JP2010108709A - Input device for motor vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an input device for motor vehicle capable of being easily operated and giving excellent operation feeling, and in which there neither generation of unusual sounds nor positional displacement of switches occurs even when a vehicle body vibrates. <P>SOLUTION: In the input device for motor vehicle, there are provided a knob 3 at the center of a case 1 and a display device 2 thereabove; a dial switch 4 rotationally operated by the knob 3 is fitted in a retainer 5 together with the knob 3; the retainer 5 is held by bosses or protruded pieces, not shown in the figure, so as to move slidably right and left to different positions; and the dial switch 4 can be operated with different functions according to each of the support positions. Therein, a capacitance sensor 6 detecting the approach of human is further provided, and, by engaging/disengaging an actuator 7 to a groove 8 by this information, the retainer 5 is not made slidable when an operator does not approach, and is slidable when an operator's hand approaches. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an input device that is mounted on a vehicle and adjusts various functions in a vehicle interior, and more particularly to an input device for a vehicle that can adjust different types of functions with a single switch by sliding movement.

  Some passenger cabins and the like have an input device for switching functions by moving a dial switch. This input device is moved by a moving holding mechanism and held at a predetermined position, and is provided coaxially with a dial switch that can be rotated, position detecting means for detecting a holding position of the dial switch, and a dial switch. And a rotation amount conversion means for converting the rotation amount of the dial switch into an electric signal.

By this input device, a predetermined function type is derived from the dial switch holding position detected by the position detection means, and a control system for the derived function is determined based on the output signal from the rotation amount conversion means. The function can be executed.
Since such an input device has a single switch compared to other types of devices such as a plurality of push button switches, visual confirmation is unnecessary and operation is simple, so the function during running Has the advantage that it can be switched safely.

  Many inventions have been made with respect to the above input device. For example, Patent Documents 1 to 3 describe inventions related to improvement in operability of input devices and prevention of erroneous operations.

JP 2004-299539 A JP 2004-259544 A JP 2004-217169 A

However, the conventional input device requires a gap for each component by providing a moving mechanism, and an unpleasant sound is generated by resonating with the vibration of the car, or the impact is increased by resonating and durability. May be significantly impaired.
In addition, the dial switch itself has a relatively large mass, and a considerable inertial force is applied when vibration acceleration is applied. Therefore, if the resistance load when moving the dial switch is set low to improve the feeling of vibration, There was a problem that the switch moved without permission.
On the other hand, the inventions of Patent Documents 1 to 3 do not solve the above problem.

  The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, can be operated lightly and provides a good operation feeling, and even if vibration is applied to the switch part due to vehicle vibration or rough road running, It is an object of the present invention to provide an automobile input device that can prevent a decrease in durability and that does not cause an increase in play or a positional shift of a switch.

In order to solve the above problems, the invention of claim 1 includes a switch, the switch is slidably held in different positions, and the switch operates different functions depending on the held positions. An input device for an automobile capable of performing the above operation, wherein the input device includes a sensor that detects that a person has approached, and the information from the sensor enables the switch to slide when the person approaches, When there is no approach, the switch is locked so that it cannot slide. Thus, an automobile input device that can be operated lightly, has a good operation feeling, and that can prevent abnormal noise and switch displacement even when vibration is applied to the switch portion is provided.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, the switch is a dial switch. This provides an input device that has a dial switch that can perform many input settings with a simple operation and that has the above effects.
The invention according to claim 3 is characterized in that the means for locking is configured such that the operating portion of the actuator is fitted / detached in a groove provided in the holding portion that slides together with the switch. . Thus, an input device that provides the above effect with a simple structure is provided.

  As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to lightly operate, obtain a good operation feeling, prevent occurrence of abnormal noise and decrease in durability even when vibration is applied to the switch portion, and increase backlash. Further, it is possible to provide an automobile input device that does not cause displacement of the switch or the switch.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, the configuration of the input device of this embodiment will be described.
FIG. 1 is a front view of the input device. A knob 3 is provided at the center of the case 1, and a display device 2 is provided above the knob 3.

  2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. The knob 3 is coupled to the tip of the dial switch 4 at the center on the back side. The rear end portion of the dial switch 4 is fixed to the substrate 9, and the substrate 9 is held by the retainer 5.

  The retainer 5 is also arranged on the circumferential portion and the front portion of the retainer 5 so that the front half of the capacitance detection electrode 6 is slidably in contact with the inner cylindrical portion and the bottom portion of the knob 3. (Figs. 4 and 5). The rear end portion of the capacitance detection electrode 6 is connected to the substrate 9 (FIG. 2).

  An actuator 7 is provided on the inner bottom surface of the case 1, and is normally fitted in a groove 8 having a shape that fits with the actuator 7 provided on the retainer 5.

  The dial switch 4 is held on the substrate 9 and is electrically connected by the capacitance detection electrode 6 and is mounted with an ECU and a drive circuit.

  As shown in FIG. 3 when the input device of FIG. 1 is viewed from the back side, a limit switch 10 is installed at one end of the lower portion of the retainer 5 to detect the position of the rib 11 fixed to the case 1.

  As shown in FIG. 4 which is a BB cross-sectional view of FIG. 3, the left and right end portions of the retainer 5 have guide holes 16a at the center portions, and projecting pieces 16 having a sawtooth cross-sectional shape 14 at the upper portion thereof. Is protruding. Boss 15 is formed in two portions corresponding to guide hole 16a of case 1, and retainer 5 is slidably held in the left and right directions by inserting boss 15 into guide hole 16a.

  FIG. 5 shows an installation position of the capacitance detection electrode 6. A part of the retainer 5 is a cylindrical surface that fits into the cylindrical surface inside the knob 3, and a thin plate-like capacitance detection electrode 6 is attached to the circumferential surface and the bottom surface of the cylindrical surface of the retainer 5. Yes.

  As shown in FIG. 6, detection signals from the capacitance detection electrode 6, the dial switch 4, and the limit switch 10 are input to the ECU. The ECU is also connected to a drive circuit 19 that supplies electric power to the actuator 7 and a control device 20 that outputs information of an input device such as display control and outputs a signal.

Next, functions of the input device configured as described above will be described.
The display device 2 displays the target state and input state controlled by the input device. The knob 3 has a shape that can be easily operated by a person. By rotating the knob 3, the dial switch 4 is rotated, and various settings are made according to the amount and direction of rotation of the dial switch 4.

  The actuator 7 fits into a groove 8 provided in the retainer 5 in a normal state and applies a load to the retainer 5 as described later to suppress the movement of the knob. The normal state here refers to a state where the knob 3 is stationary at a fixed position with respect to the moving state of the knob 3.

  The spring 12 presses the ball 13 against the sawtooth shape 14 to generate a feeling of operation when the knob 3 slides to the left and right. Specifically, in FIG. 4, when the knob 3 is moved to the left side, for example, the ball 13 is pushed up by the slope of the sawtooth shape 14 to compress the spring 12 and increase the movement of the knob 3. The spring 12 is extended and the ball 13 is pressed against the inclined surface of the sawtooth shape 14 to lighten the movement of the knob 3, so that a feeling of operation called “moderation feeling” is excellent for each mountain of the sawtooth shape 14. To cause.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the length of the spacer 17 in the direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the retainer 5 (vertical direction in FIG. 3) is longer than the vertical width of the guide hole 16a. By installing the spacer 17 as a stopper between the head of the screw 18 screwed into the boss 15 and the tip of the boss 15, the retainer 5 can slide and move left and right without falling off the boss 15.

  FIG. 7 shows a state where the non-actuated actuator 7 is fitted in the groove 8 provided in the retainer 5 and the operation knob is fixed. The non-actuated actuator 7 presses the tip against the groove 8 and is always stationary with a load applied to the retainer 5. For this reason, it is possible to keep the knob fixed even when a vibration or impact of the vehicle is applied.

  FIG. 8 shows a state in which the actuator 7 operates by detecting that the operator's hand is approaching. The tip part descends and moves away from the groove 8 to allow the operation knob to slide to the left and right. The operator can slide the knob with good feeling by the above configuration.

  FIG. 9 shows a state in which the knob 7 is fixed by fitting the actuator 7 into the groove 8 ′ adjacent to the groove 8 by the movement of the retainer 5. The operating state of the actuator 7 is the same as that in FIG. 7, and the distal end portion is pressed against the groove 8 ′, and the actuator 7 is always stationary while a load is applied to the retainer 5. Further, the limit switch 10 is pushed, and the knob 3 can detect the moving direction.

With the above-described configuration, the input device of the present invention can be operated lightly and a good operation feeling can be obtained. This is because when the operator's hand approaches the knob, the capacitance detection electrode detects a change in static electricity and outputs an approach detection signal to the ECU, and the ECU receiving this signal drives the actuator to drive the actuator. This is because the command is output to disengage the tip from the fitting groove, so that the knob can be slid only with a light load such as a spring for generating an operation feeling.
In addition, the input device of the present invention does not require an accessory device such as a release button in the fixed state because the fixed state of the knob is released as described above simply by bringing the operator's hand close to the knob. No extra action of pressing etc. is required.

  Previously, there was no switching function for fixing / opening the knob, so it was necessary to adjust the knob fixing and operation feeling to occur with a single spring strength, adjusting to satisfy both functions. It was difficult to do. On the other hand, in the input device of the present invention, two functions of fixing the knob and generating a feeling of operation when the knob is moved are separated, the former is performed by fitting the actuator into the groove, and the latter is performed by the dedicated device. It is possible to limit the adjustment of the spring strength for the latter to the generation of the operation feeling by switching the setting / opening of the knob by the operator's approach signal so that the optimum adjustment can be easily made. It was.

  In addition, the input device of the present invention can prevent the generation of abnormal noise due to resonance or a decrease in durability even when vibration is applied to the switch part due to vehicle vibration or rough road traveling, etc. Does not occur. This is also the effect that the knob can be firmly fixed regardless of the spring adjustment at the time of sliding movement by the above function separation.

Although the input device of the present embodiment includes a dial switch, the switch is not limited to this, and may be another type of switch such as a stick-type switch.
Moreover, although the dial switch is configured to move to the left and right, the present invention is not limited to this. Further, as an actuator for locking the movement of the dial switch, a motor or the like may be used in addition to the solenoid valve as in the present embodiment.

It is possible to change not only the capacitance but also the method using infrared rays, radio waves, and distortion to detect the approach of a person. Further, if the direction in which the knob is moved can be detected, the movement may be assisted in that direction.
Although the present embodiment is configured to improve the operation feeling, it may be configured not to particularly consider the operation feeling.

It is a front view of the input device of this embodiment. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is a rear view of the mechanism part of the input device of this embodiment. It is BB sectional drawing of FIG. It is the figure which removed the knob of FIG. 1, and shows arrangement | positioning of an electrostatic capacitance detection electrode. The block diagram of the input device of this embodiment is shown. It is a figure which shows the state at the time of fixation of a knob, (a) is CC sectional drawing, (b) is a rear view of an input device. It is a figure which shows a state when a human hand approaches the knob, (a) is DD sectional drawing, (b) is a rear view of an input device. It is a figure which shows the state after a knob moves, (a) is EE sectional drawing, (b) is a rear view of an input device.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Case 2 Display device 3 Knob 4 Dial switch 5 Retainer 6 Electrostatic capacity detection electrode 7 Actuator 8, 8 'groove 9 Substrate 10 Limit switch 11 Rib 12 Spring 13 Ball 14 Sawtooth shape 15 Boss 16 Projection piece 16a Guide hole 17 Spacer 18 screw 19 drive circuit 20 control device

Claims (3)

With a switch,
The switch is slidably held in different positions,
An input device for an automobile in which the switch can operate different functions depending on each held position,
The input device includes a sensor for detecting that a person is approaching, and the switch can be slid when the person is approaching, and the switch is not slidable when the person is not approaching, based on information from the sensor. An input device for automobiles that is locked.   The automobile input device according to claim 1, wherein the switch is a dial switch.   The automobile input device according to claim 1, wherein the means for locking is configured such that an operating portion of an actuator is fitted / detached in a groove provided in the holding portion that slides with the switch.

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