1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an electronic apparatus represented by a personal computer for example.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, personal computers (hereinafter sometimes referred to as “PC”) have been in widespread use not only in offices but also at homes. As one type of personal computers, there have been widely known notebook personal computers (hereinafter referred to as “notebook PC”) each composed of: a main unit having a keyboard on the top surface; and a display unit openable and closable with respect to the main unit and having a display screen. The display unit is opened to stand relative to the main unit when in use and is folded to lie on the keyboard when not in use.
Also, plate-like tablet personal computers (hereinafter referred to as “tablet PC”) having a display screen on the top surface have emerged in recent years. A user enters an instruction into this type of PC by bringing a stylus closer to a position on the display screen or touching the position with the stylus so as to make the tablet PC recognize the position.
Also, another type of electronic apparatus capable of operating both as a notebook PC and a tablet PC have come along recently. This type of apparatus has a main unit and a display unit which are connected via a two-axis connection section that supports the main unit and the display unit in such a manner that they can be opened/closed and rotated.
General electronic apparatus such as personal computers are desired to be smaller in size. Particularly, the above-mentioned notebook PCs, tablet PCs and the like are desired to be smaller and thinner because they need to be portable. Lately, as the notebook PCs have become more and more multifunctional, performance of notebook PCs has almost reached the high level comparable to that of desktop PCs. Therefore, it is desired to realize a smaller and thinner apparatus that also maintains high operability while keeping with the trend toward multifunction. Not only notebook PCs but also various types of devices, such as game machines, DVD recorders and players, hard-disk recorders are desired to be smaller and thinner for the purpose of saving space of an installation site.
These types of apparatus may or many not need some function depending on grade (e.g. standard model or high-grade model) or destination (e.g. domestic destination or overseas destination). It is conceivable to incorporate unnecessary function and make them disabled. This may suppress cost increase because it provides commonality among components and thus assemble process, and eliminates the need of preparing different components or modules to be installed.
However, when there are components or units each requiring a hole in the cabinet and when there is no need to provide all of such components or units according to the grade or destination, it is not preferable to form all the holes and to disable the functions related to the holes because such holes affect the appearance of the apparatus. In addition, forming unnecessary holes impairs the design.
In light of the foregoing, Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-244151 discloses an affixing structure of a printed board capable of being shared by a number of models by changing the attachment direction of the printed board. However, what proposed in this publication is to change the attachment direction of one component with one function depending on model, not to change the function of the component.
In view of the foregoing, the present invention provides an electronic apparatus having a structure suitable for installing different functions depending on grade or destination each requiring a hole in an enclosure by using a common module to be mounted.
The present invention provides an electronic apparatus including:
an enclosure having a hole; and
a board having mounted thereon a first component and a second component which differently interact with the outside via the hole, either one of the first and second components is disposed at such a position that the either one of the first and second components faces the outside through the hole according to an attachment direction of the board.
In the electronic apparatus, the first component may be a microphone which picks up sound, and the second component may be an infrared sensor used for remote control.
Preferably, in the electronic apparatus, the board has disposed thereon a third component interacting with the outside, the third component being disposed between the first and second components at a position that is non-changing irrespective of attachment direction of the board. In this case, the third component may be a magnetic sensor which detects contact and non-contact with a magnetic member.
Further, in the electronic apparatus, the board may be attached such that the infrared senor faces the outside, and the electronic apparatus may further include a filter covering the hole and passing infrared rays. Such a filter improves the design of the apparatus.
Furthermore, the electronic apparatus may further include:
a main unit which has a keyboard on a top surface thereof; and
a display unit which is openable and closable with respect to the main unit and has a display screen,
wherein the enclosure defines the display unit,
the main unit has the magnetic member affecting the magnetic sensor and disposed at a position coinciding with the magnetic sensor when the display unit is closed, and
the magnetic sensor detects opening and closing of the display unit.
As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to install different functions depending on grade or destination without forming an additional hole by using a common module (e.g. board) to be installed.
An embodiment of the present invention will be described.
1. Appearance
The notebook PC 10 is composed of two cabinets: a main unit 20 and a display unit 30. The display unit 30 is supported by a hinge section 40 so that it can be opened and closed with respect to the main unit 20.
The main unit 20 has a keyboard 21, a trackpad 22, etc. on its top surface and also has an insertion opening 231 of a PC card slot, which accesses a PC card removably inserted thereinto as will be described later, on the left flank. On the front surface of the main unit 20, there is disposed an operation member 232 to be slidably operated for removing a PC card inserted into the PC card slot. Inside the cabinet of the main unit 20, there is a main circuit board on which circuits such as a CPU for performing various processing and other components are mounted. Also, part of the right flank of the main unit 20 is formed by an end surface 241 of a CD/DVD drive for accessing a removable CD or DVD inserted and rotated therein, which will also be described later. The end surface 241 has an eject button 242 that causes a tray of the CD/DVD drive to slide out from the main unit 20 when pressed.
The right flank of the main unit 20 has an insertion opening 251 of a media slot for accessing various types of removable recording media (SmartMedia(™), xD-card(™), etc.) inserted therein. The insertion opening 251 is so formed as to vertically overlap the CD/DVD drive.
When the display unit 30 is closed with respect to the main unit 20, the external form of the main unit 20 covered by the display unit 30 is nearly a rectangular solid.
The display unit 30 has a large-sized display screen 31 and a front cover surrounding the display screen 31 on its front. On the front cover, there is formed a hole 32 for leading sound to a microphone (not shown) disposed inside the display unit 30.
The hinge section 40 is so configured as to support the display unit 30 in such a manner that the display unit 30 is openable and closable with respect to the main unit 20.
The display unit 30 needs to be rotatable with respect to the main unit 20 and at the same time, it must be capable of remaining in any position when the display unit 30 is open with respect to the main unit 20. For this purpose, the display unit 30 has friction members 41. The friction members 41 serve to apply friction to rotation shafts 33 of the display unit 30 so that the display unit 30 can remain in any position when the display unit 30 is open with respect to the main unit 20.
Behind the hinge section 40, there are disposed speakers 26 in the right and left of the rear part of the main unit 20. To an area between these two speakers 26, a battery unit 27 containing a battery for supplying power to components of the notebook PC 10 is removably attached. The rear-end surface of the battery unit 27 is nearly flush with portions of the cabinet of the main unit 20 that support the speakers 26.
2. CD/DVD Drive and Media Slot
Also,
The example shown in
The unit 500 is composed of a base plate 501, a CD/DVD drive 502, a motherboard 503, a chassis 504, and a media unit 505. The media unit 505 has a media slot 5051, a CF card slot 5052, and a PC card slot 5053 are mounted thereon.
The unit 500 is assembled in such a manner that the CD/DVD drive 502 and the motherboard 503 are mounted on the base plate 501, the chassis 504 is mounted on the CD/DVD drive 502, and then the media unit 505 is mounted on the chassis 504. In this case, the thickness of a portion, which includes the mounted CD/DVD drive 502, of the unit 500 is equal to the sum of the thicknesses of the base plate 501, CD/DVD drive 502, chassis 504, and media unit 505. Here, attention is focused on the media slot 5051 mounted on the media unit 505, and the total thickness of the portion including the mounted media slot 5051 is determined with consideration given to the thickness of the media slot 5051 instead of the thickness of the media unit 505.
Now, the present embodiment will be described with reference to
The unit 50 shown in
As shown in
The CD/DVD drive 24 alone becomes a unit by itself that can be removably inserted into a housing section of the unit 50 when the unit 50 is assembled (when the notebook PC 10 is assembled). An end of the CD/DVD drive 24 is provided with an opposite connector to be mated with a connector (not shown) of the circuit board 54 when the CD/DVD drive 24 is inserted into the housing section of the unit 50.
The media slot 52 is a drive for accessing a storage medium inserted through the insertion opening 251. As shown in
3. Battery Unit and Speaker
As mentioned above, behind the hinge section 40, the battery-attachment section 271 is formed, to which the battery unit 27 used for supplying power to components of the notebook PC 10 is removably attached. The external form of the battery unit 27 is nearly a rectangular solid and has a connector that is at least provided with a power terminal at one end in the longitudinal direction. Inside the case of the battery unit 27, there are two or more battery cells wired to the connector. When the battery unit 27 is slid into the battery-attachment section 271 from the back of the main unit 20, the connectors of the both sides are mated with each other. The battery unit 27 is attached to the main unit 20 in this manner. Also, at both ends of the battery-attachment section 271, the speakers 26 are disposed to output sound to the outside.
The portions of the cabinet forming the main unit 20 that support the speakers 26 are so formed as to project towards the back of the main unit 20. These portions project such that the projections become nearly flush with the battery unit 27 when the battery unit 27 is attached to the battery-attachment section 271. In the state that the battery unit 27 is attached to the battery-attachment section 271, the portions of the cabinet forming the main unit 20 that support the speakers 26 are approximately flush with the battery unit 27. In other words, the portions of the cabinet forming the main unit 20 that support the speakers 26 are not covered by the display unit 30 when it is closed to lie on the main unit 20.
A conventional battery unit is attached to a main unit in such a manner that the battery unit alone projects from the cabinet of the main unit—i.e. only about half of the battery unit is attached to the main unit. Therefore, a user often feels that it is unstable. Further, a conventional battery unit is liable to damage during transportation when the connection point between the connectors of the main unit and the battery unit is put under the load of the weight of the battery unit, or when the battery unit hits something. However, according to the present embodiment, the portions of the cabinet forming the main unit 20 that support the speakers 26 project such that the projections become flush with the battery unit 27 when the battery unit 27 is attached to the battery-attachment section 271. Therefore, the stability of the battery unit 27 in an attachment position has been improved. Also, such a structure prevents a load of the weight of the battery unit on the connection point between the connectors of the main unit and the battery unit.
At each end of the battery unit 27, a long groove 273 is formed (see
Further, as shown in
4. Card Ejection Mechanism
As shown in
The bottom cover 201 has an indentation 201a and the top cover 202 also has an indentation 202a in a position corresponding to the indentation 201a. When the bottom cover 201 and the top cover 202 are assembled, an opening defined by the indentations 201a and 202a is formed to connect the inside and outside of the main unit 20.
The operation member 232 has a projecting engagement claw 232a and is disposed on the surface of a cover formed by the bottom and top covers 201 and 202. The engagement claw 232a projects towards the inside of the cover through the opening defined by the indentations 201a and 202a. In contrast, the sliding fitting 233 is disposed inside the cover and has an engagement hole 233a through which the engagement claw 232a of the operation member 232 projecting towards the inside of the cover is inserted. When the operation member 232 is slid, the sliding fitting 233 is also slid together with the operation member 232 along an inner wall of the cover.
The sliding fitting 233 has been bent into an L-shape in cross section. One surface 233b of the sliding fitting 233 can be disposed so as to contact an inner surface of the cover, and a top plate as the other surface 233c has a slit 233e through which a screw 234 can be inserted. The screw 234 is inserted into and secured to a screw hole 235 formed in the center of a boss standing on the bottom cover 201. The sliding fitting 233 is engaged with and supported by the operation member 232, and is further guided by the screw 234 screw-fitted through the long hold 232e. Therefore, according to a sliding operation made on the operation member 232, by the guide of the slit 233e, the sliding fitting 233 can be slid together with the operation member 232 in the direction in which an L-shaped ridge 233d of the operation member 232 extends.
As shown in
Also, the present embodiment is so configured as to move the sliding fitting 233 while preventing its vertical movements by means of the screw 234 in the inside of the cover of the main unit 20. Therefore, the operation member 232 supporting the sliding fitting 233 can be well operated without having a frame for the operation member 232 surrounding the range of movement of the operation member 232. Because there is no need to provide such a frame, the present embodiment can reduce the space by the width of the frame, which contributes to the size reduction of the notebook PC 10.
5. Structure of Connector Section
Of the circuit boards 611 and 612, the upper circuit board 611 has an indentation 611a for visually observing the connector 63 at a position facing the connector 63 mounted on the lower circuit board 612. Without the indentation 611a, it is extremely hard for a user to observe the connector 63 and thus mating of the connectors 63 and 65 must be carried out with guesswork when the board assembly 61 is fixed to the main board 62, which reduces working efficiency to a great extent. On the contrary, because the indentation 611a is formed in the circuit board 611, a user can observe the connector 63, which remarkably improves working efficiency during mating of the connectors 63 and 65.
6. Affixing Structure of Friction Members
Also,
The example shown in
A back cover 1301 forming a display unit has an indentation 1301a that defines an opening formed when the back cover 1301 is covered by a front cover (not shown) that enables a display screen to be seen. A friction member 1041 is so disposed to extend linking the outside and inside of the back cover 1301 through the indentation 1301a. The friction member 1041 enters the inside of the back cover 1301 from the indentation 1301a and has two arms 1041a and 1041b spreading at both ends. The arms 1041a and 1041b have through holes 1041c and 1041d, respectively. In contrast, the back cover 1301 has bosses 1301b and 1301c over which the through holes 1041c and 1041d of the arms 1041a and 1041b are to be aligned. The bosses 1301b and 1301c have screw holes 1301d and 1301e formed in the center, respectively. The two arms 1041a and 1041b are positioned on the bosses 1301b and 1301c and screwed by using the through holes 1041c and 1041d and the screw holes 1301d and 1301e. In this way, the friction member 1041 is fixed to the back cover 1301. In the example shown in
Next, the embodiment shown in
The friction member 41 shown in
A part of the friction member 41 entering the inside of the back cover 301 through the indentation 301a is composed of a fist arm 411 and a second arm 412. The first arm 411 enters the inside of the back cover 301 through the indentation 301a and extends along an inner wall of the back cover 301 in the left direction in
The back cover 301 has an engagement projection 301b in a portion where the first arm 411 extends, which projects towards the inside of the back cover 301. The first arm 411 of the friction member 41 has an engagement indentation 411a to be engaged with the engagement projection 301b in a position corresponding to the engagement projection 301b. As shown in
In contrast, the second arm 412 of the friction member 41 extending along an inner wall of the back cover 301 is bent into a 90 degree angle, and the bent part has two through holes 412a and 412b and a locating hole 412c in the center between the two through holes 412a and 412b.
The back cover 301 has two bosses 301c and 301d formed at positions where the two through holes 412a and 412b of the second arm 412 of the friction member 41 are to be placed. The bosses 301c and 301d have screw holes 301f and 301g in the center, respectively. In the center between the bosses 301c and 301d, there is formed a standing pin 301e to be inserted into the locating hole 412c formed in the second arm 412 of the friction member 41.
In order to fix the friction member 41 to the back cover 301, as shown in
Of the two arms 411 and 412, the one arm 411 is fixed only by engagement and the other arm 412 is fixed by screws and the like in the above-described structure. Accordingly, even when space is tight in the x direction of the back cover 301 shown in
7. Microphone and Infrared Sensor (Part 1)
As mentioned above, the notebook PC 10 (see
The optical filter 35 for cutting visible light and transmitting infrared rays is affixed on the hole 32 (see
On a circuit board 71, there is mounted an infrared sensor 72 that receives infrared signals used for remote control as shown in
When a microphone is disposed behind the hole 32 shown in
Whether to contain a microphone or an infrared sensor is selected depending on the destination either of domestic or overseas at the time the notebook PC is assembled. However, such selection may be made depending on the grade of the notebook PC instead of the destination.
As described above, the present embodiment is so configured as to dispose either one of two or more types of components (microphone and infrared sensor in the embodiment) that interact with the outside through the same hole 32 in different manners. Accordingly, there is no need to provide an additional hole, which makes the notebook PC excellent in design.
In addition, because the hole 32 is formed in the front cover of the display unit 30, the hole 32 is in a higher position when the display unit 30 is opened, thereby providing excellent sound-collecting effect of the microphone as well as excellent receiver sensitivity of the infrared sensor.
8. Microphone and Infrared Sensor (Part 2)
Next, there will be described another arrangement of microphone and infrared sensor, which can be employed instead of the arrangement of microphone and infrared sensor described with reference to
In the center of a circuit board 80, a magnetic sensor 81 for detecting contact and non-contact of a magnetic member is disposed. In addition, a microphone 82 is disposed at one end of the circuit board 80, whereas an infrared sensor 83 for receiving infrared signals used for remote control is disposed at the other end of the circuit board 80. Further, the circuit board 80 has two through holes 84 and 85 for screwing the circuit board 80, which are formed between the magnetic sensor 81 and the microphone 82 and between the magnetic sensor 81 and the infrared sensor 83, respectively. When the circuit board 80 is rotated 180 degrees about the magnetic sensor 81, the through holes 84 and 85 change places so that the magnetic sensor 81 can be screwed in the same position. At this time, the microphone 82 and the infrared sensor 83 also change places.
The back cover of the display unit 30 has two screw holes 38 and 39 for fixing the circuit board 80. Fixing is made by aligning these two screw holes 38 and 39 with the two through holes 84 and 85 of the circuit board 80 and screwing by using these holes. With this arrangement, the magnetic sensor 81 can be disposed in the same position irrespective of the orientation of the circuit board 80, and the microphone 82 or the infrared sensor 83 can be disposed behind the hole 32 depending on the orientation of the circuit board 80. When the circuit board 80 is screwed in the direction in which the infrared sensor 83 is disposed behind the hole 32, an optical filter for transmitting infrared rays and cutting visible light is affixed on the hole 32. On the main unit 20 (see
Only either one of the microphone 82 and the infrared sensor 83 is used for one notebook PC according to the orientation of the circuit board 80.
According to the arrangement described with reference to
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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2005-243196 | Aug 2005 | JP | national |