Electronic apparatus and information processing apparatus

• US 20050030721A1
• Filed: 08/07/2003
• Published: 02/10/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Canon Kabushiki Kaisha (Canon Inc.)
• Inventors: Shimada, Tsutomu, Kajihara, Hideaki
• Granted Patent: US 6,992,897 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 361/726
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/181 Enclosures for portable computers G06F1/1613
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/184 Mounting of motherboards
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/187 Mounting of fixed and removable disk drives
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1639 Arrangements for locking plugged peripheral connectors
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/121 the apparatus comprising a single recording/reproducing device
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/125 the apparatus comprising a plurality of recording/reproducing devices, e.g. modular arrangements, arrays of disc drives
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/126 Arrangements for providing electrical connections, e.g. connectors, cables, switches
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 33/128 of the plurality of recording/reproducing devices, e.g. disk drives, onto a chassis

Abstract

There is provided an electronic apparatus that can solve the problem with the prior art that a removable electronic device is removed while the removable electronic device is in operation, leading to unfavorable results. A disk unit is removably attached to the main body of the electronic apparatus and receives at least one removable hard disk as a removable electronic device removably attached thereto. A locking mechanism locks together the disk unit and the main body. A CPU controls the locking mechanism to inhibit the disk unit and the main body from being locked together while the removable hard disk is in operation.

Claims

1. An electronic apparatus comprising:

a main body;

a receiving unit that is removably attached to said main body and receives at least one removable electronic device removably attached thereto;

a locking device that locks together said receiving unit and said main body; and

a controller that controls said locking device to inhibit said receiving unit and said main body from being released from a state in which they are locked together while the removable electronic device is in operation.

2. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising an electronic device removing device that removes the removable electronic device from said receiving unit, and wherein said controller controls said electronic device removing device to inhibit the removable electronic device from being removed from said receiving unit while the removable electronic device is in operation.

3. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 1, comprising a connector unit provided in said main body, and wherein said receiving unit is removably attached to said connector unit, said locking device locks together said receiving unit and said connector unit, and said controller controls said locking device to inhibit said receiving unit from being removed from said connector unit together while the removable electronic device is in operation.

4. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said receiving unit has formed therein at least one recess at such a location that the recess is hidden inside said main body when said receiving unit is attached to said connector unit, and is exposed externally when said receiving unit is removed from said connector unit.

5. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said locking device comprises a locking mechanism that locks together said connector unit and said receiving unit when said receiving unit is attached to said connector unit, said locking mechanism being responsive to a lock release command from said controller, for releasing locking of said connector unit and said receiving unit.

6. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, comprising a unit removing device that is responsive to a removal command from said controller, for removing said receiving unit from said connector unit, when said receiving unit is attached to said connector unit.

7. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein said controller controls said unit removing device to inhibit said receiving unit from being removed from said receiving unit while the removable electronic device is operation.

8. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 7, comprising a single driver that drives said locking device and said unit removing device.

9. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein the removable electronic device is configured such that the removable electronic device can be removed from said receiving unit when said receiving unit is removed from said connector unit.

10. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein the removable electronic device comprises a plurality of removable electronic devices of a same type or of different types.

11. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 10, comprising a plurality of electronic device removing devices that are provided in association with respective ones of the plurality of removable electronic devices, for removing the respective removable electronic devices from said receiving unit, and wherein said controller controls any of the removable electronic device removing devices to enable a corresponding one of the removable electronic devices that is not in operation to be removed from said receiving unit.

12. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 10, comprising a display device that displays an indication as to which of the plurality of removable electronic devices attached to said receiving unit has failed in a case where any of the removable electronic devices fails, and said display device continues displaying the indication even after said receiving unit is removed from said connector unit.

13. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 12, comprising a plurality of electronic device removing devices that are provided in association with respective ones of the plurality of removable electronic devices, for removing the respective removable electronic devices from said receiving unit, and wherein said controller issues a removal command to any of the removable electronic device removing device corresponding to any of the removable electronic devices that has failed, for removing the failed removable electronic device from said receiving unit.

14. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 13, comprising a single driver that drives said removable electronic device removing devices and said display device.

15. An electronic apparatus as claimed in claim 3, wherein said removable electronic device is positioned such that outer surfaces thereof lie inwardly of an outer surface of said receiving unit on a side thereof at which the removable electronic devices are attached to said receiving unit.

16. An information processing apparatus comprising an electronic apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 15.