Electricity: electrical systems and devices – Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical... – For electronic systems and devices
Reexamination Certificate
2000-05-30
2001-12-11
Tolin, Gerald (Department: 2835)
Electricity: electrical systems and devices
Housing or mounting assemblies with diverse electrical...
For electronic systems and devices
C361S725000, C361S759000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06330151
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Retractable trays have been incorporated in several types of electronic devices, such as IC cards, cell phones and PDA (personal digital assistants). The retractable tray holds a component such as a fingerprint sensor or telephone jack connector that is concealed and protected when the tray is stowed, and easily accessible when the tray is deployed. The tray can be deployed from its stowed position by pulling out the tray or moving an actuator along the slot, etc., but it is often difficult to grasp the tray to pull it or to operate an actuator. Automatic deployment devices such as a double click mechanism that pushes out the tray when the tray is pushed in a second time, is generally desirable. However, such mechanism has required additional parts which increase the complexity of the tray assembly. When the tray must be contained within an electronic device of very small height, such as a Type II PCMCIA standard IC card, which has a maximum thickness of 5 mm (millimeters), this can lead to a mechanism that is expensive to make and assemble and which is easily broken. A tray assembly for an electronic device, which had a minimum number of parts, which was rugged, and which enabled easy tray deployment as with a double click mechanism, would be of value.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, an electronic device is provided with a tray assembly that includes a tray that holds a component to move it into the housing of the electronic device when the tray is stowed, and to move it out of the electronic device when the tray is deployed, which is of simple and rugged design. The tray assembly includes a tray guide mounted on the housing and on which the tray can slide. A spring coupled to the tray urges it rearwardly towards the deployed position. A double click mechanism is provided that includes a cam element and a follower element, one mounted on the tray and the other on the tray guide. The double click mechanism latches the tray in the stowed position until it is pushed forward slightly, when it is released to move rearwardly to the deployed position. The tray and tray guide are each molded polymer parts, with one of the elements of the click mechanism molded integrally with the tray and the other element molded integrally with the tray guide. This minimizes the number of parts to be made and mounted.
The tray has a groove that forms the cam follower. The tray guide includes a largely U-shaped part with a base and a pair of legs extending rearwardly from the base, with the tray slideably mounted between the two legs. The cam follower is formed by a resilient arm extending rearwardly from the base of the tray guide and having a cam follower part at its rear end which is engaged in the groove of the cam.
The tray has a forwardly-projecting spring arm. A tension spring has a front end mounted on the front end of the spring arm, and has a spring rear end mounted on the rear end of a leg of the tray guide. The use of a tension spring avoids the problem of column collapse of a compression spring. The tension spring lies in a confined area between a side of the tray guide and a side of the housing of the electronic device.
An electronic connecting arrangement that connects the component on a moving tray to a mother board on the stationary housing, includes a flat flexible cable having upper and lower cable parts lying in horizontal planes and connected by a 180° bend.
The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention will be best understood from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
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Duong Hung Van
ITT Manufacturing Enterprises Inc.
Tolin Gerald
Turner Roger C.
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