Modular system for housings of electronic components

Abstract

The invention relates to elementary units intended for constructing modular housings for accommodating electronic components. The invention also relates to modular housings for accommodating electronic components, consisting of at least two elementary units according to the invention. Furthermore, the invention relates to modular housing systems consisting of at least two modular housings according to the invention.

Description

The invention relates to elementary units intended for constructing modular housings for accommodating electronic components. The invention also relates to modular housings for accommodating electronic components, consisting of at least two elementary units according to the invention. Furthermore, the invention relates to modular housing systems consisting of at least two modular housings according to the invention. From DE102006033580A1, housings for receiving and embedding (holding) electronic components, e.g., printed circuit boards or other devices for measurement, control and regulation technology, are known. These housings are characterized by the fact that the component can be fixed within the housing as securely as possible. US2015 / 156903 A1 discloses a modular enclosure system designed for housing electronic circuits. This modular enclosure system is characterized by the ability to combine multiple basic enclosure modules, thus providing increased flexibility. From DE3135899A1, connecting elements for the detachable connection of housing parts are known. This allows the length and width of housings to be increased and adapted to the respective application. This is advantageous when additional electrical components need to be installed in the housing. From CN 2 10 986 644 U, modular housings for accommodating electronic components are known, with frame elements made of an aluminum oxide ceramic, which have complementary screw connections in the side walls, through which the individual side elements can be detachably connected by means of screws. From CN 2 07 166 888 U, housings for electronic components are known, which are built from elementary units. These housings are characterized by the fact that the frame components are made up of three different layers, consisting of two conductive layers and a dirt-repellent layer. All known enclosures have in common that they are each constructed from complex individual components. These components each have a unique basic shape to fulfill a specific function. Therefore, individual parts of the enclosures cannot be easily replaced, nor can the enclosures be readily adapted and / or expanded to meet specific requirements. However, this is particularly desirable in the planning and development of electronic products, where prototypes are used during the development phase. Modular enclosure concepts are also sought after in microcontroller technology to build complex electronic devices from electronic components. In this context, it is desirable that the enclosures can be adapted to the specific electronic components used and their function. This leads to the task of providing an enclosure concept that exhibits increased modularity. The enclosure should be individually adaptable to specific requirements. Adapting the enclosure should be quick and easy, allowing for repeated modifications by adding, removing, or rearranging enclosure components. The problem is solved by an elementary unit for constructing modular housings, the housings being designed to accommodate electronic components. The height, width, and depth axes of the elementary unit are each orthogonally aligned with one another. The elementary unit comprises at least one side element extending planarly along the height and width axes, the thickness of which extends along the depth axis. Furthermore, the elementary unit comprises at least one cover device extending planarly along the width and depth axes, the thickness of which extends along the height axis. The side element has at least one first connecting element on at least one first, peripheral side edge.Furthermore, the cover assembly has at least one connecting element complementary to the first connecting element, wherein the side element and the cover assembly are detachably connected via the first connecting element and the connecting element. "Complementary" here means that the first connecting element can be guided into the second connecting element, and that the first and second connecting elements can be brought into contact, so that a force-fit connection exists between the first and second connecting elements. In addition, one of the layers of the cover assembly has several cover elements. These multiple cover elements are arranged side by side with respect to the vertical axis within a layer. According to the invention, the cover device has three layers, each layer consisting of at least one cover element extending planarly along the width and depth axes. Each cover element has at least one second connecting element, which are arranged congruently with each other and together form the connecting device of the cover device. Thus, the connecting device extends over the three layers, with the first connecting element of the side element interacting with the second connecting elements of the cover elements. It is conceivable that the side element of the elementary unit has several first connecting elements at its first peripheral edge, adjacent and spaced apart along the width axis. If the side element has three or more connecting elements at its first peripheral edge, it is preferred, but not limited, that the connecting elements are arranged equidistantly along the width axis. The cover device has connecting devices complementary to the first connecting elements, such that, in the assembled state of the elementary unit, each of these devices is connected to a connecting element of the side element. Preferably, the base bodies of the side elements have a rectangular cross-section with respect to the width and height axes. The first connecting elements extend from this base body of the side elements. However, other shapes for the base bodies of the side elements are also conceivable, such as triangular, circular, L-shaped, or trapezoidal cross-sections, or any other advantageous shape with respect to the width and height axes. Similarly, the base bodies of the cover elements preferably have rectangular cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes. However, it is also conceivable that the base bodies of the cover elements have other shapes, such as triangular, circular, or L-shaped cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes. Cover elements with L-shaped cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes are particularly preferred as corner elements. These cover elements configured as corner elements are preferably connected to a further side element of another elementary unit. Thus, two elementary units can be connected by means of such a cover element configured as a corner element. The second connecting elements are distributed and aligned according to the cross-sectional shape of the cover elements.For example, two connecting elements are located on the two legs of an L-shaped lid element and are aligned at right angles to each other. It is also conceivable that the individual cover elements from the different layers of the cover assembly have different cross-sections, sizes, and numbers of secondary connecting elements. This results in particular from the fact that the individual cover elements of the different layers preferably have different functions. Preferably, the cover elements are chamfered on the top and / or bottom surface. Thus, the cover elements have chamfers between the side surfaces and the top and / or bottom surfaces. The chamfers preferably have an angle of 30° to 60° and particularly preferably 45° to the top or bottom surface. It is conceivable that the chamfers extend over the entire cover elements. Preferably, however, the chamfers extend over the edges that are located on the outside of a modular housing when assembled. Offset chamfers, i.e., chamfers that extend only over a section of an edge, are also conceivable. The chamfers allow for easy gripping of one or more cover elements and thus facilitate the removal of the cover elements from the side elements. The thickness of the side elements and the cover elements is preferably the same. It is also preferred that the cover elements of the different layers are of the same thickness. However, it is also conceivable that the side elements and the cover elements have different thicknesses and / or that the cover elements of the different layers have different thicknesses. Preferably, however, at least the cover elements of one layer are of the same thickness. The thickness of the cover assembly is the sum of the thicknesses of the cover elements of the three layers. Accordingly, the extension of the second connecting element through the cover elements, or the extension of the connecting assembly through the cover assembly, depends on the thickness of the cover elements or the thickness of the cover assembly, respectively. Similarly, the extension of the first connecting element of the side element is adapted to the extension of the connecting assembly. Preferably, the side elements extend flat along the height and width axes, whereas the cover device or the cover elements extend along the width and depth axes. With respect to their respective flat extents, the side elements are thus oriented perpendicular to the cover devices or the cover elements. Preferably, both the first connecting elements of the side elements and the second connecting elements of the cover elements or the connecting device of the cover device extend orthogonally to the width and depth axes. However, embodiments of the side elements and / or cover devices or cover elements are also conceivable, which are not aligned perpendicular to each other with respect to their planar extent. In this case, it is conceivable, for example, that the first connecting elements of the side elements do not extend orthogonally to the width and depth axes, and / or that the second connecting elements of the cover elements or the connecting devices of the cover devices do not extend orthogonally to the planar extent of the cover elements or the cover devices through them. In this way, it is possible that, with respect to their respective planar extents, the side elements are aligned at an angle of, for example, 45° to the cover devices or to the cover elements. However, other angular settings between 0° and 180° are also conceivable. Preferably, adjacent cover elements of the same layer are arranged butt-jointed, meaning that the adjacent cover elements touch at their side surfaces or that there is only a small gap between them. The various cover elements from one layer and / or from different layers can have the same cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes. However, it is preferred that the various cover elements from one layer and / or from different layers have different cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes. The latter is conceivable because the cover elements of the different layers of the cover assembly fulfill different functions. According to one embodiment, the first connecting element is designed as a rectangular tab. The tab extends flat along the vertical and horizontal axes, while its thickness extends along the horizontal axis. The tab is rectangular with respect to the vertical and horizontal axes, with its edges extending parallel to the vertical and horizontal axes, respectively. The thickness of the flap is preferably as great as the thickness of the side element. Thus, the flap can be considered a lateral projection of the side element. However, it is also conceivable that the thickness of the flap is greater or less than the thickness of the side element. Preferably, the tab is also rectangular with respect to the height and depth axes and also with respect to the width and depth axes, wherein the edges of the tab extend parallel to the height and depth axes or parallel to the width and depth axes. However, other cross-sectional shapes of the first connecting elements are also conceivable with respect to the vertical and horizontal axes, the vertical and horizontal axes, and / or the horizontal and horizontal axes. For example, it is conceivable that the first connecting elements are designed as a kind of pin whose cross-sections are circular with respect to the horizontal and horizontal axes, or that the first connecting elements have trapezoidal cross-sections with respect to the horizontal and vertical axes, which could, for example, strengthen the force-fit connection between the first connecting elements and the second connecting elements. As in the previous embodiment, the second connecting elements are preferably designed as recesses in the cover elements. These recesses of the second connecting elements extend along the vertical axis through the entire surface of the cover elements. Along the horizontal and vertical axes, the recesses are complementary to the first connecting elements. Thus, the recesses of the second connecting elements preferably have a rectangular cross-section along the horizontal and vertical axes, provided that the first connecting elements also have such a cross-section. However, other cross-sectional shapes of the second connecting elements with respect to the horizontal and vertical axes are also conceivable. Likewise, the cross-sections of the second connecting elements with respect to the horizontal and vertical axes, as well as with respect to the vertical and vertical axes, are preferably complementary to the corresponding cross-sections of the first connecting elements. Accordingly, the connecting device is also preferably designed as a recess in the cover device, such that the connecting device extends as a recess along the vertical axis through the entire cover device. The recess of the connecting device is complementary to the first connecting element in both its width and depth axes. Thus, the recesses of the second connecting device have a rectangular cross-section along the width and depth axes. According to a further embodiment, the cover elements are arranged layer by layer and over a surface. The individual cover elements from the three layers of the cover assembly are preferably aligned congruently. However, it is also conceivable that the individual cover elements are aligned offset from one another, with the individual cover elements of adjacent layers preferably overlapping, while the second connecting elements remain congruently arranged. An overlap of the individual cover elements from different layers is particularly preferred when the cover elements have different cross-sectional shapes with respect to width and depth. According to a further embodiment, the side element has at least one further first connecting element on a second peripheral side edge. At least one further cover device is connected to this further first connecting element. The second peripheral edge is preferably arranged on the side element opposite the first peripheral edge with respect to the vertical axis. However, it is also conceivable that the second peripheral edge is arranged on a different edge of the side element. For example, the first and second peripheral edges are arranged on two adjacent edges of the side element. It is also conceivable that, in addition to the first and second peripheral edges, further peripheral edges of the side element have additional first connecting elements via which further cover devices are connected to the side element. According to a further embodiment, the side element has at least one recess. This recess extends along the depth axis through the entire side element. The cross-section of the recess with respect to the height and width axes can have various shapes. For example, it can be circular or rectangular. Preferably, the recess is designed as a kind of opening in the side element. In this case, the recess is bounded in all directions with respect to the plane spanned by the height and width axes by material of the side element. However, it is also conceivable that the recess extends to at least one side edge of the side element, so that the recess is not bounded by material of the side edge at this side edge. The cutouts in the side elements can serve various purposes. For example, they can function as ventilation slots or as retaining elements for attaching a housing assembled from the modular units. It is also conceivable that the cutouts could serve as viewing windows or openings for loading and unloading electronic components, such as batteries, or that they could be used to attach connectors, switches, or other electronic components. According to a further embodiment, one position of the cover device is configured as a mounting position. Preferably, the mounting position is the position of the cover device closest to the side element with respect to the vertical axis. At least one cover element of the mounting position has at least one mounting device for attaching and holding a component, preferably an electronic component. Thus, the cover elements of the mounting position ensure that the electronic components are securely held in a housing constructed from elementary units according to the invention. Preferably, a housing for electronic components is provided, constructed from the elementary units according to the invention. These components can be, for example, batteries, microcontrollers, interfaces, displays, circuit boards, and the like. Since the elementary units according to the invention can be easily assembled and disassembled, and can also be easily combined with other elementary units, the modular housings constructed from these modular elementary units can also be easily assembled, disassembled, and expanded. Such modular housings thus also solve the aforementioned problem. Thus, the present invention is directed to a modular housing for accommodating electronic components. The modular housing according to the invention consists of at least two elementary units as described above. The two elementary units are positively connected to each other along the depth and width axes and frictionally connected to each other along the height axis. For this purpose, the two elementary units have at least one common cover element, via which the two elementary units are connected to each other. It is conceivable that a first elementary unit is connected to another elementary unit, with both elementary units being aligned identically with respect to the height and width axes of the first elementary unit. Thus, the side elements of the two connected elementary units form a planar housing wall. It is preferred that the cover element common to both elementary units extends along the width axis, and that the second connecting elements of this common cover element are arranged along the width axis and spaced apart from each other. Thus, at least one first connecting element of each of the two side elements of the two elementary units is connected to a second connecting element of the common cover element. It is also conceivable that a first elementary unit is connected to a second elementary unit, with the height axes of the two elementary units being aligned parallel to each other and the width axes of the two elementary units being aligned orthogonally to each other. The surfaces of the planar side parts of the two elementary units are thus aligned orthogonally to each other. The two elementary units therefore form a right-angled housing edge. It is preferred that the cover element common to both elementary units has an L-shaped cross-section with respect to the width and depth axes. In this case, at least one second connecting element is arranged along each leg of the L-shaped cover element.In this arrangement, at least one first connecting element of one side element is connected to a second connecting element located on one leg of the common cover element, and at least one first connecting element of the other side element is connected to a second connecting element located on the other leg of the common cover element. Thus, cuboid-shaped housings are preferably constructed from the elementary units. However, other housing shapes are also conceivable, in which the side elements of the various elementary units are aligned parallel and / or orthogonally to each other. In further embodiments, it is also conceivable that the side elements of two elementary units form a housing edge that is not perpendicular. For example, the common cover elements that connect at least two elementary units can have a V-shaped cross-section with respect to the width and depth axes, such that the angle between the side elements of the two elementary units is less than 90°. Of course, angles between the side elements that are greater than 90° are also conceivable. In one embodiment of the modular housing, one layer of the cover assembly is configured as a closing layer. This layer is the one of the three layers furthest from the side element along the vertical axis. In the closing layer, at least one cover element is connected to at least two element units, with the cover element closing the modular housing along the vertical axis. The cover element of the closure layer thus extends flatly along the width and depth axes. Preferably, the cover element of the closure layer extends between the unit elements to which it is connected. In one embodiment, the cover element of the closure layer has at least one opening. These openings extend along the vertical axis through the entire cover element. The cross-section of the opening with respect to the width and depth axes can have various shapes, for example, circular or rectangular. Preferably, the opening is bounded in all directions with respect to the plane defined by the depth and width directions by material of the cover element. However, it is also conceivable that the opening extends to at least one side edge of the side element, so that the recess at this side edge is not bounded by material of the side edge. The openings in the lid element of the locking mechanism can serve various purposes. For example, they can function as ventilation slots or as retaining elements for attaching another housing. They can also serve as viewing windows, openings for loading and unloading electronic components such as batteries, or for attaching connectors, switches, or other electronic components. According to a further embodiment, it is conceivable that the cover element of the locking mechanism of a housing has a protrusion with respect to the planar extent of the cover element. This protrusion can, for example, be designed as a complementary counterpart to an opening of a cover element of a locking mechanism of another housing, which is designed as a retaining element. The present invention further relates to a modular housing system. The modular housing system according to the invention consists of at least two modular housings as described above. According to the invention, the modular housings are positively connected to one another along the depth and width axes. For this purpose, the connecting surfaces of the two modular housings have at least one common cover element by which the modular housings are connected. The common cover element preferably has at least two second connecting elements, wherein the common cover element is connected by at least one second connecting element to a first connecting element of an elementary unit of one housing, and by at least one further second connecting element to a first connecting element of an elementary unit of the other housing. Since the modular housing system according to the invention is composed of several modular housings according to the invention and thus also of several elementary units according to the invention, it has the advantage that it can be easily assembled, disassembled and expanded. In each case, one layer of the two modular housings is designed as a connecting layer. These layers are preferably the middle layer of the three layers with respect to the vertical axis. Preferably, the connecting layers are thus located between the closure layers and the mounting layers of the housing lid devices. Along the vertical axis, the modular housings of the housing system are preferably connected by a force-fit connection. This force-fit connection is achieved by the force-fit connection of the common cover element of the two housings. The common cover element is connected to at least one elementary unit of each housing via at least one second connecting element, which in turn is connected to at least one first connecting element of the elementary units of the housings. In the modular housing systems described above, the housings are arranged side by side along the width and / or depth. However, in a further embodiment of a housing system, it is also conceivable that the individual housings are stacked one above the other with respect to the height axis. For this purpose, it is conceivable that at least one cover element of the closing position of one housing has at least one projection extending across the surface of the cover element, and that at least one cover element of the closing position of another housing has at least one opening designed as a retaining element, wherein the projection and the opening are complementary and the housings are connected by means of the opening of the cover element of one housing and the projection of the cover element of the other housing. Further advantages and features of the present invention are explained with reference to the following description of the figures. Similar components may have the same reference numerals in the different embodiments. The figures show the following: Fig. 1a, b a section of the elementary unit according to the invention in a preferred embodiment; Fig. 2 side elements in various embodiments; Fig. 3a, b, c cover elements in various embodiments; Fig. 4 an embodiment of a modular housing according to the invention in a semi-explosive view; Fig. 5 another embodiment of a modular housing according to the invention; Fig. 6 an embodiment of a modular housing system according to the invention. Figures 1a and 1b show sections of an embodiment of the elementary unit 1 according to the invention from different directions. The side element 4 of the elementary unit 1 extends rectangularly along the height axis HA and width axis BA. The thickness of the side element 4 extends along the depth axis TA. The first peripheral edge 5 of the side element 4 is located at the upper end of the side element 4 with respect to the height axis HA. The side element 4 has the first connecting element 6 at this first edge 5, which is designed as a rectangular tab extending from the first edge 5 of the side element 4 along the height axis HA. The first connecting element 6 also extends along the width axis BA, so that the first connecting element 6 is extended across its entire surface along the height and width axes HA and BA.The cross-section of the tab is rectangular with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA, with the side edges of the tab extending parallel to the height and width axes HA and BA, respectively. The cross-section of the tab is also rectangular with respect to the height and depth axes BA and TA. This results in a rectangular cross-section of the tab with respect to the width and depth axes BA and TA as well. As shown in Fig. 1a, b, the elementary unit 1 also has a cover device 13. The cover device 13 in turn has three layers 70, 80 and 90. In layer 70, the cover device 13 has a cover element 7, in layer 80 a cover element 8 and in layer 90 a cover element 9. The thicknesses of the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 each extend along the vertical axis HA. Along the horizontal and vertical axes BA and TA, the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 each extend over a surface area. In Fig. 1a, the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 extend the same distance along the horizontal axis BA as the side element 4 extends along the horizontal axis BA. Thus, the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 terminate in line with the side element 4 with respect to the horizontal axis BA. In further embodiments, at least one of the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 can also project beyond the side element 4. Likewise, in other embodiments, it is conceivable that the side element extends further with respect to the horizontal axis than at least one of the cover elements 7, 8, and 9. With respect to the depth axis TA, the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 extend further than the side element 4 extends along the depth direction TA. The cover elements 7, 8, and 9 project beyond the side element 4 on both sides along the depth axis. As shown in Fig. 1b, the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 project only a short distance to one side (here, the right side) of the side element 4. In the case of a housing, this side represents the outer surface of the housing. The cover elements 7, 8, and 9 also each have chamfers 15 on this side. The chamfers 15 are thus preferably arranged on the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 between the underside and the outer side surface, which corresponds to the right side surface in Fig. 1b. However, it is also conceivable that the chamfers 15 are arranged between the top surface and the outer side surface of the cover elements 7, 8, and 9.Furthermore, it is conceivable that a chamfer 15 adjoins both the top and the bottom surfaces. The chamfers 15 allow for easy separation of the cover elements 7, 8 and / or 9 from the side element 4. On the left side in Fig. 1b, the cover elements 7, 8 and 9 also project beyond the side element 4. However, cover element 9 extends significantly further along the depth axis than cover elements 7 and 8. This is preferred when position 90 of the cover device is configured as the closing position. The cover elements 7, 8, and 9 each have a second connecting element 71, 81, and 91 that is complementary to the first connecting element 6 of the side element 4. These second connecting elements 71, 81, and 91 are designed as recesses in the cover elements 7, 8, and 9, respectively, and extend completely through the cover elements 7, 8, and 9 along the vertical axis HA. The second connecting elements 71, 81, and 91 have rectangular cross-sections with respect to the vertical and horizontal axes HA and BA, the vertical and horizontal axes HA and TA, and the horizontal and horizontal axes TA and BA. The dimensions of the second connecting elements 71, 81, and 91 are such that the first connecting element 6 can be guided through and released from the second connecting elements 71, 81, and 91.The cover elements 7, 8 and 9 are connected to the side element 4 by means of force-fit connections via the second connecting elements 71, 81 and 91 and the first connecting element 6. The second connecting elements 71, 81 and 91 are congruent with respect to the width and depth axes BA and TA and are arranged one above the other along the height axis HA. Thus, the second connecting elements 71, 81 and 91 form the connecting device 14 of the cover device 13. This connecting device 14 therefore extends over the entire cover device 13 with respect to the height axis HA. Fig. 2 shows several embodiments of the side elements 4. On the two peripheral side edges 5 and 10 opposite each other with respect to the vertical axis HA, these side elements 4 each have two or five first connecting elements 6, respectively. The distance 61a between two adjacent first connecting elements 6 of a side element 4 is always the same. This preferably applies to all side elements 4. In the embodiment shown, the width 61b of a first connecting element 6 with respect to the horizontal axis BA is as large as the distance 61a between two first connecting elements 6. The distance 61c between a side edge of the side element 4 and a first connecting element 6 that is arranged closest to this side edge is preferably half the distance 61a between two adjacent first connecting elements 6.This is advantageous when two side elements 4 are arranged next to each other along the width axis BA, since the distance between the first connecting elements 6 that are outer with respect to the two side elements 4 is thus as large as the distance 61 a between two adjacent first connecting elements 6 of a side element 4. Furthermore, side elements 4 are shown in Fig. 2, which have recesses 11a-g. The recesses 11a-g extend through the entire side elements 4 with respect to the depth axis TA. With respect to the height and width axes HA and BA, the recesses 11a-g have different shapes and sizes, according to their function. The recess 11a has the shape of two differently sized, overlapping circles with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA. This shape is particularly suitable for attaching a modular housing 2 to, for example, a wall by means of screws or hooks. The recess 11b has a circular shape with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA. This recess is particularly suitable, for example, for routing cables through the side element 4. The recess 11c also has a circular shape with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA. Several of these recesses 11c are arranged next to each other, making this arrangement particularly suitable for ventilating the interior of a modular housing 2. The recess 11d has a rectangular shape with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA, which is suitable as a viewing window or as an opening for loading and unloading electronic components into a modular housing 2. In addition, such recesses 11c can be used to accommodate a display or other electronic components. The recess 11e has a rectangular shape with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA, which resembles the shape of a second connecting element 71, 81 or 91. Such recesses 11e can be used, for example, to attach further housing components inside the modular housing 2. The recess 11f has a rectangular shape with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA, on which, for example, a plug connection or a socket can be arranged. In addition, the side element 4 has further circular recesses next to recess 11f, to which the socket can be attached by means of a screw connection. The recess 11 g extends with respect to the height and width axes HA and BA to a side surface of the side element 4, so that at this point no material of the side element 4 limits the recess 11 g. Furthermore, one of the side elements 2 shown in Fig. 2 has four protrusions 16. These protrude along the depth axis from the flat side of the side element 4. For example, such protrusions 16 can have through holes along the depth axis, making them suitable for attaching other objects, such as circuit boards or microcontrollers, to the modular housing. Figures 3a-c show embodiments of the cover elements 7, 8, and 9. The embodiments shown in Figure 3a are suitable as cover elements 9 of position 90, particularly when position 90 is designed as a closure position. The cover elements 9 each have three secondary connecting elements 91 near the two side edges opposite each other with respect to the depth axis TA. The connecting elements 91 are arranged equidistantly along the width axis BA. The distance 92a between two adjacent second connecting elements 91 of a cover element 9 along the width axis BA is therefore always the same. The distance 92a preferably corresponds to the distance 61a between two adjacent first connecting elements 6 of a side element 4. The distance 92c between a side edge of the cover element 92 and a second connecting element 91 that is located closest to this side edge is preferably half the distance 92a between two adjacent second connecting elements 91. This is advantageous when two cover elements 9 are arranged next to each other along the width axis BA, since the distance between the outermost second connecting elements 91 with respect to the two cover elements 9 is then the same as the distance 92a between two adjacent second connecting elements 91 of a cover element 9. The cover elements 9 in Fig. 3a also have chamfers 15 on the side edges where the connecting elements 91 are arranged. Due to the arrangement of the second connecting elements on opposite sides and the wide extension of the cover elements 9 in the depth axis TA, such cover elements 9 are particularly suitable for closing a modular housing 2. As shown in Fig. 3a, the cover elements 9 can also have openings 17a and 17b. These can serve, for example, for ventilation (17b) or as viewing windows (17a), or for cable routing, e.g., for connectors on a circuit board. The cover elements 8a-e shown in Fig. 3b are particularly suitable for position 80. Cover element 8a represents the simplest embodiment, having a second connecting element 81. Cover element 8b has two connecting elements 81, which are spaced apart from each other along the width axis BA. Accordingly, cover element 8b extends further along width axis BA than cover element 8a. The distance 82a between two adjacent second connecting elements 81 of a cover element 8 along the width axis BA is the same for all cover elements 8. This distance 82a preferably corresponds to the distance 61a between two adjacent first connecting elements 6 of a side element 4. The distance 82c between a side edge of the cover element 82 and a second connecting element 81 located closest to this side edge is preferably half the distance 82a between two adjacent second connecting elements 81. This is advantageous when two cover elements 8 are arranged adjacent to one another along the width axis BA, since the distance between the outermost second connecting elements 81 with respect to the two cover elements 8 is then the same as the distance 82a between two adjacent second connecting elements 81 of a cover element 8. The cover elements 8c, d shown in Fig. 3b are particularly suitable as corner elements. They have L-shaped cross-sections with respect to the width and depth axes. In the case of cover element 8d, a second connecting element 81a and 81b is arranged on each leg of the L-shaped cross-section. The connecting element 81b is rotated by 90° about the height axis HA. The cover element 8e has two pairs of second connecting elements 81c and 81d. The second connecting elements 81c are arranged along the width axis BA. The second connecting elements 81d are also arranged along the width axis BA, but are spaced parallel to the second connecting elements 81c with respect to the depth axis TA. Such a cover element 8e is particularly suitable for connecting two modular housings 2 to form a modular housing system 3. The second connecting elements 81c are connected to first connecting elements 6 of one modular housing 2, and the second connecting elements 81d are connected to first connecting elements 6 of the other modular housing 2. The cover elements 7a-d shown in Fig. 3c are particularly suitable for position 70. Cover element 7a represents the simplest embodiment, having a second connecting element 71. Cover elements 7b, c are comparable to cover elements 8c, d. Likewise, in Fig. 3c, the distances between two adjacent connecting elements 71 and their orientations are comparable to connecting elements 81a, b. The cover elements 7c, d also have retaining devices 12a, b to which electrical components can be attached. In the illustrated embodiments, these are perforations suitable and intended for the attachment of the electronic components to the cover elements 7c, d by means of screw or plug connections. Figures 4 and 5 show modular housings 2, which are composed of several elementary units 1. Some of the elementary units 1 used for this purpose have been described previously. Some of these are also elementary units 1 that represent simple extensions of the previously described elementary units 1. Fig. 6 shows a modular housing system 3, which is composed of two modular housings 2. The modular housings 2 are in turn composed of elementary units 1. The two housings 2 are connected to each other at least via the two cover elements 8 of the connection layer 80. Reference symbol list 1 Elementary unit 2 Modular housing 3 Modular housing system 4 Side element 5 First peripheral side edge 6 First connecting element 61 a Distance between two adjacent first connecting elements of a side element 61 b ​​Width of a first connecting element with respect to the width axis 61 c Distance of a first connecting element to the side edge of a side element 7 Cover element 70 Position (mounting position) 71 Second connecting element 72 a Distance between two adjacent second connecting elements of a cover element 72 b Width of a second connecting element with respect to the width axis 72 c Distance of a second connecting element to the side edge of a cover element 8, 8 ae Cover element 80 Position (connection position) 81,81 ad second connecting element 82 a Distance between two adjacent second connecting elements of a cover element 82 b Width of a second connecting element with respect to the width axis 82 c Distance of a second connecting element to the side edge of a cover element 9 Cover element 90 Position (closing position) 91 second connecting element 92 a Distance between two adjacent second connecting elements of a cover element 92 b Width of a second connecting element with respect to the width axis 92 c Distance of a second connecting element to the side edge of a cover element 10 Second peripheral side edge 11, 11 ag Recess 12 Holding device 13 Cover device 14 Connecting device 15 Chamfer 16 Raising 17 a,b Opening BA Width axis HA Height axis TA Depth axis,

Claims

Elementary unit (1) for constructing modular housings (2) for receiving electronic components, the height (HA), width (BA) and depth (TA) axes of which are orthogonally aligned to each other, comprising at least a. a side element (4) extending planarly along the height (HA) and width (BA) axes, the thickness of which extends along the depth (TA) axis, and b. a cover device (13) extending planarly along the width (BA) and depth (TA) axes, the thickness of which extends along the height (HA) axis, wherein the side element (4) has at least a first connecting element (6) on at least a first peripheral side edge (5) and the cover device (13) has at least one connecting device (14) complementary to the first connecting element (6), wherein the side element (4) and the cover device (13) are detachably connected via the first connecting element (6) and the connecting device (14), characterized in thatthat the cover device (13) has three layers (70, 80, 90), each layer (70, 80, 90) in turn consisting of at least one cover element (7, 8, 9) extending planarly along the width (BA) and depth (TA) axes, and the cover elements (7, 8, 9) each have at least one second connecting element (71, 81, 91) which are arranged congruently with each other and together form the connecting device (14), such that the connecting device (14) extends over the three layers (70, 80, 90), and the first connecting element (6) interacts with the second connecting elements (71, 81, 91), wherein at least one of the layers (70, 80, 90) has several cover elements (7, 8, 9), the several cover elements (7, 8, 9) being arranged with respect to the height axis (HA) within a layer (70, 80, 90) are arranged next to each other. Elementary unit (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the first connecting element (6) is designed as a rectangular tab which extends along the height (HA) and width (BA) axes and whose thickness extends along the depth axis (TA), and the second connecting elements (71, 81, 91) are designed as recesses in the cover elements (7, 8, 9) which extend along the height axis (HA) through the entire cover elements (7, 8, 9) and extend in the width (BA) and depth (TA) axes complementary to the first connecting element (6), so that the connecting device (14) is designed as a recess in the cover device (13) which extends along the height axis (HA) through the entire cover device and extends in the width (BA) and depth (TA) axes complementary to the first connecting element (6). Elementary unit (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the lid elements (7, 8, 9) are arranged layer by layer and planarly on top of each other. Elementary unit (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the side element (4) has at least one further first connecting element (6) on a second peripheral side edge (10), to which at least one further cover device (13) is connected. Elementary unit (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the side element (4) has at least one recess (11), wherein the recess (11) extends along the depth axis (TA) through the entire side element (4). Elementary unit (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the position (70) is designed as a support position (70), wherein at least one cover element (7) of the support position (70) has at least one holding device (12) for fastening and holding a component. Modular housing (2) for receiving electronic components, consisting of at least two elementary units (1) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the elementary units (1) are positively connected to each other along the depth (TA) and width (BA) axes and force-fit connected to each other along the height (HA) axis, wherein the two elementary units (1) have at least one common cover element (7, 8, 9) and are connected to each other via the common cover element (7, 8, 9). Modular housing (2) according to the previous claim, characterized in that the position (90) is designed as a closure position (90), wherein at least one cover element (9) of the closure position (90) is connected to at least two elemental units, wherein the cover element (9) closes the modular housing (2) along the height axis (HA). Modular housing system (3) comprising at least two modular housings (2) according to one of claims 8-9, characterized in that the layers (80) of the two modular housings (2) are designed as connecting layers (80), wherein the connecting layers (80) of the two modular housings (2) have at least one common cover element (8) which connects the modular housings (2) to each other in a form-fitting manner along the depth (TA) and width (BA) axis.

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