Abstract:
A dock includes a base, a pivot axis piece, a plate member, a connector and at least one elastic element. The base includes an upper case having a pressing hole and a connecting hole. The pivot axis piece is disposed on the upper case and the plate is pivotally connected to the upper case by the pivot axis piece. A first end of a main plate of the plate member has a pressing element and corresponding to the pressing hole. The connector is disposed at a second end of the main plate relative to the pressing element and corresponding to the connecting hole. The elastic element is connected between the upper case and the main plate. The elastic element makes the second end move away the upper case and lets the connector receive in the connecting hole.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to docks and, more particularly, to a dock for expanding a connectable hole/part of a portable electronic device, such as a notebook computer or a tablet. 
     Description of the Prior Art 
     To be downsized and conveniently carried, devices, such as tablets, are usually designed to be as thin as possible. To this end, the number of jacks on the device is minimized so that the thickness of the device can be reduced. Sometimes the device in operation requires a dock in order to be electrically connected with another device. The dock has an adapting connector mounted thereon so that a portable electronic device, such as a tablet, can output/input data or connect with another electronic device in order to operate. 
     A connector for use with a tablet is mounted on the dock. The connector allows a tablet to be electrically connected with another connector. The connector usually protrudes from the surface of a casing before use. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The aforesaid connector not only protrudes from the surface of a casing before use but also gets damaged as a result of a collision that happens during a storing or carrying process. In view of this, the present invention provides a dock characterized in that: before an electronic device is mounted on the dock, the connector is contained in a casing of the dock and thus prevented from getting damaged during a storing or carrying process. 
     The present invention in an embodiment provides a dock which comprises a base, a pivot element, a plate element, a connector, and at least one elastic component. The base comprises an upper casing and a lower casing. The upper casing and the lower casing are connected to form a receiving space. The upper casing has a pressing hole and a connecting hole. The pivot element is disposed at the upper casing and in the receiving space. The plate element is rotatably connected to the upper casing by the pivot element and disposed in the receiving space. The plate element comprises a main plate, a pressing portion, and at least one pivotal connection hole. The pressing portion is disposed at a first end of the main plate and corresponds in position to the pressing hole. At least one pivotal connection hole is disposed on the main plate and fitted around the pivot element. The connector is disposed at a second end of the main plate, opposite the pressing portion, and corresponds in position to the connecting hole, thereby allowing the pivot element to be disposed between the connector and the pressing portion. The at least one elastic component is disposed in the receiving space and positioned proximate to the connector. The at least one elastic component is abuttingly connected between the main plate and the upper casing to allow the main plate to rotate about the pivot element, keep the second end of the main plate away from the upper casing, and allow the pressing portion disposed at the first end of the main plate to penetrate the pressing hole and protrude from the upper casing. 
     Due to the seesaw structure disposed in the dock, the head of the connector is prevented from protruding from the upper surface of the upper casing before the electronic device is mounted on the dock. Hence, when the dock is not in use, the connector is prevented from getting damaged during a storing or carrying process. 
     In some embodiments, the upper casing further comprises at least one positioning hole, and the main plate further comprises at least one positioning post which penetrates the at least one positioning hole and protrudes from the upper casing. When an electronic device is mounted on the dock, the positioning posts perform an aligning function whereby the connector of the electronic device and the connector of the dock are aligned and electrically connected. 
     In some embodiments, the at least one elastic component is a spring fitted around each said positioning post. Fitting the at least one elastic component around the at least one positioning post dispenses with the need to provide any positioning structure for fixing the at least one elastic component in place, simplifies the structure of the dock, and reduces the steps of a related manufacturing process. 
     In some embodiments, when the pressing portion is subjected to an action force, the main plate rotates about the pivot element to keep the second end of the main plate close to the upper casing and protrude the connector from the upper casing. When the electronic device is mounted on the dock in order to operate, the electronic device presses against the pressing portion such that the main plate rotates about the pivot elements to cause the connector disposed at the second end of the main plate to penetrate the connecting hole and protrude from the upper casing; hence, the dock is electrically connected to the electronic device. Therefore, it is not necessary to spend extra time manipulating the dock; instead, the connector protrudes and gets connected to the electronic device as soon as the electronic device is mounted on the dock. 
     In some embodiments, the upper casing further comprises a hook protrudingly disposed below the pressing hole. To mount the electronic device in place, one end of the electronic device is engaged with the hook and then centrally positioned while the electronic device is being mounted on the dock, thereby rendering the mounting process easy and accurate. 
     In some embodiments, the pressing portion comprises a first board and a second board, with the first board being connected to the second board, and the second board being connected to the main plate, an included angle between the second board and the main plate is less than 90 degrees such that the pressing portion can be smoothly protruded and pressed to be stored in the base. 
     In some embodiments, the dock further comprises a fastening portion disposed at an end of the base to be opposite the pressing hole. When the electronic device is mounted on the dock, the electronic device is fastened and fixed to the dock with the fastening portion, thereby preventing the electronic device from separating from the dock while being moved or used. 
     In some embodiments, the fastening portion comprises two clutching portions disposed on two opposing sides of the upper casing, respectively, and on an upper surface of the upper casing. The clutching portions each comprise an engaging element which is engaged with the electronic device. Furthermore, the clutching portions are fixed to the base by screws. 
     In some embodiments, the fastening portion further comprises a freeing segment with two ends penetrating the base and being fastened to the clutching portions, respectively. Since the freeing segment connects with the two ends of the clutching portions, disengaging the clutching portions and releasing the electronic device entails pressing a single point rather than pressing the spaced-apart clutching portions with two hands simultaneously or separately. Furthermore, with the freeing segment being slender, the pressed area is maximized, and thus applying a force is easier. 
     In some embodiments, the fastening portion further comprises two resilient posts each penetratingly disposed at the base, with one end abutting against the freeing segment, and another end protruding from the upper casing. To remove the electronic device, the clutching portions are disengaged from the electronic device, and then the resilient posts generate a thrust away from the base to separate the electronic device from the dock, thereby making it easier to take out the electronic device. 
     In some embodiments, the resilient posts each comprise a protruding post and an elastic component, with the elastic component disposed in the receiving space and abutting against the protruding post. The protruding post abuts against the electronic device under a restoring force produced as a result of the compression of the elastic component. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a dock with an electronic device mounted thereon according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a see-through schematic view of an upper casing of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the dock with the electronic device mounted thereon according to the first embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 6  is a schematic view of a main plate of the dock according to the second embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to  FIG. 1  through  FIG. 5  illustrate a dock in the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a dock with an electronic device mounted thereon according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 2  is an exploded view of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 3  is a see-through schematic view of an upper casing of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 4  is a cross-sectional view of the dock according to the first embodiment of the present invention.  FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional view of the dock with the electronic device mounted thereon according to the first embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the diagrams, a dock  100  comprises a base  10 , a pivot element  20 , a plate element  30 , a connector  40 , two elastic components  50 , and a fastening portion  60 . The base  10  comprises an upper casing  11  and a lower casing  12 . The upper casing  11  and the lower casing  12  are connected to form a receiving space  13  for receiving an electronic component, such as a circuit board (not shown). The upper casing  11  has a pressing hole  111  and a connecting hole  112 . The shapes of the upper casing  11  and the lower casing  12  are subject to changes, depending on an electronic device  200  to be mounted on the dock  100 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the pivot element  20  is disposed at the upper casing  11  and in the receiving space  13 . Two pivotal connection holders  113  are disposed on the back of the upper casing  11  and each adapted to hold the pivot element  20 . The pivot elements  20  are disposed on the pivotal connection holders  113 , respectively. A stop element  114  is fastened to each pivotal connection holder  113  such that the pivot element  20  is fixed to the upper casing  11 . The plate element  30  is rotatably connected to the upper casing  11  by the pivot element  20  and disposed in the receiving space  13 . Referring to  FIG. 2 , the plate element  30  comprises a main plate  31 , a pressing portion  32 , and three pivotal connection holes  33 . The pressing portion  32  is disposed at a first end of the main plate  31 . The three pivotal connection holes  33  are substantially centrally disposed at the main plate  31  and uniformly distributed on the two sides and the middle of the main plate  31 . The pivot elements  20  penetrate the pivotal connection holes  33  such that the main plate  31  rotates about the pivot elements  20 . To stabilize the connection between the main plate  31  and the pivot element  20  and render the rotation of the main plate  31  smooth, one pivotal connection hole  33  is disposed on each of the two sides and the middle of the main plate  31 . In a variant embodiment, only one or more pivotal connection holes  33  are provided, but the present invention is not limited thereto. 
     The connector  40  is disposed at a second end of the main plate  30  and opposite the pressing portion  32 . The connector  40  is electrically connected to a circuit board  41 . The circuit board  41  is positioned at any point in the base  10 . Alternatively, in the first embodiment, the circuit board  41  is disposed below the connector  40  and fixed to the main plate  30 . With the pivot element  20  being disposed between the connector  40  and the pressing portion  32 , the main plate  20  rotates about the pivot element  20  in a seesawing pattern by using the pivot element  20  as a pivot. Specifically speaking, if the pressing portion  32  moves downward under a force, the connector  40  will move upward. If the connector  40  moves downward, the pressing portion  32  will move upward. 
     The two elastic components  50  are disposed in the receiving space and positioned proximate to the connector  40 . The two ends of each of the two elastic components  50  abut against the main plate  30  and the upper casing  11 , respectively, and provide a thrust for keeping the second end of the main plate  30  away from the upper casing  11 . Referring to  FIG. 3 , the pressing portion  32  corresponds in position to the pressing hole  111  of the upper casing  11 , whereas the connector  40  corresponds in position to the connecting hole  112  of the upper casing  11 . When pushed under a thrust exerted by the elastic components  50 , the main plate  30  rotates about the pivot elements  20  to keep the second end of the main plate  30  away from the upper casing  11 . At this point in time, the pressing portion  32  disposed at the first end of the main plate  30  penetrates the pressing hole  111  and protrudes from the upper casing  11 . Due to the thrust exerted by the elastic components  50 , the connector  40  is received in the connecting hole  112  and thus does not protrude from the upper surface of the upper casing  11 . 
     The seesaw structure disposed in the dock  100  prevents the head of the connector  40  from protruding from the upper surface of the upper casing  11  before the electronic device  200  is mounted on the dock  100 . Hence, after the electronic device  200  has been mounted on the dock  100  and operating, the connector  40  is prevented from getting damaged during the storing and carrying process of the dock  100 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 4  and  FIG. 5 , when the pressing portion  32  is subjected to an action force, the main plate  30  rotates about the pivot elements  20  to keep the second end of the main plate  30  close to the upper casing  11  and protrude the connector  40  from the upper casing. For instance, mounting the electronic device  200  (shown in  FIG. 1 ) on the dock  100  entails the following steps: the back of the electronic device  200  presses against the pressing portion  32  protruding from the upper casing  11  such that the electronic device  200  exerts an action force on the pressing portion  32  while it is mounted; when the pressing portion  32  moves under the action force, the main plate  30  rotates about the pivot elements  20  by using the pivot elements  20  as the pivots to cause the second end of the main plate  30  to move upward and cause the connector  40  to penetrate the connecting hole  112  and protrude from the upper casing  11  such that the connector  40  and a connector (not shown) on the back of the electronic device  200  are electrically connected to each other. Therefore, it is not necessary to spend extra time protruding the connector  40  otherwise hidden in the base  10  out of the base  10  in order to access the dock  100 ; instead, the connector  40  protrudes and gets connected to the electronic device  200  as soon as the electronic device  200  is mounted on the dock  100 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , the upper casing  11  further comprises two positioning holes  115 . The main plate  30  further comprises two positioning posts  34 . Referring to  FIG. 3 , the two positioning posts  34  each penetrate a positioning hole  115  and protrude from the upper casing  11 . When the electronic device  200  is mounted on the dock  100 , the positioning posts  34  perform an aligning function whereby the connector of the electronic device  200  and the connector  40  of the dock  100  are aligned and electrically connected. Since the positioning posts  34  serve to position the connector of the electronic device  200  and the connector  40  of the dock  100  as appropriate, the positioning posts  34  flank the connector  40  and thus perform the positioning function better. In this embodiment, in addition to the positioning function, the two elastic components  50  are springs fitted around the two positioning posts  34 , respectively. Fitting the two elastic components  50  around the two positioning posts  34  dispenses with the need to provide any positioning structure for fixing the elastic components  50  in place, simplifies the structure of the dock  100 , and reduces the steps of a related manufacturing process. 
     To render it easy to mount the electronic device  200  on the dock  100 , the upper casing  11  further comprises a hook  116  protrudingly disposed below the pressing hole  111 . To mount the electronic device  200  in place, one end of the electronic device  200  is engaged with the hook  116  and then centrally positioned while the electronic device  200  is being mounted on the dock  100 , thereby rendering the mounting process easy and accurate. After the electronic device  200  is placed at the base  10 , the electronic device  200  is fastened in place by the fastening portion  60 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 1  through  FIG. 3 , the fastening portion  60  is disposed at one end of the base  10  to be opposite the pressing hole  111 . When the electronic device  200  is mounted on the dock  100 , the electronic device  200  is fastened and fixed to the dock  100  with the hook  116  at one end and the fastening portion  60  at the other end, thereby preventing the electronic device  200  from separating from the dock  100  while being moved or used. In this embodiment, the fastening portion  60  comprises two clutching portions  61  and a freeing segment  62 . The two clutching portions  61  are disposed on two opposing sides of the upper casing  11 , respectively, and on the upper surface of the upper casing  11 , and are fixed to the upper casing  11  by screws. The clutching portions  61  each comprise an engaging element  611  and a releasing portion  612 . The engaging element  611  is engaged with the electronic device  200 . The engaging element  611  is pressed to disengage the releasing portion such that the engaging element  611  separates from the electronic device  200  and gets disengaged from the electronic device  200 . 
     The freeing segment  62  is slender and disposed on one side of the base  10 . The two ends of the freeing segment  62  penetrate the base  10  and get fastened to the clutching portions  61 , respectively. Since the freeing segment  62  connects with the two ends of the clutching portions  61 , disengaging the clutching portions  61  and releasing the electronic device  200  entails pressing a single point (i.e., the freeing segment  62 ) rather than pressing the spaced-apart clutching portions  61  with two hands simultaneously or separately. Furthermore, with the freeing segment  62  being slender, the pressed area is maximized, and thus applying a force is easier. 
     The fastening portion  60  further comprises two resilient posts  63 . Each resilient post  63  is penetratingly disposed at the base  10 , with one end abutting against the freeing segment  62 , and the other end protruding from the upper casing  11 . Referring to  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 3 , in this embodiment, the resilient posts  63  each comprise a protruding post  631  and an elastic component  632 . The protruding post  631  penetrates the base  10  and protrudes from the upper casing  11 . The elastic component  632  is disposed in the receiving space  13  and abuts against the protruding post  631  to provide an action force under which the protruding post  631  under linear reciprocating motion. When the electronic device  200  is mounted on the dock  100 , it presses against the protruding posts  631 , and thus the protruding posts  631  push and compress the elastic components  632 . To remove the electronic device  200 , the clutching portions  61  are disengaged from the electronic device  200 , and then, under a restoring force produced as a result of the compression of the elastic components  632 , the protruding posts  631  of the resilient post  63  generate a thrust away from the base  10  to separate the electronic device  200  from the dock  100 , thereby making it easier to take out the electronic device  200 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , there is shown a schematic view of the main plate of the dock according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Identical components with specific connection relationships in the first and second embodiments are denoted with identical reference numerals, and thus these components in the second embodiment are not described for the sake of brevity. A pressing portion  32 ′ of the main plate  30  in the second embodiment distinguishes the second embodiment from the first embodiment. In the second embodiment, the pressing portion  32 ′ comprises a first board  321  and a second board  322 . With the first board  321  being connected to the second board  322 , and the second board  322  being connected to the main plate  30 , the pressing portion  32 ′ is substantially L-shaped. The included angle θ between the second board  322  and the main plate  30  is less than 90 degrees such that the pressing portion  32 ′ can be smoothly protruded and pressed to be stored in the base  10 . 
     Although the present invention is disclosed above by embodiments, the embodiments are not restrictive of the present invention. Any persons skilled in the art can make some changes and modifications to the embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the legal protection for the present invention should be defined by the appended claims.