JP2015141779A - Remote controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a remote controller which facilitates manufacturing work, and enable a vicinity of an operating portion of the remote controller to emit light.SOLUTION: A remote controller is equipped with: a waterproof operation sheet 20 having a ring light-emitting portion 21; a light diffusion button 40 having light transmissivity; and a substrate 50 including a tact switch 51 and an LED 52 whose light-emitting state is controlled by the tact switch 51. The light diffusion button 40 includes: an abutting portion 41; a switch depressing portion 43 for transmitting depressing operation added to the waterproof operation sheet 20, to the tact switch 51; and a cylindrical outer wall 42 projecting out from the abutting portion 41 to the substrate 50 side, and surrounding an outer periphery of the switch depressing portion 43 so as to form an inner space 44 between the switch depressing portion 43 and the cylindrical outer wall 42. The remote controller is configured so as to guide light generated by the LED 52 to the ring light-emitting portion 21 through the inside of the light diffusion button 40 after diffusing into the inner space 44.

Description

  The present invention relates to a remote control device, and more particularly to a remote control device that is easy to manufacture and can emit light uniformly in the vicinity of an operation unit of the remote control.

  A remote controller for a hot water supply device is installed on a wall surface of a bathroom or a living room, for example, and is used to remotely control the operation state of the hot water supply device. As an example of this remote control device for a hot water supply device, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-302357 (Patent Document 1) describes an operation button of a remote control device illuminated by light from a light emitting diode. Further, as a structure of the remote control device for emitting light around the operation button in a ring shape, there is a structure in which a light guide member such as an LED (Light Emitting Diode) light guide is arranged along the periphery of the operation button.

JP 2005-302357 A

  As described above, in the remote control device arranged so that the light guide member is arranged around the operation button, the structure becomes complicated and the manufacturing work becomes difficult if the waterproof performance is ensured like the bathroom remote control of the hot water supply device. There was a problem. In addition, in the conventional remote control device, it is difficult to emit light uniformly around the operation buttons.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a remote control device that is easy to manufacture and can uniformly emit light in the vicinity of an operation unit of the remote control.

  A remote control device according to the present invention includes an operation panel having a translucent portion, an operation button that is disposed so as to overlap the translucent portion when viewed from the thickness direction of the operation panel, and the thickness direction. And a substrate including a light emitting unit that is arranged so as to overlap with the operation button when viewed from above and whose light emission state is controlled by the switch. The operation button includes a contact portion that is disposed so as to overlap the light-transmitting portion when viewed from the thickness direction, and a transmission portion that protrudes from the contact portion toward the substrate and transmits a pressing operation applied to the operation panel to the switch. And a cylindrical wall portion that protrudes from the contact portion toward the substrate and surrounds the outer periphery of the transmission portion so as to form an internal space with the transmission portion. The remote control device is configured such that light generated from the light emitting portion is diffused into the internal space, and then passes through the inside of the operation button and is guided to the light transmitting portion.

  In the remote control device according to the present invention, after the light generated by the light emitting unit is diffused in the internal space of the operation button, the operation button can emit light uniformly by passing through the inside of the operation button. Further, since the light that has passed through the inside of the operation button can be taken out from the light transmitting portion of the operation panel that is positioned so as to overlap the operation button, the vicinity of the operation portion can be uniformly emitted in the remote control device. In addition, the remote control device has a simplified structure compared to a conventional remote control device having a structure in which a light guide member is arranged around the operation button. It can be done easily. Therefore, according to the remote control device according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a remote control device that is easy to manufacture and can uniformly emit light in the vicinity of the operation portion of the remote control.

  In the remote control device, the contact portion has a surface located on the light transmitting portion side and an inclined surface located on the inner space side and inclined with respect to the surface located on the light transmitting portion side. Also good. In addition, the remote control device may be configured such that light diffused in the internal space is refracted on the inclined surface and then guided to the light transmitting portion through the inside of the contact portion. Thereby, the light generated in the light emitting part can be more easily guided to the light transmitting part of the operation panel.

  In the remote control device, the light emitting unit may be located on an inner peripheral side with respect to the light transmitting unit in a cross section along the thickness direction. The inclined surface may be inclined so that the thickness of the abutting portion increases from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side in the cross section along the thickness direction. Thereby, after the light generated in the light emitting part is refracted to the outer peripheral side on the inclined surface, the light can be easily guided to the light transmitting part located on the outer peripheral side with respect to the light emitting part.

  In the remote control device, a light diffusing material may be blended in the operation buttons. Thereby, the light generated by the light emitting unit can be more uniformly diffused inside the operation button. As a result, the entire operation button can emit light more uniformly.

  As is clear from the above description, according to the remote control device according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a remote control device that is easy to manufacture and can uniformly emit light in the vicinity of the operation unit of the remote control. .

It is a schematic perspective view which shows the structure of the remote control apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a perspective view which shows roughly the cross section along line segment II-II in FIG. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows roughly the structure of the periphery of a switch part in the remote control device which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows a mode that the light which generate | occur | produced in the light emission part is guided to the translucent part in the remote control apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows a mode that the light which generate | occur | produced in the light emission part in the remote control apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 2 of this invention is guided to the translucent part. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows a mode that the light which generate | occur | produced in the light emission part is guided to the translucent part in the remote control apparatus which concerns on Embodiment 3 of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof will not be repeated.

(Embodiment 1)
First, the structure of remote control device 1 according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The remote control device 1 is a remote controller for a hot water supply device, and is installed on a wall surface of a bathroom, for example, and used to remotely control the operation of a hot water supply device (not shown). The remote control device 1 includes a housing 10 including a front surface 10a, and the housing 10 has a rectangular shape in a front view of the front surface 10a. As shown in the lower left in FIG. 1, in this specification, the long side direction of the housing 10 is the x direction, the short side direction is the y direction, and the thickness direction is the z direction.

  On the front surface 10 a of the housing 10, an image display unit 11, a plurality of button units 12, a switch unit 13, a lid unit 14, and an audio unit 15 are provided. The image display unit 11 has a rectangular shape in front view of the front surface 10a, and is provided on the plus side in the y direction from the center of the front surface 10a. The image display unit 11 is a part that displays information such as a hot water supply temperature and a bath temperature, and an image display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display is installed on the back of the image display unit 11.

  The button part 12 is provided along with the x direction in the center part of the front surface 10a. As shown in FIG. 1, five button portions 12 may be provided, but the number of buttons 12 is not particularly limited. A button light emitting unit 12a is provided in the vicinity of the button unit 12, and the input state of the button unit 12 is confirmed by the light emitting state of the button light emitting unit 12a.

  The switch unit 13 has a circular shape, for example, and is provided on the negative side in the x direction of the image display unit 11. A ring light emitting unit 21 is provided around the switch unit 13, and the input state of the switch unit 13 is confirmed by the light emitting state of the ring light emitting unit 21. The button unit 12 and the switch unit 13 are for performing various operation operations of the hot water supply device, and are, for example, an operation input switch, a hot water filling switch or a reheating switch for the hot water supply device. The shape of the switch portion 13 is not limited to a circular shape, and may be, for example, a square shape or other shapes. The structure of the remote control device 1 in the area A including the switch unit 13 will be described in detail later.

  The lid portion 14 is provided on the negative side in the y direction from the central portion of the front surface 10a. The lid portion 14 is configured to be openable and closable around the hinge portion 16 as indicated by an arrow in FIG. The sound unit 15 is provided on the plus side in the x direction of the image display unit 11. The sound unit 15 is a part that outputs sound generated from a speaker (not shown) in the housing 10 in response to the operation of the remote control device 1.

  Next, the structure around the switch unit 13 in the remote control device 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional structure taken along line II-II in FIG. FIG. 3 shows a state where the remote control device 1 is disassembled in the thickness direction (z direction) in the area A in FIG.

  2 and 3, remote control device 1 mainly includes waterproof operation sheet 20 (operation panel), remote control cover 30, light diffusion button 40 (operation button), and substrate 50. . On the main surface 50a of the substrate 50, a tact switch 51 and a plurality (two) of light emitting diodes (LEDs) 52 (light emitting portions) are arranged. The light emission state of the LED 52 is controlled by the tact switch 51. The LEDs 52 are arranged around the tact switch 51, and more specifically, are arranged so as to sandwich the tact switch 51 from both sides. The number of installed LEDs 52 is preferably 2 or more, but is not particularly limited. Moreover, although it is preferable that the light emission color of LED52 is what a user can visually recognize easily, it is not specifically limited.

  The substrate 50 is attached inside the remote control cover 30. The remote control cover 30 is provided with a hole 31 having a substantially circular shape and penetrating in the thickness direction. The light diffusion button 40 is fitted into the hole 31. Thereby, the light diffusion button 40 is arrange | positioned so that it may overlap with the board | substrate 50 in the thickness direction.

  The light diffusion button 40 includes a disk-shaped contact portion 41, a cylindrical outer wall 42 (cylindrical wall portion) provided along the outer edge portion of the contact portion 41, and a substrate from the center of the contact portion 41. And a switch push-in portion 43 (transmission portion) provided so as to protrude to the 50 side. The light diffusion button 40 is made of, for example, a material such as acrylic resin and has translucency. More specifically, any part of the contact part 41, the cylindrical outer wall 42, and the switch pushing part 43 has translucency. “Translucent” means a property having a certain transmittance or more with respect to visible light. That is, when visible light is incident on the light diffusion button 40, visible light (transmitted light) emitted through the light diffusion button 40 can be visually recognized. Since the light diffusing button 40 is mixed with a light diffusing material made of fine particles such as calcium carbonate, the light diffusing button 40 has a light diffusing property. The mixing ratio of the light diffusing material is, for example, 0.1% by mass. Thereby, the light diffusion button 40 has higher light diffusibility than the air or the remote control cover 30.

  The contact portion 41 has an upper surface 41a along the main surface 50a of the substrate 50 and an inclined surface 41b inclined with respect to the upper surface 41a. Thereby, the thickness of the contact portion 41 increases from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side in the cross section (FIG. 2) along the thickness direction. The angle formed by the inclined surface 41b with respect to the upper surface 41a is, for example, 30 °, and is determined based on the refractive index of the material of the light diffusion button 40, the positional relationship between the LED 52 and the ring light emitting unit 21, and the like.

  The switch pressing portion 43 is a portion for transmitting a pressing operation given to the waterproof operation sheet 20 to the tact switch 51 and pressing the tact switch 51. The switch pushing portion 43 is located above the tact switch 51. The cylindrical outer wall 42 is formed so as to surround the switch pushing portion 43, and has an internal space 44 in an inner peripheral region. The cylindrical outer wall 42 is located on the outer peripheral side of the LED 52 in the cross section along the thickness direction. Further, due to the inclination of the inclined surface 41b, the volume of the internal space 44 becomes smaller from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side.

  The waterproof operation sheet 20 includes a switch part 13 having a circular shape and an annular ring light emitting part 21 (translucent part) surrounding the switch part 13. The switch portion 13 is a portion to which a pressing operation is given when the remote control device 1 is operated. The ring light-emitting part 21 has translucency, and the light transmittance is higher than parts other than the ring light-emitting part 21. The ring light emitting unit 21 is located on the outer peripheral side of the LED 52 in the cross section along the thickness direction.

  The waterproof operation sheet 20 has a waterproof function, and is attached to the upper surfaces 30 a and 41 a of the remote control cover 30 and the light diffusion button 40. Thereby, it becomes possible to suppress the penetration | invasion of the water into the remote control cover 30, and the waterproof performance of the remote control apparatus 1 can be ensured.

  The waterproof operation sheet 20 is affixed so that the switch part 13 and the ring light emission part 21 may overlap the light diffusion button 40 (contact part 41) in the thickness direction. Thereby, the pressing operation to the switch unit 13 is transmitted to the tact switch 51 via the light diffusion button 40 (switch pressing unit 43), and the light emission state of the LED 52 is controlled.

  Next, the operation of the remote control device 1 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional structure along the line segment II-II in FIG. 1 as in FIG. First, a pressing operation is given from the user to the switch unit 13 of the waterproof operation sheet 20. As a result, the light diffusion button 40 located below the switch unit 13 is pushed in, and the tact switch 51 is pushed in by the switch pushing unit 43. Then, visible light having a predetermined wavelength is generated from the LED 52.

  The light generated from the LED 52 diffuses into the internal space 44 and reaches the inclined surface 41b as indicated by arrows in the figure. Then, the light is refracted toward the outer peripheral side on the inclined surface 41b and travels inside the light diffusion button 40 (contact portion 41). At this time, light diffuses inside the light diffusion button 40. Thereafter, the light guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 is taken out from the upper side of the waterproof operation sheet 20. Thereby, the user can visually recognize the input state of the switch unit 13 according to the light emitting state of the ring light emitting unit 21. Further, by performing the above operation again, the input of the switch unit 13 is turned off, and the light emission of the LED 52 is stopped.

  Next, the characteristic configuration of the remote control device 1 according to the present embodiment and the function and effect thereof will be described. The remote control device 1 is disposed so as to overlap with the ring light emitting unit 21 when viewed from the thickness direction of the waterproof operation sheet 20 (operation panel) having the ring light emitting unit 21 (translucent unit) and the waterproof operation sheet 20. A light diffusion button 40 (operation button) having light properties and an LED 52 (light emission) that is arranged so as to overlap the light diffusion button 40 when viewed from the thickness direction and whose light emission state is controlled by the tact switch 51. Part 50). The light diffusion button 40 includes a contact portion 41 disposed so as to overlap the ring light emitting portion 21 when viewed from the thickness direction, and a pressure applied to the waterproof operation sheet 20 protruding from the contact portion 41 toward the substrate 50. The switch push-in portion 43 (transmission portion) that transmits the operation to the tact switch 51 and the switch push-out portion 43 so as to protrude from the contact portion 41 toward the substrate 50 and form an internal space 44 between the switch push-out portion 43 And a cylindrical outer wall 42 (cylindrical wall portion) surrounding the outer periphery. The remote control device 1 is configured such that light generated from the LED 52 is diffused into the internal space 44 and then guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 through the light diffusion button 40.

  In the remote control device 1, after the light generated by the LED 52 diffuses in the internal space 44, the light diffuses into the light diffusion button 40 and diffuses, whereby the light diffusion button 40 can emit light uniformly. In addition, since the light that has passed through the light diffusion button 40 can be extracted from the ring light emitting unit 21, the vicinity of the switch unit 13 can be emitted uniformly. In the remote control device 1, the structure is simplified as compared with the remote control device having a structure in which a light guide member is arranged around the light diffusion button 40. But the manufacturing work can be done easily. As described above, the remote control device 1 can be easily manufactured and can uniformly emit light in the vicinity of the switch unit 13.

  In the remote control device 1, the contact portion 41 may have an upper surface 41a located on the ring light emitting portion 21 side and an inclined surface 41b located on the inner space 44 side and inclined with respect to the upper surface 41a. Good. Further, the remote control device 1 may be configured such that the light diffused in the internal space 44 is refracted on the inclined surface 41 b and then guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 through the inside of the contact portion 41. Thereby, the light generated by the LED 52 can be more easily guided to the ring light emitting portion 21 of the waterproof operation sheet 20.

  In the remote control device 1, the LED 52 may be located on the inner peripheral side of the ring light emitting unit 21 in a cross section (FIG. 2) along the thickness direction. The inclined surface 41b may be inclined so that the thickness of the contact portion 41 increases from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side in the cross section along the thickness direction. Thereby, after the light generated by the LED 52 is refracted to the outer peripheral side on the inclined surface 41 b, it can be easily guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 positioned on the outer peripheral side of the LED 52.

  In the remote control device 1, a light diffusing material may be blended in the light diffusing button 40. Thereby, the light generated by the LED 52 can be more uniformly diffused inside the light diffusion button 40. As a result, the entire light diffusion button 40 can emit light more uniformly.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, the structure of remote control device 2 according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The remote control device 2 according to the present embodiment basically has the same configuration as the remote control device 1 and has the same effects. However, the present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the structure of the light diffusion button.

  FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional structure taken along line II-II in FIG. 1 as in FIG. The light diffusion button 60 includes a contact portion 61, a cylindrical outer wall 62, and a switch push-in portion 63 as in the case of the first embodiment. The contact portion 61 has an upper surface 61a and an inclined surface 61b. In the present embodiment, the inclined surface 61b is inclined so that the thickness of the contact portion 61 decreases from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side in the cross section along the thickness direction. Therefore, the internal space 64 formed on the inner peripheral side of the cylindrical outer wall 62 becomes wider from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side. The waterproof operation sheet 20 has the ring light emitting portion 21 as in the first embodiment, and is attached to the light diffusion button 60 and the upper surfaces 61 a and 30 a of the remote control cover 30. In the present embodiment, the ring light emitting unit 21 is located on the inner peripheral side of the LED 52 in the cross section along the thickness direction.

  In the remote control device 2, light is generated from the LED 52 by applying a pressing operation to the switch portion 13 of the waterproof operation sheet 20 as in the first embodiment, and the light diffuses in the internal space 64 and tilts. It reaches the surface 61b. In the present embodiment, light is refracted toward the inner peripheral side on the inclined surface 61b, and travels through the light diffusion button 60 (contact portion 61). Thereafter, the light guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 is taken out from the upper side of the waterproof operation sheet 20. Thereby, the input state of the switch part 13 can be confirmed by the light emission state of the ring light emission part 21 similarly to the case of the said Embodiment 1. FIG.

(Embodiment 3)
Next, the structure of remote control device 3 according to Embodiment 3 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. The remote control device 3 according to the present embodiment basically has the same configuration as the remote control device 1 and has the same effects. However, the present embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the structure of the light diffusion button.

  6 shows a cross-sectional structure taken along line II-II in FIG. 1 as in FIGS. The light diffusion button 70 includes a contact portion 71, a cylindrical outer wall 72, and a switch push-in portion 73 as in the case of the first embodiment. In the present embodiment, the contact portion 71 has an upper surface 71a and a lower surface 71b along the upper surface 71a. Therefore, the thickness of the contact portion 71 is kept constant from the inner peripheral side toward the outer peripheral side in the cross section along the thickness direction. The waterproof operation sheet 20 has the ring light emitting part 21 as in the first embodiment, and is attached to the light diffusion button 70 and the upper surfaces 71 a and 30 a of the remote control cover 30. In the present embodiment, the ring light emitting unit 21 is positioned so as to overlap the LED 52 in the thickness direction. Therefore, in the present embodiment, the light generated from the LED 52 and reaching the lower surface 71b travels straight in the light diffusion button 70 (contact portion 71). At this time, the light refraction at the lower surface 71b is smaller than in the first and second embodiments. Then, the light guided to the ring light emitting unit 21 is taken out from the upper side of the waterproof operation sheet 20. Thereby, the input state of the switch part 13 can be confirmed by the light emission state of the ring light emission part 21 similarly to the case of the said Embodiment 1 and 2. FIG.

  The embodiment disclosed this time should be considered as illustrative in all points and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is defined by the terms of the claims, rather than the description above, and is intended to include any modifications within the scope and meaning equivalent to the terms of the claims.

  The remote control device of the present invention can be applied particularly advantageously to a remote control device that requires simplified manufacturing operations and that the vicinity of the operation unit of the remote control is required to emit light uniformly.

  1, 2, 3 Remote control device, 10 housing, 10a front surface, 11 image display section, 12 button section, 12a button light emitting section, 13 switch section, 14 lid section, 15 sound section, 16 hinge section, 20 waterproof operation sheet, 21 Ring light emitting part, 30 Remote control cover, 30a, 41a, 61a, 71a Upper surface, 31 hole part, 40, 60, 70 Light diffusion button, 41, 61, 71 Abutting part, 41b, 61b Inclined surface, 42, 62, 72 cylindrical outer wall, 43, 63, 73 switch push-in part, 44, 64 inner space, 50 substrate, 50a main surface, 51 tact switch, 71b lower surface, A region.

Claims (4)

An operation panel having a translucent part;
An operation button that is disposed so as to overlap with the light transmitting portion when viewed from the thickness direction of the operation panel, and has a light transmitting property,
A substrate including a switch and a light emitting unit whose light emission state is controlled by the switch, and arranged to overlap the operation button when viewed from the thickness direction,
The operation buttons are
An abutting portion disposed so as to overlap the translucent portion when viewed from the thickness direction;
A transmitting portion that protrudes from the contact portion toward the substrate and transmits a pressing operation applied to the operation panel to the switch;
A cylindrical wall portion that protrudes from the contact portion toward the substrate and surrounds the outer periphery of the transmission portion so as to form an internal space with the transmission portion;
The remote control device configured to be guided to the light transmitting part through the inside of the operation button after the light generated from the light emitting part diffuses into the internal space. The contact portion is
A surface located on the translucent part side;
An inclined surface that is located on the inner space side and is inclined with respect to the surface located on the light transmitting portion side;
2. The remote control device according to claim 1, wherein the light diffused in the internal space is refracted on the inclined surface, then passes through the inside of the contact portion and is guided to the light transmitting portion. The light emitting part is located on the inner peripheral side of the light transmitting part in a cross section along the thickness direction,
The remote control device according to claim 2, wherein the inclined surface is inclined so that a thickness of the contact portion increases from an inner peripheral side toward an outer peripheral side in a cross section along the thickness direction.   The remote control device according to claim 1, wherein a light diffusing material is blended in the operation buttons.

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