Patent Application
20050238421
A rack is a frame or cabinet for holding an array of computer components, such as servers, peripherals, storage units, and other electronic accessories. The individual components are mounted to the rack on rail assemblies. Although the components may be recessed within the rack, the rail assemblies allow the components to slide into and out of the rack for installation and maintenance purposes. For stability and security, it may be desirable to be able to latch the component in place to prevent the component from sliding along the rail assembly. Thus, a system supporting quick and simple latching of an individual component to a rack system may be advantageous.
A latch assembly to connect a component to a rack. The assembly comprises a latch spring and a lever that are connected to a component. The latch spring is moveable between an engaged and a disengaged position. In the engaged position the latch spring is engaged with a catch that is connected to a rack. In the disengaged position the latch spring is disengaged from the catch. The lever is rotatable about an axis of rotation between a latched position and an unlatched position. The rotation of the lever from the latched position to the unlatched position moves the latch spring from the engaged position to the disengaged position in a direction parallel to the axis of rotation.
For a detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the invention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which:
Certain terms are used throughout the following description and claims to refer to particular system components. As one skilled in the art will appreciate, computer companies may refer to a component by different names. This document does not intend to distinguish between components that differ in name but not function. In the following discussion and in the claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are used in an open-ended fashion, and thus should be interpreted to mean “including, but not limited to . . . .”
The following discussion is directed to various embodiments of the invention. Although one or more of these embodiments may be preferred, the embodiments disclosed should not be interpreted, or otherwise used, as limiting the scope of the disclosure. In addition, one skilled in the art will understand that the following description has broad application, and the discussion of any embodiment is meant only to be exemplary of that embodiment, and not intended to intimate that the scope of the disclosure is limited to that embodiment.
Referring to
Lever 110 comprises body 200, axle 210, and paddle 220 (see
Latch spring 120 is a flat spring comprising a spring body 240 with a fixed end 190 and an engaging end 250. Fixed end 190 is fixably attached to chassis 140 of component 150. Spring body 240 extends from fixed end 190 outward and away from the side of chassis 140. Spring body 240 biases engaging end 250 to a position outboard of chassis 140. Spring body 240 may be a flat metal spring comprising apertures 245 or other features operable to control the flexibility of the spring body.
Engaging end 250 comprises disengaging surface 270 (
Catch 130 comprises elongate body 290 having receptacle 300. Catch 130 is attached to rail assembly 160 such that elongate body 290 is substantially parallel with bezel 180 of component 150. Receptacle 300 is formed between catch 130 and rail assembly 160 and is sized so as to accommodate at least a portion of the engaging end 250 of latch spring 120. Receptacle 300 may be formed from a portion of elongate body 290 that is offset from the surface of the body that attaches to rail assembly 160.
With lever 110 in the unlatched, extended position, paddle 220 maintains engaging end 250 of latch spring 120 in a position inboard and disengaged from catch 130. Once in the unlatched position, chassis 140 can move relative to rail assembly 160 (omitted for clarity) and component 150 can be removed from rack 170 (omitted for clarity). In certain embodiments, a stopping surface on chassis 140 or bezel 180 may limit the rotation of lever 110, such as by engaging paddle 220, in order to prevent over-rotation of lever 110.
In certain embodiments where latch spring 120 may have an engaging end 250 without an engaging surface 260, lever 110 may be in the extended position during installation of chassis 140 into rack 170. In the extended position, paddle 220 engages disengaging surface 270 of engaging end 250 and moves engaging end 250 inboard so that it will pass the front of catch 130. Once, chassis 140 is fully engaged, lever 110 is moved to the upright position and engaging end 250 engages receptacle 300.
In the embodiments shown, the movement of latch spring 120 is achieved by applying a force to the inclined surface of engaging end 250. The inclination of the surface may be selected so as to minimize the forces needed to impart motion onto the latch spring. In alternate embodiments, other arrangements and mechanisms may also, or in the alternative, be employed to impart motion onto latch spring 120. For example, the paddle or the catch could have inclined surfaces that engage and move a latch spring that may or may not also have inclined surfaces. Similarly, curved surfaces could also be utilized to impart motion to the latch spring.
The above discussion is meant to be illustrative of the principles and various embodiments of the present invention. Numerous variations and modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated. For example, the latch could have alternate orientations other than those shown, such the latch is on the top or bottom of a component as opposed to on the side. It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace all such variations and modifications.
