JP3074460U - Mechanical encoder - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] (With correction) [PROBLEMS] To provide a mechanical encoder capable of improving throughput, yield, and cost, and improving stability and accuracy. A signal splitter (40) has a gear-shaped conductive area (41), and a plurality of non-conductive areas (44) are formed in a recess of the conductive area (41) by filling an insulating material by burying injection processing. Has a pedestal 51, a first signal terminal 52, a second signal terminal 53, and a common terminal 54,
The first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 are connected to the splitter 4 respectively.
When the signal splitter 40 rotates, the common terminal 54 is always connected to the first conductive region 41 and is in contact with the circumferential surface of the signal splitter 40 when the signal splitter 40 rotates. The two signal terminals 52 and 53 are continuously 9
It is characterized in that it can receive a continuous signal of ON (conduction) or OFF (non-conduction) having a phase difference of 0 °.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[0001]

[Technical field to which the invention belongs]

 The present invention relates to a mechanical encoder. More specifically, it relates to a mechanical encoder that can improve throughput, yield, and cost, and improve stability and accuracy by improving the configuration and processing method of signal splitters and the location of each signal terminal. .

[0002]

[Problems to be solved by conventional techniques and devices]

 At present, electronic information products such as a mouse, a control ball, a printer, a scanner, etc., which are related products of a computer, each have one or more encoders for controlling the X, Y, and Z axis directions, respectively. In general, the encoder can be classified into the following three types according to its configuration and receiving method.

[0003] 1. At present, the most widespread light-shielded encoder is composed of a transmitter 10, a receiver 20, and a disk 30 (see FIG. 7). The disk 30 is made of a material through which light cannot pass, and the disk has a circumferential surface. A plurality of rectangular through holes 31 are formed at predetermined regular intervals, and the light emitted from the transmitter 10 is turned on (not shielded) and off (shielded) by the disk 30 at predetermined intervals. The receiver 20 on the other side receives this signal and converts it into a digital signal.

However, this type of encoder generates a digital signal mainly by a light-shielding method. Therefore, as the disk 30 has more isolation walls 32, light scattering and diffraction phenomena are more likely to occur, and the receiver 20 receives the light. There is a problem that the signal cannot be detected accurately. Along with this, technical issues have arisen, for example, there is a limit to improvement in the degree of analysis.

[0005] 2. The light-introduced encoder (see FIG. 8) includes a transmitter 10, a receiver 20, and a disk 30. The disk 30 is made of a material through which light can be transmitted, and has a tooth-like tooth on the disk circumferential surface. A portion 33 and a concave portion 34 are provided, and a refraction surface 35 is provided therein. When light emitted from the transmitter 10 enters the disk 30, the light is transmitted through the refraction surface 35 in the disk 30. Light (ON) and dark (OFF) signals are generated in the circumferential surfaces of the portion 33 and the concave portion 34, and the signals are received by the receiver 20 and converted into digital signals.

However, in this type of light-introducing encoder, although the degree of analysis is higher than that of the light-shielding encoder, the light is transmitted through the refracting surface 35 to 90 ° because the disk 30 is made of a material that can transmit light. When the light enters the receiver 20 in the direction, the distance to the receiver 20 is long, and the light may be attenuated or dispersed before reaching the receiver 20. Therefore, in order to emit stable light, the emission intensity of the transmitter 10 must be improved, and as a result, there is a problem that power consumption increases and the service life is shortened.

[0007] 3. The mechanical encoder (see FIG. 9) mainly includes a signal splitter 40, a common terminal 54, a first signal terminal, and a second signal terminal. The signal splitter 40 has a disk shape, and has a disk on one surface. The first conductive region 41, the second conductive region 42, the third conductive region 43, and the non-conductive region 44 are provided in the circumferential direction from the center of the common terminal 54, and the common terminal 54, the first signal terminal 52, and the second The signal terminals 53 are located on the same line and are in contact with the surface of the signal splitter 40. Also, since the common terminal 54 is always conducting, the first conducting region 41, the second conducting region 42, and the third conducting region 43 conduct with each other, and the second conducting region 42 and the third conducting region 43 communicate with each other. 43 has a phase difference of 90 °. When the signal splitter 40 is rotated, the first signal terminal 52 and the second signal terminal 53 have the phase difference of 90 ° between the second and third conductive regions 42 and 43 (on) or the non-conductive region 44 (off). ). Further, since this signal is a digital signal, conversion by an IC is unnecessary.

[0008] The mechanical encoder as described above consumes a small amount of power, and does not have any drawbacks such as light emission and diffraction phenomenon in the light-blocking encoder, and high power consumption and short life of the light introducing encoder. . Therefore, it is generally used for products requiring low power consumption, such as wireless products and notebook computers. However, this mechanical encoder has the following disadvantages.

[0009] 1. Since the signal splitter is a circuit board type and is mainly formed by etching or screen printing, a slight step is formed between the first, second, and third conductive regions and the non-conductive region. This causes the signal terminals to jump, making the signal unstable and making it impossible to make an accurate determination.

[0010] 2. Since the signal splitter is processed by etching or screen printing, a zigzag shape is formed between the conductive region and the non-conductive region, the signal received by the signal terminal becomes unstable, and accurate determination cannot be performed. .

[0011] 3. In order to obtain a highly accurate signal, the common terminal, the first signal terminal, and the second signal terminal need to be assembled on the same line with good accuracy. However, since the signal splitter is processed by etching or screen printing, there are considerable errors, high precision processing is difficult, and the yield is very low.

[0012] 4. Since the common terminal, the first signal terminal, and the second signal terminal are on the same line and are provided so as to contact the same side surface of the signal splitter, the three terminals are simultaneously suppressed by the signal splitter. Cannot rotate smoothly.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and has the following objects.

[0014] 1. By forming a disk like a gear with suitable material, filling it into the recess and filling it with an insulating material by injection processing to create a smooth disk-shaped signal splitter as a whole, the mechanical type that is formed by the conventional circuit board method It is possible to solve the drawbacks such as the bounce of the signal terminal due to the inaccuracy of the signal splitter in the encoder and the inability to accurately determine the signal due to the unstable signal.

[0015] 2. The first and second signal terminals are brought into contact with opposing positions on the circumferential surface of the signal splitter, and only the common terminal is brought into contact with the surface of the signal splitter to reduce the suppression of the signal terminal to the signal splitter. By doing so, the signal splitter can rotate more smoothly, and the stability of the signal improves.

[0016] 3. Since the signal terminals and the common terminals are set by injection molding, dimensions and positioning accuracy can be improved, assembling time can be saved, and yield can be improved and cost can be reduced.

[0017]

[Means for Solving the Problems]

 The present invention is a mechanical encoder including a disc-shaped signal splitter and a terminal set, wherein the signal splitter has a gear-shaped conductive region, and a recess in the conductive region is filled with an insulating material by embedding injection processing. The signal splitter has a smooth disk shape as a whole, and the terminal set has a pedestal, a first signal terminal, a second signal terminal, and a common terminal. The common terminal is provided so that one end thereof is in contact with the first conductive region on the surface of the signal splitter and not in contact with the non-conductive region, and the first and second signal terminals are respectively provided at the front. The common terminal is provided at a relative position on the circumferential surface of the splitter, and when the signal splitter rotates, the common terminal always conducts to the first conductive region and contacts the circumferential surface of the signal splitter. First and second signal terminals provides a mechanical encoder, characterized in that it can receive a continuous signal on continuously with 90 ° phase difference (conducting) or off (non-conductive) that.

[0018]

[Embodiment of the invention]

 Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 is a diagram showing another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the operation of the encoder of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example in which the encoder of the present invention is applied to a mouse control ring. FIG. It is a perspective view showing an example applied to.

As shown in FIG. 1, the mechanical encoder of the present invention mainly includes a signal splitter 40 and a terminal set 50. The signal splitter 40 has a disk shape. First, a first conductive region 41 such as a gear is formed by using a suitable material, and then an insulating material (for example, plastic) is formed by burying injection processing. A plurality of non-conductive regions 44 are formed by filling the recesses of the conductive region 41. Since the signal splitter 40 formed as described above has a smooth disk shape as a whole, signal terminals do not bounce between each conductive region and each non-conductive region.

The terminal set 50 includes a pedestal 51, a first signal terminal 52, a second signal terminal 53, and a common terminal 54. The pedestal 51 is formed by injection processing, and positions the first signal terminal 52, the second signal terminal 53, and the common terminal 54. Since one end of the common terminal 54 is in contact with the first conduction region 41 on the surface of the signal splitter 40 and is in contact between the concave portion and the center of the surface of the signal splitter 40 (see FIG. 1), There is no contact with the conductive area. One end of the first signal terminal 52 and one end of the second signal terminal 53 are in contact with opposing positions on the circumferential surface of the signal splitter 40, and belong to a first conductive region on the circumferential surface of the signal splitter 40. The plurality of teeth and the corresponding plurality of recesses belonging to the non-conducting region 44 allow the continuous (on) and non-conducting (off) signals to be received at predetermined intervals and continuously received.位相 phase difference can be provided.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the signal splitter 40 starts to rotate, the common terminal 54 is in contact with the surface of the signal splitter 40, so that the common terminal 54 is not in contact with the non-conductive area. It is always conductive. The first and second signal terminals that are in contact with the circumferential surface of the signal splitter 40 are on and off signals by the first conducting region 41 and the non-conducting region 44 (also referred to as repetitive signals of 01, 11, 10, 00). Can be received continuously. The continuous conduction (ON) and non-conduction (OFF) signals having the predetermined interval are standard square wave signals and have a phase difference of 90 °, so that they can be directly read and determined by the IC. It is a possible digital signal. In FIG. 4A, the first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 come into contact with the non-conductive area 44 and the first conductive area 41, respectively, and receive signals 0 and 1, respectively. Further, in FIG. 4B, two non-conducting regions 44 are respectively contacted, and signals of 0 and 0 are received. In FIG. 4C, the first conductive area 41 and the non-conductive area 44 are respectively brought into contact with each other, and signals of 1, 0 are received. In (D) of FIG. 4, two first conductive regions 41 are respectively contacted, and signals 1, 1 are received respectively. By repeating the above operation, one circulating signal such as 01,00,10,11 is formed.

FIG. 2 is a view showing an embodiment of the present invention, in which the signal splitter 40 is also formed into a gear-like material by a conductive material in the same manner as described above. By filling the concave portions, a plurality of non-conductive regions 44 are formed.

The terminal set 50 also includes a pedestal 51, a first signal terminal 52, a second signal terminal 53, and a common terminal 54 in the same manner as described above. One end of the common terminal 54 is in contact with the first conductive region 41 on the surface of the signal splitter 40 and is always in a conductive state. One end of the first signal terminal 52 and one end of the second signal terminal 53 are in contact with the same side on the circumferential surface of the signal splitter 40, and are in contact with the contact points of the first and second signal terminals 52, 53. It has a predetermined spacing, which is configured to allow the signals to have a 90 ° phase difference.

As described above, when the signal splitter 40 starts to rotate, the first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 that are in contact with the circumferential surface generate a continuous (on) or non-conductive (off) continuous signal. Receive. The continuous conduction (ON) or non-conduction (OFF) signal having the predetermined interval is a digital signal that can be read by a direct contact IC.

FIG. 3 is a view showing another embodiment of the present invention, in which the signal splitter 40 is formed with a first gear-shaped conduction region having a predetermined interval, and the left and right symmetric disks are formed. They are superposed and integrated so as to have a phase difference of 90 °, and are further embedded in the recesses of both disks and filled with an insulating material by injection processing to form a nonconductive region 44, so that the entire surface has a smooth surface. The signal splitter 40 is configured. The common terminal 54 is in contact with the surface of the signal splitter 40 and is always conductive to the first conductive region. The first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 are in contact with the same side of the circumferential surface of both disks of the signal splitter 40 so as to be on the same line. Therefore, when the signal splitter 40 rotates, the first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 receive a continuous (ON) or non-conductive (OFF) continuous signal. The continuous conduction (ON) or non-conduction (OFF) signal having the predetermined interval is a digital signal that can be read by a direct touch IC.

That is, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, the first and second signal terminals 52 and 53 having different lengths are used, and both the conductive region and the non-conductive region are used for the fixed signal splitter 40. Generates a continuous conduction or non-conduction signal having a predetermined interval. On the other hand, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the conductive area and the non-conductive area of both disks are used for the signal splitter 40 having a certain phase difference, and the first and second signal terminals 5 having the same length are used. By using 2, 53, a continuous conduction or non-conduction signal having a predetermined interval is generated in the same manner as described above.

FIG. 5 is an embodiment of an example in which the present invention shown in FIG. 1 is applied to a mouse control ring. The mouse control ring is located between the two buttons of the mouse, and is used to select menus on both sides of the display, and is especially suitable for viewing websites (web-site). FIG. 6 is an embodiment of an example in which the present invention shown in FIG. 1 is applied to a control ball of a mouse. The present invention is not limited to these, and can be freely applied to any device that requires an input member.

[0028]

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, the present invention has the above-described configuration, and thus has the following effects.

1. The gear-shaped first conductive region is provided by the conductive material, and the non-conductive region is provided by filling the concave portion with an insulating material by burying injection processing, and the signal splitter is formed into a smooth disk. Both the peripheral surfaces are smooth planes, there is no step between the conductive region and the non-conductive region, and the boundary between the conductive region and the non-conductive region is flat, so that the first and second signal terminals are formed. Receives extremely accurate signals.

[0030] 2. Since the first and second signal terminals are provided so as to be in contact with the circumferential surface, the suppression applied to the signal splitter is only in the axial direction, and the rotational resistance can be greatly reduced. The rotation of the signal splitter becomes smoother, and the signal is further stabilized.

[0031] 3. Since the first and second signal terminals and the common terminal are fixed to the pedestal formed by injection processing, the positioning accuracy of the first and second signal terminals and the common terminal is improved, and the assembling time is saved. .

As described above, the present invention can eliminate the disadvantages of the conventional encoder, is easy to produce and assemble, has a high yield, is inexpensive, has a smooth rotation of the signal splitter, and has a high precision. Thus, it is possible to provide a mechanical encoder that receives a stable signal.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration of a mechanical encoder according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of the mechanical encoder according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a view showing another embodiment of the mechanical encoder according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the operation of the mechanical encoder according to the present invention shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing an example in which the mechanical encoder according to the present invention is applied to a control ring of a mouse.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing an example in which the mechanical encoder according to the present invention is applied to a control ball of a mouse.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a conventional light-shielded encoder.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a conventional light introduction type encoder.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a conventional mechanical encoder.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Transmitter 11 ... Light emission hole 20 ... Receiver 30 ... Disc 31 ... Square through hole 32 ... Isolation wall 33 ... Teeth 34 ... Recess 35 ... Diffraction surface 40 ... Signal splitter 41 ... First conduction area 42 ... Second conduction area 43 ... Third conduction area 44 ... Discontinuity area 50 ... Terminal set 51 ..Pedestal 52... First signal terminal 53... Second signal terminal 54.

Claims (3)

[Utility model registration claims] 1. A mechanical encoder comprising a disc-shaped signal splitter and a terminal set, wherein the signal splitter has a gear-shaped conductive area, and an insulating material is embedded in a recess of the conductive area by injection molding. A plurality of non-conductive regions are formed by filling, the entire signal splitter has a smooth disk shape, and the terminal set includes a pedestal, a first signal terminal, a second signal terminal, and a common terminal. The common terminal is provided such that one end thereof is in contact with a first conduction region on the surface of the signal splitter and does not contact a non-conduction region, and the first and second signal terminals are respectively The common terminal is provided at a relative position on the circumferential surface of the splitter, and when the signal splitter rotates, the common terminal always conducts to the first conductive region and contacts the circumferential surface of the signal splitter. The first and second signal terminals are capable of receiving a continuous ON (conductive) or OFF (non-conductive) signal having a phase difference of 90 ° continuously. 2. One end of the first and second signal terminals in the terminal set contacts the same side on the circumferential surface of the signal splitter, and has a predetermined distance from the contact point of the first and second signal terminals in the signal splitter. 2. The mechanical encoder according to claim 1, wherein the distance is set so that the signal has a phase difference of 90 degrees. 3. The disc-shaped signal splitter is configured such that two symmetric discs are integrated or overlapped so as to have a phase difference of 90 °, and first and second signal terminals are respectively provided with the signal terminals. The mechanical encoder according to claim 1, wherein the left and right sides of the circumferential surface of the splitter are in contact with each other at a predetermined interval and are on the same line.