Embroidery unit attachment / detachment device and sewing machine

Abstract

To provide an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device which can prevent an embroidery unit from falling from a sewing machine, and which can prevent breakage of a portion for connecting the embroidery unit and the sewing machine even in the case where a moment load in which the embroidery unit is twisted with respect to the sewing machine acts.SOLUTION: An embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 includes: a lock mechanism which actuates being interlocked with the movement of an embroidery unit 2 in a mounting direction, and which suppresses the movement of the embroidery unit 2 with respect to a sewing machine 3 in the separation direction; and a support mechanism for suppressing relative movement of the sewing machine 3 and the embroidery unit 2 in the vertical direction by recessed parts 25, 26, 27 being engaged with protrusion parts 19, 23, 28. Three or more support units are provided, and they are arranged so as to form one flat surface.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device for enabling an embroidery unit to be attached / detached to / from a sewing machine having an embroidery function. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a sewing machine that can perform automatic embroidery sewing by installing an embroidery unit that drives and controls an embroidery frame in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. In this type of sewing machine, an object to be sewn, such as cloth, is fixed to the embroidery frame, and the embroidery frame is driven and controlled in the X-axis and Y-axis directions in conjunction with the sewing operation of the sewing machine to embroider the object. The embroidery unit can be removed from the sewing machine when embroidery sewing is not being performed, and various attachment / detachment devices have been proposed for this purpose.

[0003] As such an embroidery unit attachment / detachment device, Patent Document 1 discloses an attachment / detachment device in which a lock to prevent the embroidery unit from falling off is activated when the bottom of the sewing machine is lifted off the workbench. The correct way to use the sewing machine shown in Patent Document 1 is to remove the embroidery unit before lifting it, but with this attachment / detachment device, even if a user lifts the sewing machine with the embroidery unit still attached, the lock prevents the embroidery unit from falling off the sewing machine. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-42276 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The embroidery unit is provided with a motor for driving and controlling the embroidery frame in the X-axis and Y-axis directions. The motor is electrically connected to the sewing machine via a connector or the like provided on the embroidery unit. According to the attachment / detachment device of Patent Document 1, the above-mentioned lock can prevent the embroidery unit from falling off the lifted sewing machine, but the lock supports the embroidery unit at points or lines, and therefore cannot be expected to resist a moment load that would twist the embroidery unit relative to the sewing machine. Therefore, when such a moment load is applied to the embroidery unit, the force is also applied to the connector, which may result in damage to the connector.

[0006] In consideration of these problems, the present invention aims to provide an embroidery unit attachment / detachment device which can prevent the embroidery unit from falling off the sewing machine even if the sewing machine is lifted with the embroidery unit attached, and which can prevent damage to the parts connecting the embroidery unit to the sewing machine, such as connectors, even if a moment load is applied that twists the embroidery unit relative to the sewing machine. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention provides an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device that enables an embroidery unit to be attached to or detached from a sewing machine, the device comprising: a locking mechanism that operates in conjunction with movement of the embroidery unit in an attachment direction to suppress movement of the embroidery unit in a removal direction relative to the sewing machine; and a support mechanism that includes a recessed portion provided on either the sewing machine or the embroidery unit, and a protruding portion provided on the other of the sewing machine or the embroidery unit, the recessed portion engaging with the protruding portion to suppress relative movement in the up-down direction between the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, and three or more of the support mechanisms are provided and are arranged to form a single plane. The protrusion includes a protrusion protruding in the mounting direction and a protrusion protruding in a direction perpendicular to the protrusion protruding in the mounting direction. It is characterized by the above.

[0008] The present invention provides an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device that enables an embroidery unit to be attached to and detached from a sewing machine, the device comprising: a locking mechanism that operates in conjunction with movement of the embroidery unit in an attachment direction to suppress movement of the embroidery unit in a removal direction relative to the sewing machine; and a support mechanism that includes a recessed portion provided on either the sewing machine or the embroidery unit, and a protruding portion provided on the other of the sewing machine or the embroidery unit, the recessed portion engaging with the protruding portion to suppress relative movement in the vertical direction between the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, three or more of the support mechanisms are provided and arranged to form a single plane, The embroidery unit may further include a protrusion projection mechanism capable of storing the protrusion therein, and the protrusion may project toward the recess by moving the embroidery unit in the mounting direction. Characterized by .

[0009] In addition, in such an embroidery unit attachment / detachment device, it is preferable that the locking mechanism includes an unlocking lever that is movable in the removal direction relative to the embroidery unit, a sewing machine side locking portion provided on the sewing machine, and an embroidery unit side locking portion provided on the embroidery unit, and that the embroidery unit side locking portion engages with the sewing machine side locking portion, but operates in conjunction with the movement of the unlocking lever in the removal direction to release the engagement with the sewing machine side locking portion.

[0010] The present invention also relates to a sewing machine including any one of the above-described embroidery unit attaching / detaching devices and an embroidery unit. Effect of the Invention

[0011] According to the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device of the present invention, even if the sewing machine is lifted with the embroidery unit attached, the support mechanism and locking mechanism can prevent the embroidery unit from falling off. Furthermore, since three or more support mechanisms are provided and arranged to form one plane, the embroidery unit is firmly fixed to the sewing machine in the roll direction, pitch direction, and yaw direction. Therefore, even if the sewing machine is lifted alone with the embroidery unit attached, it is possible to prevent damage to the parts connecting the embroidery unit and the sewing machine, such as the connector described above. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view of an embroidery unit and a sewing machine equipped with an embodiment of an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device according to the present invention; [Diagram 2] 2 is a perspective view of the sewing machine shown in FIG. 1 with the embroidery unit detached. [Diagram 3] 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 2 is an exploded view of the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device shown in FIG. 1. [Diagram 5]2 is an explanatory diagram regarding the attachment and detachment operation of the attachment device shown in FIG. 1 and the sewing machine. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0013] Hereinafter, an embodiment of an embroidery unit attaching / detaching device according to the present invention, and an embodiment of an embroidery unit and a sewing machine equipped with the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device will be described with reference to the drawings. In this specification, the directions of right, left, front, rear, up, and down are directions as seen by a user using the sewing machine 3 of this embodiment when the sewing machine 3 is installed on a workbench. In addition, the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction in the following description are the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction as shown in the drawings. In addition, the roll direction, pitch direction, and yaw direction are the direction of rotation around the Y axis, the direction of rotation around the X axis, and the direction of rotation around the Z axis as shown in the drawings.

[0014] First, an overview of the embroidery unit 2 and the sewing machine 3 equipped with the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2. The embroidery unit 2 can be attached to and detached from the sewing machine 3 by the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1. FIG. 1 shows a state in which the embroidery unit 2 is attached to the sewing machine 3, and FIG. 2 shows a state in which the embroidery unit 2 is detached from the sewing machine 3. In this manner, in this embodiment, when attaching the embroidery unit 2 to the sewing machine 3, the embroidery unit 2 is moved from left to right relative to the sewing machine 3, and when detaching the embroidery unit 2 from the sewing machine 3, the embroidery unit 2 is moved from right to left relative to the sewing machine 3. Note that the attaching and detaching operation of the embroidery unit 2 to and from the sewing machine 3 may be described using the "attaching direction" and the "detaching direction," but the "attaching direction" refers to the direction from left to right, and the "detaching direction" refers to the direction from right to left.

[0015] The embroidery unit 2 of this embodiment can move the carriage 5 in the X-axis and Y-axis directions via the YX drive arm 4 by a motor (not shown) built into the embroidery unit 2. This motor is also electrically connected to the sewing machine 3 by a connector unit 6 shown in Fig. 2. Then, when the embroidery unit 2 is attached to the sewing machine 3 as shown in Fig. 1, an object to be sewn, such as cloth, is fixed by an embroidery frame 7, and an embroidery operation is performed with the embroidery frame 7 attached to the carriage 5, the embroidery frame 7 is driven and controlled in the X-axis and Y-axis directions in conjunction with the sewing operation of the sewing machine 3, and embroidery is applied to the object to be sewn.

[0016] Next, the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 will be described in detail with reference to Figures 3 and 4. Figure 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the embroidery unit 2 and the sewing machine 3 cut along the XY plane to show the inside of the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 (the position (height) of the XY plane when cutting is based on the height of line A shown in Figure 2, but has been changed appropriately for convenience of explanation). Figure 4 is an exploded view based on Figure 3.

[0017] The embroidery unit attachment / detachment device 1 of this embodiment includes the connector unit 6 described above. In this embodiment, the connector unit 6 is composed of a female connector 9 provided on the embroidery unit bottom 8 and a male connector 11 provided on the sewing machine bottom 10. The female connector 9 is electrically connected to a motor (not shown) that moves the carriage 5 described above, and the male connector 11 is electrically connected to a control unit of the sewing machine 3. As shown in the figure, the embroidery unit bottom 8 is provided with a recessed portion 12 in which the sewing machine bottom 10 is accommodated, and an opening 13 is provided at the left end of the sewing machine bottom 10. By moving the embroidery unit 2 in the attachment direction, the sewing machine bottom 10 is accommodated inside the recessed portion 12, and the female connector 9 is inserted through the opening 13 and electrically connected to the male connector 11.

[0018] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 also includes a cylindrical locking claw rotating shaft 14 that is provided on the embroidery unit bottom 8 and protrudes upward, as shown in FIG. 4. A locking claw 15 is rotatably attached to the locking claw rotating shaft 14. The locking claw 15 of this embodiment has a circular hole through which the locking claw rotating shaft 14 is inserted, and has a claw-shaped portion that protrudes from the front to the rear at one end and a protrusion that protrudes upward at the other end. The locking claw 15 is biased clockwise (in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. 3) in a plan view by a spring (not shown). The locking claw 15 of this embodiment is provided in a state where it is built into the connector unit 6 on the left side of the female connector 9, as shown in FIG. 3.

[0019] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 further includes an unlocking lever 16, one end of which engages with a protrusion of the locking claw 15, and the locking release lever 16 is movable left and right relative to the embroidery unit 2. In this embodiment, when the locking release lever 16 is moved from right to left, the locking claw 15 rotates counterclockwise in a plan view in conjunction with this movement. The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 further includes a lock receiving portion 17. The lock receiving portion 17 in this embodiment is provided on the sewing machine bottom 10 of the sewing machine 3, and engages with the locking claw 15 when the locking claw 15 rotates clockwise in a plan view.

[0020] The lock claw rotating shaft 14, the lock claw 15, the lock release lever 16, and the lock receiving portion 17 correspond to the "lock mechanism" in this specification. The lock claw 15 corresponds to the "embroidery unit side lock portion" in this specification, and the lock receiving portion 17 corresponds to the "sewing machine side lock portion" in this specification.

[0021] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 further includes a first link base 18 provided at the front side of the sewing machine bottom 10. The first link base 18 of this embodiment is U-shaped when viewed along the Y-axis direction, and has circular through holes at its front and rear parts. The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 also includes a first support pin 19 that is cylindrical and inserted into the through hole of the first link base 18 and can move in the front-rear direction, a first coil-shaped compression spring 20, and an E-ring 21 that is attached to the first support pin 19 and prevents the first support pin 19 and the first compression spring 20 from coming off the first link base 18. The first support pin 19 of this embodiment is biased from the front to the rear by the first compression spring 20 when attached to the first link base 18, and in the biased state, the tip of the first support pin 19 is aligned with the front end of the sewing machine bottom 10, or is located rearward of the front end of the sewing machine bottom 10. That is, the first support pin 19 is biased by the first compression spring 20 and is accommodated inside the sewing machine bottom part 10 .

[0022] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 includes a first link base 18, a first support pin 19, a second link base 22 having the same shape as the first compression spring 20, a second support pin 23, and a second compression spring 24. As shown in the figure, the second link base 22 is provided on the rear side of the sewing machine bottom 10, and the second support pin 23 is supported so as to be movable in the front-rear direction relative to the second link base 22. In this embodiment, the central axis of the second support pin 23 supported by the second link base 22 is located on the central axis of the first support pin 19 supported by the first link base 18. In addition, when the second support pin 23 is attached to the second link base 22 by the E-ring 21, it is biased from the rear to the front by the second compression spring 24, and in the biased state, the tip of the second support pin 23 is aligned with the rear end of the sewing machine bottom 10 or is located forward of the rear end of the sewing machine bottom 10. In other words, the second support pin 23 is biased by the second compression spring 24 and stored inside the sewing machine bottom 10.

[0023] In addition, the above-mentioned mechanism for storing the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23, including the first compression spring 20 and the second compression spring 24, inside the sewing machine bottom 10 corresponds to the “protrusion projection mechanism” in this specification.

[0024] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 also has a circular hole (third support hole 25) provided on the left side surface of the sewing machine bottom 10. The vertical position (height) of the central axis of the third support hole 25 is the same as the central axis height of the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23, which is the height at line A shown in FIG.

[0025] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 of the present embodiment includes a first support hole 26, a second support hole 27, and a third support pin 28 provided in the bottom 8 of the embroidery unit to engage with the first support pin 19, the second support pin 23, and the third support hole 25. The first support hole 26 is provided in the front end of the recessed portion 12 in the bottom 8 of the embroidery unit as shown in FIG. 3, and the second support hole 27 is provided in the rear end of the recessed portion 12. The first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 have a vertical gap that is approximately the same as the outer diameter of the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23, while the horizontal gap is larger than the outer diameter of the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23, and are oblong hole-shaped (track-shaped). The third support pin 28 is cylindrical and protrudes to the right from the left end of the recessed portion 12. The outer diameter of the third support pin 28 is approximately the same as the inner diameter of the third support hole 25. The tip of the third support pin 28 is formed to be tapered.

[0026] Although details will be described later, when the embroidery unit 2 is moved in the mounting direction relative to the sewing machine 3 (moving from left to right), the first support pin 19 is inserted into the first support hole 26, the second support pin 23 is inserted into the second support hole 27, and the third support pin 28 is inserted into the third support hole 25. In other words, the embroidery unit 2 mounted on the sewing machine 3 is restricted in its vertical movement relative to the sewing machine 3 (it barely moves in the vertical direction) by these three pins and support holes. In addition, the embroidery unit 2 is restricted in its front-to-rear movement relative to the sewing machine 3 by the third support pin 28 and the third support hole 25. Furthermore, the engagement position where the third support pin 28 is inserted into and engages with the third support hole 25 is shifted to the left relative to the engagement position where the first support pin 19 engages with the first support hole 26 and the engagement position where the second support pin 23 engages with the second support hole 27 (in other words, the engagement position of the third support pin 28 is shifted from the straight line connecting the engagement positions of the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23). In other words, these three engagement positions are not arranged in a straight line but are arranged to form a plane.

[0027] The first support pin 19 and the first support hole 26, the second support pin 23 and the second support hole 27, and the third support pin 28 and the third support hole 25 correspond to the "support mechanism" in this specification. The first support pin 19, the second support pin 23, and the third support pin 28 correspond to the "protrusion" in this specification, and the first support hole 26, the second support hole 27, and the third support hole 25 correspond to the "recess" in this specification.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 4, the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 includes a cylindrical first link rotating shaft 29 and a second link rotating shaft 30 that protrude upward from the sewing machine bottom 10. A first link 31 is rotatably attached to the first link rotating shaft 29, and a second link 32 is rotatably attached to the second link rotating shaft 30. The first link 31 in this embodiment is plate-shaped as shown in the figure, and has a circular hole through which the first link rotating shaft 29 is inserted, a hole at one end into which a protrusion protruding from the first support pin 19 is inserted, and a hole at the other end into which the second link 32 engages. The other end of the first link 31 is provided with a receiving portion 33 that is formed by bending downward. The receiving portion 33 is provided so as to be located behind the male connector 11 and adjacent to the male connector 11 when the first link 31 is attached to the second link rotating shaft 30 as shown in FIG. The second link 32 in this embodiment is plate-shaped as shown in the figure, and has a circular hole through which the second link rotation shaft 30 is inserted, and has a hole at one end into which a protrusion protruding from the second support pin 23 is inserted, and has a protrusion at the other end that is inserted into a hole provided at the other end of the first link 31 and engages with the first link 31.

[0029] The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device 1 of the present embodiment has a pressing portion 34 provided on the embroidery unit bottom portion 8 as a portion corresponding to the receiving portion 33. The pressing portion 34 is provided so as to be located rearward of the female connector 9 and adjacent to the female connector 9.

[0030] Next, the operation of attaching and detaching the embroidery unit 2 and the sewing machine 3 by the above-mentioned embroidery unit attaching and detaching device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0031] First, when the embroidery unit 2 is removed from the sewing machine 3, the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 are biased by the first compression spring 20 and the second compression spring 24 and stored inside the sewing machine bottom 10, as shown in FIG.

[0032] When the user moves the embroidery unit 2 in the installation direction (from left to right) at a position where the sewing machine bottom 10 fits into the recessed portion 12, the female connector 9 is inserted into the opening 13 as shown in Figure 5(a), and the lock claw 15, pressed against the lock receiving portion 17, rotates counterclockwise in a plan view against the biasing force of a spring (not shown).

[0033] Furthermore, when the user moves the embroidery unit 2 in the installation direction, the third support pin 28 is inserted into the third support hole 25. As described above, the tip of the third support pin 28 is tapered, so even if the embroidery unit 2 is moved at a slight angle with respect to the Y-axis direction, the tip of the third support pin 28 can be inserted into the third support hole 25. In other words, the tip of the third support pin 28 functions as a positioning guide for the sewing machine 3 when the embroidery unit 2 is moved in the installation direction.

[0034] When the embroidery unit 2 is moved in the mounting direction until the third support pin 28 is completely inserted into the third support hole 25, the lock claw 15, which is biased by a spring (not shown), rotates clockwise in a plan view as shown in FIG. 5B and engages with the lock receiving portion 17. In this state, the male connector 11 is inserted into the female connector 9, and the two are electrically connected. In this state, the pressing portion 34 presses against the receiving portion 33, which rotates the first link 31 and the second link 32, and the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 protrude and retract from the bottom 10 of the sewing machine. Since the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 are elongated holes whose gaps in the left-right direction are longer than their gaps in the up-down direction, the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 are smoothly inserted into the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27, even if the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 gradually protrude and retract when the embroidery unit 2 is moved in the mounting direction. Furthermore, since the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 are elongated holes, even if the positions of the first link base 18 and the second link base 22, which support the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23, are slightly misaligned in the left-right direction relative to the sewing machine bottom 10, the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 are reliably inserted into the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27.

[0035] When the embroidery unit 2 is moved to the end in the mounting direction in this manner, the lock claw 15 engages with the lock receiving portion 17 as shown in FIG. 5(b), so that the embroidery unit 2 is prevented from moving leftward relative to the sewing machine 3. In this state, the first support pin 19 engages with the first support hole 26, the second support pin 23 engages with the second support hole 27, and the third support pin 28 engages with the third support hole 25. That is, the embroidery unit 2 is prevented from moving up and down and forward and backward relative to the sewing machine 3 as described above. Therefore, even if only the sewing machine 3 is lifted in this state, the embroidery unit 2 can be prevented from falling off the sewing machine 3. Furthermore, the engagement positions where these three pins and three holes are engaged are arranged to form a plane as described above, so that the embroidery unit 2 is firmly fixed in the roll direction, pitch direction, and yaw direction. Therefore, even if only the sewing machine 3 is lifted in this state, no excessive moment load is applied to the female connector 9 and the male connector 11, so that damage to the female connector 9 and the male connector 11 can be prevented.

[0036] When removing the embroidery unit 2 attached to the sewing machine 3, the unlocking lever 16 shown in FIG. 3 is pulled to the left. This causes the locking claw 15 connected to the unlocking lever 16 to rotate counterclockwise in a plan view, and the locking claw 15 and the lock receiving portion 17 to be disengaged, so that the embroidery unit 2 can be moved to the left side relative to the sewing machine 3. When the user pulls the unlocking lever 16 to the left, the embroidery unit 2 is also pulled to the left side via the unlocking lever 16, and the embroidery unit 2 moves to the left side in accordance with the disengagement between the locking claw 15 and the lock receiving portion 17. This causes the third support pin 28 to be removed from the third support hole 25. In addition, the movement of the embroidery unit 2 to the left causes the pressing portion 34 to move away from the receiving portion 33, which causes the first link 31 and the second link 32 to rotate, and the first support pin 19 is removed from the first support hole 26 and the second support pin 23 is removed from the second support hole 27. Therefore, the embroidery unit 2 can be removed from the sewing machine 3.

[0037] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been exemplified above, the present invention is not limited to the specific embodiment, and various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the spirit of the present invention described in the claims unless otherwise specifically limited in the above description. Furthermore, the effects of the above embodiment are merely examples of the effects resulting from the present invention, and do not mean that the effects of the present invention are limited to the above effects.

[0038] For example, in the above-described embodiment, the sewing machine 3 is provided with the first support pin 19, the second support pin 23, and the third support hole 25, and the embroidery unit 2 is provided with the first support hole 26, the second support hole 27, and the third support pin 28, but the arrangement of the pins and support holes may be reversed. Furthermore, the number of pins and support holes may be four or more. When the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 are provided in the embroidery unit 2, the above-described protrusion appearing and disappearing mechanism may be provided in the embroidery unit 2. Furthermore, the support mechanism is not limited to the above-described pin shape, and may be formed of members such as a block or a plate.

[0039] In the above-described embodiment, the first support pin 19, the second support pin 23, and the third support pin 28 are all arranged so that their central axes are at the same height (the height of line A), but the heights may be different.

[0040] In addition, while the lock claw 15 is built into the connector unit 6 in the above embodiment, it may be provided separately near the connector unit 6 or inside the third support pin 28. The lock claw 15 may be provided on the sewing machine 3, and the lock receiving portion 17 may be provided on the embroidery unit 2. In this case, the configuration may be such that the lock release lever 16 is operated to move the lock receiving portion 17 away from the lock claw 15, thereby releasing the engagement between the lock claw 15 and the lock receiving portion 17.

[0041] In addition, making the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 into a long hole shape is advantageous when the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 gradually appear and disappear, as described above, but it is also possible to make the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 into a round hole shape by appropriately adjusting the timing at which the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 appear and disappear.

[0042] The first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 may be grooves that are cut out in the left-right direction of the embroidery unit 2. When the first support hole 26 and the second support hole 27 are grooves, the first support pin 19 and the second support pin 23 may be configured to always protrude outside the sewing machine bottom 10 (i.e., the above-mentioned protruding portion retracting mechanism may be eliminated).

[0043] Furthermore, the direction in which the embroidery unit 2 is attached to and detached from the sewing machine 3 is not limited to the left-right direction, but may be the front-rear direction. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1: Embroidery unit attachment / detachment device 2: Embroidery unit 3: Sewing machine 14: Locking claw rotation axis (locking mechanism) 15: Locking claw (locking mechanism, embroidery unit side locking part) 16: Lock release lever (lock mechanism) 17: Lock receiver (lock mechanism, sewing machine side lock) 19: First support pin (support mechanism, convex part) 20: First compression spring (protruding part mechanism) 23: Second support pin (support mechanism, convex part) 24: Second compression spring (protruding part mechanism) 25: Third support hole (support mechanism, recess) 26: First support hole (support mechanism, recess) 27: Second support hole (support mechanism, recess) 28: Third support pin (support mechanism, convex part)

Claims

1. An embroidery unit attaching / detaching device that enables an embroidery unit to be attached to and detached from a sewing machine, a lock mechanism that operates in conjunction with movement of the embroidery unit in an attachment direction to restrict movement of the embroidery unit in a removal direction relative to the sewing machine; a support mechanism including a recess provided on one of the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, and a protrusion provided on the other of the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, the recess and the protrusion engaging with each other to suppress relative movement between the sewing machine and the embroidery unit in the vertical direction; Equipped with The support mechanism is provided in three or more units and is arranged to form one plane, the protrusion includes a protrusion that protrudes in the mounting direction and a protrusion that protrudes in a direction perpendicular to the protrusion that protrudes in the mounting direction, the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device comprising:

2. An embroidery unit attachment / detachment device that enables an embroidery unit to be attached to and detached from a sewing machine, comprising: a lock mechanism that operates in conjunction with movement of the embroidery unit in an attachment direction to restrict movement of the embroidery unit in a removal direction relative to the sewing machine; a support mechanism including a recess provided on one of the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, and a protrusion provided on the other of the sewing machine and the embroidery unit, the recess and the protrusion engaging with each other to suppress relative movement between the sewing machine and the embroidery unit in the vertical direction; Equipped with The support mechanism is provided in three or more units and is arranged to form one plane, Further comprising a protrusion projection mechanism capable of storing the protrusion therein, the embroidery unit is moved in the mounting direction, so that the convex portion protrudes toward the concave portion.

3. The locking mechanism includes: a lock release lever movable in the removal direction relative to the embroidery unit; A sewing machine side lock portion provided on the sewing machine; an embroidery unit side locking portion provided in the embroidery unit, 3. The embroidery unit attaching / detaching device according to claim 1, wherein the embroidery unit side locking portion engages with the sewing machine side locking portion, and operates in conjunction with the movement of the lock release lever in the removal direction to release the engagement with the sewing machine side locking portion.

4. A sewing machine comprising the embroidery unit attaching / detaching device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and an embroidery unit.

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