Abstract:
An electronic apparatus wherein at least one detachable module is inserted into a rack and the module is connected with the rack by male/female connector, wherein it is made possible to detect any bending of pins of the male connector before the module is mounted in the rack and therefore incomplete mounting of the module to the rack can be prevented. A light source with high linearity is provided at each of the pins at the male connector side, while conversely a light receiving unit of light is provided at each of the receptacles at the female connector side. Before connection of the connectors, if all receiving units receive light, normality of the pins is detected. Instead of providing the light receiving units at the female connector side, providing a reflecting part at the female connector side and providing a light receiving unit at the male connector side is possible.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation application based upon and claiming priority of PCT application No. PCT/JP2008/056384, filed on Mar. 31, 2008, the contents being incorporated herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD 
       [0002]    This application relates to an electronic apparatus and a connector module used for this electronic apparatus. In particular, this application relates to an internal connector used for an information processing system. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    In the past, in electronic apparatuses, for example, information apparatuses such as servers, several detachable modules have been housed in a shelf unit called a “rack” to form a single electronic apparatus. In such an electronic apparatus, in general, there are connectors deep inside the rack, and there are connectors at the back sides of the modules. When these modules are plugged into the rack, the connectors provided at their back surfaces are connected with the rack side connectors resulting in the rack and the modules being electrically connected. 
         [0004]    Each detachable module is inserted from the front side of the rack, so it is not possible to visually confirm the connection state of the module side connector and the rack side connector. Therefore, in the past, two guide pins have been provided at the rack side board, while guide holes for receiving the guide pins have been provided at the back surface of the detachable module. Further, when attaching the detachable module to the rack, first, the guide pins at the rack have been inserted into the guide holes at the back surface of the detachable module. The guide holes, for example, have large diameter openings and use tapered slanted surfaces to guide the guide pins into the guide holes. If pushing the detachable module into the rack in the state with the front ends of the guide pins inserted into the guide holes, the connector of the detachable module is positioned at the position of the rack side connector and the connectors are correctly connected without positional deviation. 
         [0005]    On the other hand, a connection device provided with a mechanism for detecting a locked state where the two connectors are correctly connected and an incomplete locked state by the passage of an optical signal is disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 61-206183. The connection device disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 61-206183 includes a male connector provided with a plurality of pins and a female connector provided with receptacles corresponding to the pins. Furthermore, end faces of optical fibers are exposed at predetermined positions where the male connector body and the female connector body face each other at the time of lock. This connection device detects that the lock mechanism is completely locked when optical signals are transmitted through the optical fibers at the time of connection of the connectors and detects that the lock mechanism is incompletely locked when the optical signals are not transmitted or the amounts of transmission of the optical signals are small. 
         [0006]    However, in conventional devices, it was necessary to provide inherently unnecessary holes or places not allowing mounting at the board in order to provide the guide pins, so the wiring on the board was restricted. Further, even if requiring that the connectors not become deviate in position at the time of connection by the use of the guide pins and receptacles, if the pins of a connector are bent from the start due to manufacturing defects etc., it was not possible to prevent the problems due to bent pins. Further, in the connection device described in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 61-206183, even if incomplete lock of the connectors could be detected, poor connection due to bent pins could not be detected at the time of connection. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0007]    A first aspect of an electronic apparatus includes an electronic apparatus at which at least one detachable module is attached to a casing, provided with a first connector which is attached to a board provided in the casing corresponding to each of the modules and which has a plurality of parallel pins, a second connector which is provided at a surface of each of the modules for connection with the casing and which has receptacles corresponding to the pins, and a monitoring unit which monitors the states of the pins before connection of the first and second connectors, the monitoring unit provided with an emission instructing unit which instructs the emission of light to all of the pairs of the pins and the receptacles of the first and second connectors from one to the other, a pin state detecting unit which detects whether the emitted light has arrived at all of the pairs of the pins and the receptacles to thereby detect the states of the pins, and a pin abnormality detecting unit which determines the pins are abnormal and emits an alarm when the emitted light does not arrive at least at one of the pairs. 
         [0008]    Further, the connector module includes a connector module provided with a first connector in which a plurality of pins are arranged in parallel and a second connector having receptacles corresponding to the pins, characterized by being provided with a light emitting unit which emits light from one to the other of a pair of a pin and receptacle of the first and second connectors for all of the pairs, a light receiving unit which is provided at either one of the pin side and the receptacle side and outputs detection output indicating if the emitted light has been normally received at all of the pairs in accordance with the received state of the emitted light, and a detecting unit which uses the detection output from the light receiving unit to detect if the pins are normal in state. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1A  is a side view which illustrates conventional connection of a detachable module and a rack. 
           [0010]      FIG. 1B  is a perspective view of the location depicted in  FIG. 1A . 
           [0011]      FIG. 2A  is a perspective view of the configuration of a first embodiment of a connector provided at a rack side. 
           [0012]      FIG. 2B  is a partial enlarged front view of the connector of  FIG. 2A . 
           [0013]      FIG. 2C  is a perspective view of the configuration of a first embodiment of a connector provided at a detachable module side. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2D  is a partial enlarged front view of the connector of  FIG. 2C . 
           [0015]      FIG. 3A  is a side view illustrating a state before connection of the connectors illustrated from  FIG. 2A  to  FIG. 2D . 
           [0016]      FIG. 3B  is a side view illustrating a state where the pins of a connector illustrated in  FIG. 3A  are bent and the connectors are connected with the pins in the bent state. 
           [0017]      FIG. 4  is an explanatory view illustrating a specific configuration of male/female connectors used in a first embodiment and connection with electrical circuits etc. 
           [0018]      FIG. 5  is an explanatory view illustrating a specific configuration of male/female connectors used in a second embodiment and connection with electrical circuits etc. 
           [0019]      FIG. 6A  is an explanatory view illustrating a specific configuration of male/female connectors used in a third embodiment and connection with an alarm. 
           [0020]      FIG. 6B  is an explanatory view illustrating a state where the pins are bent when connecting male/female connectors configured as in  FIG. 6A . 
           [0021]      FIG. 7A  is an explanatory view illustrating a specific configuration of male/female connectors of the fourth embodiment and connection with an alarm. 
           [0022]      FIG. 7B  is an explanatory view illustrating a state where the pins are bent when connecting male/female connectors configured as in  FIG. 7A . 
           [0023]      FIG. 8  is an explanatory view for illustrating a state, in an electronic apparatus of a first embodiment including a rack and a detachable module to which connectors of the third embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 6A and 6B  are attached, where the detachable module is inserted into and connected to the rack. 
           [0024]      FIG. 9  is an explanatory view for illustrating a state, in an electronic apparatus of a second embodiment including a rack and a detachable module to which connectors of the third embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 6A and 6B  are attached, where the detachable module is inserted into and connected to the rack. 
           [0025]      FIG. 10  is an explanatory view for illustrating a state, in an electronic apparatus of a third embodiment including a rack and a detachable module to which connectors of the second embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 5  are attached, where the detachable module is inserted into and connected to the rack. 
           [0026]      FIG. 11  is an explanatory view for illustrating a state, in an electronic apparatus of a fourth embodiment including a rack and a detachable module to which connectors of the fourth embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 7A and 7B  are attached, where the detachable module is inserted into and connected to the rack. 
           [0027]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional view illustrating an embodiment of an electronic apparatus provided with a rack enabling mounting of a plurality of detachable modules. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS 
       [0028]    Before describing the embodiments, an explanation will be given of the connectors depicted in  FIGS. 1A and 1B . 
         [0029]      FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B  illustrate a method of positioning connectors with each other when attaching a detachable module  5  to a rack  9  of an electronic apparatus  90 . Inside the rack  9 , there is a board  8  for attachment of the detachable module  5 . A connector  1  is attached to this board  8 . On the other hand, at a back surface of the detachable module  5 , there is a mounting board  51 . This mounting board  51  is provided with a connector  2  for connection with the connector  1  attached to the board  8  of the rack  9 . In general, the connector  1  attached to the board  8  is a male connector having pins  3 , while the connector  2  provided at the back surface of the detachable module  5  is a female connector. For this reason, the state of the pins  3  of the connector  1  is not able to be visually checked from the outside. 
         [0030]    Further, in the past, to enable reliable positioning of the connector  1  and connector  2 , two guide pins  7  were provided at the board  8  of the rack  9  and sleeves  6  having guide holes  6 H for receiving the guide pins  7  were provided at the back surface of the detachable module  5 . When attaching the detachable module  5  to the rack  9 , first, the guide pins  7  at the board  8  were inserted into the guide holes  6 H at the sleeves  6  at the back surface of the detachable module  5 . 
         [0031]    The guide holes  6 H, for example, as depicted in  FIG. 1A , had large diameters. Tapered surfaces guided the guide pins  7  into the guide holes  6 H. By pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  in the state with the guide pins  7  inserted into the guide holes  6 H, the connector  2  was positioned with the position of the connector  1  and the connectors  1  and  2  were correctly connected without positional deviation. Note that, the connectors  1  and  2  were actually provided at the positions depicted in  FIG. 1B , but in  FIG. 1A , for explanation of the connected state of the connectors  1  and  2 , the positions of the connectors  1  and  2  are shifted in the downward direction from the actual positions. 
         [0032]    In this way, in an electronic apparatus  90 , guide pins  7  were provided, so the board  8  was provided with inherently unnecessary holes and parts not allowing mounting of devices. The wiring on the board  8  was therefore restricted. Further, even if requiring that the connectors  1  and  2  not deviate in position at the time of connection, if the pins  3  of the connector  1  at the board, which is difficult to be visually checked, are bent from the start due to manufacturing defects etc., it was not possible to prevent poor connection of the connector  1  and the connector  2  due to bent pins. 
         [0033]    Therefore, the configuration of a connector module to be provided inside a rack  9  which can detecting bending of the pins  3  when inserting a detachable module  5  in the rack  9  and can thereby solve the problems in the related art and the configuration of an electronic apparatus  50  using this connector module will be illustrated below using  FIG. 2A  to  FIG. 12 . 
         [0034]    Note that, members used in the electronic apparatus  90  illustrated in  FIGS. 1A and 1B  which are similarly used in the embodiments illustrated below will be assigned the same reference notations in the explanation. 
         [0035]      FIG. 2A  and  FIG. 2B  illustrate the configuration of a male connector  11  of the first embodiment provided at the rack  9  side illustrated in  FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B . As depicted in  FIG. 1B , in actuality, the board  8  of the rack  9  is provided with a large number of connectors  1  (four), but here it is assumed that the board  8  is provided with a single connector  11 . The connector  11  of the first embodiment includes a housing  11 H in which a large number of pins  3  are provided in the same way as a connector  1 . 
         [0036]    Furthermore, the connector  11  of the first embodiment is provided with circular light emitting units  31  concentric with the pins  3  at the surface of the housing  11 H at which the pins  3  are attached. Further, the light emitting units  31  are designed to emit highly linear light proceeding in parallel with the axial directions of the pins  3 , for example, laser beams emitted from a laser light source. 
         [0037]    Next,  FIG. 2C  and  FIG. 2D  illustrate the configuration of a female connector  21  of a first embodiment provided at a mounting board  41  at the detachable module  5  side illustrated in  FIG. 1A  and  FIG. 1B . The connector  21  of the first embodiment is provided, at the surface of a housing  21 H where receptacles  4  for receiving the pins  3  are provided, with light receiving units  32  of the same shapes as the light emitting units  31  provided at the connector  11 . Further, the light receiving units  32  have detectors for detecting the amounts of light input to the light receiving units  32 . The configuration of the detectors will be described later. 
         [0038]      FIG. 3A  depicts the state before connection of the male connector  11  and female connector  21  illustrated from  FIG. 2A  to  FIG. 2D . The light emitting units  31  at the bases of the pins  3  of the male connector  11  emit laser beams L parallel with the pins  3 . These laser beams L are received by the light receiving units  32  provided at the front end of the female connector  21 . When the pins  3  of the male connector  11  are not bent and all pins  3  are inserted into the receptacles of the female connector  21 , the laser beams L from the light emitting units  31  strike a total light receiving unit  32 , whereby the fact of the male connector  11  and the female connector  21  being normally connected can be learned at the detachable module  5  provided with the female connector  21 . 
         [0039]      FIG. 3B  illustrates the state where the pins  3  of the connector  11  illustrated in  FIG. 3A  were bent, but the detachable module  5  was pushed into the rack  9  in that state and as a result the male connector  11  and the female connector  21  are connected with the pins  3  as bent. When the pins  3  of the male connector  11  are bent, if the pins  3  are inserted into the receptacle of the female connector  21 , the laser beams L from the light emitting units  31  will be blocked by the bent pins  3  and will not strike the total light receiving unit  32 . Therefore, it is possible to detect bending of pins  3  before pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9 , so it is possible to prevent a worker from pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  without knowing about the bending of the pins  3 . 
         [0040]      FIG. 4  illustrates an example of the specific configuration of the male/female connectors  11 ,  21  of the first embodiment and the connection with electrical circuits etc. As described above, the connector  11  of the first embodiment is provided with circular light emitting units  31  concentric with the pins  3  at the surface of the housing  11 H where the pins  3  are attached. The light emitting units  31  are connected by a light guide member  33 . An end of the light guide member  33  is exposed at a predetermined surface of the housing  11 H. Outside of the connector  11 , a laser light source or other light emitting source  41  is provided. Further, the pins of the connector  11  are connected to an electrical circuit  41  provided at the rack side. Due to this configuration, a laser beam from the light emitting source  41  runs through the light guide member  33 , is emitted from the light emitting units  31  at the base parts of the pins  3 , and proceeds in parallel with the axial direction of the pins  3 . 
         [0041]    On the other hand, the connector  21  of the first embodiment is provided with, at the surface where the receptacles  4  are provided for receiving the pins  3  of the housing  21 H, light receiving units  32  of the same shape as the light emitting units  31  provided at the connector  11 . Further, inside the receptacles  4 , there are contacts  34  which electrically connect with the pins  3 . The contacts  34  are connected by wires to an electrical circuit  43  at the detachable module  5  side. For the light receiving units  32 , CCDs, CMOS&#39;s, or other photo-electric conversion devices may be used. Electrical signals are output from them in accordance with the intensity of the received light. 
         [0042]    The electrical signals indicating the intensities of the received light output from the light receiving units  32  are input to a detector  44  provided outside of the connector  21 . The detector  44  analyzes the electrical signals indicating the intensities of the received light output from the light receiving units  32  and detects if the amounts of light from the light emitting units  31  input to the light receiving units  32  add up to the total amount. This detector  44  is connected to an alarm  45 . Further, when the detector  44  judges that the amounts of light from the light emitting units  31  input to the light receiving units  32  do not add up to the total amount, it sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. Due to this alarm sound, a worker trying to attach this detachable module  5  to a rack  9  can learn of bending of the pins  3 , so it is possible to stop the worker from pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  in the middle. 
         [0043]      FIG. 5  illustrates an example of the specific configuration of the male/female connectors  12 ,  22  of the second embodiment and the connection with electrical circuits etc. In the connector  12  of the second embodiment, light emitting units  35  are provided inside pins  3  attached to a housing  12 H. The light emitting units  35  are connected to light conducting wires (optical fibers)  37 , while the light conducting wires  37  are connected outside of the housing  12 H through a beam splitter  46  to a light emitting source  41  similar to the first embodiment. The pins  3  of the connector  21  are connected to an electrical circuit  42  provided at the rack side in the same way as well. Due to this configuration, a laser beam from the light emitting source  41  runs through the light conducting wires  3  to the light emitting units  35  inside the pins  3 , is emitted from the front ends of the pins  3 , and proceeds in parallel with the axial direction of the pins  3 . 
         [0044]    On the other hand, the connector  22  of the second embodiment includes a housing  22 H in which receptacles  4  for receiving the pins  3  are provided. Inside the receptacles  4 , there are contacts  34  which electrically connect with the pins  3 , while at the bottoms of the receptacles  4 , there are light receiving units  36  which receive laser beams from the light emitting units  35  of the pins  3 . The contacts  34  are connected by wires to an electrical circuit  43  at the detachable module  5  side. The light receiving units  36  are provided with CCDs, CMOS&#39;s, or other photo-electric conversion devices and output electrical signals in accordance with the intensity of the received light. 
         [0045]    The electrical signals indicating the intensities of the light received from the light receiving units  36  are input to a detector  44  provided outside of the connector  22 . The detector  44  analyzes the electrical signals indicating the intensities of the light received from the light receiving units  32  and detects if the amounts of light from the light emitting units  31  input to the light receiving units  32  add up to the total amount. This detector  4  is connected to an alarm  45 . 
         [0046]    Further, in the second embodiment, when the pins  3  are not bent, the laser beams emitted from the light emitting units  35  of all pins  3  are input to all of the receptacles  4  in the total amount. As opposed to this, when the pins  3  are bent, not all of the laser beams emitted from the light emitting units  35  of all of the pins  3  are input to all of the receptacles  4 —there are light receiving units  36  where the amounts of light received are small. If, in this way, the detector  44  determines that there are light receiving units  36  where the amounts of light input from the light emitting units  35  are not the full amounts, it sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. Due to this alarm sound, a worker can learn of bending of the pins  3  and can stop the operation of pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  in the middle. 
         [0047]      FIG. 6A  illustrates an example of the specific configuration of the male/female connectors  13 ,  23  of the third embodiment. In the connector  13  of the third embodiment as well, light emitting units  35  are provided inside the pins attached to a housing  13 H. The light emitting units  35  are connected with a beam splitter  46  and the pins  3  are connected with electrical circuits in the same way as the second embodiment, so illustration will be omitted here. 
         [0048]    The point by which the connector  13  of the third embodiment differs from the connector  12  of the second embodiment is the point that the light receiving units  38  are provided at the bases of the pins  3  of the housing  13 H. The light receiving units  38  are also configured by CCDs, CMOS&#39;s, and other photo-electric conversion devices and output electrical signals indicating the intensities of the received light. The light receiving units  38  are provided with a detector  44  and alarm  45  provided outside the connector  23  in the same way as the second embodiment. 
         [0049]    On the other hand, the connector  23  of the third embodiment includes a housing  23 H provided with receptacles  4  for receiving the pins  3  and provided with a mirror  39  around the openings of the receptacles  4  of the housing  23 H. Inside the receptacles  4 , there are contacts  34  which electrically connect with the pins  3 . The point of the contacts  34  being connected by wires to an electrical circuit  43  at the detachable module  5  side is the same as in the second embodiment. 
         [0050]    In such a third embodiment, when the pins  3  are not bent, as depicted in  FIG. 6A , the laser beams L emitted from the light emitting units  35  of all pins  3  are input to all of the receptacles  4  in the total amount. As opposed to this, when the pins  3  are bent, as depicted in  FIG. 6B , the laser beams L emitted from the light emitting units  35  of the bent pins  3  are not input to the receptacles  4 , but are reflected at the mirror  39  and reach the light receiving units  38  of the connector  13 . If the light receiving units  38  detect reflected light, they notifies this to the detector  44 . The detector  44  sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. Due to this alarm, a worker can learn of bending of the pins  3  and can stop the operation of pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  in the middle. 
         [0051]      FIG. 7A  illustrates the specific configuration of male/female connectors  14 ,  24  of a fourth embodiment. The configuration of the fourth embodiment resembles the configuration of the third embodiment, so only the points of difference will be described. The connector  13  of the third embodiment was provided with light receiving units  38  at the base parts of the pins  3  of the housing  13 H, but the connector  14  of the fourth embodiment is not provided with anything at all at the base parts of the pins  3  of the housing  14 H. Further, the connector  23  of the third embodiment was provided with a mirror  39  around the openings of the receptacles  4  of the housing  23 H, but the connector  14  of the fourth embodiment is provided with light receiving units  40  instead of the mirror  39 . The light receiving units  40  are also configured by CCDs, CMOS&#39;s, or other photo-electric conversion devices and output electrical signals indicating an intensity of the received light. The light receiving units  40  are provided with a detector  44  and alarm  45  provided outside of the connector  24  in the same way as the second embodiment. 
         [0052]    In such a fourth embodiment, when the pins  3  are not bent, as depicted in  FIG. 7A , the laser beams L emitted from all of the light emitting units  35  of the pins  3  are input to all of the receptacles  4  in the total amount. As opposed to this, when the pins  3  are bent, as depicted in  FIG. 7B , the laser beams L emitted from the light emitting units  35  of the bent pins  3  are not input to the receptacles  4 , but are input to the light receiving units  40 . If the light receiving units  40  detect the input of the laser beams L, they notifies this to the detector  44 . The detector  44  sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. Due to this alarm sound, a worker can learn of bending of the pins  3  and can stop the operation of pushing the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  in the middle. 
         [0053]      FIG. 8  illustrates an electronic apparatus  61  of a first embodiment including a rack  9  to which a connector  13  and a detachable module  5  of the third embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 6A ,  6 B are attached and illustrates the state where a detachable module  5  is plugged into the rack  9  for connection. The light source  47  in this figure is defined as including a light emitting source and a beam splitter. Further, a circuit  30  is defined as being provided with the functions of an electrical circuit for sending and receiving signals through the connector  13  and a detector for detecting bending of the pins  3  from the signals of the light receiving units  38 . A laser beam from the light source  47  is emitted from the front ends of the pins  3 . 
         [0054]    The rack  9  of the electronic apparatus  61  of the first embodiment has a sensor  52  for detecting the entry of a detachable module  5  into the rack  9 . Further, the rack  9  is provided with a stopper  53  for stopping the entry of a detachable module  5  into the rack  9  at a point of time before the connector  23  connects with the connector  13 . The stopper  53  includes a casing  54 , spring  55 , plunger  56 , and solenoid  57 . The plunger  56  is biased by the spring  55  in the casing  54 . The front end sticks out into the rack  9 . The solenoid  57 , when energized, pulls in the plunger  56  against the spring  55  and pulls out the front end of the plunger  56  from inside the rack  9 . 
         [0055]    When a detachable module  5  to which a connector  23  provided with a mirror  39  at its front end surface is mounted enters the rack  9 , the sensor  52  detects the detachable module  5  and sends a signal to the light source  47 . In this case, the light source  47  sends a laser beam to the connector  13 , whereupon laser beams L are fired from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  23 . At this time, if the pins  3  are not bent, as described above, no reflected light enters the light receiving units  38 , so the circuit  30  judges that the pins  3  are not bent and energizes the solenoid  57  of the stopper  53 . As a result, the plunger  56  is housed in the casing  54  of the stopper  53  and the lock by the stopper  53  is released. If the stopper  53  moves inside the casing  54 , the detachable module  5  can be inserted deep into the rack  9  and the connector  13  can be correctly connected with the connector  23 . 
         [0056]    On the other hand, when the pins  3  of the connector  13  are bent, if the laser beam L from the light source  47  is supplied to the connector  13  and laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  23 , the laser beams L are reflected at the mirror  39  provided at the front end of the connector  23  and the reflected light is input to the light receiving units  38 . In this case, the circuit  30  determines that the pins  3  are bent and does not energize the solenoid  57  of the stopper  53 , but sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. As a result, the lock by the stopper  53  is maintained and the detachable module  5  can no longer be inserted deep into the rack  9 . Further, since the alarm  45  emits an alarm sound, the worker can learn of bending of the pins  3  of the connector  13 . 
         [0057]      FIG. 9  illustrates an electronic apparatus  62  of a second embodiment including a rack  9  to which a connector  13  and a detachable module  5  of the third embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 6A ,  6 B are attached and illustrates the state where a detachable module  5  is inserted into the rack  9  for connection. In this embodiment as well, the light source  47  includes a light emitting source and a beam splitter, while the circuit  30  is provided with an electrical circuit for sending and receiving signals through the connector  13  and a detector for detecting bending of pins  3  from signals from the light receiving units  38 . A laser beam from the light source  47  is emitted from the front ends of the pins  3 . 
         [0058]    Further, the rack  9  is provided with a stopper  73 . The stopper  73  stops the entry of the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  at a point of time before the connector  23  connects with the connector  13 . The stopper  73  of this embodiment includes a motor  74  and a rotating plate  75 . The rotating plate  75  is turned by the motor  74  to stick out inside the rack  9  and stop the entry of the detachable module  5  into the rack  9 . Further, a contact  16  is provided at the front end of the housing  13  of the connector  13  attached to the board  8 , while a contact  26  is provided at the front end of the housing  23 H of the connector  23 . The contact  16  and the contact  26  are designed to contact each other in a state where the insertion of the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  is stopped by the stopper  73 . 
         [0059]    When a detachable module  5  to which a connector  23  provided with a mirror  39  at its front end surface is attached enters into the rack  9  and is stopped by the stopper  73 , the contact of the contact  16  and the contact  26  is detected by the circuit  30  and a signal is sent to the light source  47 . In this case, the light source  47  supplies a laser beam to the connector  13 , and laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  23 . At this time, if the pins  3  are not bent, as described above, no reflected light will enter the light receiving units  38 , so the circuit  30  will determine that the pins  3  are not bent and power the motor  74  of the stopper  73 . As a result, the rotating plate  75  will turn and leave the inside of the rack  9 , whereby the lock by the stopper  73  will be released. This being the case, the detachable module  5  can be inserted deep into the rack  9  and the connector  13  and connector  23  are correctly connected. 
         [0060]    On the other hand, when the pins  3  of the connector  13  are bent, if the light source  47  supplies a laser beam to the connector  13  and laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  23 , the laser beams L are reflected at the mirror  39  provided at the front end of the connector  23  and reflected light is input to the light receiving units  38 . In this case, the circuit  30  determines that the pins  3  are bent, does not power the motor  74  of the stopper  73 , and sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. As a result, the lock by the stopper  73  is maintained, and the detachable module  5  can no longer be inserted deep into the rack  9 . Further, due to the alarm sound generated from the alarm  45 , the worker can learn of bending of the pins  3  of the connector  13 . 
         [0061]      FIG. 10  illustrates an electronic apparatus  63  of a third embodiment including a rack  9  to which a connector  12  and a detachable module  5  provided with a connector  22  of the second embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 5  are attached and illustrates the state where the detachable module  5  is inserted into the rack  9 . In this embodiment as well, the light source  47  includes a light emitting source and a beam splitter, while the circuit  30  is provided with an electrical circuit for sending and receiving signals through the connector  12 . A laser beam from the light source  47  is emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  and is input to the receptacles  4  of the connector  22 . At the bottoms of the receptacles  4 , there are light receiving units  36 . Detection signals are output when laser beams L are input to them. The signals from the light receiving units  36  are input to a detector  44  provided in the detachable module  5 . 
         [0062]    Further, the rack  9  is provided with a stopper  73  similar to the second embodiment which stops the entry of the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  at a point of time before the connector  23  is connected to the connector  13 . The stopper  73  includes a motor  74  and a rotating plate  75 . The rotating plate  75  turns by the motor  74  and sticks out into the rack  9 . At the detachable module  5  side, a contact  76  for contacting the rotating plate  75  is provided. This contact  76  is connected to the detector  44 . The motor  74  is connected to the rotating plate  75  and driven by the drive circuit  70 . Further, a contact  16  is provided at the front end of the housing  12 H of the connector  12  attached to the board  8 , while a contact  26  is provided at the front end of the housing  22 H of the connector  22 . The contact  16  and the contact  26  are designed to contact each other in the state where insertion of the detachable module  5  into the rack  9  is stopped by the stopper  73 . 
         [0063]    When a detachable module  5  to which a connector  22  including a housing  22 H in which light receiving units  36  are provided enters the rack  9  and is stopped by the stopper  73 , the contact of the contact  16  and the contact  26  is detected by the circuit  30 , and a signal is sent to the light source  47 . In this case, the light source  47  supplies a laser beam L to the connector  12 , and laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  22 . At this time, if the pins  3  are not bent, as mentioned above, the light receiving units  36  are all struck by the laser beams, so the detector  44  determines that the pins  3  are not bent and sends a signal to the contact  76 . This signal is input through the rotating plate  75  to the drive circuit  70 , whereupon the drive circuit  70  powers the motor  74  of the stopper  73 . As a result, the rotating plate  75  turns and leaves the inside of the rack  9 , whereby the lock by the stopper  73  is released. In this case, the detachable module  5  can be inserted deep into the rack  9  and the connector  12  and the connector  22  are correctly connected. 
         [0064]    On the other hand, when the pins  3  of the connector  12  are bent, if the light source  47  supplies a laser beam L to the connector  12  and laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  to the connector  22 , some of the light receiving units  36  will not be struck by the laser beams L in their total amounts or will not be struck by them at all. In this case, the detector  44  determines that the pins  3  are bent, does not output a signal to the contact  76 , and sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. As a result, the drive circuit  70  does not power the motor  74  of the stopper  73 , so the lock by the stopper  73  is maintained and the detachable module  5  can no longer be inserted deep into the rack  9 . Further, due to the alarm sound emitted from the alarm  45 , a worker can learn that the pins  3  of the connector  13  are bent. 
         [0065]      FIG. 11  illustrates an electronic apparatus  64  of a fourth embodiment including a rack  9  to which a connector  14  is attached and a detachable module  5  provided with a connector  24  in the fourth embodiment depicted in  FIG. 7A  and  FIG. 7B  and illustrates the state where the detachable module  5  is inserted into the rack  9 . The configuration of the electronic apparatus  64  of the fourth embodiment is similar to the configuration of the electronic apparatus  63  of the third embodiment, so only the points of difference will be described. 
         [0066]    The connector  22  of the electronic apparatus  63  of the third embodiment was provided with light receiving units  36  inside the housing  22 H, but the connector  24  of the electronic apparatus  64  of the fourth embodiment is not provided with the light receiving units  36 . Instead, light receiving units  40  are provided at the front end surface of the housing  24 H. The rest of the configuration of the electronic apparatus  64  of the fourth embodiment is the same as the configuration of the electronic apparatus  63  of the third embodiment, so an explanation will be omitted. 
         [0067]    In the electronic apparatus  64  of this fourth embodiment, when the pins  3  are not bent, the laser beams L emitted from the pins  3  are input to the total receptacle  4  and are not input to the light receiving units  40 . In this case, the detector  44  determines that the pins  3  are not bent and sends a signal to the contact  76 . This signal is input through the rotating plate  75  to the drive circuit  70 , whereupon the drive circuit  70  powers the motor  74  of the stopper  73 . As a result, the rotating plate  75  turns and leaves the inside of the rack  9 , whereupon the lock by the stopper  73  is released. In this case, the detachable module  5  can be inserted deep into the rack  9  and the connector  14  and connector  24  are correctly connected. 
         [0068]    On the other hand, when the pins  3  of the connector  12  are bent, if laser beams L are emitted from the front ends of the pins  3  toward the connector  22 , the laser beams L emitted from the bent pins  3  will not be input into the receptacles  4  in their full amounts. Part or all will be input to the light receiving units  40 . In this case, the detector  44  determines that the pins  3  are bent and does not output signals to the contact  76 , but sends a signal to the alarm  45  to make it emit an alarm sound. As a result, the drive circuit  70  does not power the motor  74  of the stopper  73 , so the lock by the stopper  73  is maintained and the detachable module  5  can no longer be inserted deep into the rack  9 . Further, due to the alarm sound emitted by the alarm  45 , the worker can learn that the pins  3  of the connector  13  are bent. 
         [0069]      FIG. 12  illustrates one embodiment of the configuration of an electronic apparatus  60  provided with a rack  9  enabling a plurality of detachable modules to be mounted. Inside a housing  60 H of the electronic apparatus  60 , three racks  9  are provided. A detachable module  5  can be loaded into each of these. In this embodiment, male connectors  10  are attached to boards  8 , while female connectors  20  are attached to the detachable modules  5 . Further, in this embodiment, an on/off switch  65  of the light source  47  is provided at a front panel of the electronic apparatus  60 . If pressing this switch  65  only when plugging in the detachable modules  5  to the rack  9 , laser beams L are supplied to the male connectors  10  from the light sources  47 . 
         [0070]    Note that in the embodiment illustrated above, a configuration providing the light sources  47  at the connectors at the rack  9  side was described, but the light sources  47  can also be provided at the detachable modules  5 . In this case, it is sufficient to mount batteries for powering the light sources at the detachable modules  5 , provide switches there, and turn on the switches when inserting the units so as to make the light sources emit light. 
         [0071]    Although only some exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will readily appreciated that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention.