JP2008076176A - Meter apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a meter apparatus capable of preventing occurrence of abnormal noise and improving appearance quality. <P>SOLUTION: In the meter apparatus, an outer rim section 2c of a dial 2 is gripped by a facing section 13 of an upper housing 11 and an outer rim section 12c of a lower housing 12. A plurality of projections 14 for pressing projected in the dial gripping direction are formed on the facing section 13 while leaving space in the dial circumferential direction, the dial 2 is formed so that it can be elastically deformed when it is pressed by the projections 14 for pressing, and the outer rim section 12c at a position facing the projections 14 for pressing is provided with a receiving hole 12d allowing the dial 2 of the part pressed by the projections 14 to elastically deform in the pressed direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a meter device used in an automobile or the like, and more particularly to a technique for clamping an outer peripheral edge portion of a dial.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a meter device for a vehicle or the like is known in which a pointer, a movement for driving the pointer, and a dial plate on which scales and characters are displayed are accommodated in a housing.

In addition, in this meter device, one in which the outer peripheral edge portion of the dial is sandwiched between an upper housing and a lower housing is known (for example, see Patent Document 1).
JP 2000-205897 A

  However, in the structure in which the outer peripheral edge of the dial is sandwiched between the upper housing and the lower housing, the planar accuracy of the portion that holds the dial and the dimensional accuracy in the thickness direction of the outer periphery of the dial are It is difficult to make uniform throughout.

  For this reason, there is a variation in the clamping state between the dial plate and both housings when the upper housing and the lower housing are assembled, and a minute gap may be generated between the dial plate and both housings depending on the location. . If such a gap occurs, sufficient clamping force cannot be obtained, so that the dial may vibrate when the vehicle travels, causing abnormal noise such as chatter noise, or slack in the dial. The gap between the dial plate and the upper housing becomes non-uniform, resulting in a problem that the appearance quality is inferior.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the conventional problems as described above, and an object thereof is to provide a meter device capable of preventing the generation of abnormal noise and improving the appearance quality.

  In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a meter housing that accommodates the dial plate, comprising an upper housing on the dial plate surface side and a lower housing on the dial back surface side. A peripheral device is a meter device sandwiched between the upper housing and the lower housing, and a pressing projection projecting in the dial pinching direction is spaced apart in the circumferential direction of the dial plate on one side of the housing. And the dial is formed so as to be elastically deformable when pressed by the pressing protrusion, and is formed on the other housing at a position facing the pressing protrusion. The meter device is characterized in that a receiving recess for allowing the dial of the pressed portion to elastically deform in the pressing direction is formed.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the meter device according to the first aspect, the pressing protrusion is formed in the upper housing, while the receiving recess is formed in the lower housing. This is a meter device.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the meter device according to the second aspect, a hook-shaped turn-back portion that prevents reflection of direct sunlight is formed along the inner periphery of the upper housing. The metering device is characterized in that the pressing protrusions are integrally formed.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the meter device according to the third aspect of the present invention, a rib extending outward from the inner peripheral wall of the facing portion is integrally formed, and the pressing protrusion is formed on the inner peripheral wall of the rib. It was set as the meter apparatus characterized by being formed in the position away from the meter outward direction.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the meter device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the lower housing has a plate shape that supports the dial plate in contact with the back surface of the dial plate. The meter device is characterized in that an outer peripheral portion of the support plate portion is used as a clamping portion of the lower housing.

  In the meter device of the present invention, when the outer peripheral edge portion of the dial plate is sandwiched between the upper housing and the lower housing, the pressing protrusion presses the outer peripheral edge portion of the dial plate and elastically deforms toward the receiving recess, With the restoring force, the pressing protrusion and the outer peripheral edge of the dial are pressed against each other.

  By elastically deforming the outer peripheral edge of the dial as described above, it is possible to suppress the dial from being pulled in the meter outward direction at a plurality of locations, and the dial from being slackened in the meter inward direction.

  In addition, since a plurality of pressing protrusions and the dial are pressed against each other, a higher clamping force is obtained compared to the case where the outer periphery of the dial is clamped on a flat surface, and abnormal sounds such as chattering noise are generated. In addition to being able to suppress the occurrence, it is possible to make the clamping load uniform over the entire circumference, to make the gap dimension between the dial and the upper housing uniform, and to improve the appearance quality.

  In addition to the above effect, in the invention according to claim 2, when the dial is clamped, the outer periphery of the dial is pressed by the pressing protrusion and pressed from the dial surface side toward the back side to be elastically deformed. In the peripheral part, on the contrary, it is deformed to the front side of the meter.

  For this reason, the adhesion between the portion of the dial plate deformed in the meter front direction and the upper housing is enhanced, and the effect of improving the appearance quality by suppressing the generation of a gap between the dial plate and the upper housing is further enhanced.

  In the invention according to claim 3, since the pressing protrusion is formed in the bowl-shaped facing portion, the pressing protrusion is formed without changing the plate thickness as compared with the case where the pressing protrusion is formed on the flat portion of the upper housing. It is easy to secure the force, and the fixing performance of the dial can be easily secured.

  In the invention according to claim 4, since the outer peripheral portion of the dial is pressed by the pressing protrusion formed on the integrally formed rib extending from the inner peripheral wall of the facing portion to the outside of the meter, The portion that is deformed by the pressing by the projection is located away from the inner peripheral wall.

  For this reason, it becomes easy to avoid the deformation | transformation part of the dial plate by the protrusion for a press appearing inside an inner peripheral wall.

  In addition, since the pressing protrusion is formed on the highly rigid rib, it is easy to secure the reaction force when the pressing protrusion is pressed, and the securing performance of the dial is further facilitated.

  In the invention described in claim 5, since the dial is supported by being in contact with the support plate portion of the lower housing, even if a dial that is elastically deformed when pressed by a pressing projection, The shape can be easily maintained.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  In the meter device according to this embodiment, the meter housing (1) for accommodating the dial plate (2) includes an upper housing (11) on the dial plate front side and a lower housing (12) on the dial back side, An outer peripheral edge portion (2c) of the dial plate (2) is a meter device sandwiched between the upper housing (11) and the lower housing (12), and the dial plate is sandwiched between one of both sandwiching portions. A plurality of pressing projections (14) projecting in the direction are formed at intervals in the dial circumferential direction so that the dial (2) can be elastically deformed when pressed by the pressing projections (14). The dial (2) of the portion pressed by the pressing projection (14) is elastically deformed in the pressing direction at the other holding portion at a position facing the pressing projection (14). Receiving recess (12d A meter device, characterized in that There are formed.

  Below, based on FIGS. 1-4, the meter apparatus of Example 1 of the best embodiment of this invention is demonstrated.

  The meter device A according to the first embodiment is mounted in a meter cluster provided on an instrument panel of a vehicle (not shown), and is a combination meter including a speedometer, an engine speed meter, a fuel meter, a water temperature meter, and the like. Has been applied.

 First, the outline of the meter device A according to the first embodiment will be described. The meter device A includes a meter housing 1, a dial 2, and a substrate 3 as shown in the perspective view of FIG.

  The meter housing 1 accommodates the dial plate 2, the substrate 3, etc., and is formed by engaging the upper housing 11 and the lower housing 12.

  The dial 2 is formed by printing a character 22 and a scale 23 indicated by a pointer not shown on the surface of a thin transparent rigid resin plate 21, that is, on the surface 2 a side of the dial 2. The characters 22 and the scale 23 are printed with a light-transmitting white paint or the like, while the portions other than the characters 22 and the scale 23 are printed with a light-shielding black paint or the like. The character 22 and the scale 23 are configured to emit light when illuminated from the back surface 2b side of the dial 2 with a light source (not shown). 1 shows the speedometer portion, it may be another meter of the dial plate 2. In this case, characters and scales corresponding to the meter are displayed.

  The substrate 3 includes a movement for driving a pointer (not shown), a light source for illumination, a circuit for driving these, and the like.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the upper housing 11 is formed in a ring shape that covers the outer periphery of the meter device A as a whole, and a bowl-shaped facing portion for preventing reflection of direct sunlight along the inner periphery. 13 is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the lower housing 12 includes a thin plate-like support plate portion 12 a and a light guide plate portion 15 that support the dial plate 2 by contacting substantially the entire back surface 2 b of the dial plate 2. The plate part 12a and the light guide plate part 15 form the same surface and are in contact with the back surface of the dial plate 2 while supporting the substrate 3 at a position away from the dial plate 2 in the back surface direction. .

  Note that when the upper housing 11 and the lower housing 12 are engaged, the upper housing 11 is formed with a plurality of engaging claws 11a shown in FIG. It is configured to be coupled and integrated by engaging with the engaging portion.

  In addition, in order to perform positioning when engaging both the housings 11 and 12, as shown in FIG. 1, a positioning projection 12b is formed on the lower housing 12, while the upper housing 11 A positioning hole 11b into which the positioning protrusion 12b is inserted is formed. A plurality of these positioning projections 12b and positioning holes 11b are formed (see FIG. 2).

  Next, the fixing structure of the outer peripheral edge 2c of the dial 2 will be described.

  The dial 2 is fixed by sandwiching the outer peripheral edge 2c between the outer peripheral part (clamping part) 12c of the support plate part 12a of the lower housing 12 and the turning part (clamping part) 13 of the upper housing 11. Has been. The dial 2 is also fixed in the vicinity of the rotation axis of the meter pointer (not shown), but the description of the structure is omitted.

  In the clamping portion, a hemispherical pressing projection 14 is formed on the turning portion 13 of the upper housing 11 so as to protrude in the pressing direction (arrow PS direction) of the dial 2 as shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the pressing protrusion 14 is integrally formed with the rib 131 formed on the turn-back portion 13 in the meter inner / outer direction (the arrow OUT direction indicates the meter outer direction and the arrow IN indicates the meter inner direction). Is formed.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the rib 131 extends outward from the back surface of the inner peripheral wall 132 that forms the inner periphery of the turning portion 13, and is spaced in the circumferential direction of the upper housing 11. In a plurality of locations, specifically, in Example 1, three locations are formed on the upper side of the inner peripheral wall and three locations on the lower side. Further, the rib 131 formed on the upper side is formed continuously and integrally with the vertical wall 11 c provided along the upper edge of the upper housing 11.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the pressing protrusion 14 is disposed at an intermediate position of each rib 131 that is a position away from the inner peripheral wall 132 in the meter outward direction.

  Further, in the support plate portion 12 a of the lower housing 12, a receiving hole 12 d as a receiving side recess is formed at a position facing the pressing protrusion 14. The receiving hole 12d is formed larger than the projected area (= cross-sectional area) of the pressing protrusion 14 in the direction of the lower housing 12, and the diameter of the receiving hole 12d is as shown in FIG. It is formed in the size of about 5 times the diameter of. Further, the receiving hole 12d is formed in a size and a position overlapping the turn-back portion 13 in the meter front direction.

  Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described.

  At the time of assembly, the board 3 is mounted on the lower housing 12, the dial plate 2 is brought into contact with the support plate portion 12a, and then the upper housing 11 and the lower housing 12 are engaged.

  At the time of this engagement, the outer peripheral edge portion 2 c of the dial 2 is sandwiched between the turning portion 13 of the upper housing 11 and the outer peripheral edge portion 12 c of the support plate portion 12 a of the lower housing 12. Here, the dial plate 2 is originally formed in a flat plate shape as shown in FIG. 4, but in the sandwiched state shown in FIG. 3, the dial 2 is pressed against the pressing protrusion 14 protruding from the rib 131 of the facing portion 13. In addition, since the receiving hole 12d is opened in the support plate portion 12a opposite to the support plate portion 12a and no reaction force is obtained, elastic deformation that is bent toward the receiving hole 12d occurs.

  And by elastically deforming in this way, at the outer peripheral edge 2c of the dial 2, the inner part of the meter is pulled outward from the dial 13 and the dial 2 is prevented from wrinkling. The

  Further, due to the elastic deformation, the dial 2 is pushed up in the meter front direction (opposite to the arrow PS pressing direction) with the peripheral edge 12e of the receiving hole 12d as a fulcrum at a position in the meter inward direction from the receiving hole 12d. 2 is in close contact with the inner peripheral wall 132 of the turning portion 13 of the upper housing 11.

  Therefore, there is no gap between the dial 2 and the inner peripheral wall 132 of the look-back portion 13, and good appearance quality can be obtained. In addition, since the dial 2 and the facing portion 13 are pressed against each other by the elastic deformation of the dial 2, the contact state between the two 2 and 13 is maintained even when the vehicle vibrates, and the generation of abnormal noise can be prevented. .

  Further, in the first embodiment, since the pressing protrusion 14 is formed on the rib 131 of the turn-back portion 13, for example, the pressing protrusion 14 is higher in support than when formed on the inner peripheral wall 132 of the turn-back portion 13. Rigidity is obtained, and it is easy to ensure a reaction force during pressing by the pressing protrusion 14. In particular, in the first embodiment, since the rib 131 is integrally formed with the inner peripheral wall 132 and the vertical wall 11c on the upper side of the upper housing 11, higher support rigidity can be obtained.

  In addition, in the first embodiment, the pressing protrusion 14 is disposed at a substantially central position in the extending direction of the rib 131 of the turn-back portion 13 (inward and outward direction of the meter). The position to be removed is a position away from the inner peripheral wall 132 in the meter outward direction.

  For this reason, as compared with the case where the pressing protrusion 14 is formed on the end face of the inner peripheral wall 132, the deformation of the dial 2 is avoided from appearing at the position entering the field of view of the occupant inside the meter. In addition, it is possible to secure an effect of deforming the dial 2 in the meter inward and outward directions, and to reliably obtain the effect of bringing the dial 2 and the facing portion 13 into contact as described above.

  Furthermore, since the receiving hole 12d is arranged so as to overlap the turn-back portion 13 in the meter front direction, it is possible to prevent the deformed portion due to the pressing protrusion 14 of the dial 2 from being seen by the passenger.

  In the first embodiment, the dial plate 2 is supported by being in contact with the support plate portion 12a of the lower housing 12, so that the dial plate 2 that can be elastically deformed when pressed by the pressing projection 14 is used. However, the planar shape can be maintained.

  As mentioned above, although Embodiment and Example 1 of this invention were explained in full detail with reference to drawings, the concrete structure is not restricted to this Embodiment and Example 1, and does not deviate from the summary of this invention. A degree of design change is included in the present invention.

  For example, in the first embodiment, the meter device for a vehicle is shown, but the present invention can be applied to a device other than a vehicle such as a ship.

  Moreover, in Example 1, in the part of the turning-back part 13, although the inner peripheral wall 132 and the vertical wall 11c showed what was combined in the reverse V-shaped cross-sectional shape, this shape is limited to this. For example, other shapes such as a U-shaped cross-sectional shape and a U-shaped cross-sectional shape may be used.

  In the first embodiment, the pressing protrusion 14 is provided on the rib 131. However, the pressing protrusion 14 may be provided at a place other than the rib 131. For example, it may be provided on the end surface of the inner peripheral wall 132, or the pressing protrusion 514 may be formed on the end surface of the protruding portion 532 a formed integrally with the inner peripheral wall 532 as shown in FIG. 5.

  Further, the shape of the pressing protrusion 14 and the receiving hole 12d is not limited to the shape shown in the first embodiment as long as the dial 2 can be deformed. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, the receiving recess may have a shape in which a part of the dial 602 is recessed as in the receiving recess 612d as long as the deformation of the dial 602 is not prevented.

  In the first embodiment, the pressing protrusion 14 is provided in the clamping portion. This is a case where the sandwiching portion is formed over the entire outer periphery of both the housings 11 and 12, but the sandwiching portion does not extend over the entire periphery of the outer periphery. Needless to say, the pressing protrusion 14 may be provided at a location that is not the clamping portion.

It is a perspective view of the state where a part showing the principal part of meter device A of Example 1 of the best mode of the present invention was notched. It is a perspective view which shows the upper housing 11 used for the meter apparatus A of Example 1. FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a main part of the meter device A according to the first embodiment. It is an expanded sectional view for demonstrating the assembly | attachment process of the meter apparatus A of Example 1. FIG. It is a perspective view which shows the principal part of the other example of embodiment of this invention. It is sectional drawing which shows the principal part of the other example of embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Meter housing 2 Dial 2a Front surface 2b Back surface 2c Outer peripheral part 11 Upper housing 12 Lower housing 12a Support plate part 12c Outer peripheral part (clamping part)
12d Receiving hole (receiving recess)
13 Look-back part (clamping part)
14 Pressing protrusion 131 Rib 132 Inner peripheral wall

Claims (5)

The meter housing that houses the dial includes an upper housing on the dial surface side and a lower housing on the dial back side,
A meter device in which an outer peripheral edge of the dial is sandwiched between the upper housing and the lower housing,
On one of the housings, a plurality of pressing projections protruding in the dial pinching direction are formed at intervals in the dial plate circumferential direction,
The dial is formed so that it can be elastically deformed when pressed by the pressing protrusion, and the other housing at a position facing the pressing protrusion has a portion pressed by the pressing protrusion. A metering device, wherein a receiving recess is formed to allow the dial to elastically deform in the pressing direction.   2. The meter device according to claim 1, wherein the pressing protrusion is formed in the upper housing, and the receiving recess is formed in the lower housing. Along the inner periphery of the upper housing, a bowl-shaped facing portion that prevents reflection of direct sunlight is formed,
The meter device according to claim 2, wherein the pressing protrusion is formed integrally with the facing portion. Ribs extending outward from the meter from the inner peripheral wall of the facing portion are integrally formed,
The meter device according to claim 3, wherein the pressing protrusion is formed in the rib at a position away from the inner peripheral wall in the meter outward direction.   The lower housing is formed with a plate-like support plate portion that contacts the back surface of the dial plate and supports the dial plate, and an outer peripheral portion of the support plate portion is used as a sandwiching portion of the lower housing. The meter device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the meter device is provided.

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