.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In a connector device according to the present invention, a housing having a storage space in which a plurality of IC cards and HDD packages can be selectively loaded, and a plurality of sockets disposed at the innermost portion of the storage space. Pin contact, and an eject mechanism for ejecting the inserted IC card or HDD package. A plurality of IC cards into which a plurality of IC cards can be individually inserted and removed are provided at the front open end of the storage space. In a connector device in which card insertion portions are formed at predetermined intervals, the partition member is detachable from the housing, and at least a part is positioned between the plurality of card insertion portions when the housing is attached. The configuration was provided with.

In the connector device having such a partition member attached thereto, there is no fear that the IC card is inserted obliquely across a plurality of card insertion portions, and the IC card is securely inserted into each of the divided card insertion portions. Therefore, the operability at the time of inserting the IC card is greatly improved. Further, since this partition member can be removed from the housing, there is no hindrance to insertion of the HDD package.

[0009] For example, when a partition plate is used as the partition member that extends to the back of the storage space at the time of attachment and divides the storage space, the cost of parts can be kept extremely low. Alternatively, when a cover member having a plurality of window holes for exposing the plurality of card insertion portions is detachable at a position where the opening end of the storage space is closed with a lid as the partition member,
Since each card insertion portion is exposed as a slotted insertion slot, operability is further improved.

[0010] The partition member may include a plurality of doors which can be individually closed by the plurality of card insertion portions at the time of attachment, and urging means for elastically urging these doors in the closing direction. If the IC card is provided, the storage space can be automatically closed with the opening / closing door when the IC card is not loaded, so that a dustproof effect can be expected.

Further, if the partition member has a stopper piece which can be changed in posture to a position facing the card insertion portion at the time of the attachment, the inserted IC card is erroneously ejected. It is possible to prevent a connection disconnection accident.

[0012]

Embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a partition plate is attached to a housing of a connector device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front view of the housing and the partition plate shown in FIG. 1, and FIGS. FIG. 4 is an external view of a partition plate shown in FIG.
FIG. 5 is an external view of a cover member according to an embodiment, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a main part of a partition member according to an embodiment, and FIG. 6 is a main part perspective view showing a stopper piece storage state and a stopper piece upright state in the partition member according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. In these figures, parts corresponding to those in FIGS. 7 and 8 used for explanation of the prior art are denoted by the same reference numerals.

First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.
To describe the embodiment, reference numeral 1 denotes a housing, 2 denotes a storage space formed in the housing 1, and 2a and 2b denote upper and lower inner surfaces of the housing 1 opposed to each other with the storage space 2 interposed therebetween. The guide groove 2c formed to guide the sliding movement of the IC card (not shown) is slightly narrower than the width of the IC card in a region between the upper and lower guide grooves 2a and 2b in the storage space 2. The portion 2d is formed by narrow grooves formed on both left and right sides of the narrow portion 2c, and the portions 3a and 3b are defined by extending the respective guide grooves 2a and 2b to the front open end of the storage space 2. A card insertion portion 4 into which an IC card can be individually inserted and removed is a partition plate which is detachable from the narrow portion 2c of the housing 1 and divides the storage space 2 into upper and lower parts when the card is attached. That is, the partition plate 4 can be easily attached to the housing 1 by inserting it into the narrow grooves 2d on both the left and right sides of the narrow portion 2c. Further, since the partition plate 4 has the elongated hole 4a at the center, the partition plate 4 can be easily removed from the housing 1 by pulling the partition plate 4 forward by, for example, putting a finger on the elongated hole 4a.

When such a partition plate 4 is attached to the housing 1, the space between the upper card insertion portion 3a and the guide groove 2a and the lower card insertion portion 3b and the guide groove 2b is clearly defined by the partition plate 4. Because it is partitioned,
There is no need to worry about the IC card being inserted obliquely across the plurality of card insertion sections 3a, 3b, and the IC card can be reliably inserted into each of the divided card insertion sections 3a, 3b. Therefore, compared to conventional products without partitions, I
Operability when inserting a C card is greatly improved. Further, since the partition plate 4 can be removed from the housing 1, there is no hindrance to the insertion of the HDD package. In addition, since the partition plate 4 is a single plate having a simple shape, the cost of parts can be extremely low.

Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. 4. Reference numeral 5 in the drawing denotes a cover member which can be attached and detached at a position where the opening end of the storage space 2 of the housing 1 is closed. The cover member 5 has upper and lower window holes 5a, 5b for exposing the card insertion portions 3a, 3b at the time of attachment.
And a partition 5c which is a boundary between the window holes 5a and 5b. Therefore, when such a cover member 5 is attached to the housing 1, the card insertion portions 3a and 3b are exposed as insertion holes with a border, so that operability is further improved.

Referring to FIG. 5, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described. In the figure, reference numeral 6 denotes a partition member with a shutter mechanism detachable from the housing 1.
The partition member 6 has card insertion portions 3a, 3
b, upper and lower doors 6a and 6b that can be individually closed, a spring member (not shown) that constantly urges these doors 6a and 6b in the closing direction, and moves the storage space 2 up and down during attachment. And a split plate portion 6c for splitting into two. That is,
When the partition member 6 is attached to the housing 1, the card insertion portions 3a and 3b are closed by the doors 6a and 6b. Intrusion of dust and the like can be prevented. And, I is pressed against the urging force of the spring member.
By pushing the open / close doors 6a and 6b with the C card, the IC card can be smoothly inserted into the card insertion portions 3a and 3b, and the loaded IC card is ejected from the housing 1 When the card is extracted, the doors 6a and 6b biased by the spring member automatically close the lids of the card insertion portions 3a and 3b. Therefore, in the third embodiment, not only the operability at the time of inserting the IC card can be improved, but also the dustproof effect at the time when the IC card is not inserted can be expected.

Next, the fourth embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
The partition member 7 has a locking mechanism that is detachable with respect to the partition member 7. The partition member 7 has a dividing plate portion 7 a that divides the storage space 2 up and down at the time of attachment, and is rotatably supported by the dividing plate portion 7 a. There is provided a stopper piece 7b which can be changed in attitude to a position facing the card insertion portions 3a, 3b. That is, as shown in FIG. 6A, when the IC card is not inserted, the partition member 7 is formed into a single plate shape in which the stopper piece 7b is accommodated in the notch of the divided plate portion 7a, and then attached to the housing 1. Thereby, the operability at the time of inserting the IC card can be improved. Further, the card insertion portions 3a and 3a of the housing 1 to which the partition member 7 is attached.
If an IC card is inserted and inserted into the “b”, b in FIG.
As shown in (1), the stopper piece 7b is set up with respect to the divided plate portion 7a, and the stopper piece 7b is opposed to both of the card insertion portions 3a and 3b. It is possible to prevent a connection interruption accident of discharging.

[0018]

The present invention is embodied in the form described above and has the following effects.

A detachable partition member is attached to a housing having a storage space in which a plurality of IC cards and an HDD package can be selectively loaded, so that the IC card extends over a plurality of card insertion portions. There is no need to worry about being inserted obliquely, and the IC card can be securely inserted into each of the divided card insertion portions.
Operability when inserting a C card is greatly improved. Also, by removing this partition member from the housing, the HD
It does not hinder the insertion of the D package.

In the case where a partition plate is used as the partition member that extends to the back of the storage space at the time of attachment and divides the storage space, the cost of parts can be extremely low. Alternatively, when a cover member having a plurality of window holes for exposing a plurality of card insertion portions is detachable at a position for closing a lid of an opening of the storage space as the partition member, each card insertion portion is The operability is further improved because the insertion opening is exposed as a border.

[0021] The partition member may include a plurality of opening / closing doors that allow a plurality of card insertion portions to be individually closed during the attachment.
If there is an urging means for elastically urging these doors in the closing direction, the storage space can be automatically closed with the doors when no IC card is loaded. A dustproof effect can be expected.

Further, if the partition member has a stopper piece that can be changed in attitude to a position facing the card insertion portion at the time of the attachment, the inserted IC card is erroneously ejected. It is possible to prevent the connection disconnection accident.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a state in which a partition plate is attached to a housing of a connector device according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a housing and a partition plate shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an external view of a partition plate shown in FIGS.

FIG. 4 is an external view of a cover member according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a main part of a partition member according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a main part of a partition member according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention, showing a stopper piece stored state and a stopper piece standing state.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a housing shape of a conventional connector device which is used for both an IC card and an HDD package.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing an erroneous insertion of an IC card, which is a problem of the related art.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Housing 2a, 2b Guide groove 2c Narrow part 3a, 3b Card insertion part 4 Partition plate 4a Long hole 5 Cover member 5a, 5b Window hole 6 (with shutter mechanism) Partition member 6a, 6b Opening door 6c Dividing plate part 7 ( (With lock mechanism) Partitioning member 7a Dividing plate 7b Stopper piece

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A housing having a storage space in which a plurality of IC cards and a hard disk drive package can be selectively loaded, a large number of pin contacts disposed at the innermost part of the storage space, and an inserted state. And an eject mechanism for ejecting the IC card or the hard disk drive package. A plurality of card insertion portions into which a plurality of IC cards can be individually inserted and removed are provided at a predetermined interval at an opening end on the front side of the storage space. A connector member which is detachable from the housing, and at least a part of which is positioned between the plurality of card insertion portions at the time of attachment. Connector device to do. 2. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the partition member includes a partition plate extending to a rear side of the storage space at the time of the attachment and dividing the storage space. 3. The storage device according to claim 2, wherein the partition member includes a cover member having a plurality of window holes which are detachable at a position for closing the opening end of the storage space and which expose the plurality of card insertion portions. The connector device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein 4. A plurality of opening / closing doors, wherein the partition member can be individually closed by the plurality of card insertion portions at the time of attachment.
The connector device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising an urging means for elastically urging the doors in the closing direction. 5. The connector device according to claim 1, wherein the partition member has a stopper piece that can be changed in attitude to a position facing the card insertion portion during the attachment. .