JP3173137U - Multi-directional input device - Google Patents

Abstract

【Task】
Provided is a multidirectional input device that reduces the contact sound when the operation lever comes into contact with the housing and stops even when the operation lever is greatly tilted by a strong force and has a good operational feeling.
[Solution]
A plurality of protruding pieces 1b having an interval protruding upward are provided at the inner edge portion of the opening 1a of the upper case 1 which is the upper part of the housing, and a curved surface portion is provided above the inner edge of the protruding piece 1b.
Since the protruding piece 1b provided at the inner edge of the opening 1b is more easily bent than the upper surface of the upper case, the protruding piece 1b is slightly elastically deformed to produce a buffering effect when the operating lever 3 comes into contact with the protruding piece 1b. 3 can be reduced. In addition, since the curved portion is provided at the upper part of the inner edge of the protruding piece 1b with which the operation lever 3 abuts, the contact area between the operation lever 3 and the abutment portion is widened, so that shaving and wear associated with abutment can be reduced, and reliability Multi-directional input device.
[Selection] Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to a multi-directional input device that is used as a controller of, for example, an in-vehicle electric device and outputs an electrical signal corresponding to the tilt direction when the operation lever is tilted. In particular, the operation sound during operation of the operation lever is reduced. The present invention relates to a multidirectional input device.

  As a conventional technique of this type of multidirectional input device, for example, in the multidirectional input device described in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 9, a housing 102 including a casing 109, a lid 110, and a molded metal plate 111 is used. A push switch that is operated by pressing the operation lever 101 is disposed at the center of the inner bottom surface, and the conductive movable body 103 that is tilted when the operation lever 101 is tilted is disposed around the integrated contact group 135 and the push switch. A tilt detection switch that selectively conducts any one of the plurality of lower fixed contacts 122 that are exposed and arranged is configured.

The hemispherical collar portion 107 inserted into the operation lever 101 is disposed in the cylindrical portion of the movable body 103, and the movable body 103 is biased by the return spring 104 disposed on the outside of the cylindrical portion. It is pressed against the spherical inner wall surface of the opening 110a.
When the operation lever 101 is tilted, the hemispherical flange 107 tilted integrally with the operation lever 101 tilts the movable body 103, and the upper surface side of the conductive movable body 103 comes into contact with the integral contact group 135, When the lower surface side of the movable body 103 comes into contact with any one of the lower fixed contacts 122 and any one of the integrated contact group 135 and the lower fixed contact 122 becomes conductive, a predetermined electric signal is output by the tilting operation.
When the operation lever 101 is pressed downward, the hemispherical collar portion 107 does not descend but only the operation lever 101 descends, the operation lever 101 depresses the dome-shaped movable contact 123, and the center of the movable contact 123 Since the part is reversed and comes into contact with the central fixed contact 120, the movable contact 123 and the common fixed contact 121 are brought into conduction, and the push switch operates.

With such a configuration, the multidirectional input device described in Patent Document 1 outputs an electrical signal when the operation lever 101 is tilted, and operates the push switch when the operation lever 101 is pressed. This is a multidirectional input device with excellent operability.
Further, even when the operation lever 101 is greatly tilted, the structure is such that the hemispherical flange portion 107 is prevented from being damaged by providing the buffer rubber plate 134, and is multi-directional with excellent robustness. It is an input device.

JP 11-260199 A

  However, in the multidirectional input device described in Patent Document 1, when the operation lever 101 is further tilted, the operation lever 101 comes into contact with the opening 110a of the lid 110 and stops. . For this reason, when the operation lever 101 is greatly tilted by a strong force, there is a problem in that a contact sound is generated when the operation lever 101 contacts the opening 110a.

  The contact sound between the operation lever 101 and the opening 110a is very small, and in conventional in-vehicle electric devices and the like, it is masked by ambient noise and does not cause a problem. However, with the recent quietness of automobiles, there is no noise from the engine especially in electric cars and hybrid cars at low speeds. In such a quiet car model, the operation lever 101 and the opening 110a are in contact with each other. It was required to make the sound smaller.

  In order to further reduce the contact sound between the operation lever 101 and the lid 110, a countermeasure such as arranging a rubber part for cushioning in the opening 110a of the lid 110 can be considered. When the operation lever is tilted, the stop position becomes ambiguous and the operational feeling is impaired.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a multidirectional input device in which the contact sound with the housing is reduced and the operation feeling is good even when the operation lever is largely tilted. is there.

In order to solve this problem, a multidirectional input device according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a housing having an opening on an upper surface portion, an operation lever that protrudes from the opening and can be tilted in multiple directions, and the operation lever. In a multi-directional input device comprising a tilt detection mechanism for detecting the tilting operation of the head and a return mechanism for returning the operation lever to an initial state where the operation lever is located at the center of the opening.
A protrusion that extends in the protrusion direction of the operation lever is provided at the inner edge of the opening of the housing, and the protrusion is used as a contact portion that contacts the operation lever when the operation lever is tilted. It is characterized by that.

  The multi-directional input device according to claim 2 of the present invention includes a guide mechanism that guides the tilting operation of the operation lever in a predetermined direction, and the protrusion corresponds to the predetermined direction with a gap. And a plurality of projecting pieces.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 3 of the present invention, the projecting piece is provided with a curved surface portion whose distance from the operation lever in an initial state increases toward the distal end side. The portion is the contact portion.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 4 of the present invention, the tilt detection mechanism is constituted by a plurality of push switches provided at equal angular intervals around the operation lever in plan view. A drive body that drives the push switch in accordance with the tilting operation of the operation lever is provided on the outer peripheral side of the operation lever.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 5 of the present invention, the predetermined directions in which the operation lever tilts are eight directions at equal angular intervals, and the push switch is disposed between the predetermined directions. Eight positions are provided, and when the operation lever is tilted in one direction, two push switches adjacent to each other across the one direction are driven via the driving body. .

  A multi-directional input device according to claim 6 of the present invention has a penetrating portion through which the operation lever is inserted, and has a holding member that tiltably holds the operation lever via the driver. The guide mechanism is provided with a through-hole through which the operation lever is inserted and is radiated at equal angular intervals with an auxiliary sliding member which is slidably held in one axis direction by the holding member and a through-hole through which the operation lever is inserted. And a saddle-shaped recess formed with a plurality of concave grooves extending in the direction, and held by the auxiliary sliding member so as to be slidable in the other axis direction orthogonal to the one axis direction, and accompanying the tilting operation of the operation lever It is characterized by comprising a sliding member that slides, a contact body whose tip is in contact with the bowl-shaped recess, and an elastic member that constantly biases the contact body toward the sliding member.

  In the multi-directional input device according to claim 7 of the present invention, the holding member includes a storage portion that stores the contact body and the elastic member, and the housing includes an upper case in which the opening is formed. A lower case integrated with the upper case, wherein the contact body and the elastic member are housed in the housing portion, and the contact body biased by the elastic member serves as the sliding member. The holding member is locked to the upper case in a contact state.

  Further, in the multidirectional input device according to claim 8 of the present invention, the operation lever and the drive body are formed of separate members, and the drive body is in a protruding direction of the operation lever with the operation lever being prevented from coming off. A central push switch that is driven when the operation lever is depressed in the axial direction, and has a cylindrical portion that is movably held in the axial direction along the axis and a spherical convex portion that is held by the holding member. The spherical convex portion of the driving body is held by a spherical concave portion provided in the holding member in a state where the spherical convex portion of the driving body receives the elastic force of the dome-shaped central elastic body constituting the central push switch. It is characterized by being.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 9 of the present invention, the operation lever is rotatably held by the spherical concave portion of the holding member via the drive body, and the drive body is the operation lever. And a rotor which is engaged with the driving body and is rotatable integrally with the driving body, and a rotor which detects the rotational movement of the rotor. An optical detection member; and a pressing member provided between the drive body and the plurality of push switches in a state in which the rotational movement is restricted, and the drive body moves along with the tilting operation of the operation lever. The corresponding push switch is driven through the pressing member, and the rotor rotates integrally with the rotation of the operation lever.

  According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a multidirectional input device comprising a spacer disposed between an upper surface portion of the central elastic body and a distal end portion of the operation lever, and a cylindrical housing portion that holds the spacer. And a guide member provided with a top surface for restricting the upward movement of the spacer, and the tip of the operation lever can be moved up and down and rotated on the top surface. A guide hole for holding is provided.

  In the multi-directional input device according to claim 11 of the present invention, the pressing member has a plurality of pressing protrusions that press the plurality of push switches on the lower surface, and is positioned outside the pressing protrusion on the upper surface. In addition to having an annular projecting portion, the guide member is tiltably engaged, and the lower surface of the driving body abuts on the annular projecting portion.

In the multidirectional input device according to the first aspect of the present invention, when the operation lever is tilted, the protruding portion provided at the inner edge of the opening of the upper surface portion of the housing becomes a contact portion that contacts the operation lever. Since the protrusion provided on the inner edge of the opening of the upper surface portion is more flexible than the upper surface portion of the housing, when the operation lever contacts the protrusion which is the contact portion, the protrusion is slightly elastically deformed and produces a buffering effect. The contact sound when the operation lever contacts the contact portion can be reduced.
Further, since the amount of elastic deformation of the protruding portion is very small, the stop position when the operation lever is tilted is not ambiguous, and a good operational feeling can be obtained.
Thereby, even when the operation lever is largely tilted with a strong force, it is possible to provide a multidirectional input device with reduced contact noise and good operational feeling.

  The multi-directional input device according to claim 2 of the present invention has a guide mechanism for guiding the tilting operation of the operation lever in a predetermined direction, and the protruding portion is provided with a flexible bending piece provided corresponding to the predetermined guiding direction. Therefore, the contact noise can be further reduced when the operation lever is operated in a guide direction that is easy to operate.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 3 of the present invention, the projecting piece is provided with a curved surface portion that increases in distance from the operation lever toward the distal end side, and the curved portion contacts the operation lever. Therefore, the contact area between the operation lever and the contact portion is widened, and even when the operation lever and the housing are formed of a synthetic resin material, it is possible to reduce wear and wear associated with contact. For this reason, it is difficult for foreign matters to enter the housing, and a highly reliable multidirectional input device can be obtained.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 4 of the present invention, since the tilt detection mechanism is configured by a plurality of push switches provided around the operation lever, the multidirectional tilt operation can be detected with a simple structure. it can.

  In the multi-directional input device according to claim 5 of the present invention, since the tilting operation direction of the operation lever is eight directions at equal angular intervals, it can be operated in the middle direction in addition to the four directions of up, down, left and right. A multidirectional input device with good characteristics can be provided. Further, since the tilt direction of the operation lever is detected by the outputs of the two push switches, it is possible to prevent erroneous detection even if the operation direction is as many as eight directions.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 6 of the present invention, a sliding member is provided in which the operating lever is inserted and the sliding member moves in a plane according to the tilting operation of the operating lever. The sliding member is brought into a radial direction at equal angular intervals by bringing a biased contact body into contact with a plurality of concave grooves extending radially at equal angular intervals provided in the bowl-shaped concave portion of the sliding member. Since it is guided and becomes easy to move, it is possible to appropriately guide the tilting direction of the operating lever that is tiltably inserted into the through hole of the sliding member. In addition, since the function of the return mechanism of the operation lever can be provided by the biased contact body and the bowl-shaped recess, the operability of the multidirectional input device can be further improved.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 7 of the present invention, the contact body and the elastic member are housed in the holding member, and the holding member is locked to the upper case in a state where the contact body is in contact with the sliding member. Therefore, the assembly workability of the multidirectional input device is improved.

  In the multidirectional input device according to the eighth aspect of the present invention, since the central push switch that operates by depressing the operation lever is provided, the operability of the multidirectional input device is improved. In addition, the elastic force of the dome-shaped central elastic body that constitutes the central push switch is structured to hold the operating lever to the holding member via the drive body so that it can be tilted. Instead, the structure can be simplified.

  In the multi-directional input device according to claim 9 of the present invention, since the rotation operation of the operation lever can be detected, the user can perform the tilt operation and the rotation operation by a series of operations without releasing his hand. A multi-directional input device with good performance can be realized. In addition, a structure that presses a plurality of push switches around the control lever with a pressing member that does not rotate even when rotated, so even if a rubber dome is used for the push switch, the rubber dome slides by rotating operation. A multi-directional input device that does not wear and has excellent operability and durability can be realized.

  In the multidirectional input device according to claim 10 of the present invention, the operation lever is inserted into the through hole of the sliding member and is rotatably held by the guide hole provided in the guide member, so that stable rotation operation can be performed. This enables a multidirectional input device with excellent operability. Further, since the central elastic body of the central push switch is pressed by the spacer, the central elastic body is not worn by the rotation operation, so that a multidirectional input device having excellent operability and excellent durability can be realized.

  In the multidirectional input device according to the eleventh aspect of the present invention, the annular projecting portion is provided in the vicinity of the outer periphery of the upper surface of the pressing member, so that the contact between the driving body and the pressing member when the operation lever is tilted is stabilized. Furthermore, since a plurality of pressing protrusions for pressing the push switch are provided on the lower surface of the pressing member, the pressing protrusion of the pressing member that does not rotate even when the operation lever is rotated when the operation lever is tilted operates the push switch. Press firmly. In addition, since the ring-shaped projecting portion is outside the pressing projecting portion, the pressing member is pressed against the driving body by the reaction force from the push switch to the pressing projecting portion, and the push switch can be more stably pressed.

  As described above, in the multi-directional input device according to the present invention, since the protruding portion extending in the protruding direction of the operation lever is provided at the inner edge of the opening of the upper surface portion of the housing, even when the operation lever is largely tilted with a strong force, It is possible to provide a multidirectional input device with reduced contact noise and good operational feeling.

It is an external view of the multidirectional input device which concerns on this invention, (a) is a top view, (b) is a front view. It is a disassembled perspective view of the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment, (a) is an exploded perspective view when the multidirectional input device is viewed from above, and (b) is an exploded view when the multidirectional input device is viewed from below. It is a perspective view. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. 1 which shows the structure of the initial state of the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment. It is a figure of the sliding member of the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment, (a) is a bottom view, (b) is BB sectional drawing of Fig.4 (a) which shows the shape of a bowl-shaped recessed part. It is sectional drawing which shows the state which tilted and operated the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment, (a) is sectional drawing of the AA position of FIG. 1, (b) is principal part sectional drawing. It is a figure explaining the push switch of the multi-directional input device of the said embodiment, (a) The top view explaining arrangement | positioning of a push switch, (b) is CC cross section of FIG. 6 explaining the structure of a push switch. FIG. It is sectional drawing of the AA position of FIG. 1 which shows a state when pressing down the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment. It is a figure explaining the contact part of the multidirectional input device of the said embodiment, (a) is a top view of an upper case, (b) is FIG. 8 (a) explaining the cross-sectional shape of the protrusion part provided in the upper case. ) Is a sectional view taken along the line DD, and FIG. It is sectional drawing of the multidirectional input device of the prior art example shown by patent document 1. FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

  1A and 1B are external views of a multidirectional input device according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1A is a plan view and FIG. 1B is a front view. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of the multidirectional input device. FIG. 2A is an exploded perspective view of the multidirectional input device viewed from above. FIG. 2B is a perspective view of the multidirectional input device viewed from below. FIG.

  The embodiment of the present invention is a multidirectional input device mainly used for in-vehicle electric devices, but the application target of the multidirectional input device according to the present embodiment is not limited to this, The present invention can also be applied to multidirectional input devices used in computers and household electronic devices.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 50 in which an upper case 1 and a lower case 2 are combined, and a structure in which an operation lever 3 projects from the upper surface of the upper case 1. It has become.

  The housing 50 is provided with three arm portions 51 projecting sideways, and the multidirectional input device of the present invention is attached to an in-vehicle electric device as a use destination by the arm portion 51. In general, an operation knob is assembled to the distal end side of the operation lever 3.

  Next, the configuration of the multidirectional input device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

The upper case 1 is an upper member of a housing formed of a molding material or the like. The upper case 1 has a substantially cylindrical main body portion having a top plate portion, and protrudes in a substantially rectangular shape at a part of the lower end side and continues to the lower end portion of the main body portion 2. It comprises a connector holding portion 1d having a wall portion extending downward on the side, and further, on the lower end side of the main body portion, two leaf spring holding portions 1h that engage with a mounting portion 14a of a leaf spring 14 to be described later, It has three upper arm portions 1c that protrude.
The main body portion has an opening 1a in the approximate center of the top plate portion, and eight protruding pieces 1b protruding upward along the opening 1a are provided around the opening 1a.
The side surface of the main body and the wall of the connector holding portion 1d have a plurality of case locking claws 1e that engage with a plurality of case locking holes 2a of the lower case 2 described later. A holding member locking hole 1f for locking a holding member 4 described later is provided on the side surface.

  The holding member 4 engaged with the upper case 1 is formed in a substantially cylindrical shape with a molding material or the like, and a holding member locking claw 4d that engages with the holding member locking hole 1f of the upper case 1 is provided on the side surface. The upper surface is provided with a linear groove portion on which an auxiliary sliding member 7 to be described later slides, and further, two bottomed housing portions 4a are provided symmetrically with respect to the central axis. A receiving body 8 and an elastic member 9, which will be described later, are accommodated in each of the two accommodating portions 4a. A substantially cylindrical central hole is a driving body penetrating portion (penetrating portion) 4b through which the operation lever 3 and a driving body 5 described later are inserted. A spherical surface of the driving body 5 is provided on the lower surface side of the driving body penetrating portion 4b. A spherical concave portion 4c is provided to hold the convex portion 5a.

  The auxiliary sliding member 7 is formed in a substantially cross shape with a molding material or the like, and has an oval through hole (through hole) 7 a through which the operation lever 3 is inserted at a substantially center, and is a slide that engages with the groove portion of the holding member 4. The movement guide portions 7c are provided so as to protrude in the vicinity of both end portions of the substantially cross-shaped arm, and guide grooves 7b penetrating to both ends of the arm are provided on the lower surface side of the substantially cross-shaped arm. Yes.

  The sliding member 6 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape by a molding material or the like, and has a lever through hole (through hole) 6b that holds the operation lever 3 tiltable and movable in the axial direction of the operation lever 3 at a substantially center. The upper surface comes into contact with the top surface of the guide groove 7b of the auxiliary sliding member 7, and the substantially rectangular width portion is slidably held in the width portion of the guide groove 7b of the auxiliary sliding member 7. Moreover, it has two bowl-shaped recessed parts 6a in the lower surface side.

  The contact body 8 is formed of a molding material or the like and is formed in a cylindrical shape having a substantially hemispherical tip portion, and a lower end side is an elastic member holding portion 8a having a smaller diameter than the tip portion.

  The elastic member 9 is a compression spring in which a metal material such as spring stainless steel is formed in a coil shape, and is incorporated in the elastic member holding portion 8a of the contact body 8 so that the upper surface side contacts the lower surface of the main body portion of the contact body 8. When the lower surface side comes into contact with the bottom surface of the storage portion 4 a of the holding member 4, the contact body 8 is urged in a direction to press against the sliding member 6.

  The operating lever 3 is formed of a metal material such as aluminum or a molding material in a substantially cylindrical shape, and is provided with a small-diameter protruding portion 3b having a diameter smaller than that of the cylindrical lever main body portion 3c on the lower end side, and the lever main body portion 3c and the small-diameter protruding portion 3b. In between, there is a retaining portion 3a in which a part of a cylindrical side surface having an enlarged diameter is formed in a flat shape. Further, a detent for restricting the rotation of the operation knob assembled to the operation lever 3 is provided on the upper end side of the lever main body 3c.

  The driving body 5 is formed of a molding material or the like, and is provided with a substantially hemispherical spherical convex portion 5a on the upper surface of the substantially disc-shaped main body portion 5c, and a substantially cylindrical tubular portion at the top of the spherical convex portion 5a. 5b is provided. The inner hole of the cylindrical portion 5b extends downward and passes therethrough, and an inner diameter enlarged portion 5e that engages with the retaining portion 3a of the operation lever 3 is provided near the lower end side. It is an enlarged escape. Further, the outer surface of the substantially disc-shaped main body 5c has four rotor engaging claws 5d protruding in the diameter increasing direction.

  The inner diameter enlarged portion 5e of the driving body 5 has a flat portion opposed to the plane provided on the retaining portion 3a of the operation lever 3, and holds the operation lever 3 slidably. The top surface of the inner diameter enlarged portion 5e is The operation lever 3 is prevented from coming out above the driving body 5 by coming into contact with the upper end face of the retaining portion 3a. As a result, the operation lever 3 and the driving body 5 rotate integrally, and the operation lever 3 can be slid in the axial direction and does not come out upward.

  The pressing member 10 is formed of a molding material or the like, and an annular protrusion protruding in a ring shape with the upper surface portion of the cross-sectional shape being substantially arc-shaped in the vicinity of the outer edge on the upper surface side of the substantially disk-shaped main body portion opened at the center. A portion 10a is provided, and on the lower surface side, eight pressing protrusions 10b that respectively press elastic bodies of eight push switches described later are provided at positions closer to the center than the ring-shaped protrusion 10a. In addition, the inner side surface of the central opening has four inclined guide claws 10c protruding in the radial center direction.

The guide member 11 is formed of a molding material or the like, and has a frustoconical trapezoidal protrusion 11b at the center on the upper surface side of the substantially disc-shaped main body, and has a plurality of columnar legs on the lower surface side. . Further, in the region between the outer edge part of the main body part and the trapezoidal protrusion part 11b, there are eight hole parts through which small elastic bodies 13b of eight push switches described later are respectively inserted.
At the center of the top surface of the trapezoidal protrusion 11b, there is provided a guide hole 11c that holds the small-diameter protrusion 3b at the lower end of the operation lever 3 so as to be movable up and down and rotatable, and below the guide hole 11c is a guide. A cylindrical spacer accommodating portion (accommodating portion) 11d having a diameter larger than that of the hole 11c is formed. Further, the inclined surface of the trapezoidal protrusion 11b has four depressions 11a that hold the four inclined guide claws 10c of the pressing member 10 in a tiltable manner while restricting rotation.

In the rubber plate 13, a central central elastic body 13a and eight small elastic bodies 13b provided at equal angular intervals so as to surround the central elastic body 13a are integrally formed of an elastic material such as rubber. .
The central elastic body 13a has a shape larger than that of the eight small elastic bodies 13b, has a large elastic force at the time of pressing, and has a shape that reverses by a pressing operation to generate a click feeling.
The eight small elastic bodies 13b provided around the central elastic body 13a are smaller in shape than the central elastic body 13a and have a weak repulsive force when pressed, and do not reverse when pressed and do not cause a click feeling. Yes.

  The lower surfaces of the tops of the central elastic body 13a and the small elastic body 13b serve as contact pressing portions 13c that come into contact with a central fixed contact 21a or a fixed contact 21b of the substrate 21 described later. Note that a material having electrical conductivity is joined to the contact pressing portion 13c, and the contact pressing portion 13c can be energized.

  The spacer 12 is formed in a substantially disc shape from a molding material such as polyacetal or nylon, or a metal plate such as stainless steel, and is mounted on the top surface of the central elastic body 13a that is a rubber dome. It is accommodated in the spacer accommodating portion 11d.

The substrate 21 is a connector formed by forming a substrate material such as a glass epoxy plate into a substantially disc shape, extending a part of the substrate material in a substantially rectangular shape, and being electrically connected to an in-vehicle electric device or the like used in the vicinity of the extended end. 23 is disposed, and an optical detection member 22 such as a photo interrupter is disposed at a position closer to the center than the connector 23.
A central fixed contact 21a is provided at a substantially central portion of the substantially disk-shaped portion of the substrate 21, and eight fixed contacts 21b are provided at equiangular intervals around the central fixed contact 21a.
The central fixed contact 21a and the eight fixed contacts 21b are each composed of two contact pieces that are electrically independent of each other. The contact pieces of the central fixed contact 21a and the eight fixed contacts 21b and the optical detection member 22 have the required electrical characteristics. It is wired to the connector 23 so as to achieve a general connection.

The lower case 2 is a lower member of a housing formed of a molding material or the like, and has a substantially cylindrical main body portion having a bottom plate portion, and a main body portion on two sides where a part of the bottom plate portion protrudes into a substantially rectangular shape and continues to the main body portion. It comprises a connector holding portion 2d provided with a wall portion connected to the side surface, and further, on the upper end side of the main body portion, together with the three upper arm portions 1c of the upper case 1, constitutes the arm portion 51 of the housing 50 in the side direction. It has three lower arm portions 2c that project and two holding grooves 2e that hold attachment portions 14a of leaf springs 14 to be described later.
The bottom plate portion of the lower case 2 is provided with a plurality of holes to which the guide member 11 is locked, and the inner portion of the lower case 2 has a step portion 2b that rotatably holds a rotor 15 described later. The side surface of the lower case 2 and the wall portion of the connector holding portion 2d are provided with a substantially plate-like protrusion extending upward, and a part of the protrusion is opened to a substantially rectangular shape. A plurality of case locking holes 2a engaged with the claws 1e are formed.

  The rotor 15 is formed in a substantially ring shape with a molding material or the like, and has a plurality of cam ridges 15b disposed at equal angular intervals in the vicinity of the outer edge of the upper surface, and is disposed at equal angular intervals in the vicinity of the outer edge of the lower surface. It has the some to-be-detected wall part 15a extended below. In addition, the inner diameter portion has four rotating recesses 15 c that engage with the rotor engaging claws 5 d of the driving body 5.

  The leaf spring 14 is made of a spring metal plate such as a spring stainless steel plate or a spring phosphor bronze plate, and is formed in a substantially ring shape. The leaf spring 14 has attachment portions 14a at two locations facing the center and facing each other. Two click ridges 14b projecting downward are provided at two positions orthogonal to 14a.

  Next, the assembly structure of the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 1 showing a configuration in an initial state when the multidirectional input device of the present invention is not operated.

  The contact body 8 and the elastic member 9 are accommodated in the accommodating portion 4a of the holding member 4, and the sliding member 6 and the auxiliary sliding member 7 are installed on the upper surface of the holding member 4, and are inserted into the upper case 1 in this state. Thereby, the holding member locking claw 4d on the side surface of the holding member 4 is locked in the holding member locking hole 1f on the side surface of the upper case 1, and the holding member 4 is held by the upper case 1, and the upper case 1 and the holding member 4, the auxiliary sliding member 7 and the sliding member 6 are disposed in order, and the upper case intermediate assembly product that contacts the sliding member 6 while the contact body 8 is urged by the elastic member 9 is obtained.

  The lower case 2 has a central fixed contact 21a and a fixed contact 21b, and a rubber plate 13 and a spacer 12 are placed in order on the upper surface side of the substrate 21 on which the optical detection member 22 and the connector 23 are assembled. In this state, the guide member 11 is attached from above by inserting the columnar leg portion of the guide member 11 into the hole of the bottom plate portion of the lower case 2, and the tip of the leg portion is heat-caulked on the bottom surface side of the lower case 2. The guide member 11 is fixed to the lower case 2 by being deformed by such a method. Thereby, the board | substrate 21, the rubber plate 13, the spacer 12, and the guide member 11 are attached to the lower case 2, and it becomes a lower case intermediate assembly product.

  The pressing member 10 is installed so that the inclined guide claw 10c is engaged with the recess 11a of the guide member 11 of the lower case intermediate assembly product, and the rotor 15 is further installed on the step 2b of the lower case 2. Next, the drive body 5 into which the operation lever 3 is inserted is installed so that the rotor engagement claw 5d and the rotary recess 15c are engaged, and then the leaf spring 14 is attached to the leaf spring holding portion 1h of the upper case 1. After engaging the part 14a, the lower case intermediate assembly and the upper case intermediate assembly are combined.

  Thereby, the case locking claw 1e of the upper case 1 is locked in the case locking hole 2a of the lower case 2, and the assembly is completed.

  As described above, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, the holding member locking hole 1 f is provided on the side surface of the upper case 1, and the holding member locking claw 4 d is provided on the side surface of the holding member 4. Is provided. When the holding member 4 locking hole and the holding member locking claw 4d are engaged, the elastic member 9, the contact body 8, the sliding member 6 and the auxiliary sliding member 7 are incorporated in the holding member 4, and the elastic member An intermediate assembly in which the holding member 4 is attached to the upper case 1 in a state where the contact member 8 presses the contact member 8 against the sliding member 6 and the contact member 8 contacts the sliding member 6. It can be configured.

  Accordingly, the holding member 4 has a storage portion 4a for storing the contact body 8 and the elastic member 9, and the housing is integrated with the upper case 1 in which the opening 1a is formed and the upper case 1. A holding member in a state in which the lower body 2 is provided, the contact body 8 and the elastic member 9 are stored in the storage portion 4a, and the contact body 8 biased by the elastic member 9 is in contact with the sliding member 6. Since an intermediate assembly product in which 4 is locked to the upper case 1 can be formed, it is possible to improve the assembly workability.

  Further, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, the substrate 21 includes the central fixed contact 21a constituting the central push switch and the optical detection member 22 for detecting the rotation operation in addition to the eight fixed contacts 21b. In the lower case intermediate assembly, all detection elements for detecting the tilting operation, the pressing operation and the rotating operation of the multidirectional input device are incorporated.

  Thereby, since all the detection elements are provided on the substrate 21, the assembly wiring man-hour can be reduced, and an intermediate assembly including all the detection elements can be configured, so that the operation inspection of the detection elements can be easily performed. Thus, a stable quality multi-directional input device can be provided at low cost.

  Next, the operation of the component when the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention is tilted, pressed and rotated, and the detection mechanism of each operation will be described.

  Prior to the description of the tilting operation, the initial state of the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

4A and 4B are diagrams illustrating the sliding member 6, where FIG. 4A is a bottom view when the sliding member 6 is viewed from the lower surface side, and FIG. 4B is a diagram illustrating the shape of the bowl-shaped recess 6 a of the sliding member 6. It is BB sectional drawing of 4 (a).
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which the multi-directional input device of the present invention is tilted, (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1, and (b) is a method of applying force to the pressing member 10. It is principal part sectional drawing explaining these.

In the multidirectional input device of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 3, in the initial state, the operation lever 3 is biased upward by the central elastic body 13 a via the spacer 12, and the operation lever 3 is a cylindrical shape of the drive body 5. The spherical convex portion 5a of the driving body 5 is held in a tiltable manner in the spherical concave portion 4c of the holding member 4 because the spherical convex portion 5a of the driving member 5 is held so as to be movable in the axial direction while being prevented from being detached by the portion 5b.
Further, the contact member 8 is engaged with the flange-shaped recess 6a on the lower surface side of the slide member 6, and the contact member 8 is biased upward by the elastic member 9, so that the slide member 6 is The front end portion of the contact body 8 and the central portion of the bowl-shaped recess 6a are held at a position where they coincide.

  On the lower surface side of the sliding member 6, two hook-shaped concave portions 6a are provided at symmetrical positions with the substantially central lever through hole 6b interposed therebetween (see FIG. 4A). Further, the deepest apex at the center of the bowl-shaped recess 6a has a center recess 6c, and eight recess grooves 6d are provided radially at equal angular intervals around the center recess 6c around the center recess 6c ( (Refer FIG. 4 (a) (b)).

The abutting body 8 moves the sliding member 6 in a direction in which the tip of the abutting body 8 and the center of the abutting body 8 coincide with the tip of the abutting body 8. Therefore, in the initial state, the tip of the contact body 8 engages with the central recess 6c and the sliding member 6 stops.
Since the two bowl-shaped recesses 6a of the sliding member 6 are provided at symmetrical positions with the through hole in the center portion interposed therebetween, the tip of the contact body 8 engages with the center recess 6c and the sliding member 6 stops. Then, the lever through hole 6b of the sliding member 6 is located at the center.

  Although the sliding member 6 slides with the tilting operation of the operation lever 3, the operation lever 3 is held by the sliding member 6 when it is not operated. Therefore, in the initial state, the lever through-hole 6b of the sliding member 6 is located at the center, so that the operation lever 3 is also held at the center, and the operation lever 3 is located at the center of the opening 1a of the upper case 1.

  When the operation lever 3 is tilted and then released, the contact body 8 moves the sliding member 6 in a direction in which the tip of the contact body 8 coincides with the central recess 6c of the bowl-shaped recess 6a. When the tip of the contact body 8 is engaged with the central recess 6c, the sliding member 6 stops and the operation lever 3 is returned to the initial position, so that it functions as a return mechanism.

  Next, with reference to FIG. 5A, the behavior of the component parts when the operation lever 3 is tilted will be described.

When the operating lever 3 is tilted, the driving body 5 that holds the operating lever 3 in a state where the operating lever 3 is prevented from coming off also tilts. At this time, since the operating lever 3 is biased upward by the central elastic body 13a via the spacer 12, the driving body 5 is also biased upward. Since the spherical convex portion 5 a of the driving body 5 is engaged with the spherical concave portion 4 c of the holding member 4, the driving body 5 is tilted about the center of a virtual sphere that forms the spherical convex portion 5 a together with the operation lever 3. Can be tilted as.
Since the operation lever 3 is tiltably held in the lever through hole 6 b of the sliding member 6, when the operation lever 3 is tilted, the sliding member 6 is also slid with the tilting operation of the operation lever 3.

  The auxiliary sliding member 7 is held by the holding member 4 so as to be slidable in the uniaxial direction by the sliding guide portion 7c, and the sliding member 6 is the sliding direction of the auxiliary sliding member 7 with respect to the auxiliary sliding member 7. Since it is held so as to be slidable in the direction of the other orthogonal axis, when the direction of the tilting operation is the same as the sliding direction of the sliding member 6 as shown in FIG. Does not slide, and only the sliding member 6 slides in the guide groove 7 b of the auxiliary sliding member 7.

  On the other hand, when the tilting direction is the same as the sliding direction of the auxiliary sliding member 7, that is, perpendicular to the sliding direction of the sliding member 6, the sliding member 6 is slid while being held by the auxiliary sliding member 7. The auxiliary sliding member 7 slides while holding the sliding member 6 without moving.

  When the tilting direction is intermediate between the sliding direction of the sliding member 6 and the sliding direction of the auxiliary sliding member 7, the sliding member 6 and the auxiliary sliding member 7 slide simultaneously.

  In any tilt direction, the sliding member 6 and the auxiliary sliding member 7 slide in the respective sliding directions but do not rotate. Accordingly, the sliding member 6 moves in a plane according to the tilting amount of the operation lever 3 in accordance with the tilting operation of the operating lever 3, and the two hook-shaped recesses 6 a provided on the sliding member 6 also move.

  When the operating lever 3 is slightly tilted and the sliding member 6 moves slightly, the hook-shaped recess 6a also moves slightly, and the contact body 8 engaged with the central recess 6c of the hook-shaped recess 6a in the initial state. Is moved in the counter-biasing direction, that is, in the direction away from the sliding member 6. However, since the contact body 8 is urged by the elastic member 9, the contact body 8 tries to pull back the sliding member 6 to the initial position, and the operation lever 3 is also urged to return to the initial position. Is done. Thereby, when the user tilts the operation lever 3, the user can feel the response in the direction in which the operation lever 3 is pulled back to the initial position, and the tilt operation with good operability becomes possible.

  When the operation lever 3 is further tilted, the sliding member 6 further moves, and the contact body 8 comes out of the central recess 6c of the bowl-shaped recess 6a, and enters the concave groove 6d provided at equiangular intervals around the central recess 6c. Moving.

  The eight concave groove portions 6d provided in the bowl-shaped concave portion 6a are provided in eight directions at equiangular intervals around the central concave portion 6c (see FIG. 4A), and the intersection of the concave groove portion 6d and the central concave portion 6c. The portion is deepest and becomes shallower as it approaches the outer edge (see FIG. 4B), and the center in the width direction of each concave groove portion 6d is a valley bottom portion 6e.

The contact body 8 that has moved to the concave groove portion 6d of the bowl-shaped concave portion 6a is pressed against the valley bottom portion 6e of the concave groove portion 6d by urging by the elastic member 9. For this reason, when the operation lever 3 is further tilted and the contact body 8 moves to the concave groove portion 6d, if the contact body 8 does not contact the valley bottom portion 6e of the concave groove portion 6d, the biasing force of the elastic member 9 Thus, the abutting body 8 moves the sliding member 6 in a direction in which the tip of the abutting body 8 and the valley bottom 6e of the concave groove 6d abut. When the contact body 8 is engaged with the valley bottom portion 6e of the concave groove portion 6d, the contact body 8 is guided by the valley bottom portion of the concave groove portion 6d to facilitate movement, and the concave groove portions 6d are provided in eight directions at equal angular intervals. Therefore, the operation lever 3 is guided in eight directions.
Thus, when the user tilts the multi-directional input device of the present invention, even if the operating lever 3 is tilted in the approximate direction, the operating lever 3 is guided in one of the eight predetermined directions. A multidirectional input device with good operability can be realized.

As described above, the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention has the drive body penetration portion (penetration portion) 4b through which the operation lever 3 is inserted and tilts the operation lever 3 via the drive body 5. An auxiliary slide having an oval through hole (through hole) 7a (through hole) through which the operation lever 3 is inserted, and being held slidable in the uniaxial direction by the holding member 4. The auxiliary sliding member 7 includes a moving member 7, a lever through-hole (through-hole) 6 b through which the operation lever 3 is inserted, and a hook-shaped concave portion 6 a formed with eight concave groove portions 6 d extending radially at equal angular intervals. The sliding member 6 that is slidably held in the other axis direction orthogonal to the one axis direction and slides as the operation lever 3 is tilted, and the contact body 8 whose tip is in contact with the bowl-shaped recess 6a. The contact body 8 is always on the sliding member 6 side. And a guide mechanism consisting of an elastic member 9 for energizing.
As a result, the sliding member 6 is brought into contact with the eight abutting grooves 8d radially extending at equal angular intervals provided in the bowl-shaped recess 6a of the sliding member 6 by bringing the biased abutting body 8 into contact therewith. Since it is guided in the radial direction of the angular interval and becomes easy to move, it is possible to appropriately guide the tilting direction of the operation lever 3 that is tiltably inserted into the lever through hole 6b of the sliding member 6. Moreover, since the function of the return mechanism of the operation lever 3 can be provided by the biased contact body 8 and the bowl-shaped recess 6a, the operability of the multidirectional input device can be further improved.

  Next, with reference to FIGS. 5 and 6, the tilt detection mechanism when the tilt operation is performed will be described.

  6A and 6B are diagrams illustrating the configuration of the push switch. FIG. 6A is a plan view illustrating the tilting operation direction and the arrangement of the push switch, and FIG. 6B is a diagram illustrating the configuration of the push switch. It is sectional drawing.

  The tilting operation is detected by a push switch (peripheral push switch) 60 including eight small elastic bodies 13b and fixed contacts 21b provided at equal angular intervals around the operation lever 3 as shown in FIG. 6 (a). Is done.

  In the tilting operation of the multi-directional input device of the present invention, eight equally spaced directions indicated by D1 to D8 in FIG. 6A are the tilt detection directions, and each of the eight push switches 60 has eight directions. It is arrange | positioned so that it may become the intermediate | middle angle direction of the inclination detection direction. Accordingly, when the operation lever 3 is tilted in any one of the tilt detection directions, both of the two push switches 60 located on both sides of the tilt detection direction are in an operating state. As a result, two adjacent push switches 60 are operated by a tilt operation in an arbitrary tilt detection direction, so that contact failure due to dust, shavings, etc. is less likely to occur than when one push switch is operated by a tilt operation. A multidirectional input device with excellent durability can be realized.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6B, the push switch 60 includes a small elastic body 13 b of the rubber plate 13 and a fixed contact 21 b of the substrate 21, and the substrate 21 and the rubber plate 13 are connected to the lower case 2 by the guide member 11. Attached to.

  Above the guide member 11, the pressing member 10 is engaged with four depressions 11 a (see FIG. 2) in which the inclined guide claw 10 c (see FIG. 2) of the pressing member 10 is provided in the trapezoidal protrusion 11 b of the guide member 11. It is placed so as to match. The eight pressing protrusions 10 b provided on the lower surface of the pressing member 10 are in contact with the top surfaces of the eight small elastic bodies 13 b protruding through the holes of the guide member 11, and the upper surface of the pressing member 10. Is in contact with the lower surface of the driving body 5. Thereby, the pressing member 10 is tiltably held in a state in which the rotational movement is restricted by the guide member 11.

  In the initial state where the operation lever 3 is not tilted as shown in FIG. 6B, the operation lever 3 is located at the center of the opening 1a of the upper case 1 and the drive body 5 that holds the operation lever 3 is located. The lower surface is horizontal. Accordingly, the pressing member 10 in contact with the lower surface of the driving body 5 is also horizontal, and none of the eight small elastic bodies 13b in contact with the eight pressing protrusions 10b on the lower surface of the pressing member 10 is pressed down. The pressing portion 13c and the fixed contact 21b are separated from each other. For this reason, two electrically independent contact pieces constituting the fixed contact 21b are not energized, and all eight push switches are not operated.

  When the operation lever 3 is tilted, the drive body 5 that holds the operation lever 3 also tilts as shown in FIG. The lower surface of the main body 5c of the driving body 5 is in contact with an annular projecting portion 10a provided on the upper surface of the pressing member 10, and the diameter of the annular projecting portion 10a is larger than the diameter of the operating lever 3. When the tilting operation is performed, the annular projecting portion 10a is largely pressed down.

  When the annular projecting portion 10a is pressed, the pressing projecting portion 10b presses the small elastic body 13b, and the contact pressing portion 13c comes into contact with the fixed contact 21b. Since the contact pressing portion 13c can be energized, the two contact pieces constituting the fixed contact 21b are energized, the push switch 60 is operated, and the tilting operation is detected.

  When the operation lever 3 is tilted and the push switch 60 on the tilt operation side is pressed, the lower surface of the driving body 5 pushes down the annular projecting portion 10a of the pressing member 10 downward as shown in FIG. (F1 in the figure), and the pressing protrusion 10b of the pressing member 10 is pushed upward by the small elastic body 13b (f2 in the figure). At this time, since the annular projecting portion 10a is outside the pressing projecting portion 10b, the anti-tilting side of the pressing member 10 is urged in a direction away from the rubber plate (elastic body) 13 (Rf direction in the figure) It is urged in a direction approaching the lower surface of the driving body 5. By this urging, the pressing member 10 is tilted so as to contact the entire bottom surface of the tilted driving body 5, so that the small elastic body 13 b can be stably pressed.

  In addition, since the elastic force of the central elastic body 13a that urges the operation lever 3 upward is larger than that of the small elastic body 13b, it is possible to prevent the operation lever 3 from being accidentally pressed during the tilting operation of the operation lever 3 and is stable. Tilt operation is possible.

  Since the small elastic body 13b of the push switch 60 has a shape that does not cause a click feeling when pressed, there is no feeling of operation like a two-step click even if there is a difference in the operation timing of the two push switches 60. A tilting operation with a good feel is possible.

  Further, since the plurality of push switches 60 provided around the operation lever 3 are pressed by the pressing member 10 that does not rotate even when the operation lever 3 is rotated, even if a rubber dome is used for the push switch 60, The rubber dome does not slide and wear due to the rotation operation, and a multi-directional input device with excellent operability and durability can be realized.

Further, as described above, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, the tilt detection mechanism includes the plurality of push switches 60 provided at equal angular intervals around the operation lever 3, A drive body 5 that drives the push switch 60 in accordance with the tilting operation of the lever 3 is provided on the outer peripheral side of the operation lever 3.
Thus, a tilt detection mechanism that can detect a multi-directional tilt operation with a simple structure can be configured.

The predetermined directions in which the operation lever 3 is tilted are eight directions at equal angular intervals, and eight push switches 60 are provided between the predetermined directions. When the tilting operation is performed in the direction, two push switches 60 adjacent to each other across one direction are driven via the driving body 5.
As a result, the tilting operation direction of the operation lever 3 is eight directions at equiangular intervals, so that it can be operated in the middle direction in addition to the four directions of up, down, left, and right, thus providing a multi-directional input device with good operability. it can. Further, since the tilt direction of the operation lever 3 is detected by the outputs of the two push switches 60, erroneous detection can be prevented even if the operation direction is as many as eight directions.

The pressing member 10 has eight pressing protrusions 10b that press the eight push switches 60 on the lower surface, an annular protrusion 10a that is positioned outside the pressing protrusion 10b on the upper surface, and a guide member 11. Since the lower surface of the driving body 5 and the annular annular protrusion 10a outside the pressing protrusion 10b are in contact with each other, the pressing force is applied by the reaction force from the push switch 60 to the pressing protrusion 10b. The member 10 is pressed against the driving body 5, and the push switch can be pressed more stably.
Further, since the plurality of pressing protrusions 10b are provided on the lower surface of the pressing member 10 that does not rotate even when the operation lever 3 is rotated, the pressing protrusion 10b is not tilted even when the operation lever 3 is rotated. The push switch 60 is surely pressed, and a stable tilting operation is possible.

  Next, an operation when the operation lever 3 is pressed down will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 1 showing a state when the multidirectional input device of the present invention is pressed.

  The pressing operation is detected by a central push switch 61 including a central elastic body 13 a provided at the center of the rubber plate 13 and a central fixed contact 21 a provided at the center of the substrate 21.

  The spacer 12 accommodated in the spacer accommodating portion 11d of the guide member 11 is pressed against the top surface of the spacer accommodating portion 11d by the central elastic body 13a, but the small-diameter protruding portion 3b of the operation lever 3 is the guide hole of the guide member 11. When inserted into 11c, the lower end surface of the small-diameter protruding portion 3b slightly pushes down the spacer 12, and the operation lever 3 is urged upward by the central elastic body 13a via the spacer 12.

  The operating lever 3 is held by the cylindrical portion 5b of the driving body 5 so as to be movable in the axial direction along the protruding direction of the operating lever 3, and is urged upward by the central elastic body 13a. Yes.

  When the operation lever 3 is pushed down, as shown in FIG. 7, the operation lever 3 moves downward in the cylindrical portion 5 b of the driving body 5 and pushes down the central elastic body 13 a via the spacer 12. The central elastic body 13a reverses while generating a click feeling, and the contact pressing portion 13c contacts the central fixed contact 21a. Since the contact pressing portion 13c can be energized, the two contact pieces constituting the center fixed contact 21a are energized, and the center push switch 61 is operated thereby to detect the pressing operation.

  As described above, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, the central push switch 61 that is operated by pressing the operation lever 3 is provided, so that the operability of the multidirectional input device is improved. Further, since the operation lever 3 is tiltably held by the holding member 4 via the driving body 5 by the elastic force of the dome-shaped central elastic body 13a constituting the central push switch, the operation lever 3 is held. An elastic member is not required separately, and the structure can be simplified.

  Next, the operation when the operation lever 3 is rotated will be described with reference to FIG.

  Since the operating lever 3 is biased upward by the central elastic body 13a via the spacer 12, and the driving body 5 holds the operating lever 3 in a state in which the operating lever 3 is prevented from coming off, the spherical convex portion 5a of the driving body 5 is retained. Is held in the spherical recess 4 c of the holding member 4. Thereby, since the spherical convex part 5a can rotate along the spherical concave part 4c, the drive body 5 becomes rotatable. Since the operation lever 3 is engaged with the drive body 5 so as to rotate integrally, the drive body 5 also rotates when the operation lever 3 is rotated.

  Since the small-diameter protruding portion 3b on the lower end side of the operating lever 3 is held in the guide hole 11c of the guide member 11 so as to be vertically movable and rotatable, the operating lever 3 has a spherical convex portion 5a, a spherical concave portion 4c, In addition, since the small-diameter protruding portion 3b and the guide hole 11c are rotatably held at two locations, stable rotation operation is possible.

  Since the four rotor engaging claws 5d provided on the side surface of the driving body 5 are engaged with the four rotating recesses 15c provided on the inner diameter portion of the rotor 15, the rotor 15 also moves when the operation lever 3 is rotated. Rotate. Furthermore, since the rotor 15 and the drive body 5 are tiltably engaged, even if the operation lever 3 is rotated while the operation lever 3 is tilted and the drive body 5 is also tilted, the rotor 15 is not hindered. Rotate.

  A leaf spring 14 is installed on the upper portion of the rotor 15, a mounting portion 14 a (see FIG. 2) of the leaf spring 14 is fixed by the upper case 1 and the lower case 2, and the click mountain portion 14 b is attached by the elastic force of the leaf spring itself. And is engaged with a cam crest 15 b on the upper surface of the rotor 15. Further, the lower surface of the rotor 15 is rotatably held by a step portion 2 b provided on the inner side of the lower case 2.

  On the lower surface of the rotor 15, a plurality of detected wall portions 15 a that pass through a detection portion of the optical detection member 22 provided on the substrate 21 are provided, and when the rotor 15 rotates, the plurality of detected wall portions 15 a are optical. The detection unit of the detection member sequentially passes to detect the rotation operation. At the same time, the cam crest 15b is moved by the rotation of the rotor 15, and the cam crest 15b is moved while the click crest 14b is being urged. Therefore, when the operation lever 3 is rotated, a click feeling is obtained and rotation operation with good operability is possible. It becomes.

As described above, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, the operation lever 3 is rotatably held by the spherical concave portion 4c of the holding member 4 via the drive body 5, and the drive body 5 is The control lever 3 is engaged so as to rotate integrally. Furthermore, the multidirectional input device includes a rotor 15 that is engaged with the drive body 5 and can rotate integrally, and an optical detection member 22 that is provided to face the rotor 15 that detects the rotational operation of the rotor 15. The rotor 15 is configured to rotate integrally with the rotation of the operation lever 3.
As a result, the rotation operation of the operation lever 3 and the rotation operation can be detected, and the user can perform the tilting operation and the rotation operation by a series of operations without releasing his hand. Can be realized.

The guide member 11 is provided with a spacer 12 between the upper surface portion of the central elastic body 13 a and the tip of the operation lever 3 and a cylindrical spacer accommodating portion (accommodating portion) 11 d for holding the spacer 12. A guide hole 11c for holding the small-diameter protruding portion 3b (tip portion) of the operation lever 3 up and down and rotating freely is provided on the top surface.
Thereby, the stable rotation operation of the operation lever 3 is attained, and a multidirectional input device with excellent operability can be realized.

  Next, referring to FIG. 5A and FIG. 8, a structure for reducing a contact sound generated when the operation lever 3 is tilted and the operation lever 3 contacts the opening 1a of the housing will be described.

  8A and 8B are diagrams for explaining the contact portion of the upper case 1, wherein FIG. 8A is a plan view of the upper case 1 illustrating the shape of the protrusion, and FIG. 8B is a cross-section of the protrusion provided on the upper case 1. It is DD sectional drawing of Fig.8 (a) explaining a shape, (c) is an expanded sectional view of a protrusion part.

As shown in FIG. 5A, the operation lever 3 is held by the drive body 5, and the spherical convex portion 5a of the drive body 5 is engaged with the spherical concave portion 4c of the holding member 4. The lever 3 tilts with the center of the spherical convex portion 5a of the driving body 5 as the tilt center.
When the operation lever 3 is largely tilted, the operation lever 3 comes into contact with the opening 1a of the housing and stops. At this time, when the operation lever 3 is operated vigorously, a contact sound is generated in which the operation lever 3 contacts the opening 1a.

In the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 8 (a), a protruding portion comprising a protruding piece 1b extending in the protruding direction of the operating lever 3 at the inner edge of the opening 1a of the housing. The projecting portion is used as a contact portion with which the operation lever 3 contacts.
As a result, when the operation lever 3 is tilted greatly, the inner peripheral upper end edge of the projecting piece 1b becomes a contact portion 1g that contacts the operation lever 3 as shown by an imaginary line in FIGS. 8B and 8C. . At this time, since the projecting portion formed of the plurality of projecting pieces 1b provided at the inner edge of the opening 1a on the upper surface of the housing is more easily bent than the upper surface of the housing, the operation lever 3 contacts the abutting portion 1g of the projecting piece 1b. Then, the protruding piece 1b is slightly elastically deformed to produce a buffering effect, and the contact sound of the operation lever 3 can be reduced. Further, since the amount of elastic deformation of the protruding piece 1b is very small, the stop position when the operating lever 3 is tilted is not ambiguous, and a good operational feeling can be obtained.

  As a result, even when the operation lever 3 is tilted to a very large degree, the operation lever 3 abuts against a protruding portion made of a plurality of protruding pieces 1b that are easily bent, so that the contact sound is reduced and the stop position when the tilting operation is performed is reduced. Since it does not become ambiguous, it becomes possible to provide a multidirectional input device with a good operational feeling.

Further, the multi-directional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention has a configuration capable of detecting eight tilting directions, and is provided with a guide mechanism for guiding in eight detectable detection directions. As shown to a), the protrusion part of the inner edge part of the opening 1a of the housing was made into the eight protrusion pieces 1b corresponding to the detection direction at intervals.
As a result, the tilting operation of the operation lever 3 is guided in eight detection directions that can be detected, so that the operability is improved, and the protrusions that are provided corresponding to the eight detection directions in which the protrusions can be detected are easily bent. Since it consists of the piece 1b, when the operation lever 3 is tilted in an easy-to-operate detection direction, the contact noise can be reduced more effectively.

Furthermore, in the multidirectional input device according to the embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 8B and 8C, the distance between the protruding piece 1b and the operation lever 3 in the initial state as it goes toward the distal end side. A curved surface portion r is provided, and the curved surface portion r is defined as a contact portion 1g.
Thereby, the contact area of the operation lever 3 and the contact portion 1g is widened, and even when the operation lever 3 and the housing are formed of a synthetic resin material, it is possible to reduce wear and wear associated with contact. For this reason, it is difficult for foreign matters to enter the housing, and a highly reliable multidirectional input device can be obtained.

  In the multi-directional input device according to the above-described embodiment, the tilt operation detection direction and the guide direction are eight directions. However, the detection direction and the guide direction are not limited to eight directions, and may be less than eight directions. You may also increase.

  Moreover, although the protrusion part of the inner edge part of opening 1a shall consist of the some protrusion piece 1b extended in the protrusion direction of the operation lever 3, a protrusion part is good also as one ring-shaped protrusion shape.

  In addition, although the contact portion 1g of the protruding piece 1b is a curved surface portion, the distance between the contact portion 1g and the operation lever 3 in the initial state increases, and when the operation lever 3 contacts, the inclined surface portion and the operation lever 3 It is good also as an inclined surface of the inclination angle which a side surface becomes parallel.

  Further, although the detection element for detecting the rotation of the rotor 15 is the optical detection member 22, a magnetic detection element or a mechanical detection member may be used.

  Moreover, although the material which has electroconductivity was joined to the center elastic body 13a of the rubber plate 13, and the contact pressing part 13c of the small elastic body 13b, and the contact pressing part 13c was made to be able to supply with electricity, the whole rubber plate was made into electroconductive. You may form with a material.

  Furthermore, although the tilt detection mechanism for detecting the tilting operation of the operation lever 3 is configured by a plurality of (eight in the present embodiment) push switches 60, the tilt detection mechanism is not limited to this configuration. For example, a pair of drive shaft members that are orthogonal to each other and rotated in accordance with the tilting operation of the operation lever 3 may be provided, and the rotation of the drive shaft member may be detected by a rotary variable resistor or the like.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Upper case 1a Opening 1b Projection piece 1c Upper arm part 1d Connector holding part 1e Case latching claw 1f Holding member latching hole 1g Contact part 1h Leaf spring holding part 2 Lower case 2a Case latching hole 2b Step part 2c Lower side Arm portion 2d Connector holding portion 2e Holding groove 3 Operation lever 3a Retaining prevention portion 3b Small-diameter protruding portion 3c Lever main body portion 4 Holding member 4a Storage portion 4b Drive body penetrating portion (penetrating portion)
4c Spherical concave portion 4d Holding member locking claw 5 Drive body 5a Spherical convex portion 5b Cylindrical portion 5c Main body portion 5d Rotor engaging claw 5e Inner diameter enlarged portion 6 Sliding member 6a Saddle-shaped concave portion 6b Lever through hole (through hole)
6c Central recess 6d Concave groove 6e Valley bottom 7 Auxiliary sliding member 7a Oval through hole (through hole)
7b Guide groove 7c Sliding guide portion 8 Abutting body 8a Elastic member holding portion 9 Elastic member 10 Pressing member 10a Annular protruding portion 10b Pressing protruding portion 10c Inclined guide claw 11 Guide member 11a Recessed portion 11b Trapezoid protruding portion 11c Guide hole 11d Spacer housing (housing)
12 Spacer 13 Rubber plate 13a Central elastic body 13b Small elastic body 13c Contact pressing part 14 Leaf spring 14a Attaching part 14b Click peak 15 Rotor 15a Detected wall 15b Cam peak 15c Rotary recess 21 Substrate 21a Central fixed contact 21b Fixed contact 22 Optical detection member 23 Connector 50 Housing 51 Arm 60 Push switch 61 Center push switch r Curved surface D1,..., D8 Tilt detection direction

Claims (11)

A housing having an opening on the upper surface, an operation lever that protrudes from the opening and can be tilted in multiple directions, a tilt detection mechanism that detects a tilting operation of the operation lever, and the operation lever. In a multidirectional input device provided with a return mechanism that returns to the initial state located in the center of the opening,
A protrusion that extends in the protrusion direction of the operation lever is provided at the inner edge of the opening of the housing, and the protrusion is used as a contact portion that contacts the operation lever when the operation lever is tilted. A multidirectional input device characterized by that.   It has a guide mechanism for guiding the tilting operation of the operation lever in a predetermined direction, and the protruding portion is formed of a plurality of protruding pieces corresponding to the predetermined direction with an interval. The multidirectional input device according to claim 1.   The projecting piece is provided with a curved surface portion in which the distance from the operation lever in an initial state increases toward the distal end side, and the curved surface portion is used as the contact portion. The multidirectional input device according to 2.   The tilt detection mechanism is composed of a plurality of push switches provided at equiangular intervals in a plan view around the operation lever, and drives the push switch as the operation lever tilts. The multidirectional input device according to claim 2, wherein a driving body is provided on an outer peripheral side of the operation lever.   The predetermined directions in which the operation lever tilts are eight directions at equiangular intervals, and eight push switches are provided between the predetermined directions. 5. The multidirectional input device according to claim 4, wherein when the tilting operation is performed in the direction, the two push switches adjacent to each other across the one direction are driven via the driving body.   In addition to having a penetrating portion through which the operation lever is inserted, a holding member that tiltably holds the operation lever via the driver is provided, and the guide mechanism is provided with a through hole through which the operation lever is inserted. And an auxiliary sliding member held by the holding member so as to be slidable in one axial direction, and a through-hole through which the operation lever is inserted, and a bowl-shaped recess formed with a plurality of concave grooves extending radially at equal angular intervals. A sliding member that is slidably held in the other axial direction orthogonal to the one axial direction by the auxiliary sliding member, and that slides as the operating lever tilts, and a tip of the hook-shaped recess. The multidirectional input device according to claim 4, wherein the multidirectional input device includes a contact body to be contacted and an elastic member that constantly biases the contact body toward the sliding member.   The holding member includes a storage portion that stores the contact body and the elastic member, and the housing includes an upper case in which the opening is formed, and a lower case integrated with the upper case. The holding member is attached to the upper case in a state where the contact body and the elastic member are stored in the storage portion, and the contact body biased by the elastic member is in contact with the sliding member. The multidirectional input device according to claim 6, wherein the multidirectional input device is locked.   The operating lever and the driving body are configured as separate members, and the driving body holds the operating lever in a state where the operating lever is retained and is movably held in an axial direction along the protruding direction of the operating lever; A spherical convex portion that is held by the holding member, and a central push switch that is driven when the operation lever is depressed in the axial direction, and the spherical convex portion of the driving body is 8. The multi-piece according to claim 6, wherein the dome-shaped central elastic body constituting the central push switch is held by a spherical concave portion provided in the holding member in a state where the elastic force is received. Direction input device.   The operating lever is rotatably held by the spherical concave portion of the holding member via the driving body, and the driving body is engaged so as to rotate integrally with the operating lever. A rotor that is engaged with the drive body and can rotate integrally; an optical detection member provided opposite to the rotor that detects a rotation operation of the rotor; and the drive in a state where rotational movement is restricted A pressing member provided between the body and the plurality of push switches, and the drive body drives the corresponding push switch via the pressing member as the operation lever tilts, The multidirectional input device according to claim 8, wherein the rotor rotates integrally with the rotation of the operation lever.   A spacer disposed between an upper surface portion of the central elastic body and a tip portion of the operation lever; and a guide member provided with a cylindrical housing portion that holds the spacer. The top surface for restricting the upward movement of the spacer is provided, and a guide hole is provided on the top surface to hold the tip of the operation lever up and down and rotatable. The multidirectional input device according to 9. The pressing member has a plurality of pressing protrusions that press the plurality of push switches on the lower surface, an annular protruding portion located outside the pressing protrusion on the upper surface, and is tiltable to the guide member The multi-directional input device according to claim 10, wherein the multi-directional input device is engaged, and a lower surface of the driving body abuts on the annular projecting portion.