Controller

Abstract

The utility model provides a controller. The controller comprises a shell, a circuit board and a waterproof part. The shell is provided with a top wall, a bottom wall and a plurality of side walls, the top wall and the bottom wall are oppositely arranged, the side walls are located between the top wall and the bottom wall, and an inserting area is formed on at least one of the side walls. The circuit board is arranged in the shell, and at least one connector is arranged on the side edge of the circuit board; the at least one connector comprises a combination hub arranged on the circuit board, an accommodating cavity formed in the combination hub, and a conductive terminal arranged in the accommodating cavity in an extending manner; wherein the conductive terminal is electrically connected with the circuit board, and a plugging port is formed at the tail end of the combination hub and located in the plugging area of the shell. The waterproof piece comprises a body and a cover plate connected with the body in a pivoted mode. The body is arranged in the plugging area of the shell in a closed mode, and the body is provided with an opening corresponding to the plugging port of the at least one connector. A plug is arranged on the cover plate in a protruding mode, the plug can be contained in the containing cavity of the at least one connector, and a terminal groove for containing the conductive terminal is formed in the plug. Through the structure, the waterproof and splash-proof capability of the controller can be effectively improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a controller, in particular to a waterproof mechanism of a gateway controller. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the development of Internet of Things technology, today's home appliances can communicate wirelessly with the user's terminal device, such as a mobile phone, and thus the user can control the home appliances or query the running status of the appliances through the user terminal without the help of a dedicated remote controller. The gateway controller is a device that can enable networking between different home appliances within the home and interconnection between the home internal network and the external network. The gateway controller is usually provided with multiple jacks for power supply and communication, so it needs to have certain splash-proof and waterproof capabilities, such as meeting the IPX4 waterproof level. However, the existing gateway controller usually does not have a waterproof mechanism, so it may not meet the corresponding waterproof requirements. SUMMARY

[0003] To overcome the problems in the related art, the present disclosure provides a controller with better splash-proof and waterproof capabilities.

[0004] The present disclosure provides a controller, which includes a housing, a circuit board, and a waterproof member. The housing has a top wall and a bottom wall arranged oppositely, and a plurality of side walls between the top wall and the bottom wall, wherein a plug-in area is formed on at least one of the plurality of side walls. The circuit board is arranged in the housing, and at least one connector is arranged on the side edge of the circuit board; the at least one connector includes a connector socket arranged on the circuit board, a receiving cavity formed in the connector socket, and a conductive terminal extending into the receiving cavity; wherein the conductive terminal is electrically connected to the circuit board, the connector socket has a connector port formed at the end thereof, and the connector port is located in the plug-in area of the housing. The waterproof member includes a body and a cover plate pivotally connected to the body; the body is arranged in the plug-in area of the housing, and the body is provided with an opening corresponding to the connector port of the at least one connector.

[0005] In some embodiments, the conductive terminal has a plurality of conductive terminals; the plug has one plug, and the terminal slot of the plug accommodates a plurality of conductive terminals.

[0006] In some embodiments, the at least one connector further includes a partition plate arranged in the receiving cavity, the plurality of conductive terminals are arranged on the partition plate, and the terminal slot of the plug further accommodates the partition plate.

[0007] In some embodiments, the conductive terminal has a plurality of conductive terminals, and the plug also has a plurality of plugs; the terminal slots of the plurality of plugs one-to-one correspond to the plurality of conductive terminals.

[0008] In some embodiments, the plug is fully accommodated in the accommodation cavity of the at least one connector.

[0009] In some embodiments, the body of the waterproof member is snap-fitted to the insertion area of the housing.

[0010] In some embodiments, the top and the side of the body of the waterproof member are recessed to form a snap groove; the top and the side of the insertion area of the housing are protruded to form a snap block which is accommodated in the snap groove.

[0011] In some embodiments, the body of the waterproof member is provided with a special-shaped protruding key vertically extending downward from the top thereof; the top of the insertion area of the housing is provided with a special-shaped groove vertically extending downward and matched with the special-shaped protruding key.

[0012] In some embodiments, the bottom of the body of the waterproof member is provided with a protruding rib extending horizontally and a plurality of recesses distributed horizontally; the bottom of the insertion area of the housing is provided with a baffle extending horizontally and matched with the protruding rib longitudinally, and a plurality of protruding blocks protruding from the top of the baffle and accommodated in the plurality of recesses correspondingly.

[0013] In some embodiments, the housing comprises an upper cover and a lower cover which are snap-fitted; the top wall is formed on the top of the upper cover, and the bottom wall is formed on the bottom of the lower cover.

[0014] The technical scheme provided by one or more embodiments of the present disclosure can have the following beneficial effects: the insertion area of the housing is closed by the body of the waterproof member, the connector port of the connector is covered by the cover plate of the waterproof member, and the plug of the cover plate extends into the accommodation cavity and the terminal groove of the plug accommodates the conductive terminal, so that the controller can be effectively prevented from being in contact with water during electrification in the insertion area, thereby improving the waterproof and splash-proof capability of the controller. In addition, in some embodiments, the plug of the cover plate can be fully accommodated in the accommodation cavity of the connector, thereby further improving the waterproof and splash-proof capability of the controller. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0015] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical scheme in the embodiments of the present disclosure or the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present disclosure, and other drawings can be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort on the basis of these drawings.

[0016] Figure 1 is a perspective view of a controller in an embodiment of the present disclosure, wherein the insertion area is closed by a waterproof member;

[0017] Figure 2 is Figure 1A perspective schematic diagram of the controller from another perspective is shown, wherein the plug-in area is not enclosed by the waterproof member;

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 1 A three-dimensional exploded schematic diagram of the controller shown;

[0019] Figure 4 yes Figure 3 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of the waterproof part of the controller shown in another perspective;

[0020] Figure 5 yes Figure 3 A perspective schematic diagram of the waterproof component of the controller shown in another perspective;

[0021] Figure 6 and Figure 3 A three-dimensional schematic diagram of the upper cover of the controller shown in another perspective;

[0022] Figure 7 yes Figure 1 The controller is shown in a longitudinal cross-sectional view. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The following will describe in detail the various embodiments shown in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, these embodiments do not represent all embodiments consistent with the present disclosure, and any structural, methodological, or functional modifications made by those skilled in the art based on these embodiments are included within the scope of protection requested by the appended claims.

[0024] The following description will be made using a gateway controller as an example, but those skilled in the art can also apply the technology disclosed in this disclosure to other types of controllers with sockets. Figures 1 to 3 In one embodiment of the present disclosure shown, the controller 100 includes a housing having a top wall and a bottom wall that are arranged opposite to each other, and a plurality of side walls located between the top wall and the bottom wall, wherein a plug-in area is formed on at least one of the plurality of side walls. In some embodiments, the housing can be made of plastic and generally have a horizontally elongated rectangular parallelepiped shape, which includes an upper cover 10 and a lower cover 20 that can be connected by fastening members, such as hooks 15 and 16. The top wall 11 is formed on the top of the upper cover 10, and the bottom wall 23 is formed on the bottom of the lower cover 20; a notch 121 is formed on the front side wall 12 of the upper cover 10, and after the upper cover 10 and the lower cover 20 are fastened together, the notch 121 defines the above-mentioned plug-in area.

[0025] A circuit board 40 is fixedly arranged in the shell. At least one connector is arranged on the lateral edge of the circuit board 40. The at least one connector comprises a connector socket arranged on the circuit board, a receiving cavity formed in the connector socket, and a conductive terminal extending into the receiving cavity. The conductive terminal is electrically connected to the circuit board, and the connector socket has a connector port formed at the end thereof, which is located in the plug-in area of the shell. As shown in Figure 2 and Figure 3 , four connectors are arranged along the lateral direction of the circuit board. In some embodiments, as shown in the connector 42, a plurality of conductive terminals 421 are arranged in the receiving cavity 422 of the connector 42; preferably, a partition is arranged in the receiving cavity, and the plurality of conductive terminals are arranged on the partition. In other embodiments, as shown in the connector 44, a plurality of conductive terminals 441 are arranged in the corresponding receiving cavities 442.

[0026] As shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 , the controller 100 further comprises a waterproof member 30, which comprises a body 31 and a cover plate pivotally connected to the body 31. In some embodiments, the waterproof member can be made of synthetic rubber, such as thermoplastic elastomer (TPE). The body is arranged to close the plug-in area of the shell, and the body has openings corresponding to the connector ports of the at least one connector. In some embodiments, the body 31 can be snap-fitted in the plug-in area of the shell, and after being mounted on the shell, the body closes the plug-in area, thereby achieving waterproof and splash-proof of the plug-in area; the body 31 has four openings corresponding to the connector ports of the four connectors, such as the opening 313 corresponding to the connector port of the connector 42. The top of the body 31 is recessed to form a clamping groove, such as the long and narrow grooves 315 and 317, and similarly, the side of the body 31 is also recessed to form a clamping groove, such as the groove 314. As shown in Figure 6As shown, the upper cover 10 of the shell, the top and the side of the shell in the plug-in area are respectively provided with the clamping blocks 131, 133 and 134 which can be correspondingly accommodated in the clamping slots 314, 315 and 317. Thus, the body 31 and the upper cover 10 are reliably connected through the cooperation of the clamping slots of the body and the clamping blocks of the upper cover. In some embodiments, the body 31 is further provided with special-shaped keys extending vertically downward from the top of the body, such as the T-shaped key 316 and the L-shaped key 318; correspondingly, the upper cover 10 of the shell, the top of the shell in the plug-in area is provided with special-shaped slots extending vertically downward, such as the T-shaped slot 1321 formed between the pair of protruding columns 132 and the L-shaped slot formed on the outer edge of the L-shaped protruding column 135, which cooperates with the special-shaped keys. Thus, the cooperation of the special-shaped keys and the special-shaped slots avoids the displacement between the body 31 and the upper cover 10, thereby ensuring more reliable fixation between the two. Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the bottom 311 of the body 31 is provided with protruding ribs 312 extending transversely and a plurality of grooves 3111 distributed along the transverse direction; correspondingly, the bottom of the lower cover 20 of the shell in the plug-in area is provided with a baffle 21 extending transversely and longitudinally cooperating with the protruding ribs 312, and a plurality of protruding blocks 22 protruding from the top of the baffle 21 and correspondingly accommodated in the plurality of grooves 3111. Through the above structure, the body 31 and the lower cover 20 are reliably connected.

[0027] The cover plate is provided with a plug which can be accommodated in the accommodation cavity of the at least one connector, and the plug is provided with a terminal slot for accommodating the conductive terminals. For reference, see Figure 1 , Figure 2 , and Figure 7 As shown, in some embodiments, the cover plate corresponds to four connectors, respectively labeled as 32, 33, 34 and 35; the cover plate is integrally connected with the body and can be pivoted relative to the connection between the two. In some embodiments, such as the cover plate labeled as 32 corresponding to the connector 42, it has a plug 321; when the cover plate 32 is covered to the connector port of the connector 42, the plug 321 extends into the accommodation cavity 422 of the connector 42, at the same time, the terminal slot 322 of the plug accommodates a plurality of conductive terminals 421 of the connector 42 and the partition plate carrying a plurality of conductive terminals 421. In other embodiments, such as the cover plate labeled as 34 corresponding to the connector 44, it has a plurality of plugs 341 corresponding to a plurality of accommodation cavities 442 of the connector 44; when the cover plate 34 is covered to the connector port of the connector 44, the plugs 341 extend into the accommodation cavities 442 of the connector 44, at the same time, the terminal slots 3411 of the plurality of plugs one-to-one correspond to accommodate a plurality of conductive terminals 441 of the connector 44.

[0028] The plug-in area of the controller is effectively prevented from contacting water during electrification, thereby improving the waterproof and splash-proof capabilities of the controller. In some embodiments, the plug of the cover plate is fully received in the receiving cavity of the connector, thereby further improving the waterproof and splash-proof capabilities of the controller.

[0029] In the description of the above embodiments of the present disclosure, the orientations or positional relationships indicated by "longitudinal", "lateral", "vertical", "radial", "circumferential", "horizontal", "length", "width", "thickness", "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "front", "back", and the like are based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are merely for the convenience of description and simplification of description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present disclosure. In the above description, the meaning of "several", "a plurality of" and the like similar terms is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited.

[0030] In the above disclosure, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "abutting", "connecting", "connecting", "fixing" and the like should be broadly understood, for example, it can be fixedly connected, or it can be detachably connected, or it can be integrated; it can be directly connected, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium; it can be the internal communication of two elements or the interaction relationship between two elements, unless otherwise explicitly limited. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present disclosure can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0031] In the above disclosure, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the first feature "on" or "under" the second feature can be that the first feature directly contacts the second feature, or the first and second features indirectly contact through an intermediate medium. In addition, the first feature "above", "above", "above" the second feature can be that the first feature is directly above or obliquely above the second feature, or only indicates that the horizontal height of the first feature is higher than that of the second feature. The first feature "below", "below", "below" the second feature can be that the first feature is directly below or obliquely below the second feature, or only indicates that the horizontal height of the first feature is less than that of the second feature.

[0032] It should be understood that although the present specification is described in terms of embodiments, not every embodiment contains only one independent technical solution, and the description manner of the specification is only for the sake of clarity, those skilled in the art should consider the specification as a whole, and the technical solutions in each embodiment can be appropriately combined to form other embodiments that those skilled in the art can understand.

Claims

1. A controller characterized by: The controller comprises A housing having oppositely arranged top and bottom walls and a plurality of side walls between the top and bottom walls, wherein a plug-in area is formed on at least one of the plurality of side walls; A circuit board arranged in the housing, at least one connector being arranged on a side edge of the circuit board; the at least one connector comprises a connector socket arranged on the circuit board, a receiving cavity formed in the connector socket, and a conductive terminal extending into the receiving cavity; wherein the conductive terminal is electrically connected to the circuit board, the connector socket has a connector port formed at an end thereof, and the connector port is located in the plug-in area of the housing; A waterproof member comprising a body and a cover pivotally connected to the body; the body is arranged to close the plug-in area of the housing, and the body has an opening corresponding to the connector port of the at least one connector; the cover has a plug protruding therefrom, the plug is arranged to be received in the receiving cavity of the at least one connector, and the plug has a terminal slot arranged to receive the conductive terminal.

2. The controller of claim 1, wherein: The conductive terminal has a plurality of terminals; the plug has one terminal slot arranged to receive the plurality of terminals.

3. The controller of claim 2, wherein: The at least one connector further comprises a partition plate arranged in the receiving cavity, the plurality of conductive terminals are arranged on the partition plate, and the terminal slot of the plug further receives the partition plate.

4. The controller of claim 1, wherein: The conductive terminal has a plurality of terminals, and the plug has a plurality of terminal slots corresponding to the plurality of terminals.

5. The controller of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein: The plug is fully received in the receiving cavity of the at least one connector.

6. The controller of claim 1, wherein: The body of the waterproof member is clamped in the plug-in area of the housing.

7. The controller of claim 6, wherein: The top and side portions of the body of the waterproof member are recessed to form clamping grooves; the top and side portions of the housing located in the plug-in area are protruded to form clamping blocks arranged to be received in the clamping grooves.

8. The controller of claim 6, wherein: The body of the waterproof member has a special-shaped protruding key extending vertically downward from the top portion thereof; the top portion of the housing located in the plug-in area has a special-shaped groove extending vertically downward and arranged to cooperate with the special-shaped protruding key.

9. The controller of claim 6, 7, or 8, wherein: The bottom portion of the body of the waterproof member has a protruding rib extending horizontally and a plurality of recesses arranged to extend horizontally; the bottom portion of the housing located in the plug-in area has a blocking plate extending horizontally and arranged to longitudinally cooperate with the protruding rib, and a plurality of protruding blocks arranged to be received in the plurality of recesses.

10. The controller of claim 1, wherein: The housing comprises an upper cover and a lower cover connected by clamping; the top wall is formed on the top portion of the upper cover, and the bottom wall is formed on the bottom portion of the lower cover.

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