Case and watch

Abstract

To provide a case which facilitates replacement of an exterior member and from which the exterior member hardly comes off, and a watch having the same.SOLUTION: A case includes: an instrument case 4; and an exterior member 5 which is attached in a state of covering the upper periphery of the instrument case 4. The instrument case 4 has a locking part 21 on the outer peripheral part. The exterior member 5 includes an engagement part 23 which is engaged with the locking part 21 in a state of being attached to the instrument case 4 and prevents coming-off from the instrument case 4 on the outer peripheral part. A support area supporting the engagement part 23 in the outer peripheral part 5b of the exterior member 5 is formed by a material that has smaller rigidity than an area adjacent to the support area in the outer peripheral part 5b. The exterior member 5 can be easily attached to and removed from the instrument case 4 by elastically deforming only the support area and at the same time, coming-off of the exterior member from the instrument case 4 can be surely prevented by making other general parts of the outer peripheral part rigid.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a case for use in an electronic device such as a wristwatch, and to a timepiece equipped with the case. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, in the field of wristwatches, there are known structures in which an exterior member is replaceably attached to a case, as described in Patent Document 1. In this case, the exterior member is structured to include a decorative portion that is decorated, and a fitting portion that is provided on the periphery of the decorative portion and is disposed on the circumferential surface of the case. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-4869 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, in such watches, the decorative part of the exterior part is placed on the top surface of the case and the fitting part of the exterior part is fitted into the peripheral surface of the case to attach the exterior part to the case. Therefore, if the exterior part does not fit into the case too loosely, the exterior part will easily come off the case, and if the exterior part does not fit into the case too tightly, the case will be damaged.

[0005] The problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a case in which the exterior member is easy to replace and in which the exterior member is difficult to remove, and a timepiece equipped with the case. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The case of the present invention comprises an equipment case and an exterior member attached to cover the upper outer periphery of the equipment case, the equipment case having an engagement portion on the outer periphery, the exterior member having an engagement portion on the outer periphery that engages with the engagement portion when attached to the equipment case and prevents the exterior member from coming off the equipment case, and a support region on the outer periphery of the exterior member that supports the engagement portion is formed from a material having a lower hardness than a region adjacent to the support region on the outer periphery. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, the exterior member can be easily replaced and the exterior member can be prevented from coming off. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an embodiment of a wristwatch to which the present invention is applied. [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view showing the wristwatch shown in FIG. 1 with the exterior member removed. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a front view of the wristwatch shown in FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a left side view of the wristwatch shown in FIG. [Diagram 5] 2 is a cross-sectional view of the wristwatch shown in FIG. 1 taken along the line AA. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing a main part of FIG. 5. [Figure 7] 6A is a partial cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. 5, and FIG. 6B is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the relationship between the fixed exterior member shown in FIG. 6A and an engagement portion of the exterior member. [Figure 8] FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing an engagement portion and a support region of the exterior member. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] An embodiment of a wristwatch to which this invention is applied will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 9. Note that the following embodiment is subject to various technically preferable limitations for carrying out the present invention, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment and illustrated examples. As shown in Fig. 1, this wristwatch has a wristwatch case 1. On the outer periphery of this wristwatch case 1, at the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock sides, there are provided band attachment parts 2 to which a watch band 51 is attached.

[0010] 1 to 4, push button switches 3 are provided on the outer periphery of wristwatch case 1 at the 2 o'clock, 4 o'clock, 8 o'clock, and 10 o'clock sides. Each push button switch 3 is a switch for selecting and executing various functions such as a time correction function and a display function. Each push button switch 3 protrudes from the outer periphery of wristwatch case 1.

[0011] Meanwhile, this wristwatch case 1 comprises a device case 4 provided with the aforementioned push button switch 3, and an exterior member 5 which is attached to the top of the device case 4 in a manner covering the top surface and upper outer periphery and which can be removed as required, as shown in Fig. 2. Additionally, locking portions 21, which will be described later, for locking the exterior member 5 are provided at two locations on the outer periphery 5b of the device case 4, located on the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock sides.

[0012] As shown in Fig. 5, the device case 4 has a case body 6 whose interior is open in the vertical direction. The case body 6 is made of a metal such as stainless steel, and the above-mentioned push button switches 3 are inserted from the outside into through holes (not shown) provided in the case body 6. Each push button switch 3 is prevented from falling out of the case body 6, and is biased by a spring member or an elastic member such as urethane provided in the through hole toward a position where the operating head protrudes from the outer circumferential surface of the wristwatch case 1.

[0013] A crystal 7 is fitted into the opening at the top of the case body 6, and a back cover 8 that closes the opening on the lower side is attached to the lower part of the case body 6 by a number of screws (not shown) via a waterproof packing 9. A watch module 10 is housed inside the case body 6 closed by the crystal 7 and the back cover 8.

[0014] Although not shown, clock module 10 is equipped with various parts necessary to realize clock functions, such as a clock movement that moves hands to indicate the time, a display unit that electro-optically displays information such as the time, and a circuit unit that electrically controls and drives these. The circuit unit of clock module 10 includes switch circuits that are mechanically turned on and off when each operation switch 3 is pressed.

[0015] A rear cover 12 is fitted onto the lower part of the case body 6 with multiple screws 13. The rear cover 12 covers the back cover 8 and also covers approximately 1 / 3 of the outer periphery of the case body 6 in the thickness direction, with the push button switches 3 exposed.

[0016] A fixed exterior member 14 is attached to the upper side of the case body 6 via a ring-shaped buffer member 15. The fixed exterior member 14 covers the entire circumference of the clock glass 7 from the upper side of the outer circumferential surface of the case body 6. A plurality of cutout portions 14a are provided on the outer periphery of the fixed exterior member 14 that covers the outer circumferential surface of the case body 6, and each push button switch 3 protruding from the case body 6 is accommodated from below when the fixed exterior member 14 is attached to the case body 6. The back cover 12 and the fixed exterior member 14 are formed of a hard synthetic resin. The fixed exterior member 14 is fixed to the case body 6 via the buffer member 15, and is configured to reduce the impact applied to the case body 6 when the device case 4 receives an impact from the outside.

[0017] 1 to 5 and 7, on the outer periphery of the 12 o'clock side and 6 o'clock side of the case body 6, a band support member 16 that protrudes from the case body 6 in a curved downward state toward the 12 o'clock side or the 6 o'clock side, respectively, and supports the watch band 51 attached to each band attachment part 2 from the back side, and an attachment cover 17 that covers the upper surface of the base end side of the band support member 16 are attached by screws 18 from both sides in the width direction of each band attachment part 2. Also, the fixed exterior member 14 is fixed to the case body 6 together with the band support member 16 and the attachment cover 17 by the multiple screws 18.

[0018] Here, as described above, the locking portions 21 are provided at two positions on the 3 o'clock side and the 9 o'clock side on the outer periphery of the device case 4. As shown in FIG. 6, the locking portions 21 are recesses with a rectangular opening shape on the outer periphery of the device case 4, which are formed by a notched groove provided on the outer periphery of the fixed exterior member 14 and a recess provided on the outer periphery of the case body 6 opposite to the notched groove. The lower surface 21a of the locking portion 21 formed by the case body 6 is inclined so that the opening area of ​​the locking portion 21 gradually increases from the back side toward the outer periphery of the case body 6. Meanwhile, the outer periphery of the back cover 12 covering the lower side of the case body 6 is provided with semicircular notched recesses 12a that open upward at positions corresponding to the locking portions 21. In addition, the back cover 12 is formed with a protrusion 12b on the inner periphery of the notched recess 12a, which forms an inclined surface that is inclined so as to continue to the lower surface 21a of the locking portion 21.

[0019] On the other hand, an exterior member 5 is attached to the upper part of the device case 4 in a state of covering the entire outer surface of the fixed exterior member 14. The exterior member 5 includes an upper part 5a arranged on the upper surface of the fixed exterior member 14, an outer circumferential part 5b arranged on the outer circumferential surface around the upper surface of the fixed exterior member 14, and a cover part 5c arranged on the upper surface of the mounting cover 17, as shown in Figs.

[0020] The outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5 is provided with a plurality of cutout portions 20 into which the push button switches 3 protruding from the device case 4 are accommodated from below when the exterior member 5 is attached to the device case 4. Attachment operation portions 22 that cover the locking portions 21 of the device case 4 are formed on the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock sides of the exterior member 5. The surface of each attachment operation portion 22 protrudes in a band shape from the surface of the other general portions of the outer circumferential portion 5b.

[0021] 2 and 6 to 9, the inner surface of the exterior member 5 is formed with engagement portions 23 that protrude inward from the rear surface of each mounting operation portion 22 at a substantially right angle and fit into each locking portion 21 of the device case 4. Details of the engagement portions 23 will now be described with reference to Fig. 9. The engagement portions 23 are hollow convex portions that open in the protruding direction and downward, and the cross section of the entire engagement portion 23 in the up-down direction has a U-shape that is open on the lower side and the tip side.

[0022] The lower surface 23a of the engaging portion 23 is inclined upward from the base end side of the engaging portion 23, and the engaging portion 23 is formed so that the thickness in the vertical direction decreases from the base end side to the tip end side. Also, the upper surface 23b of the engaging portion 23 has an upper surface side protrusion 24 with a semicircular cross section extending from the base end to the tip end formed at the center position in the width direction. Furthermore, on both left and right side surfaces 23c, 23c of the engaging portion, side surface side protrusions 25 are formed which extend from the base end to the tip end in parallel with the upper surface side protrusion 24, have a semicircular cross section like the upper surface side protrusion 24, and are thinner than the upper surface side protrusion 24.

[0023] On the other hand, the exterior member 5 is integrally formed with the above-mentioned parts using two types of materials with different hardness. In this embodiment, the two types of materials are a soft first urethane resin with a Shore A hardness of 95 to 97° and a hard second urethane resin with a Shore D hardness of about 64°, and the first urethane resin and the second urethane resin have different colors. In the exterior member 5, both side parts 22a, 22a in the outer circumferential direction of the mounting operation part 22 (see FIG. 8) of the outer circumferential part 5b arranged on the outer circumferential surface of the fixed exterior member 14 and the cover part 5c arranged on the upper surface of the mounting cover 17 are formed of the second urethane resin.

[0024] Also, the upper part 5a arranged on the upper surface of the fixed exterior member 14, and the part of the mounting operation part 22 excluding both side parts 22a, 22a, the engaging part 23, and the region that supports it and forms part of the lower edge of the exterior member 5, i.e., the support region TR of the outer circumferential part 5b (see FIG. 8), are formed of the first urethane resin. As a result, the exterior member 5 is configured so that the mounting operation parts 22 can be elastically deformed in a direction away from each other. Also, each mounting operation part 22 has elasticity that displaces the engaging part 23 from a position where it is separated from each locking part 21 of the device case 4 to a position where it engages with (fits into) each locking part 21 as the shape is restored from the elastically deformed state as described above, and the elasticity that is not possessed by the other general parts of the outer circumferential part 5b formed of the second urethane resin is secured.

[0025] In this manner, the support region TR that supports the engaging portion 23 in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5 is formed of a material having a lower hardness than the region adjacent to the support region TR in the outer circumferential portion 5b.

[0026] The engaging portions 23 of the mounting operation portions 22 are engaged with the locking portions 21 in a state of being fitted inside, thereby preventing the exterior member 5 from falling off from the device case 4. In this state, as shown in FIG. 7(b), the upper surface convex strips 24 of the engaging portions 23 are pressed against the inner upper surface of the locking portions 21 in a state close to line contact, and the presence of the upper surface convex strips 24 creates a gap between the upper surface 23b of the engaging portions 23 and the inner upper surface of the locking portions 21. Similarly, the side surface convex strips 25, 25 of the engaging portions 23 are pressed against the inner side surface of the locking portions 21 in a state close to line contact, and the presence of the side surface convex strips 25, 25 creates a gap between both side surfaces 23c, 23c of the engaging portions 23 and the inner side surfaces of the locking portions 21.

[0027] Next, a procedure for removing the exterior member 5 from the device case 4 and a procedure for attaching the exterior member 5 to the device case 4 in the wristwatch case 1 of this embodiment configured as described above will be described. When removing the exterior member 5 from the device case 4, first, a screwdriver or a dedicated tool (not shown) is inserted into the notched recess 12a of the back cover 12 that opens on the lower edge side of the mounting operation part 22 on one side of the exterior member 5 on the outer periphery of the device case 4. Next, the lower end side of the mounting operation part 22 is elastically deformed outward using the screwdriver or a dedicated tool, and the engagement part 23 provided on the back side of the mounting operation part 22 is released from the locking part 21 of the device case 4. Then, in this state, the exterior member 5 is rotated so as to lift the mounting operation part 22. This allows the exterior member 5 to be removed from the device case 4.

[0028] In addition, when attaching the exterior member 5 removed from the device case 4 or another exterior member 5 prepared separately to the device case 4, first, with the exterior member 5 tilted, the engagement portion 23 of the mounting operation portion 22 on one side is fitted inside the locking portion 21 on the corresponding side of the device case 4. Next, the mounting operation portion 22 on the other side is elastically deformed outward, and the engagement portion 23 on the back side is pressed against the upper outer peripheral surface of the device case 4 (fixed exterior member 14), and in this state, the exterior member 5 is pressed against the device case 4. Then, as the mounting operation portion 22 on the other side is further elastically deformed outward, the engagement portion 23 on the back side moves so as to slide on the outer peripheral surface of the device case 4. Then, when the engagement portion 23 moves to the opening of the corresponding locking portion 21 of the device case 4, the mounting operation portion 22 is restored to its original shape, and accordingly, the engagement portion 23 is automatically fitted inside the locking portion 21. This allows the exterior member 5 to be attached to the device case 4.

[0029] As described above, the wristwatch case 1 of this embodiment comprises an equipment case 4 and an exterior member 5 that is attached to the equipment case 4 in a state where it covers the upper outer periphery thereof, a locking portion 21 is provided on the outer periphery of the equipment case 4, and an engagement portion 23 is provided on the outer periphery 5b of the exterior member 5 that engages with the locking portion 21 when attached to the equipment case 4 and prevents the exterior member 5 from coming off the equipment case 4, and the support region TR (the region surrounding the engagement portion 23) that supports the engagement portion 23 on the outer periphery 5b of the exterior member 5 has elasticity that is not possessed by other general parts of the outer periphery 5b, which displaces the engagement portion 23 from a position where it is disengaged from the locking portion 21 to a position where it engages with the locking portion 21 as the shape recovers.

[0030] Therefore, by elastically deforming the support region TR of the mounting operation unit 22, which is a part of the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5, the exterior member 5 can be easily attached to and detached from the device case 4. At the same time, by making the other general parts of the outer circumferential portion 5b hard, the exterior member 5 does not deform even when an external impact is applied to the outer circumferential portion 5b, and it is possible to reliably prevent the exterior member 5 from coming off the device case 4.

[0031] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the locking portions 21 in the device case 4 are provided at two locations on the outer periphery of the device case 4, located on the 3 o'clock side and the 9 o'clock side, i.e., at two locations on the outer periphery of the device case 4, symmetrically spaced apart from the center of the upper part of the device case 4, and the engaging portions 23 in the exterior member 5 are provided at two locations on the outer periphery of the exterior member 5 corresponding to the locking portions 21. Therefore, the exterior member 5 can be reliably locked to the device case 4 while maintaining the work required for replacing the exterior member 5.

[0032] In carrying out the present invention, the locking portion 21 of the device case 4 and the engagement portion 23 of the exterior member 5 can be provided at more than two locations on the outer periphery. Even in this case, the exterior member 5 can be easily attached to and detached from the device case 4 by elastically deforming the support region TR of the attachment operation portion 22, which is part of the outer periphery 5b of the exterior member 5. At the same time, by making the other general parts of the outer periphery 5b hard, it is possible to reliably prevent the exterior member 5 from coming off the device case 4.

[0033] In addition, in the present embodiment, the locking portion 21 of the device case 4 and the engaging portion 23 of the exterior member 5 are provided at two locations, located at the 3 o'clock side and the 9 o'clock side of the device case 4 and the exterior member 5, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the locking portion 21 and the engaging portion 23 may be provided at two locations, located at the 12 o'clock side and the 6 o'clock side, for example. However, compared to that case, by providing the locking portion 21 and the engaging portion 23 at two locations, located at the 3 o'clock side and the 9 o'clock side, as in the present embodiment, the fitting depth between the two can be increased.

[0034] In this embodiment, the push button switch 3 (operating member) protrudes from the outer peripheral surface of the device case 4, and the push button switch 3 is located on each of the outer peripheral parts of the device case 4 at the 2 o'clock side, 4 o'clock side, 8 o'clock side, and 10 o'clock side, while the locking part 21 of the device case 4 is provided at two places located on the 3 o'clock side and the 9 o'clock side of the outer peripheral part of the device case 4, that is, at places shifted in the circumferential direction from the push button switch 3 on the outer peripheral surface, and the general part of the outer peripheral part 5b of the exterior member 5 covers the upper outer peripheral part of the device case 4 while avoiding the push button switch 3 when the exterior member 5 is attached to the device case 4. Therefore, when the exterior member 5 is attached to or detached from the device case 4, the push button switch 3 does not interfere with the exterior member 5, and the work of attaching and detaching the exterior member 5 can be easily performed. Conversely, it is possible to avoid a situation in which the push button switch 3 is pressed by the exterior member 5 and the time is inadvertently adjusted.

[0035] In this embodiment, the exterior member 5 is integrally formed of a first material (first urethane resin) forming the support region TR supporting the engaging portion 23 and a second material (second urethane resin) forming the general portion of the outer periphery 5b and harder than the first material. That is, the exterior member 5 is integrally formed with a first region (upper portion 5a and support region TR of the outer periphery 5b) including the first material and a second region (both sides 22a, 22a in the outer periphery direction of the mounting operation portion 22 and the cover portion 5c) including the second material having a harder hardness than the first material. This makes it possible to ensure, with a simple structure, elasticity in the support region TR that displaces the engaging portion 23 from a position disengaged from the locking portion 21 to a position engaged with the locking portion 21 as the shape is restored, which is not possessed by the other general portions of the outer periphery 5b, and thus makes it possible to reduce the cost of the exterior member 5.

[0036] In the present embodiment, the upper portion 5a of the exterior member 5 is made of a material having the same hardness as the support region TR that supports the engaging portion 23 in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5. However, the upper portion 5a of the exterior member 5 may be made of a material having a harder hardness than the support region TR that supports the engaging portion 23 in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5.

[0037] Furthermore, the area other than the support area TR in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5 only needs to have a hardness greater than that of the first material, and may be either less or greater than the hardness of the second material (which is harder than the first material).

[0038] Furthermore, the exterior member 5 is not limited to being made of the first material and the second material, but may further include a third material. In this case, it is sufficient that the support region TR, which is the region located at 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock in the outer circumferential portion 5b, is made of the material with the lowest hardness.

[0039] Moreover, the area other than the support area TR in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5 is formed of a material having a higher hardness than the support area. This has the effect of making the exterior member 5 less likely to come off the fixed exterior member 14.

[0040] Furthermore, in the case of the wristwatch case 1, the outer peripheral side surfaces on the 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock sides can absorb shocks by the watch band 51. The thickness direction is thinner than the horizontal direction, so it is more susceptible to shocks than the sides. For this reason, the liquid crystal and module are more likely to receive shocks from the top side. However, the upper part 5a of the exterior member is made of a material that is less hard than the area adjacent to the support region TR in the outer peripheral part 5b of the exterior member 5, so shocks from the top are more easily absorbed.

[0041] In this embodiment, the general portion and the support region in the outer circumferential portion 5b of the exterior member 5 are made of different colors of urethane resin, so that they are different colors from each other. This allows the exterior member 5 to have a design that cannot be obtained by only changing the surface shape, and allows for a wide variety of designs at low cost when manufacturing the exterior member 5.

[0042] In this embodiment, the locking portion 21 of the device case 4 forms a recess provided on the outer surface of the outer periphery, and the engaging portion 23 of the exterior member 5 forms a protrusion that protrudes to the inner surface of the outer periphery 5b and is fitted into the locking portion 21 from the outer periphery side of the device case 4. This makes it possible to ensure strong engagement strength between the locking portion 21 of the device case 4 and the engaging portion 23 of the exterior member 5 even with a simple structure.

[0043] Furthermore, in this embodiment, a convex strip (upper surface convex strip 24) is provided on the upper surface of the engaging portion 23 of the exterior member 5. The convex strip (upper surface convex strip 24) extends from the base end of the engaging portion 23 to the tip end and is pressed against the inner upper surface of the locking portion 21 when the engaging portion 23 is fitted into the locking portion of the device case 4. This allows the engaging portion 23 to be in line contact with the inner upper surface of the locking portion 21 when the engaging portion 23 moves into the locking portion 21 when the exterior member 5 is attached and when the exterior member 5 is removed. In other words, the frictional resistance when the engaging portion 23 moves inside the locking portion 21 can be made smaller than when the convex strip is not present. Therefore, the elastic strength to be secured in the support region TR that supports the engaging portion 23 can be set low. Therefore, when the engaging portion 23 is formed from the material that forms the support region TR, i.e., a material having elasticity, as in this embodiment, the elastic strength secured in the support region TR can be set low to improve the workability when attaching and detaching the exterior member 5.

[0044] In this embodiment, the convex portion formed by the engaging portion 23 of the exterior member 5 is hollow and opens in the protruding direction and downward. Therefore, when the engaging portion 23 is formed from the material that forms the support region TR as in this embodiment, the engaging portion 23 is likely to deform when it moves within the locking portion 21 when the exterior member 5 is attached. Therefore, the locking portion 21 can be satisfactorily fitted (engaged) into the engaging portion 23.

[0045] Moreover, in this embodiment, the device case 4 includes a case main body 6, and a fixed exterior member 14 that is fixed to the upper part of the case main body 6 and is provided with a locking portion 21 and is harder than the support region TR of the exterior member 5, and the exterior member 5 is attached to the device case 4 in a state where it covers the upper outer periphery of the fixed exterior member 14. Therefore, even in a configuration in which the fixed exterior member 14 is provided on the device case 4, the exterior member 5 can be easily attached to and detached from the device case 4, and detachment of the exterior member 5 from the device case 4 can be reliably prevented.

[0046] In this embodiment, a configuration has been shown in which the locking portion 21 forming a recess is provided on the equipment case 4, and the engaging portion 23 forming a corresponding protrusion is provided on the exterior member 5. However, the configuration may also be reversed, in which the engaging portion 23 is provided on the equipment case 4, and the locking portion 21 is provided on the exterior member 5.

[0047] In addition, in this embodiment, the present invention is described as being applied to a wristwatch, but the present invention does not necessarily have to be applied to a wristwatch, and the present invention can be applied to various types of clocks, such as travel watches, alarm clocks, table clocks, and wall clocks.

[0048] Furthermore, the present invention is not necessarily applicable to watches, but can also be applied to various electronic devices such as mobile phones and personal digital assistants.

[0049] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to these, and includes the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 1 watch case 3 Push button switch 4 Equipment case 5 Exterior materials 5a Upper part 5b Outer periphery 5c Cover part 6 Case body 10 Clock Module 12a Notch recess 12b Protrusion 14 Fixed exterior components 21 Locking part 22 Wearing operation section 23 Engagement part 24 Upper side protrusion 25 Side convex strip TR support area

Claims

1. An equipment case, an exterior member attached to cover an upper outer periphery of the device case; Equipped with the device case has a locking portion on an outer periphery thereof, the exterior member has an engaging portion on an outer periphery thereof that engages with the locking portion when attached to the device case and prevents the exterior member from being detached from the device case; a support region in the outer circumferential portion of the exterior member that supports the engaging portion is formed of a material having a lower hardness than a region in the outer circumferential portion of the exterior member that is adjacent to the support region; A case characterized by:

2. a region other than the support region in the outer circumferential portion of the exterior member is formed of a material having a higher hardness than the support region; 2. The case according to claim 1, wherein:

3. the upper portion of the exterior member is formed of a material having a lower hardness than a region of the outer circumferential portion of the exterior member adjacent to the support region, 2. The case according to claim 1, wherein:

4. The upper portion of the exterior member is formed of a material having the same hardness as the support region. The case according to claim 3, wherein:

5. a support region in the outer circumferential portion of the exterior member that supports the engaging portion has elasticity that allows the engaging portion to be displaced from a position where it is disengaged from the locking portion to a position where it is engaged with the locking portion as the shape is restored; The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

6. the locking portions are provided at two symmetrical positions on the outer periphery of the device case, separated by a center of an upper portion of the device case; The engaging portions of the exterior member are provided at two locations on the outer periphery of the exterior member corresponding to the locking portions, The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

7. an operating member protruding from an outer peripheral surface of the device case, and the locking portion being provided at a position on the outer peripheral surface that is shifted in a circumferential direction from the operating member, the outer periphery of the exterior member covers an upper outer periphery of the device case while avoiding the operation member when the exterior member is attached to the device case. The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

8. The exterior member is formed integrally with a first region including a first material and a second region including a second material having a hardness greater than that of the first material. The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

9. 5. The case according to claim 1, wherein the outer peripheral portion of the exterior member has different colors between the support area and a portion other than the support area.

10. the locking portion of the device case forms a recess provided on an outer surface of the outer periphery of the device case, the engaging portion of the exterior member projects from the inner surface of the outer periphery of the exterior member and forms a convex portion that is fitted into the locking portion from the outer periphery side of the device case. The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

11. The case according to claim 10, wherein the upper surface of the engaging portion of the exterior member is provided with a protrusion that extends from the base end to the tip end of the engaging portion and is pressed against the inner upper surface of the engaging portion when the engaging portion is fitted into the engaging portion of the device case.

12. 11. The case according to claim 10, wherein the protrusion formed by the engaging portion of the exterior member is hollow and opens in the protruding direction and downward.

13. the device case includes a case main body and a fixed exterior member that is fixed to an upper portion of the case main body and that is provided with the locking portion and is harder than the support region of the exterior member, The exterior member is attached to the device case in a state where it covers an upper outer periphery of the fixed exterior member. The case according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that

14. A watch comprising a case according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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