JP2009170391A - Usb connector plug with locking mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a USB connector plug with a locking mechanism, capable of utilizing a receptacle for a USB connector used for general purposes, and making it impossible to pull out an inserted USB connector plug. <P>SOLUTION: This USB connector plug 10 with the locking mechanism is roughly composed of a plug shell 12 comprising a tubular body the cross section of which is rectangular and both ends of which are open, a terminal fixing part 22 which is provided in the inside of the plug shell 12 and to the external surface of which a plug conduction terminal 24 is fixed, a cable 32 in which a plurality of wires 34 to be electrically connected to peripheral apparatuses, a terminal connecting part 36 to electrically connect the plug conduction terminal 24 with the wires 34, and a plug housing 38 to house a part of the plug shell 12, one end of the cable 32, and the terminal connecting part 36 in its inside. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a USB connector plug, and more particularly to a USB connector plug that cannot be removed after being inserted into a USB connector receptacle attached to a computer main body such as a personal computer or a workstation.

  A USB (Universal Serial Bus) interface as a general-purpose serial interface is used as a standard for connecting a computer body and computer peripheral devices, or between computer bodies and computer peripheral devices.

  The USB connector is a connector used for connecting a computer main body and a computer peripheral device using the USB interface. As an example of a USB connector conforming to the USB interface, Patent Document 1 discloses a printed circuit board on which an electronic device such as a transistor or a capacitor is mounted, or a printed wiring board on which a wiring conductor is not formed and the electronic device is not mounted. The USB connector resectable 101 that is directly attached to the circuit board, and the like, and the USB connector plug 120 inserted into the USB connector resectable 101, and the USB connector resectable 101 and the USB connector plug 120 are fitted. Thus, a USB connector for electrically connecting the computer main body and peripheral devices is disclosed.

  With such a USB connector consisting of a USB connector plug and a USB connector reusable, the computer main unit is connected to an external storage device such as a computer printer or USB memory, and digital data for computers can be transferred easily. It is possible to do.

  However, since the conventional USB connector can easily remove the USB connector plug inserted into the USB connector receptacle, a USB memory connected to the computer main body with the USB connector, an external hard disk drive device, etc. There was a possibility of theft of external storage devices.

In order to prevent such theft, Patent Document 2 provides a locking portion for locking the USB connector plug to the USB connector receptacle, and the USB connector plug is inserted into the USB connector receptacle. Then, a USB connector is disclosed in which the locking portion is activated and the USB connector plug cannot be removed from the USB connector receptacle.
JP 2000-223218 A JP 2006-133920 A

  However, the USB connector proposed in Patent Document 2 is a special one in which a locking portion is disposed on a receptacle shell of a USB connector receptacle, and a normal USB connector receptacle provided in a computer main body. Could not be used as is. For this reason, when the receptacle for the USB connector of the computer main body is replaced or the computer main body is manufactured, this special USB connector receptacle must be used in advance.

  The object of the present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and the main object of the present invention is to allow a USB connector receptacle to be used as it is, and to insert a plug for a USB connector. It is impossible to withdraw.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, a USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to the present invention comprises a plug shell comprising a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross-section and open at both ends, and an internal And a plug housing that houses a part of the plug shell therein, and the plug shell includes a locking portion.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the USB connector plug with a lock mechanism, the locking portion is provided on one side surface of the plug shell and is erected toward the outside of the plug shell. And a tongue piece bending mechanism that bends the tongue piece so that the claw portion protrudes and protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism, the tongue bending mechanism is provided in the gap of the terminal fixing portion, and the axis of the cylinder constituting the plug shell is provided. A slide portion slidable in a direction parallel to the tongue, a tongue piece protrusion provided on the tongue piece and protruding toward the inside of the plug shell, and provided on the slide portion and in contact with the tongue piece protrusion portion. It consists of the slide protrusion part which bends the said tongue piece by this.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism, wherein the tongue piece is bent by sliding the slide portion and bringing the slide protrusion portion into contact with the tongue piece protrusion portion. The plug shell can be locked to the receptacle shell by projecting the claw portion from one side surface of the plug shell.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism, wherein the slide portion is slid to release the contact between the slide protrusion and the tongue piece protrusion. The plug shell can be locked to the receptacle shell by releasing the bending of the piece and projecting the claw portion from one side surface of the plug shell.

  According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, the USB connector plug with a lock mechanism further includes a lock mechanism.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to disable the removal of the USB connector plug using the existing USB connector receptacle.

  Further, according to the present invention, since it is not necessary to use an expensive and special USB connector receptacle, it is possible to make it impossible to remove the USB connector plug.

  In addition, according to the present invention, it is possible to simply disable the reusable USB connector that is not used.

<First embodiment>
A first embodiment of a USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is an external view showing a state in which the USB connector plug with a locking mechanism of the present invention is locked (not removable). FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX shown in FIG. 1 and shows a state in which the USB connector plug with a locking mechanism is locked. FIG. 3 is an external view showing a state in which the USB connector plug with a lock mechanism is unlocked (removable). FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the chain line X′-X ′ shown in FIG. 3 and shows a state in which the USB connector plug with a lock mechanism is unlocked.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view of a plug shell of a USB connector plug with a locking mechanism according to the present invention. 6 is a YY cross-sectional view of the plug shell shown in FIG. FIG. 7 is a plan view of a generally used receptacle shell.

  The USB connector is a cable connector compliant with the USB interface standard, and is mainly used for connection between the computer main body and peripheral devices.

  The USB connector is for a USB connector having a receptacle shell that is fixed to a printed circuit board or the like inside the computer main body and has a receptacle conductive terminal that is electrically connected to circuit wiring disposed on the printed circuit board. A receptacle and a plug for a USB connector having a plug shell in which a plug conductive terminal for electrically connecting a receptacle conductive terminal and a cable for fitting to a receptacle shell and connecting to a peripheral device is provided. Composed.

  The USB connector plug 10 with a locking mechanism according to the present invention has a plug shell 12 formed of a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section and open at both ends, and a terminal fixing in which a plug conductive terminal 24 is fixed on the outer surface. A cable 32 provided with a plurality of conductors 34 for electrical connection to a peripheral unit 22 and the like; a terminal connection part 36 for electrically connecting the plug conductive terminal 24 and the conductor 34; The plug housing 12 includes a plug housing 38 that houses a part of the plug shell 12, one end of the cable 32, and the terminal connection portion 36 therein.

  Further, one of the four side surfaces of the plug shell 12 includes a root portion connected to the one side surface and a free end portion extending from the root portion in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylinder constituting the plug shell 12. A cantilever tongue 14 is provided. Further, the tongue piece 14 has a curved portion 16 as a tongue piece protruding portion protruding toward the inside of the plug shell 12, and a claw portion 18 erected toward the outside of the plug shell 12. .

  The tongue piece 14 is bent toward the inside of the plug shell 12 so that the claw portion 18 does not protrude from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14 in an unloaded state. Further, the tongue piece 14 can be bent with the root portion as a fulcrum so that the claw portion 18 protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14 by a load from the inside of the plug shell 12. ing.

  Note that the position of the claw portion 18 of the tongue piece 14 is provided so as to protrude to the position of the gap 66 on the side of the free end of the receptacle shell tongue piece 64 provided in the receptacle shell 62.

  The terminal fixing portion 22 has a surface on which the plug conductive terminal 24 is fixed as an outer surface, and a gap is provided in the inside. Further, the terminal fixing portion 22 is disposed inside the plug shell 12 such that the outer surface is on the other side facing the one side where the tongue piece 14 of the plug shell 12 is provided.

  In addition, the terminal fixing portion 22 is provided with a wall surface 26 on one end side where the plug shell 12 is fitted to the receptacle shell 62 so that the gap inside the terminal fixing portion 22 is not released. Therefore, the plug shell 12 can be inserted into the receptacle shell 62 only in the direction in which the plug conductive terminal 24 and the receptacle conductive terminal are in contact with each other.

  The terminal fixing portion 22 is manufactured by, for example, bending a rectangular metal plate such as aluminum and bending one end side in the longitudinal direction so that the plug conductive terminal 24 is fixed to become an outer surface and a wall surface 26. The In order to ensure electrical insulation between the terminal fixing portion 22 and the plug conductive terminal 24, for example, a resin film such as a polyimide film is used on the side where the plug conductive terminal 24 is fixed to the terminal fixing portion 22. Alternatively, the surface of the terminal fixing portion 22 may be insulated.

  Further, inside the terminal fixing portion 22, a slide portion 42 that is slidable in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylindrical body constituting the plug shell 12 is housed. The slide portion 42 has a slide protrusion 44 that bends the tongue piece 14 by contacting the curved portion 16 of the tongue piece 14.

  The plug housing 38 is provided with a lock mechanism for holding the USB connector plug 10 in a state in which the USB connector plug 10 is fitted to the USB connector receptacle. The lock mechanism includes a slide grip 52 for manually sliding the slide 42, a slide connection 54 for connecting the slide grip 52 and the slide 42 within the plug housing 38, and the slide connection 54. The lock portion is connected to the slide portion 42, the slide gripping portion 52, and the slide coupling portion 54 so that they cannot be slid at the same time. The lock dial portion 56 is connected to the lock portion and fixes the lock state of the lock portion. The

  The configuration of the lock portion and the lock dial portion 56 for fixing the slide portion 42, the slide gripping portion 52, and the slide connecting portion 54 at the same time so that they cannot slide may be any configuration such as a commonly used dial type key mechanism. .

  A state in which the USB connector plug 10 with a locking mechanism of the present invention having such a configuration is locked to the USB connector receptacle and fixed so that it cannot be removed will be described.

  First, a state in which the USB connector plug 10 is inserted into the USB connector receptacle will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, since the slide grip 52 is slid to the right in the figure, the slide part 42 connected to the slide grip 52 by the slide connecting part 54 is also slid to the right in the figure.

  In this state, since the slide protrusion 44 is not in contact with the bending portion 16, the tongue piece 14 is in an unloaded state. As a result, the claw portion 18 is housed in the plug shell 12 without protruding from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14, and the USB connector plug 10 can be inserted into the USB connector receptacle. It becomes.

  After the USB connector plug 10 is inserted into the USB connector receptacle and the plug shell 12 is fitted into the receptacle shell 62, the slide grip 52 is slid to the left in the drawing as shown in FIGS.

  Due to the slide of the slide gripping part 52, the slide part 42 connected by the slide connecting part 54 is also slid to the left in the drawing. In this state, the slide projecting portion 44 contacts the curved portion 16, so that a load is applied to the tongue piece 14, and the tongue piece 14 bends toward the outside of the plug shell 12 with the root portion as a fulcrum. As a result, the claw portion 18 protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14 and protrudes into the gap 66 on the side of the free end of the receptacle shell tongue piece 64 provided in the receptacle shell 62, The plug shell 12 is locked while being fitted to the receptacle shell 62.

  In this state, the lock dial portion 56 is operated, and the slide portion 42, the slide gripping portion 52, and the slide connecting portion 54 are fixed to be non-slidable at the same time, so that the USB connector plug 10 cannot be removed from the USB connector receptacle. Fixed.

  As described above, the USB connector plug 10 with the lock mechanism of the present invention uses the clearance on the side of the free end portion of the receptacle shell tongue provided in the receptacle shell as defined by the USB standard. Since it can be locked, there is no need to process any USB connector receptacle, and the USB connector can be locked (fixed) in a non-removable manner at a low cost.

  In addition, the USB connector plug 10 with a lock mechanism of the present invention uses the inside of the terminal fixing portion 22 that is not originally used as a USB connector plug, and provides a gap in the inside thereof, so that the slide portion and the tongue protruding portion A tongue shell bending mechanism composed of a curved portion and a slide protrusion as a plug shell, and the tongue shell bending mechanism and a cantilever tongue piece having a claw portion provided on one side of the plug shell. Since this is configured as a locking portion that locks to the receptacle shell, a small and simple USB connector locking mechanism can be provided.

<Second Embodiment>
FIG. 8 is a view showing a second embodiment of the USB connector plug 10 with a locking mechanism of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the location with the same structure as a 1st Example, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  In this second embodiment, a cable provided with a plurality of conductors for electrical connection to peripheral devices and the like, and a terminal connection portion for electrically connecting the plug conductive terminal 24 and the conductor. Instead of the above, a data storage unit 37 is provided, and the USB connector plug 10 with a lock mechanism of the second embodiment of the present invention is a so-called USB memory.

  It should be noted that the USB connector receptacle is obtained by inserting and locking the USB connector plug 10 with a lock mechanism without the data storage unit 37 and the plug conductive terminal 24 of the second embodiment into an unused USB connector receptacle. Can be used to prevent data theft.

<Third embodiment>
9 and 10 are views showing a third embodiment of the USB connector plug 10 with a locking mechanism of the present invention. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the location with the same structure as a 1st Example, and description is abbreviate | omitted.

  FIG. 9 is an external view showing a state in which the USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to the third embodiment of the present invention is locked (not removable). FIG. 10 is a plan view of a plug shell of a USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

  A plug 10 for a USB connector with a locking mechanism according to a third embodiment of the present invention has a plug shell 12 formed of a cylindrical body having a rectangular cross section and open at both ends, a plug shell 12 provided inside the plug shell 12, and a plug conductive terminal 24 on the outer surface. Is fixed to the terminal fixing part 22, the data storage part 37, a part of the plug shell 12, and the plug housing 38 that accommodates the data storage part 37 therein.

  The tongue piece 14 provided on one of the four side surfaces of the plug shell 12 has a tongue piece protruding toward the inside of the plug shell 12 in a cantilevered state in a direction substantially parallel to the tongue piece 14. It has a tongue-like protruding portion 19 and a claw portion 18 erected toward the outside of the plug shell 12.

  In the no-load state, the tongue piece 14 protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell 12 on which the tongue piece 14 is provided. Further, the tongue piece 14 has a base portion as a fulcrum so that the claw portion 18 does not protrude (sink) from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14 due to a load from the inside of the plug shell 12. Can be bent.

  The terminal fixing portion 22 includes a wall surface 26 formed by extending one side surface of the plug shell 12 and bending the plug shell 12 to the inside of the plug shell 12 on one end side where the plug shell 12 is fitted to the receptacle shell 62, and a plug conductive terminal. The terminal fixing plate 28 is fixed to the terminal fixing plate 28. The surface of the terminal fixing plate 28 is used as an outer surface, and a gap is provided in the inside. Further, the terminal fixing plate 28 is disposed inside the plug shell 12 such that the terminal fixing plate 28 is on the other side facing the one side where the tongue piece 14 of the plug shell 12 is provided.

  The slide portion 42 housed inside the terminal connection portion 22 has a tongue-like slide projecting portion 46 that bends the tongue piece 14 by contacting the tongue-like tongue piece projecting portion 19 of the tongue piece 14. is doing.

  A state in which the USB connector plug 10 with the lock mechanism of the third embodiment of the present invention having such a configuration is locked to the USB connector receptacle and fixed so that it cannot be removed will be described.

  First, a state where the USB connector plug 10 is inserted into the USB connector receptacle will be described. When the slide grip 52 is slid to the right in the drawing, the slide 42 connected to the slide grip 52 by the slide connecting portion 54 is also slid to the right in the drawing.

  In this state, since the tongue-like slide protrusion 46 contacts the tongue-like tongue protrusion 19, a load is applied to the tongue 14, and the tongue 14 moves toward the inside of the plug shell 12 with the root as a fulcrum. Bend. As a result, the claw portion 18 is housed in the plug shell 12 without protruding from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14, and the USB connector plug 10 can be inserted into the USB connector receptacle. It becomes.

  After the USB connector plug 10 is inserted into the USB connector receptacle and the plug shell 12 is fitted into the receptacle shell 62, the slide grip 52 is slid to the left in the figure.

  Due to the slide of the slide gripping part 52, the slide part 42 connected by the slide connecting part 54 is also slid to the left in the drawing. In this state, since the contact between the tongue-like slide protrusion 46 and the tongue-like tongue protrusion 19 is released, the tongue piece 14 is in an unloaded state and the bending of the tongue piece 14 is released. As a result, the claw portion 18 protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell 12 provided with the tongue piece 14 and protrudes into the gap 66 on the side of the free end of the receptacle shell tongue piece 64 provided in the receptacle shell 62, The plug shell 12 is locked while being fitted to the receptacle shell 62.

  In this state, the lock dial portion 56 is operated, and the slide portion 42, the slide gripping portion 52, and the slide connecting portion 54 are fixed to be non-slidable at the same time, so that the USB connector plug 10 cannot be removed from the USB connector receptacle. Fixed.

  In the USB connector plug 10 with a lock mechanism according to the third embodiment of the present invention, the terminal fixing portion 22 is constituted by a part of the plug shell 12 and the plate-like terminal fixing plate 28. An epoxy resin or the like that is more difficult to process than a metal such as aluminum can be used for the terminal fixing plate 28 that needs to be non-conductive in order to fix the conductive terminal 24. As a result, there is no need to provide an insulating member at a location where the plug conductive terminal 24 of the terminal fixing portion 22 is fixed, and there are advantages that the number of parts can be reduced and processing is facilitated.

  It goes without saying that the present invention is not limited to the procedure of the embodiment described above, and various modifications are possible without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, in the above embodiment, when the USB connector plug 10 is inserted into the USB connector receptacle, the claw portion 18 does not protrude from one side of the plug shell 12 and is stored in the plug shell 12. As described above, since the tongue piece 14 is a thin metal plate of less than 1 mm, the USB connector plug 10 may be inserted into the USB connector receptacle with the claw portion 18 protruding from one side surface of the plug shell 12. Is possible. In this case, it is also possible to adopt a configuration for disabling unused USB connector receptacles by not providing a lock mechanism.

  Further, in the above-described embodiment, when the slide portion 42 is slid, the slide protrusion 44 provided on the slide portion 42 becomes the bending portion 16 or the tongue-like tongue protrusion 19 as the tongue protrusion. It explained so that the tongue piece 14 might bend by contacting. However, as a configuration of the tongue piece bending mechanism, for example, the slide portion 42 is not provided with the slide projection portion 44, and the tongue portion 14 is bent by a part of the end portion of the slide portion 42 coming into contact with the tongue piece projection portion. The tongue piece 14 bends when the slide protruding portion 44 provided on the slide portion 42 contacts the tongue piece 14 without providing the tongue piece protruding portion on the tongue piece 14. In such a configuration, the slide part 42 to which elastic force is given by being bent in the middle is arranged inside the terminal fixing part 22, and the end of the slide part 42 and the bent part are bent by the slide part 42 being slid The tongue piece 14 may be bent by contacting the tongue piece 14.

  It is an external view which shows the state which the plug for USB connectors with a locking mechanism of this invention is locked.   It is sectional drawing in the XX chain line shown in FIG.   It is an external view which shows the state by which the plug for USB connectors with a locking mechanism is unlocked.   FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the chain line X′-X ′ shown in FIG. 3.   It is a top view of a plug shell.   FIG. 6 is a YY sectional view of the plug shell shown in FIG. 5.   It is a top view of a receptacle shell.   It is a figure which shows the plug for USB connectors with a locking mechanism of 2nd Example of this invention.   It is an external view which shows the state in which the plug for USB connectors with a locking mechanism of the 3rd Example of this invention is locked.   It is a top view of the plug shell of the plug for USB connectors with a locking mechanism of the 3rd example of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 USB connector plug 12 Plug shell 14 Tongue piece 16 Bending part 18 Nail | claw part 19 Tongue-like tongue piece protrusion part 22 Terminal fixing part 24 Plug conductive terminal 26 Wall surface 28 Terminal fixing plate 32 Cable 34 Conductor wire 36 Terminal connection part 38 Plug housing 42 Slide part 44 Slide protrusion part 46 Tongue piece-like slide protrusion part 52 Slide grip part 54 Slide connection part 56 Lock dial part 62 Receptacle shell 64 Receptacle shell tongue piece 66 Gap

Claims (6)

A plug shell consisting of a cylinder with a rectangular cross-section and open at both ends;
A terminal fixing part with a gap inside;
A plug housing that houses a part of the plug shell inside,
A plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism, wherein the plug shell includes a locking portion. The locking portion is
A cantilever tongue piece provided on one side surface of the plug shell and having a claw portion erected toward the outside of the plug shell;
The plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism according to claim 1, comprising a tongue piece bending mechanism that bends the tongue piece so that the claw portion protrudes and protrudes from one side surface of the plug shell. The tongue bending mechanism is:
A slide part that is provided in the gap of the terminal fixing part and is slidable in a direction parallel to the axis of the cylindrical body constituting the plug shell;
A tongue piece protrusion provided on the tongue piece and protruding toward the inside of the plug shell;
3. The USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to claim 2, further comprising: a slide projecting portion provided on the slide portion and bending the tongue piece by contacting the tongue piece projecting portion.   The slide portion is slid to bring the slide protrusion into contact with the tongue piece protrusion, thereby bending the tongue piece, and causing the claw portion to protrude from one side surface of the plug shell to make the plug shell into the receptacle shell. The plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the plug can be locked to the connector.   The slide part is slid to release the contact between the slide protrusion part and the tongue piece protrusion part to release the bending of the tongue piece, and the claw part is protruded from one side surface of the plug shell. 4. The plug for a USB connector with a lock mechanism according to claim 3, wherein the plug shell can be locked to the receptacle shell.   6. The USB connector plug with a lock mechanism according to claim 1, further comprising a lock mechanism.

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