Source: http://www.google.com/patents/US6565371?dq=6289460
Timestamp: 2018-01-23 14:47:11
Document Index: 24056430

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 13', 'art 12', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33', 'art 33']

Patent US6565371 - Connector and robot system - Google Patents
A connecting device and a robot having a cover on a first connector half unit, usually covering first electrodes and turning so that first electrodes come out of electrode projection holes when a second connector half unit is pushed against said first connector half unit, resulting in a state wherein...http://www.google.com/patents/US6565371?utm_source=gb-gplus-sharePatent US6565371 - Connector and robot system
Publication number US6565371 B1
Application number US 09/743,310
PCT number PCT/JP2000/002984
Also published as CN1304570A, WO2000069030A1
Publication number 09743310, 743310, PCT/2000/2984, PCT/JP/0/002984, PCT/JP/0/02984, PCT/JP/2000/002984, PCT/JP/2000/02984, PCT/JP0/002984, PCT/JP0/02984, PCT/JP0002984, PCT/JP002984, PCT/JP2000/002984, PCT/JP2000/02984, PCT/JP2000002984, PCT/JP200002984, US 6565371 B1, US 6565371B1, US-B1-6565371, US6565371 B1, US6565371B1
US 6565371 B1
A connecting device and a robot having a cover on a first connector half unit, usually covering first electrodes and turning so that first electrodes come out of electrode projection holes when a second connector half unit is pushed against said first connector half unit, resulting in a state wherein said first electrodes are covered up when said first and second connector units are not connected. Consequently electrical reliability and safety can be remarkably improved.
a first connector half unit having first electrodes and a second connector half unit having second electrodes;
said first connector half unit comprising an insulated cover pivotally connected to a base at one end thereof and spring-biased in relation thereto, said insulated cover having electrode projection holes corresponding to said first electrodes, and which is pivotable between a first position, wherein said first electrodes are covered by said cover, and a second position, wherein said first electrodes extend from said electrode projection holes without the cover contacting the first electrodes when the second connector half unit is pushed against the first connector half unit;
guide pins placed on the first connector half unit; and
positioning reference holes placed on the second connector half unit corresponding to said guide pins.
2. A connecting device as defined in claim 1 wherein:
said first connector half unit has a plurality of said first electrodes, some of which project higher than the rest of the other of the first electrodes in the direction of the connecting point to the second connector half unit.
3. A robot comprising charging means comprising:
a first connector half unit with first electrodes and a second connector half unit with second electrodes corresponding to said first electrodes;
guide pins placed on said first connector half unit; and
positioning reference holes placed on said connector half unit corresponding to said guide pins.
4. A robot as defined in claim 3 wherein:
said first connector half unit has a plurality of the first electrodes, some of which project higher than the rest of the other of the first electrodes in the direction of the connecting point to the second connector half unit.
This invention relates to a connecting device and a robot, and is suitably applied to a connector for electrically connecting a robot having a built-in secondary battery and an exclusive charger.
There has been a connector 1 of this type as shown in FIG. 11, comprising a connector half unit 3 having a plurality of projecting electrode terminals 2 and another connector half unit 5 having electrodes (pad) 4 corresponding respectively to each electrode terminal 2.
The present invention has been done considering those problems and is intended to offer a connecting device and a robot capable of improving electrical connectivity and safety. To obviate such problems according to this invention a cover is provided for connecting means comprising a first connector having a first terminal and a second connector having a second terminal corresponding to said first terminal. The first connector is provided with terminal projection slits corresponding to said first electrode terminals and a cover which usually covers the first terminals. When the second connector is pushed against the first connector, however, this cover turns so that the first electrode terminals may come out of the slits. As a result, with this connecting device, when the first and second connectors are not in contact with each other, the first electrode terminals are covered by the cover, whereby the first electrode terminals are prevented from getting dirty or broken, resulting from the user touching them, and the user is fully protected from electrical shocks and harm beforehand. Consequently the electrical reliability and safety can be substantially increased.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the structure of a pet robot, according to the present invention.
A mode of carrying out the present invention is described in detail hereunder, referring to the drawings.
(1) Configuration of a Pet Robot Embodying this Invention.
The reference numeral 10 represents the overall view of the pet robot according to an embodiment of the present invention as is illustrated in FIGS. 1-3. A battery (not shown in Figure) built in the pet robot 11 is charged when the pet robot 11 is placed on the designated part of an exclusive battery charger (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Station’), with a given posture. As shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, in practice the pet robot 11 consists of four leg units 14A-14D linked at the left, right, front and rear of the body unit 13 and the head and tail units 15, 16 connected to the front edge part and rear edge part of the body unit 13 respectively. A cooling fan (not shown in Figure) is provided inside of the body unit 13, through which an air exhaust port 13AX and an air intake port 133BX are formed on the upper plane 13A and the bottom 13B. This, in the pet robot 11, the air taken in from the intake port 13BX is exhausted from the exhaust port 13AX through the inside of the body unit 13 according to the motion of the cooling fan, whereby the temperature in the body unit 13 is prevented from rising.
In putting the pet robot 11 and the station 12 together, the pet robot 11 is changed to the posture of ‘lie-down’ with the lower part 13B (abdomen) of the body unit 13 approaching the floor with leg units 14A˜14D crooked. (This posture is, hereinafter, referred to as ‘station transition posture’.)
At this point, since the pet robot is in the ‘station transition posture’, the leg units 14A˜14D become no hindrance when putting the body unit 13 into the space 12AH, and the feet of the leg units 14A˜14D are attached and held firm onto both flat planes 12AR, 12AL on the main part 12A of the station 12.
(2) Internal Structure of Pet Robot 11
As shown in FIG. 5, in the pet robot 11, a controller 20 for controlling the whole operation of the pet robot, a battery 21 or a power source for the pet robot 11, and an internal sensor 24 comprising a battery sensor 22 and a thermal sensor 23 are stored in t he body unit 13.
The head unit 15 is equipped with a microphone 25 working as the ‘ear’, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) camera 26 working as the ‘eye’, a touch sensor, and a speaker 28 working as the ‘mouth’, at the designated position respectively.
Actuators 14AA1˜14AAK, 14BA1˜14BAK, 14CA1-14CAK, 14DA1˜14DAK, 15A1˜15AL, and 16A1˜16AM are placed at the joints of the leg units 14A˜14D, and the connection points of the leg units 14A˜14D and the body unit 13, the head unit 15 and the body unit 13, the tail unit 16 and the body unit 13 respectively.
The microphone 25 of the head unit 15 collects the command sounds such as “Walk”, “Lie Down” or “Follow the Ball”, given out in the form of the scales by means of the sound commands (not shown in Figure, commands generating sounds on different scales in accordance with the operation contents), and an audio signal S1 obtained whereby is sent out to a controller 20. The CCD camera 26 photographs the surroundings and a picture image S2 produced is sent to the controller 20.
Furthermore, a touch sensor 27, located at the upper part of the head unit 15, as clearly shown in FIG. 2, detects a pressure generated upon receiving physical actions from the user (such as “Stroke” or “Pat”) and outputs and sends the result to the controller 20 as a pressure detection signal 3.
In this case, the battery sensor 22 detects the residual electric charge classifying in stages, i.e., if the residual is more than 80% (Full), 80˜50% (Middle-full), 50˜25% (Middle), 25˜20% (Low) and less than 20% (Low-Low).
Then, the controller 20 determines subsequent actions based on the judgments and control programs entered beforehand, and driving the actuators 14AA1˜14AAK, 14BA1˜14BAK, 14CA1˜14CAK, 14DA1˜14DAK, 15A1˜15AL, and 16A1˜16AM, makes the head unit 15 shake up and down, left to right, the tail unit 16 wag, and the leg units 14A˜14D move like walking.
(3) Structure of the Connector According to the Embodiment of this Invention
In practice, in the first connector half unit 12C, of the station 12 side, as delineated in FIGS. 6 and 7A˜7C, a protection cover 31 made of an insulating material is attached to the base 30 flexibly so that it can turn within a predetermined range, in a longitudinal direction (in the direction of the arrow X) as the center of rotation.
Relating to the base 30, the stage 30AX is provided on the plane A facing the second connector half unit 13C (FIG. 3), and a pair of guide pins 32A and 32B are arranged on both ends of the stage 30AX. And, a plurality of electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 made of a conducting and an elastic material are arranged between the guide pins 32A and 32B in a row, with a predetermined pitch, along the longitudinal direction of the base 30. Each electrode terminal 33P1˜33P7 is, as delineated in FIG. 8A, a cross sectional view on the A-A′ line of FIG. 6, is placed inside of the base 30 with the center U-shaped part 33P1M˜33P7M fastened to it.
Also, one end 33P1A˜33P7A and the other end 33P1B˜33P7B, of each of the electrode terminals 33, are crooked in an L-shape in the same direction. The tip of one end 33P1A˜33P7A of the electrode terminals 33, jutting beneath the base 30 (in the opposite direction to the arrow Z) functions as contact pin.
The shape of each electrode terminal 33P1˜33P7 is selected so that the part 33P1BX˜33P7BX crooked in an L-shape of the other end 33P1B˜33P7B of each of the electrode terminal 33P1˜33P7, is weighed down by the elastic load of its own of each of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7.
(In FIGS. 9A and 9B) Of a plurality of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7, the two electrode terminals 33P1, and 33P7 positioned at the far ends, are designated as the terminals for power supply and grounding terminals respectively and are so designed that their crooked part 33P1BX and 33P7BX may jut out a bit higher (in the direction of the arrow Z) than that of the rest of other terminals 33P2˜33P6 (FIG. 7A).
As to the protection cover 31, a plurality of holes or slits 31H1 to 31H7, (through which the electrodes may protrude), are arranged corresponding to the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX of the electrode terminals 33 1˜33P7 on the base 30, and elliptical guide holes 31A and 31 are formed corresponding to a pair of the guide pins 32A and 32B in the direction of the arrow Y.
In this case, although the guide pins 32A and 32B of the base 30 protrude a bit out of the guide holes 31A and 31B of the protection cover 31, the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the base 30 is hidden by the protection cover 31, without protruding out of the electrode projection hole 31H1˜31H7.
To the contrary, when the protection cover 31 is pushed against the base 3 with a.pressure larger than the elastic energy of the coil spring, as FIGS. 8B and 9C show, it turns with a pair of columnar bosses 30ATA and 30ATB on the base 30 as the axis of rotation, and is subsequently fixed to the base 30 with an angle of inclination becoming ‘0’.
In this case, the guide pins 32A and 32B of the base 30 protrude out of the guide holes 31A and 31B of the protection cover 31 relatively to a long extent, and the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX Of all the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the base 30 sticks out through the electrode projection slit 31H1˜31H7.
The second connector half unit 13C comprises a plurality of flat electrodes (pad) 41P1˜41P7 made of a conducting material, each corresponding to an electrode projection slit 31H1˜31H7, respectively placed in a row on the plane 40 facing the first connector half unit 12C made of an insulating material on the base 40 and reference holes 40HA and 40HB corresponding to a pair of the guide pins 32A and 32B of the first connector half unit 12C.
Accordingly, with regard to the whole connector 18, the connectors 12C and 13C should be positioned properly, by applying a pressure to the protection cover 31 of the connector 12C so that it may approach the base 30, and regulated by a pressure along the guide pins 32A and 32B, the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the connector 12C can be contacted with the corresponding electrode 41H1˜41H7 of the connector 13C, thus accomplishing the electrical connection of the first and second connector half units 12C and 13C.
(4) Operations and Effects of the Embodiment in this Mode
With the structure of the robot system 10 as described hitherto, when charging the battery, the pet robot 11 is in a state of transitional posture and is placed on the station 12 with an appropriate positioning. At this moment the protection cover 31 of the connector 12C of the station 12 is pushed against the base 30 by the weight of the pet robot itself, subsequently making the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the first connector half unit 12C gradually stick out of the protection cover 31 through the corresponding electrode projection holes 31H1˜31H7, and finally the electrode connectors 33P1˜33P7 can be contacted with the corresponding electrodes 41P1˜41P7 of the second connector half unit 13C.
Whereas, when holding up the pet robot 11 off of the station after the completion of charging, one end of the protection cover 31 of the first connector half unit 12C starts opening with the other end as the center of rotation, by the resilience of the coil spring 34 interposed between the protection cover 31 and the base 30, consequently slowly pushing up the electrode projection holes 31H1˜31H7 towards the projected part of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the first half of connector 12C. As a result, the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX of the electrode terminal 33P1˜33P7 is finally covered up.
Accordingly, with this pet robot, since the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the first connector half unit 12C are covered up by the protection cover 31 when the pet robot 11 is not connected to the station 12, the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 are prevented from getting dirty or broken easily, and the user is protected from getting electrically shocks or injuries beforehand, possibly caused by the user touching the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7.
Moreover, since the protection cover 31 of the first connector half unit 12C is so designed that one side opens or closes in relation to the base 30, with the other side as the center of rotation, by dint of the resilience of the coil spring 34 interposed between the protection cover 31 and the base 30, the protection cover 31 can be more precisely positioned, compared to a structure wherein the protection cover 31 is moved up and down to slide into the base 30, maintaining a parallel relationship to each other, consequently preventing the crooked part 33P1BX˜33P7BX of the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 from distorting by touching the rims of the corresponding electrode projection slits 31H1 to 31H7, a malfunction possibly caused by the protection cover 31 being mispositioned against the base 30.
Furthermore, power supplying and grounding are allotted respectively to the electrode terminals 33P1 and 33P7 located at the far ends of a plurality of the electrode terminals 33P1 and 33P7. The crooked part 33P1BX and 33P7BX of the electrode terminals 33P1 and 33P7 is designed to come higher than that of the rest of other electrode terminals 33P2˜33P6 so as to prevent misoperations, possibly caused by a happening of the electrode terminals 33P2˜33P6, connected to other signal lines, becoming electrically conductive.
With the pet robot 10 being configured as described heretofore, the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 of the first half of connector 12C placed on the station 12 come out only when the pet robot 11 is connected to the station 12, thereby preventing the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 from getting dirty or broken and protecting the user from getting electrically shocks or injuries by touching the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7, thus embodying the pet robot system 10 with significantly enhanced reliability and safety.
One mode of embodiment of this invention has been so far described, referring to the robot 10 configured as shown in FIG. 1. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, but can be applied to a wide variety of other robots in different configurations. Also, a connecting device embodying the present invention has been described, referring to the configuration of the connector 18, comprising a connector half unit 12C having the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 and another connector half unit 13C having the electrode terminals 41P1˜41P7 corresponding to the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, but can be applied to a wide variety of other connecting means.
Also, in the above mode of embodiment, the first connector half unit 12C has been described, referring to the case wherein the protection cover (cover) 31 is placed on it. This cover has the electrode projection slits 31H1˜31H7 corresponding to the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 usually covered and sticking out of said slits 31H1˜31H7 only when the second connector half unit 13C is pushed against the first connector 12C. However, the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, but can be applied to a variety of other covers in different configurations so long as the electrode terminals 33P1˜33P7 are covered up when the first and second connector half units 12C and 13C are not in contact with each other.
Also, in the this mode of carrying out the present invention, as to the first connector half unit 12C, of a plurality of the terminals 33P1˜33P7 the two terminals 33P1 and 33P7 located at the far ends are allotted for power supplying and grounding, of which crooked part 33P1BX and 33P7BX is so designed as to come higher than that of the rest of other electrode terminals 33P2˜33P6. However, the present invention is not limited to this mode, and any two terminals in the middle may be allotted for power supplying and grounding. Moreover, they may be used as terminals for a variety of other signals than power supplying and grounding if necessary.
This invention can be applied to connecting means requiring electrical linkage in connecting devices and robots.
JPH0192088A Title not available
JPH0335672A Title not available
JPH03285503A Title not available
JPH04124776A Title not available
JPH04135176A Title not available
JPS6190175A Title not available
JPS6445069A * Title not available
JPS51103307A Title not available
JPS63198270A Title not available
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CN100576649C Apr 27, 2007 Dec 30, 2009 富士康（昆山）电脑接插件有限公司;鸿海精密工业股份有限公司 Electronic card connector
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U.S. Classification 439/138, 439/924.1
International Classification H01R13/453, H01R13/24, H01R13/26, B25J5/00
Cooperative Classification H01R13/26, H01R13/24, H01R13/4536
Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:WATANABE, HIROSHI;REEL/FRAME:011612/0877