EP1154339A1 - Portable electronic device,such as,in particular, a timepiece,provided with a push-button - Google Patents

Abstract

The bottom of a plastic watch case (6) is molded to form a rod or piston (40) which is supported by a thin circular elastic rim (44). The lower surface of the rim and rod (42) are recessed and when pushed by a pen or pencil move upwards. The inside top surface of the rod is metallized (48,54) and with the upward motion closes contacts (50,52) to operate a function such as reset

Description

The present invention relates to a push button whose use is suitable very well in an electronic watch or in any other electronic device relatively small dimensions.

As we know, in the field of watchmaking, the case of a watch is an essential element. In the case of electronic watches, the case contains, between others, a rechargeable battery or accumulator, as well as a quartz oscillator which provides, via a frequency divider circuit, a time base to a control for controlling a digital liquid crystal display or operate a stepper motor capable of driving a train and a switch classics. It is therefore essential that the case is waterproof and moisture proof.

Push buttons must nevertheless pass through these boxes. Some rare exceptions (capacitive keys for example), these pushers are, in the state of the art, essential to be able to control the functions watchmakers required, for example, to trigger a chronograph or by resetting the watch.

The pushers are buttons that protrude from the middle of the watch. In pushing them with a finger, the desired watch function of the watch is activated. AT For this purpose, the pusher brings the positive pole of the battery or accumulator into contact with the negative pole of the electronic control module which contains, in particular, the time reset program. Depending on the nature of the impulse, the hands or the time indication provided by the liquid crystal display, either minute in minutes (short pulse), or one hour (long pulse). When the pressure stops, the push buttons return to their original place.

The construction of these push buttons is most often quite complex. They generally consist of a pusher head which can be chased or glued on a push rod. The push rod is slidably arranged at the interior of a housing formed in the middle of the watch which must be produced with great precision. The push rod moves axially in this housing against the return force of a spring when a thrust is applied to the pusher head. The return spring is usually arranged in a housing formed in the pusher head and bears axially on the bottom of a cavity provided in the middle. Alternatively, a contact flange which has elastic properties acts as a return spring and prevents the rod to escape from the housing in which it slides. Finally, to ensure watertightness of these pushbuttons, seals are used. Unfortunately, in the long run, these joints become clogged and harden, which causes leaks which may compromise the proper functioning of the watch.

On the other hand, as mentioned above, the pushbuttons protrude of the middle part of the watch. They therefore form growths which detract from the appearance. aesthetics of the watch.

Finally, these pushbuttons, protruding from the middle of the watch, can be handled accidentally, for example by clinging to the sleeve of the wearer's shirt or jacket, which can cause unexpected activation of a function of the watch or the disruption of the latter.

To overcome these drawbacks, we already know the correctors. It's about also buttons, but they are embedded in the middle of the watch. Like the pushers, they are used to correct the different indications given by a watch electronics for example. These correctors can only be activated using a tip that allows them to be pushed. Aesthetically, correctors allow to build a build free from any growth. However, their structure is also complicated than that of a pusher and they are therefore expensive to produce.

We also know by patent application GB 2 077 506 in the name of Citizen a watch case having pushers including the rod and the outer head of the plunger are made of a single piece molded from plastic. The head has a wall thin enough to be slightly flexible, allowing a short stroke of the rod, and serving as a return spring. The free end of the rod carries a plate conductive rubber which, when pressed, applies to two fixed contacts to connect them electrically. The periphery of the flexible head is in cylindrical skirt shape which, in a first embodiment of the pusher, is glued tightly against the wall of the box. In another form of realization, the molded part is made in one piece with the box, the skirt connecting straight to the box.

Such a pusher head must have a large enough diameter that the head be flexible. This is possible in the case of the cited document because the pushers are located on an upper face of the box. However, they could not find on the side wall of the box (the part called the middle part), because the height is generally very limited. In addition, the repeated flexions of the head flexible plastic material may in time take off the skirt or crack it, thus affecting the tightness and functioning of the pusher. We can also note that the pusher head protrudes from the upper surface of the box. It therefore harms the aesthetic appearance of the watch and can be activated inadvertently.

The main object of the present invention is therefore to remedy the drawbacks of the aforementioned prior art as well as still others by proposing a pusher economically feasible by a method of injecting a plastic material of such so that the pusher cannot be activated unintentionally.

To this end, the present invention relates to a portable electronic device such that, in particular, a timepiece, comprising a case made of a material plastic bounded by a bottom and a side wall called the middle part, characterized in that this electronic device comprises at least one means intended, under the effect of a push, to control at least one electronic function such as a function watchmaker of said electronic device, this means, directed towards the inside of the case, being made in one piece with said housing and being set back from the surface exterior of the latter, said means being operable using an element pointed like the tip of a pen.

Thanks to these characteristics, the present invention provides a means or control member which can be made of the same plastic as the housing, which makes it possible to manufacture it, for example by injection or by molding, at the same time time that said housing. This results in substantial cost savings Manufacturing. In addition, as this control member is set back compared to the external surface of the case, the aesthetics of the electronic device according to the invention such as, for example, a watch, is greatly improved. The control member is indeed completely embedded in the housing, so that said housing is released from any protuberance or protuberance. Finally, the organ of control can no longer be activated inadvertently. There is therefore no longer a risk of unintentionally triggering a chronograph, for example, unnecessarily exhaust the battery or accumulator. Likewise, settings such as, for example example, that of the current time or of an alarm time, cannot be modified without user intervention.

According to another characteristic of the invention, the control means includes a rod connected to the box by a flexible part which exerts on said rod a elastic restoring force.

The rod is small, which allows it to be placed in one place any of the case, for example on the middle or in the bottom of said case. Else part, the flexible part exerts on the rod an elastic restoring force under the effect of which said rod, when the pressure exerted on it is released, returns to its initial position. It is therefore no longer necessary to provide a return spring or housing with always complex shapes in which said spring would be housed. Thanks to its very simple construction, the control member according to the invention is therefore not very expensive to manufacture.

• la figure 1 est une vue de dessus de la montre objet de la présente invention,
• la figure 2 est une vue en coupe selon les axes 3 heures-6 heures dans la montre de la figure 1,
• la figure 3 est une vue à plus grande échelle de la région entourée d'un cercle sur la figure 2, le moyen de commande étant au repos,
• la figure 4 est une vue analogue à celle de la figure 3, le moyen de commande étant activé, et
• la figure 5 est une vue de dessous de la montre représentée à la figure 1.

Other characteristics and advantages of the present invention will appear more clearly on reading the detailed description which follows of an embodiment of the portable object according to the invention, this example being given purely by way of nonlimiting illustration, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

• FIG. 1 is a top view of the watch which is the subject of the present invention,
• FIG. 2 is a sectional view along the axes from 3 am to 6 am in the watch of FIG. 1,
• FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of the region surrounded by a circle in FIG. 2, the control means being at rest,
• FIG. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 3, the control means being activated, and
• FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the watch shown in FIG. 1.

The present invention proceeds from the general inventive idea which consists in provide a push button made in one piece with the housing of an electronic device, set back from the outer surface of this housing. By these characteristics, we obtain a case whose aesthetics are improved and whose manufacture is simple and so can be expensive. In addition, as the pusher is set back from the surface outside of the case, there is no risk of inadvertently operating this button and trigger an electronic function when you don't want it to.

The present invention will be described with reference to a timepiece of the wristwatch type. It goes without saying, however, that the present invention may apply to any type of electronic device of relatively small dimensions such as that, for example, a mobile phone, whose electronic functions can be controlled by one or more push buttons according to the invention.

The timepiece according to the invention can be, for example, a wristwatch. It is shown schematically in Figure 1 and designated in its together by the general reference number 1.

The timepiece 1 conventionally comprises a case 2 provided with a middle 4 and a bottom 6 which delimits the housing 2 in its lower part. In the example shown, the bottom 6 is made in one piece with the middle part 4. It will however of itself that the present invention applies in the same way to a box which would not be monocoque and which would include a back separate from the middle. The housing 2 is made of a plastic material according to techniques, for example injection molding, well known.

The timepiece 1 also includes a horometric movement 8 supplied with current by a battery or an electric accumulator 10 which can, if necessary if necessary, be recharged after exhaustion. The stack 10, shown schematically in FIG. 2, typically presents the shape of a pellet housed in the bottom 6 of the shows 1. The battery 10 is accessed via a removable cover 12 rendered sealed by a seal 14. In its upper part, the housing 2 is delimited by a glass 16 covering means 18 for displaying time information. In the example shown in Figure 1, these display means 18 consist of a dial 20 above which an hour hand 22 moves, a hand minutes 24 and a second hand 26. So these are analog means time display. It could also be digital display means consisting of a liquid crystal cell.

Finally, the housing 2 has at its upper periphery a notch 28 in which is engaged a bezel 30 which secures the glass 16 on the housing 2. The bezel 30 is fixedly mounted on the housing 2, for example by gluing or welding by ultrasound or by hunting. The glass 16 is sealed against the case 2 through the use of a seal 32 wedged between the glass and the case.

As seen in Figure 2, the middle part 4 of watch 1 defines a cavity central unit in which the electronic watch movement 8 takes place. clockwork movement 8, carried by a printed circuit (not shown), comprises, among others, a time base circuit, a frequency divider circuit supplied by the time base, an electronic control module connected to the divider circuit and the display system 18 controlled by the electronic control module.

The electronic control module performs various functions. he maintains in particular the oscillations of the quartz oscillator of the time base circuit, divides the frequency of the quartz, corrects the running of the watch and operates a stepper motor capable of driving a train 34 and the switch formed by the hour hand 22, the minute hand 24 and the second hand 26 described above. The control module also manages special functions such as that the date, the chronograph, the alarm, the time zones, and allows correct certain indications and set the time.

As shown more particularly in FIGS. 2 to 4, watch 1 includes, for example, two control members 36 and 38 conforming to the present invention each intended to control at least one watch function of watch 1. As an illustrative example only, a push on the command 36 allows the watch 1 to be reset to the time, and a push on the organ 38 allows you to start a chronograph. More specifically, by a short press on the control member 36, the minute hands are advanced in minutes, while pressing the hands forward for one hour. Similarly, a first press on the control member 38 puts with the chronograph running, a second press stops the operation the chronograph and measure the elapsed time interval, and a third press resets the chronograph to zero. It goes without saying that the number of organs command worn by the watch is not limited to two, and is only determined by the number of watch functions that one wishes to control.

In the example shown in the figures, the control members 36 and 38 according to the invention are arranged in the bottom 6 of the case 2 of the watch 1. Although heard, due to their small dimensions, the control members 36 and 38 can be placed anywhere on watch 1, for example on the middle 4 or on the bezel 30.

In accordance with the present invention, the control members 36 and 38 are identical and each consist of a rod 40 preferably having a shape cylindrical, slightly conical or prismatic, oriented towards the inside of the housing 2 of watch 1. As is clear from FIGS. 2 and 3, the end 42 of the rods 40 located outside the housing 2 is disposed recessed relative to the surface of the bottom 6 of said housing 2. In this way, a housing 2 is provided which is free of any protuberance or protuberance, which considerably improves the aesthetic appearance of the watch 1. On the other hand, as the control members 36 and 38 are completely submerged in the case 2, the risk of actuating them involuntarily is nonexistent. Onne there is therefore a greater risk of inadvertently triggering a watch function, which allows not to exhaust unnecessarily the battery 10. Likewise, the settings of the watch 1 cannot be modified without the intervention of the wearer who, using an element pointed like the tip of a pen, can actuate the control members 36 and 38.

According to an essential characteristic of the invention, the control members 36 and 38 are made in one piece with the case 2 of watch 1, which allows manufacture them, for example by injection or by molding a plastic material, same time as said housing 2. The costs of manufacturing such a housing comprising two control bodies coming from material with it are, we understand easily, very reduced.

More specifically, the rods 40 of the control members 36 and 38 are linked to the housing 2 by a part 44 thin enough to be slightly flexible and allow thus a longitudinal stroke of the rods 40 and serve as a return spring for said rods 40. It will be noted that the recall of the rods 40 is ensured solely by the elasticity of the plastic from which case 2 is made. Consequently, it is no longer necessary to provide return spring or housing in which this spring would be arranged, which, here too, allows a substantial reduction in the costs of manufacturing.

In the example of FIG. 3, the part 44 by which the rod 40 is connected the housing 2 is in the form of a circular skirt which opens inwards of the housing 2 at an angle which is chosen so as to give said skirt 44 a well adapted elasticity. The skirt 44 is connected directly to the housing 2 and surrounds the rod 40 completely, thus achieving perfect sealing of the organs of controls 36 and 38 according to the invention. We can therefore get rid of seals which are usually used in conjunction with conventional push buttons, joints which, as we know, have the disadvantage of clogging and hardening over time time, which causes leaks which can be detrimental to the good watch operation 1.

On the inside of the case 2, the end 46 of the rod 40 has a surface front 48 which may have any suitable form for cooperating with contacts electrical 50 and 52 connected, respectively, to the positive pole of battery 10 and to an input of the electronic control module. For this purpose, the front surface 48 can be metallized or receive a metal strip 54. Under the effect of a manual push exerted on the end 42 of the rod 40 located outside the housing 2, the deformation of the flexible skirt 44 causes a stroke of the rod 40 to an active position shown in Figure 4 in which it electrically connects the two contacts 50 and 52, which makes it possible to introduce an instruction in the electronic module of ordered. When this thrust is released, the rod 40 is recalled in its rest position by the elasticity of the plastic.

The present invention is also very suitable in a device flexible electronics for developing and displaying information such as that described in international application WO 99/67702 on behalf of Viztec, Inc. The portable device includes a flexible display cell and a flexible strap that form the body of the device. The bracelet allows to fix the device around the wrist of a person for example. The portable device has light and flexible elements which allow to follow the shape of a given contour and to present a flat profile. The device can thus withstand without damage the deformations to which a shows, for example, is submitted during normal physical activity.

Such a device, due to its flexibility, is subject to constraints important as well as many contacts. If it is fitted with push buttons that protrude from its outer surface, the risks are great to see these push buttons be activated accidentally, which will cause activation involuntary function of the watch or the disruption of the latter. It is why it is very advantageous to equip such a device with one or more organs control according to the present invention. Drowned in the thickness of the body flexible, these control elements do not harm the aesthetic appearance of the device portable and cannot be operated inadvertently. Furthermore, as they are made of the same plastic material as the flexible body, they can be made of same time as the latter. This results in substantial savings in terms of manufacturing costs.

The control members according to the invention can also be used in connection with data entry keys, for example capacitive or resistive. Indeed, a first solution, the simplest, would be to leave these keys constantly energized data input, pending the use of these keys by the wearer of the watch. Besides the fact that these keys could then be unexpectedly activated by simply touching one of these buttons with a the user, this solution is not very economical from the consumption point of view electric. A more advantageous solution therefore consists in ordering the activation and disabling these data entry keys by means of the control according to the invention. A first press on one of the organs of command will turn on the corresponding data entry key. The user can then, by means of said data entry key, correct or modify any of the information processed and displayed by the portable device. A second press on the same control unit will then deactivate again the data entry key.

It goes without saying that the invention is not limited to the embodiment which comes to be described, and that simple modifications and variations can be envisaged without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims (7)

Electronic device such as, in particular, a timepiece (1), comprising a case (2) made of a plastic material delimited by a bottom (6) and a side wall (4) called the middle part, characterized in that this device electronics comprises at least one means (36, 38) intended, under the effect of a push, to control at least one electronic function such as a watch function of said electronic device, this means (36, 38), directed towards the interior of the housing (2), being made in one piece with said housing (2) and being set back relative to the external surface of the latter, said means (36, 38) being actuated using a pointed object such as the tip of a pen. Electronic device according to claim 1, characterized in that the control means (36, 38) comprises a rod (40) connected to the housing by a flexible part (44) which exerts on said rod (40) an elastic restoring force. Electronic device according to claim 2, characterized in that the flexible part (44) is in the form of a circular skirt which connects directly to the housing (2), and completely surrounds the rod (40), thus achieving the tightness of the control means (36, 38). Electronic device according to claim 3, characterized in that the circular skirt opens towards the inside of the housing (2). Electronic device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that , on the inside of the housing (2), the end (46) of the rod (40) has a front surface (48) which cooperates with electrical contacts (50, 52) connected, respectively, to the positive pole of a battery (10) and to an input of an electronic control module. Electronic device according to claim 5, characterized in that the front surface (48) of the rod (40) can be metallized or receive a metal strip (54). Electronic device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the control means (36, 38) controls the activation and deactivation of a data entry key.

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