JP7750145B2 - Electronic Equipment Systems - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to an electronic device system composed of multiple electronic device units.

Conventionally, there are various types of electronic device systems made up of multiple electronic device units. One known example is an electronic device system made up of multiple electronic device units that are electrically connected to each other by being assembled side-by-side in a specific direction. A typical example of such an electronic device system is a remote terminal device (hereinafter simply referred to as a remote terminal device) for a programmable logic controller (PLC).

A remote terminal device includes one or more communication units and one or more I/O units that can communicate with the communication units via a serial bus line and a unidirectional communication line, respectively. These communication units and I/O units are typically configured in a building block format so that one or more I/O units are connected to the communication units.

Documents disclosing remote terminal devices with the above configuration include, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 6-6051 (Patent Document 1), Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-217016 (Patent Document 2), and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-182412 (Patent Document 3).

Here, the communication unit and I/O unit serving as electronic equipment units are each attached to a mounting rail such as a DIN (Deutsche Industrie Norm) rail, and are often configured so that adjacent electronic equipment units engage with each other.

In such cases, a pair of adjacent electronic device units are typically provided with a guide groove and protrusions as a guide mechanism, with the protrusions on one of the pair of electronic device units being slidably guided by the guide groove on the other, allowing the pair of electronic device units to be assembled and disassembled. Electronic device units equipped with such guide mechanisms are disclosed, for example, in Patent Documents 2 and 3 mentioned above.

Furthermore, the front wall of the housing of such an electronic device unit may be provided with a receptacle for an external connection terminal such as an RJ-45 connector, as needed. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-134079 (Patent Document 4) discloses an electronic device unit in which a receptacle for an external connection terminal is provided on an inclined surface provided on the front wall. By providing the receptacle on such an inclined surface, it is possible to minimize the amount of protrusion of the external connection terminal that would otherwise protrude forward from the electronic device unit when the external connection terminal is connected to the receptacle, thereby improving the flexibility of installation of the electronic device unit.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-6051 Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-217016 JP 2012-182412 A Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2019-134079

In an electronic device system consisting of electronic device units equipped with the above-mentioned guide mechanism, a first connection terminal and a second connection terminal for electrical connection are provided at corresponding positions on the outer surface of each of a pair of adjacent electronic device units. As a result, when one of the pair of electronic device units is assembled to the other, the first connection terminal and the second connection terminal come into contact with each other, thereby achieving electrical connection between the pair of electronic device units.

In this case, to ensure electrical continuity between the first and second connection terminals, it is preferable that at least one of the first and second connection terminals be positioned so as to protrude from the outer surface of the electronic device unit when not assembled, and be configured to be elastically deformable in a direction perpendicular to the outer surface.

However, if this configuration is applied to an electronic device unit with an inclined surface on the front wall of the housing, when one of the pair of electronic device units is attached to the other, the connection terminal that protrudes from the outer surface of the electronic device unit will come into contact with the inclined surface on the front wall of the other electronic device unit. If an external force is applied to the connection terminal at an angle due to this contact, the connection terminal may be damaged, which could disrupt electrical continuity between the first connection terminal and the second connection terminal.

Therefore, the object of this disclosure is to prevent damage to connection terminals in an electronic device system composed of multiple electronic device units, thereby preventing the electrical connection between adjacent electronic device units from being impaired.

An electronic device system according to one aspect of the present disclosure includes a first unit and a second unit that are electrically connected by being assembled adjacent to each other. The first unit has a first front wall provided with a socket for an external connection terminal, and a first side wall. The second unit has a second front wall and a second side wall that faces the first side wall in an assembled state in which the second unit is assembled to the first unit. The outer surface of the first front wall has an inclined surface that is inclined forward or backward and on which the socket is located. A first connection terminal is provided at a predetermined position on the first side wall. A second connection terminal that is elastically deformable along a normal direction of the second side wall is provided on the second side wall at a position that faces the first connection terminal in the assembled state. The second connection terminal has a protrusion that protrudes at least partially from the second side wall in an unassembled state. The first unit and the second unit are provided with a guide mechanism that guides the second unit slidably relative to the first unit along the front-rear direction, thereby enabling the second unit to be assembled to and removed from the first unit. In the assembled state, the first connection terminal and the second connection terminal are electrically connected by crimping at least a portion of the protrusion with the first connection terminal. The inclined surface is disposed at least at a position corresponding to the first connection terminal in the height direction. In an electronic device system according to one aspect of the present disclosure, a first wall portion is provided at an end of the first front wall on the first side wall side in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface in the height direction, the first wall portion protruding forward beyond the inclined surface and having a front end that extends linearly along the height direction.

Here, "tilted forward" means that of a pair of ends of the inclined surface in the height direction, the lower end is positioned further back than the upper end, and "tilted backward" means that of a pair of ends of the inclined surface in the height direction, the upper end is positioned further back than the lower end.

In this way, a first wall portion whose front end extends linearly along the height direction is provided at the end of the first front wall on the first side wall side of the portion of the first front wall that corresponds to the inclined surface in the height direction. This means that when assembling the second unit to the first unit, external force is applied only in the front-to-rear direction to the protruding portion of the second connection terminal of the second unit. This prevents the second connection terminal from being damaged by external force being applied diagonally to the protruding portion, and as a result, significantly reduces the disruption of the electrical connection between the first unit and the second unit. Furthermore, a secondary effect is achieved in that the strength of the housing can be improved compared to when the first front wall does not have a first wall portion.

In an electronic device system according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the protrusion may have a sloped surface that abuts against the front end of the first wall portion when the second unit is assembled to the first unit.

This configuration allows the protruding portion of the second connection terminal on the second unit to slide smoothly over the outer surface of the housing of the first unit during assembly, thereby reducing the load on the second connection terminal that would otherwise be applied during sliding.

In an electronic device system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the second connection terminal may be configured as a wire-like member that extends along the front-rear direction and curves in the normal direction.

This configuration reduces the contact area between the protruding portion of the second connection terminal on the second unit and the first wall and first side wall of the first unit during assembly, effectively preventing damage to the second connection terminal.

In an electronic device system according to an aspect of the present disclosure, a first guide surface having an inclined shape may be provided on the surface of the first wall portion facing the socket, for guiding the external connection terminal into the socket when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket.

This configuration makes it easy to insert the external connection terminal into the socket.

In an electronic device system according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the first unit may further include a third side wall located opposite the first side wall. In this case, a second wall portion that protrudes forward beyond the inclined surface may be provided at the end of the first front wall on the third side wall side in the height direction, at a portion corresponding to the inclined surface.

By configuring it in this way, the strength of the housing can be improved compared to when the first front wall does not have a second wall portion.

In an electronic device system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a second guide surface having an inclined shape may be provided on the surface of the second wall portion facing the socket, for guiding the external connection terminal into the socket when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket.

This configuration makes it easy to insert the external connection terminal into the socket.

In the electronic device system according to the above-described embodiment of the present disclosure, the receptacle may be a female RJ-45 connector.

When configured in this way, the first unit can be connected to other units, electronic devices, etc. via an RJ-45 connector.

This invention makes it possible to prevent damage to connection terminals, thereby creating an electronic device system that can prevent electrical connections between adjacent electronic device units from being disrupted.

1 is a perspective view of a remote terminal device according to an embodiment in an assembled state; 2 is a perspective view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the upper left front side. 2A and 2B are an enlarged perspective view and an enlarged left side view of a main part of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 ; 2 is a perspective view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from the upper right front side. 2A and 2B are an enlarged perspective view and an enlarged right side view of a main part of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 ; 2A and 2B are a front view and a schematic cross-sectional view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 . 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a terminal block including a first connection terminal of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 and a partially cutaway perspective view of a terminal block including a second connection terminal. 5A and 5B are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating an assembly structure of the remote terminal device according to the embodiment during an assembly operation. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating the assembly structure of the remote terminal device according to the embodiment after assembly. FIG. FIG. 1 is an enlarged perspective view of a main part of a remote terminal device according to an embodiment during assembly operation, and for comparison, an enlarged perspective view of a main part of a remote terminal device consisting of a communication unit that does not have a first wall portion and a second wall portion during assembly operation.

Embodiments will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. The embodiments shown below illustrate a PLC remote terminal device as an electronic device system. Note that in the embodiments shown below, identical or common parts will be designated by the same reference numerals in the drawings, and their descriptions will not be repeated.

<A. Overall configuration>
1 is a perspective view of a remote terminal device according to an embodiment in an assembled state. First, the configuration of a remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

In the following description, as shown in FIG. 1, the rearward and forward directions when viewing the remote terminal device 1 from the front are referred to as the X1 and X2 directions, respectively, and the direction corresponding to these X1 and X2 directions is also referred to as the X-axis direction. Also, as shown in FIG. 1, the rightward and leftward directions when viewing the remote terminal device 1 from the front are referred to as the Y1 and Y2 directions, respectively, and the direction corresponding to these Y1 and Y2 directions is also referred to as the Y-axis direction. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 1, the upward and downward directions when viewing the remote terminal device 1 from the front are referred to as the Z1 and Z2 directions, respectively, and the direction corresponding to these Z1 and Z2 directions is also referred to as the Z-axis direction. Here, the height direction of the remote terminal device 1 corresponds to the Z-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 1, the remote terminal device 1 includes two communication units 2, a first unit and a second unit. These two communication units 2 are assembled so that they are positioned adjacent to each other along the Y-axis direction. Note that the remote terminal device 1 may also include an electronic device unit separate from these communication units.

In addition, in this embodiment, as shown in Figure 1, the remote terminal device 1 includes two communication units 2, but the total number of communication units 2 can be increased or decreased depending on the equipment to which the remote terminal device 1 is attached. Note that in Figure 1 and Figures 8 and 9 described below, of two adjacent communication units 2, the one located on the Y1 side is referred to as the first unit 2A, and the one located on the Y2 side is referred to as the second unit 2B.

The communication unit 2 is connected to, for example, an externally installed electronic device (not shown) via an external connection cable 200, and exchanges data with the electronic device.

The external connection cable 200 includes an external connection terminal 201 and a cable 202. In this embodiment, an RJ-45 connector is used as the external connection terminal 201. The external connection terminal 201, which is an RJ-45 connector, has a claw portion 201a for securing the external connection terminal 201 to a socket 22a provided in the communication unit 2, which will be described later. As shown in FIG. 1, the external connection terminal 201 of the external connection cable 200 configured in this manner is inserted into the socket 22a in the direction of arrow AR1 in FIG. 1, thereby connecting the communication unit 2 to another electronic device, etc. Note that the external connection terminal 201 is not limited to an RJ-45 connector and may be changed to a known communication connection terminal as appropriate.

The two communication units 2 are attached to a DIN rail 100, which serves as a mounting rail, via installation recesses 10a, which will be described later. Furthermore, two adjacent communication units 2 engage with each other via guide mechanisms, which will be described later, provided on each of them. This allows the two communication units 2 to be attached to the DIN rail 100 as a single unit.

B. Communications Unit
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the upper left front. FIGS. 3(A) and 3(B) are an enlarged perspective view and an enlarged left side view of the main parts of the communication unit shown in FIG. 2, respectively. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1 as seen from the upper right front. FIGS. 5(A) and 5(B) are an enlarged perspective view and an enlarged right side view of the main parts of the communication unit shown in FIG. 4, respectively. FIG. 6(A) is a front view of the communication unit shown in FIG. 1, and FIG. 6(B) is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along line VIB-VIB in FIG. 6(A). Next, the configuration of the communication unit 2 described above will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6.

As shown in Figures 2 to 6, the communication unit 2 has a roughly rectangular parallelepiped outer shape and includes a housing that houses various electronic components. The housing includes a box-shaped main casing 10 and a front panel 20 fixed to the main casing 10 so as to cover the front surface of the main casing 10.

In this embodiment, the front panel 20 of the first unit 2A of the communication unit 2 constitutes the first front wall, and the left side wall 11 and right side wall 12 of the main body casing 10 of the first unit 2A of the communication unit 2 constitute the first side wall and the third side wall, respectively. Furthermore, the front panel 20 of the second unit 2B of the communication unit 2 constitutes the second front wall, and the right side wall 12 of the main body casing 10 of the second unit 2B of the communication unit 2 constitutes the second side wall.

An installation recess 10a is provided on the rear wall of the main body casing 10. The installation recess 10a is a portion that receives the DIN rail 100 when the communication unit 2 is fixed to the DIN rail 100, and a fixing member for fixing the communication unit 2 is provided in the installation recess 10a. Although detailed explanation is omitted here, the fixing member is configured to be detachable from the DIN rail, and holds the DIN rail 100 in place when the communication unit 2 is fixed to it.

As shown in FIG. 2, the left side wall 11 of the main body casing 10 is provided with a pair of protrusions: an upper protrusion 15a and a lower protrusion 15b. The upper protrusion 15a is provided near the edge located on the upper surface of the left side wall 11 of the communication unit 2, and extends along the X-axis direction. The lower protrusion 15b is provided near the edge located on the lower surface of the left side wall 11 of the communication unit 2, and extends along the X-axis direction. The pair of protrusions, the upper protrusion 15a and the lower protrusion 15b, are arranged so that they face each other in the Z-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 4, the right side wall 12 of the main body casing 10 is provided with a pair of guide grooves: an upper guide groove 16a and a lower guide groove 16b. The upper guide groove 16a is provided near the edge located on the upper surface of the right side wall 12 of the communication unit 2, and extends along the X-axis direction. The lower guide groove 16b is provided near the edge located on the lower surface of the right side wall 12 of the communication unit 2, and extends along the X-axis direction. The pair of guide grooves, the upper guide groove 16a and the lower guide groove 16b, are arranged so that they face each other in the Z-axis direction.

A pair of guide grooves, the upper guide groove 16a and the lower guide groove 16b, provided on the right side wall 12 of the main body casing 10 of the communication unit 2 receive a pair of protrusions, the upper protrusion 15a and the lower protrusion 15b, provided on the left side wall 11 of the main body casing 10 of another communication unit 2 arranged adjacent to the right of the communication unit 2.

In other words, the pair of guide grooves and pair of protrusions described above correspond to the aforementioned guide mechanism that engages adjacent communication units 2 with each other, and the pair of guide grooves guide the pair of protrusions so that they can slide along the X-axis direction, thereby achieving the above-mentioned engagement and making it possible to individually insert and remove the communication units 2 from the remote terminal device 1.

As shown in Figures 2, 4, and 6(A), the outer surface of the front panel 20 has a main surface 21 that is perpendicular to the X-axis direction, which is the front-to-rear direction of the communication unit 2, and two inclined surfaces 22 that are aligned along the Z-axis direction, which is the height direction of the communication unit 2, and are tilted forward. Of these two inclined surfaces 22, the inclined surface 22 located on the Z1 side is positioned in the Z-axis direction to correspond to at least some of the multiple first connection terminals 40, which will be described later.

The two inclined surfaces 22 are not limited to being inclined forward, but may also be inclined backward. "In this context, inclined forward" means that of a pair of ends of the inclined surfaces 22 in the Z-axis direction, the end located on the Z2 side is positioned further back than the end located on the Z1 side, and "inclined backward" means that of a pair of ends of the inclined surfaces 22 in the Z-axis direction, the end located on the Z1 side is positioned further back than the end located on the Z2 side.

Each of the two inclined surfaces 22 is provided with a socket 22a, which is the portion to which the external connection terminal 201 is connected. By providing the inclined surfaces 22 on the front panel 20 in this way and providing the sockets 22a on these inclined surfaces 22, it is possible to reduce the amount of protrusion of the external connection terminal 201 that protrudes forward from the communication unit 2 in the connected state, compared to when a socket is provided on the main surface 21 perpendicular to the X-axis direction, thereby improving the flexibility of installation of the remote terminal device 1.

In this embodiment, a female RJ-45 connector is used as the socket 22a. Note that the socket 22a is not limited to a female RJ-45 connector, and may be changed as appropriate to a known female connector for a communication connection terminal.

As shown in Figure 6(A), the portion of the socket 22a that receives the external connection terminal 201 is positioned offset toward the left wall 11 in the Y-axis direction. This allows for a large amount of space to be secured on the claw portion 201a side, making it easy to remove the external connection terminal 201.

As shown in Figure 4, a first wall portion 22b is provided at the end of the front panel 20 on the left side wall 11 side in the Z-axis direction, in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface 22. The first wall portion 22b protrudes forward from the inclined surface 22 and has a front end 22bf that extends linearly along the Z-axis direction.

A first guide surface 22b1 is provided on the surface of the first wall portion 22b facing the socket 22a to guide the external connection terminal 201 when the external connection terminal 201 is inserted into the socket 22a. The first guide surface 22b1 has an inclined shape that slopes in the Y1 direction as it extends in the X1 direction.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, a second wall portion 22c is provided at the end of the front panel 20 on the right side wall 12 side in the Z-axis direction, in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface 22. The second wall portion 22c protrudes forward from the inclined surface 22 and has a front end 22cf that extends linearly along the Z-axis direction.

A second guide surface 22c1 is provided on the surface of the second wall portion 22c facing the socket 22a to guide the external connection terminal 201 when the external connection terminal 201 is inserted into the socket 22a. The second guide surface 22c1 has an inclined shape that slopes in the Y2 direction as it extends in the X1 direction.

By providing the first wall portion 22b and the second wall portion 22c in this manner, the strength of the housing of the communication unit 2 can be improved. Furthermore, by providing the first guide surface 22b1 and the second guide surface 22c1, the external connection terminal 201 can be easily inserted into the socket 22a.

The communication unit 2 has a plurality of first connection terminals 40 and a plurality of second connection terminals 50 (see Figures 3 and 5, etc.). These first connection terminals 40 and second connection terminals 50 are electrically connected to a plurality of conductive lines provided corresponding to a wiring board 60 (see Figure 6(B)) housed in the internal space of the main casing 10.

As shown in Figures 3(A) and 3(B), a first window 17a is formed by cutting out a portion of the main casing 10 at a predetermined position on the left side wall 11, and multiple first connection terminals 40 are arranged so as to be exposed to the outside from the first window 17a.

The multiple first connection terminals 40 are positioned side by side at a predetermined distance along the Z-axis direction. The multiple first connection terminals 40 are positioned so as to be substantially flush with the left side wall 11 of the communication unit 2 (see particularly Figures 3(A) and 6(B)).

As shown in Figures 5(A) and 5(B), a second window 17b is formed at a predetermined position on the right side wall 12 by cutting out a portion of the main casing 10, and multiple second connection terminals 50 are arranged so as to be exposed to the outside from the second window 17b.

The multiple second connection terminals 50 are positioned side by side at a predetermined distance along the Z-axis direction. The multiple second connection terminals 50 are positioned so that some of them protrude outward from the right side wall 12 of the communication unit 2 (see particularly Figures 5(A), 6(A), and 6(B)).

Here, the multiple first connection terminals 40 and second connection terminals 50 provided on the communication unit 2 are provided at corresponding positions on the left side wall 11 and right side wall 12 of the communication unit 2. As a result, in the assembled state shown in Figure 1, the multiple first connection terminals 40 of one of two adjacent communication units 2 are in contact with the multiple second connection terminals 50 of the other. Therefore, a pair of adjacent units are electrically connected, and the remote terminal device 1 is composed of the multiple communication units 2 electrically connected to each other.

<C. First Connection Terminal and Second Connection Terminal>
7A and 7B are respectively a partially cutaway perspective view of the vicinity of the first connection terminal and the vicinity of the second connection terminal of the communication unit shown in Fig. 1. Hereinafter, the detailed configurations of the first connection terminal 40 and the second connection terminal 50 will be described with reference to Fig. 7.

As shown in FIG. 7(A), the first connection terminal 40 has an elongated shape that has been bent, and the tip of the first connection terminal 40 is formed in a generally flat plate shape. The exposed surfaces 41 of the tip of each of the multiple first connection terminals 40 are each configured to be generally planar, and a recessed portion 42 is provided at a predetermined position on each exposed surface 41. The recessed portion 42 is configured as a rectangular groove extending along the X-axis direction, and one recessed portion 42 is provided at the center of the exposed surface 41 of each first connection terminal 40 in the Z-axis direction. As a result, a pair of opening edge portions 42a of the recessed portion 42, which is the boundary between the exposed surface 41 and the recessed portion 42, is formed on the exposed surface 41 of each of the multiple first connection terminals 40 so as to extend parallel to each other along the X-axis direction, and the pair of opening edge portions 42a of the recessed portion 42 are positioned opposite each other in the Z-axis direction.

As shown in FIG. 7(B), the second connection terminal 50 is composed of a bent, elongated, and generally flat wire-like member. Each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 is bent so that the portion near its tip extends generally along the X-axis direction, and a curved protrusion 51 is formed in the portion near the tip so that it protrudes outward from the right side wall 12 (i.e., in the Y1 direction) when not assembled.

Here, the protrusion 51 protrudes outward in different amounts in the X-axis direction. More specifically, the protrusion 51 is curved in an arched shape along the X-axis direction. As a result, when assembling the remote terminal device 1 described below, the protrusion 51 has a sloped surface 51a that abuts against the linear front end 22bf provided on the front panel 20 of another adjacent communication unit 2. The sloped surface 51a is inclined so that the front end of the sloped surface 51a protrudes more than the rear end in the X-axis direction.

When configured in this manner, when assembling the remote terminal device 1, the protrusion 51 can slide smoothly over the outer surface of the housing of another adjacent communication unit 2, thereby reducing the load on the second connection terminal 50 that would otherwise be applied during sliding.

Furthermore, each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 is given elasticity by undergoing the bending process described above, and is configured to be elastically deformable particularly along the Y-axis direction.

<D. Assembly Structure and Electrical Connection Structure>
8 and 9 are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating the assembly structure of the remote terminal device according to this embodiment during assembly and after assembly, respectively. Fig. 10(A) is an enlarged perspective view of the main parts of the remote terminal device according to this embodiment during assembly, and Fig. 10(B) is an enlarged perspective view of the main parts of a remote terminal device, for comparison, consisting of a communication unit without a first wall portion and a second wall portion during assembly. Next, details of the assembly structure and electrical connection structure of the remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figs. 8 to 10.

In the following description, of the two adjacent communication units 2 in Figure 1, the one located on the Y1 side will be referred to as the first unit 2A, and the one located on the Y2 side will be referred to as the second unit 2B. An example will be shown in which the second unit 2B is assembled to the first unit 2A by inserting it into the first unit 2A. In the following description and in Figures 8 and 9, the front panel serving as the front wall of the first unit 2A is labeled 20A, and the front panel serving as the front wall of the second unit 2B is labeled 20B. Furthermore, the left side wall serving as the first side wall of the first unit 2A is labeled 11A, and the right side wall serving as the second side wall of the second unit 2B is labeled 12B. Furthermore, the right side wall serving as the third side wall of the first unit 2A is labeled 12A, and the left side wall of the second unit 2B is labeled 11B.

As shown in FIG. 8, when assembling the second unit 2B to the first unit 2A, the second unit 2B is moved from the front side in the direction of arrow AR2 so that the right side wall 12B (second side wall) of the second unit 2B faces the left side wall 11A (first side wall) of the first unit 2A. At this time, the pair of protrusions, the upper protrusion 15a and the lower protrusion 15b, provided on the left side wall 11 of the first unit 2A are inserted into the pair of guide grooves, the upper guide groove 16a and the lower guide groove 16b, provided on the right side wall 12B of the second unit 2B, respectively (see FIGS. 2 and 4). This allows the second unit 2B to slide along the X-axis direction, guided by the first unit 2A.

At this time, the multiple second connection terminals 50, which are positioned to protrude from the right side wall 12B of the second unit 2B, will interfere with the housing of the first unit 2A. However, as described above, each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 is configured to be elastically deformable along the Y-axis direction. As shown in Figure 9, the second connection terminals 50 elastically deform so as to retreat toward the inside of the second unit 2B, thereby sliding on the outer surface of the housing of the first unit 2A.

As shown in Figure 9, when the second unit 2B is assembled to the first unit 2A so that the second unit 2B is positioned directly beside the first unit 2A, each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 of the second unit 2B is positioned directly opposite and in contact with each of the multiple first connection terminals 40 of the first unit 2A.

At this time, because each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 is configured to be elastically deformable along the Y-axis direction as described above, the protrusion 51 (see FIG. 7B) of each second connection terminal 50 is crimped onto the first connection terminal 40 based on the restoring force of the second connection terminal 50. Specifically, a portion of the protrusion 51 of each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 fits into the recessed portion 42 (see FIG. 7A) of each of the multiple first connection terminals 40. As a result, each of the multiple first connection terminals 40 and each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 are crimped together at two locations corresponding to a pair of opening edge portions 42a (see FIG. 7A) positioned opposite each other in the Z-axis direction of the recessed portion 42 of the first connection terminal 40. As a result, each of the multiple first connection terminals 40 and each of the multiple second connection terminals 50 are electrically connected at these locations.

Although detailed explanations will be omitted here, when removing the second unit 2B from the first unit 2A in the remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment, the second unit 2B can be removed by moving it from the assembled state shown in FIG. 9 toward the front side (in the direction opposite to the direction of arrow AR2 shown in FIG. 8).

When assembling the second unit 2B to the first unit 2A, as shown in Figure 8, at some point the protrusion 51 of the second connection terminal 50 of the second unit will interfere with the front end 22bf of the front panel 20A of the first unit 2A.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 10(A), the protrusion 51 of the second connection terminal 50, which is located in the Z-axis direction corresponding to the inclined surface 22 located on the Z1 side of the first unit 2A, contacts the first wall portion 22b that defines part of the front end 22bf of the first unit 2A at its sloped surface 51a (see FIG. 7(B)). As a result, the external force PX is applied to the sloped surface 51a only in the X-axis direction, which coincides with the sliding direction of the second unit 2B.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 10(B), in the case of a remote terminal device consisting of a conventional communication unit 2X that does not have a first wall portion, when the protrusion 51 of the second unit 2B interferes with the front end of the front panel of the first unit, the protrusion 51's sloped surface 51a comes into contact with the inclined surface 22 that defines part of the front end. As a result, an oblique external force PXZ is applied to the sloped surface 51a.

In other words, in the remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment, the first wall portion 22b is provided on the front panel 20 of the communication unit 2, which prevents an oblique external force from being applied to the protrusion 51 of the second connection terminal 50 of another communication unit 2 when that other communication unit 2 is assembled so that it is positioned adjacent to the communication unit 2.

As a result, damage to the second connection terminal 50 can be prevented, and the electrical connection between adjacent electronic device units can be significantly reduced from being disrupted compared to the remote terminal device consisting of the conventional communication unit described above.

In particular, when the protrusion 51 is configured to extend along the X-axis direction, which is the sliding direction, as in this embodiment, external force in the Z-axis direction, which is perpendicular to the extension direction of the protrusion 51, can be a major factor in damaging the protrusion 51. However, in the remote terminal device 1 of this embodiment, the first wall portion 22b is provided on the front panel 20 as described above, which prevents external force in the Z-axis direction from being applied to the protrusion 51. Therefore, in this embodiment, damage to the second connection terminal 50 can be particularly effectively prevented.

Furthermore, in the remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment, as described above, the protrusion 51 is made of a wire that extends along the X-axis direction and curves in the Y-axis direction, which is the normal direction of the right side wall 12. This reduces the contact area between the protrusion 51 and the first wall portion 22b and the left side wall 11 during assembly, thereby effectively preventing damage to the second connection terminal 50.

Furthermore, as described above, in the remote terminal device 1 according to this embodiment, the main body casing 10 and front panel 20 that make up the communication unit 2 are separate entities. With this configuration, the main body casing with the above-described configuration can be used as a common platform for other units with various specifications that are incorporated into the remote terminal device. Therefore, adopting the above-described configuration also makes it possible to reduce manufacturing costs.

<E. Notes>
The characteristic configuration of the electronic device system according to the present embodiment described above can be summarized as follows.
[Configuration 1]
An electronic device system (1) comprising a first unit (2A) and a second unit (2B) that are electrically connected by being assembled so as to be positioned adjacent to each other,
The first unit (2A) has a first front wall (20A) provided with a socket (22a) for an external connection terminal (201) and a first side wall (11A),
the second unit (2B) has a second front wall (20B) and a second side wall (12B) that faces the first side wall (11A) in an assembled state in which the second unit (2B) is assembled to the first unit (2A),
The first front wall (20A) has an outer surface provided with an inclined surface (22) on which the insertion port (22a) is located and which is inclined forward or backward;
A first connection terminal (40) is provided at a predetermined position on the first side wall (11A),
a second connection terminal (50) elastically deformable along a normal direction of the second side wall (12B) is provided on the second side wall (12B) at a position facing the first connection terminal (40) in the assembled state;
The second connection terminal (50) has a protruding portion (51) at least a part of which protrudes from the second side wall (12B) in an unassembled state,
The first unit (2A) and the second unit (2B) are provided with a guide mechanism that guides the second unit (2B) slidably relative to the first unit (2A) along a front-rear direction, thereby enabling the second unit (2B) to be assembled to and removed from the first unit (2A);
In the assembled state, at least a part of the protrusion (51) and the first connection terminal (40) are crimped together, thereby conducting the first connection terminal (40) and the second connection terminal (50),
The inclined surface (22) is disposed at least at a position corresponding to the first connection terminal (40) in the height direction,
An electronic device system, wherein a first wall portion (22b) is provided at the end of the first front wall (20A) on the first side wall (11A) side in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface (22) in the height direction, the first wall portion (22b) protruding forward beyond the inclined surface (22) and having a front end (22bf) extending linearly along the height direction.
[Configuration 2]
The electronic device system described in configuration 1, wherein the protrusion (51) has a sloped surface (51a) that abuts against the front end (22bf) of the first wall portion (22b) when the second unit (2B) is assembled to the first unit (2A).
[Configuration 3]
3. The electronic device system according to claim 2, wherein the second connection terminal (50) is configured as a wire-like member that extends along the front-rear direction and is curved in the normal direction.
[Configuration 4]
An electronic device system as described in any one of configurations 1 to 3, wherein a first guide surface (22b1) having an inclined shape is provided on the surface of the first wall portion (22b) facing the socket (22a) to guide the external connection terminal into the socket (22a) when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket (22a).
[Configuration 5]
The first unit (2A) further has a third side wall (12A) located on the opposite side to the first side wall (11A),
An electronic device system described in any one of configurations 1 to 4, wherein a second wall portion (22c) protruding forward beyond the inclined surface (22) is provided at the end of the first front wall (20A) on the third side wall (12A) side in the height direction, the end corresponding to the inclined surface (22).
[Configuration 6]
The electronic device system of configuration 5, wherein a second guide surface (22c1) having an inclined shape is provided on the surface of the second wall portion (22c) facing the socket (22a) to guide the external connection terminal into the socket (22a) when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket (22a).
[Configuration 7]
7. The electronic device system according to any one of configurations 1 to 6, wherein the receptacle (22a) is a female RJ-45 connector.

<F. Other>
In the above-described embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to a communication unit of a PLC remote terminal device, but the application of the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can be applied to various electronic devices.

In addition, in the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which only the second connection terminal is configured to be elastically deformable, but the first connection terminal may also be configured to be elastically deformable.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which the present invention is applied to a remote terminal device equipped with multiple communication units having the same shape and configuration, but the connected units do not necessarily have to have exactly the same shape and configuration.

Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, an example was given in which the present invention was applied to a remote terminal device configured to be mounted on a DIN rail, but the scope of application of the present invention is not necessarily limited to types that are mounted on a DIN rail.

Furthermore, the shape, configuration, size, number, material, etc. of each part shown in the above-described embodiment may be modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

As such, the above-disclosed embodiments are illustrative in all respects and are not limiting. The technical scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, and includes all modifications that are equivalent in meaning to and within the scope of the claims.

1 Remote terminal device, 2 Communication unit, 2A First unit, 2B Second unit, 10 Main casing, 10a Installation recess, 11, 11A, 11B Left side wall, 12, 12A, 12B Right side wall, 15a Upper protrusion, 15b Lower protrusion, 16a Upper guide groove, 16b Lower guide groove, 17a First window, 17b Second window, 20, 20A, 20B Front panel, 21 Main surface, 22 Inclined surface, 22a Insertion port, 22b First wall, 22b1 First guide surface, 22bf Front end, 22c Second wall, 22c1 Second guide surface, 22cf Front end, 40 First connection terminal, 41 Exposed surface, 42 Recessed portion, 42a Opening edge, 50 Second connection terminal, 51 Protrusion, 51a sloped surface, 60 wiring board, 100 DIN rail, 200 external connection cable, 201 external connection terminal, 201a claw, 202 cable.

Claims (7)

An electronic device system including a first unit and a second unit that are electrically connected by being assembled so as to be positioned adjacent to each other,
the first unit has a first front wall provided with a socket for an external connection terminal and a first side wall;
the second unit has a second front wall and a second side wall that faces the first side wall in an assembled state in which the second unit is assembled to the first unit,
an outer surface of the first front wall is provided with an inclined surface on which the insertion port is located and which is inclined forward or backward;
a first connection terminal is provided at a predetermined position on the first side wall;
a second connection terminal that is elastically deformable along a normal direction of the second side wall is provided on the second side wall at a position that faces the first connection terminal in the assembled state;
the second connection terminal has a protruding portion at least a part of which protrudes from the second side wall in an unassembled state;
a guide mechanism is provided in the first unit and the second unit, which guides the second unit slidably relative to the first unit along a front-rear direction, thereby enabling the second unit to be assembled to and removed from the first unit;
In the assembled state, at least a portion of the protrusion and the first connection terminal are crimped together, thereby electrically connecting the first connection terminal and the second connection terminal,
the inclined surface is disposed at least at a position corresponding to the first connection terminal in a height direction,
An electronic device system, wherein a first wall portion is provided at the end of the first front wall on the first side wall side in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface in the height direction, the first wall portion protruding forward beyond the inclined surface and having a front end extending linearly along the height direction. The electronic device system of claim 1, wherein the protrusion has a sloped surface that abuts against the front end of the first wall portion when the second unit is assembled to the first unit. The electronic device system described in claim 2, wherein the second connection terminal is configured as a wire-like member extending along the front-rear direction and curved in the normal direction. An electronic device system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a first guide surface having an inclined shape is provided on the surface of the first wall portion facing the socket, for guiding the external connection terminal into the socket when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket. the first unit further has a third side wall located opposite the first side wall,
5. The electronic device system of claim 1, wherein a second wall portion protruding forward beyond the inclined surface is provided at an end of the first front wall on the third side wall side in a portion corresponding to the inclined surface in the height direction. The electronic device system of claim 5, wherein a second guide surface having an inclined shape is provided on the surface of the second wall portion facing the socket, for guiding the external connection terminal into the socket when the external connection terminal is inserted into the socket. 7. The electronic device system according to claim 1, wherein the receptacle is a female RJ-45 connector.