Joints and connections – Manually releaseable latch type – Spring biased manipulator
Reexamination Certificate
2001-01-31
2004-03-09
Browne, Lynne H. (Department: 3679)
Joints and connections
Manually releaseable latch type
Spring biased manipulator
C403S079000, C403S326000, C403S322400, C024S003110, C016S285000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06702506
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a clip for attaching electronic equipment such as a portable transceiver and the like to a belt, and particularly to improvement for simplifying a detachment preventing mechanism of shaft center (guide rod) of a torsion coil spring from being detached in a case where supporting power is obtained by use of rewinding force of the torsion coil spring.
2. Description of the Related Art
In accordance with the rapid progress of semiconductor manufacturing technology, miniaturization of portable radio apparatus such as a transceiver and the like and various kinds of measuring instruments have been remarkably done in recent years. A belt clip is attached to such electronic equipment beforehand, and a user often carries the electronic equipment in a state that the electronic equipment is hung on the belt by the clip at a nonuse time.
In other words, the size or weight is too large in order to put it into the pocket. Or, in the case where the electronic equipment is put in a bag and the like, it is inconvenient to take out the electronic equipment from the bag every time it is need. For this reason, attachment of electronic equipment to a waist portion or a belly portion is the simplest and easiest way.
For example, in a conventional small-sized portable transceiver, a clip mechanism is attached to a back face of a housing as shown in
FIGS. 4 and 5
.
In
FIG. 4
, numeric symbol
50
denotes a transceiver main body, and a hang stopper plate
1
is fixed to a back face
50
a
through a rotational mechanism
2
.
As shown in
FIG. 5
, the rotational mechanism
2
is composed of a torsion coil spring
3
, a bracket
4
, and a pressure rod
5
. Both side plates
13
a
and
14
a
of the rectangular U-shaped bracket
4
are combined at the inner side of shaft support portions
11
a
and
12
a
, which are formed to be protruded to both side portions of the hang stopper plate
1
. The torsion coil spring
3
is placed in a space formed therebetween in the combined state. The pressure rod
5
is passed through holes
11
b
and
12
b
, which are formed on the shaft support portions
11
a
and
12
a
, holes
13
b
and
14
b
of both side plates
13
a
and
14
a
of the bracket
4
and the interior of the torsion coil spring
3
so as to achieve an assembly.
Here, the hang stopper plate
1
is configured as shown in FIG.
6
. The shaft support portions
11
a
and
12
a
are formed as mentioned above, and a groove
15
, into which an arm
3
a
of the torsion coil spring
3
is fitted, is formed on the surface of the combination side with the bracket
4
. Further, holes
17
a
and
17
b
are formed at positions corresponding to holes
16
a
and
16
b
(FIG.
5
), which are formed on an attaching plate
16
of the bracket plate
4
in a state of combination with the bracket
4
.
Then, the pressure rod
5
is passed therethrough and the rotational mechanism (torsion coil spring
3
and bracket
4
) is combined with the hang stopper plate
1
. In this state, as shown in
FIG. 5
, screws
18
a
and
18
b
for attachment are passed through the holes
17
a
and
17
b
of the hang stopper plate
1
, so that the bracket
4
is fastened to the back face
50
a
of the transceiver main body
50
. A state after the attachment is illustrated by FIG.
7
.
As shown in the figure, on the back face
50
a
of the transceiver main body
50
, screw holes
51
a
and
51
b
are formed at positions corresponding to the holes
16
a
and
16
b
of the attaching plate
16
of the bracket
4
. There is also formed a concave portion
52
into which an angle portion
4
c
, which is formed at an upper end of the attaching plate
16
of the bracket
4
, is fitted. The hang stopper plate
1
and the rotational mechanism
2
are tightened with screws
18
a
and
18
b
for attachment in a state that the angle portion
4
c
of the bracket
4
is fitted into the concave portion
52
of the transceiver main body
50
.
In this case, both side plates
13
a
and
14
a
of the bracket
4
in the rotational mechanism
2
are engaged with the hang stopper plate
1
to be opened within the fixed limit when rotating around the axis of the pressure rod
5
. For this reason, the torsion coil spring
3
is loaded in a state that the torsion coil spring
3
is twisted from a natural state (state that the arm
3
a
is rotated in a direction of arrow).
Therefore, in the rotational mechanism
2
, the rewinding force of the torsion coil spring
3
is used as a restoration urging force. As shown in
FIG. 7
, when the upper side of the hang stopper plate is pressed to the back face
50
a
of the transceiver main body
50
, the lower end of the hang stopper plate
1
is rotated in a direction of an open angle, so that a belt
60
can be received. When the pressing force is removed, the hang stopping plate
1
is returned to the original state, and the belt
60
is in a state that it is supported.
In addition, as shown in
FIG. 6
, a hook portion
19
is formed at the lower end of the hang stopping plate
1
. Unless the hang stopping plate
1
is rotated in the direction of the open angle, the hang stopping plate
1
is designed not to be detached.
By the way, seeing the rotational mechanism
2
shown in
FIG. 7
in a plane, the result is shown in
FIG. 8
(the portion of hang stopping plate
1
is shown by the cross-section). The detachment preventing mechanism of pressure rod
5
is implemented by fitting a top end portion
5
a
into the hole
12
b
formed on the shaft support portion
12
a
of the hang stopping plate
1
and by pressing a knurled portion
5
b
of the other end to the hole
11
b
formed on the shaft support portion
12
b.
Therefore, the relationship of a loose fining is established between the hole
12
b
of the other shaft support portion
12
a
and the shaft portion of the pressure rod
5
. However, the hole
11
b
of the shaft support portion
11
a
has an inner diameter, which is slightly smaller than the shaft diameter of the knurled portion
5
b
. A crack is easily generated on the shaft support portion
11
b
when the knurled portion
5
b
is pressed, with the result that there occurs a case in which the shaft support portion
11
b
is broken at a clip using time.
Moreover, the pressing process is completed in such a manner that the knurled portion
5
b
is protruded a little. For this reason, there is a problem, for example, in which the protruded portion is caught on a dress at the time of detaching the transceiver main body
50
from the belt
60
.
In contrast, as shown in
FIG. 9
, there is adopted a system in which a round rod
6
having grooves
6
a
and
6
b
on an outer peripheral surface of both end portions is used in place of the pressure rod
5
and E-rings
7
a
and
7
b
are fitted into the grooves
6
a
and
6
b
after attaching the rotation mechanism
2
to the hang stopping plate
1
, thereby constituting the detachment preventing mechanism.
In this system, there can be considered a structure in which E-ring fitting means is used in only one end, and the other end is used as a thin head portion.
In these systems, it is enough that the round rod
6
is loosely fitted into the holes
11
b
and
12
b
of the respective shaft support portions
11
a
and
12
a
, and there is no possibility that the crack will be generated unlike the above-mentioned case. However, the E-rings
7
a
and
7
b
are needed separately as an assembly part, and the protruded portion is also formed on the side face. For this reason, similar to the above-mentioned case, the problem occurs at the time of detaching the transceiver main body
50
from the belt
60
.
It is an object of the present invention to implement a detachment preventing mechanism of a shaft (corresponding to the aforementioned pressure rod
5
, round rod
6
, and corresponding to a guide rod with respect to the torsion coil spring
3
) with an extremely simple structure, to manufacture a belt clip of portable electronic equipment with a good yield at reasonable cost in general, and to prev
Browne Lynne H.
Fulwider Patton Lee & Utecht LLP
Schiffman Jori
Vertex Standard Co. Ltd.
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