JP2002075114A - Telephone button attaching structure - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a telephone button attaching structure, where a decoration panel, buttons and the like are removed from a front surface side of a telephone to easily cope with various specifications/requirements. SOLUTION: A recessed part 2c is provided as a part of the front surface part of an upper case 2 of a telephone set body 1. A dial button unit 70 and a function button unit 80 are placed in the recessed part 2c, where a plurality of dial buttons 7 and function buttons 8 are connected to a frame with an elastically-deformable hinge as units. The button units are sandwiched and fixed between the upper case 2 and the decoration panel 9, enabling removal/ replacement from the front surface side of the telephone set. The dial button 7 and the function button 8 are worked through the combination of a two-color molding/working technology and a laser beam machining technology, enabling color fixing, change in color, magnification, addition and the like of a figure and characters on the display surface, coping with various specifications/ requirements.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to a button mounting structure for a telephone.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional telephone button mounting structure is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 5, various buttons 34 on the telephone body 31 are mounted inside the upper housing 32 of the upper housing 32 and the lower housing 33 constituting the telephone body 31, and some of the internal components are used. It is incorporated into the telephone body 31 together with a certain circuit board 36 and a contact rubber 35 forming a contact point,
It is general that the telephone is finally closed by the lower housing 33.

[0003] The surface of the telephone body 31 has a structure capable of complying with various specifications by adopting a decorative panel depending on design or display contents. The various buttons 34 are mounted from the inside of the upper housing 32, and only a portion pressed by a finger protrudes from the button holes of the upper housing 32 and the decorative panel.

[0004] Further, with respect to the construction method of various buttons 34,
In particular, dial buttons are roughly classified into a display method using a normal printing method and a display method called two-color molding. Which method is used is selected based on required specifications such as frequency of use and abrasion resistance of display contents.

[0005]

In the above-described conventional telephone button mounting structure, it is very uneconomical to set up a production process for a small quantity and a large number of products each time a variety of needs are to be met. It is difficult. However, as a means of responding to the needs, it is necessary to exchange necessary parts for a standard telephone product inventory.

As can be understood from FIG. 11, the conventional telephone button mounting structure has a structure in which when replacing buttons such as dial buttons, the telephone body is disassembled and parts are replaced from the inside. Attempts to meet diversifying needs were very uneconomical.

As a specific replacement work, the telephone body 3
After the lower housing 33 is removed, necessary components are once removed, and various buttons 34 are exchanged for the upper housing 32, and then the lower housing 33 of the telephone body 31 is attached again. Therefore, needless to say, it takes time for the replacement work, and it also causes a quality trouble due to a secondary failure due to the once disassembly.

Next, regarding various buttons, numbers, characters, symbols, etc. are usually set in consideration of size and color in consideration of visibility, design, and operability. However, in recent years, with particular attention to the disabled and the elderly, various measures, such as enlarging the display content or considering the color, have been adopted so that all people, called the universal design, can use the phone without any problems. Is being considered. However, in implementing such measures, it is actually difficult and difficult to avoid cost increases on the manufacturing side.

There is a printing technique called "silk printing" which is a conventional method for displaying the buttons and the like, but this is an advantage such that the display contents can be freely changed by an original plate called an underprint. There is. However, in terms of abrasion resistance, the ink used for printing is scraped off with a finger or the like in accordance with the number of times the button is pressed, and eventually becomes illegible, resulting in a functional problem.

[0010] As means for solving this problem, there is a coating processing technique called overcoating from the top of silk printing, and a display processing technique excellent in abrasion resistance which is cured by irradiating ultraviolet rays called UV printing. However, all of them are not suitable for mass production because they require expensive production equipment and increase costs.

Further, a technique called two-color molding has conventionally been used and employed. This is a type in which the part of the number and the part around it are made of a different color resin material, and after forming the number by molding called generally primary molding, the surroundings are formed by molding called secondary molding, This is a method called two-color molding technology that forms one part by two moldings. Characteristically, since characters and numerals are formed by the molding resin material itself, it is semi-permanently readable without wear. However, mold equipment for molding is expensive, and every time an attempt is made to change the display characters, new mold equipment is required. This processing technology is not suitable for small lots and many types.

Since the various display processing techniques described above have advantages and disadvantages, they are actually selected according to various conditions such as specifications and costs.

An object of the present invention is to solve these difficult problems by replacing the conventional printing method and the two-color molding method of the conventional method with a two-color molding technique and a laser processing technique and combining the parts of buttons and the like. By making it, it is possible to provide low-cost, easily replaceable, easily replaceable and high-quality products with excellent abrasion resistance to diversified user needs for diversified user needs. It is to obtain a mounting structure.

[0014]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a telephone button mounting structure in which a button for operating a telephone is mounted on a telephone case, and a decorative panel which can be removed from the telephone surface without using a special tool. And buttons that can be replaced from the front side of the telephone according to various button specifications.

In this telephone button mounting structure, the telephone has a concave portion in the upper housing surface portion, and a plurality of the buttons are integrally connected to the frame via an elastically deformable hinge in the concave portion. A button unit corresponding to an interlocking switch mounted on a circuit board inside the upper housing is placed, and the button unit is sandwiched and fixed by the decorative panel detachably mounted on the upper housing. Configuration is applicable.

The button unit having the buttons connected to each other may be a dial button unit in which dial buttons consisting of 12 keys from 1 to * are integrally connected to the frame, or execute various functions of a telephone. The function button for performing the operation is formed of either a function button unit integrally connected to the frame, or an integrated unit of the dial button unit and the function button unit.

The buttons may be formed by a two-color molding technique, in which a numeral is formed by primary molding, and a peripheral portion of the numeral and the hinge and the frame are formed by secondary molding. Alternatively, the buttons are primary molded,
The secondary molding is also molded with the same resin material, and after forming the peripheral portion of the buttons and the hinge and the frame by the secondary molding, the display contents such as the numbers of the buttons are colored by laser irradiation processing technology, or You may process so that it may change color.

Further, the buttons may have either a round outer shape or a square outer shape.

Further, by replacing and removing the decorative panel and exchanging the round type and the square type of the buttons, it is possible to adopt a configuration capable of meeting various required specifications.

According to the present invention, the decorative panel mounted on the upper housing of the telephone body in the telephone can be detached from the front surface side of the telephone without using a special tool, and the upper housing of the telephone main body can be removed. A part of the surface part is a concave part, and a button unit that connects and configures each button with a deformable hinge having elasticity in the concave part is a detachable structure,
The button unit can be sandwiched and fixed between the upper case of the telephone and the decorative panel.

That is, a dial button unit called a dial button composed of 12 keys 1 to * in particular, and a function button unit called a function button for executing various functions of the telephone. These button units are detachably mounted on the lower side of the decorative panel, and these button units are mounted in such a manner as to be easily removable from the upper housing surface of the telephone in the same manner as the decorative panel.

Regarding the method of processing the buttons, the dial button is particularly composed of 12 keys from 1 to *. The standard specification is that the numeral part and its surrounding part are composed of different colors, and the primary molding and The first method is to use a method called a two-color molding technique of forming one part by performing two moldings of a type called a secondary molding after forming a numeral called a secondary molding, and Parts are manufactured as button units in which each button is connected by a deformable elastic hinge.

However, in order to respond to various kinds of specifications and requirements, as a second method, after the primary molding and the secondary molding are molded with the same special resin material, the character, color, size, etc.
By irradiating laser light on the button surface with laser processing technology to display numbers, letters and symbols etc. to meet various requirements, it is possible to easily respond to more specifications and requests using a method of coloring and discoloring It is like that.

[0024]

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entire configuration of a telephone using the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing the telephone button mounting structure of the first embodiment. ,
(B) is a perspective view of a part of the back surface of (a), FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of the first embodiment, FIG. 4 is a plan view of a button unit in the first embodiment, FIG. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a dial button according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of a first embodiment of the present invention. First, a telephone body 1 includes an upper housing 2 and a lower housing 3, a handset 4, a curl cord 5, It comprises a liquid crystal display section 6, dial buttons 7, function buttons 8, decorative panel 9, contact rubber 10, and main parts of a circuit board 11. These are similar in appearance to the general telephone structure.

However, according to FIG. 2 showing the internal structure of the first embodiment of the present invention, the features of the central content of the present invention are expressed in an easily understandable manner. That is, there are a dial button unit 70 in which a plurality of dial buttons 7 are unitized, and a function button unit 80 in which a plurality of function buttons 8 are unitized, and a shape detachably mounted on the upper housing 2 corresponding to these. There is a decorative panel 9. The dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 are placed in the concave portion 2 c of the upper housing 2 and then sandwiched and fixed by the decorative panel 9.

In the first embodiment, the dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 are
Although they have separate independent configurations, the present invention is not limited to this, and the dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 may be connected and integrated. Hereinafter, the configuration and operation of the first embodiment will be described in detail.

In use, the telephone body 1 uses the dial buttons 7 and the function buttons 8, the handset 4, and the liquid crystal display unit 6 for respective purposes. Generally, when a telephone call is received, the handset 4 is picked up when the call is received, and the interlocking switch mounted on the circuit board 11 is operated to form a call state. There is also a telephone main body 1 that can be called hands-free by pressing a function button 8 without lifting the handset 4 when the user is on the phone.

Next, for transmission, when making a call, lift the handset 4 and use the dial button 7 to dial the number of the party to be called, or use the function button 8 without the handset 4 for example. There is a method of dialing the number of the other party to be dialed using the dial button 7 after pressing the button 8a displayed as "call".

The liquid crystal display unit 6 displays a state display by numerals, characters, characters, or the like at all times or when necessary. The curl code 5 is a component that transmits and receives a voice signal between the handset 4 and the telephone body 1.

The decorative panel 9 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2B, it has a chevron shape, and is provided with two convex fitting locking portions 9a on the front side so that it can be easily attached to and detached from the upper housing 2. Further, two deformable elastic locking claws 9 b for fixing to the upper housing 2 are provided on the rear side near the liquid crystal display unit 6.

Further, on the panel surface of the decorative panel 9, round button holes 9c and 9d each having a shape and a size corresponding to each button shape of the dial button 7 and the function button 8 are formed.
And three. The upper housing 2 has two cradle portions 2a on the left side of the front surface on which the handset 4 can be mounted, and a built-in speaker for generating various sounds is provided at an intermediate portion of the cradle portion 2a. The speaker sound hole 2b for extracting the sound of the speaker to the outside is provided.

The right side of the upper housing 2 has a structure in which a liquid crystal display unit 6, a dial button 7, a function button 8, and a decorative panel 9 are provided. On the right side surface of the upper housing 2, there is formed a recess 2 c with a certain amount of depression for mounting and fixing a dial button unit 70 in which various buttons are unitized and a function button unit 80. However, the depth of the concave portion 2c is substantially flat with the surface of the upper housing 2 with the dial button unit 70, the function button unit 80, and the decorative panel 9 mounted. The recess 2c has a dial button 7 on the bottom 2d of the recess.
And a button hole 2e with a position dimension corresponding to the function button 8
Are formed.

As shown in FIG. 3, the contact rubber 1 set on the circuit board 11 is located behind the button hole 2e.
A depressed portion 10a which is depressed by various buttons of 0 is provided.

A plurality of frame guide projections 2f for positioning the dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 are provided on the inner side wall of the recess 2c. These are the button holes 9c and 9d on the decorative panel 9.
This is to ensure that the positions match when the and various buttons are fitted and mounted. Furthermore, the periphery 2g of the edge of the recess 2c
Has a dimensional relationship shallower than the concave bottom surface 2d, and the decorative panel 9 is positioned and fixed.

On the front side and the back side of the peripheral edge portion 2g, fitting engagement portion receiving portions 2h corresponding to the two convex engagement engagement portions 9a provided on the decorative panel 9 are provided. Locking claw receivers 2i are provided, each corresponding to a possible elastic locking claw 9b.

Next, various buttons will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. First, regarding the dial button unit 70, the twelve dial buttons 7 from 1 to * are formed in substantially the same size and shape. Each dial button 7 has a thin portion 7a called a displaceable elastic hinge projecting therearound, and this thin portion 7a is attached to the outer peripheral frame 7b.
And each is connected to and integrated with the internal sub-bloom 7c,
The dial button unit 70 is formed. The outer peripheral frame 7b is set in a position conforming to the concave portion 2c of the upper housing 2 and the frame guide convex portion 2f provided on the inner side wall of the concave portion 2c.

The dial button 7 has a detailed shape. As shown in FIG. 5, the dial button 7 has a round cylindrical shape as a whole, and the upper portion 7f substantially above the thin portion 7a serving as an elastic hinge is provided with a button hole provided in the decorative panel 9. 9c, and the lower part 7d from the thin part 7a is substantially
It is formed in a position shape corresponding to the button hole 2e provided in d. Further, numbers and symbols 1 to * are displayed on the top surface 7e.

Although the detailed description of the function button unit 80 and the function button 8 is omitted, the dial button unit 70 and the dial button
The only thing displayed on the top is changed to characters such as "Hold", "Transfer" and "Call" instead of numbers and symbols.

Next, a method of displaying the numbers displayed on the top surface 7e of each button will be described by taking the dial buttons 7 as an example. Normally, the size and color are set in consideration of visibility, design, and operability. However, in recent years, especially with consideration for the physically handicapped and the elderly, we have taken measures to ensure that not only healthy people but also universal design with consideration for all people can be used without any problem. Tend to have to.
Here, regarding the phone, it is necessary to consider the ease of viewing and ease of use, such as expanding the display content, changing the specifications, considering the color, etc., in order to easily handle various types of model development. .

However, it is very difficult and troublesome to implement such a measure, for example, inferior in design and cost increase on the manufacturing side.

As described in the background art, there are various display methods, such as a silk printing technique, an overcoat painting technique, a UV printing technique, and a two-color molding technique, all of which have advantages and disadvantages. It is selected according to the conditions such as specifications and cost.

Therefore, in the embodiment of the present invention, a description will be given of a button forming technique which incorporates a new processing technique while utilizing the respective merits.

Basically, a two-color molding technique that can ensure semi-permanent readability with excellent abrasion resistance in terms of quality assurance is used. First, as a standard part, the size and color of the display content are determined by total judgment of designability, cost, specifications, etc., and mold production is performed.

The numeral portion and its surrounding portion are made of resin materials of different colors. After forming the numeral by primary molding, the surrounding portion of the numeral is formed by secondary molding. In this secondary molding, FIG.
And in what is shown in FIG. 5, each dial button 7 is connected by the thin part 7a which is a deformable elastic hinge,
And a peripheral frame 7b and an internal sub-frame 7c.
Are also formed at the same time.

Here, a technique called laser processing is used to satisfy various requirements such as consideration for people with low vision or poor color vision, or change of display contents due to specification change request. In this laser processing method, when a laser is irradiated in advance under certain conditions, the color changes only in that portion to form display contents.

Here, FIGS. 6 and 7 show examples of the second and third embodiments of the present invention in which a laser processing technique is used for the display portion of the button.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a dial button according to a second embodiment of the present invention. There is a dial button 12 which is a primary molded part consisting of only standard numerals. The display content 13 is added by irradiating a laser beam with the display.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a dial button according to a third embodiment of the present invention. There is a dial button 14 obtained by molding primary molding and secondary molding with the same resin material.
The contents of the button surface are as indicated by the dotted line as if they were in a plain state with nothing displayed. It is. It goes without saying that laser processing from a plain state is not limited to two-color molding, and the same effect can be obtained by using a normal single-color molded part.

[0051] Here, the expression that the diversification is satisfied by using the same mold equipment in the primary molding and the secondary molding is described here. Since the display contents by laser beam irradiation do not use ink or the like, they are very excellent in the problem of peeling and abrasion of the display portion, and also in the problem of recycling and environment. Although the abrasion resistance is inferior to the two-color molded product, it can be said that the abrasion resistance is much superior to silk printing.

The dial button 7 and the function button 8, which are one of the features of the present invention, combine laser processing technology and two-color molding technology in place of the conventional printing method and two-color molding technology. By making parts for each button, it is possible to provide a high-quality product that is inexpensive and has excellent wear resistance even in the case of a small number of products of various types. In addition, since the dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 in which each button is connected by a deformable elastic hinge are manufactured as an integral unit component, the assembling property and the part replacement workability are very easily improved. You can do it.

The function button 8 installed near the dial button 7 is also manufactured using the same processing technology as the dial button 7, and it is needless to say that the same effect can be expected. Therefore, the detailed description of the function button 8 and the function button unit 80 that unitizes the function button 8 will be omitted.

FIGS. 8 and 9 are a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a telephone according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention and an exploded perspective view showing a button mounting structure thereof.

In the fourth embodiment, the telephone body 1 in which the shape of the buttons is a round image and the number of the function buttons 8 is three as described in the first embodiment is used. The decorative panel 9, the dial button unit 70 and the function button unit 80 can be viewed from the surface without disassembly.
8 and 9, the dial button 17 and the function button 18 are newly formed in a square image, and the dial button unit 71 and the function button unit 81 are unitized. ,
Further, a decorative panel 19 having a square image corresponding to this is provided.

Further, in the function button unit 81, the display 18a of the function button 18 indicates "Hold" and "Call".
Only the quantity is changed from three to two.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the overall configuration of the fourth embodiment includes an upper housing 2, a lower housing 3, a handset 4, a curl code 5, a liquid crystal display in a telephone body 1. Cradle portion 2a provided in upper housing 2, speaker sound hole 2b, concave portion 2c, concave bottom surface 2d, button hole 2e, frame guide convex portion 2f, edge peripheral portion 2
g, the fitting and locking portion receiving portion 2h, the locking claw portion receiving portion 2i, and the like are completely the same as those in the first embodiment. As described above, the dial button 17 and the function button The only difference is that the dial button unit 71 is different from the function button unit 81 and the decorative panel 19 of the square image.

The decorative panel 19 has a convex fitting locking portion 1.
9a, elastic locking claws 19b, button holes 19c, 19
d is provided.

In this way, it is possible to easily change the buttons of the round image to those of the square image and to easily change the number of buttons. By employing the above-described configuration, it is possible to provide a technology that can easily respond to diversified needs at low cost and easily, such as changing the color of function buttons and changing display characters.

As a fifth embodiment of the present invention, a square image button will be described with reference to FIGS. 10 (a) and 10 (b).

Regarding the shape of the buttons to be mounted in the concave portion 2c of the upper housing 2 as described above, when the image is changed from a round image to a square image while the internal structure is unchanged.
The inner mating part must be similar to a round image. Therefore, as shown in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the thin portion 17a serving as an elastic hinge in the dial button 17 is provided.
Is approximately a boundary, the upper side 17f has a square shape, and the lower side 17f has
The inside of d has a round shape, and a square top surface 1
Numeral display is performed on 7e. With the dial button 17 having such a configuration, the dial button 17 can be easily applied to the concave portion 2c of the upper housing 2, the dial button unit 71, and the decorative panel 19 shown in the fourth embodiment.

[0062]

As described above, according to the present invention, the decorative panel and various buttons mounted on the upper case of the telephone can be used without disassembling the telephone main body without using any special tool from the front side. By making parts removable by combining laser processing technology and two-color molding processing technology, buttons can be attached to and detached from, without increasing the price of standard products for diversifying user needs. There is an effect that it is possible to provide a high-quality product excellent in abrasion resistance, which can respond to the demand of a small number of varieties at low cost, can be easily replaced immediately, and has excellent wear resistance.

In addition, diversifying user needs also have the effect of securing and providing more stable cost, delivery time and quality with a short delivery time, low-cost capital investment and a simple production management system.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a telephone using a first embodiment of the present invention.

2A is an exploded perspective view showing a telephone button mounting structure according to the first embodiment, and FIG. 2B is a perspective view of a part of the back surface of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a main part of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the dial button unit according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a dial button according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a dial button according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a dial button according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an overall configuration of a telephone using a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an exploded perspective view showing a telephone button mounting structure according to a fourth embodiment.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are perspective views of a rear surface, and FIGS. 10B and 11B are front perspective views, illustrating a dial button of a square image according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view showing an example of a conventional telephone button mounting structure.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,31 Telephone body 2,32 Upper case 3,33 Lower case 4 Handset 5 Curl code 6 Liquid crystal display 7,12,14,17 Dial button 8,18 Function button 9,19 Makeup panel 10,35 Contact Rubber 11, 36 Circuit board 13 Display contents 15 Number 34 Buttons 70, 71 Dial button unit 80, 81 Function button unit

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Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A telephone button mounting structure in which a button for operating a telephone is mounted on a housing of a telephone. The decorative panel can be detached from the surface of the telephone without using a special tool, and supports various button specifications. And buttons that can be replaced from the front side of the telephone. 2. A button unit comprising a recess in a surface of an upper housing of a telephone, and a plurality of buttons being integrally connected to a frame via an elastically deformable hinge in the recess. The button unit is placed in correspondence with an interlocking switch mounted on a circuit board inside the upper housing, and the button unit is sandwiched and fixed by the decorative panel detachably mounted on the upper housing. The telephone button mounting structure according to claim 1. 3. The button unit in which the buttons are connected to each other, wherein the dial button comprising 12 keys 1 to * is integrally connected to the frame, or executes various functions of a telephone. 3. The function button for causing the button to be made of one of a function button unit integrally connected to the frame, and a function button unit integrated with the dial button unit and the function button unit. Phone button mounting structure described in 1. 4. The buttons are formed by a two-color molding technique, wherein a numeral is formed by primary molding, and a peripheral portion of the numeral, and the hinge and the frame are formed by secondary molding. 4. The telephone button mounting structure according to any one of 3. 5. The buttons are formed of the same resin material in both primary molding and secondary molding, and after forming the peripheral portion of the buttons and the hinge and frame by secondary molding, the buttons are formed by a laser irradiation processing technique. The telephone button mounting structure according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein display contents such as numbers of buttons are colored or discolored. 6. The telephone button mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein said buttons have a round outer main shape. 7. The telephone button mounting structure according to claim 1, wherein a main shape of the buttons is square. 8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said decorative panel is detached and replaced, and said buttons are exchanged for said round shape and said square shape. A telephone button mounting structure according to any one of the above.