Information equipment

Abstract

To suppress an error insertion to a connector of a same shape cable that is adapted to a specific standard.SOLUTION: Information equipment includes: a first connector that can insert a first cable having a first mold part and a first plug part in a first direction; and a second connector that is adjacent to the first connector, and can insert a second cable having a second mold part and a second plug part in the first direction. The first mold part has a rectangular form, and the first cable is inserted into the first connector in the second mold part. The second cable is adjacent to the first mold part in a state of being inserted into the second connector, and includes a bent part bent in a direction separated from the first mold part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information device. [Background technology]

[0002] In information devices, a module may be connected via a general-purpose interface such as HDMI (registered trademark). In order to realize the function, a configuration is adopted in which multiple general-purpose connectors are arranged on the control board of the information device, and each connector is connected to each module via a cable. As cables for such interfaces, standard cables such as HDMI cables and USB cables that are compatible with the general-purpose interface are used to achieve excellent transmission characteristics. However, when multiple general-purpose connectors and cables are used in this way, there is a possibility that the cable will be connected to the wrong connector, leading to malfunction of the device. For this reason, a structure that prevents the interface cable from being erroneously attached has been proposed. Patent Document 1 discloses a technology that changes the number of poles and the terminal shape of each connector as a mechanism for preventing erroneous attachment in wiring within a device, so that the cable cannot be connected to the wrong connector. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2001-15223 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, the configuration of Patent Document 1 requires changing the number of poles and the terminal shape of each connector, and therefore cannot be applied when arranging connectors of the same shape that comply with a specific standard, such as HDMI connectors.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above problems, and has an object to prevent erroneous insertion of cables of the same shape that comply with a specific standard into a connector. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The connector has a first connector into which a first cable having a first molded portion and a first plug portion can be inserted in a first direction, and a second connector adjacent to the first connector and into which a second cable having a second molded portion and a second plug portion can be inserted in the first direction, wherein the first molded portion has a rectangular shape, and the second molded portion has a bent portion that is adjacent to the first molded portion and bent in a direction away from the first molded portion when the first cable is inserted into the first connector and the second cable is inserted into the second connector. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to prevent erroneous insertion of cables of the same shape that comply with a specific standard into a connector. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information device. [Diagram 2] 3A and 3B are diagrams showing the shape of a cable according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 3] 5A and 5B are diagrams illustrating connection of cables to a control unit according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a detailed view of the connector and the cable according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 5] 13 is a diagram illustrating connection of a cable to a control unit according to a second embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] An example of an embodiment of a recording device and a liquid storage tank will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Note that the following embodiment does not limit the present invention, and not all of the combinations of features described in the present embodiment are necessarily essential to the solution of the present invention. Furthermore, the positions, shapes, and the like of the components described in the embodiment are merely examples, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to only those.

[0010] (First embodiment) 1 is an example of a diagram showing the configuration of information device 100. Information device 100 includes a control unit 101, a module A 102, and a module B 103. Control unit 101 and module A are connected by a cable 104, and control unit 101 and module B are connected by a cable 105. Through the connections by cables 104 and 105, data communication between control unit 101 and module A 102 and data communication between control unit 101 and module B 103 are performed.

[0011] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the shape of the cable used in this embodiment. In this embodiment, a cable of shape 2001 (FIG. 2(a)) having a rectangular molded section 203 and a cable of shape 2002 (FIG. 2(b)) having an L-shaped molded section 206 can be used. Either shape of cable has a plug section 202 made of metal and a cable section 204 made of multiple signal lines. The molded sections 203 and 206 are made of a resin material. FIG. 2(c) is a cross-sectional view of the plug section 202. The plug section 202 is made of a plug section 209 made of metal and a terminal 209 through which the signal lines pass, and has a trapezoidal cross section.

[0012] FIG. 3(a) is a diagram of the control unit 101 seen from above. The control unit 101 has, on its side, a connector 301 and a connector 302 into which the cables 104 and 105 can be inserted. The connectors 301 and 302 are provided adjacent to each other. FIG. 3(b) is a diagram showing a case where the cables 104 and 105 are inserted into the connectors 301 and 302 when the cables 2001 are used as the cables 104 and 105. The plug portion 202 of the cable 104 is inserted into the connector 301 of the control unit 101, and the plug portion 202 of the cable 105 is inserted into the connector 302. In this configuration, it is possible to insert the cable 105 into the connector 301 and the cable 104 into the connector 302. As a result, the connector 301 may be connected to the module B, and the connector 302 may be connected to the module A, which may cause the information device 100 to malfunction due to a connection different from the original connection.

[0013] Fig. 3(c) shows a case where a cable of shape 2001 is used as cable 104 and a cable of shape 2002 is used as cable 105. Cable 104 is a cable having the shape shown in Fig. 2(a) and having a rectangular molded portion 203, and cable 105 is a cable having the shape shown in Fig. 2(b) and having an L-shaped molded portion 206. Plug portion 202 of cable 104 is inserted into connector 301 of control unit 101, and plug portion 207 of cable 105 is inserted into connector 302, but since molded portion 206 of cable 105 is L-shaped and bent in a direction away from molded portion 203 of cable 104, the molded portions of cable 104 and cable 105 do not interfere with each other.

[0014] If an attempt is made to insert the cables 104 and 105 used in FIG. 3C into the connectors 301 and 302 in a swapped state, for example, the cable 105 will be inserted into the connector 301 first. When inserted, since the molded portion 206 of the cable 105 is bent so as to cover the connector 302 as shown in Fig. 3(d), the insertion of the cable 104 into the connector 302 is inhibited. Conversely, even when attempting to insert the cable 105 into the connector 301 with the cable 104 inserted into the connector 302, the molded portion 203 of the cable 104 interferes with the bent portion of the molded portion 206 of the cable 105, inhibiting the insertion of the cable 105. With these configurations, incorrect insertion of the cables 104 and 105 can be suppressed. Here, as described with reference to Fig. 2, since the plug portion 207 of the cable 105 has an asymmetric shape in the vertical direction, it is not possible to change the insertion direction so that the bent portion of the molded portion 206 of the cable 105 does not interfere with the cable 104 and insert it into the connector 301.

[0015] Using Fig. 4, the connector arrangement and the cable molded shape in the present embodiment will be described. As described above, in order to suppress incorrect insertion of the cables 104 and 105, it is necessary that the molded portions 203 and 206 interfere with each other.

[0016] As shown in Fig. 4(a), in the present embodiment, the length b of the bent portion 401 of the molded portion 206 of the cable 105 is configured to be longer than the distance a between the connectors 301 and 302 of the control unit 101 (a < b). Thereby, when the cable 105 is inserted into the connector 301, the bent portion 401 overlaps with the position covering the connector 302, inhibiting the cable 104 from being inserted into the connector 302.

[0017] Also, as shown in Fig. 4(b), the length c from the base position of the connector 207 of the mold 206 of the cable 105 to the bent portion 401 is shorter than the length d of the mold 203 of the cable 104 (c < d). With this configuration, even when attempting to insert the cable 105 into the connector 301 after inserting the cable 104 into the connector 302, the insertion of the cable 105 into the connector 301 is inhibited due to interference between the molded portion 203 and the bent portion 401.

[0018] As described above, in this embodiment, the shape of the molded part of cable 104 to be inserted into connector 301 is rectangular, and the shape of the molded part of cable 105 to be inserted into connector 302 is L-shaped. Furthermore, by setting the dimensions so that the molded parts interfere with each other when each cable is inserted into the opposite connector, a configuration is achieved in which erroneous cable insertion is physically prevented. This allows the operator to determine that a cable has been erroneously inserted, making it possible to insert the cable into the correct connector, thereby preventing erroneous insertion of an HDMI cable into a connector.

[0019] Second embodiment The second embodiment will be described below, but a description of the same configuration as the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0020] FIG. 5(a) is a schematic diagram showing the state of connection of the cables to the connectors in this embodiment. In this embodiment, both the cables 104 and 105 have L-shaped molded parts. The cable 105 has an L-shaped molded part 206 having a bent part 401 that bends in a direction away from the cable 104, as in the first embodiment. The cable 104 has an L-shaped molded part 208 having a bent part 501 that bends in a direction away from the cable 105 when inserted into the connector 301. That is, the molded parts of the cables 104 and 105 have shapes that are inverted from each other. With this configuration, when the cable 104 is inserted into the connector 301 and the cable 105 is inserted into the connector 302, the molded part 208 and the molded part 206 do not interfere with each other.

[0021] In this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the length b of the bent portion 401 of the molded portion 206 is longer than the distance a between the connectors 301 and 302. If the cable 105 is inserted into the connector 301 as shown in FIG. 5(b), the molded portion 206 of the cable 105 covers the connector 302, preventing the cable 104 from being inserted into the connector 302. In addition, since the molded portion 208 of the cable 105 has an inverted shape of the molded portion 206 of the cable 104, if the cable 104 is inserted into the connector 302, the molded portion 208 will cover the connector 301. This prevents the cable 105 from being inserted into the connector 301.

[0022] As described above, in this embodiment, the L-shape of the molded portion of cable 104 to be inserted into connector 301 and the L-shape of the molded portion of cable 105 to be inserted into connector 302 are configured to be inverted shapes. Furthermore, by setting the dimensions such that the molded portions interfere with each other when the cables are inserted into the opposite connectors, a configuration is achieved in which erroneous cable insertion is physically prevented. This allows the operator to determine that a cable has been erroneously inserted, making it possible to insert the cable into the correct connector, thereby preventing erroneous insertion of an HDMI cable into a connector.

[0023] In any of the embodiments, the L-shaped molded part may be bent at an angle greater than 90° rather than at a right angle, or may be bent at an angle smaller than 90°. Even in the case of such a shape, the same effect can be obtained by setting the dimensions so that the molded part of the cable covers the mis-inserted connector and the adjacent connector. [Explanation of symbols]

[0024] 100 Information equipment 104, 105 Cable 203, 206, 208 Mold section 301, 302 Connectors

Claims

1. a first connector into which a first cable having a first molded portion and a first plug portion can be inserted in a first direction; a second connector adjacent to the first connector and into which a second cable having a second molded portion and a second plug portion can be inserted in the first direction; the first mold section is rectangular in shape; the second molded portion has a bent portion that is adjacent to the first molded portion and bent in a direction away from the first molded portion when the first cable is inserted into the first connector and the second cable is inserted into the second connector.

2. 2. The information device according to claim 1, wherein the length of the bent portion is longer than the distance between the first connector and the second connector.

3. a first connector into which a first cable having a first molded portion and a first plug portion can be inserted in a first direction; a second connector adjacent to the first connector and into which a second cable having a second molded portion and a second plug portion can be inserted in the first direction; When the first cable is inserted into the first connector and the second cable is inserted into the second connector, the first molded portion and the second molded portion are adjacent to each other, the first mold part has a first bent part that is bent in a direction away from the second mold part in the above state, The information device, wherein the second molded portion has a second bent portion that is bent in a direction away from the first molded portion in the above-mentioned state.

4. 4. The information device according to claim 1, wherein the first cable and the second cable are HDMI cables.

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