JP2011204550A - Operating device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent the backlash of an operating member and to further reduce an operation resistance.SOLUTION: A housing part 20 of an insertion part 16 of the operating member 15 to be pressed for operation is arranged with a compression coil spring 24 with its axial direction being transverse and is provided with a ball 25, which then is pressed against an inner face of a switch body 11. An end of the compression coil spring 24 on a side pressing the ball 25 is provided with an elliptical ball guide 27 extending in a moving direction of the operating member 15 (in a direction of an arrow A). Because the ball 25 can easily roll within the ball guide 27 during operation of the operating member 15, the operation resistance can be further reduced compared to a case in which a ball only slides.

Description

  The present invention relates to an operating device including a compression coil spring and a ball between a base and an operating member.

  For example, in an operating device such as a push switch device, as shown in FIG. 5, a housing hole 2 is formed in the operating member 1 that is moved and operated as a structure that prevents rattling of the operating member that is moved and operated. The compression coil spring 3 is accommodated and disposed in the accommodation hole 2 in such a direction that the axial direction of the compression spring 3 intersects (orthogonal) with respect to the arrow A direction, which is the moving direction of the operation member 1, and the ball 4 is disposed at the tip thereof. There is a configuration in which the ball 4 is disposed and pressed against a base body 5 such as a switch body. With such a configuration, the operation member 1 is prevented from rattling and the operation member 1 is moved smoothly.

  In addition, there is also a structure in which the compression coil spring and the ball are provided on the fixed base instead of being provided on the operation member to be moved. For example, in Patent Document 1, a plurality of ball plungers each having a compression coil spring and a ball are provided on the fixed member side, and the ball plunger ball is pressed against a flange of a movable member (operation member) that is moved along the rail. It is made the composition made to do. Also in this case, each compression coil spring is arranged in a direction in which the axial direction intersects (orthogonal) with respect to the moving direction of the movable member, and the compression coil spring and the ball prevent rattling of the movable member. The movement of the movable member is made smooth.

JP 2008-155794 A

  In the conventional configuration described above, the compression coil spring 3 is generally formed in a cylindrical shape, and the outer peripheral surface of the ball 4 is pressed by a circular portion at the end thereof. For this reason, when the operation member 1 (movable member) is moved, the ball 4 pressed by the compression coil spring 3 hardly rolls and the ball 4 slides in a point contact with the counterpart member. There is a problem that resistance is large.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an operating device that can prevent rattling of an operating member and can further reduce operating resistance.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, the operating device according to the present invention includes a base, an operating member movably provided with respect to the base, and one of the base and the operating member having an axial direction of the base. A compression coil spring arranged in a direction crossing the moving direction of the operation member, and an urging force of the compression coil spring is opposite to one of the base body and the operation member provided with the compression coil spring. A ball that is urged to the other side, and extends in the moving direction of the operation member at the end of the compression coil spring that presses the ball to guide the ball to rotate. An oval or rectangular ball guide portion is provided.

  According to the present invention, rattling of the operation member can be prevented by providing the compression coil spring and the ball between the operation member and the base. In addition, since the ball easily rolls in the ball guide portion when the operation member is moved, the operation resistance can be further reduced as compared with the case where the ball only slides.

The vertical sectional side view in the OFF state of a switch device showing one embodiment of the present invention Perspective view of compression coil spring Plan view of the compression coil spring as seen from the ball guide side Longitudinal side view with switch device on Vertical side view showing conventional configuration

  Hereinafter, an embodiment in which an operating device of the present invention is applied to a push-type switch device will be described with reference to FIGS. First, in FIG. 1, the switch body 11 constituting the base body has a switch accommodating portion 12 whose upper surface is opened in FIG. The switch accommodating portion 12 extends in the up-down direction, and a tact switch 13 in this case is disposed as a switch element on the inner bottom portion thereof. The tact switch 13 has an operation element 14 protruding upward. The operation element 14 is urged upward in FIG. 1, which is a protruding direction, by an urging means (not shown). In the non-pressed state where the operating element 14 is not pressed, the tact switch 13 protrudes upward and presents an off state.

  An operation member 15 is inserted into the switch housing portion 12 so as to be movable in the vertical direction (arrow A direction) in FIG. The operation member 15 includes an insertion portion 16 inserted into the switch housing portion 12 and an operation knob 17 protruding upward (outward) from the switch housing portion 12. The lower end portion of the insertion portion 16 is in contact with the upper surface of the operation element 14 in the tact switch 13 from above.

  A laterally concave accommodating portion 20 is formed at an intermediate portion in the vertical direction of the insertion portion 16. The accommodation portion 20 has an open left side in FIG. 1 and extends in the right lateral direction. The housing portion 20 has a circular hole 21 on the back side (right side) opposite to the opening side, and has a long hole 22 that is long in the vertical direction on the opening side. A step portion 23 is formed between the circular hole 21 and the long hole 22, and the accommodating portion 20 has a stepped shape in the horizontal direction.

  A compression coil spring 24 and a ball 25 are accommodated in the accommodating portion 20. Among them, the compression coil spring 24 includes, as shown in FIG. 2, a circular winding portion 26 wound in a normal circle and a ball guide portion 27 wound in an oval shape at one end of the circular winding portion 26. A circular circular winding portion 26 is accommodated in the circular hole 21, and an oval ball guide portion 27 is accommodated in the long hole 22. As shown in FIG. 3, the ball guide portion 27 has two straight portions 27a extending in parallel in the longitudinal direction and opposing arc portions 27b provided at both ends in the longitudinal direction. The long hole 22 is arranged so that the direction is along the moving direction of the operation member 15 (arrow A direction). Therefore, the ball guide portion 27 is formed in an oval shape extending along the moving direction of the operation member 15 (arrow A direction). The ball 25 is accommodated in the elongated hole 22 and is urged toward the switch body 11 by the urging force of the compression coil spring 24. The length of the long hole 22 and the ball guide portion 27 in the vertical direction (longitudinal direction) is larger than the diameter of the ball 25, and the ball 25 moves vertically in the long hole 22 (in the ball guide portion 27). It can move in the direction.

  Here, the compression coil spring 24 is in a direction in which the axial direction intersects (orthogonally) the operating member 15 of the switch body 11 and the operating member 15 with respect to the moving direction (arrow A direction) of the operating member 15. It is arranged in a certain landscape orientation. The ball 25 is urged by the urging force of the compression coil spring 24 toward the switch body 11 which is the other side opposite to the operation member 15 provided with the compression coil spring 24. The ball 25 is pressed against the inner surface side of the switch body 11 by the ball guide portion 27 of the compression coil spring 24.

  The insertion portion 16 of the operation member 15 is provided with concave portions 30 and 30 that are positioned on both upper and lower sides with the accommodating portion 20 in between, with the right side surface opened in FIG. Balls 31 are movably accommodated in the respective recesses 30. Each ball 31 is in contact with the inner surface of the switch body 11 by the reaction force of the ball 25. In this case, the length of the concave portion 30 in the vertical direction is larger than the diameter of the ball 31, and the ball 31 can move in the vertical direction in the concave portion 30.

  Although not shown in the figure, a means for preventing the operation member 15 from coming off is provided between the operation member 15 and the switch body 11 so that the operation member 15 cannot be removed from the switch body 11.

  In the above configuration, in the state of FIG. 1 in which the operation member 15 is not pressed, the operation element 14 of the tact switch 13 protrudes, and the tact switch 13 is in an OFF state. In this state, when the operation knob 17 is pressed downward (in the direction of arrow A1 in FIG. 1), the operation member 15 is moved in the direction of arrow A1, and as shown in FIG. The 13 operation elements 14 are pressed, and the tact switch 13 is turned on. When the pressing force on the operating member 15 is released, the operating element 14 of the tact switch 13 protrudes in the protruding direction by an urging force (not shown), and the operating member 15 is moved by the operating element 14 from the arrow A1. It is pushed and moved in the opposite direction (upward) to return to the original position shown in FIG. 1, and the tact switch 13 is turned off again.

  Here, in the above configuration, the ball 25 is pressed against the inner surface of the switch body 11 by the urging force of the compression coil spring 24 provided on the operation member 15, and the reaction force of the ball 25 is opposite to the ball 25. Since the two balls 31 existing above and below the pressure body are in pressure contact with the inner surface of the switch body 11, the operation member 15 can be prevented from rattling and the operation member 15 can be moved smoothly in the vertical direction (arrow A direction). can do.

  In addition, since the compression coil spring 24 is provided with an oval ball guide portion 27 extending in the moving direction of the operation member 15 at the end portion on the side where the ball 25 is pressed, Both sides intersecting (orthogonal) with respect to the moving direction are pressed by the linear portion 27a of the ball guide portion 27, but the other portions are not pressed by the ball guide portion 27. It can roll along the longitudinal direction. For this reason, when the operation member 15 is moved, the ball 25 easily rolls in the ball guide portion 27, and the operation resistance can be further reduced as compared with the case where the ball 25 only slides by point contact. . Further, since the two balls 31 on the opposite side to the balls 25 are also easy to roll in the recess 30, the operation resistance can be further reduced. In this case, the dimension of the ball guide portion 27 that is elongated in the longitudinal direction (the range in which the ball 25 can roll) may be at least half the movement dimension of the operation member 15.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified or expanded as follows.
The ball 31 disposed on the side opposite to the ball 25 biased by the compression coil spring 24 is not necessarily required and may not be provided.
The compression coil spring 24 and the ball 25 may be provided on the switch body 11 side instead of being provided on the operation member 15 side.
The ball guide portion 27 may have a rectangular shape as long as the shape is long in the moving direction of the operation member 15.
The present invention is not limited to the push-type switch device, but can be applied to a slide-type switch device. The present invention can also be applied to a device other than the switch device that moves the operation member with respect to the base.

  In the drawings, 11 is a switch body (base body), 13 is a tact switch (switch element), 15 is an operation member, 20 is a housing portion, 24 is a compression coil spring, 25 is a ball, 27 is a ball guide portion, and 31 is a ball. Show.

Claims (1)

A substrate;
An operation member provided to be movable with respect to the substrate;
A compression coil spring disposed on one of the base body and the operating member in a direction in which an axial direction intersects a moving direction of the operating member;
A biasing force of the compression coil spring, and a ball provided by being biased to the other side of the base body and the operation member opposite to the one provided with the compression coil spring;
An oval or rectangular ball guide portion that extends in the moving direction of the operation member and guides the rotation of the ball is provided at an end portion of the compression coil spring that presses the ball. The operating device.

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