JP4375169B2 - Waterproof case for electronic equipment - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a waterproof case for an electronic device, and more specifically, a first operation is performed by protruding from a housing of the electronic device and performing a swing operation, and the pressing operation is performed toward the housing. A waterproof case for an electronic device capable of reliably performing a swinging operation and a pressing operation of the protrusion of the electronic device in a state in which the electronic device having the protrusion performing the second operation different from the first operation is stored in a watertight manner About.

As an operation unit of an electronic apparatus such as a digital camera or a video camera, there is provided an operation unit that performs various different operations with a single protrusion.
For example, the housing of the digital camera, if the swing-type button with five pressing portion function differently by each pressing portion for pressing operation is performed is provided, the waterproof case side thereof rocking operating member for operating the Doshiki button is provided.
Such waterproof case side of the operating member is projected five cylindrical wall in the wall of the waterproof case, such as in a liquid tight manner via an O-ring an axial parts material inside each cylindrical wall inserted, configured to constantly urge the shaft-like part material in the direction of projecting tubular wall or we are employed by such as a spring (e.g., Patent Document 1).
JP2002-90870

However, the first operation is performed by protruding from the housing of the electronic device and performing a swing operation, and the second operation different from the first operation is performed by performing a pressing operation toward the housing. When an electronic device having a protrusion is stored in a watertight case in a watertight case, the above-described conventional technology cannot perform a swinging operation although it can perform a pressing operation on the protrusion of the casing of the electronic device.
The present invention has been devised in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a waterproof case for an electronic device that can reliably perform a swinging operation and a pressing operation of a protrusion of the electronic device. is there.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, a first operation is performed by protruding from a wall surface of a casing of an electronic device and performing a swing operation, and the first operation is performed by pressing the wall toward the wall of the casing. A waterproof case for an electronic device in which an electronic device having a protrusion that performs a second operation different from the operation of 1 is housed in a watertight manner, wherein the waterproof case is formed of a hard material and accommodates the electronic device. An attachment portion is formed at a wall portion of the case body corresponding to the protrusion in a state where the electronic apparatus is accommodated, and an operation member for operating the protrusion is disposed on the attachment portion. The mounting portion includes a recess provided on the outer surface of the wall portion, a through hole formed at the bottom of the recess with an inner diameter larger than the contour of the tip of the protrusion, and a periphery of the through hole. At the bottom of the recess An annular guide surface; and an abutting portion provided at a location in the recess located radially outward of the annular guide surface, wherein the operating member includes a tubular member, and the tubular member The shaft-shaped member disposed inside, and an elastic member that holds the tubular member in the mounting portion, the tubular member includes a tubular body having a first central hole extending therein, A flange portion formed at one end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body with a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the guide surface and larger than the inner diameter of the through hole, and coaxially with the first center hole at the center of the collar portion The tip of the projection is accommodated in an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the through hole on the surface of the collar portion opposite to the position where the cylindrical body is located and the second center hole penetrated through A cylindrical wall having an inner diameter and projecting coaxially with the through-hole; The material is inserted so as to be movable from the first center hole to the second center hole, so that one end in the longitudinal direction faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body, and the other end in the longitudinal direction faces the inside of the cylindrical wall. The elastic member is inserted into the recess and attached to the abutment portion, and the elastic member extends from the entire periphery of the outer peripheral portion to the inner side in the radial direction of the outer peripheral portion. An annular elastic portion that is elastically deformable in an axial direction and a direction orthogonal to the axial direction and closes the inside of the outer peripheral portion; and an inner peripheral portion that closes the inner side of the annular elastic portion, and the inner peripheral portion Is a holding wall that holds the cylindrical body of the cylindrical member coaxially with the through hole inside the elastic portion in a state where the outer peripheral portion is attached to the abutting portion, and the cylindrical member that is held A pressing wall that faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body and is elastically deformable in the cylindrical direction, In the tubular member in which the shaft-like member is inserted from the first center hole to the second center hole of the tubular body, the tubular wall is accommodated in the through hole, and the collar portion is placed on the guide surface. The cylindrical body is attached to the holding wall so that the one end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-shaped member faces the pressing wall, and the elastic portion has the protrusion on the inner side of the cylindrical wall. The other end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-shaped member that is accommodated is elastically biased toward the neutral position of the operation member facing the tip of the projection.

In the present invention, it is possible to reliably swung projections by sliding the tubular member through the elastic member, also the collision force reliably by pressing the cylindrical member via an elastic member pressing Can be operated.

The present invention has achieved the above object by forming an attachment portion at a wall portion of the waterproof case and providing an operation member for operating the protrusion on the attachment portion.
Hereinafter, an embodiment in which the electronic device housed in the waterproof case is a digital camera will be described.

First, the camera (electronic device) to be accommodated in the waterproof case will be described.
12 is a perspective view of the camera viewed from the front, and FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the camera viewed from the rear.
In this embodiment, the camera 100 to be accommodated in the waterproof case is a digital still camera, and has a case 102 constituting an exterior. In the present specification, left and right refer to a state in which the waterproof case and the camera are viewed from the front, the subject side is referred to as the front, and the imaging element side is referred to as the rear.
A retractable lens barrel 101 that houses and holds the photographing optical system 104 is provided near the front right side of the case 102, and a flash unit 106 that emits flash light is provided near the upper front of the case 102. ing.
The lens barrel 101 is housed in the front surface of the case 102 and a use position (wide angle state, telephoto state, and intermediate state between wide angle and telephoto) protruding forward from the front surface of the case 102 by a drive unit incorporated in the case 102. It is comprised so that it may appear and disappear between accommodation positions (collapsed state).

On the upper end surface of the case 102, a shutter button 108 for taking an image, a zoom operation switch 110 for adjusting the zoom of the photographing optical system 104, a mode changeover switch 112 for changing a reproduction mode, and the like, turning on / off the power source A power switch 114 for performing the above is provided.
On the rear surface of the case 102, a display 116 for displaying the captured video, a plurality of operation switches 118 for performing various operations such as shooting, recording, and video display, and a menu displayed on the display 116 are selected. A control switch 120 for performing operations such as these is provided.
In this embodiment, the mode change switch 112 is a so-called slide switch, and has an operation member 112A protruding from the upper end surface of the case 102. The mode change is performed by sliding the operation member 112A left and right with a finger. It is configured to operate.
The control switch 120 has a protrusion (operation member) 120A that protrudes rearward from the rear surface of the case 102. The protrusion 120A can be tilted in four directions, that is, a vertical direction and a horizontal direction by moving the tip surface with a finger. And it is comprised so that the front end surface can be pressed in the thickness direction of case 102 with a finger | toe.
Specifically, the control switch 120 moves the protrusion 120A in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, for example, to move the position of the cursor displayed on the display 116 up and down, left and right, and the numerical value displayed on the display 116, etc. It can be changed (increase / decrease). Further, the control switch 120 is configured to be able to determine a plurality of selection items (menus) displayed on the display 116 and input numerical values displayed in the input column by pressing the protrusion 120A. ing.
The present invention is applied to an operating member for operating the projection 120A as will be described later.

  At the rear part of the lens barrel 101, an image sensor composed of a CCD, a CMOS sensor, or the like that captures a subject image formed by the photographing optical system 104 is disposed. The camera 100 outputs an image signal output from the image sensor. An image processing unit that generates image data based on the image data and records the image data in a storage medium such as a memory card, a display processing unit that displays the image data on a display 116, a drive unit, and a control unit. The control unit controls the image processing unit, the display processing unit, and the driving unit in accordance with operations of the shutter button 108, the zoom operation switch 110, the mode change switch 112, the power switch 114, the operation switch 118, and the control switch 120. And a CPU that operates according to the control program.

Next, the waterproof case will be described.
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a waterproof case as viewed from the front, FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the waterproof case as viewed from the rear, and FIG. 3 is a state in which the front case divided body and the rear case divided body are opened with the waterproof case upright. 4 is a perspective view of the front case divided body and the rear case divided body in an opened state with the waterproof case laid down, FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a recess housing the buckle, and FIG. FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the knob portion, FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of the buckle, FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the case main body constituting the buckle, and FIG. 10 is a buckle. It is a perspective view of the slide member which comprises.
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the waterproof case 10 is composed of two divided bodies, a front case divided body 12 and a rear case divided body 14 that are connected to each other so as to be swingable. Is provided with a buckle 16 detachably coupled to the front case division body 12.
In the present embodiment, all the remaining portions except for the rear surface of the camera 100 are accommodated in the front case division body 12, and the rear surface of the camera 100 is made to fit the rear case by aligning the rear case division body 14 with the front case division body 12. Covered by the divided body 14, the camera 100 is configured to be accommodated in the waterproof case 10.

The front case divided body 12 is made of synthetic resin, and the front case divided body 12 includes an upper wall 1202, a lower wall 1204, a left wall 1206, a right wall 1208, a front wall corresponding to the upper and lower end surfaces, left and right side surfaces, and the front surface of the case 102 of the camera 100. A space having a rectangular cross section corresponding to the camera 100 is formed on the inside of the wall 1210 so as to be open rearward.
As shown in FIG. 1, a cylindrical bulging portion 1212 that accommodates the lens barrel 101 is provided on the outer surface of the front wall 1210, and a transparent plate 1214 is attached to the front end opening of the bulging portion 1212. .
Further, a transparent plate 1216 is provided on the front wall 1210 located in front of the flash unit 106 so that the flash from the flash unit 106 is irradiated forward.
On the upper surface of the upper wall 1202, there are an operation member 1218 for operating the shutter button 108, an operation member 1220 for operating the zoom operation switch 110, an operation member 1222 for operating the mode switch 112, and an operation member 1224 for operating the power switch 114. A decorative plate 1226 is provided.
As shown in FIG. 3, a cushioning material 1228 made of rubber or the like that restricts the front-rear movement of the camera 100 by elastically contacting the front surface of the camera 100 accommodated on the inner surface of the front wall 1210 that forms the base of the bulging portion 1212. The cushion material 1228 is also attached to the left end portion of the inner surface of the front wall 1210 (not shown).

The rear end of the front case divided body 12 has a rectangular frame shape formed by the upper wall 1202, the lower wall 1204, the left side wall 1206, and the right side wall 1208, and the mating portion 20 is joined to the rear case divided body 14. The inside of the mating portion 20 is an opening having a rectangular cross section formed inside the front case divided body 12.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 6A, the mating portion 20 includes a flat surface 22 extending in the vertical direction, and a ridge 24 projecting rearward from the inside of the flat surface 22. The flat surface 22 and the ridge 24 are formed continuously extending over the entire circumference of the mating portion 20.
A cylindrical bearing portion 26 is formed at the rear end of the right side wall 1208 so as to be positioned outside the mating portion 20 so as to extend vertically.
As shown in FIG. 5, the left side wall 1206 is provided with a recess 30 that houses the buckle 16.
The concave portion 30 has a flat bottom surface 3002, and two locking walls 32 project from the bottom surface 3002 near the mating portion 20 with a vertical spacing therebetween. An inclined surface 3202 is formed.
In addition, two wall portions 34 protrude at a position near the front wall 1210 at a center portion in the vertical direction of the bottom surface 3002 of the concave portion 30 with a vertical interval, and a concave portion is formed at a portion facing the upper portion of the two wall portions 34. The locking surfaces 3402 facing each other while being parallel to the bottom surface 3002 of the 30 are formed, and inclined surfaces 3404 are formed on the front surfaces of the upper ends of the two wall portions 34. In the present embodiment, the two wall portions 34 and the locking surface 3402 constitute a second engaging / disengaging portion of the claims.
In addition, contact walls 3004 that contact the buckle 16 are provided at a plurality of locations on the bottom surface 3002 of the recess 30.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the rear case segment 14 has a rectangular flat rear wall 1402 that covers the rear surface of the camera 100 housed in the front case segment 12, and the inner surface 1402A of the rear wall 1402 is Cushion members 1404 made of rubber or the like that protrude from the rear surface of the camera 100 and elastically contact the rear surface of the stored camera 100 to restrict the back-and-forth movement of the camera 100 protrude from the four corners of the inner surface 1402A.
A rectangular frame-shaped mating portion 40 that is mated with the mating portion 20 of the front case divided body 12 is bulged and formed on the outer peripheral portion of the inner surface 1402A of the rear wall 1402.
As shown in FIG. 2, an operation member 1414 for operating the operation switch 118 and an operation member 1416 for operating the projection 120A are provided on the outer surface of the rear wall 1402 via a decorative plate 1418, and the camera 100 is accommodated. The rear case divided body 14 is formed of a transparent synthetic resin so that the display 116 can be seen.
Note that the present invention is applied to the operation member 1416, and the operation member 1416 will be described later.
A cylindrical bearing portion 1420 is provided above and below the right side portion of the rear case divided body 14, and a buckle 16 is provided on the left side portion of the rear case divided body 14.
The bearing portion 26 of the front case divided body 12 is inserted between the upper and lower bearing portions 1420, and the support shaft 1422 is inserted into the bearing portions 1420 and 26, thereby swinging the front case divided body 12 and the rear case divided body 14. It is linked movably.

On the entire circumference of the end face of the mating portion 40, a concave groove 42 into which the protrusion 24 is inserted is formed to continuously extend in an open state.
As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the concave groove 42 includes an outer wall 4202 located outside the rear case divided body 14 and an inner wall 4204 located inside the rear case divided body 14.
The front end of the outer wall 4202 is formed as a flat surface close to the flat surface 22 in a state where the mating portion 20 of the front case divided body 12 and the mating portion 40 of the rear case divided body 14 are combined.
As shown in FIG. 7, two cutouts 44 are formed in the vertical center portion of the inner wall 4204 that extends vertically on the right side portion of the rear case divided body 14 with a space in the vertical direction.
By forming the two notches 44, the concave groove 42 is opened to the inside of the rear case divided body 14 in the two notch 44 portions, that is, opened to the inner surface 1402A of the rear wall 1402, and two The inner wall portion 4204 </ b> A remains between the notches 44.
A recess 46 is formed on the inner surface 1402A of the rear wall 1402 so as to face the two notches 44 and the inner wall portion 4204A, and the bottom surface 4602 of the recess 46 is formed as a flat surface that is recessed from the inner surface 1402A.

A seal member 50 is inserted into the concave groove 42.
The seal member 50 includes a rectangular frame-shaped main body portion 5002 that is inserted over the entire length of the concave groove 42, and a knob portion 5004 that protrudes from the main body portion 5002 toward the inside of the main body portion 5002.
The seal member 50 is formed of, for example, an elastic material such as rubber, and the cross-sectional shape of the seal member 50 (main body portion 5002) is such that the main body portion 5002 is inserted into the concave groove 42. The width of the dimension smaller than the width and the height of the dimension smaller than the depth of the concave groove 42, as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the mating portion 20 and the rear of the front case divided body 12. When the mating portion 40 of the case divided body 14 is mated, it is compressed by the ridge 24 in the concave groove 42 so that the mating portions 20 and 40 are joined in a watertight manner (in this embodiment, a water pressure of 2 to 3 m). Configured to withstand).

The knob portion 5004 is for facilitating removal of the seal member 50 from the concave groove 42 by hooking a fingertip (or nail).
The knob portion 5004 protrudes from two positions spaced in the extending direction of the main body portion 5002, passes through the notches 44, and protrudes to the inside of the rear case divided body 14, and two notches. The connecting piece 5004B extends in parallel with the inner wall portion 4204A at a position facing the inner side of the inner wall portion 4204A between 44 and connects the tips of the protruding pieces 5004A. Therefore, a rectangular opening 5006 is formed by the main body portion 5002, the two protruding pieces 5004A, and the connecting piece 5004B, and the inner wall portion 4204A is inserted into the opening 5006. By comprising in this way, the dimension of the knob part 5004 (connection piece 5004B) is ensured largely, ensuring waterproofness.
In this embodiment, the concave portion 46 of the rear wall 1402 of the rear case divided body 14 is accommodated inside the knob portion 5004 as shown in FIG. 6 so that the fingertip (or nail) can be easily put on the knob portion 5004. In particular, the bottom surface 4602 of the recess 46 extends further away from the inner wall portion 4204A than the position where the connection piece 5004B is located, and is formed such that the bottom surface 4602 is exposed outside the connection piece 5004B. Has been.
As shown in FIG. 6 (A), the knob portion 5004 protrudes from an intermediate portion in the height direction of the main body portion 5002 and is aligned with the mating portion 20 of the front case segment 12 and the mating portion of the rear case segment 14. 40 is opened, and the knob portion 5004 is provided at a position above the bottom surface 4602 of the recess 46 and the bottom surface 4602 with a gap.

Next, the buckle 16 will be described. In the description of the buckle 16 and the components constituting the buckle 16, the buckle 16 is incorporated in the rear case divided body 14, the buckle 16 is accommodated in the recess 30, and the buckle 16 extends in the front-rear direction of the camera 100. It shall mean up and down, front and back, and left and right with reference to the current state.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 8, the buckle 16 is swingably connected to the left side portion of the rear case divided body 14 by a support shaft 58 whose upper and lower ends are attached to the left side portion of the rear case divided body 14. Yes. That is, the buckle 16 is attached to the left side which is the free end of the rear case divided body 14 by the support shaft 58, the support shaft 58 portion corresponds to the attachment position of the buckle 16, and the support shaft 58 portion is the buckle 16 portion. The portion that is one end and the rear portion and that is located on the opposite side of the support shaft 58 is the free end and the front portion of the buckle 16.
As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 8, the buckle 16 includes a case body 60, a slide member 62, a locking piece 64, a coil spring 66, a fixed knob 70, a movable knob 72, a plate 80, and the like. .

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, 8, and 9, the case main body 60 is formed in a size that can be inserted into the concave portion 30 of the front case divided body 12, and the case main body 60 has an outline of the concave portion 30. It has a substantially rectangular main body wall 6002 having a matched shape, and side walls 6004 bent from four sides of the main body wall 6002. More specifically, the front portion of the main body wall 6002 is formed in a curved shape that matches the front edge of the recess 30, and as shown in FIG. 9, the support shaft 58 is provided at the side wall 6004 located at the rear end of the case main body 60. A hole 6006 to be inserted is formed. And the outer surface of the buckle 16 and the outer surface of the left side wall 1206 of the front case division body 12 are formed on the same surface in a state where the buckle 16 is accommodated in the recess 30.
As shown in FIG. 8, the inner surface of the main body wall 6002 surrounded by the side wall 6004 is opposed to each other, which supports the slide member 62 so as to be movable in a direction in which the slide member 62 moves away from the support shaft 58 (front-rear direction). The pair of guide walls 6006 and 6008 are provided at intervals in a direction (front-rear direction) in which the guide walls 6006 and 6008 move away from and approach each other.
A locking wall 6010 is formed between the pair of guide walls 6006 so that the end of the coil spring 66 is locked.
In addition, two locking walls 6012 corresponding to the two locking walls 32 of the recess 30 are provided on the inner surface of the main body wall 6002, and an inclined surface 6014 is formed on the rear surface of the upper end of the locking wall 6012. .
These locking walls 32, 6012 are engaged when the mating portion 20 of the front case split body 12 and the mating portion 40 of the rear case split body 14 are aligned and the buckle 16 is swung into the recess 30 (when it is collapsed). The front surface of the stop wall 32 and the rear surface of the locking wall 6012 are in contact with each other, and the movement of the buckle 16 in the direction of the support shaft 58 in the recess 30 is prevented. The inclined surfaces 3202 and 6014 are formed on the locking walls 32 and 6012. This is to facilitate the contact between the wall surfaces.

As shown in FIG. 9, the fixing knob 70 is provided at a position near the end (front end) of the main body wall 6002 that is away from the support shaft 58 on the outer surface of the main body wall 6002.
The fixed knob 70 bulges in an arc shape with a size that can be easily picked by a finger, and extends vertically.
An accommodation recess 7002 for the movable knob 72 opened in the direction of the support shaft 58 is provided on the rear surface 70A where the fixed knob 70 faces in the direction of the support shaft 58, and the fixed knob 70 is connected to the support shaft 58 (rear side) from the storage recess 7002. A notch 6020 is provided through the main body wall 6002 over the portion of the main body wall 6002 facing the (end) direction, and a portion near the support shaft 58 of the notch 6020 is formed in an arc shape.
As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of protrusions 7010 are formed on the front surface 70 </ b> B where the fixing knob 70 faces the side opposite to the support shaft 58 so as to be easily grasped by a finger.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 10, the slide member 62 has a main body plate portion 6202, and the outer surface of the main body plate portion 6202 is placed on the inner surface of the main body wall 6002.
The inner surface of the main plate portion 6202 reinforcing ribs 6203 is projected, the reinforcing ribs 6203 formed a pair of guide walls 6204 so as to protrude to the rear of the main plate portion 6202, a pair of guide walls 6204, the case body 60 The guide wall 6006 is slidable.
The rear ends of the pair of guide walls 6204 are connected by a connection wall 6206 to which the rear end of the coil spring 66 is locked, and the connection wall 6206 has a semi-arc-shaped wall portion 6208 into which the rear portion of the coil spring 66 is inserted. Is formed.
The locking piece 64 is provided at the front end of the inner surface of the main body plate portion 6202.
As shown in FIG. 8, the locking piece 64 is provided at the tip of the leg portion 6212 and the reinforcing rib 6214 that are formed to protrude from the inner surface of the main body plate portion 6202, and is spaced from the inner surface of the main body plate portion 6202. It extends in parallel, and both ends of the locking piece 64 are configured to be detachably locked with respect to the locking surfaces 3402 of the two wall portions 34 of the recess 30, and on the rear end surface of the locking piece 64. Is formed with an inclined surface 6404 that can be engaged with the inclined surface 3404 of the wall 34 of the recess 30. The locking piece 64 constitutes a first engaging / disengaging portion of the claims.
As shown in FIG. 10, the movable knob 72 is formed to bulge out at a location near the front portion of the outer surface of the main body plate portion 6202 (the side where the locking piece 64 is provided).
More specifically, a bottom plate portion 7202 accommodated in the notch 6020 of the main body wall 6002 is bulged and formed at the center of the outer surface of the main plate portion 6202, and the movable knob 72 has an arc shape from the front end of the bottom plate portion 7202. The bulge is formed.
The bottom plate portion 7202 is accommodated in the notch 6020 and is formed to have a dimension capable of moving in the notch 6020 in a direction approaching and approaching the support shaft 58 (front-rear direction). The rear portion of the bottom plate portion 7202 has an arc shape corresponding to the notch 6020 Is formed.

The movable knob 72 (the movable knob 72 and the receiving recess 7002) is in a state where the bottom plate portion 7202 is received in the notch 6020 and the rear end of the bottom plate portion 7202 is locked to the arc-shaped rear end of the notch 6020, that is, the support. The front end of the movable knob 72 is housed in the housing recess 7002 in the state closest to the shaft 58 (the most backwardly retracted state), and the most part except the front end of the movable knob 72 is exposed from the fixed knob 70. It is configured.
Further, the movable knob 72 (the movable knob 72 and the housing recess 7002) is in a state where the plate portion 7202 is accommodated in the notch 6020 and the front end of the bottom plate portion 7202 is locked to the front end of the notch 6020, that is, from the support shaft 58. The movable knob 72 is entirely accommodated in the housing recess 7002 in the farthest state (the most forwardly advanced state), and the rear surface 72A of the movable knob 72 is positioned forward of the rear surface 70A of the fixed knob 70. It is configured. As will be described later, the index finger of the right hand is applied to the front surface 70B of the fixed knob 70, the thumb of the right hand is applied to the rear surface 72A of the movable knob 72, and the movable knob 72 is separated from the support shaft 58 by the thumb (forward). ), The thumb belly can be locked to the inner wall forming the housing recess 7002, so that both the fixed knob 70 and the movable knob 72 can be easily picked at the same time, and the swinging operation for opening the buckle 16 is facilitated. It is.
The movable knob 72 is formed in a color different from that of the fixed knob 70 so that it can be easily understood that it is a place to be operated. In this embodiment, the case main body 60 including the fixed knob 70 is formed of a white synthetic resin, and the slide member 62 including the movable knob 72 is formed of a gray synthetic resin. The movable knob 72 and the bottom plate portion 7202 are positioned so that it is possible to instantly know where the buckle 16 is removed from the recess 30 when the buckle 16 is operated.

The slide member 62 is incorporated in the case main body 60 via the plate 80 shown in FIG.
The plate 80 is made of metal and has a wide portion 8002 located at the front portion and a narrow portion 8004 located at the rear portion, and an open notch 8006 is formed in the wide portion 8002 forward. The notch 8006 is formed in a size that accommodates the two wall portions 34 protruding from the bottom surface 3002 of the recess 30.
The slide member 62 is incorporated into the case main body 60 by positioning the pair of guide walls 6204 between the pair of guide walls 6006 of the main body wall 6002 and positioning the main body plate portion 6202 between the pair of guide walls 6008. Then, the outer surface of the main body plate portion 6202 is placed on the inner surface of the main body wall 6002, the bottom plate portion 7202 is accommodated in the notch 6020, and the movable knob 72 is accommodated in the accommodating recess 7002. Thus, the slide member 62 is supported by the pair of guide walls 6006 of the main body wall 6002 so that the pair of guide walls 6204 can move back and forth, and the main body plate portion 6202 is supported by the pair of guide walls 6008 so as to be movable back and forth. become.
Next, the rear portion of the coil spring 66 is inserted into the semicircular arc-shaped wall portion 6208, and the front and rear ends of the coil spring 66 are locked to the locking wall 6010 and the connection wall 6206 . Thereby, the movable knob 72 (slide member 62) is always urged in the direction of the support shaft 58 (rearward). That is, the rear end of the bottom plate portion 7202 is locked to the arc-shaped rear end of the notch 6020, and most of the portion excluding the front end of the movable knob 72 is exposed from the fixed knob 70 to the support shaft 58 side (rear). It is biased to be held.
In this state, the plate 80 is placed on the inner surface of the main body wall 6002 of the case main body 60 from above the slide member 62, and is fixed to the main body wall 6002 with screws 8010. In this embodiment, the screws 8010 are attached to the boss portions 8012 outside the pair of guide walls 6006 and 6008, respectively.
As shown in FIG. 3, with the plate 80 attached to the case body 60, the locking piece 64 is positioned in the notch 8006, and positioning wall portions 6012 are provided on both sides of the narrow portion 8004. Exposed.

Next, a method for using the waterproof case 10 will be described.
First, the case where the camera 100 is accommodated in the waterproof case 10 will be described.
The front surface of the camera 100 is inserted into the front wall 1210 of the front case divided body 12 from the mating portion 20 of the front case divided body 12.
Next, the rear case divided body 14 is swung, and the mating portion 40 of the rear case divided body 14 is aligned with the mating portion 20 of the front case divided body 12. Thereby, the sealing member 50 is compressed by the protrusion 24 in the concave groove 42, and both the mating portions 20 and 40 are joined in a watertight manner.
Next, the buckle 16 is swung and brought into the recess 30.
When the buckle 16 is brought down, the wall surfaces of the locking walls 32 and 6012 come into contact with each other, and the movement of the buckle 16 in the direction of the support shaft 58 (rearward) is prevented in the recess 30 .
Further, as the buckle 16 is tilted, the upper end front surfaces of the two wall portions 34 and the rear end surfaces of the locking pieces 64 are engaged via the inclined surfaces 3404 and 6404, so that the slide member 62 is elastic of the coil spring 66. It moves once in the direction away from the spindle 58 against the force (forward), and most of the movable knob 72 is accommodated in the accommodation portion 7002.
Then, when both ends of the locking piece 64 are positioned below the locking surfaces 3402 of the two wall portions 34 by further tilting of the buckle 16, the slide member 62 is moved in the direction of the support shaft 58 (rearward) by the elastic force of the coil spring 66. ), The both ends of the locking piece 64 are locked to the locking surfaces 3402 of the two wall portions 34, and the state where the buckle 16 is accommodated in the recess 30 is maintained.
The slide member 62 has the rear end of the bottom plate portion 7202 locked to the arc-shaped rear end of the notch 6020, the front end of the movable knob 72 is accommodated in the accommodating recess 7002, and most of the slide member 62 except for the front end of the movable knob 72. The state where the portion is exposed from the fixing knob 70 is maintained. In this state, the contact of the tip of the plate 80 or the side wall 6004 with the contact wall 3004 prevents the buckle 16 from swinging in the direction of the bottom surface 3002 of the recess 30.
That is, after inserting the camera 100 into the front case divided body 12, the alignment portion 40 of the rear case divided body 14 is aligned with the alignment portion 20 of the front case divided body 12, and the free end of the buckle 16 is swung forward to form a recess. As a result of the operation of being tilted into 30, the state in which the mating portion 20 of the front case split body 12 and the mating portion 40 of the rear case split body 14 are held together is maintained, and the camera 100 is accommodated in the waterproof case 10.

Next, a case where the camera 100 is taken out from the waterproof case 10 will be described.
For example, the user grasps the right side of the waterproof case 10 with the left hand with the waterproof case 10 facing forward, the index finger of the right hand is applied to the front surface 70B of the fixed knob 70, and the thumb of the right hand is placed on the rear surface 72A of the movable knob 72. The fixed knob 70 and the movable knob 72 are picked with the right index finger and thumb.
Then, the movable knob 72 is slid in the direction of the fixed knob 70 (forward) against the elastic force of the coil spring 66 with the thumb.
When the movable knob 72 is slid in the direction of the fixed knob 70 (forward), the locking piece 64 is moved forward together with the movable knob 72, and the locking piece 64 is separated to the front of the locking surface 3402 of the wall 34, The locking between the both ends of the locking piece 64 and the locking surfaces 3402 of the two wall portions 34 is released, and the buckle 16 can swing in the direction of rising from the recess 30 with the support shaft 58 as a fulcrum. However, in this state, the movement of the buckle 16 in the direction of the support shaft 58 is prevented, and the swing in the opening direction of the front case divided body 12 and the rear case divided body 14 is prevented. That is, even if the buckle 16 is moved in the direction of the support shaft 58, the locking piece 64 is in contact with the wall portion 34, and the locking walls 32 and 6012 are locked.
Note that the engagement between both ends of the engagement piece 64 and the engagement surfaces 3402 of the two wall portions 34 is released, and the buckle 16 can swing in the direction of rising from the recess 30 with the support shaft 58 as a fulcrum. However, in this state, the movable knob 72 is pressed forward by the thumb of the right hand, and a force in a direction that fits the front case split body 12 acts on the rear case split body 14 by the right thumb. Therefore, even if the coupling between the buckle 16 and the concave portion 30 side is released, the force in the direction in which the front case divided body 12 and the rear case divided body 14 are aligned is applied when the coupling is released. And the rear case segment 14 are inadvertently opened, and the camera 100 is prevented from falling. In particular, when the electronic apparatus is small like the camera 100, the waterproof case 10 of the camera 100 is moved while walking. Therefore, it is more advantageous to prevent the camera 100 from falling.

Here, the user raises the free end of the buckle 16 while holding the fixed knob 70 and the movable knob 72 and raises the buckle 16.
When the buckle 16 is swung by a predetermined opening in the direction in which the buckle 16 opens, the tip of the locking piece 64 and the tip of the wall 34 are separated (the tip of the locking piece 64 and the wall 34). The tip of the locking wall 32 and the tip of the locking wall 6012 are separated from each other (the tip of the locking wall 32 and the tip of the locking wall 6012 are in the recess 30). The buckle 16 can be moved in the direction of the support shaft 58 in a direction away from the bottom surface 3002, and the front case divided body 12 and the rear case divided body 14 can be swung in the opening direction.
Here, the user opens the rear case divided body 14 with respect to the front case divided body 12 and takes out the camera 100 from the front case divided body 12.
Therefore, the movable knob 72 is slid in the direction of the fixed knob 70 (forward), and then the buckle 16 is swung by a predetermined opening degree in this state. The front case segment 12 and the rear case segment 14 can swing in the opening direction. That is, since the front case divided body 12 and the rear case divided body 14 can be opened for the first time by two operations of sliding the movable knob 72 and opening the buckle 16, the rear case divided body 14 and the front case This is more advantageous in preventing the case divided body 12 from being inadvertently opened and the camera 100 from falling. In particular, even when something hits the movable knob during use in water, the rear case divided body 14 and the front case divided body 12 are prevented from opening carelessly, which is advantageous in preventing the camera 100 from being submerged. It has become.

Next, an operation member 1416 provided on the rear wall 1402 of the rear case divided body 14 for swinging and pressing the projection 120A of the camera 100 will be described in detail.
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the operation member 1416 portion.
As shown in FIG. 11, the mounting portion 90 is provided at a position of the rear wall 1402 (corresponding to the wall portion of the case body in the claims) corresponding to the protrusion 120 </ b> A in a state where the camera 100 is accommodated. An operation member 1416 for operating the protrusion 120 </ b> A is formed on the attachment portion 90.

The attachment portion 90 has a concave portion 9002 provided on the outer surface of the rear wall 1402, and a through-hole 9004 is formed in the bottom portion of the concave portion 9002. Yes.
An annular guide surface 9006 and an abutting portion 9008 provided at a location in the recess 9002 located radially outside the annular guide surface 9006 are formed at the bottom of the recess 9002 positioned around the through hole 9004. Has been.

The operation member 1416 includes a tubular member 92, a shaft-like member 94 disposed inside the tubular member 92, and an elastic member 96 that holds the tubular member 92 in the attachment portion 90. In the example, both the cylindrical member 92 and the shaft-shaped member 94 are made of hard synthetic resin.
The cylindrical member 92 has a cylindrical body 9204 in which a first center hole 9202 extends.
One end of the cylindrical body 9204 in the longitudinal direction is formed with a collar portion 9206 having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the guide surface 9006 and larger than the inner diameter of the through hole 9004. The end is open.
A second center hole 9208 penetrating coaxially with the first center hole 9202 is formed at the center of the collar portion 9206.
The surface of the collar portion 9206 opposite to the position where the cylindrical body 9204 is located is coaxial with the through-hole 9004 with an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the through-hole 9004 and an inner diameter that accommodates the tip of the projection 120A. A cylindrical wall 9210 is formed in a protruding manner.

The shaft-shaped member 94 is inserted so as to be movable from the first center hole 9202 to the second center hole 9208 of the cylindrical member 92, and one end in the longitudinal direction faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body 9204. The end is formed so as to face the inside of the cylindrical wall 9210.
The shaft member 94 is formed with an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the first center hole 9202 of the cylindrical member 92 and larger than the inner diameter of the second center hole 9208 and is inserted into the first center hole 9202. 9402 and a small diameter portion 9404 formed with an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the second center hole 9208 and inserted into the second center hole 9208. Therefore, in a state where the camera 100 is not housed in the waterproof case 10, the large-diameter portion 9402 of the shaft-shaped member 94 is locked to the edge of the second center hole 9208 of the tubular member 92, and the shaft-shaped member 94 is tubular. It is prevented from dropping out from the shaped member 92.

The elastic member 96 is inserted into the recess 9002 and attached to the abutting portion 9008. The elastic member 96 extends radially inward of the outer periphery 9602 from the entire periphery of the outer periphery 9602 and extends in the axial direction of the through hole 9004. And an annular elastic portion 9604 that can be elastically deformed in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction and closes the inside of the outer peripheral portion 9602, and an inner peripheral portion 9606 that closes the inside of the annular elastic portion 9604.
The inner peripheral portion 9606 of the elastic member 96 holds the cylindrical body 9204 of the cylindrical member 92 coaxially with the through hole 9004 inside the elastic portion 9604 with the outer peripheral portion 9602 attached to the abutting portion 9008. It has a wall 9606A and a pressing wall 9606B that faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body 9204 of the held cylindrical member 92 and is elastically deformable in the direction of the cylindrical body 9204.
In the present embodiment, the holding wall 9606A is formed in a cylindrical shape so that an open hole is formed in the direction of the through hole 9004 coaxially with the through hole 9004 on the inner side, and is located on the opposite side to the through hole 9004. A pressing wall 9606B is provided at the holding wall 9606A so as to close the hole.
In this embodiment, an inner bulging portion 9608 that contacts the tip of the shaft-like member 94 is provided at the center of the inner surface where the pressing wall 9606B faces the hole, and the outer surface of the pressing wall 9606B that is positioned opposite to the inner surface. Is provided with an outer bulging portion 9610 that is coaxial with the inner bulging portion 9608 and bulges outward from the outer surface.
As described above, when the inner wall bulged portion 9608 and the outer bulged portion 9610 are provided on the pressing wall 9606B, when the pressing wall 9606B is pressed, one end of the shaft-shaped member 94 can be pressed more reliably. This is advantageous in performing the pressing operation of the protrusion 120A more reliably.
In addition, after the outer peripheral portion 9602 of the elastic member 96 is placed on the abutting portion 9008, the outer peripheral portion 9602 is pressed against the abutting portion 9008 from above to form a frame shape in the concave portion 9002 so as to close the concave portion 9002 in a watertight manner. The cap 98 is attached. In this embodiment, the cap 98 is constituted by the decorative plate 1418.
From the elastic member 96 to the outside of the pressing wall 9606B, the outer peripheral surface 9606 of the elastic member 96 is exposed to the outer surface of the inner peripheral portion 9606 opposite to the inner surface facing the bottom of the recess 9002. A frame-like plate 99 having a small friction coefficient is attached.
The plate 99 is in contact with the surface of the cap 98 facing the bottom of the recess 9002 on the radially inner side of the outer peripheral portion 9602.

The shaft member 94 is inserted from the first center hole 9202 to the second center hole 9208 of the tube body 9204 of the tube member 92.
The tubular wall 9210 of the tubular member 92 is accommodated in the through hole 9004, the collar portion 9206 is placed on the guide surface 9006, and one end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-shaped member 94 faces the pressing wall 9606 B (this book A cylindrical body 9204 is attached to the holding wall 9606A and arranged so as to come into contact (in the embodiment).
The elastic member 9604 of the elastic member 96 has an operation member 1416 in which the projection 120A is accommodated inside the cylindrical wall 9210 and the other end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-like member 94 faces the tip of the projection 120A (in this embodiment, contacts). It has the elasticity which urges | biases to a neutral position.

Next, the operation of the operation member 1416 will be described.
In a state where the camera 100 is housed in the waterproof case 10, the protrusion 120A is housed inside the cylindrical wall 9210, and the operation member 1416 is biased to the neutral position.
When the user slides the cylindrical member 92 along the rear wall 1402 through the pressing wall 9606B and the outer bulging portion 9610 of the elastic member 96 by the fingertip (when the user moves in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction, which are the operation directions of the protrusion 120A). ), The collar portion 9206 is guided by the guide surface 9006 and slid along the guide surface 9006 to be smoothly moved.
In this embodiment, the plate 99 attached to the outer surface of the inner peripheral portion 9606 of the elastic member 96 moves integrally with the inner peripheral portion 9606 and slides while the plate 99 contacts the cap 98. It is made smoother.
Since the slide by the projections 120A housed inside the cylindrical wall 9210 of the tubular member 92 is also moved together with the cylindrical wall 9210, the projections 120A is reliably swung, the control switch 120 in response to the tilting operation Works.
Further, when the user presses the pressing wall 9606B and the outer bulging portion 9610 of the elastic member 96 in the thickness direction of the waterproof case 10 with a fingertip, one end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-shaped member 94 protrudes through the inner bulging portion 9608. The other end in the length direction of the shaft-like member 94 presses the protrusion 120A, and the protrusion 120A is moved in the thickness direction of the case 102 of the camera 100, thereby reliably pressing the protrusion 120A. In response to this pressing operation, the control switch 120 operates.
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the projection 120 </ b> A can be reliably oscillated by sliding the cylindrical member 92 via the elastic member 96, and the cylindrical member 92 can be operated via the elastic member 96. By pressing the shaped member 94, the protrusion 120A can be reliably pressed.

  In the present embodiment, the case where the electronic device accommodated is a digital camera has been described. However, the electronic device is not limited to a digital camera, and may be another electronic device such as a computer with a monitor or a portable game device. Good.

It is a perspective view of the waterproof case seen from the front. It is a perspective view of the waterproof case seen from the back. It is a perspective view of the state where the front case division body and the rear case division body opened in the state which stood up the waterproof case. It is a perspective view of the state where the front case division body and the rear case division body were opened in the state where the waterproof case was laid down. It is a perspective view of the recessed part which accommodates a buckle. (A), (B) is explanatory drawing of a ditch | groove, a protrusion, and a sealing member. It is a perspective view of a knob part. It is a disassembled perspective view of a buckle. It is a perspective view of the case main body which comprises a buckle. It is a perspective view of the slide member which comprises a buckle. Sectional drawing of the operation member 1416 part is shown. It is the perspective view which looked at the camera from the front. The perspective view which looked at the camera from back is shown.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Waterproof case, 90 ... Attachment part, 92 ... Cylindrical member, 94 ... Shaft-like member, 96 ... Elastic member, 120A ... Protrusion.

Claims (8)

A first operation is performed by protruding from the wall surface of the housing of the electronic device and performing a swing operation, and a second operation different from the first operation is performed by performing a pressing operation toward the wall surface of the housing. A waterproof case for an electronic device in which an electronic device having protrusions to be performed is stored in a watertight manner,
The waterproof case has a case body that is formed of a hard material and accommodates the electronic device,
An attachment portion is formed at a location of the wall portion of the case body corresponding to the protrusion in a state where the electronic device is accommodated, and an operation member for operating the protrusion is disposed on the attachment portion,
The mounting portion is located around the through hole, a concave portion provided on the outer surface of the wall portion, a through hole formed in the bottom of the concave portion with an inner diameter larger than the contour of the tip of the protrusion, and An annular guide surface provided at the bottom of the recess, and an abutting portion provided at a location in the recess located on the radially outer side of the annular guide surface,
The operating member includes a cylindrical member, a shaft-shaped member disposed inside the cylindrical member, and an elastic member that holds the cylindrical member in the mounting portion.
The cylindrical member has a cylindrical body having a first central hole extending therein, and a diameter that is smaller than the outer diameter of the guide surface and larger than the inner diameter of the through hole at one end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body. On the surface of the collar portion positioned opposite to the position where the tubular body is formed, the second center hole coaxially penetrating with the first center hole at the center of the collar portion A cylindrical wall that is smaller than the inner diameter of the through-hole and that is formed so as to protrude coaxially with the through-hole with an inner diameter that accommodates the tip of the protrusion;
The shaft-like member is movably inserted from the first center hole to the second center hole of the cylindrical member, one end in the longitudinal direction faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylinder, and the other end in the longitudinal direction is Formed to face the inside of the cylindrical wall,
The elastic member includes an outer peripheral portion that is inserted into the recess and attached to the abutting portion, and extends radially inwardly from the entire periphery of the outer peripheral portion to the axial direction of the through hole and the An annular elastic portion that is elastically deformable in a direction orthogonal to the axial direction and closes the inside of the outer peripheral portion, and an inner peripheral portion that closes the inner side of the annular elastic portion,
The inner peripheral portion holds the holding wall for holding the cylindrical body of the cylindrical member coaxially with the through hole inside the elastic portion in a state where the outer peripheral portion is attached to the abutting portion. A pressing wall that faces the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical member of the cylindrical member and is elastically deformable in the cylindrical direction;
In the cylindrical member in which the shaft-like member is inserted from the first center hole to the second center hole of the cylindrical body, the cylindrical wall is accommodated in the through hole, and the collar portion is mounted on the guide surface. The cylindrical body is attached to the holding wall so that the one end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-shaped member faces the pressing wall,
The elastic portion has elasticity that urges the projection to be in a neutral position where the projection is housed inside the cylindrical wall and the other end of the shaft-shaped member faces the tip of the projection. Formed,
A waterproof case for electronic devices.   The holding wall is formed in a cylindrical shape so that an opening in the direction of the through hole is formed coaxially with the through hole on the inner side, and the holding wall is located on the side opposite to the through hole. The waterproof case for an electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the pressing wall is provided so as to close the hole. An inner bulging portion that contacts one end in the longitudinal direction of the shaft-like member is provided at the center of the inner surface where the pressing wall faces the hole, and the inner bulging portion is formed on the outer surface of the pressing wall that is located opposite to the inner surface. The waterproof case for an electronic device according to claim 2 , further comprising an outer bulging portion that bulges outward of the outer surface on the same axis as the outer surface.   After the outer peripheral portion of the elastic member is placed on the abutting portion, a frame-like cap is attached to the recess so as to press the outer peripheral portion against the abutting portion from above. The waterproof case for electronic equipment according to claim 1.   After the outer peripheral portion of the elastic member is placed on the abutting portion, a frame-like cap is attached to the concave portion so as to press the outer peripheral portion against the abutting portion from above, and the inner circumference A frame-like plate having a smaller coefficient of friction than the elastic member on the outer side of the pressing wall so that the pressing wall is exposed to the outer surface of the inner peripheral portion located on the opposite side of the inner surface facing the bottom of the recess. The waterproof case for an electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the plate is in contact with a surface of the cap that faces the bottom of the concave portion on the radially inner side of the outer peripheral portion.   The inner diameter of the first center hole is formed to be larger than the inner diameter of the second center hole, and the shaft-like member has an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the first center hole and larger than the inner diameter of the second center hole. The large-diameter portion formed in the first central hole and inserted into the first central hole, and the small-diameter portion formed with an outer diameter smaller than the inner diameter of the second central hole and inserted into the second central hole. The waterproof case for electronic equipment according to claim 1.   The waterproof case for electronic equipment according to claim 1, wherein the other end in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical body of the cylindrical member is open.   2. The waterproof case for electronic equipment according to claim 1, wherein both the cylindrical member and the shaft-shaped member are formed of a hard synthetic resin, and the elastic member is formed of an elastic material.

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