JP2003242855A - Microswitch switching/holding mechanism - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To miniaturize, without increasing a cost, a switch box of a push type excellent in operability as a switch box of a luminaire having a light control function and the like, and having multiple components housed so as to cope with three-way wiring or the like. <P>SOLUTION: A lock switch 7 provided with a lock shaft 7a alternately stopped at two positions in a pressing operation direction every time an operation button 13 is pressingly operated is disposed in parallel with a microswitch 6, and an adaptor 9 composed by forming an extension part 9a driven by the operation button 13 and abutting on a lever part 6a of the microswitch 6 is locked to the lock shaft 7a. The pressing operation of the operation button 13 is transmitted to the lock shaft 7a of the lock switch 7 through the adaptor 9, and the motion of the lock shaft 7a alternately stopped at the respective two positions in the pressing operation direction every time the operation button 13 is pressingly operated is transmitted to the lever part 6a of the microswitch 6 through the adaptor 9. Thereby, the on/off state of the microswitch 6 is held. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2003,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a microswitch switching holding mechanism for operating a microswitch for turning on / off a power supply line for an electric appliance in response to a pressing operation of an operating member, and more particularly to turning on / off a power supply of a lighting fixture. The present invention relates to a micro switch switching holding mechanism applied to a thin switch box attached to a wall surface of a building for turning off.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A switch for turning on / off a power supply line for an electric appliance such as a lighting device must be capable of holding the on / off state of the power supply line. On the other hand, when a switch for turning on / off the power of a lighting fixture is attached to a wall surface of a building, a switch box accommodating components constituting a switch circuit and a switch mechanism must be embedded in the wall surface of a limited space.

As described above, in the switch box for wall mounting, a small micro switch has been conventionally used as a switch for turning on / off the power supply line, and the on / off state of the power supply line is used by using the micro switch. As a mechanism to switch between, tumbler type,
A slide type or rotary type switch mechanism is known.

On the other hand, some luminaires have a dimming function capable of adjusting the amount of light within a predetermined range, and a switch box used for a luminaire having a dimming function has a function for the luminaire. In addition to the switch for turning on / off the power line, it is necessary to provide a switch for adjusting the light amount of the lighting equipment.

In a single room, a plurality of lighting devices may be arranged or the lighting device may be installed together with other electric products such as a ventilation fan. In such a case, operability is considered. Therefore, a single switch module should be provided with a plurality of switch boxes for turning on / off each of the power supplies of a plurality of electric appliances.

[0006]

However, in a switch used for a luminaire having a dimming function, it is necessary to dispose a relatively large electric component such as a choke coil as a reactance of a rectifier circuit, and to adjust the dimming function. In general, most lighting fixtures having an optical function consume about 500 W, and a switch for turning on / off the AC100V power line for this lighting fixture needs to have a contact capacity of 5 A or more. It is a so-called self-holding type micro switch that can hold the on / off state, and the existing micro switch that can withstand a capacity of 5 A has a large switch size because it has a built-in mechanism for self-holding. , Can not be placed in a limited space. In particular, a switch box that supports three-way wiring for turning on / off a lighting device with a dimming function at multiple positions needs to have at least three terminal portions, and the space inside the switch box is even smaller. Turn into.

Therefore, a plurality of switch mechanisms for turning on / off a plurality of electric appliances, one of which is a lighting fixture having a dimming function, cannot be arranged in a single switch module, and a plurality of switch mechanisms cannot be arranged on the wall surface. There was a problem that I had to install the switch module.

That is, the size of the switch module to which the switch box is attached is standardized, and in a single switch module, the remaining space provided with a switch mechanism for turning on / off other electric appliances is
5A of self-holding type on top of which relatively large electric parts such as choke coil and capacitor that make up the rectifier circuit are placed.
We couldn't house the existing microswitches that could withstand the capacity.

For this reason, it is conceivable to newly manufacture a self-holding type micro switch capable of withstanding a capacity of 5 A in accordance with the space in the switch box, but a great deal of cost is required for design development and manufacturing equipment. Therefore, there is a problem that the cost rises.

An object of the present invention is to provide an existing microswitch which is not a self-holding type, and a small mechanism which alternately switches the on / off state of the microswitch for each pressing operation and holds the microswitch. As a switch box for lighting equipment having a switch, a switch box that is a push type with excellent operability and that accommodates a large number of parts to accommodate three-way wiring, etc., can be used for other electrical products without increasing the cost. Another object of the present invention is to provide a micro switch switching holding mechanism which can be miniaturized to such a size that it can be housed in a single switch module together with the switch box.

Another object of the present invention is to use a microswitch according to a required capacity, which can easily cope with a change in size of the microswitch according to a required capacity change. (EN) Provided is a microswitch switching holding mechanism capable of

[0012]

As means for solving the above problems, the present invention has the following constitution.

(1) A mechanism for transmitting the pressing operation of the operating member to the lever portion of the micro switch, and provided with a lock shaft that alternately stops at two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the operating member is pressed. The feature is that the lock switch is installed in parallel with the micro switch.

In this structure, every time the operating member is pressed, the lock shaft of the lock switch is alternately stopped at two positions in the pressing operation direction. Therefore, when the pressing operation of the operating member is transmitted to the lever portion of the micro switch via the lock shaft of the lock switch, the lever portion of the micro switch alternates between two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the operating member is pressed. , And the on / off state of the microswitch is maintained.

(2) The lock switch is characterized in that the adapter is driven by the operating member, and the adapter formed with an extending portion that comes into contact with the lever portion of the microswitch is locked to the lock shaft.

In this structure, the adapter locked to the lock shaft of the lock switch is pressed against the lever portion of the micro switch by the pressing operation of the operation member. Therefore, the pressing operation of the operation member is transmitted to the lock shaft of the lock switch via the adapter, and the operation of the lock shaft, which is alternately stopped at each of the two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the operation member is pressed, causes the adapter to move. It is transmitted to the lever portion of the micro switch via the micro switch, and the on / off state of the micro switch is maintained.

[0017]

1 is an assembly diagram of a switch box to which a microswitch switching holding mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied. FIG. 2 is a front view of a switch that houses the switch box. In FIG. 1, the respective components are arranged with the front side facing upward and the back side facing downward. Switch box 1 according to this embodiment
As shown in FIG. 2, 0 is a dimming module housed in a 2/3 module, where the length in the longitudinal direction of the opening 21 in the switch plate 20 arranged in close contact with the wall surface of the building is a unit module. A switch box for a lighting device having a function (hereinafter referred to as a dimming lighting device). The remaining 1/3 module of the switch plate 20 accommodates a switch box 90 for another electric product.

As described above, a plurality of switch boxes are housed in a single switch module when a plurality of lighting devices are arranged in a single room or when the lighting devices are other electric products such as a ventilation fan. When installed with
This is because the operability is improved by centrally arranging the switches for turning on / off the plurality of electric appliances at one location on the wall surface.

The switch box 10 is mounted with the front side of the auxiliary plate 1 on which the three operation buttons 11 to 13 are formed through the opening 31 formed in the mounting plate 30 fixed to the wall surface. It is attached to the back side of the plate 30 and is housed inside the wall surface. The operation button 13 is the operation member of the present invention. The switch plate 20 is fitted to the front surface of the mounting plate 30 with the decorative plate 40 sandwiched between the switch plate 20 and the opening portion 31 in the same position. Holes 41 to 43 are formed in the decorative plate 40 at positions facing the operation buttons 11 to 13. Therefore, the operation buttons 11 to 13 of the auxiliary plate 1 exposed from the opening 31 of the mounting plate 30 are not connected to the opening 21 of the cover plate 20.
Inside, it is exposed from the holes 41 to 43 of the decorative plate 40 to the outside of the wall surface. As a result, the operator can operate the three operation buttons 11 to 1 formed on the front surface of the auxiliary plate 1.
3 can be pressed.

In the switch box 10, the control printed circuit board 3 and the power supply printed circuit board 4 are provided in the case 2 attached to the back surface of the auxiliary plate 1 described above, and the terminal fitting 5 is provided.
0, the insulating sheet 51, the terminal pressing plate 52, the heat dissipation plate 53, and other parts. Control printed circuit board 3
Includes push switches 61a and 61b and an LED 62.
a to 62e are mounted together with an electronic component such as an IC (not shown). On the printed circuit board 4 for power supply, the micro switch 6 and the lock switch 7 are arranged on the front side, the choke coil 71, the capacitors 72 and 73, and the triac 74.
Are mounted on the back side together with other electronic components not shown.

The control circuit formed on the control printed circuit board 3 increases or decreases the amount of electric power supplied to the dimming lighting device via the triac 74 in response to the operation of the push switch 61a or 61b. In addition to increasing / decreasing the amount of light, the amount of power supplied to the dimming lighting fixture is displayed by the number of lights of the LEDs 62a to 62e. Push switch 61 mounted on control printed circuit board 3
The back surfaces of the operation buttons 11 and 12 formed on the holding plate 1 are in contact with the upper surfaces of a and 61b.
Therefore, by operating the operation button 11 or 12, the light amount of the dimming lighting fixture is increased or decreased.

In the auxiliary plate 1, the LED 62
The translucent LED cover 14 is arranged at a position facing the upper surfaces of the a to 62e.
A hole 44 is formed at a position facing the LED cover 14. As a result, the lighting state of the LEDs 62a to 62e according to the power supply amount to the dimming lighting fixture is visually recognized from the front surface of the decorative plate 40 via the LED cover 14.

A main power supply circuit including a micro switch 6 formed on the front surface of the power supply printed circuit board 4 turns on / off a power supply line for the dimming lighting fixture. Further, the rectifier circuit including the choke coil 71 and the capacitors 72 and 73 formed on the back surface of the power supply printed circuit board 4 rectifies the commercial AC power supply into the DC power supply and supplies it to the control printed circuit board 3. The micro switch 6 is a non-self-holding type micro switch that cannot hold the on / off state fixedly, and is sufficiently smaller than a self-holding type micro switch that has the same required contact capacitance. Is formed in.

Choke coil 7 which is a relatively large component
A heat dissipation plate 53 holding a triac 74 is mounted on the back surface of the power supply printed circuit board 4 on which the capacitor 1 and the capacitors 72 and 73 are mounted. Further, on the back surface of the printed circuit board 4 for power supply, there is provided a connector (not shown) connected to each of the three sets of terminal parts 50 provided for realizing three-way wiring. For these reasons, a relatively large space in the front-rear direction is required on the back side of the power supply printed circuit board 4 in the case 2.

Since the switch box 1 needs to be housed in a 2/3 module, the control printed circuit board 3 and the power supply printed circuit board 4 cannot be arranged side by side in the board surface direction in the case 2. The control printed circuit board 3 is arranged on the front side of the power supply printed circuit board 4 in a state of being laminated at a predetermined interval. Here, the control printed circuit board 3 is arranged on the front side of the power supply printed circuit board 4 because the push switches 61a and 61b mounted on the control printed circuit board 3 are the operation buttons 11 formed on the auxiliary plate 1. This is for making them closely adjacent to and 12 and 12.

Therefore, the control printed circuit board 3 is located on the front side of the power supply printed circuit board 4, and the micro switch 6 for turning on / off the power source of the dimming lighting fixture is arranged on the front surface of the power supply printed circuit board 4. The space left to do so is small. On the other hand, the maximum amount of electric power that should be supplied to the dimming lighting device is often larger than that of a lighting device that does not have a dimming function.
If it is necessary to supply a power of 00 W, the micro switch 6 needs to have a contact capacity of at least 5 A.

Further, considering the operability when turning on / off the power source of the dimming lighting device, the ON state and the OFF state are sequentially switched by repeating the pressing operation rather than the operation of rotating or sliding the operation member. Therefore, in the switch box 10, the power of the dimming lighting fixture is turned on / off by pressing the other operation button 13 formed on the auxiliary plate 1. For this reason, the micro switch 6 mounted on the power supply printed circuit board 4 for turning on / off the power of the dimming lighting device is turned on and off each time the operation button 13 of the auxiliary plate 1 is pressed. Need to hold alternately.

In this case, the existing self-holding type microswitch having a contact capacity of 5 A, which has a function of alternately holding the ON state and the OFF state, is the same as the microswitch 6 left on the power supply printed board 4. It cannot be used because it is large compared to the layout space. Even if the area of the control printed circuit board 3 can be made sufficiently small, the existing self-holding type micro switch having a contact capacity of 5 A is long in the front-rear direction and the depth of the case 2 increases. Can not be stored in the wall.

Therefore, in the switch box 10 according to this embodiment, the existing non-self-holding type microswitch 6 which is sufficiently smaller than the self-holding type microswitch is mounted on the front surface of the power supply printed board 4. At the same time, the lock switch 7 is mounted in parallel with the micro switch 6, the upper end of the lock shaft 7a of the lock switch 7 is brought into contact with the rear surface of the operation button 13, and the upper surface of the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 is provided. The adapter 9 having the extending portion 9a that abuts was locked. The adapter 9 has a movement range in the front-rear direction defined by a holder 8 mounted on the upper surface of the power supply printed board 4.

The lock switch 7, which constitutes the microswitch switching holding mechanism of the present invention together with the adapter 9, is a commercially available product having the lock shaft 7a movably in its axial direction, and repeatedly presses the lock shaft 7a in the axial direction. When operated, the lock shaft 7a is alternately stopped at each of two positions in the pressing operation direction (axial direction) for each pressing operation. The lock switch 7 is arranged in parallel with the micro switch 6 such that the pressing operation direction (axial direction) of the lock shaft is parallel to the moving direction of the lever portion 6 a of the micro switch 6. Therefore, the moving direction of the lock shaft 7 a in the lock switch 7 and the lever portion 6 in the micro switch 6
The moving direction of a corresponds to the front-back direction of the switch box 10, that is, the pressing operation direction of the operation button 13 on the auxiliary plate 1.

Therefore, the pressing operation of the operation button 13 formed on the auxiliary plate 1 is transmitted to the lock shaft 7a of the lock switch 7 via the adapter 9, and the operation button 13 is pressed.
Each time the is pressed, the adapter 9 and the lock shaft 7a of the lock switch 7 alternately stop at two positions in the pressing operation direction of the operation button 13 (the front-back direction of the switch box 10), and the displacement of the adapter 9 is Extension part 9a
Is transmitted to the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6.

FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining the operation of the main part of the switch box in the ON state and the OFF state of the microswitch. In the switch box 10, in the state where the microswitch 6 turns off the power source of the dimming lighting fixture, as shown in FIG.
Of the lock shaft 7a is stopped together with the adapter 9 at the position on the front surface side in the pressing operation direction in the arrow X direction (the front-back direction of the switch box 10). In this state, the front surface of the adapter 9 is in contact with the back surface of the operation button 13.
The front surface of the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 is in contact with the back surface of the extending portion 9a of the adapter 9 due to its elastic force. At this time, the switching member 6 of the micro switch 6 is in contact.
b is not pressed by the lever portion 6a, and the micro switch 6 is off. Further, the lock shaft 7a is biased to the front side in the pressing operation direction by the elastic force of the spring provided inside the lock switch 7, and the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 is pressed by the elastic force of its own. Is biased to the front side of. Therefore, the state shown in FIG. 3A is maintained when the operation button 13 is not pressed.

From the state shown in FIG. 3A, the operation button 1
When 3 is pressed in the direction of arrow X, the operation button 13 and the lock shaft 7a of the adapter 9 and the lock switch 7 are operated.
Is displaced in the direction of arrow X. The displacement of the adapter 9 in the direction of the arrow X is transmitted to the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 via the extending portion 9a, and the lever portion 6a presses the switching member 6b, whereby the micro switch 6 is turned on. On the other hand, the lock switch 7 stops the lock shaft 7a at the back side position in the arrow X direction when the lock shaft 7a is displaced in the arrow X direction beyond the predetermined back side position in the arrow X direction. Therefore, in this state, even if the operation button 13 is no longer pressed and the pressing force is released, the lock shaft 7a remains stopped at the position on the back side in the arrow X direction.

Here, since the adapter 9 is locked to the lock shaft 7a, it is stopped together with the lock shaft 7a at a position on the back side in the arrow X direction, and the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 is moved by the extending portion 9a. Continue pressing in the direction of arrow X. As a result, in the micro switch 6, the switching member 6b is continuously pressed by the lever portion 6a, and the operation button 13
3 (B) even after the pressing force on is released.
The ON state of the microswitch 6 shown in is continuously maintained.

From the state shown in FIG. 3B, the operation button 1
When 3 is pressed in the direction of arrow X, the back surface of the operation button 13 comes into contact with the front surface of the adapter 9, and then the operation button 13 is pressed.
Together with the adapter 9 and the lock shaft 7 of the lock switch 7
a is displaced in the arrow X direction, and the lock shaft 7a is displaced in the arrow X direction beyond a predetermined position on the back side in the arrow X direction. When the lock switch 7 is further displaced in the arrow X direction from the state in which the lock shaft 7a is stopped at the predetermined back side position in the arrow X direction, the lock switch 7 is locked in the predetermined rear side position in the arrow X direction. The stopped state of 7a is released. As a result, the lock shaft 7
a is returned to the position on the front side in the arrow X direction by the elastic force of the spring in the lock switch 7. The adapter 9 also extends along with the displacement of the lock shaft 7a.
Along with this, the extension portion 9a of the adapter 9 does not press the lever portion 6a of the microswitch 6 together. Therefore, the lever portion 6a moves to the front surface side by its own elastic force, does not press the switching member 6b, and the micro switch 6 returns to the off state shown in FIG. 3 (A).

As described above, in the switch box 10 according to this embodiment, the displacement of the lock shaft 7a, which is alternately stopped at each of the two positions in the pressing operation direction of the operation button 13 in the lock switch 7, is set by the adapter 9. By transmitting to the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6 via the micro switch 6, the non-self-holding type micro switch 6 can be kept in the ON state. Therefore, a relatively small existing non-self-holding type micro switch can be used as the micro switch 6, and a push switch type switch box excellent in operability can be configured in a small size.

As a result, it is necessary to accommodate relatively large parts such as the DC circuit and the control circuit, and the switch box for the dimming lighting fixture corresponding to the three-way wiring can be operated by pressing the dimming lighting. The switch box that allows the appliance to be powered on and off can fit in a 2/3 module size that can be placed in a single switch module along with switch boxes for other appliances.

As a result, it is not necessary to newly manufacture a miniaturized self-holding type micro switch, the cost of design development and manufacturing equipment is unnecessary, and the cost increase can be prevented.

Further, in the switch box 10 according to this embodiment, the displacement of the lock shaft 7a of the lock switch 7 is changed by the adapter 9 through the lever portion 6a of the micro switch 6.
Therefore, even if the dimensional shape of the microswitch 6 changes due to an increase or decrease in the contact capacity required for the microswitch 6 in accordance with the electric energy of the dimming lighting equipment used, At the same time, only the size and shape of the adapter 9 need be changed, and it is not necessary to change the size of the lock switch 7. Therefore, the same lock switch 7 can be used for a plurality of types of switch boxes 10 according to the amount of electric power of the dimming luminaire to be used, and component management becomes easy.

In the above embodiment, the switch box for turning on / off the power source of the dimming lighting device has been described as an example, but it is necessary to store a large number of parts or large parts in a limited space. The present invention can be similarly applied to the other switch boxes.

[0041]

According to the present invention, the following effects can be obtained.

(1) Every time the operating member is pressed, the lock shaft of the lock switch is alternately stopped at two positions in the pressing operation direction, and the pressing operation of the operating member of the micro switch is performed via the lock shaft of the lock switch. By transmitting to the lever portion, the lever portion of the microswitch can be alternately fixed to each of two positions in the pushing operation direction each time the operating member is pushed, and the on / off state of the microswitch is maintained. be able to. Here, since the lock switch that alternately stops at each of two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the pressing operation is performed is formed to be sufficiently small, the lock switch is sufficiently small as compared with the self-holding type micro switch. When the self-holding type microswitch and the lock switch are installed side by side, the space occupied in the switch box is smaller than the space for placing the self-holding type microswitch alone. The switch mechanism for turning on / off the power supply line can be housed in a small switch box together with large parts constituting a direct current circuit, a circuit for three-way wiring, and the like. Accordingly, as a switch box for a lighting fixture having a dimming function or the like, a push type switch box excellent in operability and compatible with three-way wiring can be used as a switch box for other electric products without causing a cost increase. It can be made compact enough to be housed in a single switch module together with the switch box.

(2) By pressing the adapter locked to the lock shaft of the lock switch and bringing it into contact with the lever portion of the microswitch following the pressing operation of the operating member, the pressing operation of the operating member is locked via the adapter. The operation of the lock shaft, which is transmitted to the lock shaft of the switch and is alternately stopped at each of two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the operating member is pressed, is transmitted to the lever portion of the micro switch via the adapter, The on / off state of the switch can be maintained. This ensures that even if the size of the microswitch changes with the required capacity,
Only by appropriately changing the size and shape of the adapter to match the size of the micro switch, the lever part is alternately stopped at each of two positions in the pressing operation direction for each pressing operation of the operation member, and the on / off state is maintained. Therefore, it is possible to easily cope with the change in the size of the micro switch according to the change in the required capacity, and it is possible to use the micro switch according to the required capacity.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an assembly diagram of a switch box to which a microswitch switching holding mechanism according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a front view of a switch housing the same switch box.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a main part of the switch box in an on state and an off state of a micro switch.

[Explanation of symbols]

1-auxiliary plate 2-case 3-Control printed circuit board 4-Power PCB 6-micro switch 6a-lever part 6b-switching member 7-Lock switch 7a-Lock shaft 9-Adapter 9a-extension part 10-switch box 13-operation button (operation member)

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A mechanism for transmitting a pressing operation of an operating member to a lever portion of a microswitch, comprising a lock shaft that alternately stops at two positions in the pressing operation direction each time the operating member is pressed. A microswitch switching holding mechanism characterized in that the lock switch is installed in parallel with the microswitch. 2. The lock switch is an adapter driven by an operating member, wherein an adapter having an extending portion for contacting a lever portion of a microswitch is formed on a lock shaft. The microswitch switching mechanism described in.