Abstract:
A battery case having an anti-reverse insertion locking device is provided. A locking device includes a latch, a first case and a knob. The latch has one end at which a fixing projection is formed and the other end at which an elastic portion is formed. The latch has a first coupling groove formed therein. In the latch, the first coupling groove is asymmetric with respect to a length or width direction thereof. The first case has first and second through-holes formed therein. In the first case, the fixing projection enters/exits the second through-hole. The knob has a first coupling projection formed thereon. In the knob, the first coupling projection is inserted into the first coupling groove by passing through the first through-hole. Accordingly, it is possible to a knob and a latch, which have a directional property, from being in a reserve or wrong direction in a manufacturing process.

Description:
CLAIM PRIORITY 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Application No. 10-2010-0112078, filed on Nov. 11, 2010, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    An aspect of the present invention relates to a battery case, and more particularly, to a battery case having a locking device capable of preventing a battery from being inserted in a reserve or wrong direction in a manufacturing process. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    In general, battery packs used in external portable electronic devices such as personal digital assistants (PDAs) and camcorders are manufactured in an attachable and detachable type due to limitations regarding the capacity of battery cells. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    Embodiments of the present invention provide a battery case having a locking device capable of preventing a battery from being inserted in the reverse, or wrong direction, in a manufacturing process. 
         [0007]    According to an aspect of the present invention, a battery case includes a latch, a first case and a knob. 
         [0008]    The latch has one end at which a fixing projection is formed and the other end at which an elastic portion is formed. The latch has a first coupling groove formed therein. In the latch, the first coupling groove is asymmetric with respect to a length or width direction thereof. The first case has first and second through-holes formed therein. In the first case, the fixing projection enters/exits the second through-hole. The knob has a first coupling projection formed of the latch. In the knob, the first coupling projection is inserted into the first coupling groove by passing through the first through-hole. 
         [0009]    The first coupling groove may be asymmetric with respect to the length direction of the latch and symmetric with respect to the width direction of the latch. A second coupling projection may be formed on an inner circumferential surface of the first coupling groove, and the cross-sectional shape of the first coupling projection may be formed to accommodate the second coupling projection. The second coupling projection may be formed in the direction of the fixing projection of the latch. 
         [0010]    A guide portion that accommodates and guides the latch to move in the length direction of the latch may be formed in the first case. 
         [0011]    Rib coupling grooves may be formed at both sides of the first coupling groove of the latch, respectively, and ribs inserted into the rib coupling grooves may be formed at both sides of the first coupling projection of the knob, respectively. A hook fixed to each of the rib coupling grooves may be formed at an end of each of the ribs. 
         [0012]    A concave-convex portion may be formed on the other side surface of each of the first coupling grooves of the knob. The concave-convex portion may be formed to be biased to a side with respect to the length direction thereof. The concave-convex portion may be formed to be biased to the direction of the fixing projection. 
         [0013]    According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a notebook case including the battery case described above. 
         [0014]    As described above, in a battery case according to embodiments of the present invention, it is possible to prevent a knob and a latch, which have a directional property, from being in the reverse, or wrong direction, in a manufacturing process. 
         [0015]    Also, the failure rate of the battery case can be reduced, so that it is advantageous in terms of economy and time. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0016]    The accompanying drawings, together with the specification, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention, and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present invention. 
           [0017]      FIG. 1  is a partial perspective view showing an outside of a notebook case according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0018]      FIG. 2  is a partial perspective view showing an inside of the notebook case of  FIG. 1 . 
           [0019]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a knob according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0020]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a bottom of the knob of  FIG. 3 . 
           [0021]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the knob and the notebook case according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0022]      FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing a state where the knob of  FIG. 5  and notebook case are coupled to each other. 
           [0023]      FIG. 7  is a perspective view of a latch according to an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0024]      FIG. 8  is a perspective view showing a state where the latch and the notebook case are coupled to each other. 
           [0025]      FIG. 9  is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the notebook case, the latch and the knob are coupled to one another. 
           [0026]      FIG. 10  is a bottom perspective view of a knob according to another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0027]      FIG. 11  is a partial perspective view of a latch corresponding to the knob of  FIG. 10 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0028]    In the following detailed description, only certain exemplary embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, simply by way of illustration. As those skilled in the art would realize, the described embodiments may be modified in various different ways, all without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive. In addition, when an element is referred to as being “on” another element, it can be directly on the another element or be indirectly on the another element with one or more intervening elements interposed therebetween. Also, when an element is referred to as being “connected to” another element, it can be directly connected to the another element or be indirectly connected to the another element with one or more intervening elements interposed therebetween. Hereinafter, like reference numerals refer to like elements. When terms that indicate directions, such as top, bottom left and right, are used without special notation, the terms indicate directions represented in the drawings. 
         [0029]    Several locking devices are used for the purpose of attaching and detaching battery packs and the like. Such locking devices are formed at a notebook case and a case, of a battery pack, respectively, so that they are fixed to each other. 
         [0030]    Meanwhile, a latch for fixing a battery pack to a notebook case, or the like, and a knob for operating the latch are generally used as a locking device. However, the latch is frequently formed to have a constant directional property. In a case where the directional property is neglected and the battery pack is wrongly inserted in the manufacturing process, a product failure occurs, and serious economic and temporal problems follow. 
         [0031]    A locking device provided for a battery case according to embodiments of the present invention may be included and used in various other products or devices. However, in this specification, a notebook computer provided with a removable battery pack will be described as an example. 
       Embodiment 1 
       [0032]    A notebook computer according to an embodiment may be divided into a notebook case, a battery case and a locking device provided to each of the notebook case and the battery case. Hereinafter, components that constitute the notebook computer will be described in detail. 
         [0033]    A notebook case  10  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 .  FIG. 1  is a partial perspective view showing an outside of the notebook case  10  according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  is a partial perspective view showing an inside of the notebook case  10  of  FIG. 1 . 
         [0034]    As shown in  FIG. 1 , a first through-hole  12  is formed in the notebook case  10 . The first through-hole  12  is formed in the vicinity of a position at which the battery pack (not shown) is to be coupled to the notebook case  10 . The first through-hole  12  is formed to have a predetermined length. The guide portion  11  formed to be stepped deeper than surroundings is also formed in the vicinity of the first through-hole  12 . Meanwhile, as shown in  FIG. 2 , a second through-hole  14  is formed at one side of the notebook case  10 . The second through-hole  14  is formed at a side in the direction of the battery pack (not shown) with respect to the first through-hole  12 . 
         [0035]    The functions of the first through-hole  12 , the guide portion  11  and the second through-hole  14  will be described later. 
         [0036]    A guide wall  13  may be formed along the length direction of the first through-hole  12 . The guide wall  13  functions to guide a latch which will be described later to move in a predetermined direction. 
         [0037]    A knob  20  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 3 to 6 .  FIG. 3  is a perspective view of the knob  20  according to an embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 4  is a perspective view showing a bottom of the knob of  FIG. 3 .  FIG. 5  is a perspective view showing the knob  20  and the notebook case  10  according to the embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 6  is a perspective view showing a state where the knob  20  of  FIG. 5  and the notebook case are coupled to each other. 
         [0038]    As shown in  FIG. 3 , a concave-convex portion  25  is formed on a top surface of the knob  20 . The concave-convex portion  25  functions to increase a frictional force while coming in contact with a user&#39;s hand. In a case where a user pushes or pulls the knob  20 , as the frictional force is increased by the concave-convex portion  25 , the knob  20  can be easily moved without sliding. In this instance, the concave-convex portion  25  may be formed to be biased to any one of the length directions thereof. In order to effectively apply a force, the concave-convex portion  25  may be formed to be biased to the direction of a fixing projection  31  (see  FIG. 9 ) which will be described later. 
         [0039]    As shown in  FIG. 4 , a first coupling projection  21  is formed on a bottom surface of the knob  20 . The first coupling projection  21  is formed asymmetric about the length or width direction of the knob  20 . In this embodiment, a predetermined accommodation space in the length direction of the knob  20  is formed in the first coupling projection  21 , so that the first coupling projection  21  is formed asymmetric. 
         [0040]    Protruded ribs  22  may be formed at both sides of the first coupling projection  21  with respect to the length direction of the knob  20 , respectively. The ribs  22  are formed in a shape protruded in the same direction, at the same angle, as the first coupling projection  21 . Meanwhile, a hook  23  may be formed at an end of each of the ribs  22 . 
         [0041]    The knob  20  is assembled with the notebook case  10  toward the inside of the guide portion  11 . In this instance, the first coupling projection  21  and the ribs  22  in the knob  20  are exposed to the inside, opposite to the outside, of the notebook case  10  through the first through-hole  12 . As shown in  FIG. 6 , the knob  20  is guided and limited so as to travel along the guide portion  11  in the length direction thereof. 
         [0042]    A latch  30  will be described with reference to  FIGS. 7 and 8 .  FIG. 7  is a perspective view of the latch  30  according to the embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 8  is a perspective view showing a state where the latch  30  and the notebook case  10  are coupled to each other. 
         [0043]    The latch  30  is formed to have a predetermined length. A fixing projection  31  is formed at one end of the latch  30 . A portion of the fixing projection  31  is inserted into the battery case (not shown) so as to fix the battery case (not shown). Since the shape and function of the fixing projection  31  are not significantly different from those of the fixing projections in the related art, a detailed description will be omitted. 
         [0044]    A first coupling groove  32  is formed at a central portion of the latch  30 . The first coupling groove  32  is formed asymmetric with respect to the length or width direction thereof, so that the asymmetric first coupling projection  21  (see  FIG. 4 ) can be inserted with a small gap into the first coupling groove  32 . In this embodiment, a second projection  33  is formed on an inner circumferential surface of the first coupling groove  32 , as an example of the asymmetry. Meanwhile, the second projection  33  may be formed to be close to the direction of the fixing projection  31  of the latch  30 . 
         [0045]    Rib coupling grooves  34  may be formed at both sides of the first coupling groove  32  of the latch  30 , respectively. A stepped portion  35  formed to be stepped deeper than its surroundings may be formed at the outside of each of the rib coupling grooves  34 . The functions of the rib coupling grooves  34  and the stepped portion  35  will be described later. 
         [0046]    An elastic portion  36  is formed at the other side of the fixing projection  31 . The elastic portion  36  is provided with an elastic member such as a spring, so that elastic repulsive power can be applied to the movement of the latch  30 . Since the configuration of the elastic portion  36  is not significantly different from that of the elastic portion of the related art, a detailed description will be omitted. 
         [0047]    As shown in  FIG. 8 , the latch  30  is assembled to move along the guide wall  13 . In this instance, the fixing projection  31  is moved in the state that it is inserted into the second through-hole  14 . 
         [0048]    A coupling relationship between the knob  20  and the latch  30  will be described with reference to  FIG. 9 .  FIG. 9  is an exploded perspective view showing a state where the notebook case, the latch and the knob are coupled to one another. 
         [0049]    The first coupling projection  21  of the knob  20  is inserted into the first coupling groove  35  by passing through the first through-hole  12  of the notebook case  10 . The second coupling projection  33  is accommodated in the accommodation space formed by the first coupling projection  21 . In this instance, the first coupling projection  21  and the first coupling groove  32  are formed asymmetric, so that it is possible to prevent the knob  20  from being inserted in a wrong direction. Meanwhile, as described above, the second coupling projection  33  may be formed in the direction of the fixing projection  31 . This is because, as the first coupling projection  21  of the knob  20  moves, a uniform force is transferred to the first coupling groove  32 . 
         [0050]    The ribs  22  are inserted into the corresponding rib coupling grooves, respectively. In this instance, the hook  23  formed at the end of each of the ribs  22  is fixed to the stepped portion  25 . 
         [0051]    Meanwhile, a fixing groove (not shown) corresponding to the fixing projection is formed in the battery case. Since the position and shape of the fixing groove (not shown) is not significantly different from those of the fixing grooves of the related art, a detailed description will be omitted. 
       Embodiment 2 
       [0052]    In Embodiment 2, other shapes for the first coupling projection and the first coupling groove will be described with reference to  FIGS. 10 and 11 .  FIG. 10  is a bottom perspective view of a knob  20   a  according to another embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 11  is a partial perspective view of a latch  30   a  corresponding to the knob  20   a  of  FIG. 10 . 
         [0053]    As briefly described above, the first coupling projection and the first coupling groove may be formed asymmetric with the length or width direction of the latch. For the asymmetry, the second coupling projection  33  (see  FIG. 7 ) may be formed as described in the Embodiment 1. However, in this embodiment, the shape of the first coupling groove  32   a  itself is formed asymmetric. That is, the first coupling groove  32   a  is formed asymmetric with respect to the length direction and/or width direction of the latch, and a first coupling projection  21   a  is formed to be inserted with a small gap into the first coupling groove  32   a.    
         [0054]    In a case where the latch  30   a  is moved as the knob  20   a  moves, a constant force is transferred to the first coupling groove  32   a.  In a case where, the first coupling groove  32   a  is formed asymmetric with respect to all the length and width directions thereof as described in this embodiment, a uniform force is not transferred to the inner circumferential surface of the first coupling groove  32   a.  That is, in a case where the first coupling groove  32  is asymmetric with respect to the length direction thereof and symmetric with respect to the width direction thereof as described in the Embodiment of  FIG. 9 , the first coupling projection  21  transfers a uniform force to the first coupling groove  32 . 
         [0055]    Meanwhile, the aforementioned locking device may be formed so that the positions of the components respectively formed in the notebook case and the battery case may be exchanged with each other. That is, the latch and knob are formed in the battery case, and the fixing grooves respectively corresponding to the latch and the knob may be formed in the notebook case. 
         [0056]    While the present invention has been described in connection with certain exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, and equivalents thereof.