JP2008181672A - Operating button structure - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simply fix a support part supporting an operating button. <P>SOLUTION: The operating button 19 is supported by a support part 57 from behind. The support part 57 is flexibly formed by notching a part of a conductive elastic plate 42. A plurality of protruded pins 54 are formed on an inner wall of a rear cover 11. The conductive elastic plate 42 has a positioning hole 45 formed for getting insertion-coupled with the protruded pins 54. An operating button member 35 is in a shape integrally coupling top-and-bottom and right-and left buttons 23, 21 arranged around the operating button 19 with a hinge. The operating button member 35 has a plurality of press-fit holes 66 formed. As the press-fit holes 66 are press-fitted into the protruded pins 54, the conductive elastic plate 42 is pinched between the rear cover 11 and the operating button member 35. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an operation button structure devised to prevent static electricity from being charged.

  The electronic device is provided with an operation button. As an operation button, a key top surface made of resin is subjected to a plating process to enhance decoration. However, the operation buttons whose surface is plated are easily charged with static electricity. For this reason, as a countermeasure against static electricity, for example, a pressing operation portion (key top) is covered with a cap-shaped metal cap so that the cap-shaped metal cap cannot be removed, and an arm-shaped contact piece that contacts the ground contact of the substrate provided inside is attached to the metal cap. It is provided integrally (Patent Document 1). In addition, there is also known an operation button that is provided with an elastically deformable contact piece that is integrally contacted with a conductive chassis (Patent Document 2).

  However, in the invention described in Patent Document 1, since the metal cap is put on the key top, the number of parts increases and the cost increases. Further, in the invention described in Patent Document 2, since the arm-shaped contact piece is integrally formed with the operation button, the operation button has a complicated shape and the manufacturing cost is increased. In view of this, there has been known a device devised to prevent static electricity charging without complicating the shape of the operation button and without using other components (Patent Document 3).

In the invention described in Patent Document 3, a sheet member is arranged behind the operation button, and the operation button is supported by the sheet member. This sheet member is formed of a material having elasticity. In addition, the sheet member is formed with an opening that projects the key stem toward the switch mounted on the substrate, and the area other than the area including the periphery of the opening is adhered to the inner wall of the casing (outer cover), The operation button is returned to the original position using the elastic force of the included range. The sheet member is sandwiched between the inner wall of the housing and the substrate when the substrate is screwed to the inner wall of the housing.
JP 2002-93262 A JP 2006-156031 A JP 2006-244823 A

  However, in the invention described in Patent Document 3, since the sheet member is bonded to the inner wall of the housing and the four corners are screwed, the mounting work is troublesome. Further, when used for a long period of time, the adhesion is easily peeled off, and when peeled off, there is a drawback that the action of returning the operation button to the original position becomes weak.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an operation button structure devised so that the operation button can be reliably moved and a support portion can be easily attached. And

  The operation button structure of the present invention includes a support portion that is formed to be elastically deformable by cutting out a part and supports the operation button from the back, and a through portion that projects the key stem toward the switch, and is provided on the substrate. A conductive elastic plate that is directly or indirectly electrically connected to the ground contact provided; and using a locking portion provided on the inner wall of the outer cover, screw the conductive elastic plate to the inner wall of the outer cover. And a coupling means for coupling without using.

  As a coupling means, a plurality of press-fitting holes provided in an operation button member that elastically deforms an operation button that is exposed at a position different from the operation button of the outer cover and that is provided with conductivity; A plurality of projecting pins provided on the inner wall of the outer cover, and the operation button member is coupled to the inner wall of the outer cover by press-fitting the press-fitting hole into the projecting pin; and the operation button member and the inner wall of the outer cover A conductive elastic plate may be sandwiched between them.

  In this case, forming the positioning hole for positioning using at least two of the plurality of projecting pins in the conductive elastic plate can accurately position the conductive elastic plate with respect to the outer cover. This is preferable because it is possible.

  In addition, the operation button member may be an integrated component in which a plurality of operation buttons arranged around the operation buttons are connected by a plurality of hinges. In this case, each of the plurality of operation buttons having different actions from the operation buttons is supported by the hinge so as to be elastically deformable. In this case, a conductive elastic plate having a size covering the back of the operation button member is formed, and an opening for penetrating a plurality of operation buttons is formed in the conductive elastic plate. Then, it is preferable to use the notched portion that is notched to make the support portion as the opening portion, because it leads to a reduction in processing cost. The press-fitting hole is desirably provided in the hinge.

  The coupling means includes a locked portion provided on the conductive elastic plate and a locking portion provided on the inner wall of the outer cover, and the locked portion is pushed by pushing the locking portion into the locked portion. One or both of the first and second locking portions may be elastically deformed to snap-connect the conductive elastic plate to the inner wall of the outer cover. In this case, conductivity is imparted to the outer cover, and the static electricity that electrically charges the operation button by electrically connecting the outer cover and the ground contact of the substrate with a conductive member is caused to flow to the ground of the substrate through the outer cover. Alternatively, the conductive elastic plate and the ground contact of the substrate may be connected by a conductive member.

  According to the operation button structure of the present invention, the operation button is supported from behind by the support portion provided by being cut out of a part of the conductive elastic plate so as to be elastically deformable, and the locking portion provided on the inner wall of the outer cover. Since the conductive elastic plate is coupled to the inner wall of the outer cover by using a coupling means without using screws, the operation buttons can be reliably moved, and the assembling work can be easily performed. In addition, since the operation button is elastically supported by a support part made by cutting out a part of the conductive elastic plate that is electrically connected to the ground contact of the substrate, static electricity charged on the operation button is It can flow reliably to the ground contact.

  The electronic camera 10 shown in FIG. 1 has a form in which an internal part is housed in an outer cover, and the outer cover includes a rear cover 11 and a front cover 12 that are divided into two parts in the front and rear directions. The shutter button 13 and the power button 14 are provided on the upper surface of the outer cover, and the photographing mode selection dial 15, the playback button 16, the photo mode button 17, the cross button 18, and the menu / decision button are provided on the rear surface of the rear cover 11. 19 are respectively exposed. This menu / decision button 19 is hereinafter referred to as an operation button 19. The cross button 18 is composed of independent up / down / left / right buttons 20 to 23 arranged around the operation button 19.

  An LCD (liquid crystal display unit) 24 for displaying a through image, a reproduction image, a menu image, and the like is provided on the rear surface of the rear cover 11. The outer covers 11 and 12 are plated on the surface in order to enhance the decorativeness.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the rear cover 11 has an LCD opening 25, a playback button opening 26, a photo mode button opening 27, four openings 28 to 31 for cross buttons, a mode selection dial opening 32, And the opening 33 for operation buttons etc. are each formed.

  The playback button 16, the photo mode button 17, and the cross button 18 are integrated parts that are connected by a plurality of hinges and can be handled integrally. Hereinafter, this form is referred to as an operation button member 35. The buttons 16 to 18 constituting the operation button member 35 are integrally provided with a key top, a collar, and a key stem, respectively. The key top is exposed to the outside through the reproduction button opening 26, the photo mode button opening 27, and the four openings 28 to 31 for the cross button. The scissors are provided so as to protrude from the outer periphery of the bases of the buttons 16 to 18 and act to prevent the operation buttons 16 to 18 from coming out of the openings 26 to 31. The key stems 21c and 23c are for pressing the switches 38 and 40 provided on the substrate 37 as shown in FIG. 3 when a pressing operation is performed. The operation button member 35 has a surface plated.

  In FIG. 3, only the key stems 21 c and 23 c provided on the buttons 21 and 23 among the cross buttons are described, but the key stems are formed on the other buttons 20 and 22, and corresponding switches are provided below these key stems. Each is arranged. Further, the key stems of the playback button 16 and the photo mode button 17 are also arranged above the corresponding switches.

  On the other hand, the operation button 19 is also integrally provided with a key top 19a, a collar 19b, and a key stem 19c. The key top 19 a is exposed to the outside through the operation button opening 33. The collar 19 b is provided so as to protrude from the outer periphery of the base of the operation button 19, and prevents the operation button 19 from coming out of the opening 33. The key stem 19c is for pressing a switch 39 provided on the substrate 37 when a pressing operation is performed. The operation button 19 is also plated on the surface.

  The outer covers 11, 12, the operation buttons 19, and the operation button members 35 are molded with a resin that is an insulator (non-conductive material). And the plating process given to these is set as the electroless-plating process which metalizes the surface and provides electroconductivity. Gold, silver, nickel, copper, tin or the like is used as the electroless plating process. Note that an electroplating process using gold, silver, nickel, platinum, palladium, or the like may be used instead of the electroless plating process.

  A conductive elastic plate 42 is disposed behind the operation button 19. The conductive elastic plate 42 is, for example, a thin metal plate having conductivity. The conductive elastic plate 42 is formed with positioning holes 43 to 46, a ground mounting hole 47, and three openings 48 to 50 by punching, and a support portion 57 and an arm portion 58 are formed. . Projecting pins 52 to 55 provided integrally with the rear cover 11 are fitted into the positioning holes 43 to 46. These projecting pins 52 to 55 correspond to the locking portions of the present invention. The ground mounting hole 47 is screwed to the LCD support plate 56 to which the LCD 24 is mounted. The three openings 48 to 50 are openings for exposing the playback button 16, the photo mode button 17, and the cross button 18, respectively.

  Of the three openings 48 to 50, the opening 50 that exposes the cross button 18 is also used as a notch part that is cut out to make the support part 57 and the arm part 58 elastically deformable. The opening 50 is substantially C-shaped in order to cut out the support portion 57 and the arm portion 58. And the collar provided in each button 16-18 of the operation button member 35 contacts the edge of these openings 48-50.

  The arm portion 58 supports the support portion 57 so as to be elastically deformable. The support part 57 supports the operation button 19 from behind. The support portion 57 is provided with a through portion 60 and a cutout portion 61 for penetrating the key stem 19c behind. A protrusion 62 provided behind the operation button 19 is engaged with the notch 61. The rotation of the operation button 19 is stopped by engaging the protrusion 62 with the notch 61. The penetrating portion 60 has a hole shape, but may have a notch shape.

  The operation button member 35 is formed with press-fitting holes 64 to 67 in the hinge. The operation button member 35 is fixed to the inner wall of the rear cover 11 by press-fitting the press-fitting holes 64 to 67 into the projecting pins 52 to 55, and the operation button member 35 holds the conductive elastic plate 42 between the rear cover 11 and the operation button member 35. Hold it. The number of the projecting pins 52 to 55, the press-fitting holes 64 to 67, and the positioning holes 43 to 46 is not limited to four, but may be plural. Further, it is not necessary to make the same number of positioning holes 43 to 46 as the protruding pins 52 to 55. For example, only two positioning holes are formed so as to use at least two of the four protruding pins 52 to 55. May be. Furthermore, although the projecting pins 52 to 55 are formed integrally with the rear cover 11, they may be provided separately.

  The LCD support plate 56 has a plate shape made of a conductive material and supports the LCD 24. The LCD support plate 56 is provided with a plurality of attachment portions 74 to 78 that are attached to the rear cover 11. These attachment portions 74 to 78 are attached to the inner wall of the rear cover 11 by screws. One of these mounting portions 74 is attached to the inner wall of the rear cover 11 so as to overlap the ground mounting hole 47, and electrical connection is made. The on-board contact 70 contacts the LCD support plate 56 at a position different from the attachment portion 74. The on-board contact 70 has a Z-shaped cross section, one end is fixed to the ground contact 71 of the substrate 37 with solder or the like, the other end is elastically deformable in the thickness direction of the substrate 37, and the other end Comes into contact with the back surface of the LCD support plate 56. The LCD support plate 56 is also connected to the LCD ground.

  The substrate 37 is provided with a plurality of switches 38 to 40, a ground contact 71, and the like. The switches 38 to 40 are printed wiring contacts, and have a form in which a metal dome is provided above the upper and lower electrodes in order to give a click feeling. Each key stem is arranged on each metal dome. The switches 38 to 40 are turned on when the key stems dent the metal dome by pressing the buttons 16 to 18 and further presses the upper electrode, so that the upper electrode contacts the lower electrode. Instead of the dome-shaped metal plate, click rubber, dome molding by embossing, or the like may be provided. The substrate 37 is fixed by internal components.

  In the operation button member 35, the hooks of the buttons 16 to 23 are in contact with the conductive elastic plate 42, and the operation button 19 is in contact with the support portion 57 of the conductive elastic plate 42. The conductive elastic plate 42 has a ground mounting hole 47 that is in contact with the mounting portion 74 of the LCD support plate 56, and the LCD support plate 56 is in contact with the ground contact 71 of the substrate 37 by an on-board contact 70. Yes. For this reason, the static electricity charged in the buttons 16 to 19 is surely flowed to the ground contact 71 of the substrate 37. Further, since the conductive elastic plate 42 is an attachment operation in which the positioning holes 43 to 46 are simply inserted into the projecting pins 52 to 55, the assembly operation can be easily performed.

  Further, in this embodiment, since the rear cover 11 is plated in order to impart conductivity, the static electricity charged in the rear cover 11 is also affected by the operation button 19, the operation button member 35, or the conductive elastic plate 42. To the ground contact 71 of the substrate 37. Note that if there is no electrical inconvenience due to static electricity charged on the rear cover 11, the plating process on the rear cover 11 may be omitted.

  In this embodiment, the operation button 19, the operation button member 35, and the conductive elastic plate 42 may be inserted in order from one direction with respect to the rear surface of the rear cover 11, and screws or the like are used. Since it can be installed without mounting, the mounting work can be performed easily. Further, since the operation button 19, the operation button member 35, and the conductive elastic plate 42 can be attached to the rear cover 11 in advance, the handling becomes simple.

  In addition, although the cross button is comprised by four independent buttons 20-23, these buttons 20-23 are connected, and one button made in the donut shape which exposes the operation button 19 from the center is used as a cross button. Also good. In this case, four key stems may be provided on the top, bottom, left, and right behind one donut-shaped button. In addition, the conductive elastic plate is not limited to a metal plate having conductivity, but may be a metal die-molded with a resin material. In this case, electroplating may be applied to impart conductivity.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the projecting pins 52 to 55 and the press-fitting holes 64 to 67 constitute a coupling means that does not use a screw. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and for example, a well-known snap action, elastic clip, etc. It is also possible to use a coupling means that can be coupled using, for example.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the conductive elastic plate 42 is sandwiched so as not to move between the operation button member 35 and the inner wall of the rear cover 11 by the engagement between the projecting pins 52 to 55 and the positioning holes 43 to 46. However, the means for sandwiching the conductive elastic plate 42 so as not to move is not limited to the configuration of the projecting pins 52 to 55 and the positioning holes 43 to 46, and is fixed using the projecting pins 52 to 55. Any one other than the positioning holes 43 to 46 may be used as long as it can be used.

  In the above embodiment, the conductive elastic plate 42 and the ground of the substrate 37 are indirectly connected through the two parts of the LCD support plate 56 and the on-board contact 70. As shown in FIG. Alternatively, the conductive elastic plate 80 and the ground contact 82 of the substrate 81 may be directly connected using a conductive member 83 such as a gasket or a conductive metal plate provided with conductivity. As means for attaching the conductive member 83 to the conductive elastic plate 80 and the substrate 81, screwing or conductive double-sided tape may be used. Further, the conductive member 83 may be omitted, and an elastic contact piece may be integrally provided on the conductive elastic plate 80, and the contact piece may be brought into direct contact with the ground contact 82 of the substrate 81.

  In the operation button structure of each of the above embodiments, the playback button 16, the photo mode button 17, the operation button 19, and the cross button 18 are described. However, the present invention is not limited to the buttons that operate these buttons, It can also be used for buttons. Further, the present invention is not limited to the operation buttons provided on the back surface of the electronic camera, but can be applied to operation buttons provided on the front surface, the plane, the bottom surface, or the left and right side surfaces.

  The operation button structure shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 shows the structure of the operation button provided on the grip portion on the front surface of the electronic camera, and includes a grip member 85, a front cover 86, an operation button 87, a conductive elastic plate 88, and The conductive member 89 or the like.

  The front cover 86 has a plating process on its surface in order to enhance decoration, and L-shaped locking portions 90 and 91 for fixing the conductive elastic plate 88 are provided on the inner wall. It is provided integrally. The front cover 86 is made by molding. The locking portions 90 and 91 include a support portion 92 that protrudes perpendicularly to the inner wall of the front cover 86, and a claw portion 93 that is hooked on the conductive elastic plate 88, and when the claw portion 93 is formed by molding. Necessary openings 95 and 96 are formed in the front cover 86.

  The front cover 86 is formed of a resin that is an insulator (non-conductive material). The plating process applied to the front cover 86 is an electroless plating process that metalizes the surface and imparts conductivity.

  The openings 95 and 96 are hidden by the grip member 85. The grip member 85 is also subjected to electroless plating on the surface in order to enhance the decoration and impart conductivity, and is attached to the front cover 86 with a conductive double-sided tape or the like.

  The grip member 85 and the front cover 86 are formed with openings 97 and 98 for exposing the operation buttons 87 to the outside. The operation button 87 is integrally formed with a key top 87a, a collar 87b, and a key stem 87c. The key top 87 a is exposed to the outside through the openings 97 and 98. The flange 87 b abuts against the inner wall of the opening 97 and prevents it from coming out of the opening 97. The key stem 87c presses the switch 101 provided on the substrate 100.

  A pair of locked portions 102 and 103, a support portion 104, and an arm portion 105 are integrally provided on the conductive elastic plate 88. The support portion 104 is provided with elasticity by cutting out a part thereof, and supports the operation button 87 from behind. The arm part 105 supports the support part 104 so that elastic deformation is possible. The support part is formed with a through part 110 through which the key stem passes.

  A pair of to-be-latched parts 102 and 103 has a notch shape to which the claw part 93 is latched. Any one or both of the locked portions 102 and 103 and the locking portions 90 and 91 are elastically deformed to be snap-coupled, and the conductive elastic plate 88 is fixed to the front cover 86. As a result, the operation button 87 is sandwiched between the front cover 86 and the support portion 57.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 6, the ground contact 106 of the substrate 100 and the back surface of the front cover 86 are connected by a conductive member 89. The conductive member 89 is attached to the substrate 100 and the front cover 86 with screws or a double-sided tape having conductivity. When the conductive member 89 conducts between the front cover 86 and the ground contact 106 of the substrate 100, static electricity charged on the operation button 87 is generated through the conductive elastic plate 88 and the locking portions 90 and 91. To the ground contact 106. According to this, since the operation button 87 and the conductive elastic plate 88 can be attached to the front cover 86 in order from one direction, and can be attached without using screws or the like, the attaching operation can be easily performed. In addition, since the operation button 87 and the conductive elastic plate 88 can be attached to the front cover 86 in advance, handling is also simplified.

  In the above embodiment, the locking means 90 and 91 having claws and the locked parts 102 and 103 having notches constitute a coupling means that does not use screws, but the present invention is not limited to these shapes. Any of the coupling means may be used as long as one or both of them are elastically deformed to couple each other by a snap action.

  In each of the above embodiments, in order to impart conductivity to the resin molded product, an electroless plating process or an electroplating process for forming a metal vapor deposition film (such as tin oxide) on the surface is used. However, not limited to this, a method in which a surfactant or an antistatic agent is added to the resin or applied to the surface, or a method in which a conductivity-imparting agent (carbon powder, metal powder, etc.) is mixed with the resin. In addition, a method using a conductive resin (a resin obtained by synthesizing a conductive polymer from a chemical structure of the polymer, such as polypyrrole or polyacetylene) may be employed. In the case of using a conductive resin, a plating process for imparting conductivity can be omitted.

  The applicability of the present invention is not limited to the operation button structure provided on the electronic camera 10, for example, a television, a liquid crystal display device, a stereo, a mobile phone, a fan, a clock, a rice cooker, a game machine, and the like. It can also be used for electrical and electronic equipment.

It is a back side perspective view which shows the external appearance of the electronic camera which employ | adopted this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows the state which attaches various buttons, LCD, etc. to a back cover. It is sectional drawing which shows the principal part of the operation button demonstrated in FIG. It is principal part sectional drawing which shows another embodiment directly connected to the ground contact of the board | substrate from the electroconductive elastic board. It is a principal part disassembled perspective view which shows other embodiment of the operation button provided in the grip part of the electronic camera. It is sectional drawing which shows the principal part of the operation button demonstrated in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Electronic camera 11 Rear cover 12,86 Front cover 16-23,87 Operation button 35 Operation button member 37,100 Board | substrate 42,80,88 Conductive elastic board 56 LCD support plate 57,105 Support part 70 On-board contact 83, 89 Conductive members

Claims (5)

An operation button having a key top exposed to the outside through an opening provided in the outer cover, and a key stem provided to protrude to the back, and imparted conductivity;
In an operation button structure comprising a substrate on which a switch that is turned on by pressing the key stem is mounted,
A ground contact provided on the substrate, having a support portion that is formed to be elastically deformable by cutting out a part and supports the operation button from the back, and a through portion that projects the key stem toward the switch. A conductive elastic plate that is directly or indirectly electrically connected to
An operation button structure comprising: coupling means for coupling the conductive elastic plate to the inner wall of the outer cover without using a screw using a locking portion provided on the inner wall of the outer cover. . The coupling means includes
A plurality of press-fitting holes provided in an operation button member which elastically deforms and supports the operation button exposed at a position different from the operation button of the outer cover;
A plurality of projecting pins provided on the inner wall of the outer cover,
The operation button member is coupled to the inner wall of the outer cover by press-fitting the press-fitting hole into the projecting pin, and the conductive elastic plate is sandwiched between the operation button member and the inner wall of the outer cover. The operation button structure according to claim 1.   The operation button structure according to claim 2, wherein a positioning hole for positioning using the protruding pin is formed in the conductive elastic plate. The operation button member is an integral part in which a plurality of operation buttons arranged around the operation buttons are connected by a hinge, and the plurality of operation buttons are independently elastically deformable,
In the conductive elastic plate, an opening for penetrating the plurality of operation buttons is formed,
The operation button structure according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the opening portion is also used as a notch portion that is notched to form the support portion.   The coupling means includes a locked portion provided on the conductive elastic plate and a locking portion provided on an inner wall of the outer cover, and the locking portion is pushed into the locked portion by pushing the locking portion. 2. The operation button according to claim 1, wherein either one or both of the locked portion and the locking portion are elastically deformed and the conductive elastic plate is snap-coupled to the inner wall of the outer cover. Construction.

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