Patent Publication Number: US-6663398-B2

Title: Card adapter

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a card adapter for electrically connecting electrical connecting portions of a card-shaped electronic device to contacts in a slot provided in a personal computer or the like for receiving another card-shaped electronic device which is manufactured in accordance with a different standard. 
     2. Description of the Prior Art 
     A card adapter has been conventionally used, for example, for electrically connecting contacts of a CF (Compact Flash) card which is a card-shaped electronic device smaller than a PC card to contacts in a slot provided in a personal computer for receiving a PC card. 
     FIG. 17 shows one example of this type of conventional card adapter disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application 2000-259782. 
     The card adapter  80  shown in FIG. 17 has a chassis  81  made of resin or the like, a circuit board assembly  82  mounted on the chassis  81 , and a pair of conducting plates  83 ,  83  provided on the upper and lower sides of the chassis  81 , respectively. 
     The chassis  81  has a CF card receiving space  84  for receiving the CF card therein. The circuit board assembly  82  is provided with a first connector  85  to be electrically connected to the contacts (contact pins) provided in the slot for a PC card, a second connector  86  to be electrically connected to the contacts of the CF card, an eject button (eject lever)  87  and an eject arm  88  for ejecting the CF card received in the CF card receiving space  84 . 
     The eject button  87  is disposed in the chassis  81  such that it can be moved along the longitudinal direction of the adapter. The eject arm  88  is pivotably mounted on the circuit board assembly  82  by means of a rotation axis  89 . Further, the tip portion of the eject button  87  is linked with one end of the eject arm  88  through a connection  90 . 
     When ejecting the CF card received in the CF card receiving space  84 , eject operation is carried out by pushing the eject button  87  into the chassis  81 . When the eject button  87  is pushed, the eject arm  88  is rotated about the rotation axis  89 , and the other end portion thereof (which is an end portion opposite to the end portion linked with the eject button  87 ) is moved toward the inside of the CF card receiving space  84 , and as a result, the CF card is disconnected from the card adapter  80  by the eject arm  88 . 
     Further, the CF card is provided with grounding contact portions (not shown in the drawing) on the side surfaces thereof for discharging static electricity charged in the CF card, and the chassis  81  is also provided with an electrical path for discharging the static electricity from the grounding contact portion of the CF card to a grounding means of the slot for a PC card. 
     The electrical path is constructed from an elastic contacting part  91  which elastically contacts with the grounding contact portion of the CF card, a contact part  92  which electrically connects with the grounding means of the slot for a PC card, and the conducting plate  83  which electrically connects the elastic contacting part  91  and the contact part  92 . 
     In the conventional card adapter  80 , the contact part  92  is provided on the outer surface of the chassis  81  which will be frequently held by a user. Therefore, if the user touches the contact part  92  when holding the card adapter  80 , static electricity charged in the user is discharged to the contacts provided in the slot for a PC card for receiving the card adapter and to the grounding contact portion of the CF card through the contact part  92 , the conducting plate  83 , and the elastic contacting part  91 , thus resulting in the case that an electronic circuit provided in the personal computer or the CF card is broken. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In view of the problems described above, it is an object of the present invention to provide a card adapter which can reliably isolate a slot provided in a personal computer and a card-shaped electronic device such as a CF card from a user. 
     In order to achieve the object mentioned above, the present invention is directed to a card adapter for electrically connecting a plurality of electrical connecting portions of a card-shaped electronic device to a plurality of contacts provided in a slot for receiving another card-shaped electronic device which is manufactured in accordance with a different standard, comprising: 
     a first connector to be electrically connected to the contacts provided in the slot; 
     a second connector which is electrically connected to said first connector, said second connector being adapted to be connected to the electrical connecting portions of the card-shaped electronic device; 
     a chassis in which said first and second connectors are disposed, said chassis having upper and lower sides; and 
     a pair of conducting plates provided on the upper and lower sides of the chassis, 
     wherein said chassis has a pair of arms extending from portions of the chassis which are located at opposite sides of said second connector, respectively, with a space therebetween so as to define a receiving space of the card-shaped electronic device, said arms being provided with a pair of insulating grip portions for isolating said conducting plates from a user holding the card adapter. 
     As described above, in the card adapter according to the present invention, the arms which are portions frequently held by a user are provided with the pair of insulating grip portions so that conductive parts such as the conducting plates provided on the upper and lower sides of the chassis and the like are reliably isolated from a user. Therefore, according to the present invention, the card adapter can prevent static electricity charged in the user from being discharged from the user to the contacts provided in the slot for receiving the card adapter and to a grounding contact portion of a card-shaped electronic device to be connected to the card adapter through the conductive parts of the card adapter. 
     In the present invention described above, it is preferred that each of the arms has a tip side, and said insulating grip portions are provided on the tip sides of the arms in the extension direction. 
     Further, it is also preferred that said chassis is formed of an insulating material. 
     In this case, it is also preferred that said insulating grip portions are formed by partially exposing the insulating material of the arms. 
     Further, it is also preferred that each of said tip sides is an area of the arm which extends from a tip of the arm over at least 1 cm in the extending direction of the arm. 
     In the present invention, it is preferred that at least one of the conducting plates is provided with a plurality of connecting protrusions electrically connected to a grounding means provided in the slot. 
     In this case, it is also preferred that, when the card adapter is inserted into the slot, said connecting protrusions are adapted to make an electrical connection with a grounding means in the slot after said first connector has been electrically connected to the contacts in the slot. 
     In the present invention, it is preferred that the card-shaped electronic device is one selected from the group consisting of a semiconductor memory card, an interface card, and a hard disk. 
     In this case, it is also preferred that the memory card has opposite side surfaces which are in contact with the arms of the chassis when the memory card is connected to the adapter, and the memory card is provided with a grounding contact portion on at least one of said opposite side surfaces, and the arms are provided with connecting means for electrically connecting said grounding contact portion to at least one of said conducting plates when the memory card is connected to said second connector. 
     The above and further objects, structures and effects of the present invention will be more apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the appended drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of an embodiment of a card adapter according to the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the card adapter. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view which shows the card adapter from which conducting plates are removed with a CF card being disconnected therefrom. 
     FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the card adapter from which the conducting plates are removed with the CF card being connected thereto. 
     FIG. 5 is a partially cut away view which shows the internal structure of arms of the card adapter shown in FIG.  3 . 
     FIG. 6 is a partially cutout perspective view of the card adapter for showing a chassis, a push member and a link arm thereof. 
     FIG. 7 is an enlarged view which shows the section of a first linking part indicated by an arrow A in FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 8 is an enlarged view which shows the section of a rotation axis and the link arm indicated by an arrow B in FIG.  6 . 
     FIG.  9 ( a ) is a perspective view looking from the lower right of FIG. 2, showing a second linking part of the card adapter. 
     FIG.  9 ( b ) is a perspective view looking from the lower left of FIG. 2, showing the second linking part of the card adapter. 
     FIGS.  10 ( a ) and ( b ) are perspective views which show a connecting member of the card adapter, respectively. 
     FIG. 11 is a perspective view looking from the back side, showing the conducting plate of the card adapter. 
     FIGS.  12 ( a ) and ( b ) are enlarged views which show an elastic contact member and its periphery in FIG. 11, respectively. 
     FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the A-A′ line in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 14 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of a CF card to be connected to the card adapter of the present invention. 
     FIG. 15 is a plan view which shows another embodiment of the card adapter of the present invention in which the arms have a different structure. 
     FIG. 16 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of another embodiment of the card adapter in which a cap associated with an eject lever is modified. 
     FIG. 17 is an exploded perspective view which shows a conventional card adapter. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Hereinbelow, preferred embodiments of a card adapter according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the appended drawings. 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of an embodiment of the card adapter according to the present invention; FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view which shows the structure of the card adapter; FIG. 3 is a perspective view which shows the card adapter from which conducting plates are removed with a CF card being disconnected therefrom; FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the card adapter from which the conducting plates are removed with the CF card being connected thereto; FIG. 5 is a partially cut away view which shows the internal structure of arms of the card adapter shown in FIG. 3; FIG. 6 is a partially cutout perspective view of the card adapter for showing a chassis, a push member and a link arm thereof: FIG. 7 is an enlarged view which shows the section of a first linking part indicated by an arrow A in FIG. 6; FIG. 8 is an enlarged view which shows the section of a rotation axis and the link arm indicated by an arrow B in FIG.  6 : FIG.  9 ( a ) is a perspective view looking from the lower right of FIG. 2, showing a second linking part of the card adapter; FIG.  9 ( b ) is a perspective view looking from the lower left of FIG. 2, showing the second linking part of the card adapter; FIGS.  10 ( a ) and ( b ) are perspective views which show a connecting member of the card adapter, respectively; FIG. 11 is a perspective view looking from the back side, showing the conducting plate of the card adapter; FIGS.  12 ( a ) and ( b ) are enlarged views which show an elastic contact member and its periphery in FIG. 11, respectively; FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the A-A′ line in FIG. 1; FIG. 14 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of a CF card to be connected to the card adapter of the present invention; FIG. 15 is a plan view which shows another embodiment of the card adapter of the present invention in which the arms have a different structure; and FIG. 16 is a perspective view which shows the overall structure of another embodiment of the card adapter in which a cap associated with an eject lever is modified. 
     The card adapter according to the present invention is used, for example, for electrically connecting a plurality of electrical connecting portions of a card-shaped electronic device such as a CF (Compact Flash (which is a trade mark of SanDisk Corporation)) card, an interface card or a hard disk or the like to a plurality of contacts in a slot provided in a personal computer or the like for receiving another card-shaped electronic device which is manufactured in accordance with a different standard from the CF card or the like described above. In this regard, it is to be noted that the following description for the embodiments will be made with regard to the case where the card adapter according to the present invention is used for electrically connecting electrical connecting portions of a CF card to contacts (contact pins) provided in a slot for a PC card. 
     As shown in FIGS. 1 to  5 , a card adapter  1  includes a first connector  11  to be electrically connected to the contacts provided in the slot for a PC card; a second connector  12  which is electrically connected to the first connector  11  and is adapted to be connected to the electrical connecting portions of a CF card  2 : a chassis  10  in which the first and second connectors  11 ,  12  are disposed; a pair of conducting plates  70 , 71  provided on the upper and lower sides of the chassis  10 ; and an ejecting mechanism used when the CF card  2  is ejected. The ejecting mechanism includes a push member  40 , an eject lever  50  and a link arm  60 . The push member  40  is disposed in the chassis  10 , wherein the push member  40  is movable between a first position (see FIG. 4) in which the electrical connecting portions of the CF card  2  can be connected to the second connector  12  and a second position (see FIG. 3) in which the electrical connecting portions of the CF card  2  are disconnected from the second connector  12 , and the push member  40  is capable of pushing the CF card  2  positioned at the first position toward the second position. The eject lever  50  is movably mounted with respect to the chassis  10 . The link arm  60  is pivotably mounted on the chassis  10  via a rotation axis  13  to link the push member  40  and the eject lever  50 , wherein one end of the link arm  60  is linked with the push member  40  via a first linking (coupling) part  14 , and the other end is linked with the eject lever  50  via a second linking (coupling) part  15 , whereby the link arm has the function of a transmission means for transmitting the movement of the eject lever  50  to the push member  40 . 
     The chassis  10  is made of an insulating material such as a resin or the like and it is formed into a roughly rectangular shape. As shown in FIGS. 2 to  5 , the chassis  10  includes a main body  16  in which the first connector  11  is positioned at one end and the second connector  12  is positioned at the other end, and a pair of arms  17 L,  17 R having a prescribed space therebetween that extend from the other end of the main body  16  provided with the second connector  12  to define a CF card receiving space  19  (see FIGS. 3 and 5) described below. As shown in FIGS. 2 to  5 , the arm  17 L is provided with an eject lever receiving space  25  in which the eject lever  50  is movably received, and the arm  17 R is provided with an elastic member receiving space  23  which receives an elastic member  43  (described below) provided on the push member  40 . Further, the tip portions in the extension direction of the arms  17 L,  17 R are provided with a pair of insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R for insulating the pair of conducting plates  70 .  71  from a user gripping the card adapter  1 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R are formed by exposing the insulating material of the tip portions in the extension direction of the pair of arms  17 L,  17 R. This exposing of the insulating material is carried out by removing a portion of each of the conducting plates  70 ,  71 . By forming such structure, a user gripping the insulating grip portions  1 L,  18 R does not make contact with conductive members such as the conducting plates  70 ,  71  and connecting members  30  described below. 
     Further, the insulating grip portions  18 L.  18 R are preferably provided for a distance of at least 1 cm from the tip portions in the extension direction of the pair of arms  17 L,  17 R since these areas are normally gripped by the user when the card adapter  1  is mounted into the slot. 
     Then, by having this kind of structure, the card adapter  1  is insulated from static electricity from the user by the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R gripped by the user, and this makes it possible to prevent such static electricity from flowing to the slot and the CF card  2  through the conducting plates  70 ,  71  and the other conductive members. 
     Further, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIG.  3  and FIG. 4, the length of the arm  17 L and the length of the arm  17 R are roughly equal, and an eject lever cap  53  (described below) is positioned at the tip of the arm  17 L. However, the present invention is not limited to this structure, and it is possible to be formed into the structure shown in FIG. 15 in which one of the arms is formed to be a long arm  17 R′, the other arm is formed to be a short arm  17 L′ having a shorter length than the long arm  17 R′, and the eject lever  50  is provided in the short arm  17 L′. 
     In the case of the structure shown in FIG. 15, it is possible to reduce the amount of protrusion of the tip portion of the cap  53  of the eject lever  50  with respect to the tip portion of the long arm  17 R′ when the eject lever  50  is pulled into the inside of the chassis  10 . 
     As shown in FIG. 14, the CF card  2  is a plate-like card-shaped electronic device having a roughly square shape, and electrical connecting portions (not shown in the drawing) which are adapted to make an electrical connection with contacts provided in the CF card receiving space  19  (contacts of the second connector) are provided in the end surface of the top side in the drawing. Further, both the left and right side end surfaces of the CF card  2  in the drawing, namely, the side surfaces positioned at the sides of the arms  17 L,  17 R when the CF card  2  is positioned in the CF card receiving space  19  of the chassis  10  are respectively provided with a grounding contact portion  3  for discharging the static electricity charged on the CF card  2  to connecting members  30  (described below) provided on both the left and right sides of the CF card receiving space  19 , and a guide groove  4  and a guide concave portion  5  for guiding the CF card  2  when the CF card  2  is mounted in the CF card receiving space  19 . 
     Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the arms  17 L,  17 R of the chassis  10  are provided with the connecting members  30  which are adapted to make an electrical connection with the grounding contact portions  3  of the CF card  2 . 
     Each of the connecting members  30  is formed from a conductive material such as a metal material or the like. As shown in FIGS.  10 ( a ) and  10 ( b ), each connecting member  30  includes a mounting portion  32  for mounting the connecting member  30  to one of mounted portions  20 ,  20  provided on the chassis  10  and an elastic contact portion (in the form of a metal spring)  31  which makes elastic contact with the grounding contact portion  3  when the CF card  2  is received in the CF card receiving space  19 . 
     Specifically, as shown in FIGS.  10 ( a ) and  10 ( b ), the mounting portion  32  of each connecting member  30  is formed into a shape having a roughly C-shaped cross section to have a pair of opposed top and bottom engagement parts  33 ,  33 . Each of the engagement parts  33 ,  33  includes a pair of hooks  34 ,  34 . These hooks  34  have the function of preventing the connecting member  30  from being disengaged from the mounted portion  20  when the connecting member  30  is mounted to the mounted portion  20 . 
     Further, as shown in FIGS.  10 ( a ) and  10 ( b ), the elastic contact portion  31  is integrally formed with the mounting portion  32 , and it includes a bent strip formed to have a roughly V-shaped cross section which acts as the metal spring. 
     Furthermore, as shown in FIG.  5  and FIG. 13, the mounted portions  20 ,  20  are respectively provided at two predetermined locations in the arms  17 L,  17 R of the chassis  10 . Further, as is best shown in FIG. 13, each mounted portion  20  has a concave portion  27  which is formed in the top surface of each of the respective arms  17 L,  17 R. 
     The connecting member  30  having the above structure is mounted to the corresponding mounted portion  20  so that its top and bottom engagement parts  33 ,  33  of the mounting portion  32  hold the top and bottom surfaces of the arm, respectively, at the location of the concave portion  27  as shown in FIG.  13 . When the connecting member  30  is mounted to the mounted portion  20  in this way, the elastic contact portion  31  of the connecting member  30  protrudes inwardly from the inner surface of the arm ( 17 L or  17 R) so that it can make elastic contact with the grounding contact portion  3  of the CF card  2  when the CF card  2  is received in the CF card receiving space  19 . Further, in this state, as described below in more details, corresponding elastic contact members  74 L,  74 R provided on the conducting plate  70  can make contact with the top engagement parts  33  of the connecting members  30 , respectively, so that the connecting member  30  is electrically connected to the conducting plate  70 . 
     Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the chassis  10  is provided with a pair of biasing members  21 ,  21  which normally bias the push member  40  from the first position toward the second position. As shown in FIG. 2, the biasing members  21 ,  21  are compression coil springs provided on both ends of the second connector  12 , and the push member  40  is biased and displaced from the first position to the second position by the biasing force of the biasing members  21 ,  21 . 
     Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 to  5 , the chassis  10  has the rotation axis  13  which supports the link arm  60  in a freely rotatable manner. As shown in FIG. 8, the rotation axis  13  is integrally formed with the chassis  10 . Further, after the link arm  60  is mounted, the tip portion of the rotation axis  13  is formed into a mushroom shape having a diameter larger than the diameter of the rotation axis  13  by heat deformation or the like. Then, by forming such structure, it is possible to prevent the link arm  60  from disconnecting from the rotation axis  13 . 
     Further, as shown in FIG.  3  and FIG. 4, the chassis  10  is provided with walls  22   a  to  22   d  in order to restrict the rotation angle of the link arm  60  around the rotation axis  13 . 
     As shown in FIG. 4, the walls  22   a  and  22   b  are provided at positions corresponding to the positions of the lower side surface of the link arm  60  in the left side of the drawing from the rotation axis  13 , and the upper side surface of the link arm  60  in the right side of the drawing from the rotation axis  13  when the push member  40  is positioned at the first position. 
     Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the walls  22   c  and  22   d  are provided at positions corresponding to the positions of the upper side surface of the link arm  60  in the left side of the drawing from the rotation axis  13 , and the lower side surface of the link arm  60  in the right side of the drawing from the rotation axis  13  when the push member  40  is positioned at the second position. 
     Now, when an attempt is made to rotate the link arm  60  beyond a required angle, the side portions of the link arm  60  (that is, the upper side surface of the link arm  60  in the left side from the rotation axis  13  and the lower side surface of the link arm  60  in the right side from the rotation axis  13 ) come into abutment with the walls  22   c  and  22   d , whereby the rotation of the link arm  60  is restricted. Then, by restricting the rotation of the link arm  60  in this way, the displacement of each end portion of the link arm  60 , namely, the displacement of the push member  40  and the eject lever  50  respectively linked to the first linking part  14  and the second linking part  15  is also restricted. 
     The push member  40  has a function which pushes the CF card  2 , and a function which protects contact pins  29  of the second connector  12  when the CF card  2  is removed. 
     The push member  40  is formed from an insulating material such as resin or the like in the same manner as the chassis  10 , and as shown in FIGS. 2 to  5 , the push member  40  includes a contact pin covering portion  41  for covering the contact pins  29  of the second connector  12 , a protruding portion  42  which extends from the end portion of the covering portion  41  at the side of the first connector  11  (which is shown in the upper side of the covering portion  41  in the drawings), and the elastic member  43  provided on the end portion of the covering portion  41  on the right side in the drawings. 
     As shown in FIG.  2  and FIG. 3, the covering portion  41  is formed roughly in the shape of a flat box, and includes protrusion holes  44  formed in the end surface at the side of the CF card receiving space  19  to enable the protrusion of the contact pins  29  of the second connector  12 . 
     Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 to  5 , the protruding portion  42  extends from roughly the center of the covering portion  41  in the width direction thereof toward the first connector  11 . Further, an aperture  45  which engages with a projection  62  (described below) of the link arm  60  is disposed in a roughly central portion of the protruding portion  42  in the width direction thereof. The aperture  45  is formed into the shape of a slit which has a width roughly the same as (slightly larger than) the diameter of the projection  62  (described below) disposed on the end portion of the link arm  60  so that the projection  62  can move along the aperture  45  when the link arm  60  is rotated. 
     Then, by adopting such a structure, it is possible to provide a prescribed play between the projection  62  and the aperture  45 , and it becomes possible to ideally convert the rotational movement of the link arm  60  into the reciprocal movement of the push member  40 . 
     Furthermore, in the present embodiment, the engaging part of the projection  62  and the aperture  45  is referred to as the first linking part  14 . Further, in the present embodiment, the projection  62  is disposed on the link arm  60 , and the aperture  45  is disposed in the push member  40 , but the present invention is not limited to this arrangement. It is also possible to provide the projection on the push member  40 , and provide the aperture in the link arm  60 , and in the case where such structure is adopted, it is possible to achieve the same advantages as the present embodiment. 
     As described above, in the present embodiment, the first linking part  14  is positioned in roughly the central portion of the push member  40  in the width direction thereof. Accordingly, when the push member  40  is displaced, there is no difference in the displacements of the end portions of the CF card  2  in the width direction thereof like that which occurs in the prior art card adapter  80  described above, so that it becomes possible to prevent deformation of the contact pins  29  of the second connector  12  when the push member  40  is displaced. 
     The elastic member  43  is made from a metal material, and as shown in FIG.  4  and FIG. 5, the elastic member  43  includes a locking protrusion  46  which locks with a locking aperture  24  formed in the elastic member receiving space  23  of the chassis  10 , and a flat spring portion  47  which makes it possible to displace the locking protrusion  46 . The elastic member  43  having the above structure is fixed to the end portion of the push member  40  (which is shown in the right side of the drawings), and is received in the elastic member receiving space  23  provided in the arm  17 R of the chassis  10 . 
     As shown in FIG.  3  and FIG. 5, when the push member  40  reaches the second position, the locking protrusion  46  locks with the locking aperture  24  of the chassis  10 . Then, when an attempt is made to displace the push member  40  from the second position toward the first position, the locking surface of the locking protrusion  46  makes contact with the locking surface of the locking aperture  24 , whereby the push member  40  is kept at the second position. 
     Further, as shown in FIG. 4, when the CF card  2  is mounted in the CF card receiving space  19 , the locking protrusion  46  makes contact with a side surface of the CF card  2 , and is displaced to the right side in the drawings, namely, into the inside of the arm  17 R. This displacement disengages the lock between the locking protrusion  46  and the locking aperture  24 , thereby making it possible to displace the push member  40  from the second position to the first position. 
     As described above, the push member  40  is movable between the first position shown in FIG. 4, namely, the position where the CF card  2  is received in the CF card receiving space  19  under the state that the electrical connecting portions of the CF card  2  are connected to the contact pins of the second connector  12 , and the second position shown in FIG. 3, namely, the position where the electrical connecting portions of the CF card  2  can be disconnected from the second connector  12 . When the push member  40  is moved from the first position toward the second position, the push member  40  is capable of pushing the CF card  2  positioned at the first position toward the second position. According to the movement of the push member  40 , the protrusion holes  44  of the covering portion  41  of the push member  40  cover the contact pins  29  (see FIG. 2) of the second connector  12  so that the contact pins  29  are held inside the covering portion  41  of the push member  40 , whereby the contact pins  29  are protected by the covering portion  41 . In other words, in accordance with the movement of the push member  40 , the contact pins  29  of the second connector  12  are pulled out of the electrical connecting portions of the CF card  2 . 
     Further, as seen from the drawings, the push member  40  is constructed so as to push the CF card  2  by surface contact or multiple point contact along the both sides of the center of the push member  40  in the width direction thereof (although at least two point contact occurs in the both sides of the center position, many contact points are preferred). Accordingly, contact does not occur only at a single point like the tip portion of the eject arm  88  of the prior art card adapter  80  described above. This makes it possible to prevent abrasion of the contact portion of the CF card  2 . Further, because the surface contact or multiple point contact described above occurs in the both sides of the center position of the push member  40 , it is possible to prevent inclination of the CF card  2  inside the CF card receiving space  19 . 
     The link arm  60  is formed from a metal material, and as shown in FIG.  2  and FIG. 8, the link arm  60  is provided with an axis hole  61  in roughly the center thereof for support by the rotation axis  13  provided on the chassis  10 . Further, the projection  62  is disposed on the right side end portion of the link arm  60  in the drawings, and a linking protrusion  63  is provided on the left side end portion of the link arm  60  in the drawings. In the present embodiment, the portion of the link arm  60  excluding the linking protrusion  63  is referred to as a link arm body  64  for convenience sake, and the engagement part of the linking protrusion  63  and a linking protrusion receiving hole  51  is referred to as the second linking part  15 . 
     As shown in FIG.  6  and FIG. 7, the projection  62  is integrally formed with the link arm  60  (which is formed from a metal material) by carrying out a burring process or the like on the right side end portion of the link arm  60  in the drawings. In the present embodiment, by integrally forming the projection  62  with the link arm  60  by a burring process in this way, the processes carried out when manufacturing the link arm  60  are made more efficient. 
     As shown in FIGS.  9 ( a ) and  9 ( b ), the linking protrusion  63  is formed to have a roughly rectangular plate-like shape, and is integrally formed with the left side end portion of the link arm body  64  in the drawings via a step portion  65 . The step portion  65  has a function which adjusts the position of the linking protrusion  63  with respect to the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  (described below) provided in the eject lever  50 , and the linking protrusion  63  and the link arm body  64  are integrally formed via the step portion  65 . Accordingly, when the link arm  60  is mounted to the chassis  10 , the operation which engages the linking protrusion  63  to the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  of the eject lever  50  is made more efficient. 
     As shown in FIG. 2, the eject lever  50  is constructed from a rod-shaped eject rod  52  which is received in the eject lever receiving space  25  provided in the chassis  10 , and the cap  53  (made from an insulating resin) which covers the tip end portion of the eject rod  52  (which is shown in the lower side in the drawings). 
     Further, in the present embodiment, the cap  53  is formed to have a roughly rectangular parallelepiped shape, but the present invention is not limited to this. As shown in FIG. 16, the cap  53  may be formed to have roughly the same cross-sectional shape as the arm  17 L, and it is possible to provide the inner side surface of the cap  53  (which is shown in the right side in the drawings) with a guide portion (protruding member)  54  which extends in the extension direction of the arm  17 L. 
     When the CF card  2  is mounted in the CF card receiving space  19  of the chassis  10 , the guide portion  54  is adapted to engage with the guide concave portion  5  provided on the side surface of the CF card  2  in order to guide the CF card  2 . 
     By providing the guide portion  54 , when the CF card  2  is to be mounted into the card adapter  1  while the card adapter  1  is in a mounted state inside a slot (not shown in the drawings) for a PC card, the guide concave portion  5  of the CF card  2  is guided by the guide portion  54 , so that the CF card  2  can be mounted smoothly. 
     As shown in FIG.  2  and FIG. 9, the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  which receives the linking protrusion  63  of the link arm  60  is provided in the base end of the eject rod  52 . As shown in FIGS.  9 ( a ) and  9 ( b ), the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  is formed into a through hole having a roughly rectangular cross section which passes through the eject rod  52  from the right side surface into the left side surface. The width of the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  is designed to be larger than the width of the linking protrusion  63 . 
     In this way, by setting the width of the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  to be larger than the width of the linking protrusion  63 , it is possible to provide a prescribed play between the linking protrusion  63  and the linking protrusion receiving hole  51 . This makes it possible to ideally convert the rotational motion of the link arm  60  into the reciprocal motion of the eject lever  50 . 
     The conducting plates  70 ,  71  are formed from a metal material. As shown in FIG.  2  and FIG. 11, each conducting plate is constructed from a roughly rectangular main body cover portion  72  which protects the main body  16  of the chassis  10 . and a pair of arm cover portions  73 L,  73 R which extend from both side ends of the edge of the main body cover portion  72  (which is shown in the lower side in the drawings). 
     When mounted to the chassis  10 , the main body cover portion  72  makes contact with a connecting plate  28  provided on the upper portion of the chassis  10 . The connecting plate  28  is electrically connected to at least one of the terminal pins of the first connector  11 , and has a function which discharges static electricity from the main body cover portion  72  to a grounding terminal of the slot. 
     Further, as shown in FIG.  11  and FIG. 12, on the underside of the pair of arm cover portions  73 L,  73 R of the conducting plate  70 , there are integrally formed with long and narrow plate-shaped elastic contact members  74 L,  74 R, respectively, so as to extend from the outside end portions of the arm cover portions  73 L,  73 R toward the inside. As shown in FIG. 13, when the conducting plate  70  is mounted to the chassis  10 , the elastic contact members  74 L,  74 R make elastic contact with the engagement parts  33  of the connecting members  30  provided on the chassis  10  to make an electrical connection between the connecting members  30  and the conducting plate  70 . 
     Further, the conducting plate  70  is provided with a plurality of connecting protrusions  75  which are adapted to make a connection with a grounding means of a slot such as a plurality of tongue members or the like positioned in the upper side of the slot. 
     As shown in FIG.  2  and FIG. 11, the connecting protrusions  75  are provided on the conducting plate  70  near the end portion of the first connector  11 , and each connecting protrusion  75  is a protrusion formed in the shape of a hemisphere. The connecting protrusions  75  are adapted to make an electrical connection with the grounding means of the slot after the first connector  11  is electrically connected to the contacts of the slot. Therefore, in the case where the static electricity from the conducting plate  70  can not be discharged from the first connector  11  due to a break in the discharge path or the like, the connecting protrusions  75  are connected to the grounding means of the slot so that the static electricity from the conducting plate  70  is discharged to the grounding means of the slot. Further, because the connecting protrusions  75  make contact with the grounding means of the slot at many points, the grounding resistance of the main body cover portion  72  is lowered, and this makes it possible to shield the outside from undesired radiation of electromagnetic waves generated inside the device. 
     In this way, in the present embodiment, first, static electricity from the CF card  2  is discharged to the grounding terminal of the slot through the connecting members  30 , the conducting plate  70 , the connecting plate  28  and the first connector  11 , and they form a first discharge path. Further, in the case where this first discharge path is broken for some reason, the static electricity from the CF card  2  is discharged to the grounding means in the upper side of the slot through a second discharge path, namely, through the connecting members  30  and the conducting plate  70  (connecting protrusions  75 ). In this way, by providing these two separate discharge paths for discharging the static electricity from the CF card  2 , it becomes possible to discharge the static electricity from the CF card  2  to the grounding means of the slot more reliably. 
     Accordingly, in the structure described above, because there is no need to provide any members equivalent to the contact member  92  of the prior art card adapter  80  described above which are arranged on the side portion of the chassis  81  to make contact with the conducting plate  83 , it becomes possible to reliably insulate the conducting plate  70  from a user gripping the card adapter  1 . As a result, in the case where the user&#39;s body is charged with a large amount of static electricity especially during the winter season or the like, this static electricity is not discharged to the slot or the CF card  2  through the conducting plate  70 , so that there is no risk of the internal electronic circuits malfunctioning or being damaged by such static electricity. 
     As described above, in the card adapter  1  of the present invention, the push member  40 , the link arm  60  and the eject lever  50  are linked through the first linking part  14  and the second linking part  15  so that when one of these three members is displaced, the other two members are also moved. In addition, when the CF card  2  is removed from the card adapter  1 , namely, when the push member  40  is displaced from the first position to the second position, the eject lever  50  is reliably pulled inside the chassis  10  in accordance with the displacement of the push member  40 . 
     As a result, even in the case where the CF card  2  is removed from the card adapter  1  by hand without using the eject lever  50 , the eject lever  50  is held inside the chassis  10 . Therefore, it is possible to prevent the eject lever  50  from being damaged when the CF card  2  is not mounted in the card adapter  1 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, the rotation axis  13  is integrally formed with the chassis  10 , and after the rotation axis  13  is inserted through the axis hole  61  of the link arm  60 , the top end portion thereof is processed to have a larger diameter than the diameter of the rotation axis  13 , thereby preventing the link arm  60  from detaching from the rotation axis  13 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, since the walls  22   a  to  22   d  are provided as restricting means for restricting the rotation angle of the link arm  60  on the chassis  10 , it is possible to prevent the link arm  60  from rotating more than necessary. Further, because of this restricted rotation of the link arm  60 , the push member  40  and the eject lever  50  are prevented from protruding out of the chassis  10  more than necessary. 
     Further, in the structure described above, the first linking part  14  is constructed by the projection  62  disposed on one end of the link arm  60 , and the aperture  45  formed in the push member  40  to engage with the projection  62 , wherein the aperture  45  is positioned roughly in a central portion of the push member  40  in the width direction thereof. Accordingly, it is possible to prevent inclination of the push member  40  when the push member  40  is displaced. 
     Further, in the structure described above, the link arm  60  is formed from a metal material, and the projection  62  is integrally formed with the link arm  60  by a burring process. Accordingly, the manufacturing process of the link arm  60  can be simplified. 
     Further, in the structure described above, the aperture  45  is formed into a slit having a width roughly the same as the diameter of the projection  62 , and the projection  62  is capable of moving along the aperture  45  when the link arm  60  is rotated. Accordingly, it is possible to ideally convert the rotational motion of the link arm  60  into the reciprocal motion of the push member  40 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, the second linking part  15  is constructed by the linking protrusion  63  provided on the other end of the link arm  60  and the linking protrusion receiving hole  51  provided in the eject lever  50  to engage with the linking protrusion  63 , so that the rotational motion of the link arm  60  is converted into the reciprocal motion of the eject lever  50 . The linking protrusion  63  is integrally formed with the link arm body  64  through the step portion  65  for adjusting the position of the linking protrusion  63  with respect to the linking protrusion receiving hole  51 . Accordingly, it is possible to simplify the operation of attaching the link arm  60  to the elect lever  50 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, when the push member  40  reaches the second position, the holding means retains the push member  40  at the second position. This holding means is constructed from the elastic member  43  with the locking protrusion  46  which is provided on the push member  40 , and the locking aperture  24  formed in the chassis  10 , wherein the locking protrusion  46  locks with the locking aperture  24  to reliably retain the push member  40  at the second position. Further, the locking protrusion  46  is constructed to undergo displacement in contact with the side surface of the CF card  2  when the CF card  2  is mounted, and the lock between the locking protrusion  46  and the locking aperture  24  is disengaged by such displacement, thereby making it possible to displace the push member  40  from the second position to the first position. Accordingly, the push member  40  can be constructed to allow for displacement only when the CF card  2  is mounted. 
     Further, in the structure described above, the chassis  10  includes the pair of arms  17 L,  17 R having a prescribed space therebetween that extend from portions of the chassis  10  which are located at opposite sides of the second connector  12 , respectively, to define the CF card receiving space  19 , wherein one of the arms  17 L,  17 R is provided with the eject lever  50 , with the other being provided with the elastic member  43 . Accordingly, it becomes possible to efficiently utilize the limited space inside the chassis  10 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, the pair of arms  17 L,  17 R of the chassis  10  are provided with the pair of insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R which insulate the pair of conducting plates  70 ,  71  covering the both surfaces of the chassis  10  from a user gripping the card adapter  1 . Accordingly, it is possible to prevent the discharging of static electricity from the user to the inside of the CF card  2  or to the slot connected to the first connector  11  through the conducting plates  70 ,  71 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, the chassis  10  is formed from an insulating material, and the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R are formed by exposing the insulating material of the tip portions of the arms  17 L,  17 R in the extension direction thereof. Accordingly, the structure can be made simple, and the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R make it possible to reliably insulate the conducting plates  70 ,  71  from the user. 
     Further, in the structure described above, the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R are provided for a distance of at least 1 cm from the tips of the pair of arms  17 L,  17 R along the extending direction where the user is most likely to grip the card adapter  1 . 
     Further, in the structure described above, at least one of the pair of conducting plates  70 ,  71  is provided with the connecting protrusions  75  which are adapted to make an electrical connection with the grounding means provided in the slot. Accordingly, it becomes possible to discharge the static electricity from the CF card  2  to the grounding means of the slot more reliably. Further, it becomes possible to shield the outside from undesired radiation of electromagnetic waves generated inside the device. Further, the connecting protrusions  75  are adapted to make an electrical connection with the grounding means of the slot after the first connector  11  is electrically connected to the contacts of the slot. In other words, if the connecting protrusions  75  are provided at a position on the conducting plate that come to contact with the terminals of the slot before the first connector  11  is connected to the contacts of the slot, that is at a position nearer to the top end of the conducting plate, the card adapter contacts with the grounding means to make grounding even if the card adapter is partially protruded out of the slot. This resulting in the increased risk of discharge due to the increase in the possibility that the user will touch portions of the arm cover portions  73 L,  73 R of the conducting plate  70  away from the insulating grip portions  18 L,  18 R. 
     Further, the card adapter  1  of the present invention can be used ideally as a card adapter for a semiconductor memory card such as a CF card or the like. Then, in the case where the card adapter  1  of the present invention is used as a card adapter for a CF card, connecting means such as the connecting members  30  or the like are provided to electrically connect the grounding contact portion  3  of the CF card  2  to at least one of the conducting plates  70 ,  71 . 
     Finally, the present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above, and it is possible to make various changes and improvements without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention defined in the appended claims. For example, it is of course possible to apply the card adapter of the present invention to various other card adapters for cards manufactured under different standards than the CF card and the PC card described in the present embodiment. Examples of card-shaped electronic devices that can be used for the card adapter of the present invention include a semiconductor memory card, an interface card and a hard disk and the like.