Patent ID: 8241047

Claim:
A swivel-type portable computer peripheral apparatus comprising: an elongated housing defining an elongated side opening extending between a rear end portion and a front end portion; a swivel rack assembly comprising: a swivel arm having a fixed end pivotably connected to the front end portion of the housing, a free end, and a central section extending from the fixed end to the free end; a printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) mounted on the central section of the swivel arm, the PCBA including at least one MLC based flash memory device mounted thereon; and a plug connector fixedly connected to the free end of the swivel arm and electronically connected to the PCBA; a locking mechanism for securing the plug connector in one of a first position, in which the swivel arm is disposed in the elongated side opening such that the plug connector is positioned inside of the housing, and a second position in which the swivel arm is disposed out of the elongated side opening such that the plug connector is exposed outside of the housing; and a resilient torsion member connected to at least one of the elongated housing and the swivel rack assembly for biasing, upon manual deactivation of the locking mechanism, the swivel rack assembly to rotate relative to the housing such that the plug connector is moved between the first position and the second position, wherein the resilient torsion member comprises a coil spring having a first end connected to the swivel arm a second end disposed inside the housing, and wherein the coil spring is arranged such that the resilient torsion member stores potential energy when the plug connector is in the first position, whereby manual deactivation of the locking mechanism causes the coil spring to rotate the swivel arm relative to the housing until the plug connector is in the second position.