Abstract:
A controller for electronic goods having a control box capable of operating more smoothly when the control box is drawn out or inserted. The controller includes a housing mounted on a case of the electronic goods. The controller is provided with guiders on both sides and a control box. The control box includes a plurality of function keys on an upper side and is insertable into in the housing. The control box is guided by the guiders and includes a rack positioned between a pair of curved surfaces in the rear of the control box and a pressing member pressing the curved surfaces of the control box by an elastic force of an elastic member mounted on a rear of the housing. Also included in the control box is a device combined with the rack to reduce the speed of the control box when the control box is drawn out of or inserted into the housing. The control box further includes a heart cam constraint device to stop the control box when the control box is inserted into the housing.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
         [0001]    This application claims the benefit of Korean Application Nos. P1998-023956, P1998-023957, U1998-011065, U1998-011066, U1998-011067, all filed Jun. 24, 1998, in the Korean Patent Office, the disclosures of which are incorporated by reference.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The present invention relates to a controller, and more particularly, to a controller mounted on a case for electronic goods, like a monitor, for drawing out a control box or inserting it into a case.  
           [0004]    2. Discussion of the Related Art  
           [0005]    In general, electronic goods, like a monitor for displaying images, are provided with a controller for adjusting such functions as width, height, luminosity or brightness of images. The controller is fixed to a monitor case or made as one control box and, thus, hidden within the case if not being used and exposed if being used. There are two types of control boxes, one of which is slidable relative to the case to be inserted into or drawn out from the case and the other is provided with a cover connected with a hinge capable of opening or closing to reveal a plurality of functional keys provided with the case.  
           [0006]    A controller provided with a control box which is slid into or out of a case is illustrated in Korean Utility Model No. 114,104.  
           [0007]    Such a controller is provided with a controller housing fixed to a case of the electronic goods, a control box mounted on the controller housing to be insertable, a spring pressing out the control box to draw it out and a damper mounted on a side of the housing and the control box to prevent rapid movement of the control box. Here, the spring is a coil spring which has a relatively small spring force.  
           [0008]    When the control box is not being used, that is, when the control box is within the case, the control box is restrained by a push catcher and located within the housing. To use the controller, the restraint of the control box under the push catcher should be released in order for the control box to come out of the housing.  
           [0009]    But as described above, in a conventional controller, the control box must be pressed strongly to be released and, thus, it is not convenient to use the conventional controller.  
           [0010]    In addition, as the control box is released by the spring force from the housing, the control box moves at a predetermined speed. Further, as the moving speed is slow due to the relatively small spring force, it takes a long time to draw out the control box.  
           [0011]    Furthermore, as the damper is mounted on a side of the control box and the housing, it cannot be used efficiently. That is, as the control box and the housing are designed to have a long side length and the damper is mounted on a side thereof, the damper&#39;s reducing force cannot affect the opposite side.  
           [0012]    Especially, when the control box is drawn out, there is not enough room for movement between the control box and the case and, thus, interference between them occurs and, as a result, there is a loss in the reliability of these types of products.  
           [0013]    Moreover, as a conventional controller uses a coil spring to release the control box, the control box is released by the coil spring slowly at a predetermined speed.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0014]    Accordingly, in order to overcome such drawbacks in the conventional art, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a controller for electronic goods having a control box capable of operating more smoothly when the control box is drawn out of or inserted into the electronic goods.  
           [0015]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a controller for electronic goods in which the control box has a variable opening speed.  
           [0016]    It is another object of the present invention to provide a controller for electronic goods, having a control box which does not interfere with a case when the control box is opened or closed.  
           [0017]    Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part, will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention.  
           [0018]    To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the present invention, as embodied and broadly described, there is provided a controller for electronic goods including a housing mounted on a case of electronic goods and provided with guiders on both sides and a control box including a plurality of function keys on an upper side. The control box is inserted into the housing and guided by the guiders. The control box includes a rack positioned between a pair of curved surfaces in the rear of the control box. A pressing member presses the curved surfaces of the control box by an elastic force of an elastic member mounted on a rear of the housing. A device combined with the rack of the control box is provided to reduce the speed of the control box when the control box is drawn out or inserted. A heart cam constraint device is provided to stop the control box when the control box is inserted into the housing. The curved surfaces each include a sharp inclination on an upper side thereof and a slow inclination on a lower side thereof. The pressing member is positioned in the lower sides of the curved surfaces when the control box is inserted. Each guider is a guide bar formed at respective opposite sides within the housing and the control box is provided with guide grooves respectively formed in both sides thereof for receiving the respective guide bar.  
           [0019]    Alternatively, each guider is a guide groove formed at respective opposite sides within the housing and the control box is provided with guide bars formed in both sides thereof and received in the respective guide grooves.  
           [0020]    The guide grooves and the guide bars are formed in circular arcs and the guide grooves are each provided with a straight line part in a front part of the circular arc. Each guide groove includes a plurality of grooves capable of receiving a lubricant at the bottom of the control box. The grooves receiving the lubricant have a predetermined angle of inclination in an operating direction of the control box. The device for reducing the speed of the control box includes a damper mounted in the middle of the housing and a gear rotatably mounted on an upper side of the damper and combined with a rack of the control box.  
           [0021]    The heart cam constraint device includes a heart cam formed in a lower side of the control box and a heart cam driven member provided at a rear lower side of the housing. The heart cam includes a pin path formed in a lower side of the control box and a heart-shaped protrusion formed in a front of the pin path. The heart cam driven member includes a pin guided along the pin path and a flat spring mounted on the housing to press the pin to the pin path. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0022]    These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the preferred embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 1 is a total perspective view of a monitor adopting a controller according to the present invention;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the controller according to the present invention;  
         [0025]    FIGS.  3 A- 3 B are side sectional views showing how the controller according to the present invention is mounted on a case;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 4A is a total divided perspective view of the controller according to the present invention;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 4B is a view illustrating an outline of the relationship between the curved surface part shown in FIG. 4A and the pressing member;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 5 a partial enlarged perspective view showing the guide and lubricating system of the control box according to the present invention;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 6A is an enlarged sectional view of line VIa-VIa in FIG. 5;  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 6B is a main side sectional view illustrating room for movement of the control box and the case according to the present invention;  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing the combination structure of the damper according to the present invention and the open cam part of the heart cam constraint device;  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 8 is a flat view showing an outline of the controller according to the present invention;  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 9 is a flat view showing the controller in detail according to the present invention;  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 10 is a rear view of FIG. 9;  
         [0035]    FIGS.  11 A- 11 C are operation side sectional views showing how the control box according to the present invention is drawn out;  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 12 is a side sectional view illustrating how the control box is inserted or drawn out by the heart cam constraint device according to the present invention;  
         [0037]    [0037]FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing the heart cam of the heart cam constraint device according to the present invention;  
         [0038]    [0038]FIG. 14 is an operation view showing the operation of the heart cam constraint device; and  
         [0039]    FIGS.  15 A- 15 B are side sectional views showing how the control box is inserted or drawn out by the heart cam constraint device according to the present invention. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT  
       [0040]    Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals refer to the like elements throughout.  
         [0041]    [0041]FIG. 1 shows a display  1  having a control box  10  according to the present invention. The control box  10 , when unused, is put into a case  2  of the display  1  and, to be used, is drawn out of the case  2 . The control box  10 , as shown in FIG. 2, is slidebly mounted on a housing  20  which is mounted within the case  2 . A plurality of functional keys  11  are provided on the upper side of the control box  10 .  
         [0042]    The housing  20 , as shown in FIG. 2, is provided with a pair of brackets  20   a , each of which has a hole  20   b  in the middle part thereof. A pair of snap protrusions  3 ′ are formed on the bottom of the respective brackets  20   a . The housing  20  is fixed to the case  2 . A screw  4  is inserted through each of the holes  20   b  to the respective boss  3  formed within the case  2  and the snap protrusions  3 ′ are fixed to respective snap grooves  2 ′ formed in the case  2 . The holes  20   b , formed in the respective brackets  20   a , are located in respective bosses  3 , which are formed within the case  2 , as shown in FIGS.  3 A- 3 B. Thus, the housing  20  can be solidly fixed to the case  2  as shown in FIG. 3B. The control box  10 , mounted on the housing  20 , is inserted or drawn out through a drawing hole  5  formed in a front side of the case  2 .  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 4A is a total divided perspective view of a controller according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4A, the control box  10  is provided with a pair of curved surface parts  12  protruding against a backside thereof and formed in the backside of the control box  10 . Each curved surface part  12 , as shown in FIG. 4B, is formed to have different inclinations, that is, to have a sharp inclination part  12   a  in an upper part of the curved surface part and a slow inclination part  12   b  in a lower part of the curved surface part. Each curved surface part  12  contacts a pressing member  22  formed with a wire rotatably mounted on the housing  20 . The pressing member  22  presses the curved surface parts  12  against the drawing hole  5  formed in the front side of the case  2  by the elasticity of an elastic member  21 .  
         [0044]    As described above, the control box  10  is slid toward the outside through the drawing hole  5  by the elastic force of the elastic member  21  and so drawn out. When the control box  10  is inserted into the housing  20 , the pressing member  22  is located in a first position as shown in FIG. 4B. In addition, when the control box  10  is drawn out of the inserted position, it is pushed in the direction of the “B” arrow. Therefore, the pressing member  22  is located at a fourth position “d” and is then guided along the curved surface parts  12  toward a third position “c” along the slow inclination part  12   b  and the sharp inclination part  12   a  and, thereafter, when the control box  10  is finally drawn out, the pressing member is located at the second position “b”.  
         [0045]    Further, the control box  10  is provided with a rack  16  extending in the direction of movement of the control box  10  in the middle of the control box  10  between the curved surface parts  12  formed in a rear side of the control box  10 . The rack  16  is combined with a gear  24  rotatably mounted on a damper  23 , which is solidly mounted on the housing  20 . The damper  23  functions as a speed reducing device with which the control box  10  is inserted or drawn out.  
         [0046]    In the meantime, the control box  10  is provided with a pair of guide grooves  13  extending in a direction of movement of the control box  10  on respective opposite sides thereof. Each guide groove  13 , as shown in FIG. 5, has a plurality of lubricant receiving grooves  14  filled with lubricant  15  in the bottom  13   a . Each lubricant receiving groove  14  has a predetermined angle of inclination in the direction of movement of the control box  10 . When the control box  10  is moved, the movement of the control box  10  can be facilitated by the lubricant  15 . Each guide groove  13 , as shown in FIG. 6B, is formed in a circular arc shape.  
         [0047]    Each guide groove  13  is combined with a guide bar  26  formed in respective opposite sides of the housing  20 . The guide bars  26 , as shown in FIG. 4A, each extend in the direction of movement of the control box  10  and are each formed in a circular arc shape having the same semidiameter as the guide grooves  13 . The guide grooves  13  are each provided with a front lower surface  17  formed in a straight plane in order to draw out the control box  10  at such an inclination that the functional keys  11  of the control box  10  can be easily used.  
         [0048]    However, as shown in FIG. 6B, as the front lower surfaces  17  of the guide grooves  13  are each formed in a straight plane, the front lower surfaces  17  are slid in a straight line along the respective guide bars  26  of the housing  20  and the control box  10  is inserted or drawn out in a straight line so that the moveable space between the case  2  and the control box  10  can be bigger. When the control box  10  is inserted or drawn out through space k between the case  2  and the control box  10 , interference by the case  2  on the control box  10  can be prevented.  
         [0049]    When the control box  10  is guided and inserted or drawn out by the guide bars  26 , lubricant  15  is dispersed to a contacting surface between each guide groove  13  and the respective guide bar  26  act as a lubricant. With this lubrication, the control box  10  can be guided smoothly by the guide bars  26 .  
         [0050]    In addition, when the control box  10  is drawn out of the housing  20 , the control box  10  is prevented from slipping away from the housing  20  because of stoppers  49 , which are protrusions for preventing the control box  10  from slipping away from the housing and are provided near the respective guide grooves  13 . Each stopper  49  is formed within the housing  20 .  
         [0051]    [0051]FIG. 7 illustrates the damper  23  shown in FIG. 4A in detail. As shown in FIGS.  4 - 7 , the damper  23  has a circular shape having a pair of ribs  23   a  on respective opposite sides and, on the upper part thereof, a gear  24 , which is combined with the rack  16  of the control box  10 , is rotatably mounted. The gear  24 , when rotated by the movement of being inserted or drawn out of the control box  10 , is mounted so that the rotation thereof is restrained by the damper  23 . As the structure for restraining the rotation is well known, there is no need to explain it in detail here.  
         [0052]    The damper  23 , as the ribs  23   a  provided on both sides thereof are inserted into and fixed to a pair of clips  25  formed in the middle of the housing  20 , is fixed to the housing  20 . The gear  24 , as described above and shown in FIG. 8, is combined with the rack  16  provided at the rear middle part of the control box  10 . Therefore, as the rack  16  is moved toward a direction where the control box  10  is inserted or drawn out, the gear  24  is rotated toward the direction of movement of the rack  16 .  
         [0053]    The control box  10  is prevented from being rapidly inserted or drawn out by the shape of the curved surface parts  12  and the damper  23 . That is, when the control box  10  is inserted into the housing  20 , the pressing member  22  is located in the first position “a” of is FIG. 4A and, when the control box  10  is drawn out, the curved surface parts  12  are each pushed toward the direction of the second position “b”. Thus, the pressing member  22  is located in the fourth position “d” and, thereafter, as the curved surface parts  12  are moved toward a direction opposite to the “b” direction by the elasticity of the elastic member  21 , the pressing member  22  is guided along the curved surface parts  12  toward the third position “ c” along the slow inclination parts  12   b  and the sharp inclination parts  12   a . The pressing member  22  is then located in the second position “b” when the control box  10  is finally drawn out.  
         [0054]    Accordingly, the control box  10  is slowly drawn out at a predetermined speed while the pressing member  22  pressures the slow inclination parts  12   b  from the fourth position “d” to the second position “b”. As the displacement of the curved surface parts  12  is small while the pressing member  22  is guided along the sharp inclination parts  12   a  when it is almost completely drawn out, the control box  10  can be drawn out at a slower speed.  
         [0055]    In addition, as the damper  23  is located in the middle part of the housing  20 , a restraint function for restraining the insertion or drawing out of the control box  10  can be dispersed evenly between both sides thereof. Therefore, in comparison to conventional techniques in which a damper is provided at only one side of a control box, the present invention is more advanced.  
         [0056]    As shown in FIGS. 4A, 9 and  10 , a pressing member  22  is made of wire and has two edge parts  22   a  which are respectively inserted into holes  27   a , each respectively formed in a pair of supporting brackets  27  provided at a lower side of the housing  20 . In addition, the elastic members  21 , each comprising a coil spring, are mounted on the respective edge parts  22   a  of the pressing member  22  to provide an elastic force to the pressing member  22 . Each edge part  21   a  of the elastic members  21  is fixed to the housing  20  and each other edge part  21   b  thereof is formed in a hook shape and is hooked to the pressing member  22  in a direction where the pressing member  22  is pushed toward a drawing hole  5 . Accordingly, the pressing member  22  is always pressed toward the drawing hole  5  by the elastic members  21  and the control box  10  is always pressed toward the drawing hole  5  by the contact of the curved surface parts  12  provided at the rear side with the pressing member  22 .  
         [0057]    FIGS.  11 A- 11 C show how the control box  10  is drawn out or inserted by the pressing member  22 . That is, the control box  10  is stopped when drawn out or inserted by a heart cam constraint device  40 . When the control box  10  is inserted into the housing, the pressing member  22 , as shown in FIG. 11A, is pushed backward by the control box  10  and then continues to be pushed backward by the heart cam constraint device  40 .  
         [0058]    Further, the pressing member  22 , contacting directly with the curved surface parts  12  of the control box  10 , presses the lower sides of the curved surface parts  12  toward the drawing hole  5 . Thus, when the control box  10  is drawn out, the curved surface parts  12  of the control box  10  receive more pressing force from the pressing member  22  but the control box  10  is drawn out by the damper  23  at a predetermined speed. When the control box  10 , as shown in FIG. 11B, is drawn out halfway, the curved surface parts  12  of the control box  10  receive only a small amount of pressing force from the pressing member  22  but the control box  10  is drawn out at a faster speed. However, when the control box  10 , as shown in FIG. 11C, is drawn out to the finishing point, the pressing force of the pressing member  22  to the curved surface parts  12  of the control box  10  diminishes and, therefore, the drawing speed of the control box  10  decreases.  
         [0059]    As shown above, the control box  10  according to the present invention is drawn out at graduated speeds. That is, as the control box  10  is drawn out faster to the halfway point, faster drawing movement is possible. However, when the control box  10  is drawn out further to the finishing point at a slower speed, a crash noise will not occur.  
         [0060]    The heart cam constraint device  40  includes a heart cam  41  formed at a lower side of the control box  10  and a cam driven member  45  provided at the lower side of the housing  20  to make a cam movement with the heart cam  41 . FIG. 12 is a sectional view of the heart cam constraint device  40  including the heart cam  41  and the cam driven member  45 .  
         [0061]    As shown in FIG. 12, the cam driven member  45  includes a pin  46 , an edge part of which is rotatably mounted on the lower side of the housing  20  and the other edge part  46   a  (as shown in FIG. 13) of which is guided along the heart cam  41  formed in the lower middle part of the control box  10  and a flat spring  47  pressing toward a lower side of the housing  20  to press pin  46  to the heart cam  41 .  
         [0062]    [0062]FIG. 13 illustrates the heart cam  41  formed in the lower middle part of the control box  10 . The heart cam  41  includes a pin path  42  guiding the pin  46  when the control box  10  is inserted and a heart-shaped protrusion  43  is formed in the pin path  42  to be hooked to the pin  46  when the control box  10  is inserted. The front end portion of the heart-shaped protrusion  43  facing the drawing hole  5  is formed as a V-shaped protrusion and the rear end portion has a V-shaped hook groove  43   a.    
         [0063]    The pin path  42  has four bottom surfaces  42   a ,  42   b ,  42   c ,  42   d  with different heights around the heart-shaped protrusion  43 . When the control box  10  is moved in the insertion direction, the first bottom surface  42   a , which is guided along a guide surface  42   e  forming a side of the front end portion of the heart-shaped protrusion  43 , is inclined upward, as shown in FIG. 13, in the insertion direction of the control box  10 . The second bottom surface  42   b  is formed lower than the first bottom surface  42   a  in the boundary of the line extending from the V-shaped hook groove  43   a  of the heart-shaped protrusion  43  and is inclined downward toward the V-shaped hook groove  43   a . The third bottom surface  42   c  is positioned lower than the second bottom surface  42   b  in the boundary of the step part  43   b  shown in FIG. 14. The fourth bottom surface  42   d , placed in the rear of the heart shaped protrusion  43 , is positioned lower than the third bottom surface  42   c  and is inclined upward toward the guide surface  42   e  from the lower position.  
         [0064]    As the pin path  42  of the heart cam  41  is formed as described above, a position of the pin  46  according to the drawing out or inserting of the control box  10  can be explained in conjunction with FIG. 14 and FIGS.  15 A- 15 B, as follows.  
         [0065]    As shown in FIG. 15B, when the drawn control box  10  is received by the user, the heart cam constraint device  40  provided at the lower side of the control box  10  is moved in a direction A of FIG. 13 toward the pin  46  pressed to the pin path  42  by the flat spring  47 . As the heart cam constraint device  40  is moved, the pin  46  contacts the guide surface  42   e  and as the guide surface  42   e  continues to move, the first bottom surface  42   a  inclined upward contacts the pin  46 .  
         [0066]    When the control box  10  reaches an inserted position, an end portion of the pin  46  is positioned in the second bottom surface  42   b  formed lower than the first bottom surface  42   a . Then, the end portion of the pin member  46  is positioned against the second bottom surface  42   b  and the user finishes inserting the control box with the corresponding sound.  
         [0067]    The heart-shaped protrusion  43  is pushed in the drawing out direction by the force of the pressing member  22  according to the insertion by the user and, thus, the pin  46  is lead to the third bottom surface  42   c  formed lower than the second bottom surface  42   b  along a leading part  44 , shown in FIG. 14, and hooked to the V-shaped hook groove  43   a  of the heart-shaped protrusion  43 . Then, the insertion of the control box  10  is finished, as shown in FIG. 15A.  
         [0068]    If the control box  10  is pressed the direction “A” of FIG. 13 by the user when the inserted control box  10  is drawn out, a step part  43   b  is hooked to the pin  46  and the pin  46  is moved sideways along the step part  43   b . Thus, when the user releases the pressure of the control box  10 , the control box  10  is drawn out through the drawing hole  5  by the force of the pressing member  22  and the pin  46  follows the trace shown in FIG. 14.  
         [0069]    FIGS.  15 A- 15 B illustrate how the control box  10  is inserted or drawn out and further illustrate the heart cam  41  of the heart cam constraint device  40  and the cam driven member  45 .  
         [0070]    The cam driven member  45  is shown in FIG. 7 in detail and the pin  46  is designed to always be pushed by the flat spring  47 , an end portion of which is fixed to the housing  20 . Therefore, the pin  46  does not secede from the pin path  42  while travelling the pin path  42 .  
         [0071]    It is described above that guide bars  26  are respectively formed within both sides of the housing  20  and guide grooves  13  are respectively formed on both sides of the control box  10 . However, this is only one example. In reverse, the guide grooves  13  can be formed in the housing  20  and the guide bars  26 , which are respectively received in the guide grooves  13 , can be formed in the control box  10 . Here too, receiving grooves for holding lubricant are formed in bottom surfaces of each guide groove, respectively.  
         [0072]    As explained above, the control box can be smoothly drawn out by the elastic member and the pressing member according to the present invention.  
         [0073]    Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, it would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes may be made in this embodiment without departing from the principles and spirit of this invention, the scope of which is defined in the claims and their equivalents.