JP2009042001A - Pointer instrument - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a pointer instrument capable of such novel display as to make the rotation of a pointer easily recognized. <P>SOLUTION: The pointer instrument 1 is provided with a casing 12; the pointer 3 rotatable to the casing 12; a light-transmitting first pattern plate 5 which is arranged on the rear side of the pointer 3 to be rotated concentrically with the pointer 3 and in which a first pattern is formed; and a second pattern plate 6 which is arranged in the rear of the first pattern plate 5 and fixed to the casing 12 and in which a second pattern plate is formed. The first pattern and the second pattern are superposed on each other and displayed through the first pattern plate 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a pointer instrument.

  In recent years, pointer instruments that can display information easily are proposed and put into practical use. As one of them, a pointer instrument that makes it possible to visually check an auxiliary index using reflection of light is disclosed (see Patent Document 1).

This includes a pointer that emits the introduced illumination light from the tip portion, and a ring portion that is arranged in parallel with the scale, and projects the emitted light from the tip portion of the pointer onto the ring portion. It is a pointer instrument that is visually observed as an auxiliary scale for assisting the scale. With this projection image, it is possible to easily recognize the scale portion indicated by the pointer while making the scale visible between the tip portion of the pointer and the projection image.
Japanese Patent No. 3457142

  However, in the pointer instrument according to Patent Document 1, since the projected image that rotates together with the pointer is a small spot shape, both the point that makes the rotation of the pointer easy to recognize and the point that a novel display is made are constant. There are limits.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a pointer instrument capable of a novel display that makes it easy to recognize the rotation of the pointer.

  In order to achieve the above object, the present invention employs the following technical means.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 1 is disposed on the rear side of the casing, the pointer that is rotatable with respect to the casing, is rotated coaxially with the pointer, and the first pattern is formed. A first pattern plate having a light transmission property, and a second pattern plate disposed behind the first pattern plate and fixed to the housing, and formed with a second pattern, through the first pattern plate The first pattern and the second pattern are displayed in an overlapping manner.

  In this configuration, since the first pattern plate rotates coaxially with the pointer, the first pattern rotates coaxially with the pointer, and the second pattern plate is fixed to the housing. Does not rotate. Further, in this configuration, the first pattern and the second pattern are overlapped and displayed through the first pattern plate. Thereby, since the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern and the second pattern are overlapped can be displayed as a pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer, the rotation of the pointer can be easily recognized. In addition, a novel display is possible by the overlapping pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer. Therefore, it is possible to provide a pointer instrument capable of a novel display that makes it easy to recognize the rotation of the pointer.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 2 is characterized in that the first pattern plate rotates at the same speed as the pointer. This makes it easier to recognize the turning of the pointer.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 3 is characterized in that the first pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern in which the rotation axis of the pointer is a symmetric axis and the same pattern is repeated a plurality of times in the rotation angle range of the pointer. Thereby, the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern and the second pattern are overlapped can be displayed as a pattern that repeats a periodic change in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer. Therefore, a more innovative display is possible.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 4 is characterized in that the second pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern having a rotational axis as a symmetric axis and repeating the same pattern a plurality of times in a rotational angle range. Thereby, by overlapping the first pattern and the second pattern, a composite pattern different from the first pattern is newly generated as a pattern that repeats periodic changes. Therefore, the periodic change of the first pattern and the periodic change of the composite pattern different from the first pattern are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer, thereby enabling more innovative display.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 5 is characterized in that the second pattern is the same as the first pattern. As a result, the first pattern and the second pattern overlap each other at the predetermined rotation position of the pointer, and the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern and the second pattern are overlapped becomes the first pattern, and the first pattern and the second pattern become In the rotation position where they do not overlap, this overlapping pattern is a pattern obtained by adding the first pattern and the second pattern. Since the change of the overlapping pattern is periodically repeated, a composite pattern different from the first pattern is newly generated as a pattern that repeats the periodic change by overlapping the first pattern and the second pattern.

  Therefore, the periodic change of the first pattern and the periodic change of the composite pattern different from the first pattern are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer, thereby enabling more innovative display.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 6, wherein the second pattern plate has a light transmission property, is disposed behind the second pattern plate, and is a light source that transmits and illuminates both the second pattern plate and the first pattern plate. It is characterized by providing. Thereby, since the overlapping pattern obtained by superimposing the first pattern and the second pattern can be displayed as illumination light transmitted through the first pattern and the second pattern, the above-described effect can be more emphasized.

  The pointer instrument according to claim 7, wherein the light source is configured to be capable of switching at least one of the light emission color and the light emission luminance of the light source, and includes control means for switching at least one of the light emission color and the light emission luminance of the light source. The means is characterized by switching at least one of the light emission color and the light emission luminance of the light source when the pointer indicates a predetermined value or more. This makes it easier to recognize whether or not the pointer indicates a predetermined value or more.

  Hereinafter, the case where the pointer instrument according to the present invention is applied to a speedometer mounted on an automobile will be described with reference to the drawings.

  The speedometer 1 which is a pointer instrument is arranged in front of the driver's seat and, as shown in FIG. 1, has a dial 2, on which a pointer 3, a character 21 and a scale 22 are formed, and the same speed as that of the pointer 3. The vehicle speed of the host vehicle is displayed by an overlapping pattern in which the first pattern 51 that rotates and the second pattern 61 that does not rotate overlap each other. This overlapping pattern is configured to be viewed through the first pattern plate 5 through the opening 23 of the dial 2.

  The characters 21 and the scales 22 are formed by printing or the like on the dial 2 made of a translucent resin so that these background portions are in a black non-transparent state so that they are in a translucent state. . The light emitting diode 81 that illuminates and transmits the character 21 and the scale 22 is arranged behind the dial 2 as shown in FIG. The light emitted from the light emitting diode 81 is guided by the first case 9 according to the optical path P1, and illuminates and transmits the characters 21 and the scale 22, and these are lit and displayed in, for example, white with a black background.

  The pointer 3 is configured to display light emission in red, for example. The light emitted from the light emitting diode 82 for emitting and displaying the pointer 3 is guided into the pointer 3 by the first case 9 and the light guide 7 formed of a transparent acrylic resin or the like along the optical path P2, and the pointer 3 is displayed in red. Press to display the light. A light shielding cap 31 is provided on the viewing side of the pointer 3 on the rotating shaft side so that the light emitting diode 82 is not directly exposed to the viewing side.

  The pointer 3 is rotated around the rotation axis R by the movement 4. The movement 4 comprises an electric actuator such as a stepping motor or a cross coil type rotating machine, and rotates the shaft 41 by an angle corresponding to an external electric signal (automobile speed signal in the present embodiment). The pointer 3 is fixed to the tip of the shaft 41 of the movement 4.

  The light emitting diodes 81 and 82 and the movement 4 are mounted on the printed board 10.

  In addition to the pointer 3, the speedometer 1 includes a second case 12 that is a housing, a first pattern plate 5 on which a first pattern 51 is formed, and a second pattern plate 6 on which a second pattern 61 is formed. Is provided.

  The first pattern plate 5 is arranged behind the dial 3 so that it can be seen through the opening 23 behind the dial 2, and is fixed to the shaft 41 via the light guide 7 and coaxial with the pointer 3. And it rotates at the same speed. The first pattern plate 5 is formed of a light-transmitting resin plate such as a disc-shaped polycarbonate resin, and has a light shielding property, for example, on the entire surface of one surface (front surface or back surface), leaving the first pattern 51 shown in FIG. A black light-shielding film is formed, thereby forming a first pattern 51 having optical transparency. An opening 52 is formed in the first pattern plate 5, and the first pattern plate 5 is fixed at a portion of the opening 52 with respect to the light guide 7 fixed to the shaft 41.

  The first pattern 51 is a rotationally symmetric pattern in which the rotation axis R of the pointer is an axis of symmetry and the same pattern is repeated a plurality of times in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3. Specifically, the first pattern 51 is a 30-fold rotationally symmetric spiral pattern having the rotation axis R as an axis of symmetry. That is, the same pattern is repeated every time the first pattern 51 is rotated 12 degrees (360 degrees / 30) about the rotation axis R.

  Since the rotation angle range of the pointer 3 is a range of an angle of 240 degrees between the character 21 of “0” and the character 21 of “180” in FIG. 1, the first pattern 51 has the rotational axis R as the symmetry axis. And a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern 20 times (30 × 2/3) in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the second pattern plate 6 is disposed behind the first pattern plate 5 and fixed to the first case 9. The second pattern plate 6 is formed of a light-transmitting resin plate such as a disc-shaped polycarbonate resin, and has a light-shielding property, for example, on the entire surface of one surface (front surface or back surface) with the second pattern 61 shown in FIG. A black light shielding film is formed, thereby forming a second pattern 61 having light transmittance. An opening 62 is formed in the second pattern plate 6, and the light guide 7 fixed to the shaft 41 is configured to be able to rotate in the opening 62 together with the shaft 41.

  Unlike the first pattern 51, the second pattern 61 is a line-symmetrical pattern with respect to the first pattern 51, and is a 30-fold rotationally symmetric pattern with the rotation axis R as the axis of symmetry. Similar to the first pattern 51, the rotational axis R is a symmetrical axis, and the rotational pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the light emitting diodes 83 and 84, which are light sources that transmit and illuminate both the second pattern board 6 and the first pattern board 5, are arranged behind the second pattern board 6 and emit light from the light emitting diode 83. For example, the blue light or the red light emitted from the light emitting diode 84 transmits and illuminates both the second pattern plate 6 and the first pattern plate 5 according to the optical path P3. FIG. 2 shows a state in which the light emitting diode 83 is turned on and the light emitting diode 84 is turned off.

  The light emitting diodes 83 and 84 are mounted on the printed circuit board 10, and the light from the light emitting diodes 83 and 84 is guided by the first case 9, and transmits through both the second pattern board 6 and the first pattern board 5. To do. That is, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are overlapped and displayed through the first pattern plate 5.

  The dial 2, the first case 9 to which the second pattern plate 6 is fixed, and the printed circuit board 10 to which the movement 4 for rotating the pointer 3 is fixed (mounted) are fixed to the second case 12. . Therefore, it can be said that the pointer 3 is rotatable with respect to the second case 12 which is the casing, and the second pattern plate 6 is fixed with respect to the second case 12 which is the casing.

  The control device 11 which is a control means is composed of a microcomputer or the like. As shown in FIG. 5, a speed sensor 13 for detecting the vehicle speed of the automobile is connected to the control device 11 so that the signal can be input. . Further, the movement 4 controlled by the control device 11 according to the detection signal from the speed sensor 13 and the light emitting diodes 81 to 84 are connected to the control device 11.

  When the pointer 3 indicates the counterclockwise direction from the character “100” 21 representing the predetermined value of 100 km / h, the light emitting diode 84 is turned off and the light emitting diode 83 is turned on. The control device 11 is configured to turn on the light emitting diode 84 and turn off the light emitting diode 83 when the clockwise direction including the character 21 is indicated. Further, the switching value is configured to be switched by setting means (not shown).

  The operation of the speedometer 1 according to the present embodiment configured as described above will be described.

  When an ignition switch (not shown) is turned on, in FIG. 5, the control device 11 detects it and starts operation. That is, the control device 11 calculates the vehicle speed based on the signal from the speed sensor 13 and controls the movement 4 so as to rotate the shaft 41 by an angle corresponding to the vehicle speed. At this time, the control device 11 turns on the light emitting diodes 81 and 82, and turns on the light emitting diode 83 with the light emitting diode 84 turned off when the vehicle speed is less than 100 km / h.

  In FIG. 2, the light emitted from the light-emitting diode 81 that has been turned on transmits and illuminates the characters 21 and the scales 22 according to the optical path P <b> 1, and displays them in white with a black background. The light emitted from the light-emitting diode 82 turned on is introduced into the pointer 3 according to the optical path P2, and the pointer 3 is lit and displayed in red.

  The blue light emitted from the light-emitting diode 83 that has turned on illuminates both the second pattern plate 6 and the first pattern plate 5 according to the optical path P3, and this transmitted illumination light is transmitted through the opening 23 of the dial 2. Through the first pattern board 5, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are visually observed as an overlapping pattern. Since the first pattern plate 5 rotates coaxially and at the same speed as the pointer 3, the first pattern 51 rotates coaxially and at the same speed as the pointer 3, and the second pattern plate 6 moves relative to the second case 12. Since it is fixed, the second pattern 61 does not rotate.

  As a result, the blue overlapping pattern in which the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are superimposed can be displayed as a pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3 in FIG. Can be easily recognized. In addition, a novel display is enabled by the overlapping pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3. Therefore, it is possible to provide the speedometer 1 capable of a novel display that makes it easy to recognize the rotation of the pointer 3.

  The first pattern 51 is a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern 20 times (30 × 2/3) in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3 with the rotation axis R of the pointer 3 as the axis of symmetry. Therefore, the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are overlapped is a pattern that repeats a periodic change in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3, that is, every 12 degrees of rotation of the pointer 3. A pattern can be displayed as a repeated pattern. Therefore, a more innovative display is possible.

  The second pattern 61 is also a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern 20 times (30 × 2/3) in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3 with the rotation axis R of the pointer 3 as the axis of symmetry. For this reason, by superimposing the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61, a composite pattern different from the first pattern 51 is newly generated as a pattern that repeats periodic changes. Therefore, the periodic change of the first pattern 51 and the periodic change of the composite pattern different from the first pattern 51 are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer, thereby enabling more innovative display.

  In this example, since both the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are rotationally symmetric patterns that repeat the same pattern 20 times in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3, the composite pattern is also in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3. It becomes a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern 20 times. In this case, the periodic change of the first pattern 51 shown in FIG. 3 and the periodic change of the composite pattern shown in FIG. 1 different from the first pattern 51 are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3.

  On the other hand, for example, the first pattern 51 is a rotationally symmetrical pattern that repeats the same pattern 20 times in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3, whereas the second pattern 61 is 16 times in the rotation angle range of the pointer 3. In the case of a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern, the composite pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern that repeats the same pattern four times, which is the greatest common divisor of 20 and 16 (a so-called beat phenomenon pattern). Therefore, the periodic change of the first pattern 51 shown in FIG. 3 and the periodic change of the composite pattern in which both the period and the pattern are different from the first pattern 51 are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3.

  Moreover, since the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are overlapped can be displayed as illumination light transmitted through the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61, the above-described effect can be further emphasized.

  When the vehicle speed becomes 100 km / h or higher, the control device 11 turns on the light emitting diode 84 and turns off the light emitting diode 83. The red light emitted from the light-emitting diode 84 turned on illuminates and transmits both the second pattern plate 6 and the first pattern plate 5 along the optical path P3 in FIG. Through the first pattern plate 5, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are visually observed as an overlapping pattern.

  Thereby, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are overlapped, and the overlapped pattern that is switched from blue to red can be displayed as a pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3 in FIG. Therefore, it can be more easily recognized whether or not the pointer 3 indicates 100 km / h or more.

  The speedometer 1 that is a pointer instrument according to the embodiment of the present invention described above includes a second case 12 that is a housing, a pointer 3 that is rotatable with respect to the second case 12, and a back side of the pointer 3. 1st pattern board 5 which is arranged, rotates coaxially with pointer 3, and has the 1st pattern 51 in which light permeability is formed, and is arranged behind the 1st pattern board 5, and is attached to the 2nd case 12. The second pattern plate 6 is fixed to the second pattern plate 61 on which the second pattern 61 is formed, and the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are displayed in an overlapping manner through the first pattern plate 5. Thereby, it is possible to provide a pointer instrument capable of a novel display that makes it easy to recognize the rotation of the pointer.

(Modification)
In the above-described example, the light emission color is switched by the light emitting diodes 83 and 84. However, the light emission luminance of the light emitting diode can be switched.

  In the above example, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are spirally symmetrical patterns different from each other. However, the present invention is not limited to this. As shown in FIG. 6, the first pattern 53 can be an Asahikari-shaped 60-fold rotationally symmetric pattern with the rotation axis R as the axis of symmetry, and the second pattern is the same as the first pattern 53. It can be a pattern. Specifically, the first pattern 53 and the second pattern are Asahikari-like 60-fold rotationally symmetric patterns composed of 60 lines extending from the rotation axis R in the radial direction at equal intervals.

  As a result, the first pattern 53 and the second pattern overlap each other at a predetermined rotation position of the pointer 3, and the first pattern 53 composed of 60 lines is formed by overlapping the first pattern 53 and the second pattern. Thus, at the rotation position where the first pattern 53 and the second pattern do not overlap, the overlapping pattern becomes a pattern composed of 120 lines obtained by adding the first pattern 53 and the second pattern. Each time the pointer 3 is rotated 6 degrees (360 degrees / 60) from the predetermined rotation position, the overlapping pattern becomes the first pattern 53, and this is repeated. For this reason, by overlapping the first pattern 53 and the second pattern, a composite pattern different from the first pattern 53 is newly generated as a pattern that repeats periodic changes.

  Therefore, the periodic change of the first pattern 53 and the periodic change of the composite pattern different from the first pattern 53 are repeated in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3 to enable more innovative display.

  In the above example, the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 are rotationally symmetric patterns with the rotational axis R as the symmetry axis, but the present invention is not limited to this. The second pattern 61 can be a non-rotation symmetric pattern, and both the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 can be a non-rotation symmetric pattern. For example, as shown in FIG. 7, the first pattern 54 can be a horizontal striped non-rotation symmetric pattern, and the second pattern can be a horizontal striped non-rotation symmetric pattern similar to the first pattern 54. Is possible. In this modified example, as in the above-described example, the effect of the periodic change pattern by the first pattern 51 and the second pattern 61 is not obtained, but the overlapping pattern in which the first pattern 54 and the second pattern are overlapped is used. Thus, it is possible to display as a pattern that changes in conjunction with the rotation of the pointer 3, and it is possible to display a novel display that makes it easy to recognize the rotation of the pointer.

  Moreover, not only the above-mentioned example but various modifications can be considered.

FIG. 1 is a front view of a speedometer 1 that is a pointer instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II in FIG. FIG. 3 is a front view of the first pattern board 5 shown in FIG. FIG. 4 is a front view of the second patterned plate 6 shown in FIG. FIG. 5 is a circuit configuration diagram of the speedometer 1 which is a pointer instrument according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a front view showing a first modification of FIG. FIG. 7 is a front view showing a second modification of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Speedometer (pointer meter), 2 dial, 21 characters, 22 scale, 23 opening 3 Pointer, 31 Shading cap, 4 movement, 41 shaft 5 1st pattern board, 51,53,54 1st pattern, 52 opening, 6 2nd pattern board 61 2nd pattern, 62 Opening, 7 Light guide, 81, 82 Light emitting diode 83, 84 Light emitting diode (light source), 9 1st case, 10 Printed board 11 Control apparatus (control means), 12 1st 2 cases (housing), 13 speed sensor R rotation axis

Claims (7)

A housing,
A pointer rotatable with respect to the housing;
A first pattern plate that is disposed behind the pointer, rotates coaxially with the pointer, and has a light transmission on which a first pattern is formed;
A second pattern plate disposed behind the first pattern plate and fixed to the housing, and having a second pattern formed thereon;
A pointer instrument that displays the first pattern and the second pattern in an overlapping manner through the first pattern board.   The pointer instrument according to claim 1, wherein the first pattern plate rotates at the same speed as the pointer.   3. The first pattern according to claim 1, wherein the first pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern having a rotational axis of the pointer as a symmetric axis and repeating the same pattern a plurality of times in a rotation angle range of the pointer. Pointer instrument.   The pointer instrument according to claim 3, wherein the second pattern is a rotationally symmetric pattern in which the rotational axis is a symmetric axis and the same pattern is repeated a plurality of times in the rotation angle range.   The pointer instrument according to claim 4, wherein the second pattern is the same as the first pattern. The second pattern plate has light transmittance,
6. The light source according to claim 1, further comprising a light source that is disposed behind the second pattern plate and transmits and illuminates both the second pattern plate and the first pattern plate. Pointer instrument. The light source is configured to be capable of switching at least one of a light emission color and a light emission luminance of the light source,
Control means for switching at least one of the emission color and the emission luminance of the light source;
The pointer instrument according to claim 6, wherein the control means switches at least one of the emission color and the emission luminance of the light source when the pointer indicates a predetermined value or more.

Images