Abstract:
A connector device includes a housing having a slide plate with a handle. By the manual operation of the handle, the slide plate is moved by a disengageable link mechanism along the length of the housing. When a data storage medium is fully inserted in the connector device and the handle is in a first position, the link mechanism is disengaged. The link mechanism becomes engaged, and thereby operable to move the slide plate, only after the handle is moved from the first position to an extended position. In this manner, inadvertent ejection of the data storage medium is prevented.

Description:
This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 08/026,711, filed Mar. 5, 1993, now abandoned. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a connector device which can detachably connect a data storage medium, such as a memory card and hard disc drive package, to personal, laptop and notebook computers and other peripheral devices. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Published Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Registration 63-69375 discloses one of this type of conventional connector devices. 
     The connector device includes a housing having an insertion hole at one end when viewed in its longitudinal direction and connector body connected to the other end of the housing. The top surface of the housing has a slide plate slidable along the longitudinal direction of the housing. The slide plate has a hook capable of being engaged with the data storage medium via the top plate of the housing. A movable member, such as an ejection button, is mounted on the side surface of the housing such that it is slidable along the longitudinal direction of the housing. 
     The slide plate and movable member are connected such that they slide in mutually opposite directions. Specifically, the movable member is connected to the slide plate by a lever rotatably mounted on the top surface of the housing. 
     The connector device is mounted in a casing of, for example, a notebook computer. In this mount state, the movable member of the connector device can be withdrawn out of the housing of the notebook computer clear of the forward end of the housing. 
     When the movable member is withdrawn from the housing, the slide plate is moved toward the connector body side. At this time, the data storage medium is pushed toward the connector body side by the hook of the slide plate to achieve an electrical and mechanical connection to the connector device. By so doing, the data storage medium is connected to the notebook computer. 
     When, on the other hand, the movable member is pushed into the housing, the slide plate is moved toward the insertion opening side. With the movement of the slide plate, the data storage medium is withdrawn away from the connector body side and then clear of the insertion hole so that it is disconnected from the notebook computer. 
     When a data storage medium is fully inserted in the connector device, the movable member protrudes from the casing. Since the protruding movable member is subject to accidental impacts or shocks or liable to be inadvertently operated, there is a risk that the data storage medium will be inadvertently disconnected during operation of the computer system. 
     During operation, the data storage medium, such as a hard disc drive package in particular, needs to be kept connected to the connector device. Any inadvertent disconnection may render the computer system inoperative. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is accordingly an object of the present invention to provide a connector device which ensures added safety for data protection because no movable member is projected during the operative connection of a data storage medium. 
     In order to achieve the object of the present invention, there is provided a connector device for connecting to a data storage medium comprising a pair of opposing side walls spaced at an interval substantially equal to the width of the data storage medium, and a connector body provided at one end of the opposing side walls that has at least one group of contact pins disposed therein for connecting to the data storage medium. According to the present invention, a disengageable release mechanism is provided for ejecting the data storage medium from the connector device upon manual operation of an ejection handle. The release mechanism is disengaged, and therefore inoperable, when a data storage medium is fully inserted in the connector device and the ejection handle is in a first position. The release mechanism becomes engaged, and therefore operable to eject the data storage device, only after the ejection handle is manually moved from the first position to an extended position. Because the ejection handle must be moved from the first position to the extended position in order to engage the release mechanism, inadvertent ejection of the data storage medium is avoided. 
     In a preferred embodiment, the ejection handle is slidably mounted on one of the side walls of the connector device and is operative to slide lengthwise of the side wall toward and away from the connector body. The release mechanism preferably comprises a slide member movably mounted on the connector device and operable to slide toward and away from the connector body, and a disengageable link mechanism coupled between the ejection handle and the slide member for translating movement of the ejection handle into movement of the slide member when the link mechanism is in an engaged state. The slide member has at least one engaging hook adapted to engage with a forward end face of the data storage medium when the data storage medium is connected to the group of contact pins. The link mechanism is disengaged when a data storage medium is fully inserted in the connector device and the ejection handle is in a first position. The link mechanism becomes engaged only after the ejection handle is manually moved from the first position to an extended position. The connector device may further include a latch mechanism for releasably latching the ejection handle in the first position. 
     In the present embodiment, the link mechanism comprises first, second and third swingable levers. The first and third swingable levers are rotatably mounted on the connector device, and the second swingable lever is rotatably mounted on the first swingable lever. One end of the first swingable lever is coupled to the ejection handle, and one end of the third swingable lever is coupled to the slide member. A free end of the second swingable lever has a recess formed therein, and the free end of the third swingable has a projection that engages with the recess of the second swingable lever when the ejection handle reaches the extended position. After the projection engages the recess, the first, second and third swingable levers move in unison and thereby translate movement of the ejection handle into movement of the slide member. Preferably, the end of the second swingable lever opposite the free end includes a spring means that engages the first swingable lever to urge the free end of the second swingable lever toward the third swingable lever to facilitate engagement of the recess with the projection. 
     Additional features and advantages of the present invention are achieved in a connector device comprising: 
     a housing having an opening at a first end and a space for receiving the data storage medium, the space extends from the opening of the housing to a second end of the housing; 
     a plurality of contacts positioned in the second end of the housing for establishing an electrical interconnection to the data storage medium in the space; 
     a first movable member movable along the length of the housing and capable of being set to first, second and third extension positions in that order in a direction away from the housing so that, in the first position, the first movable member extends to a zero or slight extent from the first end of the housing; 
     a transmitting member connected at one end to the first movable member such that, when the first movable member is situated between the first position and the second position, a movement of the first movable member toward the first position is transmitted to the other end of the transmitting member as a normal-direction force directed toward the second end of the housing, such that, when the first movable member is situated between the second position and the third position, the first movable member is latched, and that, when the first movable member is situated in the third position, a movement of the first movable member toward the first position is transmitted to the other end of the transmitting member as a reverse-direction force directed toward the first end of the housing; and 
     a second movable member connected to the other end of the transmitting member and, together with the data storage medium, movable along the length of the housing in unison such that, when the normal-direction force is received from the transmitting member with the movement of the first movable member to the second end of the housing, the second movable member is moved toward the second end of the housing to allow the data storage medium to be connected to the contacts and, when the reverse-direction force is received from the transmitting member, the second movable member is moved to the first end of the housing to allow the data storage medium to be disconnected from the contacts. 
     According to an embodiment of the present invention, the connector device is of such a type that the space is divided into a plurality of sub-spaces in the height of the housing, the sub-space comprising at least two first sub-spaces each holding one memory card therein and at least one second sub-space each holding one hard disc drive package; 
     the contacts comprise a plurality of independent contacts each provided in a one-to-one correspondence relative to each of the first and second sub-spaces; 
     the first movable member comprises a plurality of the first movable members each independently operable in a one-to-one correspondence relative to each of the first and second sub-spaces; and 
     the second movable member comprises a plurality of the second movable members independently operable in a one-to-one correspondence relative to each of the first and second sub-spaces. 
     According to the connector device of the present invention, when the movable member is situated between the first position and the second position, the transmitting member is moved toward the contacts side in association with the pushing of the movable member to the first position to allow the data storage medium to be connected to the connector device. The movable member, when being set to the first position, extends to a zero or slight extent from the forward end of the housing, making it less subject to impacts or shocks. 
     With the first movable member set to the third position, the second movable member is moved by the transmitting member to the insertion opening side of the housing in association with the pushing of the first movable member to the first position, so that the data storage medium is disconnected from the connector device. 
     With the first movable member set between the second position and the third position, the transmitting member is latched and, therefore, it is necessary to withdraw the movable member up to the third position when the data storage medium is to be disconnected. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a connector device according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view as taken along line II—II in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing one hard drive package and two memory cards usable in the connector device; 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view showing an upper release mechanism of the connector device as viewed from the top side of the connector device; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing slide plates for upper and lower release mechanisms of the connector; 
     FIG. 6 is an enlarged perspective view showing a latch mechanism of the connector device; 
     FIG. 7 is a top view showing the upper release mechanism when a data storage medium is connected to the connector device; and 
     FIG. 8 is a plan view showing an upper release mechanism in a disconnected state corresponding to FIG.  7 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     In the Figures, X, Y and Z represent the width, length and thickness directions, respectively, of a connector device  11  and data storage device. 
     In FIG. 1, the connector device of the present invention includes a housing  12  and connector body  14  connected at one end of the housing. The housing  12  and connector body  14  may be so constructed as to be detachable from each other. 
     Proper mount members  10  are provided on the housing  12  and connector body  14  for mounting the device  11  to an electronic device, such as a personal, laptop or notebook computer. 
     The housing  12  has a pair of side walls  16  defining its opposed side surfaces and top and bottom housing plates  18  and  20  defining its top and bottom surfaces. The housing  12  has an insertion hole or opening  22  at the other longitudinal end. The housing plates  18  and  20  are made of a metal and preferably grounded. 
     As shown in FIG. 2, the inner space of the housing  12  communicating with the insertion hole  22  defines a first deck  24  and second deck  26  in the Z direction. The first and second decks  24  and  26  can store corresponding memory cards and the first and second decks  24  and  26  together can store a single HDD package. Thus, the connector device  11  can store either one or two memory cards (application B) or one HDD package (application A). 
     The connector body  14  has three sets of metal pin contact groups in the Z direction. That is, the connector body  14  has an upper-stage pin contact group  36  with one end  36 a of each pin to be connected to an I/O connector of a memory card inserted in the first deck  24 , a middle-stage pin contact group  38  with one end  38 a of each pin to be connected to an I/O connector of a memory card inserted in the second deck  26  and a lower-stage pin contact group  40  with one end  40 a of each pin to be connected to an I/O connector of an HDD package. Other terminals  36 b,  38 b and  40 b of the pin contact groups  36 ,  38  and  40  are connected to a proper circuit board (not shown), such as an interface board. 
     Referring to FIG. 3, in application B wherein two memory cards are to be inserted into the connector device  11 , each memory card  3  is typically comprised of a nonvolatile RAM and can be withdrawn out of the connector device  11  after its data has been loaded into a computer system  11 . An I/O connector (not shown) into which a pin contact group ( 36  and  38 ) of the connector device  11  is inserted is provided on a front end  3 a side of each memory card. The maximum width of each memory card  3  is, for example, 54 mm. 
     A typical HDD package  4  is comprised of a thin-type package having a housing  41  containing a thin-type HDD, such as a 1.8-inch disc drive, and a base plate  43  on which the housing  41  is mounted. Further, an I/O connector (not shown) into which the lower-stage pin contact group  40  of the connector device  11  may be inserted is provided on a front end  43 a side of the base plate  43 . 
     The base plate  43  of the HDD package  4  is typically 85 mm long, 54 mm wide, and 3 mm high. The housing  41  has a width of 50.8 mm and the distance from the front end edge of the base plate  43  to the front end edge of the housing  41  is 6 mm. The HDD package  4  can be inserted in the connector device in the same manner as a memory card  3 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, slots  28  are provided, in the Y direction, one in the inner surface of the housing side wall  16  corresponding to the upper portion of the first deck  24  and one in the inner surface of the housing side wall  16  corresponding to the upper portion of the second deck  26 . 
     Slots  30  are provided, in the Y direction, one in the inner surface of the housing side wall  16  corresponding to the lower portion of the first deck  24  and one in the inner surface of the housing side wall  16  corresponding to the lower surface of the second deck  26  so as to allow the HDD package  4  to be inserted and withdrawn into and out of the HDD package  4 . 
     The X-direction width W 1  between the slots  28  corresponds to the width (54 mm) of a memory card  3  and the X-direction width W 2  between the HDD slots  30  corresponds to the width (50.8 mm) of an HDD housing  41 . 
     Because the width W 1  of a memory card  3  is greater than the width W 2  of the slots  30 , it is impossible to inadvertently connect a memory card  3  to the lowest contact group. 
     Further, the housing  12  has an upper release mechanism  50 a corresponding to the first deck  24  and lower release mechanism  50 b corresponding to the second deck  26 . The upper and lower release mechanisms  50 a and  50 b are basically identical to each other. In FIG. 4, those constituent parts of the upper release mechanism  50 a are shown with reference character a added thereto and those constituent parts of the lower release mechanism  50 b are shown with reference character b added thereto. For brevity&#39;s sake, the upper release mechanism  50 a will be explained below as a representative example, unless otherwise stated. 
     In FIG. 4, the upper release mechanism  50 a has a slide plate  52 a, a handle  70 a for slidably moving the slide plate  52 a, and a link mechanism  100 a. The slide plate  52 a can be slidably moved in the Y direction along the surface of the housing plate  18 . 
     As shown in FIG. 5, a pair of arms  54 a are provided on respective side ends of the slide plate  52 a such that they extend toward the connector body  14 . Each arm  54 a has a bent portion  56 a stepped relative to the slide plate  52 a. Each bent portion  56 a of the arm  54 a extends toward the inner surface side of the housing plate  18  through a cutout  58 a provided on each end of the connector body  14  side of the housing plate  18 . Similarly, the U-shaped base end  60 a of the slide plate  52 a is stepped relative to the slide plate  52 a such that it is projected toward the inner surface side of the housing plate  18  through a U-shaped cutout  62 a in a middle of the housing plate  18 . 
     The arms  54 a and U-shaped base end  60 a of the slide plate  52 a slide in corresponding cutouts  58 a and  62 a in the housing plate  18 . Cutouts  58 a and  62 a allow the slide plate  52 a to move in the Y direction, while restricting movement in the X direction. 
     A struck-out raised section  64 a is provided in the slide plate  52 a so as to be abutted against a second swing lever as will be set out below. The ejection end of the bent portion  56 a of the slide plate&#39;s arm  54 a is further bent to provide an ejection hook  66 a to engage the socket-side end face of the memory card  3 . A button-like projection  68 a is provided on the U-shaped base end  60 a of the base plate  52 a. 
     Referring again to FIG. 4, the U-shaped base end  60 a of the slide plate  52 a is connected by the link mechanism  100 a to a rear end portion  72 a of the rod-like handle or ejection button  70 a. A forward end  74 a of the handle  70 a serves as a free end. The handle  70 a is slidable, in the Y direction, in and along a guide  76 a provided on one side wall  16 . The guide  76 a is formed integral with, for example, the housing  12 . The handle  70 a has a guide groove  78 a along its longitudinal direction. A guide pin  80 a fixed to the guide  76 a is inserted into the guide groove  78 a. Thus the handle  70 a is slidably moved in the Y direction, while being guided by the guide groove  78 a and guide pin  80 a, by pushing and pulling the free end  74 a of the handle  70 a in the Y direction. 
     When the handle  70 a is latched by a latching mechanism as will be set out below, the free end  74 a of the handle  70 a is slightly projected from the front edge of the guide  72 a. This position is given as a first position I in FIG. 1 to which reference is invited. In the first position I, the free end  74 a of the handle  70 a is so set that it extends flush with, or slightly from, the forward edge of the housing  12 . With the handle  70 a pulled backward, the free end  74 a of the handle  70  can be placed to second and third positions II and III in FIG. 1 where it is further extended in that order relative to the forward edge of the housing. The third position III corresponds to the position where the handle  70 a is projected to a greatest extent. Here a first extension stroke  1  (see FIG. 1) corresponds to a stroke involved between the first position I and the second position II and a second extension stroke  2  corresponds to a stroke involved between the second position II and the third position III. 
     The handle  70 a is normally so loaded as to be projected, by a proper means (not shown) such as a wire means, out of the forward edge of the guide  76 a. This load sets the handle  70 a to the second position II when a latching mechanism as will be set forth below does not act upon the handle  70 . 
     The connector device  11  has a latching mechanism for latching the handle  70 a to the first position I. As the latching mechanism, for example, use can be made of a known mechanism comprising a spring  82 a provided at the handle  70 a, latching pin  84 a provided at the guide  76 a, and leaf spring  86 a for urging the pin  84 a. A multi-stepped section area is provided at the forward end of the spring  82 a. 
     The latching pin  84 a, as shown in FIG. 6 in particular, has its one end  88 a supported on the guide  76 a and is swingable in a direction  90  as indicated by double arrows in FIG.  6 . The other end  92 a of the latching pin  84 a is urged by the leaf spring  86 a in a downward direction. 
     When the handle  70 a is pushed to the first position I, the latching pin  84 a engages a v-shaped area  94 a of the spring  82 a and the handle  70 a is latched to the first position I against such a force as to try to extend toward the second position II. 
     When the handle  70 a is further pushed from the first position I, the latching pin  84 a is moved along a V-shaped area  94 a, thus disengaging the latch pin  84 a from the spring  82 a. 
     Referring again to FIG. 4, the link mechanism  100 a has first, second and third swingable levers  101 a,  102 a and  103 a, respectively. The first swingable lever  101 a has one end supported by a rotation shaft  104 a at the rear end portion  72 a of the handle  70 a and the other end supported by a rotation shaft  106 a on the housing plate  18 . A cutout  108 a is provided at the side edge of the connector body  14  side of the first swingable lever  101 a. 
     The second swingable lever  102 a is supported by a rotation shaft  110 a in a substantially middle portion of the second swingable lever  102 . One end portion  112 a of the second swingable lever  102 a serves as a spring means for engaging the cutout  108 a of the first swingable lever  101 a. Upon being pushed from the cutout  108 a of the first swingable lever, the spring means  112 a exerts such a force as to move the second swingable lever  102 a away from the first swingable lever  101 a. A recess  114 a is provided in the inner side of the other end of the second swingable lever  102 a. 
     A substantially middle portion of the third swingable lever  103 a is supported on the rotation shaft  106 a of the first swingable lever  101 a. The third swingable lever  103 a has an elongated hole  116 a at one end portion. The button-like projection  68 a of the U-shaped base end portion  60 a of the slide plate  52 a is loosely fitted in the elongated hole  116 a. The other end of the third swingable lever  103 a is formed as a projection  126 a and is engageable with the recess  114 a of the second swingable lever  102 a. The link mechanism  100 a moves the slide plate  52 a as the handle  70 a slides. 
     The lower ejection mechanism  50 b has basically the same configuration as that of the upper ejection mechanism  50 a except for the fact that, as shown in FIG. 5, the Z-direction length L 1  of the ejection hooks  66 a of the slide plate  52 a for the upper ejection mechanism  50 a is great enough to allow a single memory card  3  to be withdrawn out of the first deck  24  but the Z-direction length L 2  of the ejection hooks  66 b of the slide plate  52 b for the lower ejection mechanism  50 b is great enough to allow either an HDD package  4  or a memory card  3  to be withdrawn out of the second deck  26 . 
     The operation of the connector device  11  equipped with the ejection mechanisms  50 a and  50 b will be explained below, noting that the connector device  11  is mounted in a computer system. 
     In the case where the memory card  3  is attached and detached to and from the computer system through the use of the connector device  11 , the upper ejection mechanism  50 a and/or lower ejection mechanism  50 b are/is employed. 
     When, for example, one memory card  3  is mounted in the computer system, it is inserted via the insertion hole  22  into, for example, the slot  28  of the first deck  24 . By so doing, the I/O connector  31  of the memory card  3  is matingly connected to the upper-stage side pin contact group of the connector body  14 . It is thus possible to connect the memory card  3  to the computer system. 
     Referring to FIG. 7, during the insertion of a memory card  3  into the slot  28 , the forward end face of the memory card  3  engages the ejection hook  66 a of the slide plate  52 a, and the slide plate  52 a is moved toward the connection body  14  side. As a result, the first swingable lever  101 a is rotated around the rotation shaft  106 , moving the handle  70 a toward the connector body  14  side as shown in FIG.  7 . When the handle  70 a is situated in the first position, it is latched to the first position I through the mutual engagement of the spring  82 a and latching pin  84 a. 
     Alternatively, the memory card  3  may be guided to the connector body  14  by moving the slide plate  52 a by manually operating the handle  70 a. 
     Upon detachment of the memory card  3  from the connector device  11 , the handle  70 a is further pushed from the first position I causing the latch pin  82 a to disengage from the spring  80 a and to be pushed up to the second position II. As will be seen from the above, the handle  70 a is now ready to be operated by the user. In this state, the slide plate  52 a is not moved. 
     As shown in FIG. 4, the handle  70 a is then withdrawn from the second position II to the third position III (the second extension stroke  2 ). This causes the first swingable lever  101 a, together with the third swingable lever  103 a, to be swung toward the insertion hole  22  side, so that the projection  126 a of the third swingable lever  103 a engages the recess  114 a of the second swingable lever  102 a. 
     When, in this state, the handle  70 a is pushed back to the first position I, then the first, second and third swingable levers  101 a,  102 a and  103 a are swung, as one unit, toward the connector body  14  side as shown in FIG.  8 . When the second swingable lever  102  abuts against the struck-out raised section  64 a of the slide plate, a positive engagement is ensured between the first swingable lever  101 a and the third swingable lever  103 a. When the swingable levers  101 a,  102 a and  103 a are further swung, the slide plate  52 a together with the memory card  3  is moved as one unit toward the insertion hole  22  side, thus allowing the memory card  3  to be released from the connector body  14 . When the handle  70 a reaches the first position I, the slide plate  52 a stops its movement at which time the memory card  3  can be removed from the insertion hole  22 . 
     The setting of the second extension stroke  2  enables the memory card  3  to be ejected out of the connector device only when it is so desired. It is thus possible to prevent an inadvertent ejection of the memory card  3  during the operation of a computer or its associated device. 
     Even in the case where the memory card  3  is inserted into the second deck  26  and connection is made between the I/O connector  31  and the middle-stage pin connector group  38 , it is also possible to similarly release the memory card  3  from the connector body so that it can be ejected through the lower ejection mechanism  50 b. 
     Since it is possible to move the upper and lower ejection mechanisms  50 a and  50 b independent of each other, when two memory cards  3  are stored in the connector device  11  at a time, it is equally possible to individually independently attach and detach the memory cards  3  to and from the connector device  11 . 
     In the case where the HDD package  4  is attached and detached to and from a computer system, only the lower ejection mechanism  50 b can be employed for HDD package ejection. 
     When the HDD package  4  is to be mounted on the computer system, it is inserted via the insertion hole  22  into the housing  12 , while being guided along the slots  30 , to allow the I/O connector  45  of the HDD package to be matingly connected to the lower-stage pin contact group  40 . By so doing, the HDD package  4  is connected to the computer system and, in this state, the ejection hook  66 b of the slide plate  52 b at the lower ejection mechanism  50 b engages the end face of the I/O connector  45  side of the HDD package  4 . The HDD package  4  can thus be attached and detached to and from the computer system as in the case of the memory card  3 . 
     The present invention is not restricted to the aforementioned embodiment and various changes or modifications of the present invention can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example, although the connector device  11  of the aforementioned embodiment has been explained as being capable of being employed for two kinds of data storage media, that is, a memory card  3  or an HDD package  4 , it may be possible to limit the memory card  3  and HDD package  4  to their own individual usages only. Many more memory cards and/or HDD packages  4  may be stored in the connector device by increasing the number of decks correspondingly. It may be possible to provide those decks not only for a combined usage of memory cards and HDD packages but also for use with memory cards only and/or HDD packages only. 
     Any proper mechanism may be provided at the housing&#39;s insertion opening  22  to prevent the data storage mediums from slipping down. 
     According to the connector device of the present invention, since the end  74 a of the handle  70 a does not protrude from the device during the connection period of a data storage medium, it is less liable to be accidentally impacted or shocked. Inadvertent ejection of a data storage medium is therefore prevented. Further it is also possible to prevent any operational errors because the data storage medium cannot be ejected from the connector device unless the handle  70 a is first withdrawn through both the first and second extension strokes.