JP2000155583A - Keyboard device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make it possible to allow keys to glitter always in a specified state without changing the degree of glittering of the keys at the time of key touch and at the time of non-key touch. SOLUTION: The hollow keys 3 are vertically freely turnably arranged on a keyboard chassis 2. Light emitting panels 6 are arranged atop the front part sides of these keys 3 and electrode terminals 18 and 19 of the light emitting panels 6 are disposed to face both flanks within the hollows of the keys 3. Contact pieces 21 and 22 of contact members 7 disposed on the keyboard chassis 2 are slidably brought into contact with the respective electrode terminals 18 and 19. Then, the light emitting state of the light emitting panels 6 does not change even if the keys are touched or not touched in the state of allowing the light emitting panels 6 to emit light and, therefore, the glittering degrees of the keys 3 do not change at the time of key touch and non-key touch unlike heretofore and the keys 3 may be made to glitter in an always specified state. The contact pieces 21 and 22 are slidably brought into contact with the electrode terminals 18 and 19 disposed on both flanks within the hollows of the keys 3 and, therefore, the stable supply of electric power is possible even at the time of key touch and non-key touch.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a keyboard device such as an electronic keyboard instrument.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in an electronic keyboard musical instrument such as an electronic piano, a light source is provided on a keyboard chassis on which a plurality of keys are rotatably arranged in a vertical direction so as to correspond to a lower front portion of each key. It has a navigation function to indicate the key to be pressed by selectively lighting the light source according to the music played in advance in the storage unit and selectively illuminating and illuminating the front side of each key. Are being developed. In this case, the plurality of keys include a plurality of white keys and a plurality of black keys, all of which are made of a synthetic resin having a light-transmitting property, and the front side of each key is formed by a light source disposed below each key. When illuminated from below, a part of the illuminating light passes through the key and exits upward, so that the key itself appears to shine.

[0003]

However, in such an electronic keyboard instrument, since the light source is provided on the keyboard chassis below the front of each key, the key approaches the light source when the key is pressed. When the key is not pressed, the key is separated from the light source. Therefore, when the key is pressed, the irradiation area of the key by the light source is narrow and the luminance is high. However, when the key is not pressed, the irradiation area of the key by the light source is wide and the luminance is reduced. That is, there is a problem that the degree of light of the key changes between when the key is pressed and when the key is not pressed.

[0004] It is an object of the present invention to provide a key that always emits light in a constant state without changing the light level of the key between when the key is pressed and when the key is not pressed.

[0005]

According to the first aspect of the present invention,
A keyboard chassis, a hollow key rotatably arranged on the keyboard chassis in a vertical direction, and an upper surface on a front side of the key, and electrode terminals opposing both side surfaces inside the hollow of the key. And a connecting member provided on the keyboard chassis and having contact pieces that slidably contact the electrode terminals, respectively. According to the present invention, since the light emitting panel is provided on the front upper surface of the key, even if the key is pressed while the light emitting panel is emitting light,
Also, even if the key is not pressed, the light emission state of the light emitting panel does not change, so that the light level of the key does not change between when the key is pressed and when the key is not pressed unlike the conventional case, and the light is always kept constant. The key can be illuminated, and the contact pieces of the connection member are slidably in contact with the electrode terminals provided on both sides of the inside of the hollow of the key. Even when a key is pressed, power can be supplied stably.
In this case, as described in claim 2, if the contact piece is provided on the keyboard chassis and attached to both side surfaces of the key guide inserted between the electrode terminals in the key hollow, the contact piece becomes the electrode terminal. By slidably contacting the key, the key can be satisfactorily guided, and the key can be prevented from swaying.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a keyboard chassis,
A key arranged rotatably in the up-down direction on the keyboard chassis, a light guide plate provided on the upper surface of the key from the rear side to the front end, and a light emitting unit and a lead wire having spring properties. A light source, wherein the light emitting unit is disposed in engagement with a rear end surface of the light guide plate, and a support member, which is disposed above a rear end of the key and to which the lead wire of the light source is attached. It is characterized by having. According to the present invention, the light-emitting portion of the light source is disposed so as to be engaged with the rear end surface of the light guide plate provided from the rear side to the front end portion on the top surface of the key. The light is guided by the light guide plate and is emitted from the front end of the light guide plate, whereby the front end side of the key can be illuminated. When the key is pressed in this state, a lead having a spring property according to the key movement The line is bent and the light emitting part of the light source is tilted according to the movement of the key. The light emission state of the key does not change, so that the degree of light of the key does not change between when the key is depressed and when the key is not depressed as in the related art, and the key can always be lit in a constant state. In this case, as described in claim 4, the support is mounted on the rear end of the keyboard chassis and is bent vertically in response to the turning operation of the key, and is mounted on the support plate. And the connection board attached in a state where the lead wires of the light source are electrically connected,
Since the support plate bends and deforms in response to the key depression operation to tilt the light emitting portion, no load is applied to the lead wire, and the durability of the lead wire can be improved.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [First Embodiment] A first embodiment of a keyboard device according to the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. FIG. 1 is a sectional view of the keyboard device. The keyboard device includes a keyboard chassis 2 disposed on a bottom in a musical instrument case 1 via a support member 1a, and a keyboard chassis 2
A plurality of keys (a white key and a black key, and a white key will be described below) 3, which are arranged so as to be rotatable in the vertical direction above;
A rubber switch unit 5 disposed corresponding to each of the keys 3 and pressed by each pressing unit 4 formed on each key 3 when the key is pressed, and a light emitting panel provided on the front upper surface of each key 3 respectively. And a connection member 7 for supplying power to the light emitting panels 6. A plurality of keys 3 are located at the rear (FIG. 1).
(The right part), the thin portions 8 are respectively formed, and the rear ends of these thin portions 8 are connected in parallel to a common connecting portion 9 along the key arrangement direction, whereby a plurality of white keys and a plurality of black keys are formed. Each key is integrally formed. The plurality of keys 3 are attached such that the connecting portion 9 is superimposed on the key attaching portion 10 at the rear end of the keyboard chassis 2, and in this state, the connecting portion 9 rotates vertically around each thin portion 8. Is configured.

The rubber switch section 5 is disposed on a circuit board 11 provided on a lower surface of an intermediate portion of the keyboard chassis 2. That is, the rubber switch section 5 has elastically deformable swelling rubbers 12 corresponding to the pressing sections 4 formed at the intermediate portions of the respective keys 3, and these swelling rubbers 12 are formed in the opening 2 a of the keyboard chassis 2. Through the circuit board 11. In this case, a fixed contact and a movable contact are provided in the swelling rubber 12 so as to be able to contact and separate therefrom. The swelling rubber 12 has an upper end protruding upward through the opening 2 a of the keyboard chassis 2 and abuts against the lower surface of the pressing portion 4 of the key 3. Key 3 is up. A key guide 13 to be described later is formed on the upper surface of the keyboard chassis 2 so as to correspond to the front portion of the key 3. The lower surface of the keyboard chassis 2 corresponding to the key guide 13 has an upper limit stopper such as felt. 14 are provided. When the key 3 is pushed up by the elastic restoring force of the swelling rubber 12 and the elastic restoring force of the thin portion 8, the upper limit stopper 14 comes into contact with the L-shaped stopper piece 15 formed on the key 3. The position of the key 3 is regulated to a predetermined upper limit position (initial position). A lower limit stopper 16 such as a felt is provided on the upper surface of the keyboard chassis 2 at a position corresponding to the upper limit stopper 14.

On the other hand, the light-emitting panel 6 on the front upper surface of the key 3
Is a flat light-emitting element such as an EL light-emitting element having an EL (electroluminescence) light-emitting layer provided between an anode electrode and a cathode electrode. As shown in FIG. It is provided in the range of several mm to several tens mm. A transparent protective plate 16 for protecting the light emitting panel 6 is provided on the upper surface of the light emitting panel 6, and color printing (white printing with a white key) is provided on the upper surface of the light emitting panel 6 or the lower surface of the transparent protective plate 17. , Black key, black printing)
Is given. In this case, as shown in FIG. 2, the key 3 is a hollow member having a rectangular cross section opened to the lower side, and has a mounting hole for mounting the light emitting panel 6 and a protection plate on its upper surface. A step portion is provided to which both side edges along the longitudinal direction of 17 are fixed. Thus, in a state where the light emitting panel 6 and the protection plate 17 are stacked and mounted on the front upper surface of the key 3, the upper surface of the key 3 and the upper surface of the protection plate 17 are flush. Further, as shown in FIG. 3, the light emitting panel 6 has electrode terminals 18 and 19 provided on both sides at the front end, respectively, facing downward. Each electrode terminal 18, 19
Are formed in a vertically long rectangular shape, respectively, and the light emitting panel 6
Are electrically connected to one of the electrodes. For example, one electrode terminal 18 is connected to the anode electrode of the light emitting panel 6, and the other electrode terminal 19 is connected to the cathode electrode of the light emitting panel 6. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the electrode terminals 18 and 19 are attached to both sides inside the front portion of the key 3 so as to face each other.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a connecting member 7 for supplying power to the light-emitting panel 6 includes a keyboard chassis 2.
Connection board 2 arranged above and below the front part of each key 3
0 and contact pieces 21 and 22 that are electrically connected to the connection board 20 and slidably contact the electrode terminals 18 and 19. The contact pieces 21 and 22 are inserted into the key 2. The key guide 13 is mounted on both sides.
That is, the key guide 13 is inserted between the electrode terminals 18 and 19 provided on the inner surface of the front part of the key 3, and the contact pieces 21 and 22 are provided on both side surfaces as shown in FIG. Are attached. These contact pieces 21 and 22
Is made of a conductive metal plate, and each intermediate portion has a spring property by being bent in a “<” shape protruding from the side surface of the key guide 13, and each intermediate portion is provided with each electrode. Each upper part is vertically movably mounted on the upper end of the key guide 13 so as to slidably elastically contact the terminals 18 and 19, and each lower end is attached in a state of being electrically connected to the connection board 20. I have. The connection board 20 is electrically connected to the circuit board 11 of the rubber switch unit 5 by a connection cable 23, and the circuit board 11 is connected to the connection cable 2
4 is connected to a control unit (not shown).

In such a keyboard device, since the light emitting panel 6 is provided on the upper surface on the front side of the key 3, the connection terminals 20 and 22 are connected to the electrode terminals 18 and 19 of the light emitting panel 6 through the contact pieces 21 and 22. When power is supplied from the light-emitting panel 6
Is emitted, whereby the front side of the key 3 emits surface light uniformly through the transparent protective plate 17. In this state, the light emission state of the light emitting panel 6 does not change even if the key 3 is pressed or not, so that the key 3 is switched between when the key is depressed and when the key is not depressed as in the related art. The key 3 can be illuminated in a constant state without changing the illuminating state of the key 3. The light emitting panel 6
Is provided only on the front side of the upper surface of the key 3, so that the light-emitting panel 6 can be of a minimum necessary size, and the price of the light-emitting panel 6 can be reduced. Further, in this keyboard device, the electrode terminals 18 and 19 of the light emitting panel 6 provided on the upper surface on the front side of the key 3 are provided to face the inner surface of the front portion of the key 3, and contact the electrode terminals 18 and 19. Since the pieces 21 and 22 are slidably in contact with each other, even if the key 3 rotates in the vertical direction when the key is pressed, the contact pieces 21 and 22 contact the electrode terminals 18 and 19 to always stably supply power. Can be supplied. The contact pieces 21 and 22 are
It has a spring property and is attached to both side surfaces of the key guide 13 and slidably resiliently contacts the electrode terminals 18 and 19, so that the key 3 can be guided well, and Lateral run-out can be prevented.

[Second Embodiment] Next, a keyboard device according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the keyboard device when no key is pressed,
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the keyboard device when a key is pressed. The keyboard device is provided with a support member 3 on the bottom in the instrument case 30.
1 and a plurality of keys (a white key and a black key, which are rotatably arranged in the vertical direction on the keyboard chassis 32; a white key will be described below. .) 33, and pressing portions 34 formed on each key 33 at the time of key pressing.
And a light source unit 36 that illuminates the front end side of each key 33.

The rear ends (right ends in FIG. 4) of the plurality of keys 33 are inserted into locking holes 32a provided in the rising portion of the rear end of the keyboard chassis 32. Is engaged with the upper end edge of the locking hole 32a, so that this engaging portion is the center of rotation (fulcrum) of the key 33 in the vertical direction. The key 33 is urged upward by a coil spring 38 interposed between the keyboard chassis 32 and a position near the front side (left side in the figure) of the center of rotation. In this case, the position of the coil spring 38 is regulated by the guide boss 33a of the key 33 and the positioning boss 32b of the keyboard chassis 32. As a result, the key 33 is urged upward by the spring force of the coil spring 38, but an L-shaped stopper piece 39, which is normally provided on the front side of the key 33, is formed on the keyboard chassis 32. By contacting the upper limit stopper 41 such as felt provided on the lower surface of the keyboard chassis 32 through the stupid hole 40, the position is regulated to a predetermined initial position (upper limit position). Note that a lower limit stopper 42 such as felt for restricting the lower limit position of the key 33 is provided on the upper surface of the keyboard chassis 32 below the stopper piece 39. At the front end of the keyboard chassis 32, a key guide 43 for preventing the key 33 from swinging sideways is provided.

The rubber switch section 35 is connected to the keyboard chassis 32.
Are disposed on a circuit board 45 attached to the lower surface of the intermediate portion by screws 44. That is, the rubber switch unit 35 is provided with a pressing portion 34 formed at an intermediate portion of each key 33.
Elastically deformable pair of swelling rubbers 4 corresponding to
6 and 47, and these bulging rubbers 46 and 47 are provided on the circuit board 45 through the openings 32c of the keyboard chassis 32. In this case, a fixed contact and a movable contact are provided in the swelling rubbers 46 and 47 so as to be able to contact and separate from each other. Further, the swelling rubbers 46 and 47 are formed such that the upper end protruding upward through the opening 32 c of the keyboard chassis 32 abuts against the lower surface of the pressing portion 34 of the key 33, and
The key 33 is pushed up via the pressing portion 34 also by the elastic restoring force of 6 and 47.

The light source unit 36 includes a support plate 48 mounted on the rear end of the keyboard chassis 32, a connection board 49 mounted on the support plate, a light source 50 mounted on the connection board 49, and A light guide plate 51 is provided for guiding the light from the light source 50 from the rear side to the front end of the key 33. The support plate 48 has a falling portion at its rear end screwed onto the rear end of the keyboard chassis 32 and a key 3 on its front side.
3 are arranged along the arrangement direction of the keys 33 in a state of being located above the rear part. The connection board 49 is screwed to the upper surface of the front part of the support plate 48, and is electrically connected to the control unit by a connection cable (not shown). The light guide plate 51 is made of a synthetic resin such as acrylic, and is arranged on the upper surface of the key 33 from the rear side to the front end. In this case, the light guide plate 51 has a configuration in which a rear end portion has a large thickness and a concave portion 51a is formed in the rear end surface. The light source 50 is composed of a light emitting diode and includes a light emitting portion 50a and a lead wire 50b having a spring property. The light emitting portion 50a is inserted into a concave portion 51a formed at a rear end portion of the light guide plate 48, and a lead wire is provided. 50a is electrically connected to and attached to the connection board 49. In this case, the lead wire 50a
Is bent substantially in an L-shape, and the tip of the
8 is attached to the connection board 49 through the opening 48a, and in this state, it is configured to bend and deform according to the turning operation of the key 33.

In such a keyboard device, the light guide plate 51 is provided on the upper surface of the key 33 from the rear side to the front end, and the light source 50 is provided in the concave portion 51a provided on the rear end surface of the light guide plate 51.
When the light emitting unit 50a of the light source 50 emits light, the light is guided from the rear end to the front end by the light guide plate 51 and emitted from the front end of the light guide plate 51. Thus, the front end side of the key 33 can be illuminated within a certain range. In this state,
When the key is depressed, the light source 50 is moved according to the vertical movement of the key 33.
Of the light emitting portion 50 is bent and deformed.
Since a is tilted in accordance with the movement of the key 33, the direction of the light emitting portion 50a with respect to the light guide plate 51 becomes constant regardless of whether the key is pressed or not, and the light emitting state of the front end of the light guide plate 51 changes. Therefore, unlike the related art, the light level of the key 33 does not change between when the key is pressed and when the key is not pressed, and the front end side of the key 33 can be always lit in a constant state.

In the second embodiment, the light guide plate 51 is used.
A concave portion 51a is provided at the rear end portion, and the light emitting portion 50a of the light source 50 is inserted into the concave portion 51a.
However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in a first modification shown in FIG. By pressing down, the light emitting unit 50a may be inclined in accordance with the vertical movement of the key 33. In the second embodiment, the lead wire 50b of the light source 50 is used.
Is bent into a substantially L-shape having a corner, and the connection substrate 4
9, but is not limited thereto. For example, as in a second modification shown in FIG. 7, the lead wire 50 b may be bent into a gently curved shape having no corners and attached to the connection board 49. You may. By doing so, stress concentration does not occur when the lead wire 50b is bent, so that the durability of the lead wire 50b can be improved.

Further, in the second embodiment, the light source 50
Is configured to bend the lead wire 50b, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as in a third modified example shown in FIG. 8, the falling portion at the rear end of the support plate 53 is formed in the thin portion 53a. The light emitting portion 5 of the light source 50 is provided with a spring property at the falling portion at the front end.
0a is provided with an engaging hole 53b.
By inserting the light emitting portion 50a into the concave portion 51a on the rear end surface of the light guide plate 51 with the rear end portion of the light emitting portion 50a engaged therein, the support plate 53 is configured to bend and deform in the vertical direction. May be. By doing so, the key 33 is depressed when the key is depressed.
The support plate 53 bends and deforms in accordance with the movement of the key 33, whereby the light emitting portion 50a of the light source 50 can be tilted in accordance with the movement of the key 33, and a load is applied to the lead wire 50b. The durability of 50b can be further improved.

In the second embodiment, each key 3
3 are independently assembled on the keyboard chassis 32. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and a plurality of keys 33 may be integrally formed and assembled on the keyboard chassis 32 as in the first embodiment. On the contrary, the keys 3 of the first embodiment are made independent from each other as in the second embodiment.
It may be assembled on top. In the first and second embodiments, the swelling rubbers 12, 46 of the rubber switch parts 5, 45,
The keys 3 and 33 are pushed up by an elastic restoring force such as 47 or a coil spring 38. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the rear end of each key is mounted on a keyboard chassis by a hinge, and the keys are supported. A hammer arm is rotatably attached to the keyboard chassis at each location, and an action load is applied to each key by each of the hammer arms, so that a key touch feeling similar to that of an acoustic piano can be obtained when a key is pressed. The present invention can also be applied to a keyboard device that is configured as described above.

[0020]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention, since the light-emitting panel is provided on the upper surface on the front side of the key, the key can be pressed while the light-emitting panel is emitting light. ,
Also, even if the key is not pressed, the light emission state of the light emitting panel does not change, so that the light level of the key does not change between when the key is pressed and when the key is not pressed unlike the conventional case, and the light is always kept constant. The key can be illuminated, and the contact pieces of the connection member are slidably in contact with the electrode terminals provided on both sides of the inside of the hollow of the key. Even when a key is pressed, power can be supplied stably.
In this case, when the contact piece is provided on the keyboard chassis and attached to both side surfaces of the key guide inserted between the electrode terminals in the hollow of the key, the contact piece slidably contacts the electrode terminal. The key can be guided well, and the key can be prevented from swaying.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, the light-emitting portion of the light source is disposed so as to be engaged with the rear end surface of the light guide plate provided from the rear portion to the front end portion on the upper surface of the key. When the light emitting section emits light, the light is guided by the light guide plate and is emitted from the front end of the light guide plate, whereby the front end side of the key can be illuminated. Since the lead wire having the spring property is bent and deformed in accordance with the movement, and the light emitting portion of the light source is tilted in accordance with the movement of the key, the direction of the light emitting portion with respect to the light guide plate can be determined whether the key is pressed or not. Is constant, and the light emitting state at the front end of the light guide plate does not change.Therefore, the light level of the key does not change between when the key is depressed and when the key is not depressed as in the conventional case, and the key is always kept in a constant state. Can shine. In this case, a support plate is mounted on the rear end of the keyboard chassis and bends up and down in response to the pivoting operation of the key, and a lead wire of the light source mounted on the support plate is electrically connected. When a connection board is attached in a state of being connected to the lead wire, the support plate bends and deforms in response to a key press operation, and the light emitting portion is inclined, so that no load is applied to the lead wire, and Durability can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing a first embodiment of a keyboard device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1;

FIGS. 3A and 3B show the light emitting panel and its electrode terminals of FIGS. 1 and 2, wherein FIG. 3A is a side view and FIG. 3B is a front view.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a second embodiment of the keyboard device of the present invention in a non-key pressed state.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the keyboard device of FIG. 4 in a key pressed state.

FIG. 6 is an essential part cross-sectional view showing a first modification of the second embodiment;

FIG. 7 is an essential part cross-sectional view showing a second modification of the second embodiment;

FIG. 8 is an essential part cross-sectional view showing a third modification of the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 2, 32 keyboard chassis 3, 33 key 6 light emitting panel 7 connecting member 13 key guide 18, 19 electrode terminal 21, 22 contact piece 48, 53 support plate 49 connection board 50 light source 50a light emitting section 50b lead wire 51 light guide plate 51a recess 52 Engagement projection 53a Thin part 53b Engagement hole

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A keyboard chassis, a hollow key rotatably arranged in a vertical direction on the keyboard chassis, and an upper surface of a front portion of the key, and an electrode terminal is provided inside the hollow of the key. A keyboard device comprising: a light-emitting panel provided on both sides of the keyboard; and a connection member provided on the keyboard chassis and having contact pieces slidably in contact with the electrode terminals. 2. The key contact according to claim 1, wherein the contact pieces are provided on the keyboard chassis and attached to both side surfaces of a key guide inserted between the electrode terminals in the hollow of the key. Keyboard device. 3. A keyboard chassis, a key rotatably arranged on the keyboard chassis in a vertical direction, a light guide plate provided on an upper surface of the key from a rear side to a front end, and a light emitting section. And a light source having a light-emitting portion engaged with a rear end face of the light guide plate, and a light source disposed above a rear end portion of the key and having a light-emitting portion. A keyboard device comprising: a support to which a wire is attached. 4. A support plate mounted on a rear end of the keyboard chassis and flexibly deformed in a vertical direction in accordance with a pivoting operation of the key, and the light source mounted on the support plate. 4. The keyboard device according to claim 3, further comprising: a connection board attached in a state where said lead wires are electrically connected.