Patent Application
20100254743
1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to electronic devices and, particularly, to an electronic device with height adjustable keys.
2. Description of Related Art
A typical electronic device includes a number of keys, the keys are usually fixed to a circuit board, the height of the keys relative the base usually cannot be changed. When the electronic device is used for playing games, only a few of keys are required. However, because unrequired/negligible keys of the electronic device which are not needed during playing games are adjacent to the required keys, the unrequired keys are often stricken inadvertently during playing games.
What is needed, therefore, is an electronic device having height adjustable keys to overcome or at least mitigate the above-described problem.
Many aspects of the present electronic device can be better understood with reference to the accompanying drawings. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, the emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principle of the present electronic device. In the drawings, all the views are schematic.
Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail below, with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The housing 10 includes a front wall 11, a back wall 12, and a side wall 13 substantially perpendicular to the front wall 11 and the back wall 12. The front wall 11 of the housing 10 defines an opening 111 for receiving the keypad 20. The back wall 12 includes a securing portion 14 and a guiding portion 15. The securing portion 14 and guiding portion 15 protrudes from an inner surface 121 of the back wall 12. The securing portion 14 is located under the keypad 20, and the guiding portion 15 is arranged between the securing portion 14 and the side wall 13 of the housing 10. The guiding portion 15 defines a guide hole 151 with center axis thereof substantially perpendicular to the side wall 13. The side wall 13 defines a sliding slot 131 substantially aligned with the guide hole 151 of the guiding portion 15. The sliding slot 131 extends along a direction substantially parallel to the back wall 12 of the housing 10. The side wall 13 further includes a latching rack 132 arranged at an end of the sliding slot 131. The latching rack 132 includes an engaging surface defining a number of notches 1321 substantially perpendicular to the back wall 12 of the housing 10. The latching rack 132 can be integrally formed with the side wall 13 of the housing 10.
The keypad 20 includes a number of first keys 21 and a number of second keys 22. In the present embodiment, the first keys 21 are designated ones for using predetermined features of the electronic device 1, such as playing games, and the second keys 22 are negligible when using the predetermined features of the electronic device 1.
Further referring to
The platform 31 is configured for supporting the second keys 22. In the present embodiment, the platform 31 is a circuit board. The first keys 21 can be supported by other circuit board electrically connected to the platform 31 by wires etc. The platform 31 includes a first slidable block 311 and a second slidable block 312 which are slidable along a surface of the platform 31 facing the back wall 12.
The cross bridging 32 includes a first supporting arm 321 and a second supporting arm 322. The first supporting arm 321 is pivotably connected with the second supporting arm 322. In the present embodiment, a first end of the first supporting arm 321 is pivotably connected to the first slidable block 311, and a second end of the first supporting arm 321 opposite to the first end is pivotably connected to the securing portion 14 of the back wall 12. A first end of the second supporting arm 322 is pivotably connected to the second slidable block 312, and an opposite second end of the second supporting arm 322 is pivotably connected to the pushing rod 33.
The pushing rod 33 passes through the guide hole 151 of the guiding portion 15. The pushing rod 33 includes a first end 333 connecting to the second end of the second supporting arm 322, and a second end 334 resisting the sliding button 34. The pushing rod 33 further includes a block 311 formed between the sliding button 34 and the guiding portion 15. A spring 312 is sleeved on the pushing rod 33 and compressed between the guiding portion 15 and the block 311. The spring 312 keeps the second end 334 of the pushing rod 33 constantly resisting the sliding button 34. In other embodiment, the spring 312 and the block 311 can also be omitted, and the second end 334 of the pushing rod 33 is kept resisting the sliding button 34 by the weight of the platform 31 etc.
The sliding button 34 is received in the sliding slot 131 on the side wall 13 and is slidable along the sliding slot 131. Further referring to
The sliding button 34 further includes a latching portion 343 and an operation portion 342. The latching portion 343 extends from the second surface 344 of the sliding button 34 for engaging with the notches 1321 on the latching rack 132. The operation portion 342 extends out of the housing 10 from the second surface 344 of the sliding button 34. The operation portion 342 is configured for moving the sliding button 34 relative to the sliding slot 131 when receiving an external force. The operation portion 342 can be a protrusion, or a skid-resisting surface. In the present embodiment, the operation portion 342 is a protrusion with a skid-resisting structure on the surface of the protrusion.
Referring to
While certain embodiments have been described and exemplified above, various other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing disclosure. The invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described and exemplified, and the embodiments are capable of considerable variation and modification without departure from the scope and spirit of the appended claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 200910301316.3 | Apr 2009 | CN | national |
