Manually operable mechanic and electrical connector

Claim 2

Apparatus for attaching a photographic camera assembly to an electronic visual display instrument, comprising: an electronic visual display instrument, a hinge pivot bar attached to said electronic visual display instrument, a photographic camera assembly, a pivot shaft attached to said camera assembly, said pivot shaft being cooperatively shaped to be received by said hinge pivot bar and rotated with respect thereto about an axis of rotation, an electrical receptacle positioned a distance away from said hinge pivot bar on said electronic visual display instrument, said receptacle having an elongated plug receiving slot that is substantially parallel with said axis of rotation, and an electrical connecting plug held by said camera assembly for insertion into said receptacle slot as said pivot shaft is rotated within said hinge pivot bar about said axis of rotation, said plug being resiliently suspended on said camera assembly in a manner that it can move in a direction toward and away from said pivot shaft as the camera assembly is positioned on the instrument and the plug is inserted in said receptacle slot.

Claim 3

Connectable apparatus, comprising: an electronic device containing a visual display, an elongated hinge pivot bar connected to said electronic device adjacent one edge of said visual display, a circular bore within said hinge pivot bar and extending in a direction along its length, said circular bore having a surface with a uniform diameter therealong, an elongated slot extending along the length of said hinge pivot bar in a manner to provide an opening into said circular bore, said slot including a pair of parallel plane surfaces intersecting said circular bore surface, said parallel plane surfaces being spaced apart a distance that is less than said circular bore uniform diameter, a photographic camera assembly, a pivot shaft having a uniform diameter that is slightly less than the diameter of said circular bore but significantly greater than the distance between the parallel surfaces of said slot, said pivot shaft being rigidly connected to said photographic camera assembly, at least one pair of parallel plane surfaces on opposite sides of said pivot shaft along at least a portion of its Length, the distance between said shaft parallel plane surfaces being slightly less than the distance between the parallel surfaces of the slot of said hinge pivot bar, an electrical receptacle held by said electronic visual display device along an edge of said display that is opposite to the edge along which said hinge pivot bar is connected and a certain distance therefrom, and a plug held by said camera assembly said certain distance from the pivot shaft and having a shape cooperating with that of the receptacle to be received thereby as said camera assembly is pivoted about its pivot shaft within said hinge pivot bar.

Claim 4

Connectable apparatus, comprising: an electronic device containing a visual display, an elongated hinge pivot bar connected to said electronic device adjacent one edge of said visual display, a circular bore within said hinge pivot bar and extending in a direction along its length, said circular bore having a surface with a uniform diameter therealong, an elongated slot extending along the length of said hinge pivot bar in a manner to provide an opening into said circular bore, said slot including a pair of parallel plane surfaces intersecting said circular bore surface, said parallel plane surfaces being spaced apart a distance that is less than said circular bore uniform diameter, a photographic camera assembly, a pivot shaft having a uniform diameter that is slightly less than the diameter of said circular bore but significantly greater than the distance between the parallel surfaces of said slot, said pivot shaft being rigidly connected to said photographic camera assembly, at least one pair of parallel plane surfaces on opposite sides of said pivot shaft along at least a portion of its Length, the distance between said shaft parallel plane surfaces being slightly less than the distance between the parallel surfaces of the slot of said hinge pivot bar, an electrical receptacle held by said electronic visual display device along an edge of said display that is opposite to the edge along which said hinge pivot bar is connected and a certain distance therefrom, and a plug held by said camera assembly said certain distance from the pivot shaft and having a shape cooperating with that of the receptacle to be received thereby as said camera assembly is pivoted about its pivot shaft within said hinge pivot bar.

Claim 5

A connectable apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said electronic visual display device includes a cathode ray tube whose display is desired to be recorded by a camera on said camera assembly.

Claim 6

A connectable apparatus according to claim 3 wherein said hinge pivot bar extends across a top edge of said cathode ray tube.

Claim 7

A connectable apparatus according to claim 4 wherein said pivot shaft is oriented on said camera assembly so that its parallel plane surfaces slide into the slot on said hinge pivot bar with the camera assembly rotated to form an acute angle with said electronic visual display device, whereby said camera assembly is rotated relative to said hinge pivot bar once the pivot shaft is engaged within said circular bore thereof.

Claim 8

A connectable apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said hinge pivot bar extends outward of said electronic instrument and further wherein said pivot shaft is rigidly attached at its ends to a pair of hinge blocks on said camera assembly, said hinge blocks being spaced a distance apart that is slightly greater than the length of said hinge pivot bar, whereby lateral motion of said camera assembly relative to said electronic visual display device is restrained when the pivot shaft is engaged within the hinge pivot bar.

Claim 9

A connectable apparatus according to claim 6 wherein said circular bore extends within the hinge pivot bar for only a portion of its length, said portion including segments adjacent each of its said abrupt ends, the middle of said hinge pivot bar between said segments being relieved.

Claim 10

A connectable apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said plug is movable a small amount with respect to said camera assembly in a direction toward and away from said pivot shaft so that the plug may engage said receptacle as said camera assembly is being rotated about said hinge pivot bar for movement into engagement with said receptacle.

Claim 11

A connectable apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said hinge pivot bar is connected across a top edge of said display portion of the electronic display device and wherein said electrical receptacle is held along a bottom edge of said display portion.

Claim 12

Apparatus according to claim 2 wherein said plug is a thin printed circuit board having strips as conductors for contacting associated contacts within said receptacle.

Claim 13

Apparatus according to claim 10 wherein said plug is held in a manner to be movable in a direction toward and away from the part of the mechanical connector on the same device a certain fixed amount for proper alignment and engagement with said socket as the two devices are rotated with respect to each other.

Claim 14

Apparatus according to claim 11 wherein said printed circuit board plug is held by at least a pair of springs on either side thereof which under compression push toward said plug in a direction toward and away from the part of the mechanical connector on the same device, whereby said plug is movable against said springs as it engages said socket.