JP2012243671A - Operation device and electronic apparatus including the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an operation device, such as a dialing device, for facilitating an installation check of a clicking member that urges an operator, and an electronic apparatus including the same.SOLUTION: An operation device comprises: an operator 40 which has one or multiple concave grooves 48, 48 and is operated in a rotatable or slidable manner; a mounting part 21 which the operator fits into; support holes 23 which are formed in the mounting part 21 and have openings directed to the orbits of the concave grooves of the operator; urging means 70 which is to be inserted into each of the support holes; and clicking members 72 which are held to the support holes and urged toward the orbits of the concave grooves by the urging means. The operator has a hole 49 which penetrates at least one of the concave grooves and has a diameter smaller than the external diameter of the clicking member.

Description

  The present invention relates to an operating device used in an electronic device, and more specifically, relates to an operating device capable of easily confirming the attachment of a click body that urges an operating element, and an electronic device including the operating device. Is.

  A digital camera equipped with a dial device having a rotatable dial operator and operating the dial operator to perform various selection operations such as switching to a shooting mode, shutter speed, and playback mode. Electronic devices are known.

  The dial device is configured by rotatably fitting a dial operator to a cylindrical mounting portion protruding upward from a housing of an electronic device. A pair of support holes are formed inside the mounting portion in the direction of the dial operator, and a click body such as a ball is spring-biased toward the dial operator in the support hole and a dial operation facing the click body is performed. There has also been proposed a structure in which a plurality of grooves are formed on the inner surface of the child so that a click feeling can be obtained when the dial operator is turned (see Patent Document 1).

JP 2006-66147 A

When assembling the dial device, it is necessary to check whether the spring-biased click body is correctly attached to the support hole.
Therefore, there is a method for determining whether there is a feeling of clicking by rotating the dial operator. However, in this case, in a dial device provided with a plurality of click bodies, it is very difficult to confirm when one of the click bodies is dropped or missing or not correctly attached.

  An object of the present invention is to provide an operation device such as a dial device and an electronic apparatus including the same, which can easily confirm the attachment of a click body for energizing an operation element.

The operating device of the present invention is
An operator having one or a plurality of concave grooves and capable of rotating or sliding;
A mounting portion into which the operating element fits;
A support hole formed in the mounting portion and opened toward the track of the concave groove of the operation element;
Biasing means inserted into the support hole;
A click body that is held in the support hole and is urged toward the groove groove by the urging means,
An operating device having
In the operating element, a hole having a smaller diameter than the outer diameter of the click body is formed through at least one concave groove.

  According to the operating device of the present invention, after assembling the operating device, the presence or the attachment state of the click body can be confirmed by visually or image-recognizing the click body through the hole.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a digital camera provided with an operating device according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed obliquely from the front. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the upper cabinet of FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3-3 in FIG. FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a main part of the upper cabinet. FIG. 5 is a plan view of the dial device before attaching the decorative plate.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, a digital camera (10) which is an embodiment of an electronic apparatus of the present invention includes a photographing lens (14) on the front surface of a housing (12) and an upper wall of the housing (12). An operating device is provided in the upper cabinet (20) to be formed. Hereinafter, the rotary dial device (30) will be described as an example of the operation device.

  In the case of the digital camera (10), detailed description and / or illustration is omitted as appropriate, but it has a shutter button (16), a zoom lever, etc. in the vicinity of the dial device (30). A flash mechanism is installed in place, and a liquid crystal panel is installed on the back.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the dial device (30) includes a cylindrical dial operator (40) rotatably disposed on a circular mounting portion (21) formed in the upper cabinet (20). The dial operator (40) is provided by a spring (70) (70) serving as a biasing means accommodated in one or a plurality of support holes (23) (23) provided to open upward from the upper cabinet (20). Click body (72) (72) urged toward the holding member (50), and a holding member (50) that supports the dial operator (40) by fitting with the dial operator (40) on the back side of the upper cabinet (20). ) And a fixing screw (60) for fixing the dial operator (40) and the holding member (50).

  More specifically, the dial operator (40) includes a cylindrical portion (41) provided with a number of irregularities for preventing slippage on the outer periphery, and a support portion (43) provided concentrically with the cylindrical portion (41). ) Are connected by an annular disk portion (47), and are supported so as to be able to rotate 360 degrees or more with respect to the holding member (50). Of course, the dial operator (40) may be rotatable within a predetermined angle range.

  The cylindrical part (41) has a slightly protruding upper side than the disk part (47), and the decorative board (32) describing the function operated by the dial operator (40) is an adhesive means such as a double-sided tape (33). It can be attached by. A positioning projection (42) of the decorative plate (32) is formed inwardly on the inside of the cylindrical portion (41).

  The cylindrical part (41) extends downward from the disk part (47), and the inner surface of the cylindrical part (41) is an annular ring part (upwardly protruding from the mounting part (21) of the upper cabinet (20)). 22) is slidably fitted.

  The support part (43) protruding downward from the center of the disk part (47) fits rotatably in a circular attachment hole (24) opened through the attachment part (21) of the upper cabinet (20). .

  A recess (44) is formed in the center on the upper surface side of the support portion (43). The recess (44) includes a plate recess (44a) in which a screw plate (65) in which a fixing screw (60) for fixing the dial operator (40) to the holding member (50) is fitted is accommodated. The plate-shaped recess (44a) is formed of a substantially rectangular retaining plate recess (44c) into which a retaining plate (35) for preventing the screw plate (65) from falling off is fitted.

  In the plate recess (44a), a claw piece (44b) (44b) is projected inwardly, and for the screw opened through the screw hole (66) into which the fixing screw (60) is screwed. The plate (65) is engaged with the claw pieces (44b) and (44b) by engaging recesses (67) and (67) formed on the side surfaces, and cannot rotate in the plate recess (44a). .

A screw insertion hole (45) through which the fixing screw (60) passes is formed at the center of the lower surface of the support portion (43), and an outer periphery of the screw insertion hole (45) is attached to the holding member (50). An engaging portion (46) that fits in a non-rotatable manner is formed downward.
As shown in the figure, the engaging portion (46) can be engaged with the holding member (50) in a non-rotatable manner by forming a concave shape having a linear portion in part.

  On the back surface of the disk portion (47), a plurality of concave grooves (48) (48) are formed at predetermined intervals between the cylindrical portion (41) and the support portion (43). The concave groove (48) (48) is provided on the track of a spring-biased click body (72) (72) to be described later, and when the dial operator (40) is rotated, the click body (40) 72) fits into the groove (48) to position the dial operator (40) and improve the operability by obtaining a click feeling when the click body (72) is fitted. it can.

In the present embodiment, the number of the concave grooves (48) (48) is the same as the number of functions written on the decorative plate (32) of the dial operator (40). For example, when eight functions are written on the decorative board (32), the number of the grooves (48) and (48) is also eight.
In addition, when the function described in the decorative board (32) exists only within 180 degrees of the dial operator (40), the number of the concave grooves (48) may be double the number of functions. .

  Further, at least one of the concave grooves (48) (48) is provided with a confirmation hole (49) (hereinafter referred to as “confirmation hole”) penetrating the disk portion (47). The confirmation hole (49) has a smaller diameter than the concave grooves (48) and (48), and is not visible from the outside when the decorative plate (32) is attached to the disk portion (47).

  The mounting portion (21) of the upper cabinet (20) is provided with a mounting hole (24) through which the support portion (43) of the dial operator (40) passes, and the outer periphery of the mounting hole (24). Is provided with an annular ring portion (22) concentrically with the mounting hole (24). The ring portion (22) is in sliding contact with the lower inner surface of the cylindrical portion (41) of the dial operator (40).

  Furthermore, one or a plurality of support holes (23) and (23) are formed in the attachment portion (21) so as to open upward between the attachment hole (24) and the ring portion (22). The support holes (23) and (23) are provided at positions facing the tracks of the concave grooves (48) of the dial operator (40). In the illustrated embodiment, the number of support holes (23) and (23) is two, but may be one, or may be three or more.

Each of the support holes (23) and (23) is fitted with a spring (70), and the click body (72) is accommodated on the distal end side of the spring (70). As the click body (72), a ball having a diameter smaller than that of the support hole (23) can be exemplified. The click body (72) is not limited to a sphere such as a ball or a steel ball, and may be, for example, an oval like a rugby ball, a polyhedron, or a rod. The material of the click body (72) is not limited to a metal, and may be a resin or the like.
The spring (70) for biasing the click body (72) is adjusted to a length that the click body (72) protrudes from the opening of the support hole (23) in an unloaded state.

A holding member (50) is disposed on the back side of the dial operator (40) with the upper cabinet (20) interposed therebetween. The holding member (50) is in contact with the lower end of the support portion (43) of the dial operator (40), and the engagement receiving portion into which the engagement portion (46) provided at the tip of the support portion (43) is fitted. (51) is projected. The engagement receiving portion (51) is partially formed in a straight line in accordance with the shape of the engagement portion (46), and the engagement receiving portion (51) can be attached in a non-rotatable manner.
Further, a screw insertion hole (52) through which the fixing screw (60) is inserted is formed through the center of the engagement receiving portion (51).

  The lower surface of the engagement receiving portion (51) has a disk-like diameter, and the brush (55) serving as an electrical contact that is in sliding contact with a substrate (not shown) that transmits an operation command by the dial device (30) on the lower surface side. Is fixed integrally with the engagement receiving portion (51) by the fixing screw (60).

The dial device (30) configured as described above can be assembled in the following manner.
First, as shown in FIG. 4, a pair of springs (70) (70) and click bodies (72) (72) are accommodated in the support holes (23) (23) of the upper cabinet (20) one by one, and the dial operator The support portion (43) of (40) is fitted into the mounting hole (24) of the upper cabinet (20).
In this state, the engagement receiving portion (51) and the brush (55) are arranged on the back side of the upper cabinet (20), and the fixing screw (60) is inserted from the brush (55) side, and the dial operator The dial operator (40) is rotatably attached to the upper cabinet (20) by being screwed to the screw plate (65) provided in the plate recess (44a) of (40) (see FIG. 5). .

In the above assembly, whether or not the click body (72) is correctly mounted so as to be positioned on the track of the concave grooves (48) (48) in a state of being biased by the spring (70) in the support hole (23). Confirm.
More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, the confirmation hole (49) provided in the dial operator (40) is clicked to a predetermined position through the confirmation hole (49) by visual observation or image recognition. When the body (72) is visually or image-recognized, it can be confirmed that the click body (72) is correctly attached. In addition, when the confirmation hole (49) does not face the support hole (23) and the click body (72) cannot be confirmed during visual inspection or image recognition, the dial operator (40) is rotated. Or just rotate.

  At this time, if the click body (72) is not visually or image-recognizable, it is confirmed that the click body (72) or the spring (70) has been forgotten or dropped when the dial operator (40) is assembled. Because it can, it can be correctly installed again.

  In addition to the confirmation of the click body (72) by visual inspection and image recognition of the confirmation hole (49), by confirming the click feeling when rotating or rotating the dial operator (40), the accuracy of the confirmation work is improved. Can be increased.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to confirm more reliably than determining whether or not the click body (72) is correctly attached based on a click feeling or the like. Further, in the operating device having a plurality of click bodies (72), it is difficult to determine whether all the click bodies (72) are correctly attached with a click feeling, but in the present invention, visual or image recognition, etc. Thus, the presence / absence and mounting state of each click body (72) can be confirmed, which has the advantage of simplifying the confirmation work.

  After confirming that the click body (72) is correctly attached as described above, as shown in FIG. 4, the restraining plate (35) is arranged in the restraining plate recess (44c), and the decorative plate (32) is mounted on both sides. The dial device (30) is assembled by attaching it to the upper surface of the dial operator (40) with a tape (33) or the like.

  The upper cabinet (20) to which the dial device (30) is attached is mounted on the housing (12) of the digital camera (10) after the shutter button (16) or the like is assembled, and the dial operator (40) is rotated or By rotating, a desired function can be selected.

  In the above description, the present invention is applied to the rotary dial device (30) having two click bodies (72) and (72). However, the number of click bodies (72) is not limited to two. The mechanism may be one or three or more, and the mechanism is not limited to the rotary type as long as it is a mechanism that enhances the positioning and the click feeling by urging the click body (72). Of course, the invention can be applied.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is useful for an operating device capable of easily confirming the attachment of a click body that urges an operating element, and an electronic apparatus including the operating device.

(10) Digital camera
(12) Body
(20) Upper cabinet
(21) Mounting part
(23) Support hole
(30) Dial device
(40) Dial operator
(48) Concave groove
(49) Hole
(70) Spring
(72) Click body

Claims (3)

An operator having one or a plurality of concave grooves and capable of rotating or sliding;
A mounting portion into which the operating element fits;
A support hole formed in the mounting portion and opened toward the track of the concave groove of the operation element;
Biasing means inserted into the support hole;
A click body that is held in the support hole and is urged toward the groove groove by the urging means,
An operating device having
An operating device for an electronic device, wherein the operating element has a hole having a diameter smaller than the outer diameter of the click body formed in at least one concave groove.   The operating device according to claim 1, wherein the operating element is a dial operating element that is rotated.   An electronic apparatus comprising the operating device according to claim 1.

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