Electronic device and holder having elastic elements thereof

This Non-provisional application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) on Patent Application No(s). 093108206 filed in Taiwan, Republic of China on Mar. 25, 2004, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

1. Field of Invention

The invention relates to a holder and, in particular, to a holder having an elastic element in contact with a casing.

2. Related Art

With progress in the electronic technology, people have higher dependence on various kinds of electronic devices. In particular, the convenience and portability of laptop computers has induced a lot of demands in recent years. However, during the moving process, there may be collisions occurring to the laptop computer. The operation of the hard disk drive (HDD) itself also causes vibrations that may damage the computer.

As shown in FIG. 1 , to avoid damages to the HDD 6 , the holder 1 of the conventional HDD 6 is installed on a buffer pad 2 that is installed on a casing 3 . The buffer pad 2 can absorb the intrinsic vibration of the HDD 6 and also external collisions to reduce the chances of damages to the HDD 6 . The buffer pad 2 can be a rubber, a conductive cloth, or a conductive sponge. If the buffer pad 2 is a conductive cloth or a conductive sponge, a first surface and a second surface of the casing 3 have a conductive film (not shown). In addition to the buffering function, it can further reduce the electromagnetic interference (EMI) on the HDD 6 .

Thus, it is an important subjective in the field to provide a holder that can both provide a buffer for vibrations and collisions and effectively reduce the EMI on the HDD.

In view of the foregoing, the invention is to provide a holder to both buffer vibrations and collisions and effectively reduce the EMI effect on the HDD.

To achieve the above, the holder of the invention is installed on a casing to load an HDD. The holder comprises a bottom surface, at least one first elastic element and at least one second elastic element. The bottom surface is facing to a first surface of the casing. The first elastic element is installed on the bottom surface with a first end connected to the bottom surface. At least one part of the first elastic element is configured through at least one opening of the casing, and clips on a second surface of the casing. The opening is configured through the first surface and the second surface, the latter being opposite to the former. A third end of the second elastic element is connected to the bottom surface. At least one part of the second elastic element is in contact with the first surface.

Since the holder of the invention includes a bottom surface, at least one first elastic element and at least one second elastic element, any vibration or collision occurred to the HDD can be buffered to reduce possible damages. It can also effectively reduce the EMI effects on the HDD.

The invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description given herein below illustration only, and thus is not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a conventional holder,

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of how the holder functions according to a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic exploded view of the holder according to the preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged schematic view of the holder according to the preferred embodiment of the invention; and

FIGS. 5A to 5E are schematic views showing the installation procedure of the holder according to the preferred embodiment of the invention.

The present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein the same references relate to the same elements.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 , the holder 4 according to an embodiment of the invention is installed on a casing 5 to support an object to be protected. In this embodiment, the object to be protected is an HDD 6 . The holder 4 includes a bottom surface 41 , at least one first elastic element 42 and at least one second elastic element 43 . The bottom surface 41 is facing to a first surface 51 of the casing 5 .

As shown in FIG. 4 , the first elastic element 42 is installed on the bottom surface 41 . A first end 421 of the first elastic element 42 is connected to the bottom surface 41 . At least one part of the elastic element 42 is configured through at least one opening 52 of the casing 5 , and clips a second surface 53 of the casing 5 . The opening 52 is configured through a first surface 51 and a second surface 53 , with the latter being opposite to the former 51 .

A third end 431 of the second elastic element 43 is connected to the bottom surface 41 . At least one part of the second elastic element 43 is in contact with the first surface 51 . A fourth end 432 of the second elastic element 43 touches against the first surface 51 .

With reference to FIGS. 5A to 5E , when the holder 4 is installed on the casing 5 , the holder 4 loaded with an HDD 6 is pushed into the casing 5 so that at least one part of the first elastic element 42 is configured through the opening 52 . It is further pushed in the direction toward the connection port 7 , so that the first elastic element 42 is connected to the casing 5 and clips onto the second surface 53 . The connection port 7 is provided on a circuit board 8 to connect the HDD 6 to a circuit. When taking the holder 4 out, the holder 4 loaded with the HDD 6 is pushed away from the connection port 7 . Then, the first elastic element 42 no longer clips on the second surface 53 , before the holder 4 is completely pulled out.

Referring to FIG. 4 , when the holder 4 is in a collision, the external force pushes the holder 4 away from the first surface 51 . However, the second surface 53 prevents the first elastic element 42 from moving away from the casing 5 . Thus, the first elastic element 42 provides a restoring force to balance at least partially the external force, reducing the impact on the holder 4 and the HDD 6 by the external force. Moreover, when the holder 4 is pushed by the external force toward the first surface 51 , the first surface 51 prevents the second elastic element 43 from moving toward the casing 5 . Therefore, the second elastic element 43 has a restoring force to balance at least partially the external force, reducing the impact on the holder 4 and the HDD 6 by the external force.

The first elastic element 42 can be formed together with the holder 4 . The second elastic element 43 and the holder 4 can also be integrally formed.

Moreover, the first surface 51 and the second surface 53 have a conductive film. The holder 4 , the first elastic element 42 and the second elastic element 43 are made of a conductive material. The first end 421 of the first elastic element 42 is connected to the bottom surface 41 and at least partially configured through the opening 52 to clip the second surface 53 . In addition, the third end 431 of the second elastic element 43 is connected to the bottom surface 41 , and the fourth end 432 touches against the first surface 51 . Therefore, the first elastic element 42 and the second elastic element 43 are in electrical connections with the first surface 51 and the second surface 53 that have the conductive film(s), thereby reducing the EMI on the HDD 6 .

The following discloses an electronic device according to another embodiment of the invention, where the same references relate to the same elements in the previous embodiment.

An electronic device according to this embodiment of the invention comprises a casing 5 , a holder 4 , at least one first elastic element 42 , and at least one second elastic element 43 . The casing 5 has a first surface 51 , a second surface 53 , and at least an opening 52 . The opening 52 is configured through the first surface 51 and the second surface 53 . The second surface 53 is opposite to the first surface 51 . The holder 4 is installed on the casing 5 to support a HDD 6 , and has a bottom surface 41 facing to the first surface 51 . The first elastic element 42 is installed on the bottom surface 41 , with a first end 421 connected to the bottom surface 41 . At least one part of the first elastic element 42 is configured through the opening 52 , and clips onto the second surface 53 . A third end 431 of the second elastic element 43 is connected to the bottom surface 41 . At least one part of the second elastic element 43 is in touch with the first surface 51 . Since the structures, configurations and functions of the holder 4 , the first elastic element 42 , and the second elastic element 43 in the current embodiment are the same to those described in the previous embodiment, the descriptions thereof are omitted herein in concise purpose. Nevertheless, as described before, the first end 421 of the first elastic element 42 is connected to the bottom surface 41 and one part thereof clips onto the second surface 53 . The third end 431 and the fourth end 432 of the second elastic element 43 are connected to the bottom surface 41 and the first surface 51 . Therefore, the vibrations of the HDD itself and any collision can be absorbed to reduce the damages. As the first elastic element 42 and the second elastic element 43 are both made of a conductive material, and the first surface 51 and the second surface 53 of the casing are formed with a conductive film, EMI can be effectively blocked from the HDD.

Although the invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, as well as alternative embodiments, will be apparent to persons skilled in the art. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims will cover all modifications that fall within the true scope of the invention.