FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a portable information device having a cover device and the cover device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A portable information device such as a laptop PC or a tablet PC is required to avoid damage or breakdown when being carried around. Further, it is desired that the appearance design and the sense of touch of the portable information device should be of high quality. Therefore, a cover device may be mounted on the outer surface of the chassis of the portable information device for the purpose of protection or decoration. The applicant proposes a cover device for a foldable tablet PC in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2018-105961.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

As described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2018-105961, the cover device is required not only to simply cover the outer surface of the chassis, but also to be rotated as necessary so as to function as a stand for the device. The cover device of this type has a base cover section relatively fixed to the outer surface of the chassis, and a stand cover section to be rotated relative to this base cover section by using a hinge device.

In the meantime, in the cover device, a soft material such as natural leather, artificial leather, or the like may be used as the outermost surface material in consideration of the appearance design and the sense of touch of the cover device. In the cover device using this type of material, when the stand cover section is rotated relative to the base cover section at more than a certain angle, for example, up to an angle close to 180 degrees, side end faces of right and left brackets of the hinge device function as scissors blades. As a result, it is found that the surface materials of the base cover section and the stand cover section can be broken down or damaged due to the cutting power of the scissors blades.

The present invention has been made in view of the above conventional technique problem, and it is an object thereof to provide a portable information device having a cover device capable of suppressing the occurrence of breakage and damage, and the cover device.

A portable information device according to the first aspect of the present invention includes: a chassis; and a cover device provided to cover the back surface of the chassis, the cover device including: a base cover section provided along the back surface of the chassis; a stand cover section provided to be rotatable relative to the base cover section so as to be movable between a stored position where the stand cover section is provided along the back surface of the chassis and a standing position where the stand cover section protrudes from the back surface of the chassis; and a hinge device having a hinge shaft, a first bracket rotatably coupled to the hinge shaft and fixed relative to the back surface of the chassis, and a second bracket provided adjacent to the first bracket in an axial direction of the hinge shaft, coupled rotatably to the hinge shaft, and fixed to the stand cover section, wherein the first bracket has a first notch-shaped portion in a root part of a side end face thereof on the side of the hinge shaft to face the side of the second bracket in the axial direction, and the second bracket has a second notch-shaped portion in a root part of a side end face thereof on the side of the hinge shaft to face the side of the first bracket in the axial direction.

The portable information device may also be such that the base cover section has a first core material, and a first surface material formed of a material softer than the first core material to form the surface of the base cover section, the stand cover section has a second core material, and a second surface material formed of a material softer than the second core material to form the surface of the stand cover section, the first core material has a first bracket placement hole in which the first bracket is placed, and a first protruding portion protruding from an inner peripheral surface of the first bracket placement hole into the first notch-shaped portion, and the second core material has a second bracket placement hole in which the second bracket is placed, and a second protruding portion protruding from an inner peripheral surface of the second bracket placement hole into the second notch-shaped portion.

The hinge device may also be so structured that at least the shaft center of the hinge shaft is located in a position lower than the surfaces of the base cover section and the stand cover section.

The portable information device may further be such that the chassis includes: a first chassis; and a second chassis coupled adjacent to the first chassis to be rotatable relative to the first chassis, the base cover section includes: a slide cover section provided to be movable relative to the back surface of the first chassis along a line-up direction of the first chassis and the second chassis; a fixed cover section relatively fixed to the back surface of the second chassis; and a folding cover section which connects between the slide cover section and the fixed cover section to be movable relative to each other, and the stand cover section is placed to be movable relative to the back surface of the second chassis and adjacent to the fixed cover section across the hinge device.

The portable information device may further include: a display provided on at least the surface of the first chassis; and a camera provided in a peripheral portion of the display on the surface of the first chassis.

A cover device according to the second aspect of the present invention is a cover device configured to cover the back surface of a chassis of a portable information device, including: a base cover section; a stand cover section provided to be rotatable relative to the base cover section; and a hinge device having a hinge shaft, a first bracket rotatably coupled to the hinge shaft and fixed relative to the base cover section, and a second bracket provided adjacent to the first bracket in an axial direction of the hinge shaft, coupled rotatably to the hinge shaft, and fixed to the stand cover section, wherein the first bracket has a first notch-shaped portion in a root part of a side end face thereof on the side of the hinge shaft to face the side of the second bracket in the axial direction, and the second bracket has a second notch-shaped portion in a root part of a side end face thereof on the side of the hinge shaft to face the side of the first bracket in the axial direction.

The cover device may also be such that the base cover section has a first core material, and a first surface material formed of a material softer than the first core material to form the surface of the base cover section, the stand cover section has a second core material, and a second surface material formed of a material softer than the second core material to form the surface of the stand cover section, the first core material has a first bracket placement hole in which the first bracket is placed, and a first protruding portion protruding from an inner peripheral surface of the first bracket placement hole into the first notch-shaped portion, and the second core material has a second bracket placement hole in which the second bracket is placed, and a second protruding portion protruding from an inner peripheral surface of the second bracket placement hole into the second notch-shaped portion.

The hinge device may also be so structured that at least the shaft center of the hinge shaft is located in a position lower than the surfaces of the base cover section and the stand cover section.

The above-described aspects of the present invention can suppress the occurrence of breakage and damage.

