JPH10106674A - Card connector - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a card connector with a base usable with a so-called SIM card and a cover, which has less number of parts in an inexpensive structure and availability for an extremely small size, an extremely low profile and a lighter weight, by forming a lock structure to hold the base in a closed attitude without using other pieces of parts. SOLUTION: A pair of right and left shafts 4, 4 are provided on a base 1 and a pair of the right and left arms 7, 7 are provided on a cover 5 with a card holder. Fitting holes 8, 8 in the arms 7, 7 are fitted to the shafts 4, 4, respectively. The fitting hole 8 has a circularly round hole 81 and a slit 85. When the round hole 81 is fitted to the shaft 4, the cover 5 is open/close- operable around the shaft 4 and, when the slit 85 is fitted to the shaft 4, the cover 5 is locked in closed attitude.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a card connector,
In particular, a micro SIM (Subscriber Identity) is a module for identifying the identity of a subscriber such as a telephone subscriber.
Module) A card connector for use with a card.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional card connector of this type basically includes a base provided with a contact member having an electrode contact portion, and a cover having a card holding portion. The cover is attached to the base so as to be freely openable and closable in consideration of the convenience in the case. Further, when the cover holding the card held by the card holding portion is closed and the surface electrode of the card is brought into contact with the electrode contact portion, the contact piece member having the electrode contact portion is bent against its elasticity. Therefore, the cover is always urged in the direction in which the cover opens by the reaction force. Therefore, in order to ensure the contact reliability between the surface electrode of the card and the electrode contact portion of the contact member when the cover is closed, the cover is moved to its closed position against the bias by the contact member. A lock mechanism for holding the lock becomes indispensable.

[0003] In a conventional card connector, this kind of locking mechanism has been constituted by attaching a separate piece part to a cover or a base.

[0004]

However, if the lock mechanism is constructed by attaching a separate piece of component to the cover or base as in the above-described conventional card connector, the number of components increases and the price increases. In addition to the above, there is a problem that restrictions on handling ultra-thin and ultra-small requirements particularly required for a card connector handling an extremely small card such as the SIM card are increased.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a card connector which can eliminate the necessity of using a separate piece by providing a portion which exerts a locking action when the cover is closed on the base itself or the cover itself. It is to provide.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an easy-to-use card connector in which a cover can be closed and brought into a closed position, and then the cover can be immediately slid with a closed finger to lock the cover in a closed position. It is to be.

Still another object of the present invention is to reduce a load on a portion provided on the base itself, which exerts the above-mentioned locking action, when the portion is weak in terms of strength.
Moreover, it is an object of the present invention to provide a card connector capable of improving lock reliability.

Still another object of the present invention is to allow the front end of the cover to rise naturally from the base when the cover locked in the closed position is unlocked, so that the cover can be removed when the card is removed or replaced. The object of the present invention is to provide a card connector which can be easily opened with the tip of a finger.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a card connector which can prevent a cover locked in a closed position from being accidentally unlocked.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a card connector in which a cover is closed to a closed position, and then the cover is immediately slid with a closed finger to lock the cover in a closed position. It is an object of the present invention to provide a card connector which can regulate the slide of the cover without using the above-mentioned parts.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a card connector in which an open position of a cover is fixed when a card is pulled out or replaced.

Still another object of the present invention is to achieve ultra-thin, ultra-small, and ultra-light card connectors for use with the SIM card.

[0014]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a card connector comprising a pair of left and right shafts protruding laterally at a rear end of a base provided with a contact piece having electrode contact portions. A pair of left and right arms are provided at a rear end of a cover having a card holding portion for holding a card having a surface electrode corresponding to the electrode contact portion, and a fitting provided on each of these arms is provided. A mating hole portion is separately fitted to the pair of left and right shafts, and the fitting hole portion is formed by a circular round hole portion and an elongated hole portion connected to the round hole portion and extending rearward. The short diameter of the long hole is shorter than the diameter of the round hole, and the shaft body has a horizontal engagement surface and a hitting portion separately on both upper and lower portions sandwiching the axis. The horizontal gap between the horizontal engagement surface and the contact portion in the vertical direction is the same as that of the elongated hole portion. The diameter of the outer surface is equal to the minor diameter, and the interval between the foremost part and the last part of the outer surface is equal to the diameter of the round hole and longer than the minor diameter of the long hole. When the round hole is fitted to the shaft, the cover is supported by the shaft and can be opened and closed about the shaft, and when the long hole is fitted to the shaft, the length of the cover is extended. When the horizontal engaging surface hits one long side of the hole and the hitting part hits the other long side, the shaft locks the cover in a closed position, and the cover is closed when the cover is in the closed position. The round hole portion and the long hole portion are selectively shifted to the fitting position with the shaft body through the sliding operation in the front-rear direction.

In the card connector according to the present invention, when the round hole of the fitting hole on the cover is fitted to the shaft on the base side, the cover may be opened or closed around the shaft. it can. After the cover is opened and the card is held in the card holding portion, the cover is closed with the finger of the hand to bring the card to the closed position, and then the cover is slid forward with the finger. The long hole of the part fits. As described above, when the long hole is fitted to the shaft, the horizontal engagement surface of the shaft hits one long side of the long hole and the hitting portion of the shaft hits the other long side. The cover cannot be opened around the shaft, and the cover is locked in the closed position. In this locked state, even if the electrode contact portion of the contact member provided on the base side resiliently contacts the surface electrode of the card and is biased in the direction in which the cover is opened by the elasticity of the contact member,
The cover is kept in a closed position against the bias. When the cover thus locked is slid rearward in the closed position, the round hole of the fitting hole is fitted to the shaft, so that the cover is unlocked and the cover is pivoted around the shaft. Be able to open.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a card connector.
2. The card connector according to claim 1, wherein an engaging piece projects rearward from the base, and the cover is slid forward in a closed position to fit the long hole into the shaft. When the cover is slid rearward in the closed position by engaging the engagement piece to prevent the cover from opening, the engagement is released when the round hole is fitted to the shaft. An engagement portion that allows the cover to open is provided at a front end of the cover.

According to the present invention, when a force in the opening direction is applied to the cover locked in the closed position, the force is applied to the cover via the engaging portion provided at the front end of the cover. Since the portion is received by the engaging piece on the base side with which the portion is engaged, not much force is applied to the horizontal engaging surface of the shaft. For this reason, the base body is made of a synthetic resin molded body, and it is necessary to form the shaft body in a very thin and small shape like a card connector that handles a micro card such as a SIM card. Even in the case where the mechanical strength of the shaft cannot be increased so much, an excessive force is applied to the horizontal engagement surface of the shaft, and the horizontal engagement surface is damaged or the shaft itself is damaged. Such a situation is unlikely to occur. Further, since the engagement piece and the engagement portion can be formed in a relatively large shape even if the card connector is very small, the lock reliability of the cover in the closed position is improved.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a card connector comprising:
3. The card connector according to claim 1, wherein the cover is provided with a spring piece extending forward, and when the cover is in a closed position, the spring piece is bent against its spring property. The base is provided with a spring receiving surface for receiving the distal end of the spring piece in a state in which the cover is slid forward in a closed position in front of the spring receiving surface of the base, and the elongated hole is formed in the shaft body. An opening is provided for lowering the distal end of the spring piece when the part is fitted so as to eliminate the bending of the spring piece.

According to the present invention, when the cover is locked, the tip of the spring piece falls into the opening and the deflection of the spring piece is eliminated, so that the cover is locked by the spring piece when the cover is locked. It is not biased in the opening direction. However, if the lock is released by sliding the cover locked in the closed position backward, the tip of the spring piece rides on the spring receiving surface on the base side from the opening and is received by the spring receiving surface. Accordingly, the spring piece bends against its spring property, so that the cover is urged in the opening direction by the urging of the spring piece. For this reason, after sliding the cover backward with your finger,
When the finger is released, the cover naturally rises from the base due to the bias of the spring piece. This makes it easier to open the cover with the tip of a finger when removing or replacing the card.

A card connector according to a fourth aspect of the present invention comprises:
The tip of the spring piece has a curved shape protruding downward, and the cover is slid rearward in a closed posture at an edge of the opening on the spring receiving surface side. In this case, there is provided a latching portion which comes into contact with the curved distal end of the spring piece and resists the sliding operation of the cover rearward.

According to the present invention, when a rearward force is applied to the cover which is locked in the closed position, the curved end of the spring piece which has fallen into the opening until then is engaged with the base. The slide operation.
For this reason, when a rearward force is applied to the cover locked in the closed position, the cover is unlikely to be unlocked by such an unexpected force.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a card connector comprising:
In any one of claims 1, 2, 3, and 4, the rear end of the arm portion is bent inward so as to face the rear end surface of the base, and When the cover is slid forward in the closed position, a slide restricting portion is formed to hit the rear end surface of the base and prevent the slide.

According to the present invention, in the card connector in which the cover is closed and brought into the closed position, the cover is immediately slid with the finger with the cover closed to lock the cover in the closed position, The slide of the cover is regulated without using it.

The card connector of the invention according to claim 6 is:
The slide restricting portion may also be used as a stopper portion that contacts the lower surface of the rear end portion of the base when the cover is moved from the closed position to the open position and prevents the cover from moving. Things.

According to the present invention, the open position of the cover when removing or replacing the card is determined by the position when the stopper portion also used by the slide restricting portion hits the lower surface of the rear end of the base. Further, since the stopper portion is also used by the slide restricting portion, there is no need to separately provide the stopper portion and the slide restricting portion.

The card connector of the invention according to claim 7 is:
In the fifth or sixth aspect, the elongated hole reaches the slide restricting portion of the arm portion.

According to the present invention, since the slide restricting portion is formed by bending the rear end of the arm portion inward, the slide restricting portion extends the arm portion straight rearward from the rear end. Compared to the case where the slide restricting part is formed by the member protruding inward,
The length of the cover in the front-rear direction is shortened accordingly. In addition, the height of the card connector (height from the base to the upper end of the cover) when the cover is opened to the open position is reduced by the length of the cover. Therefore, miniaturization of the card connector is facilitated.

The card connector of the invention according to claim 8 is
Claim 1, Claim 2, Claim 3, Claim 4, Claim 5,
The card holding portion of the cover according to any one of claims 6 and 7, wherein the card holding portion has a vertical and horizontal dimension of 25.
It has a size that can hold a SIM card having a size of 15 mm.

According to the present invention, the above-mentioned SIM card which is a module for identifying the identity of a subscriber such as a telephone subscriber can be used. Mold and weight savings are achieved.

[0030]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing an embodiment of a card connector according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view of a base 1, FIG. 3 is a side view of the card connector with a cover 5 opened, FIG. 4 is a side view of the card connector in a state where the cover 5 is closed but not locked, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is an enlarged side view of a main part of the card connector when the shaft 4 is fitted into the round hole 81, and FIG. An enlarged side view of a main part of the card connector when the card connector is fitted to the part 85;
8 is an enlarged plan view showing a main part of the base 1, FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of a portion along line IX-IX in FIG. 8, and FIG.
And FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the XI-X of FIG.
Action explanatory view of a spring piece showing a cross section along line I in an enlarged manner,
FIG. 12 is an explanatory view of the operation of the spring piece, also showing an enlarged cross section along the line XI-XI in FIG. 2, and FIG. 13 is an explanatory view showing the dimensions of the shaft body 4 and the respective portions of the fitting hole 8.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a base made of a synthetic resin molded body having excellent electrical insulation.
The three contact pieces 3..., 3... 3 each having a resiliency are arranged in the first half and the second half of FIG. Each of these contact piece members 3 is inclined so that the electrode contact portion 31 at the tip thereof slightly floats from the bottom wall 11 (see FIG. 3), and is shown in each of these contact piece members 3. There are provided terminals 32 to be soldered to the circuit of the non-wiring board, and these terminals 32 project forward or backward of the base 1.

In the front half of the base 1, rib-shaped side walls 12, 12 are provided on the left and right sides of the bottom wall 11, respectively, and locking portions 13, 13 facing inward are provided at the front ends of the side walls 12, 12. The locking portion 13 on the right side has an inclined surface 14. The side walls 12, 12 and the locking portions 13, 13 have a function of positioning a card C, which will be described later, in a fitting manner. The inclined surface 14 is set such that the card C is set on the base 1 in an inappropriate posture. It plays the role of so-called "prevention of incorrect insertion". Therefore, when the card C is set on the base 1 with the front and back directions and the front and rear directions properly set, the inclined side C2 faces the inclined surface 14, and the card C is moved to the left and right side walls 12, 12 and Fit between the locking portions 13, 13,
If their orientation is not correct, the card C
Any one of the corners overlaps the right locking portion 13 having the inclined surface 14 so that a cover 5 described later cannot be closed.

An opening 1 long in the front-rear direction is provided at the boundary between the bottom wall 11 of the base 1 and the left and right side walls 12, 12.
Openings 5 and 16 are formed, and narrow openings 17 and 17 extending forward are connected to the openings 15 and 16. 9, 11, and 12 are provided on the back surface of the bottom wall 11 at portions adjacent to the openings 15 and 16 and the narrow openings 17 and 17.
Is formed, and a rectangular portion of the bottom wall 11 having the recesses 18 is formed on the base 1.
Are formed as thin engaging pieces 19, 19 protruding rearward. Further, a spring receiving surface 2 which is one step lower than the upper surface of the bottom wall 11 is provided on the rear side adjacent to the left opening 15.
1 is provided, and the edge of the opening 15 on the spring receiving surface 21 side serves as a hook portion 24.

At the rear end of the base 1, a pair of left and right shafts 4, 4 projecting laterally are integrally formed. Although the shaft body 4 in the illustrated example is formed in a substantially columnar shape, as shown in FIG. 13, the shaft body 4 has a horizontal engagement surface 41 on a lower portion in a side view,
The top of the opposite side (upper part) of the horizontal engagement surface 41 with respect to the axis is a contact part 42.

The cover 5 is formed by bending or stamping a metal plate. As shown in detail in FIGS. 1 and 10, the cover 5 has a face plate portion 51. FIG.
As shown in the figure, on both sides of the front end portion of the cover 5 and on both sides of the middle portion in the front-rear direction, there are provided entrance guide portions 53, 53 and intermediate guide portions 54, 54 formed by bending inwardly into an L shape. At the rear end of the face plate portion 51, a contact piece 55 formed by bending downward is provided. The left and right entrance guides 53, 53 are connected to the left and right openings 15, 16 on the base 1 side.
It corresponds to. Then, the face plate portion 51, the entrance guide portions 53, 53, the intermediate guide portions 54, 54, and the contact piece 55
A card holding unit is constituted by the above. Therefore, the card C can be inserted through the entrance guides 53, 53 and the intermediate guides 54, 54 until the card C hits the contact piece 55.

The lower piece of the above-mentioned entrance guide portion 53 is formed as an engaging portion 56 corresponding to the above-mentioned engaging piece 19, and a contact piece portion 57 is connected to the rear end portion of the engaging portion 56. I have.
The contact piece portion 57 contacts the back surface of the card C inserted into the card holding portion to release static electricity charged on the card C, or holds the card C in the card holding portion. Help. Further, from the lower piece of the left intermediate guide portion 54, a spring piece 6 having a curved distal end portion 61 projecting downward extends forward.
The spring piece 6 is inclined so as to fall forward.

A pair of left and right arms 7, 7 are provided at the rear end of the cover 5, and fitting holes 8, 8 are opened in these arms 7, 7, respectively. The fitting holes 8, 8 are separately fitted into a pair of left and right shafts 4, 4, respectively. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the fitting hole 8 is formed by a circular round hole 81 and an elongated hole 85 that is connected to the round hole 81 and extends rearward. The minor diameter a of the long hole 85 is shorter than the diameter d of the round hole 81. The long hole portion 85 has a pair of upper and lower parallel long sides 86 and 87. The vertical distance between the horizontal engagement surface 41 and the contact portion 42 of the shaft body 4 in the vertical direction is equal to the mutual distance between the long sides 86 and 87, that is, the short diameter dimension a. Also, the distance between the foremost part 43 and the rearmost part 44 of the outer surface of the shaft body 4, that is, the diameter dimension d of the shaft body 4 is equivalent. Therefore, the forefront 4
The distance between the third portion 44 and the rear end portion 44 is longer than the minor dimension a of the long hole portion 85. Further, when the round hole portion 81 is fitted in the shaft 4 as shown in FIG. 6, the cover 5 is supported by the shaft 4 and can be opened and closed about the shaft 4 as shown in FIG. As described above, when the long hole portion 85 is fitted to the shaft body 4, the horizontal engaging surface 41 of the shaft body 4 contacts the lower long side 86 of the long hole portion 85, and the shaft body 87 contacts the upper long side 87. The cover 5 is held in a closed position by the shaft body 4 when the contact portion 42 of the cover 4 comes into contact therewith. The state where the cover 5 is held in the closed posture by the shaft body 4 is the locked state. Only when the cover 5 is locked and in the closed position, the cover 5 can be slid in the front-rear direction. And the long hole portion 85 can be selectively shifted to a fitting position with the shaft body 4. Note that, in this embodiment, the top of the round hole 81 starts at the long hole 8.
The upper long side 87 of 5 extends.

As shown in FIG. 1, the arms 7, 7
The rear end is bent inward so that the slide regulating portion 71,
A long hole 85 of the fitting hole 8 reaches the slide restricting portions 71, 71. For this reason,
When the cover 5 is slid forward in the closed posture, as shown in FIGS. 5, 7, 12 and the like, the slide restricting portion 71 hits the rear end face 22 of the base 1 and the slide is prevented. When the cover 5 is moved from the closed position to the open position, the slide restricting portion 71 also serves as a stopper portion 72 that contacts the rear end lower surface 23 of the base 1 to prevent the cover 5 from opening as shown in FIG. For this reason, the opening posture of the cover 5 when removing or replacing the card C is determined by the posture when the stopper 72 shared by the slide restricting portion 71 hits the rear end lower surface 23 of the base 1.

The card C shown in FIG. 1 has a surface electrode C1 corresponding to each of the plurality (six) of the contact piece members 3,. (In FIG. 1, illustration of individual plane electrodes is omitted, and the whole of them is denoted by reference numeral C1.)

In the card connector, when the round hole 81 of the fitting hole 8 of the cover 5 is fitted to the shaft 4, the cover 5 can be opened or closed around the shaft 4. it can. When the round hole 81 of the fitting hole 8 of the cover 5 is fitted to the shaft 4, the stopper 72, which is also used by the slide restricting part 71, as shown in FIG. When the cover 5 is opened until it hits the lower surface 23, the cover 5 is in the open position and stays in that position. At this time,
When the card C is inserted through the left and right entrance guide portions 53 and the left and right intermediate guide portions 54 until it hits the contact piece 55,
The card C is held by a card holding portion constituted by an entrance guide portion 53, an intermediate guide portion 54, and a contact piece 55. When the card C charged with static electricity is inserted into the card holding portion, the contact piece portion 57
To release the static electricity charged on the card C by contacting the back surface of the card C.

When the cover 5 is slightly open,
Since the long hole 85 of the fitting hole 8 does not fit in the shaft 4, the open cover 5 can be closed smoothly around the shaft 4 by pushing it with the fingers of the hand. it can.

When the cover 5 is closed in this manner, the left and right entrance guides 53, 53 are connected to the left and right openings 1 on the base 1 side.
5 and 16, and the curved end portion 61 of the spring piece 6 is connected to the spring receiving surface 21 on the base 1 side as shown in FIG. 11.
Supported by. At this time, the front end 58 of the cover 5 is slightly protruded above the side wall 12 on the base 1 side by the spring piece 6 as shown in FIG. Thereafter, by pressing the cover 5 with a finger against the bias of the spring piece 6 to deflect the spring piece 6 against its spring property, the cover 5 is closed and the surface electrode of the card C is closed. Each of the electrode contact portions 31... 31 on the base 1 side elastically contacts C1 while the left and right entrance guide portions 53 and 53 are connected to the base 1.
The left and right engagement portions 56, 56 are fitted into the left and right openings 15, 16 on the side of the base 1, respectively.
The long hole 85 of the fitting hole 8 faces the shaft 4. Therefore, when the cover 5 is slid forward with the finger holding down the cover 5 as shown by the arrow X in FIGS. 5 and 12 and the slide regulating portion 71 is brought into contact with the rear end face 22 of the base 1, as shown in FIG. The long hole portion 85 of the fitting hole portion 8 is fitted to the shaft body 4, and the entrance guide portion 53 and the engagement portion 56 advance as shown by the arrow X1 in FIG. As shown in FIG.
As described above, the engaging portion 56 is engaged with the engaging piece 19 by fitting below the engaging piece 19 on the base 1 side. Further, the distal end portion 61 of the spring piece 6 extends over the hooking portion 24 and the opening 1 as shown in FIG.
5, whereby the deflection of the spring piece 6 is eliminated. The surface electrode C1 of the card C is connected to the electrode contact portion 31.
, 31... Are self-cleaned and are in good contact with the electrode contact portions 31.

As described above, when the long hole 85 of the fitting hole 8 is fitted to the shaft 4, the shaft 4 is fitted to the long side 86 below the long hole 85 as shown in FIG. , And the contact portion 42 of the shaft body 4 hits the upper long side 87, so that the cover 5 cannot be opened around the shaft body 4 and the cover 5 is locked in the closed posture. In this locked state, since the force of the contact piece member 3 on the base 1 side is applied to the surface electrode C1 of the card C,
Although the cover 5 is biased in the opening direction, as can be seen in FIG.
Since the engagement portion 56 is received by the engagement piece 19 on the base 1 side with which the engagement portion 56 is engaged, no large force is applied to the horizontal engagement surface 41 of the shaft body 4. For this reason, even if the shaft body 4 is formed to be extremely thin and small, a situation where the horizontal engagement surface 41 is damaged or the shaft body 4 itself is not damaged does not occur. The same applies when the cover 5 is forcibly opened with the fingers of the hand.
In the locked state, the front end 58 of the cover 5 is held at the same level as the side wall 12 on the base 1 side as shown in FIG.

When the rearward force is applied to the cover 5 while the cover 5 is locked in the closed position, the curved end portion 61 of the spring piece 6 which has been dropped into the opening 61 until then is applied. Since the slide operation is hindered by hitting the latching portion 24 on the base 1 side, the situation where the lock of the cover 5 is easily released by such an unexpected force does not occur (see FIG. 12).

As shown in FIG. 12, when the locked cover 5 is slid backward with a finger in the closed posture, the shaft 4
The engagement hole 56 is moved backward and slips out from under the engagement piece 19 on the base 1 side to be unlocked, and at the same time, the tip of the spring piece 6 is released. 61 is the hook 2
4 and rides on the spring receiving surface 21. When the user releases his / her hand from the cover 5, the front end 58 of the cover 5 is attached with the card C1 by the urging of the spring piece 6 as shown in FIGS. Rise from. For this reason, it becomes easy to open the cover 5 with the tip of a finger.

In the card connector of this embodiment, since the slide restricting portion 71 is formed by bending the rear end of the arm portion 7 inward, the length of the cover 5 in the front-rear direction is shortened accordingly. . Therefore, the height of the card connector (the height from the base 1 to the upper end (front end portion 86) of the cover) when the cover 5 is opened and opened is reduced by the extent that the cover 5 is shortened. Accordingly, miniaturization of the card connector has been promoted.

The card C to be used with the card connector includes not only an IC card conforming to ISO7816 but also a SIM card having a size of 25 × 15 mm in length and width. SIM card is IC
Its size is extremely small compared to the card.

[0048]

According to the present invention, a lock mechanism for holding the base in the closed position can be constituted only by the base provided with the contact piece and the cover without using a separate piece. It is possible to provide a card connector with a small number of parts and an inexpensive and simple structure, and furthermore, it is easy to achieve an ultra-small, ultra-thin, and lightweight card connector. Can be suitably used.

According to the present invention, the operation of closing the cover to the closed position and the operation of sliding the cover forward to lock the cover in the closed position can be continuously performed with the fingers of the hand. When opening the cover, slide the cover backward to release the lock, the front end of the cover naturally rises from the base, making it easier to open the cover with your fingers, and the opening position when opening the cover is constant Therefore, it is possible to provide an easy-to-use card connector, in particular, an easy-to-use SIM card connector.

Further, according to the present invention, it is necessary to form the shaft in a very thin and small shape like a card connector for handling a SIM card, so that the mechanical strength of the shaft can be increased so much. Even in the case where the cover cannot be locked, the load applied to the shaft when the cover is locked can be reduced, and a card connector with high lock reliability can be provided.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a card connector in which a cover locked in a closed position is unlikely to be unlocked accidentally.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing one embodiment of a card connector of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a base.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the card connector with a cover opened.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the card connector with the cover closed but not locked.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the card connector with a cover locked.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged side view of a main part of the card connector when the shaft is fitted in the round hole.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged side view of a main part of the card connector when the shaft is fitted in the long hole.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged plan view showing a main part of a base.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view of a portion taken along line IX-IX in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an engagement portion and an engagement piece.

FIG. 11 is an operation explanatory view of a spring piece showing an enlarged cross section along the line XI-XI in FIG. 2;

FIG. 12 shows XI-XI in a state different from FIG. 11 of FIG.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of an operation of a spring piece showing an enlarged cross section along a line.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing dimensions and the like of each part of a shaft and a fitting hole.

[Explanation of symbols]

 C card C1 Surface electrode 1 Base 3 Contact piece 4 Shaft 5 Cover 6 Spring piece 7 Arm 8 Fitting hole 15 Opening 19 Engagement piece 21 Spring receiving surface 24 Hook 31 Electrode contact 41 Horizontal engagement surface 42 Contacting part 43 Foremost part 44 Last part 53 Inlet guide part (card holding part) 54 Intermediate guide part (card holding part) 55 Contact piece (card holding part) 56 Engaging part 58 Front end of cover 61 Tip of spring piece 71 Slide regulating part 72 Stopper part 81 Round hole part 85 Long hole part 86, 87 Long side a Minor diameter of long hole d Diameter of round hole

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A card provided with a pair of left and right shafts protruding laterally at a rear end portion of a base provided with a contact piece member having an electrode contact portion, and having a surface electrode corresponding to the electrode contact portion. A pair of left and right arms are provided at the rear end of the cover having a card holding portion for holding, and fitting holes provided in each of these arms are separately fitted into the pair of left and right shafts. The fitting hole portion is formed by a circular round hole portion and a long hole portion connected to the round hole portion and extending rearward, and the minor diameter of the long hole portion is the round hole portion. The shaft body has a horizontal engagement surface and a contact portion separately on both upper and lower portions sandwiching the axis, and the vertical direction of the horizontal engagement surface and the contact portion is different. The distance between each other is equal to the minor dimension of the long hole, and the front and rear portions of its outer surface The gap is equal to the diameter of the round hole and longer than the minor diameter of the long hole, and when the round hole is fitted in the shaft, the cover is closed. , And can be opened and closed about the shaft, and when the long hole is fitted to the shaft, the horizontal engagement surface hits one long side of the long hole and the other side. When the contact portion hits the long side, the shaft locks the cover in the closed position, and when the cover is in the closed position, the cover engages with the shaft through a sliding operation in the front-rear direction. Wherein said round hole portion and said long hole portion are selectively shifted. 2. An engaging piece projecting rearward from the base, wherein the cover is slid forward in a closed position and the elongated hole is fitted into the shaft body. To prevent the cover from opening, and when the cover is slid rearward in the closed position and the round hole is fitted to the shaft, the engagement is released to open the cover. 2. An engaging part which allows the cover to be provided is provided at a front end of the cover.
Card connector described in. 3. A front end portion of the spring piece is provided on the cover, the spring piece extending forward, and when the cover is in a closed position, the spring piece is bent against its spring property. The base is provided with a spring receiving surface for receiving the spring, and the cover is slid forward in a closed position on the front side of the spring receiving surface of the base and the elongated hole is fitted to the shaft. 2. An opening for lowering the distal end of the spring piece to eliminate bending of the spring piece.
Or the card connector according to claim 2. 4. A tip of the spring piece has a curved shape protruding downward, and an edge of the opening on the side of the spring receiving surface is provided with:
4. The card connector according to claim 3, wherein a latching portion is provided which abuts on a curved end of the spring piece when the cover is slid rearward in the closed position and resists the sliding movement of the cover rearward. . 5. A rear end portion of the arm portion is bent inward so as to face a rear end surface of the base, and hits the rear end surface of the base when the cover is slid forward in a closed position. A slide restricting portion for preventing a slide is formed.
The card connector according to claim 4. 6. The slide control device according to claim 5, wherein the slide restricting portion also serves as a stopper portion that contacts the lower surface of the rear end portion of the base to prevent the cover from moving when the cover is moved from the closed position to the open position. Card connector. 7. The card connector according to claim 5, wherein the elongated hole reaches the slide restricting portion of the arm. 8. The card holding section of the cover has a size capable of holding a SIM card having a size of 25 × 15 mm in length and width. The card connector according to any one of claims 5, 6, and 7.